Angela

Kris Carr’s Crazy Sexy Manifesto

I absolutely love this gal!  She is an inspiration and I believe everyone is affected by cancer in their lives at one point or another.  It may be a friend, loved one or themselves and it is always game changer.  Kris stands for empowering yourself against disease and facing it with positivity.  Her movie, books, newsletters, and blog are a daily inspiration for me and my patients. Take some time to watch this superhero gal in action in the trailer from her movie “Crazy Sexy Cancer”.

 

 

I’m Kris Carr, author of the New York Times Best Seller, “Crazy Sexy Diet,” and founder of Crazysexylife.com, an award-winning and fantabulous wellness site with daily articles from leading experts and cutting-edge resources for building vibrant health and happiness. My wake up call – a stage 4 cancer diagnosis, with no cure and no treatment (Zoinks!) – ignited a personal revolution and taught me how to take responsibility for my well-being at the deepest level imaginable. Now I want to show you how to step into your destiny and become the CEO of your own health. Radiance is your natural state. You can banish the blocks that hold you back with a plant-powered diet and Crazy Sexy lifestyle!

Each and every one of us has the power to ignite a wellness revolution in our kitchens. Change now. Get juiced now. Learn to live like you really mean it and teach others to do the same. By joining the revolution, you vow to wake up and take a stand for your well-being. No one can take better care of you than wise, brilliant, capable, and STRONG you.

This self-care thing is bigger than many of us imagine. The pursuit of personal health, spiritual wealth and happiness is actually a political statement, a peaceful protest and a powerful act of love. Why? Because in order to care for ourselves in a full-tilt-boogie-I’m gonna-walk-the- talk sorta way, we must rebel against the broken systems that support dis-ease and dismantle the status quo. We can’t wait for special interests, government policies, subsidies, agribusiness, factory farming, pharmaceutical industries and advertisers to change. But we can get off our sofas, vote with our forks and knives and heal the way we eat, drink and think.

Read the guiding principles of the Crazy Sexy diet and lifestyle I’ve outlined below and make these simple health habits stick. Get inspired – print it out, hang it on your fridge and read it daily! This step alone will have a huge impact on your life.

Keep in mind, this is just an overview of the guiding principles. To dig deep and make lasting changes, grab your copy of “Crazy Sexy Diet” here.

Make juice not war and remember, you are the change you’ve been waiting for… Peace & Revolution,

Kris Carr

Posted on by Angela in Body, cancer, Diet, Exercise, Guest Blog, Nutrition, Uncategorized, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

Chew that Gum!

Thanks Kevin for helping me choose a healthier alternative to my chewing gum fetish!  I have always been a huge fan of chewing gum because I come from a family of excessive talkers!  Yes, I do have a habit of running my mouth to extremes!  But a fear of bad breath also drives my need for chewing gum.  Thankfully, Kevin has some good alternatives to some of the sugar free gums for us to try.

The Truth About Chewing Gum

One of America’s favorite passtimes and quick fixes for bad breath, chewing gum is a daily ritual for millions of americans. Ever wonder what is in the gum you are chewing or what effect it has on your health?

Quick Stats

  • More than 100,000 tons of chewing gum being consumed every year.
  • Every year over 374 trillion sticks of chewing gum are made.
  • In the next 5 years, over 1 million metric tones of chewing gum will be produced.
  • The Chewing Gum Industry is profitable market. The world’s chewing gum industry is estimated to be worth approximately US $19 billion.

Potential Health Benefits of Chewing Gum.

Chewing gum improves memory

Some suggest that chewing gum can help in improving memory and enhance cognitive powers.  Research studies show that people who chewed throughout standardized tests produced significantly better scores than people who did not. Some attribute this to an increase in the stimuli produced in the area in our brain linked to memory, the hippocampus, when you continuously move your jaw.  Chewing gum can also increases blood flow to the brain. Some studies have reported that blood flow to the brain increases by as much as 25 to 40 percent during gum chewing. Also the act of chewing speeds up our heartbeat and blood pressure just enough to wake up both left-and right hemispheres to work together.

Check out this site for one of the first studies showing actual evidence of this.http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn2039-chewing-gum-improves-memory.html

Chewing gum reduces symptoms of stress

Research has shown that the rhythmic motion of chewing gum has a stress-reducing effect because relaxed and satisfied feelings. Psychiatrists and psychologists believe that chewing gum can help reduce tension and help to release nervous energy. Chewing gum may provide an outlet for frustration and irritation while also increasing alertness and concentration.

For more on this http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/119826.php

Chewing gum helps to manage weight

With a low-calorie count (5 to 10 per serving), chewing gum is an inexpensive snack. According to some studies, adults who chewed gum ate 36 calories less of the snack than adults who did not chew gum. Both regular and sugar-free chewing gum helped adults to eat less by helping to curb their appetite. The physical act of gum chewing may help to reduce your cravings for high calorie snacks. Some reports show that chewing gum can burn around 11 calories per hour. (IE not to be used in place of actualy exercise)

Chewing gum improves digestion

Chewing gum helps to improve intestinal motility and also helps to increase saliva flow which promotes more frequent swallowing. This helps to prevent reflux of acid from the stomach back into the throat.

Chewing gum improves oral health

The results of scientific research demonstrate that chewing gum is good for oral health and teeth specifically. Chewing gum increases saliva, which is the most important component of oral health and powerful protector of the oral cavity. Stimulated saliva corrects a potentially harmful environment using its high concentration of buffers, minerals and antibacterial components. That helps to flush sugars, food debris and decay-causing acids out of the mouth. Chewing gum also freshens breath, whitens teeth by reducing stains and preventing stains from accumulating and reduces plaque.

Potential Health Risks of Chewing Gum

The basic make up of gum: gum base, softeners, sweeteners and flavorings. Ever wonder what makes up the sweetener and flavoring part?

The Ingredients

Sweeteners are added to gum to give it that sweet flavor. Those ingredients are usually sugar, corn syrup and even beet juice. Sugar is probably the healthiest off all sweeteners. Sweeteners such as  xylitol, sorbitol, mannitol and aspartame are also used, which have been linked to several long-term health effects that are also found in diet sodas.

Some gum ingredients are suspected to be carcinogens or have been linked to various health conditions. Sugar can cause cavities and lead to health issues such as diabetes, while aspartame, a popular artificial sweetener, has been linked to cancer, diabetes, and neurological disorders. Chewing gum containing such ingredients can have dangerous and long-lasting health effects.
What about Sugar-less or Sugar-free gum?

 Sugar-free chewing gum has a number of dental benefits. Sugar free chewing gum doesn’t cause tooth decay. It demineralises tooth enamel and has an antimicrobial effect. Those who chewed sugar-free gum after eating had fewer cavities than those who did not. HOWEVER, Sugar-free gum often contains either aspartame or sorbitol, the first being  potentially toxic and increasing your hunger, and the second becoming a  dangerous laxative in large doses. For me, it’s very similar to comparing soda to diet soda.

Jaw Related Issues
One of the most common health issues related to chewing gum is muscle fatigue due to overuse of the jaw muscles. This is known to lead to chronic headaches. The action of chewing gum can also cause unnecessary wear on the cartilage in the jaw joint. Frequent gum chewers may be more likely to develop problems in the temporomandibular joint, or TMJ

My suggestion
Most health nuts will advise you to switch to something outrageous like licorice root, parsley, or chewing on a natural tooth pic. I actually believe the benefits outweigh the negatives in terms of chewing gum. I suggest looking for a gum sweetened with erythritol ( a natural sugar alcohol which has recently gained popularity because of its inclusion in a few mainstream stevia based sweeteners),stevia, or lastly xylitol at a natural foods store. Identifying products with no sugar additives or artificial sweeteners is important with all food selections and should not be any different for gum. While it is more expensive, this type of gum is more safe and less likely to cause adverse health effects. Make your pack last twice as long by chewing half a piece a day versus a whole piece.
Thanks for reading and let me know if you have any questions.
From South Bend,
Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Exercise, Nutrition, vegan, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

Fooducate

In this world of technology overload, I have found a positive to my smart phone that is quite helpful.  FOODUCATE is a fabulous app for all our wellness patients and website followers to use.  Here is a little information about this app and how/why to get started using it.  It not only grades nutritional content of the items at the grocery store, it allows you to scan the barcode and get the information right on your phone.  Then you can search for alternative, healthier options based on their suggestions.  It’s ingenious!  Why didn’t I think of this first?

 http://www.fooducate.com/

Get the Fooducate mobile application and use it to:

  • Automatically scan a product barcode
  • See product highlights (both good & bad)
  • Compare products
  • Select better alternatives
  • Dig deeper and learn more about food and nutrition

Features:

  • Created by dietitians and concerned parents
  • Uses your mobile’s camera to effortlessly scan UPC barcode
  • Over 200,000 unique products and growing daily
  • Simplified information helps you make better choices
  • Works on iPhone, iPod touch, iPad and Android OS version 2.2 and up

This is what is nice about this app

You get to see the stuff manufacturers don’t want you to notice, such as

  • excessive sugar
  • tricky trans fats
  • additives and preservatives
  • high fructose corn syrup
  • controversial food colorings
  • confusing serving sizes
  • and more…

Read the labels or let fooducate do it for you.  And remember, eat your veggies people.  Eat your veggies!

 

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, vegan, Weight Loss, Whole Food 2 Comments

BPA—Read the Label

Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical that acts like the hormone estrogen in your body, is used to create the epoxy linings of canned food.  BPA is a chemical created over 70 years ago as a drug that was intended to promote healthy pregnancies.  It was never used as a drug so the food industry saw no problem adding it to a wide range of products, including canned food linings and plastic food containers. Low levels of BPA exposure have been linked to abnormal development of reproductive organs, behavior problems in children, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic changes resulting in diabetes.

BPA is generally used to keep fats from becoming rancid.  It is most commonly found in butter, meats, snack foods, cereals, dehydrated potatoes and beer.  It is also used to preserve food color and flavor so it’s added directly to many packaging materials.

Eat Your Veggies!  Eat Your Veggies!

Just another reason to avoid it if it’s in a box, package, or can!  Shop the perimeter of the grocery!  It goes a lot faster and you don’t have to curse under your breath at the lame geeky people who spend 10 minutes reading the label of a product and then putting it back.  You know they didn’t take the time to read the Oreo label, but when it comes to buying their pasta–they only want whole grain!  Check out this excerpt from Mayo Clinic regarding how to avoid BPA products.

 

  • Seeking out BPA-free products. This may not always be easy to do, of course. Some manufacturers label their products as BPA-free. If a product isn’t labeled, keep in mind that most aluminum cans or bottles have linings that contain BPA, while steel bottles or cans don’t. Polycarbonate plastic is generally hard, clear, lightweight plastic. It often has the No. 7 recycling symbol on the bottom.
  • Microwave cautiously. The National Toxicology Program advises against microwaving polycarbonate plastics, although the American Chemistry Council says this is safe. The plastics can break down over time, possibly causing BPA to leach into food.
  • Wash safely. The National Toxicology Program advises against washing polycarbonate plastics in the dishwasher using harsh detergents, although the American Chemistry Council says this is safe.
  • Use alternatives. Use glass, porcelain or stainless steel containers for hot foods and liquids instead of plastic containers.
  • Cut back on cans. Reduce your use of canned foods since many cans are lined with BPA-containing resin.
Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Nutrition, vegan, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

Monsanto Evils

This post is for Cindy–a dear patient and friend who has been suffering from a debilitating illness since 2001.  She has been to Cleveland Clinic, Mayo, and to all of the top specialists in the fields of neurology, rheumatology, infectious disease, dermatology, oncology, cardiology, and pulmonology.  Geez–I think we hit every field of medicine.  However, I promised Cindy that I would never stop looking for what may actually be making her sick!  I recently did an ALCAT test on her to find that she has a severe intolerance to GLYPHOSATE.  Ba Bam!!!  Ironically, if you have been following the news lately, you are aware of  The Monsanto Company who exclusively produces Roundup Ready soybean seed for the commercial market.  Allegedly,  many of monsanto’s seed products are genetically modified to make them resistant to the Monsanto produced agricultural chemicals such as Round Up herbicide.  They also allegedly produce recombinant Bovine somatotropin.  Yes, I know  What???  It is a synthetic growth factor injected into cows to increase their milk production.  Watch this trailer for more information.  And watch out Erin Brockovich because if I cure Cindy by getting her off of Monsanto products—I’m casting Channing Tatum in the movie!

Posted on by Angela in Body, Call to action, Diet, disease, Exercise, Humor, Nutrition, vegan, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

“When I let go of who I am, I become who I will be”—Day #1

“I don’t want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don’t want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed.” -Lloyd Dobler (Say Anything)

When I was a little girl–the words “become a professional and don’t expect someone else to take care of you” were gently and repetitively etched into my head.  I think that is why I aspired to become a doctor.  I didn’t want to do law, I have no passion for rules.  A business owner seemed too processed for me.  I wanted to help people.

When I was in college after already committing my life to become a doctor, I became terribly ill and landed a spot in the hospital.  My doctor at the time told me “You are not going to die”  That phrase I will never forget because at that moment–I felt like I might.  I was then forever indebted to becoming that person who would reassure a patient that their darkest hours were not at hand.   I studied hard and abstained from activities my peers were engaged in only to persue my dream.  Eleven years ago my dream came true and I was finally the doctor starting practice and ready to change the lives of many.  I was trained to treat every disease with the best of medicines and could conquer any patient’s complaint.  Unfortunately, those concepts drastically changed as I continued to evolve as a person and was touched by each patient that I met.  After ten years of medicine I could feel myself beginning to change but I wasn’t quite sure just what the change was.  Then the day Susan came in I began to have a greater focus.

A few years ago, Susan, a popular vet in the local community with 4 boys, came to me tearstricken and upset.  She had developed an autoimmune disease seven years before that had debilitated her to the point that she was unable to function as the woman, mother, and wife that she had once been.  Tears welled in my eyes during that annual visit as I noted her spirit and life’s luster being eroded by the burden of her disease.  I told her … “I am no superwoman, I have no answers for you.”  We could only pray together that things would change.

The following monday morning she called and said  “My pastor pulled me aside after church on Sunday and told me he had dreamt I got a second opinion and was healed.”  I immediately called a physician who I had not seen since residency.  He was leaving for a mission trip to Haiti the next day and the only way he could see her was if she could be there in thirty minutes.  Ironically, she had no patients scheduled that day, had a babysitter for her kids, and was already having lunch in the area.  He told her that it wasn’t a disease, it was an allergy.  He hadn’t a clue as to what she might be ingesting that would cause this severe reaction. Eventually, she discovered that she had to eliminate red dye # 40 from her diet and she is 100% healthy now.

I have spent countless hours walking in the woods and enjoying my own family.   Yet, I continue to watch many other patients struggle with their inability to share the same pleasures in life.  I have now realized that I have been on the wrong track.  We dont need to cure and treat disease–we need to prevent it!
All the years of training to to heal people have proven that I have been coexisting with them.  I must shift my role to help them before the diseases takes hold.  I must help my patients change themselves.  I realize that the best way to change the world is to change yourself.

Thus—I will simply become who I am by letting go of what I thought I was and hope to do the same for those who come to me for help.

Posted on by Angela in Diet, Family, Humor, Mind, Nutrition, Spirit, Whole Food Leave a comment

Labor Day Recipes

Happy Labor Day weekend!  The long weekend brings lots of get togethers with food as the main agenda!  Don’t waste your weekend slaving behind the stove—
Instead, load up your slow cooker with one of the following crowd-pleasing dishes. I’ve listed the  recipes in countdown order— if you have a favorite, please chime in below. Happy Labor Day!
10) Salsa Chicken and Black Bean Soup. This is filling, delicious, and is different enough to gain lots of attention on the buffet table. Easy to stretch by serving rice, and fixen’s like sliced avocado and tortilla chips.
9) Lima Bean Casserole Cassoulet. I love serving this to guests and listening to the conversation. “what type of beans are these?” “I’m not sure. some sort of large pinto beans or something?” I usually wait until the pot is practically empty before coming clean that they were lima beans.
8) Honey Lentils. Delicious, nutritious, vegan vegetarian, and such a fun offering to bring to a picnic. I get the nicest emails about these lentils!
7) Pesto Spinach Lasagna. I need to run to the store to pick up the ingredients for this! You have never had a better vegetarian lasagna. So so good.
6) Hirino Psito. This is a wonderful main dish to serve to guests. Worcestershire sauce, dijon mustard, and beer mix together to create a savory sauce that perfectly compliments the sweet contrast of brown sugar and cranberries. Win!
5) Brie with Apricot Topping. To make this more user-friendly for guests, insert an oven-safe dish into your large slow cooker and load the ingredients into the dish. Then remove the dish (use mitts!) and serve with your favorite crackers (we like Glutino a lot). Do not add water in the crockpot around the dish.
4) Pomegranate Beef. When we host a dinner for new friends, I usually make this. This keeps picky older relatives happy, along with the kids (note to self: I need to update some of these photos!). I’ve made this for television audiences, and served it at the Disneyland Food & Wine Festival, where the kitchen chefs gave rave reviews, which made me cry. This recipe was also featured on Oprah.com!
3) Cream Cheese, Sausage,  and Rotel Dip (mommy crack). The ingredients are odd, the taste is not. Make this and you’ll be happy.
2) Potluck Beans. We can’t have a potluck countdown without potluck beans, now can we? These beans have bacon. Nuff’ said.
1) Original Taco Soup. Feeds a bunch, easy to throw together, and everyone LOVES it. This has been our number one potluck bring along for the past 12 years.
 
Honorable mention: Black Beans with Cilantro. I ran out of numbers— this is a great bean recipe.
Enjoy your long weekend!
Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, disease, Nutrition, vegan, Weight Loss, Whole Food 2 Comments

Emotional Eating

This topic is near to my heart right now.  As many of you know, our family of 6 at home drastically dropped in the last two weeks.  Alex moved out into a house with her highschool best friend and we toted Ciara off to IU to start her freshman year.  I didn’t think I would take the change so hard.  I completely melted down –crying, emotional outbursts, and binge eating!  In that one weekend, I consumed enough pizza, chicken fingers, nachos, ice cream and potato chips to sink the Bismark!  Unfortunately, the binge triggered all the old cravings for those nasty players again.  I have found myself no longer practicing what I preach!  This video from one of my favorite bloggers gives a nice plan and explanation for change.  It’s a little lengthy but, realistic.

Visit her site  http://www.lindawagner.net for more informational posts—you can also click the healthy eating link on the right to go directly to her great blog!

First day of kindergarten to first day of college

Posted on by Angela in Diet, disease, Guest Blog, Mind, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

Aloe Vera Magic

If we put aloe vera on painful sunburns for its soothing effects;  why not drink it to soothe gut inflammation? After all, it’s just a plant. Here are some major advantages to drinking aloe vera gel or juice on a regular basis.

THE GUT:

A healthy digestive track plays a huge role in how we absorb nutrients from foods entering them into our bloodstream to fuel our cells. We have various yeast and bacteria in our gut that require a delicate balance.   Aloe vera helps as a natural balancer in that it regulates the overgrowth of bacteria or yeast. This allows the bowel to absorb nutrients better, especially protein. The added benefit is that it helps transit of stool through the bowel which results in softer, bulkier stool.

THE SKIN:

Aloe vera helps feed basal skin cells keeping them healthy and functional. It stimulates fibroblast cells to reproduce faster and increase in number. Fibroblast’s job is to produce collagen and elastin which give skin its structure making it look more plump and elastic;  therefore, less wrinkles and you look younger!  These fibroblasts also form mesh networks over a wound which allows new skin cells to grow over and close wounds faster. Bonus!

VITAMINS:

Aloe vera contains calcium, sodium, potassium, iron, chromium, magnesium, copper, zinc, vit B12, C, E, and floic acid. Many of these vitamins can’t be stored int the body so we need to constantly replenish them by ingesting them in foods. These plants tend to grow in areas where soils are rich in minerals and its roots absorb them well in these uncontaminated areas.

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY:

Aloe contains salicylic acid and plant sterols which have a natural anti-inflammatory and pain killing effects. It tends to soothe muscles, maintain healthy joints along with mobility and flexibility. Patient’s with chronic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome seem to claim benefits.

Superjuicer Michelle and I mix 2 oz of aloe vera juice or gel into our daily breakfast juice concoction and it has absolutely no taste. What have you got to lose to give it a try? GOT JUICE????

Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, disease, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment

Another Great Post from Kevin Deeth!

There are a few important things to consider in the pre-workout meal discussion. Timing, size, and content are the three key factors in choosing a great meal that will give you optimal performance levels.
Timing– Ideally, a meal should be eaten between 2 and 3 hours before a workout in order to give your body time to fully digest the protein, carbohydrates, and sugar that will be converted to fuel to power you through those grueling last few reps. For all you earlier birds, I don’t expect you to wake up at 3 Am to make an omelette. So your meal and portion size will be much different.
Size– Portion size is extremely important because you don’t want to feel bogged down or bloated during a workout. On that same token ensuring your muscles are properly fueled is vital to prevent muscle degredation. The preworkout meal and time before workout are directley correlated. The farther away you are from a workout (say 3 hours) the bigger your meal (probably full size). If you are grabbing something 15-20 minutes before it should be much smaller and generally in liquid form so it is easily digestable.
Content-An ideal pre-workout meal should consist of 20-30 grams of protein to keep your body in an anabolic state to prevent muscle breakdown during your workout. Along with the protein, 20-30 grams of low glycemic carbohydrates is also advisable.

A 2-3 hour prior example 

green+eggs+&+not+ham+chicken+&+spinach+pesto+omelete.JPG.jpg

A turkey/chicken breast, spinach & tomato omelette with a small serving of steel cut oats. Low glycemic carbohydrates such as spinach and steel cut oats will be converted to energy and used as fuel during your workout. Low glycemic carbohydrates will keep your insulin from spiking which can lead an energy crash mid-workout. This meal is also low in fat and fiber which will make it easy to digest.

Ingredients

  • 2 whole cage free eggs
  • ½ cup spinach
  • ½ turkey/chicken breast
  •  ¼ cup dice tomatoes
  •  ½ cup cooked steel cut oats with cinnamon and blueberries

Nutritional Facts

  • Calories-400
  • Protein-30 grams
  • Carbohydrates-30 grams
  • Fat-6 grams
  • Fiber-8 grams

I like to workout in the late mornings so the first thing I do when I wake up is start off with a great breakfast that has an adequate source of protein, carbohydrates, fiber, and fat. The protein will ensure there is no muscle breakdown and give your body a steady stream of fuel and amino acids through your workout. The carbs will be converted to energy while the fiber and fat will keep you feeling full throughout the pre-workout/workout period. Adequate hydration is also vital to prepare you body for a successful workout. Ensuring your muscles are hydrated will prevent cramping and optimize performance.

Now, for the early birds. (15-45 minutes before workout)

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Home made protein shake

My protein shake is very generic but an effective, homemade recipe. I shoot for a 1:1 carbohydrate to protein ratio made with the following ingredients.

  • 1 cup unsweetened Almond Milk
  •  1/2 serving plain unflavored greek yogurt
  •  1 tbsp chia seeds
  •  ¼ cup of blueberries
  •  ½ banana
  •   1 scoop of unflavored 100% whey isolate protein powder (20-30 grams)
  •  3 grams of glutamine
  •   Ice cubes

Nutritional facts

  • Calories-300
  • Protein-25 grams
  • Carbohydrates- 30 grams
  • Fiber- 12 grams

A 2:1 or 1:1 carbohydrate to protein ratio is ideal for refueling your muscles and replacing glycogen levels. Drink this shake within 30 minutes of your workout, or 30 minutes prior, to ensure your muscles receive healthy carbohydrates and protein from natural sources to rebuild muscle tissue that has been broken down during a workout. A liquid meal, such as a protein shake, is absorbed more quickly than solid food. The addition of fruit will help you restore your glycogen levels and transport protein to your muscles. Using natural foods such as fruit and unflavored yogurt will stabilize blood sugar levels and not cause a severe insulin spike that you get with most “store-bought” shakes due to the large amount of processed sugars and additives that are present.  The combination of chia seeds, fruit, yogurt, and almond milk provides an excellent source of fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. With such a wide array of products and additives that are present in many supplements and shakes, I always recommend people make their own, using unprocessed ingredients, to ensure your muscles receive the most bang for your buck. Here is a tip: Make your shake the night before and store it in the fridge to save yourself the hassle and cleanup in the morning.

refuel-2.jpg

Generally a medium-sized meal is recommended 2 hours before your workout to give your body a chance to digest and convert the food before you lift. With that being said, every person is different. Finding out what works best for you in terms of energy levels, muscle growth, and recovery is the most important thing. Whatever you do make sure you have a steady stream of energy to you can power through a tough workout.

Sorry about the recent hiatus and thanks for reading. Let me know if you have any comments or questions.

From South Bend,

Kevin
Posted on by Angela in Body, Diet, Exercise, Nutrition, Weight Loss, Whole Food Leave a comment