Hydration

The human body is almost two-thirds water, and when that total water level drops by only a few percent, we can become dehydrated.  A hormone is then released that signals the kidneys to retain fluid.  At the same time, the brain sends signals that we are thirsty! With cooling temps rolling in, it might be difficult to think about dehydration. Once cool temperatures set in permanently, it may be more difficult for some of us to stay hydrated.  Studies have shown that cold weather can alter our “thirst” sensation, and we don’t generally feel as thirsty when the weather is cold.  So, we drink less.  When exercising or working outdoors, it is very important to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water.  It doesn’t mean you have to carry water with you everywhere, just make sure you have places to stop that have nice cold water!  If you’re unsure of how hydrated you are, sources show the best way to gage hydration is urine color.  If our urine is pale yellow, we are well hydrated.  If it is darker we should be drinking more water and/or choosing foods that have a higher water content.  Runner’s World suggests the following Edible Liquids; watermelon: 91% water; carrot: 92% water; spinach: 92% water; cucumber: 96% water.  These nutrient-dense foods can help provide a vitamin-packed and delicious recovery after a long run or sweaty workout.  

 

Get Hydrated and Run!  Here are some upcoming races in our area:

Oct.6- Marineland Tri/Du in St. Augustine...Run with the Marines!!!

Oct.6- Jacksonville Challenge

Oct.12-Color Me Rad-Jacksonville

Oct.12-Fall Frolic 5K-Jacksonville

Oct.12-Fighting Back 5K and 1Mile Serenity Stroll-Jacksonville

For more races visit:

http://www.runningintheusa.com/Race/List.aspx?Rank=Upcoming&State=FL&Page=1

Authored by Kim Usry, fitness chair of Healthy Kids Initiative, at Ocean Palms Elementary. 

For sources please contact Kim at kbusry@gmail.com or visit opefoodandfitness.blogspot.com.

Juice This!

Did you know that juicing isn’t just for health nuts?  It can be a wonderful way to supplement our normal healthy diets to ensure we’re receiving all the benefits that live veggies and fruits have to offer.  You may have heard someone juicing to lose weight or to cleanse.  Truth is, juicing is an easy way for our bodies to assimilate enzymes, phytochemicals, vitamins, and minerals.  Juicing is the process of squeezing fruits or vegetables using a machine in order to separate the liquid from solids.  Solids, or pulp, should be composted or recycled into soups or stews.  Fresh raw juices are easily digested within 15 minutes in our guts, compared to eating the entire fruit or vegetable which contains fiber in it’s pulp taking up 2 hours or longer to digest.  Because we need that wonderful fiber, it is not suggested to juice rather than eat the actual fruits and veggies.  But if it is difficult to get all the daily servings of fruits and vegetables you need, juicing is a great way to conveniently work those foods into your diet.  Please keep in mind that juices from the store most often are heated (pasteurized).  Juice is best when fresh.  Whenever possible, we should juice organic foods which are farmed without chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or other artificial agents.  Do your research on which fruits and veggies are worth buying organic, like apples are worth it but sweet potatoes aren’t!

Through my personal experience juicing has helped our family’s health in so many ways.  You don’t have to diet or count calories when you’re eating healthy.  Balance your meals out with plenty of vegetables and fruits and when you know you haven’t gotten all your greens in for the day, just throw some kale, watercress, beets, and an apple into the juicer!  Add juicing to your healthy diet and reap it’s digestive and regenerative benefits!  Here are a few of my favorite juicing recipes to help get you started:

Pear and Sweet Potato

-1 large peeled sweet potato

-1 pear

-Dash of Cinnamon (on top and optional)

I use a Bosc pear and add some of the pulp to my gluten free pancakes and the kids love them!  This is a wonderful Fall treat.

Apple and Carrot

-6 carrots

-1 sweet tart apple (golden delicious or granny smith)

I personally use 6 large carrots and just one apple to make one cup.  To make this sweeter just add more apples!  We use a lot of apples and carrots so I make sure I buy organic if our budget allows!  This juice has cured skin issues for us at home!  Curious?  Shoot me an email or leave a comment!

 

 

Orange and Grapefruit

1 navel orange

1 pink grapefruit

Makes over one 1 cup depending on where you get your fruit!

 

Liver Mover*

10 carrots

1 beet with greens

2 golden delicious apples, cored and quartered

*Recipe shared from Live Foods Live Bodies! by Jay and Linda Kordich

 

Some notes if you're a beginner juicer:

-Buy a cheap juicer from Target or Wal-Mart to get started...it may only last 6 months, but that's long enough to know if you'll like it.  When you get ready to spring for the expensive ones you'll know which veggies or fruits you prefer juicing and then it will be easier to pick one out.  I personally use the Omega Juicer but it's awful at juicing anything mushy like grapes.  I have to alternate juicy fruits with firm to make it flow.  We would still be using our Juiceman from Target ($75) if the motor hadn't stopped working.  The juice output is about the same!

-Make a healthy habit!  We made it a point to make us and the kids freshly squeezed OJ every morning.  The kids will ask if we miss a day, and I believe this has helped our kids stave off some colds this year!  Check out http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/search/list  for how many nutrients this raw juice has.

 

 

There are several juicing recipes online.  Some books with wonderful recipes are Live Foods Live Bodies and The Juicing Bible.  If you have other resources please comment below!  I would rather try something I've heard is good than take a chance that my kids might not drink what I make. :)



 

Authored by Kim Usry, fitness chair of Healthy Kids Initiative at Ocean Palms Elementary. 

For sources or more great juicing recipes please contact Kim at kbusry@gmail.com.

Are you processing this?

With deadlines to meet and functions to plan, are we watching the foods we eat?  Choosing to eat
whole foods instead of processed foods can reduce visits to the Doctor, boost our moods, treat
depression, and burn calories.  Why on earth would we choose processed foods?  Convenience, of
course!  Most processed foods are made for shelf life and not human life.  Highly processed foods can become addictive which is just one of their many effects on our bodies.   They artificially stimulate dopamine, which are pleasure neurotransmitters in our brain.  It’s better to stimulate those pleasure neurotransmitters from a run other than cookies, candy bars, or sodas!  We do not live in a remote location where we must eat packaged foods; we live where fruits and veggies abound at the grocery store and farmers markets. 

Whole foods are foods that are unprocessed and unrefined, or processed and refined as little as
possible, before being consumed.  Whole foods are naturally made up of carbohydrates, proteins, fats,
fiber and water. They include fresh fruits, veggies, fish and meat.  These nutrient-dense whole foods can help level out your mood, sustain your energy levels, and leave you feeling calmer and more collected. 

Processed foods on the other hand are modified with some of these components removed or highly
concentrated.  They are almost everything else in the grocery store.  Some also have combinations of
foods that are not good for our gut.  They can make you feel sluggish and wanting more.       
Trying to eat right to feel well becomes quite easy once we realize we don’t have to worry with reading labels anymore!  If it has a label, we don’t need it!  Keeping this in mind may help us resist the urge to reach for the cheapest and easiest way to make our next meal.

There is a lot of information available on Whole Foods, Processed Foods, Organic Foods, Genetically
Modified Foods, etc.  Get informed and Get Active.  The more you know the better.  Here are a few
definitions that may help you get started:

GMO(genetically modified organism)- is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using
genetic engineering techniques
Refined-with impurities or unwanted elements having been removed by processing
Organic foods- foods farmed that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides
and chemical fertilizers
For more information or sources please contact Kim Usry (kbusry@gmail.com)

Sources:

http://www.naturalnews.com/039743_processed_foods_eating_reasons.html#ixzz2f9n4XRA9

http://www.naturalnews.com/039743_processed_foods_eating_reasons.html

http://www.healthy-eating-politics.com/processed-foods.html

http://bodyecology.com/articles/10-things-processed-food-industry.php#.Ujh0UD9Infc

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/processed-food-definition-2074.html

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/isnt-healthy-eat-processed-food-8196.html

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-4008/This-Is-Your-Body-on-Processed-Food.html

http://www.poliquingroup.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/919/Seven_Reasons_to_Eliminate_Processed_Foods_from_Yo.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_food

Eat well and exercise to sleep well!

Need another reason to eat well?  What you eat can affect your sleep!  Studies have shown that eating
the right foods can also help us rest well.  All of us with kids realize getting plenty of rest is key to being happy and thinking clearly, but sometimes it can be tough to get there. 

The most recommended foods to eat for a good night’s sleep are cherries, bananas, fish, beans, oatmeal (not the sugary kind), avocados, greens, etc.  Foods high in B6 are recommended because they aid the body in producing melatonin. Melatonin is a sleep-inducing hormone triggered by darkness.  Calcium, magnesium and potassium are also sleep boosters!  Foods high in potassium and magnesium like bananas and beans respectively, may help because they are natural muscle relaxants.  Calcium and magnesium are best when taken together! 

Laura A. Bushey, M.A., founder of Kitchen of Life, suggests eliminating some common foods from
your diet such as alcohol, aspartame, caffeine, and sugar to ensure a well-rested night.  Bushey also
recommends not eating three hours prior to bed-time, because your body should be detoxifying during sleep and digesting can disrupt your REM sleep.  REM sleep is the phase of sleep in which we vividly recall our dreams, and don’t we all wish to remember our dreams?  She goes on to say “I don’t offer magic bullets but help people realize what they are doing promotes ills.”  This is a strong point to make and definitely makes sense.  Hippocrates said it best, “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” 

Even when you are fueling up with the right foods, you may still have trouble sleeping due to stress,
anxiety, or KIDS!  That’s where regular exercise can help.  Exercise has been proven to improve sleep, reduce anxiety and if done regularly (30 minutes of sweating a day) your brain releases chemicals such as endorphins, serotonin, adrenaline, and dopamine.  All these chemicals make us feel good.  It’s our body’s natural “drug”.  So, eat well, burn some of that food or “fuel” up by exercising, and then later turn the lights down low and enjoy a sweet treat of apples and almond butter or oatmeal with a cup of chamomile tea to relax.  Sleep Well!

For sources or more information please contact Kim Usry at kbusry@gmail.com

Do it for your Bones!

Did you know that Calcium in our bloodstream helps cuts to heal and muscles to move and also sends nerve impulses to our brain?  Our bodies maintain a balance of calcium between our bloodstream and our bones(where Calcium is stored).  After our twenties, those precious storages of Calcium are all we have!  To maintain our bone health and prevent our Calcium storages from being used up, we need to consume a Calcium-rich diet and do bone-strengthening activities such as running, jogging, jumping rope, etc. 

Calcium is best absorbed through foods and we need 3-4 servings a day.  Some foods high in Calcium are leafy green veggies(kale,collards,turnips), almonds, and beans. 

To ensure the absorption of Calcium you must have Vitamin D3.  It’s easy to get 30 minutes of sunlight here in Florida which enables our skin to produce 10,000-20,000IU of Vitamin D3!  For most of us the daily recommended value needed is less than 1,000IU of Vit D3. So, ditch the supplements and opt for eating a healthy diet and exercising and feel great! 

Some races to help build those bones:

9/11 Heroes Run (5k/Fun Run)                   9.7.13                    www.travismanion.org

Nease Band on the Run(5k/Fun Run)         9.7.13

Kids Fitness Zombie Chase                      10.20.13               www.999gatorcountry.com

ZOOlympics (5k/Family Run)                    11.23.13               www.prsracetiming.com

For more Local races check out www.prsracetiming.com

For sources or more information please contact Kim Usry at kbusry@gmail.com