Last Sunday I started a regiment of supplements to get my body healthy and in shape. I purchased a butt load of pills to take some I feel I needed, some were recommended to me by my dad who’s a major health nut. So as of Sunday, I began taking 18 pills a day. That’s 11 different supplements of varying dosages. Now that may seem like a lot… well, it is. But my dad takes more then 30 pills a day. But it’s hard to argue with the result, he’s in his mid 50s and looks great, has all his hair with only a bit of gray. His body is in good shape if not for back issues which are the result of an accident when he was younger.

After starting the regiment, the obvious first sign that I was headed for trouble was that for some reason now, whenever I burp, I taste sea weed. I’m chewing gum constantly. The second sign was that I started to feel bloated and then get gassy. I warn you, the below gets pretty graphic. Finally, I broke out in frequent diarrhea. Love how much these pills are helping me. At first, I thought it was the bad breakfast of the hotel or the so so food of this tiny Ellensburg, WA. But I don’t think that would last the entire week and plague me even after Immodium which usually does the trick.

So there could be a lot of explanations for this. Perhaps my body doesn’t agree with one of the pills I’m taking or perhaps I started taking too many at one time too quickly. Starting this weekend, I’m going to change my game up a bit. I’m going to start over and just add one at a time; a new pill every week, starting with what I think I need most. This way, I’ll slowly gradiate myself into AND by giving myself a week, I’ll fish out the diarrhea causing culprit.

Here’s a list of all the pills I’m taking. I got them from lef.org which is the Life Extension Foundation of which I am a member. All of these pills are natural preventative nutrients which has been scientifically proven to fight cancers, neurological deterioration, organ failure, inflammation, and yes even the swine flu and have none of the side effects assocatiated with pharmaceutical synthetic drugs; well perhaps diarrhea, but i’ll let you know when I get to the bottom of that issue (pardon the pun).

00625 Mega EPA\DHA – provides needed omega-3 (fish oils) and omega-6 fatty acids
00717 ONly Trace Minerals – trace minerals no longer present in most of our drinking water like zinc, manganese, boron, etc.
00802 Anti-alcohol antioxidants with patoprotection complex – formula containing additional antioxidants designed to suppress free radicals, neutralize toxic alcohol metabolites such as acetaldehyde,32-35 and support healthy liver function in addition to vitamin B1, vitamin C, N-acetyl-cysteine and benfotiamine.
00912 super curcumin with bioperine – reduces inflammation response, healthy lipid profile, bowel, and joint functions, and other good stuff for ya
01338 Blueberry extract with pomegranate and cocoa gold – great all around anti-oxidants
01425 super ubiquinol CoQ10 with Mitochondrial support – promots stronger, healthier cells, lowers blood pressure, etc
01409 Optimized resveretrol with pterostilbene – anti-oxidant and anti aging properties
01224 Super K with advanced K2 complex – bone density
01371 Vitamin D3 with sea iodine – protection against influenza, supports immune system
00965 Fast acting joint caps – supports and gives tools to regrow cartilage damage faster
01454 Life Extension Mix – overall health and wellness

So much has been happening, I never updated how the end of the eating experiment went. The chicken week went by without a problem. Everything’s a breeze after vegan. I actually didn’t have any great urge to eat more chicken. I still felt like eating fish. I only ate chicken three times that week. Then when beef week cam round again, I again didn’t feel like eating beef. But I had planned for many weeks to celebrate that which I thought would be a glorious day at Rudy’s BBQ here in Austin. They are my favorite BBQ place, the ribs, the moist brisket, oooohh soo good. But once again, when the day finally came, the consuming of beef was more of a formality or a choir then a priviledge. Not to say I didn’t enjoy my 2 pork ribs, half pound of brisket and half pound of sausage, but i didn’t crave it either. In fact, that night, I felt kind of woozy from so much heavy, fatty meat. That’s not surprising seeing as my body had not encountered such food for 2 months.

Bottom line, the experiment was a success.  I opened myself up to new, healthier eating opportunities, found great recipes like curry soy protein and other meatless meals, cooked at home more often, and now have a lower craving for beef and get more satisfaction when eating healthier options like salads.  Now all that’s left is to find a good meatless protein substitute and incorporate it into my routine… as soon as I find a routine.

Here’s an article from my sister in law Vaiva which I thought should be shared:

I am reading this cool book now: “Green Babies, Sage Moms – the ultimate guide to raising your organic baby”, and I am learning a lot.  It teaches you how to live green and not break the bank. It’s not just for moms

Anyway, I know I told you about a Dirty Dozen before (12 fruits and veggies with highest rates of pesticides). Those you really should buy organic.  Here it is again, in case you lost it:
apples
bell peppers
celery
cherries
imported grapes
nectarines
peaches
pears
potatoes
red raspberries
spinach
strawberries

But did you know that there’s a Tempting Twelve?  It’s 12 fruits and veggies that have the lowest rates of pesticides, so if you can’t find them organic, it’s not that bad:
asparagus
avocados
bananas
broccoli
cauliflower
corn
kiwis
mangoes
onions
papaya
peas
pineapples

Something else interesting that I found out.  Since grapes are one of the ones with the highest rates of pesticides, guess how good your wine is?  You may just be drinking pesticide glass   Well, there are organic wines, and from first glance they are not crazy expensive, ~$10-15 a bottle.  Here’s a website:  www.organicvintners.com They don’t ship to all states, but they do ship to TX, but not to WA   They list all states, but TX is not one of them, but if you go to a drop down menu of states they ship, TX is there.

Here’s a website with tons of organic food and they deliver overnight (I think everything).  I didn’t study it too much, but it looks reasonable (I compared to our store prices of things that we have, but looks like they have a lot more than you can find in store): www.diamondorganics.com

And make sure you’re drinking organic coffee

So, that’s the green tidbit for today.

So I was sitting around the house on Tuesday.  Kelly had gone to swim practice, Spokes was at the gym, and I think Jake was out filming something.  I was at home eating lunch and watching TV and I suddenly realized: “I’m now the laziest person in this house.”  And that just won’t do my friends.

So Wed, I went running with RunTex and ran straight for a mile and then half mile intervals, a total of 4 miles.  OMG it’s like hell on earth.  My muscles ached, my back hurt, my knees were tempting collapse.  But I made it through.  Of course the next day is Ultimate Frisbee, so I played that for a couple of hours.  By the end, my entire body didn’t know what to feel.

I felt like I could be walking along anytime and suddenly fall for no reason and not be able to get up.  Upon arriving home, I was starving, so I made some chicken tacos with veges.  They were delicious, but I was crashed out by 11pm.  Weird thing was, I couldn’t really get to sleep.  My body was exhausted and my brain was poorly low on resources and yet it still wanted to function.  My brain likes to go constantly, it’s really hard to shut down.  If it were a wrestler, it would kick some ass!

Now it’s Friday and I’m still tired.  I’m trying to get going, but it’s really hard.  Any getting fit advice would be awesome.

This is an old video, but I’ve always loved it and felt the need to comment on it.

We are a people of unrealistic expectations both in ourselves and in others. We’re made this way by the constant barrage of ideals in which we are told to believe and this concept of normality and beauty which becomes common solely because of its perfusion through out our entire society. I’m not saying we should look completely beyond the physical, for that is wholly unrealistic. We always judge a book by its cover, that’s our first impression and that’s natural instinct. Even a blind person will judge a person by the tones of their voice. I’m saying learn to think for yourself, give people a chance and learn to understand what is beneath the skin. The skin is still very important and we should upkeep ourselves, but shouldn’t rely on it as our primary redeeming factor.

Look for that healthy mix of personality, intellect, and upkeep, this shows more about a person’s integrity and beauty than looks alone.

But of course, we will still always care about outter appearance, as this video rebuttle to the Dove Evolution video does so well.