What Is All The Hype About Fish Oil??

by Dr. Laura Riley Jones

What is all the hype about fish oil??

The words “fish oil” lead many people to visualize a less than pleasant childhood memory of their mother pushing a tablespoon of cod liver oil into their mouth, insisting that it would keep them healthy.  As usual, our mothers were right!!

I know, it sounds too slimy and smelly to be good for you. However, fish oil has more to offer than most people realize. Fish oil is rich in omega-3 fatty acids.  Omega-3s are essential fatty acids (EFAs) that our bodies are unable to create on their own. Therefore, we must obtain EFAs from food. Most people do not get enough of these polyunsaturated fats from their diet. This is why supplementation with fish oils can be so important to our health.

EPA and DHA play a key role in brain development, nervous system function, and eyesight.  They also play a protective role in the body, reducing the risk of developing high blood pressure, arthritis, cancers, and heart disease.  In fact, a large amount of research on omega-3s has focused on their effects on heart disease.

EPA and DHA are linked to lower triglyceride levels, decreasing one’s risk for atherosclerosis.  These two fatty acids can also decrease inflammation in the body, improve immune function and promote skin, hair and nail health.

Recent clinical research has shown that not only the quantity of fat in the diet, but also the type of fat affects body weight and metabolism.  Diets rich in omega-3 oils result in healthier body weight and metabolism as well as the best body composition in terms of fat/muscle ratio.  In addition, fish oils act as strong antioxidants throughout the body and improve the oxygen delivery to cells thus improving aerobic performance.

If purchasing fish oil, make sure it is from a reliable source, free of environmental contaminants (pesticides and heavy metals), and contains vitamin E to protect and preserve the oil.  It is important to store your oil in a cool location, away from direct light.

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Dr. Laura Riley Jones earned a Doctorate in Naturopathic Medicine with Honors from Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry with Honors from the University of New Hampshire.  Her Naturopathic medical practice, Whole Health Concord, is located in Concord, NH.
Dr. Riley Jones is a licensed primary care naturopathic doctor.  She treats patients of all ages with a variety of health concerns.  Her areas of greatest interest are Women’s Health as well as Autoimmune diseases, Gastroenterology, Endocrinology and Metabolic disorders.  Dr. Riley Jones also specializes in the treatment of symptoms associated with Menopause and the use of phytoestrogens and Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement Therapy. She employs several naturopathic modalities when treating patients with a focus on Clinical Nutrition including vitamins and mineral supplementation, Homeopathy and Herbal Medicine.  She works with each patient to uncover the cause of their illness and develop a treatment plan using the Naturopathic modalities that best suit their individual needs.

During her training, Dr. Riley Jones was a member of the Diabetes Research Group which focused on treatments for patients with Type II Diabetes, High Cholesterol and Weight gain.  Dr. Riley Jones lectures throughout New Hampshire on various topics related to health.  She is a member of the New Hampshire Associaton of Naturoapthic Doctors. Please visit her website at http://www.naturalmedicinenh.com/

Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown – The S3 Debrief

At the time I am writing this blog, there are less than 24 hours until the final weigh in for S3 – Our 8 week “Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown” contest. We have seen some incredible changes in many of our members. Not only in the way they look, but in the way they feel, the sense of purpose and focus to themselves and their health, and as a bonus some pretty drastic fat loss as well!

We have also observed a pretty wide range of emotions as the contest draws to a close and the day of reckoning approaches.

Some of you are excited, some of you are dreading facing the scale, and others are, well, pretty indifferent about the whole thing.

There are three basic outcomes that we will see at the end of the contest. You will have:

1. Lost pounds and inches
2. Gained pounds and inches
3. Stayed the same

I would suggest that how you approach those results, how you feel about how you did as well as the actual results themselves, is actually more important than what happened during this brief 8 week period.

Why?

Because there are reasons why you did or did not succeed to your level of expectation.

In other words your outcome over the last 8 weeks that is an amalgamation of all the choices you have made, for better or worse.

I don’t think it’s going out on a limb to say that those who were committed to their training, nutrition and sleep made great progress, while those who were not, did not.

Now what are you going to do with that?

One definition of insanity is “Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result”.

Were your actions in line with your expectations? Did you do anything different over these last 8 weeks?

Changing your body composition is only easy if you are trying to do one thing – be overfat. Most of us have experienced that – you wake up one day and you weigh 30 pounds more than you did a couple years ago, and you didn’t even have to try!

Going the other way is not that easy, as many of us have also discovered over the years.

But it isn’t rocket science either.

The #1 reason why we don’t make the progress we desire is because we are unwilling to change what we are doing, usually in the area of nutrition.

• Unwilling to record a food diary
• Unwilling to plan and prepare
• Unwilling to limit non-supportive foods

I defy anybody to demonstrate they have taken these three steps over a reasonable period of time (8 weeks maybe?) and not made significant progress toward body composition goals.

I am extremely proud of everyone who made the effort to make the changes necessary to achieve the outcome they desired. I know you will continue on the path you have started.

I want to help those who did not.

Do you really want to make the change necessary to achieve your goals?

I have to believe that you do.

So here is what I want you to do.

Step #1

I want you to go to http://fitday.com and set up your account. Click here to watch our video on how to do that. Make your account public so we can look at it.

Step #2

Talk to Greg, Anne or Stephanie about the results they have achieved over just the last few weeks since they started keeping a food journal.

Step #3

Log your food intake into your account for one week. When you have done that, send me an email and I will not only take a look and evaluate for that week, but put you on my schedule (or Nancy’s if you prefer) to look at it every week, as long as you continue to be consistent.

No other changes, no other hassles, no nothing. Those three simple steps.

This is our gift to you, our current clients. Very soon we will be offering nutrition classes and coaching, and there definitely will be a charge for those. I would strongly encourage you to receive and use this tool.

If you won’t, think long and hard about why not.

I am excited about tomorrow. I am excited to see how you all did. To hear your success stories and your challenges overcome. It has been incredible to see the changes that are being made, and I am more excited than ever about helping you reach your goals.

The only way you can fail is to give up.

Don’t ever, ever, ever give up!

Make It Happen!

Dean

Healthy Recipe Ginger Salmon Video

We received great feedback from this recipe when we posted it, so this edition of “Cooking with the Carlson’s” shows you just how quick and easy it is!

Enjoy!

Grilled Salmon

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/4 c onion, chopped

1 tsp ginger, grated

1 tsp garlic, minced

2 Tbsp Soy sauce or Tamari

1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

1/2 tsp paprika

1 lb salmon fillets

Combine marinade ingredients. Add salmon and marinade at room temperature for 15 minutes. Drain marinade. Cook on uncovered grill for 7 minutes. Turn with spatula and brush with marinade and cook for an additional 6-8 minutes until the fish flakes easily. (the fish can be broiled in an oven as well) Serves 2

Healthy Recipe – Vegetable Fettucine

No Pasta? No Problem!

This great tasting dish uses your favorite vegetables to keep calories low while keeping all the flavor.

The Latest Get Fit NH Bootcamp “Make It Happen” Award

Goes to Greg and Judy of the “Road Crew”. Greg and Judy have made great strides in fitness but also in their nutrition. This husband and wife team encourages each other to eat healthy each meal. Recently they faced two challenges head on and won.

Here is what Judy wrote:

“This morning we went to the Meathouse to resupply our Boars Head. We were the first customers of the day & as we were checking out, the cashier said “would you like a loaf of bread? (it was the giant round loaf kind) …it’s FREE!”  Greg had already successfully negotiated the fudge, cookies & other land mines throughout the store & at the checkout.  We both looked at each other – none of the other temptations were FREE. We both laughed & smiled at the cashier & Greg said, no thanks I’ve been doing so well, I don’t want to ruin it now. Come to think of it, that loaf of bread was about the size of a small land mine…

Thanks for helping us so much!! – Judy”

Avoiding the Land Minds, Isn’t that what it is all about?

Great Job Greg & Judy!

Do You FitDay?

This free tool might be the most valuable tool in your nutrition and healthy eating toolbox!

Tip: Click on the “YouTube” logo to see the video in a larger format.

Why?

Because most of us are masters at convincing ourselves that we “eat good”. But what exactly does that mean? If I ask 100 people what “healthy eating” is, odds are good I will get 100 different answers.

In general there are three primary reasons why we are not getting the results we are looking for with our nutrition.

1. We don’t have a plan.
2. We are not following the plan.
3. The plan stinks.

The order in which those are listed is important. If you don’t have a plan, you know the challenge already. If you have a plan and aren’t following it, it’s not hard to figure out that you need to follow the plan to get the results you want. And if you have a plan and are following it, and you still aren’t getting results, it’s time for a new plan.

The focus of this video is to discover if reason number two is holding you back. We will start with the assumption that you have a plan. But how can we evaluate properly if it’s effective?

You must measure!

The only way to know if you are truly following your plan is to log what you are eating, everything you eat and drink, on a regular and consistent basis. When a client asks us for nutrition guidance, the first thing we are going to ask for is their food logs, so we can see the content and amount of food being consumed.  The video will take you through the steps to setup your own free http://FitDay.com account. If you have any further questions about setting it up, let us know!

Happy Birthday To You

Happy Birthday to Bootcamp! Happy Birthday to Bootcamp! Happy Birthday to Get Fit NH Bootcamp. Happy Birthday to you.

Yes, Get Fit NH Bootcamp turned two in May. We’ve grown and expanded. We opened with one class at 5 AM in the great outdoors, rain or shine. And because of wonderful clients and great results we now have 8 classes, built one location, and hold classes in another facility with over 130 terrific bootcampers.

We Owe You A Big Thank-You!

You’ve Made It Happen.

This year Get Fit NH Bootcamp was voted best fitness facility in Concord by the Hippo. Dean had great honors by being voted the best trainer in Concord by both the Hippo and the Cappies.

We’ve started our Hall of Fame. Those bootcampers walking around proudly wearing a red shirt have earned their way onto the Hall of Fame. They’ve been Making it Happen for over a year. Congratulate them. Ask them where they were when they started.

So Happy Birthday Get Fit NH Bootcamp and many happy returns.

Make It Happen – Every Day!

Nancy

Latest HOF Red Shirt Members

Thank-you and congratulations to Paula, Deb, Lisa and Tim for earning their one year “Red Shirts” and being the newest inductees into the Get Fit NH Bootcamp Hall of Fame!

You Guys Are Awesome!

You Spoke, We Listened!

File this under “You asked for it, you got it”!

Our Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown Contest is in full swing, with only a few more weeks to go.

You are doing a great job with the contest:

Your pants are getting looser…

The class competition is getting tighter…

and you are throwing more trash talk my way than ever!

In spite of the fact that you are doing your best to hurt my feelings, due to overwhelming demand we have decided to extend the S3 contest…

One More Week!

Why?

Two primary reasons:

First it’s April vacation next week, and many of you are going away. We wanted you to have a couple weeks after vacation to tighten it up, get back on track, and make your final push. If you are not going away – even better – you have one more week to Make It a Happen!

Second, the first week of May is a short week. Don’t miss this! We will be meeting Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday only the week of May 3rd.

Because of these two facts, we are going to end the Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown on Friday, May 14th. Your final weigh-in will be the last day you train during that week, and you must weigh-in no later than Friday.

I am really looking forward to seeing you take advantage of the extra week and make even better progress!

If you have any questions, please let us know.

Don’t Treat This Recipe Ginger-ly!

I love cooking with fresh ginger. It’s quick, easy, and very flavorful.  The picture on the right might not look like a gingerbread house, or a ginger cookie, or a ginger drop, so I put it there so you can see what the ginger root looks like in its “natural” state.

The flavor of ginger is peppery and slightly sweet. It makes a killer marinate for chicken, pork, and beef, but my favorite is on Salmon.

This recipe is super-easy and fast to make, and it tastes fantastic!

Grilled Salmon

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/4 c onion, chopped

1 tsp ginger, grated

1 tsp garlic, minced

2 Tbsp Soy sauce or Tamari

1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

1/2 tsp paprika

1 lb salmon fillets

Combine marinade ingredients. Add salmon and marinade at room temperature for 15 minutes. Drain marinade. Cook on uncovered grill for 7 minutes. Turn with spatula and brush with marinade and cook for an additional 6-8 minutes until the fish flakes easily. (the fish can be broiled in an oven as well) Serves 2

At the grocery store you can find ginger in the produce section. It is a root and looks like a gnarly branch or somewhat like a deer antler.

Now if you don’t use ginger all the time here is a great tip for keeping it on hand and not letting it go to waste.

Store ginger root in the freezer (I use a zip-type bag).

• It grates really easily and finely (any grater will do)
• You don’t have to peel it! I’m not kidding. The peel grates up so fine you don’t have to worry about it
• Much less waste, so it lasts longer.

Try this and you will be a convert, I guarantee. It takes all of the hassle out of working with fresh ginger.

Coach Nancy