The Carrot and the Cow

A few years ago, I learned a powerful lesson on a peculiar date with a particular woman.

The woman was into wellness. A little too into wellness.

It felt extreme when she requested that I pick her up at the gym. But that proved mild compared with her interpretation of a dinner date.

When she got into my car, I invited her participation in selecting a restaurant. She responded that she had brought her dinner with her.

Seriously?

Seriously. Read more

No More Food To-Go

I recently discovered a new phenomenon in San Francisco: a seatless Starbucks.

In between appointments, I sought out Starbucks for 15 minutes to recharge. But there was nowhere to sit.

This was not because a swarm of entrepreneurs, remote employees and students had turned every table into a cubicle or library for the day. It was because there was no furniture.

It was your average-sized Starbucks. There was definitely room for tables and chairs. Yet there was none. It was kind of like standing in a drive-thru at a fast food restaurant.

Determined to not take my coffee to-go, I discovered a 2-foot-wide stoop underneath a window and squeezed my 6-foot-7-inch frame into this tiny box just above the floor.

I enjoyed 15 minutes of awkwardness and a weird stare from a businessman. Then, I got the message from the failure of furniture: You are not welcome here. Get your coffee and get the hell out.

Apparently having overstayed my welcome, I finished my coffee and fled.

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Your Toxic Relationship to Food

You know the feeling.

You meet someone who immediately hooks your attention, who gives you that jolt that your body has been begging you for.

Deep down, you know that something is off. Your gut informs you that this person will not support – let alone enrich – your well-being in the long term. It may even warn of a crash.

But you ignore your internal wisdom.

You are craving company. Finding someone who will nourish you in all of the ways that you desire requires time and effort. And you deserve to at least have a little fun in the meantime, right?

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How Many Hours of Exercise Does Your Food Cost?

You will start to see them zipping around restaurants, eateries and grocery stores near you: customers sprinting, cycling, jump-roping, dancing and dribbling up and down sidewalks and across parking lots – earning their food.

Move over, Pokémon GO. There is a new app that is hungry to dominate the globe. It is the best thing since sliced bread – because it actually lets you eat sliced bread.

We are excited at The Big Yogi to unveil our first app: Earn $hit.

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Clean Up Your Diet With Five New Habits

As a nation, we know that our health is a mess.

More than 70 percent of adults ages 20 and older are overweight, according to the 2015 health status of the nation report compiled by the National Center for Health Statistics. Nearly 40 percent of adults are obese. Roughly 20 percent of youth ages 6 to 19 are obese.

Preventable chronic diseases account for seven of the 10 leading causes of adult deaths per year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Data on how these diseases are manifesting in children and teenagers is also becoming more available. The SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study found that the prevalence of Type 2 diabetes in youth ages 10 to 19 increased by 30 percent from 2001 to 2009.

And yet, there is one major reason for this mess that we continue to ignore: food. Our society is eating itself into obesity, sickness and death.

It is time for us to take responsibility for our health. It is time to clean up our nutrition.Read more

P-Nutrition: Your New Magic Bullet

Phones have been ringing off the hook at The Big Yogi since we introduced our hot new program last week: Patience Training™. But wait, there is more!

Many fitness professionals deem nutrition “very important” for achieving your goals. This is a huge understatement. Nutrition is the most important factor in determining how your body will look, function and feel. It constitutes at least 80 percent of the equation.

Luckily for you, we have got you covered!

This week, we are excited to announce P-training’s™ state-of-the-art counterpart: Patience Nutrition™. Combine both programs now in a special promotion to transform your body and your life.

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Eat to Transform Your Body and Life

Backpacking through South America five years ago, I met an Adonis.

As I arrived at a whitewater-rafting trip one early morning, I stared in awe at a tall, shirtless blond who was smiling and buzzing with energy. Unlike my typical crushes, the object of my admiration was not a woman. It was a Greek god.

The man was an eccentric pharmacist from the United States named Kirk. He was an enigma – super scientific, but also kind of a bro. I felt drawn to him.

I was bursting with questions about how he possessed such a muscular and lean body.
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Fast for Your Body, Mind and Spirit

We all know that eating well is crucial to health, but we are afraid to talk honestly about our struggles with it. It is time to step outside of your comfort zone, to test your willpower and to examine what arises. Today, I am going to invite you to challenge your attachment to food by introducing how and why to fast.

The choices and amounts of food that we eat are out of control. This is partially due to physical imbalance, mental weakness and spiritual hibernation. So let’s talk about the power of not eating. Let’s master the art of being OK with the discomfort of abstaining from food.
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Foods That Fuel

This week, we look to nutrition as an energy source by exploring how specific foods can fuel our bodies and minds.

From playing collegiate basketball to exercising regularly, I’ve spent more than a decade looking for and experimenting with foods to power my workouts, to increase my physical output, and to feel energized and healthy. What I’ve discovered is that nutrition makes up at least 80 percent of how I look physically and feel energetically.

Last month, I offered nutritional foundations to simplify your diet and to eat for health. When eating for energy, the same rules apply: Keep it simple. Find effective sources. Be willing to experiment to discover what works for you.
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Build Your Nutrition From The Ground Up

This month’s blogs focus on building strong foundations in your wellness practices to set yourself up for success and to enjoy the freedom this yields. Understanding the basics of nutrition is essential to create a diet that serves you.

Many of us are confused about what and how to eat. There is a lot of information about nutrition available, and much of it is crap. The amount of contradictions among sources makes it nearly impossible to know what or who is correct. One article proves going vegan is the only way to go, while the next article proves that it is life-threatening. It is a mess out there.
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