Are you Stuck???

Do you exercise regularly but don’t get the results you are looking for?  Are you inconsistent with your exercise habits and therefore don’t achieve the health related results you are seeking?  Were you active as a younger person, but the busyness of life has slowly stolen your health?  Maybe you are the person whose life experiences with sports, movement and exercise have been negative so you avoid it, but you know you need it?  You have a child that is struggling and needs a safe and positive environment to begin the habits of exercise?

There are a lot of ways that people find that they are stuck. 

At Forte Fitness we have served so many people that fit into one of the narratives above.  If you find yourself there or someone you care for fits one of these descriptions, we would be honored to have you or them in for a complimentary session to share with you how we can help.  It is what we do! 

If you are exercising regularly but are not getting results we can help pinpoint the reason or reasons.  It could be you are doing the same exercises the same way over and over, and your body has simply adapted and you don’t know how to get out of your rut.  We can analyze your workouts and nutrition and develop a plan that will work! 

If you are inconsistent we can provide the accountability you need.  At Forte we don’t sell memberships and draft accounts and then hope nobody shows up.  We build relationships with our clients and are with you the whole way!

There are 168 hours in a week.  We can help you set two appointments a week.  Two hours!  You will still have 166 left.  We will take those two hours a week and make a difference in your health and how functional your body is.  No matter how busy you are at some point you have to make your health your priority.  Often people don’t make their health a priority in the busyness of life because they are caring for everyone else.  But, you have to keep your tank full to keep caring for your loved ones, and they don’t want to see your health suffer.  Give us a try!

At Forte we provide a safe place, privacy so that you can be comfortable.  There are no crowds, no one to stare at you, and no waiting on equipment – just you and your trainer who is 100% focused on your success!

Many children struggle during recess and PE.  It is not their natural playing field and in a time where children are more sedentary than ever with so much screen time, personal training can make a big difference for a child.  Our trainers have hearts for children and can help your child begin to enjoy his or her body that is designed to move.  They can begin to develop some confidence in their own skin.  They can begin to develop habits that deliver a lifetime of health! 

Are you stuck?

If you are or someone you care for is … then check out our website … check out our success stories and if you are curious just email or call us.  We would be honored to have you in simply to explore whether or not Forte is the right fit.  We offer a complimentary session which includes a tour of the studio, a medical screening, a goal setting consultation, and a full training session.  At the end of your session we will let you know what a good plan would be.  All you have to do is decide if Forte is the right fit for you. 

Recipe of the Week...Turkey Nachos with Pickled Jalapeños and Pinto Beans

Ingredients: 

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 
• 1 pound ground turkey breast 
• 1 (1.4-ounce) package taco seasoning 
• 1/2 cup beer 
• 12 ounces tortilla chips 
• 2 plum tomatoes, chopped 
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced 
• 2 tablespoons pickled jalapeño pepper slices, chopped 
• 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed 
• 3 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese or mozzarella 
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground turkey and cook, until just browned and no longer pink, stirring to crumble turkey into pieces. Add taco seasoning and stir to coat turkey with spices. Add beer and reduce the heat to simmer until the liquid has been mostly absorbed; remove from heat and set aside to cool briefly.

Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and scatter tortilla chips in an even layer. Combine tomatoes, green onions and jalapeños in a small bowl. Using a spoon, top chips with turkey, beans and the tomato mixture. Top with cheese and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until cheese is melted. Top with cilantro and serve immediately.

Recipe of the Week...Almond Brown Rice Pudding

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup pitted dates 
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice 
• 4 cups unsweetened vanilla almondmilk 
• 1/2 cup raisins 
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/2 cup toasted, chopped slivered almonds 

Method: 

Place dates in a bowl and pour 1/2 cup boiling water over them. Let soak 15 minutes, then transfer dates and water to a blender and puree until smooth to make a date syrup. Meanwhile, bring rice and almondmilk to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until rice is cooked and has absorbed most of the almondmilk, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.

Stir date syrup, raisins, vanilla extract, almond extract, cinnamon and almonds into rice and serve warm.

An Argument Against Supplements

I am not telling you not to take supplements.  I am not a doctor.  It is possible that one may have a vitamin or mineral deficiency, and a supplement could be helpful ie. iron.  However, I am asking you to think about it and consider something more important.

What does the word supplement even mean?  It has to do with adding to, in addition to one's normal dietary intake.  Supplements of vitamins and minerals are a multi-billion dollar industry and are not the panacea of good health.  Many cause health problems.  Vitamin and mineral supplements are extracted or even synthetically produced.  Our bodies were not designed and have not evolved to consume extracted vitamins and minerals, much less those that are synthetically manufactured.  

Our bodies were designed to consume vitamins and minerals not in isolation but in a mysterious integration in food.  Science is only beginning to scratch the surface in terms of understanding how a food and the integration of all the nutrient components work.  But, we do know this: regular exercise + eating a diet full of whole foods vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans, seeds and whole grains does produce health and wellness in human beings.  

Before spending your money on supplements, or falling for the claims of supplements and constantly changing media reports, think about what is truly the best medicine.  It is moving one's body in all ranges of movement and getting one's heart rate up.  It is eating whole foods, mainly vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans, seeds, whole grains and occasionally animal products and dairy.  We know this works.  In Dan Buettner's study of the "blue zones" which are areas where the populace has the highest rates of centenarians in the world, the key has not been supplements.  It has been regular exercise typically common to the moving required in caring for a garden and house work + eating whole foods.  It is not the same whole foods or percentages of proteins, carbohydrates, fats or calorie counting in these blue zones, but it is simply eating whole foods in the diversity that is available in their geographic area and how that culture develops recipes around those whole foods. 

It takes time.  It takes planning.  You must be intentional.  It takes discipline to eat a diet of whole foods in a society filled with refined and processed foods and the same goes for exercise - BUT - the best medicine and the best supplement is exercise + whole foods.  Begin making it your lifestyle at some level that you know you can be successful with and build from there. 

Don't Stop Eating Meat...

Don't stop eating meat, but do consider no longer consuming meat produced in a CAFO.  What is a CAFO??? It stands for "confined animal feeding operation" and essentially turns raising animals into a factory product focused on short term profit as the ultimate goal.  Therefore, the lives of CAFO raised animals is short and cruel. You may be wondering what are some specific examples.  Are you really ready?

The animals live much shorter lives generally coinciding with the animals productivity and size relative to profit.  The animals live in very tight pens that do not allow for normal healthy movement often crippling the animals. The animals are not free to move and eat the diet that is natural to them moving freely in a grass field. To assist the animals in achieving slaughter weights more quickly, growth hormones may be used as well as feeds that are not natural to the animal.  The conditions often lead to disease so the animals are then in need of pharmaceuticals and antibiotics.  Unnatural lighting cycles do not mimic the normal rhythm of the night and day and are used to increase production.  The smell of these living conditions that comes from living in too close of quarters and the abnormal amount of manure per square foot would turn any of us away from eating meat produced in this fashion.  

What are some of the ramifications of consuming CAFO produced meat other than a cheaper price at the cash register?  And remember, that cheaper price is an illusion when one considers the costs from a deeper sense of economics.  

The environmental costs are enormous and include soil loss, groundwater contamination, deforestation, increases in the use of fossil fuels and the depletion of deep aquifers.  According to Dr. David Pimentel of Cornell University, the World Bank and the UN Food & Ag Organization CAFO based animal production is a much more inefficient use of resources:

• CAFO protein production requires 8x as much fossil fuel as plant protein
• CAFO livestock consumes 5x as much grain as the US human population
• CAFO beef production requires 100,000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of beef vs. 1 kg of wheat requires just 900 liters of water
• CAFO raised animals according to the United Nations are responsible for 80% of deforestation to create new farmland in the tropics, ie. Amazon
• CAFO livestock produce 18% to 51% of total global warming greenhouse gases   

Consider the Ogallala water aquifer in our own midwest.  It is situated under eight states: South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas.  It is big!  But it is threatened severely.  This aquifer provides the majority of water used in these eight states  for residential, industrial and agricultural use.  We are presently using the water from the Ogallala aquifer faster than the rains can replenish it.  Not only are we using it too fast by supporting CAFO animal production but we are polluting the aquifer with chemicals that negatively effect human health, wild animal health and their ecosystems.   

CAFOs not only destroy environmental resources but we are feeding these CAFO animals grain that could be used to feed our world's poor and starving peoples. The calories from this grain could be used to feed people rather than mass produced animal protein.  

So, what am I asking you to do?  I am not asking you to stop eating meat.  But, I am asking you to consider purchasing meat from local farmers that are raising animals in a natural and sustainable manner.  Will this be more expensive?  Yes, but only at the point of purchase at the cash register.  When one considers a deeper sense of economics, it is less expensive.  We are paying for CAFO meat not just at the cash register but in taxes that goes to environmental clean up, health insurance costs and our personal health.  Local, sustainably raised meat and dairy is environmentally and socially more responsible, but it is also simply healthier meat. Animals that eat a diversity of grasses and bugs rather than a diet of grain, which is not even the natural feed of these animals, are more nutrient dense, have higher levels of omega 3 fatty acids, are lower in fat, lower in total calories, and have healthier cholesterol ratios.  It does not mean you need to spend more on meat.  A great way to keep your budget on target is to spend the same amount on meat but simply eat smaller portions of meat and eat meat less often but when you do you are eating better tasting, more healthy meat and caring for our shared world better.  Eating less meat also means you will be healthier when you replace those calories with a diversity of plants.  

Think about it.  

Recipe of the Week...Quinoa with Balsamic Roasted Mushrooms

Ingredients: 

• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 
• 1 pear, peeled, cored and cut into chunks 
• 1 garlic clove, halved 
• 2 pounds portobello mushrooms, stemmed and gills scraped out 
• 1 cup red or white quinoa 
• 3 cups tightly packed fresh spinach, chopped 
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced 
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds, toasted 
• 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 475°F.

Put vinegar, mustard, pear and garlic in a blender with 1/3 cup water and blend until smooth, about 1 minute, to make the dressing. Cut mushrooms into chunks and combine in a large mixing bowl with 1/4 cup of the dressing. Spread mushrooms in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until tender, stirring occasionally, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.

While mushrooms roast, prepare quinoa. In a medium pot, bring 1 3/4 cups water to a boil. Stir in quinoa, cover pot, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove pot from heat and set aside, covered, 10 minutes more. Uncover and fluff quinoa with a fork.

Combine mushrooms, quinoa, spinach, green onions, almonds, salt, pepper and 1/2 cup more dressing in a large, wide serving bowl. Stir to mix well. Serve with remaining dressing on the side.

Tea

In the East tea has been a staple beverage for thousands of years and is believed to be a key to health.  The term "tea" is often used in a very broad manner; however, the true teas originate from Camellia Sinesis which is a plant native to China and India.  These true teas would include green, black, white, oolong, and pu-erh.  The key health component of tea appears to be the flavonoids which fight free radicals that contribute to heart related diseases, clogged arteries and even cancer.  Tea has low levels of caffeine that typically do not affect sleep patterns but do boost mental acuity.

More specifically research demonstrates the following:

1.       Green Tea – The antioxidants in green tea appear to disrupt the growth of the following cancers: bladder, breast, lung, stomach, pancreatic, and colorectal.  The risk of stroke, clogged arteries, and high cholesterol is reduced in regular green tea drinkers.  The rate of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease is lower in green tea drinkers as well. 

2.       Black Tea – Black tea has the highest caffeine content and is made from fermented tea leaves.  Black tea provides lung and stroke protection.

3.       White Tea – Unprocessed white tea may have the most potent anti-cancer properties.

4.       Oolong Tea – Oolong tea is helpful in reducing high cholesterol.

5.       Pu-erh – Pu-erh tea may help to maintain healthy body weight and lowers unhealthy LDL cholesterol.  It is a fermented tea made from black tea leaves. 

Herbal teas are made from plants other than Camellia Sensis and include herbs, roots, leaves, fruits, and seeds.  There are too many to list; however, some common herbal teas include chamomile, red tea, ginger, and jasmine.  These herbal teas are varied but are full of different nutrients, and when steeped it is like drinking a very healthy soup.  Some of the claims are not supported by science, for example, chamomile fighting the common cold; but, the fluids consumed by someone who has a cold and the healthy nutrients are certainly good for us.  Adding a sweetner like honey, agave or sugar is fine occasionally as a treat, but developing a taste for straight tea is best.  

Recipe of the Week...Creamy Tropical Smoothie

Ingredients: 

• 2 cups unsweetened cashewmilk 
• 1 cup frozen mango chunks 
• 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks 
• 1 1/2 tablespoons melted coconut oil 

Method: 

Combine cashewmilk, mango, pineapple and coconut oil in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into 2 tall glasses.

Nature versus Nurture

What is the biggest key to our nutrition?  Is it nature – genes?  Or, is it nurture – exposure to various environmental catalysts?  When we look at disease the big three are cancer, heart related diseases and diabetes.  Heart disease and Type 2 diabetes can truly be avoided and reversed with proper eating habits and regular exercise.  Cancer is the scary one.  Cancer seems to be a genetic ticking time bomb.  This is true in some cases, but it is important to understand a bit more.  

Cancer is not necessarily preventable through proper nutritional habits; however, nutrition is a predominant factor.  Genetics is not the straight, causal line that we are sometimes led to believe.  Nutrition can alter gene expression and mitigate symptoms.   Nutrition affects the way our bodies respond to damaged or mutated genes.  Genes are the “nature” or starting point for the health and disease continuum, but they are not necessarily unalterable or fixed.

We have all read percentages connected to preventing cancer.  The following are actual figures: not smoking prevents 90% of all lung cancer, a proper diet prevents 30% of all lung cancer, and avoiding air pollution prevents 15% of all lung cancer.   Any grade school child can add these figures together and come up with 135% chance to prevent lung cancer.  I like those odds.  Certainly not smoking, eating healthfully and avoiding air pollution are healthy habits.  We have also read studies of carcinogens and many of these studies are conducted in lab rats / mice.  Species to species extrapolation has many confounding limitations.  The point is that risk does not actually exist as an objective reality.   These numbers are dictated by how much we presently know and a lot more by how much we don’t know, and there is a lot that we do not know.

According to Ph.D Colin Campbell a Cornell professor and researcher - Nutrition has far more influence on health and disease than any other single factor.  

What do we know?  Since World War II cancer, heart disease, and diabetes rates have increased in dramatic proportions.  The standard American diet in conjunction with an ever increasing sedentary lifestyle is the biggest reason for the increases in these diseases.  We know the main cause.   

Sadly we have become a culture that views eating a diet consisting of primarily vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains and taking a 30 minute walk every day as more radical than consuming pharmaceuticals with a host of negative side effects, surgeries, radiation and chemo.  These are reactive responses and last resort interventions.   In no way am I casting guilt or blame on anyone who is suffering, but I am hoping we will truly consider what we can control.

We know that just taking a multivitamin and a supplement of the macronutrients protein, carbohydrate and fat will not support life and in many cases these supplements cause serious problems.  We know that whole foods are doing things in a way that we don’t fully understand yet - and may never completely understand.  There is no "one size fits all" solution, but whole foods focused on vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, seed, and whole grains and in that order is our offense and defense.  

Whole food plant based nutrition is the best proactive disease management system and does not come with any negative side effects.  

Give it a try.

How the Chin Up can Change your Life

Martin Rooney is a friend of mine from college where we were both athletes at Furman University. He was and is a great athlete. He threw the javelin with the hopes of making it to the olympics. Unfortunately the dream did not come true, but in true Martin style he did not give up.  Instead he switched to bobsled.  He trained with Hershel Walker and Willie Gault in the olympic trials - pretty cool!  Martin owns Training for Warriors.  It is a bit more intense than what we do at Forte, but for those wired to go hard it is awesome stuff.  I believe this link to Martin's blog is common and can be an encouragement to many.