POSITIVITY

Ok guys, open your minds - because some of you may read this and think my mind has left the planet and gone to live with the fairies.

Yesterday, I had a challenge to face. Someone let me down, and I got annoyed. Really annoyed, and do you know what, it affected me for a long time - well an hour or so anyway. My body felt tense, my shoulders were close to my ears, my breathing rate and my heart rate increased and I felt generally pretty uncomfortable with myself.

And then I sat and thought about what had happened and tried to look at it from their perspective. It was my choice to feel angry by what had happened; I really don't believe it was their intention to try to make me angry or unhappy.

I sent them a message later, I reached out and explained how I'd felt after our encounter, and guess what? I immediately felt better, and they responded in a positive way too. Phew! I then went about my day feeling calmer and far more in touch with myself and my emotions.

Thoughts and emotions can be toxic. Particularly if they are allowed to be stored inside the body. Ideally they need to be released immediately, as if they accumulate they have such a strong influence on us that they can cause health problems. The mind and the body are strongly connected, more so than most of us realise on a day to day basis.

Negativity seems to be the way alot of people have become programmed. Listen when you speak to people today, and see what I mean. Try to rise above it, and don't be dragged down; you'll honestly feel much better if you try to stay positive. It's not always easy to see the good in everything, I'm as guilty as the next person for this but let's all give it a jolly good try today and the next day..........

I'm a believer in Angels. I have two who look after me, as we all do. They are with me always and if I remember to respect and believe and appreciate them, particularly through my thought processes I believe they and the universe will answer me and good things will happen.

On the flip side, constant negativity, anger etc. will be returned back to you by others if this is what you choose to give out.

Bit profound for a Friday, but hey yesterdays lesson hit me hard, and made me think deeply about what I want back from life. I love my life, and I am truely grateful for it.

How about you share your thoughts with me on this subject please?.


Today's Tip : have been teaching the kids this week to do one random act of kindness every day, and we share what each of us has managed to do at the end of each day. Yesterday Ben said one of his friends needed cheering up so he'd said a rude word behind the teachers back to make his friend laugh - perhaps a bit risky but it had the desired effect!!
RX

RUB DOWN

My mate Ian came over last night. He sorts my soft tissue out after all the hard training I do (and the Spider stuff is well hard!). And in my line of work I sometimes don't warm up as much as I should so do I need abit of massage therapy on a regular basis.

I'm bigging up Ian today, because he's absolutley brilliant at what he does, and not just because he's a mate. I've told him if I ever win the lottery I'm going to employ him to work on me for at least three hours a day!

Last night he worked on my hip flexors.Bit sore at the time, lots of manipulations, lots of me having to move my body into wierd and wonderful positions, and boy did it make me sleep well. This morning I feel great and ready to work out with a full day of clients.

Ians business is called Smartwaytohealth and he works on postural correction, injury rehabilitation, and also maintenance work for those who choose to push their body's or just fancy a bit of rub down with his healing hands.

Contact him at smartway2health@btinternet.com or smartway2fitness@btinternet.com and/or follow him on Twitter at Smartway2health.

You won't be disappointed.

Thanks Ian, you're the best matey.RX

THAT DREADFUL STUFF.........

............sugar! Bain of my life at the moment because I can't have it (see last blog post). At all, not one little bit, and when you can't have something what happens? You want it more!

I never let it take over my life but I was extremely partial to the odd bit of Green and Blacks with my peppermint tea, and as for Hotel Chocolat - don't even get me started.

Todays blog is a little rant from me at all the foods in the supermarkets that contain sugar, and you know what, there are lots and lots of them. In fact, turn it the other way around and trying to find foods without sugar becomes a challenge.

Even in my health food shop, most of the products contain sugar in some guise or other.

Dessicated coconut with added sugar, why? Baked beans, with added sugar, why? Chicken pieces, glazed with sugar, why? Prawns in chilli and garlic, with added sugar, why? Guacamole even, with added sugar, why?

Why, because it is undisputably a flavour enhancer. And so addictive and that's the problem. We are primarily a nation of sugar addicts, and that's not good. Alot of the time we don't even realise we're ingesting it so until it has to be taken away it becomes a way of life.

Corn syrup, brown rice syrup, fructose, lactose, maltose, high fructose corn syrup, molasses, palm sugar, sucrose, galactose, dextrose, stevia, honey, agave syrup, xylitol, rapadura are all forms of sugar - some much more refined than others. Try reading labels for a while and you'll see it in all its guises.

Sugar equals carbohydrate and yes, we need carbohydrates in our bodies to a certain extent. After all, the brain and working muscles primarily use glucose as their energy source . However, we really do not need as much as most people consume in their diets hence the increase in obesity, diabetes etc. etc.

Too many carbs particularly refined ones will upset your blood sugar levels leaving you feeling flat/lacking in energy and in need of more, which becomes a vicious circle as you eat more and more to create some kind of false homeostasis. Insulin levels go haywire over time which can lead to diabetes - more common than you think.

The best way to avoid too much sugar is to stop eating processed foods. If you only eat foods in their most natural state they haven't been 'tampered' with and so are unlikely to include added sugar (not guaranteed!).

I work (or did before the candida diagnosis) to the 80/20 rule. If I eat well 80% of the time I figure my body can cope with the 20% of foods which may challenge it in some way or other.

Alcohol is another carbohydrate/sugar which places major challenges on the body. It is the bodys preferred energy source, so it will use up the alcohol first leaving all other foods to potentially be turned into fat. A tip from my first trainer on a night out, was to have one glass of alcohol, followed by a glass of water and keep this up all evening. Lessens the hangover, and reduces the damage. Try it.

So, whilst sugar, in any form, is good in moderation, keep an eye on how much you consume a day by checking the labels on your food. If sugar is one of the first two ingredients it's likely to be very high and should potentially be avoided unless it's a 20% food.

If it is then you just enjoy it, I'm only a teeny, weeny bit jealous!
RX

SUGAR

I've had major stress in my life for a few years now, and whilst I won't go into detail it is one of the reasons why I've started to take my health so seriously, and may explain why some may think (and say even!) that I've turned into some kind of health 'freak', and so have now made it my business.

Just to give you a bit of background, I had excema as a child and was given steroids which were applied liberally to my skin, by people who knew no better at that time, leaving me with damaged skin and a damaged gut (the medical profession can debate this all they like but I wouldn't put steriods on my kids skin for all the tea in china).

Also, in our family (close and extended) it was the norm to eat puddings and have sweets as treats.Lovely at the time, but I grew up with a sweet tooth; a very sweet tooth. I also have a slightly addictive personality and if I find something I like, well, I just can't get enough of it. This has applied to alcohol, cigarettes and most definitely sugar. I once remember my sister and I eating a whole chocolate orange at one sitting - each(that was a confession that was hard to admit, by the way, given my lifestyle now).

Along with the current stress, all this 'baggage' from my past has taken a major toll on my body and has culminated in me having a candida overgrowth. Candida is a fungus which lives in the gut and feeds on sugar (and any food your body turns into sugar during the digestive process) and for many reasons it can get out of control and cause health problems.

Candida albicans overgrowth is a problem that is not necessarily recognised by GPs - yes they treat thrush and athletes foot with topical creams, pessaries etc. but they don't always agree that candida living in the gut can cause numerous health problems, and so treat it systemically.

Problems such as:
leaky gut
dizzyness
headaches
vision problems
skin problems
inability to think straight
urinary infections
bloating
diarrhoea/constipation
thrush
lethargy

.....and I could go on. Basically candida can attack the whole system and so any health problem is possible and the longer it's there the more problems can occur.

Candida feeds on sugar so logically to get rid of it one must kill it by depriving it of ALL sugar. Have you ever tried to take sugar out of your diet completely? It includes the obvious white refined table sugar (which is in most processed foods), maple syrup, golden syrup, etc. but also most fruits as the fruit sugar levels are too high - the only fruit I can eat are berries (thank God) and green apples. All others are off limits. It also includes alcohol, grains, root vegetables apart from carrots, peas, sugar snap peas,peppers, squashes and most pulses.

How limiting is that? I can therefore eat just meat, fish, eggs,some nuts (peanuts and pistachios are out), some green vegetables and carrots, green apples and berries, and coconut.

So what's the problem? That sounds like a very lovely healthy list of foods doesn't it? But I like to work to the 80/20 rule. I'm not a saint or a health 'freak' really. I'm rather partial to Green and Blacks chocolate and the odd glass of champagne, and bananas are always useful in a milk shake after a work out. And roasted sweet potatoes and butternut squash are lovely with a sunday roast....

So I've had to rethink my whole diet to starve off these nasty fungal thingies. Easter was hard, parties are very hard, going to my mothers is hard because I associate it with eating puddings and sweets, and Fridays in our house is hard - we have 'eat what you like' day, so there is generally sugar around for the kids.

I'm also rattling with the number of supplements I'm taking, prescribed by an expert digestive specialist who uses natural and organic products of the highest quality only.

I'm determined and I do have will power but it's hard, very hard. I've slipped a few times and then beat myself up badly becuase of it. But tomorrows another day.........

Sugar is addictive, no doubt about it and it's a major problem in our society today.Its a cheap additive in millions of processed foods, and it gives us a temporary 'high' that makes us crave more when the high wears off.It also lowers the immune system ;just one teaspoon can supress the immune system for up to four hours. During stressful periods of our lives we are more likely to use sugar and alcohol as a crutch as it induces an emotional response which can help temporarily.

I would guess that there are millions of people wandering around with candida out of control inside them, but they're just not aware of it.Not just that, overusing sugar can result in diabetes, and we're now seeing this being more prevelant in children which is terrible and unnecessary.

Sugar to me is a legalised drug and there should be some steps put in place to control its use before more and more people develop serious health problems.

Wish me long on my quest to banish sugar and therefore candida, it can be a long process but I'm determined to rid my body of it however long it takes.

Today's Tip : Read food labels.

FAT - YOU NEED IT!

I'm still annoyed. Everytime I walk into a chemist there's a massive point of sale display for Alli, and I'm sure the dreaded pills are selling like hot cakes. One of the assistants in my local chemist told me she'd taken it, and made the mistake of eating a slice of pizza (well there you go, if you eat pizza you are asking for trouble aren't you whether you take Alli or not?!!!!!) and within seconds she'd had an accident down below.Sorry, but the whole thing really makes me feel ill.

So, todays blog is all about fat - one of the major macro nutrients and therefore something that we can't actually live without. Suggest again you really don't take Alli and send fat through your body at a hundred miles an hour - let your body do what it needs to do with it, just make sure you eat the right kind.

Why do we need fat? Lots of reasons, all important to varying degrees - here's a very simple basic list :

To make hormones

For energy (we store it for use when we need it)

For insulation, to keep warm

It gives us shape (whether we like it or not!)

It cushions the skin (be a bit painful otherwise)

It's a necessary part of every cell membrane

It helps nerve endings fire, so we can talk, walk, run, speak etc.

It promotes healthy skin, nails and hair

It helps transport fat soluble vitamins around the body from food - A, D, E and K

And lots more besides, so as you can see to take a pill that's going to pass fat straight through your body is depriving it of a very necessary, fundamental substance so please, please don't do it. There are far simpler, safer ways to release fat if you are overweight, none of which are quick fixes but I'll hold your hand all the way and we'll do it together. You just have to be in the right mindset; so, so determined.

Types of fats can be confusing but basically the ones to avoid eating totally are the hydrogenated, trans fats that your body doesn't know what to do with and so stores as a toxin. These fats are mainly found in processed CRAP foods so are relatively easy to keep out of the diet if you only buy wholesome fresh foods to prepare yourself. Actually, alot of the supermarkets are now guaranteeing that their own label products don't contain these 'nasties' but it's still worth going down the 'prepare yourself' route at least 80 per cent of the time just to be on the safe side.

Also, avoid low fat products - they've been 'tampered' with to remove the fat making them more processed and other things may have been added to increase the taste. Better going for full fat but less of it (depending on your metabolic type - contact me for details).

The best fats to include in your diet are poly and mono unsaturates. Polyunsaturates are the omegas - 3s and 6s. Omega 6s are common in our diets as they're used in lots of processed foods - found particulalry in vegeatable oils. Omega 3s we generally need to eat more of, and they can be found in oily fish, green leafy vegetables, linseeds and kidney beans. They help reduce inflammation, keep arteries flexible and are vital for brain function.
Too many omega 6s can promote inflammation - the equivalent of two tablesspoons of oil a day is sufficient in an adult diet.

Monounsaturates are found in oilve oil, and nuts particularly hazelnuts, pecans, macadamias, and avacadoes (my favourite food of all time)and amongst other things help with cholesterol.

Saturated fats, if good quality, organic and therefore naturally raised are absolutely fine to eat and are in fact necessary for insulating organs, forming sex hormones etc. Grass fed beef is a great source of saturated fat, as is one of the most versatile of foods - the coconut (see earlier blog for health benefits and they are many).

Unfortunately we tend to eat too much by way of processed foods ; meat pies, cakes and biscuits - all those visits to Greggs and Ainsleys at lunchtime may be quick and tasty,but you're doing yourself no favours. Too many of these bad saturates can clog up your arteries and increase the risk of heart diesase and strokes, and being overweight just is not where we want to be. It puts pressure on the joints, your organs, causes diabetes and allsorts of other diseases, AND puts a major strain on the NHS (and the government will never sort this because of the mutli national companies selling CRAP foods bringing in so much money to the country).

So there you have it. Fat is a good thing. Low fat diets are generally not unless medically supervised, so the Alli thing, just leave it well alone........please.

Today's Tip : (not done one of these for a while) think about what you're putting inside you. Respect your body and allow it to do its work efficiently and effectively by not feeding it CRAP.

Adult Nappies

Hurray for GlaxoSmithKline and their new 'anti obesity wonder drug' ALLI, which the FDA have approved to be sold over the counter. No longer will we have any weight issues in the world, all we have to do is pop three tiny pills a day and hey presto all our fat issues will be solved once and for all. Really, they claim it's that easy.

One slight problem is that if you take these little miracle pills you may experience a few side effects, but then isn't that to be totally expected, and accepted, with conventional medicine anyway. After all, who's suprised when they get thrush from a course of antibiotics - you just take more pills to get rid of that don't you?

But the side effects with ALLI are a little less socially acceptable than thrush - namely flatulence and rectal discharge. Yes, you heard, rectal discharge! For goodness sake, are they going to give away free adult sized nappies for us all to wear too?

I'm gob smacked, outraged and horrified that in the name of making an extremely large profit, these people who must have SOME intelligence between them think it's ok to sell such shit (excuse the pun) to the general public. Many of whom are so desperate for a quick, lazy, easy way to shift their blubber they will try anything.

I heard a girl interviewed on the radio today who said when she took ALLI she had to take three outfits of clothes into work with her because she kept having 'accidents', and another who said ALLI caused her so much embarrassment during her first relationship with a guy.

What is wrong with the world when we expect our lives to be made better, and our body's to look and feel better by taking three little pills a day. Most people who are overweight have emotional issue that go with it, which pill popping will NOT cure, and with side effect like the ones mentioned you'd have to be certified crazy to even contemplate having a go.

We have become a nation of 'quick fixes' - we want and expect everything yesterday, and weight loss if no different. But if we have any respect for our bodys whatsoever, even a tiny, weeny, little bit we might think about what is actually happening inside them when we pop these weight loss pills.

The science behind them is that they reduce fat absorption, so it's transported quickly out of the body with no fuss - other than some soiled clothing (yuk, yuk, yuk). But, and it is a big but - our body's NEED fat.Our brains need it to function efficiently, we need it for hormone production, we need it for insulation, we need it for our nerves to fire, we just NEED it.

The right sort, of course, not hydrogenated, trans fats which are in so many processed foods now but ALLI doesn't differentiate between types of fat, it lumps it all together and rushes it through with no time to enjoy the ride. It deprives our bodys of one of the vital nutrients, and that's a good thing?! Absolutely not!

It's time to get a grip - you can probably tell I am really really incensed by this one. The likes of Lighter Life and Sure Slim and Celebrity Slim and all those other miracle diets have nothing on this (side effects from these by the way - just gallstones! That's ok then.); ALLI gets the star prize.

What the hell is wrong with upping ones physical acttivity and reducing the amount of food one stuffs into ones mouth without thinking about the consequences. Yes this may take a little longer to produce results than ALLI but at least your clothes will be stain free, and your body will be absorbing the good fats it so desperatly needs.

Do I have a minority view here? Please, please lets have some comments!

Todays Tip : change one thing about your diet for the better each week. You know you can. RX

HEALTHY DIGESTION

I've been chatting to some clients recently about their eating habits and how they digest foods. Seems like there are an awful lot of undesirable symptoms going on following meals including bloating, burping, constipation, acid reflux, gurgling, griping pains and I could go on. And judging by the number of over the counter medicines relating to digestion we are a nation of people who could do with some assistance in this area.

So, todays blog includes tips for a healthy digestion and even if you add in one a week you'll be doing your gut a big favour. I'm sure I've covered most of this stuff before but it's always good to re evaluate, especially after Easter!

1. Don't do anything other than eat ie. concentrate on your meal (no tv watching, reading the paper etc. at the same time).

2. Play relaxing musci - so the parasympathetic nervous system kicks in and aids digestion.

3. Drink 2 glasses of water , clean and freash (filtered or mineral) 15 minutes before each meal. This stimulates digestive juices (alcohol on its own irritates the gut and activates the sympathetic nervous system which shuts down digestion).

4. Limit the use of dehydrated foods, as they often get stuck to the colon wall where they draw moisture out.

5. Avoid any foods you are intolerant towards or allergic to.

6. Chew food until it is liquidified.

7. Eat smaller meals more often (5-6 times per day). It's easier to digest and absorb than 3 meals.

8. Never supress the urge to go to the toilet. If you supress teh urge to defecate each day for as little as a week to three weeks you could cause a permanent traffic
jam. This disrupts digestion/inhibits absorption of nutrients and increases the toxicity of the bowel.

9. Wherever possible start your meal with raw (live) foods. All raw foods contain enzymes beneficial to digestion ie. pineapple and papaya aid digestion of meals.

10. Chew a handful of dried rice each morning.

11. Take digestive enzymes during your meal.

12. You should have a bowel movement 20-30 minutes after eating every meal, if your pooh train is operating on time.

13. Do the colon transit test - eat sweetcorn or beetroot and see how long it takes to come through.

14. To overcome parasites invading your gut and upsetting your gut flora, eat organic foods, raw foods, raw garlic, bentonite clay, chew your food, and keep your stress levels down.

15. Get your METABOLIC TYPE tested, this should automatically sort out some food issues. Contact me for further details or read earlier blog posts.

THE BODY IS THE BEST HEALER OF ALL< IF WE JUST LET IT DO ITS WORK.
RX