Welcome To Absolute Nutrition

Living Well

RSS
Make This Valentine's Day Healthy and Exciting

Make This Valentine's Day Healthy and Exciting 0

For most Americans, every Valentine’s Day brings the trite and cliché; a night out at dinner and a box of chocolates. Maybe if you’re lucky, you receive those chalk flavored heart candies. When you think about it, Valentine’s Day has taken on the characteristics of an unhealthy and boring day with no special meaning. It doesn’t have to be that way! Here are some exciting tips that will keep you thinking about your health on a typical day where splurging and monotony are the norm.

Take your partner out for a walk or a hike on Valentine’s Day.

This can be as creative and as fun as you make it, not to mention very healthy. This doesn’t mean to just take your hubby around for a neighborhood walk that lasts ten minutes. Instead, try going somewhere with your significant other that you two have never been before. This could include a park, a mountain, a lake, a beach, or some other natural landscape.

Spend Valentine’s Day doing some sort of physical activity.

Valentine’s Day may be more romantic if you participate in activities that are appropriate for the season. For example, a good calorie burning source of entertainment would be ice-skating. Many people have never even tried ice-skating before. It makes for a good activity because it burns calories and can be very romantic.

Plan a Weekend Getaway

Valentine’s Day lands on a Tuesday this year, but that doesn’t mean you can’t plan for a weekend trip. Perhaps you could go to a trip to a ski lodge or a nice hotel somewhere. Make this year’s Valentine’s Day interesting and healthy! Don’t recycle the same idea because then it seems like you and your partner are just running through the motions of what conventional Valentine’s standards demand of you.

Be authentic. Be healthy. Be active. Be original.

Bodybuilding Tips for Beginners

Bodybuilding Tips for Beginners 0

Thinking about really getting into shape and starting bodybuilding? Bodybuilding is all about building muscle and cutting out body fat through strength training. If your body isn’t used to this type of regimen, it can be a bit of a shock to the system and you will have to adjust to get used to the load, but with some expert tips, you can start on the right foot. When you begin to train your body in a different way, it’s important to develop correct, healthy habits, because you can easily injure yourself otherwise. Weight training has different intensities, and it will definitely be a climb to reach your intended goal, but if you stick to these tips you’ll see the change in your body!

 

1. Form is important.

You may want to jump right into your new workout, but put your eagerness aside and make sure you properly learn how to perform each movement and exercise. It doesn’t matter how much weight you can lift if you aren’t doing it correctly. And furthermore, if you start off with incorrect form, it will lead to bad habits. It is the way it is for a reason, don’t question or adjust to what’s easier. This is a sure fire way to develop an injury, and you might not even get the results you want if you aren’t performing with correct form. If you’re unsure, consult with a trainer to make sure you’re doing everything the right way. 

 

2. The right order can make all the difference.

Do your workouts in a specific order to get the most out of them. Most people do cardio first, then move on to strength training. Experts are saying, however, that this is not the most effective way to have a successful workout. Workouts that work more muscle groups are going to require more energy than those that only work a single group, which means you actually want to start with those. By the time you finish your cardio workout, you’ve expended some of your full tank of energy, and you would then move on to strength training with a half-empty tank, hindering you from pushing with all you’ve got. Be sure to work on what’s the most important while you have the most energy available. Major lifts like bench press, squat, deadlift, or shoulder press are all workouts that work multiple muscle groups, so next time, try starting with one of these.

 

3. Do more reps.

This is recommended for beginners because you are likely starting off with a lower muscle mass, and unable to work with a larger weight load. In order to see a more effective change in strength, muscle size, and definition, work your muscles a little harder by performing more reps within each set. The general rule is the more sets, the less reps, and the more reps, the less sets. Stick to more reps, usually between 8-12, to really hone in on the exercises, and fewer sets. Once you get used to this, you can decrease the reps but increase the weight, so you can focus on really bringing up your strength level.

 

4. Take days off.

It’s recommended to take off a full day in between workouts, contrary to what #NoDaysOff may say. It’s best for beginners to start with full body workouts to hit all muscle groups, which with a day off in between still allows for a full body workout 3 times a week. Taking a break will reduce soreness and fatigue, and will actually allow you to get a better, more fulfilling workout in next time as opposed to a limited one because of your soreness.

 

5. Don’t skip stretching.

Some view it as an unnecessary step even though others swear by it. Don’t be this stubborn person! Stretching is completely necessary. Not only will it help to prevent injuries, but it will markedly decrease any soreness you may experience post-workout, while also increasing your range of motion so that you get a better workout in.

Notice Anything New About Our Website!?

Notice Anything New About Our Website!? 0

You may have noticed a bit of a change to our website! This is because Absolute has expanded to include an entire fitness and weight management based line of products that can go hand in hand with your current CBD regimen.

 

You can now beef up your fitness supplements to have the very best of all worlds - weight loss, health, and pain management. If you find yourself not able to shed the desired pounds you aim to even while busting your butt at the gym, one of our weight loss supplements might be the best option for you to finally be rid of that pesky extra weight. Take your CBD before or after working out, and you'll soon find that any aches or soreness have disappeared from your life. Supplements also help to boost antioxidants in your system, add nutrients to your diet, and improve your cardiovascular health.

 

While CBD is still a focus of ours, we like to believe it fits well within the spectrum of health, fitness, pain management, and nutrition. You can create the best lifestyle for you to live absolute with the addition of these helpful supplements in your life. So explore the new website and decide whether now is the time for you to live absolute!

The Truth About Your Healthy Snacks

The Truth About Your Healthy Snacks 0

truth-about-healthy-snacks

We’ve all tried to swap out a bag of chips for some whole grain pretzels or a granola bar in an attempt to eat better and be more healthy. However, what we’re perceiving as the better option may be just as bad as our original guilty pleasure or indulgence. As people study food more, it has come to light that many things we thought were good for our health and our waistlines might not be as beneficial as we thought. Let’s take a look at some popular “healthy” snacks and see what the truth is.

 

Granola Bars: These can be great if you avoid the ones loaded with sugars. However, many granola bars are super sugary and sacrifice health for taste. Granola isn’t good for you if it’s been over processed and covered in multiple layers of corn syrup and sugar. The challenging part about finding truly healthy granola bars is most people don’t like the taste of a dry, unsugared granola bar (go figure!) Because of this many granola bars contain chocolate, caramel, and other ingredients that you wouldn’t eat alone and think they’re healthy.  So why does having them loaded in your healthy snack make it any better? Look for options that don’t contain added sweet ingredients, and stick to natural flavors.

 

100 Calorie Packs: People think these are “healthy” alternatives, but they’re actually only marketed this way because there is a limited number of calories in them. Calorie count aside, these are usually snacks high in processed fats and carbs. Instead of the entire bag of chips, you’re just getting a small portion of the same unhealthy products. You’re hard pressed to find an element of these little packs that can be construed as healthy. Furthermore, many people think that since there’s only 100 calories in one pack and it isn’t bad for you, they can eat multiple, leading to the consumption of calories that are equivalent to the full-sized snack. 

 

Pretzels: For some reason, we have the perception that pretzels are a healthy alternative to snacks like chips or cookies. But when it comes down to it, pretzels are basically just flour and salt, and all carbs, which are all a huge no-no. They’re also nutritionally empty. If you’re going to fuel your body, try choosing something a bit more nutritional. Pretzels will do absolutely nothing for your body. They also have a ton of sodium stemming from all that salt on top - with one serving size containing about 25% of your recommended daily consumption.

 

Veggie Chips: Just because you see the word veggie on these packages doesn’t make them as healthy as a vegetable. These products are often misleading, with the only veggie in sight being vegetable powder that fools you into thinking your veggie chips have the nutritional value of the vegetable they share a color with. The nutrients from vegetables are not in your veggie chips, despite the artificial flavoring that might give you that impression. If there actually are veggies in your chips, their presence is so minuscule due to over processing that any nutritional value that could possibly come from them is gone. Veggie chips are also made of mostly potato starch and corn flour. So unless potato starch is your idea of a nutritional vegetable, steer clear of veggie chips. 

 

Dried Fruit: Many are fooled into thinking since fruit is good for me, dried fruit must be too. The truth is, many dried fruit products contain a ton of additives like sulfur to extend their shelf life. Do you really want to be consuming sulfur when you’re trying to be healthy? Additionally, many dried fruit is thoroughly sweetened with a ton of sugar to balance out the taste, totally canceling out any health benefits. Unsweeted and unsulfured products are available at certain health food stores, but you might as well save yourself the hassle and just stick to fresh fruit instead.

Your Phone May Be Interfering with Your Good Night's Sleep

Your Phone May Be Interfering with Your Good Night's Sleep 0

phone-light-interfere-with-sleep

Chances are, you sleep with your phone close by your bed in case of boredom, the urgent phone call, or a quick Google to answer a question. You probably also spend your last few minutes before shut-eye browsing your phone and updating yourself on anything you may have missed throughout the day. How well do you usually sleep? Science is now telling us there is a connection between your phone and your sleeping habits. As it turns out, checking your phone before bed and keeping it close by may be damaging to your sleeping patterns, because of the light emitted by your phone’s screen.

 

All artificial light (that means LEDs, fluorescent bulbs, and incandescent bulbs) interrupt normal sleeping patterns. LED lights are frequently used because they happen to be more energy efficient and provide better lighting than your average incandescent light bulbs. They are also present in your phone.

 

To understand why this is bad for your sleeping habits, you must first understand how your body works. Your body’s natural biological clock is set in motion by the amount of light and dark you are exposed to, called the circadian rhythm.The circadian rhythm of your body also has the ability to control many other physiological processes, or many other individual clocks, like sleeping and feeding patterns, brain activity, hormone production, and cell regeneration. Light is the most powerful cue for shifting the phase of these rhythms.

 

Natural light stimulates your retinas, which send a signal to the hypothalamus in your brain, telling it to set sleeping patterns according to perceived “daytime (sunlight)” and “nighttime” (no sunlight). When it starts to get dark, your brain gets another signal from the hypothalamus that tells it to start creating sleep hormones, like melatonin, and prepare for sleep in other ways like dropping your body temperature. When light is sensed in the morning, your body gets the signal to warm up and produce hormones that wake your body up. This is how a normal circadian rhythm should work.

 

So now that we know how your body naturally works, what’s the deal with phones?

 

Artificial light, blue LED light specifically, has a substantial effect on shifting these phases and melatonin suppression. Artificial light confuses your body’s natural circadian rhythms. Since your retinas are receiving light all throughout the day, not just during sunlight hours, your body is unsure about when to prepare for sleep.

 

Guess what produces huge amount of blue light? Phones, tablets, TVs — everything you probably use right before bed. This blue light specifically suppresses melatonin more than any other type of light. This is due to the short wavelengths in blue light, which the human body is far more sensitive to than any other type of wavelength. Studies have found this does two disastrous things: suppress delta brainwaves (which induce sleep), and boost alpha wavelengths (which create alertness).

 

So what are we saying, that you have to stop using your phone or limit your time around artificial lighting to get a good night’s sleep? Not exactly, especially since in today’s day and age it would be near impossible to do that. There are some small steps you can take to improve your sleep, though.

 

For one, you can stop using your phone 30 to 60 minutes before bedtime. This will remove most of the blue light that interrupts your sleep. We know it sounds pretty difficult, but before mobile phones became so prominent in our lives, people had many other bedtime rituals that helped them to settle into their slumber. Try reading a book (not an e-book!) or making yourself a cup of tea to wind down. A dimly lit environment with no blue light will signal your body to start getting ready for sleep and produce melatonin that will begin to diminish your wakefulness. If you absolutely must use your phone, turn your brightness all the way down to limit the intensity of the blue light. These small steps may help you to improve your sleep, which can lead to bettering your overall health.

12 Quotes to Drive You to Fulfill Your New Years Resolutions

12 Quotes to Drive You to Fulfill Your New Years Resolutions 0

12-quotes-fulfill-new-years-resolutions

 

2017 is here! That means everyone is doing their best to stick to their resolutions, some being far more difficult than others. As we know by now, resolutions aren’t always a one-stop fix. They’re an uphill climb, hard to stick to, and you will most likely face many steps backwards while trying to move forward. When your resolution involves making healthier choices and getting your body in better shape, you’ll need some motivation to push you through those difficult times. We’re here to help motivate you — after all, we’re on this journey of health together. But some motivation from those who are more wise than we are can be immensely powerful. Here are 12 quotes we think represent this journey to a better you. We hope these quotes free you from what was holding you back in 2016, and get you in the healthiest mindset for the trials and triumphs of 2017.

 

“Change doesn’t come in nickels and dimes. It comes in dedication and sweat.”
- Toni Sorenson
“Exercise is a great leveler. It doesn’t matter how rich you are, you can’t just buy your way into a great body. You have to do the work. I find that comforting. It’s one of the few things in life where we’re all on a level playing field.”
- Vinnie Tortorich
“A healthy attitude is contagious but don’t wait to catch it from others. Be a carrier.”
- Tom Stoppard
“We either make ourselves miserable or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same.”
- Carlos Castenada
“The best view comes after the hardest climb.”
- Unknown
‘I’ve realized that I’m more important than food is. I love a big slice of pizza, but I love myself more. It’s about saying you deserve to be healthy.”
- Valerie Bertinelli
“Transformation isn’t a future event, it’s a present day activity.”
- Jillian Michaels
“Most people have no idea how good their body is designed to feel.”
- Kevin Trudeau
“Great works are performed, not by strength, but by perseverance.”
- Samuel Johnson
“Vision is not enough. It must be combined with venture. It is not enough to stare up at the steps; we must also step up the stairs.”
- Vaclav Havel
“There is always a step small enough from where we are to get us to where we want to be. If we take that small step, there’s always another we can take, and eventually a goal thought to be too far to reach becomes achievable.” 
- Ellen Langer
“The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine, or the slowest form of poison.”
- Ann Wigmore