Brock Picken

Lets face it. We are now living in a society with advancements in technology far beyond what many of us would have even been able to comprehend 15 years ago. Take music for example. Is there anyone else out there whose first car had an AM/FM radio – and that’s it? I can remember when we first installed the internet in my house when I was in high school, and how it totally blew my mind that I could download songs. I however was not able to “burn” them to anything. It’s both pathetic, yet humbling to share with you that I actually held a mic with a cassette recorder to the speakers of my computer to record my songs, then played the cassette tape in our “new” tape deck in our car. The whole point of that was mainly to avoid listening to Celine Dion when my mom drove me to work (I apologize if you like her. Just because I’m Canadian doesn’t mean I have to.). The fact that we can now at the push of a button access satellite, or listen to 1000’s of songs from an ipod is nothing short of remarkable.
So why is it with all of this information at our fingertips that we generally are confused about what we should be eating and avoiding? Ah yes, the point of all this babbling. After all, this is my area of…I hate to call myself an expert because it sounds so snooty. I just like to share my passions with others, which include food and cooking, and exercise and being active. Lets just say these things are in my “wheelhouse” (for all you baseball fans – Go Jays!).
The topic of healthy food can be a confusing one for many people. If you’ve picked up any fitness magazines or diet (jeez I hate that D-word) books, everyone preaches something different. Low-carb, no-fat, soup diet, cabbage diet, liquid diet, no diet, eat every third day…blah blah blah. Don’t even get me started on meat vs. vegetarian or organic vs. conventional, those are other topics for other days. It goes on and on (and I have a feeling I’m doing the same). Right, get to the point.
The point is this: We know fast-food is bad. We know fruits and vegetables are good (and if you didn’t know that, now you do). Because this is such a complex topic that we can talk about for years (I plan to), lets focus on one or two main points at a time.
First and foremost – drink WATER. Please drink tons of the stuff. If you don’t like it, remember, you’re made mostly of it. Here are some quick facts about water: it helps with digestion, helps with muscle function, helps with organ and brain function, lubricates your joints, removes waste from your body, and pretty much assists every other chemical process that happens in your body.
Secondly, and lastly for today, with respect to food - VARIETY is key. We can become malnourished very easily by not consuming enough vitamins and minerals. Certain foods contain a limited number of nutrients. Therefore, the more you experiment with fruits, vegetables, and grains, the more nutrients you consume. Try to take yourself out of your comfort zone as often as you can. Buy whole, natural foods you’ve never heard of before. Marta taught me to buy a fruit/vegetable you’ve never had before everytime you are grocery shopping. Then research that food online to learn how to cook it (or email me, I’d be happy to share my ideas). As an example, I was always afraid to buy eggplant (I think the name turned me off). I bought a few and experimented, and discovered a new healthy food that I now love to eat. I’ve got a killer curry eggplant recipe. It goes really well on the BBQ as well. Anyway time to stop rambling. Once I get going on food it’s hard to stop.

Yours in Strength & Wellness,
Brock Picken