Suffer from Anxiety? 4 Foods to help manage it

Anxiety can be such a crippling thing to deal with. Of course people suffer from all different levels of anxiety from  feeling a little bit low or nervous, to full blown panic attacks which can even have physical consequences such as vomiting, sweating and shaking.

 If you do suffer from some form of anxiety it is really important that you talk it over with your GP to get the appropriate advice and help.

In saying that though there are things  that you can add to your diet to assist your overall anxiety management.

Almonds

Almonds contain iron which can assist in brain fatigue which can be a cause of anxiety. The also contain zinc which is important for creating a balanced mood.

 Blueberries

So many benefits come from blueberries with them having such a high anti-oxidant count. It is also believed that they have a natural sedation effect.

Wholegrains 

Wholegrains make you feel full which is important to prevent anxiety. They also contain tryptophan which converts to serotonin. Seratonin is what helps keep you calm.

Chocolate

Yes I hear you celebrating! Chocolate has an effect on our body by reducing cortisol levels. Cortisol is the stress hormone our body makes. Just make sure you are eating the dark chocolate variety ( more than 70% cocoa) so you are not consuming unnecessary sugar and remember portion control!

Lastly stay away from all foods high in sugar, fried and fatty food, alcohol and high GI foods as these can make anxiety worse.

Berry and choc swirl yoghurt

 Measurements are per person

4 tablespoons of full fat greek yoghurt

10-12 frozen blueberries

1 natvia stick

1 tablespoon choc protein powder

 ( natures way)

1. Put yoghurt, Natvia and protein powder in bowl and mix thoroughly

2. Heat blueberries in microwave until defrosted. This also helps make them sweeter

3. Once defrosted, add blue berries and gently fold them through until yoghurt goes swirly

4. Enjoy

Go Natural- 6 Ways to ease Muscle Cramping

Muscle cramps are something that can either bother you a little bit or escalate into full blown agony. Either way you don't want to have them.
Here are some natural solutions to try before you reach for the pill packets.

Epsom salts

Not only do they ease your muscles (best time is post workout) but they also aid in detoxifying the body. If you are planning on doing a juice cleanse it is recommended you have an epsom salt bath before the night of the cleanse and every day for for the first seven (depending on how long your detox is) It will help pull all the junk from your skin and allow it to escape without the breakouts that often occur in the early detoxing stage. Add one third of a 250g box to the bath.

Ginger

This little root has powerful anti inflammatory properties. Add it to your food, juices or vitamin supplements. Also great for women at that time of the month. It can also help you deal with stress.

Tumeric

Such a versatile in its healing properties, tumeric is known for helping aid arthritis, lowering cholesterol and treating liver conditions. It's flavour isnt overpowering so you can add it to most of your cooking for maximum benefits.

Heat

Applying heat directly to a muscle will help relief minor pain and allows the muscle to relax. The warmth will also assist in expanding the blood vessels leading to better blood flow.

Coconut water

A yummy drink that contains a whole heap of electrolytes that assist in balancing magnesium, potassium and calcium which is the main reasons for cramps.

Interview with International Fitness Model- Christina Hailkolopolos

How did you begin in the fitness modelling industry? 

 

I started to hit the gym to get my confidence up as I needed a boost after my then waste-of-a-time boyfriend, cheated. See? Girls, this can happen to anyone. So when someone is an ass, pick yourself up and make yourself stronger! You can do it, and you’re absolutely worth it!
Through my experiences I really believe if you do good things by others, good karma comes back around. One day while I was training, a sups company approached me. I wasn’t sure where it would lead me but I accepted the opportunity. After one shoot my photos went viral, I have since featured in almost sixty websites, four mags and all that within one year. 

what sort of  workout routine do you have to do to keep in shape?

My current weekly workout routine is:
Monday: Shoulders, Abs Tuesday: Legs Wednesday: Biceps, Triceps, Abs Thursday: Back Friday: Light over all workout, Abs Saturday: Rest Sunday: Rest > Cheat meals ; )

How strict is your diet?

My Daily diet consists of

Breakfast: Oats + Protein Powder + cinnamon + berries Snack: Protein Shake Lunch: Brown Rice + flavoured tuna + almonds, green salad (balsamic vinegar) OR Chicken breast + Greek salad, 1 plum Snack: Protein smoothie (check my FB for the recipe) Dinner: Chicken breast or fish – brown rice (if I trained in the evening) or just Greek salad (if I trained in the afternoon) Snack: Protein Shake

What are the most important foods  for someone wanting to achieve the ultimate body to consume? 

1.  Chicken Breast
   Quinoa
   Brown Rice
   Tuna
   Sweet potato
   Broccoli
   Tomato
   Citrus fruits
   tuna , chicken breast, green salad leafs, eggs, quinoa, brown rice, sweet potato, tomatoes, citrus fruits, and broccoli. - See more at: http://www.rippednfit.com/lifestyle/christina-halkiopoulos-tv-host-fitness-model/#sthash.7PkzRL3B.dpuf
   
   

    

    What sort of opportunities have come from being a fitness model? 

   I have been in photo shoots here and overseas, featured in magazines, a music video and been a TV presenter. I also recently met my idol Arnold Schwarzenegger when he came to Australia in June this year.  

   
   Who is your inspiration?  

Jamie Eason. I used to have a picture of her on my fridge which i tore out of a magazine. At the time i didn't even know who she was only that i wanted to look like her! Now I have met her in person.

 

Make sure you have tuna , chicken breast, green salad leafs, eggs, quinoa, brown rice, sweet potato, tomatoes, citrus fruits, and broccoli. - See more at: http://www.rippednfit.com/lifestyle/christina-halkiopoulos-tv-host-fitness-model/#sthash.Pp2BGLGy.dpuf

Make sure you have tuna , chicken breast, green salad leafs, eggs, quinoa, brown rice, sweet potato, tomatoes, citrus fruits, and broccoli. - See more at: http://www.rippednfit.com/lifestyle/christina-halkiopoulos-tv-host-fitness-model/#sthash.Pp2BGLGy.dpuf

Start the day with one of these babies. A "Green Smoothie"

All ingredients have great health benefits to kick start your day.

Celery: helps prevent your body retaining water and  reduces blood pressure

Apples: contain fibre to keep you regular, fuller for longer and assists in lowering cholesterol

Avocado: 1.4 daily folate intake, fibre to make you feel full and stabalizes blood sugar

Spinach: full of antioxidants to fight free radicals, anti inflammatory properties to aid in asthma or arthritis.

 Ingredients

1/2 Avocado

1 green apple chopped skin on

1 handful  of spinach

1 medium stalk of celery

1/2 cup iced water

Method 

1. Blend all ingredients together adding a bit of a time to enough water to blend
2. Continue blending until it reaches a thick smoothie consistency. Use as much water as needed to achieve this.
3. Serve in a tall glass. 

 It is important to use green apples over red especially if you cannot afford organic. Often red apples have have had human interference to make them red. See article Organic vs Non Organic is it worth the money?

  

If you don't have time to make one of these smoothies try getting some spirulina capules or powder drink into you for similar benefits, but the real thing is always going to be better!

Organic vs Non Organic is it worth the money?

Organic seems to be the fashionable thing to do at the moment in regards to your health.

It’s easy to send yourself broke getting caught up in the hype, leaving you to go in the completely opposite direction and never buy organic again.

Recent studies have shown that there is no difference in the amount of nutrition you get with an organic vegetable vs a non organic vegetable, leading many to believe there is no point going organic. 

 For a farmer to produce a large amount of produce they use chemicals to

• Assist crop to grow faster
• Brighten colour of food to be more attractive on supermarket shelves
• Protect against insects

The residue is left on the foods that you and I will eventually eat. Yuk right?

The scary thing is though, while the nutrition isn’t altered, what ELSE is in the vegetable could be incredibly dangerous to your health. Australia does NOT have to prove that any pesticide is not hazardous to your health like it does in Europe. Seventeen pesticides on the Australia's pesticide list  are either known to be or are most likely to cause cancer.

Do we even know what is in these sprays? Probably not. But chances are that if you delve into their chemical make up you would be horrified.  So how do  you limit chemical exposure on your food?

• Buy organic where possible
• Grown your own veggies and use home made natural remedies against pests
• Remove the peels on all non organic fruit and veg ( which is a shame as majority of nutrition is directly under the skin)
• Wash all the fruit and veg thoroughly. You can now purchase special cleansers for this purpose.

While buying certified organic or growing your own is the safest way to avoid health issues from chemical it is not always practical. Often organic is a whole lot more expensive making it harder on the average person and is often limited to particular locations. 

One thing you can try to do it buy partial organic. This means, buy things organic that have a higher risk of interference.

Fruit and vegetables that have a thin skin such as celery, cucumber, broccoli and spinach should be purchased organic as it is much easier for the chemicals to be absorbed and therefor consumed. 

Buy your non organic fruit and vegetables that have a thick skin, things like citrus, whole melons and pumpkin are less likely to have leeched as much toxic pesticides through.

DIET NO NO'S -7 THINGS YOUR DOING WRONG

Not eating enough food, often enough.

Skipping breakfast, long breaks in between eating or extreme calorie restriction is not going to help you achieve sustainable weight loss. Instead choose foods that are high in nutrients that will keep your sugar levels from spiking, keep you fuller for longer and your energy levels up. 

Make sure you are eating small meals every 3-4 hours rather than large meals 3 times a day. This will ensure your metabolism is revving at its optimum minus exercise from sun up to sun down. if you "forget" to eat set yourself some alarms. 

 

 Drinking only when thirsty.

  By the time you feel thirsty, your body is already dehydrated. Often thirst is mistaken as hunger causing you to consume more calories when you actually need hydrating. 

Drinking water throughout the day helps your metabolism, flushes out toxins, assists in regulating blood sugar and keeps you regular. You should be drinking approximately 3 litres of water a day and even more if you fit in some exercise.

 

 Not making time to unwind and relax

When someone is stressed their body releases a hormone called cortisol. If your body is working overtime trying to deal with stress it can hinder weight loss.

When a person is under extreme pressure or stress the body releases adrenaline, cortisol and corticotrophin releasing hormone (CRH) .Initially this gives you energy (like in a flight or flight response) however both adrenaline and CRH are both short lived while cortisol hangs around in the body longer which can make you feel hungrier than normal.

Try to incorporate some deep breathing/meditation and stretching into your day so help stop cortisol having too much influence in your body. Green tea also helps reduce cortisol.

Having one bad day and giving up.

  Fell off the bandwagon for a day? Maybe two? Don’t punish yourself over it. Most of us do it one time or another. The important thing is that you don’t continue the cycle.

 Increase your water intake, get out in the fresh air for some exercise and continue back into healthy eating patterns. Your body will forgive you as long as you right the wrongs of the weekend during the week.

Throwing portion control out the window because the food is “healthy” 

Just because something is healthy doesn’t mean you should consume it like its going out of fashion.

For example the average woman should consume between 100-150g lean protein per meal. This is about the size of your palm NOT your entire hand. A Man should consume between 150-200g protein per meal unless of course you are an athlete of some sort.

 Fruit should be consumed sparingly as too much can spike sugar levels causing you to “crash” Also all the fructose will convert to fat if the body doesn’t use it through exercise.

Vegetables such as celery and cucumber can be eaten to your heart’s content as you burn more calories  with the action of eating them than you actually consume.

Thinking that all need to do is "diet" to  lose the weight.

Well its right to a point, you will lose some weight. But your efforts could come to a full stop.  Combining exercise with a proper nutrition plan allows you to build lean muscle which in turn will assist the body in burning fat. So you will be able to burn fat while sitting! 

This doesn’t mean of course that once you have got to your goal weight that you get to become lazy. Exercising will also potentially make the weight loss faster. Incorporate a mix of cardio and weights for best results. 

And remember not however go by the numbers on the scales. Muscles weigh more than fat so you could end up feeling like you are not making progress. Measure your progress by the fit of your clothes.

Lack of preparation

If you don’t meal plan or prepare meals ahead of time chances are you will grab something convenient-and unhealthy. Even reaching for a takeaway salad can be detrimental as often dressings contain and whole lot of sugar or salt your body doesn’t need.

Try cooking up a few days meals at a time lean meat such as chicken breast. Buy whole veggies and chop up or steam, keep a fruit bowl to grab quick snacks or pre pack in little glad bags a range of unsalted nuts.

 Purchase water tight containers to keep your yogurt snacks in to avoid purchasing the high sugar pre-packaged ones. Low sugar and salt dips such as hummus or  tzatziki  are good to have handy in fridge.