Happy birthday to me! Writing a birthday blog has become an annual tradition. My goal is to inspire others to be the best version of themselves by living a healthy lifestyle. I try my best to do so. Like most of us, I’m on a path of continuous improvement. This past year has been eye opening, and I’d like to share some of what I’ve learned. Over the years, I’ve been working on how to deliver a more palatable message on how to live a healthy lifestyle. Before I get into that, please allow me to give a brief recap of some significant life events since my last birthday.
In September of 2021, I won the overall Masters Physique division at the Western Regional, earning my Pro Qualification in Natural Bodybuilding. I then made my pro debut at the Natural Olympia in Las Vegas in November. I’m proud to have earned my PNBA Pro card at age 56 in the 40+ Masters Physique division. A few years ago, I never would have imagined I’d become a pro athlete at this age. Going forward I plan to continue to compete and maintain my PNBA Pro status for as long as I’m able.
Another life event was meeting a vibrant spirit unlike any I’ve ever encountered. It came in the form of a radiant woman, beautiful inside and out. Empathetic, kind, sweet, and wicked smart, she shares my passion for fitness. My unicorn. As a compassionate soul, she considers everyone’s unique experience. She’s helped me to better understand that talking about how, what, and why people eat is far more complex than the biological aspects of nutrition science.
As anyone who knows me or follows me on social media will tell you, I’ve been practicing a low- carb, high-fat nutrition plan for several years. It’s been shown to reverse type 2 diabetes and to improve cognition in diseases such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. It’s also been shown in scientific studies to prevent those same non-infectious diseases as well as heart disease, obesity, and some forms of cancer. The root cause of these and many other modern non-infectious diseases is metabolic dysfunction, caused by insulin resistance, caused by spiking your blood glucose too frequently.
I view our health through the lens of evolutionary biology. For most of human history humans were hunter/gatherers who followed the herds. We’ve been eating animal fat and protein for 6 million years. Often demonized by mainstream medicine, our species has thrived on saturated fat and cholesterol. Mother Nature doesn’t make bad fat. The domestication of grains is a very recent event in our evolutionary timeline. We’re not well equipped to deal with the modern food products derived from refined grains. Consuming too much refined carbohydrates rapidly and markedly elevates our blood glucose, which can causes serious health problems.
Having said all that, I now see that evolutionary biology isn’t the whole story. Beyond physiology, there is much more to consider when we talk about food and nutrition. I’ve come to understand that for many people, the psychological aspect of how and what we eat is their greatest challenge. Many people experience or have experienced food insecurity. Most diets ultimately fail. For many people, diets do more harm than good. For people who’ve experienced trauma from food insecurity, calorie and food restriction can be a nightmare. They may very well follow a diet for a short period of time through will power. They often get the short term expected weight loss results. What we don’t see it the emotional suffering they experienced to achieve the results. Following a meal plan that restricts many foods can trigger PTSD. They suffer and are miserable, and so they eventually rebound. Too often, they end up in a worse state than they were in before starting the diet, both physically and emotionally.
So then, what is the solution? I don’t have all the answers, but I do have compassion. I can tell you what works for me, and I hope can work for others. Much like the way I live in general, I eat with intention. My intention is to stay strong and maintain my stamina therefore I do resistance training and cardio exercise every day. My intention is also to live disease free and feel good, both physically and emotionally. I don’t have any food restrictions. I choose the foods I eat like this: I look at all the foods available to me. I’m fortunate, so the available foods include pretty much everything. I pick the foods I eat based on whether or not they’re going to help me. I might choose salmon for the protein, fat, and omega 3. I might choose kale, asparagus, or broccoli, for the micronutrients in green vegetables. I might choose and orange or blueberries for the many essential vitamins. But that’s not the whole story…
I might choose a glass of wine because I want to celebrate a special event with someone I love. I might choose a piece of cake because someone dear to me baked it with love and it’s a special birthday party. I might choose creamy mashed potatoes because it will make me feel good and give me loads of energy in the morning. All these choices serve some intention. Strength, stamina, physical health, emotional health, well-being, celebrating life, sharing a special moment with someone I love. In all cases, there are no restrictions, I choose what I eat with good intention. You can do the same.
I hope this message resonates with some people. Even if only a little bit, I hope it helps people who struggle with the question of how and what to eat. I am writing this birthday blog because I am fortunate to enjoy excellent health at the age of 57, and that good fortune has been attained because of my healthy intention. I hope that sharing this helps others achieve similar good fortune and good health.
Yours in health and fitness,
JD Griffin, Certified Nutrition Coach, PNBA Professional Natural Bodybuilder
In September of 2021, I won the overall Masters Physique division at the Western Regional, earning my Pro Qualification in Natural Bodybuilding. I then made my pro debut at the Natural Olympia in Las Vegas in November. I’m proud to have earned my PNBA Pro card at age 56 in the 40+ Masters Physique division. A few years ago, I never would have imagined I’d become a pro athlete at this age. Going forward I plan to continue to compete and maintain my PNBA Pro status for as long as I’m able.
Another life event was meeting a vibrant spirit unlike any I’ve ever encountered. It came in the form of a radiant woman, beautiful inside and out. Empathetic, kind, sweet, and wicked smart, she shares my passion for fitness. My unicorn. As a compassionate soul, she considers everyone’s unique experience. She’s helped me to better understand that talking about how, what, and why people eat is far more complex than the biological aspects of nutrition science.
As anyone who knows me or follows me on social media will tell you, I’ve been practicing a low- carb, high-fat nutrition plan for several years. It’s been shown to reverse type 2 diabetes and to improve cognition in diseases such as Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. It’s also been shown in scientific studies to prevent those same non-infectious diseases as well as heart disease, obesity, and some forms of cancer. The root cause of these and many other modern non-infectious diseases is metabolic dysfunction, caused by insulin resistance, caused by spiking your blood glucose too frequently.
I view our health through the lens of evolutionary biology. For most of human history humans were hunter/gatherers who followed the herds. We’ve been eating animal fat and protein for 6 million years. Often demonized by mainstream medicine, our species has thrived on saturated fat and cholesterol. Mother Nature doesn’t make bad fat. The domestication of grains is a very recent event in our evolutionary timeline. We’re not well equipped to deal with the modern food products derived from refined grains. Consuming too much refined carbohydrates rapidly and markedly elevates our blood glucose, which can causes serious health problems.
Having said all that, I now see that evolutionary biology isn’t the whole story. Beyond physiology, there is much more to consider when we talk about food and nutrition. I’ve come to understand that for many people, the psychological aspect of how and what we eat is their greatest challenge. Many people experience or have experienced food insecurity. Most diets ultimately fail. For many people, diets do more harm than good. For people who’ve experienced trauma from food insecurity, calorie and food restriction can be a nightmare. They may very well follow a diet for a short period of time through will power. They often get the short term expected weight loss results. What we don’t see it the emotional suffering they experienced to achieve the results. Following a meal plan that restricts many foods can trigger PTSD. They suffer and are miserable, and so they eventually rebound. Too often, they end up in a worse state than they were in before starting the diet, both physically and emotionally.
So then, what is the solution? I don’t have all the answers, but I do have compassion. I can tell you what works for me, and I hope can work for others. Much like the way I live in general, I eat with intention. My intention is to stay strong and maintain my stamina therefore I do resistance training and cardio exercise every day. My intention is also to live disease free and feel good, both physically and emotionally. I don’t have any food restrictions. I choose the foods I eat like this: I look at all the foods available to me. I’m fortunate, so the available foods include pretty much everything. I pick the foods I eat based on whether or not they’re going to help me. I might choose salmon for the protein, fat, and omega 3. I might choose kale, asparagus, or broccoli, for the micronutrients in green vegetables. I might choose and orange or blueberries for the many essential vitamins. But that’s not the whole story…
I might choose a glass of wine because I want to celebrate a special event with someone I love. I might choose a piece of cake because someone dear to me baked it with love and it’s a special birthday party. I might choose creamy mashed potatoes because it will make me feel good and give me loads of energy in the morning. All these choices serve some intention. Strength, stamina, physical health, emotional health, well-being, celebrating life, sharing a special moment with someone I love. In all cases, there are no restrictions, I choose what I eat with good intention. You can do the same.
I hope this message resonates with some people. Even if only a little bit, I hope it helps people who struggle with the question of how and what to eat. I am writing this birthday blog because I am fortunate to enjoy excellent health at the age of 57, and that good fortune has been attained because of my healthy intention. I hope that sharing this helps others achieve similar good fortune and good health.
Yours in health and fitness,
JD Griffin, Certified Nutrition Coach, PNBA Professional Natural Bodybuilder
RSS Feed