New Year’s Resolutions

Now that we are well into the New Year, it’s a good time to reflect to see which new year’s resolutions lasted and which ones have already slipped out of sight. Instead of setting many resolutions at once and overwhelming ourselves, it’s a good idea to set milestones to achieve throughout the year.

One way is to slowly incorporate each resolution into our daily routine. For example, if my new year’s resolutions were 1) to eat right, 2) to exercise and 3) to dedicate more time to a hobby, I could start out by focusing January on bettering my eating habits. Once I feel that I have that under control, February could be focused on incorporating exercise into my daily routine while maintaining control over my diet. And once I feel that I have mastered the incorporation of these two tasks, I could work on taking time out of my schedule for my hobby.

We know that attempting to do too much at once will only be short lived. Small, calculated steps are often the ones that can be managed and thus repeated. So, as you think about those New Year’s resolutions, put them on a list. Start out with number 1 and work until you have accomplished or incorporated it into your lifestyle, then move on to number 2 on your list. You might find that this approach will be more effective than trying to tackle the whole list at once.

Spotlight: Avena Sativa – Oats

Avena Sativa is commonly known as Oats. The milky oat seeds of this plant contain its medicinal properties. Oats have numerous uses in food – most often they are found rolled or crushed into oatmeal. Avena is a great remedy to restore the nervous system. Over time it helps weakened nervous systems and can treat exhaustion whether it is due to lifestyle or illness. Avena has a multitude of actions on the nervous system and can also be used in treatment of insomnia when a person has difficulty staying asleep.

Avena can be used topically because it is mucilaginous and therefore soothing and anti-inflammatory. Oats can be placed in a thin sock or bag and be added to a bath. Allow the oats to steep in the bath and enter the bath when the water is tepid, ring out the sock several times. This treatment can be used for conditions such as insect bites, eczema, poison oak/ivy, contact dermatitis.

Dosing with Avena is usually long term with frequent dosing. While Avena has no known toxicity, you should consult your doctor before starting any treatment regimen.

Exercise and Nutrition

Many of us focus our energies on establishing or being more consistent with an exercise plan in the New Year. If you are an athlete you must maintain an adequate intake of protein to promote increase in muscle size and an increase in strength. But too much protein intake can lead to dehydration. Recommended protein intake is 0.8-2.0 gram protein/kg of body weight depending on the intensity of your daily exercise program.

Now, granted it can be hard to get our daily intake of protein. An easy way to supplement is with nuts/trail mix or a trail mix protein bar. Also, a high protein shake is a great way to start the morning. Mixing fruit, yogurt/soygurt and ice in a blender is a convenient, nutritious breakfast. It is important to take the smoothie out of the blender and add the protein powder later because heat from the blender’s blade can denature the proteins found in the protein powder.

An athlete should also make sure their diet is balanced in fat and carbohydrates as well as protein. Anyone who is starting a strenuous exercise program will produce more free radicals and increase lipid peroxidation. Free radicals damage muscle tissue and result in inflammation and muscle soreness. Antioxidants, beta carotene, Vit E and Vit C all decrease lipid peroxidation and improve recovery time, they also decrease creatine phosphokinase and lactic dehydrogenase – which induce muscle damage. An increase in energy metabolism also creates a need for B vitamins which serve as co-enzymes in the energy cycle.

Eating balanced, regular meals, taking a high quality multi-vitamin supplement and keeping hydrated are essentials for anyone starting a new exercise regimen. Please check with your doctor before starting any exercise program if you have any health concerns.