MAN TO MAN

How 5 guys stay in shape 

You’ve heard it before: Skip processed food, be more active, take supplements … To see how real men do it, we asked five leaders in the natural health movement to share their healthy lifestyle habits. While they share some similarities, each one has a unique approach to staying in shape.

Alan Christianson, NMD 

Age: 46

As an overweight 12-year-old who had suffered from cerebral palsy and seizures, Alan Christianson, NMD, decided to transform his health after a classmate made a derisive comment in gym class. He not only became a varsity football player, but also went on to help thousands of other people as a naturopathic doctor. The author of The Adrenal Reset Diet and other books, he practices naturopathic medicine at Integrative Health in Scottsdale, Ariz.

What He Eats

Breakfast: A shake with pea protein, greens, berries, beans, and chia seeds.

Lunch: Leftovers from last night’s dinner.

Dinner: Lots of organic veggies, different types of legumes, natural sauerkraut, and organic poultry or wild fish.

Snacks: None.

Beverages: Water or herbal teas, without caffeine.

Favorite treat: Organic dried or fresh figs, every couple of weeks.

Supplements

Gets nutrient levels tested and adjusts accordingly, but staples include basic vitamins and minerals found in a comprehensive multi, vitamin D, essential fats, and creatine to enhance recovery from sports.

Fitness Routine

On weekends, a long hike, bike ride, or mountain climbing for at least 2 hours, sometimes up to 12 hours. Each week: 2 or 3 strength-training sessions in a gym, and running or cycling for 30 to 60 minutes, four times.

To unwind: Exploration and adventure outdoors; currently riding a mountain unicycle (a mountain bike with one wheel). When you fall off, he says, you usually land on your feet. Technically called an “unplanned dismount,” it’s part of learning the sport, which he describes as “a very focusing experience.”

Other fun activities: Vertical rock climbing.

Sleep: 7.5 to 8 hours.

Naps: Rarely, maybe 20 minutes on an occasional weekend.

Online: drchristianson.com

William Davis, MD 

Age: 57

After years of treating heart patients after the fact, and seeing his mother die of a heart attack at age 62, cardiologist and Wheat Belly
 author William Davis, MD, became a health crusader. Renewing a childhood interest in nutrition, he discovered that eliminating wheat, other grains, and sugars healed the heart and most other ills (including weight problems), in his patients and himself.

What He Eats

Breakfast: Fried eggs, uncured bacon, and coffee, or a smoothie with coconut milk and avocado.

Lunch: Typically none, but may nibble on a handful of nuts.

Dinner: Fish or organic, grass-fed, fatty meat, lots of veggies, and red wine.

Snacks: None.

Favorite treat: Once or twice a month, homemade chocolate, made by melting plain baker’s chocolate, sweetening with stevia or monk fruit, and adding nuts or raw seeds.

Supplements

Vitamin D, fish oil, magnesium malate, zinc, iodine, and tryptophan at bedtime.

Fitness Routine

Depending on the weather (in Wisconsin), cycling outdoors or riding a stationary bike, several times a week, and high-intensity strength training, once or twice per week. In good weather, a 25-mile bike ride once a month and a two-hour walk once or twice a month.

To unwind: Challenging 14-year-olds on Xbox while riding a stationary bike, or watching movies.

Other fun activities: Traveling to watch his daughter play in pro tennis tournaments around the world, and going on wine country tours.

Sleep: 7.5 hours.

Naps: None.

Online: wheatbellyblog.com

David Foreman, RPh, ND 

Age: 50

Once a very successful conventional pharmacist, David Foreman, RPh, ND, switched gears to become The Herbal Pharmacist and educate both health professionals and consumers about the power of natural healing. He now lectures at universities and hospitals, teaches pharmacists, hosts a national radio show and blog, and frequently appears on television shows around the country.

What He Eats

Breakfast: Hard-boiled eggs and coffee.

Lunch: Salad with a small amount of protein, most often chicken, raw veggies, and apple or pineapple.

Dinner: Fish, chicken, or lean cuts of pork or beef, baked or grilled, with at least two veggies, usually cruciferous ones. Sushi once or twice per week.

Snacks: Raw veggies with hummus or a mix of nuts (pistachios, raw almonds, macadamia nuts) and dried fruits (dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries), and occasionally, hot-air popped popcorn with butter and cayenne pepper.

Favorite treat: Good red wine or craft or European beer, once a day.

Supplements

Turmeric; fish oil; reishi; AHCC to build healthy immunity;
magnesium citrate; B complex; green tea (as a tea); probiotics; Phase 2 white kidney bean extract before eating starchy foods; ubiquinol; chia seeds; chromium; MenaQ7 vitamin K2 with calcium and vitamin D3 for heart health; and, if needed, Celadrin and IbuActin with Perluxan for pain relief.

Fitness Routine

Each week: Cycling up to an hour, 3 to 4 times; running 3 to 5 miles, once or twice; and weight training 3 to 4 times, with one day off.

To unwind: Golfing, working out, lunch or dinner out with friends or cooking for them at home. Going to professional baseball, hockey, basketball, and football games around the country.

Sleep: 8.5 to 9 hours.

Naps: Between 30 and 60 minutes, especially when he sleeps less than 9 hours.

Online: herbalpharmacist.com

Joel Fuhrman, MD 

Age: 61

A board-certified family physician and author of The End of Dieting and other popular books, Joel Fuhrman, MD, was a competitive figure skater until a serious injury ended his athletic career.
Alternative medicine helped him recover and inspired
him to become a doctor who specializes in preventing and reversing disease through nutritional and natural means.

What He Eats

Breakfast: Steel-cut oats, ground flax and chia seeds, wild frozen blueberries, pomegranate or an orange, or a green smoothie made with kale, lettuce, seeds, berries, and half a banana.

Lunch: Veggie-lentil bean soup with a carrot-celery juice base, salad with red onion, chickpeas, and a nut-seed-based dressing such as tomato-almond fig vinegar, and one fresh fruit.

Dinner: Cabbage slaw with cucumbers, steamed artichokes,
asparagus, or broccoli, with mushrooms and/or onion, intact whole grain sprouted grain bread with avocado, tomato, and almond pesto. An occasional glass of fresh squeezed veggie juice, fresh fruit, or a frozen fruit-based desert.

Snacks: None.

Favorite treat: “Nice cream,” about once a week, made by blending frozen banana, unsweetened vanilla soy milk, cocoa powder or vanilla beans, coconut flakes, and a date.

Supplements

A men’s multi with vitamin D, which does not contain folic acid; beta carotene, or vitamin A; a vegan DHA-EPA omega-3 supplement that is refrigerated for freshness; and a mix of mushroom extracts with beta glucan; astragalus root; and elderberry for healthy immune function.

Fitness Routine

Weight training twice weekly; playing singles tennis or mogul skiing (depending on the season) twice weekly; plus biking, swimming, running, and exercises at home, such as hopping up stairs, jumping on and off a bench, abdominal and back exercises, and lunges to maintain fitness for more aggressive activities, including mountain biking in the woods, digging holes for planting bushes and trees, and climbing trees.

To unwind: Watching movies or television in bed.

Other fun activities: On occasion, snorkeling or surfing in a warm climate.

Sleep: 7 hours.

Naps: None.

Online: drfuhrman.com

Andrew Saul, PhD

Age: 60

The editor of The Orthomolecular Treatment of Chronic Disease, author of many natural health books, and the subject of The Megavitamin Man, a documentary being released later this year, Andrew Saul, PhD, became passionate about nutrition when he became a father. And his children grew up without needing antibiotics. Dedicated to enlightening people on the true power of nutrition, he isn’t afraid to say that nutritional therapy can cure disease, and provides evidence to back it up.

What He Eats

Breakfast: None

Lunch mid-morning:  Oatmeal and yogurt, an omelet, a whole-grain sandwich, or a wrap.

Dinner: Salmon, quiche, or pasta with salad and/or veggies and cheese.

Snacks: Homemade trail mix of nuts and dried fruit, or fresh fruit.

Beverages: Veggie juice, fruit juice diluted with water, and organic cider.

Favorite treat: Natural or organic ice cream, every other day.

Supplements

Vitamins A, B complex, C, D, and E; extra niacin and sublingual B12; fish oil; phosphatidylcholine; lutein; zeaxanthin; chromium; zinc; magnesium citrate; and probiotics or yogurt.

Fitness Routine

On average, walking about four miles every other day and doing yoga stretches daily, plus gardening, hiking, swimming, and in winter (in Rochester, N.Y.) shoveling snow.

To unwind: Listening to classical music.

Other fun activities: Picnicking and travel.

Sleep: 8 hours.

Naps: Every other day, on average, for an hour or so.

Online: doctoryourself.com