Saturday, 25 January 2014

Princess Health and Dealing With Pain Naturally. Princessiccia

"Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that the most commonly abused prescription drugs like OxyContin, Vicodin, Xanax, and Soma now cause more deaths than heroin and cocaine combined." (source: healthimpactnews.com)

First things first: when you have a pain, ache in your body, the most important thing is to find out the reason. The pain itself is "only" a sign, it is similar to a red light in your car's dashboard, or another example would be the cry of a baby. When you see a red light in your car, you won't start breaking it just because you don't want to know about it, right? When your baby cries, you won't put earplugs in your years - do you agree? In both cases, you want to know what the reason is: what's wrong with the car, what's your baby's problem, what bothers him or her?

Now when you take a painkiller for your head ache, back pain, period pain etc, it is the same: you don't want to know what the reason is behind, you only make yourself deaf and blind. Is that really what you want? If yes, then don't read the rest of this post.

But if you'd rather deal with the pain naturally, then continue reading. So as I said, first of all, do everything possible to look for the reasons and deal with the root of the problem. Of course pain, ache is something we want to deal with straight away, so here are four natural remedies, which don't have side effects, therefore won't cause you even more troubles, neither they will make you addicted:

1. Turmeric (curcuma)

Turmeric is more than a spice and it is used widely to relieve inflammation throughout the body. More than that, it aids joint health, it supports the immune system, balances the health of your digestive system. You can buy organic turmeric and ground yourself then use it when preparing food, or you can look for organic turmeric supplements, without the use of fillers, binders and too many additives.

2. Ginger

Due its anti-inflammatory properties, ginger can relieve joint pain. It improves the absorption of essential nutrients in the body. Ginger also helps with tummy-cramps. You can get rid of throat and nose congestion with the help of ginger tea.

3. Krill Oil

Fatty acids in general are known for their anti-inflammatory benefits. There are studies showing its benefits in reducing PMS and krill oil can also be successful when coping with painful menstrual periods. If you visit any health shop, you'll find good quality krill oil supplements.

4. Water

Sounds too simple? Yes, it is simple, yet very effective for example when struggling with head ache. Head ache can be one of the signs of dehydration, and oddly enough you'll experience head ache sooner than thirst itself. Without enough water in our body, our joints don't have lubricating material, so you'll experience pain sooner or later. Drink plenty of clean, still water.

The final word here is that pain is just is sign. Never focus on relieving your pain only. Always go forward and find out what's behind your pain or ache.

























































































Tuesday, 21 January 2014

Princess Health andFrosty Trail and Rock �n� Roll Arizona Marathon.Princessiccia

Time for the first results post of 2014!  First up, the team had a great performance at the Frosty Trail Race.

In the 6 hour, Vicki (aka VZ, aka V-Zizzle) had an amazing performance.  She put her consistent high-mileage training to work and ended up placing 4th overall, running over 40K in the snowy, soupy mess that the trails had become.
















Dave Rutherford, the Frosty Trail vet, had an outstanding performance in the 3 hour.  He tore through the snow on his way to place 2nd overall, and running well over 20K.









Will had an awesome 2014 debut as a Health and Performance athlete.  Despite a busy schedule filled with work and becoming a new dad, he still competed hard and ran a very respectable 14.1K through very tough trails. 















Jordan represented the team quite well in the 1-hour event.  He ripped up the trails, finishing in 2nd place overall, and more importantly, kept the dream alive by wearing shorts!
















A far cry from the snowy trails some of our athletes competed in this past weekend, we also had two athletes competing in the warmth of Arizona at the Rock 'n' Roll marathon.

Tracy had one of her best performances in years, running just under 3:34 for the marathon, comfortably qualifying her for the Boston Marathon!

Alain also had a great marathon, coming in with a final time of 3:05!

Sunday, 12 January 2014

Princess Health and Public Talk at the University of Virginia on Friday, January 17. Princessiccia

This Friday, I'll be giving an invited lecture at the University of Virginia, my undergraduate alma mater.  I was kindly invited by a medical student named Robert Abbott, and it worked out well because I was already traveling to Charlottesville.

The talk will be titled "Why Do We Overeat?  A Neurobiological Perspective".  Here's the teaser:
Obesity is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in industrialized nations, yet this is a relatively recent phenomenon.  In the United States, increasing obesity prevalence has paralleled a gradual increase of daily energy intake.  Why do most Americans eat more than we used to, and more than we need to maintain a lean state, despite negative consequences?  This presentation will touch on the neurobiology of action selection, the neurobiology of energy homeostasis, and why our central nervous system hardware may not be up to the task of constructively navigating the modern food environment.
The talk will be attended by medical students, but I also hope to have some doctors and researchers show up, as well as people from the broader Charlottesville community.  It will be a thought-provoking talk regardless of your background, and it will touch on some of my own work.

The talk will be held in the main medical school auditorium, MEB 3110, on Friday, January 17 at noon.  You can find driving directions and parking information by following this link.  You'll probably have to park in a parking garage, either the Lee Street or Central Grounds garage (directions in the link).

For a map of the UVA health system, follow this link.  The Medical Education Building is number 44 on the map, and the talk will be in room MEB 3110 on the 3rd floor of the building.

See you there!


Saturday, 11 January 2014

Princess Health and Raw Chocolate Pudding. Princessiccia

Many call it chocolate mousse, but I think the name is not so important. The important thing is its taste. Because you will not eat any other chocolate pudding after you taste this.

No, it is not a mistake that the base for this pudding is avocado. Avocado has a neutral taste, so it works perfectly when preparing sweets. Not to mention that it is full with fiber, it contains double the amount of potassium compared to a banana, it is packed with vitamin  E, B-vitamins and folic acid.

Ingredients:
3 ripe avocados
1/4 cup raw cocoa powder
1/4 cup date paste or maple syrup
1 pinch cinnamon (optional)
1 pinch salt (use sea salt or Himalayan salt if possible)

1. Peel the avocados
2. Blend all ingredients until smooth.
Enjoy!

Can you imagine a faster treat than this?

There are many similar recipes on the internet, I found this one on youngandraw.com























































































Thursday, 9 January 2014

Princess Health andH+P Athlete Spotlight: Mike Piazza.Princessiccia

He's competitive, he's driven, he's hungry for more....he's H+P's very own Italian Stallion.  In today's edition of H+P Spotlight, we talked to Mike Piazza.  




H+P: You have seen some huge improvements over the last few years, including taking almost 20 minutes off your half marathon. What were the big changes in your training that lead to this development? 

MP: The biggest change I think would have to be the interval group. When I got back into running years ago I would do some intervals on my own but they don�t compare to the intervals I do now. The motivation and encouragement of everyone who comes out and trying to push myself to keep up with the runners faster than me I think has contributed the most to my improvement. Another factor would be getting in my long run every weekend. In the past I would regularly push those back and eventual skip them, but having the group
to run with now makes them enjoyable.

H+P: What recent race results are you most-satisfied with? What happened at these events? 

MP: The race result that I am most-satisfied with would have to be the Nutrience Oakville Half Marathon last fall. I felt going into this race that I was at the peak of my training for the season. Leading up to the race I wasn�t sure if I was going to taper before it or use the race as a training run for my full marathon the following month. I ended up cutting back my mileage slightly that week and doing my usual race prep for the couple days leading up to the race. I also focused a lot on my nutrition for the week and couple days before the race. The race itself could not have gone better for me. It was a chilly morning and I had told myself I would go out at a comfortable pace and then see how I felt when I hit the only real hill at the 7km mark, instead of going out hard the first couple kms like I usually do. When I got to the hill I felt great and pushed the pace up it a little bit and then kept it steady the rest of the race. Coming into the last km I could see a few other runners in reach and I told myself I would catch them. I ended up finishing with a sprint finish, passing those couple runners, and a low 1:26, which was a personal best by 16 minutes. I felt I gave everything I had during that race and I was very satisfied when I checked my splits after and saw that they were consistent. 

H+P: You are currently pursuing a PhD in biochem. Does your background in science help you with training and other components to running performance? How so? 

 MP: I would say it has helped with other components of running, mostly with my nutrition. Knowing what it takes
to fuel your body and how to maintain your energy through a long race has certainly helped me become better. Also my strong background in research that I have acquired through my studies has been quite beneficial. Its helped in reading through various articles on running training and nutrition and being able to understand what is correct or not.

H+P: Anybody who knows you well is certainly aware that you are a competitive person- where does this drive come from? 

MP: I think this stems from always wanting to be the best, haha. Growing up playing sports I always had a competitive nature and I always wanted to win. These days that competiveness has transferred to all aspects of my life. I like to think that if someone else can do something I can also. Translating this over to running makes me work harder, whether it�s during a race or a practice, I�m always competing against the person running alongside me. I think this competitive nature improves my running ability and makes me faster. Plus a little competition never hurt anyone. 

H+P: Outside of competition, what else motivates you to keep training so hard day in and day out? 

MP: The biggest thing would have to be the feeling I get after a hard interval practice or long run. Not many things are better than the runners high I get after that. Running has also helped me get into pretty good shape, and I want to stay that way, haha. 

H+P: We also know that you used to be involved with competitive running in your highschool days.
What forces dragged you away from the sport, and then what eventually brought you back? 

MP: I ran cross country first year university also and then that winter I had a bad knee injury while playing hockey which left me unable to run for about 5 months. After taking that time off it was tough to get back into running on my own, while also having fun in school. I would always run on my own but nothing serious or competitive. I got more serious about running when a few of my good friends from home asked if I wanted to train for a marathon with them in 2010. After having an absolutely terrible run I decided I wanted to get back into running more serious. Also being able to run as part of a group and having others motivate you to run on days where you just don�t feel like going out has helped immensely. 

H+P: It must have been a long road working back into a level of running fitness you were happy with- describe that process. What helped you fight through those tough times to get where you are now? 

MP: It has been a long road back and I feel like I�m almost where I used to be. Mind you back when I was running competitively in high school I had faster 5 and 10km times but I don�t think I could run the longer races like I do now which are what I really enjoy. Knowing in the back of my mind that I had run like that before and with enough hard work I could get there again has been a big factor in helping through some tough times. And of course being pushed by others in the group and racing with friends has helped a lot. 

H+P: What personal best(s) are you most focused on taking down? Are those races in the plans for next year?

MP:  My personal best for the full marathon is what I�m most focused on this year. I really want to qualify for Boston and run sub 3 hours. I plan running another marathon in May, either the Mississauga or Toronto Goodlife. I also want to PB at the 30km Around the Bay race this year. Last year I had run it coming off an injury and couldn�t train very well for it, I�m hoping there are no excuses this year. Another PB I want to set is for the 5km. I�ve never broken 20 min in a race, although I�ve run sub 20 5k pace while breaking 40 min
in some 10km races.

H+P: What's it like being Nazem Kadri's older brother? 

MP: Haha, I have gotten this quite a bit. I don�t know if it�s because people know I play hockey and am a Leafs fan or if I do look like him. Whatever the reason, hearing the comments have been a lot of fun.

Wednesday, 1 January 2014

Princess Health and Free e-Book and Ideal Weight Program 2.0 Announcement. Princessiccia


I'm happy to announce that we're releasing a free e-book titled Why do We Gain Fat, and How do We Lose it? An Introduction to the Science of Body Fat, by Dan Pardi and myself. This is a slimmed-down version of the longer, fully referenced e-book we offer as part of the Ideal Weight Program. In it, we provide a succinct overview of the science of body fat gain and loss, and the evidence base for our program.  It also contains a schematic that ties together the various concepts in visual form. You can download it from the Dan�s Plan site by following this link to our program overview page.

Ideal Weight Program 2.0 Upgrades

Over the last year, Dan and I have been working hard to improve the Ideal Weight Program, both in response to user feedback and our own ideas for development.  Here are some of the new features we offer in 2014:
  1. Four-week meal plans and shopping lists for the FLASH diet and the Simple Food Diet, as requested by Ideal Weight Program users.  This is in addition to the recipes and cooking guides we already provide.  
  2. The Protein Unit system.  Research suggests there's an optimal amount of protein for appetite control and fat loss, depending on your height, weight, gender, and physical activity level.  Our fat loss diets are high in protein, but how do you know you're getting the right amount?  We've created a calculator that does it for you automatically, and explains how to apply your personalized Protein Unit value easily and intuitively using real food. 
  3. Diet plates.  These are visual guides to following our diets, based loosely on the intuitive USDA MyPlate design.  
  4. Cheat sheets.  Put these on your fridge to remind yourself of your diet and lifestyle guidelines, and daily protein unit goal.
  5. Updated guidance.  We've refined a few things in the diet guidance documents. 

At a time of year when many people want to shed excess holiday pounds and start down a leaner, healthier path, we offer the Ideal Weight Program 2.0.  The program comes with a 30-day no-questions-asked refund policy so you can try it without risk.  We think you'll love this program, but if it doesn't work for you, we're happy to refund your purchase price. 







Financial disclosure: I receive a portion of the revenue from the sale of the Ideal Weight Program.  I do not receive revenue from the sale of other products associated with Dan's Plan or the Ideal Weight Program (such as the Fitbit, cooking tools, and other programs).