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It's hard to always be an energetic entrepreneur. It's often round after round of networking, check writing, employee management, and bookkeeping. Weight gain and low energy often follow, with multiple cups of coffee, fast food, and erratic snacking. Popping a handful of supplements first thing in the morning is not the answer. This scenario really can be better. Just a few small changes, such as looking at good nutrition through the lens of overall health, can lead to big results. Here are seven pillars that support your well being and get you through your busy day with energy to spare. 1. Digestion: does yours functioning properly? This means after you eat, you don't have heartburn, acid reflux, bloating, gas, etc. If you suffer from any of these painful, uncomfortable, often embarrassing problems, it could be a sign of hypochlorhydria. That means lack of sufficient stomach acid, produced at the right time, to digest your food. It's the opposite of what the pharmaceutical companies would have us believe. They'd like us to think we've got too much stomach acid, and we need acid blockers to control it. Usually, we don't have enough! The weak cardiac sphincter at the end of the esophagus allows incompletely digested food to come back up when it is only partially broken down by stomach acid. Sipping warm lemon water can help. So can apple-cider vinegar, diluted or used as a salad dressing. Hydrochloric acid tablets are available, usually labeled HCL, in natural food stores. Good digestion is the first step toward good health. 2. Blood sugar regulation: need a sweet snack at 10:00am and 3:00pm? If that mocha, soda, candy bar, or other sugar hit is the only thing getting you through to the next meal, then you have a blood sugar regulation problem. Fueling and then refueling your body in less than three to four hours is an indication that you need fewer simple carbohydrates. More complex carbs, adequate protein and healthy fats slow down digestion and allow your body to absorb blood sugar at a more moderate rate. Grabbing for a sweet energy boost is what many of us do every day, driving the Type II diabetes epidemic sweeping this country. Don't become a statistic. Instead of a candy bar, try an apple with some nut butter. Instead of a mocha, a small container of yogurt with a few almonds, or some carrot sticks with a small piece of cheese. Perhaps a hard boiled egg is more your style, with a celery stick or two? Is soda your thing? Try some San Pellagrino mineral water with a twist instead. 3. Essential fatty acid balance: We need fat. It's a component of every cell membrane in our body. Fat protects our organs, it allows us to utilize many vitamins, and it keeps our skin healthy. What we don't need are trans fats, fake fats, and fats made from non-foods, such as cotton seeds. Our ancestors did not eat cotton, and we shouldn't be eating it either. Eat more wild salmon, sardines, and small tuna, like tongol tuna. Eat less canola oil based products, found in salad dressings and mayonnaise, for example. 4. Vitamins and minerals: Soil depletion has taken its toll on the nutrient density of our food supply. Lack of trace minerals are often at the root of our health problems. Buy salt that has trace minerals intact. Try Celtic sea salt, Real Salt from Utah, and other unprocessed salts. When you eat chicken, save the bones in the freezer until you have enough to make a good amount of broth. Bone broths are high in minerals. They are an inexpensive and tasty way to re-supply your body with the minerals needed for nerve conduction, bone health, and many other processes. If you take vitamin supplements, ask questions first. You want to know that the brands you buy contain what's on their labels. Make sure they are not on shelves that allow direct sunlight to brighten their day! Many vitamins are depleted by exposure to sunlight. 5. Hydration: The newest accessory is the water bottle. People haul these around like a small pet. We rarely drink as much water as we imagine. Coffee, soda, fruit juice, teas, and alcohol deplete our bodies of water because they are diuretics. For every 8 ounces of these beverages that we consume, we need to drink at least an equal amount of pure water. That's on top of the suggested six to eight glasses of water per day. If you drink bottled water, check out the source. It may just be municipal water in a fancy bottle. If you drink tap water, use a filter. Well water can be a rich source of minerals, but check it often for contaminants. Water is the number one nutrient deficiency in America. 6. Nutrient dense and properly prepared food: Eating on the go is hard. If you go to three or more networking events a week you are eating mass prepared food. That means the possibility of trans fats, poor quality, and less than optimum freshness in those three meals. If you visit a drive-thru at least twice a week, and then enjoy a restaurant meal once or twice a week, you've just given over a third of your meals to someone else's bottom line. And you can bet that your good health is not their main concern. So, what to do? Join a CSA - community supported agriculture. Once a week, you'll receive farm fresh veggies, sometimes right to your door. Go to farmer's markets for farm fresh eggs. Boil up half a dozen for a grab-and-go snack. Purchase only bread and crackers that say 100% whole grain. Try to eat the rainbow of colorful foods every day. Or, at least every two days. Buy organic. It's good for the planet and it's good for you. If you can't find organic, look for biodynamic, or sustainably-farmed food. Fish that is labeled wild caught is better for you than farmed fish. 7. Manage your stress: what does stress management have to do with nutrition? There are two modes to our autonomic nervous system: sympathetic and parasympathetic. Sympathetic nervous system activities can be reduced to these words - fight or flight response. Hunting a charging wooly mammoth, running from a flash flood, escaping from danger, these are under the control of the sympathetic nervous system. Parasympathetic activity includes digestion. Today we react, even over-react to just about everything in our environment and social sphere. In a constant state of physical, emotional, or mental stress, our digestion takes a hit. What to do? Exercise, practice deep breathing, meditation, get adequate sleep and eat slowly. These activities help to lower the sympathetic and enhance the parasympathetic response. Getting the most from your food means having a digestive system that functions properly. Without good digestion, what's getting into your cells to fuel your body for all the activities a busy entrepreneur undertakes daily? Stress is inevitable. Learning to manage it is about choices. Give your health as much consideration as you do your business, and you'll be unstoppable. Get More Energy Starting Now ~ This report explains 7 easy steps to increase your stamina, clarity & self-confidence ~ Solution Through Nutrition. Sandi Thompson is a nutritional therapy practitioner and certified wellness coach. She primarily works with women over 50 who are sick and tired of feeling very sick and very tired most of the time. Her approach is based on sound science and the art of coaching. This non-judgmental approach leads her clients to self-discover and increased self-awareness, while they get their health back and their eating under control. Knowing where to start to regain health is important.
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