I talked a bit about how our gut can grow/maintain healthy or bad gut bacteria, and ​what we eat nurtures or starves the bacteria.

Highly processed sugary foods feed the bad bacteria in our gut. The result is our body produces less serotonin​​ because the bad bacteria pushes out the healthy bacteria that does produce serotonin.

The bad bacteria also enhances our cravings for sugar - they feed off of sugar! Part of the reason for eliminating processed foods completely for 30 days is to help reset the bacteria in our gut. That's the beautiful part, the flora or gut bacteria in our stomachs changes all the time based on what we eat and drink.


In other words you can ReSET your health over and over again!! Just like your fitness practice, you can continue to improve bit by bit. I named this nutrition program ReSET for this very reason. This, like HIITing play, is an imperfectly perfect lifestyle. Are you going to eat "imperfect meals?" YES!!! But do you have the skills and self knowledge to realize one meal doesn't destroy your hard work. Life is about living. Just like missing a workout doesn't undo all your progress.

The key is learning habits you can sustain and when you find you've drifted away from your goals or ideals you can simply ReSET back to where you want to be.​​​​​​ ​

Each of these emails​​ can be printed and added to your workbook to further enhance your recipe selection and knowledge.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWERFUL.

Understanding the why behind food choices makes it easier to choose well and easier to give oneself grace when we deviate. If you want to live a long, healthy vibrant life it is absolutely important to nourish and move your body daily. My hope and ambition is for you to see food as a tool to optimize your health, your alertness, your cognitive function and your energy. Most importantly your mental health is directly related to what you eat and how you move.

Just like our planet, our body's systems are intricately related and every single one is fuelled and maintained by what we eat and how we move. When we do both well .... MAGIC!

~ Amy, your coach and trainer
​

Ps. Eat your whole grains​​​​

Raspberry Kombucha Smoothie
For the Raspberry Layer

• 1 cup frozen raspberry (thawed)

• 1 tablespoon chia seeds

For the Kombucha Layer

• 1/2 cup kombucha

• 1-1/2 cups oat milk

• 1 tablespoon rolled oats

• 1 tablespoon almond butter

• 1 banana (peeled, chopped)

• 2 scoops of Arbonne vanilla protein powder
  

Instructions

• Add the raspberries into a medium bowl and mash with a fork.

• Sprinkle in the chia seeds, then mix to incorporate.

• Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the chia seeds to absorb the liquid and turn the mixture into jelly.

• Meanwhile, prepare the kombucha smoothie by adding the ingredients into a blender and processing to get a smooth, creamy liquid.

• Divide the raspberry chia jelly into two serving glasses. Then pour the kombucha smoothie evenly over the top.

• Mix and serve.

The human gut is an amazing piece of work. It is the only organ to boast its own independent nervous system, an intricate network of 100 million neurons embedded in the gut wall.

The 100 trillion microbes that make up the GI tract are critical to health. Gut bacteria regulates digestion and metabolism. Gut Bacteria extract and make vitamins and other nutrients from food that you eat. They program the body's immune system.

Tweaking the balance between beneficial and disease-causing bacteria in the gut can alter brain chemistry.

The brain can also change the gut microbiome, changing behaviour. Studies shown that psychological stress suppresses beneficial bacteria, which causes increased feelings of anxiousness.

The relationship between our physical and mental health is intricately tied to how we move our body and what we eat - DAILY. When we learn how to maximize both we can significantly improve how we feel!!

We MUST stop thinking about nutrition and fitness as a function of weight loss and start thinking about it as a critical piece of our mental and physical health. We are what we eat and we are what we do!!

How can we positively change our gut bacteria? I'm going share tips with you over the next few days.



Source: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/09/gut-feeling

This Salad is a huge HIIT of healthy fats!

Packed with healthy fats, protein and carbs it's the perfect 3X salad
1 cup of cooked farro
1 cup cooked quinoa​​​​
2 cans of chick peas
1 red pepper cubed
1 green pepper cubed
1 zucchini cubed
1 bag of frozed shrimp cooked
1/2 cup of cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
drizzle olive oil
2 limes squeezed
Toss the ingredients together and serve with 1/2 an avocado and sprinkle 1 tbsp of hemp seeds​​​​​​​​​​

No, you don't have to fly like superman but you do have to set a timer to see how long you can hold a plank for. This is this week's fitness challenge.

Set your phone camera up to record and when you hit record the timer begins. When you break, hit stop and you have your video recording for the plank challenge. Either send it to me or screen shot how with the timer showing how long you help your plank.

For every minute you hold you get an extra bonus points.

1min ~ 1 bonus point

2min ~ 2 bonus point

3min ~ 3 bonus point

etc

I'll post my plank challenge at the end of the day.

Get OUTSIDE!

Either take your workout outside or go for a 30 min walk or run. Every time you either take your workout outside or go for a 30 min walk you earn a bonus point on your tracker. You can earn up to 21 bonus points this week in fitness alone!

1 point for your TriFIT workout

1 bonus point if you do your workout out side

1 bonus point if you go for a 30 min walk

We need them and our body is unable to make them, so we either eat or supplement with EFAs. 

Essential fatty acids are the "good" fats our brains and bodies need to operate optimally. This includes DHA, ALA and EPA which make up omega-3's.

Not surprising, foods with high levels of omega 3's are 3X foods. Try using these 3x foods this week:

Salmon              flaxseeds
tuna                   cashews
trout                   walnuts
muscles             chia seeds
herring               hemp hearts
sardines            quinoa
seaweed           kidney beans
cold water fish         
spirulina

We do not eat enough seafood and there are great options for vegetarians too!

Why eat seafood or sea plants?

DHA ... the most significant essential fatty acid for the brain, the heart and the body.  Yes you can supplement but the best source is from the ocean.

How I save money and easily add seafood to our weekly meals 2-3x:

1. I buy whole fish and ask the person behind the counter to descale and de-fin the fish for me. One trout feeds the whole family and is on average $7.99/lb versus $14.99/lb. Huge cost savings. I then cook the fish whole in tin foil with butter, lemon and dill.

2. I buy shrimp every time it's on sale, even if I don't plan on using it. Often I can buy a bag with 30-40 pieces for $6.99. This becomes a quick go to stir fry or curry when I need it.

3. Seaweed is packed with DHA and can be used in stews, stir frys, sushi rolls, and even seaweed chips