My Daily Wellness Tip

Are You Getting Enough Sunlight?

In the midst of winter, due to the cold, we often tend to spend a lot more time indoors.  As a result, this greatly reduces our exposure to sunlight. 

 

One of the direct side effects of not getting enough sunlight is a decrease in the natural production of vitamin D by the body.  This is very important because vitamin D is a precursor to many important functions in the body (i.e. calcium absorption, production of hormones, insulin secretion, etc.)

 

Therefore, make an effort every day to spend time outdoors.  As little as 20 minutes of exposure to sunlight has been shown to be beneficial.

Olympic lifts

I realise that most people don't do Olympic lifts and that's why I wanted to shine light on them.

Olympic lifts are the best exercises for performance, so if you play a sport or simply want to get in overall better shape you might be tempted to try it. Olympic lifts allow you to work intermuscle coordination, balance, functional flexibility and power all at once. They also create a large hormonal response when you're using a lot of weight making it great for gaining muscle.

If your in a sport that involves power, Olympic lifts are the king of all lifts. When doing my leg training internship I had the opportunity to learn Olympic lifts with one of Canada's greatest and when in class the coach said that an elite Olympic weight lifter can out sprint an elite sprinter in the first 40m.

But here's the problem,

Problem #1:it is riskier and more likely that you will hurt yourself because it requires precision of technique and good muscle balance. Another strength coach once told me it takes 3000 repetitions at 90% of your maximum to master this technique.

Problem #2: Most gym's don't allow it because it's loud when it falls. And even if you accomplished a good lift, it seems like it's out of control to average person.

But here are some rules if you want to get started.

• Learn the technique with a broom stick
• Have a good foundation of lifting weights first (a good front squat, overhead squat and shoulder press)
• Get a coach to watch over you or film yourself to see what your doing wrong

Sometimes when I feel I'm getting strong, I look at this video and it brings me back to reality. Have a look at how flawless his technique is and the speed and explosiveness of the bar for the amount of weight he is lifting.

Male Osteoporosis: A Silent Threat

When talking about men’s health, one of the most commonly brought up concerns is prostate cancer.  But prostate cancer is not the only threat to men.  Men are also at risk for osteoporosis, and men over the age of 50 actually have a greater risk of developing osteoporosis than they do prostate cancer.  If you are surprised by this, you are certainly not alone.

 

Osteoporosis is characterized by compromised bone strength that puts a person at an increased risk of fracture.  Women often develop thin bones from hormonal changes that occur after menopause, but men may develop the disease because of a hormonal condition called hypogonadism. 

 

Other risk factors for osteoporosis in men include:

-Aging        

-Alcoholism        

-Gastrointestinal disorders        

-Kidney stones        

-Smoking        

-Lack of physical activity        

-Low exposure to sunlight        

-Treatment with glucocorticoids (cortisone or prednisone)        

 

 

Eat a variety of meats/food

  

Eating a wide variety of foods is important for a few reasons. First of all you will be getting a wider variety of vitamins and minerals from your foods naturally.

Secondly many people do not know that you can develop allergies to foods simply by eating too much of them for too long. For example if you eat chicken day in, day out you may develop a slight allergy to chicken.

This is not to say you will have obvious reactions at all, you will probably not even notice you have developed a slight allergy. If your body did become sensitive to chicken it could simply start not running at 100% (that is if all else was perfectly in check). You would probably never know this had anything to do with your chicken you love to eat daily.

So eat a variety of foods to avoid this and to also get the most amount of vitamins and minerals from your foods as naturally as possible. If you are interested in allergy testing Free Form Fitness will be hosting a Naturopathic Doctor (www.optihealth.ca) once a month at our location and she will be doing testing like this.

Hormones Balance With Dr. Joel Villeneuve

Here is a recap of the video.

Hormones are an interconnected system that helps the body communicate from organ to organ. What Dr. Joel often encounters in her practice is women that tend to have a high estrogen to progesterone ratio caused by an overactive liver from toxins in the environment. Some of the symptoms would include, heavy PMS, cystic breast, irritability, sugar cravings, changes in body temperature, fatigue.

Small tip for helping women with this: Take a B-vitamin complex

Sleep problems are also caused from a hormone imbalance. The problem is this is a vicious cycle, your cortisol is high late in the day so you can't sleep. Sleep helps reduce strain on the sympathetic nervous system thus reducing cortisol. So getting cortisol under control is very important

In the case of Men, at age 30 the male hormones (testosterone) starts to decline causing a decrease in mental concentration, strength and causing you to change your body composition from gaining muscle to gaining fat.

Best way to increase testosterone is by reducing cortisol. Testosterone cannot be maximized when too much cortisol is flowing around.

Small tip for helping Men with this: Take a B-vitamin complex, balance blood sugar with small meals

 

A SNEAK PEEK AT THE 40-DAY CHALLENGE

Spots are filling up fast, so be sure to call or email today if you would like to register for the EXTREME MAKEOVER 40-DAY CHALLENGE! Here's a sneak peek at what you will learn if you attend.

In order for change to be effective and long lasting, it must come slowly,  so as not to shock the system or the brain. It's very difficult for your body to function well physically and mentally if it is unhealthy, under stress, and depleted of what it needs.

Consider this today...

What would it be like if you could consistently wake up refreshed, without having a coffee or another source of caffeine to get your day started?  What would it be like to go through a whole week, or even a day, without feeling stressed?  What would it feel like to look and feel your best nearly all the time?

 

Isn't this something that you would like to know the secret to?  Well, over the next 40 days, we will work together to get you there.  You are going to learn how to take care of your body, just like you take care of your car, your house, etc.

 

Day 1 Action Step: Just start moving from where you are.

"I find that the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving."  Oliver Wendell Holmes

You can register for FREE by calling 613-831-9665 or sending an email to health@hazeldeanchiropractic.com. Click here for more information.