Author:Vancouver Health Coach

September 6, 2014 In Editor's Picks: Must Haves for Staying Healthy, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Spud Delivers Affordable, Organic Food Right To Your Door

Combine a modern day on-the-go lifestyle with the task of grocery shopping for a healthy, well balanced diet and you have what most would consider a stressful situation. This is why it’s no surprise that organic grocery delivery services have become increasingly popular in cities such as Vancouver. With organic grocery delivery services such as SPUD (a delivery service offered in the lower mainland, Vancouver Island, Calgary and parts of the U.S.) your shopping worries can be put at ease with this service that allows you to choose your items online in a virtual grocery store. Once you have chosen your items, you...

September 6, 2014 In News, Spotlight, Weight Loss By Vancouver Health Coach

The Trouble with Low Glycemic Diets

Low glycemic diets are very much in vogue these days. Most claim that diets high in carbohydrates lead to high insulin levels which prevents the burning of fat which results in obesity. Insulin is the hormone secreted by the pancreas to help glucose gain entry into our cells where it is turned into energy. Glucose is a simple sugar found in all dietary carbohydrates that is used by our cells as the key source of energy for the body and brain. Insulin stores excess glucose as fat. Too much insulin affects the body's ability to use calories efficiently thereby causing...

September 5, 2014 In Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Fermented Quinoa Chocolate Cake

Although I generally don’t eat desert, with a family of three kids and a wife, my mostly dessert-less perspective on the issue is seldom shared. So, yielding to the demands of the masses, I included an alternative to regular cake, made from quinoa, in my book Food As Medicine. Many people with celiac disease and sensitivities to gluten find that they can tolerate quinoa much better, but even still, quinoa may contain the same prolamins as wheat, and in sensitive people like celiacs, can cause a negative reaction. One way to avoid this issue is to ferment the quinoa, by soaking it...

September 5, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Workouts By Vancouver Health Coach

The Importance of Rest Between Sets

In general, we all know that we need some rest between workouts to allow for recovery and to achieve the best results. What a lot of us don't know is that rest between sets during a workout is just as important (if not more important) and can greatly affect your results. So why is rest between sets so crucial and how much is enough? Intensity Gauge How much rest you need is an important gauge of how hard you are working. If you don't need to rest between sets, then chances are you're not working hard enough. When performing a set of a weighted exercise,...

September 4, 2014 In Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Vegan Diet: Benefits for Inflammatory Conditions

The vegan diet is a subset of the vegetarian diet whereby any animal byproducts are avoided completely. Strict vegans extend this ideology to a philosophy and lifestyle which excludes the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. Recently, investigators from Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm found that a gluten free vegan diet was beneficial for not only the joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, but also their hearts. The study reflected other research which indicates that healthy nutrition plays an important role for those with rheumatoid arthritis; these individuals are often known to be more prone to heart...

September 4, 2014 In Family Fitness, Green & Healthy Living, Holistic Health, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Asthma, Allergies and Th-2 Dominance

Asthma and allergies are caused by dysregulation and hyperactivity of the immune system. The part of the immune system that becomes overactive is a subset of T cells known as thymus helper 2 lymphocytes, or Th-2 cells. What are T cells? T cells are a type of white blood cell that carry out the functions of the immune system. T helper 1 cells identify pathogens (viruses, bacteria, fungi) and stimulate the activity of macrophages, another type of white blood cell, to digest the pathogenic material and cellular debris. In this way, Th-1 cells, when functioning optimally, help us from contracting infections and getting...

September 3, 2014 In Eliminating Toxins, Family Fitness, Green & Healthy Living, News By Vancouver Health Coach

H20 bottles and the Gym

Are you still bringing plastic water bottle to the gym every day? Worse, are you throwing it away in the trash on the way out? It's time to move to a reusable bottle. Preferably one that is not plastic to avoid toxic BPA chemicals leaching into your H2O. Bottled water has become the indispensable prop in our lives and our culture. It starts the day in lunch boxes; it goes to every meeting, it's in our cubicles at work; in the cup holder of the treadmill at the gym or beside our yoga mat during a hot yoga class. How can...

September 3, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

3 Fitness Myths BUSTED!

They are all around us. As seen on TV, as read in magazines and as heard in gyms across North America are fitness myths. Among the common fitness myths are: A person needs to specifically perform ab exercises especially crunches in order to get a 6 pack. It’s impossible to get a great workout in less than 1 hour You need big fancy exercise equipment to get a good workout It is now time to BUST these fitness myths! A person needs to specifically perform ab exercises especially crunches in order to get a 6 pack? Firstly, no matter how many crunches you get on the...

September 3, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Weight Loss By Vancouver Health Coach

Men and women versus weight loss: Why is it harder for women to lose the extra pounds?

You may have heard and realized that it’s more difficult for women to lose fat than men. Immediately most people think it must be estrogen or some hormonal issues. But perhaps the biggest factor is not hormones, but the simple fact that women are usually smaller and lighter than men. When you have a smaller body, you have lower calorie needs. When you have lower calorie needs, your relative deficit whether it’s 20%, 30% or higher gives you a smaller absolute deficit and therefore you lose fat more slowly than someone who is larger and can create a large deficit more...

September 2, 2014 In Emotional Health, News By Vancouver Health Coach

Is Stress Making You Sick?

Stress is the root of many illnesses and bothersome symptoms. Everyone has stress, but it affects us differently. Stimuli (called stressors) cause the stress response to spring into action. Momentary stress can cause temporary tension or nervous energy, such as feeling wired, anxious, or hot. But a prolonged stress response can offset normal body maintenance and leave you weak, tired, or emotionally exhausted. Managing Your Stress Your personal stressors and how you respond are unique. You don’t have to avoid your stressors—just use healthy ways to relieve or manage them. Here are a few tips: Be armed with quick and long-term stress relievers...