Is Your Favorite Cooking Oil Healthy or Toxic?

Did you know that there are healthy and unhealthy cooking oils?  Some cooking oils are full of wonderful health benefits… And some promote disease.  It’s important to know which oils are good for you and which oils you should avoid. 

Unfortunately, the oils that need to be avoided tend to be in most packaged foods.  Check the ingredients on a lot of pre-packaged food labels in your kitchen and you’ll likely find canola oil.  Why?  Because it’s cheaper to produce and has a longer shelf life.  

Continue reading to learn more about healthy and unhealthy oils to help you make the best choices at the grocery store.

Common unhealthy cooking oils to avoid:

• Vegetable oil

• Canola oil

• Sunflower oil

• Safflower oil

• Cottonseed oil

• Soybean oil

• Corn oil

You may be asking “but what makes these unhealthy?”  These oils are obtained using toxic chemical extraction and processing techniques to make them bright, clear, and pretty on the shelves.  They are also usually produced from GMO plants that are sprayed with glyphosate. 

Photo: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

The chemical extraction process to make these “unhealthy” oils generally looks like this:

1.     After the seeds, kernels, etc. are obtained and cleaned, they get ground up and pressed, which will release around half the available oil content. 

2.     Then, to release as much of the oil from the “cake” (leftover pressed material) as possible, it is mixed with a chemical solvent, typically the neurotoxin hexane.  The solvent is removed by evaporation.

National Institute of Health (NIH):  “n-Hexane is a chemical made from crude oil...  Most of the n-Hexane used in industry is mixed with similar chemicals called solvents. The major use for solvents containing n-Hexane is to extract vegetable oils from crops such as soybeans. These solvents are also used as cleaning agents in the printing, textile, furniture, and shoemaking industries… [as well as] certain kinds of special glues used in the roofing, shoe, and leather industries..., gasoline, quick-drying glues used in various hobbies, and rubber cement… It has a role as a non-polar solvent and a neurotoxin.”

3.     After extraction, the oil is processed again and again to de-wax, clarify, deodorize, and brighten the color of the oil using sodium hydroxide (which is used to manufacture chlorine, bleach, detergents, and other cleaners), steaming processes, and bleaching.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want any of those chemicals near my food!  It’s shocking that this kind of processing for food is legal.  Further, these chemical processes diminish the health benefits of these oils. 

They are often too high in omega-6 fatty acids and not high enough in omega-3 fatty acids.  These chemicals and techniques used to process the oil are carcinogenic, neurotoxic, and release disease-forming free radicals into your body.

Common healthy cooking oils (and butter): 

• Coconut oil

• Olive oil

• Avocado oil

• Sesame oil

• Hemp oil

• Grapeseed oil

• Grass fed butter and ghee 

These oils are very minimally processed during the oil extraction process and are high in amazing health benefits.  These oils are antioxidant-rich, heart-healthy fats with anti-inflammatory properties.

It is important to buy high quality, organic cooking oils to ensure you are not receiving low grade, processed products.  The marketing in the cooking oil aisle is strong and many oils are posing as healthy options on the shelves.

Which one should I choose?

What’s the difference between cold-pressed and expeller-pressed oil?

Cold-pressed oil is a high quality, natural way to extract oil without chemicals or heat.  It is a slower process using an oilseed press at a temperature of 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit) or less.

Expeller-press production involves using a screw press machine to press the seeds and nuts using intense friction and pressure to extract oil.  The high friction causes higher heat ranges than with cold-pressing which can affect the nutrient density and quality of the oil. 

Cold-pressed oils retain the highest nutritional value due to the lack of chemical or heat processing during production.

What about refined and unrefined oil?

Refined oils are processed to remove particles in the oil and make it clear, deodorized, and brightened.  This process typically affects the nutritional value of the oil.  Some refining can be done without chemicals and some is done with chemicals.  I recommend using unrefined oil as it will be the healthiest option for you.

What is hydrogenated oil?

Hydrogenation is the process of adding hydrogen to oil, turning it into a solid.  Common partially hydrogenated foods are margarine and vegetable shortening.  I do not recommend foods including hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils as they are mostly found in packaged processed foods.  They are often the culprit for “trans fats.”  Hydrogenated oils are risky for your heart health, and are produced to save money, extend a product’s shelf life, and add texture to processed foods.

Do you have any cooking oil in your kitchen that needs to be replaced with a healthy option?  I mainly cook with olive oil, coconut oil, and avocado oil myself.  These small changes can have a major impact on your long-term health.

Educating yourself around what’s in our food and how to make the best choices to live healthfully is so important. I love helping to educate, guide, and support my clients on their journey to looking and feeling their best using nutrition and a healthy lifestyle.

Interested in working with me? Send me a message to set up a free health coaching consultation!

Why You Need to Add Seaweed Into Your Life

One ingredient that’s not prevalent in American cooking is sea vegetables and algae.  If you’re anything like me, the only seaweed you’ve ever eaten was in sushi.

However, marine vegetables have been in many culture’s cuisines for centuries.  Seaweed is bursting with health benefits and is an easy, light, and delicious food to add into your cooking.

Here’s some cool things you need to know about sea veggies and how you can incorporate them into your diet.

Health Benefits

1.     Supports heavy metal detoxification.

2.     Major source of vitamins, antioxidants, omega-3 fatty acids, and minerals, especially iron, copper, potassium, magnesium, vitamins, A, B6, C, and E.

3.     Source of iodine, which is often missing from our diets and can affect thyroid function.

4.     Higher fiber content than fruits and vegetables.

5.     Great prebiotic to support your good gut bacteria.

6.     High protein content (Bonus:  sea veggies are a complete protein, which means they are a protein source that contain all nine essential amino acids that your body can only get through your diet).

7.     Increases energy.

8.     Stabilizes appetite.

Types of Sea Vegetables & How To Incorporate Into Your Diet

There are many different types of edible sea vegetables.  Marine vegetables range from single-cell algae to multicell organisms.  Lauren Tanabe, Ph.D., interestingly points out that “these organisms aren’t plants, even though they resemble them.  They have no root system because they’re able to absorb nutrients and water directly into their tissues.” 

1.     Kelp – typically what you see washing up on the beach.  It is often used as a thickener in many products, but is also delicious in soups and stews, salads, or in seasonings.

2.     Nori – this is the seaweed you find in sushi because it is great as a wrap, but it’s also a yummy snack in the crispy dried version.

3.     Chlorella and spirulina (single-cell algae) – usually found powdered as our bodies aren’t able to break down the cell walls during digestion.  Excellent source of protein and easily incorporated into a smoothie, sauce, or salad dressing.

4.     Wakame – often found dried, you can rehydrate by soaking in water for around 10 minutes and use as a leafy green for salads or soups.

5.     Kombu – difficult to digest, so it is often used to add umami flavoring in soup stock.

6.     Dulse – beneficial for use in beauty products, such as scrubs and creams for glowing, exfoliated skin.  It’s also been shown as a healthy, vegan alternative to bacon when fried.

7.     Arame – with a sweeter, more mild flavor, arame is a good introduction to seaweed if you’re not a big fan of the flavor.  First soak for around 5 minutes to rehydrate, then sautée with other veggies and a protein.

8.     Hijiki – prepared and used in a similar way to arame, but it has a strong ocean flavor and takes longer to rehydrate (10 minutes) as it is thicker and courser.

When shopping for sea vegetables, it is very important to shop organic as they are absorbent, and can absorb heavy metals and contaminants.  Organically raised seaweed will not be exposed to the toxins typically found in our polluted oceans.  Also make sure they are clean and processed without toxic oils, additives, or preservatives.

I love seaweed and hope to incorporate seaweed into my routine more often.  One way to easily add sea veggies into your diet and experience the health benefits is this organic kelp seasoning by Bragg’s!

If you have any great recipes that include seaweed, I would love to try them out and feature them on my blog!  If you do, email me at jleahy@liveitupwellness.com.

My philosophy on health is that there is no one size fits all routine for anyone, and my program focuses on the needs of the individual.  If you would like to learn more about nutrition and how to best care for your personal health needs, please send me a message to schedule a free 30 minute consultation!

Three Unexpected Ways to Promote Healthy, Youthful Skin

The anti-aging solutions industry has exploded in popularity.  This industry includes a broad range of products and solutions, from sunscreens, moisturizers, and collagen supplements all the way to Botox, fillers, and cosmetic surgery.

While skincare is important to anti-aging, the largely overlooked piece to maintaining youthful skin and slowing down the aging process is your diet and lifestyle.  Your skin is directly correlated to what you are putting in your body.  You will notice a change in your external beauty as you clean up your internal environment.

Here are some tips for youthful, healthy, radiant skin:

1.     Skin promoting foods

Did you know that certain foods actually age your skin?  Typically, these include excessive sugar, meat, and dairy products.  This is because eating too much sugar and animal protein creates toxins in your system and overtax your liver and kidneys to process.

Foods that promote youthful skin are high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, natural oils, and are hydrating. 

Some foods to add into your diet to promote youthful skin are:

• Avocados, coconuts, cucumbers, walnuts, spinach:

  • Moisturizing, hydrating, and rejuvenating

  • Antioxidants which protect against environmental damage, free radicals, and aging

• Bell peppers, lemons:

  • Vitamin C for bright, radiant skin

  • Collagen regenerating and repairing properties

  • Detoxifying

• Turmeric:

  • Contains the antioxidant flavonoid curcumin, which has major anti-inflammatory properties

  • Supports the cardiovascular system, blood flow, and blood cleansing

• Fermented foods (kefir, cultured veggies, sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, miso):

  • Healthy bacteria and enzymes that support a healthy gut, fight bad bacteria, and detoxify for clear skin

2.     Hydration

It’s not surprising to hear that being dehydrated will cause aging effects to the skin, making it dry, flakey, or crepey.  Drinking too many caffeinated and sugary beverages instead of plain, clean, filtered water will be aging to your skin.

Hydrating properly increases elasticity and reduces wrinkles.  It helps detoxify your system and keep your skin bright, clear, and dewy.  It reduces puffiness but plumps your skin to achieve that natural, youthful complexion. 

3.     Toxic buildup

A major contributor to aging is toxic buildup in your body.  We are getting toxins from so many different sources:  our food, air pollution, chemicals in our beauty and cleaning products, chemicals on our furniture and carpets, heavy metal exposure, pharmaceuticals… we need to detox regularly.

One important way to detox and remove the toxic buildup in your body is to support your bowels.  Eating lots of fiber and hydrating is helpful to keep you regular.  You can also support by taking magnesium citrate supplements before bed.

Another great way to support detoxification is drinking lemon water or water with apple cider vinegar, which are amazing at flushing your system.  Including fresh herbs in your meals is another helpful tip, as they are blood purifiers and heavy metal cleansers. 

I can’t stress enough the importance of supporting healthy organs, including your liver, kidneys, and gall bladder, healthy circulation, and regular colon flushing.

I hope you enjoyed this week’s blog as much as I enjoyed writing it!  I have such a deep passion for natural health and beauty.

If this resonates with you and you would like to learn more about how to care for your health, send me a message to set up a free health coaching consultation!

What You Need to Know About Sugar

Most people eat way too much sugar, and it doesn’t always necessarily come in the form of a candy bar or soda. 

Sugar and sugar substitutes are in pretty much all packaged food and drinks.  It sneaks up on you in many foods that aren’t even sweet, like salad dressings, condiments, and seasonings. 

Many of our packaged foods are also full of refined carbohydrates that have no nutritional value or fiber.  These refined carbs turn into glucose in your blood stream and spike your insulin levels, just like sugar does.

There are a myriad of health issues that go along with eating too much sugar and refined carbohydrates, such as high blood sugar, bad bacteria and yeast overgrowth, and diabetes.  It affects brain function, mood, and speeds up the aging process.  Sugar is also addicting!

Sugar Is Addictive

I struggle with sugar cravings.  I always want something sweet after a savory meal.  It’s very rare that I can go a night without having something sweet after dinner. 

Some alternatives that I have found to satisfy a sweet craving is kombucha, a cup of tea with a little honey, one medjool date, or a piece of dark chocolate.

We all deserve to have a little treat sometimes, but needing it is another matter.  I’ve found that when my sugar habits increase (usually around the holidays) I am unable to just stop the sugar and will need to wean myself down.  Sugar has been said to be as addictive as opiates.

Eating sugar triggers the release of dopamine which makes you feel great… and makes you come back for more to activate those pleasure responses again.

Sneaky Names For Sugar

There are many different names for sugar and sugar substitutes in packaged food that are worth being aware of.  Some are obvious sweeteners and some are much more sneaky:

• Agave nectar

• Artificial flavor

• Aspartame

• Barley malt

• Beet sugar

• Brown rice syrup

• Brown sugar

• Buttered sugar/buttercream

• Cane juice

• Cane sugar

• Caramel

• Coconut sugar

• Confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar)

• Corn Syrup

• Dextrin

• Dextrose

• Ethyl maltol

• Evaporated cane juice

• Fructose

• Fruit juice

• Fruit juice concentrate

• Galactose

• Glucose

• High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

• Honey

• Lactose

• Malt syrup

• Maltodextrin

• Maltose

• Maple syrup

• Molasses

• Natural flavors

• Raw sugar

• Refiner’s syrup

• Rice syrup

• Sorghum syrup

• Sucralose

• Sucrose

• Treacle

• Turbinado sugar

Plenty of these are sneaky additives on food labels that consumers wouldn’t recognize as sugar.  And many of these ingredients are engineered to make a packaged food’s flavor and texture so perfect, you can’t stop eating it.

The food companies want you to eat and drink more of their products.  You know that feeling when you have a delicious salty chip and then you can’t stop eating them?  This is what these ingredients do to you.

One myth I want to dispel is that fruit is too high in sugar.  The naturally occurring sugars in fruit are not a concern in most cases (outside of certain medical diagnoses where your doctor recommends you avoid it).  When it comes to fruit, or fructose, the fiber in fruit helps your body metabolize and regulate the sugar content.  

The wide range of powerful vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in fruit are majorly healthy.  Fruit simply doesn’t have the same negative impact that added sugar and sugar substitutes do on your body.

Alternative Sweeteners

The $72 billion diet industry has churned out alternative sweeteners for people trying to avoid sugar and calories.  Most of these have been manufactured in a lab and are not good for you.

Splenda (sucralose), Equal and Nutrasweet (aspartame), and Sweet N Low (saccharin) are worse than actual sugar.  These “foods” have the same effect on your system as sugar including weight gain, but are also associated with blood sugar regulation issues and insulin spikes, brain and memory problems, mood disorders, and have been linked to cancer.

We also have the glorified “healthy” and “natural” zero calorie sweeteners, like agave and stevia.  While their true natural forms are better for you, typically what you’re buying in the store is highly processed and still detrimental to your health. 

Just remember that anything sweet will be treated like sugar by your body.  You cannot escape that sugar and sugar substitutes will affect your body and health…

So use the high quality stuff and try to enjoy it in moderation.

Not Only Is Sugar Addictive, We’re Eating Way Too Much of It

Have you ever tried to track your sugar intake for the day?  Try it.  You might be shocked how many grams of sugar you’re getting.  The maximum recommended daily intake of added sugar by the American Heart Association is 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men.

 According to the Angeles Institute, the average American consumes 71.14 grams of sugar every day.

Being aware of sneaky places for added sugar and cutting it back is a good place to start for health and weight loss goals.  Check the ingredient labels on your packaged foods.  What are the major culprits for your daily sugar intake?

If you struggle with food cravings and making health changes, you are not alone.  These are very common problems for people and it takes time, patience, and support to make changes.  I have gone through (and still go through) it myself and I would love to help educate you and work through the challenges of changing your eating habits to transform your health.

Send me a message to learn more about my one on one health coaching program!  I would love to work with you.

Why You Need to Stop Counting Calories Now

Calories.  They’re in all food and we need them to function.  But when it comes to weight loss, people obsess over them.  How many times have you heard “you must be in a calorie deficit to achieve weight loss?”  Too many. 

If you’ve ever counted calories, you probably were frustrated, starving, and you likely failed at reaching your goal or gained back everything you lost once you stopped dieting.

About Calories

The first studies and use of the calorie as a measurement was in the late 1700s/early 1800s.  Calories were defined as the amount of energy required to heat 1 kilogram of water by 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit).  Or, how much energy does it take to burn up a food.  This is still how they are measured.

But your body is not boiling or burning up your food…  It is chemically breaking it down with enzymes, stomach acid, etc.  Is this then a reasonable measure for our food?

Calories are calculated by adding up the grams of protein, fat, and carbohydrates in a food and multiplying by the appropriate calorie count per gram of each macronutrient. 

There are 4 calories per gram of protein, 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate, and 9 calories per gram of fat.

We slap that total calories number on a food package and those numbers now rule our understanding of food.

Diet Coke

Low-Cal Dieting

I’m not saying calories don’t matter and that intake vs. output aren’t a thing but… I do believe that it is a lot more complicated than that.

How our bodies metabolize a food, our ability to properly digest, hormones, stress, and the nutritional value of our food need to also be taken into account.

What about those man-made “foods” that are zero calorie?  Does this mean those zero calorie foods made in a lab are better for your weight loss goals?

Absolutely not!

I think we can all agree that a Diet Coke with zero calories is not as healthy as an avocado which is a higher calorie, nutritionally dense natural food.  0 calorie diet soda vs. 250 calorie avocado… common sense could tell you which one is better for you.

Diet Coke is full of chemicals that spike your insulin levels, screw up your hormones, mess with your gut, and more.  But hey, it’s zero calories so it will look better for your 1500 calorie goal in your food tracker, right?

Wrong.

There are major health risks that go along with our overexposure to packaged, processed food.  If something needs to be labeled as low-cal or zero calorie, it is almost guaranteed to be bad for you.  The food industry is marketing a product to you – they don’t care about quality nutrition. 

Notice there are no nutrition labels on fresh fruits and vegetables… and you typically don’t see commercials on TV about them either.

How Restricting Calories Affects Your Health

Another factor to consider is that with a goal of eating low calorie, you are very likely not getting the nutrition you need to function properly. 

When I went low-cal my Freshman year of college, I was shaky, low energy, and had brain fog.  I was obsessed with meal times and would stare at the clock counting down the minutes to when I could allow myself more food.  I eventually became anemic and would bruise very easily.  I lost the weight, but I was not healthy at all.

If you are too concerned about eating the right number of calories to lose weight instead of being concerned about nutrition, you could end up with much more serious problems like hormone imbalance, nutritional deficiencies, thyroid issues, brain fog, lethargy, depression and mood disorders, and ultimately slowing down your metabolism.

When you eat less, your body will continue to burn calories at first like when you were eating more.  This is likely when you’ll see some progress.  However, once your body realizes it does not need to burn as many calories because you aren’t feeding it as much, your metabolism will slow down.  That’s when you plateau and stop seeing progress. 

And now because your metabolism is slower, it will take MORE effort to make the same method work again.  It is because of your slowed metabolism that you gain all the weight back and then some when you return to eating the way you did before your restriction. 

This is why calorie counting doesn’t work.  Not because restriction is hard (even though it is), not because it makes you crazy (because it does)… but because it messes up the way your body processes food.

My home yoga practice during social distancing - extended side angle pose

Focus On Total Health

We need to be sensible, and eating too much of any food can interfere with weight loss.  But please… stop obsessing over calories.

My recommendations for weight loss have very little to do with calories.  Focus on:

• Portion control

• Gut health

• Eating detoxifying, natural, healthy foods

• Staying hydrated

• Managing stress

• Getting great sleep

• Optimizing digestion

• Activating your metabolism

• Avoid grazing

• Don’t let yourself get so hungry that you binge eat

• Get in tune with the emotions attached to your eating habits

• Move your body daily

Love your body and respect yourself while you work on these things. The anxiety and mistreatment of yourself will not serve you.

If you’re looking to make a lifestyle change to improve your health, lose weight, and/or improve your relationship with food, you don’t have to do it alone.  I would love to help you learn more about food, healthy eating, and how to love and nourish your body.

Send me a message to learn more about my health coaching program and schedule your first session free!

How Eating the Rainbow Makes You More Beautiful

Did you know that eating a range of colorful foods, or “eating the rainbow,” is one of the most healthful ways you can eat?  Keep in mind, the food needs to come from the earth to see those benefits… so let’s skip the Froot Loops.

Eating a range of natural colors is a way to ensure a wide variety of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and healthy goodness for your body.  These colorful foods are built to strengthen your immune system, fight illness, boost your energy, make you strong, and foster beauty and vitality. 

Eating with health benefits in mind can help get you excited to eat healthy food!  When I add lots of colors on my plate, I like to think about all the beauty-promoting benefits.

I like to think about how the nutrients will brighten and clear my skin, make my hair shiny and full, help my body digest, feed the good bacteria in my gut, and give me energy. 

A fresh, colorful meal will make you feel great.  And you can make some seriously yummy dishes with your rainbow of healthy options!

Here’s what you’re getting with each color of the rainbow:

RED

 High in:  antioxidants, vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, fiber, flavonoids, lycopene, reservatrol

Good for:  boosting your immune system, fighting illness and allergies, fighting cancerous cells, healthy heart, healthy skin

Foods:  strawberries, red bell pepper, tomatoes, cherries, radishes, cranberries, raspberries, pomegranates, chili peppers, beets, red apples, watermelon

ORANGE

 High in:  vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B6, beta-carotene, potassium, fiber

Good for:  boosting your immune system, eye sight, promoting cellular health, regulating blood pressure

Foods:  orange, cantaloupe, orange bell pepper, pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, peaches, nectarines, apricots, persimmon

YELLOW

 High in:  potassium, vitamin B6, manganese, vitamin A, magnesium, fiber

Good for:  digestion, reducing risk of stroke, immune health

Foods:  bananas, yellow carrots, yellow peppers, squash, papaya, mango, corn, pineapple, lemons

GREEN

 High in:  lutein, folate, vitamin K

Good for:  cellular health, detoxification, energy, blood and bone health, boosting immune system

Foods:  broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts, spinach, leafy greens, celery, artichoke, cabbage, kiwi, green apples, avocado, edamame, pear, cucumber, green bell pepper, lime

BLUE

 High in:  antioxidants, reservatrol

Good for:  immune system, beautiful hair, skin, & nails, reduces oxidative stress

Foods:  blueberries

PURPLE

High in:  antioxidants, vitamin A, flavonoids, reservatrol

Good for:  healthy skin and blood vessels, anti-cancer, anti-aging, reducing oxidative stress, fighting inflammation

Foods:  purple sweet potato, eggplant, purple artichoke, purple cabbage, purple carrots, blackberries, plums, figs

WHITE/BROWN

High in:  allicin, vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, fiber

Good for:  immune system, managing cholesterol, heart health, reducing yeast and bad bacteria, anti-cancer 

Foods:  garlic, cauliflower, leeks, onions, parsnips, mushrooms, jicama, potatoes, beans/legumes, seeds, coconut, ginger

On your next grocery store trip, challenge yourself to grab every color from the produce section and build your meals throughout the day to include them all.

A really great way to sneak in all the colors is in smoothies, soups, and salads.

For example, my smoothies usually include apple (red), carrot (orange), banana (yellow), greens and celery (green), blueberries (blue/purple), and chia seeds (brown)!  Now that you know the benefits of these, think about how powerful a glass of my green smoothie would be for your body every day!

If you come up with an awesome colorful recipe, I would love to see it or even feature your recipe on my blog.  Shoot me a message with your colorful recipes!

Why Are People More Overweight These Days?

If you watch a film taken of real people from the 1960’s, you’ll notice something different about them… 

Hardly anyone is overweight.

If you watch a film taken of real people today, it’s almost a guarantee that you’ll find people who are overweight.  In fact, the obesity rate in the US has nearly tripled since the 1960’s.  

In 2019, the United States was ranked 12th for one of the most obese countries in the world, with 36.2% of the population classified as obese and an average body mass index (BMI) of 28.8.  For adults, an average BMI of 18.5-24.9 is considered normal, 25-29.9 is considered overweight, and 30+ is considered obese.  

This means our average is at the top of the “overweight” range.

So what is it?  What has changed so much since the 1960’s?

A LOT has changed about our food and lifestyle, and unfortunately it isn’t for the better.

Below are just a few reasons besides your portion size that are affecting your weight! This topic is so much bigger than what I can share in a single blog post.

If you are interested in learning more about weight loss and how I can help you can look and feel so much better, shoot me a message!

1.     Convenience eating

Going out to eat, fast food, and meal delivery services are more common than staying home and cooking these days.  This can be a problem for both your waistline and your wallet. 

Restaurants typically use low quality ingredients that can make you gain weight and cause your body harm. Even a salad at some of these places can be incredibly high in calories and full of toxic oils, fillers, and sugars.

Cooking at home is always going to be one of my first recommendations to anyone trying to lose weight.  However, it goes farther than that… Zapping a frozen dinner in the microwave is not the same thing as cooking real food.  Ingredients matter.

2.     Processed Foods

Processed foods are in almost everything!  It’s very difficult to avoid.

What is considered a processed food?  Basically any food that is changed from its whole, original form.  This can include frozen, canned, dried, baked, pasteurized, and especially chemically altered foods.

There are different levels of processed food which range from pre-washed and chopped veggies to foods with added preservatives, sugars, and oils for longer shelf life or a more delicious flavor.

Not all processed foods are bad… I’m the first to admit I prefer buying my onions pre-chopped (I prefer not to cry over the cutting board!).  But when food is processed to the point that it never goes bad and the ingredient list looks more like your high school chemistry book, it can definitely affect your health.

Some processed foods you should avoid are:

• Soda and sugary juices

• Low quality salad dressings, condiments, and sauces

• Alternative butter like margarine

• Low quality, man-made cooking oils

• Junk snack foods like potato chips, microwavable popcorn, breakfast cereal, white flour bread or baked goods, etc.

• Most packaged foods

•  Fried foods

• Chemical sweeteners

The problem with these processed foods are the ingredients and what they do to your body.  Unfortunately, these ingredients exist in everything… even showing up in healthier options.  

These ingredients are terrible for weight management, your metabolism and hormones, your gut, and can even be a cause for chronic disease.

3.     Ingredients to Watch Out For

It’s important to know what to look out for on your packaged food’s ingredient list.  Does it look like it was made in a lab?  Then it’s probably terrible for your health. 

But food companies are sneaky and have found ways to market ingredients to make them seem less terrible than they are.

Here’s some examples of ingredients you want to avoid:

• Artificial flavors and natural flavors– can include up to 100 proprietary ingredients (mostly chemicals) that they do not have to disclose on the package.  They are made specifically to be delicious and addicting to consumers.
  

• Artificial sweeteners, sugar substitutes, and corn syrup/high fructose corn syrup – aspartame, saccharine (Sweet’N Low), sucralose (Splenda), dextrose, and more– these have been known to be carcinogenic, they affect your blood sugar, and have been linked with dementia.

  • Keep in mind that anything sweet, regardless of actual sugar content or calories, will trigger an insulin response, which can make you gain weight and lead to insulin regulation issues.  It’s also incredibly addicting.

• Artificial colors – Red no 40, Red no 3,  Blue no 1, Yellow no 5, Yellow no 6, and caramel coloring– linked to hyperactivity and cancer.

• Antibiotics and growth hormones in meats– major hormone disruptor.

• Foods that have been sprayed with pesticides and herbicides– known to be carcinogenic and endocrine disruptors.

• Canola oil, corn oil, partially hydrogenated oils, cottonseed oil, and soybean oil– chemically refined with toxic chemicals like hexane and bleach.

• Preservatives, anti-caking agents, emulsifiers, and other ingredients with confusing chemical names – carrageenan, calcium peroxide, BHA and BHT, azodicarbonamide, citric acid, cellulose, maltodextrin, etc.– these are often toxic chemicals that have endocrine disrupting, cancer causing, gut destroying, carcinogenic effects on humans.

4.     Sedentary Lifestyle

We have so many conveniences and many people do not have physically demanding work… we tend to have much more sedentary lifestyles today.

We’re a long way away from our hunter-gatherer roots. We do not have to fight so hard to survive and thrive today, but our bodies are built for a much higher level of activity than most of us get.

Even with an hour of scheduled exercise a day, most people spend the majority of their day sitting during their commute, at work or school, and in front of the tv.  

There are easy ways to consciously add more movement into your day, like:

• Cleaning

• Take a walk

• Dance in your house

• Do some light exercises while watching tv

• Get up and stretch first thing in the morning, at work, and before bed

• Schedule yourself some time to move

5.     Stress 

Unfortunately, we also tend to have overpacked, overscheduled, demanding, and stressful lives.  Cortisol is the stress hormone that gets released into your blood stream during stressful situations. 

The evolutionary purpose was to help you survive in a life-threatening scenario.  Your heart rate increases, blood pumps to your muscles, and your body is flooded with cortisol and adrenaline while we go into a state of “fight or flight.”

If you are constantly under stress, however, this can have very harmful long-term effects on the body. 

Many people are so used to being stressed out, they aren’t even conscious of it.  This consistent release of cortisol can wear out your adrenals and hormone production, which can ultimately lead to adrenal fatigue… which can be permanent.

Stress inhibits weight loss and is a precursor for pretty much all chronic disease.

Taking measures to be aware of and cope with stress is hugely important to your health.

Take a moment to stop and take deep breaths throughout your day.  Be conscious of releasing tension with breathing, exercise, yoga, meditation, or even seeking out someone to talk to.  These coping mechanisms are a skill that need to be practiced.  

If you are someone who is having trouble losing weight, it could be due to many different factors. I can help you figure out what will work best for YOU… without counting calories.

Click here to schedule a free session to learn how I can help you meet your health goals!

7 Powerful Ways to Boost Immunity & Fight Contagious Illness

Coronavirus (COVID-19) - word about it is everywhere!

Some people are saying it’s a huge, terrifying illness that we should be incredibly fearful about, others are saying it’s being completely overhyped. Regardless, the news about the coronavirus has been getting increasingly concerning for people all over the world and the consequences are affecting our daily lives.

Every day we’re getting reports with new startling details about the spread of the virus, quarantines, and travel bans.  The stock market is tanking, the word “pandemic” is being thrown around, and the highly contagious infection seems to be spreading like… ahem… the plague.

While the coronavirus is certainly something to be concerned about, I need to also point out that we are constantly exposed to viruses and illness-causing bacteria.  The common cold, influenza,  MRSA, and staph are typical threats to our health every day.  So why do some people get ill and others are just fine?  

It all comes down to your immune system!

If your immune system is strong, it will be ready to fight off a viral attack.  During a process called RNA interference, the immune system will produce antibodies that can bind to the virus cells and rend them as non-infectious.  The body then sends T cells to destroy the virus.

If your immune system is low, you are at a higher risk of contracting infectious diseases as you will be unable to successfully fight off viral invaders. 

What can be a cause for a low immune system?  

Lack of sleep, poor nutrition, stress, allergies, autoimmune diseases, smoking, a sedentary lifestyle, consuming too much alcohol, and poor sanitation all can contribute to an increased likelihood of contracting an infection.

While maintaining a strong immune system certainly isn’t the only precaution you should take in the event of a potential major health threat, it is something you should consider all the time for longevity and feeling your best.

Focusing on boosting your immune system, especially at the onset of an illness or even just after a poor night’s sleep can knock down a bug immediately.

With all that in mind, let’s focus on how you can boost your immune system!

1)    Eat foods high in:

• Vitamin C:  Guava, bell peppers, oranges, kiwi, strawberries, tomatoes, papaya, broccoli, pineapple, lemon, blueberries

• Vitamin A: Cod liver oil, king mackerel, salmon, goat cheese, butter

  • Your body can also produce vitamin A on its own from foods high in carotenoids, or provitamin A. This includes fruits and vegetables like:

    • Sweet potato, kale, collards, carrots, bell pepper, spinach, swiss chard, mango, cantaloupe, grapefruit, watermelon, papaya, apricot, tangerine

• Zinc– spinach, nuts, pumpkin seeds, and high quality grass-fed red meat

• Selenium – Brazil nuts and garlic

• Take your supplements.  Remember, taking vitamins will not override a poor diet.  However, due to nutrients often being depleted in soil, it may be worthwhile to supplement even a healthy diet.

  • Make sure you are always buying high quality supplements.  Pay attention to the ingredient list and make sure there are no unnecessary fillers/inactive ingredients like magnesium stearate, titanium dioxide, and artificial colorings, that can be detrimental to your mission for great health.

2)    Get some sun (aka vitamin D). Many people tend to be vitamin D deficient these days as we typically aren’t outside enough… and when we are outside, we wear sunscreen to protect our skin.  While you can get some vitamin D from food, typically our best resource is exposure to sunshine.  I recommend taking a supplement that also includes vitamin K for optimal benefits. 

3)    Add immune boosting and antibacterial/antiviral foods and herbs into your diet:  Ginger, honey, coconut oil, garlic, mushrooms, turmeric, elderberry, echinacea, and astragalus.

4)    Take probiotics daily.  Again, do some research and find a great brand without additives.  You can also eat and drink cultured foods such as kefir, kombucha, and sauerkraut or kimchi for a wonderful variety of healthy probiotics and a happy gut.

5)    Drink plenty of fresh, filtered water to flush out toxins.

6)    Get great sleep consistently. I can’t say enough about this one.  Lack of sleep is a huge contributor to a weakened immune system!  Your body desperately needs the regenerating and detoxifying systems that occur while you sleep.  Your mental, emotional, and physical health are hugely impacted by getting enough quality sleep.

7)    Work on reducing stress.  Deep breathing, gentle exercise, stretching, meditation, Epsom salt baths, and other forms of self-care are great stress reducing practices.  Stress is the biggest contributing factor to chronic illness in our society.  If you have a weakened constitution due to stress, you are much more likely to contract an infectious illness.

For an overall healthy immune system, your best bet is to practice all seven of these health tips all the time.  You don’t have to be that someone who gets sick a lot, you can fight for your own health.

I would love to help you make some changes to ensure a healthier you.  Whether that’s making immune boosting lifestyle changes or dropping some pounds before your summer trip (hopefully when there is no more fear of the coronavirus…), I am here to support, educate, and guide you.

Contact me to inquire into one-on-one health coaching today!

Carbs… Are They Really Bad For You?

What’s with the hate on carbs?  If you follow any of the trendy diets, you have likely seen carbohydrates being demonized in the health world in recent years.

Why do people think they are such a problem?

Most people know about the importance of protein and healthy fats… But when it comes to carbs, many people think they are bad for you.  Why is that?

What are carbohydrates? 

The most common forms of carbs are starches, sugars, and fiber.  Carbohydrates are found in many types of foods, both healthy and unhealthy.  You can find carbs in fruits, vegetables, legumes, baked goods, pasta, milk, bread, juice, and more.

Carbs are broken down in our body into a smaller compound called glucose, which our cells use as energy… and the type of carbs you consume for that fuel really matters!

Simple carbohydrates break down quickly providing a quick burst of energy.  Sugar (sucrose), fruit and honey (fructose), and dairy (lactose) are examples of simple carbohydrates. 

Complex carbohydrates take longer to break down, which slows digestion and prevents major spikes in our blood glucose levels.  Some examples are whole grains (such as brown rice, oats, quinoa), vegetables (including starchy vegetables), and beans/legumes.

Good vs. bad carbs

The truth is that there are “good” and “bad” carbs.  Whole foods, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans/legumes, are where you will find the “good” carbohydrates. 

There is a misconception that fruit has too much sugar and should be avoided.  While fruit does naturally contain sugar, it also is a great source of health and beauty-promoting fiber, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals.  The types of sugars in fruit do not spike your blood sugar the same way white sugar does.

Think about it this way… There are 14 grams of carbohydrates in around 3 cups of broccoli and 15 grams of carbohydrates in 1 slice of white bread.  These two foods are completely different as far as your health goes. 

Broccoli is a nutritional powerhouse… and white bread is a refined carbohydrate with very little nutritional value, or a “bad” carb.

There are three main parts of whole grains:  bran, endosperm, and germ.  The bran and germ are the nutritionally dense part of whole grains. 

When grains are refined, the bran and germ are removed for increased shelf life of the product... and often there are unhealthy additives added to the product to improve taste, preserve, and even to spike cravings in an effort to have consumers finish it faster and buy again.

Because of the removal of the nutritional parts of the grains in refined carbohydrates, the health benefits of slowed digestion and blood glucose management are removed.  So foods like that slice of white bread that contain white flour and sugar cause your blood glucose to increase quickly, which can wreak havoc on your system.

So what’s with the hate on carbs?

All carbs break down into glucose in our system.  The glucose is either absorbed and used as fuel or stored as glycogen for when we may need fuel.  If you are storing too much excess glycogen, this can turn into stored fat in your body.

Foods too high in simple carbohydrates that cause blood glucose to spike quickly will require a hormonal response to process it.  Glucose spikes that occur too frequently can have negative consequences on our bodies and can be a culprit for obesity and chronic illnesses, such as diabetes and insulin resistance.

But healthy carbs are good for us!  They can facilitate healthy digestion, weight management, and provide important antioxidants and nutrients to keep us healthy, fight off aging and illness, and promote vitality and beauty. 

As long as you are eating nutritious, whole foods and limiting inflammatory refined carbohydrates, then there is no reason to fear carbs.

Too much of a good thing…

There are a lot of fad diets out there celebrating one of the three macronutrients and demonizing another. Your best bet is to find a healthy balance that works best for your body.

Proteins are building blocks for our system, helping us to build muscle tissue, optimal organ function, and promoting cell regeneration.  However, there is a lot of misinformation around protein that typically promotes consumption to a fault, including way too much animal protein and dairy in the standard American diet. 

Too much protein can convert to sugar and then fat, leading to weight gain; it can contribute to bacteria and yeast issues, including Candida; and it can fuel cancer cell growth. 

Typically, you want around 10-35% of your calories from protein.

Fat has recently been celebrated in the media with the ketogenic diet.  However, in the 1990’s and early 2000’s, the recommendation was to avoid fats.  Everything on the shelves was low-fat, fat-free, reduced fat… and unfortunately this trend led to health problems for many people.  Major shifts like these are a reason why I don’t recommend buying so heavily into fad diets. 

Now we know that healthy fats are critical for our health.  They provide your body with energy, help with satiety, are crucial for brain health, and help your body absorb vitamins and other nutrients. 

However, foods containing healthy fats are typically nutrient dense and eating too much could contribute to weight gain. 

The recommendation is for 20-35% of your calories to be from fat.

We now know that carbohydrates offer many health benefits, like weight management, digestion improvement, and blood sugar regulation. 

Too many carbs can turn to extra glucose in your system, which can be stored as glycogen or fat in the body.  Too much glucose in your system affects your blood sugar and insulin levels and can cause chronic issues, like diabetes or hormonal problems. 

The recommended amount of carbohydrates is 45-65% of your total calories. 

At the end of the day, everyone is different.  Experiment with yourself and pay attention to what feels best for you when it comes to a balanced diet.

What kinds of foods make you feel good and which ones make you feel tired or bloated? 

Which foods help with satiety and energy?  

Which foods seem to cause you to eat more, have cravings, and crash?

True health is finding a balance that works for you and makes you function and feel your best. I’d love to help you find that balance and make lasting healthy changes.

If you would like to inquire into one on one health coaching, click here to send me a message!

Start Your Day the Healthiest Way With This One Simple Thing

Welcome! My name is Jessica Gilman and I am a health coach… and now I can officially call myself a blogger!

I’m a newlywed dog mom from southern California, currently living in Seattle and missing the sunshine terribly.  

I love hot yoga and hiking. I am addicted to music, entrepreneur and true crime podcasts, and Netflix.  I’m a Disney and Harry Potter nerd and proud of it! I would love to be able to travel and experience more of the world.

I have a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from San Diego State University and my health coaching certification from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.  

I started my health coaching business Live It Up Wellness while working full time in Human Resources.  I’m officially taking the plunge to make my side hustles my full-time career – it’s a super exciting time for me!

I’m not a professional photographer, writer, or social media genius; I am a regular person with a passion for health and wellness.  I do my best to make healthy choices most of the time, but I’m certainly not perfect.

Down about 30 lbs, Sophomore year of college on a trip to Vegas

I have gone through many phases of weight management, yo-yo dieting, and trying extreme things that were ill advised to my actual health.  

After gaining the Freshman 15 (thanks to late night burritos after too many vodka shots… sorry mom!) during my first semester in college, I took diet pills and cut my calories down to about 1,000 a day.  I lost 25-30 pounds… and became anemic.  I was the thinnest I had ever been and thought I looked great, despite some rather concerning bruises.  

For the record, they ended up pulling that diet pill off the shelves and adjusting the recipe because people were having heart attacks.  Yikes! 

After the diet pills and living on low-cal meals for months, I got a personal trainer.  My first day working out with her, I almost passed out in the gym because all I had for breakfast before my training was a rice cake.

Since that time, my weight has fluctuated up and down a few times. I’ve learned a LOT in the years since then regarding health, fitness, and wellness.

I have a lot of different topics I want to cover in this blog and I’m so excited to share my knowledge and experiences regarding health, beauty, and wellness with you!

I want to start by sharing one of the first changes I made when I started getting into health:

I start every day with a cup of hot water before my coffee.  You probably have heard about drinking hot water with lemon in the morning and that’s great too, lemon can be very detoxifying.  Be careful not to drink water that is TOO hot, you don’t want to scald your tongue or esophagus.

Here’s why hot water first thing in the morning is so beneficial:

•  You are dehydrated when you first wake up.  Rehydrating after 6-8 hours of sleep is super important.

•  Your body is detoxifying and rebuilding while you sleep.  Rehydrating your cells first thing helps rinse out your system to flush out those toxins.

• Hydration first thing helps activate and aid in digestion.  Your organs will thank you.

•  Hot water helps relieve constipation as it helps your intestines contract and allow waste trapped in your intestines to pass.

• Drinking hot water has a calming effect to your nervous system and reduces stress levels.

• Similar to how a warm bath helps with circulation, so can drinking hot water.

• This routine may also promote weight loss, skin clarity and brightness, and energy.

This was a simple health practice for me to add into my morning routine, I can’t start my day any other way now.  Give yourself 10 minutes in the morning to have a cup of hot water first thing and you will begin to crave it!

If you don’t already have one, buy yourself a cute kettle that will look great in your kitchen and start your day with some hydration!  I can’t wait to hear how you feel about it.

Thanks for reading!  If you have any other topics you would like me to cover, please let me know.

Click here to inquire into one-on-one health coaching with me!  As your coach, I will educate, guide, and support you to reach your goals through either in-person or Skype sessions.