Why you should eat more Raspberries

So when starting out on this journey to improve your overall health, diet is the most critical piece of the puzzle. You hear everyone in the media talking about “organic weight loss through diet and exercise”, those impudent bastards make it sound so simple! It’s far from it. Diet is EXTREMELY hard to change! Think of it this way: you’ve been driving to work the same way for 20 years, and one day, someone comes along and says; “You have to get to work without taking any of the same streets you have been taking for the last 20 years, oh and… no GPS”. Yeah right! Well, diet is kind of like that. So today, I just want to focus on 1 food in particular. Raspberries! We will highlight some quick benefits to this awesome super food, get you all excited about eating it, and hopefully, after you go to the supermarket and buy some, it will help you replace 1 bad eating habit.

1. Boost your immunity:

   Raspberries are high in Vitamin C. Even though we know that Vitamin C is no cure to the common cold, it is extremely important for you. Vitamin C is a rich antioxidant agent and highly effective in purifying and cleaning our blood and cells that make the immune function strong.

2. Maintain eye health:

   Since raspberry is rich in antioxidants, it protects the eye retina from oxidative stress. So it is effective in preventing the loss of eye vision in the form of cataract or age-related degenerative eye disease macular degeneration. The combination of antioxidants like Vitamin C, Vitamin A and phenols ward off disease and safeguard the membranes of the eye that produce the watery fluid thereby cleaning and protecting the eye from “Dry Eye” syndrome.

3. Diabetes management:

   Raspberries are not too high in sugar content, but are extremely high in fiber which make them ideal for people suffering from diabetes. They also contain Tiliroside. Tiliroside stimulates the body to produce an Adiponectin to maintain sugar and insulin level in type 2 Diabetes patients. Adiponectin plays a key role in the regulation of blood sugar and blood fats. Adiponectin is a protein that is responsible for glucose breakdown in our body. The synthesis of glucose leads to its absorption and prevents high levels of undigested sugar being circulated in the blood.

4. Healthy weight loss:

   Raspberries have a very low fat content, but are high in fiber which makes you feel full for longer. Further more, Raspberry Ketones (Rheosmin) found in the raspberry have been found to be effective in burning the fat stored in the abdominal region by many studies. These studies showed that it breaks down the lipid within fat cells. Thus, this reduces the fat deposits in the body. It has also been found that Raspberry Ketones reduces the capacity of the body to absorb excess fat. It burns fat naturally and promotes healthy weight loss.

5. Promotes cardiovascular health:

   Raspberries act as natural blood thinning agent, promotes healthy cholesterol and optimizes heart function making it excellent for blood pressure and cardiovascular health.

So my advice to you…

Take just 1 unhealthy snack that you eat consistently, and eat a few raspberries instead. do this for a week and see how you feel. I guarantee you will not be disappointed. Below, I will also include a Nutritional Label for your reference

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6 Benefits of Walking

So the first step to a healthy lifestyle is “being active”. We can’t all start being marathon runners so the best thing to do is to start slow. The first thing I did to get to a healthy weight, is walk everywhere. Start slow; only 15-30 minutes a day. Pick a fun destination. For example: I would walk to Rita’s Water Ice and treat myself to small water ice as a reward. It replaced the snack I would normally have at home, and it got me to leave the house. The key to forming good habits, is having an immediate incentive for yourself.

Over 2000 years ago, around 400 BC Hippocrates said, “Walking is a man’s best medicine.” I believe him to be correct. Walking was the beginning to me changing my lifestyle but it really has plenty of additional benefits. Today, I will dive into some of the main reasons why you should make walking, a daily habit:

1. Fat Burning:

   That’s right! Burn that stubborn belly fat! Studies have shown that a low intensity work-out is perfect for burning fat. Think about the last time you were on a tread mill/bike/elliptical. When picking a fat burning workout, they try to keep your heart rate low. That is what is known as a “low-intensity workout”. It’s the same thing walking outside. Keeping a normal pace, you should never exceed a moderate heart rate. When this is done for an extensive period of time (15-30 minutes), your body will start to burn fat to create energy. Go for longer walks to burn more fat, easy right?

2. Easy on the Body:

   Walking is excellent if you are recovering from an injury or are currently suffering from certain ailments. After I had back surgery, the only thing I could do to stay active was to walk. I began every Physical Therapy session with a 10 minute walk. So that pain in your foot or back is not a good enough reason to continue your unhealthy lifestyle, SORRY. When you run, you are completely airborne in between strides. That sort of “up and down” motion may have a negative effect on your muscles and joints. When walking, you have at least 1 foot on the ground at all times, and that is why it is so much better to walk than to run when you are establishing new healthy habits.

3. Anti-Depressant:

   Not only is walking good for the body, but it also has a TON of mental health benefits. According to Michael Craig Miller, M.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School walking can improve the mood of people with mild-moderate depression, help manage stress, and may play a supporting role in treating severe depression. Experts have known that walking enhances the action of endorphins; chemicals that circulate throughout the body. Endorphins improve natural immunity and reduce the perception of pain. They may also serve to improve mood. So think of it this way, the first time you go for a walk, you might hate it, but eventually, this habit will have you in a much better mood to inevitably improve your life. And… it beats having to potentially deal with the negative side-effects of those prescription anti-depressant pills that you see on TV right? Even if you are not suffering from depression, I’m sure you can use a little more happiness in your life. I’ve never heard a person say, “I’m TOO happy!”

4. Medical Benefits:

   We all know that keeping a healthy weight is good for you, and the whole walking thing is a stepping stone to that. However, walking by itself has proven to be a link to major medical benefits. A meta-analysis was done by Harvard Health on the impact walking has on you body and their discoveries are phenomenal. To recap:  Among 10,269 male graduates of Harvard College, walking at least nine miles a week was linked to a 22% lower death rate. Among 44,452 male health professionals, walking at least 30 minutes a day was linked to an 18% lower risk of coronary artery disease. Among 72,488 female nurses, walking at least three hours a week was linked to a 35% lower risk of heart attack and cardiac death and a 34% lower risk of stroke. To view the full article, go to: https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/Walking-Your-steps-to-health

5. Improves Sleep:

   Another major benefit is walking has been found to improve your sleep quality. According to the National Sleep Foundation, walking significantly improves the sleep of people with chronic insomnia. The experiment monitored a group of people and showed that when throughout the course of the day they did a low-moderate intensity exercise like walking; they showed reduced time it takes to fall asleep and increased the length of sleep. So if you’re having trouble catching some “Z”s, try to go for a walk before you “hit the hay”

6. Prevents Varicose Veins:

   Man, getting old is not fun! And to stay looking young, you must take preventative measures right? Well, you can kill 2 birds with one stone by making walking a daily habit. Yes, walking also keeps your legs looking young. Don’t take it from me. Maysa M. Rabea published a fantastic article on the World Journal of Sport Sciences, check it out: VaricoseVeins

I hope this give you enough motivation to start today. Again, this is a simple habit you can start right away. It’s the first of many steps you will take on the journey of improving your health. As always, comment, like, share…

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About Me

Hey guys and girls! Thank you for visiting my website. The purpose here is to share information on how to get fit using natural methods. This site should serve as an open forum tutorial on how to lose weight, get in shape and how to live a healthy, happy life. To qualify myself, I will tell you a brief story about my struggle with weight and overall health.

I was born outside of the U.S. in Crimea, which is a small peninsula in Southern Ukraine (now Russian Territory). I was completely fit and healthy before I came to the U.S. at the age of 8. Within 3 months of living in New York City, I was what you would consider “obese”. How? Well, my mom and I did not know anything about what Corporate America was doing with food and we ate what ever we wanted. We were not aware of big business adding antibiotics, chemicals, preservatives, sugar, etc. Outside of the U.S. obesity was a result of HOW MUCH you ate and not WHAT you ate.

I was obese all the way until high school. Of coarse, then, I realized that to get girls to like you, you had to have six pack abs (which is not true, but hey, I was 13). I began being more active by playing basketball, walking everywhere, eating at home instead of fast food, I even joined the football team. My best friend at the time, Jake, helped me as well by watching my eating habits. He made sure I did not reach for that extra slice of pizza, or that I didn’t go back for seconds during family dinner. The fact that we were together all the time, helped me burn A LOT of fat. Even with my teenage metabolism (oh how I miss you) it took 2 YEARS to get in shape. By 11th grade, I was 6 feet tall and weighed in at about 170lbs. Best shape of my life! I maintained that weight until college.

Ever heard of the freshman 15? How about the freshman 130? YEAH! I forgot the gym, traded in real sports for Madden and NBA Live on my Xbox. Drank beer like water. Eating cheesesteaks and pizza regularly, and I didn’t care. I got into a long term relationship with the woman of my dreams and no longer had a purpose to maintain appearances. By the end of my 5 year relationship, I couldn’t look at my self in the mirror. I was ashamed what all those years of bad habits have done to my body. I weighed in at about 300lbs. The worst part was, I couldn’t do anything about it as I had a badly herniated disk from a snowboarding accident I had some years back.

My journey to recovery started right after my girlfriend and I broke up. First, I changed my eating habits, second, I took care of my back. I’ve tried everything before finally having surgery on my L4 disk. After countless physical therapy hours, I was almost back to normal. I continued to make sure that I did not put any junk into my body. I coupled that with being active. First, I just walked everywhere. Eventually I was hitting the gym 3-4 times a week, playing basketball, running, and yoga. I even ride a bike 25 miles to work now. With all that, I finally got down to a healthy weight of 200lbs. THATS RIGHT, I lost 100LBS in less than 2 years. I am very proud of that fact, I feel great, and I am as healthy as I ever was.

I am very glad I took these steps for myself, as now I have a wife and a baby boy on the way to look after. I want to make sure I live as long as I can for them. This website is about a common goal however. It’s about sharing best practices, and supporting one another. Feel free to leave comments on what worked for you. Hope this improves your quality of life, but it will be up to you to take the first step.