Think you're healthy doing these 6 things? Think again.

It is safe to say we have officially entered the age of wellness. Between our yoga classes, workouts, and trips to the farmers market, we're certainly learning how to truly take care of ourselves. Wellness itself has become a booming industry and that's a great thing, yet, in our attempts to stay healthy, we're in search of quick answers that are often misleading. Here are a few things I still hear from clients on a daily basis and through my own research what I've seen to be true.

Over exercising til you drop is stupid. There I said it. 

"Gotta keep that heart rate up. "If a little exercise is good, a lot must be better."-

Whoa there. Yes, exercise is a tremendous health-booster, cardio-strengthener, endurance builder, and the benefits are endless, but be careful of slipping into compulsive mode. Just as we can have unhealthy relationships with food, so too with exercise. If you find yourself too sore to walk, or getting injured often, it's okay to back off a bit, and never use exercise as a punishment for eating too much.

The United States Centers for Disease control (CDC) suggests a minimum of 2.5 hours a week of moderate aerobic exercise divided up through the week along with muscle strengthening exercises. Of course, we want to do more than prevent disease so adding more hours is great, but be cautious. Over-exercise can take its toll on muscles, joints, and effect female cycles.

But this food was marketed "healthy"….

"Well Jamie Lee Curtis says Activia is good so it must be. "

For the most part, the more advertising you see for a product, the worse it is. Just because a celebrity endorses a product does not mean it's good. Sure, there may be some probiotics in this dessert yogurt, but the 20g of sugar and modified cornstarch more than trump that benefit. Words like "fat-free", and "lite" are major red flags that usually mean something else is added in to take the place of the real ingredients like those sexy fats you're trying to stay away from. Best to get a plain, Greek, organic yogurt and add a bit of your own fruit or a touch of raw honey. This way, you reap the benefits, and it's delicious at the same time.

 

Other no no's:

*Egg beaters- (psssst, use real eggs)
*Reduced fat cookies and ice- cream-Hint.. can you pronounce the ingredients?  eggs, cream...? Better yet, make your own healthy cookies, or buy them from a trusted bakery.  

Better run out and get a CT scan…OUCH WAIT!

"As a preventative measure, I want to be tested and be on the safe side"

Tens of millions of CT scans, PET scans, and mammograms are being performed each year, many of which are not necessary, and often inaccurate which can make things even worse. This dangerous radiation, (sometimes the equivalent of 500 chest x-rays) has been known to CAUSE cancer, yet is still being enthusiastically prescribed.

Before getting one of these tests, ask:

Is it absolutely necessary? 

What will happen if I don't have the test done?

What are the potential risks?

Over-slathered with sunscreen

"I don't want to get skin cancer!"

Ok, but have you checked what's in your sunscreen? I am by no means saying that we need to banish sunscreen all together, but when we mindlessly slather and spray ourselves (and our kids) with chemical sunscreens 2 things are happening.

1. We're blocking the absorption of natural Vitamin D (which can actually protect us from cancer)

2. We're putting chemicals on our bodies.

Kind of counterproductive, no? If you're going to use sunscreen, go for one with zinc oxide and other herbal, organic ingredients. There are also natural, homemade sunscreens that include coconut oil. If you have fair skin, keep out of the sun during peak hours, but be sure to get some on your arms & legs for about 20-30 minutes a day to absorb the sunshine vitamin, D.

S**load of synthetic supplements is soooo not sexy

"My friend says the acai berry will help me burn fat and there was a sale at Rite Aid."

 Of course, supplements can be a good addition to an already healthy diet, but they shouldn't be purchased just because you heard they were good. Most supplements on the shelves are made using synthetic ingredients which can actually do more harm than good, or at best provide what I like to call, "expensive urine". It's best to get help from an experienced practitioner and always go for "whole food based" supplements and resist the temptation to purchase them at a drug store! Here is some very important info about supplements that everyone should know. The nutritious yogi family has  access to the best whole food concentrates in the world! Contact me if you have any questions about supplements, or order here for fast checkout!

Prescription Overload! 

"I explained to my doctor of my indigestion, and he gave me this awesome prilosec. Now my left hip is fractured but Boniva's taken care of that! 

Hey, why is my right hip fractured?"

In my opinion, there are way too many prescriptions being written without identifying underlying causes of symptoms. Some of my favorite examples of "poly-pharmacy" are the cholesterol-lowering drugs (statins), sleep medications, oral anti-fungal medicines, and of course, the antacids (proton pump inhibitors) What's up Prilosec? Eaten up any vital stomach acid lately? I had several clients on this awful medicine and though it helped them in the short term, the long-term side effects made them feel lousy.  Then they tried probiotics and digestive enzymes with their meals, and soon they were able to slowly reduce the medication with the help of the doctor. Sometimes the body doesn't produce ENOUGH  HCL, (hydrochloric acid) to fully digest meals, and taking these PPI's will end up making it worse.

And I hate to keep picking on the celebrities but really Sally Fields, Boniva?  These bisphosphonates, (osteoporosis drugs) are said to help prevent osteoporosis in postmenopausal women, but in fact, it's doing more harm than good. The ingredients in this class of drugs are the same ones used to remove soap scum from your bathroom. They disrupt the balance of normal bone formation in the body, causing the bones to become actually MORE brittle (most commonly the jaw bone)

Best bet is to supplement with natural vitamin D, and calcium from the diet, or whole food based D3 supplementation.

For more information about whole food based supplements,  click here and find the product you'd like to know more about!

From my heart to yours,

~karen

Have you downloaded my new recipe pdf, Sexy smoothies for Hippy Athletes yet? What in the world are you waiting for? 

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