Tony Horton's Official Blog

The remarkable Tony Horton, creator of Power 90, Power 90X, Power 90X Plus, Great Body Guaranteed, Tony Horton One On One, has opened his official blog right here on Blogger. Check out his latest, 'Food. It's that thing that's killing you, slowly.'

Nourish Interactive promotes nutrition education for families

Nourish Interactive is "a free website that promotes nutrition education for families. Margaret LaBarbera started this website to promote nutrition to our nation's children because as a nurse she knows a few sobering facts:

* -childhood obesity is an epidemic and leading to a growing number of children with diabetes and heart disease (something seen in adults and rare in children but unfortunately is becoming more common now in kids)
* -over 80% of children do not eat a balanced healthy diet which leads to less optimal performance in school and increases the risk for diseases later in life
* -this is the first generation predicted to have a shorter lifespan than their parents

NourishInteractive.com is all about educating families about nutrition and exercise in a fun way. Nutrition education needs to be fun and engaging so that children will be excited to learn about being healthy. We provide fun, interactive online games for kids that are designed to teach through animation, exploration, and decision-making.

Nourishinteractive.com is the first website to create “matching” nutritional tools, one for the parent and one for the child. These nutrition tools send similar messages to both the parent and child, so the entire family can work as a team to establish good nutrition at home. Early nutrition education is the key to empowering children to make healthy choices throughout their lives."

I have made my site free because I believe all families need to have access to this information. As a Hispanic American, I also know that Latinos have one of the highest childhood obesity rate and fastest growing population of diabetic children. That is why I have made the commitment to offer the site and tools all in English and Spanish."

Campbell Brown's Erroneous Opinion On Where Our Campaign Donations Should Go

First, I'd like to address CNN's Campbell Brown's erroneous idea that presidential candidates should donate a large amount of their campaign coffers to charity. Ms. Brown, when I and my fellow Obama supporters donate $5, or $50, to Senator Obama we want our money USED by the Senator himself to get elected as president. I did NOT send my hard earned money to him so that you could dictate it should go somewhere else. You have no right to suggest my money should go anywhere. It's my money, I earned it, and I have a right to donate it to my choice for presidential candidate with the expectation it will be used as I intended.

I'd bet that people who've donated money to Senator McCain meant for their donations to be used to elect him and not sent somewhere else. So, I respectfully disagree with you, Ms. Brown. It's also erroneous to believe that if we donate money to political candidates we didn't also donate to charity as well. I support charities as well. Please pay attention to your own finances and stay out of mine.

To contact Campbell Brown click here.

Informative Links

Real Clear Politics Electoral College Map and Latest Poll Data

The Huffington Post: Republicans Voting for Obama: In Their Own Words by Eric Hirshberg

National Politics Examiners

Time: McCain's Struggles: Four Ways He Went Wrong

Best DIGGS of the Week

I pretty much took Monday off after a busy weekend. I did do two 10 Minute Trainer workouts – click the link to read my review at Healthy New Age. You might want to check out the HNA "Meet Our Authors" page. I'm now an ongoing contributor.

And I took a two hour nap yesterday. Delicious and refreshing, and nice to wake up to a recharged stock market.

I also ran across some cool reading. Hey, it's research. Yeah, that's it, research. Here are the links: Hope you "DIGG" them too.

Sioux County.com is a gallery of Women's Bodybuilding, Fitness, and Figure Competitors. This site is a must for bodybuilders and fans.

6 Most Disastrous Uses of Work Email – True and Funny

Women and Muscle: Photography Great Bill Dobbins Speaks Out by Carol Bardelli for The Examiner

Best New Blog – Sanity Rant from Lady Rose of The Diet Pulpit.

Cutting Back on "Bad" Carbs

It's A Busy Dizzy World

Cool Links For A Dizzy Day

I hope you enjoyed my guest blogger Matt Sison. Matt's an expert in his field and his hypnosis CDs are of value to anyone seeking to lose weight through proper diet and exercise. I'll be doing an indepth reviews of Matt's Cds soon.

I've taken on new and exciting writing assignments beyond my column at The Examiner and I think you'll enjoy these new projects as they're completed.

Until then I'm serving up these links I hope you'll enjoy.

Tom Venuto has an excellent article and audio on why fruit is fine for most diets, and particularly for bodybuilders.

Science News

A Little Exercise Goes A Long Way For Severely Obese

ScienceDaily (Oct. 6, 2008) — A little exercise goes a long way toward helping severely obese individuals improve their quality of life and complete important daily tasks, according to researchers at the Duke Diet and Fitness Center.
See also:

In a pre-program assessment where patients reported, on average, just under one hour of exercise per week, individuals who were more active reported better overall-quality of life. They also reported improvements in their ability to perform daily tasks as measured on a physical functioning scale.

"Things that many people take for granted like tying one's shoes, getting dressed, or simply moving around were easier for those who reported routine exercise," says Martin Binks, Ph.D., research director at the Duke Diet and Fitness Center, a residential weight loss program at Duke University Medical Center. Read more.

Food For Thought: Regulating Energy Supply To The Brain During Fasting

ScienceDaily (Oct. 6, 2008) — If the current financial climate has taught us anything, it's that a system where over-borrowing goes unchecked eventually ends in disaster. It turns out this rule applies as much to our bodies as it does to economics. Instead of cash, our body deals in energy borrowed from muscle and given to the brain.

Unlike freewheeling financial markets, the lending process in the body is under strict regulation to ensure that more isn't lent than can be afforded. New research by scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies reveals just how this process is implemented.

"We have all seen the sub-prime mortgage crisis," says Marc Montminy, M.D., Ph.D., a professor in the Clayton Foundation Laboratories for Peptide Biology who led the current study. "If you take out a loan, sooner or later you've got to pay your debt, and the same is true in fasting metabolism." Read more.

National Nutrition Examiner Annie Kay has an enlightening article on Kid's cereals and sugar content. Check out Annie's excellent column at The Examiner.

The winners are in... Find out who won the 4th Annual Bodybuilding.com Supplement Awards right here! By: Bodybuilding.com

Bodybuilding.com has announced a new and innovative way to help customers find truly exceptional products and brands, while also helping to recognize the efforts of the many great companies that make up this industry.

Over 200,000 Customer Votes!

Those who voted were entered to win $500 in free supplements from Bodybuilding.com and automatically received a 5% discount for use in our store anytime until the end of September! We appreciate the help of everyone who voted!

What Are The Supplement Awards?

The Bodybuilding.com Supplement Awards are the industry standard for recognition of the best products and brands in the fitness and supplement industry. They not only help customers find the best products in their class, but also give the winning companies a way to set themselves apart from their rivals by displaying the award seal in their ads or on their site. Read more.

The Diet Pulpit has a David Lettermen style top ten on Sarah Palin.

And please check out my latest columns at The Examiner. I'm sure you'll find something you'll like.

Cool & Informative Links

It's Monday and I'm taking the day off. My weekend was incredibly busy and I got very little down time - in other words a typical weekend for me. I have reading to catch up on and a nap with my name on it.

Enjoy these links:

How a Very Low Calorie Diet Can Make You Gain Weight By Meri Raffetto

The weight loss industry is a multi-billion dollar industry filled with meal plans that provide very low calorie levels. This is the magic bullet because if you follow these meal plans closely you will absolutely lose weight. You’re happy and the company can say they gave you what they promised. Physiologically we know that very low calorie diets work for short term weight loss but the question is what are we doing to ourselves in the long run?

The fact is; very low calorie diets (1,000 – 1200 calories or less) are contributing to weight gain more than they are helping people to find lasting weight loss. Many people feel they have to go on a very low calorie diet because this is the only way their weight will budge. Well…they’re right and this is why. Read more.

The Secret to Losing Weight - It’s All in the After-Burn By Joel Marion, CISSN, NSCA-CPT

When it comes to fat loss, research shows that metabolic resistance training is more effective in burning calories than aerobic exercise. Not sure what metabolic resistance training is? It’s a vigorous weight-lifting session that targets multiple muscle groups with only short rest periods between sets and exercises. This type of training results in an “after-burn,” an increased metabolic rate that persists for hours after the training session ends. Read more.

Make the Most of Your Metabolism By Colette Bouchez - WebMD Weight Loss Clinic-Feature Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

"It's my metabolism!"

Sound familiar? If you're carrying some extra pounds (and having a hard time losing them), it's tempting to put the blame on a sluggish metabolism.

But is your metabolism really the reason it's often so hard to lose weight? And, more important, is there anything you can do about it?

WebMD asked experts to explore facts and myths about metabolism -- and the good news is, there are things you can do to help boost your body's calorie-burning power. Read more.

Do Diet Foods Lead To Weight Gain?

If you think you're cutting calories by eating diet or low-calorie versions of your favorite foods, think again. A new study by Canadian scientists published in the journal Obesity suggests that our bodies can't be fooled that easily.

Led by David Pierce, researchers at the University of Alberta studied the eating habits of young rats, and found that they tended to overeat when they were fed "diet" foods. Though the new study was conducted in animals, it adds to a growing body of research in humans that suggests a diet-foods paradox: the more low-calorie (or even zero-calorie) sodas and foods you consume, the more your body demands payback for the calories it was deprived. Read more.

Culinary Genius - Meat Cake!

Links Friday

This graphic is why I shouldn't be allowed to play with Photoshop.














It’s time for a links round up of websites worthy of checking out.

Opposing Views has a debate going on asking the ever controversial question “Are Low-Carb Diets Healthy?”

“Struggling with weight loss? Ever since Dr. Atkins introduced his revolutionary diet, low-carb regimens have been all the rage. These diets promise that you can lose weight, while still enjoying many of the foods you love (T-Bone steak anyone?). But some have warned that the low-carb craze isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. What should we be aware of when considering a farewell to pasta?”
Check out their discussion and feel free to add your two cents in the comments section. Our fellow low carb friends and warriors Jimmy Moore and Jamie VanEaton gave their views.

PJ at The Divine Low Carb has a raw, honest, and poignant post on how her body changes as she loses weight. Her details on the experience of her body's "redistribution of the wealth" is a great read.

Wifezilla has written several excellent posts lately I enjoyed. Check out her “More Reasons To Avoid Fruit Juice,” “Carbs Clog Your Brain” and “Wifezilla Versus Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld,” at Wifezilla’s Way.

And last but not least, be sure to check out Jamie VanEaton’s Low Carb Examiner Column AND Amy Dungan’s Low Carb Examiner Column. These Ladies have plenty to say about living a healthy low carb lifestyle.

Fun and Informative Links

Personal Update: I'm better but still having pain and other symptoms from this last bout of colitis. I haven't worked out for about a week and I'm strictly sticking to the colitis diet recommended my Dr. Gibbons, eating mostly turkey, chicken, shrimp, salmon, cottage cheese, plain yogurt, soft cheese, eggs, butter, olive oil, and white potatoes and rice. Oh, and homemade gluten free pizza (see this post for the recipe).

Hey, Don, if you read this, that homemade marinara in the pizza making photos is made from your garden fresh tomatoes from last year. Yum!

After awhile the pain wears you down. Luckily, it's less frequent now and ice packs help some. Over the counter pain relievers hurt my stomach - probably because this frigging disease can involve all of your digestive tract. In the past I've had esophageal involvement where I'd get even small bites of food stuck and because it wouldn't go down I had get it out by throwing up. This would only happen once in a while because I learned to take smaller bites, eat less, and chew longer.

Ironically I'm down to 118 pounds and 21 percent body fat despite not working out. I haven't bothered to count calories or macro-nutrients in the last week but know they're low, probably too low on some days. I'm still measuring my portions (habit) as in 2 ounces of meat and an ounce of cheese etc. i My appetite was in the gutter but it's coming back.

I'm going to buy some soy protein (ran out months ago) before I start weight lifting again. I had to stop the whey protein as whey is on the no no list along with milk.

Here’s some interesting links I thought I’d share:

Eight Amazing Metabolism Boosting Recipes by Jaime Filer

As promised, I have 8 recipes that include ingredients from my Top 10 list of metabolism boosting foods. The main ingredients in these dishes are great for your metabolism. Fire it up now with these great recipes! Read more.

Mechanism Behind Mind-body Connection Discovered

ScienceDaily (July 16, 2008) — Every cell contains a tiny clock called a telomere, which shortens each time the cell divides. Short telomeres are linked to a range of human diseases, including HIV, osteoporosis, heart disease and aging. Previous studies show that an enzyme within the cell, called telomerase, keeps immune cells young by preserving their telomere length and ability to continue dividing.

UCLA scientists found that the stress hormone cortisol suppresses immune cells' ability to activate their telomerase. This may explain why the cells of persons under chronic stress have shorter telomeres.

The study reveals how stress makes people more susceptible to illness. The findings also suggest a potential drug target for preventing damage to the immune systems of persons who are under long-term stress, such as caregivers to chronically ill family members, as well as astronauts, soldiers, air traffic controllers and people who drive long daily commutes. Read more.


The Push-Pull Workout by TC

I've known them all, German Volume Training, EDT, HIT, and Anti-Bodybuilding Hypertrophy Program. I've trained Thibaudeau style and the way of Cosgrove. You name it, I've tried it. I did it power-lifting style, Olympic style, and of course, regular old bodybuilding style.

All of them worked, of course...for awhile, but the one that I keep coming back to, the one that never fails me, is one of the most basic and ancient — in bodybuilding terms — routines of all. It's the basic Push/Pull system, presumably invented by that scoundrel, Joe Weider.

When I want to make guaranteed progress, I train Push/Pull. Read more.

Achieve Your Dream Body With Diet & Exercise By: Diana Chaloux
The Perks Of Achieving Your Dream Body

Are you dying to know how to get the body of your dreams? Do you want to be one of those people who walks into a room and makes every head turn and conversations stop? How does being self-confident, loving how you look, being full of energy, having a low risk of disease development and leading a higher quality and quantity of life sound to you? It sounds pretty good to me!

I've got a secret. I know how you can achieve all of these things. Patience, patience... I'm going to tell you. But before I spill the beans I've got to warn you. It's not a miracle pill, it's not a fad diet, and it's not the latest greatest thigh master machine.

The secret to success, the key to reaping all of these amazing benefits is this... drum roll please... proper nutrition and exercise! Read more.

Portion Control Quiz - Test your dieting IQ here!
Think you know your stuff when it comes to portion control? Test your knowledge on sizing up servings with our portion control quiz.

Dr. Mercola & Hodge Podge Of Links & Videos

I'm off to Carson City for the day to shop, and to tour the house Jerry's been remodeling. He's very happy about how nice it's turning out. People are already showing interest in it although it's not officially on the market. This house is a two-story charmer overlooking the governor's mansion in one of Carson City's nicer historic districts. Seems everyone who enters this house falls in love with it. Now with all the upgrades it's irresistible.

Last night, Bruno and I stayed up late making a trampoline video but it came out sort of dark. We're going to do a remake today. The kid can jump for 30 minutes nearly non-stop. He's a bundle of energy. We'll post the video eventually.

When we get home, we'll make homemade pizza and play Scrabble into the evening. Sunday will be a relaxing day in the swimming pool. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

I'm a fan of Dr. Mercola. He's (almost) always right.

Clearing Up Confusion On Non Sugar Sweeteners mercola.com



Is Whole Wheat Bread Really Good For You? www.mercola.com



Who Else Wants to Painlessly Lose Weight? www.mercola.com/MT



Lose Weigh With The Law of Attraction



Goodbye Gluten. Hit The Road High Fructose Corn Syrup by Dr. Mercola

HEALTH BOMB #1: High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has become a modern-day plague. Not only does it contribute to our obesity epidemic, but it has also been linked to:

* Pancreas dysfunction, diabetes and insulin resistance
* High cholesterol and heart disease
* Cancer
* High blood pressure
* Anemia
* Liver damage
* Infertility
* And more

Sadly, the average consumption of fructose has doubled between 1980 and 1994. Soft drinks and some fruit drinks are a major source of HFCS, but it is also found in many other products, from crackers to salad dressing. Read more.

Fat Friends And Poor Education Helps People Think Thin

ScienceDaily (July 25, 2008) — Research by economists at the University of Warwick, Dartmouth College, and the University of Leuven, finds that people are powerfully but subconsciously influenced by the weight of those around them. Without being aware of it, the researchers believe, human beings keep up with the weight of the Joneses.

For a whole society, this can lead to a spiral of imitative obesity. The researchers will present their results on July 25th at a National Bureau of Economic Research conference in Cambridge Massachusetts in a paper entitled Imitative Obesity and Relative Utility at the NBER Summer Institute on Health Economics.

Using data on 27,000 Europeans from 29 countries, the researchers find that nearly half of European women feel overweight. Less than a third of males feel overweight.

The authors suggest that whether for reasons of job promotions or finding a mate it is someone’s weight relative to others that matters. They show that overweight perceptions and dieting decisions are influenced by people’s comparisons with others of the same age and gender.

Highly educated Europeans hold themselves to a particularly tough standard, the research shows. For any given level of Body Mass Index (BMI), somebody with a university degree feels much fatter than someone with low educational qualifications.

Overall, the researchers believe that a person’s "utility" (an economic term roughly meaning satisfaction levels) depends on their own weight relative to the weight of those around them. They suggest that it is easier to be fat in a society that is fat.
Read more.

How Cranberry Juice Can Prevent Urinary Tract Infections

ScienceDaily (July 25, 2008) — For generations, people have consumed cranberry juice, convinced of its power to ward off urinary tract infections, though the exact mechanism of its action has not been well understood. A new study by researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) reveals that the juice changes the thermodynamic properties of bacteria in the urinary tract, creating an energy barrier that prevents the microorganisms from getting close enough to latch onto cells and initiate an infection. Read more.

Happy Fourth Of July, Recipes & Links

Happy 4th Of July!

May we remember this weekend that one of our greatest blessings is freedom.

Freedom has its life in the hearts, the actions, the spirit of men and so it must be daily earned and refreshed - else like a flower cut from its life-giving roots, it will wither and die. ~Dwight D. Eisenhower


Liberty is the possibility of doubting, of making a mistake,... of searching and experimenting,... of saying No to any authority - literary, artistic, philosophical, religious, social, and even political. ~Ignazio Silone, The God That Failed, 1950


Liberty: One of Imagination's most precious possessions. ~Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary

Here’s a few recipes you can whip up for any Summer barbecue or bash from my book “Weight Loss That Works” – soon available by eBook.

Spiced Pepper Salad

1 cup each: red, yellow and green bell pepper slices
¾ cup sweet onion (Walla Walla, Vidalia, or Maui) slices
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss. Sprinkle with feta cheese. Cover and chill 1 hour before serving. Makes 4 servings. 1 serving equals 1 cup. Nutritional Information: Calories: 70 Carbs: 9 grams, Fat: 4 grams, Protein 2 grams.

Gulf Coast Garlic Shrimp

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 fresh garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 (4 ounces) cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons fresh parsley

Spray a nonstick skillet with non fat cooking spray. Add red pepper, garlic, bay leaf and sauté a minute. Add shrimp and salt, sauté 3 minutes. Remove shrimp from skillet. Add wine and parsley, bring to a boil, and cook about a minute until reduced to 1/4 cup. Return shrimp to skillet, toss to coat. Discard bay leaf. Makes 4 servings. 1 serving equals 1/4 of shrimp and sauce.

Nutritional Information: Calories: 218, Carbs: 4 grams, Fat: 3 grams, Protein 43 grams.

Links

Here’s a must read link for you. Mark McManus’ How To Build Muscle And Burn Fat At The Same Time

Tony Horton’s Newest “One On One Training" video number one "Plyo Legs" (in a series) is available. I ordered mine this morning. This product isn’t listed in the website’s products yet! This is an early bird offer sent to Power 90X grads, so take advantage now.


Let’s revisit a classic by Dave Draper, THE SECRET IS THERE IS NO SECRET

There are basically two types of people who use weight training for fitness. Type A, the driven and type B, the not-so-driven. Though the degrees of difference vary, I know that for those of you of the A type, it would be an act of cruelty to keep you from your workout - an absolute impossibility, like stopping the movement of a glacier or the stampede of wild horses.

And then there are amongst you of the B type, neither lazy nor irresponsible, who can't seem to make it to the gym (or the garage) on a regular basis. You have a long list of reasons why you can't and some of them are even pretty good. It is to this larger half of the population to whom I speak.

To be effective, exercise must be consistent. This is the first and foremost precept of physical conditioning. If there's a secret, it's consistency. Don't quote me on this, but I believe bad exercise, badly executed consistently is far better than no exercise at all. Getting to the gym whether you want to or not, even for a short appearance, a salute or a bow is vitally important to the health of your fitness lifestyle. A break in consistency leads to the erosion of your training foundations, and without sound foundations no structure will stand. Read more.

And check out Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty Tips


Enjoy you holiday!

Like A Snail Traveling Up A Slippery Slope

That's what my internet connection is like this morning. Slowww...And I have high speed satellite for criminy! Luckily I compiled a little something ahead of time to slap up today. Below are some links you might want to check out.

One the personal front: Last night's pizza and wine were de-lish-oh-yes-ous! No change in the scale this morning. And I'm so pre-menstrual I have cramps. That should go nicely with the cool pool...I shouldn't complain, at least I have a cool pool.

I'm reading the July 2008 issue of Iron Man Magazine - seeing as my internet reading has been nixed. There's some great stuff in this issue. (There always is, of course). In 'Smart Training' by Charles Poliquin there's information about controlling cortisol including this:

Step 7. Change your perception of your world. How you perceive reality has a lot to do with your cortisol output. If you perceive your world as unsafe, you'll make far more cortisol. ... There are many stress reducing modalities, such as yoga and meditation, that can help drop your cortisol and further your efforts in the gym. One study had Olympic lifters engage in so-called autogenic training, a form of relaxation through mental suggestion, after working out, and their cortisol dropped far more rapidly than those in the control group. That drop correlated with long term improvements in the snatch, clean and jerk, and squat.

I'm going to start meditating after my weight workouts.

Here's those links:

Time For Some Hot & Cool Links

Performance Nutrition Show

Dr. Jose Antonio and Carla Sanchez host the Performance Nutrition Show - a webcast/podcast for fitness enthusiasts interested in nutrition and training.

Dr. Jose also has an excellent article in Iron Man on "How Dieting Can Make You Fat" with research that backs up the importance of plenty of protein especially on a fat loss diet.

Volumize Your Diet-Eat Large, Stay Lean! Chris Shugart

Portion Control Sucks
It used to be low fat. Then it was low carb. Today it's portion control. And guess what? You're still fat. Or at least 66% of Americans are.

It's still junk food, fattie.

Sorry, mainstream media, food manufacturers, diet clinics, and TV weight loss gurus, but portion control — eating smaller amounts of the same ol' foods that made you fat to begin with — doesn't work. As I always say, portion control is about as effective as the "I'll only put it in a little" method of virginity preservation.

Oh don't get me wrong, the idea of portion control sounds great. Eat what you want, just in small quantities. Problem is, like a lot of ideas that sound good on paper — socialism, welfare, a sitcom featuring those Geiko cavemen — it just doesn't work.
It might work if people could actually do it, but most people can't. In fact, daytime portion control is often the catalyst for nighttime binge eating — one of the biggest causes of fat gain.

So why are we, the fitness industry, promoting it?

Telling someone to stop eating before they're satisfied is like telling someone to stop having sex right before they climax. That's not just a crude joke either. Appetite and the pleasure we get from eating are classified as "sensual desires" and fit into the same category as the sex drive.

Appetite and sex drive: different and not so different.
These are core, continuation-of-life drives: innate and powerful and often hard to control. Combine the natural urge to eat until full with abundant, cheap, and calorie-dense foods and it's no surprise people overeat and get fat.

A Better Plan

So if low-fat diets suck, and low-carb diets are often short-sighted, and portion control has a 95% failure rate, then what's the best nutrition plan for shedding excess body fat so you can have sex with the lights on again?

Well, here's a big part of the answer: volumetrics.

Now, I actually don't endorse most "volumetrics" diets because they often ignore the benefits of good fats like omega-3s. And some fat sources, like olive oil and almonds, are healthy and calorie-dense. Chances are if you see a "Volumetrics" book on the shelf, it's mainly just a low-fat diet that encourages you to eat a lot of soup. I'll pass.

However, we can take a page from the volumetrics approach and apply it to our bodybuilding and fat loss goals. We can learn to manipulate recipes and choose foods that get us full without making us fat. In short, we can get ripped and stay ripped with practically no dietary suffering or excessive hunger.

As a side benefit, volumizing your diet will make you healthier and increase longevity since the most filling foods are often the most health-promoting.
Let's take a look at a real life example. Read more.


20 pounds in 20 weeks-Muscle Building Meals by Dr. John M Berardi


If you've read my articles, then you know that the goal of each and every integrated training, nutrition, and supplement program I design is to find the intersection of the habits that lead to optimal body composition, optimal health, and optimal physical performance. I call this the "Sweet Spot."

Dr. John recommends finding the Sweet Spot.

Once I've found it, my next step is to make it practical for everyday use by giving you strategies for making it happen in the framework of 9 to 5 jobs, significant others, weekends at the cottage, tournaments on the road (for yourself or your kids), and any other scenario that presents a challenge to your health and nutritional habits.

To this end, for all of you guys and girls transfixed by big muscles, today I'm gonna get as practical as we can. No fancy science here. Just one real-world eating plan straight out of the nutritional journal of one of my most successful clients. This guy, in 20 weeks, packed on 20 pounds of lean body mass, with more to come.

The Plan

Ok, 20 pounds in 20 weeks is a big friggin' deal. I imagine you're trying to guess what sort of "prescription" ol' Dr. John put this client on. You may even be wondering where you can buy some. Shame on you, my cynical friend. This client simply followed the training and supplement ideas laid out in my muscle-building guide Scrawny to Brawny and the recipes provided in Gourmet Nutrition. Read more.


Can Diets Make You Fat?

I've never been a big fan of diets (see: Reasons to Quit Dieting Forever) and now I've got some support in some new information by Dr. Len Kravitz.

Kravitz evaluated nine data-based research studies to find out what happens to our bodies when we diet. Here's what he found:

* In women who dieted, BMR was lowered up to 20%, even more in very low-calorie diets
* There was an average weight gain of 0-5 kg (0-11 lbs)
* The women in these studies experienced a rebound effect after going off the diets, gaining much of the weight back

Read more.

And if you're after the elusive six pack check this out:

5 Facts You MUST Understand if You Are Ever Going to Lose Your Belly Fat & Get Flat 6-Pack Abs by Mike Geary - Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Personal Trainer (CPT)

Links Friday

I’m working on part three of “Reasons Dieters Get Stuck & Solutions - Number Two: Low Carb Versus Low Fat: Part Three – Cycling Carbs, Calories, Exercise, Rest” and I’ve written a guest post for Lay Rose’s The Diet Pulpit that will appear while she’s on vacation, so I’m crunched for time right now. So here are some must read links to check out:


Wifezilla has a must-read follow up on NutriSystem and their deceptive advertising involving Jillian Barbari, who is pregnant in her “before” photo . And now Marie Osmond’s claims she lost weight on NutriSystem after she stated she lost weight by performing on ‘Dancing with the Stars’. Did she do both at once? No wonder she fainted…you can’t eat that low calorie and be that active at the same time.

Excerpt –“Back in April, I blogged about Nutrisystem and their latest spokesmodel, Jillian Barberie. She was touting a 41 lb weight loss in a series of TV ads and I made the observation that her clothing in the before photo appeared to be maternity wear. From the information I could gather at the time, Jillian had lost weight after giving birth even though she was crediting the Nutrisystem program.”

Check out The Fitness Insider and author of The TNT Diet Adam Campbell’s article “My Personal Grocery List”

Excerpt - I'm often asked what I actually eat. So yesterday, after a trip to the supermarket, I took a photo of our haul. The foods you see are precisely what my wife Jessica and I will eat for both dinner and lunch this week. That is, we make enough in the evening so that we can have a great leftover meal the next day at noon.

Obesity And Depression May Be Linked

ScienceDaily (Jun. 6, 2008) — A major review reveals that research indicates people who are obese may be more likely to become depressed, and people who are depressed may be more likely to become obese.

Smart Substitutes: Your guide to low-calorie cooking alternatives at Calorie King

Revving Up Your Metabolism with Exercise

"I can't lose weight, I've got a slow metabolism."

How many times have you heard or read that? It's a common perception that excess weight is due to an inherited slow metabolism or a thyroid problem. Yes, these conditions do exist, but they're not as common as you might think. Most obesity and overweight conditions occur because people eat too much and move too little -- simple as that.

That's not to say that you can't rev the metabolism up a little in your activity program. You can. But the main game is still big-picture recommendations like eating less and exercising more. Even so, every little bit helps.

The three main activities that will make your body more efficient as a fat-burning machine involve physical activity and body composition.

Rainy Day Hot Links

Swimming Pool Opening Postponed On Account of Rain.
This Photo Of Bruno Is From Last Year.













We are setting some kind of record for consecutive rainy days here in Northern Nevada. I've lived here eighteen years and cannot recall ever seeing three days of rain in a row. I feel like I'm back on the Northern California coast where I grew up. The only thing I really miss about Northern California is the rain and fog. I always loved the rain and fog and spending time inside on a cozy couch with a hot drink. Rainy days were always lazy days. Living in Northern Nevada, the weather is sunny 95 percent of the time with a few thunderstorms in the summer, and some snow in winter. For me, this unexpected stretch of rain is just delicious. Pardon me while I make hot cocoa...

Hot Links

Meet Molly, a pony abandoned in Hurricane Katrina, rescued, and given a prosthetic leg after an amputation. Simply amazing.

Why are doctors ignorant about nutrition? (Clue: only 6 percent study nutrition in medical school). This is a .PDF expose on economics as the driving force behind medicine and medical decision making. Why recommend a safe, effective and free solution to a health problem when the drug companies will stuff your pockets for recommending a dangerous and / or dubious drug choice?

Be sure to check out What Your Doctor Doesn't Know About Nutritional Medicine May Be Killing You (Hardcover) by Ray D. Strand M.D.

Check out Dr. Strand's Nutritional Medicine website. "Dr. Strand respects the strength of traditional medicine. But with its disease and drug-oriented focus, the body’s natural defenses have been overlooked. In spite of many life-saving medical advances, chronic degenerative disease remains at an all time high.

While learning more about the "root" cause of over 70 chronic degenerative diseases—oxidative stress—you too will realize that humanity’s best safeguard against developing coronary artery disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, Alzheimer’s dementia, Parkinson’s disease, lupus, MS, Crohn’s disease, macular degeneration, asthma, arthritis, etc, is not found in pharmacology, but is found within our own bodies.

You don’t have to passively wait to see if the diseases you fear will someday affect you.

Learn how you can turbo-charge your immune system, antioxidant defense system, and repair system; making certain you secure the absolute best chance to win the war against the root cause of degenerative disease."

Check out Big Daddy D's Low Carb Life blog.

I'm Such A Loser has an insightful post on Eat Often To Lose Weight.

Eating frequent meals boosts your metabolism and is a proven approach to fat loss and muscle gain when combined with resistance training and cardio. Used by bodybuilders, fitness models, fitness buffs, and smart dieters, this approach is the main component of Michael Thurmond's Six Week Body Makeover a program which I've bought, tried, reviewed, and recommend.

Eat More, Weigh Less? By Christopher Mohr

Excerpt - Don't rub your eyes, do not pinch your cheek; yes you're awake, this is not a dream. While everything you may know up until this point has led you to believe you must eat less to lose weight, I'm here to question that theory-to an extent.

I'm not saying you can eat more food than your body can use and successfully lose fat, but I am saying that eating more frequently may help you break through a weight loss plateau. Hibernation season is over; it's time to get in beach body condition.

Here's two excellent articles from Tom Venuto - How To Gain Lean Body Weight Part One - Calories and Part Two Meal Ratios, Meal Frequency & Food Choices

Check out KaHunka In The Kitchen's video Quick & Easy High Protein Pizza to Pack on Muscle! (Personally I wouldn't eat a tuna pizza - where's the cheese ??? - but he's not hard on the eyes).



And from Tosca Reno, author of 'The Eat Clean Diet' - a video on the basics.

Colitis Flare & Links On Various Topics

I'm on about the the eleventh day of a colitis flare and getting tired of it. My right side feels like someone stuck a dagger in it. This whole annoying episode started because I ate a Bacon Cheeseburger Toaster at Sonic and realized too late it was smothered in barbecue sauce. Almost every barbecue sauce on the market has high fructose corn syrup (and every other processed or packaged food does too including dill pickles). High fructose corn syrup is a major trigger for me.

I haven't worked out since Sunday partly due to this and because of spring cleaning. I'm sure the brief rest will do me good on the muscle building front - I tend towards over training - but the pain sucks. So I started Colon Clenz this morning to force the issue. (I'm regular, that's not the problem, but something irritating is still, well, hanging around).

The Double Danger of High Fructose Corn Syrup By Bill Sanda, BS, MBA

Excerpt - For many years, Dr. Meira Fields and her coworkers at the US Department of Agriculture investigated the harmful effects of dietary sugar on rats. They discovered that when male rats are fed a diet deficient in copper, with sucrose as the carbohydrate, they develop severe pathologies of vital organs. Liver, heart and testes exhibit extreme swelling, while the pancreas atrophies, invariably leading to death of the rats before maturity.

Wiki on Colon

Best Book To Manage Colitis Through Diet

My personal story about developing and dealing with colitis.

Here's some links you might find informative:

Bodybuilding.com Women's Super Feature - This feature is designed specifically for the woman in mind. We cover all female related topics that can help you get into the strong and sexy shape that you desire.

Got Sugar? Skeletal Muscle Development Responds To Nutrient Availability

Excerpt - ScienceDaily (May 12, 2008) — A new study finds that restricted nutrient availability prevents muscle stem cells from growing into mature muscle cells. The research, published by Cell Press in the May issue of the journal Developmental Cell, provides exciting new information about how developing muscle cells sense and respond to nutrient levels. The study adds a new twist to ongoing research into the effects of caloric restriction on physiology and aging and may lead to new therapeutic avenues for muscle wasting.

Boost Your Metabolism - Tips To Speed Up & Increase Metabolism

Excerpt - Your metabolism can be affected by genetics and age but for the most part it is affected by what we do to it. Did you know you can slow down or speed up your metabolism? Before I get into that I would like to explain what metabolism is. Metabolism is the process in which your body breaks down food and uses it as energy. This gives you the ability to function and do all the things that your body is meant to do. If you have a fast metabolism your body stores less body fat. In return if you have a slow metabolism your body tends to store more fat.

These are the secrets to keeping your metabolism up.

1.) Feeding your body. Just keep in mind that your body needs

The Blood Sugar Hormones

Excerpt - Hormones are very important in building muscle. Understanding them can give you a boost in your endeavor to better your body. In this article, I will outline two major hormones that play a role in bodybuilding.

Psychological Stress Linked To Overeating, Monkey Study Shows

ScienceDaily (May 14, 2008) — Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, have found socially subordinate female rhesus macaques over consume calorie-rich foods at a significantly higher level than do dominant females.

The study, which is available in the online edition of Physiology and Behavior, is a critical step in understanding the psychological basis for the sharp increase in obesity across all age groups since the mid-1970s. The study also is the first to show how food intake can be reliably and automatically measured, thus identifying the optimal animal model and setting for future obesity studies.

Because the relationship between diet, psychological stress and social and environmental factors is complex, Mark Wilson, PhD, chief of the Division of Psychobiology at Yerkes, and his research team set out to determine whether individuals chronically exposed to psychologically stressful environments over consume calorie-rich foods. To do this, they studied the feeding patterns of socially housed female rhesus macaques, which are organized by a dominance hierarchy that maintains group stability through continual harassment and threat of aggression. Such structure is a constant psychological stress to subordinates.

Metabolic Syndrome Linked To Overeating, Not Obesity

Excerpt - Overeating, not the obesity it causes, is the actual cause of metabolic syndrome, suggests a study with mice by researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.

Metabolic syndrome is a collection of health factors that increase the risk of developing insulin resistance, fatty liver, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

This study was among the first to propose that weight gain is an early symptom, not a direct cause, of metabolic syndrome, the researchers said.

"Most people today think that obesity itself causes metabolic syndrome," senior author Dr. Roger Unger, professor of internal medicine, said in a prepared statement. "We're ingrained to think obesity is the cause of all health problems, when, in fact, it is the spillover of fat into organs other than fat cells that damages these organs, such as the heart and the liver. Depositing fatty molecules in fat cells where they belong actually delays that harmful spillover."

Cool & Informative Links

Can You Spot All Ten Cats? There's Two Moms and Eight Kittens In This Photo























Check out Lee Doyle's interview with Lady Rose of The Diet Pulpit. She even lists Kudos For Balanced Fitness & Lifestyle as a blog she reads regularly...that's too cool.

Also check out these cool links...

20 Strategies For Bodybuilding Success

Burning Fat - "How you can use these proven fat loss strategies to lose those unwanted pounds of body fat!"

The Science of Fat Loss: Why a Calorie Isn't Always a Calorie

Blueprint Your Success

Spring Shape Up - 4 Weeks to a Healthier You

Visit Wellsphere For Expert Health, Nutrition & Fitness Advice

Today's blog entry is intended to introduce you to a website named Wellsphere that offers a valuable wealth of information and guidance on everything related to health.

Wellsphere - Indulge In Healthier Living - featured on NBC - is chock full of features including interactive mobile motivation you can receive by cell phone that allows you to get reminders, track goals, find local resources, get tips, update your journal, and more.

Wellsphere also features an article library written by experts on topics like "Increase Family Fitness" and "Sneak In Superfoods." Also check out their informative and entertaining videos, expert advice, and support to achieve your goals. Wellsphere covers a wide variety of subjects including low carbohydrate foods, high protein foods, low fat foods, abdominals exercises, working out with weights, yoga for beginners, recreational sports, healthy recipes, and so much more.

Members can join communities on a wide variety of interests including weight loss, exercise, stress relief, healthy eating, recreation, mind body, dance, martial arts, endurance training, healing & recovery, and quitting smoking. You can share your experiences and progress, as well as find motivation and help with a variety of issues.

Special Wellsphere features include their interactive WellPhone, WellTips to help you stay informed and on track, WellPrize that rewards you with points and greater status withing the Wellsphere community, and Path To Feeling Good that guides you expertly to reaching your goals.

Isn't it time for you to start down your own path to feeling good? Join Wellsphere today and begin your own journey to indulge in healthier living! Get on your path to feeling good. It's free!

Foodie Friday - Cheesy Goodness

I got the idea for this post because I'm staring down the week ahead at my scheduled cheat day on Wednesday via the Cheat To Lose Diet plan. I'm shopping for my cheat foods today at iGourmet. And I'm buying this bargain because if I don't get some Cotswald - which I haven't had since Christmas - I'll die. Besides that much cheese, properly stored, will last me two months. I have a Seal-A-Meal and if you reseal cheese in an airtight bag cheese lasts up to 9 months as opposed to a week or so in a regular baggie.

(Joel Marion, author of The Cheat To Lose Diet, says not to shop ahead because you may not be craving on cheat day what you bought ahead. Too bad, Joel. I live 20 miles from the store and I'm not wasting $10 in gas to do an unnecessary shopping run on a Wednesday. Ain't happening, baby. Besides I KNOW what I want, cheese and chocolate).

If you're into diet, nutrition, weight loss, and fat loss, chances are you're also a foodie. Some of us foodies are gourmets, love to cook, own and use every herb and spice known to man, and prefer imported English Stilton to plastic wrapped slices of plastic tasting American cheese any day. Other foodies are not purist and don't know Cotswold from coriander. These foodies love McDonald's, Frito Lay, Oscar Meyer, and Banquet microwave dinners. Whichever side of the foodie fence you sit on, even if you're a fence sitter, there's something below that should tickle your fancy.

My very favorite place to buy food is iGourmet. They have excellent customer service and the biggest selection of American and international gourmet food. Also, if you're signed up for their newsletter you receive great deals including customer appreciation free shipping days. And they have sales, today I got a daily special, one pound of Royal Blue Stilton for $6.00 off.

Can you tell I'm crazy for cheese?

Here's some great food, cuisine, and cooking sites (in no particular order):


Gourmeted.com - The Adventures of Two Desperate Foodies

Gina's Weight Watchers Recipes

The Restaurant Hopper

Healthy Cooking Recipes

Jenn Cooks - Adventures From The Kitchen

The Grill Man

Fruit Species

Suger & Sweets - Find Something Crave Worthy

Mouthing Off

Articles


Immune System Needs Food To Function Well


Pimp My Meal - 8 Instant Ways to Make Healthy Meals Delicious by Josef Brandenburg

Gail Simmons 10 Best Spring Dishes

The Best Pies In London

Foodie Videos

Food Wars



The Hippy Gourmet Makes Veggie Sushi



Extra Cheese: The Rap



Fast Food Freestyle

Just Another Freaky Friday

I found this link Big Ass Fans at Pandora’s Casket and it got me to thinking.

How many other websites have Big Ass in their title or description? So I Googled it. As you might have guessed a bunch of adult sites popped up. (Can't click on those, I've got Bruno, my eight year old, sitting next to me playing on my other laptop. Wait a minute, why would I click on those? I'm not into big asses.)

So if there's a gillion websites of big assed girls out there, why is most of the female population trying to diet their hind ends off? Apparently guys LIKE BIG BUTTS. Sing with me, “I like big butts and I can not lie.” (I can hear Ross and Rachael from "Friends" singing this to their newborn Emma).

The only clean one in the first few pages was Big Ass Belle, a blog I used to link to. (Every now and then I clean my blog roll for one reason or another and Belle got the boot, probably for a lack of posting. I'd put her back but she still hasn't posted in over a month).

Then there was a music site called Big Ass Beats I’m not linking to because of a suspicious pop up box to install something. And there’s Big Ass Towels to cover up your, um, big ass. Then I found Big Ass Truck, a band who doesn’t know how to design a website seeing as it’s mostly empty.

And as Debbie pointed out to me, there's Big Ass Cabs - a wine worthy of kudos. Just don't drink too much and put your fat burning on hold for EVER. (Hey, it's still a full moon).

Okay, now I’m bored. Big Ass searches aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.

Get it? Cracked? (For those of you a little slow today - for whatever reason - Ass Crack, asses are cracked. Um, never mind).

Can you tell it’s freaky Friday?

Funniest Read Of The Week Is From Monkey Fables And Tales "Some Things Are Kinda Fuzzy"

Cool & Informative Links

Wow! Get a load of what's down there! (Our cats Karma and Zen)


















If you’re a regular and see a post of links, you guessed right – I’m too busy to blog. It’s spring break and I have an active eight year old boy on my hands. We’re accomplishing the mundane like household chores and computer gaming (I’ll let you guess who’s doing which!) A decent blog entry is impossible to write with a precocious and talkative kid around.

But I assure you, these links are worth your time. Hope you enjoy!

MD Junction Diet Online Support Group – People Helping People

A community of patients, family members and friends dedicated to dealing with Diet, together.

Disaboom - Live Forward

The premier Online Community and Information Resource for people affected by disability.

Ask Rocco – Smart and Outspoken Training and Nutrition Advice

Ripped Naturally For Men & Women

Ex Rx Net

ExRx.net (Exercise Prescription on the Net) is a free resource for the exercise professional, coach, or fitness enthusiast." ExRx.net consists of over 2000 pages, most of which are found in the Exercise and Muscle Directory.

Entrecard

The easy way to network with other bloggers. Get to know your dedicated readers and favorite writers of the blogs you like. Earn points for dropping your Entrecards at other sites and advertise your blog.

Get those darned dogs out of our cat territory! (Our dogs Dee Dee & Junior)

Good Friday & Links

Good Friday 03 21 2008

I’m busy and preoccupied with Easter preparations (way more fun than tax preparations) so all you’re getting out of me today is some informative links on nutrition and fitness, including a few on Good Friday. Enjoy! Happy Easter!

And remember, don’t drink on Spring Break. Your fat loss will grind to a halt and you’ll turn into an obese under muscled toad overnight! (Must be a full moon).

All About Good Friday

Good Friday Wiki


Cheaters Always Prosper
The OFFICIAL Scivation Guide to Dietary “Cheating”

By: Chuck Rudolph, MEd,RD With Marc Lobliner and Derek Charlebois

Since publishing Game Over—The Final Showtime Cut Diet You’ll Ever Need, we have been bombarded with emails and comments. The one most frequently asked question is how and when it is okay to deviate from the plan. The answer for this is simple…Never! If following the Cut Diet, you should not cheat and if you do cheat, it better not be often. If you do happen to cheat, don’t cry to us that your results aren’t optimal.

The bottom line is that the Cut Diet relies on getting the body primed and in the zone. Cheats throw this off. But what if following more of a lifestyle type Cut Diet where you taper carbs throughout the day or even bulking? These are situations where cheating is acceptable and downright yummy. If you like eating pie and being lean at the same time read on and find out how you can cheat and win!

How much can I cheat?

Let’s set forth some guidelines. While it is okay to have the occasional Thanksgiving-like feast where you eat until your pants don’t fit and your feet are swollen, we do not recommend doing this on a weekly basis. Thus, when following the aforementioned diets, we recommend two to three cheat meals per week with calories at around 150% of your normal meal. Meaning that if a normal meal for you yields 500 calories, you will want the cheat to be around 750 calories. But how do you count cheat calories? You don’t. It is all about moderation and approximating the total. In essence, eat until you are full yet not stuffed.

What can I eat for my cheat meal?

We recommend making healthy choices, but the beauty of a cheat meal is that you can cave in to those cravings! If you feel like a piece of pie, get a nice slice of Pecan Pie. If you feel like cheese, buy some Gouda! Just try to control yourself and not eat the whole pie or an entire cheese wheel. The beauty is that you can kiss those protein to carb to fat ratios goodbye for this meal. Enjoy the freedom! Read more.

Sodium, Your Secret Weapon
by Scot Abel

In ancient times, salt was precious. It was traded as the most valued of all commodities, and having a good supply of salt was as close to life insurance as you could get. Age-old aphorisms like "salt of the earth" and "worth your salt" remind us how important salt has always been.

The answer may surprise you. The anti-sodium campaign actually began as a commercial movement to sell different foods and snacks, under the guise of being healthier. Much like the low-fat movement, manufacturers care more about selling products than they do about scientific accuracy. Read more.

Busting the Great Myths of Fat Burning

Your body burns either fat or carbs depending on the intensity of your activity. But when it comes to losing weight, calories are calories. You burn fat even when you're in couch-potato mode. Yet, a lot of misunderstanding prevails.

Get ready to break down some of the myths people have about burning fat:
Read more.


Fat Roundtable
What's new in fat science?
Refereed by John M. Berardi

During our last roundtable, Cy Willson, Lonnie Lowery, and myself got together to talk protein. There were no holds barred as we threw out our own personal protein theories and suggestions with extreme prejudice. With the theories bouncing around like lotto balls in a billion dollar drawing, we went crazy. Lonnie was screaming about being a real man while whipping out his long, cylindrical? pointer to illustrate his points on the graphs and tables he brought along.

In the meantime, Cy and myself were flipping each other off at each disagreement. All in all we had a real blast while giving you guys some practical suggestions for how to use protein to get bigger.

We had so much fun I couldn't wait to do another roundtable. Only this time we'll talk about fat. Within the last few years there's been a lot of discussion regarding the optimal macronutrient composition of the diet. A wide range of individuals (some of them being very wide themselves) have asked me for advice about what fats to eat and how much.

You see, after the anti-fat surge of the 80s and early 90s, people began to realize that the elimination of dietary fat from our culture was not only nearly impossible, but was downright stupid. Read more.

Marion Nestle’s Sorting out low-fat vs. low-carbohydrate

Several people, among them Kerry Trueman of Eating Liberally, asked my opinion of John Tierney’s column about Gary Taubes’ new book, Good Calories Bad Calories, in today’s New York Times. Taubes’ book arrived while I was in India and I can’t really comment on it until I have had a chance to read it. I gather from Tierney’s piece and Gina Kolata’s review of it on Sunday that it comes down hard on carbohydrates.

I continue to be impressed by how difficult it is to separate the health effects of fat, carbohydrate, and protein from the calories they provide, the foods that contain them, the diets as a whole, or the rest of the lifestyle that goes along with the diet. Finding out what people eat is hard to do. Determining the health effects of dietary factors or patterns is even harder since humans make such awful experimental animals. Plenty of things about human nutrition are reasonably well established–the basic nutrients that are required and the amounts that prevent deficiency diseases, for example. But it is much trickier to figure out the effects of nutrients on chronic diseases that are also affected by activity levels, cigarette smoking, alcohol use, and social factors such as poverty, stress, and lack of control. So I can’t help but be skeptical of journalists who think they have answers to questions that scientists have been grappling with for years. Read more.