Chili Peppers!!!

In honor of the Red Hot Chili Peppers recently getting inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I thought I'd post an article that I found very interesting about chili peppers. :) 

Chili Peppers: A Hot Ticket for a Healthy Diet
By Kim Kash

If you're one of those obnoxious, macho types who makes a big show of snacking on hot peppers for the shock value—keep it up! It looks like chili pepper hotheads may be less susceptible to inflammation, diabetes, prostate cancer, and heart disease. Plus, all that spicy hotness chases away congestion, and it even (ironically) helps to prevent stomach ulcers.

Native to Central and South America, chili peppers were introduced to Asia in the 1500s and have been a cornerstone of cuisines in both those parts of the world ever since. In the West, the heat of chili peppers is measured using the Scoville Organoleptic Test, named after Wilbur Scoville, the chemist who devised it in the early 1900s. It sounds very fancy and technical but, in fact, the Scoville method is a subjective process involving subjects who sip diluted solutions of ground chilis and sugar water. In other words, the Scoville Method isn't much more scientific than the Pepsi Challenge^®. There are now more scientific ways of measuring chili heat, but the Scoville method is still the one mostly used by the food industry.

Asian countries don't use the Scoville method; instead, they rely on the general rule of thumb that the smaller a chili is, the hotter it is. Again, not so much with the science, but it makes sense when you consider this: the hottest part of a chili pepper actually is not the seeds, but the white membrane where the seed attaches inside the pepper. Larger peppers have proportionately less of this membrane than smaller ones, so they are generally milder. We probably all think the seeds pack the punch in hot peppers because they sit in such close proximity to the membrane and absorb its heat, and then they often remain whole in pepper sauces and condiments.

The fiery goodness of chili peppers comes from capsaicin, which has been found to inhibit substance P, associated with the inflammatory process. The hotter the pepper, the more capsaicin it contains. Researchers are looking at capsaicin as a treatment for arthritis, psoriasis, and diabetic neuropathy. It seems counterintuitive that chili peppers would inhibit the inflammatory process, since handling them in the kitchen can irritate your fingers, and too many of them in the salsa can make your head feel like it's on fire, but there you have it.

Some veteran travelers to countries where the freshness of food can be questionable make it a point to eat food as spicy as they possibly can—that spice invariably coming from fresh or dried chilis—in order to ward off illness and boost immunity. Chili peppers have lots of beta-carotene, vitamin A and vitamin C, and they kill bacteria you may have ingested.

The capsaicin in chili peppers is also a thermogenic: it causes heat production and heat production burns calories. Even sweet red peppers increase the body's heat production for several minutes after they are consumed. Certainly there are more efficient ways to lose weight than stuffing your face with hot chili peppers! But isn't it nice to know that adding more salsa might help you burn that burrito off slightly faster?

Why Strength Train?

Okay, so I keep getting questions about whether or not women will "bulk up" if they start strength training.  The answer to that is no (because we're women - bulkiness is basically testosterone-related). YOU MUST STRENGTH TRAIN (yep, I said MUST) and the article below tells you exactly why.  I couldn't put it in better words, so I thought I would just copy the article "as is".


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Why Strength Train?
By Kathy Smith


Still not convinced you should strength train? Here's a good reason. After the age of 30, we all lose a quarter pound of muscle mass each year. Yikes! With less muscle, our metabolism slows down and we gain fat—averaging about 15 pounds a decade. While muscle is metabolically active (each pound of muscle burns approximately 35 to 50 calories per day), stored fat is not, burning far fewer calories. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn throughout the day, whether you're walking, vacuuming . . . even sleeping! What's more, while aerobic activity burns fat during exercise, weight training utilizes fat hours after exercising, so your metabolism stays slightly elevated for a longer period of time following a strength-training session than following an aerobic workout.

It's time - let's get started!

I know the holidays are upon us - but aren't you ready to do this?  I don't plan on putting on weight this holiday season and hopefully you don't plan it either (why start out the year on a bad foot?).  So, let's do the BeachBody challenge!  Here's a video about it:  
So, if you're ready to join me:
1. Go to this link http://www.teambeachbody.com/connect/beachbody-challenge?referringRepId=50511 
2. Scroll down and click TAKE THE CHALLENGE!
3. You will fill out the Beachbody Challenge Pledge and be all signed up for the BIG BEACHBODY CHALLENGE
4. THEN you will be able to choose your Challenge Pack!!!

Hypothyroidism - what to look for and what to expect

Hypothyroidism is a condition/disease where your body is lacking the sufficient amount of thyroid hormone. The problem with this condition is that the thyroid is in charge of your metabolism. When you lack thyroid hormone, your metabolism slows. You can see how this plays into weight loss...right? When someone is hypothyroid, it is EXTREMELY difficult to lose weight. Where one person can lose 2 pounds in a week, you may only lose .5 of a pound.

This actually happened to me just last week, I was thrilled with losing 7 pounds over the last 2 months drinking Shakeology and increasing my workouts. Then my friend tells me 'oh, I've been doing the same thing, I'm down 15 pounds'. UGH! This is where your 'will' to lose weight has to be the strongest ever. You CAN do it, you have to work REALLY hard at it, and it's WORTH IT!

Maybe you're unsure of whether you are hypothyroid. Some of the signs of hypothyroidism are:

Fatigue
Weakness
Weight gain or increased difficulty losing weight
Coarse, dry hair
Dry, rough pale skin
Hair loss
Cold intolerance (you can't tolerate cold temperatures like those around you)
Muscle cramps and frequent muscle aches
Irritability
Memory loss
Abnormal menstrual cycles
Decreased libido
Constipation
Depression

You may have just a few of these symptoms or you may have many of them, each person is different. For me, I had many of the symptoms, but I kept coming up with other excuses for them. Then, once I started losing my hair, I high-tailed it to a Doctor! Lo and behold, I found out that I have a version of hypothyroidism called Hashimoto's Disease (a disease where the body attacks the thyroid, because it thinks it is something bad).

If you think you may be hypothyroid, you must visit your DOCTOR asap. You can see your regular doctor, but it's even better to visit an Endocrinologist. He/She will do the proper blood tests so you will know, once and for all, whether it's your thyroid that's wreaking havoc on your life. Good luck!