Fit Fab and Inflamed Part 3

Now that you are pretty sure you have some kinda inflammation, what can we do about it?? Let's dig into that today!

In part 2 we covered the signs to look for and how to start to dig deeper into what is causing them. I tasked you with creating a week long journal that covered the bodies reactions as well as how you felt mentally, emotionally and spiritually. What where the take aways for you? Did you notice a connection between your nutrition, movement and emotions? Did you notice any signs of inflammation? Where you able to start to pinpoint the root cause of the inflammation?

The root cause of the inflammation can be from a variety of sources. Perhaps you are in a state of chronic stress, the chronic stress leads to extra alcohol intake, the extra alcohol leads to consuming foods that aren't good for your particular digestive issue, which leads to fatigue that causes more stress because you are too tired to get the things done you need to accomplish..... and around and around we go!

Let me share with you my first steps to breaking the chronic inflammation cycle and how they have helped me. This week I want to look deeper into the root causes of Stress and dehydration. Next week we will spend our time going deeper into the nutrition and movement side of all this.

DESTRESS!

In a perfect world we would be able to drop the stress cycle completely..... but this is anything BUT a perfect world. So we need to find HEALTHY ways to unwind and destress (FYI drinking a bottle a wine each night is NOT one of them!). Making time for a calming activity each day has been shown to decrease the stress response in the body by up tp 60%. Specifically meditating in a quiet space for 5 mins at the start of your day. Making a morning meditation a daily habit will help you shift your thoughts and stress levels dramatically in a short period of time. If you are new to meditation try out my online course REClaim YOUR Calm for step by step guidance on how to create a practice that fits YOUR needs. The most important part of this quiet practice is finding a way to make it work for you. For example; I have a VERY busy mind. I have a horrible time sitting still and quiet. For me a silent meditation NEVER goes well. I need a guided meditation, story or even an audiobook to focus on. Without it I find myself fidgeting and creating mental grocery lists. This is not de stressing me at all. Through trial and error I found that the CALM app's daily 10 min guided meditations first thing in the morning where the best option for me. I need to be seated with a back support and headphones in to still my mind. You may find that being able to lay flat in silence is better for you. The point is finding a still moment in the hustle and bustle of the chaos we live is vital. No outside stimulation, no distractions. I suggest starting with 2 mins a day and working up to your goal time one week at a time. Slow and steady to create a habit.

HYDRATE

Our bodies are 80% water, so image how hard your body has to work to keep you going when you deprive it of water. When we aren't hydrated our tissues become brittle and stiff, or sometimes even congested feeling. I know I am getting dehydrated when my head starts to get foggy, or my feet start to hurt. Sometimes we can mistaken thirst for hunger as our brain seems to have the same signals for both hunger and thirst. When you first start to increase your water intake, you may notice you are spending A LOT of time in the bathroom. This is GOOD! Keep going! Your body is using the extra water to help flush itself out. You are eliminating the junk and crud. If you keep going you will start to see a decrease in the bathroom breaks and an increase in tissue hydration. You may notice your skin is plumper and requires less lotion, your stiffness is decreasing, your body aches are lessened. As you continue to flush out the stagnant fluids and rehydrate the body many of your chronic inflammation symptoms can start to decrease. Many of my clients find it helpful to use one of those GIANT water bottles that track your daily water intake. Having this visual reminder may help you keep sipping on that hydration.

I know many people say they can't stand the taste of water, so they don't drink it. How do you get past this? My advice is simple, find a way to enjoy it. Add frozen fruits, electrolytes, greens, or make herbal teas (iced or hot), squeeze in a fresh slice of citrus. Avoid using those water flavour squirt things as they are actually dehydrating as well. Play around with different fruit and tea combinations until you find something you love. Don't torture yourself with straight up tap water if you really don't like it! You won't stick to it if it is causing you more pain than pleasure.

Keep in mind that not all water is created equal. Many of the bottled water companies purposely add dissolved solids that dehydrate you into the water to make you more thirsty and make you come back for more. Check the labels, the ingredients should be WATER! Dasani Water for example will actually pull MORE moisture from your tissues than it will provide your tissues because of the dissolved solids it contains. So do your homework, get a good filter and find a great water source. Like we talked about in part one there are many factors that can cause dehydration on the body, so making sure that your water intake is providing you with more than the dehydrating factors are taking from you is very important. One rule of thumb I like to abide by is the 2 -1 ratio for my caffeine intake. Two cups of water for every one cup of caffeine. Since switching to decaf I have to say I am staying way more hydrated.

Take some time now to plan out how you are going to make these two steps work for you. How will you find your quiet 2 mins? How will you grab some extra water? Are you already a meditating and water drinking pro, or is there a little room to improve. Start here and work on this over the next week. When we come back for part 4 we are talking NOURISHMENT! Afterall, you are what you eat!