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  • Protein Powder Alternatives

  • Refueling with Chocolate Milk?

    The post-workout meal is an essential part of improving fitness and building strength. The body needs to repair and replenish itself after breaking down muscles during a workout.  Thirty minutes to an hour after training, your body needs proteins and carbohydrates to grow. Healthy fats encourage vitamin absorption and restore energy levels. In doing my…

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  • Strengthen Your Core with Planks

    Sit-ups are not ideal for your body. Planks are a solid substitute to replace them. From Harvard Health Publications: One reason is that sit-ups are hard on your back — by pushing your curved spine against the floor and by working your hip flexors, the muscles that run from the thighs to the lumbar vertebrae…

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  • “The Jackie” Crossfit Workout

    I just completed my 5 x 5 workout with a new twist, and I’m anxious to share the results. As you might remember, I recently decided to press the pause button on my squats after my right hip started cursing like an inebriated seaman. It’s been about a calendar week since I last dropped my…

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  • Open Thread: Week 28

    Welcome to our 28th edition of the weekly open thread. Boston writes in: I’ve been a follower of KL for a while now and enjoy you sharing everything. You seem to end up discussing topics that I am interested in hearing about. I have a question about children and technology. I think it’s important to…

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  • Finding a Gym on a Budget? Think Creatively

    If you’re on a budget, finding a gym with the equipment you need requires some creativity and ingenuity. After reading through the comments posted by some folks after I penned this a few days ago, I wish we were all in the same room to discuss. In this moment, I’m as inspired as I’ve ever…

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  • Grind Your Own Coffee

    In an effort to cross the finish line of the caffeinating race with you, we started with a discussion of the French press. Now, I’m adding in one more small recommendation. Get a coffee bean grinder. We go to great lengths to produce a delightful cup of coffee for our daily fresh start. To maximize…

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  • Grind Your Own Coffee

    In an effort to cross the finish line of the caffeinating race with you, we started with a discussion of the French press. Now, I’m adding in one more small recommendation. Get a coffee bean grinder. We go to great lengths to produce a delightful cup of coffee for our daily fresh start. To maximize…

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  • Almond versus Peanut Butter

    In Little League, everyone’s a winner. In the battle of almond versus peanut butter, we’re not teaching sportsmanship, but we don’t really need to crown a champion, either. In order to have an intelligent discussion on this topic, let’s state the obvious – this discussion is about the virtues of almonds and peanuts; their form…

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  • Sweet Thursday – Break the Cravings (Epic Bar Review)

    We have trained ourselves to reach for a sweet snack between meals. Break this behavior chain and you will find yourself with a world of convenient options for that 3pm craving. You know I rarely review products, but I do enjoy the tasting process. When I discover a new commodity that captures my attention, I…

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  • Open Thread: Week 33

    Let’s kick this off with a question from Mike: What’s your opinion on using a hex bar for your deadlifts? Hey, brother. I don’t use the hex bar at all. The straight bar is more difficult and allows you to move more freely and easily. From AZcentral.com: Hex bar deadlifts require less mobility than regular…

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I aim to plan and consciously choose all of my indulgences. I have the knowledge and willpower to do so, but occasionally, I will have a substantial misfire.

I was in Boston, my home away from home, for the 2004 World Series reunion. I splurged nutritionally as I had intended, but I didn’t map out my large nutritional stumble while watching the game.

I had it all pre-navigated. My two men (12 and 14) and I love to experience travel through food. We think it’s the most efficient and interesting way to explore the culture of a city. We discussed the trip ahead of time and decided on three restaurants where we would fully indulge and eat like kings. We’d start with the team dinner at a fine steak and seafood house, follow it up with breakfast the next morning at a bakery, and finish it out with lunch at a tapas joint in the South End.

The first night the three of us shared bone in filets, swordfish steaks, oysters, giant shrimp, crab cakes, lamb chops, chocolate cake, apple crisps and cold vanilla ice cream. I enjoyed a few glasses of whiskey, neat, and my boys drank Sprite. We left the restaurant 1 for 1. Remember, this indulgence was planned.

The next morning, we went to a bakery suggested by a Boston-based chef friend. The boys picked up scones and French toast; I scored big with a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich on a crusty roll with spinach and tomato. The bite came complete with a Dijon mustard finish that struck a chord with me, managing to last all day. 2 at bats, 2 knocks.

After mobbing around on the T train all morning, making our way to Harvard and back to Downtown Crossing, we landed at our destination for lunch, Toro. Theo Epstein made the recommendation after I mentioned that my boys and I were on a food adventure. This is the guy who went out to get the “washed up” 2002 version of David Ortiz, so he’s proven his scouting mettle. If he thinks it’s a worthwhile trip, I’ll take his advice.

Back to food.

Rather than turn this post into a restaurant review, I’ll keep it simple. I had an out of body experience. Every small plate that arrived was visually captivating and stunning on the palate. We sprinted the gamut. From spicy curry beef empanadas to cauliflower with golden raisins and pine nuts to the pièce de résistance, roasted bone marrow with radish citrus salad and oxtail marmalade. This dish, holy fuck. Our waiter described it exquisitely as “like rich, hot, beef flavored butter.” I was now 3 for 3 and ready for my final at bat.

A theme throughout this entire trip was advance planning. My first mistake was not preparing for this final meal. I figured my boys and I would just eat at the ballpark and didn’t put much thought into it. I knew that the options would be plentiful and come in large quantities. I wasn’t necessarily wrong, but I quickly got off course.

I was running around at Fenway from this place to that, answering questions and meeting folks. My boys were on their own and already up in the suite by the time I arrived around the start of the first inning. They had eaten pizza, snacks and fruit, totally what I expected for them. I walked in starving, my second mistake.  I reached for a plate and piled on decent looking veggies, a huge mound of guacamole, and the only available protein, stale fried chicken strips. I could have reached into my bag and opened a can of wild caught salmon. I didn’t. My defenses were down. I hadn’t snacked. I ingested that garbage and suffered strike one.

You know my stance on processed foods. Those frozen chunks of flour covered meat product provide little nutritional value. I had already experienced a whirlwind day filled with emotion and exertion, and the pizza under the heat lamp began to look lovely.

I advocate indulgence, but I advocate planned, quality indulgence. This was neither. I scarfed down a piece and the drugs hit my bloodstream. I couldn’t chew fast enough. Strike two.

The final pitch of the at bat came in and I chased it. I scarfed down a few more slices, knowing even as I did so that it wasn’t my finest hour.

3 for 4. In baseball that’s a hell of a day. Nutritionally, I expect 4 for 4s from myself almost always. I’m in control, so the high bar is appropriately set. Rather than dwell on it, I’ll do what Manny tells us to do after a rough at bat. “Turn the page, papi.”

I write this from the plane the following morning. I’ve turned the page. Today, I’ve ingested steel cut oats, fresh organic blueberries, a pile of kale, a chunk of a ham steak, a few fresh scrambled eggs and organic black coffee.

In my bag, I have a large salad with tons of fresh veggies, almonds, chicken, organic Hannah yams. I also still have that wild salmon I passed over for pizza in a box.

I’m back on track. I remember last night’s at bat and will make the adjustment without carrying the emotion of yesterday over into today’s game.

I hope you’ll share your stories of strikeouts or home runs in the comments section below.

Kap