A Few KaleMales

I'm nearing the book finish line but not there yet, I asked Carolyn to write about a trend we've been observing.

As Lauren can attest, I have been on several of ‘the worst dates ever’ but one in particular stands out. A guy brought me on a ‘surprise date’ to a Brooklyn hot spot called Fete Sau. It’s essentially a meat market. It was organic and local, sure, but hello, I’ve never pretended to be a “chill girl” and a tray of flesh is certainly not my nutritionist-style – not to mention when I left my $50 drybar hair reeked of brisket.  Is a male who loves kale so much to ask for?

Beyond my personal life and the brisket incident, the number of #kalemales (like our hashtag?) is increasing. Either that or men are just fessing up. We are seeing a huge increase in the number of dudes interested in nutrition and healthy eating – from Mark Bittman’s post on “The Bible of Kale” to our twitter conversations with #kalemales, and even the influx of guys in our office recently (some turned in by kale-pushing wives and girlfriends). We’ve had to create a whole new category of services: “Dudetraining”.

Although we’re asked, we don’t see couples together for sessions because male and females very different (in general and when it comes to nutrition). From actual nutritional needs to the amount of structure men and women generally prefer, even the specific types of foods they like-gender differences exist. For our Foodtrainers’ newsletter this month, we outlined our favorite dude foods and created a bro bundle (men can't be expected to obtain their healthy food, c'mon). With the exception of Popeye, eating your greens hasn’t historically been all that masculine. Being the “diet dude” is way, way worse than being the diet chick, but that’s all changing.

A few foods of the #kalemale movement we are loving:

-       Bro-fast: Superfood chia-PB on Paleo Bread or a Sunwarrior protein smoothie

-       Six-pack snacks: 22-day bars, created Marco Borges who Jay-Z calls "the worlds best trainer". They're organic, vegan, and gluten, soy and dairy free. As Jay would say “got 99 problems but a bar aint one”

-        Slantshack jerky, jerky the ultimate guy grub, this one holds off on the nasty additives and is pure grass-fed, gluten-free goodness.

#Kalemale has a ring to it, but the king of all dude foods may not be kale at all- but tomatoes. Many studies have shown that guys who eat tomatoes and tomato based foods are lass likely to develop prostate issues than men who don’t eat them. As Carla mentioned in her What’s better, raw or cooked?

post, lycopene, the main antioxidant in tomatoes, is one of the rare nutrients that actually becomes more bioavailable when heated. As we all know, prostate health is very important…. So things like homemade tomato sauce and chili are great dude foods. Raw tomatoes are all good too -- but guys, ketchup doesn’t count. 

Guys also love their gadgets and having specific number goals, so beyond food we’re also seeing major progress with men using the FitBit and the Nike fuel band. We suggest the wristband as the belt ones seem to get misplaced. But even our fit dude friends love competing in their total number of daily steps.

Get your man our bro-bundle or sign them up for dudetraining today.

So do you have a number one “#kalemale”? Have you noticed more men are interested in nutrition and healthy food? Why do you think this is?

PS: if you’re really in search of your own #kalemale, rumor has it Same Plate is a foodie dating website where you can be matched up based on food preferences.

Ripa/Consuelos Theory: Salads and Sex

I was watching an episode of Live with Regis and Kelly  a couple of weeks ago. On the show Bryant Gumbel was co-hosting and he and Kelly were discussing a dinner party he had thrown. Apparently, Bryant had cooked this delicious and not-so-small meal including an entrée of Cornish hen. Bryant was lamenting that he made “too much food.” Kelly smiled and shared a theory her husband, Mark, has. I’ll paraphrase but she said that when her husband sees her eating a salad for dinner, he gets a little excited thinking there’s a good chance he will get “lucky” later that night. On the other hand if he sees her chowing down, he knows “it” may not happen that night. Kelly shared with Bryant that when she devoured the hen (which she called chicken), her husband realized his odds were not good. Brilliant theory.

Saturday night, my Marc and I and 2 other couples went to Lavo for our own not-so-small dinner. It was the kind of meal where a ton of appetizers are ordered for the table. There is no need for entrees in this scenario but you order them anyway. I was full way before my branzino arrived. We passed on after dinner drinks and headed home. I got to thinking, does anyone feel sexy after a large meal? And is there a physiological component for this or is it just knowing that we just consumed too much?

You really wouldn’t believe what turned up as I googled every version of “big meal” and “sex”. I received a little too much of an education. If you’re curious or perverted see what Urban Dictionary defines a tossed salad as (blush). I did find some legitimate and interesting research. One study, though not focused on libido and eating, explained that post large meal food coma. This study mentioned , in NewScientist, explained why we often feel we need a siesta after a large meal. Researchers discovered that high blood glucose levels (after eating a meal) can switch off brain cells that keep us awake and alert. The group of brain cells are orexin neurons, found in the hypothalamus.The author added that “it makes evolutionary sense for animals to turn off their wakefulness and conserve energy once they have eaten their food, since it could be risky or wasteful to expend too much energy looking for more food.” Now I haven’t been in research for some time now but I am selectively hearing that one should conserve energy after a large meal, maybe even read a magazine and watch Project Runway? However, it also must make “evolutionary sense” to further the species, so to speak, maybe after dinner just isn’t the time for this.

I recalled another study that came out last year that I looked up to refresh my memory. In Canada, a team of researchers examined the eating habits of single, college-aged women. Their primary conclusion was that women’s caloric intake was significantly lower when their eating companions were male versus female. The explanation given was that women feel it’s more attractive or think they appear more attractive when eating less. Aside from this finding being rather depressing, in keeping with the “Mark” theory, I had a different spin. Rather than conforming to some gender eating role, perhaps women feel sexier when eating this lighter meal. After all, women like to “get lucky” too at least single, college women…

There is a rather well established connection between being overweight and sex. Female sexual functioning is significantly lower in overweight women than those who are normal weight. The British Medical Journal found obese women “29% less likely to have had a sex partner in the previous 12 months.” We also can’t isolate this connection to women. Overeating can decrease a man’s libido as well (I said decrease not eliminate) and excess weight can cause erectile dysfunction. Fat cells also produce estrogen, thereby reducing testosterone and sexual drive.

Aside from weight, eating well enables us to feel our best and that is what this is really about. When we feel good we’re more confident and this has a carryover effect. Meanwhile, I started this by saying that when Mark (Consuelos) sees his wife eating a salad things look promising. I am not sure what the male equivalent is but my husband just dropped the kids off at school. I couldn’t find anything on Medline but I’m fairly certain this increases his chances.
Do you subscribe to the salad and sex theory? Do you think it’s “women only” or do men experience this also? Do you feel sexier when eating well? Don’t be shy, we’re just talking about salad.