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  • Protein Powder Alternatives

  • Underappreciated Hip Hop

    I’ve said it before, this is a lifestyle blog. Art is well within our theoretical boundaries. Practically, we have no walls anyhow. Let’s talk music. Any true fan of hip-hop digs the activity of ranking their top ten albums of all time. Clearly, this is a subjective activity. Music is art. We love what we love and cannot…

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  • The Pursuit of Perfection

    Sometimes, it’s healthier to go easy on yourself instead of stressing out about perfection. I was reminded of this lesson’s significance over the weekend. Allow me to set the stage. I had to catch a flight to Minneapolis for the All-Star Game and got a little backed up on time. I didn’t have the resources…

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  • breakfast

    I celebrated the opening of the new year with a snowboarding adventure in Whitefish, Montana.Because I flat out love food and hate wasting a meal, relying solely on airport food wasn’t going to cut it.  Packing some nutrition for the hours prior to getting settled in the sleepy little mountain town was an absolute must.In…

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  • sample recipe

    I fully recognize that I maintain somewhat restrictive dietary habits. I also have two teenage sons (almost; my younger son turns 13 in November). I encourage their love of food by preparing things they’ll thoroughly dig eating. Eating rules.One of the many advantages of this arrangement is gleefully experiencing indulgences through my young men. I…

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  • protein

    Powders are for snorting. If you want protein, you should be eating real food.You know my views on shortcuts, and protein powders undoubtedly belong in that blender. I get my protein in a form my body recognizes, via the flesh of humanly raised animals. But I’ve finally cracked. For you, not for me, I’ve researched…

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  • motivation

    We are not responsible for the health and well being of our loved ones. We can support them and lead by example, but their fitness levels are unequivocally up to them.We recently opened up a Q&A at Kaplifestyle. The response was overwhelming.  There are so many phenomenal questions on the thread; I don’t know how…

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  • motivation

    Stalling out achieving your training goals? Work out with a partner.How many times does this happen to you? I stare at the squat rack while picking up my phone, I tweet something meaningless about John Coltrane, then check my email, back to twitter. I stroll to the water fountain for a drink, then waltz back…

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  • calories

    Spending each day pushing awkwardly with one leg, squatting, swiveling the hips – it sounds less like fun and more like work.   I realized, however, my recent snowboarding trip could have very well posed as a health spa vacation.I don’t believe that calories are a good place to focus attention, but they can paint a…

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  • Eating Healthy on a Budget

    I headed to Cal State Fullerton out of high school, baseball scholarship in hand. I found myself living in a dorm room as a young 18 year old with no clue how to be a man. Everything was new, and I was totally unaware how nutrition would impact me, either on the field or in…

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  • sugar

    A friend recently asked me if I have a sweet tooth. The answer is unequivocally yes!What I’ve found, however, is when we change our lifestyle to remove nearly all the added, refined sugar from our diets, real food begins to taste sweet. We can satisfy our desire for decadence in a manner consistent with our…

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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