April 2015

We’ve been discussing naps frequently around here. I’m fascinated by the idea of improving cognitive function, boosting hormone production and generally becoming more effective in life by simply taking a break and napping.

Today, I’m curious about how to optimize for good sleep. More specifically, I’m mining for what sort of surface is ideal for the most Zs. We can’t always be assured of a bed for an afternoon nap, so we must be resourceful and not let obstacles distract us from our goal.

Yesterday afternoon, I lay on the floor in my office as has been my practice for several days straight. Shades drawn, feet up on a chair, I closed my eyes and rested. As the minutes passed, I drifted off into a very light, barely identifiable sleep. There was nothing beyond that. I was up and working 30 minutes later. This was not my desired outcome. Rather, I’d like to grab 45 minutes of real, uninterrupted REM and deep sleep. The good stuff.

The other day, I grabbed myself this product for my afternoon slumbers at work. I logically figured that I could roll it up and stick it in the corner when I’m not napping. Will this be the surface that has me seeing the green butterfly from the Lunesta commercials (our drug companies are clever, huh)?  It seems there may not be conclusive evidence to suggest that I’m doing myself a favor. From zafu.net:

When I researched for months trying to find an intelligent, scientific article on what type of bed will provide deep, rejuvenating sleep, I could not find it. None of the research seems to know specifically anything about this–in other words, the statements are not definitive and claims are not backed up, or are backed up with dubious studies. Even the terms ‘comfort’, ‘soft’, and ‘healthy’ are not defined. No studies measure the important health indicators, like pulse, heart rate, levels of stress hormones as related to the type of surface being used.

I’ve done my own digging and haven’t found a study that satisfies me, either. At this point, I’ll trust logic. I’m guessing that if I’m more comfortable, I’ll rest easier. Perhaps my purchase will help. Frankly, this floor is exceptionally hard, and it won’t take much to elevate the pleasure of my experience, at least incrementally.

Value at the margins,

Kap

Stress may kill, but stressful situations can bring out the absolute best in us. If we can identify our heightened sense of focus in emotionally elevated situations while staying below our personal redlines, we can use our stress like a powerful drug. From artofmanliness.com:

If you’re like many people, you likely experienced small cognitive and physical breakdowns due to fear and stress. Whenever we encounter stressful situations, our body is flooded with hormones that elevate our heart rate to prime us to fight or flee. Our bodies become aroused and ready for action – a good thing. But if we get too amped up, our physical and cognitive skills fall apart – a very bad, potentially dangerous thing.

For a baseball player, the ultimate goal is to be just amped up enough that we are mentally aroused, but not so much so that we chase pitches at our shoe tops or become tight in our deliveries. Of course, we’ve all heard the antiquated, unscientific crap that sports psychologists tout. “Find the zone” and other generic mantras aren’t what we do around here.

Several sports performance researchers during the 1970s and 1980s found that athletes experienced increases and decreases in different motor skills at different stress-induced heart rates. For example, when heart rates reach above 115 beats per minute (BPM), fine motor skills, like writing, begin to deteriorate. However, when heart rates are between 115 and 145 BPM, complex motor skills, like throwing a football or aiming a gun, are at their peak. Cognitive functioning is also at its peak in this range. After 145 BPM, performance for complex motor skills begins to diminish, but gross motor skills like running and lifting remain at optimal levels. When heart rates go above 175 BPM, capacity for all skilled tasks disintegrates and individuals begin to experience catastrophic cognitive and physical breakdown.

The ability to use stress to our advantage is in no way unique to sports or training. How about an altercation with a loved one? What’s wrong with using an argument, with its subsequent elevated heartbeat, and putting it to good use?

Imagine you’re 22 years old and engaged in a shouting match with your brother over something trivial. You both say some things you don’t mean and walk away furious, hearts beating fast. If cognitive function is peaking in this moment, we may want to take some time and immediately write down some solution-based thoughts. Cognitive functions encompass reasoning, memory, attention and language. They point directly to the acquisition of information and, ultimately, knowledge. It’s possible that you’re at your peak capacity to solve whatever problem was causing friction. If you’re near a computer in that moment and decide to research the topic, you probably got smarter.

In order to use stress to our advantage, we first need to re-conceptualize how we think of it. From Shawn Achor, in The Happiness Advantage:

if we could get someone to change their mindset around stress to see it as a challenge instead of as a threat, they had 23% fewer stress-related symptoms like headaches, backaches and fatigue. The stress was still there but the effect upon the body was completely changed. So stress is inevitable but its effects on us are not.

Once we begin thinking of stress as something that can be used to our advantage, we can begin assessing our own individual responses. Just like with anger, we want to use our stress, not let it send us into an out-of-control tailspin. When the adrenaline begins to flood your body, acknowledge the reaction, harness it and use it to fuel positive, productive outcomes.

We’ve long known how to use our minds to push ourselves physically. We can also use the physiological reactions in our bodies to grow our intellectual muscles.

Stress is a prehistoric gift to us all. Let’s unwrap it.

Kap

I swear this post is about two things, the taste and health benefits of beef broth. There will be diversions along the way. Hang in there with me. It will all simmer (see?) down to these two focal points.

I’ve been making beef broth all day with bones from the ½ cow I have outside in my freezer. It tastes like butter. No bullshit, it’s the best I’ve ever sampled. I put more water over the bones and have two more pots simmering as we speak just to see if I could squeeze out some additional mind blowing flavor. I got the simple recipe and instructions from our know-it-all editor and my partner at Kaplifestyle, Stephanie. Here they are:

1. Turn your oven on to 450
2. Oil a roasting pan or baking sheet with olive oil
3. Season your beef bones with salt (rosemary is good here too)
4. Roast them in the oven for an hour, then check. They should be very browned, stuff should be on the bottom of your pan, and they should smell good. If those three things aren’t true, they need more time.
5. Pull them out of the oven and dump everything into a pot – bones, oil, juices, all of it. Then dump a cup full of water onto the sizzling hot pan and scrape up everything that stuck to the pan with a wooden spoon. Pour the water and the bits from the bottom of the pan into the pot.
6. Fill the pot with water, making sure all the bones are covered.
7. Put the pot on the stove at a very low temperature. You should see an occasional bubble break through the surface, but not much more than that. I usually toss in a handful of salt, a bay leaf or two, maybe some dried herbs (rosemary, thyme, oregano).
8. Wait. 12 hours is good. 24 is better. 48 is better than that. If you want to get fancy, in the last hour of cook time, add an onion (quartered), maybe a couple carrots, leek greens, garlic.
9. Strain it, let it cool, and refrigerate or freeze it.

If this jargon feels familiar, it’s because she walked me through a version of beef vegetable soup the other day when I was in Mammoth. That soup came out good. This is in another world. Granted, I have, as Steph puts it, “a high quality product to work with now.”

I’m not afraid to boast. Here it is:

ALL Novy Ranch cattle are born and raised entirely on our ranch. We raise our herd in large, open pastures with room to roam and places to hide from inclement weather or when a mother cow feels the need for privacy to give birth. They are never confined in feedlots, ever. In the winter months when grass is dormant, they are fed high quality hay (high protein) of mixed grasses and alfalfa and are provided straw to bed in. The ranch terrain itself provides areas of shelter from wind and weather with trees and hilly, lee-side areas, but in addition, we provide bunkers of large straw bales for the cows and calves to nestle in and behind. The cows love this. We know that caring for them well and reducing their stress enables them to produce a better product for you.

The better product unquestionably made for superior palatability. What about that health thing? I’m a believer in eating the bones of humanely raised and slaughtered or hunted animals. The broth made from those bones is nutritionally dense as well. From draxe.com:

Nutrition researchers Sally Fallon and Kaayla Daniel of the Weston A. Price Foundation explain that bone broths contain minerals in forms that your body can easily absorb: calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and others. They contain chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, the compounds sold as pricey supplements to reduce inflammation, arthritis and joint pain.

Maybe you want to skip the step of making the broth, go to Vons and grab a carton of broth, you sneaky devil. You want the short cut, don’t ‘cha? Go ahead, but be warned, it ain’t the same, partner.

Sally Fallon explains that most store bought “stock and “broth” today aren’t “REAL”. Instead, they use lab-produced meat flavors in bouillon cubes, soup and sauce mixes. Also, manufacturers began using monosodium glutamate (MSG), which is recognized as a meat flavor but in reality is a neurotoxin.

The MSG thing is a debate for another day, but most broths are heavily processed and filled with artificial ingredients. Even if you remove the science and just think logically, you want the collagen to ooze into your soups. This connective tissue is bountiful in bone, marrow, cartilage, tendons and ligaments. When we eat a steak or a burger, we don’t get that deliciousness. When an animal in the wild devours another, they don’t pause at the fleshy parts. Rather, they hunt the bones and crush the whole number. They love the taste for a reason. They have no clue that they are protecting themselves from disease, they simply know that shit is delectable. Nature knows what she’s doing. That woman is not only stunningly beautiful, she’s brilliant.

Here we are, back where we started. Taste, health, bones, broth.

Peace,

Kap

A few weeks back, I posted about replacing your vitamin C bottles with berries. If you’re looking for an added layer of protection against illness in the dead of winter, grab some squash, too. From whfoods.com:

Winter squash is one of the richest sources of plant based anti-inflammatory nutrients such as omega 3s and beta-carotene, which are important for a strong immune system to help protect against colds and flu.

You’ve been following the blog for a while, so you likely remember that I sliced grains from my habitual eating. I’ve mostly replaced them with additional sweet potatoes and yams; I’ve been eating two monster spuds daily. I don’t really tire of foods, but it’s nice to have an alternative if I need one.

The other day, my tremendously thoughtful ex-wife, Lisa, prepared an acorn squash for me. The sweetness was exquisite, the texture divine.  Most folks don’t know that you can eat the whole thing, skin and all. If baked correctly, the outer layer gets crisp and crunchy providing a splendid contrast to the starchy flesh of the veggie. In about six bites, I took down the entire beast. From everydayhealth.com:

When preparing squash, most people would opt to simply eat the flesh of this superfood. Newgent says that means missing out on vital antioxidants: Acorn squash skin provides an array of phytonutrient benefits plus fiber.

Acorn isn’t the only variety of squash in my house. I’ve got some butternut joints hanging around in my kitchen as well. A drizzle of olive oil, some coarse sea salt and into the oven they go for roughly 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Simple and ridiculously healthy. Buy the organic variety of this veggie whenever possible. It’s better for your system and our soil:

Winter squash is a vegetable that might be especially important for us to purchase organic. Recent agricultural trials have shown that winter squash can be an effective intercrop for use in remediation of contaminated soils. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), including pyrene, fluoranthene, chrysene, benzo(a)anthracene and benzo(a)pyrene are unwanted contaminants. PAHs are among the contaminants that can be effectively pulled up out of the soil by winter squash plants. When winter squash is planted as a food crop (as opposed to a non-food crop that is being planted between food crop seasons to help improve soil quality), the farmer’s goal is definitely not to transfer soil contaminants like PAHs up into the food. But some of that transfer seems likely to happen, given the effectiveness of winter squash in mobilizing contaminants like PAHs from the soil. For this reason, you may want to make a special point of purchasing certified organic winter squash. Soils used for the growing of in certified organic foods are far less likely to contain undesirable levels of contaminants like PAHs.

Speaking of seed planting and growing, when I was a young lad living in Reseda, CA, I used to tell my folks, “I want to write about winter squash when I grow up.”

Yup, just like I drew it up.

Kap

Warning! I’m going to be playful in this post. If you’re feeling sensitive, go read another washed up athlete’s blog.From Norah Jones: It’s him or me that’s what he said, But I can’t choose between a vegan and a pot head, So I chose you because you’re sweet, And you give me lots of lovin’ and you eat meat, And that’s how you became my only man of the hour I’ve been … [Read more…]

Life gets crazy. When you’re out and about tackling daily activities, sometimes you need to make a pit stop and grab easy nutrition. Ideally, this should just be to tide you over until your next meal.You know that the big fast food chains are loaded down with artificial ingredients and no redeeming nutritional value, but you spy a smoothie chain up ahead. Jamba Juice, … [Read more…]

This Thanksgiving, I find myself grateful for driven people.

We all need inspiration. Some of us find it through prayer, others through a good book or a movie about redemption. I find myself inspired by many things, but if you’ve been following the blog, you know that I find myself most invigorated by humans who put their minds and bodies to the test and then share with us how they’ve enhanced their lives as a result.

Thank you, Genevieve, for providing fuel for us all on this Thanksgiving Day, 2014.

I’m a Mixed Martial Arts competitor, and I love it.

I was a three sport athlete in high school. I followed that up by playing 3rd base for Hofstra University, a nationally ranked D-1 school. Training hard day in and day out was a normal thing for me, something I had done since I was 13 years old. When I graduated at 21, I no longer had the structured gym time. I found myself a little lost.

Like many people, I set out on my own; searching to replace what was lacking my life. I tried my own workouts and various classes at the local gym. Cardio kickboxing was fun for a bit, but after 3 weeks of the same routine, I was bored. I had won a few private boxing lessons at MPR Endurance in Fairless Hills, PA and decided to give it a try. I was looking for a good workout, and there was a decent number of MMA fighters and boxers who trained at this gym. There was really no downside.

I found myself hooked. A few boxing lessons led to Muay Thai, then Jiu-Jitsu. I followed that up with Judo and Sambo. Eventually, I found myself locked in a cage, an MMA fighter ready for battle. What began as a few free lessons ended up with me being close achieving my blue belt in Jiu-Jitsu. I have competed in 4 competitive Jiu-Jitsu tournaments and am preparing for my first MMA fight in the new year.

The physical benefits of Jiu-Jitsu are clear. It is an amazing sport and an unbelievable work out.  I am in better shape now and more conscious of how my body works training jiu-jitsu than I ever was as an athlete in college. It has been an intense process. Training for fights requires a rigorous 12+ week fight camp with multiple training sessions per day. I had to eat as healthy and clean as possible (alcohol is off limits; I will give a nice long pause for that one…).

All of that training culminates in three 6 minute rounds in a Jiu-Jitsu tournament or three 5-8 minute rounds in a cage fight. The physical training is critical, but the mental aspect may be more important. I would be lying if I said you don’t have any negative thoughts questioning your skills and strengths along the way.  It happens, but being a fighter is all mental toughness. Who wants it more? It is all right there in your hands (pun intended).

Learning this sport gave me back that competitive edge I was searching for since graduating college. I remember being a bit nervous during the national anthem, but once I threw my first fielded ball across the diamond, it was game on. Being out there competing has always been inspiring to me. More importantly, I learned that the toughest part that it is you and only you competing. Softball was a team sport. If you make an error, there was someone right next to you to pick you up. In the cage, the only person you can rely on is yourself.

Most people might think negatively about the sport of fighting, but out of all the sports I have played, these athletes are the most respectful people I have ever met. You both agree to go in there and test your skills through strikes, kicks, take downs and submissions. People look at me and say I can’t fight or that I never would. That adds way more ammo to my arsenal.  Fighting, and competing in these grappling tournaments, is the most competitive thing I could ever do as an athlete.

On a deeper level, as a female, it is extremely important to have an understanding of self-defense and the tools that you may need in the event you are faced with an attacker.  Jiu-jitsu teaches you how to protect yourself, work off your back and use an opponent’s body weight for leverage.

Ultimately, this sport has given back the piece of my life I was missing. When I am getting my cardio in, weight lifting and doing agility drills, I remind myself that if I don’t give it my all, my opponent is in another gym working 10 times harder. Jiu-jitsu increases your flexibility, targets your core, enhances your grip and improves your overall reaction time.  I encourage anyone who may be interested to try out a class and see what you think.  I really encourage females to learn the basics so they can be prepared in the event they ever need to use it in real life.  Jiu-jitsu has given me goals to strive for, the ability to compete again and has been a positive in my overall well-being and life.

Coconuts are a strong contributor to optimal health and well-being. Don’t take my word for it; ask August Engelhardt, a German author devoted to Cocovorism (I have no idea, but it has to do with coconuts) and Sun Worship:

Naked cocovorism is God’s will. The pure coconut diet makes man immortal and united with God. The sun cocovore man is the man, as he should be. The coconut is the Philosopher’s Stone.

Sure, the dude was way off his rocker. Absolutely batshit crazy. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t have a good idea or two about the value of crushing whole coconuts. Most folks prefer the parts rather than the whole.

Here’s a common conversation I’d have with a teammate during my playing days:

Them: Kap, what are your thoughts on coconut water?

Me: It’s fine, but why not use the whole coconut?

These exchanges were generally followed by an eye roll, loosely translated as, “Why on earth would you make my shortcut long?”

My pitch is simple. It’s worth the minimal extra effort. A coconut has several components, each with its own unique properties. From marksdailyapple.com:

The milk makes a great base for smoothies, soups, and curries; the oil is a great source of saturated fat that stands up well to heat; the water beats commercial sports drinks with its impressive electrolyte content; the nut itself can be used as a projectile weapon. It’s just a well-rounded, versatile food with some interesting characteristics and a ton of offshoot products.

I appreciate each component individually. You remember how I feel about coconut oil. The stuff is remarkably versatile. The water of the tropical nut can be heavenly. If you refrigerate a young coconut, for example, the drinkable portion is tremendously refreshing and will beat any boxed experience you’ll have. Think squeezing the juice of a stunning orange directly into your mouth vs. a carton of Tropicana. The flesh (that shredded stuff for you supermarket goers) is mildly sweet and, despite popular belief (fat is evil!), has splendid nutritional benefits. From superhumancoach.com:

Coconut and the products derived from it like coconut meat have been for years wrongly deemed as an unhealthy type of food because of its long known high saturated fat content. However, a growing body of recent studies have shown that the type of fats present in coconut meat are in fact medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs). When you eat coconut meat, the MCTs it contains are transported from the intestinal tract to the liver and immediately transformed into fuel. This then means there is very little MCTs left to circulate and deposit in fat tissues in the body.

C’mon now, challenge your assumptions. If your main aim is convenience (nothing wrong with that), you’re a marketers dream. If your goal is powerful life experience and supreme health and well-being, follow these simple steps:

1. Climb a coconut tree barefooted and use your machete (you can borrow mine) to chop down your choice.
2. Hack that bad boy open.
3. Eat and drink to the point of contentment.
4. Smear the remains on your skin and jump in the ocean.

Got a little carried away today.

Forgive me,

Kap

B vitamins are a critical part of maintaining your health. Luckily, you can grab them from a variety of natural sources. Look to dark leafy greens, fish, cantaloupe, poultry, meat, eggs, dairy…getting the picture? Needles do not reside on this list. You needn’t seek out shots for your nutrient…shot.I regularly weight train at a boutique gym in Malibu (the creatively dubbed … [Read more…]

Warning! I’m going to be playful in this post. If you’re feeling sensitive, go read another washed up athlete’s blog.From Norah Jones: It’s him or me that’s what he said, But I can’t choose between a vegan and a pot head, So I chose you because you’re sweet, And you give me lots of lovin’ and you eat meat, And that’s how you became my only man of the hour I’ve been … [Read more…]