Les Mills 21-Day Nutritional Challenge

Les Mills 21-Day Challenge

Nutrition is an essential part of health. We all know the huge benefits of exercise and that eating healthy, whole, clean, nutrient-rich foods enhance health even further.

You may have heard about the new 21-day eating plan Les Mills is offering.

Les Mills is moving into nutrition because they stand for a fitter planet, plain and simple.

The 21-Day challenge is a way to RESET YOUR HABITUAL EATING PATTERNS.  This means they are using a safe 3-week period to help detox your body and healthy eating habits so you can start fresh with more conscious behaviors around food.

The Penn State University undertook a Literature review on the safety and efficacy of low carbohydrate diets like this one.

What you need to know is the 21-day plan is a low carbohydrate diet and it has the essential components to be considered safe.

You must follow the plan, as it is, especially the prescribed amounts of vegetables and water and eating at the regular intervals. And if you can't live without carbs, eat some; just make sure they are whole unprocessed and nutrient rich.

And remember, this approach may not be right for you; it is just an offering for those of you who want to try it!

If you have tried and feel it is beneficial, you are most welcome to share it. You can find the full report at www.lesmills.com/research

What Is Included In the Les Mills 21-Day Challenge

Reduce your waist size in just 21 days! Check out the Les Mills Pyramid (NOTE pyramid contains photos that aren't in the plan) to remind yourself of the different food classifications first. Now, this is tough - but Les Mills promises that you won't regret it. You will only be sorry for not having tried it sooner.

This is it: Women eat FIVE meals per day and men eat SIX meals a day. On workout days, one of these meals is a post-workout protein shake.

THE FACTS

1. There is no evidence to suggest that low carbohydrate diets for a SHORT period of time are harmful.

2. This plan eliminates the foods we KNOW to be terrible for us - high calories and low in nutritional value - like processed snack foods and sweetened beverages.

3. Numerous investigations have demonstrated that low carbohydrate diets improve glucose control in the body, raise HDL cholesterol, reduce triglycerides (TGs) and improve the parameters of metabolic syndrome.

MEAL PLANNING

Every Meal MUST Contain:

Protein: one palm full of animal protein; that includes fish, chicken, turkey, duck, pork, beef, lamb, shellfish and eggs.

Fat: a thumb size focusing on getting in your essential fatty acids; like avocado, olive oil, walnuts and flax seeds.

Carbohydrates: one to two handfuls of low starch carbs such as asparagus, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, leafy greens, raw carrots, onions, tomatoes and eggplant.

Protein Shake: only WHEY protein and water. Women should have .01 ounces per kg of body weight; men should have .02 ounces per kg of body weight.

Water: take your body weight in kg and multiply by 0.033 liters of water per day, then add an extra 8 ounce glass of water for every hour of exercise.

Foods to Avoid: diary products, roasted salty nuts, grains, including oats, polenta, rice, couscous, wheat, fruit, legumes (beans), starchy vegetables, and soy apart from Tamari.

And to drink: Water, herbal tea, coffee (black), black tea, No sweeteners.

TIPS

- Never skip meals, as this will just leave you feeling hungry

- If you feel hungry between meals, snack on 6-8 nuts

- Try to stop eating 2 hours before bedtime so the digestion process does not affect your sleep and recovery

- Vary your protein sources to get a good mix of amino acids, so you do not end up with food sensitivities

- Never skip the veggies, as these are an important source of fiber to keep your digestive system healthy

- East a ratio of 2:1 white meat to red meat

- To monitor how well you are doing, take a waist measurement before the after the challenge

DAY 22

Follow the eating guidelines shown in the Les Mills Food Pyramid and make sure you practice following the portion sizes suggested. Remember: try to stay focused on eating whole foods only!

This eating plan is difficult; you will have moments when you want to chew your arm off, and times when you'd consider mugging someone for their French Fries! But once you slide gracefully into your skinny jeans in three weeks' time all the pain will be forgotten. Go to your cupboard now, put everything that's not on the list in a box, drive it to the nearest homeless shelter and leave the box there. Go to the gym and enjoy the next 21 days of Bliss.

Make sure you check out the commonly asked questions at: www.lesmills.com/research

If you need specialized nutritional guidance or help contact Flow Studio's Health and Wellness Coach (Teresa Harlow) at teresa.harlow@youcanwellness.com or (740) 972-1116.

Visit www.flowwithus.com for more information on Flow Studio's Elite Group Fitness Classes.

Alarming Facts about the Food We Eat

It’s getting harder and harder to stay healthy in our increasingly toxic world. We’re exposed to more chemicals, pesticides and pollutants than ever before in history; they seep into the water we drink, pollute the food we eat and permeate the air we breathe.

Recently, the nonprofit Environmental Working Group released a disturbing study after analyzing the blood of newborn babies across the United States. In addition to discovering 287 chemicals and other toxins in their blood, they also found 76 chemicals that damage cells in humans and animals; 94 that are toxic to the brain and nervous system; and 79 that are toxic to a developing fetus.

What’s causing this?
Alarmingly, over-farming is wiping out the nutrients in your vegetables and fruits. Fertilizers intended to sterilize the soil have robbed it of mineral content. Since the soil is depleted, so are the foods grown in the soil, and so are we.

Take a look at this important study by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) showing the loss of vitamins and minerals infruits and vegetables since 1975.

• Apples: Vitamin A is down 41%
• Sweet peppers: Vitamin C is down 31%
• Watercress: Iron is down 88%
• Broccoli: Calcium and vitamin A are down 50%
• Cauliflower: Vitamin C is down 45%; vitamin B1 is down 48%; and vitamin B2 is down 47%
• Collards greens: Magnesium is down 85%

So, how do you get the nutrients your body needs to safeguard your health?

Health professionals have signified certain supergreens and superfruits that infuse the body with phytonutrients to protect your health. Phytonutrients enhance your body’s natural detoxification pathways, enabling health and longevity. You might have heard of spirulina, chlorella and wheat grass, for example, which are supergreens. Mangosteen, Star Fruit and Acai Berry are powerhouses of nutrition, too—which is why they’re called superfruits. These superfoods can be your essential line of defense against environmental toxicity.

As the World Leader in Nutritional Cleansing, Cellular Replenishing, and Youthful Aging™, Isagenix® offers two revolutionary superfood products to boost your body’s ability to clear toxins and replenish with optimal nutrition. Isagenix Greens!™ and IsaFruits® contain the healthiest supergreens and superfruits on the planet. Our unique cold processing technique, which features natural spray drying and concentration, preserves the phytonutrients in these superfoods.

But, those are only just a few of the products available. And, I am excited to say my dietician approved my continuing to use all of the Isagenix products I enjoy!

If you would like more information contact me at 614-477-1794 or visit my website at www.aalthoff.isagenix.com and watch the "Are You Toxic" video.

To Your Health!!

Balance is the Key for Optimal Nutrition

As we get into the third and fourth months of the New Year, we see all those New Year’s Resolutions to get healthy and lose weight start to wane.

We all know that the average American gains seven pounds from Thanksgiving through New Years. We’ve even hopelessly coined the phrase, “The Seasonal Seven”. So we make a resolution January 1 to take off the weight, but most of us don’t keep it.

What is it that keeps us on this vicious cycle of gaining and losing? This perpetual existence of over indulging and then severely inhibiting our lifestyles is more than unhealthy; it's damaging. Why can’t the resolution stick and be a permanent change of health as opposed to an everlasting, never-ending restriction of food and choices, which consistently are sabotaged by the beginning of February?

In this fast paced world with smart phones and iPads and easy access to always being connected, we want the quick fix. We are the nation of the quick fix and the fast fix. So if something doesn’t give us that instant gratification the idea and the method are abandoned and off we go to bigger and better things… hopefully.

It’s not that we are always making bad choices, it’s that the choices we have are so limited. Our foods have become nutritionally bankrupt.

There are two main problems with food today and we must examine the changes in our food consumption in terms of type and quality since the 1950s:

· Some food is not really helping our body and may be harming us (Supersize it, residual toxins).

· Food no longer includes all the essential nutrients our bodies need to function correctly.

In essence we need to rebalance our bodies nutritionally. We need to remove the toxins and give our bodies a fresh start while flooding them with the organic essentials to help balance our pH and restore homeostasis. When our bodies are balanced internally and they can function the way they were meant to function the goals we have for health will more rapidly come to fruition. And we can all benefit from a constant, consistent intake of balanced nutrition rather than the rollercoaster of indulgence versus restriction. And what are the results of a truly balanced, optimal nutrition?

• Energy Boosts

• Consistent weight loss over time

• Reduced cravings for unhealthy foods

• Improved muscle tone

• Balanced digestion

• Better sleep

• Better mood

Aim for balance in your life in all aspects – Isagenix can help. Moderation and variety are the keys. And remember this is not a diet. This is optimal nutrition to be healthy for life.

To learn more about my Nutritional Rebalancing Program with Isagenix, please email ANGELA at adshep2002@yahoo.com for her personal username and password and the best place to review the program. 10 minutes of your time is worth a lifetime of abundant health and balance.

Being a Successful Stat-at-Home Mom

http://aalthoff.isagenix.com/us/en/isavideos_enterprisingwomen.dhtml

Why Vitamins & Minerals Are SO IMPORTANT

After you read this, take a look at what you consume and determine if you feel you get enough vitamins and minerals from the foods you eat. Could your health & wellness be improved if you consumed or supplemented more?

Source: The Health Awareness Foundation

Where do vitamins/minerals come from?

VITAMINS are natural substances found in living things such as plants. Vitamins must be obtained in the body from foods or supplements, as the body cannot usually produce them

MINERALS are found in plants. Plants get their minerals from the soil – soil gets their minerals from water washing over rocks. For vitamins to do their job, they require minerals. Minerals must also be obtained from food or supplements.

ANTIOXIDANTS are specific vitamins or minerals that protect body cells from the damaging effects of Free Radicals. Free radicals come from or are caused by smoking, sunlight, stress, exercise, etc., and are one of the primary causes of premature aging, sickness and disease.

How do vitamins/minerals get in the body?

Vitamins and minerals get into your body when you eat plants such as fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts and spices or when you take a vitamin/mineral supplement. You can also get some vitamins and minerals into your body by eating meat as most animals eat plant food.

SUPPLEMENTS are vitamins and minerals that have been extracted from a plant or created in a laboratory and put into a form that can be ingested and used by the body.

There are effective supplements, ineffective supplements and hazardous supplements.

Uneducated consumers are at risk from two sides:

1. Consumer knows they should supplement but doesn’t know how to select an effective supplement, therefore wastes their money, time and health.
2. Consumer is uninformed (or given bad advice) on the need to supplement and sacrifices their health.

Where do vitamins/minerals go in the body?

Vitamins and minerals go from your stomach to your intestines. They then go through a very complex allocation system whereby the body distributes certain vitamins and minerals to parts of your body based on its own priority system.

If a nutrient is needed in a certain organ that it (the body) deems more important, it will take the nutrient from a less important organ, and allocate it to a more important organ. Sort of a “rob Peter to pay Paul” action. That’s why it is critical to maintain proper vitamin & mineral levels.

Vitamins and minerals in your body should not be viewed as independent substances, but rather as a cooperative network of nutrients working together. If one nutrient is missing, it throws the entire network of nutrients out of balance.

“A deficiency of a vitamin or mineral WILL cause a body part to malfunction and eventually break down – and, like dominos, other body parts will follow.” James F. Balch, M.D. Prescription of Nutritional Healing.

How do vitamins/minerals leave the body?

Vitamins and minerals are “used” by the body. As they perform their function, they often use themselves up in the process, which is the case with most of the critical disease fighting antioxidants.

Even thinking uses vitamins and minerals. Exercise and stress use a lot of vitamins and minerals; the use of diuretics (substances that increase the discharge of urine) such as drugs, alcohol, coffee, tea and sodas – washes vitamins and minerals out of the body creating deficiencies – this can create a major health problem!

Tobacco and alcohol can also inhibit the absorption of vitamins and minerals, or accelerate the loss of them.

YOUR HEALTH, YOUR INTELLIGENCE, YOUR ENERGY AND YOUR APPERANCE ARE DEPENDENT ON YOU REPLENISHING YOUR VITAMINS AND MINERALS SEVERAL TIMES PER DAY.

What do Vitamins and Minerals do for you?

Build Up Your Immune System

Illness and disease are not “caught.” One doesn’t catch cancer, heart disease or a cold. You create these ailments with deficiencies based on what you eat or don’t eat.

Increase Your Energy Level

Vitamins & minerals are involved in the release of energy from digested foods. Strong, lasting energy levels are good indicators of a healthy vitamin and mineral intake.

Enhance Your Appearance

Skin clearness, tone, and elasticity; hair strength, thickness and color; fingernail strength, color and texture all depend on vitamins and minerals. Some people look 50 years old at 30. Some look 30 at 50.

Everyone will die, but how you look and feel for the last 20-50 years depends on your lifestyle and vitamin & mineral intake throughout your entire life.

For more information on how to properly supplement your body in obtaining an adequate amount of vitamins and minerals, contact me at 614.477.1794 or visit www.aalthoff.isagenix.com

Do You Work Out All the Time and Get Less Than Optimal Results?

Several weeks ago I was asked about the best strategy for maximizing weight loss in the gym. It should be obvious to everyone reading this post that despite the amazing potential for Isagenix® products, systems and packs to help you reach your weight loss and fitness goals, your success can be expedited and enhanced by a well planned workout regimen. What I have discovered…Drum roll please…is that there is currently no consensus that can lead you to one specific workout plan to maximize weight loss. Virtually every source seems to have a different opinion as to what will lead to the greatest success. With that said, there is some information available that can help you make some better personal choices on how to utilize your time in the gym. Ultimately, everyone seems to say that weight loss success in the gym is a great experiment unique to each individual. I can suggest some things you can try to discover what best works for you. Remember, these suggestions are assuming your goal in the gym is to facilitate weight loss while improving your level of fitness.

Both cardio and weight training have their pros and cons when integrated into a fitness regimen. Most sources suggest that you should ensure adequate energy exists to make it through an effective workout routine. Therefore, you may consider splitting your cardio and weight training so these workouts occur on separate days. Another suggestion is to combine the two specialties with interval or circuit training, which give a full body workout. Weight lifting often burns more calories per minute than performing endurance exercises. Furthermore, muscles require energy, i.e. the more muscle you have, and the more fat you will burn. However, you will most likely fatigue more quickly if you focus entirely on weight training in a workout. This, once again suggests that a combination of cardio and weight training is the best strategy (combined with good nutrition of course!).

So should cardio occur at the beginning or the end of your workout? Many sources suggest it is better to do cardio first and then lift weights when your desire is to increase weight loss. Yet cardio has a tendency to deplete the body’s carbohydrate stores. Therefore you are eliminating the fuel your body needs to get in a good weight training routine. Too much cardio can also be a bad thing as you may find your body burns muscle to ease the demands of doing too much aerobic work. We should then pay attention to the “Hierarchy Scale of Energy”. If you understand how your body burns fuel, then you may be able to build a workout that best serves your fitness desires.

The human body accesses certain nutrients for energy in the same way and in the same order every time.

1. Muscle Glycogen—Sugar processed from carbohydrates and stored in muscle for contraction.

2. Liver Glycogen—Storage organ for excess Glycogen; this is the primary fuel source for brain function.

3. BBA (Blood Borne Amino Acids)

4. Fat

(http://www.articlesbase.com/fitness-articles/smart-cardio-to-burn-fat-574698.html).

As you can see fat is the last thing to go. Ultimately Perry NIckelston in his article Smart Cardio to Burn Fat suggests the following framework to help reach your weight loss goals (Smart Cardio to Burn Fat, Nickelston, Perry, Articlesbase.com, September 23, 2008).

1. 5-minute cardio warm-up

2. 30 minute weight training routine (This will eat up #1-3 on the hierarchy scale)

3. 15-20 minutes of cardio to now hit the fat reserves

The last consideration is heart rate and I will address this in my next post. If you would like to find out more about how Isagenix® can help you to achieve your weight loss and fitness goals when coupled with a strong workout regimen you can contact us through our web-site at www.aalthoff.isagenix.com, or by calling 614-477-1794.

Don’t forget, new members enroll for FREE until December 31^st, and all new products packs get a FREE before and after BodPod assessment until December 31^st too.) Happy Holidays!!