11/26 Myth Busting Monday

Dugan gets ready to sumo deadlift high pull. 

The Myth that you eat certain foods to feel a certain way and do physical exercise to look better.

I recently had a realization that we've been fed a lie. This lie is pervasive, persistent, and perturbing. We've been lied to our entire lives by the media, our families, our friends, doctors, food companies, exercise "experts," and all manner of well-meaning acquaintances. The lie is this: eat certain foods to feel a certain way and do physical exercise to look better. The realization I had is this is the complete opposite of the affect of food and exercise. 
The food we eat has the most significant affect on our physical appearance. Six pack abs are not made through a thousand sit-ups, they're made through counting your macros. The food we eat can bloat our bellies, alter our hormones, give us GI distress, make our skin break-out, and make us look puffy, tired and sick. But, all of the messages about food is that we eat it to feel good. It's a treat. It's comfort. Have you had a rough day? Drink wine and eat chocolate to feel better. Want to celebrate a special occasion? Eat some cake and drink some champagne. Just had an epic bike ride or a big ski day? Go out for nachos and beer. Eat this to feel that. 
We are told that eating and drinking will make us feel better. But, that's a lie. Physical activity makes us feel better. How many times have you dragged yourself to the gym in a dark and foul mood only to skip out the door after your workout feeling happy and unconquerable? 
We are told that we can get a beach body, six pack-abs, big guns, tight buns, and "toned" (whatever toned means) by exercising. But, that's a lie. We get a beach body and all the rest of the things by eating meat, vegetables, nuts & seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar in amounts that support exercise but not body fat. 
You can't out exercise your diet and you can't eat your way to happiness. Oh sure, you can try; but, the results will not be what you want. If you want to be happy and feel good, then you need to exercise (even when you don't feel like it.) If you want to look good naked, then you need change what you eat.
What should you eat? Well, a damn good place to start is to eat meat, vegetables, nuts & seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.
What should you do for exercise? Well, a damn good place to start is practice and train major lifts: deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, and snatch. Master the basics of gymnastics: pull-ups, dips, rope climb, push-ups, sit-ups, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds. Bike, run, swim, row, etc., hard and fast. Five or six days per week, mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports.

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