Month: November 2013

Getiing Your Body Back to Normal After the Thanksgiving Day Indulgence!

Wallace Bishop I.N.H.C, C.N.C.Leave a comment
Oh I ate too much!
Oh I ate too much!

I still smell the pumpkin pie and turkey! I love this time of year. It rings of comforting nostalgia, the crisp air, Pumpkin pie, apple cider and cinnamon, can you smell it? I can close my eyes and think back to being 8 years old in moms kitchen and the aroma of pumpkin pie and sweet potato souffle make me smile, it just makes me feel good regardless what kind of life I am having. I also think the act of kindness and charity at this time of year seems to give a greater meaning to life. It’s not all about me, it’s about us.  There is much to be grateful for.

Some people don’t over do it and find way to have  a healthier Thanksgiving Day meal. This is just one day or at most one weekend of a change to your normal healthy (hope you are eating healthy) dietary routine. Don’t get all worried about it. Enjoy it, try not to over do too much and get back to normal as soon as you are able.

However, if you feel like your body is sluggish and you over did the food this is a great way to get  your body back to form and feeling better.

For many of us, the Thanksgiving week-end is a detour to our bodies normally dietary intake. We end up eating a lot of foods that pollute our bodies. Regardless how hard you try you must give in a little to those sumptuous tasting yet not very healthy foods,  it’s Thanksgiving after all. After three or four days of eating a few of the normally avoided foods my body is rebelling and I feel bloated and heavy and I can’t wait to get back to a clean body.  Frankly, by the time Sunday arrives I have had enough and my body is in shock from all the calories, simple carbohydrates and excessive protein. For those of you that eat fairly healthy and would like to get your body back to normal as quick as possible try this short and simple approach.  If you don’t eat healthy this would be a good way to start.

This is not intended to be a total body cleanse. If you have been eating a poor diet for a long time you will need to do a different and more intense cleanse,  however that type of cleanse should only be done under the supervision of a qualified health professional.

The question is, how do we get our bodies back to normal as quick as possible after the holiday? It’s fairly simple. We need to aid our body in cleansing out the junk through a light diet and exercise. The diet will help in the cleanse and exercise will get our lymphatic system moving the junk out. The lymphatic system is part of our cellular waste and toxic material removal system. It relies totally of the movement of our muscles to pump our lymphatic fluid throughout our body. Unlike our circulatory system that depends on our heart, our skeletal  muscles do the job for the lymphatic system. For example; when your arms and leg muscles contract, they squeeze the lymphatic fluid through the lymphatic system. The body is so amazing.

An infrared  sauna can also help remove toxins through your sweat.

Suggested Dietary Changes for 3 days

Day 1 Healthy Liquids Only  (Vive!™ ,cleansing lemonade, warm green tea)

Day 2 Healthy Liquids and select vegetables and fruits only

Day 3 Healthy Liquids, select vegetables, fruits and a few cooked vegetables.

Day 4  Slowly add other healthy whole grains, beans and nuts and seeds back to your diet.

Recipe; Cleaning Lemonade  ( taste very good, you can drink this everyday if you wanted to)

  • 110 ounces of purified water or spring water
  • 1 to 1.5 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice  ( I use the juice and pulp from 7 lemons )
  • 6 ounces of Bragg’s apple cider vinegar
  • 1 cup raw honey
  • optional- 4 ounces of blackstrap molasses (this is optional) add to mix if exercising or sweating from working out or exercising
  • Stevia and/or xylitol as sweetener, sweeten to your taste preference

Warm Green Tea (if you can get Matcha tea it is even better!)

My Cleansing Routine

Day 1

On Monday I will start a liquid only diet for 24 hours. The contents for my day are; Vive!™ , the cleansing lemonade and warm green tea. My diet will consist of 2 scoops of my Vive!™ with 12 ounces of water 3 times that day, 40 ounces of cleansing lemonade, consumed throughout the day and 24 ounces of warm green tea.  It does not matter when you drink the lemonade or green tea. The Vive!™ is taken at breakfast, lunch, late afternoon and early evening, no later than 7:00PM.

Exercise for 45 minutes to 1 hour, work up a good sweat. If you can only walk for 5 minutes, walk for five minutes 2 or 3 times every day and slowly build up your time till you can walk comfortably for 30 minutes at a time. Only exercise if you have your doctors OK.

Day 2

On Tuesday I will cut the Vive!™ intake to 2 times that day, will continue the cleansing lemonade and will add raw vegetables and fruit to my diet.  Continue to exercise and sweat.  If you have a NutriBullet put it to use making smoothies with veggies and low sugar fruits.

Breakfast is 1 Vive!™ shake

Mid morning snack will be a small to medium apple with almond butter.

Lunch, I will have a salad with spinach, romaine lettuce, orange bell pepper, carrots, zucchini squash, onion, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, and portabello or crimini mushrooms. Dressing will be balsamic vinegar and olive oil. You can add spices of your choice. If you prefer put it in the NutriBullet for a smoothie!

I eat a salad at least 5 days per week and some days I will have one at lunch and dinner! A salad is hard to beat for building health as long as you do not use unhealthy dressings.  A dressing high in sugar content or those that contain high fructose corn syrup can neutralize some of the health benefits that a salad provides. Using too much salad dressing, even a healthy one can sabotage the benefits from lower calories a salad naturally offers. Also look for salad dressings using olive oil in place of soy or other vegetable oils. They are healthier.

Mid afternoon I will have another Vive!™ drink.

Dinner, I will have another salad.

Mid evening  snack; a smoothie with 1/2 cup frozen strawberries, 1/2 cup frozen blueberries with 1 to 2 cups cup almond milk and stevia for extra sweetness. Blend and enjoy

Day 3

Vive!™ is consumed twice per day on going. I will continue drinking the cleansing lemonade ongoing, I like it.

I will add back a little cooked food to my diet. Cooked food is optional. There are many days I do not eat any cooked food. The schedule is the same as day 2 except for dinner. You can switch lunch and dinner at any time. Many people say it is best to eat your heaviest meals at mid day. I grew up eating my largest meal at dinner and most of the time I have continued that tradition.  It is best not to eat at least 2 hours before bed time.

Dinner;  steam 1 large head of broccoli, 1 cup asparagus spears,  then saute in olive oil 3/4 cup onions,  3 cloves of garlic, 1 cup of diced mushrooms, 1 whole red yellow pepper, 1 whole tomato (optional) and 2 cups diced purple cabbage.

Evening snack; mixed fruit

Ongoing days

Slowly add your normal foods back to your diet, hopefully healthy foods! Continue to drink at least 1/2  of your body weight in ounces of water per day.  Be sure to include beans, whole grains, nuts and seeds with your daily dietary routine, they provide great health benefits.  Exercise must be a regular part of your daily routine.

This is a great time to keep the healthy eating going. variety is the key to being happy when eating very healthy. Use a variety of Beans, lentils, nuts and seeds and a few whole grains along with your vegetables to keep meals interesting. If eating meats keep them free range and organic lean cuts. Fish should always be wild caught and eggs should be free range organic eggs.

Healthy Wishes

Wally Bishop C.N.C.

Vive!™

The contents of this blog is not and should not be  considered medical advice. This blog is for informational purposes only. Always consult with your doctor before making any dietary or lifestyle changes. Never quit taking prescription medications unless advised to do so by your doctor.

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Eating for Athletic Performance

Wallace Bishop I.N.H.C, C.N.C.Leave a comment

cyclistI had the opportunity to work at a cycling event recently. As many riders from the 80 mile mountainous ride were coming in, one serious cyclist came to our booth and said “I need calories, please anything”. Obviously, we hooked him up with a Vive!™ shake. He chugged it and then another half of one 10 minutes later. He explained that 15 miles back he had bonked (depleted glucose and glycogen stores causing extreme muscle weakness) coming up the last hill. Can bonking be prevented or delayed nutritionally? Yes absolutely!
Certainly training is essential for endurance particularly to push back the anaerobic threshold so you don’t bonk as easily, however the role of your nutritional intake is 3 to 4 times more important than any other part of your regimen. Many runners and cyclist will take glucose gels and electrolytes drinks during their event to replenish their lost blood sugar and electrolytes, which is necessary. Some will add supplements containing L-Tyrosine, L–arginine and Beta Alanine to aid performance and they can help. However, to turn glucose, fat and protein into readily available energy is a highly complex process that involves many metabolic actions requiring enzymes, and the cofactors and factors, vitamin and minerals. In the metabolic pathway many vitamins and minerals are necessary to convert the energy source (foods) into energy molecules such as Phosphocreatine, ADP and ATP. Additionally the antioxidants contained in vegetative foods is very important at protecting muscle cells from the heavy oxidative damaged caused by intense exercise. They help speed up recovery as well.

You cannot overcome a nutritionally poor diet with supplements. However you can supplement a nutritionally rich diet and increase performance potential. Refined and processed foods are nutrient thieves. They deplete your body of more nutrients than they provide.

Nutrients (factors and co-factors) and their effects on energy metabolism pathways.

Enzymes are required to make energy and cannot do their jobs without factors and cofactors! If you do not get the nutrients from your diet the body robs them from muscle and organs to produce the energy you demand.  Continued nutrient depletion leads to slower recover and less than optimal performance potential and eventually illness and disease.  Vive!™ provides an abundance of factors and co-factors!

Vitamins
Thiamine (B1)
B1 is an essential cofactor (required for enzymes to do their job) in the conversion of carbohydrates to energy. B1 is needed for normal muscle function.
Riboflavin (B2)
B2 is a cofactor and helps in the release of energy from fats and carbohydrates. B2 is part of the flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) oxidation reaction in the cell to make energy. B2 is very important in the conversion of fat to energy.

Nician, Nicotinic acid, B3
B3 is a cofactor and is transformed into nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and NADP, which play a key role in cellular energy production.

Pantothenic acid (B5)
B5 plays an essential role in the Krebs cycle (one of three energy major energy pathways) as a component of coenzyme A (a critical enzyme needed to make energy).
Pyridoxine B6
B6 helps in the release of energy from carbohydrates fats and proteins. B6 is used as a cofactor mainly in protein and amino acid metabolism and is involved in over 100 enzymatic reactions.

Biotin (B7)
B7 is a cofactor involved in metabolism of fatty acids, amino acids and utilization of B vitamins.

Folic acid, Folate (B9)
Folates function as a family of cofactors required for methylation reactions. Folate is essential for metabolic pathways involving cell growth and replication.

Vitamin B12
B12 is essential for metabolism of fats and carbohydrates and the synthesis of proteins. B12 is required for folic acid metabolism.


Vitamin C
Vitamin C is essential for synthesis of carnitine (carnitine transports long-chain fatty acids into mitochondria). Vitamin C increases can triple the absorption of non-heme (iron from plants) iron and the synthesis of cortisol.

Minerals
Calcium
Calcium is essential for the contraction of muscles and activation of nerves. Calcium activates a series of reactions including fatty acid oxidation for use in the mitochondria.
Phosphorus
Phosphorus is a structural component of the nucleotide coenzymes creatine phosphate, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). All of which are required in the mitochondria for energy to be produced.
Magnesium
Magnesium is essential for the relaxation of muscles and nerves. Magnesium is used in over 300 enzyme reactions. Required by all enzymatic reactions involving the energy storage molecule ATP.
Trace minerals
Copper
Cooper is involved in the making of some enzymes. Copper is also involved in iron metabolism.
Chromium
Chromium promotes insulin action, thus promoting glucose (blood sugar) uptake by the cells.
Iron
Iron is essential in hemoglobin for transporting oxygen and for storing oxygen in the muscle and releasing it when needed during muscle contraction. Iron facilitates the transfer of electrons in the cell energy pathway and is important in ATP actions.
Manganese
Manganese is a cofactor of several enzymes involved in metabolism of carbohydrates and gluconeogenesis. Gluconeogenesis is the making of glucose from non-carbohydrate sources. It involves the tearing down of muscle to turn certain amino acids and glycerin into glucose. This begins when you bonk as glucose and glycogen stores are depleted. This is very hard on the body and you want to avoid it.
Zinc
Zinc is an essential part of more than 100 enzymes, some of which are involved in the cell energy pathway.
If you want to optimize your performance, beginning today you need to ensure you are adding a bounty of nutrients to your nutritional stores daily. Ideally, you should be eating a minimum of 7 servings of vegetables, 3 servings of fruits, beans, nuts, seeds, and limited whole grains. Vive!™ boost your performance potential by giving you a bounty of energy producing and recovery enabling nutrients!

Additionally, if you are meat eaters include free range lean meats, wild caught fish, free-range organic poultry and eggs. Anytime you can make your food selections organic, wild caught and free range you reduce the risk of contamination from pathogens and potentially increase your nutritional intake.

This website can give you a great list of which foods are the best sources for which nutrients.  http://www.whfoods.com/nutrientstoc.php
Eat great to perform great.
Healthy Wishes,
Wally Bishop C.N.C.
WebND

Developer of Vive!™

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Getting Better and Deeper Sleep!

Wallace Bishop I.N.H.C, C.N.C.Leave a comment

sleepI am tossing and turning, toss and turn some more! Count sheep, pray, etc….. I just can’t get to sleep, my brain just will not relax or turn off!!!! I am sure many of you have been in this same situation and it is a very frustrating one. Insomnia! It must have roots in the word insane because several nights of poor sleep I thing I am headed that way.  insomnia can vary from difficulty falling asleep despite being tired, to waking up in the middle of the night. It can also be a temporary, occasional, or chronic problem. But whatever form it takes, a lack of good quality sleep can wreak havoc on your health and make you feel very ill. You can’t concentrate, you are so tired and irritable.

What you may not realize is that many important task are not getting done inside of your body when you do not get the sleep your body needs. Your body can’t restore and build nutritional and body compounds (enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, antibodies, blood cells, etc…), build and repair tissues and bones when you are awake. Your mind and body require deep sleep for 7 to 8 hours for your bodies systems to function properly.  Everyone’s body is different. Some people can get by on 6 hours sleep and some people need 10 hours of sleep but for most people 7 to 8 hours of deep sleep is required for a healthy body. When you are sleeping the bodies night shift goes to work repairing damaged tissues, building new tissues, and restoring depleted compounds and nutritional stores used the day before.

Your Sleep Clock

You have probably heard of the circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm controls normal sleep patterns and is part of the bodies master clock and is controlled by the hypothalamus gland in our brain. This rhythm is also effected by external factors such as your diet, your environment and behavior. To help establish good sleep never eat in your bed room and start turning the lights and sounds down low. This will begin to signal the body that it’s time to get ready for sleep. It may takes a few day to a few weeks of this behavior for your body’s natural clock to kick in.

Major triggers of insomnia.

  • Lack of magnesium (magnesium is required for muscles to relax)
  • Lack of potassium
  • Lack of B Vitamins
  • Caffeine (particularly late in the evening)
  • Stress (stress causes hormonal imbalances and can imbalance the natural circadian rhythm
  • A lack of complex carbohydrates in the diet (carbohydrates help absorb B vitamins, have tryptophan that help release serotonin and melatonin which help us relax and sleep)
  • Eating to close to bed time (can cause reflux)
  • Eating to much sugar a few hours before bed time
  • Lack of adequate exercise

Improve Your Sleep with These Tips

  • Getting out in the sunshine in the mornings on a regular basis helps re-establish your natural sleep clock.
  • Get plenty of magnesium and potassium in your diet by eating lots of leafy greens, nuts, seeds and whole grains. Whole grains also provide lots of B vitamins and minerals. Blast a wide variety of foods for optimal sleep.
  • Bananas are an excellent source of magnesium and potassium, which help to relax muscles. They also contain tryptophan, which convert to serotonin and melatonin, the brain’s key calming hormones.
  • Tart cherries also increase your bodies melatonin. A team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and University of Rochester did a sleep study and they found that cherries, particularly tart cherries, naturally boosted the body’s supply of melatonin.
  • Almonds are a great source of magnesium
  • Chamomile tea is a very helpful for calming and relaxing the body.
  • Green tea contains theanine which is relaxes and helps promote better sleep. Just make sure it is decaffeinated green tea.
  • Exercise at least 30 minutes to 1 hour 5 days per week.  Exercise in the morning gets your body revved up for the day and helps generate relaxing chemicals .  If you exercise in the afternoon or evening make sure you have at least 5 hours before going to sleep. About 5 hours after exercising your body temperature begins to fall triggering your body for sleep. Vigorous aerobic exercise tends to provide the highest sleep benefits of any exercise.
  • You can also buy melatonin and 5-HTP as supplements to aid in your sleep. 5-HTP is a form of tryptophan your body can absorb easily.

Fire Up the NutriBullet for Great Sleep!

Try this mind calming blast about 1 hour before bedtime.

  • 1  banana with slightly green tips
  • 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 1/4 cup tart cherry juice or 1/2 cup tart cherries

A good nights sleep which is 7 to 8 hours for most people is very important for your health.

Healthy Wishes

Wally Bishop C.N.C.

Vive Developer

The contents of this blog is not and should not be  considered medical advice. This blog is for informational purposes only. Always consult with your doctor before making any dietary or lifestyle changes. Never quit taking prescription medications unless advised to do so by your doctor.