Vashti Schulz 21/1/19 Vashti Schulz 21/1/19

Blog Snack: Truth about sodas / soft drinks

I’m not going to preach too much today but instead let the graphics speak for themselves. You may have seen them before as apparently they are famous. I hadn’t so here they are, fresh from the Renegade Pharmacist. A great website to have a look around.

Whether you drink soft drinks or not, most of us are aware that they are not good for us. Not good is a pretty vague statement though. Here is a terrific infographic on Coke. Simple and to the point.

Infographic on Coke

Diet soft drinks

Unfortunately the only thing diet soft drinks can deliver on is a low calorie beverage. Thats where the health value starts and finishes. The artificial sugars used still trick the body to release insulin which is then not needed and so converts energy to fat by reflex. The artificial ingredients cause a major upset in the body as it struggles to break them down and the gut microbiome (last years catch phrase), is also compromised. We need healthy gut bacteria for all sorts of processes including producing hormones at the right ratio. Compromise that system and serotonin is not produced sufficiently, melatonin, the list goes on.

Have a look at this next infographic

Infographic on diet soft drinks

If you wish to drink a soft drink, it may be better for you to drink a non diet one. The chemicals are less as they use sugar to sweeten and not a poor artificial one. In some places drinks are sweetened with Stevia, a more natural sweetener that the body is able to process much more efficiently. Those ones are certainly your best bet, but always check the label and see what sweetener is used, there are sweetness made from Stevia that may not be completely good for you either

To finish, please drink water, lots of water Lemon juice or lime will make it taste more interesting if thats your need. There is no good road ahead to health and long life if you consume the more available soft drinks out there, they negatively impact your cognition and gut health, increase your chances markedly for diabetes, dementia, heart disease etc, and make those conditions worse …. and wear the enamel from your teeth.

I’m always here for your health :-)

Vashti x

Vashti Schulz 18/1/19 Vashti Schulz 18/1/19

Do you want a MIRACULOUS morning?

I heard the term ‘morning miracle’ first used by an author named Hal Elrod. This young man had a nasty accident in his early 20’s and through a lot of perseverance and positivity and support was able to go from not being able to move and given a fairly dismal future diagnosis, to moving and fully functioning fairly quickly. My details won’t be exact, as it is several years since I have heard about this man, but what he achieved against the odds and in short time is astounding. He was inspired to create a concept he dubbed the ‘6 minute morning miracle’, it was his way of making sure that every morning he started the day with meaningful actions designed to get him stepping toward goals.

This concept in itself is nothing new. I’m sure you have heard of doing regular small things that end up being a big thing such as a new skill or productive habit, new business, better relationships etc. What I appreciated about Hal is that he appealed to my lazy yet structured brain with this one minute concept.

The idea is to allot 1 or 2 mins to 3- 6 things. For example, as soon as you wake up you could:

Meditate
Write in a gratitude journal
Squats
Pushups
Write a to do list
Stretch

1 minute each and in 6 minutes you are done. It’s not a lot of time but I’m sure you can see by the end of it you would feel like you have started your day off brilliantly. Mentally inspired, physically ready to go and emotionally settled.

It’s the concept of this that I appreciate. It’s a great way to start new habits but not feel overwhelmed when you really have little to no motivation at times.

We all could do exercise for one minute even when feeling like its the last thing on earth you would like to be doing.

Just Do it.

Try it right now, lets just do something for 3 tiny little minutes.

Put your timer on. Make it easy and start with 3 big impact things.

First 60 seconds,

Exercise. Squats, star jumps, pushups...a combination of the above, or simply stretch, 30 secs per side in a lunge or waist or hamstring stretch.

Next 60,

Paper and pencil and write. Write things and people you are grateful for. Go!

And the final 60 seconds,

Close your eyes. Breathe and listen for a while and sounds around you. Then bring the focus to the breath passing in and out of your nose. then follow that breath to feeling inside your head, all around and gradually make your way down your spine to your.... oops! Times up.

Now, how do you feel?

Imagine starting everyday like this

.... imagine finding every day like this .... theres no limit or restriction. We are all individual. Where could this idea most benefit you?

Individualise this

Again, theres no real rules and restrictions ..... this is just a cool flexible way of adding good quality routines and beneficial habits into your life. So think what you really need to address ..... is it more activity? Is it calmness? Is it learning a skill? Is it just to be happier?

If you are not sure, or need a bit of help, a good coach is the perfect person to go to. Someone like myself who is positive, open and individualised will help you set the goals and methods that best fit your life. They can either hold your hand for a few weeks/ months/ years.... or leave you to it... what ever you need.

Lets do it

Write a free list of things you would like to add into your life to enrich your world. Don’t analyse, just write.

When you are done pick the top 6. Then pick the top 3.

Start with 3 things at one minute each. It sounds tiny, but just do it at least once....then you can either add a few others or make it 2 mins each. No over achieving here.... just for a few days. After say 5 days in a row have a think about increasing it or leaving it exactly as it is for now.

But what if I’m in the flow and don’t want to stop?

Say you are exercising first, then before meditating you have your gratitude list minute to do and you are really getting into it. Just stop....its good discipline and if you kept going the odds are that you won’t do the meditation section no matter that you may tell yourself you will. Do the meditation. when that’s finished go straight back to your gratitude exercise.

It sounds easy and it should be, but what can derail you is if you want to add ‘exercise’ but then come unstuck about the best one to choose as you only have one or 2 minutes for it....thats where a friend or coach can help.

Say you want to learn a language and think how on earth in that short time can I make it count? Or you don’t like meditating but know its ‘good for you’ so you want to add it to your life.

Let me give you some more examples:

First is exercising :

You may have a fatburning goal and want to make your bottom a nice shape. Aobviously you will not be able to accomplish fatburning in your time, BUT you can increase your blood flow and energy to be ready to put in later. So 30 seconds of either vigorous squat jumping or squatting and 30 seconds of bottom squeezes would be a great start. thats for a one minute interval.

Second, a language:

Pick out one or two new words at the most and write them out over and over and then look at them and say them out loud. Voila!

Third, for the reluctant meditators:

Do a forward fold and hang or lie on your back with your legs up on the wall and allow them to sink to the sides. Now breathe and hold. As you breathe, think about the muscles you feel stretching, note your desire to get out of that stretch and breathe through that.... one minute is up before you know it and your body is echoing a big THANK YOU!

There are endless options.

Think about the last year you have had...

did you grow or change? Are you sitting here feeling you are in the same or similar spot?

Imagine if you did some little habit everyday for the next year ..... the difference it would make to you as a person.

Pretty significant huh!?!

It’s easy, but most of the time we don’t do this. Any steps you make will benefit and change you. Start today, don’t make excuses. If you need help, let me know. If you start doing it yourself, let me know too! I want to hear :-)

Make 2019 YOUR year.

Love, Vash x

References

Sample morning routines from super achievers:

Vashti Schulz 16/1/19 Vashti Schulz 16/1/19

Hacks to enhance my life, brain, body, performance

A few weeks ago I was quite taken aback … in a good way ….

The owner of one of the gyms I work at asked me to sit with him and film a short video of what my day consists of. In short what do I do now, at the age of 47, to keep me fit and healthy. He knows I love bio hacking (which is just finding simple ways to live, think and move better through life), and we have spent a lot of time in the past exchanging ideas and any interesting things we come across that may help a person to perform better and more happily through life.

We chatted briefly, made a few notes and went straight to video. It’s amateur but a good first go I thought. You can see it and other videos here.

Although our chat on the video went well, due to it being impromptu, I later I realised I had missed several other interesting things that someone might find useful.

So I have decided to write a little about my daily routine with a few why’s of what I currently do and share it below.

The steps below are ones I take nearly everyday. They are things I have found through my research and experience. I try many things, some stick and some don’t . I try what appeals and keep it if it works easily into my life….. at heart I’m sure I am really very lazy. This is what I’d like you to do, pick out something interesting and doable. I think you’ll find several really easy things to action straight away, and you never know…they just might make the difference you are needing at this point in time.

I do the following roughly 80% of the week (a silly statistic meaning it may be 7 days, it may be 5 days a week).

I found being this way has allowed me to keep my figure at this current weight of **cough cough…60kg….(that was confronting to say, although I know thats very healthy, I have left over disordered thinking from being 50kg a few years back which likes me to panic if I am ‘heavy’)

…. so 60kg and approximately 19% body fat (BF)….fairly easily. Personally I would love to hit 55kg again, which with my muscle mass is around 15-16%BF, but to do that means I don’t eat out a few times a week and probably zero alcohol and a little more training…. It would make me tired and less able to cope with stress (I have a little chronic PTSD I deal with…not from the weight mentioned above …. so stress is a regular thing for me to cope with)… which reminds me…resilience training is the next thing I’ll be putting in my schedule soon!

This was a long winded way of saying I put in work, most but not all, of the time so I can still eat out and relax with friends and family and not be overly strict with my diet, and exercise constantly (I have done that in the past…and although I thought my body was great...its not the way to live a life thats happy for me and also to be good to be around).

Lets start!

First thing in the morning

I get up early.

5am weekdays, I like an early start. I try to make weekends 6am as it is best for your body’s health and circadian rhythm, to get up at the same time every morning. I haven’t mastered that, but I do the best I can, and I admit to sleeping in at least once a week most weeks.

I have half to one litre of water between now and my shower with apple cider vinegar to help the bile acids activate for the day. This aids in digestion and the natural detox system.

I walk the dogs for 30 mins. Its easy and fairly slow which used to frustrate me but they so LOVE to fossick around and check everything out…. then I decided to use this time to stretch my body and I feel so much better ( as do my joints), that I have never looked back.

I do stretching and rotations of my :

Shoulders
Neck
Chest
Hamstring
Hips
Hip flexors
Calves

…and I do some pushups and yogic down dogs on benches at certain spots.

Nothing to strenuous. I breathe deep. The shoulder and neck stretches make me look upward to the lovely trees and I always hold and relax for a breath or two. This particular one I have given the highest importance as its the key to a straight posture - so no turtle neck!

Cortisol is high in the morning and because of this I don’t overdo morning exercise as that would create too much cortisol. Instead the dog walking and stretching increases my mobility and posture while nurturing my parasympathetic system( rest and digest).

During walk I make sure to take in the sky so my eyes can soak in the morning uv light, stop melatonin production .... terribly important for a healthy circadian rhythm, enhanced immunity, weight control, stress control, and brain health amongst other things.

It's interesting actually what looking at the sky in general does.

We have all these sensors in our eyes that absorb the uv lights and others and that initiate processes and systems in the body. If we cover up our eyes with glasses or windows then we don’t get the full benefits for our body. So it doesn’t mean don’t cover up, but just try to get some pure light to your eyes in the morning and evening at least. Shield your eyes when glare is around.

When I want to burn more fat I will go for a 20 to 30 min gentle running shuffle after the dog walk, my running is a shuffle and on my toes (to use my body’s natural suspension system) ….. my version of a jog that I hope to continue most of my life. If I don’t run I will do yoga instead.

After the run, more water and then shower time.

I am gradually acclimatising myself to cold showers. I do this by playing with the temperature. A few seconds cold and then hot. I gradually lengthen the cold time and its surprisingly bearable to do it this way and my body has taeken to it well. Its no longer quick the shock when the cold hits me and I am able to keep it cold longer than the time before generally. Trust me, I’m not brave, I LOVE my hot showers and am the last to jump into pools as everyone who knows me is well aware. I’m a complete coward. So why on earth would I add this seeming torture to my morning schedule

Health benefits of cold

Hot cold contrast showers to activate brown fat, helps body’s natural thermal regulation stimulates the vagus nerve (largest cranial nerve), slows and even prevents inflammation.

The vagus nerve has been shown to cure rheumatoid arthritis when electrically stimulated. It can also be stimulated stimulated by cold and deep breathing. Low vagus activity is associated with poor memory , inflammation, brain fog and fatigue. The higher the vagus tone the more oxytocin (the cuddle hormone) you produce. ….so a cold shower and a cuddle could be the ultimate happiness recipe maybe…hmmmm

With higher vagal tone we are less anxious, gut health is promoted and with the oxytocin produced we feel closer to people and more altruistic.

Brown fat is the metabolic beast of the body. Some of us have more, some have less. The more you have, the more white (think ugly) fat we will burn doing everyday things. So we want more. It also works a charm at allowing us to adapt to extremes in temperature more easily.

My extra hack: I will be taking bitter melon before I shower as this works synergistically with the cold to increase the brown fat activity.

Intermittent Fasting

I intermittent fast most days and everyday if possible I try not to eat for a 12 hour window. It’s a lot easier than you may think. It gives the body a chance to rid itself of old, damaged cells, and also to rest from the digestive process. Our body prioritises digestion before running other healing processes completely so allowing those to take precedence for some extra time everyday is a good thing to do for general health. It also balances blood sugar and insulin levels, which of course leads to fat loss.

Fasting is interesting, and for the health benefits I mentioned above. It can be done SO many ways. This is just one. I like the regular everyday one, or you could fast for one day a week, or a few days a month, etc…. there are plenty of ways to do it so try the one you feel will be easiest to fit into your lifestyle.

I will still have black coffee and water and then I will eat/consume any calories (like a coffee with milk) when I feel I need it between 10am to 3 pm. Because the body is so receptive at that point, I will make sure the very first thing is either vegetables or a quality protein and fat. If I put anything carby like toast, my body would go into a little spasm and over produce insulin and I’d have the blood sugar levels sky rocketing and then plunging….a recipe for ill health and fat gain.

As I have double checked all the knowledge I have on how my body works with a DNA test I know that I have a tendency to obesity, diabetes, cardiac issues. I can go into that more another time, but the upshot is I am a little more vigilant with my blood sugar response to food and drink and I supplement and choose my foods accordingly. Supplements I sweat by, especially if I eat breads, pastas, fruits, anything sugary.

Apple cider vinegar
Berberine
Bitter melon
These 3 power house supplements help my body to slowly release glucose and also for my insulin level to respond normally and immediately when these foods are eaten. The calories still count of course but my body’s response to them is sensitive now and not dulled by chronically high levels which anyone over weight, is.

Later

As the day draws on, cortisol naturally dips and even if you made sure to keep your carbs low to avoid that sleepy afternoon feeling, you may still feel flat and mentally drained. To work with this dip, I lift weights. Sometimes its quite hard to get in to the gym, but most of the time I will go their and not allow myself to start thinking about it…else I will sit my bottom back down in a chair and probably eat. Weights….or any exercise, in the afternoon will provide a lift to your energy and mood and settle the cortisol. This is even true if you are suffering unnaturally high cortisol levels which is generally due to chronic stress. In this later case the higher cortisol will be utilised more productively to enhance muscle gain and thus will lower afterwards naturally and help to reset your cortisol cycle.

Exercise is often easy to avoid later in the day. Don’t talk yourself out of a session just because its not the best time of day or you are tired. Listen to your body, do a lighter workout, do yoga, do anything, just be consistent. A little everyday ….. there’s magic in that.

The best workout is the one you do

At the end of the day

I take bitter melon with my evening meal to again deal with higher sugar levels from dinner which is often concluded by fruit (I do LOVE my sweets so fruit is a wonderful substitute to ice cream)

Sleep

Sleep is a high priority and I guard it tightly. I like to go to bed at 9pm for my 5 am start. My room is as dark as possible and I use a salt lamp as the light is not the blue of normal lights. You may remember above that you look at the sky in the morning to soak up the blue light which switches off melatonin production amongst other things, well the red light of the lamp allows the body to start producing it.

Be careful of electronics. Looking at a screen of any sort (they emit a blue light) and the body reacts by suppressing melatonin, so ideally you would wear either blue blocking glasses or turn all electronics off an hour or so before bed.

Melatonin is a wonder hormone (although aren’t all hormones wonders). It is released every evening to inform the body to shut down and wind down. It activates the healing processes and all systems needed to rejuvenate the body. It seems that as we age, we produce less and less melatonin, which could be why many older adults sleep less and less. If you go to sleep at different times then the body doesn’t know what time to release melatonin and your sleep will no doubt be quite unsatisfying. By going to sleep at a consistent time the body is able to reliably produce melatonin at the best moment for a therapeutic sleep. However one or two late nights and it takes a while to settle back down again. You can see this is why health professionals advocate sleeping at the same time everyday of the week and not just Monday to Friday. You can also imagine why jet lag takes quite a toll on the body as it has to work our gradually when on earth is the best time to release melatonin.

As a result, for many years I have cycled through supplementing melatonin.

I use either 5 HTP (5 hydroxy tryptophan, this is a precursor to serotonin and melatonin, take 150-300mg) and / or melatonin ( 1+ gm, not the homeopathic stuff) to ensure that my body and circadian rhythm is consistent. I especially use this the night after a late night before. It resets my body by ensuring the release of melatonin happens when it should, it should be taken an hour before bedtime. It really is a miracle worker for jet lag.

Now, if this has caused more questions than answers please send me a message or comment below. If you agree or disagree, also please send a message. I love to get others opinions and thoughts….and if you have tried any of the above, put that down too! The above is basically what I do, and I have another list of things I PLAN to add in the future.

Do try something, any time spent improving your health will repay you back many times over, so start small.

Click the button to download your free PDF. Start with something that seems easy to do and notice how much better you feel over the coming days and weeks.

All the very best x

Vashti Schulz 30/11/18 Vashti Schulz 30/11/18

Supplementation for a kick ass brain

I’m a happy supplementer … some would say a little too enthusiastic at times (or is that obsessive?) … So I don’t need much motivation other than it may be good for you, to try a supplement, however, many others feel a balanced diet should take care of any extra need.

In an ideal world a balanced diet would be easy to follow and would completely take care of everything our body and brain needs. Unfortunately most diets are extremely poor in the balance and span of nutrients. Environmentally we live in a more chronically stressed world which leads to a faster depletion of stored nutrients and our farming has changed, many of these vegetables and fruits don’t contain nearly as much of the good stuff as they used to early in the last century. Just bite an organic piece of fruit and compare with a store bought one…no comparison!

As always if you do decide to try any of the following supplements, please check with a doctor first, you never know how they will interact with your diet and current medications.

A fascinating study was done on 30 retired NFL players. NFL players are a great group to test cognition on as they have all been afflicted with head injuries in their playing life. Cognition later in life is very affected by any head trauma of the past, often even minor ones.

The ex players were encouraged to lose weight and take the following supplements for 6 months.

Vinpocetine 15 mg
Fish Oil - 1720 mg EPA and 1160 mg DHA
Ginkgo Extract 120mg
Alpha Lipoic acid 300mg
Acetyl -L Carnitine 1000mg
Huperzine A 150 mcg
N-actetyl-cysteine 600mg
High potency Multi Vitamin

After 6 months they were retested and significant increases were noted in attention, memory, reasoning, information process and accuracy. Scans showed increased cerebral blood flow throughout most of the brain!

Lets look further at each supplement and see what it is that made such an incredible difference

Fish Oil

“The human brain is nearly 60 percent fat. We’ve learned in recent years that fatty acids are among the most crucial molecules that determine your brain’s integrity and ability to perform. Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are required for maintenance of optimal health but they can not synthesized by the body and must be obtained from dietary sources.”

— www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20329590

Fish oil is anti inflammatory, and we just don’t get nearly enough in our diet, unless you eat fresh salmon a few times a week. Not all fish oil is created equal its worth looking for a good quality one. You can easily check the one you have bought by either piercing one capsule, if the oil smells bad, then its rancid as it should be relatively odourless, OR store the fish oil in the fridge….if it looks cloudy, its likely to be poor quality. For a real anti-inflammatory synergistic effect, pair your fish oil with turmeric and a bit of black pepper (pipeline).

Vinpocetine

Vinopocetine is a man made chemical created from the periwinkle plant. It is thought to increase cerebral blood flow and is used to enhance memory and prevent alzheimers. Its sometimes used to prevent a stroke or at least prevent disability from one as it prevents blood clotting and that can help reduce the likely hood of clots stopping blood flow to the brain, therefore keeping oxygen and nutrients flowing through and reducing neuronal death.

Ginkgo Extract

Ginkgo biloba increases blood flow in the brain like vinpocetine.

Alpha lipoic acid

Alpha lipoid acid increases antioxidant activity which reduces the harmful effects of oxidation in the hippocampus. It is also helpful in reducing blood brain permeability, a leaky brain.

Acetyl L-carnitine

Acetyl-L-Carnitine might enhance NSC proliferation and adult hippocampal neurogenesis by regulating proneural genes and cell survival related signals

N-acetyl cysteine

N acetyl cysteine increases antioxidant activity, reducing oxidative effects by increasing glutathione levels (These levels are found to be much lower in a stressed brain environment)

Huperzine A

Huperzine A increases nutrients for neurotransmitters through acetyl choline and may support proliferation of hippocampal neural stem cells.

This is a big stack, and it worked.

These were sportsmen with acknowledged cognitive difficulties due to past head trauma and they all benefited. That makes this stack a very interesting one to consider.

For the Everyday person

Perhaps you have no or little concern for your cognitive health but would like something easy and simple to supplement with to protect and strengthen your brain and keep yourself from developing any issues later.

These other supplements are also recommended by experts in the field of brain health.

First, they all seemed to agree that a high potency multi/vitamin mineral and quality fish oil supplement is a staple. The following ones are also recommended.

Vitamin D3

Most of us are Vitamin D3 deficient. This is due to our diet and more particularly our lifestyle. Get your levels checked and make sure to have your supplement with a fatty meal or with the fishtail as this will help the body absorb it. Vitamin D may support the synthesis of neurotrophic factors and neurotrophin receptors, and thereby support NSC proliferation and differentiation, neuronal maturation and growth, neuronal survival, and synaptogenesis.

Magnesium

Consensus seems that we are all magnesium deficient. Magnesium is part of over 300 enzymatic reactions in our bodies, so is extremely important to keep topped up. The kind of magnesium is also important, most forms bought in stores are not very bio available to the body. Magnesium Threonate is hard to find, but has some interesting studies stating it can cross the blood brain barrier very well, so grab that one if possible. If not choose either a glycinate or citrate version. Dr Mark Hyman, an American GP and a loud voice in natural health and preventing brain decline, recommends 300-400mg of magnesium taken before bed to relax the brain, nervous system and muscles.

He also recommends Vit D 3, Omega 3, High quality, potent, bio available and broad spectrum Multivitamin / mineral and to make sure the magnesium is a citrate or glycinate form.

Creatine

Creatine is a wonderful supplement to increase your strength and power but did you know its also really helpful as a nootropic (substances that increase cognition). It can have a neural protective effect by slowing down neuronal cell death. It also can increase levels of glutamate (a neural transmitter), aid learning, memory, and even help with depression! This study found it worked to improve memory and cognition in older and stressed people.

Try 2 or more milligrams a day.

Probiotics

The brain and the gut are inextricably linked. If our gut isn’t happy, neither will the brain be. A whole food diet will do a lot to restore the integrity not the gut lining and bacteria. These beneficial bacteria can improve your digestion, reduce food allergies, and reduce gut inflammation. Gut health plays a powerful role in brain health. When you don’t have the right gut diversity, inflammation and things like leaky brain can occur, setting the stage for diverse problems ranging from brain fog to dementia.

Add a quality, broad spectrum pro and pre biotic to your diet to facilitate gut health. Pre biotics include fibre such as psyllium husk and glucomannan. These two make excellent thickners in soups and sauces. Fermented foods include apple cider, kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha etc.

Always try to get the best quality possible as there can be quite a difference in efficacy of these foods and probiotics. Its hard to find a high quality and brand spectrum probiotic…often these supplements contain very little live bacteria….an expensive exercise, so best to stick with fermented foods where possible.

Is that it?

NO!

There is a whole field of nootropics out there from the Racetams to Modafinil. Some freely available, some prescription only. This is another huge bag of interesting things but I won’t be covering that today, however, please send me a question if you are all curious. Its an interesting field.

Is supplementation worth it?

Obviously this is up to you. Unfortunately the food is not like it was 100 years ago. The fruits, meats grains and vegetables are less nutritious and even now inflammatory (in the cases of grain fed meat and modern grains). Our lifestyle is more prone to chronic low level stress, less activity, poorer posture, more estrogenic (poorly metabolised versions such as is found in cling wraps, plastic containers) and all this leads to our bodies and minds needing additional nutrition to make up the lack and further nutrition to counter those environmental antagonists we are all subject to as mentioned above.

Of course always check what supplements you want to take with a doctor or nutritionist before hand. Also do yourself a favour and get regular blood tests to check all levels and create a baseline for you to compare changes. This will provide a really useful history you can reflect back on in the years to come.

With all supplementation, cycling your intake is often recommended, and of course this keeps the costs down. Supplementation can be quite costly. Join the mailing lists of your favourite sites and shops and look out for their specials and buy up.

The following are some useful sites I have used in the past (I have no affiliation with any of them)

iherb.com.au

Good Australian sites:

Bulknutrition.com.au
Createyourownsupplement.com

If you have any good sites or supplements you would recommend, please write them in the comments section below as well as what country you are from.

Thanks again, and happy supplementing!

Vashti Schulz 2/11/18 Vashti Schulz 2/11/18

Spotlight: Interview with Remarkable Ruth, 60

Ruth has just celebrated her 60th birthday. When I met her a few years a go I was amazed with her energy and positivity (and beauty!). She works more than full-time, as a high-level manager with an international company and has become the happiest of grandparents with her daughter's gorgeous 14 month old son. When Ruth came to the gym those years ago, she came with motivation to feel good and perform stronger at work as well as regaining some of her youthful body back. Since then she hasn’t seemed to look back and has been consistent with her workouts despite ebbs and flows in life. Now that she has added a low sugar diet to her routine, her body and radiance has bloomed further. The best part is that she has been maintaining this for many months with seeming ease!

Describe your current exercise pattern

I exercise 5 days a week, early in the morning. Normally at the gym by 6am for an hour to an hour and a half.

I have a personal training session once a week to keep pushing me to the next level.

How long have you been doing it like that for?

I used to visit the gym daily in my thirties, and then stopped going. I have been dedicated to this programme for at least the last three years religiously.

What are the main reasons you have this exercise pattern?

I have a very busy job and a hectic schedule, fast pace and under constant stress. If I didn’t get up early and make the time to exercise in the morning, I wouldn’t do it.

Whenever I have left my visit until post work, I get home and then think … can’t be bothered. Going early, before work also sets me up for the day, clears my mind and makes me feel full focused and full of energy.

I can hammer myself and get rid of any stress and agro that has built up and take it all out on the gym equipment.

I also want to be able to enjoy my grandchild and future grandchildren, be mobile, active and agile.

What impact has this had on your life and lifestyle?

I feel far more energetic, I am much fitter and stronger than pre gym. I have lost weight, gained muscle mass and look and feel so much better.

I actually look at photos of myself 3 years ago and think who is that stranger in the photos.

Do you have any other goals exercise/ fitness wise?

Yes, to bench press my years in weight and continue to build muscle mass. I never get on the scales, I judge my weight loss and shape change by my clothes.

Note: Ruth has reached an amazing 55 kg press so far!

I want to continue to change my shape and look fit and strong going into my 6o+ years and make it a habit for life.

If you had to stop exercising for a month, how would you feel?

I couldn’t do it. Just a few days away from the gym makes me feel sluggish and slow. I am addicted to the high I get from exercising and feeling powerful.

How do you motivate yourself for exercise and healthily eating? Any tips?

“I love music and have a great playlist that has specific songs linked to my programme that I look forward to listening to. I am motivated by the changes I am now seeing in my body.”

It’s my time, I can put in my earphones, and disappear for an hour into another world.

I am competitive by nature and also enjoy reaching goals that I have set for myself.

The changes I have seen since participating in the 6 week challenge and from ongoing exercise has been both motivating and rewarding and the comments received from people when they now see me also spurs me on to continue with my disciplines .

Whats your diet like? Have you always eaten this way?

My diet is much better since participating in the 6 week challenge (with FitnessLife Studios).

I was a carb-a-holic pre the challenge. I have dropped the sugar, decreased the glasses of wine and really curbed the carbs. I lost 6 kilos in 6 weeks, and after keeping on the programme, another 3 kilos.

What is your ‘go to’ healthy meal? A favourite that gets you by

My favourite and must have meal is breakfast. Its a simple omelette made with two eggs. Inside I put mushroom, spinach and little sliced chilli ( seeds out). If I have it for tea I add tuna to it.

If you could tell your 40 year old self anything, what would it be?

I would tell my 40 year old self to be more disciplined in my eating habits, to keep up a good fitness programme, that you can continue to look great at any age and that

“... if she (40 year old self) saw me working out so physically at 60 she wouldn’t believe it xx”

Thank you so much for sharing Ruth.

My takeaways from Ruth is:

To consistently exercise.
Get it out the way first thing in the morning.
Eat a predominantly low sugar diet, and aim high in fitness goals and life quality.
Face the world positively and be empowered take charge of your own health, that you really can make fantastic changes.

Vashti Schulz 10/10/18 Vashti Schulz 10/10/18

Don't Let Eating Out Derail Your health

In the culture we live in now, it is becoming more and more common to dine out, lunches at cafes, dinner at a restaurant. In Adelaide we are completely spoilt for choice, value for money and food styles and I know this is becoming more and more the norm world-wide. When you travel you also tend to eat out, well, all the time really, don’t you? Unless you make a large effort to go to a supermarket and bring food back to your room.

So how do we do this and still maintain a level of health?

useful-and-useless-food-question-for-choosing-vector-8310359.jpg

There is no doubt that eating out will put on the pounds and not in a good way. Most restaurants will use vegetable oils, cheap butter and even if they advertise olive oil…most are low grade. None of these fats are good for your body. They contribute higher levels of triglycerides leading to clogged arteries, diabetes and heart disease amongst other things….yet, damn it…we want to eat out!

Like all healthy lifestyle factors, it comes down to choice.

Your choice.

You have the power to eat out, enjoy the company and not gain the pounds. You just need a little bit of knowledge, a little bit of guidance and all the pressure is off.

In a perfect world …..

……… we would all be able to go to a restaurant, order one glass of quality red wine. Ignore the bread. Order a large serve of vegetables or salad and get a serving of protein to join that. All with only quality extra virgin olive oil as a sauce. OR as apparently the French do, go out and order, but eat only a tiny portion of the meal.

BUT… it’s not ALWAYS that easy …

If you can do the above…wonderful, you are fantastic and you don’t need to read further. However, if like me, you are a little less self controlled…well, come this way …. lets real world this …..

Being able to comfortably and easily order healthily when out can’t be forced and rushed…else you are plunged in denial and a binge will come sooner or later….thats a for sure win bet.

Lets make it all painless. Its just like adjusting to a new diet, which really shouldn’t be a diet but a way of eating for life. A new way of eating is best done in stages else you really will rebound straight back and probably past your previous weight.

First - we take this is stages.

This is how I would coach you to do the dinning out (contact me if you would like help with this. Being accountable to someone is really useful)

Play imagine if …

At first, just read the menu and pick out exactly what you would order, if you were picking a meal that looked like the suggested one above. Don’t order it, order what you want, just make sure you have picked what you would if you were right into this. You’ll be surprised that this is actually fine and doesn’t make you feel guilty or anything.

Do this each dining out visit till you are ready to move forward. NO RUSH.

Pretend …

… do exactly as before but this time imagine the plate in front of you and imagine you eating it and jump your mind ahead to how you will feel when you get home tonight. How you feel mentally and physically from having a vegetable based meal that doesn’t require some supersonic digestion. Remember too, that because you did what you set out to do you will get a serotonin dump of happiness because you achieved what you set out to do. (Make sure it only takes a minute of your time at the most)

Then order as you normally would like to. Do this for at least 5-10 dining out visits. Make a list and tick off the times you do this.

Get Veged up!

Now this time you will order as normal BUT with an extra large bowl of vegetables. Eat as many or little as you can. All are ticks on your list….. again 5 -10 visits

Next Habit …

Order as last time but try to just eat the meat and vegetables and skip the white starches. Bread, rice white potatoes and pasta.

Now try to do the above without the sugary or calorific sauces. If you feel brave, order yours without any sauce or oil and bring your own organic olive oil. Organic, unheated olive oil has so many health benefits.

TIPS

Definitely go through each stage at least 5 times each or more if you don’t feel its really easy to do. Take your time to go through each stage (days, weeks, months)…it doesn’t matter, it only matters that you do it most of the time (ie, 95% of the time you eat out, else you are not forming a permanent habit). Move on ONLY when you are positive you actually WANT to and not that you feel you MUST or SHOULD move forward. This is about your HEALTH, not aesthetics (always remember you look your best, your glowing best, when you are healthy)

IMPORTANT:

One of the biggest stumbling blocks to this is the embarrassment or peer pressure of ordering a little differently around friends/ family, even to the waiter/ess. So just say you’ve been having some stomach issues/ pain/ allergies when you eat certain foods, and you are avoiding it for now. Everyone understands that. Friends and family want whats best for you but they generally don’t realise that ‘just this once’ isn’t the most supportive phrase to a healthy body. If they think it will cause you pain or discomfort, no one will press you further.

Finally -

Make the commitment now

Choose a better meal. There are so many temptations…sooo many…and they taste wonderful….however, is that really worth the aches, pains, inflammation, chronic disease? I sound alarmist, but thats exactly what is being invited in. Its easy to ignore because the change is so gradual and we can all get away with it for a while till suddenly we can’t.

So commit to yourself out of respect for your body. Choose healthier, start small. Your healthy body will thank you for it as you will FEEL fantastic ….

…… and enjoy many fun times out with friends for years to come.

Please comment below if you try this and let me know how you went. I’d love to hear some stories :-)

Further ideas on eating out choices:

Vashti Schulz 5/10/18 Vashti Schulz 5/10/18

Nutrition for Brain Health

“The research makes it clear: Diet plays a clear and determinant role in every aspect of brain function, literally shaping our thoughts, actions, emotions, and behaviors...If your job depends on your brain, it depends on your diet.”

— Dr Lisa Mosconi

Previously I talked about how to use exercise to improve your cognitive health, today we will have a look for the ways you can heal and rejuvenate your brain with diet.

But, before we talk broccoli and chicken, lets have a quick look at what happens to the brain as we age.

The brain depends on blood flow to deliver oxygen and nutrients for neuroplastcicty, and neurogenesis. This cerebral blood flow is delivered through tiny capillaries that surround the neurons . As we age, the brain naturally experiences hypoprefusion, which is a slowing of cerebral blood flow (interestingly ... women a little less so, heheh). This diminished blood flow is associated with cell injury, cognitive impairment and alzheimers. To quickly even the gender bias above, unfortunately women are more susceptible to alzheimers than men….damn! Scientists are still hypothesising why this is…….

…… Now, when there is any kind of interruption to this flow, your neurons can be killed or injured and that causes nerve damage and restricts blood flow.

Things like any kind of head trauma can hasten this hypoperfusion and damage. Aging can thicken veins, degrade capillaries, and a poor diet will hasten this degradation further. A poor diet causes high blood glucose, and high inflammation with an intake of vegetable oils, foods you may be allergic to, processed sugars and commercially raised meat.

What can diet do for your brain?

The brain is a very hungry organ.

It uses approx 25-30% of our daily energy intake. Its made of lipids (fats) and water, and it relies on what we eat to heal and rebuild itself. If your diet is low in fats for example, the brain is unable to build new cells and facilitate its neural pathway processes. Dehydration is also very important to avoid as well.

A lot of us are eating foods that inflame our bodies, such as processed starches and grain fed meat.

Putting petrol in first is a more efficient idea

To compound this we also tend to eat diets low in anti-inflammatory foods such as oily fish and green leafy vegetable. Like persistently putting vegetable juice in your petrol tank and getting frustrated that the car is not driving like it should. To state the obvious, cars need petrol (or electricity, thank you Tesla), and humans need a range of nutrients.

Most of us and yet looking at many diets you can see that this is not happening.

Fortunately a little know how and motivation to subtly change what we eat, should be all thats needed to give our brains the best chance of getting healthy and staying healthy.

Special mention to our second brain - THE GUT

The gut’s microbiome is basically our second brain, and more and more are we finding how important it is to our brain health. Many hormones and processes we thought were initiated by the brain are actually done by the microbiota in the gut. No wonder everyone is getting on the pre and pro biotic bandwagon. We need a healthy gut (happy bug colonies abounding) to have a healthy brain. The one influences the other.

“These hundred trillion bacteria that live within your gut are so intimately involved in your brain at a number of levels. They manufacture neurochemicals, for example. Things like dopamine and serotonin. They manufacture important vitamins that are important to keep your brain healthy. They also maintain the integrity of the lining of your gut.” - Dr D Perrlmutter

Feed the gut microbiome with fermented foods such as kimchi, kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha and prebiotic foods, those high in fibre, garlic, dandelion greens, jerusalem artichoke.

What to eat for your brain

Fortunately its not that complicated to eat for brain health. If you make some small changes, you won’t have to wait till you are in the midst of a major health issue like onset dementia. If you wait till then, adjusting your diet will still make a vast difference.

If you aren’t interested in much detail, let me put this in a nutshell:

Vegetables good ………….

………….. Sugar bad

Why Vegetables?

Dr. Martha Clare Morris is an interesting lady. She is Professor of Epidemiology, Director of the Section of Nutrition and Nutritional Epidemiology in the Department of Internal Medicine, and Assistant Provost of Community Research at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago……….what a mouthful!

For the last twenty years she has been researching factors involved in the development of alzheimers as well as other health concerns for older adults. Her research found that people who ate the least amount of vegetables had the fastest cognitive decline, but that this slowed and cognition was even protected with higher intakes of vegetables.

Her research found that eating two or more servings of vegetables per day offered a statistically significant reduction in cognitive decline. Green leafy vegetables, in particular, were associated with slower decline, and people who ate green leafy vegetables at least six times a week exhibited much slower cognitive decline — researchers estimated it was like being 11 years younger in age…

Greens such as spinach and kale contain lutein and zeaxanthin. These two carotenoids are associated with faster learning speeds and applying learning and knowledge in older adults. This study showed that lutein increased thickness in areas of the brain associated with learning and slows cognitive decline in older adults.

Spinach and eggs anyone?

What about Fruit?

In her studies Dr Morris found fruit did not offer this protection, but berries did. Dr Richard Isaacs, Director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic, Memory Disorders Program, and Neurology Residency Training Program at Weill Cornell Medical College, also is a firm proponent of eating a diet full of vegetables and blueberries …thank goodness…I love a blueberry!

So all kinds of berries were protective with strawberries being the gold standard for Dr Morris and blueberries for Dr Isaacs.

Coffee

Coffee appears to play a protective role in the risk for MS, alzheimers, Parkinson’s and perhaps even early mortality. This maybe partly due to its role in reducing inflammation that is associated with reduced cognition. We certainly are all aware of its stimulating effects which is in its ability to block an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain, adenosine. Adenosine can reduce mental stamina and make you feel tired. It also activates our Nrf2 pathways that fight off oxidative stress and protectactivate our Nrf2 pathways, helping to fight off oxidative stress and protect against neurodegenerative diseases,

This study showed that by drinking 3-5 cups a day in midlife had a significantly lowered chance of getting Alzheimers and dementia by a HUGE 65%.

The sweet spot seems to be 2-5 cups a day. So make it organic and put that kettle on!

Green Tea

High-dose green tea extract was found to scavenge oxygen free radicals, enhance antioxidant potential, decrease lipid peroxide production, and reduce oxidative DNA damage. The high-dose group had better spatial learning and memory than saline-treated rats.

Eggs

Eggs contain lutein and choline. Choline is of particular importance for your neuronal membranes and is the precursor to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.

Acetylcholine is important for learning and memory, as well as deep sleep. Some of the drugs approved to treat the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, a fatal memory disorder, work by boosting levels of acetylcholine in the brain.

Unfortunately our bodies are only able to produce a small amount of choline so its very dependant on dietary intake.

Chocolate

The theobromine and polyphenols in chocolate correlate to better cerebral blood flow, improved cognition. Just make sure you eat a quality chocolate source at least 70% cacao bean and preferably higher, like 85% with low sugar.

More frequent chocolate consumption was significantly associated with better performance on the Global Composite score, Visual-Spatial Memory and Organisation, Working Memory, Scanning and Tracking, Abstract Reasoning.

Water

Our brain is mostly water, with fat coming a close second…enough said!

Kind of. Being an electrical system, the brain needs adequate water to function efficiently. The brain will react to even the smallest amount of dehydration which can cause brain fog, faitgue, dizziness, confusion and brain shrinkage. So drink those 8 glasses at least, a day. Go for quality water high in minerals and natural electrolytes where possible.

Fats

Here we need the good oils found in avocado, olive oil, MCT oil, quality fish oil. The brain can only rebuild itself with the right equipment and that is fats. Make sure your fats are from good sources and bear in mind the change that some fats go through if they become overheated such as olive oil. It will quickly become rancid and inflammatory when heated, so just save it for salads and dressings.

Protein

Quality protein is important and as we age we need a little more. It doesn’t appear as important before the age of 65 (check the research of Dr Longo), but after that, make sure to get a few serves in a day. Animal protein should be grass fed and free range. This is particularly important with red meat. Grain fed cows have meet that contains a large amount of omega 6 which is essential but not in large amounts. Grass fed cows have meat that is rich in th perfect ratio of 6 to omega 3.

“... you are what you eat ate. Yes, that’s right: you better think twice about whether your steak ate grass vs. GMO corn, your chicken ate bugs vs. herbicide-laden grains or your fish ate worms vs. pieces of other dead fish ground up with fish farm meal. Nowhere is this truer and more applicable than when it comes to fueling your brain”

— B.GreenField

Now its very important to know……

……… What to Avoid

Ideally you would want make sure your diet has none of the following:

Vegetable oils
Heated nuts and seeds
Processed sugar (always check the sugar levels in the ingredients of foods. There are a lot of hidden sugars lurking around)
Grain fed meat and farmed fish (full of omega 6, have an omega 3 capsule with these if you must eat them to balance the 6:3 ratio)
Processed starches and grains

I hope this article will inspire you to take control of your brain health and those around you.

Knowledge is power.

Don’t let the above doesn’t overwhelm you with information and do’s and don’ts. Keep it simple, its never to soon to increase your brain health. Remember Alzheimers starts more than 10 years before diagnosis is made.

Have a look through your pantry and fridge. Take note of what you are regularly eating and see how many of the mentioned foods you are there. Try writing down it down in two columns and see how it measures up. Are there more ‘avoid’ foods? More ‘eat more’ foods?

The beauty with that little exercise is we that we know where you and your household are at now. Each day,

incorporate more brain health foods and less of those to’ avoid’ foods.

Especially if you are currently feeling in a healthy state, you can take your time with this and not be too militant. If you or a loved one is experiencing brain fog, early signs of cognitive difficulty, or is right in the midst of dementia, then try everything you can to improve the food choices you make for yourself and others. Please bear in mind I am no doctor and please run any major changes past a doctor and get an ok first. For example, if you are on blood thinners then increasing fish oil can be hazardous as that also thins the blood. So you need to make sure.

I’ve included an easy PDF printout you can stick on your fridge to help remind you of what choices are best. Please download and use that if you would find that helpful.

If you have any questions at all contact me or comment below. Check out my regular updates and tips on my Facebook page too and its another great place to message me :-).

Next blog will be on supplements that have been shown to improve brain health.

Further Good References:

Ben Greenfield Fitness

Alzheimers Universe

Max Lugavere

Books that may interest you:

Genius Foods, Max Lugavere

You Can Fix Your Brain, Tom O’Bryan

Deep Nutrition, Dr Cate Shannahan

Longevity Diet, Dr Valter Longo

Brain Maker, Dr David Perlmutter

Brain Food: The Surprising Science of Eating for Cognitive Power, Dr Lisa Moscow

Vashti Schulz 24/9/18 Vashti Schulz 24/9/18

Blog Snack: Dairy lowers heart risk

This was too good not to share. A study was done on individuals aged 35-70 between Jan 1, 2003, and July 14, 2018. The individuals were multinational as they were recruited from 21 countries. The study grouped individuals into dairy and non dairy intake. The idea was to see if the intake had any significance to heart disease, stroke, cardiac conditions.

Dairy intake, greater than 2 a day as opposed to no intake, was shown to be associated with a lowered risk of total mortality and non cardiac and cardiac issues (stroke, heart disease). Greater than 1 serve versus no intake of milk and yoghurt rather than cheese and butter, was also associated with lowered risk of mortality by cardiac issues. There was no association with with myocardial infarction (heart attack) in either groups.

Takeaway :

Don’t be afraid of dairy IF you like it and are able to digest it. Most people stop producing as many lactose digestive enzymes as they had when they were young, the exception are many of those from Northern European descent. Pro tip: find a good digestive enzyme and take a couple before you eat the dairy for maximum digestion of the nutrients.