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  • humor

    Bill Cosby: You can turn painful situations around through laughter. If you can find humor in anything, even poverty, you can survive it. I posted a quick tweet to alert folks about the PB&J sandwiches post.https://twitter.com/gabekapler/status/477251316452818944Sometimes when I tweet, I hit send and immediately think “Why on earth would you say something so … [Read…

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  • First Steps

    “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” –MLK Jr. My current schedule has me training with heavy weights on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and running sprints on Thursdays and Sundays. On Tuesdays and Saturdays, I walk. I don’t have a set distance or time.  I just go.  For me,…

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  • Working Smart: Speed and Power

    Endurance training for a baseball player is illogical. We are not endurance athletes. I remember a mentor of mine telling me I needed to “pound the pavement” to prepare for spring training. He was a former MLB player, and I trusted his guidance. He believed that distance running gets a player ready from a cardiovascular…

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  • ginger

    If you’ve followed the blog, you know my take on supplements. I’m not a fan. They’re dangerous, because they’re highly processed and poorly regulated. They’re expensive. These supplements also have a more pernicious effect. Taking supplements lulls you into a pattern of poor decisions and subsequently diminished health.If I believe I can get my nutrition from a…

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  • shoulders

    The bench press is the most essential upper body move for overall strength, power and muscular development. It has also inspired the world’s most ridiculous question: Man, how much can you bench?This query is both embarrassing and meaningful. The amount of weight an athlete can move off of his or her chest translates directly to…

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  • A Cure for the Comedy Allergy

    Bill Cosby: You can turn painful situations around through laughter. If you can find humor in anything, even poverty, you can survive it. I posted a quick tweet to alert folks about the PB&J sandwiches post. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches aren't for everyone. Wait, that was silly. Yes, they are. http://t.co/BPCJSRz42S — gabe kapler…

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  • dumbbell snatch

    I love the dumbbell snatch. It’s one of the exercises I perform simply because enjoy it. I dig the sensation of moving the weight fast and the sting when my feet hit the floor.Lucky for me, the dumbbell snatch translated perfectly to baseball. Picture Andrelton Simmons going from an athletic position to leaping up to,…

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  • self-image

    We train for many reasons, but sometimes the process itself breeds confidence.Roughly 30 days ago, we (that’s me, Ben Lindbergh and some of you) began a 30 day calf-workout-challenge-thingy. If you haven’t been reading daily, shame on you. Read this and rejoin us.I’m sure you, like me, have been diligent and made it through to…

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  • sample routines

    Every Thursday and Sunday for the last year, I’ve gone through the same sprint workout. This time, I find myself dreading following that routine. A warm-up followed by four 100s, four 60s and four 40s…I can’t do it today. I need something different. From business2community.com: Ask anyone who fell off the bandwagon with their New Year’s…

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  • sweet potatoes

    I grub on Japanese sweet potatoes almost daily. I’ve made a bunch of new friends since January 8th, so I won’t assume you know why this is my carb of choice. Go ahead, catch up with this post and then rejoin the OGs (original gangsters, newbie).Lately, there have been two issues bugging me when it…

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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