Tag Archives: Weight

DNA: Can We Change It?

Our bodies are no longer viewed as stagnant and incapable of change. A branch of science called epigenetics studies how we can effectively alter our DNA. Instead of being a victim to our genes, we can actually manipulate them. According to epigenetics, you don’t have to accept the spare tire around your middle (“that my momma gave me”) and you don’t have to resign yourself to a slow metabolism because of age. You have the power to alter the course of your entire life. To change your destiny, if you will.

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How is it possible to literally change who you are?

Stem cell biologist Bruce Lipton explains the difference between genetic determinism and epigenetics:

“The difference between these two is significant because this fundamental belief called genetic determinism literally means that our lives, which are defined as our physical, physiological and emotional behavioral traits, are controlled by the genetic code. This kind of belief system provides a visual picture of people being victims: If the genes control our life function, then our lives are being controlled by things outside of our ability to change them. This leads to victimization that the illnesses and diseases that run in families are propagated through the passing of genes associated with those attributes. Laboratory evidence shows this is not true.”

Based on Lipton’s theory, healthy cell expression can result from both intention and a “quantum nutrient diet.”

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Changing your DNA through intention:

Roger Nelson published a report through Princeton called “The Physical Basis of Intentional Healing Systems.” Nelson explains the power of the mind in the healing process: “When there is a disruption, and healing is required, the need is for additional order, the infusion of information. Of course consciousness is nothing if not a manifestation of information, and in its creative and structuring capacities, it is ideally suited as a reservoir for the processes that sustain and restore health and wellbeing.”

Nelson and Lipton agree that while it is difficult to quantify, the mind has powerful healing capacity when its faculties are directed at creating a state of mental, emotional and physical harmony.

Changing your DNA through “quantum nutrients”:

Quantum nutrients aren’t as complicated or ellusive as they sound. They are simply positive states of the mind such as love, self-love, appreciation, joy, hope and peace. When our body is stripped of these positive states and is plagued by stress, anger or frustration, it is depleted both emotionally and physically, detracting from energy the body has to focus on cellular repair. Thus, negative emotions can encourage disease and positive ones can foster good health and wellness.

The Institute of HeartMath in Boulder Creek, CA agrees with this notion and has decades of research showing how love, appreciation, anxiety and anger can all impact a person’s genetic code or genetic “blueprint.” This supports the power and restorative nature of positive thinking and its impact on our overall wellness.

Changing our DNA 1

Basic Ways to Change Your DNA and Life:

Research supports the power of the mind and its role in our health. Simple, daily steps are possible so that you can create a state of harmony in your body and mind, which can promote the best expression of your genetic potential. Here are a few things you can consider:

  • Meditation – download a podcast or app, join an online community or attend a workshop near your home. There are lots of ways to get involved in meditation. It can be a scary thing to step into, but once you are alone with your thoughts and can practice harnessing them, you will begin to see the world simplify. It will become easier to manage even as it becomes more profound.
  • Journaling – write down positive affirmations or intentions every single day. This daily practice will train your mind to focus on the positives instead of the negatives in your life. With consistency, this can trascend into other areas of your life such as how you interact with your loved ones and how you speak to yourself in your mind.
  • Spiritual Practices – finding a spiritual community of some variety is essential to wellbeing. The modern world we live in convinces us that our self-worth exists in areas we have little control over such as our careers, our financial wellbeing, and our impression on others. If we focus on an unchanging and priceless spiritual identity, we become more secure and joyful individuals because we are no longer shaken by the ebbs and flows in our bank accounts, physical health, job title or popularity.

In these ways and more, I hope that you find improved wellness. I hope you can acknowledge the incredible power you have over your body and the direction of your life.


“The concepts which now prove to be fundamental to our understanding of nature … seem to my mind to be structures of pure thought, … the universe begins to look more like a great thought than a great machine.”

James Jeans, The Mysterious Universe


Yours in health and wellness,

Maggie

wellnesswinz blue sea

This Girl CAN

Sport England, a UK government agency, found that 75% of women want to participate in sport and exercise but are afraid to get involved. Widespread hesitation stems from “fear of judgement” and “worries about being judged for being the wrong size, not fit enough and not skilled enough.”

This is really upsetting news because the Women’s Sport Foundation has suggested that sport and exercise has a significant and positive impact on women’s physical and mental health. Women who have participated in sports are less likely to experience an early pregnancy and to be victims of domestic abuse. They also tend to have higher levels of self-esteem and confidence. Not to mention the plethora of other benefits.  

It’s imperative that as mature women, we decide to cast aside feelings of insecurity in order to live life to the fullest. We must rise to the occasion and start believing we can. Once we embrace movement and our bodies, future generations of women will feel the liberty and empowerment to do the same.

A lot of what helps us get involved in sports and exercise is finding something that’s fun. I have recently been honored with the opportunity to write a guest post for Fit Mommy Diaries, a blog that has roughly 2 million sets of mommy eyes on it every month. Whoa, mama – literally! My guest post implores women to find what sport or exercise works best for them:

“Keep trying out classes until you find one that you love! Also, try not to doubt your ability to get into the shape you want just because you found out that training for a half marathon isn’t your mojo. Try something else! There are plenty of exercises, classes, races, groups, and more to get involved with. Think of it like dating – you don’t have to settle for the guy who asked you out on your first date. Unless it’s life-long love, why would you?! First dates can be uncomfortable, stressful, and awkward. *Or am I the only one who experienced this?* Trying out new exercise routines can feel the same.”

To discover more about how to find a routine that is fun and how to balance it out with what your body needs, feel free to check out: http://bit.ly/1y8oODm. Sia, the fit mommy behind the blog, is a shining example of a woman who is brave and willing to be up close and personal in order to inspire other women. Now, we’re not all going to have Sia’s impressive toned abs, nor do we all need to share what we might prefer to keep personal, but we must, must, must believe we can.

Check out this 90 second video by Sport England that is rapidly spreading across the web…ironically, it’s titled “This Girl Can.” How fitting. It will make you feel like getting up from your desk or chair to do a victory dance. This is what real women look like when they work out. It’s awesome. 

Yours in health and wellness,

Maggie

wellnesswinz logo 2

 

 

References:

http://fitmommydiaries.blogspot.com/2015/01/featuring-guest-blogger-fellow-personal.html

https://www.sportengland.org/our-work/national-work/this-girl-can/

http://www.womenssportsfoundation.org/

 

7 Ways to Ditch Your Scale

There is a better solution than weighing yourself on the scale! It’s called circumference measurements. I will explain exactly how to use circumference measurements on 7 different places of your body. It’s quick, simple and measures REAL results. The weight on the scale is meaningless!

Weighing yourself on a scale may not reveal the true results of your fitness or eating habits. Why? The scale reflects your weight, not your body composition (a reflection of how much fat vs muscle your body has). Without the need for additional evidence, we all know that adding muscle to your body can result in many health benefits. What women oftentimes don’t know is that muscle takes up less space than fat. In other words, you can look smaller but weigh more.

WW Scale

Hello, old enemy!

 You’re probably thinking “say whhaaat?” Yes, it’s true! For example, before my wedding I was doing a lot of cardio exercise to burn stress. Since I was less focused on weight training, I actually lost some strength during this time. Today, I weigh a solid 8 pounds heavier than I did on my wedding day because I reinserted weight training into my regimen. But get this – at a heavier weight, I’m still the same dress size thanks to gains in muscle!

The saying “muscle weighs more than fat” is a myth. One pound of muscle = One pound of fat. Again, the difference is that muscle takes up less space than fat. When I was studying Exercise Physiology in undergrad, a professor explained it to me this way: “Imagine a bag of cotton balls. Five pounds of cotton balls will take up a lot of space. Now, imagine a rock. A five pound rock will look very compact when compared to the enormous bag of cotton balls that weighs the same.” In this example, cotton balls = fat and rock = muscle.

Check out the following website’s images to see what I’m talking about (especially the first two – you will be shocked!): 

http://paleozonenutrition.com/2012/04/25/what-does-your-body-look-like-on-the-inside-more-reasons-to-lift-weights/

Many women I’ve trained have had challenges wrapping their minds around the fact that while becoming more lean and fit they might not lose weight (they might even gain weight)! If the scale is used to assess progress these women will be disappointed and confused.

Weighing yourself on a scale every day doesn’t always help you understand the changes happening in your body. It also can lead to obsessive check-ins and emotional highs and lows. Your weight fluctuates throughout the day and can quickly vary by 5 pounds or more! This can happen because of bloating, what you have eaten, not going to the bathroom, and the timing of your menstrual cycle (your period and ovulation can cause water retention and/or bowel changes).

WW Woman Upset

Measure your body, not your worth!

If you want to keep track of your weight, try weighing yourself once a week. Make sure you are weighing yourself at the same time on the same day. Also, keep in mind that if you ate a high sodium dinner and haven’t had a bowel movement in the past 24 hours that it will be reflected in the number. Try not to panic. Always take the higher perspective and think about the various factors impacting your body. The same is true for circumference measurements. They can vary from time to time but all said and done, they are better assessments of your progress.

At last, to answer your question, “what are circumference measurements?”

Circumference measurements assess size at key sites on your body. They are a good way to measure progress since even a few pounds of fat loss can mean exciting changes such as losing an inch on your waist or feeling your pants fit better. I recommend women follow the same instructions mentioned above for weighing on a scale. Try to do circumference measurements once or twice a week, same time/same day, and bear in mind the various external factors that can cause your results to fluctuate (ex: you just got back from vacation, you attended a cocktail party, you’re under stress, etc.).

There are 7 sites that I recommend women measure: Arm, Chest, Waist, Stomach, Hips, Upper Thigh, and Lower Thigh.

Check out the following image tutorial:

Arm:

 WW CM Arm 2

Measure mid-way between your elbow and shoulder, at the thickest part of your arm.

 

Chest:

WW CM Bust

Measure straight across the nipple line at the fullest part of your bust.

Waist:

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Measure at the smallest part of your midsection. You can find your natural waist by dropping your arms by your sides. Where your elbows fall is where your waist is.

Stomach:

WW CM Stomach

Measure directly across your belly button while letting your stomach relax.

 

Hips:

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Measure around the center of your gluts (aka your booty). The tape should run across your pubic bone, the bony area on the front of the hip. Keep your heels together for consistent measurements. 

 

Upper Thigh:

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Measure around the thickest point of your thigh, approximately an inch or two below groin.

Lower Thigh:

WW CM Lower Thigh

Measure right above the knee where your muscle and fat begin, not on the bony part of your knee.

 

Now that you know how to better track the changes in your body, remember that in the spirit of wellness, we must drop judgment of ourselves. Measure your body, not your worth.

 

Yours in health and wellness,

 

Maggie

 

 

References:

http://www.jillianmichaels.com/fit/lose-weight/myth-weighing-yourself?xid=nl_LosingItWithJillianMichaels_20130902

http://www.niashanks.com/stop-weighing-on-the-scale-for-weight-loss/

http://www.niashanks.com/10-commandments-for-simple-fat-loss/

http://paleozonenutrition.com/2012/04/25/what-does-your-body-look-like-on-the-inside-more-reasons-to-lift-weights/