Getting By With Help of Friends

Ha!  I bet after reading the title you thought this would be about enlisting your friends and family to help you.  While that is also a very important part of your journey [and a great topic for another post--thankyouverymuch!], this post is about vitamins.

In an ideal world we would be getting all of the nutrients we need from our diets and wouldn't need to take supplements, but...in an ideal word, we'd all be perfect and I wouldn't be blogging about this.

Did you know nearly 75% of Americans are Vitamin D deficient [17]?  I've always known that it was a high number, but until I was actually diagnosed, I didn't realize it was that high!  Yep.  A sunshine lover and dairy fiend like me is deficient in Vitamin D!  I was shocked.  But it does go to show that just because you think you're getting all the nutrients you need, you might not be.  Plus, short of having a degree in pharmacology or medicine, you might not realize that vitamins A, D, E, and K require fat to probably be absorbed [thus why milk & yogurt are great sources of both A & D] or that too much vitamin C can decrease the amount of calcium absorbed by your body.

The best place to start?  A daily multi-vitamin.  And if you're getting older or have a history of osteoporosis in your family, then also take a Calcium supplement.  If you wanna be really fancy, schmancy you can go here and let Dr. Weil be your vitamin advisor!  At your next annual physical, ask your doctor to run tests checking your vitamin and mineral levels--you just might be surprised at what you find!

Whichever way you choose--just get the ball rolling!  The sooner you do, the sooner you'll have more energy and feel better overall.  Once that happens, you'll then be able to exercise more and make better choices when it comes to food [remember, the snowball effect???]

~a grain of salt to keep your electrolytes in balance

Post Holiday Babble...

Okay, so technically we still have another week to go in "the holiday season."  However, a thought struck me tonight as I felt a bit peckish after a particularly gluttonous day: ultimately, what our bodies crave is healthy food--sometimes we just have to listen really hard to hear the message.

For example, I decided that a cup of tea with milk and a few chocolate covered cherries would be the ultimate Christmas bedtime snack.  But as I was waiting for the tea to boil I realized that what I was craving was a black tea without milk or sugar and an orange.

HARK!  [well, it is Christmas!]

I think too often we get wrapped up in what we should or should not eat or when we should or should not eat that we often ignore the best authority on what our body needs most: our own body.  With the new year on the horizon and thoughts turn to ways to make you healthier, spend some time creating self-awareness about you and your needs.  Interestingly enough, one of the main attributes of why those who practice yoga are healthier is that they are more in-tune with what their body needs.  Hate yoga?  Fine, but find another way to quiet the world around you and tune-in to you.

Happy Holidays!

~a grain of salt for one last holiday margarita