Dr. Levi

Well, this is going to shock some of you!  Many of you have been told, and we have held off with the full scale announcement until we made sure that those who have been around a long time would get an opportunity to hear this news directly from he or I.

Dr. Levi is leaving.  And because it has taken us so long to get it out to everyone, it is happening this week.  Yep.  Please get yourselves into the office this week to say good bye to Dr. Levi.  Now, it is possible that you will see him around, somewhere, in the future.  He isn’t “leaving” in the sense of moving away.  He is leaving in the sense of blazing his own path.  I have to say, I am proud to see this day.  Proud of him to take this leap.

Dr. Levi is not heading out to start his own practice, but he is stepping out to start his own CrossFit Gym.  Yep!  CrossFit Allatoona is opening soon, and it is under the sole ownership of Dr. Levi and his wife.  Levi joined me about 11 years ago, roughly a year after I was in practice.  He is a loyal guy, which I appreciate immensely, but he came to me from a successful background in personal training.  It was his thing, he was really good at that.  Then he added chiropractic to his repertoire of things to be good at, but underneath, he always had a comfort with fitness education that you couldn’t deny.

When he got into CrossFit, I pictured him having a more permanent home in a gym one day.  He is great at dissecting anything.  The medical model, leptin, chiropractic, crossfit… this gift makes him an awesome coach, and a great leader in fitness.

I cannot say enough about how great it has been to have Dr. Levi in the office.  It will be a huge difference going forward.  Especially given that Dr. Samara will be leaving for her career change to Australia shortly.  But we’ll be ok… so let me fill you in on what will be happening at HealthSprout.

Intern Nate (very close to being Dr. Nate) and his soon to be wife Dr. Rebecca (intern from two quarters ago) will be working with us shortly.  They however, are in a program with Maximized Living, where they will be moving at the end of the year.  They are more of a stop gap, to keep things rolling.

The long term plan, is that I have my brother coming.  He is about to graduate from a chiropractic school in Buffalo.  He’ll be down here with me early in the new year.  And will be back and forth to Buffalo until the school year ends and his kids get out of school.  Not sure how much we will see him, but we’ll have fresh interns as well, and all will be good.  By next July, we’ll have a stable plan going forward.

Don’t worry about HealthSprout, we’ll be all sorts of focused and good!  Right now, the focus is on making sure we give Dr. Levi the farewell that he deserves!  So please, take the time to be sure you get into the office to give him a big hug!

CrossFit Allatoona is on the web HERE and FACEBOOK HERE.

Be well and Be Blessed!  (you too Dr. Levi!) – Dr. E

Glycemic Load and Index

This list of Glycemic indices as well as loads, is a good list to help get a sense of how foods effect your blood sugar.  Of note, look at the load of a bagel at 25 (70 grams), and 111 grams of white cake with betty crocker frosting at 24.

If I call you a sugar addict, and you tell me “I don’t like sweets”, then I say that you are a sugar addict because of your bagel addiction, what will you tell me?  “I don’t eat bagels” is the only response that fits.  Children are at a higher need of blood sugar than adults, so I would OK a semi regular bagel.  But I wouldn’t do it without at least modifying the foods that might accompany it, or surround it during the rest of the day.

So what is the difference of load and index?  Index represents the actual blood sugar raising levels in a food, where load is the impact based on a typical serving size.  So we can find more use in reviewing load.  For example, 50 grams of ice cream only has a load of 6.  So if you are looking at the cake and the ice cream, skip the cake, just eat the ice cream.  And if you went with an organic variety, you will have saved yourself a ton of potentially hazardous ingredients that were in the cake!

Fruit, well lets see what we can learn from fruit…

Raisins – 28 (aren’t these the healthy things we feed our kids???)
Dates – 18
Banana – 16
Grapes – 11

Though raspberries aren’t listed below, their index for a cup, is about 3.  This is why you’ll hear us say, “Eat Berries First!”

Enjoy this information, use it, and jump into the 60 Day Turnaround tonight at 7:15pm, where we will dig deeper into understanding blood sugar, and how to control it!  Be Well and Be Blessed!  – Dr. E

FOOD Glycemic index (glucose = 100) Serving size (grams) Glycemic load per serving
BAKERY PRODUCTS AND BREADS
Banana cake, made with sugar 47 60 14
Banana cake, made without sugar 55 60 12
Sponge cake, plain 46 63 17
Vanilla cake made from packet mix with vanilla frosting (Betty Crocker) 42 111 24
Apple, made with sugar 44 60 13
Apple, made without sugar 48 60 9
Waffles, Aunt Jemima (Quaker Oats) 76 35 10
Bagel, white 72 70 25
Baguette, white, plain 95 30 15
Coarse barley bread, 75-80% kernels, average 34 30 7
Hamburger bun 61 30 9
Kaiser roll 73 30 12
Pumpernickel bread 56 30 7
50% cracked wheat kernel bread 58 30 12
White wheat flour bread 71 30 10
Wonder™ bread, average 73 30 10
Whole wheat bread, average 71 30 9
100% Whole Grain™ bread (Natural Ovens) 51 30 7
Pita bread, white 68 30 10
Corn tortilla 52 50 12
Wheat tortilla 30 50 8
BEVERAGES
Coca Cola®, average 63 250 mL 16
Fanta®, orange soft drink 68 250 mL 23
Lucozade®, original (sparkling glucose drink) 95±10 250 mL 40
Apple juice, unsweetened, average 44 250 mL 30
Cranberry juice cocktail (Ocean Spray®) 68 250 mL 24
Gatorade 78 250 mL 12
Orange juice, unsweetened 50 250 mL 12
Tomato juice, canned 38 250 mL 4
BREAKFAST CEREALS AND RELATED PRODUCTS
All-Bran™, average 55 30 12
Coco Pops™, average 77 30 20
Cornflakes™, average 93 30 23
Cream of Wheat™ (Nabisco) 66 250 17
Cream of Wheat™, Instant (Nabisco) 74 250 22
Grapenuts™, average 75 30 16
Muesli, average 66 30 16
Oatmeal, average 55 250 13
Instant oatmeal, average 83 250 30
Puffed wheat, average 80 30 17
Raisin Bran™ (Kellogg’s) 61 30 12
Special K™ (Kellogg’s) 69 30 14
GRAINS
Pearled barley, average 28 150 12
Sweet corn on the cob, average 60 150 20
Couscous, average 65 150 9
Quinoa 53 150 13
White rice, average 89 150 43
Quick cooking white basmati 67 150 28
Brown rice, average 50 150 16
Converted, white rice (Uncle Ben’s®) 38 150 14
Whole wheat kernels, average 30 50 11
Bulgur, average 48 150 12
COOKIES AND CRACKERS
Graham crackers 74 25 14
Vanilla wafers 77 25 14
Shortbread 64 25 10
Rice cakes, average 82 25 17
Rye crisps, average 64 25 11
Soda crackers 74 25 12
DAIRY PRODUCTS AND ALTERNATIVES
Ice cream, regular 57 50 6
Ice cream, premium 38 50 3
Milk, full fat 41 250mL 5
Milk, skim 32 250 mL 4
Reduced-fat yogurt with fruit, average 33 200 11
FRUITS
Apple, average 39 120 6
Banana, ripe 62 120 16
Dates, dried 42 60 18
Grapefruit 25 120 3
Grapes, average 59 120 11
Orange, average 40 120 4
Peach, average 42 120 5
Peach, canned in light syrup 40 120 5
Pear, average 38 120 4
Pear, canned in pear juice 43 120 5
Prunes, pitted 29 60 10
Raisins 64 60 28
Watermelon 72 120 4
BEANS AND NUTS
Baked beans, average 40 150 6
Blackeye peas, average 33 150 10
Black beans 30 150 7
Chickpeas, average 10 150 3
Chickpeas, canned in brine 38 150 9
Navy beans, average 31 150 9
Kidney beans, average 29 150 7
Lentils, average 29 150 5
Soy beans, average 15 150 1
Cashews, salted 27 50 3
Peanuts, average 7 50 0
PASTA and NOODLES
Fettucini, average 32 180 15
Macaroni, average 47 180 23
Macaroni and Cheese (Kraft) 64 180 32
Spaghetti, white, boiled, average 46 180 22
Spaghetti, white, boiled 20 min, average 58 180 26
Spaghetti, wholemeal, boiled, average 42 180 17
SNACK FOODS
Corn chips, plain, salted, average 42 50 11
Fruit Roll-Ups® 99 30 24
M & M’s®, peanut 33 30 6
Microwave popcorn, plain, average 55 20 6
Potato chips, average 51 50 12
Pretzels, oven-baked 83 30 16
Snickers Bar® 51 60 18
VEGETABLES
Green peas, average 51 80 4
Carrots, average 35 80 2
Parsnips 52 80 4
Baked russet potato, average 111 150 33
Boiled white potato, average 82 150 21
Instant mashed potato, average 87 150 17
Sweet potato, average 70 150 22
Yam, average 54 150 20
MISCELLANEOUS
Hummus (chickpea salad dip) 6 30 0
Chicken nuggets, frozen, reheated in microwave oven 5 min 46 100 7
Pizza, plain baked dough, served with parmesan cheese and tomato sauce 80 100 22
Pizza, Super Supreme (Pizza Hut) 36 100 9
Honey, average 61 25 12

http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/31/12/2281/T1.expansion.html

The “Health Plan”

I sometimes neglect to share the full details with you.  All the details about living healthy.  Getting adjusted is amazing for helping function and health.  But it cannot stand alone.  That has been the problem with countless of the “great” chiropractic educators from the mid to late 90’s.

Chiropractic philosophy got really popular with certain groups, and I love these guys.  Listen to this statement that you might have heard me repeat.

“It’s not my job to make you feel better so you can go out into the world and die! It’s my job to correct your subluxations so that you can live!”  – Dr. James Sigafoose

How could you not love that philosophy?  Don’t you all need to be reminded almost everyday that it is less about what you are feeling, and more about your pursuit of feeling good?  I was seven days into my eye injury that has left me blind in one eye, and I was in the basement working out.  One of my patients said, “shouldn’t you be resting?”, and I responded, “I am… I am sleepgin 14 hours a day… when I am not sleeping, I need to be active, driving the inflammation from my body, and spurring on hormones to create healing”.  I am still blind in that eye, but I have healed nicely in other ways.

The reality of the situation however, was that I would have not been too far away from drilling holes in my own head to release the pressure.  This was no fun, and it hurt at all times.  Like the time I blew out my AC joint in my right shoulder (I still don’t have one, so if you want to see something weird, ask me to show you).  I was taped up, and thrown right back in to play… but I couldn’t.  My shoulder was completely separated, Grade III.  So ended my collegiate career playing hockey.  A National Championship while sitting on the bench.  I guess the good news is that I was on the ice for the final play a year earlier when we won.

But I bring both of these up, because my point is that pain is not the focus, nor the enemy all the time.  It simply is.  And just like Dr. Sigafoose extends that his job has nothing to do with pain… neither does ours.  It is about function.  I HATE when people talk about me to others as the guy who helped their pain.  I WISH they would say, he is the guy who got rid of my subluxation, and you know what… my pain went away too!

So my health plan, is to not just focus on the chiropractic, but to start there.  Then to move to the diet, watching it closely, following our Biblical focus, but being sure to keep us aware of the difference between Biblical food quality, and food quality of today.  The old Chiropractic Philosophers missed the boat when they decided that getting adjusted was all they needed.  I know a bunch of these guys, and a bunch of them have suffered health calamities that surely look like overloaded toxin levels.

There have been gross lapses in their pursuit of exercise.  A huge no-no in the health world.  But I think one of the greatest areas of neglect, has been to uncover the lies of the 20th century food pyramid.  When it comes to understanding healthy and not, too many of the last 40 year health gurus, have been headed the wrong direction while following the food pyramid (now the food plate – both totally wrong).

So my plan, to focus on all these things.  I want you to try to do it with me.  My video of Monday Nights talk is here: FOUNDATIONS I    Please watch it.  All of you.  I can see how many views I have, and I would like to see the number jump 10 fold in the next week.  The only way is if you watch it!

Here is the whole thing in a nutshell –

  1. Stay adjusted
  2. Eat well 80% of the time
  3. Take Juice Plus Daily, supplement with Omega 3 and Vitamin D as needed
  4. Avoid Medications until we know, know, know without a doubt that they are needed… this is really important, as they are serious toxins to the body
  5. Exercise 5x a week (the whole family)
  6. Enjoy God, enjoy life, give praise, and give glory
  7. Stretch, not enough, but keep it in sight daily
  8. Listen to music, laugh, dance, and be joyful
  9. Strive to help others

BOOM!

Be well and Be Blessed…. joining the 60 Day Turnaround is not hard.   -Dr. E

 

 

What you missed Monday night…

Is coming to video.  Yep!  If you wan to do the 60 Day Turnaround, but just don’t see how you’ll make those meetings (even though we have a ton of them).  You can sign up online or in the office, and you can do it from home, via video review and reading.  We will record the workshops, and get you all that you need to be successful from home.

So, one more time.  Why do you want to get into the 60 Day Turnaround:

  1. Because you do more when pushed in a group then on your own.  Period.
  2. To understand the why behind the right diet.  Stop eating low fat, and “healthy” labeled foods.  I was just reminded tonight that the “NATURAL” flavor that makes up most raspberry flavors in the world, are from the anal glands of a Beaver.  Called Natural because it was not made in a lab, but it was surely not grown from the ground!
  3. Clean – get to know the word clean.
  4. Detox – another buzz word that means nothing until you investigate it… get to know it, do it, and love it.  The Suero Cleanse is for everyone… find out why.
  5. Eat my cooking!  Yep, come to recipe night!
  6. Buy groceries with me.  I love shopping with a crowd!
  7. Get to try out CrossFit really cheap… or Chiropractic… your call, or do both.
  8. Get tested for your toxin load, your fluid distribution, your body mass, your health!
  9. Watch a cool health based movie with friends…
  10. The best reason – be committed to something that can change your life!

 

I look forward to seeing you here, next Wednesday night at 7:15pm!  Thanks!

Be well and be blessed… and cleansed!  – Dr. E

Review Inflammation

Today we are getting ready for tonight’s introduction to the 60 Day Turnaround.  So we are simply asking you to review INFLAMMATION on our site – Daily Sprout’s that is.  So Click the link above, and see you tonight at The Garage at 110 Londonderry Court, Suite 122, Woodstock GA  30188.  At 7:15pm!

It is Here!

OK, so what are we doing with the 60 Day Turnaround?  Many of the scheduled details are posted now on the main page.  Also, the add on details are available as well for the most part, and here they are.

Member Pricing – $49  Register here  (HealthSprout and Better Health By Design Patients, Gym Members are included here)
Member Pricing But I own the BOOK (Green Max Living Book) – $29 (same link above)

Non Member Pricing – $99 (for guests, people who aren’t already investing into their health with CrossFit gyms, or HealthSprout or Better Health By Design)

Here are some Add Ons for you:

Toxic Body Testing (Hair Analysis and Webinar seminar) – $50 (normally $85)
10 Class CrossFit Punch-card (for non-member, first time users) – $49
4 Adjustment and Examination (X-Rays if needed) Punch-card – $49 (Either Chiropractic Office)
Suero Viv Cleanse (RECOMMENDED FOR EVERYONE) – $75 – $90 (Three Options)
Dunk Truck (Hydrostatic Body Fat testing on location) – $TBA
BIA Analysis (Cell Health Analysis and Webinar seminar) – $15
Recipe Nights (Eat and Learn) – $7 ($15 to invite non participant guests)
30 Minute Consult with Dr. Eric – specific hormone review.  You will need a blood test prior to this consult.  Testing will range from $100-$400.  Consult is $100 ($200 value)
High Hampton Retreat – October 7-10, travel to the High Hampton Inn with Dr. Eric for a wellness retreat ($240/night – includes all meals and spa treatments, and continuing workshops) – see the schedule HERE, or reserve with High Hampton HERE.


Other components that are INCLUDED with your registration:

All Workshops, which will be offered multiple times at different locations, including DAYTIME workshops!  In addition, the shopping excursions are included.  There is a facebook page that will also be the focal point of information dissemination, and will provide a place for a facebook group to grow from so that you can communicate with others in the turnaround.

Movie Nights – Sick, Fat and Nearly Dead, Food Inc., Food Matters will all be offered at different times throughout the turnaround.  Invite friends to these events.

Blog posts specifically focused on what you are doing.  Where is the blog?  Right at the Main Page for the Turnaround!  Right HERE!

Remember, this Monday Night – you can attend for free at 7:15pm at The Garage, check out the

MAP to the Garage now!  Be Blessed and Be Well!  – Dr. E

Map Of Garage

 

The Longing for Immortality – And how it effects your health.

It was a decade plus ago when my grandfather died.  He was a cool guy.  Lots of cool stories, and a ton of opinion.  He had served in the Merchant Marine in World War II, which fueled both his appetite for story telling, and for political concerns.  When he died.  I realized I had missed out because of my own immortality.

What I mean is, at the age of 28, I had either been plagued with being young (sorry young readers, it is a plague of sorts), or with busy-ness leading up to this time.  So I blame both in this case, as primary reasons why I had not invested the amount of time back into my Grandfather as I would have liked.  My Grandmother has been different since then… but not different enough.  Sure I have had her down to visit with us, and she will be in Hilton Head with us over the Fall break, but it hasn’t been enough (this time I’ll only blame busy ness, no longer plagued with youth fortunately 🙂  ).

Cordelia Robnett
I didn’t have an electronic image of my Grandfather, so I figured my mother and her siblings would do!

 

So why immortality?  Well, had I not falsely placed an immortal sense on myself as a youngster, I would have been more in tune with the reality of my Grandfather’s passing, before it happened.  I can remember being shocked.  He had not been in the best health, but not the worst, but I should have known.  And so now I wish I could get back to him to talk more, listen more, learn from wisdom, perhaps tell a joke or two.  I never actually inspired joking with Grandpa, he always joked, but it was him, not me.

Tell me, have you ever wished for someone to return?  So many of you who read me, are Christians like myself.  Others have belief in other faiths, and some no belief at all.  But haven’t all of you had some longing for immortality at some point?  Well, I believe we are, and that it will come, but the reality of that is greatly unknown to us.  What does it all look like, and who is going to know who?

I have thought often, read Randy Alcorn’s Dictionary sized book on Heaven, and have read Revelation multiple times in hopes of getting a better understanding.  Its hard to say that I have gained that.  But there is something I have gained, and that is insight.  Insight into the relationship between our mortal lives here, our immortal lives there, and the impact on our health that happens somewhere in between.  And what is that impact hinged on?   Hope.

I have read many articles on stress, I have read many articles on life and health.  And beyond all of it, I believe the most important piece of health, is based on stress.  And I believe the most important cause of stress… is a lack of hope.

For the person who is struggling with a failing health situation… hope is necessary.  Without it, you will give in.  For the person who sees their lives eroding around them, whether due to divorce, or financial collapse.  Hope is the necessity.  And for the one who loses an amazing loved one, perhaps even a child.  Hope, will SLOWLY dash away the pain.  Hope.

So as I was thinking about my Grandpa today, on top of his horse (he owned horses and was in the mounted sheriff’s department in his home town… he actually was Sheriff).  The great peace that I felt, was hope.  A hope that he is where he needs to be, and that one day I will be there too.  This type of hope, builds peace, and this type of peace that we rest in, brings health.

I pray you can find this in your life!  Be Well and Be Blessed!  – Dr. E