Today Lecrae’s new album OVERDOSE hits the selfs and you know what that means. YES…………I be will giving away a free copy. Lecrae is one of my favorite artist and has been for about 5 years now. He is extremely talented and with each new album he just seems to get better and OVERDOSE is no exception. This album does not disappointment, his creativity and lyrical skills shine through like a light in darkness. It doesn’t matter if your a fan of rap or not Lecrae is an artist you will enjoy.

For your chance to win Lecrae’s new album OVERDOSE all you have to do is comment below then  retweet or facebook share this post. Drawing will take place tonight at 10pm central time using a random number generator by Random.org

UPDATE: Thanks to everyone who participated. I’ve been listening to the album all day and I can tell you it’s a great one. So, without further ado the winner is ……………………………. Karsten!  Congrats!

I’m not talking about eating dirt or dirty foods (unless you want to). Eating Dirty is the term I’ve chosen to associate with a way of eating.  In simple, Eating Dirty means – eating what I want, when I want and however much I want. I am not here to say this is a bad thing, only to bring clarity to this lifestyle of eating.

So let’s start with what eating dirty is not.

• Usually eating healthy but enjoying a piece of cake at a friend’s wedding

• Being on vacation and enjoying all that the local cuisine has to offer

• Enjoying the occasional ice cream sundae with your family

Having a treat now and then doesn’t make you a Dirty Eater no more than having an occasional drink makes you an alcoholic. Yet we all have friends and family who eat healthy and then want to beat themselves up if they so called “slip up”, or those who think if they eat healthy they can never again have some of their favorite foods.

The mindset of someone who lives the Eating Dirty lifestyle is like that of a drug addict. Does that seem harsh? Probably only if you live the Eating Dirty lifestyle. Let’s look at the comparison of those with addictions liking gambling, drugs, alcohol or porn and compare it to those of the Dirty Eaters.

• Refuse to believe they have a problem no matter who warns them
• Don’t seem to have the ability to look ahead and see how this is affecting them and their family
• They begin to hide and sneak stuff around
• Their bad habit begins to affect they’re day to day actions (ever seen someone miss their coffee or Dr. Pepper?)
• They’re physically different as the addiction takes a hold of the body.

Eating Dirty, while the term sounds like fun, it can be a dangerous way to live. Now while it is true that even those who eat dirty might live a long life; but is going to the doctor all the time and hurting from ailments really living? With all the advances in medicine, you have people who have smoked 2 packs a day and drink a 5^th of gin daily that live long too.

I personally would love to see you live a long, healthy, fulfilled life doing what you were created to do. You can still enjoy your favorite treat just like you can have an occasional drink or play game of poker. It’s when your bad eating habits become an addiction and control your life that you’re Eating Dirty.

This a clip from a show on the BBC network very funny you have to appreciate the humor they have over in England.

If you know me, you know that our children’s education is very important in our home.  Our daughter, Adriana attends a Classical Christian school here in Oklahoma City and it is the only one of its kind around here. We are very pleased with our decision to place our daughter here and highly recommend others to check it out. My wife says that she was sold on the school while reading through the handbook by one simple but very profound phrase: “The Bible is not a subject, it is a looking glass”. That phrase says it all about how we should live our lives. Below is some information about an upcoming information meeting. If any of you have school age children, I would encourage you to attend a meeting just to check it out.

Some of the children (including our daughter) will be giving a brief presentation of what they are learning at the meeting. We hope to see you there!

Providence Hall Classical Christian School is hosting Information Meetings on Thursday, January 13th at 10am and 7pm for parents of potential students for the 2011-2012 school year.

We are the only full-time classical Christian school in the OKC area. Providence Hall serves grades PreK-8. Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten classes will have full-day and half-day options.

At Providence Hall, our goal is to prepare students for a lifetime of learning, equipping them with a firm foundation in the elements of Western Civilization and culture. We desire to graduate young men and women who think clearly, with discernment and understanding, who reason persuasively and articulate precisely, and who see themselves and the world through the light of scripture.

Please join us to learn more about the excellent educational opportunities for your child at Providence Hall.

Providence Hall is located at 1120 East Hefner Road, Oklahoma City, OK 73131-1600.

Future information meetings will occur February 10th at 10am and 7pm, March 10th at 10am, April 14th at 10am, and May 12th at 10am. Reservations are not necessary but appreciated.

For more information about our school, please visit www.providencehall.org, and follow us on Facebook, too.

If you have any questions, please contact Lynne Doe, Development Director. (LDoe@providencehall.org or 405-478-2077)

There use to be a time when there were 3 things you didn’t talk about with people(unless you shared the same views): Politics, Money and Religion. Now this was mainly because people could not seem to agree or even agree to disagree on the topics. So the easiest solution was just to ignore them. That almost makes sense with all the extreme differences on what one’s political view might be, or even religious preference. The arguments in both of these areas are endless and everyone is sure theirs is the truth.  Now it’s 2011 and while none of this has changed other than there are now more religions and political views, food is now in the category of things you almost just don’t want to talk about.

There are thousands of ways to eat. Some based on religious views, others science or even history and some are based on ones financial status.  No one ever thought we would fight over what a person eats. You just eat what you like and go about your business…….right? You would think so but it seems that no matter what you are eating it is the concern of someone around you.

It’s lunch time and you’re sitting with four friends you are about to enjoy a nice steak and baked potato with butter and bacon. Just as you begin to dive into your delicious looking meal; your vegan friend says, “You shouldn’t eat that steak it’s wrong to kill animals”. Then your friend who lives by the eat clean philosophy says, “You shouldn’t really eat the butter and bacon”.  Now your Paleo friend is telling you, “I hope that’s a grass fed steak and you shouldn’t eat that potato at all”. Finally, your friend eating a Big Mac says “I’ll eat it if you won’t” and all you wanted to do is enjoy your nice meal.

Three of your friends are at least trying to convince you of their healthy choice, you have a fourth that has said, “Look at me, I eat whatever and I’m still alive”. It’s never ending debate and it seems to just get more confusing as you dive into the ways of eating. Carbs no carbs,  eat this fat but not that fat, peanuts  are on the no list but almonds are ok, eat every 2-3 hrs blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah is just what it sounds like and now you just want to become a food atheist.

While this ensuing debate goes on about who has more proof or who has eaten this way for years and how it works for them. It’s not just you experiencing this it is taking place in restaurants, lunch rooms and homes all around the country. You would think there was a food election coming up and the winning side determines what the country will eat for the next 4 years.  Crazy right……..it’s like something you see in a movie but not real life.

Did you know there are about as many ways to go vegan as there are one hit wonders on VH1. You would think they all get along because they are vegetarian, some do but they still debate it out. Now I’m not picking on vegans. The same goes for Paleo Dieters , the eat clean lifestyle, or even the eat dirty lifestyle. It is a debate from every angle.

Food is the new religion and just like religion, most people are fighting the battle with an empty gun. Not based off truth or facts, but what they’re parents did while they were growing up. They see a celebrity doing this or that diet on the cover of a magazine in the checkout line. With all the info that scientist provide like eggs are healthy one month and 3 weeks later they are not. What seems to be an ever evolving debate can be overwhelming.

What we’ll do this week is breakdown what I consider to be the five most basic ways of eating. These are only four of them but they seem to cover most of what’s out there.

Here they are with basic definitions and we will dive in further everyday this week.

Vegan – a conscious way of eating, and involves the practice of following a diet which includes fruits, vegetables, cereal grains, nuts, and seeds, with or without dairy products or eggs.

Paleo – a hunter/gatherer way of eating. The Paleolithic diet consists mainly of meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, roots, and nuts.

Eat Clean – eating natural foods without preservatives. Also, portion control and eating every 2-3hrs

Eat Dirty – eating whatever.  No rules, no exceptions, no concern for health. If they like it, they eat it.

Stay tuned, enjoy and share your style of eating.

The New Year has begun and for most of us we are busy trying to figure out how we  will make those New Year’s Resolution stick. We’ve joined the gym, thrown out the cigarettes, and even cancelled the cable. Why? Because this is the year you accomplish your goals and unlike every other year this time it’s going to happen.  It doesn’t matter how long you’ve tried to accomplish your goals wether it’s been 10 years of this is your first year. Some times we just need little reminders to help us out along the way.  So here are 10 ways to help you keep your goals.

1. Be honest – I’m not sure who came up with idea of lying to yourself but all it does is set you up to never succeeded. You’ll never get anywhere if you can’t be honest about where you are starting and where you really want to go.

2. Don’t cheat yourself – The only thing  taking short cuts are good for is trying to avoid traffic.

3. Make a plan – If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.

4. Celebrate the small victories – No matter what you goal might be don’t wait till you achieve 100% to celebrate. Take the time to celebrate the changes you make along the way . Not only is the journey more enjoyable but your are more likely to accomplish your goal.

5. Get help – No matter how you look at if you were the expert on what you’re trying to achieve then it probably wouldn’t be a new resolution. Take the time and find some one more knowledgeable they yourself to assit you. People are always willing to share their knowledge.

6. Don’t let failing scare you -Failure can be a scary word or it can help teach you how to get better for the next time. Thomas Edison didn’t event the light bulb on the first time. but he didn’t give up and  I’m glad he didn’t or i might be typing this by candle light.

7. Learn to say No – You can’t do it all, it be nice if you could but you can’t and in order for you to make things happen your going to half to say no to somethings. Look at this way your saying no to one thing so you can say yes to something else

8.Set new Goals – When we get close to reaching our original goals we seem to get lost on what to do next. The key is to continually set new goals so that we are always moving forward.

9. Ignore the haters – I’m not sure if its a law or what but every time you try to do something to improve your life  here comes someone to tell you it can’t be done. IGNORE THEM

10. STOP IT – the patterns of self destruction, the lies, the excuses, the fearful thoughts and  whatever it is that holding you back just STOP IT!

What a horrible misconception it is that if you are not overweight, there is no need to try and eat healthy or exercise. Not only is it not true, but it’s what leads most people to what is known as the “yo-yo effect”. They were overweight, and then began to exercise and eat healthy, and now they are skinny so they stop. Then there are those who look skinny, but all their weight is surrounding there midsection. They believe because they can still fit into a certain size of clothing, they must be healthy.
People of all shapes and sizes have heart attacks, cholesterol problems and diabetes. Doctors tell them all the same things, “watch what you eat and exercise”. See your health is not based just on the size of clothes you wear. Exercise and healthy eating do more than just change your physical appearance. They also affect your heart, mind, lungs bones and all that great stuff that allows the outside to function. Even though you may not be able to see it, we have to take care of it.
I imagine that your take on health would be quite different if you could see your organs all the time. What if you could see the condition of your heart or your liver and how the foods you eat and lack of exercise affect them? While the mirror might be pleasing, if you look good naked, these are not great signs of what lies beneath the skin. It’s time go beyond skin deep and start to take care of the internal mechanisms, the controls of the body, just like all the work we put into our outward appearance.

Are you doing the Daniel Fast to start the year off? Maybe your looking  for a more healthy way to start your day. One of the things I suggest is Green Smoothie. Not only do I recommend this for the Daniel Fast but for year round health. Now the video below is kind of cheesy but it is very helpful.  If you have a favorite green smoothie receipe comment on it below or if you have question just let me know.

I do not have the nice fancy blender he uses. My blender came from target 3 years ago cost less than $60 and works just fine. The key is not to add all the ingredients in at once. Start of with just water and some of the greens blend for a bit. Then add in some more and just repeat this  untill all you ingredients are blended then enjoy. I enjoy using spinach and collard greens along with what he mentioned. Below is another video again cheesy but very helpful.

This video may be old school but still speaks volumes. Jack Lalanne was way ahead of his time!

Unhealthy food is not your enemy no matter how much you like to believe that. People think if there were no more doughnuts in the world, all their problems would be solved. WRONG! No one ever died just from eating a doughnut. (Well at least one that wasn’t poisoned).

This morning I had a “year in review” talk with my kids about how the past year went well and what we can improve on in 2011. Afterwards, I took them to Browns Bakery for a treat; a doughnut.  You’re asking, the guy who is always drinking those green smoothies and grass fed beef lets his kids eat doughnuts? The answer is yes.

The thing about your health and fitness is it’s all a series of choices. In our everyday life, we want to learn what the smart choices are versus the bad choices. There is no one rule fits all. If you are 100lbs overweight, then a daily doughnut might be a bad choice for you. If you’re about to run a race, eating a big meal right before might be a bad choice. It’s the choice you make that determines your lifestyle, not the lack of choice.

If all the junk food in the world was removed, we would still find ways to eat unhealthy. There was a time when there was no junk food, we created it! We know that constantly eating unhealthy food is not good for us, but when you look around it’s easy to see what choices a person makes the majority of the time.

One of the best lessons in fitness and in life is to make smart choices. Hiding from doughnuts (or whatever else) is not the solution.