THE MAKESENSEI...
...teaching you how to eat clean and keep fit in Tokyo, in ways that just MAKESENSE.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
What's this all about then?
This blog is the culmination of my 10+year journey into fitness and clean/conscious eating here in Japan, with an interested look towards the next generation to encourage them to make informed and healthy choices, for themselves and the planet.
Here I share recipes for adults and children, hints & tips for cooking & shopping, to eat clean, in bulk and on a budget, in Tokyo. In addition, I review restaurants which either fit my eating ideologies and value for money prerequisites, or just peak my interest for unusualness/deliciousness!
There is a section on workouts which can be done at home, with minimal equipment and for all abilities, including kids. As well as a section on research articles on related topics, which are posted to spark thought and debate.
Whether I am blogging about cooking, shopping, eating out or working out, my aim that the information I provide requires little to no explanation - it should just MAKESENSE.
ABOUT ME
Who am I?
Middle aged male (yeah, that's as much as I'm giving you). Half Chinese (speak next to none), half English (ignorantly only speak this). Married (to an Aussie). No children (I'm surrounded by other's daily). Ex-pat, born and bred in the UK, living in Japan (for a decade+++).
Bachelor's degree and post-grad in Education. Qualified Primary school teacher, Crossfit Level-1 Trainer, Crossfit Kids Trainer and currently a Physical Education specialist at an international school in central Tokyo.
Fitness enthusiast. Regular Crossfitter, boulderer, snowboarder etc.
Passionate about clean and conscious eating. Predominantly paleo, partially vegan.
MY FOOD PHILOSOPHY
How I eat and why.
Cleanly, consciously & realistically....
I classify 'eating clean' as eating things which require little to no explanation as to what they are. These are the items which mother nature provides and I try to consume them in their most natural form possible. Processed foods are off the menu, which is pretty much anything made in a factory, that has an ingredients label.
'Eating consciously', simply means being aware and accepting of what you eat and where it comes. For example, if you are going to eat factory-farmed animal products, research the impact factory farming has on our environment and watch videos of how the animals are reared and slaughtered and be okay with it. I believe we should make children aware of this too because in this convenience, instant gratification driven generation, too many young people think meat grows in nice, white, sterile, styrofoam boxes!
The 'realistically' part simply means that before beginning any new food journey, make sure you understand it fully and that it MAKESENSE to you. If it is way too far removed from how people generally eat and requires a lot of explanation to understand it, does it sound 'right'? If it is too strict and requires too much 'maintenance', will you realistically stick to it? If not, you are setting yourself up for failure and will undoubtedly fall back into bad habits. And this is really the key to making positive changes: Rather than following some complex 'diet', the aim should be to change negative eating habits to positive ones, slowly and over time. Always allow yourself the grace to occasionally eat things that do not fit your new approach but be strict with yourself when this happens and be okay with it when it does.
Personally, I am predominately paleo and partially vegan, but this does not mean I think everyone should be, this is just right for me.
In a nutshell (no pun intended), the Paleo 'diet' is a framework of eating healthy by choosing foods that have the longest history of human consumption from the hunter-gatherer ages. So, lots of fresh fruit, vegetables, roots, nuts, seeds, eggs and meat/fish. The diet tends to avoid grains and legumes, refined sugars, processed carbohydrates (bread, pasta, rice, white potatoes) and of course processed foods, which humans only began eating large amounts of after the agricultural revolution and which tend to be full of 'junk', gut irritants or sit quite high on the glycemic index.
This way of eating makes me feel good, plain and simple. I don't feel lethargic after meals, I feel I have plenty of energy for the intense workouts I like to do and feel I can perform to my optimum ability, without feeling sluggish or weighed down. My digestion is on point, I am regular (yup!) and my complexion is excellent (if I do say so myself!).
For mainly environmental conscious reasons, I try to maintain a partial vegan/vegetarian/pescatarian diet, to reduce my impact on the planet. I roughly do a three week cycle of two weeks vegan/vegetarian, followed by one week pescatarian. These weeks are weekdays only, as come the weekend it is a free-for-all and I eat whatever I feel like! A lot of the time my cheat days will contain animal products, as I certainly still enjoy the taste of them. However, as I am often eating out on weekends, these products tend to be from more expensive, organic/free-range sources.... but not always, and I'm okay with that. I love ice-cream, pasta, pizza, burgers, beer, wine etc. etc. and on weekends, I eat as much of these as I want and completely guilt free!
These conversations about food choices should be had regularly with children, when shopping, cooking and eating. But the role of 'leading by example' cannot be overstated when it comes to forming positive food habits in children. If you personally don't eat 'it', or eat too much of 'it', you can't expect your children to do any different. My aim for children is to introduce them to wholesome, nutritious, real ingredients and as wide a variety as possible, in ways they may not expect. Getting them into the kitchen and invested in creating what they eat is a powerful tool in getting them to try and enjoy foods which they may otherwise have been resistant to.
MY FITNESS PHILOSOPHY
How I exercise.
As mentioned I am a Crossfitter (Crossfit Level-1 Trainer & Crossfit Kids Trainer) and much of how I exercise is rooted in the basic principles I have learnt over my 8+years of training. Before you start running for the hills though, please rest assured that I am not one of those Crossfitters. By that I mean, I don't subscribe to the cult mentality and don't preach this form of exercise above all others. However, I do believe that the core principles which Crossfit is based on just MAKESENSE and any workouts I blog about here will be based on these...
Constantly varied, functional movements performed at high intensity. All workouts are based on functional movements, and these movements reflect the best aspects of gymnastics, weightlifting, running, rowing and more. These are the core movements of life. They move the largest loads the longest distances, so they are ideal for maximising the amount of work done in the shortest time. Intensity is essential for results and is measurable as work divided by time - or power. The more work you do in less time, or the higher the power output, the more intense the effort. By employing a constantly varied approach to training, functional movements and intensity lead to dramatic gains in fitness. Source: Crossfit.com
All workouts should be scalable to an individual's ability and 'form' is emphasised above all else. Form is never lost when intensity or weight is added. If it is, you do less, slower or lighter, no compromises. Injury is not fun (especially at my age!). As Crossfitters often say (but unfortunately don't always do), "Leave your ego at the door!"
The workouts I blog about here are designed to be done at home/your local park with no/minimal equipment. If a workout is complex enough that it requires a lot of weight/equipment, you should really just go to your local box/gym where they already have all that equipment and do the workout under the watchful eye of a trained professional.
My aim for children is for them to form a positive association with exercise, improve all aspects of their health and fitness, increase resilience and perseverance and to nurture a positive attitude towards competition through having FUN!