Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Curb Hunger by Eating Right

Sunday, February 7th, 2010

We often have clients coming to us woman-eating-appleasking for ways to curb hunger. Some report feeling full after they finish a meal only to feel hungry again an hour or so later. Others say they feel o.k. in the morning, but find themselves getting hungry before or after lunch. Many times, just by making a few changes in what and when they eat can make a big difference in how they feel throughout the day. If you are finding yourself hungry outside of mealtime, try the following tips to find the real cause of  your hunger and learn how to improve how you feel throughout the day.

1. Eat Breakfast (and every other meal): Eating breakfast kick starts your metabolism and provides you with the energy you need to begin your day. Eating breakfast has also been shown to help promote weight loss and improve mood and concentration.

(As a side note, it is NEVER o.k. to skip meals. Your body needs fuel throughout the day to function properly, and by skipping meals you are throwing your hormonal system off balance which will impair how your body uses and stores calories, causing a multitude of problems, including the storage of calories as fat.) 

2. Drink Enough Water: Did you know that hunger is sometimes a sign of dehydration? Be mindful of how much water you are drinking throughout the day. A good rule of thumb: Your urine should be clear enough to be able to read through it (if there were a hypothetical piece of literature in your bowl).

3. Eat Protein: Many times too many carbohydrates in our diets are the culprits for increased hunger and decreased energy and mood. Carbohydrates are great for providing us energy, but our bodies burn through these fairly quickly. Protein takes longer to digest, keeping you feeling full until your next meal. Good sources of protein include lean meat, fish, nuts, beans, legumes, eggs and dairy.

4. Don’t Forget About Fiber: Most of us do not get enough fiber in our diets. Because it is undigestible, fiber moves through the digestive tract slowly, so it makes you feel full and has been shown to help reduce overeating, control blood sugar, reduce cholesterol and your risk of colon cancer. Fiber can be found in whole grains, nuts, seeds, and in the skins of fruits and vegetables. Don’t peel that apple!

5. Know Your Metabolic Type: Just as our bodies look different on the outside, they are also functioning differently on the inside. Knowing your metabolic type, or how quickly your body turns food into energy, is extremely helpful in knowing what ratio of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats you should be eating at every meal. Common symptoms when not eating for your metabolic type include: getting hungry quickly, fatigue, nervous energy, depression, headaches, mental sluggishness and cravings for sweets or coffee. Contact us if you would like to learn what your metabolic type is.

 

As always, we appreciate your comments and feedback on how these changes are impacting your life. If you are interested in learning more about how to restore health and vitality in your body, feel free to contact us for a complimentary consultation. We provide nutrition and lifestyle coaching in Los Gatos and San Francisco as well as over the phone.

 

Dorothy Lizak

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

 

Photo: thank you to: http://women4hope.files.wordpress.com/2008/01/woman-eating-apple.jpg

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Posted in Digestive Health, Nutrition Tips, Prevention information, Uncategorized, Weight Managment | No Comments »

Break and Breathe: Simple Relaxation Techniques to Reduce Stress FAST

Sunday, January 24th, 2010

Many of us are constantly on the go, stress0multi-tasking our way through our day and finding ourselves feeling stressed out. If you are like so many others, your mind may be racing, your heart rate and breathing may quicken and you may have trouble concentrating and getting your work done. This probably starts making you feel badly about yourself and negative thoughts start swirling in your mind which just causes you to be more stressed. As we’ve mentioned in other blogs, stress doesn’t just affect you mind, it also negatively affects the way your body functions. It causes hormone imbalances, disrupts sleep, digestion, your immune system and has a strong correlation with medical conditions such as heart disease and depression. 

 

The next time you are feeling stressed, I want you to remember the two B’s: “Break and Breathe” and do the following.

 

1. Take a Break:

You are given breaks at work for a reason, so take them. So often we get caught up in the mindset of “I don’t have time” and work through our breaks and lunch which only leaves us burnt out, more stressed and less productive. Instead, take a time out, do some of the breathing exercises below, and you’ll probably be more productive when you get back. It’s best to leave your workspace, but if you can’t you can easily do these at your desk.

2. Breathe:

One of the easiest ways to change how your body is physically reacting to stress is through your breath. By focusing on your breathing, you are forcing your heart rate to slow down which will calm your body and mind. Here are a few breathing exercises to choose from.

     1. Close your eyes and inhale as slowly as you can and silently count “1″. Then exhale slowly and silently count “2″. On your next inhale, silently count “3″ and so on. The goal is to reach the number “20″. By this point you should notice that your breathing will be fuller and deeper, and you will be more relaxed.

     2. Close your eyes and inhale as slowly as you can. Try to prolong your inhale to the silent count of 4 seconds. When you finish inhaling, gently hold you breath for 2 seconds and slowly exhale to the silent count of 8 seconds. Repeat for a minute or longer. If you can’t control your breathing for that long, its ok to shorten the duration of inhale and exhale, just make sure your exhale is twice as long as your inhale.

   3. Close your eyes. As you slowly inhale through your nose, visualize pure white cleansing air entering and filling your entire body. As you exhale, picture the gray negative, stressed air exiting your body through your nose. Continue this process as you inhale and exhaling, replacing your stressed out body with clean, fresh air and energy.

It’s also important to remember that mental/emotional stress isn’t the only way to stress out your body. Eating the wrong kinds of foods, going to bed late, not drinking enough water, having unbalanced hormones, can induce stress on your body and cause a multitude of symptoms including low back and neck pain, PMS, irritable bowel syndrome, frequent illness, migraines, and many others. We provide nutrition and lifestyle coaching in Los Gatos and San Francisco as well as over the phone. Give us a call to learn how to get your body back in balance.

If you try these stress techniques, let us know your experience, we’d love to hear from you.

 

 

Dorothy Lizak

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

 

References:

photo thank you to: http://www.stressrelatedillness.com/stress-management.html

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The power of the media and society

Saturday, April 25th, 2009

classroomI had the opportunity to speak to an 8th grade class on Friday about the importance of fitness and nutrition.  I must stay first off that I commend the teacher for having the desire to education her students not only about the importance of fitness as well as nutrition but her desire to educate them on the balance of these two important topics.

The class that I spoke to comprised of about 40 students.  I was amazed how all of them were interested in what was being said as well as being participatory.  The topics that I spoke about were on strength, flexibility, stability and endurance and the importance of cross training and proper supplementation.  I spoke heavily about nutrition and what balanced nutrition looks like.  We discussed specifically what makes up proteins, fats and carbohydrates and what each of these items do for the body.   The kids were great, they were answering questions and asking questions and the questions were amazing!

However, one thing that I noticed was how influenced these 8th graders were already by the marketing of our media and views of society.  Some of the questions that came up were questions about 6 packs (in regards to the abdominals) and splenda & diet sodas (regarding staying thin). The question that blew me out of the water though was the question of what is the difference between lipo-suction and gastric by-pass.  Now, the question in and of itself is a great one.  However, the student goes on to ask which of the two are better and what goes through my head is “why is an 8th grader asking such a question”?  Unfortunately, I did not have time to ask her why she was asking such a question at such a young age. 

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, juvenile diabetes, obesity and an array of other health problems are affecting our young today. I am writing this blog entry to remind everyone who is reading this that the health of our youth is vital.  Families need to be educated as well as have discussions about healthy food options and fitness and families as a whole need to get healthy together.  Fun ways that a family can get healthy together are by cooking meals together, going to the park and playing, going on bike rides or taking hikes.  If you do not have proper education on nutrition or fitness find lectures and workshop in your area on such topics.  In addition, discussions about what being healthy is really about also need to take place. What I mean by this is that our young need to understand that just because someone has 6 pack abs does not make them healthy.  This subject becomes a difficult task because of how the media portrays “healthy” bodies. 

I want to thank the 8th grade class and their teacher for inviting me into their classroom.  I would love to see more schools and teachers doing this for their students.  The benefits that come from healthy nutrition and proper exercise are endless:  Improved cognition and concentration, decreased anxiety and restless and improved performance both in and out and out of the classroom.

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