ENRICHED (Bleached Flour) – It means you’re eating bleach and poisoning your cleansing organs little by little. Enriched usually means processed and therefore useless for nutrition.
FORTIFIED – The ingredients are taken out, isolate and added back in. They often become useless for the Human Body and often foods are fortified with synthetic ingredients or vitamins.
ADDED VITAMIN D – Most vitamins and minerals added back into processed junk-science food, like pasteurized milk and orange juice, are totally and completely worthless, with no biological value whatsoever. Just buy raw, organic vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds and stop the insanity.
TO PROTECT COLOR AND FLAVOR (BHT) – Are you a guinea pig? Then why are you being tested like one. The FDA does not require any testing or “pre-market review” for most food additives and preservatives because, let’s face it, most of them would never be allowed to be eaten by humans. When they say it’s not about the money, it’s always about the money. BHT is linked to an increased risk of cancer in animals, and yes, you’re an animal, even though you can read this.
PRESERVATIVES (SODIUM BENZOATE) – Most big food preservatives kill mold and fungus while suffocating human cells. Human cells that can’t “breathe” turn cancerous. Is that what you want? Never buy anything preserved with Sodium Benzoate.
USED TO PROTECT QUALITY (EDTA) – Big Food Corporations love to kill food so it never spoils, but guess what else they’re killing? Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid (EDTA) is a pharmaceutical staple that’s harmful to people with mercury amalgams (dental fillings) because the mercury overwhelms the EDTA and creates an even worse toxic brew. You really want that getting stuck in your kidneys?
EXPELLER PRESSED (USED OFTEN WITH CANOLA OIL, EVEN ORGANIC) – Sure, it sounds great. That’s why the term is plastered all over food labels. Honestly canola oil coagulates like glue in your blood and leads to dementia. Doesn’t matter if its “expeller pressed” or “organic” would you eat expeller pressed kids glue?
ALL NATURAL – This term means virtually nothing as far as the FDA regulations for safe food. There are simply no defined parameters in place in order for a manufacturer to claim any product is “all natural” because the FDA has no standard set. One typical misleading “all natural” product is the massively popular synthetic sweetener Splenda. When this junk comes out of the laboratory its nothing close to natural.
GLUTEN FREE – The second someone finds out just how bad gluten can be for the body, the mind and the skin they start searching for the buzz words “Gluten Free”. Much to their dismay they find products chock full of concentrated salts (and still call them “low-sodium”), GMO fillers and pesticide laden, processed garbage junk-science “food stuff” all gluten free… Think Again!
GRAS “GENERALLY RECOGNIZED AS SAFE” – This means the FDA recognizes that a certain additive is harmful to humans, but it’s in so much food in such a small amount that they figure nobody is doing the math enough to figure out that the cumulative effect is detrimental.
The war is on for those of us trying to eat clean. Big Food uses buzzwords and phrases to fool us who try to eat clean, but have no idea what they’re doing.
Ready to join and become a HEALTHY LIFESTYLE REVOLUTIONIST?
CLICK ON THE WORK WITH ME LINE BELOW AND LET’S HAVE A DISCUSSION…..
If you’ve been looking for put high octane into your meals, fiber may be exactly what you need. Even though research has shown fiber to be powerful, I find people aren’t taking this nutrient seriously.
To help you fuel your health with fiber, here are 9 helpful facts.
As one of the key ingredients to healthy eating, fiber is something that shouldn’t be skipped. Fiber can serve many different purposes, which were covered above. If you aren’t getting enough fiber in your diet, start today it’s never too early, just don’t wait till it’s too late.
One of the most difficult aspects of sticking to a strict, balanced meal plan is keeping that balance when snacking at work. Long days at work often need to be broken up, and people snack to keep their energy levels up or often just to break up the day. While it can be quite easy to carefully plan the main meals of your day, planning your snacks can often be problematic. However, it can be done. With a little preparation and the right mind-set, you can ensure that those mid-morning or late afternoon snacks don’t ruin your physical goals! Let’s take a look at a few simple snacks that are easy to prepare and tasty to eat!
Fruit is an excellent source of vitamins and nutrients, and yet it’s something that most of us don’t eat enough of. Bringing an apple or banana into work involves no preparation, little cost, and is a tasty way of boosting your energy levels. For those looking for a little more variety, why not prepare a fruit salad. Chop up your favorite fruit or berries and you can have a delicious treat that won’t detract from your goals!
Smoothies can be a superb way of treating yourself during the working day. By preparing a smoothie to bring to work, you can ensure that you are getting enough fruit and veggies in your diet, and give yourself an excellent energy boost when the afternoon lag sets in! Smoothies also allow you to vary your snack from day to day, ensuring that every day feels like a new treat!
So start ditching the chocolate bars and bag of chips for a easy to prepare healthy alternative.
Want to change your eating habits and embrace a clean living lifestyle? Our FREE Program shows you how to make the shift with a 4 Days, 4 Weeks, 4 Months, 4 A Whole New You in 30 Days. Challenge yourself to become a peak performer by raising your standards when it comes to giving your body the right full it actually craves.
Protein is one of the main nutrients you need in order to help you lose weight and get healthy. It is actually common knowledge to Athletes and Bodybuilders as the most important food group to get when they are trying to manage their weight. They know that protein contributes to muscle development! But do you know it curbs hunger and reduces cravings?
Protein truly provides a win-win for your body and while protein is easy to come by, finding the right type to help you may not be so easy. Today many foods have protein added to them. For example, you can buy protein enriched tortilla wraps.
If life gets busy and you are strapped for time a healthy protein shake is super alternative. It promotes lean muscle, quick recovery post workouts and increases your energy. There are many different levels Protein Powders on the market, many of which have varying degrees of cleanliness. You should always make sure your whey protein source is free of BCAAs, Soy-free, Gluten-free and NONGMO.
My go to Whey Protein is the Frezzor Pure New Zealand 100% Grass-fed Whey Protein Shake which is absolutely the Purest Whey Protein on the market with Over 20 Life-Enhancing Superfoods and Minerals Essential for optimum health and weight.
Stock Up on Wild Caught Fish!
When you’re including meat in your diet think beyond red meats like steak or lamb. Both these meat can have huge amounts of fat and that may counteract the benefits you get from them. Remember to always chose lean cuts for your meats. Wild Caught Salmon, Halibut or Cod are better options and a good foundation for a protein-rich diet.
Hemp Protein Powder for Vegans!
Did you know that Hemp seeds are one of nature’s best sources of plant-based protein? If you’re looking to increase your protein intake from a natural and vegan source, then hemp protein powder just might be the perfect choice for you. Why is it so important to increase protein? Increase protein will help those proteins in your body, proteins like those that make up vital organs, muscles, tissues, and including some hormones. Proteins also help to develop, grow and maintain just about every part of your physiological make up. In addition, they help boost metabolism and increase your body’s fat-burning potential.
Beginning to increase your protein intake doesn’t have to be a tedious task. There’s easy additions you can incorporate to your meals to elevate the amount of protein you ingest. Spinach is a great example, and can be added to such a wide array of foods. Try including a few leaves of spinach to your pasta. It is delicious, and it doesn’t have that much effect on the taste and it sure is packed with protein. I love adding spinach to many of my smoothies.
For A Quick Fix, Canned Tuna is the Way to Go!
There’s lots of trick that can add more protein to your day, and one is to simply stock the pantry with tuna. Canned tuna is quick to make and again the variety of things you can add it to in endless. Today many manufacturers carry tuna in cans as well as pouches, so you can even take it on the go. The thing I love about adding in these kind of product into your day is a simple, fast alternative and will keep you away from the fast food restaurants and the highly processed foods you might be tempted to stop at.
While many families begin there day with processed cereal for breakfast, this highly affordable box is a root cause of many health issues. I will get into that in a future blog post. Other that being affordable, convenient and delicious, most brands of cereals are basically sugar. Remember, this is not healthy and an extremely bad way to start your day because you’ll eventually crash from the sugar high. Try eating eggs instead! They are just as cheap and can be prepared ahead of time if you’re rushed in the morning. Make sure to purchase Cage-Free Organic Eggs!
Eating more protein definitely takes some time to get used to and while you may think it’s not possible right now the simple truth is you already eat protein and switching to a much healthier option is just a matter of knowing what those options are.
It’s hard to argue against the benefits of eating your vegetables. But drinking your vegetables is another story. Here are some things you may need to know.
Green juicing, or juicing raw vegetables, allow you to drink more vegetables than you can eat, juicing also allows your bodies to more easily absorb the vitamins and antioxidants extracted from fresh produce. Juicing has been credited with alleviating everything from skin diseases and immune disorders to cancer and high blood pressure.
If you’re not eating enough vegetables, drinking them might be one way to up your intake. The bottom line is, juicing certainly can’t hurt.
Your digestive system will thank you.
If you juice for enzymes, the right food combinations can help with digestion.
For best results, drink green juice on an empty stomach, and make sure it’s as fresh as possible.
Not all juices are created equal.
If you make your own juice, experiment with combining different kinds of fruits and vegetables for taste and nutrition. Popular combinations include mixing leafy vegetables like spinach or kale with celery or cucumber, and adding beet, carrot or apple for sweetness.
One thing I have learned is we Cyclists are a diverse group. Some of us ride fat tires down rocky trails, some of us ride road bikes up burly hills, some of us ride for sport and some of us ride just for fun. Some ride for the adrenaline rush and some ride their bikes for basic transportation. But all of us can take advantage of the healthy benefits of cycling, even if we never ever buy a single item made from spandex.
Bicycling, along with being the most efficient form of human locomotion, is also one of the best all-around activities for improving our health. From head to toes, cycling’s health benefits are hard to beat.
Cycling is good for your heart: Cycling is associated with improved cardiovascular fitness, as well as a decrease in the risk of coronary heart disease.
Cycling is good for your muscles: Riding a bike is great for toning and building your muscles, especially in the lower half of the body – your calves, your thighs, and your rear end. It’s also a great low-impact mode of exercise for those with joint conditions or injuries to the legs or hips, which might keep them from being active.
Cycling is good for your waistline: You can burn a lot of calories while biking, especially when you cycle faster than a leisurely pace, and cycling has been associated with helping to keep weight gain down. And cycling has the added benefit of ramping up your metabolism, even after the ride is over.
Cycling is good for your lifespan: Bicycling is a great way to increase your longevity, as cycling regularly has been associated with increased ‘life-years’, even when adjusted for risks of injury through cycling.
Cycling is good for your mental health: Riding a bike has been linked to improved mental health..
Cycling is good for your immune system: Cycling can strengthen your immune system, and could protect against certain kinds of cancers.
Even with all of these health benefits to cycling, some of us may ride them just for fun. I know why I ride! Do YOU?
So, by now, you’ve heard of superfoods; everyone has. The term “superfood” has become a mega buzzword lately, as more and more people are becoming health-conscious and turning to a traditional, whole foods approach to their wellness. If you find yourself in this group, we applaud you.
However, with so much conflicting information online, people often get confused about what exactly superfoods are and what they can do for their health. Currently, there is no legal or scientific definition of the word. It is a term simply used to describe extremely nutritious foods, which, unfortunately, can often be subject to opinion. So here’s the 411 on superfoods. Print this article out, keep it handy, and take it with you next time you find yourself standing in the produce aisle debating between which berry or leafy green is more nutritious.
According the wellness researchers and professors at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the School of Medicine and Public Health, a food item is considered a “superfood” when the nutrient content is very high, beyond carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. In other words, superfoods are extremely rich in important nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and antioxidants.
While there are literally thousands of different types of superfoods, from exotic goji berries to almost unheard of maitake mushrooms, there are some common superfoods you can find in your local produce aisle that will help boost your health. The ever-helpful team over at Whole Foods Market rates superfoods they stock on their shelves based on what is known as an ANDI score. ANDI stands for Aggregate Nutrient Density Index and scores are obtained based on micronutrient levels in foods from 1 to 1000. Use this list when you grocery shop to ensure you’re getting the biggest nutrient bang for your buck.
As you can see, fruits and veggies pack quite the nutrient punch, but to find a wide variety of superfoods, you can look outside the produce section, as well. Some yogurts, dairy products, seafood, and even teas (black and green) are nutritionally dense enough that they qualify as superfoods!
How to get more superfoods in your diet.
1. Blend them. There’s nothing better than starting your day with a nutritionally dense superfood smoothie. Add kale, spinach, blueberries, and raspberries to get your day started off with a bang!
2. Toppings. Adding superfoods to your meal is really easy when you’re used to using toppings. Finish off a salad with a hand full of sunflower seeds or a pasta dish with fresh basil to incorporate more superfoods.
3. Puree them. Pureeing boiled sweet potatoes or cauliflower are super nutritious alternatives to mashed potatoes. Make a berry puree and chill it for a refreshing summertime dessert.
4. Stir them in. Beef up your recipes with more superfood ingredients, like incorporating more veggies into your casseroles and meatloaf or adding in more nutritious beans to stews.
5. Substitute with them. Have you ever froze a banana and then pureed it? It’s an incredible and healthy alternative to ice cream and is just as satisfying. Finely diced, cooked cauliflower is an awesome replacement for white rice, while replacing some of the green leaf lettuce with robust kale and collard greens deliver even more incredible superfoods in your already healthy salad.
6. Just add one. When first starting out and experimenting with superfoods, shoot for adding just one serving to each of your meals. Once you’ve mastered that, add more and more until the majority of what you eat is superfoods.
7. Cook with fresh herbs. Skip those prepackaged seasonings and go straight to cooking with fresh, superfood herbs. Basil brings pasta dishes to life while thyme is excellent in casseroles. Cilantro is yummy on tacos and just about any herb can be added to a salad.
8. Stash them. Bring at least one superfood serving with you wherever you go. Stockpile superfoods at work, like carrot sticks, pomegranate areoles, grapefruit, and berries. Always have sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and fresh almonds in your purse or car for an on-the-go snack.
Superfoods really are some of the best things to incorporate into your diet and you should try implementing more and more of them as you go. Try new ones. Experiment. Have fun! Go get those superfoods!
Many of your body’s essentials functions are supported by the digestive system, making GI health crucial to your wellbeing. This system is responsible for not only digesting foods, but also absorbing critical nutrients that promote wellness in virtually every aspect of your physical, mental, and emotional health. Without a properly functioning digestive system, everything easily becomes out of balance and can lead to serious illness and disease.
Stay on schedule. Maintaining a consistent meal and snack routine helps keep your digestive system at top-function. Waiting too long between meals and snacks leads to hunger and encourages binge eating that can cause bloating and acid reflux. Munching too frequently leads to overeating and high calorie intake.
Exercise regularly. Routine workouts and regular exercising helps keep food moving through your digestive system. Try yoga practices that are specifically for healthy digestion and incorporate twists and gut-friendly poses.
Chew your food. Easy enough, right? Wrong. Most people don’t chew their food nearly enough. Digestion actually begins in the mouth and by thoroughly chewing your food, you ease the stress of digestion on the rest of your GI system.
Ban processed foods. Nutrient-poor, highly processed foods are full of refined salt, sugar, and fatty oils, all of which are more difficult for your body to digest. Having a diet high in these types of foods makes your digestive system work harder than it needs to compared with a whole foods diet.
Cut sugar. Too much sugar and sugary foods can cause bloating and an unhealthy overgrowth of harmful gut bacteria.
Incorporate probiotics. On the flip side, probiotics in your diet encourage a healthy growth of beneficial gut bacteria that help combat the effects of a poor diet, antibiotics, and stress. Probiotics also assist in nutrient absorption, break down lactose, and strengthen the immune system. You can get probiotics from yogurt, kefir, kombucha, and fermented foods.
Stay hydrated. Water is essential for dissolving fats and soluble fiber. If you’re suffering from digestive issues, increasing your water intake can be one of the easiest solutions.
Eat a high-fiber diet. Fiber-rich foods help keep your digestive system strong and healthy. Be sure to incorporate a combination of soluble fiber, which comes from nuts, seeds, and legumes, and insoluble fiber, which can be found in wheat bran, vegetables, and whole grains.
Listen to your body. What works for one person may not work for another. Listen to your body to understand the keys to a healthy digestive system. Keep a food journal to learn what types of foods trigger a negative response.
Some digestive issues and be repaired easily and naturally when you take the right steps. By incorporating these tips you’ll enjoy a happier, healthier digestive system that supports overall wellbeing.
It seems like every day there’s a new fad diet emerging that’s the “best” new way to drop unwanted pounds in the shortest amount of time. But how do you know which ones are effective and manageable, let alone safe? We’re debunking eight of the most popular diets trending currently, plus adding our own tips to create a long-term, healthy diet that will not only help you lose weight, but will increase your overall wellbeing as well.
Paleo Diet. This caveman-inspired diet reflects the eating practices of our hunter-gatherer Neanderthal relatives. It focuses on consuming fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood, lean meats, and healthy fats with the robust side effects of increased athletic performance and improved skin, all the while naturally slimming and sculpting your body into a leaner version of yourself. Sounds great, right? Before you jump on this caveman bandwagon, you need to know its pros and cons.
Pros. Focuses on healthy, lean meats and plenty of fruits and vegetables while reducing sodium intake and encouraging physical exercise.
Cons. Entire food groups, like whole grains and dairy, are eliminated, making it more difficult to obtain required essential nutrients. Also, Paleo dieters tend to get stuck on certain meals and feel somewhat limited. For people with specific health concerns, the Paleo diet is not recommended and can actually be dangerous.
Raw Food Diet. When you become a raw foodist, you commit to never cooking anything you eat or drink above 116 degrees Fahrenheit. This belief is that by keeping food raw, its many important enzymes remain fully intact. This diet emphasizes fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, and miso, and excludes items like bread, beans, lentils, pastas, meats, and eggs.
Pros. Consuming a minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables is no problem for the raw foodist.
Cons. Eliminating whole food groups can lead to severe nutrient deficiencies. Also, meal prep on the raw food diet is extremely tedious and difficult for most people to follow.
Lemonade Diet. This diet, also known as the Master Cleanse, focuses on detoxification as the means of shedding pounds. For ten days, you consume nothing besides a concoction of lemons, water, cayenne pepper, and maple syrup with the astonishing results of dropping an upward of two pounds each day.
Pros. You will definitely lose. But that is about the only benefit to this type of dieting.
Cons. Diets that eliminate food completely encourage yo-yo weight loss and regain. While you might shed pounds over the course of the 10 days, when you reintroduce food to your system, there is certain to be weight gain. This is not a long-term solution for weight loss and could potentially be very dangerous.
Vegan. Many people opt for a vegan lifestyle based on their ethical practices. Because of its side effect of weight loss, others choose this lifestyle as a means to drop and control weight. Veganism consists of eliminating every animal product from your diet including meat, dairy, and honey.
Pros. According to the American Dietetic Association, an appropriately planned and highly nutritious vegan diet can decrease the risk of certain diseases, lower BMI, and reduce the chance of heart disease and other obesity-related conditions.
Cons. Veganism requires strict planning to ensure enough essential nutrients are consumed. A much larger percentage of vegans are b12 deficient versus meat-eaters. The vegan lifestyle requires meticulous planning that many people are unable to commit to long-term.
Gluten-free Diet. Originally, gluten-free regimens were created to cater to the dietary needs of those suffering from certain diseases, such as celiac disease. Some people have found it to be a successful means to shed unwanted pounds, making it a hot diet right now as well. Being gluten-free means you eliminate all gluten from your diet from wheat, barley, and rye sources.
Pros. Whole foods are generally promoted with the gluten-free diet, such as fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils, and dairy, while processed and packaged foods are avoided.
Cons. Many gluten-free food options are loaded with more sugar, sodium, and fat than their gluten-filled counterparts and consuming these types of items leads to increased weight gain. Eliminating gluten completely can also decrease the spectrum of nutrients you get, unless you are properly supplementing.
Weston A. Price Diet. Originating from a dentist who traveled the world, studying the healthiest communities around the globe, this diet focuses on removing processed, packaged, and artificial foods from consumption and encourages getting plenty of wholesome grass-fed animal products, raw milk, butter, and a more “natural” diet.
Pros. Encourages whole foods, avoiding prepackaged and highly processed items that contribute largely to weight gain.
Cons. Some doctors and nutritionists believe this diet doesn’t promote enough living, green foods in meals. Also, consuming raw dairy products is highly controversial and not even legal in many states.
Intermittent Fasting. Also known as the 5:2 Diet, this dietary regimen is based on the belief that our bodies are programmed to operate in a “feast or famine” sort of way. Two days a week, dieters restrict their caloric intake to a meager 600 calories, and the other five days they continue to eat as usual. On fasting days, foods that are encouraged should be low-glycemic-index and low-glycemic-load since they take more time to digest and leave dieters satisfied longer.
Pros. Most research shows that people can successfully lose weight with intermittent fasting.
Cons. Can destabilize blood sugar levels, causing stress on the body and fatigue. Hunger experienced on the fasting days leads dieters to overeat on the non-fasting days to compensate.
Juicing Diet. This diet requires an expensive piece of kitchen equipment called a juicer or fresh, raw juices purchased from distributors at a high price. This diet consists of removing all liquids from fresh produce and consuming it in a juice cocktail of sorts, leaving behind the pulp.
Pros. Access to a lot of different vitamins and minerals from fresh, raw produce.
Cons. Expensive. Juicers can cost anywhere between $50 and $500, not to mention the enormous amount of produce just one juice requires. Juicing can also cause feelings of hunger, which can lead to overeating. Furthermore, vital nutrients and essential fiber is eliminated from this diet and left behind in produce’s pulp.
1. Portion control is key. While you shouldn’t over-obsess about calorie counting, make sure to reduce your caloric intake to slightly lower than what’s recommended (typically 2000 per day for women and 2500 per day for men).
2. Move more. Getting your body moving will help you burn through your calories quicker, even if it’s just a walk or a bike ride.
3. Minimize sugar and sodium intake. These two ingredients are in almost all prepackaged foods. Controlling the amount you are getting will have weight loss results.
4. Don’t fall for “quick weight loss” solutions. Losing 2 pounds every day is not a sustainable option. Most experts believe that losing two pounds a week is a safe amount of weight loss that discourages regain.
5. Don’t skip meals. Try eating something small and healthy every three hours to keep your blood sugar levels consistent and curb feelings of hunger that lead to overeating.
6. Drink plenty of water; it will actually help you feel less hungry.
7. Eat a well-balanced diet consisting of mostly fresh fruits and vegetables.
8. Cook dinner. Try to avoid pre-packaged and processed foods.
9. When you’re controlling calories, it’s difficult to get enough of every single nutrient. Supplementation is a great way to ensure you’re getting the right amounts of key vitamins and minerals.
10. Finally, and most importantly, realize that healthy weight loss and management isn’t the result of a particular diet, but a lifestyle change.
I hope this information helps when choosing which diet plan is best for you!