Nate Clark's Blog, page 3

CDGA 2020 – Photos

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CDGA 2020 – Photos

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[image error]BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 28: Nate Clark attends the 22nd Costume Designers Guild Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Elisabeth Caren/Contour by Getty Images)

Photo courtesy People Magazine / Entertainment Weekly

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I’m Amplifying Causes and Organizations that Deserve Our Support

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I’m Amplifying Causes and Organizations that Deserve Our Support

We’ve all been overwhelmed by recent global traumas, e.g., the pandemic, confronting systemic racism, fascist leadership, etc. It’s hard to focus on the positive work we need to do while we’ve got our hands full with so many unexpected challenges. But there are lots of people and organizations who’ve dedicated their time to improving life for us all, and I’d like to dedicate more of my energy to spreading their messages. There are so many great causes deserving of out support, so I’m going to share them regularly on this website.

My LA2050

I was inspired to promote more of these causes when I learned about My LA2050. If you haven’t heard about the My LA2050 Grants Challenge, here are the details. This program will provide $1,000,000 in grants to 10 non-profits, with $100,000 going to each of the 10 winners. Funding and administration of the program comes from The Goldhirsch Foundation.  This initiative intends to “make LA the best place to learn, create, play, connect, and live” by outlining a vision for Los Angeles based on those 5 areas.

What Makes this Grant Different?

The My LA2050 initiative excited me because it includes a crowd-sourcing component. After an open-call for ideas, all the qualified applicants appeared on their website. Community members voted on their top choice for each of the 5 categories. The top 10 vote-getters in each area (50 in total) became finalists. An internal jury made up of the Goldhirsh Foundation board and staff will award the 10 grants .

This structure of this campaign serves two purposes. First, it allowed community guidance for the grant application process. By allowing the community to vote, everyone can voice their own priorities for LA. That’s cool, for sure.

But there’s a second benefit to this kind of campaign. The applicants received a media boost because of the voting process. Each non-profit appeared on the My LA2050 website, with links for the community to learn more about their organization. The website encouraged the community to volunteer or donate to these causes and organizations, independent of the grant process.

Not everyone will be a winner, but everyone who applied stands to benefit from the exposure.

I’m inspired to amplify causes, too

No, I don’t have a million dollars to donate to charity. But I do have this website and my social media platforms.

There are so many non-profits I admire. Why not share their work here? (I did something similar a few years ago and people responded well. Now I’m going to make it a regular thing.

Amplifying great causes might incentivize my friends to get involved with a non-profit they didn’t even know existed. It’s also an opportunity to highlight the work of the Human Services Commission in West Hollywood, on which I serve.

I’m inspired by these organizations, so I’m going to resume featuring them on this blog and across social media.

People often ask me how they can take part in the fight to improve the lives of… well, everyone. Now I can point folks to my blog and say “pick a charity to cause, then volunteer or send them your dollars.”

I’ll post about these causes as often as I can. And if you champion an organization that you think people should know about, please send the info my way. I’m always keen to hear more about the good work people are doing in our community.

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Nate Clark

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I’m posting about nonprofits you might not know about

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I’m posting about nonprofits you might not know about

My LA2050

If you haven’t heard about the My LA2050 Grants Challenge, here are the details. This program will provide $1,000,000 in grants to 10 non-profits, with $100,000 going to each of the 10 winners. Funding and administration of the program comes from The Goldhirsch Foundation.  This initiative intends to “make LA the best place to learn, create, play, connect, and live” by outlining a vision for Los Angeles based on those 5 areas.

What Makes this Grant Different?

The My LA2050 initiative excited me because it includes a crowd-sourcing component. After an open-call for ideas, all the qualified applicants appeared on their website. Community members voted on their top choice for each of the 5 categories. The top 10 vote-getters in each area (50 in total) became finalists. An internal jury made up of the Goldhirsh Foundation board and staff will award the 10 grants .

This structure of this campaign serves two purposes. First, it allowed community guidance for the grant application process. By allowing the community to vote, everyone can voice their own priorities for LA. That’s cool, for sure.

But there’s a second benefit to this kind of campaign. The applicants received a media boost because of the voting process. Each non-profit appeared on the My LA2050 website, with links for the community to learn more about their organization. The website encouraged the community to volunteer or donate to these organizations, independent of the grant process.

Not everyone will be a winner, but everyone who applied stands to benefit from the exposure.

I’m inspired to do something similar

No, I don’t have a million dollars to donate to charity. But I do have this website and my social media platforms.

There are so many non-profits I admire. Why not share their work here? (I did something similar a few years ago and people responded well. Now I’m going to make it a regular thing.

Amplifying great causes might incentivize my friends to get involved with a non-profit they didn’t even know existed. It’s also an opportunity to highlight the work of the Human Services Commission in West Hollywood, on which I serve.

I’m inspired by these organizations, so I’m going to resume featuring them on this blog and across social media.

People often ask me how they can take part in the fight to improve the lives of… well, everyone. Now I can point folks to my blog and say “pick a charity, then volunteer or send them your dollars.”

I’ll post about these causes as often as I can. And if you champion a cause that you think people should know about, please send the info my way. I’m always keen to hear more about the good work people are doing in our community.

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Opinion: It’s Time To Talk About West Hollywood’s Children

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Opinion: It’s Time To Talk About West Hollywood’s Children

WeHo’s kids need our help. It’s time for the City of West Hollywood to create a dedicated body to address the concerns of children and families. Here are a few reasons why:

Our schools need help.

Foremost, our schools are struggling. According to a report by school board representative Nick Melvoin’s office, if the West Hollywood area was its own school district, only 20% of our middle schoolers would meet or exceed expectations in math, and only 37% of middle schoolers would meet or exceed expectations in English and Language Arts[i]. That means 80% and 63%, respectively, of middle school students in the area aren’t performing to the basic standards set for them. Are West Hollywood community members satisfied with these percentages? I hope not. These numbers are shocking, and merit being addressed.

We have enough children to merit representation.

Secondly, our population of children and families has reached a “critical mass.” Currently there are 513 West Hollywood residents attending 70 separate LAUSD campuses spread out across Los Angeles County[ii]. This number does not include kids attending private institutions, home schoolers, or pre-school age children. Our recent community study estimates that 4% of our population is under the age of 18[iii].Ignoring the 5% margin of error from that study (weird, I know), that would mean at least 1,460 children live in WeHo. But this number doesn’t include their caregivers who, obviously, also have an interest in the needs of children. It’s easy to imagine the total number of residents who are directly impacted by our schools (children + parents + other caregivers + prospectiveparents, etc.) being three or four times that number. It’s clear that the population is large enough to merit an advisory board, at least.

The number of children and families is likely to increase.

And this population will most likely increase as years go by. More same-sex couples are opting to raise kids—my husband and myself included—and we want our kids to grow up among the same WeHo community where we’ve felt safe and welcomed for many years. Regardless, the general lack of affordable housing in the entire SoCal basin makes moving elsewhere “for the schools” no longer a viable option for most people. Gone are the days when families could simply buy a house in the Valley in order to get into a great public school. It’s clear the impacted population is here to stay, and it’s continuing to grow.

Many other vulnerable groups are represented in City government.

Additionally, please consider that we have advisory boards to represent almost every cross-section of our community. Lesbian and gay people, older adults, adults with disabilities, women, transgender adults, and Russian speaking residents are all represented in city government. Likewise, our commissions provide essential community input to the City Council regarding the services that our community members rely on: everything from law enforcement, public spaces, and the arts, to the many essential social services our residents utilize every day. And yet, there is no body to provide input about the schools that serve our city, even though our schools are an “essential service,” too. (The Human Services Commission, on which I serve, does not oversee schools as one of its program areas.)

This is not just LAUSD’s problem.

To be sure, the City of West Hollywood relies on LAUSD to serve our kids’ public school needs. But we should think of LAUSD as a contracted service provider. They are the same as the Sheriff’s Department, or any other service provider that we engage to keep our community healthy and safe. LAUSD is our partner in ensuring a successful education for our children. I believe we’re responsible for providing the same support and input to LAUSD that we provide to any of our contracted service providers. It’s ultimately our responsibility to make sure our schools are successful. An advisory board could help to do that.

I’m not making any suggestions for how to run our schools. I’m not advocating for or against charter schools, UTLA, re-districting, new construction, creating our own school district, joining with other area school districts… or any of the myriad ideas being informally floated by community members. I can’t solve these challenges on my own, in an Op-Ed! We need to engage our entire community to find solutions to these challenges.

It’s time.

That’s why I’m calling on the City of West Hollywood to formally recognize the interests of children and families, the same way we’ve done for so many other segments of our population. WeHo includes a diverse, vibrant, and growing population of children. It’s time for the city to consider the needs of children and families with the same respect and distinction we apply to every other vulnerable population: by creating a dedicated city body made up of parents and community members who can address those needs.

This article originally appeared at Wehoville.com .

[i] Nick Melvoin, Open Dialogue About Improving Schools in West Hollywood, 04/18/2018

[ii] LAUSD, 2018-19 West Hollywood K-12 Student Count, 02/06/2019

[iii] Raimi + Associates, City of West Hollywood 2019 Community Study Summary of Findings, 03/12/2019

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Please don’t roll your eyes when I tell you I’m bisexual

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Please don’t roll your eyes when I tell you I’m bisexual

This post is a long time coming. Not just because the event that inspired it happened three years ago, but because it’s about something that’s been impacting me my entire life. Here’s the headline: 
I’m bisexual.

I knew early on that I felt different, but I didn’t know how or why. When puberty hit, I realized quickly that I was attracted to… basically, everyone. I remember being in Pennsylvania with my family when I told my parents. They told me it was “just a phase” and I’d grow out of it. When I pressed the issue, my mom said “so what if you’re gay?” That was the first moment I realized that people don’t understand bisexuality.

We didn’t talk about my sexuality again for more than a decade. For most of my young adult life I dated women, I brushed off attraction to men, and I tried everything I could to do to fit into societal norms. I shared my views on sexuality with close friends in high school and college, but always with forced personal detachment. I told them that I believe sexuality is a spectrum and somewhat fluid for most people, whether most people can acknowledge that or not. I very rarely labeled myself bisexual. The few people I told didn’t get it or didn’t believe me.

It’s hard to speak the truth when most people doubt it’s possible.

I quickly grew afraid of sharing my story. I didn’t want to alienate people. I didn’t want to constantly explain something that felt natural to me. I wanted people to like me, but even when they did, I felt like I was cheating the system.

As an adult I found my own sources of strength and self-confidence, and I became more comfortable sharing this information in intimate situations. Still, even among progressive, LGBTQ folks and their allies, very few people are comfortable with the concept of bisexuality.

 I get a lot of eye-rolls.

That’s been my experience. Straight women were threatened by the idea that I’ve been with guys. Bisexuality seemed to undercut their view of my masculinity, and threaten the “protector” vibe I am supposed to deliver in the common (archaic) view of a straight relationship. Or maybe it just reinforced their own insecurities in our relationship.

Gay men typically assumed I was gay and afraid to come all the way out of the closet. If they did accept that I’m sexually attracted to women, they often became more threatened than their straight female counterparts—jealous that I had “options” to fit in that they didn’t have themselves.

That’s the problem. Bisexual people are often forced to defend their sexuality in a way that others aren’t. Constantly explaining. No, my masculinity isn’t threatened by your inability to understand me. But I’d still like to be friends. I’d like you to “get it.” To get me.

Don’t be offended if I correct you when you refer to me as gay.

Every time I tell  someone “I’m bisexual” my spine tingles. Do they believe me or do they think I’m lying? Every damn time. For a long time, I didn’t mention it. But when others mislabel me, it stings. It feels like I’m being erased.

I’ve spent too much of my life in fear of other people’s reactions to me. Afraid of their limited understanding. I’ve allowed other people’s erroneous perception of me—other people’s story—to dictate how I expressed myself. I’m tired of living like that. I’m learning that their comprehension of bisexuality is out of my control. 

Also, I’ve realized that keeping quiet on this matter robs other people of an opportunity to understand bisexuality. By leaving their worldview unchallenged, I deny them a chance to grow, and that ultimately stunts the growth of society as a whole.

That’s an important lesson. When I hold back saying the thing I want to say because I’m afraid of the response, I rob that other person of a chance for intellectual, spiritual and emotional growth. I prevent the Universe from moving forward.

I’m done living my life like that.

A few years ago I participated in the AIDS/LifeCycle, a San Fran to LA bike ride to raise funds and awareness for HIV/AIDS. Most of my teammates identify as gay. One night I was sharing an Uber with one of them, and the driver started chatting us up about women. He assumed we were both straight and he knew we were visiting from out of town, so he suggested the clubs where we could find the hottest girls… the sluttiest girls… and…

Locker room talk. Chock-full of all the sexist objectification of women we as a culture are only beginning to acknowledge. Why is it always the guys least likely to get laid who talk the most about getting laid?

My teammate and I had an opportunity to correct the record and let this driver know that we weren’t interested in what he was selling. I’m in a monogamous relationship, and my teammate identifies as gay, so neither of us was looking to find the “easy pussy” this Uber driver was trying to share with us. But instead of correcting him, we didn’t say anything. We took the path of least resistance. We allowed the driver to assume that we fit his definition of “normal.” Two pussy-chasing dudes looking to score some tail.

He made assumptions about us in order to feel comfortable trusting us in a social context, and we were both too afraid to betray his “trust” by negating those assumptions.

But something else was going on in that moment. Not only was I too afraid to mention my sexuality to the driver, I was also too afraid to tell my teammate that I’m bisexual. I knew that he assumed I was gay, and I didn’t correct the record. I was afraid that dropping the “I’m bisexual” bomb might have created separation between us, when his perception was that we were an “us,” unified in our distinction from the driver.

I wanted to fit in with my teammate, so I kept quiet.

I plan to do better.

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that it’s important to speak up about the ideas that scare me the most. Not only is there power in overcoming our fears, but sharing our own stories in the face of fear can create a teaching moment for others.

Yes, there will be people who aren’t ready to get it. Maybe they have trouble reconciling my sexuality with their religion. Maybe they struggle with their own sexuality. Maybe they’re just dumb. I don’t know what factors inhibit their understanding, but that’s their story, and their story is not my responsibility.

What I know is that when we hold back our truth so that others can remain comfortable, we rob them of an opportunity to understand us. That doesn’t only impact us; it impacts everyone else that person meets. Anyone who is different than that person, for whatever reason, is impacted by their limited perspective.

Hiding your story perpetuates the problem and stunts the growth of humanity.

Being bisexual is just one part of who I am. It’s not the sum of my parts. I hope that someday our society will better come to understand human sexuality, to eschew the stereotypes we assign to LGBTQ+ people, and to respect the differences that make life exciting and new. Some people will understand that, and some people won’t. That’s the way it will be until we evolve.

Until that evolution happens, I will be better at speaking my truth and doing my part to help us move forward.

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The Fitness Supplements I Use To Get The Results I Want

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The Fitness Supplements I Use To Get The Results I Want

I recently wrote about the foods I avoid. Skipping those foods has made a HUGE difference for me, and I’m certain it will be the same for you. For the most part, my diet consists of clean proteins, simple grains, vegetables and the occasional treat. But there are 6 supplements I use to augment my strength-training regimen and to help balance my macro ratios. Here they are, in order of when I take them throughout the day.

If you need a shopping list right now, you can check out a list of the products I use here, and then come back and read this post later. But please read the post… I spent a lot of time on it!

Disclaimer: some of these supplements include fake sugars and/or chemical sweeteners. If you’ve read the blog, you know I mostly avoid those things.

However, I typically use the supplements below early in the day– with a workout– in a way that allows me to control my insulin response. I find that the positives (convenience and macro-impact) outweigh the negatives (some fake sugar and chemicals). However, you’ve got to test them out and see what works best for you.

#1: BCAA’s (During My Workout)

I prefer to workout in a fasted state, first thing (or second thing) in the morning. While some people feel like they need carbohydrates to get them moving in the morning, I do not. I feel sluggish and bloated if I eat a meal before working out. (Especially with a belly full of oatmeal. Huh?!) All I need is coffee and, occasionally a handful of dried apricots.

Because I strength train in a fasted state, I use a BCAA supplement during my workout. BCAA stands for Branch Chain Amino Acids. BCAA’s are the building blocks of protein, the stuff that makes up muscle mass. The 3 branch-chain aminos are leucine, isoleucine and valine, 3 of the 9 essential amino acids required by our bodies.

After sleeping for 8 hours (hopefully, right?) your body is in a fasted state. You’ve essentially been on a mini-diet throughout the night. As I’ve mentioned, when your body needs energy but doesn’t have any food to digest it begins to look elsewhere to create that energy. Hopefully your body burns fat for fuel, but if you are lifting weights in a fasted state there is a solid chance that your body will begin to catabolize muscle tissue to free amino acids it can use for fuel.

You need amino acids in your system when you workout.

This is one of the reasons people often times lose hard-earned muscle mass while dieting. The leaner you are, the more likely your body will use-up some of your muscle mass for energy. This is obviously not good when you’re trying to hold onto muscle as you lose fat, or to gain muscle in the face of even a small caloric deficit.

This is where a BCAA supplement becomes useful. Here’s why I drink a BCAA supplement throughout my workout:

To balance against the loss of amino acids from protein breakdown.
It’s been proven that leucine increases protein synthesis, adding another weapon against protein breakdown while exercising in a fasted state. 1
Drinking a BCAA mixture helps me stay hydrated, because it’s mostly water. Duh.

Are BCAA’s necessary?

It’s true that we can get all the branch chain amino acids we need (and other aminos) from food. Whey protein supplements, for instance, include the BCAA’s we need. But there is a catch: food, including whey shakes, must be digested in order to release those BCAA’s into your system…

Digestion is exactly what I’m trying to avoid while I’m exercising. I don’t want my body spending any effort on digestion, and I don’t want to walk around the gym with a gut full of whey protein powder.

I like Scivation Xtend BCAA’s. I’ve tried MANY other brands, but these flavors are the best. Like I said, I do drink some of the flavors with fake sugar (sucralose), but I only have one small serving of these in the morning. Also, this brand makes several flavors that are sweetened with stevia, if you’re really diligent about avoiding fake sugars.

#2 Whey Protein (Post-Workout)

You know what this is. Whey protein is the fastest, most efficient way to get protein into my system quickly after training. And speed is critical.
Whey is easy to digest (easier than casein or a chicken breast, obviously). My muscles are hungry after lifting. The body needs protein to prevent muscle catabolism and begin the muscle building process.

There are people who will argue against the importance of ingesting protein immediately after a workout, and research exists to support both ideologies. Yes, your total protein intake throughout the day is much more important than when you consume it. (I will discuss macro nutrient balances in a future post.) I’m simply stating what works for me, and I’ve had great results by sucking down a protein shake after I lift.

I want to do everything I can to support muscle mass while trying to lose fat, and I don’t want my body pulling energy from my muscles. I’m telling my body to immediately begin building muscle tissue as a response to the stress I’ve just put my muscles through. I want to reassure my body that everything is okay — “start building, because we have the food (protein) we need to survive.” I want to convince my metabolism that we are in a building phase, even though I am actually trying to lose fat.

Not all whey proteins are equal. I use a filtered, lactose free whey protein. I’ve talked about why I avoid dairy in an earlier post. I’ve also talked about why I avoid protein bars and opt for whey instead.

My brand of choice is Isopure protein supplements because it’s lactose free and I know from experience that it doesn’t make me bloated. On occasion I will switch things up and use Carnivore protein (made from beef), but I usually like the taste of Isopure the best. Also, it’s available almost everywhere.

#3 Carb Powder – dextrose, maltodextrin, or a combo (Post-Workout)

Here’s where my post-workout shake gets interesting. The second supplement I take as soon as I finish my workout is a quick digesting, high-glycemic carbohydrate (a simple sugar), often in the form of straight dextrose or maltodextrin. I mix this powder directly into my whey protein shake, so I get both supplements at the same time.

Yes, I’m essentially adding sugar to my protein shake. Am I a hypocrite?
A few years ago, if anyone had told me “Nate, you need to consume a bunch of high-glycemic carbs right after your workout” I would have thought they were insane. CRAZY! I’ve seen high calorie “mass building” supplements at the gym and I’ve always ignored them. Why would I take something like that when I am trying to lose fat?

I’ve always been taught to cut carbs when I want to lean out, and that has traditionally “worked” for me. Except, it didn’t really work, and here’s why:
Normally I avoid high-glycemic carbohydrates because I know that an insulin spike and a rush of sugar into my blood stream sets me on a roller coaster ride for the next several hours.

Swings in my blood sugar level result in swings in my energy level… which results in a grumpy, tired, often times angry Nate. That cycle (high blood sugar, then crash) causes me to crave foods I don’t really want to eat, and it screws with my mood.

HOWEVER, post-workout is exactly the right time to induce the insulin response.

“Why should I eat sugar right after I worked my ass off to burn a bunch of calories?”

Your body just used up the glucose you had in your system during your workout. (And that was probably a very limited amount if you prefer to lift in a fasted state, like me.) Additionally, you probably dipped into some of the glycogen stored in your muscles as an additional energy source.

You can replace those used up glucose and glycogen stores rapidly by consuming quick digesting carbs (simple sugars). This is especially essential for any fast-twitch, high intensity interval training. This is why drinks like Gatorade and Powerade exist.

When you ingest those simple sugars you cause a spike in blood sugar, which in turn triggers your insulin response. Insulin is the hormone your body uses to regulate glucose as an energy source, and to shuttle that glucose into muscle cells for growth. Post-workout is the exact time you want this to happen. You want to restore glucose and glycogen stores so that your body doesn’t trigger the starvation response.

“So, can I eat a Snickers bar after my workout, brah?”

Absolutely not. You are trying to lose fat, and for the most part that means avoiding refined sugars at all costs. However, a controlled portion of sugar (free of fat and for which you know the exact caloric content) is appropriate immediately after you train. And those sugars are definitely not in the form of high-fructose corn syrup.

So which sugars should you reach for?

There are competing philosophies about the benefits of dextrose (a monosaccharide or very “simple” sugar) vs. maltodextrin (a slightly more complex carbohydrate, or “starch”) post-workout. I’ve tried both kinds of supplements and I think both do the same thing within a sufficient time-frame. Don’t get bogged down by hype-science that tells you one brand enters your blood stream ten seconds faster than another. it’s BS.
Taste and convenience are the most important factors for me when shopping for a carb powder. Here’s what I’m looking for:

Must be flavorless, because I add it to whey protein (I don’t want to drink two separate shakes or a shake plus Gatorade);
Must be easy to mix/ dissolves easily;
Must have limited or no fructose, because I get that from fruit;
Must be caffeine free, because I don’t want anymore caffeine after a workout;
Must be free of additional protein, dairy, etc., because I get protein from the whey. I just want carbs in this supplement.

It’s not always easy to find a supplement that meets these requirements. Most post-workout carbohydrate supplements come pre-mixed with protein, etc., or they come in the form of a fruity powder that doesn’t taste good mixed with chocolate Isopure.

So what do I use?

For most of this year I used Waxy Maize, which is basically corn starch (maltodextrin). I liked it. Some people think their claims of super quick absorption are a hoax, but it does what I needed it to do, and it adheres to the 5 requirements above.

Sometimes I’ve used Performix Carbon, which is a dextrose supplement. Dextrose is an even simpler sugar than maltodextrin, and Carbon tastes very sweet. Like table sugar.

I’ve also tried a Universal Nutrition product called Carbo Plus. This is another maltodextrin supplement, and it’s made by a company that’s been around a long time. It’s more expensive by the ounce, but I’m going to give it a try because I use this stuff pretty sparingly.

I know you are probably skeptical of adding sugar to your shake, but I am telling you it has made a HUGE difference for me this year. If you are trying to maintain (or gain) muscle while losing fat, this is a must-do… but only right after your workout and in conjunction with the proper macro-nutrient (iifym) diet.

Side note: I typically also eat an apple after my workout, just to supplement that dextrose or maltodextrin with fructose. This is the time my body needs simple carbs and can use them efficiently, and it’s nice to get a little fiber in to keep me “full” until I eat a real meal (about 1 hour after my workout). Post-workout is the only time I’ll eat simple carbs all day (all other carbs will be complex), so I enjoy fruit in this time period.

#4 Creatine

The last ingredient I add to my post-workout protein shake is a teaspoon (5g) of creatine powder, as a maintenance dose.

Creatine is a non-essential nutrient created by the body to facilitate ATP transportation into cells. Here’s some science… skip ahead if you are bored.
ATP (Adenosine triphosphate) is the “energy” our bodies use at the intracellular molecular level. (Protein, fat and carbs are all eventually turned into ATP at the end of the digestion/oxidation process.)

ATP creates energy in the form of heat by hydrolyzing a phosphate group. This “heat” is the basis for all bodily functions, from moving your eyes to breathing to, of course, lifting weights. Once ATP has given up its phosphate in the name of energy production, it becomes ADP (Adenosine diphosphate). Creatine binds with phosphate to become creatine-phosphate, and then shuttles that extra phosphate to ADP, turning it back into ATP. That’s the gist.

Our bodies produce a small amount of creatine naturally, and we can only store so much of it in reserve. This is why you hear about people “loading” creatine by taking a large dose (>15g) every day for a few days to increase the amount stored in their body.

Many, many people supplement their creatine intake, especially vegetarians. (This is because creatine is, essentially, a combination of several amino acids, and it’s found in meat.) There is evidence to show that supplementing creatine to create a creatine surplus aids in ATP storage and therefore makes more energy available during strenuous exercise.

Is creatine safe?

Like I said, there is a limit to how much creatine your body can store (< 2400000 mol/lb) so ingesting large amounts of creatine is pointless. I take a maintenance dose of 5g/day to make sure there is enough in my system, without putting undue stress on my kidneys or liver.

The European Food Safety Administration released a statement in 2004 stating the safety of creatine supplementation of 3g/day is safe, and many people load with much more than this.

I supplement with 5g post-workout for three weeks out of the month, and then I abstain for a week to allow my body’s natural equilibrium to reset, to ensure that I am still producing decent levels of creatine on my own.

I look for creatine supplements that are flavorless (duh), and don’t contain any extra stuff, like sugar, fake sugar, caffeine, etc. You want the purest creatine you can get, but it isn’t worth spending a fortune on “super-duper micro-ionized triple-filter blah-blah.” That’s marketing hype. Here’s a link to the brand I use.

The best time to take creatine is post-workout, with a simple carbohydrate (see above) that stimulates the insulin-response system. Because, again, insulin is the hormone that facilitates creatine transport through the body.

#5 Vitamins (Lunch time)

I take a vitamin supplement every day. Yes, it is true that you can get all the vitamins you need from a balanced diet. The same goes for protein, sugar, and creatine.

However, the balance of vitamins in my body fluctuates based on my diet, and diet is contingent on the time of year, e.g. the foods that are available during different seasons. For example, I’m lucky to live in Los Angeles, and I can usually get tomatoes anytime I want them. But sometimes during colder months they taste like garbage or they are imported from places with governments I don’t support (sorry, not sorry), so I avoid them.

Additionally, some vitamins are dependent upon external sources. For example, Vitamin D is produced by the body when skin is exposed to sunlight. During short winter days when my sun exposure is low, I don’t produce the Vitamin D I need to stay balanced.

I supplement my vitamin intake with an Animal Pak. I take one pack every day to help regulate my system. It’s not so much that I risk an overdose (they recommend two “paks”) but it’s enough to be an insurance policy against slips in my diet.

I take the basic, regular, original Animal Pak — not a “sterol stack” or any of the other paks they offer now. It’s the same Animal Pak my dad has taken for 30 years. I know the company (Universal Nutrition) has maintained high quality control and a consistency of product for decades. Also, if you or your doctor think you need to cut back on a specific vitamin, you can remove that pill from the pack.

#6 Casein (Before bed)

The only other supplement I use regularly is casein. Casein is a milk-based protein (naturally lactose free) that digests slowly. I take a casein shake before bed so that the protein digests in my system overnight.

Nighttime is when I would otherwise be in a “fasted” state, i.e. I’m sleeping, so I go for 7+ hours without eating. Nighttime is also the time when my body runs it’s maintenance and housekeeping cycles… including muscle-building. I supplement with casein so that I have protein in my system for at least part of the night.

I know serious lifters (like my former roommate) who set an alarm in the middle of the night to eat more protein. I’m not going to do that because I’m prone to acid reflux if I lay down with a full stomach. A casein shake before bed hasn’t given me any tummy trouble so far (knock on wood).

I’ll also often eat a small portion of fat (typically 0.5 oz of raw almonds) with the casein, just to help prevent the starvation response. Regarding “before bed” supplements, you should experiment with what works for you. Acid-reflux is no joke, and it’s best not to eat any solid foods for at least an hour before you lay down.

CONCLUSION

These are the only supplements I take consistently, and I take them with a well-balanced, mostly “clean” diet. IMHO, most other supplements are either a) dangerous, or b) a waste of time. Again, here’s a list of the stuff I use: https://www.amazon.com/shop/nateclark

A note about “fat-burners”

I’ve tried MANY varieties of “fat burners” in my quest to lose weight. I suggest you avoid any pill that claims to aid in fat loss. Avoid them! I’m not saying that because I think you should avoid short cuts. There are no short cuts to fat loss, (other than liposuction).

Fat burners are stimulants and/or diuretics. They will screw with your energy, your blood pressure, your endocrine system, etc., and they are dangerous. Any weight loss you experience is most likely water-loss, or it’s caused by the starvation response. Fat burners are only good for extreme lifters who are already have low body fat and are preparing for a contest or a photo shoot… when they need to be dehydrated. The effects are temporary and they are not worth the risks.

Recently, I accidentally tried a fat burner that was included in a vitamin supplement I took. I didn’t sleep for days. AVOID FAT BURNERS. Maintain a caloric deficit and you will lose fat without feeling like you’re amp’d on 10 gallons of coffee.

That’s it

I’ll write about proper nutrition and break down my macro-nutrient plan in a future post. I’m almost done writing about the things I’ve learned this year, and I’m excited to share the rest of this information with you. Stay tuned.

Vote Nate Clark – 2017

Content taken from Nate Clark

Vote Nate Clark – 2017

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THANK YOU to everyone who supported my campaign for city council in 2017, and also to everyone in West Hollywood who was open to hearing from a newcomer in this election. We didn’t win this time, but we were successful in provoking a conversation about issues that matter to us. I’m proud to be speaking up about improving upon what’s already fantastic, by encouraging more transparency, more City involvement in our local public schools, a more proactive approach to addressing homelessness, and a more cohesive vision for development in WeHo. Thank you to the Los Angeles County Young Democrats for your endorsement, and to the other Democratic clubs and organizations who considered my candidacy, despite my newness to local politics.

This was an exciting first step for me, and I’m thrilled by the level of participation and engagement I received from the people I met during my campaign. I am sincerely humbled and grateful for your support. I mean it. Thank you for welcoming me into your lives. And, an especially big thanks to my partner, Allen, for putting up with the campaign paraphernalia that’s been strewn around our place for the past two months. You’re a saint.

In June of 2017 the City of West Hollywood City Council voted to appoint me to one of two at-large seats on the Human Services Commission. This commission makes recommendations to Council on priorities in human services initiatives, and works to “promote citizen participation in the decision-making process… as regards human services programming.” This is a terrific opportunity to learn more about the ways in which West Hollywood provides services to our residents, and a chance to connect our citizens with the organizations that provide those services. I’m very excited to represent the community in areas I am passionate about, including homelessness, LGBTQ rights, public education, ending HIV, sports/leisure (like WeHo’s bike share program) and so much more.

Big thanks to City Councilmembers Horvath, D’Amico, Duran and Meister for supporting me in this appointment. I look forward to working with — and learning from – my fellow commissioners, our City Councilmembers, and City staff.

I’m proud to live here and proud to be a part of this process. Also, feel free to call me “Commissioner Clark” moving forward.

Content taken from https://nateclark.net

Nate Clark

Nate Clark - Official Site

Foods I try to avoid (and why I avoid them)

Content taken from Nate Clark

Foods I try to avoid (and why I avoid them)

The TYPE of calories you eat can have a huge impact on how efficiently your body works.

One more time for the cheap seats: the only thing you must to do to lose fat is to maintain a caloric deficit. In theory, you can eat whatever you want and still lose weight. HOWEVER, your body works best with certain kinds of fuel. If you eat crappy foods, you will probably feel like crap. Plus, when your body isn’t running efficiently, neither is your metabolism. That makes it harder to maintain the correct deficit.

There are calories (energy) in dirt… but you can easily see how eating dirt is going to cause other problems. See where I’m going?

Unfortunately, many of the foods we commonly consume are just as bad as dirt; we just don’t realize it. If you eat foods that disrupt the natural balance of your bodily functions, you run a greater risk of heart disease, cancer, dementia, etc. Yes, overall calorie intake determines weight gain or loss… but the quality of those calories determines how well you are able to burn future calories. Certain foods put an unnecessary strain on my system, and those are the foods I try to avoid.

With that in mind, the following is a list of the foods that I avoid:

Added (refined) sugars
Refined grains
Alcohol
Dairy
“Fake foods,” i.e. fake sugars and added chemicals

Not only are these foods “bad” for me, but I know from experience that eating them is a quick way to sabotage my fitness goals. They also tend to be calorically dense and throw me out of a deficit without satisfying my hunger. If you cut even a few of these items from your diet, you’ll find it much easier to be in a deficit. You’ll feel better and you’ll also be more in-tune with how these foods screw with your system, which means you’ll be able to feel how they affect you the next time you eat them. Nobody is perfect, but if you are looking to create more discipline in your diet, avoiding these foods is a rapid way to jumpstart your goals. Here’s why…

Added (Refined) Sugars

Science provides ample evidence of the drawbacks of consuming too much sugar. The problem is SUGAR IS EVERYWHERE. No joke, I bought a can of green beans at the super market recently and “sugar” was listed as an ingredient. Who wants that? Also, WHY?

Sugar creeps into our foods in myriad ways, and it takes many forms. Corn syrup, cane sugar, added fructose, glucose, sucrose… it’s everywhere. I’m not going to dive deep into the political, economic and industrial reasons that food manufacturers put sugar in almost everything, because if I start writing about that here I’ll never finish this post. (Maybe later I’ll write a post dedicated specifically to the pitfalls of sugar, but for now I’ll be brief.)

Added sugars wreak havoc on your body by causing unnatural blood sugar spikes and falsifying your awareness of energy expenditure. You feel a rush, and then later, as your blood sugar dips back to lower levels, you feel tired. This fluctuation is be addictive and it taxes your endocrine system (by creating unnecessary insulin spikes). Moreover, added sugars sneak unnecessary calories into your diet.

You need to read the labels wrapped around the foods you eat to make sure you aren’t eating more sugar than you need/want. Here’s a link to a HuffPo article about some of the hidden sugars you might be missing.
This is my rule: if I want sugar, I eat a dessert. If I want sugar, I’ll eat candy or chocolate (in moderation, of course). Canned green beans don’t need sugar! My salad doesn’t need to have sugar added to it in the form of salad dressing or 1/2 a cup of cranberries! If I decide to have a Pumpkin Spice Latte I am thinking of that as a dessert—an occasional treat—not something that I drink every morning before work.

I know that when I eat refined sugars, in any form, I am going to feel a spike in my blood sugar level, which will ultimately lead to a “crash” when my blood sugar level swings in the opposite direction. I feel like shit when that happens. If I need (or crave) sugar, I try to get it in its purest forms and I time it strategically to compliment my energy expenditure, i.e. right after a workout. That’s the perfect time to eat a piece of fruit or add berries to oatmeal. Exercise depletes glycogen reserves, so my blood sugar is already low at that point. Eating an apple after a workout brings me back to neutral. (In fact, I add a carbohydrate supplement that is mostly pure sugar to my post-workout protein shake. More on that later…)

I know how added sugars impact my body. When I first “gave up” refined sugar a few years ago I got terribly sick. I was immediately exhausted and within two days I succumbed to a full-blown cold that knocked me out for a week. It was awful.

When I emerged on the other-side, I became much more in-tuned with how sugar affects my body. I believe many of us are addicted to sugar, and if you avoid it you will feel better. The easiest way to avoid more sugar than you need is to make sure it’s not sneaking into your foods— read the labels. If you’re serious about your goals, I suggest you skip the foods with added sugar, and have a piece of fruit when the timing is right.

Refined grains

“Refined grains,” for me, is basically code for “bread.” Also crackers, cakes, and the stuff on the outside of fried chicken. I had a gym coach in college who told us that donuts are the worst food you can eat. “They take flour, bleach it, suck out all the nutrients, then they mix it with lard and sugar, then they fry it in lard and then coat it in more sugar,” he said. The message stuck with me. The idea of bleaching the flour to make it white… sucking nutrients out and breaking it down so that it’s easy to digest. Industrial food processing strips the wheat germ and bran from the flour, essentially leaving you with starch. Does that sound like wheat is something your body is supposed to be eating?

I’ve tried the Whole 30 diet and I’ve gone “Paleo” at times, limiting all grains from my diet. I think the biggest benefit to diets like this are that they limit your consumption of hidden sugars and chemicals, and that’s obviously a good thing. But I’ve also come to realize that my body runs better when I include a limited amount of certain grains, as long as the processing is minimal. These good grains include rice, quinoa and whole corn (which isn’t a “grain” until it’s dried, but might as well be).

In my experience, the worst possible refined grain is wheat. I don’t eat wheat in any form. When I eat it, I feel bloated and gross. I’ve also noticed that when it’s processed heavily (which is always) it causes my blood sugar to spike very quickly, and then I crash immediately after. Bread is essentially sugar. I avoid bread at all times, in all forms.

If I crave cake or pie, I eat baked goods that are made with nut flours. These may be higher in calories due to the high fat content in nuts, but they don’t fuck with my blood sugar the way flour does. Even when a cake has a lot of sugar in it—- coconut sugar, maple syrup, agave, etc.— I don’t experience as much of a spike in blood sugar as I do when I eat refined wheat. That’s because bread has a higher glycemic index than table sugar. A Kaiser roll has a glycemic index of 73, while a Snickers Bar® (60g) has a glycemic index of 60. Think about that for a minute.

Are you familiar with the term “bread head?”

There are multiple studies connecting a high-glycemic (heavy on carbohydrates) diet with Alzheimer’s disease. The term “Bread Head” is the title of a documentary in process by a guy named Max Luguvre I think he’s the one who coined this phrase. My limited understanding of the research behind this connection is that glycemic spikes can lessen the body’s ability to sweep amyloid plaque from the brain. This “plaque” is the stuff that causes Alzheimer’s disease.

Regardless of the strength of the current evidence, I know, personally, that refined grains, especially wheat, make me tired, cranky… and fat. I will eat corn off the cob, but I don’t eat corn chips. I eat potato chips on occasion, but I do not eat Sun Chips. Bread— even whole grain types— is NOT good for me, so I don’t eat it in any form. You can get enough fiber from fruits and vegetables, and enjoy sugars (in their natural state) that won’t cause insulin spikes the way refined grains will.

I know you’ve heard this before, and I know you probably “love” bread… but if you are serious about losing fat and feeling better, you should skip it altogether. Bread is not worth it.

Alcohol

Avoiding alcohol started as a necessary personal choice for me, and then it evolved into a health choice. I spent much of my 20’s drunk to some degree, and eventually I found help for that problem. I don’t consider myself “sober,” and I am not part of a twelve-step program at this moment, but I haven’t had a drink in almost 10 years. Life is better that way. I’m nicer, less depressed/manic, and I’ve found that exercise is a better way to regulate my mood than alcohol ever was. I don’t self medicate, and I don’t need a drink to talk to people in a crowded room. It took me many, many years to learn that lesson.

Later, I discovered an important added benefit to avoiding alcohol: a sharp reduction in calories. Alcohol is packed with calories, and it’s easy to “over eat” with booze in the following ways:

Alcohol is liquid. Liquid calories are easier/faster to ingest; make you feel less “full,” and they add up quickly
Alcohol is often mixed with sugary syrups and fruit juices that increase the amount of calories you’re consuming
Alcohol makes you hungry, by stimulating neurons that produce agouti-related peptide (AGrP). This peptide is created by the brain during starvation mode as a way to increase appetite.
Alcohol impairs your capacity for self-restraint, i.e it loosens inhibitions and makes it easier to “cheat.”

Alcohol in moderation might work for you

It doesn’t work for me, because of the reasons I just listed. But I’m not trying to police all of your fun, and a lot of people have fun when they drink booze. That’s cool. If you decide you can’t live without it, consider limiting your consumption. Opt for drinks with lower calories, and alternate alcoholic drinks with glasses of water.

And remember: all of those alcohol calories count against your deficit, and they add up quickly. Make sure to include them in your food journal with accuracy. Opt for a gin and soda— a drink that is relatively easy to estimate caloric content— instead of a margarita, which is not only high in sugar, but will vary wildly in caloric content depending on the bartender who makes it.

Dairy

This one is hard for me. I love cheese. Or, at least, I used to. I haven’t eaten any cheese in about 4 years. It started because my partner is lactose intolerant. I realized that dairy typically made me feel bloated and gross, too, so I stopped. Then I started researching why it makes me (and many others) feel bad.

We are the only mammal on the planet that eats the milk of other animals. That’s weird when you think about it, right? Would you walk up to a cow and just suck on it’s teet? I don’t think so… and yet we’ve developed an entire industry around cow’s milk.

Lactose is the sugar found in milk. Lactase is the enzyme that breaks this sugar down, and it is most likely only produced in adults as an evolutionary response to early man’s discovery of dairy as a nutritional supplement. Here’s an article on evolution from the University of Berkeley that states “most adults in the world are lactose intolerant and cannot digest lactose, the primary sugar in milk.”

The ability to produce lactase as an adult is the result of a genetic mutation in response to the amount of dairy your cultural ancestors ate. In other words, your ability to digest milk is directly related to your cultural (racial, ethnic) heritage. It’s not “natural” for any of us to eat dairy.

So why do some fitness nuts continue to eat dairy? Because it’s a quick way to supplement your protein and fat intake. But as a staple? I don’t think so. The more lactose you ingest, the more likely you are to experience bloating, diarrhea, and cramping when your body can’t process it.

When I did eat dairy, I’d notice major differences in how different processing methods would make me feel. Certain cheeses were fine, while others made me think I was about to crap my pants. Combine that gastric-stress with refined wheat, i.e. pizza, and you are asking your body to work with materials it isn’t naturally predisposed to process. Why do that to myself.

TIP: When you eat out, ask the kitchen to cook your food with oil instead of butter. In my experience, most restaurants are willing to do this… it’s often easier for kitchen to cook with oil.

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Notice two shakers in this pic. More on that later…

What about whey protein and casein? Aren’t they milk products?

In recent years I’ve been experimenting with whey and casein again. I use whey protein in the morning after workouts, because it is quick to digest, but I ONLY use whey that is 100% lactose free. Typically the Isopure brand. Most of the other brands give me the farts.

I also use Casein at night before bed, because it’s a slow digesting protein and is processed slowly overnight when my body gets to work at building the muscle I earned during the daytime. I believe most casein products to be practically lactose free… especially if they are carb-free. If there is any residual lactose in the casein products I use, it’s so little that I haven’t noticed any issues.

Some people experience gastric distress from casein itself. Calcium caseinate is, as described, a slower digesting protein. It’s harder to digest, which is why it takes a longer. I used to avoid protein bars with casein as the primary protein because those bars made me super bloated. I assumed that it was the casein, so I opted for whey instead. But after experimenting with pure casein powder, I’ve come to realize that my body was most likely reacting to the sugar substitutes, chemicals, etc., in those protein bars, not the actual casein. Which brings me to the next group of “foods” I avoid…

“Fake foods” with weird chemical ingredients that I can’t pronounce

“Fake foods” include a broad category of foods I try to avoid. It includes fake desserts, foods with engineered sugars or fats, and desserts masquerading as protein supplements (protein bars). I try to eat “clean” in the sense that I want to know what’s in the food I’m eating. There is plenty of research showing the bad effects of fake sugars on the body’s insulin-response mechanism. In fact, there is evidence that diet soda is worse for weight loss than regular soda.

The FDA has approved five artificial sweeteners: saccharin, acesulfame, aspartame, neotame, and sucralose. Their benefits (fewer calories) are overshadowed by the ways they screw with my body’s natural ability to process actual sugar. I try to avoid them as much as possible.

The more I’m able to maintain a clean diet, i.e. free from fake sugars, bulkers, emulsifiers, preservatives and chemicals I can’t pronounce, the more in-tune I’ve become to how these chemicals effect me. They make me feel awful. Symptoms range from headaches to gas to depression and anxiety. I had no idea these supposedly “healthy” substitutes were wreaking havoc on my body until I eliminated them.

This includes protein bars!

The biggest culprit: protein bars. I was pescatarian for almost 13 years. (I ate fish and dairy, but no beef, chicken, pork… you get it.) I foolishly believed that protein bars were a safe supplement for my protein needs. For YEARS I would routinely eat two or more protein bars a day. Most of them were flavored to taste like candy bars or desserts. I had no idea those bars were tanking my fitness goals, by messing with my endocrine system and forcing my body to process unnatural chemicals.

Earlier this year I cut out protein bars completely. I had been eating several Quest bars a day, thinking that they were a safe supplement. Within weeks of eliminating them from my diet I began to lose fat like never before. I’m not kidding—it seemed like a miracle. Even while maintaining the same caloric deficit, there was something about those bars that was hindering my fat loss efforts.

My guess is that the biggest culprit here are the fake sugars. Fake sugars destroy your ability to detect, process, and sort natural sugar as an energy source. The article I linked to above (re: diet soda) talks about this, and here’s an article that details how fake sugars are related to an accelerated “blood insulin and glucose response.”

Fake sugars make it harder for your body to process natural sugars effectively, and may even lead to Type 2 diabetes. So why eat them? The risks outweigh the rewards.

Here’s my philosophy: if I want something sweet, I eat sugar as it was intended to be eaten, e.g naturally and in moderation. I’ll have a piece of candy or a pie (made with paleo crust) that use natural cane sugar, maple syrup, or agave as a sweetener. I eat natural sugars, not chemical substitutes. Even better, I’ll have a piece of fruit. I’ve definitely noticed that limiting hyper-sweet fake sugars has heightened my response to fructose… which makes an apple taste like candy. REALLY! You probably think I’m an asshole for suggesting that an apple is the same as a candy bar, but I’m not exaggerating. Plus, fruit has fiber.

If I need protein, I eat meat, fish, poultry and the occasional whey or casein supplement (with as few added chemicals as possible). I don’t eat protein bars.

Conclusions:

I hope I didn’t take the wind out of your sails. You don’t have to eat rabbit food in order to lose that fat. Avoiding these items has made a huge difference for me (I know that they will make a difference for you, too), but only you can decide how far you’re willing to go to meet your goals.

I’m not a perfect eater and my diet is not 100% “clean.” I eat in restaurants. I eat on-the-go. I even eat some of the stuff on this list occasionally. Sometimes that happens by accident and sometimes because fuck it, I decide to. But when I do, I accept the consequences and I correct course as quickly as possible.

You know that your first priority is maintaining a caloric deficit. It is ultimately the only thing that matters. But as you lose more weight and try harder to fight the starvation response, eating foods that help your body run more efficiently will become key for continued wight-loss. Overloading your system with crappy foods will slow your metabolism.

You don’t have to skip these foods to lose weight. But I guarantee that if you avoid the stuff on this list, you will feel different: better, stronger, and, overall, more aware of how your body works with the foods you feed it. You’ll have a better perception of your insulin response and how certain foods impact your blood sugar level. You will feel less bloated and more regular. You’ll be better at realizing when you are actually hungry vs. thirsty or just crashing. And I expect that most people will notice major increases in energy, like I did.

All of those things happened for me when I stopped eating these foods. Give it a try for a few weeks and see how you feel.

Content taken from https://nateclark.net

Nate Clark

Nate Clark - Official Site

Inspiration to help you overcome a fitness setback

Content taken from Nate Clark

Inspiration to help you overcome a fitness setback

[image error]It’s been almost a month since the last time I sat down to write a blog post about fitness, or anything else for that matter. I had a setback. I made plans, wrote down my goals… and then life got in the way.Sometimes it seems that the closer I get to realizing my goals, the more obstacles the Universe throws at me. Or maybe I am the one throwing these obstacles at myself? Either way…

I wish I could say that I’m perfect and that staying in shape (and achieving all my other goals) is easy once I decide to commit myself to something… but COME ON! We all know that’s not the case for anyone. And, as much as it sucks, setbacks are part of being a human person. There are no up’s without down’s. Life is a rollercoaster, not a slide.

If you’ve experienced a fitness or fat-loss setback recently, here are three inspiring ideas to keep in mind as you work to overcome it.

#1 – SETBACKS HAPPEN TO ALL OF US.

You are not alone. Nobody is perfect. We aren’t machines (yet). Here’s what happened to me this month:

I work as a freelance creative-type person. I act, I’m a voice-over artist, I write, I have a monthly musical comedy show at UCB, and I also do graphic design/art direction for several major brands. The design thing started as a “survival job” while pursuing my other goals, but it has strangely grown into a lucrative business of its own. I’m grateful for that.

However, this type of work has a tendency to overtake my life, stealing all of my time and making it difficult to pursue my own projects and goals. (Like my personal quest for single-digit body fat.)

This month I took on two design projects that I shouldn’t have said “yes” to. One was for a new client with extremely poor organizational skills and no leadership to speak of. The other project was with a client I’ve worked for years, and even though I swore last year that I’d never work for them again, they seduced me with dollars. I felt like I needed the money, so I said committed to working on both projects. I acted out of fear, and I immediately regretted these decisions.

In exchange for earning those dollars, I gave up a most of the time I might have invested elsewhere. Time I would have spent writing this blog. Time I would have spent preparing my meals ahead of time. Time I would have spent sleeping. Time I could have spent pursuing my own professional goals.

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Too tired to eat well?

Yes, I managed to drag myself out of bed and get to the gym 6 days a week as I finished the last month of a 12 week muscle-building cycle. That was an achievement. But, I also managed to overeat almost every day. A caloric deficit? Forget about it. I gained 8 pounds this month. Yeah, some of it is muscle, but a lot of it is fat, too.

That is frustrating. It’s hard for me to stay disciplined in my food choices when it feels like I have no time to think, let alone prepare my food for the day. I failed to meet my goals, and that sucks. Yes, I held onto the one thing I could: getting to the gym every day. But everything else on my goal sheet went out the f’ckin window.

SHIT HAPPENS.

I know I’m not alone in this type of setback. Things like this happen to all of us. Life is challenging. Whether you work a full-time job, have kids to wrangle, or you hit a bump in the road because you’re dealing with depression… whatever the cause, setbacks happen to everyone. They can last for days, weeks, months or maybe you’ve been in a funk for years.

It happens to all of us. But that brings me to number 2:
#2 – A SETBACK ISN’T PERMANENT.

Setbacks aren’t the end-of-the-road. A setback is part of the natural balance of the Universe. A setback is the pendulum-of-life swinging in the opposite direction for a beat. It will swing back in your favor. It’s easy to wallow in a setback. I believe it’s human nature. Abandoning your pursuit might feel easier than accepting failure and course-correcting. But which will feel better long-term: giving-up now, or achieving your goals? Don’t be fooled into thinking a setback is permanent.

Think about it this way: you NEED the lows to understand the HIGHS. Literally. Nothing is “good” without a point of comparison, i.e. something “bad” to compare it to.

This might sound convoluted and abstract, but it’s incredibly simple: there is no “thin” without “fat.”

So, how do you embrace that understanding in practice? How do you use an abstract concept about balance to get back on the horse and resume your fitness goals?

Use your setbacks to acknowledge where you are, and as a reference to remind yourself where you’d like to be.

How do you accept failure and learn from your setback? You continue to write in your food journal, even when you are eating shitty foods.

Recognize the crappy way you’ve been eating during this setback, and look at how those choices have affected your goals. Did you gain a few pounds this month? Are you tired? Are your clothes tighter?

No, I’m not advocating that you use your food journal to beat yourself up. Do not judge yourself for failing to stick to your plan. You’re not a machine, you’re a human.

But, don’t ignore your journal, either. Remember, this is math. You don’t gain weight because you feel stressed or busy or depressed. (Those are root causes/issues, and sometimes they are unavoidable.) The ONLY reason you gain weight is because you are eating too much (or moving too little). Acknowledge that by continuing to document your caloric intake in your food-journal even when you are in a funk. Write. It. Down.

TIP: In MyFitness pal it’s easy to look at your average daily caloric intake for a week or month. Review that! Don’t look at yesterday and feel bad about the 5,000 calories you consumed or the Chocolove bar you finished in one sitting at 10pm last night. Look at your averages for the earlier weeks and see how far off you were on average. This gives a more detached, birds-eye view of the math, and the math is EVERYTHING.

As you review your journal, remove emotion from the equation. Those extra calories you’ve been consuming don’t care about why they’ve been. They are platform-agnostic. Weight gain/loss is science and math, exclusively.

If you overeat, you gain weight. If you maintain a deficit, you lose weight. This is factual, regardless of how you feel about it. This fact is always true, even after weeks, or months, or YEARS of gaining weight in a setback. Remember: you are always able to lose that fat when you engage the math. No setback is permanent.

You don’t gain weight because you feel bad, just like you don’t lose weight because you feel good. Separate yourself from those feelings about food. Don’t fall prey to a society that confuses eating with emotions. 

YOU ALWAYS GET TO CHOOSE WITH ABSOLUTE, SCIENTIFIC CERTAINTY WHETHER YOU ARE LOSING WEIGHT OR GAINING WEIGHT.

I already know what I need to do to achieve in the kind of body I want. I understand the science, and at this point, you do, too. The setback I’m experiencing is a product of not doing the one thing I need to do: maintaining a caloric deficit. The reasons why I am eating poorly are irrelevant, and… sometimes setbacks are unavoidable.

Sometimes you need to make money… sometimes depressed hits you after a break-up… sometimes you are stressed-out because of work or because your family is visiting and they are awful… and sometimes when these things happen your food choices slip. You eat poorly and your exercise habits go off-track because you’re tired or emotionally taxed or strapped for time. It happens to all of us.

But then a window opens up—or your force it open—and you have the freedom to get back on the horse. Because setbacks aren’t permanent. They are a part of the journey, and will ALWAYS have the opportunity to lose that fat! Always. It’s math.

Don’t let a setback derail you permanently. Don’t live in your setback indefinitely. Don’t be fooled into thinking your setback is the new status quo. Recognize it as a “low,” acknowledge your choice in the matter, and then use that knowledge to plan your deficit for tomorrow. Just because you ate that bag of Reese’s last night doesn’t mean you have to eat another one today.

Don’t wallow. Remove emotion and self-judgement from the equation. You know this is an equation, right? Explore the math and apply it. That brings me to the number 3 thing you need to remember during a setback:

#3 – MAKE A NEW PLAN FOR MOVING FORWARD AGAIN AFTER YOUR SETBACK.

I gained at least 5 lbs of fat this month. Now I am working on my plan for burning it off. I’m not interested in making this “5 lbs heavier Nate” the new normal. I’ve acknowledged my setback, and now I choose to recommit myself to my goals.

That feels great! I know EXACTLY how to cut those 5 lbs, and I know how awesome I will feel after I burn them off. I choose to pursue that goal.

Thor facing a few setbacks in the arena.

I want to reclaim the energy those two jobs sucked out my life. I want to take more shirtless selfies. I saw Thor: Raganarok last night and I want to be jacked like Chris Hemsworth.

I’ve made a plan to get there, and it feels fantastic to move past the setback I experienced this month.

Do the mental gymnastics you need to do to recommit yourself to your goals, renew your obsession, and then formulate a plan. Maybe you want to start a new training program you’re excited about. Maybe you want to try a new meal planning service that will make it easier to stick to your deficit, or maybe you want to test out a new gym.

Regardless, base the math on where you are at TODAY, post-setback, and get to it.

I’m gonna repeat myself once more time because it’s worth it: This is MATH, and you CAN ALWAYS LOSE THE FAT.
Setbacks are a part of life.

Setbacks are just another step on the road forward. If a setback has you frustrated or short on inspiration, remember to stay focused on these three ideas:

1) Setbacks happen to everyone, and sometimes they are unavoidable;

2) A setback isn’t permanent, so don’t accept them as such. Don’t wallow in a setback;

3) Make a new plan to move forward after a setback, because today is a new day and you can ALWAYS LOSE WEIGHT IF YOU WANT TO.

*****

Thanks for reading this. It is, in essence, another pep talk I am giving myself everyday to remind myself of my own goals. It’s helpful for me to write it down, and I hope it helps you to read it.

The next post is about the foods I avoid, why I avoid them, and it also has suggestions for substitutions. I’m not as militant about diet as you think, I promise. It’s about the deficit, first. You’ll see.

Content taken from https://nateclark.net

Nate Clark

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