Resolution Solutions

Are you someone who ever year says you want to lose weight and get in shape for the New Year? If so, I hope this is the year that you change your approach and have great success. Diet's don't work, they are "to die with a T"!  Taking small steps towards more healthy food choices, having consistency with your exercise program, drinking enough water,  along with getting enough rest can make a big difference.

You have to decide you want to change and believe in the change so it can become a habit. I recommend people write down why they want to lose the weight as this will give you some motivational tips to keep moving forward with your goal. Picture yourself healthy and able to do the things you enjoy. Many say to post a picture taken when you felt you were at an appropriate weight to help you get back to that body shape but remember age will shift how you change and you may not look the same.

Give it time!!! You can drop 1/2 to 1 pound of weight in a week and 1-4% body fat in a month realistically. If you try to do it faster than this you are dieting and much of the initial weight loss is water reflecting a 3-5 pound change. By the way, when you are properly HYDRATED the scale will drop 3-5 pounds and when you are DEHYDRATED you will gain 3-5 pounds!

When evaluating success do not rely no the scale, better yet evaluate things like: "How do your clothes fit? "How is your energy?" "How are you sleeping?" "Are you having any cravings?" "How is your mental focus through out the day?" "Are you feeling better?" These questions will allow you to "feel" from the inside/out the progress you are making instead of relying on a number. Here are some things to think about with regards to your food, exercise, water and sleep steps.

As you think about food choices try to look for foods that are as close to their natural form. The more processed the food the less nutritional value in it.

The perimeter of the store tends to be where the best food choices are: Fruits, Vegetables, Seafood, Chicken, Meat, Dairy, Cheeses and breads (for those that are not gluten sensitive) Within the isles the healthier choices are usually on the top or bottom shelf. Leave your cart at the end of the isle, walk in, get what you need and walk out, you are less likely to grab additional items this way.

Read ALL labels and look for hidden forms of sugars. Things ending in "ose" along with high fructose corn syrup and corn syrup are some of the biggie's to watch for.

When you set up your exercise program don't try to jump into 5 times a week start with 1-2 and build up. Maybe go every other day or every 2nd day to start. Do what you like to do and when your time schedule allows you to exercise, you will have higher compliance.

You can also park further from your office, the store or any place you are stopping to do an errand. Walk stairs whenever you can. Set an alarm on your phone that goes off each hour so you get up at work and walk to the bathroom or make a lap around the office building. Use a heart rate monitor to gauge what is an appropriate output. (See my article "Burn The Fat Save The Carbos" on my website).

Get a pedometer and shoot for 10,000 steps a day. You will quickly see that if you do not do a "formal" walk each day you may not get close. If you have pets you will definitely have a better chance with walking them 1-2 times a day and parking further from your destination.

Be sure to drink enough water but not too much. The base amount of water is  your weight divided by 2. You add 2-4 ounces of water for every 15 minutes of exercise. If you find you are drinking water and always going to the bathroom, try some Fiji water which has a higher pH and is absorbed in the tissues to help "cleanse" the body better. If you are not having good bowel movements you may not be drinking enough water!

How much sleep varies for each person. Usually 6-9 hours is recommended. If you are not sleeping well you may have adrenal exhaustion issues, allergies, hormonal imbalances, or you are not eating enough of the right food choices and relationship.

I highly recommend keeping a log/journal. Research shows that those who do, have a much higher rate of success. It is very helpful for me to review if we work together too as I can see patterns and explain why certain cravings come about from what you have eaten. This also allows you to start learning the consequence from your food choices. You can evaluate what is and what is not working between your food choices and exercise along with you sleep patterns.

Create positive rewards for yourself and be ready for relapses. Don't beat yourself up, just get back on track with small steps.  You may find that once you get a routine going if you do relapse you will feel better more quickly than when you first started out and this gives you motivation to keep working the process.

If you want to work on bringing these things into balance the correct way, live a healthy lifestyle and keep the weight off because you have the tools to play the game all year long, contact Dr Caroline Smith www.metabolismmagic.com or call (303) 471 4725


Here's to a healthy and happy New Year.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins (Gluten Free)

It has taken a lot of bombs to get this recipe acceptable to share. I brought it out at a recent Christmas party and they were a hit. After a number of my guest asked for the recipe so I shared it with them and then  I decided to share it with everyone on my blog too. I hope you enjoy them!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Yield: 8-12 regular muffins and 12-18 mini muffins

½ heaping cup sliced organic unblanched almonds

1 ½ cups organic Oat flour

¼ cup organic brown rice flour

1/3 heaping cup of organic raw sugar (can cut this in half or omit)

1 ½ TBSP Pumpkin Pie Spice

1 tsp baking soda

¼ heaping tsp baking powder

¼ tsp sea salt

3 large organic eggs

2 cups organic plain pumpkin (whole 16 ounce can)

1/3 Safflower oil

1 ½ cup mini chocolate chips

Check consistency, if too wet you will need to add some more flour, try brown first.

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Put almonds on a baking sheet or pie pan and bake about 5 minutes, just until lightly browned; watch carefully so they do not burn. Slide almonds off the baking sheet so they cool quickly.

Grease muffin cups or use foil or paper baking cups.

Thoroughly mix flour, sugar, pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

Break eggs into another bowl, Add pumpkin and oil and whisk until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips and almonds. Pour over the dry ingredients and fold just until moistened. If the batter is too thick add 1-2 TBSP of water until a little easier to stir.

Scoop  batter evenly into muffin cups. Bake 25-35 minutes for regular muffins and about 15-25 minutes mini or until puffed and springy to the touch in the center. Watch closely so they don’t get over cooked and too dry. Turn onto a rack to cool. Cover with a dishtowel to keep the moisture in. Once cooled wrap in a plastic bag and keep one or two days to enhance the flavor before serving. Great to freeze. Can be reheated before serving.  

If you need help putting together recipe ideas, figuring out how to convert recipes or just overall help with your nutrition and exercise program please feel free to check out my website www.metabolismmagic.com or give me a call at 303 471 4725.  Happy Holidays.

Dr Caroline Smith  

How Not To Gain Weight Over the Holidays

As the leaves fall, you start thinking its hopeless. Gone are all those long sunny days with a few more hours of light to encourage exercise. Coming up are the cold days that invite you to hibernate; pound-hiding layers of clothes and "hearty" winter food fare. It  doesn't have to happen to you, here are some tips to help you fight the holiday gain.

The turkey isn't the only one who's stuffed. According to a recent survey 77% of US individuals admitted to overeating almost every Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is followed closely by Christmas and then New Year's. These are happy and fattening times. The average person used to gains 4-6 pounds during the holiday season but that has now increased to 10-12 pounds and it is now starts at Halloween. We'd be better off if our feast were every two or three months, giving us ample time to work off the extra calories. But the holidays come, as they will every year. With a little advance planning and precaution you can manage to maintain your current weight through the New Year.  That way your New Year's Resolution won't have to be to lose the weight you gained over the holidays.

                                                SET YOUR GOAL

 Weigh yourself a few days before Thanksgiving and write down your weight. Keep your eye on the goal throughout the holidays. Step onto the scale again a few days after New Year's and compare your weight. Reward yourself with something special (not food) if you kept within a pound of your pre-holiday weight.

                                                                                HELPFUL TIPS

        You don't have to "gobble gobble" all you can eat. You can eat smaller quantities. Taste everything, but take smaller portion.

 

Eat a light meal before going to holiday parties so you won't arrive "starving" and overeat.

 

Offer to bring a dish to parties you attend. Prepare a low-calorie dip or appetizer.

         

       Fill your plate with low-calorie, low-fat foods such as fruits, vegetables and salads. Crowd your plate with them, leaving little room for the higher fat items.

 

         Drink plenty of water and non-alcoholic beverages.
Dilute alcohol or wine with fruit juices or club soda.

 

 Focus on friends and family rather than the food. Remember, the holidays are a time to visit with family and friends and share more than food.

 

Look for opportunities to be physically active through the holiday. Talk walking tours to see decorations or go caroling. Get out and walk after the meal instead of taking a nap on the couch. Park as far away from the store as you can and take the stairs any chance you get instead of an elevator.

 

         Serve chicken, turkey and fish rather than beef and pork.

    

      Indulge freely in fresh fruits and vegetables.

    

      Be pleasant but firm when declining offers for additional food servings.

 

Try not to eat after 7PM. If you do end up eating late, try to avoid too many carbohydrates and fats as it will all store as body fat. Go for a blend of protein, carbohydrates and fats.

 

If you are eating out, ask for a "TO GO" box as soon as the meal is set down and take off half of it. You can then use that as a meal or snack the next day. "Out of sight, out of mind", you will have less chance of over eating.

 

If you do choose to eat sugary foods, be sure to put protein with it, to help regulate the insulin effect.

 

      Several times a day, it would help if you stop what you are doing and take 3-5 deep breaths. Also if you do 5 minutes of deep breathing before you go to bed it will help you relax and

increase the quality of your sleep.

 

Try to do some exercise every 3rd day, it will hold you where you are. If you get more in consider it a bonus. 

 

Try to get to bed by 10PM to avoid shifting into the adrenal overdrive of the system.  Excess cortisol causing an increase in the belly fat on your body.

 

To reset your pineal gland from travel or daylight savings time, sit on the porch in the morning for
5 minutes without any glasses (sun or prescription) or contacts, do not look at the sun but allow the sunlight to move through the iris of your eye, the pineal is right behind the iris. If you can't do this in the morning then any time of the day would help.

 

Be sure you are getting enough supplemental Vitamin D, especially if you live in areas where there is less daylight through the winter. 

 

Have a safe and happy holidays.

    

 

If you need help after the beginning of the New Year to restablish balance for your body or want to move to the next level of health contact Dr Caroline Smith at 303 471 4725. You can visit her website at www.metabolismmagic.com to learn more about her services.  

How Good Is The Food You Put In yYour Shopping Cart?

When you go to the store do you think about where the food has come from that you put in your cart? Do you consider how it was grown? Is it organic? GMO(Genetically Modified)? Loaded with Pesticide residue?  Here are a few ways to evaluate your produce.

If the first digit on the produce sticker is a "9" the produce was organically grown.
If the first digit is an "8" then it was genetically modified.
If the first digit is a "0" or the number is simply a four digit code, the item was conventionally grown. This code is generally presented without the zero digit.

Some foods are cleaner than others in how they are grown and the way they take on pesticide residues. Look through the Dirty Dozen and the Clean Fifteen list so you can shop more effectively.

Dirty Dozen Plus                                                Clean Fifteen
apples                                                                  onions
celery                                                                   pineapples
sweet bell peppers                                               avocado
strawberries                                                         cabbage
nectarines, imported                                            sweet peas
grapes                                                                  asparagus
spinach                                                                canteloupe, domestic
lettuce                                                                  eggplant
blueberries, domestic                                           sweet potatoes
potatoes                                                                mango's
cucumbers                                                            kiwi
peaches                                                                grapefruit
green beans +                                                       watermelon
kale/collard greens +                                            mushrooms
                                                                             sweet corn*

+ green beans and kale/collard greens may contain a highly toxic organophosphate pesticide residue.

* sweet corn that is used for biofuels and animal feed is almost all produced with genetically modified (GMO) seeds. Some sweet corn for human consumption falls into this category but it is not labeled in US stores. If you are not sure, it is best to buy organic sweet corn.

To learn more about food choices you can visit www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/.

If you need help with putting together a food plan contact Dr. Caroline Smith of www.metabolismmagic.com

Cellular Patterning

Do you find that you regularly get sick at the same time every year?

This might be related to a cellular patterning. Look back to when you can remember this first happened and then go one year prior to that time. Ask yourself, "did anything happen to me physically, emotionally, financially or spiritually in that year?" If so, was it about the time that you were getting sick? If yes, you may have an association to that life stressor that has not been resolved.

It is important to become aware of the association and then start reprogramming. If you always get sick and say, "I always get sick or have allergies at this time of the year", start saying, "I have really taken charge of my health and I am able to fight off issues around a weak immune system. I will not get sick, I will not have allergy issues." It may take a few years to break through but each year should get better and better.

The rule of thumb for "unwinding" an imbalance is 1 month for every year you have had the problem. This is not a quick fix solution. You did not get to this compromised state over night, so plan on taking the time to clear it for good. Work back through the imbalances and allow the body to rebuild the correct way. We must look at not only the structural body but the emotional/spiritual associations too.

The other option is to look at that emotional issue in relationship to the Bach Flower Remedies so you can clear it at the cellular level quicker. This can be done through the Body Scan.  There are three main emotions and most diseases are rooted in one of these imbalances. Fear is Kidney/Bladder and can be paired with adrenal stress, Anger is Liver/Gallbladder and paired with thyroid imbalances and Sorrow is pancreas and often associated to "a loss of sweetness in life".

Louise Hay has a great book, "You Can Heal Yourself" with affirmations for various health issues.

Dr Cheryl Townsley has written "Discovering Wholeness" which covers more in depth the health issues/disease and how they are expressed along with the branch and root emotions.

If you want to explore your body, mind and spirit balance or to learn more about how Dr Caroline Smith can help you please visit her website www.metabolismmagic.com

How To Be Prepared For The Cold And Flu Season

IS it a COLD? or the FLU?


SYMPTOMS                              COMMON COLD                                            FLU
Fever                                           Rare                                              Usual; high (100-102),last 3-4 days
Headache                                    Rare                                               Common
General Aches and Pains            Slight                                             Usual; often severe
Fatigue, Weakness                      Sometimes                                     Usual; Can last up to 3-4 weeks
Extreme Exhaustion                    Never                                             Usual; at beginning of the illness
Stuffy Nose                                 Common                                        Sometimes
Sneezing                                      Usual                                             Sometimes
Sore Throat                                  Common                                       Sometimes
Chest Discomfort, Cough            Mild/Mod hacking cough             Common, can become severe
Complications                              Sinus congestion/earache             Bronchitis, pneumonia; can be life
                                                                                                           threatening

Table: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, National Institute of Health website.

Fabulous Five Remedies to Have on Hand to Stay Well

• Probiotics
• Vitamin C (acreola/rose hips-good form)
• Echinacea Goldenseal/Astragulus (Depending on Your Blood type)
• Zinc, Slippery Elm or non-sugar throat lozengers or spray
• Vitamin C (up to 10,000 IU/day based on bowel tolerance)
• If you can find Colloidal Silver (natural antibiotic-Whole Foods carries it with a disclaimer)

Some Good Old Home Remedies

• Gargle salt water at the first onset of a sore throat
• Swallow honey with lemon juice and then dissolve in hot water what's left on the spoon. Drink at the onset of a sore throat.
• Hot water with lemon first thing in the morning to keep the bowels clearing well. First thing in the morning helps clear the bacteria that released during the night.
• Epsom Salt soaks (1-4 cups, water as hot as you can tolerate, 5-7 minutes, get in, get out and rinse off). Can be helpful when one is having trouble sleeping or bowels aren't moving as well as they should.
• Use a Nette Pot (can get at drugstores) to do a saline rinse of the sinuses to clear bacteria and keep infection down. It is very important to warm the water on the stove but not to a boiling point.
• Ear candling is very helpful for clearing excess wax build-up  but can't be done when there is sinus pressure issues.
• Jumping on a mini-trampoline to help move the lymph. You can also tap the body up the legs and up the arms, down the neck, under the armpit and back into to the middle of the chest. It is important to always move towards the heart when tapping.  In addition, you can also walk or soak (as listed above) to help move your lymphatic fluid.
• Drink water (take your weight and divide by 2 to get your base amount needed) and then add 2-4 ounces for every 15 minutes of exercise.  

If you end up getting sick, you can always contact me to do a BodyScan (visit my website to find out more). This can help you clear the crude quickly. Getting support so that you do not create a cellular memory is important too if you are one of those that says, "I always get sick at this time of year" You may have an emotional correlation with that sickness.  Stay tuned to my next blog for more on this patterning.

To learn more visit my website www.metabolismmagic.com

How Does Sugar Affect Your Body/Health?

Did you know that each TBSP of sugar you consume, lowers your immune system 50% for 3-5 hours. A standard soda pop has 3 TBSP's (9 teaspoons) of sugar in it. This can compromise your system for 9-15 hours!

This is often why the beginning of a new year people end up getting sick. Starting after Halloween through the holidays people are consuming alot more sugary products, not only are they gaining weight they are weakening their immune system.  Once they stop "hitting" the system with all the sugar it collapses.

An important supplement to consider so you can help your bowel flora stay stronger is a probiotic. 70% of our immune system is rooted in our "gut flora" health.  Keeping the good bacteria up is important. For some, yogurt is not a good choice as they have difficulty digesting dairy. If this is the case and you eat the yogurt you create more inflammation from the indigested food and that compromises your immune system.

When purchasing a probiotic at the store be sure to check the label to make sure you are getting the various good bacteria strains not fillers like wheat and chemicals which would cause a weakening of the system too.

Here are some other things that sugar does:
Causes Congestion
Causes Headaches
Cause Aging
Can lead to Alcoholism
Can cause a significant rise in Triglycerides
Can upset the mineral balance in the body
Can cause Kidney Damage
Can cause Hypoglycemia
Can cause Varicose Veins
Can increase Cholesterol
Can cause Food Allergies
Can contribute to Diabetes
Can contribute to Eczema in children
Can lead to Anxiety,  a difficulty in concentration and crankiness in children

A very important food balance if you choose to eat something sugary is to  have some protein with it to help control the high then low insulin affect. If the sugary item does not have fat in it then adding some nuts with the protein will really help regulate it.



To learn more, contact Dr Caroline at www.metabolismmagic.com