Healthy Gut = Healthy Body

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Our guts are the gateways to heaven, or quite the opposite, depending on how we treat them, and what we feed them. Did you know that between 60-80% of our immune system lives in our guts? Having a healthy gut will help us stay healthy! Now, in order to get a healthy gut, we first have to know what we are doing to damage it, and then how we can fix it and keep it healthy.

Our guts are comprised of good and bad bacteria. There should normally be a balance of about 80% good stuff to about 20% bad bacteria in there at any given time. As I had stated in a couple of my previous posts, (Damaged Intestines and What's Been Happening?) my gut bacteria have been in an epic war for the last 7 months. There have been many painful and uncomfortable battles, but I am happy to report that I think I am finally restored to normal (or pretty close) bacteria balance! So, what was causing all of my bad bacteria to take over? Here is a short run down.

The first mistake I was making was sugar intake. Now, of course there are healthy, natural sugars that are in fruits and things, but I am talking about the added sugars and junk pumped into foods. Thinking I was being healthy, and eating foods that I thought were good for me, turned out to be a false dream sold to me by the processed food industry. Even things like yogurt, that you think are great for you, usually hide more than 15g of sugar in one little container! YIKES! Sugar is not good for your health for so many reasons.

"Eating sugar actually nourishes the bad or pathogenic bacteria yeast and fungi in your gut, which may actually harm you more than its impact on insulin resistance.  One of the major results of eating a healthy diet is that you cause your beneficial gut bacteria to flourish, and they secondarily perform the real "magic" of restoring your health." 

Click the link above to see the full article! It is full of amazing information!

So, I needed to cut out the sugar. All those processed foods were horrible for my overall health. I noticed a difference in my stomach when I changed my sugar intake. I didn't feel as sluggish, and my stomach wasn't bothering me as often. Now when I have sugar, my body does not appreciate it. My intestines make it a point to remind me that it was not a wise decision to put those yucky sugar guys into my body. Steering clear is the best choice.

Another big thing that I have cut out, is meat with injected antibiotics and hormones. Growing up, we never really paid too much attention to the meat we were eating. As I started changing my diet, I started realizing that my body was so much happier when I ate meats that were free of those chemicals. Antibiotics kills bacteria....both good and bad. When the chemicals go in and kill all bacteria, it makes it pretty hard to have a large stash of healthy guys in your tummy army. The poor fellas are being destroyed when you eat meat dripping in antibiotics. I want, and need, those buggers strong and ready to fight bad stuff!

Now, how do we get the good guys some strength and some back up buddies? We supplement with good probiotics that can be found in supplement form, or in foods. CLICK HERE to see some foods that have pre and/or probiotics in them naturally. Below is also a graphic that gives you a few examples.

Most of us don't really realize just how important our gut health is. I certainly didn't understand the importance of a healthy tummy until I came to the realization that I was not supposed to be feeling so sick and icky every day. Balanced good vs. bad guy bacteria makes a huge difference! It not only helps me absorb the good stuff in food, it helps block fat, and also keeps me from getting sick. Watch the video below for a quick explanation of why a good probiotic is important.

Now, I needed some good guys, and fast. I needed them to be ready to go into battle, and I also needed them to have some major reinforcements. I had messed up my gastrointestinal system pretty bad. I knew I needed a GOOD probiotic, but where to start? CLICK HERE for four key points when choosing a good probiotic. As everything, they are not created equal!  I was referred to visit Dr. Osborne's page at www.glutenfreesociety.org and check out his high quality products. They are all gluten free, and not pumped with fillers. I take the one pictured below. It has helped speed my gut health along in the right direction. There are also a lot of other great products and information on that site. Check it out!

Here is a little graphic to represent the benefits of great probiotic health. 

Now that you know just how important these guys are:

It's your job to now take care of them, keep the strong, and give them new good friends to play with. 

Remember, now that you know better, you can do better. Happy tummy health!

Quality Protein Does a Body Good

I have learned how important quality protein daily intake is. It is essential for many reasons. When we think of high protein, most people automatically think of protein shakes. With the thought of protein shakes, we see a mental image of a beefcake man, muscles bulging, gym rat. You already went there in your head, I know. However, it is in everyone's best interest to put plenty of quality protein into our bodies on a daily basis. 

Protein does many things. As stated in THIS article, protein helps build muscle that burns fat. Pretty awesome if you ask me! As we talked about in the "Strong is Sexy" blog post, muscle burns fat while at rest. So, eating high quality lean protein throughout your day will only benefit you! It not only burns fat, but it helps keep our hunger at bay and keeps our blood sugar at normal levels. 

As I am sure you've noticed, I have said the word quality multiple times. This is where it gets sticky. People reach for things in the grocery store that they think are going to help them shed those pounds, build that muscle and keep them full for hours. A lot of those protein shakes and bars on the shelves that promise to build your muscles are full of protein that can not even be fully digested or absorbed into our bodies. They are also so completely full of sugar, soy, carbohydrates, and other yucky stuff. Pretty much all of those protein shakes, or bars are not helping us build muscle, burn fat, or do anything of the sort. They are actually not healthy at all. The protein is not quality, and there are tons of fillers.

Whey protein is a great protein that can be absorbed into the body. We talked earlier about grass fed cows, and how much more healthy these cows are, which means the products that come from their milk are also healthier. The health and wellness of the cows is not usually a component that we think about when looking at the different protein products on the shelves, but it should be. Healthy cows produce healthy products! 

So what is whey protein anyway? Whey protein is the byproduct of cheese production. In the late 1970s, Dr. Gustavo Bounous realized the nutritional benefits of this byproduct, and then began the protein frenzy.

What is important to know about your whey protein is how is it processed? There are fragile molecular structures with this protein, and many can be disrupted or destroyed in a denatured process. When looking for a quality whey protein, look for some that have been through an undenatured process. 

"High quality undenatured whey protein is the protein extracted from milk through the process of cold filtration which carefully preserves the molecular structure of bonded cysteine leaving it intact throughout the entire manufacturing process under stringent pharmaceutical grade conditions. Undenatured whey protein can thus serve as a cysteine delivery system for boosting glutathione levels and improving immune health"  immunehealthscience 

I have added some high quality whey protein shakes into my world, and have seen an amazing change in my lean muscle tone, and my decreasing fat levels. Isagenix IsaLean, IsaLean Pro, and IsaPro shakes have made a large difference in my journey. I see the results of quality protein before my eyes daily. Contact me for more information on these nutritional gems! 

Ok, so it is 2:00pm and you are sitting at your desk, and you're starving. Instead of reaching for chips or a candy bar, reach for some natural protein! There are lots of foods that are high in protein naturally that you could snack on and keep that hunger at bay. I personally love hard-boiled eggs! YUM! Here is a little list of great snack choices, along with links to some more suggestions! You should always include lean protein in all of your meals as well. My hard-boiled eggs fill me for about 4 hours every morning. I add some avocado to my eggs and take in that healthy fat as well! When you are planning out your week's meals (remember that meal prep post?) plan ahead for your protein intake. Check out these yummy choices

1. Greek Yogurt (watch out for the sugars and other things added. My suggestion is to buy plain greek yogert and add your own bits of fresh fruit to it)

2. Cottage Cheese (be mindful of the sodium content. You can add your own fresh fruit to this as well)

3. Eggs (remember, healthy chickens produce healthy eggs)

4. Steak (remember, healthy cows make the best lean, nutritious meat!)

5. Ground Beef (of course I choose to eat the grass-fed/finished variety. YUM)

6. Lean chicken breast (animals with no antibiotics and hormones injected into them are the best choice!)

7. Tuna (fresh from the fish counter is best!)

8. Beef Jerky (be aware of the sodium levels)

9. Peanut butter (all natural is the best. All natural almond butter is great too. These all natural versions have less sugar in them, and have healthy fat in there too, as nuts naturally do. Most of the popular brands are full of added sugars and junk, be careful)

10. Nuts (all natural and raw w/o added sugar, salts or other gunk. Cashews have a good amount of protein, as do almonds and peanuts)

11. Edamame (this is a soy bean, women be mindful of how much soy you take in, this will affect your estrogen levels)

I am hesitant to say protein bars because almost every single one on the shelves are not actually healthy, but Quest bars are actually not too bad. Of course there are delicious and nutritious options offered through Isagenix that I love to eat, but if on the run, Quest bars have protein isolate which is the best protein you will find in any of those yuck bars on the shelves. They also don't have a huge sugar content. When in doubt, grab for them, if you don't have an IsaLean bar handy.

CHECK OUT this big list.

There was a lot of information in this post, but the bottom line is to be sure you have quality protein in your life every day. Protein-packed days are healthy days! 

I had always said that knowledge is power, but I recently heard that applied knowledge is power. Having the knowledge means nothing unless you apply it!