I’m no extremist. Admittedly, I enjoy an occasional cocktail, cappuccinos once in a while, and have a “fondness” for doughnuts that is not normal. I often have people review their diets with me by keeping a seven-day food diary. Invariably, these logs are overrun with sugar, simple carbohydrates and other stimulating foods. People consume it daily and without consciousness, it seems. Somehow, they think the fact that they are active and fit mitigates the harm a routine of low-quality food intake creates. This treat-for-tricks mentality around food is dangerous. A great diet will do more for your health than any training plan will.
We’ve had the cliché of “diet and exercise” burned into our collective psyche so much that we ignore it. Of course, exercise is a great option for us all and it does have many benefits. However, exercise on a diet of caffeine with fast and sugary foods is not going to net you a fountain of youth or a great state of health. I want to encourage us all to take the spotlight off the routine of exercise and place it on what we put in our mouths. In 13 years of practice, I’ve witnessed so much more improvement and degradation in health due to diet changes than I have in changing exercise routines. I continue to be amazed by this!
There are food and exercise industries out there that beg to differ with what I am saying. I provide you with no research or conventional proof of what I describe, only my years of observation in practice. Gyms, sporting-goods retailers and the media desperately want you to believe it’s not the food you put into your body, but what you own or wear to augment your activity that will make you look and feel healthy. It’s not. The quality of the food on your plate is responsible in large part for your state of health, your state of mind, and how long you’ll likely live to enjoy this life, exercising in it or not. Please consider this before your next meal and your next run.
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Joshua Stevens, D.C., is a holistic chiropractor in Chapel Hill and Durham, where he utilizes chiropractic, acupuncture, detoxification, nutrition, and cold laser therapy with patients. A two-time Ironman finisher, he focuses on racing cyclocross and mountain bikes … much easier!
