Eat foods rich in L-carnitine!

L-Carnitine is an amino acid manufactured in your liver. It helps facilitate fat metabolism, increase energy in muscle cells and promotes fat loss. It also can help increase circulation in the brain and prevents fat oxidation in the brain. This is important in preventing Alzheimer's and Parkinson's dieases. What foods are rich in L-carnitine?
Fish
Poultry
Wheat
Avocado
fermented soybeans

Vegetarians are more likely to be deficient than nonvegetarians because it is not found in Vegetable protein.

Vary Your Exercise for Fun and Safety

Many times we pick an exercise we enjoy and we continue to do that exercise week after week. Two problems can result when we don't vary our exercise. First, by performing only one time of exercise we are more prone to muscular injury and over use snydrome. Second, we can eventually get bored and stop exercising all together.

Follow these simple exercise tips for fun and safety:

1. Pick at least two to three exercise activities you enjoy doing and vary them each week to keep it fun and fresh.

Here are some ideas:

Walking

Aquatics

Weight training

Circuit Classes

Outdoor sports and exercise classes

Biking

Dancing

Running/Jogging

Swimming

Tennis

Surfing

Gardening

Fitness Classes

Rock Climbing

Pilates/Yoga- Breathing Exercises

Rollar Skating

Skate Boarding

Skiing

2. Make sure you are using different muscles weekly. If you are varying your exercise this will happen naturally. Make sure you focus on core training at least 1 to 2 times a week. Over use syndrome happens when you perform the same activity everyday, every week, every month.

3. Listen to your body. If you have not been active for a while, start out slowly. Check with your doctor if are on medications or recovering from a injury. Find out if any exercises are contraindicated. If you overdo it you will be more likely to give up in the early days because of aches and pains.

4. Most of all have Fun and Be Safe!!

The Power of Fruits & Vegetables

With the New Year here many of us want to improve our diets and eat more fruits and vegetables. We know it’s healthy, but why?

• Fruits and Vegetables are powerful antioxidants that fight oxidation in the body.


• Research has shown that that diets containing a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables can decrease the risk of diseases such as cancer, hypertension, stroke and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and obesity to name a few.


• Fruits and Vegetables help protect our DNA and enhance our immune function.
  
• They can also lower our homcysteine levels (a precursor to disease that is measured in the blood).

Unfortunately, very few of us are able to eat the recommended 9-13 servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Here are eight great ways to increase your fruits and vegetables in your diet everyday!

1. For breakfast add your favorite fruit (such as blueberries, strawberries, peaches, bananas, etc.) to your cereal, oatmeal, & smoothies.

2. Pack an apple, orange, grapes for a mid-morning snack.

3. When you are eating a sandwich, pile it up with veggies first. Start with organic lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, avocado, and artichoke hearts. It fills you up and is a great way to add fresh fruits and veggies to your diet.

4. Snack on crunchy raw vegetables like carrot, celery and jicama sticks, green beans, broccoli and cauliflower florets. If you don’t like the taste spruce it up with some yummy low fat dips or things like peanut butter for your celery.

5. If you don’t like veggies add them to your fruit smoothies…things like carrots, beets, celery, wheat grass can make your smoothie nutritious & delicious!

6. Dehydrate your fruits and veggies to make yummy snack packs. Things like bananas, apples, peaches, sweet potatoes, green beans are good choices. Dehydrating takes some time but it’s worth it. If you buy fruits and veggies already dehydrated read your labels. A lot of them will contain extra sugar and additives.

7. Top pizzas with bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, artichoke hearts, spinach, basil and grated zucchini.

8. Supplement your Fruits and Veggies with whole food supplements like Juice Plus (http://www.nutritionwithjuiceplus/). Juice Plus contains 17 different raw fruits and vegetables in a capsule, chewable or gummie form. It's a great way to get whole food nutrition.

Start today adding more fruits and veggies to your diet and your body will thank you for years to come!!!

What is your Wellness Vision?

We all want to be active, look great and be healthy into our 90’s & beyond but what does that look like for you? These are some responses I have received over the years from my clients:

-I want to delay aging
-I want to have peace of mind
-I want to feel more energetic and alert
-I want to be healthier so that I can prevent disease
-I want to be more balanced

When I ask most of my clients if they have created a Wellness Vision for themselves they ask “what’s that?” First, it’s important to understand the definition of wellness.
Wellness is much more than the opposite of illness:

-Wellness is the state of being in good health or at your best health;
-Wellness is the condition of good physical and mental health, especially when maintained by proper diet, exercise, and life habits;
-Wellness is the mastery of one’s wellbeing- physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.

The mastery of health and wellness doesn’t happen naturally. We need to plan and take action to improve or maintain our health. A Wellness Vision is our written plan.

Here are five simple steps and get started on your Wellness Vision today!

1. Start asking yourself questions. Who do I want to be when it comes to health, fitness and wellness? What do I want to do consistently- exercise, eat well, relax more? What do I want to have happen (i.e. weight loss, greater fitness, less stress, better health, more peace of mind)? Why does this matter to me?
2. Look at any obstacles. What are things that could get in the way?
3. Develop strategies to overcome obstacles. What are some realistic strategies that will increase my confidence in my ability to succeed?
4. Write it down!!! A wellness vision includes general statements that address the longer term (six months, 1 years, 2 years, 5 years, etc). Write down your answers to the questions above and be sure to include a realistic timeframe.
5. Take action everyday. Revisit your written wellness vision weekly. Take small steps each day towards your goals.

Make your wellness a priority today and for the future. It’s an investment that is priceless.

Make SMART goals during the holidays and for the New Year!

During the holidays it can be challenging to exercise daily and keep your diet in check. Since the holiday time includes parties and get togethers it is very easy to gain weight. Some research suggests that we can gain up to 5 lbs. or more between the period of Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. What can you do to stay on track with your wellness and health? Develop SMART goals around the holidays and for the New Year. Developing goals around the holidays for the New Years is a great way to keep on track and stay motivated.

S- Specific. A specific goal has a much greater chance of being accomplished. Ask yourself...Who, what , where, when, why. An example: "I will get in shape." A more specific way to pharse this goal is "I will join a health club and workout 4 days a week for at least 45 minutes ."

M- Measureable. In order to know if you have reached a goal it must be measureable. When you measure your progress you stay on track. Ask yourself "How will I know when I have accomplished my goal?"

A- Attainable. When you identify wellnes goals you begin to figure out ways you can make them come true. You can attain most any goal you set weh you plan wisely and establish a time frame that allows you to carry our your plan.

R- Realistic. To be realistic your goals must represent something you are willing and able to do. Your goal is probably realistic if you truly believe you can accomplish it.

T- Timely. Your wellness and fitness goals should be grounded within a time frame. For the holidays think about where you want to be in the New Year (3 months from now, 6 months from now).

Refer to your SMART goals daily and you will be accomplishing them before you know it.

Nuts for your health

Chesnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans are always favorites at the holidays. Many of us think of nuts as high fat, high calorie food that should be avoided. Nuts, however, when eaten in moderation are actually good for you. Studies have shown that nuts can LDL (bad) cholesterol and your risk of heart diease. Nuts are high in monounstaturated and polyunsaturated fat. Diets rich in unsaturated fats have many health benefits. Nuts also contain protein, dietary fiber, and are rich in phytochemicals (that contain antioxidants).

So this holiday season indulge eating nuts by following these simple suggestions:
1. Eat no more than one ounce or a handful of nuts daily.
2. Carve a place for nuts by cutting back on meat, chees and other animal proteins.
3. Minimize you consumption of salted nuts if you have high blood pressure.
4. If you tend to overeat stick with unshelled nuts. The extra effort helps to discourage overeating.
5. Avoid nuts with sugary glaze or covered in chocolate. You will be packing on a lot of unneeded calories.

To have more fun with nuts at the holiday season consider roasting them with friends and family or purchasing a fun "nutcracker" for your holiday parties.

Five Simple Things You Can Do To Super Charge Your Health!!

Americans are not very healthy. 1500 of us die of cancer every day. One in three women and one in two men have cancer in their lifetime. Over 500,000 heart attack victims die in the U.S. every year. 74% of Americans believe they are overweight. Diabetes will increase by 165% over the next 50 years!

Why are we so unhealthy? There are many reasons. Some include: Lack of exercise; stressful life style; not drinking enough water, toxins in our air and water, and poor food choices. What can we do? Here are five simple things you can do on a daily basis to Super Charge you Health!

1. “Read Your Labels”. According to a study from Washington State University, the average American child eats more than 5 lbs. of sugar every week and adults are close to that as well. Sugar contains no vitamins, minerals, enzymes and fiber. Check your label before eating and limit your sugar intake to no more than 18-20 grams per meal.

2. Sleep Well. According to the National Sleep Foundation’s survey on sleep, 40% of adults are so sleepy during the day that it interferes with their daily activities. Left untreated sleep disorders are associated with serious medical illnesses such as High Blood Pressure, Stroke, Obesity, Poor quality of life, & Injury from accidents. The amount of sleep that we need varies from person to person but on average it is recommended that you get 8-9 hours on sleep each night.

3. Eat Your Fruits & Veggies. Fruits and Vegetables contain plant fiber that helps lower cholesterol, risk of diabetes, and many types of cancer. Fruits and Vegetables contain 1000s of phytochemicals that help fight disease. Doctors believe that over 70% of degenerative diseases can be prevented by eating 9-13 servings each day.

4. Get Active! Make exercise an essential part of your schedule. Pick a favorite activity (walk, swim, run, join a sport) and start slowly (just 10 minutes a day can make a difference).

5. Remember Laughter really is Medicine! Researchers at University of Maryland found that people who laughed the most were less likely to suffer from heart disease and that laughter seems to increase antibodies that fight upper respiratory diseases and other infections. Humor also increases tolerance to pain. To increase your laughter subscribe to a joke of the day, watch funny movies or check out your shows of your comedians in your community.

You play a major role in determining the quality of your future. The choice is yours. Start today and super charge your health!!