Billie
05-31-2006, 08:43 PM
Welcome to the June Challenge! This challenge will be different from what we’ve done so far.
The June Challenge is all about learning… New Learning! Remember how important New Learning is to make Protein Power a true lifestyle? New Learning is an integral part of Protein Power and here is your chance to go back to basics, get your notebooks ready and be willing to commit yourself this month to increase your knowledge so can truly find the reasons why you have adopted this way of life, this way of eating, and this way of thinking!
Let’s kick it of with a provocative quote from Herbert Butterfield (author of The Origin of Modern Science):
“…the most difficult mental act of all is to re-arrange a familiar bundle of data, to look at it differently and escape from the prevailing doctrine…”
We’re all witnessing a true war of concepts and ideas. Anywhere we look, there is contradicting information all around us. On one hand, the bombardment with nutritional information disguised as ‘fact’ with little, weak or no solid evidence behind it. On the other hand, a rather re-emergence of evidence-based nutritional information, so counter-intuitive that it is either banned or even dismissed yet not refuted by the ‘experts’ and ‘nutritional gurus’.
We’ve all learned or at least heard that dietary carbohydrates are not absolutely essential to sustain life as we’ve been taught since we were little school children; we’ve all heard or read somewhere that there is no solid link between fat consumption and heart disease or atherosclerosis, but how much do we actually trust in that information? How to separate weak from solid science, evidence-biased from evidence-based?
Since we can find almost everything with a simple act of ‘googling’ these days, then how do we know what’s worth learning from what’s trash? Perhaps one of Francis Bacon’s quotes comes in handy:
“Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted… but to weigh and consider.”
That is the fundament of New Learning.
So we’ve learned how to estimate the amount of ECC in a meal and how to choose the best sources of good fats and protein. We’ve even developed a keen eye for choices when we eat in restaurants. We’re very diligent in making sure that we have a good intake of omega-3s and a good balance between those and omega-6 fats. We’ve even read that exercise is great and it makes everything even more efficient! But… are we really convinced that what we’re doing is precisely what we need to do for ourselves to improve or even re-gain our health?
Are we still thinking old thoughts like ‘fat makes you fat’, ‘it’s all about calories regardless where they come from’, ‘a calorie is a calorie’, ‘low-carb is ok but I’ll go low-fat just in case’?
How much do you trust your own knowledge of what you’re doing? Knowledge is not only the power but also the key to success. Without knowledge, the rest is useless in the long run for long-term behaviors depend on how much knowledge we have, and not how many times we repeat an action. Without convincing ourselves, boredom quickly ensues, routine sets and next thing we know, we fall of the wagon and can’t find the reasons to get back on it.
So, here’s the June Challenge:
During the month of June, each week research a topic on nutrition or any other topic related to your adopted lifestyle. Examples of these topics are Nutrition, Physiology, Psychology (the psychology behind overeating, binging, etc.), topics found in Mike and Mary Dan Eades’ respective blogs. The sources need to be scientifically based—not just something off the Internet without any background data. This doesn’t mean that you need to subscribe to Nature or Science but make sure that the material you choose does provide references. There are several sources that offer free access to their online versions of their published material.
Here are just a few:
Mike Eades Blog (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/)
Mary Dan Eades Blog (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmd/)
BioMed Central (http://www.biomedcentral.com/)
American Society of Nutrition (http://www.nutrition.org/)
Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders (http://www.liebertpub.com/publication.aspx?pub_id=115)
Once you find an article that catches your eye, we want you to read it, share the source and bring to the discussion forum some thoughts on what you think about the article, questions, etc. Maybe for example, how does insulin respond after a protein-rich meal or how you will implement concepts from something you read if it turns to be sound and supported by solid facts. The objective is for you to discover how this new learning gives you a better handle on how this program works.
Each week, write down those new bits of information you’ve learned and share them with us each week of the Challenge. You’ll be surprised at the amount of new things you will learn!
The June Challenge is definitely more cerebral than exercise, counting carbs, or trying new tasty recipes; we wanted something different and new and as well something that would keep your brain in a state of constant calisthenics!
Each week there will be a discussion thread for the challenge, something like June Challenge week one, please share you new information with us all!
Remember Butterfield’s quote at the beginning? At the end of the challenge, re-examine yourself, find out if you’ve escaped from the prevailing doctrine and share your wisdom with all of us.
Billie and Gabe
The June Challenge is all about learning… New Learning! Remember how important New Learning is to make Protein Power a true lifestyle? New Learning is an integral part of Protein Power and here is your chance to go back to basics, get your notebooks ready and be willing to commit yourself this month to increase your knowledge so can truly find the reasons why you have adopted this way of life, this way of eating, and this way of thinking!
Let’s kick it of with a provocative quote from Herbert Butterfield (author of The Origin of Modern Science):
“…the most difficult mental act of all is to re-arrange a familiar bundle of data, to look at it differently and escape from the prevailing doctrine…”
We’re all witnessing a true war of concepts and ideas. Anywhere we look, there is contradicting information all around us. On one hand, the bombardment with nutritional information disguised as ‘fact’ with little, weak or no solid evidence behind it. On the other hand, a rather re-emergence of evidence-based nutritional information, so counter-intuitive that it is either banned or even dismissed yet not refuted by the ‘experts’ and ‘nutritional gurus’.
We’ve all learned or at least heard that dietary carbohydrates are not absolutely essential to sustain life as we’ve been taught since we were little school children; we’ve all heard or read somewhere that there is no solid link between fat consumption and heart disease or atherosclerosis, but how much do we actually trust in that information? How to separate weak from solid science, evidence-biased from evidence-based?
Since we can find almost everything with a simple act of ‘googling’ these days, then how do we know what’s worth learning from what’s trash? Perhaps one of Francis Bacon’s quotes comes in handy:
“Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted… but to weigh and consider.”
That is the fundament of New Learning.
So we’ve learned how to estimate the amount of ECC in a meal and how to choose the best sources of good fats and protein. We’ve even developed a keen eye for choices when we eat in restaurants. We’re very diligent in making sure that we have a good intake of omega-3s and a good balance between those and omega-6 fats. We’ve even read that exercise is great and it makes everything even more efficient! But… are we really convinced that what we’re doing is precisely what we need to do for ourselves to improve or even re-gain our health?
Are we still thinking old thoughts like ‘fat makes you fat’, ‘it’s all about calories regardless where they come from’, ‘a calorie is a calorie’, ‘low-carb is ok but I’ll go low-fat just in case’?
How much do you trust your own knowledge of what you’re doing? Knowledge is not only the power but also the key to success. Without knowledge, the rest is useless in the long run for long-term behaviors depend on how much knowledge we have, and not how many times we repeat an action. Without convincing ourselves, boredom quickly ensues, routine sets and next thing we know, we fall of the wagon and can’t find the reasons to get back on it.
So, here’s the June Challenge:
During the month of June, each week research a topic on nutrition or any other topic related to your adopted lifestyle. Examples of these topics are Nutrition, Physiology, Psychology (the psychology behind overeating, binging, etc.), topics found in Mike and Mary Dan Eades’ respective blogs. The sources need to be scientifically based—not just something off the Internet without any background data. This doesn’t mean that you need to subscribe to Nature or Science but make sure that the material you choose does provide references. There are several sources that offer free access to their online versions of their published material.
Here are just a few:
Mike Eades Blog (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/)
Mary Dan Eades Blog (http://www.proteinpower.com/drmd/)
BioMed Central (http://www.biomedcentral.com/)
American Society of Nutrition (http://www.nutrition.org/)
Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders (http://www.liebertpub.com/publication.aspx?pub_id=115)
Once you find an article that catches your eye, we want you to read it, share the source and bring to the discussion forum some thoughts on what you think about the article, questions, etc. Maybe for example, how does insulin respond after a protein-rich meal or how you will implement concepts from something you read if it turns to be sound and supported by solid facts. The objective is for you to discover how this new learning gives you a better handle on how this program works.
Each week, write down those new bits of information you’ve learned and share them with us each week of the Challenge. You’ll be surprised at the amount of new things you will learn!
The June Challenge is definitely more cerebral than exercise, counting carbs, or trying new tasty recipes; we wanted something different and new and as well something that would keep your brain in a state of constant calisthenics!
Each week there will be a discussion thread for the challenge, something like June Challenge week one, please share you new information with us all!
Remember Butterfield’s quote at the beginning? At the end of the challenge, re-examine yourself, find out if you’ve escaped from the prevailing doctrine and share your wisdom with all of us.
Billie and Gabe