Supplements....

 In a perfect world, I truly believe that if you eat a well balanced and healthy diet, you don't need to supplement. But most of us live in an imperfect world... and using supplements can make a difference in your health, energy levels and well being. Supplements can get spendy, but it's well worth the price if you diet is lacking. I have really noticed a difference in my sleep and mood since I've been taking Vitamin D. I live in the Pacific Northwest, so I don't see the sunshine enough. People who are exposed to normal quantities of sunlight do not need vitamin D supplements because sunlight promotes sufficient vitamin D synthesis in the skin. 

These are the supplements I take in the photo up above. Fish oil for overall mind and body health. Fish oil contains important omega-3 fatty acids that reduce risk of heart attack and coronary heart disease, combats depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, ADHD, and more! It helps with weight loss, fertility, pregnancy and skin care too! Biotin is very important for the metabolism. Biotin also known as vitamin H, is used to enhance skin growth, healthy hair, and strong nails. It can aid in losing weight by increasing energy. Vitamin D also promotes weight loss. Vitamin D boosts the immune system, and fights off viral infections. Vitamin D can protect against some cancers, increase calcium absorption, and stimulates cell differentiation. Multi vitamins are a good way to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need. Ideally a healthy diet should be enough, but it's a good nutrition insurance policy.

Use it or Lose it... Time to be Proactive instead of Reactive

Wake up calls can be the catalyst to changing up unhealthy habits and lifestyles. Your doctor diagnoses you with diabetes, you have no choice but to exercise and watch your diet. You realize you can't walk up a flight of stairs without heaving and gasping for breath,  you know you need to quit your smoking habit. Maybe a family member has to go through extensive heart surgery, from high high blood pressure and clogged arteries, as a result of not exercising and eating unhealthy their whole life.  Maybe a friend's liver fails because they have been drinking heavily for the last 10 years... Maybe your lower back is aching all the time, and you injure it at work because your core is weak..... When your health begins to effect the quality of your  life, it can really be an eye opener, a game changer. Your health is priceless. You can have all the money in the world, but if you are unhealthy and weak, your quality of life will be poor.

But why wait until you get to that point? Start being proactive about your health now, before it's too late. It's selfish not to take care of your body. If you are a parent, you need to stay healthy to provide for your family and be a role model for your children. It's not fair to your  spouse or partner if you don't take pride in your health, your looks will diminish faster, you won't be a good lover, your life span will be shorter...  It isn't fair to your grand children, if you won't be able to play and enjoy a healthy life with your grand kids. It isn't fair to your family and friends that want to spend as much time on this planet with you as possible... You owe it to yourself and the people you love to treat your health with utmost importance.
Why wait until you get to the point of no return?

Don't be reactive and wait till you hit the absolute rock bottom! Be proactive about your health and the way you want to live out the rest of your life. Eat healthy, exercise, manage your stress, try to be the best human you can be, not only for yourself but for those that care about you. Don't wait until it's too late to do anything. It's tough to exercise when you are extremely overweight, don't let yourself get to that point! Strengthen your  body and core to prevent injuries! It's much tougher trying to get back to the gym or an exercise regimen  after a back or knee surgery. Quit smoking now, instead of waiting 10 years down the road, and seeing your skin and lungs health suffer.  Today is the first day of the rest of your life, it's never too late to make positive changes in your life.

If you are overweight, smoke, drink excessively,  addicted to drugs, sedentary, extremely stressed out-  you really need to give yourself a wake up call. Sometimes it's tough to admit it, but it will save you a hell of a lot of complications down the road if you make the changes NOW!  Not only can a unhealthy lifestyle  cost you lots of money on health care bills, it can cost you your life.


Answer the following questions honestly. I believe that these are bare minimum  physical fitness  requirements for any healthy adult. And with this I mean, BARE minimum....  If you can help it, don't ever let yourself get to the point of not being able to do the following in your adult years... I'll give you some slack after 70! :)

Can you  speed walk, jog, or run a mile without stopping? (  running 8-10 minute per mile, jogging should take 10-12 minutes, walking 12-15 minutes)

Can you do one pushup from your toes?  From the knees if you are a women?

Can you do one pull up? Can you hold your chin above a bar for 5-10 seconds if you are a woman?

Can you do bench step ups for 2 minutes without having to stop. ( just stepping up and down on a bench)


I'm not trying to be harsh, but if you cannot complete the exercises above, you are teetering at borderline... it's time to turn it around, before it's too late.

Being able to jog, climb stairs, push and pull your body weight are all functional movements to living a healthy and normal life. What if you fall down, and need to get up quickly in an emergency? What happens if you don't have the strength to push yourself up?  What if your child is hurt at the park, and you need to run 400 meters to get a first aid kit, and you don't have the stamina?  What if your kids want to play tag, and you can't keep up or don't have the energy? What if you are attacked, and you can't run away, or you can't pull yourself up from a fall? What if you can't pick up a package at work correctly by using your legs, and put your back out?  I'm not trying to scare you, but by being fit and strong, you have more power and control over situations in your life. It's a nice feeling when you feel capable in your body.

So the motto, "use it or lose it" is really is true. If you don't incorporate exercise in your daily routine, your muscles wills start to atrophy... you will get weaker and weaker. A body with lower muscle composition, has a slower metabolism, so not only are you getting weaker, it's much easier to gain weight. It can be a viscous cycle.  As the years go by, you get weaker and weaker, and pack on the pounds... who can honestly say that's how you want your life to be?

Start by making small steps in the right direction towards living healthier lifestyle. Most of us know how to live a healthy lifestyle, it's really taking the steps and actually implementing what you need to do that is the tough part. It can be frustrating working with 45, 50 year olds that waited their whole life to exercise and eat right. It's tough to undo all the previous unhealthy years. Make the changes in your 20's or early thirties, before your unhealthy habits catch up to you! But whatever age you are, taking the steps to controlling your health and exercise habits is the smartest move you can make.   Not taking responsibility for your health is selfish. The outcome of being unhealthy can negatively affect your family and friends. You owe it to yourself and the ones that love you.

Ok, I'll step off my soap box. That was my rant of the day!

Cheers to your health!
Joc

Why you are fat..... the simple truth whether you like it or not.

One of my friends kept talking about this book, "Skinny Bitch", by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin. I needed something to read on my way back home from San Diego, so I decided to give it a go. It was a quick read and highly informative. It honestly really struck a chord with me and reinforced the importance of eating a clean and healthy diet. After reading the book, I was a little scared to even go in a grocery store... My boyfriend was rolling his eyes while I was inspecting every single food label making our grocery shopping trip last three times longer than it should of! (Another thing for me to get OCD about!) So much of our food is pumped up with crap, you can hardly even consider it food, more like genetically modified garbage. With all the hormones, preservatives, pesticides and chemicals we are consuming, it's no wonder cancer, obesity, heart disease and diabetes are plaguing us. I'm already on an organic kick, but what I took home from this book was altering some of my choices when it comes to consuming meat and dairy products. It is a little overwhelming trying to eat a "perfect" diet... but the more information you have, the better your chances of making healthy choices. The only thing I can't give up is my coffee.... No way! I don't want to give away too much, but if you are looking for a book that doesn't hold back, and tells you like it is, I'd suggest reading it. Especially if you need some incentive to change up your eating habits and make a lifestyle change, it really does the trick. In the end, it's all up to you... I don't believe in excuses or slackers, and that's why I liked this quick, amusing and worthwhile read.

Squats

I incorporate squats into all my strength training workouts. It's one of the best ways to train and strengthen your lower body. Learning how to perform a squat correctly, will help prevent injuries, build muscle and strength, boost your metabolism and improve your overall look. To get a tight, round booty and shapely legs - you have to do your squats! I never get bored with squats, there are so many variations, it's one of those exercise that will always keep you challenged. By adding more weight, changing your foot stance, doing them on one leg, adding a jump to them... the possibilities are endless.

The squat is a compound, full body exercise that targets the muscles in your thighs, hips and butt. The primary muscles that the squat targets are your Erector Spinae (Lower back), Gluteus Maximus (glutes), Quadriceps (quads- front of thighs), and Hamstrings (back of thighs).

I'd recommend starting with a basic body weight squat, then once mastered, trying different variations. Some of my favorite variations are, one legged squats, squat jumps, sumo squats and overhead barbell squats.

Here are some tips for perfecting your squat that I got from the ACE exercise library:

Step 1
Starting Position: Begin standing with your feet slightly wider than hip-width, with the toes turned slightly outwards with your hands by your sides so the palms facing inwards. Depress and retract your scapulae (pull the shoulders down and back).

Step 2
Stiffen your core and abdominal muscles (“bracing”) to stabilize your spine. Hold your chest up and out, tilt your head slightly up, shift your weight back into your heels while pushing your hips towards the wall behind you.

Step 3
Downward Phase: Start the downward phase by first shifting your hips backwards then downwards to create a hinge-like movement at your hips and knees simultaneously. As you lower your hips the knees will then start to shift forward slowly, but try to control the amount of forward translation (movement) of the tibia (shinbone). Maintain tension in the core muscles (continue bracing) and attempt to keep your back flat.

Step 4
Continue to lower yourself until your thighs are parallel or almost parallel with the floor, until your heels begin to lift off the floor, or until your torso begins to round or flex forward. Monitor your feet, ankles and knees, ensuring that the feet don't move, the ankles do not collapse in or out and the knees remain aligned over the second toe.

Step 5
From the Lowered Position: the knees should continue to remain aligned over the second toe and body weight should be evenly distributed between the balls and heels of the feet. From the side, the position of the tibia (shinbone) and torso should be parallel with each other and the low back should appear flat or showing the beginning of some rounding.

Step 6
Upward Phase: While maintaining your back, chest and head-up position, exhale and extend the hips and knees by pushing your feet into the floor through your heels. The hips and torso need to rise together while keeping the heels flat on the floor and knees aligned over the second toe. Continue extending until you reach your starting position.


This is a great example of what a squat looks like in motion...



Remember, building muscle boosts your metabolism, thus helping lose fat. Don't get stuck in the cardio trap that I see a lot of people at the gym doing. They spend hours doing cardio, and don't see results. The more muscle you have, the faster you burn calories all day long.... So if you haven't already added squats and strength training to your routine.... DO IT!!!