Am I doing enough???

Hi OwnPace Family (smiles & waves)! I hope this note finds you doing well!. Olan asked if I could share some tips on how to keep your immune system strong, especially since COVID-19 is currently running things! He asked if I could produce something small due to my passion for Holistic health. I am a Specialty Pharmacist and after interacting with many sick patients, I have become passionate about prevention. There are numerous things we can do to support our body’s natural immune response and I wanted to share some things that I feel may be important for you to know during this time. 

1.    Your skin has a pH value of about 5.5, it is not necessary to wear gloves. Wearing gloves actually spreads germs faster due to people touching multiple surfaces and not changing them. Its best explained like this, would you want your doctor to use the same gloves for every patient? Definitely not, it would spread germs way faster. Your skin has the natural ability to fight-off some germs due to its acidic nature. This is why the CDC recommends hand-washing. Gloves allow the germs to stick, whereas your acidic hands kill the germs on contact. The germs that are left will be killed by washing your hands.  

2.    Fear, worry, and stress all reduce the immune system’s ability to fight infections. It is well known that stress can cause your immune system to decrease your body’s lymphocytes (white blood cells) and make you more prone to illness. Watching the news all day can instill a sense of fear. It’s great to be informed, but please don’t let it overwhelm you. Follow the important updates and cut the news off. Stressing about what’s next can decrease your immune response. Do your best to stay positive and practice mindfulness. 

3.    Don’t stop moving! Even though we are quarantined, it is no excuse to become lazy. Exercise reduces stress, anxiety, and naturally boost the body’s immune response. There is no better time to get moving. Take your kids for a run, get some sun and fresh air, use this time to kick your work-out regimen up a notch. If you’ve never tried yoga and/or meditation, now is a great time to tune into your own body. Practice deep breathing and find new ways to move. 

4.    Eat a balanced diet! I know all the quarantine snacks are gone , but let’s try to choose our foods wisely. Since we are home, cooking healthy well-balanced meals should be a priority. Incorporating more leafy greens such as kale and fresh whole fruits like grapefruit will definitely aid your body during this time. I am actually following a plant-based diet and have incorporated morning immunity shots! I’ll list the recipe below!

5.    Practice gratitude! Every morning you wake-up is a gift! Your heart is beating, there is laughter in your belly, you can breathe deeply, and you can feel your surroundings! That my friend is a gift! Take advantage of it!

Always remember nothing can beat a healthy immune system! You are strong, you are brave, and you have everything it takes to make it through this! WE are in this together! If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out., my email is nateka.shelton@gmail.com. Happy social distancing!

IMMUNITY BOOSTING SHOTS:

Ginger shot 

Thumb-sized piece of Ginger cut in half (if powder 2 teaspoons)

1 lemon or Lime 

¼ cup of Warm water 

If you have a juicer, juice the ginger and lemon or lime together mix with warm water and take a shot. If no Juicer, blend everything together and strain with a cheese cloth or stockings. 

Turmeric Shot 

Thumb-size piece of turmeric or if using powder 2 teaspoons

1 Lemon 

¼ teaspoon of black pepper

¼ cup Warm water

If you have a juicer, juice the turmeric and lemon together, then mix with pepper and warm water and take a shot. If no Juicer, blend everything together and strain with a cheese cloth or stockings. 

 Signed with a lot of Love,

      Nateka 

How to Eat During the Quarantine and Beyond

Hi OwnPace Family,

Hope everyone is doing ok and staying safe. As we adhere to the stay home order, it came to my realization that this is the perfect time to work on our long term eating habits and create sustainable patterns. I noticed i’ve been eating more, some healthy, some not so much but overall i haven’t gained any weight and have been losing some weight actually. In this post, I’ll be sharing the way I’ve been eating that has kept in even better health than before the quarantine.

One of the biggest obstructions i hear as a health coach and trainer towards healthy eating is usually time. I do agree with a lot of these reasons because i’m usually in the same boat “I don’t have time to make breakfast so I skip it” or “I get home late and I’m tired so I eat takeout or whatever is available” and the worst of them all “eating at work”. While we are home, we have the perfect opportunity to establish our long term eating habits and I’m here to guide you through them.

There are 3 things i’ve noticed that have been a major contributing factor to being able to not only stay healthy, but get in better shape.

1. Preparation: this is probably the most important part. At home, you have 100% control over what you have around you to eat. so while at the grocery story make the right decisions i.e. almonds vs pringles as a snack so when you are home you have no choice but to make the right choice. Unhealthy snacking is one the top dietary contributors to weight gain.  Also, while at home now, think of ways to prepare the foods you like in a time efficient manner so when we go back to work you are set up for success.

2. Balance: There is no secret that your body needs a mostly plant diet, but that doesn’t mean you have to be vegetarian., you just have to eat things in the right portions. The meat should not be the largest food item on the plate. Here are some guides

3. Flexibility: Don’t be too hard on yourself and don’t set strict rules. Unless you have a specific goal at hand that requires laser focus allow yourself some freedom. Remember we are trying to establish a life long habit not just a short term restriction. So allow yourself to have that dessert, that drink, that double portion and don’t feel bad about it as long as that is the exception and not the habit.

I call myself a flexitarian, I eat mostly plant-based foods but dabble in steak, chicken stir-fry or fish tacos etc. I like to think of it as a “pro-plant, not anti-meat dietary lifestyle,”. The biggest benefit is that its flexible and its all about giving yourself options.

What exactly does being a flexitarian entail? Does it mean eating animal protein once a week? Once a month? Once a day? “As the name suggests, the beauty of flexitarianism is that it’s all about options,” says Blatner.

You can embrace meatless Mondays, making 1 day a week meat-free. Or you can start by simply cutting the quantity of meat in certain meals; for example, replacing half the beef in burgers and tacos with mushrooms. You just have to work toward switching from a meat- heavy diet to a plant-based one.

Flexitarianism is also convenient when dining out. No more sticking to lackluster veggie menus! However, as demand for vegetarian options increases, more restaurants will offer a better range of meatless menu choices.

It Offers a Better Nutrient Balance: Plant-based foods are rich in fiber, disease-thwarting antioxidants and a number of vitamins (such as vitamin C) that you won’t find in meats. Yet, by including reasonable amounts of animal-based foods in your diet, you don’t have to worry as much about getting enough protein, calcium, vitamin D, iron and vitamin B12.

Flexitarian eating is ideal for those who want to prepare and eat more vegetarian meals but find it too arduous to commit [to going meatless] 100% of the time.Unlike so many other regimented dietary plans that make certain food off-limits, flexitarian eating is easy to stick to because the food options are wide open, as there are no forbidden edibles.” You just have to work toward switching from a meat-heavy diet to a plant-based one.  Here are 3 suggested categories:

• Beginner: eats two meatless meals a week.

• Advanced: eats three to four meatless meals a week.

• Expert: eats five or more plant-only meals a week

There so many benefits to eating this way such as:

1. Fat Loss: Plant-based meals are typically lower in calories, higher in fiber—to promote satiety—and with a lower proportion of calories from fat. You can expect to shed weight and body fat on a flexitarian diet only if you focus on eating reasonable portions of whole foods, such as beans and whole grains, as opposed to replacing animal protein with baked goods, bagels and large bowls of refined pasta.

2. Your bank account: Meat, fish and poultry tend to be among the most expensive items in the grocery cart, o buying more plant-based items like lentils can save a family a significant amount of money, especially given the increasing food prices. Another benefit of purchasing less meat is that when you do so, you can now afford to splurge on better-quality products, such as grass-fed beef and wild-caught Pacific salmon. Meat consumption becomes about quality, not quantity.

3. Saving the earth: replacing red meat and/or dairy with other protein sources such as eggs or vegetable-based dishes a single day per week could have the same climate impact as buying all household food from local providers.

Bottom line: A plant-heavy diet plus a little meat is good for your health, the planet and your pocket.

Cardio & Core Home Workout Series Pt 3

Hey guys, 

Hope you are having a great day. Here is the 3rd week of our holiday workout series.

The rules are still the same, however now we have 6 exercises.

8 rounds

20 secs of work, 10 secs break

Exercises:

Air Jump ropes

Full extension in & out

Alternating reverse lunge with knee drive

Spiderman Mountain Climbers

Squat Jack

Toe touches

Detailed description is in the video below.

Ps; Don't forget to like the video/comment on youtube and share with as many people was possible.

Cardio & Core Home Workout Series Pt 2

Hey guys, 

Hope you are having a great day. Here is the 2nd week of our holiday workout series.

The rules are still the same, however now we have 4 exercises.

8 rounds

20 secs of work, 10 secs break

Exercises

• In & Out floor touches
• Power Plank
• Hip twists
• Straight leg bicycles

Detailed description is on the link below.

Ps; Don't forget to like the video/comment on youtube and share with as many people was possible.

Thank you,

Olan 

Cardio & Core Home Workout Series Pt 1

Hey OwnPace Family, 

As promised, here is a new home workout series to keep you in shape through the holidays. Each week you'll get a new cardio and core workout you can do anywhere, no equipment needed.

For the first installment, we have Kriss Kross toe taps and boxer crunches with boxer stance active rest for

8 rounds

20 seconds of work and 10 seconds of active rest. completion of both exercises counts as 1 round.

To get the best results, try not to stop until all 8 rounds are completed.

This will only take 8 minutes of your day, and can be performed multiple times a day as needed.

For detailed a detailed video description, press play below.

During the holidays we tend to become a little bit more sedentary so to keep us in shape. I've created a workout Sergie that you can do at anywhere and anytime. It will consist of a cardio move and a core move for 8 rounds Tabata style.

Planks = ABS!!!!

Hey OwnPace family, 

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been receiving a lot of requests about exercises for the belly/abdominal area. So I decided to make the next set of home workouts all about the core, I’ll be sending you core exercises that you can do at home and they take very little time to help build you build a great core.

For the first installment we are going to work on some plank variations. Before you start doing crunches, leg lifts and other dynamic core movements, you want to make sure you have a stable core to build the foundation and that is the focus of this workout.

The plank is one of the best exercises you can do for your core because it builds isometric strength to help sculpt your waistline and improve your posture. And depending on the type of plank you try, you can also engage your back, arms, shoulders, glutes, and hamstrings.

We have 3 moves for 3 rounds for 1 minute each and a bonus round if you are more advanced.

Check out the video below for a detailed description.

OFF Day Workout 1

Hi Everyone, 

Hope everything is going great. As you know, at OwnPace I'm constantly coming up with ways for you to get the best sustainable results. In a previous blog I wrote called "The other 161 hours", I explained how there are 168 hours in a week and even if you trained 7 days a week, that still leaves 161 hours. In reality, we know for most people it's way less . Most of us train 2-3 times a week. The truth is, that isn't enough to address all our goals. The 2-3 days normally focuses on our primary goal and everything else gets minimal attention. So I thought it would be very beneficial to give you targeted workouts for your off days that addresses "everything else" while still getting you in great shape..

• The best part about these workouts is, they can be done at Home with very minimal equipment needed if any. Also, I will be making videos so you can make sure you are doing them correctly.

These workouts will target a variety of things that will make you an overall healthier and fitter person.

I'm very excited to give you the first installment of this new workout series. This workout is a total body workout that targets every major muscle group in the body (core, legs, chest, back, shoulders, biceps and triceps). All you need is effort and a band.

Before you start the workout, I have a couple of "asks".

1. Please share this workout with anybody you think it will be beneficial to. The goal at OwnPace is to share our brand of fitness to the world and get as many people as possible to be better versions of themselves.
2. When you do these workouts, if you take any photos/videos and want to share it with us, I would greatly appreciate it and would love to post it on our social media sites.

OK OK.. Now you can enjoy this workout and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask. And we are open to all feedback and suggestions.