This is All Kinds of Disgusting

For a few years, now, rumors have been circulating about a new "sandwich" that KFC was test marketing called the "Double Down." This sandwich supposedly defied the logic of traditional sandwich construction by featuring two breaded chicken breasts as the "bun" of the sandwich, encasing a mix of cheeses as the sandwich filling. The sandwich had popped up in places like Omaha, Nebraska and Providence, Rhode Island, but no official information was available as to whether or not KFC would choose to unleash this monstrosity upon America.

Well, guard your arteries, because starting on April 12th, the Double Down is coming to your town. KFC advertises the Double Down on their website with a clock counting down the days, hours, minutes and seconds until its release. They also have a television commercial you can view on the site.

KFC describes the sandwich as a:

"One-of-a-kind sandwich" that, "features two thick and juicy boneless white meat chicken filets (Original Recipe® or Grilled), two pieces of bacon, two melted slices of Monterey Jack and pepper jack cheese and Colonel's Sauce."

To their credit, KFC also lists some nutritional information for both the breaded and grilled versions. The breaded version has 520 calories, 32 grams of fat and 1380 mg of sodium. If you're watching your figure and choose to go grilled, you'll be putting away a skinny 460 calories, 23 grams of fat, and 1430 mg of sodium. Should you pair the Double Down the way KFC recommends - with a large soda and potato wedges - the calorie, fat, and sodium content goes up dramatically, however.

Several writers have tried the Double Down and chronicled the experience for your reading pleasure. The best article I've found actually comes from the A.V. section of "The Onion," which is why, when I initially read the headline, I thought it was another Onion joke. The writer describes his experience thusly: "

The Double Down did to my gastrointestinal system what Sherman did to the South, leaving a scorched-earth trail of destruction in its wake. After the initial flavor burst of herbs and spices faded, I was left with a series of stomach-turning pairings, the most horrifying being really bad pepper-jack cheese—school-lunch cheap and school-lunch nasty—and odious bacon."

The article really is worth a read in its entirety - though I don't recommend perusing before meal-time.

Don't get me wrong - I like junk food. I support eating freely and decadently and unhealthily every once in a while. But this? If you're going to eat something unhealthy, at least make it something that contains real food that's prepared with care. Not processed cheese and low quality meat. Not something you scarf down in the car or in a molded plastic KFC booth.

And if your idea of an amazing meal really is two breaded chicken breasts sandwiching a mix of cheeses and bacon? At least make it yourself with better ingredients. I guarantee you, it will be at least marginally more healthy than KFC's sodium and fat bomb.

It seems America's unhealthy chickens truly have come home to roost.

An Open Letter to Commissioner Goodell

Dear Commissioner Goodell,

My name is Laura Hogensen, and I’m a female NFL fan.

It shouldn’t surprise you that your league has females who follow it just as avidly as males. If you’ve been studying the recent viewer and fan trends of the league that you govern, you are hopefully aware that females comprise 58 million of the 138 million NFL fans in this country. The number of women who tune into the Super Bowl has climbed 8% over the past decade. Over 40 million of us watched the Super Bowl this year, up from a record-setting 38.3 million for the 2009 Super Bowl. Female viewership influences the television spots and even the products of the companies that sponsor your teams and purchase ads during your games. And this fan base only stands to grow larger.

So, as a loyal female fan, as someone that’s purchased tickets to your games, followed your players, bought your products, and never fails to tune in each Thursday, Monday, and especially Sunday, I need you to do something for me – for us.

Talk to Ben Roethlisberger. Schedule the meeting with him that you promised you would. Because frankly, Commissioner? It’s starting to look like violence against women isn’t all that important to you.

During your time as NFL commissioner, you’ve maintained that player misconduct is intolerable. You made it a policy to meet with players accused of misconduct before a police investigation was even concluded. You’ve taken a hard-line stance against players who choose to flout the rules and code of the National Football League, often suspending them before they’ve even been convicted in a court of law.

You took this stance with Adam “Pacman” Jones three years ago, suspending him for a season after allegations of his involvement in a shooting at a Las Vegas strip club surfaced. You sat down with Pacman immediately, and suspended him within a week of that meeting. And all of this action took place two months before Vegas police officially charged Pacman with any wrongdoing.

That same year, you also suspended the late Chris Henry for eight games after multiple violations of the NFL conduct policy. In a statement about your decision to suspend both players, you said:

"We must protect the integrity of the NFL. The highest standards of conduct must be met by everyone in the NFL because it is a privilege to represent the NFL, not a right. These players, and all members of our league, have to make the right choices and decisions in their conduct on a consistent basis."

In the 2009 case of Plaxico Burress, who accidentally shot himself in the thigh at a New York nightclub, then tried to lie about his identity at the hospital he was taken to, you suspended him indefinitely before his case was concluded in court. You did this because the case, which was brought forth in July, had been delayed until September, and you felt it was necessary for the league to take action before this time.

Though you waited for the justice system to deliver a final verdict before suspending NFL quarterback, Michael Vick, you barred him from training camp while the investigation was in progress.

You wrote Vick a letter, telling him: "While it is for the criminal justice system to determine your guilt or innocence, it is my responsibility as commissioner of the National Football League to determine whether your conduct, even if not criminal, nonetheless violated league policies, including the Personal Conduct Policy."

Commissioner, I want you to pay attention to this list of disciplinary action not because you got it wrong, but because you got it right. You should have suspended each of these players as soon as you received sufficient evidence that they had committed wrongdoing. Your actions with Jones, Henry, Burress, and Vick were a statement that the NFL does not tolerate guns, violence, or misbehavior of any kind. You stated that it is your “responsibility as commissioner of the National Football League” to discipline players when their “conduct, even if not criminal … violate[s] league policies.” You’ve been so vocal and so responsive in the past that now, your silence on the Roethlisberger case has become deafening.

You’ve done nothing; you’ve released nothing since you stated on March 23 that you planned to meet with Roethlisberger. You can’t hide behind the fact that the investigation hasn’t been completed yet. You met with other players immediately following the mere whiff of allegations of wrongdoing. You can’t say that Roethlisberger hasn’t damaged the “integrity of the NFL.” He’s been accused of sexual assault twice in the past year.

You’ve taken no real action up to this point concerning Roethlisberger, himself. And you’ve refused to acknowledge this case in the media for over two weeks. Is it because you don’t consider this case to be as serious as the others you’ve passed judgment on? Is the alleged assault of a 20-year-old woman in the bathroom of a nightclub not a graver situation than a self-inflicted gunshot wound? Is Michael Vick’s attempted cover-up of his involvement in dog fighting more heinous to you than Roethlisberger and his entourage’s attempts to obfuscate what happened in that Georgia nightclub?

Did you know that the accuser’s friend tried to remove her drunken companion from the bathroom where Roethlisberger allegedly committed the assault? Were you aware that Roethlisberger’s entourage prevented the friend from seeing the accuser, even though she stated repeatedly that the accuser was drunk? Have you noticed that Roethlisberger has refused to cooperate with Georgia police by giving a second interview?

Tread very carefully, here, Commissioner. Your actions or lack thereof will define not only your views on Roethlisberger’s conduct, but the NFL’s views on women as a whole. These are not charges that should be dismissed by you, even if they end up being dismissed by the law. The NFL should not be tolerant of abuse or misconduct against women, and action should be taken against players who make this kind of behavior a pattern – even an alleged one.

The disciplinary action that Roethlisberger deserves is up to you. This is your league, and your judgment. But the first step, the step that’s long overdue, is a face-to-face meeting with Roethlisberger. You’re not just representing the male members and fans of this league; you’re also representing the NFL’s female fans - all 58 million of us.

Do the right thing.

Sincerely,

Laura Hogensen

Nike Ad: A Dream Deferred

I can't watch this ad without tearing up a little. It's one of my favorite Nike track ads.

Sanya Richards, the athlete in the ad, holds the fastest 400m time in the world, and the record for the most sub 50 second 400 races.

This ad was made in 2007 after her most challenging season. That year, she was diagnosed with Bechet's Syndrome. She missed the first six races of the 2007 season, and did not qualify for the US National Team in the 400 - placing fourth in that race. A day later, she had to put all of this behind her mentally to compete in the 200m, her last shot at qualifying for the team. She ran an incredible race, and qualified.

The ad, produced by Nike, features Langston Hughes's poem, "A Dream Deferred," narrated by Danny Glover.

For more on Richards, you can visit her website.

Bogut v. Big Baby

Here's Milwaukee Bucks center, Andrew Bogut with a monster dunk on Centics forward, Glen "Big Baby" Davis. I love how Big Baby stumbles backwards after being manhandled by Bogut. Definitely worth a watch if you didn't get a chance to see it live last night.

The Bucks are pretty good this year, winning ten of their last eleven games. It's these close games with great teams, like the one we witnessed last night (86-84) that really make me excited for my home town team

Are Supplements Effective?

I have a confession to make. Each day, ingest at least 10 pills that I think will improve my health or performance. Inside my bathroom mirror, there is a row devoted solely to supplements. There’s a bottle of omega 3 fish oil – good for muscle repair, a daily probiotic for digestion, vitamin d for immune health and bone density, glucosamine for joint repair. The list could go on. And I’m not alone, either. Nearly half of Americans take at least one multivitamin per day. In fact, the vitamin industry as a whole makes $20 billion per year.

But are these vitamins and supplements really contributing to my health, or am I and others just a victim of good marketing and the placebo effect?

About a year ago, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood institute paid for a study to determine whether daily multivitamins could reduce the incidence of major illness in postmenopausal women. This study was the largest of its kind, tracking the health of 162,000 female participants over a period of eight years. According to the report:

“During the eight-year study period, 9,619 cases of breast, colorectal, endometrial, renal, bladder, stomach, lung or ovarian cancer were reported, as well as 8,751 cardiovascular events and 9,865 deaths. The study found no significant differences in risk of cancer, heart disease or death between the multivitamin users and non-users."

What does this mean for you? Well, for one, it means that you could save some money, if you wanted to, at least on multivitamins. Instead, opt for getting your vitamin content from the foods that you eat: dark leafy greens, fruits, whole grains, etc.

To be honest, though, I think I’m going to keep sticking to my vitamin regimen, and here’s why. First, I don’t take a daily multivitamin. I find that, in most multivitamins, the “A to Z” vitamins that each pill contains are rarely 100% of what you need for the day. If I’m going to be eating a healthy diet, then most of that content will come from my food. I do, however, take specific vitamins – for instance, vitamin d – because I feel that my body could use an extra amount. Whether the “issues” I refer to are real or imagined is definitely up for debate, however, I can honestly say that I feel better when I take my vitamins, and that’s worth the money spent.

In his book, Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual, author Michael Pollan writes that it is not so important to take a multivitamin/vitamins daily, but to be the kind of person who takes their vitamins. Take an active role in your health. Be concerned about what you put in your body and how to improve it.

Lebron's Latest

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, here's LeBron's latest, sickest dunk on the New York Knicks two nights ago. Delonte West had the assist. The Cavs went on to win the game, or should I say, "rout," 124 - 93. This guy is truly amazing.

Yesterday, LeBron sent in the paperwork to officially change his jersey number from "23" to "6," his Olympic-team jersey number. James states that he wants to change numbers in order to try to officially retire the number with Michael Jordan. When the PTI guys discussed this change on the show yesterday, Wilbon mentioned that, should LeBron be thinking about going to the Chicago Bulls, the number change would be especially necessary. Though the Bulls aren't usually discussed as possible teams for LeBron to go to next year, it's definitely fun to think about.

Cheetah Girl

Most of us watched the women’s skiing events during the Winter Olympics to see the famous athletes like Lindsey Vonn and Maria Reisch try to medal. On Friday, I turned to the women’s slalom, hoping to catch a glimpse of Vonn. Instead, I saw a racer who has stuck with me for the last few days.

Her name is Sarah Schleper, and she roars before each race. See for yourself:

Schleper, is 32 and a four-time Olympian, but she’s never medaled. She’s made it to the world championships, but only won once. She is one of those athletes who always shows up and fights it out, but will never get the kind of recognition that a skier like Vonn has. Her presence at the 2010 Olympics was by no means guaranteed, either. In 2007, she missed the entire season due to a torn ACL. In 2008, she took the season off for the birth of her son, Lasse. The amount of determination and drive it must have taken to get back into Olympic-qualifying form – not only as a formerly injured athlete, but also as a young mother – is incredible.

Her story, itself, is touching, but it was Schleper's roar that had the most impact on me. Immediately before Sarah starts each race, she lets out that loud, uninhibited scream. A lion, or a cheetah roar, which gets her in the right mindset for each race. I’ve seen hundreds of pre-event rituals, but never one like this. It was a powerful statement from a female athlete, an action that both projects and also summons confidence.

I think that the concept of the “lion roar” can be applied to any sort of race or challenge that we face as athletes. If you want to win or succeed, you have to put it all out there, unabashedly. No matter what starting line you find yourself on – don’t ever apologize for your presence among your fellow competitors. If you don’t feel like you have the “right” to be standing with them at the beginning, then you’ll never beat them to the finish. Let out your roar, whether quiet or loud, and use what’s inside of you to carry you through.