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Jul 06 2015

How Gut Health Equals A Happy Gut Mind

To Have A Happy Gut You Have To Understand The Gut Brain Connection

By Maya Cordova

Have you ever felt “butterflies” in your stomach? Do you recall ever having a “gut wrenching” experience or a “gut feeling”? These terms are often used to describe sensations that are paired with emotional responses. They are created by the interaction between the gut and the brain! In the following I will define the gut, describe the gut brain connection, and finally, explore the influences of food, how to manage cravings, and how to make healthy nutritional choices.

The gastrointestinal tract, also known as the gut, begins at the mouth, draws down into the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and ends at the colon. Within the intestinal sheaths of our digestive tract we each have over 100 million neurons that are in constant communication with our brain. This means there are more neurons in our belly than in our in our spinal chord and our peripheral nervous system! These digestive neurons make up the Enteric Nervous System, and are directly affected by the emotions we experience moment by moment. Some common emotions that influence the gut are Exhilaration, Happiness, Sadness, Anger, and Anxiety. The particular experience of Stress and Anxiety impacts the function of the GI tract by causing an inflammatory response and increased acidity. This causes poor nutrient absorption and higher risk for disease. According to a study done by Harvard Medical School, “a person’s stomach or intestinal distress can be the cause or the product of anxiety, stress, or depression.” This is why it is extremely important to become aware of certain stressors in our lives, and learn how to manage them in healthy ways.

Great strategies for relieving stress are: Exercise, Listening to Music, Engaging in Creative Expression (Art, Writing, Dancing, Music etc.), Going for a Walk in Nature, Meditation, Deep Breathing, Yoga, and Counseling.

Nutrition For Gut Health!

Peer-reviewed science is also making clear to us that the foods we choose to put into our body actually cause specific emotional responses. What we eat determines our mood and plays a huge role in determining the health of our brain. According to Dr. David Perlmutter (a leading global speaker and author on nutritional health), eating a high carbohydrate and low fat diet is actually one of the leading causes of brain disease! In order to prevent diseases such as Parkinson’s, Dementia, Alzheimer’s, M.S., Autism, Schizophrenia, ADHD, Coronary Artery Disease, and Diabetes, it is important to eat a diet that is low in carbohydrates (gluten, processed sugar, and alcohol), and high in organic healthy fats and proteins, vegetables, and fermented foods. More than half of our brain is made of fat! Therefore, it is essential to consume healthy fats that will continue to nourish the brain.

Just like the emotional experience of Stress and Anxiety, having a high-carb diet causes increased acidity and inflammation in the body…not to mention making it incredibly challenging to lose weight. The physiological response of inflammation actually changes the bacteria that line the walls of the GI tract. This gut flora, also known as our good “helper” bacteria, aids in the digestion of our food and helps boost the immune system. It is possible to balance the acidity in the gut by eating fermented foods, and incorporating live pro-biotic supplements into your daily dietary routine. This not only allows the body to become more alkaline, making it challenging for microorganisms causing illness and disease to survive, but also soothes the inflammatory response, and replenishes the gut flora that is essential for our overall health.

Foods to avoid: Sugar, artificial sweeteners, gluten, alcohol

Foods to savor: Nutrient dense and organic fiber rich veggies and fermented foods with probiotics such as Kimchi, Tempe, Adzuki Bean Miso, Sauerkraut, Kefir, and Kombucha. Live probiotic supplements, grass fed beef, wild caught fish, free range eggs, olive oil, coconut oil, nuts, seeds, and avocado.

Mind Set For Gut Health.

Retrain Your Brain!! You Can Do It!!

Now that you know what is good for your body, it is time to change those unhealthy eating habits and make your brain and body happy and healthy. This means connecting to your true emotional and nutritional needs, making healthier choices, and managing your cravings. When you begin to feel a strong craving towards food, important questions to ask yourself are:

Am I stressed out right now?

During a stressful situation, your brain releases a hormone called Cortisol. According to Dina Aronson (a registered dietitian and nutritional author), excess levels of Cortisol can cause weight gain, high blood pressure, high blood glucose levels & suppressed insulin (aka. Diabetes!), inflammation and acidic blood, insomnia, poor memory, constipation, osteoporosis, diminished sex drive, muscle weakness, depression, anxiety, and irritability. High levels of Cortisol can also cause pre-mature aging and suppresses DHEA, aka “youth” hormone. Cortisol prepares the body for the fight-or-flight response, making it very challenging to make rational decisions.

Since glucose becomes high in the blood after the release of Cortisol, but is not absorbed into the cells, the body thinks that the cells need more glucose…more sugar…more carbs!! The body thinks that it is hungry, and the appetite is stimulated.

Comfort foods that are high in sugar actually blunt the release of cortisol. This provides temporary relief in symptoms of stress. Meanwhile, the brain is becoming conditioned into believing that it needs sugar to feel good and that carbs are the solution to unpleasant emotions and experiences! When you reach for that cupcake, your leftover pasta, that bag of chips, or those brownie bites, ask yourself “Am I stressed out?” Then stimulate your own happiness by putting on your favorite CD, exercising, taking a deep breath or meditating, calling a supportive friend, or going for a walk outside. You can even distract your brain by writing someone an email or engage in reading an interesting book. Retrain yourself to partake in activities that make you feel good, but don’t cause the gut and brain to suffer. Then you can begin to address the causes of the present stressors, make necessary changes, and empower yourself to keep living the healthy life you want to live.

Am I getting enough sleep?

Diminished sleep actually causes an increase in the hormone Ghrelin, an appetite stimulator, and decreases the hormone called Leptin which tells the brain when you are full! Allow at least 7-10 hours of sleep per night. A great strategy to overcoming your cravings is to take a quick 10-minute nap.

Am I drinking enough water?

Remember it is important to drink half your body weight in ounces of water per day! If you do not consume enough water then the body may confuse the thirst response with the hunger response. When a food craving occurs, it is beneficial to drink at least one full glass of room temperature water before consuming any food. This may diminish the craving completely.

Another technique that will assist with overcoming food cravings is the practice of affirmation and visualization. In the moment of a food craving immediately tell yourself “Stop!” Then visualize yourself healthy, fit, and happy. Feel the sensations of that vision with all of your senses. Repeat a supportive affirmation such as “I am healthy…I eat healthy and I am fit…I love veggies” etc. Eventually, you will be able to manifest your vision and will no longer crave the foods that do not serve your highest good!

All human beings are capable of breaking patterns and cravings, and you can do it too!! May your gut and brain be forever happy and healthy! Happy gut health!
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Jun 12 2015

Holistic Personal Training- Say No To GMO’s

SolCore Fitness Santa Fe practices Holistic Personal Training.

What does that mean “Holistic Personal Training.” It means that the program that you are on should take into consideration diet and lifestyle factors as well as a complete exercise program. So if you are one of those people who is on the newest diet craze or fitness craze, I implore you to take a little more consideration in what you are doing to yourself.

Below is an article that we believe in. To us practicing holistic personal training means that we need to be aware of how much “bad” stress we are putting on our body. It is not just about one thing that causes people to get sick, it is about the totality of what we are doing or not doing to ourselves. Eating to much non organic food means that we are ingesting to many chemicals and compounds that our body doesn’t know how to deal with.

“By 2025 One in Two Children will be Autistic.”

The above quote — and shocking prediction — was said recently by Dr. Stephanie Seneff a senior researcher at The Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Her “one in two” prophecy is based upon the following pattern…

In 1975, 1 in every 5000 would develop autism. In 1985, it was 1 in every 2,500. In 1995, it was 1 in every 500, in 2005 in was 1 in every 166 and today it is approximately 1 in every 68 children.

In her June 5th 2014 report called Is Roundup the Toxic Chemical That’s Making Us All Sick? she presents a chart that shows the correlation between the use of Monsanto’s Roundup (which contains the active ingredient glyphosate) on crops and the rising rates of autism.

If that were her only proof it would be easy for critics to dismiss as one could overlap a chart of anything that has gone up over the years on the autism chart and make a similar case, but her case against Roundup (specifically the glyphosate found in Roundup) is well founded.

She notes that the well-known bio-markers of autism –low serum sulfate, disrupted gut bacteria, inflammatory bowel, serotonin and melatonin deficiency, mitochondrial disorder, zinc and iron deficiency (and more) “can all be explained as potential effects of glyphosate on biological systems.”

From 1995 to 2005 the use of glyphosate in pesticides rose 1,500 percent. Every year a 100 million pounds of glyphosate is used on more than a billion acres in the United States alone according to an article published in Science in Society in 2010.

In the summary of her Is Roundup the Toxic Chemical That’s Making Us All Sick? report she says that we should be very worried about glyphosate contamination of our food supply and recommends that it be banned from agriculture. She also suggests that, in addition to autism, its use can be linked to the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, celiac disease and other intestinal disorders.

So how do you protect yourself against the effects of glyphosate? Avoid consuming GMOs (At 13 parts per million, GMO corn contains more than 18 times the safe level of glyphosate set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) and support GMO labeling efforts.

Quote:

“It is commonly believed that Roundup is among the safest pesticides… Despite its reputation, Roundup was by far the most toxic among the herbicides and insecticides tested. This inconsistency between scientific fact and industrial claim may be attributed to huge economic interests, which have been found

Very interesting and thought provoking info. I realize some objections may come saying “I’m to busy to cook all these meals.” Well don’t stress because as long as you are 80 to 90% good at home you don’t have to worry if you go out to eat at your favorite restaurant and they don’t use organic ingredients.

Another objection: “Organic food is to expensive!” With the rise in popularity in people wanting Organic food grocers now have to compete for business and this means discounts. Also going to the farmers market cuts out the middle man and now you get a better price and the farmer keeps more of the money. And if you are really money conscious know that cancer treatments are not cheep.

Don’t just perform random acts of movement for your workouts and don’t throw up your hands because eating organic is “hard.” Take control of your health with a Holistic Personal Training Program.
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May 20 2015

Personal Training Success Story

Personal Training Success Story: Barbara Hendrick

I first met Barbara about a year ago. She came to SolCore Fitness because she was having a lot of back pain and she couldn’t get rid of it. She had been on a trip with her husband and they were horseback riding when all of a sudden she “tweaked” her back. It was one of those times when it hurts, but you fully expect it to loosen up and get better after a week or so. It didn’t, and it started to bother her even more. She tried Physical Therapy, Osteopath treatments and a 3 set of really expensive Prolotherapy shots. As always, we sat down and talked to her first in a consultation to make sure we understood exactly what she was looking for, if we could help her, and if she was ok with working hard and being a little uncomfortable in order to get better. She was.

A little background on Barbara. She is an excellent bookkeeper who is ridiculously active. She works out, does water aerobics, pilates, paddle boards, hikes (her favorite), and I am sure a bunch of other activities that I am forgetting. You get the picture. In fact Barbara said that if she couldn’t hike with her husband, Chris, “then what’s the use in living?” Wow! If you didn’t get how much she loves being active from hearing all she does, that quote pretty much sums it up.

I chose Barbara as the May member of the month because of the amazing progress that she has made over the past year. She has come leaps and bounds from where she was, and continues to make progress even after a year in our group classes. I hope that you can take a little of what Barbara has done to be successful and apply it to your own exercise program. I know I will!

I am proud to announce Barbara Hendrick our April 2015 members of the month’s Personal Training Success Story:

What made you decide you wanted/needed to start a program? Back pain. I had hurt my back horseback riding and it was getting unbearable. I was desperate.
What did you do before? I had done PT, Osteopath treatments and a 3 set round of Prolotherapy, and none of it worked to ease my back pain.
What results have you achieved since starting your program that you are proud of? I have much better posture now. My spine is much more flexible and has a lot more mobility. And now even when I do activates that really cause my back to tighten up (like gardening) it goes back to normal really quickly. Editors note: Barbara got hurt in August of 2013. She started classes in May 2014, and by August 2014 she was able to go horseback riding without pain!
Do you have a favorite exercise? Least? What do you like or don’t like about them? Frogs (a series of stretches for your inner thigh) and butterflies (an exercise to strengthen your upper back) are my least favorite even though I know they are good for me. I love all the other exercises, because I know that I am doing a lot of good for my body by making it stronger and more flexible. If I did have to choose two movements that I especially love and which have been really helpful to me it would be the 90/90/90’s and the sliding back and forth move with my spine. The sliding back and forth (a lateral translation of the upper body) really started to open up my spine, and the 90/90/90 (Obturator internus myo-fascial stretch) has really balanced my pelvis, which has helped my back stay out of pain.
What are some challenges or goals you are currently working on? To keep my body in a place where I can keep playing. I want to hike, horseback ride, paddle board, work out, garden, etc., without having to worry that I am going to get hurt.
What do you like best about our program/ having a trainer? You guys make it so comfortable to come and work out. And it is a lot of fun in class. Really humorous.
What advice would you give to the other SolCore Fitness members? Do your homework! (I swear I didn’t make her say that) ***Side note*** It took Barbara about four months before she started doing her homework. When she did, her results started to be extremely rapid.
What would you say to someone on the fence about joining our program? Give it a try. To try it for three months is nothing.

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May 15 2015

Mindfulness Is The Key To Being Happy In Whatever You Do.

Mindfulness in your exercise program and in your life.

By Maya Cordova

Now that you have begun to move forward full speed ahead into your exercise practice and are advancing in your ELDOAS and Myo-fascial stretching techniques, I want to introduce to you a new technique…one that will help you enjoy your life even that much more. This technique is called Mindfulness! Now…what in the world is Mindfulness?

Mindfulness is a joyful and easy technique that all human beings are capable of practicing. It is simply the practice of awareness, observation, and acceptance. You have already begun to find awareness in your body by practicing healthy exercises that change your posture, allowing you to move more efficiently in your life. You can tell when your ears are over your shoulders or when your chin is sticking up to the sky…but now, lets take one step further. By using the breath as your guide it is possible to become aware of the sensations in your body, the thoughts that flow in and out of your mind, and the emotions that come along with them…while simultaneously being at peace with them! By experiencing this awareness you can become awake to your life, and empower yourself to make choices to create the healthy life you want to live.

Benefits of Mindfulness

The practice of mindfulness will leave you feeling more productive and energetic in your daily activities and will help you to sleep better at night. You will gain better awareness of your body and how certain foods, emotions, and even thoughts affect your body. Mindfulness allows you to become harmonious with your experiences and helps your stress and anxiety levels to decrease. You will learn to become present, find more gratitude in your heart, feel more joy and peace, and essentially find a greater sense of fulfillment.

The 4 Steps of Mindfulness in Action! How can we be more mindful in our lives?

Step 1: Awareness of the breath!! The breath is the magical key!

It is very common to live our lives thinking about the future. Humans are constantly planning, looking at the clock, rushing from one place to the next, feeling overwhelmed, or feeling anxious when experiencing conflict or other stressful situations. If you find yourself doing these things, remember that you can slow down (even if it’s just for one minute!!) and focus on your breathing. What does the texture of your breath feel like? What does the breath sound like? By focusing on the spaciousness between each inhalation and exhalation you will reconnect to the NOW moment. This will help you find a sense of presence, peace, and acceptance and you become more efficient at the task at hand. You can practice breath awareness during meal times, walking, driving, working, communicating, and exercising. Once you connect to the breath you can SLOW DOWN enough to become aware of your surroundings, thoughts, and feelings.

Step 2: Awareness of thoughts!!

When you connect to the breath, you are able to slow down and actually accept the experience that you are having. This acceptance helps you to realize that IT WILL PASS. While focusing on the breath, you may begin to notice your thoughts floating in and out of your mind. Often times it is easy to get lost in the loops, and sometimes you will be able to come back to the Now moment within the breath. Eventually, you will realize that these thoughts are not actually you but are only a rising and passing part of your present experience…Thank goodness! By being aware you can actually create empowering and positive thoughts that will help you enjoy your day and motivate you through challenging situations (Like your ELDOAS!!).

Step 3: Awareness of emotions!! “What am I actually feeling right now? Whatever it is, it’s OK!!! I am human!”

Humans experience a wide range of emotions! Let them be felt! Once you become aware of what you actually feel, you can practice observing the breath and accepting the feeling that you are having. The breath is present, and the emotion, like everything else, is rising and passing. Know that your emotions, like your thoughts, are not who you are, but they are part of your present human experience. Being aware of your feelings will help you clarify your needs and you can consciously proceed forward.

Step 4: Awareness of Sensations!!

Our thoughts create emotions, and emotions create sensations in the body. At the same time sensations in the body create emotions, and emotions create thoughts! They are all connected! And each one influences how we move in the world: who we think we are, how we respond or react, how we communicate, and how we contribute to the environment around us. Being mindful of sensation in your body will help you understand where you hold tension, stress, and emotion. Experience the rising of sensation and watch as it passes away through each mindful breath.

When you practice mindfulness you may begin to notice things you hadn’t before…the sound of birds singing, the sensation in your belly during a conversation with a new friend, the taste of the incredible spices in your food, and even the beautiful hummingbird as you walk from one place to the next. Awareness empowers you and awakens you to each experience in your life. Enjoy!
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