Victoria Wellness Professionals

POSTURE
by Todd Pelan

The importance of posture transcends far beyond just looking our best. Optimal posture, ensures that the muscles of our bodies are properly aligning our joints, from head to toe? The proper transmission of the many forces of everyday life, ensures our joints remain healthy forevermore.

Going one step further did you know that a forward head posture facilitates the “pelvo-ocular reflex” (POR). When this happens the lower back arches to realign the eyes, helping us maintain our sense of balance. The problem with this is that something as simple as a forward head position, may affect quite literally our entire body.

In conclusion, maintaining proper head posture improves posture of the entire kinetic chain.

A Word About Carbs
by Todd Pelan

The popularity of Low Carb Diets have given this nutrient a poor reputation, leaving us confused and faced with the questions. Carbs, good or bad? In truth carbohydrate intake should fill 50 – 70 percent of our daily energy intakes for moderately active people.

Carbohydrates are the body’s main source of energy. Without adequate carbohydrate intake, we end up missing the bulk of our diets. Meaning we never feel full. Fiber is present in balanced proportions from whole foods, like fruits and vegetables helping delay emptying of the stomach, and is essential for the prevention of heart disease & numerous forms of cancer.

Colourful Greens, Fresh Fruits and Whole Grains, whilst making perpetual efforts to replace refined carbohydrates, is one of the best investments for supporting your goals. For example: This week replace wheat pasta with Zucchini Pasta. Mmmmm.

Cooking Oil Conundrum
by Todd Pelan

Many questions arise when it comes to what are the healthiest fats to cook our food with. Monounsaturated, Polyunsaturated, Saturated, Unsaturated??? The list is confusing & goes on & on. Speaking to this question, I will attempt to simply express a few great options and close with some not so great options.

GREAT FATS

Extra Virgin olive Oil. “Monounsaturated Fat”. Cooking with this oil is a fantastic option for low to medium cooking temperatures, just remember “no smoke” when using this oil or any other oil for that matter. Organic Coconut Oil. “Saturated Fat”. A great option for slightly higher cooking/sautéing temperatures. Organic Butter. “Saturated Fat”. A nice option for cooking/sautéing with or for enhancing flavour after a dish has been cooked.

POOR CHOICES

“Trans Fats”. Partially Hydrogenated/ Hydrogenated, Shortening, vegetable/ Shortening Ideally, or better said “unconditionally” these fats should stay out of your daily food choices at home and out on the run. Raising Bad and decreasing good Cholesterol increases incidences of Heart Disease.

Canola, Sun/Safflower, Soy, Corn, & Cottonseed Oils. “Polyunsaturated Fat”. These fats are very unstable, often highly refined/modified from there natural form making them oils that should stay out of your home. Yes they are of vegetable origin making them perceivably healthy oils. But due to there nature are a poor choice. Things like French fries and chips are commonly cooked in these oils.

Uncategorized carbohydrates, monounsaturated fats, posture, trans fats

The subject of nutrition is vast and much too complex to be covered in such a limited format. This article will touch on the basics only and how nutrition and exercise are vital to our overall good health.

Nutrition in its basic form is the ingestion of nutrients to sustain life. These nutrients include water, vitamins, minerals proteins, fats and carbohydrates. It is important that you consume all the needed nutrients on a daily basis. It is well known that your performance, whether it be at the workplace, at home with the children or during a chosen sports activity will suffer if adequate nutrition is not maintained. How often have your heard someone say they felt or maybe yourself felt tired and sluggish. If you are not meeting your body’s nutritional requirements you will become fatigued and unable to meet the demands put on your body in your daily life.

Just what are we supposed to eat? There is a constant barrage of information coming at us each day about what to eat, when to eat, how much to eat. It is sometimes just too overwhelming to make sense of all the information that is provided through the media, the medical community, and now with the computer and the world wide web there is even more information at our fingertips.

If you are one of the millions of people trying to diet; then the information is even more prevalent. Billions of dollars are paid annually to a multitude of weight loss companies each ensuring they have the answer to your weight loss problems.

But the bottom line comes down to this. The only way to lose body fat is to be on a negative calorie diet. You must take in fewer calories than you would need to stay at the same weight. There are no secret formulas here. Your goal is to increase lean muscle tissue and lose body fat. This can only be done through a program of resistance training and a monitored nutritional program.

One of the biggest mistakes people make when they attempt to lose weight is to cut their calories dramatically. This does nothing other than slowing your basal metabolic rate. Your body requires a minimum number of calories just to exist. You cannot cut your caloric intake lower than this amount. The 800-1000 calorie per day diets that are so popular are dangerous. Your body cannot survive on so few calories, so what it does it slow is down your basic metabolic needs. It will then store much of the food you consume as fat in preparation for the “famine” to come.

This information is not new, but yet many people still insist on starving themselves in hopes to attain that “perfect body”.

Some nutrition tips to consider:

- Eat at least 5 times a day. This provides your body with a consistent and frequent supply of food. This will also maintain blood sugar and insulin levels, preventing those energy fluctuations so often felt over the course of your day.
- Ensure each meal is balanced with carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Limited saturated fats and use low glycemic index carbohydrates primarily.
- Eliminate junk food from your daily meal plans.
- Drink 8-10 glasses of water each day.
- Consume high fiber foods.
- Exercise with weights to increase your lean body weight.

Narina

Check out Prograde Nutrition at http://victoriawellness.getprograde.com

Uncategorized carbohydrates, exercise, fat loss, fats, nutrition, Prograde Nutrition, protein, weight loss