There Is A Method to the Madness
This is a podcast where I will be discussing all aspects of physical fitness. I am an exercise physiologist and personal trainer and owner of Maxwell's Fitness Programs for the last 25 years. My passion is health and fitness and I am excited to share my views, some stories, interviews and much more with you.
There Is A Method to the Madness
Food Wisdom Without The Extremes
Welcome to the Fit, Healthy and Happy Podcast hosted by Josh and Kyle from Colossus...
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Welcome to There Is a Method to the Madness. My name is Rob Maxwell, and I'm an exercise physiologist and personal trainer. I am the owner of Maxwell's fitness programs, and I've been in business since 1994. The purpose of this podcast is to get to the real deal of what really works and most importantly why things work. Hence the name, There is a Method to the Madness. Before I get to today's show, I want to thank Jonathan and Lynn Gilden of the Gilden Group at Realty Pros. They are committed to providing the highest level of customer service in home sales. Why don't you give them a shout and figure out what your home is worth? 386-451-2412. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, everybody. Whatever time you're listening to this, I hope it is good. And uh today we're gonna talk about some like why people struggle with dichotomy. And especially when it comes to food, because I still believe that like food is the most confused in subject, or I should say, people are the most confused about what to eat and how much to eat, more than any other fitness thing. You know, I think for the most part, I think everybody knows they should exercise. You're gonna find very few, hopefully none, know people that would say something like people shouldn't walk, right? So I think everybody knows. I mean, yeah, there still is some debate out there about the best kind of exercise and all that. And you know, I'm not saying that there aren't issues with that, meaning that some of that inconsistency isn't a problem. I think it is. Like for the most part, though, I think it is worse in nutrition. All right. So basically, what I'm leading you up to here is to talk about a saying that I like to say in a lot of things, and that is two things can be true at the same time. And I really do think for some reason we as human beings really seem to struggle with that. You know, we like to think that everything is totally black or white, or you know, everything is um the way you've been taught the world is, and and anything that uh, you know, gets in the way of that kind of thinking creates some kind of distress and anxiety. So I want to talk about that when it comes to food, because two things can be true at the same time. And I'm going to give you a lot of examples of why this is true and how we kind of have to learn to figure out what works for us. Take the science which is out there and figure out what works for us. But before I get to that, let me talk just very briefly about some of the uh emotional and psychological characteristics that keep people from thinking that way, that keep people kind of in a dichotomous way of thinking, you know, that everything is opposed, you know, so it's my way or the highway. I'm gonna be plant-based, or I'm gonna be a carnivore. I'm going to be a high carbohydrate guy, or I'm gonna go keto. I'm gonna go Atkins or I'm gonna go vegan. And have you ever noticed that the I mean, those diets, those that I just mentioned, or those three styles of eating, you couldn't get further apart on those opposites, right? I mean, you just can't. They are, you know, one way or the other. And have you ever noticed the people that tend to go in one direction or the other tend to go in the other direction later? Have you ever noticed that? It's almost like the people who are all over keto used to be all over low or no fat. I mean, have you noticed that before? Or, you know, sometimes you see it a little bit less with veganism and vegetarianism because, and I'm gonna get into that because a lot of times that has different factors other than um physical health and nutrition. But have you ever noticed that people are either all in on one diet, then they're all in on another, and that diet can be like totally contradictory to the other one, right? So there tends to be a personality type that really tends to gravitate towards that either or thinking. And the reason is is because the body feels safer when there is like less uncertainty. So the body feels safer. So there's almost a reduction, physiologically speaking, in anxiety and things like that when there is a clear path. And for some reason, and that's the kind of the funny part about all this, two things can be true at the same time. You can have a clear path and you know still understand that it's a clear path for you. I mean, you can still have a clear path, you can get that once you understand maybe, and that's the main part of this podcast, maybe why you were confused as to why two things in a certain situation can be true at the same time. So there is a physical stress reduction when people feel like they are not confused. Another thing is is so the mental clarity feels safe in the mind. You don't have to think about decision making as much. Don't have to think about if you're making the right call. If you have somebody out there saying, you know, it's just this. It's just, you gotta be a carnivore. Like you just can't, you know, human beings were not made to like eat processed carbohydrates or, you know, anything in a box or and all that. And you you're like going, oh, okay, I figured it out. Like that's it, you know. Or you can go the complete opposite direction. Oh, you know, human beings aren't supposed to ever eat any fat or any animal products because we're just supposed to eat off the ground. Oh, okay, you know, I figured it out. I don't have to think about this. Like that, you know, um, Philip told me that. Philip said, you know, this is the way, and Philip knows, right? And, you know, we see where human nature has a tendency to get itself in trouble a lot when we take into that way of thinking when we're listening to people. Because, man, you better hope to hell they're right, right? Because if they're not, it's like, uh-oh, you know, blind leading the blind. I just followed this guy down the path and uh he was wrong. Oh man. And, you know, that's the problem with making people into idols, so to say. Like we have to do our own research. My program has always been, when I say my program, I mean my personal training programs, because I don't have a food program I give people, I give people advice, I give myself advice. I don't think there is a program. I think there is what is best for you. And I've been hopefully trying to get that across to everybody for years. So, but my my business program has, you know, always been science-based to say, well, well, let's look at what the science says. Let's let's talk about this situation for you, and let's see what we can come up with on there. Um, another thing that kind of keeps people in that dichotomous thinking is, you know, there tends to be stronger relationships forms formed among like tribes. And if you ever notice, like um, you know, not not to take shots at CrossFit or anything, because you know, I got friends that do it, and it's uh it's a fun way for them to work out. I, you know, have no problem with it. I think there's a lot of good ways to work out. Um, some people I would never send there to do, but you know, whatever. I'm just trying to say that I don't have a problem with CrossFit because I like I said, I'll just give you a brief example with that. Like two things can be true at the same time. It's like so it can be a way to get in shape, true. And it can be a way that people frequently get hurt, also true. So, like those are things we just have to kind of like learn to accept. But another thing people do is they like to feel like they're in a tribe. So when people are like eating a certain way, you know, they they tend to feel like, yeah, this is part of what the group does. This is groupthink at its best. And CrossFit tends to really um, you know, get people there, get people involved who have a tendency to fall into that kind of cultish thinking a little bit. And, you know, they were very, they still are, but they were extremely paleo when they first came out. It was like, you know, that was the CrossFit way, you know, don't eat any kind of like processed carbohydrates, you know. They were big in the sending people to the um the whole 30 or whatever it's called, you know, um, where you only eat like anything out of the ground, like nothing processed for 30 days. I think it was called Whole Foods 30 or something like that. But like they would lead people to that because that was just part of their big thing. So people would sign up, they'd start doing CrossFit courses, and then the next thing you know, you know, the the leaders of the pack, so to say, are saying things like, um, well, we don't eat this, we don't eat that. Let me give you some suggestions. So there is some like um, you know, relationship building that goes with that, some safety in numbers type of thing. So that's another reason why people tend to fall into that trap of dichotomous thinking. All right. So there's a reason. I'm I'm basically made the case. There's a reason why people have a hard time believing that two things can be true at the same time. But I do think like the most evolved, the most mature people tend to understand that concept and realize like two things can be true at the same time. Some things could be good and then some things could be bad. Like two things can be true at the same time. So let's look at some of these things that go on. Let's start with that whole, you know, plant-based thing. Um, so can it be true that like eating from the earth, so to say, without eating, say, any animal product? So whether you go like plant-based or veganism or a form of vegetarian, is it true? Is there any research that backs that that is a good physical way to get through things with your nutrition? Of course. I mean, yeah, I mean, we pretty much can get all of our nutrients if we never ate meat. We could. Does that mean it's not hard? No. At the same time, it's sometimes difficult to get all of our protein needs that we need. It is difficult for people to get their iron if they're not eating red meat. Um, so you know, it's true. Can you do it? Yeah. Is it best? I don't know. Is it best for you? I mean, for me, I'm mostly plant-based. Not entirely, no, not vegan. Not even really vegetarian, but mostly plant-based. I'd say the majority of my foods come from plants, not animal products. The majority, I would say, of that. Now, for me, it's mostly because of, say, ethical reasons. So, and that's me. That's that's my personal choice. Like, I'm not a fan of factory farms. Like, I'm not a fan of that. Like, for me, that's just, I don't believe in that whatsoever. That's just my opinion, right? So for me, it's mostly that. Um, you know, like I'm not one of those that thinks eating all animal is bad. No, it's like, you know, I do believe in, you know, some of the natural um selection of things, of course. But for me, factory farming's bad. So what I try to do is I try to follow, you know, the moral minimum, so to say. So I'll say, so for me, like I'm gonna try to stay away from like obvious factory farms. Like for me, that's the reason. So does that mean it's best? No, it means it's the best for me because I don't want to be in a quandary of guilt and thinking, oh, I'm just eating this to satisfy my my hunger needs or whatever, when I know there's plenty of ways to do that. But like I'm fortunate because I really know, I mean, pretty much everything there is to know about food that I need to know. And so, like, I know how to get the protein I need, I know how to get the carbs I need, you know, I know the pros and cons of say eating too much saturated fat and eating trans fats, you know, and I know the the the cons of not getting enough protein. So like I know these things, so I know how to do it. So for me, it's kind of easy to do that, right? But but two things can be true at the same time on this. So you can be plant-based and you could also be lacking your protein. I know, you know, people are like, well, you can get all your protein from vegetable sources. Yes, if you really are smart about it, like you know, not like you gotta have to have an IQ of 150. Well, what I mean is you have to do your work, you know, and you can figure out what plant products have the most protein in them. For example, quinoa, you know, peas, things like that, or you can combine certain nuts with certain grains to get it. So if you do your diligence, then you are going to be able to do it. But if you don't, you're probably gonna be malnourished in some ways, you know, probably lacking some protein and some iron. So two things can be true at the same time on that. All right. So, you know, this is gonna be true across the board with everything we want to pick. Let's talk a little bit about high carb, low carb, okay? And this is probably one of the biggest like myths out there, like one of the biggest things that like people want to go totally all in on one way or the other. And I think it's because um it's hard to restrict carbohydrates sometimes, but two things can be true at the same time. Like, so eating too many carbohydrates is going to make you fat. Okay, it just is. But so is eating too much fat, eating too much protein, eating too many calories. And when I say too many too too much or too many, it's like, well, what do you mean, Rob? Like, is there a limit? Yeah, there's a limit for you. So carbohydrates are meant to provide energy. So if you have eaten your fill of carbohydrates and you have used up your or haven't used up your carbohydrates, and you're gonna now use them for energy. Well, they're gonna do their job, and that's what you want. But if you've taken in more than you need, and how do you know? And I think that's why people like that dichotomy of thinking. I think that's why, because like, well, I don't want to have to think about it then. I just won't eat any. It's like, okay, well, now you're gonna be unhealthy because now you're not gonna have the energy for your workout, so you're gonna lose muscle. So not only will you not gain muscle, or you won't have any energy, and you'll be in brain fog all the time, because the only fuel your brain can use is glucose. So if you don't have enough glucose, you're walking around in a brain fog all the time. So that's not good. So not only are you gonna have brain fog, not only are you not gonna gain muscle, but you're also gonna lose muscle because there's such a thing as gluconeogenesis. And what that means is that your body will make carbohydrates out of muscle tissue. It'll break it down because your organs, namely your brain, need glucose. So it will break it down. So it'll take your heart earned muscle mass and it'll break it down, and you won't have muscle mass left. All right. So if you don't eat enough, that's what's gonna happen. If you eat too many, you're gonna get fat. Too many for you. Two things can be true at the same time. So we have to learn. Well, I don't need to be on a like, what is a low carb diet? What is a medium carb diet? What is a high carb diet? I mean, so much of this depends on your body weight. So when people are throwing grams out there, that's totally just nonsense. Like you don't know how many grams because everybody's different. You take somebody like Shaquille O'Neal, who is way over 300 pounds, and I guarantee you he needs way more grams of carbohydrates than you and I do. All right. So if we're to say to him, well, we're gonna keep it to 300, okay, I think 300 grams, that's not bad. Well, that's only 1200 calories of carbohydrates for Shaq. Is that enough? I'd say probably not. Probably not even close. And if he's highly active, not even remotely close. So we can't just throw numbers out there. It's too many or too little for you. And that's where people really do get into trouble because then they have to count. Then they have to pay attention. Now, when I say count, I mean there's been centuries that have gone by where, you know, people have not been overly fixated on counting grams of carbohydrates, right? I mean, obviously, this is a pretty new tool to be able to use to figure all this stuff out. You know, you go back 30 years, even looking it up in the index of a book, that's still a tool. So obviously, man has worked walked the earth for years without this kind of problem. But people, I think, were a little bit better at naturally knowing back then. And I think the other side of this is that carbohydrates and all foods really, but it's so easy to eat in large numbers that compared to the old days, say, you know, like you're gonna get your carbs, you know, from from plant products, you know, and and if if you were around when, you know, they're making natural breads or whatever, that takes work to do. So you're like, you're probably not overeating them because it takes work to produce them. And now everything is is really mixed with sugar, salt, and fat, and it's just easier to consume so much in such a short period of time. So part of it's a problem. So back in the old days when people weren't tracking, they figured it out a little better because they probably weren't in as dire straits, consuming as much. But you don't necessarily have to track everything nowadays, but you do have to figure out like what is your limit. And if you don't, well, then you know why you're putting on weight, maybe when you know you're trying to figure it out. You you're like, well, you know, obviously I have consumed too much of something. So there has to be some way you know how much you're consuming. And I do think that paying attention to that. Uh I mean, logging is great. I think logging is what we all should do until we figure it out for sure. But what I'm saying is your body also does a pretty good job if you're good at paying attention to your body. So, like, if you've been overeating a certain food and you notice yourself gaining a little weight, well, that's your clue right there. Does that mean that you should knock that food out entirely? No, it means that you probably have to figure out a better way to regulate it. And I get it, that's hard. And that goes back to that early on when I was talking about in the beginning of the podcast, like why people tend to go towards safety, because then they don't have to make decisions. Then they can go, well, you know, I'm just not gonna eat it. It's like, well, okay, but two things can be true at the same time. So now you might be missing out on a food that's really good for you. And where we really get into trouble is when people have different forms of, say, eating disorders or disordered eating. Then it becomes the food's almost like a drug. Well, then, you know, that is also one of those two things can be true at the same time. You could say, Well, Rob, you said there was nothing wrong with like having some sourdough bread. I mean, you said it was healthy food. I'm like, well, yeah, of course it's a healthy food. But then you just told Jane over there she shouldn't eat it. And I'm like, okay, because you know, Jane has an obsession with sourdough bread. And once she eats a slice, she eats 10. So for her, that's not gonna work. So sourdough bread can be extremely healthy and good for you. And a great food, any bread or anything else eaten in overabundance is gonna make us gain weight. That's true. I've already established that. But for this person, if she eats it, she's gonna eat 10. So for her, she probably shouldn't eat it. And that's where like we really need to understand that like there are so many truths for us that we have to pay attention to. And, you know, that's always been one of the big reasons I shy away from giving people food plans and eating plans, because ultimately they don't work. You know, nobody had to ever give me an eating plan or a food plan. You know, I mean, the closest it ever got was before I was educated and I was doing my first bodybuilding show. Like I was falling back on what this one guy was doing for contest prep for a show, you know, and uh, but what's funny is I still like even looked at all that. Like I was looking at who I agreed with the most, and then I went with this one guy. So, like that, yeah, I mean, that's that's the closest I've ever come. But other than that, it's kind of like, well, I have to figure this out, you know. Like, I know like I love chips and salsa, right? I mean, god dang, I like it, right? Sit down and like I could eat, and I just said like like four times, all right. So I think I got my uh quota in on likes. I could sit down and eat, I don't know, three, four baskets of it, right? Ah, I did it again. So does that mean chips and salsa are bad? No. It means for me, if I'm not gonna control it and I don't really get a weight problem or anything, but it doesn't mean that I wouldn't go home and feel like my stomach's bloated and I ate all that crap, it's still not good for me. So it doesn't mean it's bad. It means like for me, that's something I might overdo. So maybe I should just keep that to rare occasions, right? So two things can be true at the same time, and we have to understand that. And I'm stressing this because too often people like they want the fit way to eat. Like, well, what's the fit way to eat? Well, you know, the fit way to eat is we have to eat within our means. We have to eat as close as we can to the exact number of calories we need for our goals, whether it be to maintain our weight, gain weight, or lose weight. We have to get as close as we can to that every day, which I 100% believe if people pay attention, they will learn a very good self-monitoring system that will work for that, right? And then being able to use the different tools that are out there to help with that. Another thing is we have to get in all of our nutrients. We have essential nutrients we have to take in. So essential means not important, it does, but that's in another definition. Essential in this case means your body can't produce it. So you have to take it in from the outside. So our body needs essential macronutrients and essential micronutrients. Without the proper balance of those two things, we cannot be maximized in our health. So the essential macronutrients are carbs, protein, water, and fat. Those are the big four essential macronutrients. They're the only four. Okay, those are the macronutrients. We need to eat all of them and drink that in the right balance for us based on our conditions. We also need essential micronutrients. Micronutrients are vitamins and minerals. If we don't get all of our vitamins and minerals, we will not have ideal health. So we need to make sure we're eating for that. So, really, the food rules are that simple. We need to eat within our means, calorically speaking, and we need to make sure we're eating a balanced diet of all our essential nutrients. From there, there are so many options and ways out there to make work for you. Like you have to know yourself. In my book, You Can't Outrun a Poor Diet, I talk about some of the major behavioral strategies that help because I just outline the physiological food benefits to all this. So, like that's, you know, that's kind of simple. The hard part is putting it into action, and that's where the rules come in. Like maybe don't eat dessert and don't eat after six, you know, things like that. Because we are going to then work within what we use if we have more rules attached to them for us, but the rules are for us because everybody is different. And that gets back to why I said I don't like writing food plants because everybody's different. I like it a lot better when people just say, Hey, I've been doing this. What do you think of this? And I'll ask them a few questions and I'll say, Oh, okay. So, yeah, this sounds good. I would watch that though at that time of day, you know, or maybe you need to consume a little more of this after your workout, or maybe you you should eat in the morning, whatever. Based on what they're doing, I can give empirical evidence on what I think they need to do. One more point on this, what the two things can be true at the same time. So it is absolutely true that a high carb diet gives you more energy and is essential for somebody when I say high, high for you. So higher than you would take in if you weren't sedentary. Okay. So that means that you're taking in the amount of carbohydrates to sustain your exercise or fitness program. All right. That's what I mean by high. So it is absolutely true that to do that, you're going to maximize your fitness and give yourself what you need. It's also true that the more carbs you take in, you do spike your insulin. So then if you do have, like if you have a tendency towards prediabetes or a tendency towards having blood sugar issues high or low, it's also true that by doing that, you are getting an influx of insulin into your system. And again, only you and your doctor know your labs and know how you like are affected by insulin. So both can be true. Like, yes, a higher carbohydrate for your energy level absolutely make you more fit. And it could also be giving you too much insulin based on your blood work. And only you know that. Like for me, I don't have issues with that. Like I can eat too many of them, you know, and all of a sudden kind of be in a little bit of a brain coma, right? Because it's like, oh, that was too much carbs and that produced too much insulin. But I don't have like physiological medical issues with that. I tend not to really do that anyway. I tend to eat pretty, you know, I eat a lot of food by, you know, pretty controlled and I spread it out throughout the day and things like that. So like all these can be true at the same time. All right. So I guess I leave you with this advice like, do your own research, figure out what works for you. Don't follow a zealot on diet rules. Don't follow a zealot on how to eat. I don't care if it's freaking, you know, some of these doctors of the past, like Dr. Oz, you know, I think everybody knows he kind of turned out to be a Looney Tune in ways, no offense to anybody, but you know, or others that are new, you don't need to do that. You know, you need to do your own research. Fall back a lot on common sense and remember two things can be true at the same time. And the ultimate truth is what is absolutely true for you. And you'll know in what happens when you eat and what happens with your fitness. Okay? The body won't lie. Take care. Two things can be true at the same time. Thank you for listening to today's program. I ask you to please follow the show wherever you get your podcasts, and please select automatic download because that really helps the show. Now I want to thank Overhead Door of Daytona Beach, the area's premier garage door company. They have the best product, they have the best service. I personally vouch for Jeff and Zach Hawk, the owners. They are great people with a great company. If you have any garage door needs, please give them a shout at 386 222 3165.
