Interview NutraBeauty News

This week we have the honor of gaining valuable knowledge from a noted authority in the fields of fitness, nutrition and sports. Founder of the Cory Holly Institute and creator of the Cory Holly Signature Series of supplements, Dr. Holly is also a writer, speaker and teacher.

Having travelled the world and lived among aboriginal people, his experiences are both enlightening and fascinating for us to read about.

NBN: It's terrific to have you here with us today, Dr. Holly. I have to say that I could've written a book about what you've accomplished, but I'll work within the confines of this article. With such an extensive background in fitness and nutrition, what do you feel are the main causes of the current obesity statistics?

CH: Simple. Overeating the wrong foods and spending too much time with our behind parallel to the ground. During this RV tour of America I’m watching what Americans put in their shopping baskets at supermarkets. I’ve never seen this many people eat and drink so much lifeless dead food.

If you watch some of the old B/W Turner Classic movies you’ll notice that almost everyone is lean. What was different back in the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s? We ate less junk and moved more. No drive through or ordering in.

Obesity is a state of mind. First we think, then we do. What we see in the mirror is what we’ve created. It is the tangible evidence of our habits and lifestyle. All action is preceded by thought. This is elementary.

Processed food doesn’t get into the body on its own. We have to put it there. What are we eating and why? What is the true biological role and purpose of food? How can something we have total control over appear to have total control over us?

The acronym for DIET is Discipline In Energy Transfer. Discipline is something we all need. We have to control ourselves. We have to learn to delay gratification without feeling bad or negative. Good health is impossible to achieve or maintain without desire, discipline and dedication. Let go and let health I like to say.

We are in command of everything we do and don’t do. If we just let ourselves go and leave everything to chance, it’s quite likely we’ll get into some real trouble when it comes to nutrition. Unless we live in the Amazon, we’re all surrounded by highly processed addictive sterile food. No one is making us eat it, but it’s very easy to conform, give into temptation and join the crowd. It begins at the age of innocence as children.

Perhaps more than anything is the relationship of food to our emotions. We use food as a soother. Concentrated fat and sugar has a drug-like effect on the brain similar to prescription and recreational drugs. Things like ice cream, pizza, white bread and sweets can tranquilize and sedate us into a semi-conscious state. We lose touch only wanting more.

Refined food is new to our genes. Our genes evolved from organic, fresh, whole food, and the only way to obtain such food until recently, was too hunt, gather, fish or farm. All over the world humans are gaining bodyfat when they do two things: eat junk and stop moving. The world now supports one billion+ obese people.

Of course there are many variables that influence body composition (weight) including our individual mind and body type, genetic predisposition, physical movement patterns, food quality, food quantity, food chemistry, portion size, timing, gender, age, nutrition history, involvement in sport, depression, self-esteem, and so on.

But before I can recommend a solid functional health program to any client, they must complete a total fitness assessment, and have both their current diet and body type analyzed. With this information I can really get down to business.

Weight is not the focus. Health is the focus. Weight is the influence of gravity on mass. Body composition analysis is a much better way to understand weight management science. Fat is a storage container of energy. We simply have to redistribute that energy through movement, exercise and optimum nutrition. Consistency is Key.

I’ve lectured and written extensively on this topic of weight management for years and want people to know that as a true endomorph, I’m absolutely predisposed to gaining bodyfat. The reason I’m lean can be explained. It’s a choice I make. Everyday.

I simply follow the rules that regulate and optimize health (not weight).

Here’s a fantastic health secret. To obey the laws that govern health and wellness, we must understand the difference between the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. Rules of engagement and ceremony are one thing, but of much greater importance is how we feel about ourselves, on the deepest most intimate level.

The body is designed to be well, functional and lean for life, but it needs our cooperation. Are we a friend or foe to our own body? Do we have the courage to be true to ourselves? An amazing number of us sabotage our health for many, many reasons, mostly emotional.

NBN: I think your philosophy of conquering "the struggle within" and "achieving peace within" is wonderful. You've lived with native and aboriginal people in over 60 countries. How do you see people who live by centuries-old customs address that issue - and how can we in other countries learn to "achieve peace within"?

CH: Native people have an amazing acceptance of what is. They live by the Serenity Prayer without even knowing how to read or write. They accept what can’t be changed and change whatever they can if wisdom prevails. They tend to live closer to nature and respect the environment out of necessity. To fowl their own nest would make no sense at all.

They don’t eat junk because it doesn’t exist. It’s hard to get sick or fat on fish, green leaves, tubers and berries. They move and rest constantly. A balance of energy consumed and energy expended in harmony with nature.

Aboriginal people live differently. They don’t watch sports on TV. We waste so much time with things and stuff that in the long run at day’s end, really doesn’t matter. What matters most is how we look and feel. Are we strong, vibrant, lean and healthy, or have we become a walking time bomb ready to explode without warning? What is it we have to change inside?

Natives are also very honest. In fact the honesty blew me away at first, but then it grew on me. To speak the truth and express how you feel about everything all the time with everybody is a fantastic way to be and live. That’s how I define a friend. They let me be me without restraint, judgment or ridicule. Of course all of this honesty is buffered by affection and genuine caring. The greatest rule above all is do no harm.

To overcome the struggle within requires time, patience and courage, lots of courage. In fact in this regard, courage is more important than wisdom, temperance and justice. Without courage, without standing up and doing what’s right when it’s time to take action, well, all else fails, all else crumbles.

If we cave-in when it’s time to do what’s right, our moral fiber weakens inside. With continued conformity to the wrong percentage group, we lose our integrity and power to choose good over evil, yin over yang, light over darkness, right over wrong, whatever.

Traveling is a powerful way to expand our inner horizons. When you work and live with people in different countries, without prejudice, it’s simply amazing what you can learn about yourself. How we tick? What’s important? What love is? Where we came from? Who we are? Where we’re going?

The answers to the big questions trickle in over time with each new experience. The experiences build on each other. If we’re lucky, we learn to become friends with ourselves. We stop “kicking against the pricks”.

It is only then that we can hope to cope with this life and endure all that life will bring our way. Overcoming ourselves is perhaps life’s greatest accomplishment. It is definitely a process.

NBN: What country/area of the world have you seen to have the healthiest people - and what in particular do you feel is the reason?

CH: Hard to say. Let’s go with Fiji. I met a fisherman on the docks early one morning who invited me to go fishing with him. Turns out he was 95 with ten children. He didn’t know who the US President was and didn’t care. He literally lived in a grass hut on a beach. The simplicity of his life was beyond description and he wouldn’t take a dime. Said he had no need for money.

I spent three days with this man and it seemed like forever and a day. He was calm, peaceful and very funny. Never saw anyone smile and laugh so much. But he was a hard worker and very strong. No body fat whatsoever. Everything we did was manual. No engine. No machines. No pollution.

At night we made a fire, talked about life, his family and mine and the “old ways” and slept on the beach under the stars. I lost track of time.

We used oars to power the outrigger and fished for barracuda in the morning as the sun came up, using a simple pole and line method. We ate the fish right in the boat with salt and lime. To this we added some taro root and papaya. It was absolutely delicious and of course, this is the very best way to eat, fresh and clean from a pure environment.

In Fiji they say “Bula Bula” and they really mean it! “Welcome my friends. Enjoy life to the fullest!”

NBN: You coined the term emoducation. Tell us how that came about and what it means.

CH: I love music and love to use it to enhance my training, running and workout experience. I’ve always known that music acts like a stairway to heaven. It raises my positive emotions and suppresses my negative emotions. If one is up the others must be down.

When the internet exploded onto the world, I soon discovered a means of accessing technical information fast and easy. I could download various audio tutorials and guest interviews on topics related to health and fitness, or positive thinking, transfer them into my iPod and listen to them in the gym between songs. It was so cool! My learning curve and motivation went right through the roof!

The process of emoducation (emotion + education) elevates the senses to receive life changing information better than any other method of learning I’ve tried. You simply download your favorite music files and audio tutorials from the internet to your MP3 player. I personally use an iPod.

Now you have the punch of positive emotion caused by listening to the music you love, shuttled randomly between the intellectual stimulation of the educational data you enjoy and have an interest in.

To emoducate your mind is to elevate the sensory portion of your brain by listening to your favorite music during exercise and physical activity. This enables you to absorb, utilize and retain selected educational tutorials, interviews and health related data in audio format.

Movement and physical movement is the KEY, because without the physical movement you cannot emoducate yourself. Emoducation is the magic that exists between the elevated mind and the physically moving body. As the blood sugar and oxygen levels adjust to accommodate performance demands, the brain becomes more alert and more precise in its ability to adapt to the educational information. I teach this method of learning to all of my students.

NBN: You pioneered adding flaxseed oil and omega-3 oils to protein shakes. Tell us about that and how it can help us stay fit.

CH: About thirty years ago I discovered Dr. Johanna Budwig and the healing benefits of flax seed oil when mixed with sulfurated proteins. Budwig, a German biochemist and expert on fats and oils, identified a deficiency of lipoproteins in the blood of cancer patients. Her dietary protocol included the ingestion of a special oil-protein mixture in the form of organic cold-pressed flaxseed oil mixed in cottage cheese or “quark”. Her objective was to reduce excessive omega-6 fatty acid intake, eliminate trans-fats and refined sugar and provide an abundant supply of essential omega-3 fatty acids.

When flax seed oil is combined with a high-quality sulfur rich protein, the EFAs combine with amino acids to form “water-soluble” lipoproteins. This allows immediate transport of the unsaturated fatty acids through the bloodstream. Dr. Budwig’s special diet of flax, quark and whole natural foods, when consumed exclusively for as little as three months, caused tumors to recede, anemia to vanish and life energy to be restored. In many cases symptoms of cancer, liver dysfunction and diabetes were alleviated.

Well this information just blew me away. So I began using flax as a staple and promoted it to everyone for everything with astonishing results. Then in 1992, I discovered another incredible supplement at the Expo West in Anaheim CA - whey protein isolate (WPI).

Finally, a smooth, soluble, alkaline-forming, pleasant tasting, non-denatured source of sulfur rich protein. With its unique peptide microfractions, high biological value and superior nitrogen retention, WPI was the perfect supplement for training and sports nutrition.

The next step was obvious. I reasoned that adding 1-3 T. of flax seed oil to a shake consisting of WPI, filtered water and fresh organic fruit (blueberries, papaya & banana) could duplicate the same nutrition benefits observed by Dr. Budwig.

So I assembled as many athletes as I could find and set all of them up on a dietary protocol consisting of whole natural food and an oil-protein mixture (shake) before and after exercise.

Over time every single one of my athletic clients on this protocol reported something positive. Less inflammation, improved joint function and rapid recovery from strenuous workouts. Many gained additional power, strength and speed. I myself gained an extra 20 pounds of lean mass at age 35.

Others lost bodyfat quickly and kept it off. Stubborn injuries began to heal and circulation improved. Tissue began to mend and energy was restored. To make the program even better, we blended extra creatine, ribose, glutamine and spirulina into each shake and would take a handful of essential vitamins, minerals and enzymes. I kept detailed records and accumulated hundreds of new client files for research purposes.

This concept of “shaking and taking” before and after each workout gave birth to the concept of Shake’&’Take, a phrase coined by Tracy, my wife and business partner. I called it my workout sandwich.

More and more research data poured out from independent university studies to reinforce the safety and efficacy of the concept. As a result of continued promotion through media, seminars and industry tradeshows across the country, the nutritional trend of adding 2 tablespoons of anmomega-3 rich sport oil to pre- and post-workout protein shakes with WPI was set in motion.

NBN: This is something I ask everyone at the end of an interview. How do you define beauty?

CH: Great question! Beauty is what I see in myself. That is how I am able to endure the race I run and work “with” rather against myself.

I also see beauty everywhere around me. I see it in others and I see it in beautiful men, women and children. I see it in nature, in animals and in a palace. I see it in the compassion of forgiveness.

But what is beauty exactly? Beauty is a thing to behold. It is something you feast upon and consume. It is awe-inspiring and lovely. It is something you immediately recognize but can’t describe any other way.

Wow! Look at that. Is that ever beautiful!

Beauty is the connection between a small child and his mother. It is felt between a husband and his lover. It hides in the sweet kindness of tender affection. It is observed in family, in art and in the soul. Beauty is what moves us and keeps us true. It is fuel for our appetite and passion.

Beauty is what beauty does. It astounds me.

NBN: Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience with all of us. It's been a pleasure having you here.

Nancy Welker
CEO, Nutrabeautiful, Inc.
Founder & Editor in Chief
FitBeautiful! Magazine