Tag Archives: Supplements

Careful of Your Supplements

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OxyEliteYesterday it was reported that Aaron Rathy was forced to return his silver medal in Wakeboarding at the Pan Am Games because of a supplement he mistakenly took.  He  picked up some OxyElite Pro from GNC which contains Methylhexaneamine and is a banned substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency in 2010.

 

While athletes are fully aware of all the things they cannot take, they really need to make sure of what they put into their bodies.  The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport actually recommends athletes not take any supplements because of things just like this.

While there are many supplement companies that offer NSF Certified for Sport, I’m proud to have the opportunity to represent one.  Nutrilite provides a few NSF certified supplements like DoubleX, Concentrated Fruits and Vegetables and it’s Daily Multivitamin.  Perfect Water also listed as NFS certified.  I’m not saying you need to buy our stuff however this is one of the reasons why we have great retail success with local athletes, they can trust the supplements listed here won’t negatively impact them.

Weight Loss Update

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FitnessSo I figure it’s a good time to update my progress on my weight loss and dive deeper into what it is I’m doing that I’ve changed and maybe some of the supplements I’ve started to take to round out my regime.

Today I weighed myself and I’m back to 204lbs.  I believe before Wyatt was born I got down to 204 or 205 and that was the lowest and right now is the lowest I’ve been since I’d say 10 years.  My waist has gone in and I can now fit some 34 inch waist clothing.  I’ve not fit into 34 inches since I was around 18-20 years old and playing hockey.  Funny how a little exercise and watching what you eat will do to your body.

So what have I changed and what am I doing to ensure I’m getting optimal health?  Well I work out at least three times a week, two of those dates are with my trainer and at minimum one day is dedicated to cardio.  I try to get in a few extra cardio dates but sometimes life gets a bit busy, no worries three times a week is a good fit.

So you cannot lose weight without having a good diet, diet is 80% of losing weight. Some people like @huntjason lost 50lbs just on food alone! That’s amazing! So mad props to him.  However with food, you don’t always get everything you need from it so you have to supplement. Here is my list of supplements that I take and why.

  • Multi-Vitamin – I take a plant based non-synthetic multi-vitamin that contains phytonutrients, multi-mineral, and multi-vitamin
  • Concentrated Fruits and Veggie Supplement – In order to fill in where my fruits and veggies are lacking, and everyone is lacking in this department, I take this supplement.
  • Omega3’s – DHA and EPA Omega 3’s for cognitive health and brain functions. Omega3’s are the building blocks for your cellular system, yet most of us don’t get enough of it even with what we eat.
  • Vitamin C – I take a slow release Vitamin C so that my body doesn’t just pee it out. We all know Vitamin C is good for immune health.
  • Siberian Ginseng – Helps with people always on the go, being busy, having kids to run around after.  Helps reduce the need for caffeine or sugar by using ginkgo biloba for mental sharpness.
  • Glucosamine – I’ve not had to take this so much anymore but I did take this to help with my knees.  Glucosamine is great for joint health and helps build health cartilage.
  • CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid) – This is something that most people who are building muscle mass take as it helps retain muscle mass which is important when weight training.
  • Chromemate – Its an essential trace mineral that your body requires to assist in carbohydrate, lipid and protein metabolism. Fun fact, your body processes chromium five times faster than normal during strenuous exercise yet 90% of us are not getting enough of it.
  • Whey Protein Isolate – Necessary to help your body rebuild muscles after you exercise.  I checked with a few body builders at work on what I should be taking and how much and they agree this is crucial to proper muscle mass development.

Supplements

Well this may seem like a lot of supplements and I thought so at first so I checked with my family Dr., and also got a second opinion with another Dr. and they said there is no problem with what I’m taking.  In fact they were quite impressed with my decision to take my health seriously especially after my physical a few years ago.  I had a visit with my Family Dr. two years ago to have a physical done and he mentioned to me I need to get my butt in gear and watch what I eat.  That scared me a bit and yet still took me awhile to get going.  It wasn’t until Lindsay was pregnant and I had a family on the way when I got that butt in gear.  So far things are going great and I feel amazing!

So I’m not telling you what you should or shouldn’t take, this is just what I take.  You should check with your Dr. and or Dietician before making changes.  I just know what works for me and how I feel.  Lastly be careful where you get your supplements from and what’s actually in them.  Most supplements and vitamins end up being pooped out and do nothing for you.  Don’t believe me? Call some porta-potty companies, they will fill you in.

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Fruits and Veggies, Are You Getting Enough?

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Vibrant ProduceProbably not, a recent survey by Statistics Canada says Canadians are eating fewer fruits and vegetables for the first time in a decade.  Only 43% of people aged 12 and older ate fruits and vegetables more than five times a day in 2010.  Canada’s food guide says an Adult Male between the ages of 19-50 should be getting 8-10 servings per day and it’s no secret we don’t get anywhere near that.  Check here for the food guide. This report also talks about stress levels are up from 2008, 18% of the overall population is obese, people with hypertension, and the list goes on with health related horror stats. 

This is exactly why people need to look at supplementation to their regular diet as we are obviously not getting enough.  Whether it’s being to busy or just not getting the quality and substance out of what you are eating, you need to supplement to help make sure you get all the nutrients your body is more than likely missing.  Now I don’t often promote our products on my blog but we have just the right supplement for this staggering stat.  It’s called Nutrilite Concentrated Fruits and Veggies and contains crucial phytonutrients from natural fruits, vegetables and plants enough to equal the amount found in 10+ servings in two tablets.  You cannot even eat 10 servings of fruits and vegetables for the amount of these supplements, we’ve tried.

Lastly if you are going to supplement, make sure you know the company your buying from.  Do the practice environmental sustainability?  Do they own their own organic farms? Or do they farm it out to some unknown company where they cannot track what happens to the product?  Do they plant, harvest and make pills on their own farms?  Have they been around for over 75 years and proven themselves as the global leader in vitamins and supplements?

Check out the article here – http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20110621/statscan-health-110621/

Gym Update

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livestrong backlitWOOOOOOO! That’s how I feel over the last little bit.  While I am a bit sore from the work outs and really waking my muscles up, I’m feeling pretty darn good.  I’ve been to the gym without my personal trainer a few times to put in practice the workouts he suggested.  True I may not be doing it EXACTLY like he taught me, I’m trying my hardest to keep the proper form because that’s what it’s all about.  Do the exercises wrong and you could end up hurting yourself. 

I’ve also mentioned I’ve been keeping track of my calories and being more mindful of what I put into my body.  While I’m not sacrificing 100% of what I eat, I am eating more in moderation and making sure my lunch is my largest meal.  Dinner is a much smaller meal which it should be, far to often we make dinner our largest meal and that’s just no good for when you hit the sack at the end of the day.  You can check out my livestrong.com profile here if you care. http://www.livestrong.com/profile/shaung/

I’ve also been supplementing and being more diligent with taking my vitamins.  Obviously I’m taking our Nutrilite brand of vitamins and have been very satisfied with them so far.  The best supplement I’m taking is CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) which helps with shaping up and is an essential fatty acid.  It’s my secret weapon haha.  I’ve checked with a few guys at work and they take it when they work out.  I trust them because they’ve been working out for years and one of them did competitions so they know what’s good to take and what’s not.  While I’m not going to compete, it’s going to help retain muscle mass and help with the reduction of fat.

If you are getting back into shape or trying to cut the fat I encourage it.  It starts with a good work habit and discipline that is the key.  I think it’s easier this time around for me because I’ve got a great work habit in our business which is why we are moving forward.  I’m just going to apply that same work habit to my working out and if I do that, I’ll become successful with my weight loss and getting into shape.

nutrilite

Vitamin and Supplement’s Dosage

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I wrote the other day about Vitamins for Pre/Pregnancy/Post stages and how it compared to a competitor Materna.  Janine had a great comment on how your body can only process so much vitamins and the rest are just disposed of.  I’ve also heard this as well and so I did some digging and also checked with a few friends who are in the medical profession to get some better understanding. 

First and foremost always take the prescribed dosages that are on any supplements or vitamins you take.  If you start taking multiple vitamins and supplements always check with a physician or whoever you take your nutrition advise from. 

What I did find out is there are maximum’s for every vitamin and supplement for your body.  It’s varies depending on age, gender and if your pregnant and also for what type of vitamin. I won’t go into all the maximum’s because well it’s just a TON of information. 

Some important things to take note of though is that there are two types of vitamins.  Water Soluble Vitamins and Fat Soluble Vitamins. Water Soluble vitamins are all the B-Vitamins as well as Vitamin C.  So these are not stored in your body.  If you take to many or more than what your body can handle then yes it will just excrete them out.  You’d just be wasting your money. 

Vitamin A, D, E, and K are Fat Soluble Vitamins, if you take excess doses then your body will store them in your fat and liver.  The problem with them being stored is they can become toxic.  So make sure you take the recommended daily intake, that being said your body can take a bit more on then what is recommended because recommended is always lower for safe guards.  Again check with your Doctor.

With all Vitamins and Supplements if you check on what the Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) is for each vitamin then you’ll know what your body can handle at the highest level that will likely pose no risk.

Here is a great PDF document from Health Canada that shows the Dietary Reference Intakes.  You can find your RDA (Recommended Dietary Allowance), AI (Adequate Intake) and UL.

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/alt_formats/hpfb-dgpsa/pdf/nutrition/dri_tables-eng.pdf

You can find out a lot of information here about the Dietary Reference Intakes if your curious.

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/nutrition/reference/index-eng.php

So while some vitamins will just pass through you if you take to much it’s important to know that some vitamins like the fat soluble vitamins will actually stick around and can do more harm than good.

Hope that helps clear things up!