How to Beat Afternoon Fatigue

The Afternoon Slump

Whether you work in an office, from home, at a construction site, out there on the roads everyday, or anywhere else, I think most of you will have experienced the afternoon slump.  This is something that seems to kick in somewhere between 2 and 4 in the afternoon, or if you have an early lunch, maybe sooner.  It makes you feel like curling up and going to sleep.

I can remember times when I literally couldn’t keep my eyes open in front of my computer.  It was the worst feeling and it was horrible thinking that someone might see me with my eyes closed, even if just for a second!

And since a midday kip normally isn’t possible, due to work commitments, location (I certainly don’t have a nap room at my office!), or any other reason, what do we end up doing?

This slump usually makes us reach for something to bring us back to life.  Some form of caffeine.  Maybe chocolate.  Maybe even just some fresh air or an ice cold glass of water.

How to Avoid It

Whatever it is that helps you get through this afternoon fatigue, you don’t have to deal with this feeling ever again.  What is it that has rid me of the PM slump and can help you do the same?

Nutrition.

What you eat (especially at lunch time) can help you avoid the afternoon tiredness.  Once I started cutting out high carb lunches, and/or sugary things right after my lunches, I noticed a huge change in my energy levels.

What exactly did I do?  I substituted bread heavy sandwiches (i.e. baguettes, baps, rolls) with whole grain sliced bread sandwiches.  Or I substituted any type of sandwich with a salad.  I also made sure I was getting wholesome vegetables in my meal.  Just to clarify, this doesn’t include iceberg lettuce and a couple of slices of cucumber.  I’m talking about hearty vegetables, like spinach, rocket, or other nutrient packed leafy greens.  Broccoli, green beans, carrots, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, zucchini, and sweet potato are good options (and there are plenty of others.)  You can steam some of these to have as a side dish with your salad/sandwich, or you can just have them raw, either on your salad or on the side.

One other thing I did was to make sure I was getting some healthy fats.  This includes putting some good quality olive oil on my salad, having some avocado, or adding seeds/nuts to my meal.  These all provide the “good” fats to your meal and help you stay full for longer.

Finally, I made sure to have some lean protein.  If you’re a meat eater, this can be turkey, chicken, or fish.  If you’re a vegetarian, this can be low-fat cheeses or tofu.  Just like fats, protein also helps you stay full longer.

Sweet Tooth

Now, regarding what I said about not having sweets, candy, cookies, etc right after eating, here is what I found.  If I really needed to have something sugary, I waited until a couple of hours after I had my lunch before I indulged.   By doing this, I was giving my lunch a chance to digest a bit and my blood sugar levels a chance to stabilize before feeding sugar into my body.

Now, I have to just say a quick piece here about sweets.  If you’re trying to follow a healthy eating plan to lose weight, just be a healthy person, or for any other reason, sugary things should not be a big part of your daily diet.  This includes sugary drinks…even fruit juice.

Blood Sugar Levels

Why does eating high carb (especially low quality carb) and sugary things make you tired?  The short answer to this is that these things all hit the blood stream really quickly and heavily, causing the blood sugar levels to increase rapidly.  This makes the body give out insulin to help control the blood sugar levels.  Because the blood sugar levels were sent so high, the amount of insulin given out is more than what is necessary to control it, and therefore, it brings the blood sugar levels down to an even lower level than they were at before you ate anything.

Where does that leave you?  Tired.  And probably wanting more food and/or caffeine to compensate for that.

This is not a healthy cycle to put your body through on a daily basis.

In Summary

The things I’ve talked about in this article should actually apply to all of your meals.  If you follow these principles, you will have more energy, feel happier, be healthier, and lose weight.  Even if you’re happy with your current weight, if you’re not eating like this now and you change your habits to follow these principles, you’ll probably lose a few pounds.

To your health,

Kimberly

Why to Focus on Losing that Extra Belly Fat

These days, many people are overweight or even obese.  In the US, it has actually gotten more common to be overweight than to be of a normal weight.  Scary!   With such a widespread epidemic of weight gain, I think more people are getting complacent about doing something about the weight gain.  In other words, because so many people are overweight, we feel like it is “ok” or that it’s just the way it is and it’s too hard to do something about it.

If you need a reason to take that first step in losing weight (other than just feeling better about yourself!), then here are a few:

A) First and foremost, excess fat around your middle area has a direct link with the top illnesses: heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.   By getting rid of the extra inches on the waistline, you decrease your chances of being affected by these common life threatening conditions.

B) Being overweight has a negative impact on your psychological well-being.  If you have been overweight for awhile, you might not even realise it, but every additional pound that you put on takes a bit of your self-confidemce.

C) To enjoy life!  Many people are more likely to get out and enjoy things if they are a normal weight.  Being able to run around with your children is easier.  Putting on a bathing suit to enjoy the swimming pool or beach is certainly less traumatizing!  And even just  being able to walk comfortably makes visiting new places a better experience.

You can start today.  Look out for the upcoming free guide to easy weight loss.

To your health,

Kimberly

Top 5 Reasons to consume Wheat Grass

Wheat and/or Barley Grass have so many benefits, the list could go on for awhile.  Here are the Top 5 reasons you should make it a part of your daily life.

1) Natural detox and healer – Wheat grass and barley grass have high contents of chlorophyll.  This is the basis of all plant life and can stop the growth of bad bacteria.  It actually neutralises toxins, thus acting as a natural detoxification tool.  Because of this, it is touted as a great healer.

b) Vitamins and Minerals – There is a very high concentration of vitamins and minerals in these grasses.  I’ve heard statistics saying that wheat/barley grass contains a level of nutrients up to 30 times higher than that you would get from eating a normal day’s worth of vegetables.  That is pretty high!  In fact, it is probably physically impossible to consume enough vegetables in a day to match this.

c) Energy like you wouldn’t believe – Because of the great nutrients that your body absorbs from these grasses, your energy levels will sore.

d) Natural (and naturally gluten free) – Wheat and barley grass are a 100% natural way to get nutrients, and they are naturally gluten free.  These days, we all have enough unnatural temptations around us.  Isn’t it great to have something simple that is totally natural, easy to consume, and natural?  I think so.  Just make sure to check labels when you buy it – sometimes manufacturers try to sneak things in.

e)  Fountain of youth – These grasses have essential enzymes, which help repair damage to your body.  Effectively, this helps prevent and possibly reverse premature aging!  Isn’t this what many of us strive for? Including wheat or barley grass in your diet can be a huge help.

Why not give it a try?  It does take a bit of getting used to, but you do feel amazing after only a couple of days.

To your health,

Kimberly

Great reminders for weight loss

I recently watched Paul McKenna’s new program called “I Can Make You Thin.”  I was really curious to see what he had to say as I know he has been very successful in helping people kick other bad habits such as excessive drinking and smoking.

I only watched the first episode of the series but it was interesting.  Paul McKenna laid out what he calls his “Golden Rules” of weight loss.  They are:

1. When you’re hungry, eat.
2. Eat what you want, not what you think you should have
3. Eat Consciously; enjoy every bite
4. When you think you’re full, stop eating.

They are so simple, yet fantastic for everyone!  If you are already thin or content at your current weight, these are great reminders.  Or if you are overweight and sick of being that way, these are great rules to live by…not diet by, but live by.  You can easily follow these rules throughout your whole life, rather than living by other rules (e.g. low fat foods) temporarily just to lose some weight.

To expand on these, Paul McKenna gave some other tips and examples.  For rule 2 he actually gave the audience and viewers permission to go to their cupboards at home and throw away the foods that they don’t actually like (but eat because they think it is healthy to do so) and then go shop for the foods they love.  Sound crazy?  At first, yes.  But, coupled with rule 3, it works.

For rule 3, he said to focus on what you are eating by putting your silverware down between each bite.  Enjoy each bite of the food you love.  Who knows, you might even decide that after really tasting your “favorite” foods, you actually crave something else.

Finally, for rule 4, the show did an experiment where people were blindfolded and told to stop eating when they felt full.  All of these people ended up eating less than they did when not being blindfolded.  It makes sense!

Why not give it a try?  It sounds like a very simple plan to follow.  No crazy recipes, shakes, pills, or other fancy things to learn.  Just eat normal , follow the rules, and see how it goes.

I’d love to hear about your experience.

Here’s to your health!

Kimberly

Delicious recipes with health benefits!

Hi Everyone,

I always enjoy looking up new recipes and recently came across a few that might be of interest.  My theme today is beverages.

First up:  Homemade ginger ale.  Now, why is this of interest?  Well, we all know there are great health benefits in ginger, such as helping an ailing stomach, fighting inflammation and combating clots that clog your arteries, amongst other things.  And ginger ale is delicious (in my opinion anyway!)

So, rather than buying packaged ginger ale, which packs loads of sugar, or even the diet variety, which has sweeteners in it, why not make your own?

The recipe comes from The Real Age website at HERE.

Next up:  Low-fat egg nog.  Mmmm, I must say one of my favorite things about the Christmas holidays is egg nog.  I just love it!  And it’s got a good amount of protein in it.

But, I also know that the fat and calories can add up quickly.  Given that many of us already consume far more calories than normal during the holidays, simply from the yummy foods that available, wouldn’t it be good to get your beverage calories down to a minimum (but retain the protein)?

Similar to the ginger ale above, I realize that you can find low-fat egg nog at the stores, but I always like knowing exactly what is in mine!

Here is a recipe that might strike your fancy.  Check it out HERE.

Just remember that although this is a low-fat recipe, it should still be a treat rather than an everyday staple in your diet.  (It does have sugar!) And, of course, the alcohol is optional.

My third and final recipe for today is Black Pineapple smoothie.  Sounds a bit strange, huh?  Well, it is something I found in a smoothie book I’ve got, called The Smoothies Bible, by Pat Crocker.  This book has a whole array of smoothies which are developed to help with various ailments.  The one I chose is for weight loss.

The Black Pineapple smoothie is super easy to make and yummy.  Just blend the following ingredients:

1 cup (250ml) pineapple juice

2 tbsp (25ml) lemon juice

1/2 cup (125ml) each of blackberries, blueberries, raspberries (fresh or frozen)

1 tbsp (15ml) parsley*

*The book does comment that pregnant women should limit their parsley intake to 1tsp (2ml) per day.

Here’s to your health!  And please send me recipes you enjoy as some of the other readers might enjoy them too!

Kimberly