Spotlight

September 28, 2014 In Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight, Uncategorized By Vancouver Health Coach

Does the Label Organic Deliver on its Promise?

What does the word “organic” conjure up for you in your mind? For me, ten years ago before I began to research food, “organic” meant over-priced, blemished fruits and veggies. I certainly didn’t understand why anyone would pay extra for what I thought must be subpar produce. Of course, I had never seen an organic apple at that time - I just believed they would be full of worms, since no pesticides were used. Later, after I’d actually gone into a store that sold organic produce, and found my first organic apple to not only be blemish free, but also to...

September 27, 2014 In Food, Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Why Are Food Additives In My Food?

How much do we know about what we are eating? Ingredient lists the length of a children's short bed time story are really not uncommon in commercially prepared, boxed and fast foods. Being able to pronounce half of those ingredients at best is the norm and even if you can pronounce those ingredients- do you know what they are and where they came from? First of all, what are food additives & preservatives doing in our food anyways? As a teacher of mine once said, 'Convenience is the killer.' Food additives and preservatives are mainly in our food for the following reasons:  So food doesn't spoil...

September 27, 2014 In News, Spotlight, Yoga By Vancouver Health Coach

Yoga has Potential to Relieve Fibromyalgia Pain, Study Says

Yoga is proven to have a significant impact on managing the symptoms of fibromyalgia patients. Research conducted at Oregon Health and Science University indicates that a regular practice of Hatha yoga, combined with meditation, breathing exercises and the development of coping skills, relieves the severity of the widespread pain associated with fibromyalgia. Though it is still undetermined if fibromyalgia is a syndrome primarily manifesting from physiological causes or stemming from psychological factors, it is characterized by muscle pain and fatigue. Other symptoms include morning stiffness, tingling or numbness in the extremities, headaches, memory problems, issues with balance and trouble sleeping. Fibromyalgia...

September 26, 2014 In Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Rich Ralph

Agave: Too Good to be True?

We all like to indulge with a rich, sweet dessert every now and then. And most of us know that most of the sweets we buy or order are full of refined sugars to appeal to our taste buds. But all these heavily processed sugary foods haven’t always been around. Big corporations are well aware of the addictive effect sugar has on people and take full advantage of this by creating foods that have virtually no nutritional value, but keep us reaching for more. In recent years, a variety of natural and artificial sweeteners have developed in hopes of breaking...

September 25, 2014 In Eliminating Toxins, Food and Recipes, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Keeping Your Adrenal Glands Healthy with the Proper Foods

Do you suffer from fatigue or low energy? Do you eat healthfully yet wonder why you can't lose weight? In this post we will discuss adrenal health, and specific foods to eat to combat adrenal fatigue. Included is a VEGAN recipe: Slow Cooker Chickpea and Lentil Stew. If you answered yes to the questions above, you could be suffering from adrenal fatigue! Anyone can experience adrenal fatigue at some point in his or her life. Nutrient deficiencies, inadequate rest, a life crisis, or too much pressure can drain the adrenals of even the healthiest person. What are the Adrenal Glands? Adrenal glands are part...

September 24, 2014 In Fitness, News, Spotlight, Workouts By Vancouver Health Coach

Getting Your Groove Back When Your Fitness Routine Gets Disrupted

Sometimes we can find a groove in our fitness routine, in which we're motivated to workout every day, we're feeling optimal and hitting our fitness goals - what could be better! - And then everything comes to a screeching halt. Any number of unforeseen events can come along and pull you away from your groove: Getting the flu, an injury, a family emergency, personal crisis, prepping for a special event, moving, your favorite running route getting blocked off, or a relaxing holiday that becomes extra relaxing. Returning to fitness after a disruption? Go easy on yourself. Many people tend to revert...

September 24, 2014 In Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Food Test: Are You a Part of the Collective Eating Disorder?

When was the last time you sat down to eat without worrying about carbohydrates, fats, or calories? We invite you to take our Ultimate Food test and find out if you are adding to the collective eating disorder in North America. Ultimate Food Test When was the last time you sat down to a special home–cooked meal with your family just because you wanted to? Do you believe that some of your first and strongest memories are of food? Do you believe the food you serve your family accurately represents your values? Do you eat for reasons other than to satisfy hunger? If you answered "longtime,"...

September 23, 2014 In Food and Recipes, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

As Stocks Decline, Should We Really Be Eating Salmon?

This year once again, the Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery has been completely shut down. No sports fishing nor native fishery allowed either. We need every salmon possible to make it upstream to spawn if we want to have any salmon at all in 4 years. It was 4 years ago in 2009, when 10 million salmon failed to return to the Fraser to spawn. So it should be no huge surprise that the offspring of those that did make it would be few in number this year. I wrote this post in 2009 on possible reasons for the salmon...

September 23, 2014 In Fitness, News, Product Reviews, Spotlight, Yoga, Yoga By Vancouver Health Coach

REVIEW: The Basic Poses package for iYoga Premium

As a yoga teacher and trainer, I can fully appreciate the amount of work it must have taken to create this beautiful app. The images are anatomically gorgeous and move in a very lifelike way, which can make it relatable for students. However, I found the repertoire to be far more anatomically-inclined than asana-inclined. This would make a good post-yoga teacher training reference for students who would like to refresh their memory regarding which parts of the body are affected and how. The multiple views and visuals of muscles contracting, stretching or both are great references. I also really enjoyed the different...

September 22, 2014 In Ask The Expert: Health & Fitness Advice, Green & Healthy Living, News, Spotlight By Vancouver Health Coach

Hormone Q+A

Ask The Expert is a health & fitness advice column. If you have a question for one of our Fitness Goop experts, please email [email protected]. What are bioidentical hormones? Bioidentical hormones are hormones with an identical chemical structure to the hormones your body produces naturally.  Derived from plant sterols from soy or diosgenin (wild yam), these hormones mimic exactly the actions of the body's own hormones.  A prescription from your ND (with prescribing rights) or MD is required, and bioidentical hormones are dispensed from a compounding pharmacy, usually as either a topical cream or oral pill. Bioidentical hormones...