ArticlesRecipesAre you Getting Enough Nutrients?

Not eating enough fruits, vegetables or dairy products? You’re not alone, and you might be missing out on some important nutrients.

It should come as no surprise that the vitamins and minerals that are often lacking in many diets are the same ones that are abundant in fruits, veggies and dairy products. Are you eating enough to meet your needs for these five nutrients?

Folic Acid

Why you need it: Folic acid—or folate, which is the form in which it exists in foods—is one of eight B-vitamins that are needed for the manufacture and maintenance of cells, particularly during periods of rapid cell growth. Folic acid is also used to manufacture genetic material, as well as red blood cells, which help carry oxygen throughout the body.

Where you find it: This vitamin is abundant in green leafy vegetables. You can also find folate in asparagus, broccoli, avocado and citrus fruits, as well as nuts and beans.

Vitamin A

Why you need it: A key function of Vitamin A is to support proper vision. It’s a critical player in the transmission of electrical signals from the eye to the brain. Vitamin A also supports the health of skin and mucous membranes, which act as barriers against infection. It also supports reproductive and immune system function.

Where you find it: Most people get the bulk of their Vitamin A in the form of beta-carotene. The body can easily convert beta-carotene into the active form of Vitamin A. Beta-carotene is found in many colourful foods, including carrots, peaches, apricots, papaya, sweet potatoes, leafy greens and broccoli.

Calcium

Why you need it: Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body, and nearly all of it is stored in your bones and teeth. Calcium plays a role in muscle contraction and helps to regulate your heartbeat, and it helps cells in your nervous system to communicate with one another.

Where you find it: Although most people look to dairy products first—and they are the richest sources of calcium—you can also find it in leafy green vegetables, tofu, beans and almonds.

Vitamin D

Why you need it: Vitamin D stimulates the absorption of calcium and phosphorus from the digestive tract, so it is vitally important in helping the body to form and maintain healthy teeth and bones, where these minerals are stored. Vitamin D is also necessary for proper muscle function and it supports activity of the immune system.

Where you find it: Vitamin D is sometimes referred to as the “sunshine vitamin,” because the body is able to manufacture this vitamin in the skin when it’s exposed to sufficient sunlight. However, many people may not have adequate sun exposure due to many factors, including lifestyle or use of sunscreen, to produce adequate amounts. There are only a few natural food sources of Vitamin D. The primary ones are fatty fish, egg yolks and liver, which is why milk can be a valuable source.

Potassium

Why you need it: Potassium helps the central nervous system send its impulses throughout the body, it also helps maintain healthy blood pressure, and it helps you to efficiently extract energy from your food. And all your muscles, including your heart muscle, need potassium to properly contract.

Where you find it: Fruits and vegetables are loaded with potassium. The best fruit sources include bananas, avocados, apricots, citrus fruits and strawberries. The highest potassium vegetables are tomatoes, carrots, spinach and broccoli. Milk, along with its calcium and Vitamin D, is also a good source of potassium.

How to Create a Personalised Weekly Exercise Plan

How

much exercise you need depends on your overall goal. What may be a good weekly exercise plan for you may not be the best for someone else. Let me guide you to find a nutrition and fitness plan that works best for your own schedule and current fitness level.

How much exercise do we need?

There are several sources that recommend 30 minutes five times a week for weight loss and general health. This is classified by moderate to vigorous physical activity.

However, let’s say your goal is to run a marathon. In this case, you’ll need to train for a lot longer than 30 minutes at a time. If your goal is to lose weight or improve your overall fitness level, 30 minutes may be all you need.

Invest more time to personalise your workout.

I believe that although a workout time of 30 minutes is adequate for achieving the health benefits associated with exercise, you should attempt to schedule a longer workout.

Here’s why:

· Approximately 50-60 minutes per day will allow you to have an additional focus on yourself.

· This extra time could be used for a warm-up and cool-down.

· You won’t have to speed through your workout. Take a breath, stay hydrated, and integrate workout supplements into your plan as needed.

· You could develop a habit of writing in an exercise journal.

· You’ll have more time to prepare a healthy post-exercise snack.

Know your limits: why over-exercising can be counterproductive

When it comes to exercise, too much of a good thing can spoil it. Overdoing your workout can be just as harmful as not doing any at all. Here are several reasons why doing too much exercise can set you back:

Excessive exercise can stall your weight loss goals. Taking your fitness to the extreme may slow down your metabolism, and that’s because your body tries to conserve precious energy, causing you to burn fewer calories. In addition, maxing out your intensity level without sufficient breaks may stimulate the release of cortisol, a stress hormone linked to weight gain.

Your muscles need to recover. Exercising promotes small tears in your muscle fibres, and as they heal your muscles grow. Without a sufficient healing period and adequate nutrition, your muscles won’t regenerate properly. Instead, you should set apart time to rest, stretch, and refuel, so your muscles can recover faster.

Excessive exercise can be bad for your overall health. Severe cases of over-exercising can lead to exhaustion, dehydration, serious injury, and even rhabdomyolysis – a condition that occurs when muscle tissue breaks down and muscle fibres enter your bloodstream, potentially damaging your liver.

How much exercise is too much?

Restricting your hard workout regime to 3-4 days a week and allowing a rest day or two is a great idea. You need to be conscious to combine an intense exercise regime with great nutrition as well.

Develop a consistent exercise plan each week

I encourage you to get active, and to keep a journal to monitor your minutes to make sure you’re hitting your minimum goal each week. If you’re an avid exerciser, make sure you take time to recover.

Here is my personal workout-rest schedule to give you an idea of how I plan my week:

· Monday: Running and gym, high-intensity level

· Tuesday: Cycling and yoga, moderate-intensity level

· Wednesday: Bodyweight interval training, high-intensity level

· Thursday: Active rest day for fun walk or hiking, low-intensity level

· Friday: Cycling and running, moderate-intensity level but long duration

· Saturday: Active rest for family fun swimming, paddle boarding, low-intensity level

· Sunday: Rest

I usually adjust my intensity level and workout duration to ensure my workout is stress-free and fun.

ArticlesRecipesWhy Immunity is Your Best Defence and How to Fuel It

Our immune system has one job: helping our bodies defend and recover from illness.

Unhealthy diets – high on calories from sugars, meats, and dairy products – are usually associated with health problems like obesity and metabolic diseases. But they can also cause a tremendous imbalance in our immune system, thus weakening it.

Regularly eating foods that are not nutritious can break down our immune defence, similar to how invaders can damage a fortress. This, in turn, can also make one more susceptible to new and reoccurring illnesses.

Why Is Immunity Our Best Defence?

I want you to think of your body as a well-designed fortress. Every day, our body silently defends itself against potential harm through its layered system of defence. It can defend and repair when it is challenged.

Our cells are like the army of protectors, each with specific roles to play to help our body defend itself. If unsuccessful, they will repair the body when needed. That is why nutrition is so important. Our cells need nutrients that come in the form of:

· Macronutrients

· Micronutrients

· Phytonutrients

Within these three broad categories, we understand the specific importance of protein, healthy essential fats like omega-3, the power of fibre to support our microbiome, and of course, vitamins, minerals and plant-based nutrients that keep our body in optimal condition.

A Real-Life Story on the Impact of Good Nutrition

While deficiency is rare in developed countries, many people in developing countries do not get enough essential vitamins over a long period of time. Back in 1976, an eye doctor was working in Indonesia to reduce the number of children who would go blind because of a deficiency in vitamin A. He noticed that when these individuals were given vitamin A, they also were not dying from common infections in the country like measles or diarrhoea.

This led to studies and the eventual recommendation by the World Health Organization for universal vitamin A supplementation. The World Bank declared vitamin A supplementation one of the most cost-effective of all health interventions.

This teaches us that whether it is vitamin A, D, or C, minerals like magnesium or zinc, or antioxidants from plants or protein – our cells need the right balance of nutrients to do the job they were meant to do.

Consuming a balanced diet with the right vitamins, minerals, and nutrients while maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the best way to keep your immune system working fine and doing what it is meant to do: defend your body.