7 Things to Promote Weightloss All Day

The best part of mornings is that they’re so full of potential! No matter whether you laced up your sneaks yesterday or overindulged on a co-worker’s birthday cake, it’s a fresh chance to get closer to your health goals. To keep that get-fit momentum going all day long, start your day off right with these morning habits that will motivate you even more.

1. Get Some Sun Basking in the sun’s rays can help you drop pounds, according to research published in the journal PLOS ONE. Study authors had 54 participants wear wrist monitors that recorded their exposure to morning light for seven days. During that period, participants kept food diaries to track their calorie intake. The people who spent more time in morning light had lower BMIs than those who were in the dark, no matter their age, activity level, or what they ate. Why? Morning light helps regulate your internal clock, which aids your sleep schedule (crucial for weight loss). Morning sunshine also contains higher levels of blue light, which has the strongest effect on your circadian rhythm. You only need 20-30 minutes of morning sunlight between 8 a.m. and noon to get in on these benefits!
2. Sleep In This one goes hand-in-hand with the previous tip. Spending more time on those precious Zzzs can help you eat less and have fewer cravings than people who skimp on sleep. Researchers at the University of Chicago and the University of Wisconsin tracked the sleep of 10 overweight young adults who were at risk for obesity and who self-reported fewer than six and a half hours of shut-eye each night. For the first week of the study, they stuck with their regular sleep schedules. For the second and third, the study authors had them bump it up to eight and a half hours. On average, they slept around an additional 1.6 hours and experienced a 14% decrease in appetite and a 62% drop in cravings for sweet and salty junk. If you’re groaning each time your alarm goes off, try to rearrange your schedule so you can spend a little more a.m. time in bed.
3. Get In A Mindful Mood Mindfulness is a key strategy when it comes to weight loss. It’s all about taking a focused, intentional approach to your life by really tuning in to your body and mind. Even better, it can stabilize your emotions, potentially making you less likely to give into stressed-based eating. Researchers at the University of Utah had 38 people between ages 20 to 45 fill out a survey that measured how mindful they were naturally. For two days, participants rated their emotions throughout the day in addition to tracking their physical and cognitive arousal before sleep to measure anxiety. Those who were naturally mindful had experienced less irregular mood swings. Rather than trying to kick-start this habit when faced with your first meal, begin your morning with mindfulness instead: Take a few minutes at the start of each day to sit quietly and focus on the rhythm of your breath.
4. Change Up Your Commute Driving to work is easy, but it may not be best for your waistline. A study published in the journal BMJ shows that people who walk, bike, and take public transportation have lower BMIs and body-fat percentages than those who depended on their cars to get to work. The University College London team of researchers collected the BMIs and body-fat percentages of more than 7,000 people. Participants then completed a survey about how they usually got themselves to the office. The women who used a method other than a car had a BMI that was around 0.7 less than the others, which is about a 5.5-pound difference on the scale. Note that this doesn’t exclude public transportation! Even walking to the closest bus stop or train station can be beneficial.
5. Go High-Protein While the jury’s still out on whether breakfast is essential for weight loss, a healthy dose of protein in the morning looks like it can help you drop pounds. Scientists at Biofortis Clinical Research and the University of Missouri department of exercise physiology and nutrition gave 35 women from the ages of 18 to 55 three different breakfasts. One was just a glass of water, while the others clocked in at around 300 calories each (and had equal fat and fiber counts). One of those had three grams of protein, while the other had 30 to 39 grams, which is more than two-thirds of the RDA. Those who had high-protein breakfasts felt less hungry and ate 175 fewer calories at lunch. Protein takes a long time to digest and pushes your body to secrete the gut hormone Peptide YY, which helps increase feelings of fullness.
6. Work Up A Sweat Obviously, working out at any point is going to be a good thing! But besides giving your metabolism a boost that lasts well into the day, a study in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that women who exercised in the morning were less distracted by pictures of delicious food. They had 17 participants with healthy weights and BMIs and 18 obese participants walk briskly for 45 minutes in the morning. Apart from not being as interested in pictures of unhealthy food, study subjects were more active throughout the day, no matter their weight.
7. Pack The Day’s Snacks Avoid the afternoon dash to the office vending machine with this one: Take just a few minutes each morning to make sure you’ve got enough snacks to take you through the day, suggests Keri Glassman, MS, RD, a Women’s Health contributor. When you’ve just woken up, it’s easy to underestimate how much fuel you’ll need throughout the day and just throw an apple in your bag. Instead, budget extra time to whip up some quick, healthy snacks that will keep you on the road to weight-loss success. Even better, just throw them in your bag after prepping them the previous weekend.

Moving on

Pain is what I feel right now…….I never dreamed I could be so attached to an animal. My precious Dixie Mae left this world on Friday. My life is forever changed because of her. I’ve mourned. I’ve grieved. I’ve even self-medicated. Sleep has been my solitude. When I sleep I feel nothing, which is what I want more than anything. I can’t help but wonder what I’ve done to deserve this pain. I’m not perfect….far from it. I’ve done things I’m not proud of. And I’ve paid a high price for those things. How much more do I have to pay. I’ve lost everything. All my parents within 18 months and all to terrible deaths. Through all that I had my precious Dixie Mae. And now she’s gone. I almost have to chose to believe that there is no God. If I believe that there is, I have to believe that he is a cruel and vindictive entity that inflicts nothing but pain on those who are weak. I hate feeling that way but I don’t know how not to. I’ve begged this god for forgiveness….for love…for favor….but have received nothing. I feel like a small child begging her parents for love only to have them slap her face and walk away. God continues to swing at me and I’m not sure how many more times I can get up. So at this point I have to believe in only me. I have to believe that what I have, I have not because of a higher power but because I worked for it. I have to believe that it is I who must look out for me. It’s sad….it’s like a death really. Everything that I have based my life on is changing. But I will keep moving on. It’s what I do. I can’t give up. I have to put on my big girl panties and live to fight another day……

Chlorella..the super supplement you may not know about

Chlorella is one of the most widely studied food supplements in the world. Aside from being the subject of medical research in the USA, USSR, Germany, Japan, France, England and Israel, chlorella has been extensively studied as a food source since it is made up of a whopping 50 percent protein and is considered a complete amino acid-based food.
Even NASA has studied using chlorella as the one of first whole foods in space on the international space station!
Studies in Japan have shown chlorella may help reduce body fat percentage and may be useful in fighting obesity and weight related diabetes. It may also help reduce both cholesterol and hypertension. Chlorella’s cleansing action on your bowel and other elimination channels, as well as its protection of your liver, also helps promote clean blood. And clean blood helps assure metabolic waste get efficiently carried away from your tissues.
Chlorella is such a powerful detoxifier because it is rich in chlorophyll, which is known to:
Aid you in processing more oxygen
Cleanse key elimination systems like your bowel, liver, and blood
Help purify your blood and clean away toxins
Aid you in promoting optimal blood pressure
Support elimination of molds in your body
Help neutralize bad air you might breathe in
Promote growth and repair of your tissues
Chlorella is actually very useful even beyond detoxification, and its range of health benefits includes:
Boosting your immune system
Improving your digestion, especially if constipation is a problem
Providing B vitamins from an animal source
Enhancing your ability to focus and concentrate
Increasing your energy levels
Balancing your body’s pH
Normalizing your blood sugar and blood pressure
Reducing your cancer risk
Freshening your breath
A three-year double-blind metal detoxification study with over 350 people participating was undertaken at a Russian metal foundry, where more than 20 natural compounds were used in trials to remove heavy metals from people who had been exposed at very high levels to four main metals — antimony, lead, cadmium and arsenic.
What were the results of testing chlorella as a heavy metal detoxification agent? The Russian trial using Broken Cell Wall chlorella combined with cilantro eliminated ALL heavy metals, including mercury! With no reported side-effects! In fact, the heavy metal binding power of chlorella was first discovered in the mining industry. Mixed with water, they pumped chlorella into mine shafts to collect the residual metals after bulk mining was completed.
Not All Chlorella is Created Equal

Unlike many food supplements, chlorella has one unique feature that makes the manufacturing process one of the primary concerns when considering a source of supplementation. Chlorella is completely indigestible by humans. We simply do not have the enzymes to break down its cell wall.
Unlike other green foods, chewing and digesting chlorella will not release the powerful health benefits contained within this green algae. This is because chlorella’s tough outer cell wall, which is also chemically responsible for binding with the toxins inside your body, cannot be broken down by your biology,
Therefore, it is imperative that the manufacturing process break down the tough outer cell wall for you, as this is the only way to make the chlorella biologically available to remove toxins from your body.
This is why I only recommend supplementing with Broken Cell Wall chlorella, because this is the only form that allows your body to use this powerful detoxification agent. Another concern when choosing your chlorella is to be sure that the source waters where it is grown and harvested are free of any contamination. Since chlorella is a natural green food, it will be affected by polluted water and will retain environmental toxins if it’s grown in contaminated waters. So be certain any chlorella you supplement with comes from a naturally clean water source.
One other aspect of chlorella you need to be aware of is some people tolerate it better than others.
You should always start any detox with chlorella gradually, taking just a small amount at first to see how your body tolerates this powerful detoxification tool. Some people also report benefits from beginning a detoxification by first eating small amounts of cilantro for a few days. Cilantro also promotes a detoxification response in your body, but at a less intense level — which may help your body ease into a smoother detoxification response from chlorella.
The best results of using broken cell wall chlorella for detoxification have also been documented as coming from mixing chlorella with the green plant cilantro, so this might be another consideration for you when undertaking your detoxification program. I recommend finding an organic source of cilantro, to insure you are not putting more unwanted chemicals into your body as you try to detoxify your body’s already existing heavy metal burden.
Learn more about me at http://www.empowerwellnessholistichealthcenter.com

The antioxidant nobody talks about

Glutathione is considered to be the master antioxidant and detoxifier of the cell. Without glutathione, the antioxidant system breaks down, and toxic chemicals hang around to wreak havoc in our cells and tissues. Glutathione is so critical because it’s the cell’s first line of defense against the toxins that enter your body through the foods, liquids and gases you take in.

Among the different antioxidants found in the body, glutathione performs a very unique role. Its main function is to provide cell protection as well as boost other healthy compounds in the body. It is essential in the proper functioning of different systems of the body like:

Respiratory system
Gastrointestinal system
Nervous system
Immune system
Glutathionealso aids in proper metabolism of nutrients and absorbs harmful chemicals. Because it performs a very crucial role, the glutathione level of our body is equivalent to our level of health.

What Affects Glutathione Level

Because it is a naturally-produced substance, the body produces glutathione as needed. However, there are number of factors that affect the normal level of this important substance in our body.

Age – The most common reason for glutathione depletion is age. The older a person gets the lesser glutathione the body produces.
Diseases – Diseases also contribute to the ability of the body to produce or recycle glutathione.
Diet and Pollution – Diet and pollution are considered by many experts as the biggest culprits in glutathione reduction. It is a known fact that in order to be healthy, we need to eat healthy foods. Unfortunately our lifestyle today has given us easy access to any food that we like to eat, regardless of their health benefits. We have become so accustomed to fast food and junk foods that our body becomes a dumping ground of chemicals. The influx of harmful chemicals to the body prevents the natural production of glutathione, and eventually there are more toxic materials in our body than glutathione.
Environmental Factors- Aside from our diet, our environment also contributes to the depletion of the glutathione level in our body. Pollution is the biggest hazard that we encounter on a daily basis and the heavy metals that we breathe in daily eventually find their way into our organs and cause illnesses. The stress brought about by our lifestyle also contributes in our body’s inability to function properly.
The combination of aging, stressful lifestyle, pollution, and unhealthy diet is just too much for our body to create or recycle glutathione. Once the body is overwhelmed, it will eventually succumb to illness.

How to Boost the Body’s Glutathione Level

There are two ways of introducing glutathione to our body: artificial and natural. The artificial method involves taking glutathione supplement in a pill form. For a lot of people, their introduction to the benefits of glutathione revolves around marketing information about this kind of supplement. Although it is a very convenient way of supplying our body with this substance, it is not really as effective as we think it is. For one, our digestive system does not absorb glutathione very well. Only a small percentage of oral glutathione actually gets transferred to the circulatory system of our body.

Secondly, glutathione supplements prevent the body from producing the substance naturally. As the chemical is detected by the body, it regulates its natural production to the point where it completely stops, which in turns leads to dependence on supplements.

The most advisable way of getting glutathione into our body is through the natural way. Eating the right kinds of food that help boost glutathione production is the primary means of ensuring that we have enough of this essential antioxidant in our body. The key here is not to introduce glutathione, but to induce our body to produce the chemical naturally.

The Best Ways to Increase the Body’s Glutathione Level

First, you need a lifestyle check: how can you prevent unnecessary depletion of glutathione? Are you active enough to induce natural glutathione production? You see, exercising regularly helps keep glutathione at the optimum level. Simple exercises like jogging, walking, or cycling keeps the body active, helps in metabolism that leads to better immune system response, detoxification, and improves antioxidant function.

You may also need to cut down on your alcohol consumption. Although there are some health benefits in drinking wine in moderation, prolonged exposure of the liver to alcohol prevents the organ to produce the antioxidant regularly. Without the detoxifying effect of the liver, the body becomes overwhelmed by toxins and free radicals that results in diseases.

Eat the Right Foods

The best way to boost glutathione level naturally is by eating the right kind of healthy foods that contain either natural glutathione or elements that can help in the production of the antioxidant. Foods that are rich in amino acids are considered the best sources of glutathione.

Fruits and veggies. Fruits and vegetables must be eaten raw to maximize their glutathione content. Some examples of glutathione-rich foods are tomato, broccoli, garlic, spinach, asparagus, avocado, and walnuts.
Milk thistle. Aside from getting enough natural glutathione supply from natural sources, preventing glutathione depletion is also equally important. Milk thistle contains the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammation chemical silymarin which is essential in treating liver-related illnesses and helps in boosting glutathione level.
Vitamins and minerals. Vitamins B6, B12, and B9 (folic acid) are considered as the most effective natural glutathione producers in the body. Needless to say, eating foods like salmon, tuna, scallops, beef and lamb (for B12), spinach, banana, potato, chicken (for B6), and lettuce, asparagus, spinach, and lentils (for folic acid) is highly recommended.
Whey to go. This can be a bit tricky because there are so many products in the market today that contains whey. However, they also contain chemicals and sugar that may have adverse health effects. So if you choose whey as glutathione-booster, you have to make sure that it came from grass-feeding cows which are not exposed to synthetic hormones or pesticides. Another consideration is the way it is processed. Cold processing is the only way to go as heat destroys the molecular structure of whey.
Curcumin, a naturally occurring chemical compound that is found in turmeric, may also be useful for increasing glutathione levels.
Protein rich foods. 3 amino acids – cysteine, glycine and glutamate – are the precursors to glutathione production. Protein-rich foods tends to be high in all 3. But heating or pasteurizing them destroys many of the glutathione-producing properties.
Glutathione is very important in our overall health status. It cleanses our body of toxic substances, helps improve our immune system to fight off diseases, and prevents health concerns that can be fatal. In our effort to remain healthy, it is very important that we consider the most effective method of improving the glutathione level of our body. Supplements can be an option, but doing it the natural way is still the best.

Being generous

If you’re like most people, you’re an extremely generous person. You most likely give and give and give. So much so it’s likely that you give until there is nothing left for you to give. You likely deplete your biological resources mentally and emotionally, and ultimately that depletion shows up physically. Women especially are prone to believe that we are to put the needs of EVERYONE else far and above our own. We even give more generously to strangers than we do to ourselves! In counseling women, I usually have two words in regards to this behavior…”STOP IT!” It’s good to give generously; but in order to live a truly healthy and balanced life, you have to give equally as generous to YOURSELF also. If you’re not refilling your own resources, what can you possibly give to those you love? I get it…. You love your family and friends and want to do things for them. That’s understandable, but you MUST do and love yourself just as much. If you don’t, your living your life out of balance and actions like that will eventually catch up to you. When it does, you might find emotions such as resentment and discontent. You may even find yourself in your physician’s office with a stress disorder, depression, or irritable bowel syndrome. Then what? Who is going to do for those you love? Ladies, it is OKAY to love yourself and give yourself some TLC. Spend some time learning to practice extreme self care. If you’re not certain how to make that happen, let me teach you. Extreme self care is something most women have to learn. It’s not always bred into our DNA. We tend to think that if we’re doing something for “us” that we’re selfish and self-centered. That couldn’t be farther from the truth!! Loving ourselves and caring for ourselves gives us the ABILITY to love and care for our families and friends more contently and more completely. So stop what you’re in the middle of and schedule some time in your calendar for extreme self care for YOU. It’s okay to “love yourself up”!! I promises that you will be a better wife, mother, daughter, and friend because of it.

How did I get here?

At no point in your life will you ever feel more alone, more abandoned, or more orphaned that at the time when you lose your parents. In a matter of 18 months, I lost the people nearest and dearest to my heart. At this point in one’s life, it’s natural that you would step back and take a long hard look at your life, your passions, and your dreams for your future. It’s natural that at this time, you would look for something that fills that empty space where loved ones had resided all those years. Being a heart-centered person, I looked high and low for a career that would fulfill me. I worked in medicine for many years, and it did not take long to see that the system we call “healthcare” is broken. Because time with your physicians is fiercely limited, Enormous amounts of time is spent on illness and little to no time is spent on health and wellness. But if more time could be spent on wellness, there would be less time required to spend on sickness. It’s a cyclical pattern that needs to end. Several years ago, I been seeking out a career in which I could use my heart-centered gifts to advocate for patients In this “sick-care” system in which we all must live. But it wasn’t until the passing of my father-in-law, my mother-in-law, and then my own mother that I became adamant about finding a career in which I could help people live longer, healthier lives. Sadly, a career like this was not going to be found in Western medicine. It wasn’t until a medication side-effect suddenly took the life of my mother that I became determined to be the change that world needed. I did hours and hours of internet research and found the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and realized that the career I had searched for for so long was that of a Health and Wellness Coach. Sick-care has over-burdened Western medicine and Health Coaches are the future of the HEALTHcare system. It is my heart-centered desire and passion to see people live long, happy, healthy lives with the people they love. No person should lose a loved one because of a sick-care system that can’t possibly treat the population of chronically ill people. Becoming a Wellness Coach is the greatest thing I could have ever done for me and my family; but my education has been bittersweet as I have learned things about wellness that may have prolonged the lives of those that I held nearest and dearest to my heart. But I am determined to see to it that nobody else loses a loved one to an untimely sudden death because of our sick-care system. You see “Medicine is not health care. Medicine is sick-care. Integrated nutrition is healthcare. Let’s get this straight.” Don’t let the people you love be a causality of the sick-care system. Fight for them. My loved ones are gone, but I WILL fight for yours.
Frankie Davis, Penny Davis, Norma Aklestad…. May you always rest in peace.