New To Real Foods

So... You have finally decided to change your eating habits and focus on real, whole foods. Good for you. That is a step in the right direction to decrease any long-term illness (hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, auto-immune diseases, etc). There are so many websites and "diets" that really push their style of eating. Is it confusing? Damn straight. I have tinkered with my diet so many times over the past couple of years and finally found what works for me. I don't follow Paleo because I consume dairy and sprinkle some maple syrup and honey (raw if I can find it) every now and then on some stuff. But two things I do avoid is grains and stuff with added sugar. Only because they make me feel like crap after consuming them. I know I mentioned that I have a little maple syrup and honey but they do contain some nutritional benefits whereas table sugar, artificial sweeteners, and anything ending with -ose are nutritionally void.


In order to make things easier for you when it comes to selecting the right foods to consume, Nourished Kitchen has 10 simple steps to follow to steer you in the right direction. Check it out here!

Are They Worth It?

Are the supplements you are taking working for the reasons you think they should? Or do you take the supplements just because "my doctor told me so" or "I heard it on the news"?


Below is a screen capture of the website that contains information as to which supplements are good for which condition.

To find out which supplements are good for a certain condition, click here to check out the bubbles. When you click on the bubble, it will direct you to scientific studies that will support the finding as to why the selected supplement will work, or won't be beneficial, for 'X' condition.

Here is the continuation from Part 1.

So in Part 1 we discussed the body's composition with regards to water. Also, dehydration and how it can affect performance.

Many people detest the taste of water. Or even the lack of taste. A very easy solution to this problem... slice up some fruit and let it sit in the water container. Pour yourself a glass of water and enjoy! Another way is to enjoy a cup of tea. Some people are concerned with the caffeine content in some teas because caffeine has been found to exert diuretic effects. But it has been proven that the diuretic effect has little impact on the excretion of water.

Water (Part 1)

I apologize about the delay between posts. Other than laziness, I don't really have a valid excuse.


Here is a post I did well over a year ago. I am reposting it due to the hot, humid weather we have encountered over the past couple of days. And now that summer is coming upon us, it is vitally important to stay well hydrated before, during, and after working out.







Water is an important substance that is required for pretty much everything done in the human body. It allows for chemical reactions to occur, lubrication, nutrient & vitamin delivery (in the form of digestion), waste disposal, heat dispersion, and temperature regulation.

The adult human body is composed of 45 - 60% water. The brain is made up of over 80% water. Muscle is composed of 80% water whereas fat is only 20%. As a result, the lower a person's body fat percentage, the higher the percentage of water.

Food Is Not Optional

I had a conversation with an athlete recently about concerns of abdominal fat and how to get rid of it. I gave my answer of:

• you can't isolate a particular body area to remove fat from (unless you look into liposuction - NOT RECOMMENDED)
• performing high intensity workouts along with a clean diet will allow the body to start burning fat to be used as energy

Then I was asked about running and getting rid of abdominal fat. My jaw clenched for a second:

• running is a great exercise to keep the heart rate elevated and experience the feeling of "runners high", like you accomplished something great
• any type of moderate intensity, long-distance running causes a hormone in the body, cortisol, to be released
• leads to a breakdown of muscle protein (that's why distance runners are skinny and possess no muscle mass) - NOT GOOD FOR OUR INTENTIONS
• with prolonged cortisol secretion, the adrenal glands become exhausted and weak resulting in adrenal fatigue
• can lead to increased body fat, depression, and other symptoms
• so, if you're going to run, do sprint intervals

Afterwards, I remembered a great post the I had read with regards to how important nutrition is whether you are exercising or not. Click here for the site or continue on for the article:

What We Feed Our Kids (and ourselves)

World renowned chef, Jamie Oliver, is determined on improving the diets of people in the United Kingdom and United States. He is also a strong advocate of removing processed foods from schools.


The following is an excerpt from his show Jamie Oliver Food Revolution.

Gestational Diabetes (Part 2)

In Part 1 of the gestational diabetes article, we learned, in a nut shell, what gestational diabetes is and how it affects the fetus and mother. Now, without further adieu, is the second instalment of gestational diabetes.

How does GD occur?

It’s believed that pregnancy hormones such as progesterone (being the main culprit along with cortisol), human placental lactogen, prolactin, and estradiol all interfere with the action of insulin. These hormones bind to the insulin receptors on cell membranes.