Breathe Magazine

You are browsing the archives of Nutrition.

For those of you that know me, I’m not a big advocate of eliminating foods from your diet; I find that it’s either unnecessary as it causes you to miss out on vital nutrients, or it’s too restrictive, causing you to eventually rebel and eat too much in the long run. Most foods (even treats) [...]

Carbohydrates are the body’s ideal fuel for most bodily functions. They supply the body with the energy needed for the muscles, brain, and central nervous system to function properly. The brain actually relies exclusively on carbohydrates to function. 
Which is precisely why I cringe when people say they are going ‘low/no carb.’
Carbs are found in fruits, [...]

A couple months ago I won a  Breville Juicer from Foodbuzz and finally started using it. I have always been very interested in juicing, but didn’t want to fork out the dough or cut off my right arm for a juicer. I really like the juicer that they sent me and now think it is [...]

An estimated 18 million adults use herbal supplements in one form or another and that number continues to increase each year. We are a society plagued by the need to have results quickly, which is leading us to pop magic pills to get results.
Even if you don’t take diet pills or stimulants, those “natural supplements” [...]

I love when you get diet advice that says things like “make easy swaps to cut calories, like having a salad instead of your regular fast food meal.”
How is that an easy swap?  Because you are still having lunch?  Something tells me that someone who routinely has fast food isn’t going to be satisfied by a [...]

Most people view eating right and exercising as an exercise in willpower.  Many people also think that willpower is something you are born with: some have it and some don’t. 
Willpower is a mental muscle- the more you use it, the stronger it gets.  You can’t expect to just be able to resist your biggest culinary [...]

Most people check the nutrition facts on a food, and make their decision whether to eat it or not based on that. But just as important as calories and fat, are the ingredients inside your food. Here’s what some of those ingredients are and what they mean for your food.
Hidden Sugars:Sugar isn’t the only word [...]

Eating and exercising should be fun and pleasurable, but for most people it is the cause of guilt, confusion and remorse. I firmly believe that information overload from magazines, T.V., and online sources, coupled with lack of basic knowledge of nutrition and fitness, scares people away from doing what they need to do to get [...]

Many of my blog readers ask me how I stopped counting calories. I reminded myself whenever I felt the urge to start counting or worry about missed counts that it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Here is an example of a transition from accuracy and counting to just being… You are normal [...]

Tracking your food is beneficial for many reasons. No matter your knowledge of nutrition, your goals or your current eating habits, most individuals can benefit from tracking their daily intake. Here’s how:
Timing
Just as important as what you eat, keeping track of when you eat can show you a lot about why you are where [...]

Protein builds and repairs muscle tissue.
During the rest periods after strength training, the muscles synthesize proteins and builds slightly higher levels of strength. Just like when you break a bone, the bone heals stronger, your muscles heal from workouts, with the help of protein, a little bit stronger.
In order to properly repair your muscles, you [...]

Calories are fuel for your body.  If you don’t give your body enough fuel, it will start to slow down your metabolism to conserve energy because it thinks you’re starving.  When your metabolism is in this slowed state, it’s called “starvation mode.”
 
 The second your body starts to run low on energy, your body slows and [...]

Because I am running tonight after my Pilates class, I thought I would do a Mini Living Room Boot Camp session! I decided to add in my push-up, sit-up and squat challenge to the mix!
Here’s what I did:

2 minutes of jump rope
1 minute rows with a squat (challenge)
20 push-ups (challenge)
1 minute rows with a squat [...]

It seems like an easy enough question to ask yourself, but many of us don’t know what hunger is. There was probably a time when you were a child when you knew exactly when you were hungry. Your stomach would growl, and you’d go into the kitchen to ask when dinner would be ready. You [...]

I think most people would agree that healthy eating is easiest at home. With a well-stocked kitchen of fresh ingredients, healthy eating is fun! Venturing from your house into the busy world poses a bit of a challenge, but with a little planning, tackling eating on the go isn’t hard. You’ll find some tips and [...]