BLOG 148 MIKE TYSON
Sometimes the personality of an athlete can outshine their talent. This holds true for Mike Tyson, a definite champion and top-notch fighter, but maybe not the most considerate human being. I went into my research with an open mind, understanding the media can distort. So here’s a little bit about Mr. Tyson….
He grew up in Brooklyn with his single mom who he spoke of as being promiscuous. She made ends meet and Mike grew up making cash here and there from drug sales, mostly marijuana and cocaine. He didn’t ever expect to be a fighter, and learned how to fight after saving up all his money and having one of the neighborhood kids tear the head off of one the pigeons he bought. That’s where the instant rage and anger began. It was a man named, Cus D’Amato, who discovered his fighting talent and quickly took him under his wings. Mike trusted Cus, who built his confidence and let him live with him in his mansion. Unfortunately, he passed away when Mike was only 19. It was then that under little guidance and direction, Mike’s career, especially financially, became messy. Most memorable was Don King, who Mike beat up publicly over money. He did get some of the money back from a legal case, but most of his money became mismanaged and washed up from others taking advantage of him.
Mike Tyson came in at 217/218 fighting weight. For a heavyweight he had speed. He felt he had people beat psychologically before the fight even started. He would stare right at the opponent and once they looked down, he knew he had them. He traveled the world, was in a Moscow parade, had figurines made of him in Japan, met the Prime Minister of Italy, but always said his probation officer made it hard for him to travel.
His outlook on females was quite distorted. He wanted to dominate as many as he could, sleeping with as many as he could. He was married to Robin Gibbons for only 8 months before his extra-curricular activities became too much for her.
In 1992, he went to prison for rape. Today, he has 6 children from different women. Tyson regrets a lot of his actions with women and how he handled his finances. He only did fights in his later career to pay his bills.
1997 was the year he bit Holyfield’s ear, not once but twice. The fight ended early and he admitted he lost his cool. He was enraged by Holyfield head-butting him.
The tattoo on his face is a New Zealand tribal symbol, which represents him scaring the enemy.
He ended with a record of 50-6-0 and 44 knockouts.
Today he has made some movie and radio appearances, but mostly is making up for lost time with his kids. He an interesting outlook on life so who’s know why lies ahead as he tries to put his past behind him.
BLOG 147 TONY ROBBINS
After hearing about all the lives he has helped, touched, and improved, I had to know more about him. Netflix released a 2 hour documentary called, “Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru”. He wasn’t your typical life coach that I was anticipating to find. In fact, his approach was shocking, yet powerful for those he worked with.
Okay so I don’t know if I’m the only person who didn’t know that Tony Robbins uses the “F” word freely. He is in your face, and seeks an arousal. The “F” word provokes people and is taboo word so there an energy that comes with it causing a reaction. Probably shouldn’t use this on your kids at home, but under Tony’s circumstances it seemed to work.
Obviously, this entrepreneur is doing something right. He has written 6 best selling books, owns 30 companies worth nearly $5 billion visits 12 countries per year performing his seminars. These seminars hold over 200,000 people each at rate of $4995, which is for 6 days each 12 hours long. A typical day is form 11am to 11pm all with Tony. Netflix covered his seminar “Date With Destiny” focusing on reclaiming who you are. He has helped big names like Aerosmith, Green Day, Pitbull, and Usher. He has a team of life coaches that work for him.
His purpose is to help you make changes. It isn’t about just solving your problems but really narrowing down the source of them. You have to decide what you want, not just what you will tolerate in life.
The best advice I received from him was regarding blame. We can blame our parents or other people for certain issues we have, but we can also blame them for the good too. Meaning just because I lost my mother to alcoholism and grew up with the associated situations of that, doesn’t mean she’s at fault for all that goes wrong in my life. My mother is actually to blame for my drive and determination to be the best. She is to blame for my work ethic and perfectionist traits. For that, I thank her, which aided with my closure.
On your fitness journey, we know it isn’t just all about working out and eating right. We have to get our minds right too. A life coach like Tony Robbins may just be the additional help you need. No hurt in doing a little research to better yourself because that’s the end goal…. to become the best version of YOU!!!!
Tony Robbins: I Am Not Your Guru. (2016). Joe Berlinger.
BLOG 146 JUICING
Juicing has become a popular craze among fitness and nutrition fanatics. Having a juicer at home is just about as common as having a toaster these days. The power of fruits and vegetables does wonders for our internal health and it is unlikely to consume the recommended daily totals (17 each). The reasons one might start to juice include weight loss, lowering blood pressure, or detoxing. It is no healthier than eating the same content, but a popular trend is a trend and jumping on board happens to the best of us.
Personally, I like the texture and chewing action of eating. I feel satiated longer and feel that I’m getting more bang for my buck. Liquid doesn’t fill me up, at least not for long. So if I were to eat an apple vs. drink an apple you can see my point…. 5 min to chew an apple vs. 2 seconds to drink that sip of apple. And I do have to say from my research for this, there aren’t many claims other than being able to consume more fruits and vegetables per day that justify the benefits of juicing. So why so popular??
Adding to this, I watched a documentary called, “7 Days 2 Guys 1 Juicer”. In this film, Chad and Kenny were two obese middle-aged men, who for 7 days were put in a hotel to complete a 7 day juicing cycle. When they arrived the refrigerator was stocked with nothing but fresh produce. Not one item was in the freezer. From the gate, the men noticed how much work juicing really was with prepping the produce and then cleaning up after. This was quite the lifestyle change for them both, coming from backgrounds of fast food, no activity, and very little motivation to be healthy and make changes. Taken out of their environments, the men were forced to follow the plan precisely. They underwent withdrawal, headaches, and hunger pains.
According to the documentary, juicing dates back to the ancient Greeks who used pomegranate juice as a love potion. In the U.S., juicing was introduced in the 1920s when there was a new popularity to be vegetarian or vegan. In the 1970s, Jack Lalanne sold his famous juicer. Today, people in their 20s and 30s have created a $5billion business out of juicing. There’s a status associated with high end juice bars connected to yoga studios.
In the end, Chad and Kenny lost about 9 pounds each. I really anticipated a higher weight loss considering their past, which goes to show that juicing isn’t entirely weight loss oriented and the weight can be gained right back after stopping. Here’s the concept: “Doing the math, on average, an ounce of ‘mixed juice’ contains about 15 calories. If you need 1,400-1,500 calories daily to achieve weekly weight loss, you could drink a whopping 96 ounces of this juice (about 12 cups) each day and still stay in that calorie range, which should result in weight loss. On this sample juicing diet, you would, however, only be getting 9 grams of fiber (36% of your need) and 25 grams of protein (41% of your need) each day, which is far from ideal. This unbalanced nutrient intake would result in immediate muscle mass loss and an increase in hunger and food cravings. Other nutrients such as fat, vitamins and minerals would also be severely lacking. Successful and safe long-term weight loss would not be achievable on such a plan” (http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1800).
Obesity causes over 25 diseases, so we do want to make sure proper nutrition is in place, but the type that is sustainable. In a world that praises fat-free and all natural that comes out of a box, something isn’t right with our food. Fresh is always best. Have a juice here and there to compliment your eating. It can be a nice, cold, refreshing, sweet beverage. Take your fitness journey tips, use them to your advantage, and make those changes the best you can, each and every day!!!!
BLOG 145 CHILDREN & NUTRITION
Is it strange to see a child reading a nutrition label?? Is that not something a kid should be doing….worrying about their weight, concerned about calories, watching how much sugar there is in an item?? In a sense, we want kids to be kids, but we also want them to be healthy, happy, and do well. As childhood obesity rises, we know that changes need to be made to address the problem. Innocence isn’t lost with nutrition education and food doesn’t have to serve as reward for our youth. Let’s talk about children and nutrition.
It’s never too early to learn the basics of foods. We all grew up going to the store with mom or dad and walking down the aisles. We would reach for what we wanted and beg for those treats, sometimes making store time a real battle for our parents. Fruits and vegetables aren’t children’s favorite food selections, sometimes making the be forced. They’re not the after school snack of choice. This is due largely in part to the 5,500 advertisements kids see about junk food versus the 100 they might see regarding fruits and vegetables (“The Kids Menu” (2015) by Kurt Engfehr) featured on Netflix.
If you ask a child if they know anyone who is obese in their family, almost everyone would raise their hand that they do. If one parent is obese, that child is 40% more likely to be obese too. That goes to say that if both parents are obese, then there is an 80% chance. It is said that parents are 72% responsible for what their children eat, of course the rest of the time is when kids are at school or not with them. Fast food is also a reality with the demands of parenting, but it becomes important to make healthier selections and teaching children to do so. (“The Kids Menu” (2015) by Kurt Engfehr)
I grew up on fast food. That was what 2 full time working parents with 3 kids and sports year-round resulted in. I was active and that deterred a lot of what I was eating. But to be completely honest, my parents were role models of healthier choices. When we went to McDonalds, dad ordered a salad or grilled chicken sandwich and an iced tea. Mom did the same. We could order whatever we wanted, but you do what your parents do. Just this Christmas, I was saying to my dad while everyone was eating that I never had prime rib before because you never made that. We had chicken and salmon.
Where my mixed messages came from were the athletes and TV that I watched. I saw my favorite sports stars drinking Gatorade, so naturally I wanted that too for every practice. I was oblivious to the sugar content and definitely didn’t need the excess calories. Processed food is attractive with it’s decorative packaging.
So all in all, the issue with children and nutrition comes down to 3 key points. The first being their lack of knowledge. If children knew the benefits of whole foods, fruit and vegetables versus their bodies’ responses to cereals, granola bars and sugar filled drinks, maybe they might make a better-informed decision. Second, children need to have access to a good diet. This means what they are fed at home and school. The pantry shouldn’t be filled with boxes of food and school lunches can have a daily salad bar. And lastly, children need role models of health. What they see is what they do. We are products of our environment.
Obesity isn’t the entire issue, it’s also the resulting diseases from it. I hope that I can lead children by example and lead my clients by example who can then pass this on. It’s a community effort and requires leadership in health and wellness. When we better ourselves, we can better others, and you never know who is watching. So be a leader on your fitness journey and be the difference in someone’s life to see and feel the results of a healthy mind and BODY.