superadmin

If you ask a nutritionist in Brookhaven, GA, what the best type of food to eat was, he or she would say foods without a label. What does that mean? It simply means you opt for whole foods. Foods that have been processed less. Fresh fruits and vegetables don’t come with an ingredient label, since they are natural. Lean meat, poultry and fish are also examples of whole foods.

What do whole foods provide that processed ones don’t?

The more a food is processed and the more added ingredients to add shelf life, taste or color, the fewer nutrients that food contains and the more chemicals it has. While some of those chemicals are innocuous and don’t harm the body, some may. We don’t always know what’s healthy until later. Think Crisco and cigarettes. The original Crisco was praised as being a healthier option to butter or lard and it was soon added to many foods. What wasn’t known was the partially hydrogenated trans fats, were incredibly unhealthy. Cigarettes were touted as healthy and even television doctors recommended them. You don’t have that problem with whole foods, particularly organic ones.

Whole foods are rich in nutrients.

Many of the nutrients in processed foods have been removed. Some were removed due to the processing, which can destroy nutrients like vitamin C. Some were removed for marketing. Consider low fat yogurt. The fat has been removed, but the fat actually makes you feel fuller and adds flavor to the yogurt. To make the yogurt more palatable, manufacturers add sugar, which is far worse for you than yogurt’s healthy fat. Refined grain has all the nutrients removed, so even though it has a label, choosing whole grains is important.

Whole foods, like fresh fruit and vegetables, have nutritional synergy.

What is nutritional synergy? It’s one nutrient boosting the effect of another nutrient. A good example of this is blueberries. Scientists were studying the potential of the antioxidant, anthocyanin, to fight cancer. Earlier studies had indicated this flavonoid that gives color to the blueberry could help fight it. They removed it and tried it without the results they hoped to achieve. Why? It seems the anthocyanin works in synergy with the other nutrients in the berry to provide the cancer fighting effects.

• Many processed foods are high in sugar. The sugar may come in a variety of names. High fructose corn syrup is one of those. HFCS is in a wide variety of products from candy to cough syrup and has proven to be more hazardous to the health than regular table sugar.
• Some processing isn’t bad and some food with labels isn’t either. For instance, frozen fruit and vegetables that contain only the vegetables or fruit are as healthy, if not healthier than fresh ones. They’re picked at their ripest and immediately frozen to bring more nutrients to your table.
• Fresh produce can be cheaper in season than processed foods. Frozen foods and some canned foods also provide more nutrients if they don’t contain additives.
• When selecting fruits and vegetables for your meal, make your plate look like a rainbow. The more colorful the collection of fruits and vegetables, the more likely you’ll get a wide variety of healthy nutrients.

For more information, contact us today at Thrive Fitness Atlanta

At Thrive Fitness Atlanta in Brookhaven, GA, we offer more than just help with your exercise program. We provide nutritional plans that are well balanced and delicious. Some foods in that plan are so simple, it may surprise you. One of the healthiest is oatmeal. It has so many benefits, including keeping you full for hours, so you’re less likely to eat sugary treats and highly processed snacks. When you eat oatmeal, keep it as close to its natural form as possible and avoid the highly processed instant oatmeal.

The fiber in oats helps lower your blood pressure and stabilizes blood sugar.

The fiber in oats creates a thick gel that slows the absorption of glucose in your intestines. That means there’s no glucose rush into your blood stream and better control of blood sugar levels. The soluble fiber also lowers LDL—bad—cholesterol levels. It’s believed that the cholesterol sticks to the fiber in the intestines and doesn’t allow it to be absorbed. Instead of clogging your arteries, it leaves your body when you go to the bathroom.

Oatmeal is high in antioxidants.

Some of those antioxidants prevent the LDL cholesterol from oxidizing. Since oxidation of LDL causes inflammation and tissue damage, oatmeal prevents that and by doing so, lowers the risk of heart attack and stroke. Not only does it contain beta-glucan fiber, it also contains manganese, phosphorus, copper, iron, zinc, magnesium, folate, B1, B5, some B3 and B6. It has more protein and fat than many other grains.

If you don’t have time to make oatmeal every morning, try overnight oats.

Go for oat groats. Those are whole oats before a lot of processing. If you’re on a time constraint, overnight oats are delicious. Just mix equal parts oats and milk, almond or other milk alternative and store it overnight in the refrigerator. When you’re ready for breakfast, just heat and eat. You can add nuts, chia seed or fruit to suit your taste.

Only oats contain avenanthramides. They help the body increase nitric oxide, which lowers blood pressure and improves the mitochondria, the energy producers for cells.

When babies are fed solid foods too early, it can increase the risk of developing asthma. That’s not true for oats, which may actually protect babies from it. One study showed children getting oatmeal before six months old had a decrease risk of asthma.

You can eat oatmeal as a breakfast or combine it with peanut butter and honey as a quick snack. Mix organic peanut butter with just peanuts as the ingredients, with a little honey. Then add enough dry oatmeal until you can form a ball. Roll in excess oatmeal. They will firm up the longer they sit.

Top your oatmeal with Greek yogurt to pack on the protein. Sweeten it with berries, ripe bananas or dried fruit. Add nuts for more protein and nutrients.

Everything you do affects all areas of your life. Your social activities can affect your work and your health. If you’re not healthy, the social you won’t be sociable and the work side won’t do their best at work. It might seem hard to ensure you focus on all aspects. The key is balance and making sure you spend time ensuring every aspect of life receives attention. If one part of your life increases stress, all parts suffer.

Eliminate stress and create a stronger body with exercise.

Exercise burns off the hormones of stress and replaces them with ones that make you feel good. It helps improve posture, so your body functions at its best, as it gives you a look of confidence. Lack of exercise can cut years off your life and negatively affect the years you do have. It prepares the body for stressful situations and physically challenging ones. When you workout, it also improves brain functioning and keeps you younger longer.

Learn to find peace of mind.

Exercising can help burn the hormones created by stress, but sometimes you aren’t in a place where you can exercise and need relief. Doing deep knee bends in the middle of an important meeting isn’t necessarily appropriate and nearly impossible in a traffic jam. Finding ways to rest your brain with breathing techniques can help clear your mind, improve breathing rate, lower blood pressure and help tension disappear.

Learn to appreciate the taste of whole foods.

An important part of being healthy, both mentally and physically, is diet. Diet can affect your mental processes. Too little omega-3 and too much omega-6 in the diet can cause you to be more angry and aggressive. The bacteria in your gut affect your mental abilities and mood. If they don’t get the proper food via your diet, it affects your brain chemistry negatively. Take time to savor every bite. Not only will that make meals more pleasant, you’ll eat less.

• Nourish your brain with knowledge and learning something new every day. Just like food, what you feed your brain makes a difference. Make sure it nourishes and enriches your life.
• You need a social life that’s rich and enjoyable. Spend time with people who enjoy the things you do and who are supportive. Studies show that the more social you are, the longer you’ll live.
• Learn to keep your work worries at work and your home problems at home. If you’re constantly working overtime, you might be able to change that. When you workout, you become more efficient.
• Get adequate sleep at night. You need to strengthen your circadian rhythms for gut health, immune health, heart health and mental health. Have a sleep schedule and get 8 to 9 hours of sleep. Make sure you get exposure to natural light every day.

For more information, contact us today at Thrive Fitness Atlanta

Clients at Thrive Fitness Performance in Brookhaven, GA often ask about meal planning. I tell them that it’s a great way to ensure you stick with a healthy diet. The idea is to plan your meals one day a week, shop one day a week and cook all the meals for the week on the weekend, or when you have a day off of work or when you’re home. You can store the meals for the week and then it only takes a minute to warm and serve. It’s as fast as waiting in line at a drive-through, just as easy as a prepared freeze meal and you’ll know all the ingredients used.

Plan your meals one night a week.

It’s best to plan the meals by checking online to find what’s on sales at the grocery. Use meats and vegetables in a variety of ways. If you need chicken breasts, but find buying the whole chicken is cheaper, plan a meal using the rest of the chicken. Don’t throw out the broth, it makes a great soup. Plan for leftovers. Grilled veggies are great on salads and in Buddha bowls. Double or triple a recipe you can freeze and store it in meal size portions in the freezer to save time and money another week.

Save money with in-season fruits and vegetables.

If you want fresh and cheap, look for sales and low prices on in-season fruits and vegetables. There may be roadside stands you pass on the road to work that might also provide low cost options. Buying local is one way to ensure you’ll get fresher food. There’s not only lower costs for transportation, but also lower time from field to store. You can also include frozen fruits and vegetables, which go immediately from field to processing plant.

Have a meatless Monday or two.

Choosing a cheaper form of protein can be great for your budget and quite healthy, too. Good sources of less expensive protein include beans, eggs and nuts. Sprinkle nuts or add beans or nuts to salads to boost the protein or make a quinoa salad. A meal of rice and beans is nutritious and yet very inexpensive.

• Save money by choosing the vegetables on the Clean 15 list from the traditionally grown and go organic if the fruit or vegetable is on the Dirty Dozen list. The Clean 15 list has fruits and vegetables that show little or no pesticides when tested.
• Always check expiration dates when you buy and check them in the cupboard, frig and freezer. Before you plan meals, check freezer, frig and cupboards for foods you need to use quickly.
• Buy fruits and vegetables in bulk when they’re in-season and freeze them. If you want a cheap, low cal alternative to ice cream, buy inexpensive ripe bananas, then peel, slice and freeze them. When you’re ready for ice cream, put them in a blender until smooth and creamy.
• Don’t snub canned foods. Check the labels to see what the ingredients are. Tuna should be water packed and fresh fruit should not contain added sugar. You can even use green beans that have added sodium if you drain the liquid and rinse them first.

For more information, contact us today at Thrive Fitness Performance

What goes into your body is more important than what goes on it. Healthy eating and getting all the essential nutrients will help thicken your hair far more than any rinse or conditioner. Choosing your food carefully and ensuring you get the vitamins you need for healthy, thick hair and vitamins for hair loss can help ensure your mane will become thicker and more attractive, but only if you were deficient in the vitamin in the first place.

Focus on eating foods high in vitamin Bs.

There are several B vitamins and each one helps in a different way. They boost oxygenation to scalp cells by boosting red blood cell production. Biotin(B7) is a member of the vitamin B family, and is often touted as a treatment for hair loss. One study showed that taking biotin helped improve hair and nails. However, all the participants in the study also had a medical condition that caused a deficiency that caused the problem. B12 deficiency may lead to hair loss. If you’re a vegan, it’s hard to get adequate B12, since it’s found in animal products. Riboflavin (B2) deficiency can occur, particularly in people with hyperthyroidism or alcohol problems. It also occurs in older people. A riboflavin deficiency also causes hair loss.

If you have a vitamin A deficiency, it could lead to hair loss, but so could too much vitamin A.

Vitamin A plays a role in hair growth and if you’re deficient in it, it can cause damage to your hair follicles that results in hair loss and other health issues. It slows down the process of building new cells by the body. Since the hair is the fastest growing cells in the body, it’s noticeable there quicker. You’ll find it in skin care products and those for healthy hair and scalp, but it’s always better to consume vitamin A, rather than supplement or put it on your body. Vitamin A can build up in your body and too much actually causes hair loss, too.

Vitamin E deficiency can result in hair loss.

Vitamin E is an antioxidant that helps protect your cells. It helps prevent hair loss and graying. In a study on males, a group that took oral supplements of vitamin E for eight months had a 34% increase in the number of hairs in their scalp than the placebo groups, who also lost 0.1% of their hair strands. Vitamin E increases scalp circulation, while also balancing oil production, makes hair shinier and improves scalp health.

• Eggs, leafy greens, legumes such as lentils and chickpeas, milk and enriched grain products are all good source of riboflavin.
• Good sources of vitamin E include sunflower oil, nuts, olive oil and leafy greens. It’s also found in meat and in many breakfast cereals that are fortified.
• Consuming food with vitamin A is superior to taking supplements, since it’s almost impossible to overdose. The body converts what it needs of beta carotene and flushes the rest. Toxicity occurs with too much retinol, found in liver and dairy, but it’s minimal.
• Consuming yellow, orange, red and dark green vegetables can provide all the vitamin A you need in the form of carotene.

For more information, contact us today at Thrive Fitness Atlanta