Introducing...Chocolate VEGAN Shakeology!!!

I can't wait to try it, I hear it has more of a 'dark chocolate' taste...I don't know if it's true, but that's what I hear!  (and I LOVE dark chocolate)

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?

To eat or not to eat, before working out

Hey, have you heard - we are nearing summer (lol!).  You know what it means...BATHING SUITS!  So, it's time to get your workout on!!!  Food is your fuel, not your enemy (even though you are thinking about that bathing suit).  I found this quick article on how to get the most out of your fuel before that killer workout...

Pre-Workout Eating
By Steve Edwards
 
How much you should eat before your workout depends on the type of workout that you plan on doing: high, moderate, or low intensity. If you're going to do a low-intensity workout, don't eat before your workout because it will just make you feel sluggish. On the other hand, for moderate to high-intensity workouts, you'll want to have some reserve carbs in your system to perform the best.

Here are some caloric guidelines:
·         If it's 3 or 4 hours before your exercise, eating a large meal is OK (600 calories or more).
·         If it's 2 or 3 hours beforehand, a smaller meal is better (400 to 500 calories).
·         If it's 1 or 2 hours before, a liquid meal is a good choice (300 to 400 calories).
If it's an hour beforehand, a small snack will do (200 to 300 calories).

Try not to eat during the last hour before you begin a workout because it floods your system with too much blood sugar during those initial stages of your workout.

It's HERE!! The Ultimate Reset!!

It's here, it's here, it's here!!!  The Ultimate Reset! Straight from the website at the link below:

The Ultimate Reset

If you've been feeling tired, run down, or just plain lousy lately . . . if you're having trouble with your digestion or difficulty losing weight . . . if your body just isn't working the way you want it to . . . the solution may be simpler than you think. The solution may be an Ultimate Reset™ .

In just three weeks, the Beachbody Ultimate Reset will restore your body to its original "factory settings," so you'll have more energy and greater focus, experience better digestion and a more positive mood, you'll notice that your body is functioning more efficiently, helping you lose weight and improve your overall health.

And you'll do it all without drugs . . . without fasting . . . naturally and painlessly. You'll do it with Ultimate Reset.

I can't WAIT until I'm done with P90X2 so that I can try this!! I have about 6 more weeks to go and then - I'll be all over this one!

Click here for more info!

The reason to drink Shakeology every day, IMO...

This article did it for me.  It explains why I need these nutrients --- EVERY day. Please read on...

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The Hunting of Shakeology Ingredients!

By Darin Olien

OK, how did the over 70 ingredients end up in this fantastic blend of potent nutrition and yumminess? Like I mentioned in a previous article I started with some questions. I asked myself, "What do most bodies require in this day and age?" "What is not being delivered in food today (and even good, organic food)?" "What are the gaps in nutrition that need to be filled for the majority of people?"

But the first question was, "Why do we even need a shake with that much nutrition anyway? What's wrong with the food we eat anyway?"

The fact is, these days, our food is lacking nutrients. The nutrient density of our food has continued to plummet as the value of money has trumped the value of quality. It is insane, but true!

The facts are well documented. Pushing farm production has depleted soils. Crops of non-nutritive foods have replaced nutrition-dense foods. And pesticides and genetic modification are wreaking havoc with the chemical and genetic markers that have evolved over the centuries. That means we're putting more food into the pipeline that has less of what we need and more of what we don't need. On a biological level, your body hardly recognizes the food we are swallowing.

Ask yourself…how do you expect your body to live tirelessly, vibrantly, with the power to defend itself from disease if what is being fed into it is like putting dirty gas in the tank of a Ferrari? What a waste of a beautiful sports car!

If we want our health to improve, we need to be aware so we can choose differently, and in this case, we chose to create something to fulfill the deep desire of EVERYbody's need to be fed more nutrition. So we started by filling in those gaps, giving the body what it really wants and requires!

The result is 70-plus ingredients, feeding the body the equivalent of a supercharged multivitamin and protein-rich health smoothie. As important as the ingredients are, what drove their inclusion was the body's need for these vital ingredients, the cornerstones of Shakeology's creation:

1.      Whole foods. So many supplements on the market are just fragmentations of the complete matrix of real food. Think of it like taking the most popular scene from a two-hour movie and calling THAT the movie. It's incomplete without the character development, plot, and nuance that make it a holistic experience. The same goes with food. On a biological level, your body needs the whole "movie" to get the complete benefit of the vitamin or mineral that is the star. You just cannot replace or reengineer the incredible balance and creation of whole foods. So we selected high-quality, potent foods, herbs, grasses, and ingredients and then processed them minimally to preserve the integrity, phytochemicals, natural vitamins, minerals, alkaloids, phytosterols, etc. This was a huge aspect of Shakeology getting the whole, deliverable nutrition in bio-available ways.

2.      Vitamins and minerals. We included quality nutrition from potent and varying whole-food sources ("nutrition, right off the vine" as I like to call it). And then we backed that up by adding in a well-balanced vitamin and mineral profile since whole foods fluctuate from crop to crop.

3.      Enzymes. Enzymes are critical for optimal health. But since enzymes flood the food only in the last days of ripening before harvest, enzyme supplementation is critical for the majority of people. Even if you eat all raw foods, the enzymes are still low. And cooked food has ZERO active enzymes.

A very quick note . . . why enzymes? They have been called "The Fountain of Life!" They are behind EVERY single process in the body! Yes, EVERYTHING requires enzymes! The labor force of the body that digests, absorbs, allows for signals to be sent, creates new blood cells, etc. is all governed by enzymes. You would be shocked at how starved your body has been for enzyme support. That's why the addition of these vital forces to Shakeology was so critical!

4.      Prebiotics and Probiotics. We've all heard about foods with additive probiotics, like yogurts for instance. Did you know that your body can actually manifest its own probiotics if you feed it prebiotics? With the way people eat today they have created a thriving environment for UNHEALTHY BACTERIA in the body. That has created all sorts of debilitating breakdowns of the body: candida, fibromyalgia, even the foundation for mental and emotional fatigue…and on and on. The prebiotics of the amazing yacon root (which I will get into in future posts) is food for the "healthy" bacteria, and in turn creates an environment for healthy probiotics to flourish. By getting our internal "ecosystem" in balance, you have the potential for a vibrant, thriving body and life! It's complex, and even difficult to fathom an ecosystem inside your own body, but it cannot be underestimated. You need prebiotics to help you foster probiotics!

5.      MSM (Methylsulfonylmethane). MSM is a naturally occurring sulfur compound found in FRESH, RAW fruits and vegetables, milk, fish, and grains. But within hours of harvest, MSM changes and is virtually gone. That's why it is very difficult to get MSM naturally, because where ancient man ate what he picked almost instantly, today it is picked, processed, packaged, and palleted for months before it hits the table. MSM is long gone. But why is it important? MSM is critical to the connective tissue and the fluidity (or space) between cells! MSM gives them "room to breathe." When the body becomes very rigid, tight, painful and stiff, oftentimes MSM is at very low quantities in the body. Since we are not eating our own foods immediately after harvesting we MUST supplement this vital component or the body has a hard time staying healthy and flexible on a cellular level, which translates throughout the body on a biomechanical level as well.

Minty Shamrock Protein Shake

Since we are rapidly approaching St. Patrick's Day - here's a new recipe for you!

Minty Shamrock Protein Shake
If you're not using Greenberry Shakeology, you don't need to add the peanut butter.  Greenberry is LOADED with veggies & nutrient-dense ingredients.  For some reason, the peanut butter completely "cuts" that "green" aftertaste.  The PB is not needed if you will be making your shake with regular vanilla protein powder.

-1 scoop of Greenberry Shakeology (or a vanilla protein powder of your choice)
-2 heaping tablespoons PB2 powdered peanut butter (or 1 teaspoon peanut butter)
-2 tablespoons fat-free, sugar-free cheesecake-flavored instant pudding mix (this makes it creamy like ice cream)
-couple of drops of mint extract (play with the amount - too much will clear your sinuses & too little makes the shake blah.)
-2 cups of ice
-Truvia or Stevia sweetener, to taste

Toss the protein powder, peanut butter, pudding mix, mint, ice, and sweetener into a blender.  Blend from medium speed to high, adding water as needed until the shake has your preferred consistency.

Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Makes 1 serving
Per serving:  210 calories, 20 g protein, 33 g carbohydrates, 2 g total fat, 5 g dietary fiber, 513 mg sodium

From Chalene Johnson's book "PUSH"

Shakeology - article in Businessweek

This is a fascinating article about Shakeology in "Businessweek".  I loved the stuff before and now I really love it.  :)  So, I need (I said "need") to share it with you:


http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/the-adventures-of-superfood-man-01262012.html


Read it...it's worth 5 minutes of your day!! :)


THEN --- when you want more information about it (I said "when"), go to my site to do your research:  http://www.shakeituptoday.com.

Shakeology and Vitamins

With regard to drinking Shakeology, here's one of the MOST common questions that I get: 


Should I continue to take ActiVit® or other multivitamins along with Shakeology?


From www.shakeituptoday.com:
Because of the way Shakeology is formulated, one shake pretty much covers your body's normal daily requirement for vitamins and minerals. However, if you're following a recommended exercise routine, your body is likely to be using up those nutrients at a faster rate. For example, if you're doing P90X® or INSANITY®-hard-charging routines that burn more calories, along with vitamins and minerals-you may need some additional supplementation, like ActiVit. Due to the digestive enzymes in Shakeology, taking ActiVit at the same time you drink Shakeology will help your body to better absorb all the nutrients.


Also, I ALWAYS get people who request to see the nutrition labels, so here ya go, happy reading!

*Greenberry label*

*Chocolate label*

Shakeology 3 Day Cleanse

I get people all the time ask me...what is the Shakeology 3 Day cleanse?  Well, here is what you need to know, are you ready...?

- 3 days (maximum)
- calorie-restricted (800-1200 per day)
- nutrient-dense eating plan
- flushes toxins
- used as a 'jump start' or 'plateau breaker'

Possible results
- weight loss
- feeling cleaner, healthier
- less bloat

Below is an outline of the program. (It is the same for all 3 days.)

Start: One cup green tea
Breakfast: Shakeology (with water and ice only – may add ½ piece fruit)
Snack: One piece fruit
Lunch: Shakeology (water and ice only) followed by one cup green tea
Snack: Shakeology (water and ice only) – can drink this after dinner instead
Dinner: Salad with greens, 3 servings of veggies, 4 ozs of grilled white meat or fish (or tofu, beans, of vegetarian) and 2 tablespoons low-fat salad dressing

NOTE: you can eat your salad for lunch instead of dinner if you prefer

DRINK LOTS OF WATER

NO DAIRY (EVEN ALMOND MILK/ RICE MILK)

The cleanse is made to do with exercise, but not INTENSE exercise. Also, it is not recommended to do the cleanse more than once a month. Remember that bodies are different and will have different reactions and results, so it is important to pay attention to how you feel. If you have an adverse reaction - STOP. If you have any medical conditions or questions, ask your doctor.

Good Luck! :)

Underactive Thyroid and Food

Being hypothyroid for the past ~8 years, I have done quite a bit of my own research on what foods I should and shouldn't eat. More foods than you realize may affect how thyroid medication is absorbed, so it is important to know the potential effects of different foods BEFORE you eat them. I am including a link to this article because these are the foods that most individuals agree on. There are others out there, that I will bring up another day, that are more controversial (soy, for instance).


http://www.livestrong.com/article/255372-healthy-foods-for-an-underactive-thyroid/


It is important to remember to take your medication everyday (synthroid for me). I take mine first thing in the morning with a giant glass of water on an empty stomach. Per the directions: I wait one hour before eating anything (which makes for a hungry workout!!) and avoid vitamins, minerals, and supplements for at least four hours. This is why I drink my Shakeology for LUNCH not breakfast - better to be safe than sorry!