One of the most common questions I am asked at expos and book signings is: “What do you eat?” As is the usual with me, I honestly care about questions I receive, not just on the surface but on multiple levels. First of all, I want to answer the question to best of my ability. Second, I am hoping to partially anticipate why I am being asked the question in the first place, so I can give an answer which is designed in such a way to best answer the questions burning in the minds of those asking me. Finally, I realize there are two separate ways to answer the question, with one being a short succinct answer with not much meat to it (which most people want) or one which, if I am allowed, will take me a great deal longer to answer but will hopefully address the first two points above.
However, as I mentioned, most people don’t want a long answer. In today’s sound bite world they want an answer that makes sense to them (e.g. “pasta” ), makes them laugh or shake their heads (e.g., “I live on junk food”), or one that fits into what they want to hear (“I eat whatever I want because I run so much!”)
Well, to start I don’t eat whatever I want because I run so much. In reality, I do not really run all that much, (at least not enough that I can eat whatever I want with no consequence.) Also, when it comes to bad food, the analogy I have always used is how we do not put low-grade gasoline in a brand new supped-up Porsche. Why fine tune your body to a high level only to load it with garbage? With regard to the easy answer of pasta, I am a big fan of the noodles and eat carbs of that nature for a variety of reasons (palate, budget, and lifestyle.) And while I definitely could eat better (try eating well when you spend most of your days on the road), I do not live on junk food.
Most recently at the San Francisco Marathon, I was given both the platform to answer this question and the time to go into greater detail. I was able to state that yes indeed carbs are part of my diet, but more importantly, I am a big consumer of protein, specifically in the form of beef. The instant recoil I saw in some of these super fit people made me realize how much of a bad name beef has received. I also found it funny that those who were looking for information upon which to build their own argument for or against running multiple marathons were slightly take aback. This takes me to my biggest hesitation with answering any: “So, what do YOU…” fill in the blank.
Continue Reading: 1 2
{ 2 comments }
Dane, Dane, Dane. Don’t you know beef is a four letter word? No wonder your audience was shocked! Actually fish is too but we’ll exempt that one because they’re not furry and have cute eyes. :-) I applaud you for speaking the truth, there are those out there who would have lied in a situation like that. It seems beef is a dirty word nowadays and I can see why. I’ve seen alot of shows on the topic, but I still eat beef even though it’s not real frequent. Like most meat, I eat in quantities that are not bad for my health. Protien is protien however, and like it or not we wouldn’t have the big brains we do without it. I don’t really care much where folks get their protein myself. I do what works for me and leave everyone else to select what works for them.
I like fish by the way, not that anyone should care that much.. except that these happen to be ones that I catch myself for the most part. I get alot of grief over the fact that I “kill poor innocent little fish” to get my protein.
Be a vegetarian or vegan or anything you want to be. Eat what you want, but don’t wish your diet upon anyone else and find it abhorrent when others eat beef, pork or otherwise. Not everyone holds the same values, but we all need our protien like it or not.
I don’t like killing any more than anyone else, but it’s fact of life that I try to ignore because it is what it is. We have canine teeth and they aren’t there for shredding cous cous.
Dane,
Personally, I would like to thank you for your fact based and informative take on how lean animal proteins, like beef can fit into a healthy diet. As a registered dietitian, I am often times astounded by the misinformation that is broadcast abundantly by news media and other fitness professionals regarding specific food components in the diet.
Frankly, most people are just misinformed when it comes to lean beef in the diet. Many people do not realize that there are 29 lean cuts of beef that meet USDA guidelines for leanness, meaning for an average of 180 calories they provide less than 10 grams of total fat, less than 2.5 grams of saturated fat and less than 95 milligrams of cholesterol. In addition, beef is a great source of protein, as 3 ounces of lean beef provides over 50% of one’s daily needs for protein in addition to 10 essential nutrients, such as vitamin B12, zinc and iron. I also think that people are confused about beef’s fat profile, as beef often gets a bad rep for being high in saturated fats, when actually 3 ounces of lean beef provides us with more than 50% of its fats from monounsaturated fats, the same heart healthy fats found in olive oil, and an additional 20% of its fats from stearic acid, a unique fatty acid that does not raise or lower blood cholesterol, but instead acts neutrally on blood cholesterol levels. Therefore, what we see is a 3 ounce serving of beef having a 70% positive fatty acid profile.
In addition, many people misunderstand that not all proteins are created equal. In a society where most people are over-consuming foods by an additional 300 calories per day. It is important to ensure that for our calories we are getting the nutrition that we need. A three ounce serving of lean beef provides us with nearly 25 grams of protein. While 25 grams of protein may be attainable from other foods sources, you would have to consume 2-3 times the calories to get equal amounts of protein. For instance, to get 25 grams of protein from black beans, you would need to consume nearly 350 calories, or from peanut butter, nearly 700 calories.
I am a big believer in the fact that all foods fit into a healthy diet, when consumed with variety and moderation in mind. If all beef eaters loved to exercise, loved their fruits and veggies and thought about good health the same way you do, perhaps the misconception that beef and animal proteins were unhealthy would be very different.
Kind Regards,
SCB