Category: Health & Well Being

Supplements? We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Supplements…

Supplementation can be an important tool for proper fitness, but it’s one of those things that is very specific to the user. What works for one person may not work for the other, and if you happen to have Type-1 Diabetes, you need to be very careful about what you may be putting in your body, as it may inadvertently affect your blood sugars.

So, what are supplements? As they pertain to this specific post, supplements are anything you consume in order to help improve performance, muscle growth and/or energy levels in order to allow one to develop better. They can come in various forms, including pills, powders and even pre-mixed shakes. They vary in their delivery, meaning some need to be taken prior to working out, some after and some don’t really matter and simply need to be consumed on a daily basis.

I think that one of the important aspects to bear in mind, is that there’s no “magic pill” or supplement that will do anything for you. You have to put the work in, even if you take supplements and use them on a regular basis. I’m always reminded of an old friend of mine, from years ago. I stopped in during early morning to go for coffee. before we left his house, I noticed he scooped out a spoonful of some unknown powder and consumed it with a glass of water. When I asked him what the powder was, he said it was creatine, because he was trying to gain mass. When I asked him what workout regimen he was following, he gave me the curious puppy look and asked, “Workout? What workout? That’s what the supplement is for…”

Here’s the thing: a supplement is defined as something that completes or enhances something else when added to it. This means that there’s no supplement that will make you lose weight, help you gain muscle mass or burn fat on its own. The important thing to remember is that ALL of these supplements need to be used in conjunction with proper diet and exercise. It won’t DO the job for you, it may simply help make it a touch easier.

Another important aspect to remember is that most supplements are substances that you either already get from a proper diet or that your body already produces. Creatine or whey protein for example, can be good supplements to help push you along your fitness routine, but these are substances produced by the body and/or can be obtained by consuming certain foods. “Pre-workout” supplements, that I’m aware a lot of people I know consume, are basically just B vitamins, caffeine and creatine, which you can obtain naturally or elsewhere. I would argue that unless you’re feeling sluggish, there may not be a great need to take a pre-workout supplement.

From a Diabetes standpoint, it’s important to recognize that a lot of supplements may contain sweeteners, carbohydrate amounts or simply affect the body in such a way that will cause fluctuations in overall blood sugars. I’ve noticed over the years that almost everything indicates “not suggested for people with Diabetes” for exactly this reason. It isn’t that it will inherently cause issues. But it COULD affect Diabetes, which is why it becomes important to consult your doctor prior to starting any supplementation.

I’ll be the first one to admit I’d be hitting up my pharmacy, should they ever create a pill that will melt the fat off my gut. Otherwise, know what you’re putting into your body, consult your doctor and remember that there are no shortcuts to fitness. It’s incumbent on the person to include proper diet and exercise in order to reap the benefits of supplements. The body is programmed to do what it needs to, but should you feel the need to use a supplement, just be wary. And keep a close eye on what secondary effects you may get from using them. ☯️

Tired Because of Exercise, Or Trying To Exercise When You’re Tired?

Life is exhausting. If anyone says that it isn’t, they’re lying to themselves. I could get into the whole reason behind some of that exhaustion, including the plethora of Diabetes-related issues that can cause lack of sleep or fatigue, even when you are well-rested. But that ins’t really the purpose behind today’s post. I recently wrote a post about the issues surrounding working out when you’re hungry. Therefore, it stands to reason that my next step would include addressing the issue surrounding working out when you’re tired. Buckle up!

Maintaining a fitness routine is difficult at the best of times. Between work, family and home responsibilities and health concerns, being able to say you work out at specific times on fixed days is spotty, at best. So, hat’s off to the folks who manage to be part of fitness clubs with scheduled classes or who go that extra step and manage to maintain consistent fitness at home, because I personally know it ain’t easy. It becomes all the more difficult when you’re tired.

Being tired is one of those things where one needs to find a balance, or perhaps compromise with oneself. On the one side, being tired will often elicit the response that one should take the opportunity to rest. On the other side, sometimes you just gotta push through your fatigue or you’ll never overcome it or get anything done. Assuming you can tell or “feel” the difference, here are some potential effects of working out when tired:

1. You’ll Resent Your Fitness: It’s hard to concentrate and be motivated when you’re tired. If you find yourself “pushing through,” and I’m not saying you shouldn’t, you could find that exercising when tired will do little more than tire you further and possibly make you resent exercising. Much like the bedroom should only be associated with sleep, associations help to form our opinions on certain things;
2. You’ll Make Mistakes: Being tired or exhausted could lead to making mistakes, being inadvertently clumsy or working out improper. Ever drop a dumbbell on your foot? That shit hurts, and can potentially break bones., which leads me into my next point:
3. You Could Injure Yourself: Fatigue can be distracting, and if you’re tired to the point where you’re making mistakes, you may potentially harm yourself as well. Besides dropping random weights on yourself, fatigue may distract you in karate class enough to cause injury. These are just some examples, of course;
4. You Won’t Achieve Your Fitness Goals: This is a big one for me and pisses me off to no end. There’s nothing I hate worse than being out on the bike for a solid 20k, thinking I should push through the fatigue, only to completely drag ass and have it take twice as long to complete my distance AND I’m just further exhausted afterwards; and
5. You May Require Longer To Recover: If you push yourself too hard when you’re tired, it may take longer for you to recover and feel better. This applies both to feeling rested and to recover from any fitness-related healing you may need, including muscle and tissue repair.

So, what can you do to prevent some of this? Obviously, I’m a big fan of naps. If you’re tired and you know that you have a workout coming up, grabbing a quick snooze on the couch can be helpful. One need only be cautious about sleeping for too long, which can have the effect of leaving you groggy and slow-moving, which isn’t the best when you’re about to get into some physical exertion. Keep your naps short, about twenty minutes or so. Just enough to take the edge off.

If your fatigue is light and perhaps just the result of the typical daily grind, this might be where you want o push through. Fresh air and movement will often be an effective means of wiping out fatigue and getting your day back on track. I’ve lost count of how many times I sat on the bike or went to karate class, feeling as though I should be hitting the bed instead, only to be re-energized and rejuvenated once I got through it.

Ultimately, there will be times where you may simply need to take a step back and take a break. Naps and pushing through notwithstanding, there will be times when the best alternative will be to simply acknowledge that you need to take a day and just rest. The key is knowing one’s body enough to recognize whether it’s a “take a nap” scenario or a “push through” scenario. But in there interest of being rested and allowing one’s body to heal, sometimes taking the day and saying “screw it” may what the doctor ordered. ☯️

It’s Hard To Be “Social” When Everyone Focuses On The “Media”

Anyone who’s been following along on my journey will know that I have something of a love/hate relationship with social media. On the one side, participating on social media platforms allows people to connect, communicate and potentially get in touch with some folks they may not have seen or heard from in years. I, myself, recently reconnected with a handful of people from my high school graduating class, which is saying quite a bit although I won’t age myself by saying how long it’s been. But it could be easily argued that this is the intended purpose behind social media: to connect and communicate. To be social, albeit over a digital environment.

Unfortunately for me and many others who seek a peaceful existence, this is rarely the reason behind people’s presence on social media. Most choose to use it as a platform to argue their views and opinions, which often leads to unnecessary conflict, once again albeit on a digital forum. It takes away from the experience of maintaining contact with those we aim to remain friends with and becomes all the more convoluted when some of the involved parties causing this “digital suffering“ happen to be good, close friends.

About three years ago, certain events took place that altered the course of my life. Although I could arguably say that these changes were in my best interest and that I’m happier now than I have been in a LONG time, it doesn’t remove the fact that these changes came at the cost of great, personal suffering. As many of you know, the elimination of suffering is kind my thing. So, it makes life difficult when others who should be understanding and compassionate cause MORE of that suffering instead of trying to eliminate it.

I’m getting slightly off path here, and the point is that a big part of the difficulties I faced years ago were due, in part, to social media. When the world spends its days living in a way that involves sharing what they’ve eaten, where they’re going and where they’ve been, as well as personal details of their everyday lives online, it should come as no surprise to have those who wish to do wrong use that information against you. When I discovered that this was the case, I made the difficult choice to take a step away from social media and permanently closed all my accounts.

This was a difficult step for me since, like most people, my day was filled with frequent checks of my phone and computer, looking at people’s updates, sending messages and getting a laugh at memes and jokes. What made things worse is that I had a handful of people with whom social media was the ONLY form of contact I had. And even though I spent some time posting the ol’ “I’m leaving social media, flip me your phone number,” there are a number of people that never got back to me. A necessary step, thanks to someone else’s negative actions.

In recent months, life has gotten progressively better, despite the current state of the world. So, I tentatively dipped my toes back into social media, which is where I managed to connect with the aforementioned folks from high school. But it’s in FACT the current state of the world that has now begun causing issues for me, through social media. I’m sure I’m not alone in recognizing that the world is currently divided on the key issues involving vaccination, masking, health requirements and the overall state of the world. It’s pretty much THE hot topic and is hotly debated by even the closest of friends and family members.

I’m not having it. By definition, peace cannot be imposed. It’s up to the people to recognize what’s required in order to achieve peace and sustain it. Understanding, compassion and open communication are part of those requirements, to name a few. But these are things that are in short supply in today’s society. And it’s for that reason that I’ve found myself in a compromised position where I am once again considering stepping away from social media. Then I thought to myself, why am I depriving myself of good communication with family and friends for the sake of the few who choose to use this platform to argue their opinions with others? Rather than eliminate social media, why not simply cut out the negative energy?

I’m tired. The daily grind of life is difficult enough without people making it more difficult amongst themselves. The ideal scenario would be for each person to keep to themselves and exercise their choice without broadcasting it to the world. You do you. I’ll take it a step further and won’t even bother saying which side of the line I fall on, because it doesn’t matter. I don’t care what your choice is, just don’t give me shit if it happens to be different than mine. Vaccinated, not vaccinated, pro-mask, anti-mask, whatever. Do what you gotta do to survive this roller-coaster called life and stop picking on each other. Life’s too short.

For this reason, I’ve made a compromise with myself in order to eliminate some of the negative in my life. Rather than remove social media, I’m removing those who spread negativity, hate and ignorance of the facts. Some people may suddenly be disappearing from my social media. The irony is I started this practice almost two weeks ago and the removed parties have yet to notice. Or at the very least, they’ve yet to reach out and ask why. Maybe they’re too busy arguing “their rights” over “what’s right.” That’s a balance we all have to work on. ☯️

When You Feel Like A Yo-Yo…

One of the biggest issues I face with Diabetes is the occasions where I become exhausted from going above and beyond what’s required for a normal day. For example, when the average person wakes up, they go to the washroom, wash their face and get breakfast going. Likely, they’re including coffee in that mix. Although if they aren’t, the light help them. But for me, my morning start with the consumption of three different medications, testing my blood sugar and depending on the day I may need to change up my insulin pump’s infusion set. THEN I get to use the washroom and potentially consume breakfast. But caffeine is a must. Obviously. Moving on…

Once in a while, I’ll succumb to this exhaustion in the sense that I’ll skip steps in the process that I likely shouldn’t. this was demonstrated last Tuesday night when my CGM sensor decided to expire at about ten o’clock at night. Now if you know anything about the process for getting one’s CGM going after a replacement, it’s a lengthy one. I’ve written about this before and in fact, I’m pretty certain I’ve thrown up a video of the CGM installation as well, but the bottom line is that it takes anywhere between 4 to 6 hours for a new sensor to be up and running.

This is because once you’ve injected the sensor and installed the transmitter, there’s a 2-hour warm-up period required. then, the pump prompts you for a blood glucose test to calibrate the sensor, followed by another one sometime in the following few hours. Starting this process at 10 o’clock at night when my head should be hitting the pillow doesn’t sound appealing. So, I did the only thing a reasonable and exhausted person in my position would do; I shut off SmartGuard, plugged the transmitter in to charge for the night and went to sleep without it.

That night wasn’t such a huge problem, although I did have a waking blood glucose reading of about 10.4 mmol/L, which is a tad higher than I’m used to. But I could live with that. Since I primarily place my CGM on my triceps, I usually recruit my wife to help install the sensor and transmitter since I can’t see the back of my arm, especially if I’m pre-coffee. Insert whatever nurse-fantasy jokes you’d like, here. But given that she was quite exhausted from dealing with my hyperactive loinfruit the day before and she was still asleep, I figured what the hell…. I’ll go a day without and install it tonight. No biggie, right?

Don’t get me wrong, I love my insulin pump. Honestly, I can’t understand how I survived as a Diabetic for as long as I have without it. It has the potential to make life SOOOO much easier…. Please note that I used the word “potential” in that sentence. I didn’t think I would ever have to admit that I could become addicted to an electronic device, but apparently I have become incapable of managing my blood sugars properly with the use of a CGM. By the time I got home from work, I had fluctuated from high to low at least three times and I was exhausted and just wanted to sleep.

Let me break down why this scenario is a problem…. When you DON’T use CGM, your pump delivers a pre-programmed base rate of insulin, referred to as a “basal rate.” But as your blood sugars fluctuate, the pump doesn’t take that into account until you test your blood sugar to discover that you’re either high and need more insulin or low and need to eat something. Meanwhile on CGM, SmartGuard will begin to trickle in an extra bit of insulin on top of your basal rate in order to stem higher blood sugars and will set off an alarm if you start going low. The result is better time in range, better overall control and less feeling like you just want to voluntarily curl up into a coffin and stay there. Still with me? Good.

Once I had the CGM installed, my evening started to go a little bit better but my blood sugars somehow managed to creep up a bit. So I corrected. This started a yo-yo effect that lasted through the night. My correction caused a low. In my sleep-induced haze, I ate a few too many jellybeans. Fell back asleep. My many jellybeans caused a high and I was woken by an alarm. I treated. Then I woke with my alarm in the early hours of the morning with a low. Bloody lovely.

Despite the fact that some of that can be attributed to human error (too many jellybeans, etc), it stands to reason that this can happen frequently depending on a number fo different factors. I’ve written about this type of this before but once in a while, it’s good to remind people that it ain’t all joy and jellybeans, even with the advantages of an insulin pump. And that complacency can start to have an effect if you get to used to the technology you’ve been given. ☯️

Be Who You Are, You Aren’t Designed To Be Anyone Else…

Here’s the thing, and you may as well buckle up because this one will be a bit of a rant. I am who I am. I spent a good portion of my youth being someone I wasn’t meant to be. And that’s a horrible way to live, even as a child. As we grow into adulthood, there’s always this great expectation that we’ll conform to certain societal norms and kowtow to the masses. But realistically, we don’t live in that kind of world anymore. And with the advent of social media and the internet, it doesn’t take long for anyone who tries to suppress any individual’s thoughts, beliefs or lifestyle to be swiftly and sometimes radically, put in their place.

I take stock of who I was in my youth (my youth includes both childhood and my teens) and I recognize that I had a lot of work to do. Sure, I studied the martial arts and I worked on my health. But there were a lot of hiccups along the way. I was quiet and withdrawn. I didn’t associate with the world very much, which I’ve come to feel has damaged opportunities and taken away certain options I COULD have had in life. I made myself content with staying in my small corner of the world and ignoring the rest of it, all while doing karate and enjoying my few, small pleasures.

It wasn’t until I reached adulthood and took ownership of certain personal choices that I finally began to open up. Most people who know me now would likely be taken aback by the quiet, pliable and compliant individual I was throughout my youth. Considering how loud and larger than life I tend to be now, all thanks to my specific heritage, no doubt, I think it would come as a shock to most people who knew me “back then.”

What got me here? Honestly, I’ve screwed up during my life. A lot. I’ve made mistakes and errors in judgement that I’ll never be able to take back and that have had real and measurable consequences on the way my life has turned out. I’ve made poor and even bad choices. and have lost friends and loved ones due to my inability to say or do the right thing at the right time. Although some of them are dearly missed, their chosen absence tells me that they weren’t meant to be a part of my overall journey.

I’ve done a lot of good in my life. I’ve done charity, made donations and given away possessions and time. I’ve solved crimes and saved lives and tried to make the world a better place in whatever way I could. I have also done some bad in my life. I’ve failed to be there for people who needed me. I’ve ignored the needs of others and have ended friendships because walking away was often easier than fighting it out. Sometimes in the pursuit of eliminating suffering; sometimes not.

Among all of my direct and indirect actions, my words and choices comes one ultimate result: I am me. For better or for worse, here I am. Some people like me. Some people don’t. Hell, some people hate me. And I KNOW that some people love me. And therein lies the secret to life: it doesn’t care about your plan. And by that very fact, it’s important to recognize that one should never live with regret. Regret is insidious and can only lead to suffering. And it gets you absolutely nothing.

Learn to live with the life you have and you’ll never be without happiness. This isn’t to mean that you won’t ever feel sadness. Or loss. It simply means that your life as a whole will be far happier. Once you let go of hate (and the haters), eliminate the suffering in your own life and do what makes you happy, especially with THOSE who make you happy, you’ll always be on the straight and narrow path to a happier, more enlightened life.

I am me. I am who I am. I may be weird, although I prefer to think unique. I’ll always say exactly what I think and what you see will always be what you get. I find myself incapable of ever being otherwise. Those who know me, know this for a fact. I don’t make friends easily and keep them even less easily, especially once folks get to know the real me. But if you happen to be one of the select few in my life who stick around through the good AND the bad, my love and loyalty will be yours. Without question.

The only down side to being open and always saying what I think, is that it works both ways. If I don’t like you or you bring harm to me or my lobbed ones, you’ll discover that little fact quickly. I make no apologies for turning the page on the story that is my life. As the line from hamlet says, “To thine own self be true.” Life will throw you a lot of curve balls. Some good and some bad will always be inevitable. Such is the balance of life. But so long as you remain true to yourself in all aspects of life, you’ll navigate the good and bad without issue. Food for thought…. ☯️

How Buddha Got His Groove Back…

It’s been a difficult couple of years for the entire world and very few people have gotten away unscathed. The pandemic caused a lot of upset and difficulty for most people, causing the closure of businesses, loss of jobs and the loss of key life experiences that one will never get back, like high school graduation. As society begins to lick its wounds and the world re-opens (for now), I take stock and reflect on the fact that one of the biggest things that has affected me, besides Nathan being kept home from school, is the closure of my karate dojo.

For almost fifteen years, my policing career has dragged me all over Saskatchewan, to an extent where the thought of joining a karate class was a moot point. After all, what’s the point of joining a martial arts school just to have them lose me after the 3 to 5 that the Mounties usually required at any given one spot? So, it was an important step in the right direction for me when I transferred to Regina and found the current dojo that i train in. Imagine the irony, when I was forced to step away when the dojo closed due to the pandemic.

Oh, we tried the old Zoom training thing, as I posted about here. It was alright, per se… But karate isn’t a knitting circle. Eventually, you need some physical contact with an actual partner in order to train and practice certain techniques. We closed up shop for the summer, as we usually do. As Labour Day came and went, i got a little concerned when I didn’t get the customary “back to the dojo” email that I’ve gotten every year for the past five years. Five years… I’ve been training with the Regina Institute of Kempo Karate for five years, Still feels like yesterday…

Anyway, I got the email on Monday for class on Tuesday evening. I walked into the dojo and time melted away. it was two years ago, before the pandemic and lockdown. The same faces and the same class. the same energy and the same mojo. We were back. I was back. It was glorious. We were all a little excited to be chatting and catching up, so we started a little late. AND we took things a little easy to start off the season (I may or may not have pulled a bicep during a ridge punch) but it was a fantastic class. Next one is tomorrow night and I just can’t wait to get back.

I’ve been so focused on cycling and training by myself, I had almost forgotten the importance and value behind training with others. Who knows what the months to come may bring? With all the variants floating around and the way the world is treating the pandemic, things may lock down again shortly. And if they do, so be it. But when opportunities present themselves, it’s important to jump on them while we can. After all, you never know what you got ’til it’s gone. ☯️

Six Of One, Half Dozen Of The Other…

That time came once again to visit my endocrinologist. If you read the previous post, my last appointment was last May, when I received news of the lowest A1C reading I’ve had in almost two decades: 6.9. Why is this reading important? For you non-Diabetics, the A1C results basically calculate a Diabetic’s average blood sugars over a period of three months. Although still an important reading, one’s A1C can be manipulated through extreme highs and lows, making it a less efficient means of proper blood sugar control than one’s percentage of “time in range.” Time in range can’t be manipulated; either your blood sugars are good or they aren’t.

I made my way downtown quite early this morning; well before most businesses were open. The air was crisp and the morning had the feeling of autumn. I was only semi-caffeinated but the walk did its job and woke me up properly before I reached the doctor’s office. I was almost half an hour early, which wouldn’t have been an issue, pre-COVID. Now, most clinics and doctors’ offices frown on arriving early, since they try to keep patients from interacting as much as possible. But my laptop was outdated and couldn’t update to support the Medtronic CareLink Uploader, meaning I needed the office staff to do it for me. This did not please them.

Once my pump was uploaded, I saw my endocrinologist and discovered that my A1C had increased to 7.4, which was disappointing but I had expected a rise of some sort. I expected it because I’ve had a significant amount on my plate since the last appointment. Between starting a new job and a new routine in April, we’ve got major renovations happening in the house as well as my son Nathan, deciding to use his bedroom as a public washroom and basically hosing down every corner. This resulted in the removal of the carpet and discovery of asbestos tile, which obviously needed to be replaced. Then, we repainted, put in new flooring and new baseboards and basically dropped some serious G’s into renovating his bedroom far ahead of plan. And budget. FML.

Long story short, added stress and life issues caused some variations in blood sugars that I’m not proud of. What can I say? I’m human and far from perfect. As I said, I expected it. What I didn’t expect, was the increase in cholesterol and blood pressure. To the point that my doctor has increased some of the “preventative” pills that I take. My Endo considered me a bit of a medical oddity, since despite the increase in cholesterol, I somehow managed to lose about ten pounds. Ain’t medicine wonderful? He also added a new pill that would work in tandem with my other medications to help bring my cholesterol and blood pressure in check.

Despite the medicine aspect, we discussed some things that I could do to improve things on my own. The reduction (but not elimination) of sodium in my diet, increased water intake and reduce my alcohol intake (I don’t drink constantly, but everyone could stand to drink less) and ensure I cut back on foods that may be fried or processed. He also suggested trying to eliminate some of the stress in my life. This aspect can be a bit tougher, since some stress is inherent in the course of normal life and can’t necessarily be eliminated.

I left the doctor’s office feeling a little down. It was a strange combination of victory and defeat, considering one of my main goals has been to breach the 200-pound weight level. It was nice to have the doctor acknowledge my hard work in losing ten pounds, even though I haven’t crossed that 200 mark, yet. But the raise in cholesterol is concerning. Certain lifestyle changes will need to take place. I think that first and foremost, and if this wasn’t written here, many who know me wouldn’t believe it, that I need to cut back on the caffeine I consume in a day. I should refocus my efforts towards some herbal teas and water. I can easily recognize that the multiple caffeinated beverages I consume throughout the day easily contributes to my increased blood pressure.

My wife and I have been on a decent salad kick, recently. We fell away from that, somewhat. So tonight’s supper involved some chicken with a very lovely salad. The best part is that there was enough salad left over for me to bring to work tomorrow. The day wasn’t all bad. I got notice today that karate classes will resume tomorrow evening. That’s been a long time coming. I haven’t trained with others since March of 2020, so it’ll be good to get back at it. And last but not least, I’m currently typing this post on my newly purchased MacBook Pro. Since my old laptop could no longer support any updates or sync my phone, I decided it was time. In today’s world of technology, I think that six years is a pretty good lifespan for a computer. ☯️

Carbs vs. Calories, The Battle Continues…

This is going to be one of those posts where I make a point of saying that I’m not a doctor or health professional, nor am I a nutritionist or dietitian. If you want the real Slim Shady on any of the facts I’m describing in this post, you should consult one of the professionals mentioned above. But I certainly have information I can contribute for the sake of conversation, so take what I write with grain of salt. But not literally, since you shouldn’t be salting your food. But I digress…

I’ve often written that the most important and consistent factor behind proper fitness and weight loss is being able to burn more calories in a day than you consume. I’ve also mentioned on many occasions, the importance of reducing one’s overall carbohydrate intake in order to promote better blood sugar control and to help with weight loss as well. So, which one is the important one? What should you be focusing on for your weight loss efforts? Well, the easy answer is… both.

Because I’m wordy and I like to write, let’s start by pointing out that “fad diets” are bullshit. I’m sorry, but they are. At their core, most fad diets (which I won’t name here because I don’t like the potential for getting sued) target a certain core demographic based on a gimmick, or a trend. The whole concept of “don’t eat this” or “only eat that” will always work for JUST enough people that the masses will quickly jump on the bandwagon to try and slim down using these methods, fully unaware that like everything else in life, it’s subjective to the person and that maybe eating like humans did in paleolithic times isn’t ideal, because our bodies have evolved past those methods and that method may have worked for your neighbour who now looks great in their yoga pants, but it won’t necessarily work for you.

Even if you partake of one of these trends or fad diets, it won’t change three very important realities. That being that no matter what the diet, 1) you need to include regular exercise, 2) you need to burn more calories than you burn, and 3) you need to make good lifestyle choices. It’s a holy trifecta of fitness that simply can’t be ignored. If you start dieting consistently, you may shed some pounds, but your efforts will plateau pretty damn quickly. You have to include some exercise in there to help with muscle tone, blood circulation and calorie burn. This is especially important for us Diabetics.

The lifestyle choices can apply to a significant number to things. For example, you may have gotten a solid workout in and ate a green salad for lunch. But those efforts are wasted if you cap off the evening by sitting back with a six pack of beer and nachos. Mmm,…nachos…. Umm, moving on! The point is, there has to be a balance. So, while I’m not saying that you shouldn’t occasionally treat yourself, since life is meant to be lived and it’s been proven by multiple sources that depriving yourself will make your efforts all that much harder, you still need to be smart about it. Still with me? Good. Let’s examine the difference between calories and carbohydrates.

Good old calories…. If you want to get all scientific about it, a calorie is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a quantity of water by one degree. For the purposes of food consumption, calories are the measurement of energy contained within the food. When a person consumes more calories than they burn, the body tends to store the excess as body fat, which results in weight gain. On the flip side, consuming too few calories can lead to some dangerous deficiencies in the body, as one may not be getting all the vitamins and nutrients required throughout the day. Depending on the source you draw on and your age, metabolism, level of fitness and even gender, the average person needs to consume anywhere between 1200 to 2000 calories a day.

You may be asking, what’s the point of consuming them if you’re only going to burn them to lose weight? Wouldn’t it make more sense to simply keep reducing one’s overall calories? The answer to that is no. Look at that previous paragraph, again/. While burning the calories is important in order to maintain good weight loss potential, you still need the vitamins and nutrients you draw from food. Eating at a calorie-deficit will prevent you from getting everything you need to keep your body running smoothly. Make sense? Good. NEXT!

Carbohydrates are a naturally occurring compound, found in most foods but not all of them. Carbs are a source of fuel for the body and since they are a key nutrient, are a requirement, as much as I’d like to eliminate them altogether. Mainly comprised of sugars and starches, they get broken down into energy for the body. There’s that word again: energy. And in case no one was paying attention, you need energy to well,… live. Because of the nature and composition of carbohydrates, they’re usually the nemesis of someone with Diabetes, since we need to take insulin in response to the amount of carbs we consume.

So, what’s the difference? One is the measure of energy, the other is fuel that gets burned as energy. Am I the only one who feels that they both kind of sound like energy? I found a good article posted by The Cleveland Clinic, and I apologize because I didn’t seem to be able to copy the post. But it discusses the fact that “a gram of fat has about 9 calories, while a gram of carbohydrate or protein has about 4 calories. In other words, you could eat twice as much carbohydrates or proteins as fat for the same amount of calories.” That sounds like a lot of math to me, but you can go to my.clevelandclinic.org and check out the article entitled “Fat and Calories: The Difference & Recommended intake.”

For me, the difference still ins’t clear. But for weight loss, you need to burn more calories than you consume. We’ve already covered that. For carbs, you need to count the number of net carbs you consume, which involves subtracting fibre from the total carb count on your nutritional label. That is to say, if what you’re eating even has a nutritional label AND if they’’re count is accurate. That’s why portion control is important. Whether you count calories or carbs, portion control is important. I would say the latter is more important for Diabetics, since it involves insulin consumption.

No matter which you choose to reduce or limit in order to help with your weight loss journey, bear in mind that reducing either by too much will leave you feeling weak and may not actually help in weight loss. Instead, consume healthier foods that are lower in calories or carbs but still contain a lot of the nutrients your body needs in order to function properly. Vegetables, lean proteins and limited starches made of whole grains are ideal. And don’t forget to consult a health practitioner before starting any radical change in food regimen. ☯️

When You Just Can’t…

I recently had a reader comment on one of my posts, where it was mentioned that one of the issues faced with traditional forms of meditation is that staying in a relaxed position with one’s eyes closed will usually result in the body slipping into something akin to a dream/sleep state. At least for one of the posts, I was discussing the use of meditation as a means of refreshing oneself from fatigue, so this wouldn’t be an unexpected result. But the reader made a good point about the importance of experiencing one’s day with open eyes, to live in the moment to experience all the beauty that life can potentially offer.

I remember in my pre-teens when I started toying with the concept of meditation and more often than not, trying to meditate for more than ten minutes would typically result in my falling asleep. At that age, it was entirely a bad thing. But during adulthood, we scarcely have the free time to meditate in any form, much less being available to fall asleep randomly. Imagine taking your lunch hour to meditate at the office and falling asleep? Only to have your boss give your shoulder a shake and ask you what the hell is going on?

I’m not saying this has happened to me, and the fact that some employers not only encourage but provide the resources for lunch-hour naps notwithstanding, that’s a topic for another post. The question is, can one meditate with eyes open? Are there any benefits to such a practice and how does one do it? The answer isn’t as simple or easy as a yes or no. And there are a LOT of conflicting sources. Depending on what definition you read, meditation is simply defined as working towards an enlightened state of focus, concentration and awareness. It’s thought to be a technique capable of changing one’s consciousness, allowing for a number of physical and mental benefits. If you’re a reader of some old classics, you may remember that Marcus Aurelius wrote a book simply called “Meditations.” In this context, meditation is considered someone’s written discourse on a particular subject, weighing heavily on their opinion. The focus of today’s post is obviously the definition as I’ve provided it, above.

Nathan, taking his first crack at meditation

Meditating with your eyes open, or “wakeful meditation,” as I’ve heard it referred to, is a practice where one can go about one’s day and perform daily activities all while maintaining some basic level of awareness towards meditation. In some respects, this can be a handy tool for allowing yourself to be freed from distractions in one’s environment, to increase one’s focus and even in some circumstances, to block out certain forms of pain.

This is not without challenge, and I’d be lying if I said it was something that could be sustained indefinitely. But it’s certainly possible and definitely recommended. The thing about meditation that most people seem to forget, is that you don’t need to be dressed in robes, sitting in the lotus position with your eyes closed in order to achieve it. I had a math teacher when I was in high school, who would take the fifteen-minute recess to close his classroom door, sit at his desk and simply close his eyes and perform a simple, deep-breathing meditation. Fifteen minutes. That’s it. And it would leave him refreshed and ready to continue on with his day.

I found an analogy online that would seem to be fitting. The word “meditation” is a bit like the word “sports.” If you tell someone you play sports, they’d likely ask you what sport you play, since there would be hundreds upon hundreds of possibilities. Meditation is very much the dame thing. There are many ways of meditating, different methods, techniques and postures, all with the goal of helping one increase their overall awareness and consciousness. The key thing is to find a method that works for you and suits your purposes. Otherwise, it’s like picking out a car to buy. If you don’t get the model you want with the options you were looking for, it’ll get you from point “A” to point “B,” but there’ll always feel like there’s something missing. Meditation falls very much under the same comparison. A huge shout out to the reader who provided comments that elicited this post. If you’re reading this, inspiration is always appreciated. ☯️

The Importance Of Small Steps

I found the above photo online and just couldn’t help but share it. It illustrates how trying to climb in grand leaps through life will put things out of your reach. More importantly, it should also be a clear message that should you need to take big steps in life, it shouldn’t be done alone and it’s okay to ask for help. If the subject on the right had a partner, they could help each other scale the ladder. Food for though… ☯️