CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: Swap Your Milk Challenge!

Today, you can find many alternatives for animal milk, yogurt, and other dairy products in the supermarkets.  The number of people drinking and using them is rising, so there are a lot more options out there than there used to be!

Regular milk has a lot of potential negative effects on your body- including leeching calcium from your bones (yes- this is true!), causing inflammation in your body, and causing digestive problems because 75% of the world’s population is genetically unable to digest milk!

Even if you don’t feel the negative effects from drinking regular milk, I encourage you to give some of these other options a try! 

Alternatives are:
1.  Almond milk - light and tasty; it also contains a lot of vitamins such as E and B, magnesium, calcium, iron, even healthy fats!

2.  Coconut milk - thick with subtle coconut flavor and high in healthy saturated fats.

3.  Cashew milk - has the least nutty flavor of all nut milks and it is also a great source of healthy fats, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, and zinc.

4.  Hemp milk - made from hemp seeds and has watery texture. It is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which is important for heart health.

5.  Rice milk - low in fat, neutral, easy to digest.

Since people have different tastes, I would recommend you experiment with a couple of different options to see what you like the best!  Just make sure whichever option you choose is not loaded with sugar or other strange ingredients.  Remember- the fewer the ingredients the better!

If you want to make your own at home, try this recipe: wellnessmama.com/366/organic-almond-milk-recipe

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: Vitamin D Challenge:

Vitamin D is one of my favorite vitamins to talk about!  It’s incredibly important because it helps to support your immune system and keep you healthy. 

It also helps keep your brain healthy, bones strong, fight against depression, and a whole lot of other amazing things!

And luckily, there are many ways to get your daily intake of vitamin D.

Sunlight – around 20 minutes should do the trick, but FYI sunshine through closed windows does not count – so get outside!

Another great source of vitamin D is fatty fish such as salmon, trout, mackerel, eel and tuna (canned tuna or sardines both contain vitamin D). And on the plus side, you also get heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids from fish.

Eggs are also another place to find your vitamin D, however, they will only give you about 10% of what you need for the day. 

You can also find it in beef liver and cod liver oil.  Cod liver oil could be a better choice than beef liver since it tastes better and is often flavored with mint or citrus.  It can even be found in capsule form.

And…last but not least, if you’re not getting enough vitamin D, supplementation may be the way to go!  You can get it just about anywhere.

If you want a great article about vitamin D and want to find out exactly how much of it is in certain foods, check out: draxe.com/vitamin-d-deficiency-symptoms

This week’s challenge is rather simple….make sure you’re focused on getting enough vitamin D all week either through food, liquids, or just by spending more time outside in daylight! 

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: Detox Bath Challenge 

Our bodies are champs at detoxifying naturally.  However, with the amount of pollutants and chemicals floating around these days, it can be really beneficial to give your body a little help from time to time. 

Detox baths have been around for centuries and are used all of the time for eliminating toxins, helping the body absorb minerals and nutrients, curing skin problems and easing sore muscles.

They are easy to prepare and most of the ingredients can be found in your local grocery stores.

You will need: Epsom salt (2 cups), baking soda (1-2 cups), sea salt or Himalayan salt (1/4 cup), unprocessed Apple Cider Vinegar (1/4 cup), essential oils (any fragrance you like, 20 drops will do), ground ginger (optional), skin brush and of course bathtub filled with hot water.

Make sure you are well hydrated before and during your detox bath because minerals in the bath will pull toxins out from your skin - and that can be very dehydrating.

Before starting your bath, it’s always a good idea to dry brush your skin, which will help shed dead layers of skin off, speed up your lymphatic system and smooth your skin.

A relaxing atmosphere can’t hurt, so get your fave relaxing playlist ready. 

And then the best part! Soak, relax, breathe, calm your mind, and let your body take over from there.

Sound good to you!?

Your challenge this week is to take one homemade detox bath!  Choose a day and time when you can spare 30-40 minutes or more to relax without rushing.

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: “Just Breathe” Challenge

It’s a good thing we DON’T have control over many of the things that go on in our bodies. 

We get so busy, that we probably would have died a long time ago because we would absolutely have gotten distracted and have forgotten to BREATHE! 

However- although breathing happens automatically for us, our minds are often focused on other things….so that even though we’re alive and “breathing”- we’re still not doing it right. 

IN fact, up to 80% of us are “chest breathers” and are not getting enough oxygen into our bodies.  This causes tension in the neck and shoulders.

Rebecca Dennis (breathing expert) says "if we’re not breathing fully, it can make us feel stressed, anxious, depressed, drained and our sleep patterns get affected."

The good news is, if we consciously bring awareness to our breathing, all of this can be fixed!

Here is an easy deep-breathing practice that I’m challenging you to do every day this week!

·      Sit comfortably and straighten your back.

·      Deeply breathe in air through your nose and hold your breath for a few seconds.

·      Exhale through your mouth slowly, pushing out as much air as you can.

·      Continue to breathe in and out like that for a few minutes and try to relax as much as possible. Concentrate of your breathing only.

This practice is especially great in the morning to help wake up your body and detox from toxins.  (but it’s also good at any time of the day!)

This week I challenge you to practice deep breathing for at least 3 minutes every single day.

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: Water ONLY Challenge! No coffee, tea, alcohol, or juice!

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” - Loren Eiseley

Want your mind to be totally blown?  Look up Dr. Masaru Emoto’s research on water!

You’ll never look at water the same way again.

We all know that drinking water is good for us, yet far too many people are walking around dehydrated!

This shows up in so many ways from dry skin, to headaches, to lack of concentration, to fatigue and joint pain… (and this is just the beginning).

Basically, everything in your body is able to function better when you’re hydrated.

Now only that, but EVERYTHING gets better when you’re hydrated… it will:

·      Help you to maintain a healthy body weight

·      Boost your energy

·      Help with digestion

·      Improve the quality of your skin

·      Help your immune system to function optimally

·      Help prevent depression

·      Help you get rid of toxins in your body

Your challenge this week is to drink NOTHING BUT WATER!  No coffee, no tea (except herbal), no juices, and no alcohol!  Basically nothing liquid except water!

Let’s get back to basics this week and take a break from caffeine and the excess sugars that we’re drinking.

Let’s stop flooding it with acidic coffee in the morning and swap it for a big glass of water with lemon instead.

Keep a water bottle with you throughout the day every day this week.

Your goal is to drink at least half your body weight in ounces.  (Water that you drink during your workouts does not count!)

You up for our water-only challenge this week?  Your body, skin, and energy levels will thank you.



 

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: No Added Sugar Challenge:    

Do you know how much sugar you eat during the day?  Have you ever checked?

There is an easy way to do that: write down everything you eat during the day (be honest!), and then use ingredient labels or simply Google how many grams of sugar each food has and count.

The World Health Organization recommends about 25g (or less!) added sugar per day.

This is because excess sugar intake can spike your blood sugar levels, cause you to feel more hungry, have mood swings, store excess fat, and worse… can cause diabetes and a whole host of other issues.

Think you may be consuming too much sugar? Here are a few ways you can reduce your daily sugar consumption:

·      Be more aware of what’s in the food you’re eating by reading the labels.

·      Drink more water, especially when you feel like snacking (because cravings could be a sign of dehydration!)

·      Try using coconut sugar instead of regular table sugar (which won’t raise blood sugar nearly as fast).

·      Have healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner (so you’ll be less hungry afterwards and won’t go around hunting for snacks.)

·      Try preparing your meals at home instead of eating out, because that’s one of the surest ways to control what you are eating.

So let’s kick this inflammation-causing fire-starter to the curb and not invite it into your body in the first place.

This week’s challenge is to keep added sugars to UNDER 25 grams per day, each day this week!   Sugar that is naturally occurring in the whole foods that you’re eating is ok.

But this means that any recipe that has “sugar” in it should get shuffled to the back of the box!  This also means you need to limit the sugar in your coffee and check EVERY label of everything you’re eating this week!

Are you in for this not-so-sweet challenge this week!? 



 

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK

CHALLENGE OF THE WEEK: Plank on Steroids Challenge!

 

The “plank” is one of the single greatest exercises out there- mainly because if you learn how to do this correctly, you’ll be able to keep a proper spinal position and core stability in just about every other exercise you do. 

Nearly every exercise you perform will depend on your ability to keep a neutral spine and a strong core.

Here are a few other benefits of practicing the plank exercise:

·      It will help you develop stronger core muscles (meaning a stronger back and spinal column) which will reduce back pain and decrease your risk for injury.

·      You’ll have a more stable and proper posture (leading to a decrease in lower back and neck pain).

·      Your overall body balance will improve.

This means that practicing the plank will not only improve your workout performance, but it will improve your quality of LIFE!

Now, to keep things interesting, your challenge this week is to practice a variety of planks throughout the week!

Break your planks up into as many sets as you need in order to reach the recommended time each day with proper form.

·      Monday: Straight Arm Plank (1 minute total)

·      Tuesday: Forearm Plank (2 minutes total)

·      Wednesday: Left and Right Plank (3 minutes total)

·      Thursday: Straight Arm Plank (4 minutes total)

·      Friday: Forearm Plank (5 minutes total)

·      Saturday: Left and Right Plank (6 minutes total)

·      Sunday: ALL PLANKS! (7 minutes total)

Here’s a great article to check out to make sure you’re using the correct form while you’re doing plank: http://greatist.com/fitness/perfect-plank

Are you in?