Tag: Nutrition

Sacrifices & Hard Work

“Everyone wants to win. But to truly succeed whether it is a sport or at your job or in your life you have to be willing to do the hard work, overcome challenges, and make the sacrifices it takes to be the best at what you do.” -Ronda Rousey, from her book “My Fight/Your Fight”

Never mind the fact I went into a 6 hour life or death full on open cranial surgery (April 2010) to remove a brain tumor that took up half my brain, but just within BMX I face so many challenges, sacrifices, and have to put in 100% every time I ride or I may end up in the hospital. That’s the reality of our sport and life in general to some degree. 

We always face fear, challenges, and uncertainties. The hard work, persistence, and determination to be better than our previous selves are what gets up past these challenges. I started to take all of this even more serious after having a full reconstructive surgery (November 2015) on my right knee and an ACL and meniscus tear. 

I don’t see it as hard work anymore. I see it as just something that needs to be done to get to where I want to be and then where I want to progress from there. That’s the beauty of life. It never stops providing an opportunity to grow and progress in any facet of our lives. Once we shift our minds from seeing an experience as “good” and “bad” to seeing all experiences as an equal opportunity to learn from and progress from, things become clear and precise.

A few days ago I was told the two brain tumors I currently live with are stable after shrinking for two years, thanks to Gamma Knife Radiosurgery (November 2012). Then I was told I face two more challenges. I now have 2 new brain tumors residing on the opposite side of my brain that the original tumor operated on (April 2010) was taken from. This makes me a little uneasy seeing as I was told the original tumor was benign yet new masses are appearing in other areas of my brain. Again, that’s life and the cards I am dealt and I have to play the game with these “cards” now. That shit hand isn’t going to stop me! 

For me, #BMX is my everything. It’s my obsession, my state of meditation, my hobby, my career, my life, and my only option. I know I’ll never ride at this level forever, but I do know the hard work I’m putting in on and off my bike right now will benefit my career and what I create for when I’m no longer riding at a professional level. For now, BMX is what keeps me motivated to not let anything or anyone hold me back from accomplishing my goals in life and I’m forever grateful for my parents getting me my first bike. 

I live, breath, eat, and sleep BMX. I feel that’s what it takes to do something you dream of in life. There are no excuses, just the ones we lean on in times of hardship and fear. I know first hand that’s not an option to living the life of our dreams. 💚✌️

-Josh P.

Focus

Focus: the state or quality of having or producing a clear visual definition.

Focus on where you want to be, not where you were or where you are. When you focus on negatives, you’ll attract more negativity into your life. When you focus on positives, you’ll have more positivity and opportunities to be positive in your life. 

Happy New Year

No dream is too big. All that matters is that we believe in ourselves, we feel it, and we take action.

The brain is amazing and anything is possible with that combination. Embrace the new, the unknown, and the uncomfortable. It’s a part of the journey. Thanks to everyone reading this for contributing to my growth in life, supporting my dream, and allowing me to share with all of you. Happy New Year, everyone!

How To Stay Motivated

This photo was taken on April 16th, 2010 at Duke University after a 6-hour long surgery to remove an 8cm long by 2cm wide by a 2cm deep brain tumor. It’s changed my perspective on life, how I want to live it, and what I want to do within it.

Motivation is one of the many keys to success in life and within business. Gary Vaynerchuk shared that his key to staying motivated is remembering tomorrow isn’t promised. I’m a firm believer in this statement after realizing I may loose my life at the age of 21.

It’s sparked a whole new level of motivation to become the best version of myself, attack my dreams, and support others along the way. Since this photo, I’ve been re-diagnosed 2 more times with a total of 4 new brain tumors. It hasn’t stopped me, though, and it’s my mission to share the power of our minds with the world along with supporting those facing adversity and are determined to overcome it.

This link will take you to a video series I’ve started titled, “Quest To Progress“, which shares my story, my passions, and my goals within life.

Remember, it’s a miracle we’re alive and we should all be grateful for what we have rather than ungrateful for what we don’t. That simple shift in perspective can do wonders for your life like it has for mine.

💚✌️

-Josh P.

Pain Is Weakness Leaving the Body

“Imma go as hard as I can dawg

Til’ the Grim Reaper come and take me

I’m not afraid of fallin’ to the very bottom

No death don’t intimidate me

Cause I bleed the blood of a winner

I can feel it all running through my veins

I know this might sound a lil’ crazy to ya

You wouldn’t understand unless you was me” 

“Pain is weakness leaving the body” is one of my favorite quotes from Jeremy Piven in a role he played as a car salesman. This photo was taken after I over rotated a 720 and hit my chin off my handlebars on an untraditional/ kinked jump, mid-contest run last year. @trishbare got me all patched up and I went and did my second run perfectly as planned. 

One of the most important lessons BMX has taught me was to get up when we fall down and try again. Falling, or failure is a part of life and should be viewed as a learning experience rather than a negative experience in our lives. It’s all a matter of perspective. Glass half full or glass half empty. 

If you know me, I’m always in favor for the glass half full. Full of possibilities, ideas, dreams, hard work, achievements, education, and love. With that combination, anything is possible.

-Josh P.

Making The Most Of The Mind-Body Connection

Athletes of all kinds focus on building and maintaining a healthy and productive mind-body connection. Generally, this means managing mental stress as a tool for enabling maximum physical performance. As a BMX freestyle athlete, I’ve spent years developing a mind-body connection that allows me to overcome both physical and mental obstacles. This connection allows me to push through fear and becomes adept at making quick, intuitive decisions that help me to achieve my goals both on and off the BMX course.

Several years ago, I had a transformative experience that made me realize the mind-body connection has more than one dimension, and that taking care of yourself physically is essential to having a healthy brain.

In March 2010, I was told I had a brain tumor that required immediate surgery. I was fortunate that the surgery went well and that I was back on my bike within two months of the procedure. But that wasn’t the end of it. While performing in India, I learned I had two more brain tumors. I didn’t have a choice in the diagnosis, but this time I did have a choice in treatments.

[See: Exercising After You’ve Gone Under (the Knife, That Is).]

Tapping into the mind-body connection that I’ve honed over years of BMX training, I put my fear of the tumors aside and focused on identifying the best treatment option. After doing some digging on all the options out there, I decided upon radiosurgery with Gamma Knife – a non-invasive treatment that uses focused beams of radiation to destroy tumor tissue without the need for open brain surgery. The Gamma Knife procedure was incredibly simple and I was back out on my bike six days later. I’m always somewhat surprised that, when I tell my story, most people aren’t familiar with Gamma Knife. It’s an important treatment option for people with brain tumors and other neurological disorders.

My brain tumor diagnoses were a real catalyst for thinking about how I could better care for myself. I started to think about factors that impacted my brain health and were in my control and realized that food and nutrition might play an important role in helping repair the damage from the tumors and the head injuries I had suffered in the past. To be honest, up to that point in my life I had made some pretty unhealthy lifestyle choices.

Committed to finding a healthier path, I learned about the work of Dr. David Perlmutter, a top-notch neurologist, and fellow of the American College of Nutrition. He has a unique perspective on the brain and how the food we eat affects it.

Inspired by his work, I undertook a yearlong program at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. I took what I learned in the program, combined it with the knowledge I’d gained from Dr. Perlmutter’s work and applied it to my own day-to-day nutritional choices. I began eating fermented foods like sauerkraut and kombucha, got rid of the added sugars, starchy carbs and gluten, and started including more healthy fats like avocado, coconut oil, grass-fed butter and ghee, and extra virgin olive oil.

[See: 12 Psychological Tricks to Get You Through a Workout or Race.]

With these changes, I lowered my total carbohydrate intake by about 80 to 90 percent. I also started taking probiotics and got serious about my fitness – which became a key priority after going through an ACL reconstructive surgery. I’ve also found that getting enough sleep, being grateful for what I have and finding strength in helping others are all good for my soul and for my brain.

My mornings went from having a bowl of processed cereal loaded with sugar and conventional cow’s milk, toaster strudels, cheap pasteurized juice, soda, pastries and even more horrific foods, to starting my day with a large amount of water, a bulletproof coffee and a healthy breakfast consisting of lots of healthy fats (avocado and coconut oil), quality protein (organic, pasture-raised eggs) and low-starch veggies (broccoli, red cabbage, mushrooms and onions) with spices (black pepper, pink Himalayan sea salt, garlic and turmeric). I ditched the cheap recovery protein shakes and swapped them for Garden Of Life’s non-GMO, organic, gluten-free protein and various other supplements. I’ve also added Barleans organic and wild-caught fish oil to my meals. My lunches and dinners have the same basic components as my breakfasts, and I find that healthy fats add delicious flavors and keep me satisfied.

From adopting these healthy eating habits, I have seen great changes take place. I don’t oversleep, and I look forward to waking up and starting my day. I have significantly reduced my body fat and see even more definition in my muscles. I feel stronger and more energized throughout my whole day on and off the bike. In addition to feeling better physically, I’m able to think more clearly without the constant brain fog and forgetfulness that I experienced before adopting better eating habits. Importantly, this clarity of thought has really improved my ability to assess my emotions and be realistic about my life. Perhaps the best result of the changes I’ve made to my diet is that I know I’m doing everything I can to protect my brain’s health today and for the long term. This knowledge allows me to live in a constant sensation of gratitude, peace, love, and happiness.

[See: 10 Ways to Break a Bad Mood.]

The moral of my story is that being diagnosed with a life-threatening situation isn’t always the worst thing that can happen. In fact, any “negative” diagnosis, challenge, failure or obstacle can be a positive experience if you allow yourself to see it that way. In my case, my brain tumor diagnoses helped me see I was making lots of decisions that were taking me further and further away from the healthy lifestyle I needed to have. It took the prospect of death to make me open my mind to change. It’s now my mission to help others become aware of the changes that they can make to improve their lives, without having them go through the challenges I’ve experienced.

Strangely, my brain tumor diagnoses ended up being blessings in disguise, and I am beyond grateful for all that I have learned from them. I am proud of who I have become and the choices I am making to take care of my mind and my body, and I am honored to have the opportunity to share my story with you.

The connections between our minds and bodies are truly powerful. Take care of both, and you’ll be able to live life to the fullest.

-Josh P.

What Surviving 3 Brain Tumors Taught Me About Health

First, they said I’d never ride again. Then they said I’d never compete again. Then they said I’d never win again. I didn’t believe them. I was right.

Let me back up. I’m a professional BMX athlete, which means I compete in freestyle BMX bike riding events where we do tricks like backflips, spins and tail whips. When I was in my 20s – not long after I had won a major professional competition and competed in the X-Games, the most elite of extreme sports competitions – I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. This tumor, known as a meningioma, took up almost the entire left side of my head. I went from feeling on top of the world to feeling like the world was on top of me. A team of surgeons opened my skull and cut out the tumor. The surgery was intense and the recovery was tough, but fortunately, I was back on my bike just over a month later.

[See: Exercising After You’ve Gone Under (the Knife, That Is).]

The experience changed me, but not as significantly as you might expect. I thought of my brain tumor as a short pause in an otherwise normal life; not much different than the sort of bumps I went over on the BMX course. I went back to training, traveling and competing. I was your basic 20-something kid: I rode hard during the day, and ate, drank and stayed out late with my buddies at night. Life goes on, right?

Wrong. Two years after making a full recovery from surgery, I was traveling in India when I found out I had two more brain tumors. The news hit me hard. I knew I was lucky to have come out of the first diagnosis and surgery with little more than a scar on my scalp. With this second diagnosis, I started to worry that my luck was running out.

That was when I knew it was time to make some changes. While I had probably known all along deep down that I couldn’t fuel my dreams on 42-ounce sodas and microwaved burritos, the return of my tumors made me realize how precious good health really is. It gave me the motivation to take a serious look at my life and lifestyle and to reconsider my choices.

I started with my most pressing issues, which, quite literally, were the brain tumors pressing on my skull. My intense desire to beat the tumors and get on with my life almost matched my desire not to live through another craniotomy. I believed that there had to be another way to fix the tumors, so I sat at my computer searching the web until I found something that seemed like it might be an alternative: Gamma Knife radiosurgery, a way to treat the brain tumors without having to cut the skull open. I soon found a doctor who would perform the procedure, which involves directing a high dose of irradiation through the intact skull to control the tumors. The radiation works to make the tumors disappear, shrink or stop growing.

Next, I focused on revamping my diet. Now, the sodas, beer, and fast food are out, and real, whole foods are in. I try to eat organic whenever possible. I’ve cut way back on sugar and I drink a lot of water. One of the things that surprised me when I changed my diet was that eating healthy really isn’t that complicated. Staying away from packaged and processed foods and eating organic when I can are small changes that made a big difference – at least for me. I now have more energy and fewer midday energy crashes, which means I can train harder and longer. My digestive issues have gone away. I heal faster and get sick less often. I’ve also found that my mood is more stable, which helps me focus my mind and block out anxiety and fear.

[See: 10 Ways to Break a Bad Mood.]

Finally, I made important changes to how I view and use my brain. I started to use breathing and visualization techniques when I’m practicing and competing. For example, before a competition, I run through the moves I want to do in my mind, picturing what it would look like if I accomplished them perfectly. Then, I focus on my breathing, telling myself to take nice, slow, deep breaths. This routine, which I perform over and over, keeps my energy up and my heart rate down, and also lets me really be in the moment. To be honest, though, these rituals don’t always work. But even then, I just take the hit and get back up on my bike and try again. If brain tumors weren’t enough to knock me out of the race, then an occasional fall off my bike isn’t going to stop me either.

Taking better care of my body and my mind is paying off: I recently competed at the FISE World Series in Osijek, Croatia, where I had hoped to make it to the top 12. (I didn’t set my goal higher since it was my first big event since I had ACL surgery in November 2015.) At the competition, I didn’t stress about being back in the spotlight and instead visualized myself succeeding at each stage of the competition and made sure I kept breathing. I made it through qualifiers, then through semifinals and hit my goal of being in the top 12 finalists. Then, I took third place.

Since my second diagnosis, I’ve learned that fear is something that exists in our minds. If you focus on a goal rather than on the fear, you can accomplish anything. Mental focus is important for success, and how we fuel our bodies impacts how we think and feel. Since I started paying more attention to my mind and my body, I find it’s easier to deal with stress and anxiety. I can pick myself up, take a step back and then figure out the best way to keep pushing ahead.

[See: 12 Psychological Tricks to Get You Through a Workout or Race.]

Whether it’s a health scare, a relationship that has gone bad or career setback, eventually, we all get knocked down. The trick is to get back up, learn from it and keep going. You don’t need a frightening diagnosis to change your life for the better. The only second chance you need is the one you give yourself.

-Josh P.

GQ The Real-Life Diet Of a Pro BMX Rider (Who Survived Cancer Three Times)

Josh Perry has a lot of reasons to not be here. In 2010, shortly after becoming a pro BMX rider, he received the first of his three brain tumor diagnoses. That one was a meningioma, a large mass on his brain that was benign but only removable via open craniotomy. The next one, two years later, called for an evocatively named procedure called gamma knife radiation, which beamed radiation into his brain.

“It sounded pretty scary, just because of the name, but the more I researched it the more comfortable I became,” Perry says today. “It seemed painless, and it was.” He was back on his bike six days later.

Perry, now 27, says it took going through surgery to get him thinking about nutrition. These days, when he’s not riding up to six hours a day, he’s touting a holistic post-cancer lifestyle. That means a diet benefitting both his body and his brain, including these two super-simple, instant-fresh meals—which he can assemble in about 10 minutes.

Mornings

“I never get tired of this: Sautee organic coconut oil, organic butter, minced garlic, onions, purple cabbage, and broccoli. Add pink Himalayan salt, black pepper, turmeric, ginger root and maybe some curry. Sautee until the veggies are soft, and then crack an egg over the top. When that’s about done, add sliced avocado, a little sriracha sauce, and organic olive oil.” While that’s happening, he’ll whip up fresh oats, with chopped apple, cinnamon, and peanut butter.

The secret, he says, is advance prep. Chop veggies in advance (make it a Sunday night project) and store them in glass Tupperware. Buy spices in bulk, and store them in glass jars as well. Then it’s just a matter of grabbing what you need and throwing it in a skillet; it’s a mix of good-quality fats, proteins, and carbs.

Afternoons and Evenings

Perry takes the ready-made approach for lunch and dinner as well: “Sautee spinach or kale, chopped-up chicken, avocado, BBQ sauce, olive oil, pumpkin seeds and chickpeas. I can put that Tupperware and take it to the park or the gym. If I’m late, I’ll whip up a smoothie with banana, peanut butter, avocado, cinnamon, salt, and ice. It’s too easy.”

He’s also big on sweet potatoes, which he toasts in their skins at 400 degrees for an hour. “Take them out, slice them open and they fall right out of the skin,” he says. “And they work for any meal.”

Finally, Perry has joined the growing group of athletes and chefs focusing on GI health. “I never thought I’d eat sauerkraut, but there are so many different variations. I’m into ginger beet sauerkraut, which is great for your gut.” He’s also known to knock back kombucha, which has its own probiotic benefits. “Everything we put in our body goes to our gut, and fermented foods are amazing for that. At the end of the day, everything I do is for my brain—which is for my body.”

-Josh P.

Don’t Regret Where You Started

My past Friday night consisted of me busting my ass at the BMX park. What did yours look like? My past Friday’s used to consist of aimlessly going out drinking with friends with no goal in sight other than to have fun.

That was then and this is now. Now I’m goal orientated, driven, passionate, and persistent towards making my dreams come true. I’m healthier than ever, more fit than ever, more dialed on my bike than ever, and the most confident on and off my bike that I’ve ever been. I contribute part of that to having a goal in mind with the focus to choose things that will supplement my efforts, not take away.

I don’t regret any of the past times and choices I’ve made because it is what led me to where I am now. In the moment, it was fun followed by feeling like absolute shit and pushing myself to ride through it because I was sort of committed to making my dreams come true. Little did I know it would be a life changing experience that reiterates everything I’ve learned about #holistic #health and #nutrition.

One morning riding with Dave Mirra hung over and feeling like I was about to throw up all over the ramps, I fell because I wasn’t 100% focused on what I was doing. Luckily I didn’t get hurt but it didn’t help the pain I was already in.

I’m not saying drinking is bad or that you shouldn’t go out with your friends.  I’m simply saying making those choices for me, my goals, and my life was indeed toxic and bad. Alcohol on those levels and frequencies destroys our brain and body. Definitely not what I’m about now. This doesn’t mean I never drink. Although it’s been months since I’ve had a drink, when I do drink I choose to have the best quality drink available to me (usually high-quality wine), consume activated charcoal before and after, as well as get some MCT oil in my system. Some quick Bulletproof Biohacking tips

The point of my sharing this is to point out the growth in which I’ve achieved from past experiences and help inspire you all to assess your choices. The most important change is my perspective on my goals and which lifestyle choices helps or takes away from reaching those goals. 💚✌️

Routines

This is my daily routine/taking the action step towards an idea, goal & dream that I referred to. A cup of coffee with brain fueling healthy fats (Kerrygold grass-fed butter and organic coconut oil) while handling business.

It’s great to have goals and dreams, but an idea stuck in our minds typically doesn’t manifest into much more than a thought. A belief and feeling it’ll work out, followed by action, is required to ensure you manifest your thoughts into reality. It may be a whiteboard (which I’ll be sharing more of that with all of you this year), an email, an outline, a social media post, trying a new trick in the foam pit for the first time, asking out that special person that’s caught your eye, applying to a school of your dreams, approaching an idol of yours to create together (more on this from me soon) going for that promotion, etc. It doesn’t matter, TAKE ACTION!

I’m beyond stoked to share my new website with all of you once we get the final touches updated. It’ll be merging with my blog www.DailyBrainstorms.com as a way to share more of who I am with all of you, on and off the bike.

-Josh P.