Are you feeling stressed?

Well here is the bad news... Everything boils back down to stress in, on and around our bodies- internal and external stress- but how does chronic stress affect your health? 😲

1. Inflammation/Weight Gain: Persistent stress decreases the responsiveness of glucocorticoids which lowers the immune response and cause cause “toxic water weight” from toxin being stored in the body’s adipose tissue or fat cells

2. Digestive Health: Stress negatively impacts digestion, because digestion down regulates when your body is in fight or flight.

3. Immune System: Chronic stress suppresses the immune system, making us more susceptible to infections and illnesses.

4. Heart Health : Prolonged stress raises blood pressure and increases the risk of heart disease and strokes.

5. Mental Health: Long-term stress is linked to depression and anxiety, disrupting our neurotransmitters in our gut aka our second brain.

6. Cellular Aging: Stress accelerates the shortening of telomere...

Ok so hear me out. I’ve tried to put on muscle for years. Legit high protein diet, heavy weights, creatine supplements… the works 

However women don’t naturally “bulk up” due to estrogen- I’m sure there is some genetic freak or two out there exception to every rule- however the “bulky” women you see usually aren’t all natural.

Also after the age of 30-ish our muscle starts to decline roughly 5% every 10 years which is why strength training is so important!

But why should you start to workout BEFORE (aka during) your weight loss journey?

Because muscle burns fat! 

Yes muscle can take up 20% more mass than fat- this is why muscular people usually weigh a bit more than they apear. However their body fat percentage is lower than someone of roughly the same age, height and weight.

So since muscle burns fat, the more muscle I build the more it speeds up my metabolism and the more calories I burn off, therefore the faster I achieve my weight loss (I prefer inches not scale measure...

As hard as I try, I eventually get sucked into the social media scroll, and the more I do the more contradicting information I see. You should do this, you should do that, don't miss that, avoid this... it goes on and on, but what do I find to be one of the biggest lies in the fitness industry?!

If I could only pick just one (I think I smell a series coming through lol) I would start with this:

 One size fits all diet and workout plans 

We are not the same!

Nutrition and Fitness plans should take into account:

(In no particular order, at least most, ideally all, of these should be factored in)

1. Gender

2. Age

3. Weight (current and goal weight)

4. Goals

5. Activity levels

6. Lifestyle

7. Body type

8. Health imbalances 

9. Injuries

10. Health concerns

But I’m also going to add a little controversy with this one: 

Your diet plan should not be missing any major macros (protein, fats, carbs) for an extended period of time!!!!

This is why I loveeee to harp on ...

Which one should you choose for your gut health!? 

Let’s start with the gut microbiome (aka the microbiota or gut flora). The microbiome is the trillions of tiny organisms in your GI tract, specifically the intestines, that help to break down and absorb nutrients. It’s vital for the immune system, brain and many other body systems that all rely on a healthy and diverse gut microbiome.

Probiotics and probiotics affect your Microbiome by feeding and providing beneficial bacteria, prebiotics support probiotics.

Probiotics are live strains of “good” bacteria including: Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium and Saccharomyces boulardii. Prebiotics feed good bacteria and support bacteria growth and are non high fiber (non-digestible carbohydrate) foods. This fiber acts as food for probiotics and microbes in the gut.

So which one should I take? 

Personally I choose to take this probiotic supplement  and get my prebiotics from foods like: apples, almonds, bananas, beans and veggies! 

Th...

There is way to much health info overload out there, but I'm going to tell you where I start.

Labels: If you can’t recognize the ingredients, your body can’t either.

Yes I’m calling out food labels with things like: 3-methylbut-1-y ethanoate, palmitoleic acid, 2-hydroxy-3-methylethyl, and phylloquinone…

But I’m also calling out clean products with ingredients like:

2-(2-butyoxyethoxy) ethanol, Ethylene glycol mono butyl ether, Diethylene glycol mono butyl ether, nonylphenol ethoxylates, octylphenol ethoxylates, nonoxynols and octoxynols

And also beauty products with ingredients like:

1,3-butadiene, Beta Hydroxybutanoic Acid, Trethocanic Acid, Methenamine and Quarternium-15, and Bronopol, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1,3-diol

But I’m not quite done yet… look out for “supplements” with sneaky ingredients like: Titanium Dioxide and Magnesium Stearate

Make sure to read all of your labels! Just because something is marketed as healthy, doesn’t mean it actually is.

I used t...

Ok so you're busy, I get it, I feel ya - too much to do, not enough time, work, family, kids, the fur babies, social life... shoot, just all the things. Our nutrition often goes to the backburner when life gets hectic. So what do you do when you can't do it all but need to do more?

1. Always be prepared

Have a stash of grab-and-go single-serving nut packs, fruit, cut-up veggies, and/or organic protein bars where you usually get stuck—a.k.a. your car, your desk, or your purse!

2. Drink a cup of water for every hour you work

Set hourly reminders on your phone, carry a reusable water bottle, and drink one cup (oz) of water every hour you’re working — whether that’s chasing after clients or your children. This is a way to hold yourself accountable and drink more water. 

3. Aim for veggie-centric options when dining or taking out 

Prioritizing vegetables helps reduce your intake of excess calories, fat, carbs, sodium, and potentially sugar, as well as cancer-potentiating comp...

So what is the major must have mineral you're probably missing?

It's Magnesium!!

 Discover the incredible benefits of magnesium and how it can enhance your overall health and well-being. Magnesium is an essential mineral that plays a crucial role in numerous bodily functions, including nerve function, muscle relaxation, and energy production.

With today's modern and fast-paced lifestyle, many individuals may not be getting enough magnesium through their diets alone. This is where supplementation comes in, offering a convenient way to make up for any dietary deficiencies.

The benefits of magnesium are vast and varied. Not only does it promote a healthy heart by regulating blood pressure and preventing cardiovascular disease, but it also supports healthy brain function, promotes better sleep, and even aids in relieving stress and anxiety.

Additionally, magnesium is crucial for maintaining strong bones and teeth, optimizing digestion, and supporting a healthy metabolism. It can even ...

Let me just preface this well now novel, with the fact that this has been drafted since September 18, over 4 months later and it's still pretty raw so I probably won't proofread.

Here we go again with my drama and trauma....

No but really, we are so very extremely abundantly beyond blessed by the birth of our first (and probably only... little foreshadowing here) son Hunter David on Labor Day, September 4th, 2023 (yep my kid making me labor on Labor Day, we love an entrance and a holiday).

It's no secret it was a struggle for me to get pregnant (7ish years of infertility and a miscarriage) and pregnancy was a struggle for me mentally, physically and emotionally (see previous blogs) and labor and delivery as well as the first two weeks of having a new born were also a struggle.

I know I can be a little dramatic... (if you know me personally you know I always have a story) so I had decided to save everyone the drama and not share my birth story... but I know others birth story helped...

Ok so this was not on my list of things to do buttttt babies and their tiny bodies are most susceptible to toxins and of the other Non-toxic, organic, natural baby registries I could find they were all out dated, like from 2020 or before where most of the products I couldn't even find and I wandered what was new/better or they were priced so high (yes you get what you pay for) but I couldn't register for them and send the list out to friends and family who couldn't afford to spend hundreds...

So here we are 30+ hours later...

Also let me just preface with I'm a first time Mama to be so this is based on research from ingredients, certifications etc but also asking other Mama's their experience with products and what they actually used and loved!

Also these are clickable links to add to your cart or baby registry! (no I'm not just asking for baby gifts, this isn't my actual registry haha)

So why Natural, Non-Toxic, Organic, anyways?

Specifically, the ingredients in most conventional...

Sigh…

Pregnancy hormones…

I’ve received to many messages after recent posts I feel like it’s only fair to take this blog on a bit of a personal journey… again…

Once again this is not meant to sound like I’m complaining-just to let all the other women out there know they aren’t alone… because knowing that has helped me so much.

It’s funny how you want something soooo bad for soooo long and you finally get it and it hurts, hard, and it hurts hard because it hurts…

Most days I swear I feel like I have two heads. I look at my life and it’s even better than I could have ever thought or even imagined and I’m like wow God you are sooooo good (I’m not going to tell you allll the million things I’m grateful for because you would probably tell me to shut up-I would tell me to shut up haha). But then that other head gets in the way saying then why can’t you get it together, why are you so miserable… why aren’t you happy… why are you so ungrateful… talk your self out of it… suck it u...