Calorie Killers Intense Fitness, Honest Advice

Coke Tax

And no, I don't mean cocaine.  Although I'm sure if we legalized the stuff and taxed it we'd fix our health care woes faster than lickety-split.

Anywho...

This business of taxing "junk foods" is pretty silly.  I've been hearing a lot about it lately.  Considering I'm a healthy eater and a typical stupid hippie, you'd think I'd be all about it right?  Wrong.  It's no solution or "quick fix" for America's expanding waistline.  It's no solution for our failing healthcare.  It's another stupid band-aid proposed by another stupid politician.  Taxes on crappy foods won't solve much.  Certainly it may raise some money but it will do little to fix an underlying problem...and what's that?

No simple answer!

Why is Average American X or Y overweight?  Well, could be a number of reasons.  We're quick to lay blame on the stereotypical American diet - fast food, processed foods, soda, sugar, and junk in general.  The stereotypical diet isn't necessarily the case for many.  There are other underlying reasons for being overweight that many gloss over such as: unbalanced diets, consumption of unknown food additives, little knowledge of daily caloric needs, yo-yo dieting, lack of activity (this is big), poor portion control, drinking sugary beverages, mindless snacking, and sabotage/emotional eating.  The average person may eat a variety of whole, healthy foods but may overindulge or lack physical activity.  Physical activity doesn't mean standard exercising...just means getting up off your rear and doing SOMETHING...cleaning, walking, mowing the lawn, laundry, gardening, what have you.  Maybe this person likes to snack or graze and forgets how much they eat.  Maybe they are eating as a response to stress.  Maybe they have no fricking clue as to how dense in calories a standard restaurant salad actually is...Maybe they consume a high sugar diet but have no idea they do so (hint: lots of foods contain hidden sugar, believe it or not).  Maybe Average American X is considered "overweight" by the standard weight chart but has healthy body stats.  Chew on that one for a bit.

Repair starts at awareness.

First, we should focus on health.  What's a key to better health?

Step one. Clean up your meals.  Fad diets are just that...fads.  Strive to eat real food and enough of it.  Don't be tempted to starve yourself with goofy fasting.  Eat whole, healthy foods including lots of vegetables, fruits, lean proteins, legumes, and whole grains.  That's pretty basic.

Step two. Know your portions.  I'm a psycho who tracks, weighs, and measures all my food, but that's not obviously for everyone.  Have a general idea of what a portion is.  I do recommend measuring food for a while to get a better idea.  You'll be able to eyeball portions much better.  A good rule of thumb for 3-4 ounces of meat is that it's the size of a deck of cards.

Step three. Learn to read a label.  Know what the heck those food additives are.  Some are controversial...some are just common sense to AVOID when possible.  What are some chief dirty offenders?  High fructose corn syrup (think: shitty sugar derived from corn), Nitrites (preservatives used in most deli meat), synthetic preservatives, partially hydrogenated anything (0% trans fat...not so if this is on the list), corn oil, refined sugars, artificial colorants, synthetic flavors, the list goes on.

Step four.  Fitness.  I do recommend folks clean up their diet before starting any fitness regiment.  Why?  Because fitness requires energy and proper fuel for the body.  Supply your body with good, clean fuel in the form of good, clean food, and you're ready to go.

Step five. EVALUATE progress and tweak as necessary.  Sometimes caloric needs go up and down.  Many get technical and evaluate macronutrient ratios.  I'd say this is a good idea, but you really need to get technical and log your calories to do so.  I do so, but that's my own choice.  Continue to evaluate your progress by taking measurements of your cholesterol, blood pressure, waistline, weight, body fat %, and heart rate.  Increase fitness intensity as you progress in any fitness program...this means lifting heavier, bringing more intensity, etc.  At the same time, learn when to lay off to avoid overtraining.

Step six. Learn to relax.  Reducing stress is a key to being in better health.  Being more healthy can lead to improved stress levels and a better sense of wellbeing, so these can go hand in hand!

I think things such as these should be embraced more by the public, but instead most fall for quick fixes to waistlines, fad (read: ridiculous) diets that make no nutritional sense.  I've fallen for that b/s in the past and can say fads aren't lifetime fixes and usually just result in weight gain, sometimes more severe than before starting a fad diet.  In addition to fad diets, many fall victim to fad workouts which don't establish healthy eating or fitness behavior, but rather dangerous situations of overtraining while not consuming enough calories.

Oh yeah, and fuel yourself with WATER...not crappy soda.  So then if a crazy tax is imposed, you certainly won't miss it