Showing posts with label Focus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Focus. Show all posts

Focus Friday: Boost Yourself

Today's Focus Friday is about ways to give yourself a boost of energy when you need it the most!

We've all had it, does the midday slump ring any bells?
Well I'm here to give you some handy tips on what do and eat to help counteract those stale hours throughout the day that make you want to sleep under the counter (or desk).
A quick disclaimer here to state that I would always recommend visiting a medical professional or your GP if you suffer from fatigue and tiredness on a regular basis, as there could be an underlying cause that I am not qualified to diagnose.

My personal top tip is to have a healthy and varied diet that consists of lots of fruit and vegetables, protein and fibre. Things like broccoli, bananas, mushrooms and blueberries.
Green leafy vegetables, eggs, lean meat and whole grains are full of fatigue fighting B-Complexes. Alongside that,green veggies are full of iron which helps with the transportation of oxygen round the body (be careful with toxicity levels of iron in children).


Another tip is to take a good multivitamin that contains Ginseng, Ginseng may help keep you alert as it has a slight stimulant effect, it is also an adaptogenic, helping the body cope with stress.
If you suffer from Migraines then I would advise speaking to your GP before taking Ginseng. So making sure you are getting your daily nutrients is very important, but what about sleep?

We need 8 hours sleep for optimal performance, now for some people that is easily said than done. Get into bed mode by switching off any white back lit electronics a few hours before you nod off, this is because the white light blocks the hormone Melatonin, and Melatonin helps you sleep. You can also help induce sleep by having a hot shower or bath before and add a little lavender to the bath for a soothing aroma.

My final tip for energy gains is keep hydrated, get that water bottle out of the cupboard from last years yoga classes and keep it filled up and ice cold throughout the day. No slacking.












Focus Friday: Antioxidants



Focus Friday will be my new sub genre of this blog, with topics of focus from all parts of life such as food, mood and cats!
That's if I remember to blog every Friday...
Todays topic is Antioxidants!

Let's start with the basics
According to Google the almighty, the definition of an antioxidant is "A substance that inhibits oxidation".

Ok so in what? 
Food and our bodies.

In layman's speech our bodies weak cells split sometimes and we are left with what we call free radicals which contribute to various illnesses and ailments, this is accelerated by pollution in the environment, UVA rays from the sun and smoking (amongst others).
This is where antioxidants come in to the equation, they interact with these naughty free radical 'cells' and connect with them, stopping the damage of other vital molecules in the body.
So they may help to protect us from these factors mentioned before.



(Psst they also help with premature ageing caused by sun damage, just take a look at Sir Patrick Stewart back in the day and now.)

Where can I find Antioxidants?
Good question, now Antioxidants are pretty common in many everyday foods and vitamins. For a start foods rich in vitamins A,C and E are abundant in them so if you like citrus fruits, strawberries, broccoli and bell peppers the chances are you are getting a good dose already.
Other sources are:

  • Goji Berries
  • Wild Blueberries
  • Pecans
  • Kidney Beans
  • Tomatoes
  • Green Tea
  • Grapeseeds
  • Pomegranite
  • Matcha Green Tea
  • Acai Berry


So maybe swap that third cup of tea at the office for a cup of green tea? or the next time you reach for the milk chocolate  swap it for the darkest you can find.
I'm sure our bodies will thank us for it.

Ok so that concludes this weeks Focus Friday, if there's anything you'd like me to go into depth about next friday then feel free to drop me a message or email on leeaaronharley@gmail.com.
Keep it clean!




Credit
normsfarms.com 
boldsky.com