Self-discipline and failure with William Ferraiolo

William Ferraiolo is a professor and author of the book, Meditations on Self-Discipline and Failure: Stoic Exercise for Mental Fitness. William describes stoicism as a school of Greco-Roman philosophy that advocates the pursuit of living well and virtuously, and notes that one should only concern himself with the attainment of wisdom and virtue. By focusing on one’s own will, he allows himself to be at peace, leading to living a more valuable life.

When many things go wrong, people tend to attribute blame to the external world, saying that it has power to throw to derail one’s progress. However, the view of stoicism is that people can control themselves through their will and determination. Insufficient will power and self-discipline is usually what prevents people from accomplishing their goals.

In discussing failures, William states that failure from the viewpoint of stoicism is not the same as how society typically views failure. Specifically, the only real failure is a failure of self-discipline or will power. These failures are indicative of one’s character. If one does the very best he can and still falls short, he has not failed. However, when one has not done his best and fails, it is due to a lack of self-discipline. In this case, the key to making progress is when one admits his flaws and is honest about his failures. This awareness provides the tools to prevent the reoccurrence of bad habits in the future.

William explains that people should not be afraid of the big goal or challenge and should at least make an effort to move in that direction. Though many challenges appear to be insurmountable, it is not an excuse to not try and improve one’s self. With this, it can be helpful and healthy to acknowledge not only what is yet to achieve, but what progress has already been accomplished. William recommends turning everything into an opportunity for mental exercise and improvement.

To connect with William Ferraiolo or to learn more about Meditations on Self-Discipline and Failure: Stoic Exercise for Mental Fitness, visit http://www.academia.edu to read some of his works or find him on LinkedIn and Facebook.

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The 7 principles of stress with Ori Hofmekler

Ori Hofmekler is an acclaimed author on the topic of diet and health whose new book, The 7 Principles of Stress, shares how people can live their best lives while under stress.

Ori explains that chronic stress occurs when the body experiences prolonged stress, which can actually cause damage. Several signs of overstressing include chronic fatigue, anxiety, craving sweet foods, and weight fluctuation.

The human fight or flight reaction allows the body to respond to stress very quickly. Over many years, this mechanism evolved for short reactions. However, in today’s age, we find ourselves in states of prolonged stress, creating a chronic situation of stress, where the stress hormone becomes dysfunctional and the metabolic system can be destroyed.

Ori explains 7 principles of stress:

1. Exposure to low level stress yield resiliency to high level stress
2. Reach maximum resiliency to stress
3. Low dose of toxin can help relieve and prevent respective toxicity
4. Energy deficit is the key factor
5. Excess of energy shortens life
6. Stress must be intermittent, never chronic
7. Resiliency to stress extends virility

One area of confusion surrounds the topic of antioxidants. Despite the production of oxidants, people stay alive well under stress. This is because oxidative radicals signal the body to produce its own antioxidants. These are essential for one’s life and longevity and they cannot be bought. Yet when synthetic antioxidants are introduced into the body, these shut down one’s defenses and prohibit the production of powerful antioxidants, making one vulnerable to damage. Synthetic antioxidants should be avoided.

Ori describes three parameters for staying young:

1. Fast more, eat less and introduce stress mimicking nutrients
2. Avoid substances that inhibit your stress response system, including sugar, chemical additives, and GMOs
3. Exercise while fasting

To connect with Ori Hofmekler or to learn more about The 7 Principles of Stress, visit http://www.defensenutrition.com or http://www.orihofmekler.com.

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Keto for cancer with Miriam Kalamian

Miriam Kalamian is a nutrition consultant and ketogenic diet enthusiast whose new book, Keto for Cancer, shows how the ketogenic diet can be used to improve the body’s response to fighting off the disease. Cancer is generally thought of as an older person’s disease.

Though cancer is generally thought of as an older person’s disease, Miriam’s passion for nutrition developed when her four-year-old son was diagnosed with brain cancer. He started with chemotherapy, yet every treatment failed. After learning that a ketogenic diet could slow the growth of brain cancer, Miriam immersed herself in learning and implementing the diet with her son. In three months, his tumor had not only stopped growing, but had actually shrunk.

Miriam discusses the genetic and metabolic aspects of cancer. Plenty of evidence suggests there is a metabolic component to consider beyond genetic causes. Miriam recommends we look at the underlying cause, which is something that has gone wrong at the cellular level. Often this is an accumulation factor, which is why cancer is often seen in older people. Unhealthy eating also promotes inflammation, which creates a perfect environment for cancer and other diseases to progress.

Because the ketogenic diet slows the growth of cancer, Miriam offers three options on how someone can get into ketosis. These include:

1. Begin by fasting. While fasting, get your plan in place so you can maintain the advantages of the fast.
2. Learn everything they need, get what they need, and dive in with a rigorous ketogenic plan.
3. Remove sugar and carbohydrates and add fats at each meal. Then remove all carbohydrates.

Exogenous ketones can be used for therapeutic reasons for epilepsy, Alzheimer’s Disease, and other conditions. They can be beneficial for a pre-workout energy boost and improved mental clarity. However, the real impacts of exogenous products are unknown. Mariam would not recommend using exogenous ketones for weight loss.

To connect with Miriam Kalamian or to learn more about Keto for Cancer, visit http://www.dietarytherapies.com

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The stevia deception with Dr. Bruce Fife

Dr. Bruce Fife is a nutritionist, physician, and author of the book, The Stevia Deception. The aim of this book is to give people facts from both sides of the story regarding stevia.

Though stevia is a natural herb, has some safety concerns. First, it may impact reproductive health for both males and females. In fact, it has been used as a contraceptive or to cause an abortion. When eating stevia, insulin is released into the digestive tract. As a result, a Type 2 diabetic may experience issues with the pancreas, as it may become overworked. Stevia also seems to put stress on the liver and kidneys. Some studies have also shown that stevia may cause mutations to the DNA.

When people think of stevia, they think of a healthy plant or herb. However, it’s actually a highly refined, powdered chemical. Anything sold in stores is not pure stevia, but mixed in with other items such as sugars or other chemicals.

Stevia also has the ability to prevent people from getting into ketosis or may kick them out of ketosis when they are currently in it. When stevia is consumed, it triggers the body to take muscle tissue and break it down to produce glucose to store. When this occurs, the liver cannot produce ketones at the same time.

Because all sweeteners share many of the same adverse consequences, including the ability to kick you out of ketosis or lower your ability to get into ketosis, they should be avoided. The best sweetener you can eat is sugar, as each cell in your body knows how to handle sugar. Limiting your added sugar intake to eight teaspoons per day is a good guideline to follow.

To connect with Dr. Bruce Fife or to learn more about The Stevia Deception, visit http://www.piccadillybooks.com.

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Paleo ketogenic with Dr. Sarah Myhill

Dr. Sarah Myhill is an accomplished physician and the author of multiple books, including her new book The PK Cookbook, which focuses on the paleo ketogenic diet. Dr. Myhill views this paleo-ketogenic diet as the starting point for treating many medical conditions.

Dr. Myhill explains that we live in a world where we are driven to eat because of addiction, comfort eating, and convenience. Though these vicious cycles can lead to a downward spiral, we can correct it through thoughtful and healthy eating. The difficulty lies in convincing people to make the change, as they can’t always see the bigger picture.

With the paleo ketogenic diet, you can eat anything; it’s all about the amount. Certain foods with less than 5% carbohydrates are ideal, as it is difficult to overeat on those foods. This includes foods such as green vegetables, some nuts, and avocado. With other foods, one must be somewhat cautious and other foods are safer to avoid, especially if you are easily addicted to food.

Dr. Myhill discusses the distinction between good fats and bad fats. Cooking with saturated fats is better because they retain their shape. Oils are liquid at room temperature and are curvaceous. When heated or hydrogenated, they can flip into a trans fat, which can be detrimental to one’s health. Dr. Myhill recommends cooking with saturated fats and using oils cold.

Dr. Myhill’s book, The PK Cookbook, also includes a recipe for paleo-keto bread where linseed, water, and salt are the only ingredients. This is critical for those who might otherwise avoid the paleo-keto diet because of their love for bread.

To connect with Dr. Sarah Myhill or to learn more about The PK Cookbook, visit http://www.drmyhill.co.uk.

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Fast food genocide with Dr. Joel Fuhrman

Dr. Joel Fuhrman is a board-certified family physician with more than 25 years of experience in nutritional medicine. He is also the author of the new book, Fast Food Genocide.

Dr. Fuhrman explains that fast and processed foods are shortening lives and affecting people’s health at younger ages than ever before. They can cause damage to the brain as well as a host of other negative health implications.

One reason why people rely on fast and processed foods is many do not have access to fresh food. Dr. Fuhrman believes that when people have this nutritional information at their disposal and have access to fresh foods at an affordable price, we all will benefit.

Dr. Fuhrman also speaks about the nutritional density of food. Real foods contain micronutrients in addition to macronutrients. When micronutrient adequacy is achieved in quantity and variation across the spectrum, people do not have as much hunger or cravings and become more in tune instinctually with the number of calories their bodies need. He explains that continuous overeating on the standard American diet actually resembles a form of addiction.

To prevent disease and ensure better health, Dr. Fuhrman encourages people to include GBOMBS in their daily diet; specifically greens, beans, onions, mushrooms, berries, and seeds. He recommends trying to eat these foods every day, as they will work synergistically to prevent cancer and other diseases and health conditions. The Nutritarian diet also includes eating animal products, but Dr. Fuhrman recommends consuming them in a limited fashion.

People don’t realize the incredible health power of consuming these foods in addition to removing the fast and processed foods. You truly can control your health destiny.

To connect with Dr. Fuhrman or to learn more about Fast Food Genocide, visit http://www.drfuhrman.com. To learn more about the Nutritarian Women’s Health Study, visit http://www.NutritionalResearch.org.

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– Facebook Group – 40plusfitnesspodcast.com/group
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Activated charcoal for health and beauty with Britt Brandon

Britt Brandon is a certified personal trainer, nutrition specialist, and author of Activated Charcoal for Health. In this book, Britt explains that activated charcoal is a natural agent that offers many health benefits throughout daily life. Though it is regularly available, it is not yet readily used.

Britt describes activated charcoal as a granulated powder, though it can be used in a variety of forms. The key is to purchase it from providers that sell quality versions of the product. Though there are ways to make it at home, Britt would not recommend doing so.

Activated charcoal is so useful because of its propensity to cling to things and its ability to act as a cleansing agent. It binds to anything that is a chemical or a foreign body and flushes it from the body. Britt notes that it is important to consume charcoal at appropriate intervals to ensure that any supplements or medication you take are not flushed as a result.

The book details many of the benefits and uses of activated charcoal. First, activated charcoal is especially helpful in improving cholesterol levels and preventing heart disease, as all toxins are removed from the body and it is able to operate in an optimized state. Activated charcoal can also help to improve cognitive function, remove stain deposits on teeth, and minimize varicose veins, just to name a few.

A charcoal detox is another topic of discussion. While this can be helpful, it needs to be implemented hand in hand with other healthy lifestyle implementations such as a cleaner diet or more physical activity. It cannot be used as the “end all, be all,” but rather used in addition to healthy everyday choices.

To connect with Britt Brandon or to learn more about Activated Charcoal for Health, visit http://www.ultimatefitmom.com or send her an email at brittabrandon@yahoo.com.

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