How To Relieve Stress

That's right, I'm writing this post at lightning speed. What's the subject? I considered blogging about how to buy vitamin supplements. But after much deliberation I thought the better idea might be to go with those disgustingly tasty omega 3 vitamins as a source of blogginess.

But finally I decided on Dubai. Why Dubai? Well, I've been dickering around with the idea of middle eastern travel, and the recent tourism boom in a place that is otherwise defunct of interest. It has no natural or recent history. It's a fucking desert. And yet, because the country can pour so much goddamned money into that little city, it has a attracted the world super powers. Global media corporations, software techs, it seems everyone has got a little station out there in the oasis, and it gets prettier every day.

So, what's my goal? I want to live there. For two years. I want to spend a little time in this exotic location, get a sense of the business, have a little fun. Then it's right back to the states, to nasty, nasty L.A. to abuse my career and education. Hooah!

Do you take your vitamins before or after lunch?

I'm on a caveman diet, or paleo diet if you prefer, but I don't always stick to it, so I take a good multivitamin to fill in for the nutrients I'm taking. I also take some omega 3 capsules (have to make sure I'm getting enough orac value!). I keep switching the time when I take the vitamins. I used to take them at breakfast, but now I take them after my lunch.

The only problem is, occasionally I get fish burp when I take them after lunch. But I never have the fluid on hand before lunch (has to do with where I work, no easy access to cups and a drinking fountain) to take my vitamins beforehand. I thought about bringing my own bottle of water to work each morning , but that's a hastle and could also be expensive.

So, I'll stick to taking my vitamins after lunch. The only other option is before dinner, but I don't bring my vitamins home with, so I never have any on hand to take! What do you think of that!

Oh, by the way, I always buy my vitamins online.

Who's Bill Browski? Bill Browski is this amazing guy I met at the gym. He had a ripped set of washboard abs, and he knew how to use them. Browski would strut around the gym, talking on a cell phone, flexing his lats, his biceps, his abs. I don't think I ever saw him actually use a machine, he just showed up to show off.

Browski was always talking about omega 3 capsules. He loved those little fish oil caps.

"Jack!" he'd scream into his cellphone. "Jack! You got to try these little pills! You gotta pop 'em! They're great! Fish oil! Yeah! YEAH!!!! TAKE THEM!!!!" Browski could really get himself worked up.

One time I saw Browski take a nose dive into a rowing machine. He was jabbering on about some best antioxidant to his guy pal on the cell when he tripped and face planted right against the pull bar of the rowing machine.

Most people would laugh, shrug it off, say "Damn, that hurt!" and move on.

Not Browski.

Browski kneels on the ground holding his face for a moment, then climbs right onto the rowing machine and starts pumping away as fast as he can. Like he planned to mount the rowing machine via swan dive. The funny thing is Jack was still waiting on the cellphone, now discarded on the ground, screaming back "Bill! Browski! What about those Antioxidants, Browski! What's the orac value, Browski! Browski!!!"

It's about time I talk a bit about Chinese vitamins.

The supplementation industry is vast and, for the most part, unchecked. Whereas a typical prescription drug goes through roughly a decade of testing and 700 million dollars of research, a holistic medicine simply requires a bottle and a label. There are no standards and practices, thus there is a multitude of rip-offs, half baked ineffective supplements, and empty placebo vitamins online. There's so much vitamin information out there, and yet not enough to weed out the bad seeds (mixed metaphor).

The truth is, many ordinary vitamins come from contaminated Chinese sources. I won't argue that China has a reputation of contamination, but their vitamins aren't known to be the most pure.

So, if there is no way to tell if a vitamin is quality, how do you go about purchasing supplementation? The answer is in customer service. If you're thinking of buying vitamins from a company, give them a call. Find out if the salesmen know about the vitamins, where they come from, what the ingredients do. Good customer service is often representative of good product.

Also, I found a great post on a health website about abs on a high fat diet. Well worth reading.

I've been hearing a lot about this new eating disorder called Orthorexia nervosa. Basically, it means people are eating too healthy. And it doesn't surprise me at all that this is happening.

There's a whole industry built on scaring people into health. Rather than promoting positive health images, many products use the tactic of negativity to make the dollars. If you don't watch out for "stuff" in your meat, you're going to get E. Coli! or Mad Cow disease! Or some other random rare bacterial infection that almost never appears!!!! So eat organic, grassfed, non-homogenized, non cultured, all natural, pampered beef, or else you'll die!!

The same is true with any product that has been "processed." People seem to believe that if something has been processed it is some how bad, evil, disgusting and far too unhealthy for out children.

News flash, processed is just another term for "prepared." Everything is processed, and most of it is processed in a clean sterile environment according to FDA standards.

Finally, the "all natural" tag. Here's another news flash: everything is all natural. It's just what we do with it that deems it "unnatural." But there's no clear guideline as to when something goes from being natural to being unnatural. I guess too much processing, though I couldn't say why.

So, for those food purists, I say beware, you may be just as bad as the anorexics.

And if you want to find people now, check out the link I've provided!