Ways to enhance your indoor environment

Here are a few pieces of equipment and miscellaneous that I think are very useful for your indoor environment.

The focus is creating an environment where you can be parasympathetic most of the time (rest and digest)

This allows your body to recover, build strong immunity, and stay energized. 

You do not need to go all out. Pick one or two that you feel 90% confident with implementing right now ,and let me know which ones you are using! I would love to hold you accountable with them. 

Blue light exposure, air quality, and self care routines for good measure. Lets start with the list shall we?

Food

Fermented foods like pickles, kimchi, kombucha, and other vegetables can chill you out by restoring your gut microbes, which can be jacking up your enteric nervous system. Just be willing to try one or two at a time. Put them on your next grocery list. Another way of re establishing some gut health is a high quality greens supplement like Organifi 

Reducing exposure to blue light and EMF’s

We’re on our computers and phones more than ever. Whether you’re working from home, watching the market, on zoom meetings, or just watching a movie, I definitely recommend you invest in some blue light spectrum blocking glasses! This can enhance the quality of your sleep, make you feel better overall, and reduce headaches if you get them often.  Here are the ones I have. If you’re not digging these, try these stylish ones

Aroma therapy 

How’s the air quality at your home? If you’re not opening the windows to get fresh air, you can grab a few plants and try a humidifier. I personally use an oil diffuser to let essential oils roam the air. If you want to more serious about your air quality, you can look into an air quality monitor that connects to your phone to show you whats in your air.

If you know me, you will know I run through incense like a bad smoker runs through a pack of cigarettes. If you find the right scents, they can soothe you. It’s my way of working, relaxing, cooking, reading.

Music

Here are my top go to Spotify playlists

Healing Frequencies

Coffee Table Jazz

Classical Study

Late Night Jazz

Sleep

Airplane mode and electronics plugged off if possible (reduces EMFs, which mess with REM sleep through brain frequencies.)

You need some strategies to block any light that can mess with your melatonin production. Also, if you are sleeping in a little later than usual, I would recommend you use a really good sleep mask. If you do not have black out curtains, I’d suggest you look into that as well. If not, the sleep mask will do. Getting grounded before bed or during bed can re establish electron balance within the body which has several health benefits. You can either use a blanket or use a grounding mat that you can out under your feet when you are working on your laptop, or just sitting.

Last but not least, Magnesium spray is an awesome product that can assist your bedtime routine, or a daily habit to help your overall health.

As I said, this list is not to intimidate you as if you need to get all of the above to be an adequate human being. These are just extras that can assist you with executing a new habit more effectively. Pick one or two that you feel ready and willing to implement. If you need any suggestions or want to chat to assess what is the best strategy for you to implement right now, contact me

Side note: I did not get into infrared light therapy, but if you are interested, visit Joov

All about carbs

There are different types of carbs: sugar, starch and fiber. What makes them differ is the chemical structure and bonds they hold, which your body's digestive process handles differently. 

We have the following: glucose, sucrose, and fructose. 

Glucose is a simple sugar that is found in many carbohydrates. When eating glucose your body releases a hormone called insulin. Many people who gain weight easily are insulin resistant, meaning your body’s receptors to release insulin are not working. Glucose is left in the bloodstream and, once the liver is already capped out on glucose storage, the body stores the rest as fat!! This is why the choice of carbohydrate is important. We will come back to this later. 

Let’s look at starch carbohydrates. If we make a chain of glucose they link together to form starch.

The starch here is? The tortilla wraps. Evil? Not at all. Keep reading to find out how to finesse your tacos.

Your body has to break down the links in order to take the starch and use it as glucose, a simple sugar. This is where breads, pastas, and other processed carbs mostly lay. A starch that your body breaks down to sugar. 

Why does this matter? Because if we start to look at many ingredients within the carbohydrates we choose, we will see that they are mostly glucose and starches disguised as whole grains, hearty food, healthy, etc...

Starch breaks down in the blood as glucose. Our body's digestive system has the enzymes needed to break the starch chain into glucose. The result? Single glucose molecules your body uses for fuel.  If it’s a large amount of glucose, the pancreas releases insulin. 

What is insulin? It’s a hormonal response that allows the glucose that's running in your blood now, access to get into your cells. If not, glucose is just sitting in your blood which is dangerous and toxic. It’s basically what type 2 diabetic is all about. Insulin doesn't work, so glucose is building in the blood. No bueno. 

Now let’s not paint glucose as the total villain. When it is in your cell, it is used for energy, or is stored for future use. It is all about the ratio of glucose you are consuming to the amount of activity or exercise you have in your life.

We will talk about how to win this battle after we cover fructose and sucrose :)

Fructose is another sugar, but is handled in the body differently as supposed to glucose. This is the sugar found in fruits, and is in high volume in the food industry's high fructose corn syrup creation. Fructose is only used in the liver. The liver converts fructose into glucose or fat! This is all based on the health of the individual and the amount of sugar being consumed on a daily basis.

Last but not least, we have sucrose. Sucrose is another simple sugar. The difference is that it is a double molecule with a glucose and a fructose stuck together. This is what table sugar is made of. When you consume sucrose, your body breaks it down to it’s individual molecules of glucose and fructose very fast. 

What changes the quality of carb? Is it fiber? 

Fiber is what bonds these different types of sugars together. Every fiber is not the same. Our gut doesn't have the necessary intestinal flora to break down every fiber. Fiber is very good for you if it is the right fiber.

What’s the right fiber captain?

Fermentable fiber! On a scale of super duper processed to fermented AF, use your spider senses to figure out where the carb you’re about to eat is located on the scale.

Fermentation allows the bacteria in your gut to break the bonds down in the fermentable fiber. These bacterias eat some of the sugars that are dispersed when breaking down the bonds, which then create a waste product of short chain fatty acids called butyrate and propionate, If you want to learn more about them, watch my saturated fat lesson. 

After these fats are released, the cells that line your colon use them as fuel, which keep them healthy. 

Now let’s get into one more thing.

Insulin VS Glucagon

We already discussed insulin above. Re read it if you have to. 

Glucagon is the hormone that is released when there is no insulin response from the food you eat. It breaks down glycogen (stored glucose in liver) to release some of that glucose. If you keep eating like this, the liver will have to release all of that stored glucose to the point it will start creating glucose out of thin air from amino acids. 

This process is known as gluconeogenesis, and is a fast track to burning a bunch of fat. How so? When your body isn't occupied with clearing glucose and storing it as fuel or fat, the body now has to feed your brain that made up carbs and tap into its fat storage account now!

If this is too much, I totally understand, Watch an old video I made when I ran my fitness studio below, or just skip straight to the carbs to eat and carbs to avoid. (Start at 1:50 to get straight to it)

How to pick carbs 

Use the fermentation scale I just made up. Also, look at the ingredients if you are in doubt. Many products lie to you by telling you whole grains, fiber, etc.. None of that matters. You have to see for yourself if this is fermentable fiber, or processed starch that will spike your glucose levels and take you away from your goals. 

Pay attention to the sugar in each serving. How many servings? Also, when you look at the ingredients, you can see the type of sugars that are involved. Don’t go too crazy. Use the simple method I explained above. Also, use what’s below.

Now the goal isn't to avoid insulin and carbs altogether! There is no evil in them! Just be aware of what your diet consists of. The problem, as stated above is when the insulin receptors no longer work. If you are sensitive to insulin, there are several tests you can take. Contact me for more info on glucose tolerance testing 

Also, what you eat your carbs with changes how fast or slow glucose is released! Everything in moderation and combined with other healthy foods. 

For more info on how to build a healthy plate of food based on your body type and goals, here is my Green Zone system 

Some things to do during the quarantine

You know, not everything in life is about working out. I strongly recommend that everyone maintains their level of fitness, and stays balanced with their nutrition, but life is about enrichment.

With that being said, here are a few free apps I think are worth the time with all this down time:

Babbel is an app that makes learning a language very easy. It doesn’t have all languages, but I’ve been using it to learn Russian, and it’s easy and fun!

Brilliant is another app that allows you to explore anything in math, science, and computer science. Why not!?

Welltory is an app I use for myself every morning, It measures your HRV (heart rate variability). By using your finger over your camera lens , it can measure the variability in between each heart beat, which is a good indicator of how much stress your’e are under. Use this in conjunction with my stress cup worksheet and you will know how o scale your activity, as well as be in tune with your body. Here’s a video to understand more:

Blinkist is an app that breaks down a book into short concise summaries called blinks. In other words, books can be extremely repetitive. This app takes the major components and lessons of a book and creates an effective way to enjoy books, digest the major take aways, and save time!

If you have any questions or comments, drop one below! As a reminder, Online training is available. All you have to do is apply below and I will get back to you!

The Stress Cup : A Free download

I would like to share with you some concepts about Stress. The immune systems strength heavily relies on the amount of stressors your body is dealing with.

To help you learn how to mitigate and scale the stress, I’ve created a worksheet called The Stress Cup.

Print out the below and use it!! After 5-7 days of logging in your stress cup, send it over to me and I’ll gift you a 30 minute video training session with me.

All about your Immune System

Let’s get straight to it, shall we?

What is Inflammation? 

• A bodily response directed by cells in our immune system.

What cells? 

• Dendrites, Macrophages, T-cells, and B-cells

There are two segments within our strong Immune system

1. The Innate Immune System

• The guardians of the castle (Dendrite cells & Macrophages) who protect the door from any bacteria or viruses that look or act suspicious. 

• Guardian Dendrite & Guardian Macrophage destroy invaders and display their heads on the castle wall for the inside army to see - The adaptive immune army

1. The Adaptive Immune System 

• T - cells & B - cells who adapt themselves to any invader mounted on the castle wall by the guardians.

Why do they adapt?

• To be prepared for any future encounter with any of these invaders, so they can can be perfect assassins for it. 

How?

• T & B cells clone themselves and spread within the body, waiting to encounter another invader with their antigen (specific pattern of protein of invaders)

• When fighting, they anti bodies called “cytokines” → These are inflammatory 

Is all Inflammation bad!? No!!

How so? 

• The Immune system generates & controls acute inflammation response needed for the beneficial functions of: Proper wound healing, fighting infections, and exercise recovery.

Difference between Acute & Chronic

• Acute is temporary

• Chronic is a continuous stimulation of the immune system. Constant release of “cytokines” wreak havoc in your castle and health. 

Fun Fact: 

70 - 80% of your immune system lives in our gut!

Oxidative Stress 

What is Oxidative Stress?

• A free radical AKA Reactive oxygen species (ROS). Think of ROS as the drunk guy at a bar for now….

• It is the process of an unpaired electron (Free radical) stealing an electron from a nearby cell membrane in your beautiful body. 

What does this do?

• When a  free radical steals an electron from a nearby molecule, it damages structures like cell membranes even DNA. Tell Kendrick that…

• Long term DNA damage by free radicals can cause mutations leading to cancer.

Where does it come from?

• It comes from many internal and external stressors like: 

• Pollution

• Infection

• Radiation

• Cigarette smoking

• Normal metabolism in our cells

• Processed foods

• Many more

How do I avoid this!?

Well, you can’t avoid it entirely. The goal of all of this is to keep you aware of shit so you can minimize it as much as possible. It’s a yin & yang thing ya know? 

Stay tuned for the next blog post, where I give you a free PDF to learn where your stressors are coming from. From there, we can create interventions to help reduce inflammation & oxidative stress, thus strengthening your immune system.

Gym Equipment For At Home Workouts

Here are a few pieces I’d recommend for an at home workout:

1. Super Bands

For Rows, Presses, Core work, Mobility, loaded squats and or deadlifts

---

2. Resistance bands

(Different from above as it has handles, which allows you top do chest press, biceps, triceps, etc…

---

3. A pair of dumbbells

I’d say grab a weight that you can press overhead with. If you’re okay with spending a little more, grab an extra set for squats or deadlifts that are heavier.

I personally have Power blocks. You can change the weight from 2.5 lbs up to 50 lbs. However, that is the more expensive option. If you want to go for that, more power to you. If not, these will do!!

---

4. Workout Mats

If you have a yoga mat, that will do! If not, you can try grabbing a pack of these. What I like about them is the ability to puzzle them together and take them apart. As I said a yoga mat that is not slippery will do as well.

TO purchase any of the items above, simply clock the image and you will be directed to amazon. Let me note that these brands and items are references. If you feel more comfortable with another brand or an alternative piece of equipment, go for it!

For a free at home workout, click here

If you’d like to experience training with me on an app with monthly workout programs I write myself,

fill out the form below and I’ll get you started!

My First Infra Red Bed

I hope all is well with you and your family. There is alot going on, but I feel confident with our abilities to take care of ourselves and resume our daily lives.

Last Friday, I went back to Soul Recovery for an infrared bed session! I’ve been intrigued with infrared light therapy, as I am a big reader of Neurosurgeon, Dr. Jack Kruse

To give you a brief over view, the benefits of infra red light, as taken from SoulRecovery’s website, are:

Alleviates joint pain and stiffness

Reduces pain, inflammation and soreness

Improves muscle performance

Increase blood flow

Speed up muscle recovery

Promotes better sleep

Improves energy levels 

Improves antioxidant production

Diminishes the appearance of dark circles & spots

Boosts Collagen Production

There was a 15 minute timer on the bed, and I was set to press start once I was stripped down to under wear and ready with the safety goggles. They provided headphones with a spotify playlist if you wanted to listen to music during the session.

Once I pressed start, a 1 minute countdown began which was for me to be laying in the bed by the time the lights came on. I laid down and closed the top of the bed to about 80-85% of the way. The soft music was playing in the headphones, so I just tightened the safety goggles and waited until the lights came on.

Once the lights came on, I must admit, I started to low key feel anxious or nervous. Despite having goggles, I can still feel the power of the infra red light. I immediately thought to myself, “well they said there was an emergency stop button to my right.” However, I realized I couldn’t see anything and to try to crack open the safety goggles just to find a button, would be the last of my pupils. That’s when I told myself, “okay chill the F*** out bro!” I immediately put my hands to my sides and just let go. About 5 minutes in, the light started to feel really good. I can feel it penetrating my skin.

Once it was all done, the lights shut off and I took off my goggles. It felt like I just sat on a beach and took a nap after swimming. The at ease feeling you have when your body is grounded in beach water, sand, and sun. I felt super calm.

Stay tuned for my next visit, as I will be doing full body Cryotherapy!!

To visit Soul Recovery, visit their website: https://www.soulrecoverynyc.com/

My first floating Pod

Yo!

Last Friday I went into my first sensory deprivation pod at an awesome spot called Soul Recovery, located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Now for you who don’t know what this is, a sensory deprivation pod is basically a tank of mineral solution water that allows your body to stay afloat within the water. The tank closes and you are left with you and your thoughts.

I was close to trying one back when I went to Seattle a few years back, but this was the first time I decided to actually do it. Honestly, I just met the owner at an event my gym hosted, and it was down the block, so I said what the hell!

You are explained all of the pre and post pod protocols, then you are left alone with your own shower to rinse before and after. There is soft music playing, but as soon as you step inside the pod, it shuts off. You have an led light you have the option to shut off with a side button in the pod. You also have another button for assistance for whatever reason.

Once I stepped inside the pod, I was completely naked, fully showered with ear plugs, and decided to take in a floating head support piece they gave you the option to take. I shut the pod and laid in the water.

At first, it felt awkward because the water is shallow and the pod isn’t very big. My body did not fully let go, and I can still feel myself holding my head up a little, as well as my feet.

I’d say about 10 minutes in, I started to fully let go. My head was fully resting on the floating device and my joints felt at ease; I was no longer holding tension anywhere. It was at this point where I started to notice my breathing. It ws all I can feel and hear, so my attention was brought to it. I didn’t try to fix it. It was a mere observation with no judgements. I can truly say I was just being.

Shortly after, I felt as if I was watching my thoughts go by as if I was observing through a window. There is a difference between being caught in the crossfire of your thoughts and being just an observer from afar. It becomes liberating. You realize where your head is and what’s been going on inside with no judgement.

I believe I fell asleep for a short time because all I can remember was being at peace as if I just woke up from a nap and having that feel good daze of an accidental couch nap.

After 60 minutes of pod time, the music turns back on which is your cue to open the pod because the session has ended. I got up slowly and opened the pod. Still feeling at ease, I looked back into the pod staring at it as if it was a place I found home in and now I have to go. At this point, the pod filters kicked on and I snapped out of it to head to the shower.

Overall, Id recommend you give it a try! The pod has 3 intense filters and they have these rigorous protocols and weekly testing for maximum sanitary conditions. Everything was super clean, and the staff was awesome. I drank this refreshing pressed juice the spot offered me, and I booked an Infra red session for next week!

Stay in the loop for my infra red bed experience by subscribing to my newsletter if you haven’t

If you have any questions or comments, drop it below!

Also, if you’d like to check out the spot I went to, here is their website

https://www.soulrecoverynyc.com/

5 Ways to a Better Bottom

1. Practice the Patterns

Practice the movement patterns on how to properly squat, hinge, push and pull. There are many people who squat and/or bench, but still do not develop the glutes or chest they desire. There are many reasons for this, but one of the main reasons is that people use mechanics that do not allow them to fully engage the muscle groups they originally intended to work out.

Your muscles are all interconnected through a big electrical-circuit system; your nervous system. Put simply, if a light flickers, there is a poor connection somewhere; and it could be anywhere. Well, the same goes for your body. This is what proper mechanics do, they strengthen the signals and currents from the brain to the body. When your body is fully turned-on, you'll have it working a lot more, leading to increased muscle stimulation.

‍

2. Progressively Load Those Patterns

The better you get at these patterns, the easier they become. To keep your body changing and improving, progressively add external weight to these patterns to get stronger and avoid plateauing. There are many different ways to progress in your exercises. Finding what works for you specifically, is the key.

‍

3. Eat Like A Grown Adult

As you practice the patterns and progressively load them, your body’s energy will need to increase as well. Everything you do must be in sync with your progression. I know you’re all hard working humans. Your daily activity and thinking require the necessary fuel. Not eating is not an option. Not eating for your correct body type is a big mistake as well. Add that to the body you’ve been pursuing, now add some strength training.. and you require much more fuel! 

‍

For some more information on nutrition and eating for specific body types, click here.

‍

4. Sleep Like a Baby

Whether you're a super-parent doing 20 things at once, or climbing the ladder of success, you're key ally, physically and mentally, is sleep. Your brain, nervous system, cells, muscles, organs, and essentially your soul, all need adequate sleep to recover and repair (and that's just from regular daily activity). If you're exercising as well, your muscles are able to recover a whole lot faster, which means increased & quicker growth, better performance and an overall better body. 

‍

If you'd like to know more, here's a great book to get you started: Sleep Smarter: 21 Essential Strategies to Sleep Your Way to A Better Body, Better Health, and Bigger Success

‍

5. Get That Outfit You've Been Eyeing

Even if you're not big on fashion, clothing plays an important role in our daily lives (well, at least in most places). For added motivation, buy an outfit or article of clothing that complements the goal you want to reach. Whether it's that dress to show off your booty, a t-shirt to show off your biceps, or a swimsuit for next summer; buy it, feel it - want it. Make that investment and set a timeline. Try it on every week and take a picture to track your progress. Be it a holiday party or special occasion coming up, just make it happen!