Conventional Wisdom: What I Learned about Corporate Changes, and How They Apply to Real Life

Last week, I attended my company's 20th Annual International Convention. It was a pretty big deal. I mean, where else are you going to have almost 10,000 people who get hyped up over stuff like liver detoxification talks, the unveiling of a new non-GMO snack bar, and reverse osmosis water fountains? Probably nowhere but at a health convention. Sure, we get stoked about regular people things, too-- you'd have to be like a health savant *not* to love the free iPads all around, and the chance to earn a seriously super cool cruise--but it was pretty awesome being immersed in the corporate health aura for a few days.

Since it was the 20th anniversary of the company, there was a lot of nostalgia about our roots, but, more importantly, there were some pretty big changes in store as we began to look toward the future. Now that I've had some time to digest all the announcements our corporate officers made, I realized that what we learned as a company applies to me as an individual, as well. So here's what I learned...I hope these four lessons from four days make a difference for you, too.

Some Things Were Better Off Left in the 80s. Like leg warmers. 
And low-fat diets.

Even though USANA Health Sciences was founded in 1992, a lot of our corporate festivities focused on the 1980s. Not really sure why, except that, in reality, the early 90s were really just an extension of the 80s, I guess. At any rate, our Convention kicked off with a huge concert by some of the best 80s stars, like Belinda Carlisle, Tommy Shaw, and Kenny Loggins.  I heartily sang along with the chorus of "Heaven Is a Place on Earth," and I may or may not have done the Carlton during "Footloose," at which point the Hubs was relieved to have been a comfortably distant 30 yards away. It was pretty epic. 

What was *not* epic was seeing people comply all too readily with the invitation to sport their best 80s outfits. Seriously, I think some people there had simply hung on to their 80s wardrobe, waiting for it to come back in vogue instead of letting those trends die with what little dignity over-sized T shirts and leg warmers could muster. The Hubs and I wondered what the ratio was of people who bought an 80s outfit for the occasion vs. people who just pulled something out of their regular wardrobe rotation and finally had a chance to blend in again. It was crazy.

In the health world, there are a lot of 80s trends that need to die with dignity, too. Things like the whole low-fat diet trend. Or the high-carb, low- protein trend. You look around and tell me if either of those has curbed the problem of the expanding waistlines of Americans. I didn't think so. Instead of clinging to our dietary side ponies and Tshirt ties, we need a health update that, incidentally, may help you fit into those ugly 80s clothes again. Although I would strongly advocate a shopping spree instead. Check out the following myth-busting article that backs me up on this one: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-57461950-10391704/low-glycemic-index-diet-may-be-best-at-keeping-off-pounds/

It's Never Too Late to Change Your Image.

One of the big announcements our CEO made last week was the complete overhaul of our labels and branding for our products. Yes, this *was* cause for a lot of excitement among our team. What can I say? We get giddy easily. But seriously, check out the before and after, and see if you don't think our new logo brings the razzle-dazzle:

Why change a logo after 20 successful years? Seriously, I would have never thought to jazz it up. I was fine with the way things were. Until I saw that they could be better.

And, that, my friends, was a huge wake-up call. I think a lot of us live with the way things were because we are simply too comfortable in our little ruts. Or we don't see any possibility of change. That is my passion: to help women see that life after baby or life after 40 doesn't *have* to be a certain way. It's my firm belief that there are always opportunities for us to bring the razzle dazzle in life, as well. (I'm sure there's a scientific term for razzle dazzle somewhere...maybe razzulous dazzulous or something.) Just because you've "never been thin" or "always carried my weight in my belly" or "have a family history of diabetes" doesn't mean you have to leave it that way.

I've swapped pretzels for protein bars. The Hubs went from prescriptions to supplements. We both went from recitals to running. My students traded in cravings for curbings. This stuff *really* happens. *You* can change your personal logo!

Health Can Be--And Should Be--Almost Illegally Fun.

When our VP announced the release of a new snack bar to our line of healthy foods, you would have thought the whole place had gotten new iPads. Actually, they already had. This was just icing on the cake. Especially when samples floated down in those cute little parachutes into the crowd. It was almost pandemonium.

And then there were the energy drink popsicles. They sound like they *should* be bad, but they are totally low-glycemic and have only clean sources of caffeine. And they're red (without artificial coloring or flavors) and juicy. Pure nectar of the gods, my friends.

I tell you, this is better than having the ice cream man come around. And less creepy, too.

Being around a bunch of health geeks will make this sort of thing exciting. But I seriously think that healthy choices should be exciting on a daily basis, too. Some of our favorite recipes around here make the menu rotation again and again, not because it's part of our diet kick, but because we actually *like* them! One of the speakers at the Convention said we should strive to come up with a healthy diet that is easy to love. I think he totally hit the nail on the head. What's the fun in doing something just because it's good for you?

That's why I like to bring the razzulous dazzulous to my health classes, too. We swap smoothie and soup recipes, try new desserts, and make the healthy choices in our lives the fun ones, too. I encourage my girls to find a walking buddy because I know for me that hanging out with my friends is sometimes the only thing that will make me get up out of bed and *want* to move. I've had some of the best laughs over a stupid P90X DVD that would have otherwise irritated the crap out of me. And I just had like the best salad ever, thanks to some awesome friends who think that healthy stuff doesn't have to be for dieting, but is OK to serve at fun dinners, too. I love that approach.

The best part is when health becomes fun, it becomes a way of life. Otherwise, it's just a diet. And those pretty much suck.

Dr. Oz, While a Talented Physician, Cannot Even *Fake* Playing the Guitar. 

We all have our gifts and limitations, I suppose.

*shrieks with delight that Dr. Oz is here* *cringes with shame that he holds a guitar like that*

Yeah, so one of the big deals about our 20th Convention was that Dr. Oz himself was going to be there. He came in with all the glory of a rock star as our corporate band, the Free Radicals (some of you will think that is funny), played a jam behind him. It was a cool entrance, but as a musician, I have enough guitar-playing friends to know that it's a good idea to at least *look* like you're strumming or picking or something. His musical improv was sorely lacking.

But his nutritional knowledge was not. He gave us all sorts of insight into how the body responds to wise and poor choices, gave us five tips for a better life, and encouraged us to keep taking control of our own health and help others do the same. He was great.

And I guess I learned that we all have areas we are strong in. And it's OK that they're all different.  Some of the people I hung around are way better than me about abstaining from dessert. Others can't fathom completing a 5K. Some people can run circles around my knowledge of the chemical reactions of food in the body, while others were still eating bagels during break time. Some are social media geniuses who use forums to promote better health to a broader audience. Others couldn't create a funny, educational, and exceptionally well-written blog post on Oreos and pretzels if they were paid to.+

Even our company founder has his limitations. You don't get a double PhD, run two successful businesses, and receive a prestigious Albert Einstein award without some serious brains to back that up. But I'm pretty sure that sentences like, "The fluoridation, chlorination, and bromination of our food and water is an abomination,"--while true-- wasn't exactly a great pick up line at parties back in the day, either.

While these two great guys may not be killer musicians or awesome water-cooler conversationalists, they are doing their part to make a big difference in the world. Their lives are definite proof that one life can make a difference in countless others. 

And while I may not have their brains, I feel inspired to do what I can with what I've been given to continue to share a message of hope through health. Even if I never have my own TV show (a gross injustice to the world, I'm sure), I do have this blog, and I do have my health classes, and I do have friends that I like to introduce to quinoa. And you have families that you can share healthy meals with. And friends that you can exercise with. And enemies you can share this blog with. The point is, we can all do *something* to make a difference in the lives of those we care about.

Here's to a lot of individual changes making for huge corporate changes across America.You decide where to start. As long as it involves getting rid of your leg warmers, you'll have my enthusiastic backing and support.

   +Editor's Note: This may or may not be a reference to one of my first blog posts that landed me my first two out of three followers. Except I am not paid to write them. Though I do accept donations in the form of precious metals, US dollars, free vacations, and Snickers.

10 Things I Hate About Food

ATTENTION, FOUR BLOG READERS: Please consider yourself warned that, in this post, I am going to sound a little crotchety-- like the late, great Andy Rooney. There are so many things I love about my job, but the single most frustrating thing about a career in the wellness industry is the abundance of misinformation and misleading advertisements out there that can derail my students' efforts to lose weight at a time when they are trying their hardest to do just that. There are a lot of food impostors out there that seem like a step in the right direction, when, in reality, they are real metabolism killers or frauds altogether. Their existence really annoys me.

Now, I'm definitely *not* saying I have all the right answers--except for anyone looking for a rationalization of their insatiable love of Oreos--but I do know that there is a lot of baloney out there in the field of wellness. And baloney promotes anything but wellness. Even when it is cooked on a griddle and made to look like a sombrero. Fun, but still worthless.

So here are some foods that really annoy me. I present to you the

10 Things I Hate About Food:

1) Diet Soda.
I probably shouldn't even get started on this one. I know a lot of people use diet soda as a gateway drug into drinking weird stuff like, oh, I don't know, water with lemon and unsweetened green tea. And I applaud the effort. But the fact is, one study showed that just one soda a day--regular or diet--leads to a 30% increase in the likelihood of central weight gain. There are also plenty of studies showing that your body perceives those chemical sugar substitutes the same way it does sugar, which means you really aren't escaping the whole roller coaster effect of high glycemic foods, even though it has less "sugar" than that apple you had for a snack today.

2) The McDonald's "Under 400 Calorie" Menu Items.
Am I the only one who finds it ironic that the home of the Big Mac and Super-Sized fries is sponsoring a game celebrating athletes at the peak of physical fitness? While not all their choices are dietary disasters, the fact that the Filet-O-Fish squeaks in around 390 calories doesn't magically make it the lunch of champions. Or even a viable food choice. Personally, I think Filet-O-Fish should be permanently outlawed. But, even if you love pretend patties of white substances fried and made to look like fish, consider this: with all its low-caloric glory, the sandwich still has a GL of 20. And because you've been reading my blog all along, you know that 20 is the maximum GL recommended for a meal. I guess that means you can't add in those delicious, 370-calorie medium fries now, can you? 
(FUN FACT: The medium fries only have a GL of 22. Given the choice between the two evils, I'd go with the one that tastes good.)
(FURTHER FUN FACT: Does anyone else realize that when you add these two items together, not only do you have a highly caloric meal--blowing the whole point of having a low calorie menu--, but, with a GL like that, you could have had two Snickers bars instead? Think about it.)

3) Big G Cereals.
I just love the abuse of the term "whole grains" on these cereal packages. When doctors and experts recommend that a person eat more whole grains, I'm pretty sure they didn't mean for parents to go grab the Lucky Charms for their kiddos, just because it has the Big G symbol on it that somehow indicates General Mills uses an entire kernel of a random grain in their cereal. They also use a ton of sugar and food coloring, but I guess there's no Big G sign for that. The real magic of Lucky Charms is that they *look* like breakfast, even though there isn't a single redeeming quality about them. Except for those whole grains. Thank God for that corn kernel.

4) Vegetable Soup. 
With this one, you may be starting to question my judgment. What could possibly be wrong with vegetable soup? And don't you base your whole health class on eating soup?

Yes, yes, I do. But the type of soup I advocate always contains protein in it, whether it's chicken or a great vegetarian source like beans. Some of our friends at the Campbell's company believe that it's OK to take a pass on the beans and instead substitute some noodles or cool little pasta letters that create a bad game of floating Scrabble. Combining the higher glycemic nature of pasta without any protein to taper it off is a surefire combination for a blood sugar crash-and-burn. With no sustained energy or any sense of fullness, who would want to eat "healthy"? Not me! I'd rather take the time to make my own soup or be uber careful about the quality of those I buy.

5) Fruit Smoothies.

(See #4 above--it's pretty much the same logic). I love me some summer smoothies, but I absolutely refuse to have one that doesn't contain some yogurt or protein powder in it. My ratio is usually a full serving of my meal replacement shake powder (15 grams of protein, 8 grams of fiber) to 1 cup or less of fruit. And I never add fruit juices, because 

Jennifer +Orange Juice= Buzzed Driving. 

Seriously, most fruit juices, because of their reduced fiber and added sugar, can dramatically increase the GL of any meal. If you don't add yogurt, try milk or just plain water. It works. Really.

Also, some of the stuff being marketed as a fruit smoothie is little more than ice crushed up with a powdered mix,at which point you might as well go indulge in a milkshake. I mean, at least then you know you're doing something bad for your body, instead of pretending that a smoothie with a name like Protein Berry Pizzaz doesn't have a GL of 28....

(FUN FACT: A McDonald's Triple Thick Chocolate Shake actually has 2 g more protein than the Jamba Juice Protein Berry Pizzazz listed above! It's still way worse for you in terms of calories, sugars, and GL, but it just goes to show that even smoothies that sound good for you can be tricky. You should probably just sign up for my class and learn to make your own awesome ones.)

6) Fat-free Foods.
Not all fat is bad fat. And not all fat-free foods are good foods. I would much rather see my health class students eat a "fatty" avocado on their salad than enjoy a slice of French bread with dinner. Before I knew any better, I used the fact that bread and pasta were low-fat foods to feel better about myself whenever I ate them; but I kept noticing that I never looked as low-fat when I did, so I started making changes. I now enjoy lots of fatty foods like guacamole, olive oil, and almonds, and meal replacement shakes with a whopping 7 grams of fat in them. And you know what? My abs are a lot happier with those choices than if I just ate fat-free marshmallows and bread all day. Go figure.
(CAVEAT: Not all fat is good fat, either. And not all fat-free foods are bad foods. I trust that my previous posts and your keen sense of deductive reasoning will work together to make reasonable decisions. I don't think that's asking too much.)

7) Gluten-free, Organic Chocolate Chips.
This to me is just a prime example of buzzword marketing. Just because an item is gluten-free or organic does not mean that it won't have an equally dangerous impact on your blood sugar as its more toxic counterparts. I'd like to think that the manufacturers of these $5-per-bag concoctions put a little extra time into making it better for you all the way around; but I have no guarantees that they did (unless they're dark chocolate). There are plenty of gluten-free or organic items that are still high-glycemic, like rice or chocolate milk. And there are plenty of them that are great for you, like quinoa or grass-fed beef. The point is, you can't trust a product just because it's labeled with healthy terms that are in vogue right now. You have to think for yourself and realize that, if they made something like gluten-free, organic Lucky Charms, they'd probably still be bad for you, even if they had the Big G seal of approval. These qualities are only great in great foods, so don't go racking up your grocery bill on organic potato chips and gluten-free Fruit Roll-ups. Stick to real food that matters, and you'll be ahead of the game.
(BONUS RECIPE: I like gluten-free stuff, I really do. In fact, here is a gluten-free, low-glycemic brownie recipe in which you can use organic chocolate chips if you really want to. Nobody will be suspicious of your healthy baking with this tasty treat.)

8) Granola Bars
 Doesn't a granola bar just *sound* healthy? Well, I've got news for you: they're not. The tricky thing for me is that I strongly advocate the use of convenient snack foods like protein bars in my classes. When students substitute a granola bar in place of a protein bar, they don't realize the full benefits of the lifestyle I'm trying to help them achieve. The thing about granola bars is that some of them are decently low-glycemic, but that still doesn't make them a complete snack. What most of them lack is a protein content anywhere in the ballpark vicinity of 10 grams per snack. (Most have about 2-3 grams of protein, which you can get from an Oreo.) Sure, they're low-cal, and they won't send your blood sugar peaking *too* high, but you won't feel satisfied without long-term satiety caused by protein, and you won't get much of an energy boost, either. Just like ice cream or Oreos, these health-impostors make their way onto a low-glycemic list; but, just as in the case of vegetable soup or fruit smoothies, true health food goes way beyond that. If it's not giving you a great balance of good carbs, lean protein, and a little fiber and fat, it's not really a healthy snack. Sorry.

 9) Dollar Menu Items
I hate the dollar menu for so many reasons. First, because it makes bad "food" (I use that term loosely) look cheap and convenient. Second, because it does not include large McFlurries. Just kidding. I am the first one to understand when someone tells me that they have reservations about the cost of healthy eating, and I usually offer up a lot of frugal suggestions, like adding beans instead of meat to their dishes. But when they are always able to grab a couple of menu items from McDonald's, I have to wonder why they would substitute $2 or $3 worth of stuff that usually comes with a white bun and a fountain drink for a $3.30 meal replacement shake that is guaranteed not to spike their blood sugar and help them lose inches. Plus, the shake is equally convenient as--if not more so--than buzzing through a drive-thru. I don't waste any time or gas rolling out of bed and spending two minutes whipping up the Hub's lunch for the day. AND I still look like a domestic goddess for preparing all his meals. On the other hand, left to his own devices at the drive-thru, there would inevitably be a receipt for a sandwich of some sort, fries of all sorts, and the largest sweet tea a buck can buy. Factor in the long-term consequences of blood sugar abuse, and you tell me which one suddenly looks more affordable. Here I present another helpful equation:

Dollar Menu + Diabetes = Should Have Listened to Jennifer

10)  Activia
OK, this may be one of my most ridiculous inclusions in this list, but hear me out. I am all about probiotics and Live and Active Cultures for good digestive health. But do you really think that, for just $2/four-pack, Activia was able to include the only 2 probiotics that can even stand the stomach's digestive acids to actually give you a health benefit? Factor in the cost of production, advertisement through a celebrity endorsement (if you can call Jamie Lee Curtis a celebrity), and the need to make a profit, and how much quality went  into the ingredients? My guess is somewhere around $.06 per cup. Maybe $.08, because of a lower protein content than Greek yogurt, and the fact that Jamie Lee Curtis probably paid Dannon to let her act again. So, do you really think you can get all the probiotics you need through $.08 worth of quality ingredients? Probably not. Plus, if I was forced to eat act Activia every day, I'd probably have graphic images of Jamie Lee Curtis running through my mind at every serving, which would completely destroy both my digestive and mental wellness. It'd be a total waste of time and money.

Look...even she doesn't look happy eating this stuff.

This now concludes my Andy Rooney rant. You may now return to your regularly scheduled dietary program already in progress. Except if they include any of the items I just warned you about. Then you should discontinue immediately and consult a psychologist about the Jamie Lee thing.