All posts by Robin Walsh

Top 5 Ways to Get More Out of Your Day!

Stress, Time Management,

Stress is a growing problem in our society. A reported 43% of all adults in Canada suffer adverse health effects due to stress, 75-90% of all visits to family doctors are for stress related complaints, each day 1 Million people are absent from work due to stress and 25 billion workdays are lost annually are due to stress related factors.

One of the underlying factors that create stress in our lives is the feeling that we just don’t have enough time in the day to get everything done. We find ourselves scrambling between our jobs, our responsibilities at home and around the house, our commitment to friends and family, preparing meals, exercise and trying to find some time to have some fun in the mist of it all. This creates a lot of stress on a daily basis, and if we’re not managing our time effectively we eventually ‘burn’ ourselves out trying to get everything done, or we will put some important aspects of our life on the ‘back burner’ such as regular exercise.

Time, or lack thereof is one the #1 complaint I get in my office! It’s a big source of stress in our lives, and it’s also an excuse or rationalization used for why we aren’t able to make better choices in our lifestyle such as regular exercise and healthy eating.

One of the best ways to reduce our stress and to get more out of our day is to manage our time better!

 

 

Is it possible to get everything done in our 24hrs day?

Top 5 Ways to get more out of your day!

#1 Set Priorities!

Decide what is most important to you! There maybe several aspects of your life that you feel are really important – your work, your family, your social life, exercise and so on. Remember it’s important to have a healthy balance of work and pleasure. The priorities may change week to week. Decide what your top priority is and put most of your energy towards that. If possible address your priorities early in the day so they’re out of the way, this will help you start the day with a sense of accomplishment and reduce the weight on your shoulder for the reminder of the day.

#2 Organize Your Day

Plan ahead and anticipate what your day will look like! Make a list of the tasks that you would like to get done in a day. It has been proven that if we write things down and schedule them into our day we are much more likely to get them done! Better yet, make that list in the order that it needs to get done – be as specific as possible. Use your “NET” time wisely. “NET” time is pockets of time throughout the day that is often wasted, such as repeatedly pressing the snooze button in the morning instead of using the time wisely such as firing off some emails that need to get out or putting in 15-20 mins. on the treadmill or walking around the block to get your daily exercise in. Find pockets in your day that you usually waste, and schedule tasks into those pockets. Find efficient ways to run your errands, such as internet banking instead of having to make a trip to the bank to pay your bills or using your breaks at work to run errands or squeeze in some daily exercise. Now, no matter how well we plan ahead, we are bound to encounter surprises. So things won’t always turn out as planned. Keep a flexible attitude and be prepared to juggle your schedule for the surprises that keeps life exciting!

#3 Delegate What You Can

It’s important to recognize when you can delegate some of the workload. Whether at work or at home, share the responsibility! Communicate to those around you on when and what you need help with! When we are able to delegate tasks we leave opportunity for more time in the day to get to other things that are important to us done. Sharing responsibilities is an important way to build a healthy work environment and home. Much more gets done when everyone pitches in and it also helps to build a sense of unity.

#4 Don’t Over Schedule

Be reasonable about what you can get done in a day! This will help to reduce the pressure of time, and you’ll feel really great about yourself when you complete all the tasks you set out to complete in a day. Make sure you have a balance in your schedule! It does you no good working like a dog and leaving little time for enjoyment or rest or vise versa. Assign time for your job, family, and fun each day! If you are giving extra attention to work one week, make sure to balance that out the following week and do something enjoyable for yourself.

#5 Let Go of Perfectionism

As mentioned earlier, your day will not always go perfectly as planned and you need to keep a flexible attitude so you can deal with unexpected changes in your day. Some tasks may need a lot of detail other tasks could do without. Pick and choose what you want to spend more time on, and what can be done swiftly.

If you are feeling the pressure of time take a moment and see which of the 5 steps is most unlike the way you approach you day and start with that step to get more out of your day and reduce the stress of time!

The Beauty of Sleep!

Sleep

A good nights rest is an important part of a healthy lifestyle! Rest is just as important as eating a balanced diet, daily exercise and stress management. On average most adults require about eight to ten hours of sleep every night to in order to get the full benefit from rest. When we sleep well we have the energy to take on the day, the creativity to put into our work and home-life, and we feel better over all. Good sleep also reduces the signs of aging – we wake up looking and feeling refreshed, and who doesn’t want that?

When we sleep we are rebuilding and rejuvenating our bodies, we are supporting immune health and hormone function. There are 3 different stages of sleep and each night we go through several cycles of these stages. The third stage is known as our deep sleep and during this time there is increased secretion of growth hormone which helps to repair and rebuild our body and tissues. It has also been shown that while we sleep we have increased production of proteins and decreased breakdown of proteins. Proteins are very important for cell growth and repair from damaging factors such as stress.

When we are sleep deprived our bodies register this as added stress to our system. Most of us could use less stress in our daily life and if you are sleep deprived on top off all the stress you experience on a daily basis you could be heading down a dangerous road.

How do you know you’re sleep deprived?

  1. Not sleeping 8-10 hours a night regularly.
  2. Not sleeping solid throughout the night.
  3. Difficulty winding down and getting to sleep at night.
  4. Waking early hours in the morning and not being able to fall back asleep.
  5. Waking frequently to go to the bathroom.

If you feel you’re not getting the rest you deserve there are several tips to help you get a more restful sleep.

  1. Schedule Sleep: Maintaining a consistent sleep cycle helps to support the bodies need for rhythm and routine. Your internal clock or circadian rhythm guides your sleep and is very sensitive to change. By going to sleep every night at the same time and waking at the same time you keep your internal clock happy which in turn supports more restful sleep. Try to avoid sleeping-in for missed hours over the weekend because it really throws off your internal clock.
  2. Wind Down: It’s important to get into a ‘relaxed’ state as bedtime approaches. Spend at least one hour before bed engaged in some relaxing activities to help you wind down from the busy day such as mediation, reading, a warm bath with lavender oils, listening to quiet soothing music, or any other activity that you find relaxing. You want to avoid strenuous activities or anything that gets you worked up close to bedtime.
  3. Mindfully Consume: Caffeine consumption, especially if you have troubles falling asleep or staying asleep should not be consumed in the afternoon or evening. Eating before bed overloads the digestive system and takes energy away form the rebuilding and regenerating tasks of sleep. Sugar is also very stimulating sand should not be consumed at night – such as chocolate, candy, soda etc. Also consuming extra liquids in the evening can keep you up going to the bathroom throughout the night, so reduce consumption of liquids a couple hours before bed.
  4. Regular Exercise: Research shows that regular exercise earlier in the day improves the quality of sleep – one more reason it’s important to incorporate daily activity into your lifestyle. Exercise helps to reduce circulating stress hormones and will promote a less ‘wired’ feeling into the evening and before bed.

There are a several herbal teas that can also be helpful for winding down and preparing for a restful sleep, these include:

  1. Passionflower
  2. Valerian
  3. Chamomile
  4. Lavender
  5. Combo ‘sleepy teas’ I personally like the Calm tea by Tazo (it’s the Starbuck brand but you can find it for cheaper at Zehrs!)

Lastly, your sleep environment can greatly impact your quality of sleep! There are a few things that you can do to make your bedroom a sleep haven!

  1. Keep a pitch black room while you sleep by using heavy curtains and turning off all lights.
  2. Quiet as a mouse – turn off all music or the T.V. before bed! It is very important to have the quietest possible sleeping environment so you don’t disturb your internal clock form doing its job. Even traffic on the street or horns beeping can disturb sleep. Keep this in mind when you’re buying a house and choosing where to put your new bedroom.
  3. Keep your bed away form power outlets – the radiation from power outlets can disturb sleep. Try to keep you bed at least 2 feet away from powered electrons such as the alarm clock or radio.

With all the work our bodies do during sleep it’s no wonder that we spend – or should be spending – 1/3 of our lifetime sleeping! Getting a good night sleep on a regular basis does so much for our health and helps us to live a full and vibrant life. Good rest leads to more energy, extra patience, greater ability to deal with daily stress and a younger more refreshed look! That’s the Beauty of Sleep!

Low Fat, Reduced Fat, No Fat, 50% Less Fat and Society is Still Getting FATTER!!!

Weight Loss, ,

All macronutrients (fats, carbohydrates and proteins) are equally important for the body! Many modern diets advocate a significant reduction and in some cases completely obliterate one of the macronutrients.  How many times have we heard – low carb diet, low fat diet?  Instead of focusing on diets that rob us of essential nutrients we need to be concerned about getting high quality nutrients in our body in healthy moderation.

Today I’m going to be talking about good and bad fats, and the importance of good fats in helping us achieve a healthy body composition.

We need fat!

In fact, EVERY cell in the body (there are trillions of cells in the body) is made of a double layered fat membrane (see diagram below – fat membrane is labelled as Lipids(bilayer) the orange circles).  The quality of our cellular fat membrane greatly influences how well our body functions and is responsible for the following:

  1. Regulates what comes in and out of cells.
  2. Houses receptor (such as insulin receptors that manage our blood sugars) which allow for communication into the cell and between cells.
  3. Regulates movement of water in and out of the cell.

cell_membraneFats play other important roles in the body:

  1. 60% of our brain is fat contributing to our cognitive/mental & emotional function.
  2. Preferred energy source by heart cells responsible for cardiovascular health.
  3. Essential to the growth and development of children.
  4. Boosts immune system and fights viruses.

We need to focus on eating Good Fat in our diets!

Avoiding fat is not the solution; we have to Avoid Toxic/Bad Fat and Eat More Healthy/Good Fat! The ancient idea of reducing fat to lose weight has become obsolete.  In fact, research now shows that eating healthy fats actually help you burn stored fat on our body!

Manufactures of processed food will try to sell you their poisonous food by advertising the reduced or no fat products, but have you ever stopped and asked yourself what food manufactures do to foods were fat has been removed?  The fats have to be replaced with something and often that something is more processed, artificial fillers to enhance the taste of the product and make up for the tasty fats that have been removed.  In addition, processed food manufactures will modify healthy unsaturated vegetable oils into more solid, saturated substances to give packaged foods taste, texture and to maintain their shelf life.   These modified toxic fats are better known as Trans Fats.

Trans Fats health affect on the body:

  • increases LDL (bad cholesterol)
  • decreases HDL (good cholesterol)
  • interfere with fat metabolism
  • block metabolism, create weight gain
  • increase risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes

Trans Fats should be AVOIDED – Read your labels and avoid:

  • Partially Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (It is commonly found in processed foods, fried foods, potato chips & margarine.)

Saturated Fats should be limited in the diet and come from:

  • animal products (meat, dairy, lard).
  • chocolate
  • cottonseed oil, palm kernel oil

Saturated Fats are solid at room temperature and higher doses contribute to:

  • heart disease
  • inflammation and diabetes
  • have been linked to breast and prostate cancers

Coconut Oil (mostly containing lauric acid) on the other hand is a healthy source of saturated fats.

Effect of BAD Fat on Weight

Dietary fat talks to our genes.  Molecules from fat cells bind to receptors on the nucleus of our cells which turn on or off genes.  Bad fats such as trans fats and saturated fats turn off fat burning genes which makes it harder to lose weight.  In addition bad fats desensitize our insulin receptors making it difficult to control our blood sugars, and as mentioned above have a profound impact on our cardiovascular health.

Give me the GOOD Fat!

Good fats communicate good signals to our body and promote good health!  Good fats especially omega 3 fatty acids turn on fat burning genes and improve insulin sensitivity which are important components of healthy weight loss.  Good fats also support a healthy cardiovascular system, reduce inflammation, support development in children and much more!  Eating good fats daily in moderation will help to reduce our risk of chronic disease and support the healthy function of all cells in the body!

Type of fat Source Health Benefits

Mono-unsaturated Fat

Olive oil

Nuts

Seeds

Avocado

Reduces inflammation

Reduces blood pressure

Boosts immunity

Omega 6

Required in small doses

Grapeseed oil

Sunflower oil

Safflower oil

Walnut oil

Borage & Sesame oil

Some Omega 6 tends to be modified & should be limited in the diet, such as:

Soybean oil

Vegetable oil

Corn oil

Anti-inflammatory

Hair & Skin health

Hormonal Health

Omega 3

99% of us are currently deficient

Wild Fish – salmon, herring, sardines, anchovies

Flaxseeds and Flaxseed oil

Nuts & Seeds – walnuts, pumpkin, hemp

Prevents cardiovascular disease

Controls blood sugar levels

Reduces cholesterol & increases HDL

Brain protection & increases function

Lubricates joints

Weight loss

Controls inflammation

Promotes skin health

foods-good-fats

EAT 4-6 servings of healthy fat a day!  Focus on eating more Omega 3 fatty acids because you’re likely deficient in it.  Supplementing a high concentrated Omega 3 fatty acid is beneficial especially with our limited sources of wild fish.  Consult you naturopath for the best supplements available!

Average serving size of fats:

  • 1 tsp of healthy oil (extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, grapeseed oil)
  • ¼ of an avocado
  • 10 olives
  • 1 tsp of mayonnaise (from canola oil or grapeseed oil)

The Best Things in Life Are FREE

Exercise, Goals, Weight Loss, , , , ,

I spent my holidays in Florida this year where the warm temperatures gave me the opportunity to get outside and run.  This routine of running daily allowed me to jump-start my New Year’s resolution of incorporating more movement into my day.  Running is nothing new to me, but it had been a long time since I’d been on a regular running routine.

Feeling energized after returning home I was motivated to continue running, but found the cold outdoor temperatures too much to bear.  Although I have access to a treadmill at my office/clinic, I remembered enjoying my experience of running on the track at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex a couple years ago and decided to give it a shot again.

Not only did I find refuge from the cold, but the track at the Waterloo Memorial Recreation Complex is FREE to the public most of the week, making it easier to find time that fit my schedule.  I made a running schedule, writing down the days and times I would go to the track, knowing I would be more likely to succeed in carrying out my resolution if I scheduled it into my weekly routine (see The Power of Goal Setting- Commit to a Better You).

Wow, a FREE and warm place to run, but my experience at the track extended far beyond that…

It was inspiring to see people, lots of people, people of every size, shape and age all on a healthy mission to GET MOVING!  And whether they knew it or not they were doing wonders for their body composition (see What is Body Composition?).  There were a group of woman walking together catching up, moms walking with their babies in strollers, and a senior couple walking hand in hand as they circled the track with a brisk walk.  The more experienced runners were taking fast powerful strides around the track, while others were incorporating walking sticks to give the upper body more of a workout.

My favourite group on that first visit was a dad and his young daughter (who was around 7 years old) running around the track together.  Everyone was moving to their own beat, transferring energy and inspiration to their fellow track visitors!  It was the energy of the track full of people that I really enjoyed.  It was wonderful to see so many people of vast levels of fitness and age making time to give their body the power of movement!

I encourage you to come check it out!  A FREE indoor track is the perfect opportunity to overcome the barrier of cold winter weather that may be keeping you from getting active.  There is no obligation to join, and no need to invest in a membership – it’s FREE!  If you’re just starting, or thinking of starting, a regular exercise routine and don’t have access to a treadmill (or even if you do), come out to the track for a walk or run and enjoy being inspired by fellow track visitors!

Here are some ideas to get you to the track…

  1. Instead of meeting a friend at Starbucks for a coffee suggest going to the track for a brisk walk while you catch up.
  2. You can ask your husband or wife to join you for an entertaining night on the track, and keep yourself motivated by making dates with different people throughout the week!
  3. Or, you can go on your own and get lost in the music of your iPod like I do!  Strollers are welcome, so feel free to bring your kids or grandkids!

A few important tips:

  1. Slower movers stay to the left and those of you with speed keep to the right, which keeps the flow of traffic smooth.
  2. It is over a rink so you need to be dressed appropriately (But note, there are no gushing winds and the temperature is always the same, so you know what to expect!).
  3. If you warm up pretty fast while running a sweater or running jacket is plenty of clothing to keep you warm.
  4. You can always store your coat or boots on the bleachers, so don’t be afraid to bring extra layer.
  5. And there are also a few lockers and washrooms available for changing if needed.

Remember it’s FREE! And open for hours that will suit most anyone’s busy schedule.

Below is a list of FREE tracks and schedules in the KW area:

Waterloo Memorial Recreational Complex RIM Sports Complex Activa Sports Complex
Address 100 Father David Bauer, Waterloo (corner of Caroline St. and Erb St.) 2001 University Avenue, Waterloo Lennox Lewis Way, Kitchener (Cortland and Homer Watson, behind Peter Hallman Ball Park)
Phone Number 519-886-1177 519-884-5363

ext. 221

 519-741-2699
Hours of FREE Track Time Monday – Friday

6:00 am – 5:00 pm

8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Saturday & Sunday

6:00 am – 8:00 am

8:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Hours are subject to change due to scheduled Hockey Games.

Paid track time available on weekends from 8:00 am – 8:00 pm

 Walking Loop only

Monday – Sunday

6:00 am – Midnight

 Track open daily

6:00 am – 11:00 pm

If you know of any other free indoor track facilities please email us and we will pass along the information!