Youth FIRE Strength and Conditioning

More Teens are looking for the competitive edge by getting into the Gym this Xmas

With families not going away for Christmas this year, many are opting to improve their children’s fitness by put their tweens and teens into  professionally operated gyms and teaming them up with qualified Personal Trainers.   They want their son or daughter to be coached how to train and ultimately lift weights safely and properly. 

The object is to get an  all round training program to reduce the chance of injuries in and out of the gym so they don't  do the usual silly things,  kids tend to do when they first start strength training like ALL chest exercises and just ab crunches.

They key to avoid injuries and create balance and a leaner body is to  having variety and focus on technique first before isolating muscle groups (if ever) and adding more resistance to the growing child. 

Training teenagers is very different to training  adults.  Even though we can begin adding resistance to their workouts.  Teenagers are already performing a kind of resistance training in their sports like soccer and rugby such as tackling, jumping, running and pushing, changing directions but generally they are doing it wrong.  Firstly, they need to demonstrate, for example, how to squat (which we use to jump) with perfect form.  Once they have learnt this then we can begin adding resistance (weight) slowly to challenge the central nervous system as well as their muscles and joints to create strength, power and resilience.  Thereby the body will adapt.

Strength is not the only aspect needed to safely improve performance.  We must also look at coordination, flexibility, speed, power, endurance, balance and agility.  This is crucial to improve the performance and reduce the chance of injury to the child.

So if your teenager needs to improve their performance in sport and wants to build size and power click on the link below to get them involved this Christmas and New Years in our Strength and Conditioning Camps

My Story with SIBO

By Helen Revans | November 11, 2020

I’m sure you’ve heard of IBS.

But have you ever heard of SIBO?

SIBO is actually the leading cause of IBS.

I didn’t know this either. Until SIBO started to ruin my life.

SIBO stands for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth and comes with many unpleasant side effects, including the production of hydrogen, methane and/or hydrogen Sulphide gas. While many people experience these gasses as symptoms of IBS, they are actually also causing damage to the intestinal wall.

IBS can be brought on by many different factors, although SIBO is a very common undiagnosed cause. In fact, research indicates SIBO is responsible for up to 84% of IBS cases.

What are the symptoms of SIBO?

SIBO can be extremely uncomfortable with common symptoms presenting as fatigue, bloating, excessive gas, acid reflux, abdominal pain, cramping, foggy brain and nausea. These symptoms can also be present when a person is suffering from IBS.

Some of the more severe symptoms of SIBO include chronic diarrhoea or constipation, weight loss, fatigue and malabsorption, joint pain, skin rashes, iron and vitamin B12 deficiency. Some patients even suffer from respiratory symptoms such as asthma.

In 2013, I was experiencing severe heart palpitations, I was feeling exhausted and I had a foggy brain. Although I’d always had an amazing memory, I was struggling to remember even the simplest things like people’s names. I knew something had to be wrong.

Intuitively, I felt the problem was likely to be a hormone imbalance, but my doctors didn’t want to take my opinions seriously, dismissing my assessment and leaving me frustrated and confused.

In an effort to figure out what was going on, I did my own research to set about finding the root cause of the problem. To do this, I insisted on having a full thyroid panel test, including a thorough check of my thyroid antibodies and vitamin D levels. (Vitamin D is a prohormone and is vital for hormone balance). When the results were returned, I could immediately see I had a deficiency.

What causes SIBO?

There are many causes of SIBO. Sometimes, even having a bad case of food poisoning can trigger it. That’s what happened with my case. Or it could be something as innocuous as a food sensitivity that can bring on the symptoms of SIBO or IBS. The condition can also be linked to unhealthy lifestyle habits in many cases.

I continued to educate myself about thyroid health and realised there are many root causes of this condition.  A large percentage of people with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis have gut dysbiosis in the form of SIBO and eventually I found out that I did too.

Oftentimes these two conditions are inextricably linked, when you have a sluggish thyroid you can have sluggish everything such as low stomach acid and insufficient digestive enzymes. These in turn contribute to SIBO.

For me, it was definitely food poisoning. Since living in Asia, I’ve had several cases of severe food poisoning requiring hospitalisation. This is when my SIBO trouble began and toxins from the food poisoning bacteria had damaged my migrating motor complex (MMC) thus preventing waste moving out of the body correctly.

MMC is responsible for moving intestinal contents along the digestive system through peristalsis (the sequential contractions of the digestive tract muscles). If the peristalsis isn’t effectively working, then the bacteria can be stuck in the small intestine and don’t get swept along into the large intestine, leading to an abnormally large population in the wrong location.

That’s when constipation occurs and bacteria from the large intestine start to colonise the small intestine feeding off sugars and creating gas and bloating.

Those symptoms, along with gastritis and unexplained weight gain around the belly were my signs that something was wrong.

Diets that are too loaded with simple carbohydrates are also a common cause of SIBO as well as medications and a stressful lifestyle. Normal stomach acid levels are required to kill bacteria but those suffering from chronic stress are susceptible to lower levels of stomach acid output (hypochlorhydria). Stomach acid is a natural antibiotic—it kills food borne bugs. This is why people who are on acid blockers are more susceptible to food poisoning and “gastro bugs”!

While unhealthy lifestyles are often to blame, sometimes the reason we are suffering from the uncomfortable symptoms of SIBO/IBS is far beyond our control. Occasionally, the structure of anatomy is to blame. Some people have a malformation of the ileocecal valve or scar tissue/adhesions can form as a result of a previous surgery, thus altering the normal anatomy of the small intestine.

A more curious cause of SIBO can originate from our infancy where the initial colonization of bad bacteria occurred. This is common among patients who were born via caesarean or did not have the opportunity to breastfeed as a baby.

All of these can cause digestive complaints that are often indistinguishable from one another, making SIBO a difficult condition to diagnose.

How do you treat SIBO?

Once a person has been diagnosed, treatment needs to be focused at correcting the underlying causes be they dietary, surgical or medical.

Armed with my test results, I sought out a doctor that I felt would take me seriously and give me the medication I needed. I was successful and my heart palpitations stopped within three days!

The next step in my journey was to find a supportive gastroenterologist, figure out the treatment options/healing diets and find a way forward.

Diet and lifestyle certainly need to be adjusted for the treatment of SIBO but research shows SIBO cannot be cured with dietary changes alone. SIBO requires treatment with pharmaceutical or natural antibiotics known as antimicrobials.

I always prefer to take the natural healing approach as opposed to potentially harmful antibiotics. So I chose to try the Biphasic Diet plan and natural antimicrobials made from antibacterial essential oils such as Myrrh, oregano, thyme and lemon balm. The Biphasic diet lasts for 4-6 months depending on each individual case.  It’s a gluten, dairy, sugar free diet and there are carnivore and vegetarian versions of it available.

I was also referred to an excellent naturopath.

I was aware of a functional medicine stool sample test called a GI-MAP and this was available at the specialist I chose. This, along with a lactulose SIBO breath test confirmed that I did have SIBO and gluten sensitivity.

Four months into my treatment I did another SIBO breath test and we could see things had significantly improved yet I still had work to do, I’d lost 6 kilos, felt so much better and I looked better.

We adjusted the antimicrobials and after a further three weeks of this treatment I did another breath test and was thrilled to find out that I had the all clear and no more SIBO. The eczema I’d had for almost five years has gone, as had all those gastrointestinal symptoms, plus my energy levels and sleep quality had significantly improved too.

Changing one’s diet helps to improve the symptoms of SIBO and can actually train your body to heal your gut.

There are four popular diets that have proven to be successful in the treatment of SIBO.

1. Biphasic

2. GAPS

3. SIBO Specific

4. Low FODMAP’s

Let me help

If my story resonates with you, or if you have been suffering from gas, bloating, diarrhoea, constipation, plus skin rashes or foggy brain there is a high likelihood that you have gut dysbiosis. I know how disheartening it can be and I’m here to help.

I offer a free, 20-minute discovery health coaching call and specialise in gut and thyroid health.

Contact me and let’s chat some more: helen@nurtureyourlife.com

When was the last time you felt stiffness and tightness in your body or irritable, crampy?

Helen Revans, EPT holistic nutritionist

Whether it is a body part or an even a mood – those symptoms are signs of magnesium deficiency. This critical mineral is responsible for over 300 enzyme reactions and is found in all your tissues -- yet mainly in your bones, muscles, and brain. You must have it for your cells to make energy, for many different chemical pumps to work, to stabilize membranes, and to help muscles relax. That is why the list of conditions that are found related to magnesium deficiency is so long. In fact, there are over 3,500 medical references on magnesium deficiency.  You might be magnesium deficient if you have any of the following symptoms:

• Muscle cramps or twitches • Muscle pain, tightness • Insomnia • Irritability • Sensitivity to loud noises • Anxiety • Autism • ADD • Palpitations • Angina • Constipation • Headaches • Migraines • Fibromyalgia • Chronic fatigue • Asthma • Kidney stones • Diabetes • Obesity• High blood pressure • PMS • Menstrual cramps • Irritable bladder • Irritable bowel syndrome • Reflux

In our society, magnesium deficiency is a huge problem. By conservative standards of measurement (blood, or serum, magnesium levels), 65 percent of people admitted to the intensive care unit -- and about 15 percent of the general population -- have magnesium deficiency. 

Why are we so deficient? Many people eat a diet that contains practically no magnesium -- a highly processed, refined diet that is based mostly on white flour, meat, and dairy (all of which have no magnesium). When was the last time you had a good dose of sea vegetables (seaweed), nuts, greens, and beans? If you are like many Westerners, your nut consumption mostly comes from peanut butter.    Add to this that Magnesium levels are decreased by excess alcohol, salt, coffee, phosphoric acid in colas, profuse sweating, prolonged or intense stress, chronic diarrhea, excessive menstruation, diuretics (water pills), antibiotics and other drugs, and some intestinal parasites.

Furthermore, magnesium is often poorly absorbed and easily lost from our bodies. To properly absorb magnesium, we need a lot of it in our diet, plus enough vitamin B6, vitamin D, and selenium.

How to Stop Draining Your Body of Magnesium

• Limit coffee, colas, salt, sugar, and alcohol • Learn how to practice active relaxation • Ask your doctor if your medication causes magnesium loss (many hypertension or diuretic drugs can cause this.   Eat Foods High in Magnesium such as: Kelp, almonds, cashews, buckwheat, brazil nuts, dulse, millet, pecans, walnuts, rye, tofu, soy beans, brown rice, figs, dates, collard greens, spinach, shrimp, avocado, parsley, beans, barley, dandelion greens, and garlic

Use Magnesium Supplements

The RDA (minimum amount needed) for magnesium is 300 mg a day. Most of us get far less than 200 mg.  Some may need much more depending on their condition.  Most people benefit from 400 to 1,000 mg a day. The most absorbable forms are magnesium citrate, glycinate, or taurate, although magnesium bound to Krebs cycle chelates (malate, succinate, fumarate) are also good.   Avoid magnesium carbonate, sulfate, gluconate, and oxide. They are poorly absorbed (and the cheapest and most common forms found in supplements).

Side effects of too much magnesium include:

·       Diarrhea (often avoided if you switch to magnesium glycinate)

• Most minerals are best taken as a team with other minerals in a multi-mineral formula.

• Taking a hot bath with Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) is a good way to absorb magnesium without GI effects.

• People with kidney disease or severe heart disease should take magnesium only under a doctor's supervision.

Try this tasty, vegetarian recipe tonight for a great way to get a good dose of Magnesium! Serve it with brown rice & sprinkle some crushed almonds on top.

 RECIPE: https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/vegetables-recipes/saag-paneer/

Let's Talk about Health, Baby with Holistic Nutrition Health Coach, Helen Revans

Discussing her journey to becoming a Health Coach, Testing, SIBO, Hashimoto's Disease, Brain fog and the possible ways to find out if you have it and cure it!

8 Areas to Focus on Strengthening & Conditioning a Youth Soccer Player

Like this article? Register for EPT’s Strength & Conditioning Program for Teens(10-16year olds) click on this link for our upcoming Holiday Camp ends 18th Aug

To improve any budding athlete in any sport, It always good to look at, what I call the 6 Pillars of Health – Mindset, Breathing, Hydration, Nutrition, Movement, Sleep. Optimise all 6 of these, and you would have to agree that the body would respond in a positive manner. However to improve athletic performance, and in particular soccer, there are 8 areas to look at.

So, assuming we are dealing with an un - injured young athlete the areas to focus on to improve athletic performance are - Strength, Power, Speed, Agility, Balance, Coordination, Endurance, Flexibility and how important are each of these areas to improve their soccer game with their current skillset.

Obviously, tweaks in training will have to be made between a back, a midfielder and a forward but for now, we can generalise what abilities are most important to improve their performance with the skillset they have right now.

Generally, soccer players need all of these 8 abilities however not all of the, are as important as each other.

So, if you were to rate what is most important to a soccer player on a scale of 1-10. It would look something like this:

Strength- 7

Power- 9

Speed- 9

Agility- 9

Balance- 9

Coordination- 8

Endurance- 9

Flexibility- 6

So their program should consist more of improving their speed, agility, power, balance and endurance. Then focusing a little less on their strength and coordination. And even though it has importance, less again on strength and then less on flexibility. 

NOTE: Although flexibility is not as important as the other abilities, teaching kids to stretch on their own, tailoring specific stretches to them can be taught by sharing the benefits of doing them after a game and at home.

So what does this look like in a Strength & Conditioning program?

1.    Core/Swissball/Stability Training

Strengthening the core is the base to build stability and is the platform to build all the other abilities off.  If they don't have a strong core, it is much like shooting a canon from a canoe!

2.    Power, Speed & Agility work

The best way to improve an athlete’s P,S&A are bounding, box and Speed Ladder drills. 

3.    Strength Training

Resistance Training – In the past, weight training has been considered dangerous for kids – that it stunts their growth or easily to hurt themselves but current research is supporting the opposite when resistance training is done correctly, progressively and safely having benefits for kids provided when done correctly.  Benefits include injury prevention, stronger bones and muscles, increase in their metabolism, boost in confidence.

4.    Flexibility Protocol

Stretching muscles that are tight before playing sport and at the end rebalances the body, decreases the aches & pains & reduce the chance of injury. In my experience, children who have been diagnosed with Osgood-schlatters Disease can be alleviated with regular stretching as part of their recovery. 

In summary, when creating the most beneficial strength & conditioning program for your youth, rate all of their physical abilities needed to play soccer first then allocate the right training for the right amount of time to get the most desired effect.  And the best way to know it is working?  It will be in their performance.

<click on this link for more info of how to get your 10-16 year old in our upcoming Holiday Camp ends 18th Aug>

Getting Good Food into Children

Nathan Solia

I have been asked many a times by my clients of what they should feed their children, how much they should feed their children and how to get more nutritious food into their children’s diet.

Going on my own childhood experience, it was a difficult task for my mother to get any vegetables onto my plate. I would either flat out refuse to eat my asparagus (where I would secretly throw them into the fireplace!)or when I was rarely served peas and carrots, I would be grudgingly blend them into my mashed potato so I could quickly gulp them down as fast I could and I never realised why I was always sick and tired as a child.

We didn’t have the nutrition information available to us like we do today. We never got the Jamie Oliver’s “School Dinners” nor the “Super Size Me” movie to gross us out and educate us nor the countless books on the links between food and children’s behavior that we do at our fingertips. We now know sugar leads to diabetes and obesity and bad fats (trans fat) contained in biscuits and processed foods damage our body’s cells and also lead to obesity.

So I have been looking at the ways of getting healthy food onto children’s plate AND into their stomach without putting them on a drip......More importantly, reduce (I say reduce because you are not going to stop them) the amount of processed foods(What I mean by processed food is anything that wasn’t around 10,000 years ago) being digested by your child.

One way is to buy healthy and nutritious foods for the household and have recipes to make tasty food by your children, maid or yourself. Food like fruit, yoghurt, nuts, dried fruit, honey, pita bread, hummus, ham, pineapple, tomato paste, mozzarella are great ingredients to have so you can make things like fruit salad, fruit and nut mix, mini pizzas, dips.

Another way to get good food is to not have unhealthy food in the house. The less processed food we have in the house the less they will eat it. In Sweden, families nominate Saturday as “Candy Day”. The children are allowed a chocolate bar, hard candy and a soda and let them go nuts. The great thing is when the child asks for candy we can calmly say “You can have it on "Candy Day” and because it is only once a week because your child is not unknowingly becoming addicted to sugar. I believe the best and most long lasting way to get good food into our children is to educate your children about the effects of food on them. Your children are smart and even though you may not be able to physically stop them from having sweets you can inform them of the benefits of having healthy foods and point out the side effects of unhealthy food like short attention span, hyperactivity followed by tiredness and grumpy.

Why should we move more?

By Nate Solia, CHEK Practitioner Level 1, HLC Coach

As soon as we are conceived we begin to move.  From an embryo all the way until we die. But why do we move and why do we need to? No stress on the body equals status quo and that sounds quite comfortable, right?

Well, I am afraid not. 

If we don’t move then our muscles, bones, tendons and joints begin to deteriorate.  Our organs become weaker with no exercise.  For example, the heart doesn't have to work so hard as it doesn't have to pump so much oxygenated blood around the body.  The lungs don't have to work so hard because, well, quite frankly, you are not blowing so hard at an idle state.  And unless you are a rock, we need to move to exist and if you want to exist for a long time, we must move often and if we are to survive “life threatening “situations like running for the bus.  Because if you miss it and your boss will kill you for being late again!

All jokes aside, life presents many situations when your body will be tested. If your body is strong enough, you will survive these incidents without feeling like you might pass out, or worse, experience a sore lower back or worse still have a heart attack.  Lack of movement can also lead to other lifestyle issues such as aches and pains as well as diseases such as obesity, diabetes, chronic fatigue and hypertension to name a few.  In addition to physical issues, we know physical exercise can alleviate a number of mental health issues like depression, anxiety, anger, stress and mental fogginess amongst others.

My point being, you will benefit greatly if you were to incorporate regular movement into a daily practice. 

But I hear you say “I got that Nate, but I walk a lot, isn’t that enough?” 

Walking is necessary.  We need to get from A to B easily and at times quickly, BUT walking is not enough to keep our entire body healthy, fit and functionally strong.  Why? Because all parts or our body move and are needed to move in certain ways to support the body’s many functions.  One of these is to exercise our organs.

How?

Well, your body is a complex machine.  It is full of wires (nerves) that run through our spinal cord entering and exiting throughout different points along the spine to connect the brain to the various parts of the body.  These nerves are sending and receiving signals back and forth from the brain to the various parts of the body to move. What is less known is that these same neural pathways that link the brain to muscles also links to certain organs like the heart and lungs.  If we moving the chest muscles we are also sending signals to heart and lungs to pump harder.  This in turn builds a stronger voltage and better connection between the brain and the organs. The stronger the organs the stronger they can withstand stress. Now I don't recommend putting more stress on the body with diet and lifestyle choices.  That is another conversation for another day! 

Now there is a caveat here – Putting too much stress through too intense or too long periods of exercise can also cause adverse effects on the body.  Have heard the saying  “Too much of a good thing is bad for you”?  This applies here too. My advice is steady as you go and consider what you are doing is something you will do for the rest of your life.

Movement must be built up over time and it is lifestyle related.  Some us want to be an elite athlete meanwhile others would like the ability to play with their children without feeling like they are embarrassing themselves losing to their 10 year old son on the soccer pitch. Your exercise regime should reflect what your goals are and the should include not wanting to die too early…..?

In total, movement impacts positively in some way, all 11 systems in our body.  The Circulatory, Digestive, Endocrine, Exocrine, Immune, Muscular, Nervous, Renal and Urinary, Reproductive, Respiratory and Skeletal system.

We know that when we move regularly and appropriately, our circulation, respiration, digestion, muscular and skeletal system and immune system improves.  What you may not know is that our endocrine (hormone production), exocrine (skin, hair, nails and sweat) and our ability to excrete toxins through our liver and kidneys can be positively impacted by regular and appropriate bouts of exercise.  It has been known that movement can influence men’s sperm count as well as women’s ability to conceive!  Men and women, take note of your new form of foreplay!

So next time, you don’t feel like hitting the gym, the trails, yoga or Tai Chi class, because you are too busy or cannot be bothered, think of what your body is missing out on.  Every little bit supports you every day to survive the rigors of life today into your old age AND it’s not too late to start. 

Join our 40 Day “Health is Wealth” Program starting Mon, 18th May.

https://z90m6bdi.pages.infusionsoft.net/

OPTIONAL

Nate Solia is a leading Holistic Personal Trainer in Hong Kong.  He specializes in Corrective Exercise, Body Transformation and Holistic Health.  Practicing his 6 pillars of health – Mindset, Breathing, Hydration, Nutrition, Movement and sleep. He also owns a boutique PT studio in Wong Chuk Hang, Hong Kong and is a regular public speaker.  Speaking to hundreds of groups including corporates, fitness conventions as well as his own Fitness Retreats in Thailand he holds twice a year.

Be physically ready for ANYTHING

By Nate Solia

Hi folks, I hope you have been staying safe and well over the past few months. I know that HK has done extremely well in containing the COVID virus and hopefully when you read this we are now back to a relative normalcy in our community.

One thing that has become clear that our health is our No.1 priority. Without it, we can do very little. Even meeting with family, friends and social gatherings we need to be healthy. So with that in mind, I want to give you some tips around staying healthy:

Movement

We NEED to move every day. The amount of movement we do each day impacts our mental, emotional and physical state. Movement strengthens our muscles and bones as well as eradicates toxins from our organs and releases serotonin(happy hormone) into the body. In addition, movement strengthens our central nervous system, our circulation system and even keeps our digestive system in check. A great book is “How to Eat, Move and Be Healthy” by Paul Chek

Nutrition

We all know we should be eating right but what is ”right”? Here are some easy and not so easy to implement ways to tidy up your diet. Implement the 80/20 Rule. Eat REAL and ORGANIC food 80% of the time. This will soak up eating a Carbohydrate Rich And Processed diet (CRAP).

We are all metabolically different and our dietary requirements are also different. Some people need more proteins and fat, others need more carbs to feel good. Either way, it would pay to find out what your metabolic type is. There are many DNA, saliva tests you can take or you read the book “Metabolic Typing” by William Wollcott.

What goes hand in hand with good nutrition is good hydration. Hydration, I mean water and only water. Drink half your body weight in ounces of water each day, not beer, not soda, not tea – drink WATER. Formula Weight(kg) x 0.03 = required water in liters per day

Lifestyle choices

Lifestyle also plays a part in keeping health, fit and happy. For many of you, these may be different but for me they are- Mindset, Breathing &amp; Sleep. When done correctly, daily, they impact me profoundly.

Mindset is the key to unlocking all your motivation to achieve anything, to be anyone, to winning and to learning in life. We start here and stop here. I am sure you are motivated in many things but are you motivated in getting and staying fit and healthy? If you struggle with “stinking thinking” or procrastinate, then I suggest, “Do” the book, Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod. It will set a good mindset each day.

Breathing is our life force. Also called prana, chi. It is what we need every second of every day to live. If we are not breathing correctly, we are dying. Exercise, meditation, breath work are all ways of breathing life back into ourselves (Pun intended!)

Finally sleep. We need it to regenerate your body and mind. It resets and downloads our mind each day. It heals the battle wounds of the previous day. And when you are sick, sleep heals the body to get better again. Sleep must be incorporated into everyone’s life just like exercising and eating.

So how much do we need? Everyone is different. Here is a way to find out.

1. Go to bed 4-5 days in a row at around the same time and don’t set an alarm (Best to be done while on holiday or if you are not working. - Tonight!)

2. Record the hours that you sleep and average it out and round it to the nearest 90 minutes For example, you average 8 hours sleep, set the alarm for 7.5 hours. Why? Generally, we have a 90-minute sleep wake cycle. If you wake up on a 90-minute cycle, you will generally feel more refreshed.

So if you are feeling you need any or all of the above, I highly suggest starting today because, we only have 1 body and 1 mind and if you ever get struck down by any virus (and you will) you will be in the best possible shape to fight it.

Nate Solia, CHEK Qualified Health &amp; Lifestyle Coach, CHEK Level 1 Movement Coach and has been coaching clients to healthier, fitter with less pain for over 20 years.

Eat your greens….

‘The importance of adding more greens into our diet’

By Chrissy Denton, Registered Nutritionist

Nuzest Ambassador, Hong Kong

Green leafy vegetables play an important role in keeping us healthy and preventing illness. However, only 25% of us eat 3 or more servings of vegetables every day.

Eating our greens has been shown to have many positive health benefits as they are packed full of nutrients, antioxidants, and fibre and are low in calories. Leafy greens are high in Vitamins A, C, E and K as well as calcium, magnesium, zinc, phosphorus and potassium. By including more greens into our daily meals we are loading ourselves up with all the goodness that helps strengthen our health.

Some of the great reasons why you should eat your greens include:

1. Heal the digestive tract

2. Reduce inflammation

3. Improve skin appearance

4. Lower cholesterol

5. Cardiovascular protection

6. Boost bone health

7. Enhance brain function and mood enhancement

8. Maintain a strong immune function

9. Help fuel the body

10. Prevent cancer

If you struggle to get enough greens in your diet or have a child that claims a sudden allergy to anything green then don’t despair. There are plenty of easy ways to introduce greens or sneak them into their diet.

Green smoothies are an easy ‘go to’ snack or mini meal that can boost your intake of daily greens without the fuss of prepping a full meal when you’re short of time.

Greens are also very child-friendly when blended up with other flavorful ingredients such as pineapple, bananas, coconut water or dates.

Nuzest Good Green stuff contains over 75 ingredients from carefully selected fruits, vegetables and herbs – with added vitamins, minerals, probiotics and antioxidants for optimal health - a great way to increase your daily vegetable intake and get an added energy boost.

‘Greens energizer shake’

Ingredients:

1 ripe banana

1-cup coconut water

1-cup chilled, filtered water

2 servings Good Green Stuff

Juice of half a lemon

1 tsp. grated fresh ginger

1-cup baby spinach

1-cup ice

Method:

1. Add the banana, lemon,

ginger, spinach, and liquid into a blender. Mix until smooth.

2. Add in the Nuzest Good Green Stuff and ice and blend

3. Serve into a tall glass and enjoy!

Serves 2

Is it true that the more you sweat during a workout, the more calories you burn?

False.  People sweat more or less depending on their fitness level, the humidity, the temperature of their body and the temperature outside the body. 

In fact, people who are really fit usually sweat more than unfit people.

1) Can you explain why we perspire when we exercise? How does perspiring help the body during and after a workout?

When the body gets to a certain temperature, the body begins to releases a salty mixture of liquid that forms on the surface of our skin that when it touches with the air begins to cool our body temperature down. 

2) Why do some people perspire more than others while exercising? (Some people do sweat profusely) - can you also mention some factors that affect our ability to sweat, for example, climate/weather, humidity level, what we are wearing, pore size (?).

Fit Men tend to sweat more than fit women even though women have more sweat glands than men.  This is usually the sweat glands are much more activated in men than women.  Fit people tend to sooner so they can cool their body down faster.  In fact, people who are fit tend to sweat more than those who are not as fit.  This also also depends on the weather/ humidity,

3) Is perspiring excessively during exercise an indication that I've burned a lot of calories? Conversely, if I don't work up a sweat while exercising, does that mean that I didn't exercise hard enough to burn a significant number of calories? 

False, as in question 1, you don’t have to sweat profusely to burn calories.  Weight Training is 1 example of being able to burn calories without having to sweat a lot. 

In fact sweating a lot may lead to dehydration which means you need to replace your fluids more frequently.  Which is why when you have had a long run in the heat or had t a hot yoga class, you will weigh lighter.  Keep in mind that this is water weight.