FU3Ling? Do Tell!

Earlier this month I tweeted about the latest incarnation of the Nike+ device, Nike Fuel.  Long before I started this blog, I thought about the interconnection between food, fitness, and faith in regards to the role of accountability when I read the June 2009 issue of WIRED focused on self-tracking, specifically the articles titled "Know Thyself" and "The Nike Experiment." The article discusses the power of information to motivate people to make a change in their health. However, tracking your progress only takes you so far. It's when you share your advances that you see growth become exponential compared to your solo efforts.


We see this hold true in all areas of FU3L. It isn't hard to draw between Weight Watchers, a running club, and the Biblical model of church. All have a personal component and a community component. Weight watchers requires you to log your food/exercise points at home, in a run club you have days where you train alone to focus on personal weakness, and as part of the church you spend time in the Bible and prayer alone to strengthen your relationship with God. In the group meeting (usually a weekly affair) you then share with the group your stumbling blocks and triumphs and together you engage in the practices that reflect the goals which you are striving for - whether it be a long run, food portion strategies, or worshiping God through song.

This concept is best expressed in the oft-referenced African proverb: "If you want to go quickly, go alone; if you want to go far, go together." Have you found this true in your life? Do you track and share and to what ends? If so, please leave a comment for discussion.

The Role of Rest

Now that the summer solstice has passed and we are officially in season of vacation, I thought we should discuss the utility of rest as a source of FU3L. If we look at food, fitness, and faith we can see that taking a break is something that unifies all three areas.

• The natural food cycle has a period of rest between sowing and reaping that is the time of growth. Also, many recipes call for a dish to "rest" for a period of time to allow the flavors to blend and balance out. 
• In the world of fitness, taking a day off gives the body time to heal and restock glycogen. According to a Runner's World article titled "The Importance of Rest Days" it allows the muscles time to adapt to the work for optimal performance. 
• As for faith, The Bible commands us to Sabbath, or take one day of rest per week. This is to give us time to reflect on what God has done for us that week without distraction. In an era of 24/7 connection to the grid, it is humbling to see that the world will keep moving forward even if we are not participating in it. We are not necessary, but rather privileged, to be a part of His kingdom.

Taking a word from the food lexicon, rest gives us time to digest. It gives us the proper perspective as we re-enter our week refreshed. While it can seem like a sacrifice to give up time, in fact we are the better for it in the end as we become well-balanced and better adapted for the next challenge. Jesus says, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath" (Mark 2:27). As with all of God's commands, the call to rest was designed for our benefit. 


So enjoy your time at the beach and comment on how taking a break has helped you re-FU3L

Brain Boost

Many of us grew up being told that once we lose brain cells, they never grow back (so no head banging to heavy metal!) but neuroscientists now know that is not true. Adults can undergo neurogenesis, or the formation of new neurons. Even better news is that we can enhance the effectiveness of these new connections by simple exercise, like a walk or a swim. Translation: FU3L makes you smarter and science proves it :)


In an April NY Times magazine article, the author explains that,  "exercise... does more to bolster thinking than thinking does." Although the brain is not a muscle, it gains benefits from exercise of the musculoskeletal system. And before you are discouraged thinking you have to run a marathon to become the next Einstein the article notes that, "Whatever the activity, though, an emerging message from the most recent science is that exercise needn’t be exhausting to be effective for the brain." 


So what are you waiting for? Get moving! Summer is upon us which means it's the perfect time to get outside and start moving. You can integrate the other areas of FU3L into your exercise by listening to worship music as you work out or walking to a farmer's market for fresh produce (more brain food!) Leave a comment about how you are keeping your mind and body sharp. 

Healthy harvesters: Good News for everyone

Hello FU3Led friends!
Did anyone try out mindful eating this past week? If so, leave a comment or send an email! This week I wanted to highlight an article that brings about the topic of food justice. I'd like us to reflect on how stewardship affects our bodies, our communities, and our environment. There will be more posts on this issue but today we'll with the term "fair trade." It is easy to become cynical and assume that this label is yet another ploy to cash in on the trendiness of being Green. How is "fair trade" coffee different than conventional - and why should you care?

Let's start with the definition. Fair trade refers to food produced in a way that the workers are given a living wage for their labor and the food is harvested sustainably. And yes, this means in order to pay the workers a fair wage the food will cost more. We should care about the people who provide our daily bread as stewards of this earth but if you have a hard time translating heart motive to your wallet, consider how unfair trade must affect the quality of your food. NPR's food blog, The Salt, recently published a piece on the health of the food workers (Read Full Article). Think about your own career: how do you perform at work when you are unwell? If you are EATING the literal fruits of labor of workers with poor living conditions, how is that going to taste?

The Good News transforms our world for believers and non-believers alike. How we care about our food preparers will redeem the quality of life for them as well as the quality of food for us. Stewardship is not sacrifice if you take the time to think about how we are all lifted up together by demanding justice for others.

Mindful Eating

And we're back! Sorry about the delay in posts. I launched with enthusiasm but without a realistic plan in place to sustain a flow of contact. Thanks to my friends Megan and Adam for their wisdom on how to do this project more thoughtfully. For the summer, and hopefully beyond, I commit to posting once a week and tweeting more frequently than that.

It is my hope that this blog is a collaborative project so if you have ideas, links, or feedback of any kind, please comment or send an email!

For this week, I want to point your attention to a practice called Mindful Eating. I first read about this in a NY Times Article that I recommend you read for yourself. It has been imported from Buddhist traditions via none other than the behemoth Google. They are a company that understands the link between health and employee productivity.

In essence the practice is to focus wholly on the food as you eat it - the flavors, textures, and your emotions as you consume. The spiritual component comes as gratitude for your food as you gain awareness of what you are eating. We see remnants of this idea also in the Jewish tradition of the seder. I believe there is much to be gained by this simple, but by no means simplistic, practice. Try it for one meal this week. Eat with no distractions and even try closing your eyes as you chew. See what you experience. Like any other discipline, the first time may be uncomfortable and not yield too many insights but try, try again.