My study materials arrived yesterday for my personal
training certificate! I’ve been using loaner books until now. As of today I
have my very own – I feel official. I spent a solid two hours at Train
Gym today; side note I absolutely love this place. I’ve never walked into a
gym and felt comfortable before. It is privately owned and everyone there has
been incredibly nice. More on that later…..
After my two hour leg work out, I was famished! Luckily I planned
ahead and brought celery sticks to munch on and a Vega
protein bar for recovery. Those bars are not only Plant Based Paige
approved but so f-ing delicious I swear I work out more just as an excuse to
eat them. The great thing about all Vega products is they only use truly natural
sweeteners like stevia or dates.
Avoiding traditional sugars (white, brown, cane) are vital
to your health. Dropping those crappy sweeteners was one of the best things I
did for my body, skin, moods, and energy levels.
To keep this simple I’m just going to toss out a few facts
about sugar and what it does to the body. Please feel free to add any questions
or comments to the comment section!
·
White sugar leeches
you of minerals contributing to anemia,
osteoporosis and anxiety among
other things.
·
With sugar we lose B vitamins, calcium, phosphorus, iron and peace of mind.
·
Produces acidic blood (because it steals
alkaline minerals).
§
Viruses, cancer
and all other types of illness love an acid environment.
·
It causes inflammation
and can constrict nerves causing pain.
·
Can contribute to chronic spasm, scattered
thinking and is considered a major player in mental illnesses like Schizophrenia.
·
Sugar is addictive and may be the underlying
factor in every addictive behavior: depression, compulsive behavior,
scattered thinking, and in states of withdraw: lethargy, intense cravings, anger, negativity, night sweats,
nightmares, and crying to name a few.
·
Messes with our pancreas and insulin levels that
can lead to diabetes.
·
Sugar causes weight gain because it supplies only empty, low quality calories and
excessive carbohydrates that are converted to fat.
·
Some studies show that sugar can actually age the skin faster causing wrinkles, pimples, dry and/or splotchy skin.
·
Coupled with other negatives influences it
contributes to the eventual breakdown of
the body.
Now the good news! You need sugar in your life. Good quality
sugar. I’ve heard people talk about a completely sugar free diet (including no
fruit) which is a bad thing. The brain cannot function on anything but glucose.
Fruit is glucose in the body. Some facts:
·
Less refined sweeteners made from fermented
complex carbohydrates, like brown rice syrup, barley malt, and amasake, take a
longer time to hit he bloodstream and don’t take us on quiet the roller coaster
ride.
·
Maple syrup and molasses also contain lots of
minerals to help metabolize them well.
·
The sugar in fruit is un-tampered with and
supplies the body with the nutrients it craves. It also supplies fiber.
When talking to younger people about nutrition I always get
this sense that they aren’t worried about it. Many still have that “invincibility”
thing going on. I highly encourage you to think about future you. If you have
parents in the retirement age talk to them, go to an event with them and see what
the topics of conversation are for that age range, in my experience: death,
disease, cancer, diabetes, weight issues, etc. AGING DOES NOT HAVE TO BE THIS
WAY. Make yourself a priority and start eating, acting, and being better now.
There is a great quote from Fit for Life
that sums it up.
“Picture a large bay window. If you were to throw a small pebble
at the window, it would not break. But throw one hundred thousand small
pebbles, and the window will shatter. Each negative influence on your body is
like one pebble, and all together those influences can and will break down your
body’s health.”
For your sweet tooth check out my chocolate lavender cheesecake!
