learn to do a chin-up in a couple minutes a day!

I love chin-ups and pull-ups! They engage so many different muscles, and there are a hundred variations to keep things exciting. Think you're a pull-up pro and can't get much better? Check out the bar scene on Venice Beach for a humbling bit of perspective: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6nVX9txw6E

That stuff's incredible, but let's get back to a basic chin-up, which the majority of people can't do. Most of us spend our days behind a computer, at a desk, and barely mobile; we don't use our shoulders for anything anymore, and our arms are lucky if they get a five-minute workout doing dishes or cleaning up the house. But, I'm here to claim that most of you can learn to do a chin-up in a month!  Guys, girls, in-shape, out-of-shape, give it a try! I'm convinced almost anyone can do it with a simple month of effort. And why do it? It'll start to tone you up, increase your mobility on everyday tasks, and give you a sense of accomplish which can translate to other goals (here's a task I wanted to complete, that I didn't think I could complete, and I did it!). Let's get to it!

health on the road

I’ve been spending a lot of time on the road recently for a mix of work and pleasure.  I love to sample local foods (and beers!) with the friends that I visit, but I try to eat most of my meals each day from food I’ve brought along with me, to save money, and to keep things healthy and consistent for myself.  It also makes the trip a lot easier when I don’t have to think about most of my meals.  Here’s a quick list of what I travel with, and why:

recipe - nurse betsy's cabbarage

A personal favorite for the Summer months.  Incredibly delicious, super healthy, paleo (just ditch the cheese, right?), and gets better day after day.  Thanks to the dynamic duo of Al and Chip for the name (both brussel sprouts and kale are part of the broader cabbage family), and to my mom for the base recipe!

don't be afraid of fat!

The name itself is terrifying to most people – Fat.  But it turns out that our supposed villain in this story of health has been framed!  The true culprits of our current health crisis are likely sugar and processed foods (along with the policies and poorly-performed studies that have built this worldwide fallacy), but I’ll focus here on the positive side of our tale, as we try to understand our maligned friend Fat.

it's going to be a dry june...

Since college, roughly ten years ago, I probably haven't gone a full week without an alcoholic drink.  The combination of a varied social life, an appreciation for good alcohol of many sorts (including actually making beer, wine, and liquor), and high-pressure jobs, has led me to enjoy many drinks over the years.  And I don’t regret those years and those drinks (well, most of them…), but I do realize that it is costly, a glut of empty calories, rough on sleep, a detriment to muscle recovery, and in general, bad for overall health.  Particularly as I try to optimize my health and running in preparation for an intense race this August, I want to make a drastic change, and challenge myself.

So for the month of June I’m going sober…kind of.

cutting caffeine - part 1: background and basic thoughts

I am a healthy guy.  I care about what goes into my body, though with an approach that takes mental health into consideration as well - meaning, if it's going to cause me considerable stress to not consume or do something, I probably won't worry about it.  That said, my two primary vices, as with most Americans, are booze and caffeine (I'll tackle booze in another article, some day).  My caffeine consumption is by no means serious, but my addiction is strong; a morning without caffeine finds me with a dull headache in the afternoon, and a pounding one the following morning - because of this I don't go many mornings without.  My thoughts on this are extremely conflicted, since I know there are few long-term physical downsides to moderate caffeine consumption, but I always wonder if I would be better without it.  Here are my thoughts:

my go-to green

Some people have a hard time eating the same thing every day – I’m not one of those people.  5 out of 7 days each week my green smoothie is the exact same.  It’s simple, consistent, and delicious.  But, it’s Not sweet; after drinking these for years, my green tolerance is high.  For newbies, consider changing the initial 1C water to 1/2C water and 1/2C pomegranate or acai juice (high in antioxidants) to start, or just add more berries.  Ingredients below are in the order that I add them.