I have been noticing as of late a great movement when it comes to health in general. I love this movement because it seems everything is going in the direction of understanding. There are facts about health we didn't know about per say a decade ago or even a couple of years ago. Let me break down some of these discoveries about health we have learned over the last ten years. Before, we thought fat in general is bad but now we know what fat is good, such as the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish, and what fats are bad, pretty much trans fat. Before, we thought a lot of hours of cardio is good for metabolism and losing weight but now we know the more lean muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn. In general terms, muscle burns fat. What I like the most about this movement is that we are moving into the "X" when it comes to health. That means we are understanding the "X" in excersizing, dieting, and now nutrition. To most people, the "X" means "extreme". However, people don't realize that the "X" is a variable and anything can be put into it. This means that any type of diet, excercize, or nutrient has a different effect on different people thus the open variable of "X" being used. This is what I mean by the "X" in health. We are understanding this variable more than ever when it comes to our health and it is showing. This article is about breaking down the "X" in health by dividing this article in three parts: workout, diet, and nutrition.
Now I am sure some of you are asking why I am doing this type of article. Why some of you were probably wondering what I was doing reviewing a workout system earlier today (Exercise Review: P90X) when this website is dedicated to mostly media. Well my boss Patrick has been expanding the horizons of ICE as of late. Besides my duties of free promotion of independent artists and dabbing my interest in all forms of media, I am a workout-a-holic. Most men's toy stores are either Home Depot or Best Buy. My toystore is GNC. That's right! I feel right at home around protein powders, vitamins, supplements, meal replacements, and mixed drink shakers. As a matter of fact, I am on a mission to be thin and tonned like I was in my younger years. I am aiming to be metro-gorgeous again. That's right! I said metro-gorgeous. If you didn't know, I'm a metro. Ask your girlfriend or friends who are girls what it means to be metro. Maybe that is why I am attracted to tomboys. (Grinning Face Here) Anyways, without any further disruption, here is the article on the "X" in health.
The "X" Workout
In our United States Society, more than half, almost 75% of our population doesn't workout the required number of times a week which is three. Also most people would usually do something inactive during their spare time instead of something proactive per say working on chores or yardwork, or even just working out. Playing a physical activity with friends is more proactive than just doing nothing by yourself. Because of this setup for most Americans not excercizing the recommended number of times a week plus their general lethargic attitudes mixed in with the two most dangerous diseases the American people in general have: vanity and greed, a lot of marketers have targeted people who aim to look good for the lowest price and the least amount of work. Enter the exercize gadgets and gizmos aplenty along with the marketing of the workout myth, spot reduction. I have seen so many different products promising so much but usually based off of spot reduction. Now trust me when I say this. The products work but not in the way the advertisers promote the item. Also, if you notice most infomercials on products, there is a huge amount of fine print on the bottom of the screen. Usually, the fine print will say something around the criteria of working out three times a week and eating a healthy diet. Coincidence? I don't think so.
Now, people are wising up thanks to Team Beachbody which is the website I go to for all my online support for working out and getting in shape. This company has shown more and more people how workouts should be. They even shown people that workouts can be ten minutes a day every day but it only works if you do these workouts with good form. As of late however, Team Beachbody has been pushing the variable of "X" to the extreme and that is what I like. These new workouts are pushing the limits that people put on themselves with an extreme set of workouts, and extreme nutritional diet, and sometimes extreme supplements and aids to assist in your workout voyage. The above video I have posted is how P90X was researched, created, and brought to millions of people, including me. I highly recommend P90X as a good start for extreme workouts because this workout started it all. The other two are based around the concept of muscle burning fat (ChaLEAN Extreme) and intense interval training (Insanity). All three of these workouts will push you to the limit and if you are commited and just keep pushing play and bringing it, you'll see results in either 90 days (P90X or ChaLEAN Extreme), 120 days (Optional - ChaLEAN Extreme), or even 60 days (Insanity). Yes sir! Thanks to Team Beachbody, the "X" is now being shown to the world as commitment instead of shortcut. Why even video games are getting into the mix with the Wii Fit and Jillian Michaels's Boot Camp games on the Wii.
The "X" Diet
Just like workout programs, I believe that our diets are drastically changing to the extreme as well. If you want to see proof of this, think about what fast food restaurants served to you as a kid and think of what they serve our kids now. Back in my day when I was a kid, which was the 1980s actually, McDonald's, Burger King, Taco Bell, and the whole fiasco of franchise fast food restaurants were not at all interested in health. Then it took the breaththrough performance from one of my heroes, Morgan Spurlock, to change all of that. What did he do? He ate McDonald's food for thirty days straight. Let's just say the results were terrible. I won't go into detail but lets just say because of him, fast food restaurants changed their menus drastically. First thing noticeable was the removal of the biggest option on value meals. That meant Supersize (McDonald's), Biggie Size (Wendy's), King Size (Burger King), Up Size (Hardee's), and any other form of sizing up was taken off the menu. Next, a lot more restaurants were incorpating healthier options and food choices. McDonald's now offers their Happy Meals with the option for children to have milk instead of soda as well as apples instead of fries. The apples are disgusting though and seem to be soaked in some sugar perservative I really don't take a liking to. Even special dine-in restaurants such as Applebee's and T.G.I.Friday's are showing healthier options by incorporating wither Weight Watchers or the Atkin's Diet into their menus.
My favorite movement when it comes to dieting are all the huge diets that emphasize a lot of science that works. I think the one everyone hears about is Nutrisystem. Now what science they enforce in their product is all their food being based on the glycemic index which is really good. Not a lot of people know about the glycemic index and it is actually kind of hard to follow through with. I personally have not been on Nutrisystem but I did have two of their lunches as a sample. My friend said the food tastes terrible to him but to me, I liked the lasagna but wasn't into the burger as much. I think its like playing Russian Roulette when you order the food at Nutrisystem. Some of them are good, and some of them are not. Now the movement in diet I prefer and love the most is shown in the video above. Team Beachbody made a shake that has all the vital nutrients and minerals your body needs and then some that takes this drink to the extreme. This drink is known as Shakeology and the basis around this drink is you replace a meal, preferably lunch, with a shake, keep a sensible diet, and workout three times a week. Pretty much, what heallth experts have been saying for years plus the shake. Now I had the chocolate shake and it is awesome! I am so going on this when I am done with certain bills and also, right now if you get the direct home option, you'll get the Shakeology workouts (One 30 Minute Workout and one 60 Minute Workout) for free along with free shipping. Now if you're not sure about the taste in this product, later on this year Team Beachbody will be selling single-serving packets. There are two flavors: greenberry and chocolate. Now if you want the nutritional facts for Shakeology, here is the link for chocolate and greenberry for you all to analyze. Trust me, you'll be amazed.
The "X" Nutrition
Obesity is probably the biggest reason why heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cholesterol is so high and reaching epidemic proportions. We here in the United States have the biggest everything, including the biggest people. However, with the "X" in health, nutrition in general is being effected as well. Before, people did whatever it took just to lose weight but now we are taking nutrition on a whole new level on losing weight that matters as well as losing weight safely. Before, people would be big into ephedra which alone isn't bad but people abuse ephedra to the point of killing themselves. Now we are understanding nutrition better than before. This includes fruits like the goji berry, acai berry, bee pollen, and of course pomegranetes. We are utilizing what the sun and the earth can provide us and putting them all into nutritional supplements. Also, we are understanding certain parts of nutrition are good for you but to an extent. We didn't know selenium would kill a person if taken in high amounts before. Now we do. We didn't know phosphorous was bad for you but now we do. I personally think the company pushing nutrtion to the extreme isn't just Team Beachbody but also Cellucor which specializes in supplements for elite athletes..
Cellucor is very good with science when it comes to advanced workouts and nutrition. I am right now on three of their products which are WS1 Extreme, T7, and L2 which are all weight loss products. Not to mention they don't have any stimulants. Usually these three come in a package of weight loss. There are two versions of the weight loss package in which one has stimulants and the other does not. The only difference betwen them both is the stimulant package has D4 instead of L2 and vice-versa for the stimulant free package. They also have muscle-building packages and powders too. Feel free to visit their website by following the link in the logo above.
Well that is it for now! I hope you all enjoyed this entry on something that is totally true to my heart. Ever since my voyage begin, I lost over 30 pounds of weight and hope to lose more getting to my missionary goal of being thin, tonned, and metro-gorgeous. If you have any problems, questions, or suggestions with your own personal journey to getting healthy if you are on your own personal journey to getting healthy, feel free to join Team Beachbody at their website or email me at
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and I will do the best I can to help you with your goals. Until next time, everyone enjoy the rest of the day, the week, the year, and so on. May your lifestyle reflect the happiness you may feel.
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