Last week, I invited your questions and promised to reply to some of them on Saturday. Well, here we are. I wish we could do this in person over a cup of coffee. A man can dream. Here goes.

Mike says:

Kap, great news on the Q&A, I seem to only ask questions that may only be relevant to your older mass gaining train of thought, but do you or did you ever monitor total caloric intake and if so what were the ranges you shot for when either trying to lose or gain weight? I understand body types are different but what worked for you? I feel you have an extremely deep understanding of this side of exercise and nutrition that we have not been exposed to. Thanks!

Hey, Mike.

I have never counted calories. However, if I’m feeling heavy, I’m apt to remind myself to stop eating before becoming full. Here’s what I wrote in a post on the topic several months back:

The indigenous people of the Ryuku Islands, Okinawa in particular, are best known for having the world’s longest life expectancy. Theses folks have a rule known as “Hara Hachi Bu,” which essentially translates as eat until you’re 80% full. They generally enjoy better health than we western cats do.

I generally feel lighter on my feet and more energetic when I’m following this line.

On the other side of the coin, if I’m feeling weak in the squat rack or just skinny in general, I’ll add an egg and apple or a piece of humanely raised and slaughtered animal flesh to one of my meals.

This is certainly not scientific. It’s my feel and what works for me.

Do you, brother.

Kap

Tom St.Clair says:

Kap, my question comes as a parent of an athlete. What is your opinion on how much do you push your son or daughter. With respect to training, diet and academics? My concern is getting my son to realize his full potential.

Oooohhh, Tom. This is a biggie and highly variable. I model behavior whenever possible.

Here’s an example:

I notice my 14 year old QB hasn’t been keeping up with his throwing program. Instead of jumping him with something like, “Chase, you better get out there and throw. You’re going to lose power,” I might try bringing my own workouts into a conversation with him.

“Chase, I have a goal to run the 60 yard dash in 6.8 seconds. I know what I have to do to get there. I need to practice my form daily, be consistent with my squat routine and make sure I’m getting enough nutritional density with every meal. I know that if I follow my program, I’ll reach my sprint goal. What are you training for?”

I know the answer to my question. My mission is to make him think. I know he will ponder his football career and throwing program.

The final piece of the puzzle is making sure he knows about it when I take action.

“Chase, headed out to do my squats, see you in a bit.”

I fully trust that he will follow suit. Not necessarily immediately, but in just the right time for him.

Hope this example helps,

Kap

Susan Altman says: 

I would love your take on the energy of foods, especially the energetic impact of different animal proteins on your body. Maybe a bit on food combining as well? I am curious about how this effects your food choices – or not. As always, much appreciated.

Hey, Susan.

I’ve paid pretty close attention to the topic of food and its energy since some folks close to me went through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition program. The curriculum is heavily focused on your area of interest (wink).

I know you’ve been following the blog for some time, and I know you’re aware that many of my opinions are science and evidence based. That doesn’t mean that I’m not very much in tune with how my body feels when I look at, smell, taste and hold food.

When I crack open an egg in the morning, I notice the subtle or obvious differences in size, color and shape of the yolk. I share the belief with you, it seems, that an animal raised on its natural diet, in a stress free environment and slaughtered humanely will inherently be healthier. Thus, I will be ingesting flesh with a more “positive” nutritional and energetic profile.

While I’m focused first on how to most effectively enjoy the experience of eating, I quickly shift to understanding how the food ‘works’ in my body. I do this through research and trial and error.

As you know, there are numerous posts on this blog devoted to the animal proteins I ingest regularly. I sense, however that I have answered your different, more pointed question.

Take care, Susan.

Kap

Chester says:

Lifestyle choices of MLB’er during the off-season. Are you free to do whatever (legally)? Are there contractual terms forbidding things like climbing, skiing, etc? Or does management pull a player aside and remind a player to make the right off-season choices with their body, because the player needs to “protect their asset” (no pun intended)? Just kinda curious.

Chester,

These activities are addressed in the contracts. Players are not permitted to take part in dangerous sports. This is perfectly sensible.

Imagine Clayton Kershaw decides to take a snowboarding adventure on the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He’s a great athlete, and after his second lesson, he’s ready to venture out on his own. He’s also a risk taker, so he decides to tackle a double black diamond run. When he gets off the lift, he’s scared but goes anyway. That’s courage, right? His balance is amazing, but that ultimately hurts him as he’s able to stay on his feet and pick up an insane amount of speed. He’s travelling at 42.3 MPH when he catches an edge and tumbles 145 yards before landing in a snow bank. Uh oh, he suffers an injury which forces him to miss an entire season. The Dodgers are paying him $30M for his innings, which he is now unable to provide.

Need I say more?

Kap

Friends,

I’m fully aware that many questions from our open thread remain. I will continue to get to as many as I can. Use this thread for new thoughts.

Much love,

Kap