I was in the gym the other day and I noticed two young guys working at one of the bench press stations. They would do a set, chat about the functions on their iPhones for 5 minutes, then the other guy would do a set and so on. By the time I had finished warming up, completed 20 working sets and stretched myself out from head to toe, they had just finished with the bench press. I realize that when you are a teenager you don’t have the same responsibilities and time constraints that someone with a family and a full time job does. The problem here is that testosterone levels peak at 30 minutes and begin to drop exponentially at the 60 minute mark making this type of training ineffective if you are trying to build any appreciable muscle mass.

Across from them I watched a couple of guys do what seemed like 25 different exercises during the same time that I did four. Most of them were crap and a total waste of time. Balancing on one leg on a stability ball or contorting yourself on a mat with a 10 lb dumbbell in one hand is only functional if you are a trapeze artist. It is not going to build any significant strength or reap any cardiovascular benefits. These guys would have been much better off ditching the majority of these exercises and doing a few extra sets of some really good ones.

So what constitutes a ‘really good’ exercise ?

Here is my criteria:

1. Multi joint movements. An overhead shoulder press is a multi joint movement because it works at both the elbow and shoulder joints. A biceps curl on the other hand is a single joint movement or isolation exercise because it only works at the elbow joint. The more joints you can activate at one time, the more muscle you will build and the more calories you will burn because the movement is more taxing on the system.
2. Exercises that allow for the greatest amount of loading. The greater the load you can add to an exercise, the more muscle you are going to build over time. Barbells are great because there is no end to the amount of weight you can add to the ends of the bar. That is why squats and dead lift variations need to be staples in any strength training program.
3. Exercises that train the body through a full range of motion. These exercises activate the most amount of muscle, promote symmetry and balance and prevent injuries. That is why I prefer body weight exercises like the body weight lunge for beginners (see the video below).  It allows the trainee to practice proper exercise technique while taking their body through a full range without the added stress of a dumbbell or barbell, until they have mastered the movement.
4. Exercises that move your joints through a natural range of motion. That is why I hate exercise machines. What machines do is force our bodies to move in a fixed plane. It is unnatural. My body is not meant to move in the exact same plane as yours. That is why I love dumbbells. They allow me to move the resistance the way my body was designed, reducing the chances of injury.

You don’t need more than 4 to 5 exercises to get a great, results producing workout. I prefer one upper body pushing movement, 2 upper body pulling movements, a lower body movement and then one exercise that really isolates my core. Top it off with 5 to 10 minutes of calisthenics for conditioning purposes (jumping jacks, burpees, mountain climbers) and you are good to go.

If you want to get ripped fast, this is the way to do it. It is not easy. The first couple of weeks will be absolutely brutal from a diet standpoint. The fact is, it works. You will drop body fat in rapid fashion if you follow the advice below.

1. Cut your carbs down dramatically. The only carbohydrates you will be eating for the first 2 weeks will come from steamed vegetables. Broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, brussel sprouts, kale, spinach and all other green leafy greens. That is it. No grains, no dairy and no fruit. Your diet will consist of protein (1 gram per pound of body weight daily), fibrous vegetables and lots of healthy fats (nuts, seeds, avocados) in place of carbohydrates. You will lose anywhere between 1 and 4% of your body fat within the first 2 weeks. It is impossible to put on weight when your insulin levels are kept so low for such a long period of time and that is what this type of diet is so effective at doing. You will need to eat 5 or 6 small meals throughout the day approximately every 3 hours and drink a ton of water. I am talking about 3-5 litres a day.
2. After the first 2 weeks you will re-introduce carbohydrates sparingly. You will limit yourself to 2 cups of low-glycemic fruit per day. That fruit will come from thin skin berries. Blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc. On the days you lift, you can allow yourself 40-60 grams of carbohydrates post workout which will come in the form of sweet potatoes. They are a low glycemic carbohydrate and they are great at replenishing glycogen stores. On the days you don’t lift, carbohydrate intake will be reduced to green leafy vegetables and 2 cups of berries. This will satisfy whatever sugar cravings you might have.
3. Strength train 3 times a week. No machines and no isolation exercises. Just the big lifts. Only barbells and dumbbells will be used. Squats, lunges, dead lifts, pressing and rowing variations will be performed with an emphasis placed on getting stronger. The goal is to add more weight to the bar and/or perform more repetitions each session. By performing big lifts, you will burn more calories and maintain your muscle mass, which is crucial if you want to get ripped. Remember, muscle is metabolically active. If you lose muscle, you burn less calories throughout the day.
4. Start getting up early in the morning (before work or school) and perform 45 minutes of fasted walking at a brisk pace. You can do it on the treadmill or you can go outside. It really doesn’t matter. Get up, have a couple of glasses of water to get your metabolism going and start walking. When you are done you can eat. In a fasted state, your body will use fat as the primary fuel source providing that activity is performed at a low heart rate. While you may not burn gobs and gobs of calories walking, the majority will come from fat stores.
5. Sprint 2 to 3 times a week. Sprinting is another term for interval training. Periods of work performed at high intensities, followed by periods of recovery performed at low intensities. If running for your life is a 10 out of 10, your high intensity periods will be performed at a 9. Your recovery periods will be performed at an intensity of 2 or 3 which is a light stroll.  These can be done on days you don’t lift or after a lifting session, depending on your energy levels. They can be done on a treadmill, a stationary bike, a cross trainer and if you don’t have any equipment, buy a skipping rope. The work portion must be intense enough to cause a rapid heart rate and you need to maintain the effort for 20-30 seconds. I prefer a 1:2 work to rest ratio. Start with 8 intervals and work your way up to 12.
6.  You must sleep 8 hours a night minimum. This is the most crucial variable of all. You are going to be performing an awful lot of  physical activity. In order to repair and grow, high quality sleep is imperative. You can catch up on late night television another time. That is what a PVR is for.
7.  Take a day off. One day a week you will do absolutely nothing. No walking, no lifting and no sprinting. Give your central nervous system a break so you can recharge and recover. I love lazy Sundays on the couch watching football. Use this day off to prepare your meals for the coming week.

Good Luck !

If all it took were 3 one-hour training sessions a week to get the physique of your dreams, everyone would do it. How hard is it to put in 3 hours of physical activity a week? Not very. Unfortunately, that is just a very small part of the equation. Unless you have been blessed with paper thin skin and have the ability to dip french bread in maple syrup and store it in your muscles, you are probably not going to like what I am about to say.

When I meet a client for an initial consultation, the first thing I ask is what their goals are. Most often, they tell me they want to get ripped. They want to see their abs. It is not the answer I want to hear because I know the likelihood of reaching that goal is very slim.

I am not a big fan of bodybuilding, but I have an immense respect for the discipline that bodybuilding requires when it comes to diet and exercise. It’s a huge sacrifice for anyone, both physically and emotionally. For many it borders on pathological. And a social life? That goes right out the window unless they are okay with bringing Tupperware filled with chicken and broccoli to the bar Friday night. I didn’t think so.

Fitness and fashion models that you see in publications make their living with their bodies. So it pays for them to make these sacrifices, but not even they walk around year long with single digit body fat. They are already lean and they will still spend somewhere between 6 and 8 weeks getting even leaner for a photo shoot. Once the shoot is over they go back to being fit, which means putting back the 10 to 15 pounds they had to drop for the shoot. It is similar to what fighters do to make weight before a bout. After the weigh-in, they re-hydrate and re-fuel for 24 to 48 hours before stepping into the ring.

Getting ripped is brutally hard work. It takes great dedication. For most, it is probably not worth the sacrifice. I am not saying this to deter anyone, I am trying to be realistic. When Internet gurus claim they can give you a six pack in six weeks if you follow their program, they are lying to you. There are no short cuts when it comes to dramatically altering body composition. If you are starting from square one, you will need to put in a bare minimum of 12 weeks of consistent training and diet adherence to make considerable changes to your physique.

If you still want to get ripped, check in next week and I will fill you in on the gory details.

While most of my clients have come to me for fat loss, a number of high school and college students have enlisted my services because they needed to add weight for their chosen sport. If anyone knows how to put on weight it’s me. At 15 years of age, I vividly remember stepping on the scale in my parent’s bathroom and being just shy of 140 lbs at 6 foot 2 inches tall. Being bone thin sucks.

Today I am an inch or two taller and 75 lbs heavier at approximately the same body fat percentage as I was back then. We all look and perform better with some muscle on our frames. It took me several years to put that weight on, but I did it the right way. I wasn’t eating large pepperoni pizzas and chasing them down with 2 litre bottles of coke. I did my research. I read the literature and sought counsel from a few guys who had done it before me. I spent a lot of time in the gym throwing weights around, but my nutrition was spot on.

When you are trying to put on weight, I recommend that you look at what you’re eating and see if there is a nutrient-dense, higher calorie alternative. You don’t want to add calories at the expense of your nutrition because this will just make you fat and sick. A good rule of thumb is to start by increasing your calorie intake by 10%—you want to gradually increase your intake to avoid adding fat. If you put on any more than a pound or two a week, you are overeating. Better to start small and build the calories up as you go.

The first thing I did was become very familiar with a blender. Because everything is blended and already broken down, the ingredients will usually sit well in your stomach. You would be amazed at how calorie dense you can make a smoothie by adding protein powders, frozen fruit, and nut or seed butters. Ideally you want to chew your food as much as possible, but blending up a couple of shakes every day can easily add an extra 1500 calories to your daily intake.

Start swapping your low fat dairy for full fat options. Preferably seek out organic grass-fed dairy products including milk, cheese and yogurt. You can add whole milk to puréed soups, sauces like curries, or pour it over your cereal. I like to drink a litre of it post workout which adds an extra 600 calories of high quality protein, carbohydrates and fats to help me recover. Not everyone does well with milk, but many of those who don’t are able to tolerate yogurt. It is great to make parfaits by adding berries, nuts, seeds and granola. So the calories will add up in a hurry.

Avocados not only taste great, but they are loaded with high quality, nutrient-dense calories. One medium size avocado contains a whopping 225 calories. Those calories come primarily from monounsaturated fat (the good kind of fat). You can blend them into dressings, pesto sauces, chop them onto salads, add slices to sandwiches or in wraps, blend into smoothies, use as a dip, or just eat them on their own.

Keep a container full of dried fruits, nuts and seeds lying around the kitchen. Every couple of hours when you feel a hunger pang coming on, go into the jar and grab a handful. They will keep your blood sugar constant and provide you with a ton of nutrient-dense calories. This is what I put in mine: dried blueberries, figs, pineapples, Thompson raisins, cherries, figs, pistachios, pecans, macadamia, brazil nuts, pumpkin and sesame seeds. Sprinkle in a handful of cinnamon to give them some extra flavour.

Start eating grass fed beef and chicken thighs for dinner. They are high in fat and calories and the nutrient profile goes up dramatically when they are organic. You can use grass fed ground beef to make burgers, casseroles or throw them in a Shepherd’s pie. Chicken thighs make a great substitute for white meat. They have a lot more flavour and more calories. I would use them the same way you would a chicken breast.

I make a point of having things to look forward to each and every day. Hockey games, dinner with friends or checking out a new movie that just came out over the weekend. We all need things to look forward to in order to keep ourselves going. Without it, what would be the point?

The one thing I look forward to more than anything else is training. I need to do something active every day.  Humans are meant to move.  Not sit at a desk all day slouched in a chair pushing paper. If you have a few minutes, watch the TED Talk entitled: “The real reason for brains” at the end of this blog.

Now whether I am shooting for a new personal best on the squat rack, performing sprints on my stationary bike or doing my hour long walk around the neighbourhood, without daily activity, I can’t be nearly as effective in other aspects of my life. That applies to my relationships, my job or giving back in my free time.

Training is what centres me and keeps me on track throughout the day. Having structure and routine in my life does not limit me or hold me back, it gives me freedom. So when I am planning my day, some form of training will always be part of it.

When I don’t train, I pay the price for it. My relationships suffer, my stress levels go up, my gratitude disappears and I am generally unhappy. A friend of mine’s father used to say that, “Smart people stay active”. So I make training non-negotiable. It is something that I do no matter what is going on in my external world.

Find physical activities that you enjoy and do them religiously. Your quality of life will improve dramatically. That is a promise.

There really are easy-to-prepare, sweet-tasting recipes that are so healthy that they will actually help you make progress towards your fat loss goals.

Like most kids, I grew up with lots of desserts in my home. Eating my vegetables at dinner time was a prerequisite to being rewarded with some type of sugar concoction. Cake, ice cream, cookies, I didn’t care. As long as it was sweet, I never turned it down. Broccoli and peas were another story completely.

Sugar is shunned by every nutritionist, dietitian and holistic practitioner. Study after study shows how excess sugar leads to a fatty liver, diabetes, cancer and a host of other diseases. I firmly believe we can still eat foods that taste sweet and satisfy our palate without causing bodily harm to our systems. It is natural to crave sugar and salts. It’s the sources that we use to satisfy these cravings that are wrong. The majority of cookies, cakes, pastries and ice cream in your local supermarket are loaded with chemicals, dyes and artificial sweeteners. These extras interact with your pleasure centres causing you to crave them more and more, much like an addict who takes that first hit. Sugar works quite similarly.

This may sound a bit overblown, but it is true.  How many people do you know who experience these cravings first hand? Late night trips to the doughnut shop or a sour key run in the middle of the day? It shows a complete loss of control and that is what sugar can do to many people. There are a few who don’t fall victim to this type of physiological and psychological response to sugar, but they are in the minority. The rest of us get a rush followed by a crash and it is the crash that causes your body to crave more sugar to perk itself back up again.

Apart from the natural sugars that occur in dairy, fruits and vegetables, I’ve been sugar-free for years. Sugar is sugar, but there is a big difference between the sugar in an apple and sugar in a chocolate bar. The fructose (fruit sugar) in the apple doesn’t spike insulin to anywhere near the extent of the sucrose or table sugar in a chocolate bar. A good sized apple contains 5 grams of fibre, and the fibre further slows down the release of sugars from the apple into your bloodstream. A healthy, lean individual can eat 3 to 5 pieces of fruit a day without experiencing any negative effects. Someone who is on the heavier side and trying to lose weight should keep it to 1 to 3 pieces a day and stick with lower glycemic options. Different types of berries, cherries and plums are ideal.

Try this luscious, dairy-free, rich, silky and smooth Strawberry Panna Cotta to finish your meal. It has a creamy texture from the coconut milk but holds together nicely because of the gelatin. Look for unflavored gelatin that is sourced from grass-fed, healthy animals to add both an excellent source of pure protein and texture.

This recipe was originally from Dr. Mark Hyman’s Blog, and has been modified by my Mom:

Ingredients
1 15 oz can full fat coconut milk
1 pound fresh strawberries (organic) rinsed, stems/leaves removed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon honey
2 tablespoons gelatin
1 pinch sea salt
2 tablespoons finely unsweetened shredded coconut

Instructions
1. Put the strawberries in a food processor and pulse until well chopped.
2. Warm the milk, berries, vanilla, and honey in a saucepan over medium-heat for about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to the lowest setting. Using a hand mixer, blend for about 2 minutes.
3. Add the gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Blend with the mixer so the gelatin is thoroughly mixed in with the berry mixture, another 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Pour the mixture into a glass bowel, sprinkle with a little salt and shredded coconut and place in the refrigerator to cool for an hour, or until panna cotta reaches desired consistency.
5. Garnish with fresh strawberry slices, if desired.

Makes 4 servings. Nutritional analysis per serving: calories 240, fat 22g, saturated fat 19g, cholesterol 0mg, fibre 3g, protein 6g, carbohydrate 14g, sodium 95mg

One fall morning eight years ago, I woke up in a pool of sweat. It felt like the walls were closing in on me. I was completely paralyzed with fear and unable to move. My thoughts had gotten the better of me. In reality, everything was okay. Not exactly the way I would have liked it to be, but nothing earth shattering that I couldn’t handle. I had a panic/anxiety attack. They are a lot more common than you might think, but at the moment you are experiencing one, it feels like cardiac arrest. Not fun.

Looking back, there were a number of incidents that had taken place, which I had chosen to sweep under the carpet, that led up to this event. However, this was something I could not ignore. I was determined to make sure it never happened again and believe me I tried everything. I changed my diet. I got off caffeine. I sought out cognitive therapy to straighten out my thoughts. I even exercised more than I already did. They all helped to some extent, but nothing helped more than learning how to breath properly. It sounds ridiculous—I had been breathing for 35 years at the time, so you would think I’d be pretty good at it by then, but that wasn’t the case at all.

I did a bunch of research and it turns out that most of us are “vertical” breathers, meaning that our shoulders move upward when we inhale. We breathe from our upper chest, where our lungs have minimal presence. The correct way to breathe is horizontally from the diaphragm which is located in the middle of the body. The belly needs to expand while we inhale through our nose and then we need to squeeze our bellies inward during the exhale.

Whenever I get stressed and my mind begins to fill up with thoughts of doom and gloom, here is what I do:

I inhale deeply through my nose until my stomach is completely full, which takes about 7 to 10 seconds. I hold that in for 5 to 10 seconds and then exhale all that built up air pressure through my mouth. Then I repeat this process as long as I need to. (I’ve been known to do it for as long as 5 to 10 minutes at a time.) I can promise you that it works. When I am done, I have usually forgotten what I was so fearful about in the first place.

“You are your routine”. If you are eating nutrient deficient food, chances are your brain does not function optimally. If you are not getting enough sleep at night, you likely have high cortisol levels and are sluggish throughout the day. If you are performing unchallenging exercises at the gym without sufficient resistance, you are certainly not strong and sturdy. So if you are not happy with your current physique, you need to figure out what it is you are avoiding to get the results you want.

When I go out on consults to meet with potential clients I ask: “What has held you back in the past from getting the results you are looking for ?”  Most people don’t know why they are not progressing as they would like. My theory is that the majority of gym goers have the greatest of intentions. They just don’t know what to do. They work diligently on the treadmill for hours on end. They spend 2 hours lifting weights in the gym until they can barely move, have a shower and then go home and eat salad for dinner.The prevailing societal attitude is that ‘more is better’. If I can train for X amount of time, then doing even more must be to my benefit. This is clearly the not the case. There is a point of diminishing returns in everything that we do. That goes for inside and outside of the gym. Here are some of the top reasons you may not be getting results.

1.  You are not getting enough nutrient dense food in your diet. Protein, fibre rich carbohydrates and healthy fats are essential to fueling and recovering from your workouts.

2. You are not getting enough high quality uninterrupted sleep. This is quite common. The majority of the population reports getting 6 hours of sleep on average per night. We need a minimum of 8 hours sleep to function optimally. At night is when our bodies recover physically and mentally from the stress of the day. Make it a priority to get into bed by 11pm if your wake up time is 7am. Even earlier if you have trouble falling asleep. Try and avoid excess light (computers, televisions) at bedtime.

3. You are spending too much time in the gym. If you are in the gym for more than an hour, you are not training, you are making friends. Peak testosterone levels hit at about 30 minutes into a training session and go down from there. After an hour the body starts to produce excess cortisol (stress hormone) which you need to avoid if your goals are to gain muscle and lose fat. You need to work hard and work fast. Keep your rest periods between sets at 60-90 seconds and get done in under an hour. If at the end of the hour you still have more energy, you are not working hard enough !!!

4. You are not performing a sufficient warm up. I am not talking about walking on the treadmill for a couple of minutes before you jump into your routine. I am referring to mobility drills. A bodyweight warm up. Squats, push ups, jumping jacks, skipping, duck unders, band pull aparts, etc. Muscles are like putty. They need to be warmed up and stretched before having heavy loads placed upon them. The primary concern I hear from clients is that the warm up will cause them to lift less once they start the meat of the session. The truth is the opposite. You will have better mobility, feel less stiff and be able to lift more weight as a result. It might take a few sessions to get used to, but in the long run you will be much better off.

5. You are performing way too much cardio !!!! Steady state cardio is the kiss of the death. If you are jumping on the cross-trainer or as I like to refer to it as the hamster wheel for hours on end, you are wasting your time. Start focussing more on intensity and less on duration. 20-30 minutes of hard work interspersed with brief periods of rest 2 to 3 times a week will do the trick (30 seconds on 30 seconds off). This is referred to as conditioning. I recommend doing this after your strength training sessions or on days where you are not lifting.

As promised last week, here are five more foods I believe you must start eating.

Grass Fed Beef – Don’t be afraid to eat red meat. Be afraid to eat commercially-raised beef. When cattle are raised properly, their nutritional value is off the charts. Cattle evolved to graze in pastures and eat what is there (grass, hay, clover). Commercially raised cattle are fed a diet consisting primarily of corn and wheat because it is a lot cheaper and fattens them up much quicker. The problem with this practice is that the number of omega-6’s found in the meat becomes extremely high, and this has been directly linked to cardiovascular disease. The benefits of grass fed beef are endless. Cows raised on grass have less total fat, more heart healthy omega-3 fatty acids, more conjugated linoleic acid (a type of fat that reduces heart disease and cancer risks) and more antioxidant vitamins, like vitamin E. Grass fed beef is available at Whole Foods and most specialty grocery stores. You can also go online and seek out a local farmer.

Kale – This is one of the world’s healthiest foods. One cup of kale has only 36 calories, 5 grams of fibre and 0 grams of fat. It is great for aiding in digestion and elimination with its great fibre content. It is loaded with nutrients, vitamins A, C, E, K, folate, calcium and magnesium. It is great for detoxifying your body and keeping your liver healthy. I go out of my way to have at least 3 servings of kale per week, if not more. It is great in salads, and if you are in the mood to be creative there are numerous recipes online. Give kale chips a try.

Almonds – They are extremely high in monounsaturated fats, which is the same type of health-promoting fats found in olive oil, which have been associated with reduced risk of heart disease. Study after study shows their ability to lower LDL cholesterol (the bad kind) that is believed to come from their high levels of vitamin E. Almonds have high levels of magnesium and potassium that are thought to improve the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. Almonds are easily broken down into flour, making them an ideal choice to bake healthy cakes, cookies and muffins.

Greek Yogurt – In order to create this little piece of heaven, the yogurt is heavily strained to remove liquid whey and lactose, leaving behind a tangy, creamy product. Plain Greek yogurt has double the protein, half the carbs and half the sodium of the regular variety, keeping you fuller for longer. Because Greek yogurt contains less carbohydrates than regular yogurt, it has less lactose, the sugar in dairy products that can sometimes upset people’s stomachs. This is especially helpful for people who have lactose intolerance. I go out of my way to find the organic plain full fat versions. I like Organic Meadow myself. Add a handful of berries to give it a sweeter taste.

Sweet Potatoes – They are a fantastic source of beta carotene (vitamin A). They are also a good source of vitamin C, manganese, copper, pantothenic acid, and vitamin B6. Additionally, they are a good source of potassium, dietary fibre, niacin, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, and phosphorus. The best part about them is that they are a low glycemic/slow burning carbohydrate providing long lasting energy, making them less likely to be stored as fat. Try baking them for 1 hour at 450 degrees. Once they are done,  add a pat of butter or coconut oil to them and then sprinkle on some cinnamon. They taste like candy.

I find myself becoming more and more frustrated when reading articles about nutrition. Invariably I am told what not to eat.  The authors usually offer very compelling reasons for their recommendations, but they leave a vacuum, not telling us what to get more of in our diets. I have known many people with good intentions who have had a sincere desire to change their lives and improve their health, but didn’t have a clue where to start—they were lost in the supermarket. So my goal is to arm you with as much knowledge as possible. Below I have listed the foods that I strongly believe we all need to eat on a regular basis. Some you can eat a few times a week and others daily.

Wild Fresh Caught Salmon – Not organic and not farmed. It has to be wild. I recommend eating it at least once a week and if possible, even 2 to 3 servings of fatty fish per week. It is the omega-3 fatty acids that are found in cold water, oily fish such as salmon and mackerel bring so many health benefits. They protect your heart against plaque buildup in the arteries. They boost your skin’s defenses against UV damage. In a study published earlier this year in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers found that those who ate a little more than 5 ounces of omega-3-rich fish each week decreased the development of precancerous lesions by almost 30 percent. Scientists think the omega-3s act as a shield, protecting cell walls from free-radical damage. From a muscle building standpoint, 6 ounces of wild sockeye salmon provides you with a whopping 34 grams of high quality protein. So eat up.

Blueberries – Eating a cup of mixed berries (e.g., raspberries, strawberries, blueberries) has been associated with increased levels of “good” HDL cholesterol and lowered blood pressure. Both of which are huge positives when it comes to heart health. It is the diverse range of polyphenols, which are health-promoting plant compounds, that are responsible for these perceived benefits. Blueberries contain anthocyanins (which are pigments) that have been linked to an increase in neuronal signalling in brain centres. A study done at the University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center looked at the effect of daily consumption of wild blueberry juice on older adults with memory changes. After 12 weeks, participants showed noticeable improvement in memory function. And, one cup of wild blueberries provides 6 grams of fibre.

Broccoli – Include broccoli as one of the cruciferous vegetables you eat on a regular basis if you want to receive the fantastic health benefits it provides. Eating high amounts of broccoli has been associated with lowering the risk of a number of different cancers. Studies have suggested that sulforaphane, which is the sulfur-containing compound that gives broccoli it’s bitter bite, is also what provides its cancer fighting power (phytonutrients). Broccoli has significant amounts of omega-3 fatty acids, which are well known as having an anti-inflammatory effect. Each cup consumed provides 5 grams of fibre.

Stay tuned. Next week in Part 2 I will outline 4 more nutritious foods that you NEED to have as a part of your diet.