Let A Kid Be A Kid Part 2

By Ross Enamait

I couldn’t have asked for a better (worse actually) follow up to my last entry. Nine-year-old Jericho Scott (pictured above) was recently told by the Youth Baseball League of New Haven, Connecticut that he is too good to pitch in the league (full story here). The eight league team, with approximately 100 players has decided that Jericho throws the ball too fast for the rest of the league.

Connecticut is a small state. My own state is kicking kids out of little league because they are too good! What the hell is going on? What kind of message are we sending our kids? Let’s all play nicey nice, but let’s not try to be good at anything. Should we all get together in a group hug and start playing with foam baseballs instead?

Pure Nonsense

The league’s attorney Peter Noble had the following to say regarding Scott’s pitching ability:

“There are a lot of beginners. This is not a high-powered league. This is a developmental league whose main purpose is to promote the sport… Facing that kind of speed is frightening for beginning players…”

How is kicking a 9 year old boy out of the league promoting the sport? As for the comment about beginners, Jericho is only 9 years old! It isn’t as if he’s been playing baseball for 10 years. He is just as young as everyone else, and he’s never even beaned another player while pitching. It seems like the league has enacted a ban-him-just-in-case law.

And for those who are not familiar with New Haven, it is a rough city with gang violence and more than its share of drug activity. Cities such as New Haven need more kids on the baseball field! We can’t turn kids away because they are too good.
The parents who made this decision should be ashamed of themselves. After all, it isn’t as if the 9 and 10 year olds had a meeting and decided to ban Jericho from the league. It is obvious that the parents got together and made this decision. What message is a parent sending his or her own kids? They can play sports, but they should never face an opponent who might be better? Should we pretend that everything in life is fair and even? Should we pretend that there are no challenges in the world? Is that the message we want to send our kids? Is that going to help little Johnny become a better person?

When I played little league, there wasn’t a 9 and 10 year old league. We played with the 12 year olds. At 9 years old, a 12 year old is an imposing monster on the mound. That was part of the fun. There was nothing better than a base hit against a pitcher who was a few grades above you in school. That is what we called bragging rights! Sure, we all had moments of nervousness when an older pitcher threw some high heat, but that was just part of the fun!

No one was kicked out of the league for being too good. We busted our ass for playing time. No one wanted to sit on the bench. Playing baseball wasn’t about being fair. It was about working hard to earn more time on the field. Working hard to become a better player. Working hard to give your team a better chance at winning. These are lessons that carry over into the real world.

Sooner or later your kids will figure out that life isn’t all fun and games. I’m not suggesting that we throw our children to the wolves, but little league baseball shouldn’t be confused with a rabid pack of wolves. Let kids be kids!

Let A Kid Be A Kid Part 1

By Ross Enamait

Below is an excellent article about safety and kids, and the potential problem that one has on the other.

Why Safe Kids Are Becoming Fat Kids

The author discusses several modern safety measures that didn’t exist when we were kids. The world has changed however. Kids no longer are encouraged to get outside and play. There is no freedom to explore and do the things that kids would naturally do. There are even certain school districts that have banned running at recess. Running has been deemed too dangerous! What the hell is wrong with our world!

When and why did the world become so soft? What happened to letting a kid live a little? Is it really that bad? As kids, we grew up outside. No one wanted to sit inside and play video games. We grew up playing baseball, tackle football, pick up basketball games, etc. We would have stayed out all night if sun didn’t go down.

Sure, there were times when I came home with bumps and bruises, but that was just part of growing up. Life isn’t supposed to be cake walk. Why fool kids and pretend that it is? If you never learn to take calculated risks as kids, how can you be expected to take calculated risks as adults? No one is suggesting that we all live recklessly, but there are times when it makes sense to go against the grain. Almost every successful person in this world did just that on his or her way to the top.

Today, we preach safety and sameness. Kids are always being reminded to take it easy. Don’t do this, don’t do that, be careful with this, be careful with that, etc. The outdoor fields are empty. When I take my son to the playground, we are usually alone. No one else is outside playing. Should it come as a surprise that adults in today’s world struggle with obesity?

What will come next? Will our kids be banned from going outside? Is it too dangerous? Should we all walk around with safety masks? Should we live inside protective bubbles?

The world needs to lighten up. A few bumps and bruises are the end of the world. There are much bigger problems faced by millions of people around the world. Let your kids live a little and get outside with them. Leading from the front is the only way to lead, and your kids will learn by watching you!

Ross

PS - Here are two related entries (here and here)

PPS - Yes, the image above is of me at age 9. What isn’t shown is me crashing into the floor after jumping off my bed in an attempt to look like I could fly. My brother was the remarkable camera man who was able to jump out of the way before I crashed into him. Nothing beats the good old days!

Healthy Digestion

Everyone knows that a healthy digestive track is one of keys to proper health and vitality. Here is a video of what happens when you really take care of your self and add plenty of fiber to your diet.

Good Gut Health Video

Classic Workout Video

I was looking in my video treasure chest and came across this classic video. It shows what happens to a woman's body when she focuses on the right diet and exercise program. All women should aspire to follow this lead.

Let me know what you think.

WORKOUT VIDEO

Thomas

Do You Know Your S/*%$!

It’s unbelievable. Over 31 percent of the typical mini-van driving, TiVo watching, Lucky Jean’s wearing, Prozac popping, spray-on-tan sporting American hasn’t taken a crap in the last three days! This is the same segment of the world’s population who insists that it is “civilized” because they have a functional public sewage system.

In the same regard, their personal sewage systems (digestive tracts) are backed up with putrid, foul, and festering feces. If only they were as concerned with the “colon compost collection” leaking through their gut wall into their bloodstream and wreaking havoc on their immune system, causing such avoidable diseases as arthritis as they are with catching a glimpse of Janet Jackson’s nipple during Super Bowl XXXVIII, they’d be in much better shape. It’s all about the poop!

Read on if you are kept up at night with a strange “gut feeling” (forgive the pun) that you are needlessly suffering from a plethora of irritating, yet manageable, but still nasty little chronic conditions such as:

• bad breath
• skin rashes
• foggy thinking
• poor energy or fatigue
• headaches
• excessive farting or burping
• paunch belly (“bloated gut”)
• joint problems
• fungal infections
• constipation

This list can go on for days!

You are very likely suffering from toxic overload due to severely dysfunctional digestion. Prior to our days of processed foods, proctologists and Prilosec, ancient physicians diagnosed the onset of disease by analyzing physical and emotional symptoms as well as urine and feces. They would smell, touch, and TASTE their patient’s poop in order to make a correct diagnosis as to the infestation of parasites or the presentation of blood or mucus. They also used the urine and feces to determine any internal imbalances.

Today, your doctor may ask you for a stool sample on rare occasion, but for the most part, patients and practitioners have lost touch with the essential art of fecal examination as a means for maintaining good health and diagnosing disease. If you are as obsessed as I am with maintaining superior health, strength, and vitality well into your middle and old age, you NEED to read and absorb this article and proceed with the practice of poop screening on a daily basis. If you are even going on a daily basis…we’ll discuss constipation in another article.

Know your sh--! Paul Chek created the diagram below to help his patients understand what to look for in the bowl after an “excretion episode.” Study the pictures, and perhaps you’ll notice a character that looks like the creature staring back at you from the throne. Below the diagram, I’ve given a brief description of each poop animation, the cause for his existence, and a few tips on how to defend yourself against him.

Poopie line up (from left to right). This image is from Paul Chek’s, “How to Eat, Move, and Be Healthy.”

Sinker n’ Stinker: This guy is named as he behaves. He is like a smelly piece of black coal that sinks to the bottom of the bowl after an arduous attempt to squeeze him out with tremendous force. His appearance is due to an overexposure to toxins such as processed foods, environmental toxins, and medical drugs.

The Swimmer: This guy is light in color and floats. He is a pain to flush. His appearance is due to a high content of undigested fat.

Bodybuilder: This dude is jacked! He is typically big and round. He makes you strain to get him out. If you pop a blood vessel in your eyeball when you poop, you’ve probably met this guy. His appearance is due to eating too many protein bars and shakes.

Pellet Man: He looks like rabbit poop. His appearance is due to altered states between peristalsis and dehydration.

Diarrhea: “If you’re sliding into first and you feel something burst…” This guy needs no introduction. His appearance is due to your crappy diet and your body’s attempt to purge you of it.

The Flasher: If you can identify what you’ve eaten by looking at your poop, you are being flashed! Undigested food particles making an appearance in your bowl are a sure sign that this guy has crashed your party. His appearance is due to food intolerance and an inflamed gut wall.

The Poopie Policeman: This guy is “the sh--!” He is what all of our poop strive to look like. He is well-shaped (with a consistent contour), passes easily, is light brown in color, and smells earthy, not foul. Yet, he floats…but not too much. Mmmm.