FOUNDATIONS

DIGESTION    BLOOD SUGAR    FATTY ACIDS    MINERALS    HYDRATION

Enjoying a life that is vibrant and full of health and vitality is in your power. By educating yourself and making good choices each day, both in nutrition and lifestyle, you will be on your journey to your best you.

Our bodies are a beautiful combination of systems that work together for optimal health and vitality. 

Just as a strong foundation is important for the strength of a home, a strong FOUNDATION for our bodies is where we start.

By healing and strengthening the FOUNDATIONS we can live a life that is health-filled and vibrant. This can include getting off prescription medications, lose weight, lower blood pressure and blood sugar, sleep better, balance hormones, improve auto-immune diseases, your moods…..and so much more

"Enjoying a life that is vibrant and full of health and vitality..."

YOURDIET

At the base of our foundation is DIET. We believe in properly prepared, nutrient dense whole foods that are delicious, nourish our bodies, and restore good health.

"grass fed,
wild caught, organic"

This includes: Grass-fed, pastured beef, chicken, eggs. Wild caught cold-water fish (salmon, sardines….), Good quality fats like olive, coconut & avocado oil, avocados, grass-fed butter, olives, nuts like walnuts, almonds (preferably raw and soaked), organic non-starchy vegetables in volume.
 

Click the TABS below to learn more

FOUNDATION ONE

Digestion

Digestion is the Superhero. Every cell in your body that makes up every tissue that makes up every organ and how they all function depends on your digestive system to provide the nutrients it needs. You can be eating the most perfect, whole food, delicious diet and if your digestion is not working properly you are not getting these nutrients.

Your digestion is fascinating! Get to know it by learning just how it works with everything you eat and drink.

Digestion is a north to south process. It starts in your brain and ends at your bottom….with all kinds of good stuff going on in between. Here is a summary of what that is:

YOURBRAIN

You know how you see or smell something delicious and your mouth starts to water?! That is your brain hitting the start button on your digestion.  Along with the saliva getting started, your stomach starts producing more hydrochloric acid (HCL) and your brains tells your pancreas to get ready with insulin.

"...your brain hitting the start button on your digestion."

Best thing to do: 

  • Slow down and get ready to enjoy your food. 
  • Pause and give thanks for what you are about to eat and even where it comes from. 
  • Digestion is done in what is called your “parasympathetic” state - or “rest & digest”. So often we eat on the run, or eat too fast and stressed. When we do this we are in a “sympathetic” state - more of a fight & flight state, this negatively affects your digestion from the start.

YOURMOUTH

The mechanical and chemical breakdown of your food happens here. Did you know that your saliva actually contains a digestive enzyme, called salivary amylase that does the chemical breakdown of carbohydrates right away?! Here is an interesting test to do…as much as we don’t promote eating pretzels or bread…chew a small piece and pay attention to how it actually turns sweeter. Carbohydrates breakdown to sugar. 

Once you swallow your food it is called Bolus and travels down your esophagus, through the cardiac sphincter and into your stomach.

small...slow...properly

Best thing to do: 

  • Take small bites
  • Eat slow and
  • Chew your food properly. The more you breakdown your food through chewing the less work has to be done later.

YOURSTOMACH

Here is where the churn and burn happens. Picture the bolus ball of food entering your stomach. Your brain has already told your stomach it is on it’s way and the mucous lining of your stomach starts secreting a gastric juice that contains: mucous, pepsinogen/pepsin and hydrochloric acid. The HCL and pepsin breakdown and digest the protein you eat - that big bite of steak or chicken! This is just one reason a good amount of HCL is needed. It is important for the stomach acid to be strong enough to properly digest that hunk of steak. The other thing strong HCL does is insure that any bacteria or parasite that is on our food gets killed here and does not get passed on further into our body.

Best thing to do: 

  • Insure that you have the proper amount of HCL in your stomach.
  • Control stress - this affects your HCL level
  • Excess carbohydrates, alcohol and nutrient deficiencies affect your HCL

If not, a couple things can happen: 

  • Your food does not digest all the way and will cause problems down the intestinal road (ie Leaky Gut)
  • Bacteria and parasites do not get killed off and start growing in the warm intestinal environment
  • Undigested food can actually back up into your esophagus causing damage as well as that heart burn or acid reflux we actually think is too much HCL - it is not - it is too little.
  • If the acid level of the stomach does not reach the high level that is required, your ball of food (now called chyme - Greek word for juice) will not pass on quickly to the next step in your digestion and just kind of sits there and ferments - yuck.

YOURSMALL INTESTINE

Once that ball of chyme’s PH level reaches the correct acids level it can then move into the Small Intestine. The first part of the small intestine is called the Duodenum. So much awesome stuff goes on here. One thing it does is that it kicks off some hormones to tell some of your other organs to do their part:

"...Liver, Gall Bladder & Pancreas."

The 3 other organs come into play are: Liver, Gall Bladder & Pancreas

  • Your pancreas secretes some pretty powerful pancreatic juice that: Further breaks down carbohydrates into glucose; proteins are broken down into amino acids; and fats get broken down into fatty acids.
  • Your liver is in charge of the production of bile and releases it into the small intestine. 
  • Your gall bladder squeezes bile through the bile ducts, which connect the gallbladder and liver to the small intestine.
  • Your pancreas secretes bicarbonate to bring down the acid level of the chyme so it can move on down the line.

By the time chyme leaves the duodenum part of the Small intestine, your food has been completely digested!

All this glucose, amino acids and fatty acids are then absorbed through villa in the small intestine and sent into our bloodstream.

Best things to do to here:

  • Again the HCL level of the stomach comes into play here. If the chyme coming into the small intestine is not acid enough your pancreas won't send off those hormones that start the break down of your protein, fats and carbs into the nutrients to be absorbed.
  • Eat good fats! Low fat and bad fat diets wreck havoc on your gall bladder. No bile or think bile means no absorption of fat. 

YOURLARGE INTESTINE

Once the chyme in the small intestine reaches the proper PH level (less acidic) it gets moved on to the Large Intestine.

Here any water gets recycled, waste gets recycled and nourishes your colons cells and any leftover nutrients, with the help of good bowel flora gets converted to important Vitamins K/B1/B2 & B12.

….and finally gets expelled as feces!

FOUNDATION TWO

BLOOD SUGAR

Never before in the
history of mankind

have we had the emergency need to lower blood sugar. This has come about since we started consuming large amounts of sugar and refined flours. Type 2 diabetes is no longer an adult disease, 1 in 3 of those diagnosed today are under age 18

Blood sugar levels are a measure of how effectively our body uses glucose. One of the benefits you experience with balanced blood sugar levels is sustained energy throughout the day and good sleep at night.

We have 3 key organs that are involved in blood sugar handling: pancreas, adrenals and liver. Our body’s blood sugar regulation system is a beautiful system when working properly.

How our blood sugar handling system works:

  • When we eat carbohydrates and sugar enters the blood stream through the digestive process, the pancreas releases the hormone, insulin to transport the glucose into the cell for energy. 
  • When your blood sugar level drops, like in between meals, your pancreas releases glucagon that then tells your liver to either convert protein to glucose or convert stored glycogen to glucose to bring your blood sugar back up.

These two hormones work in balance. You can see that when we are eating a balanced diet, low in sugar and refined carbohydrates this balance can work smooth.

Consider a common diet today high in sugars….sugar laden drinks, sugary desserts, refined flour products like pasta, breads….can you picture the back and forth your blood sugar regulating system has to go through.

What happens is that eventually some of this process and organs gets tired and either sluggish or resistant. A condition called insulin resistance is when there is so much continuous insulin in our bloodstream, the cells become numb and stops taking the glucose up to use as energy and it stays in the blood stream, leading to high blood sugar.

Hypoglycemia    Type 1 & 2 Diabetes    Insulin Resistance    Metabolic Syndrome

All serious diseases/conditions that have a huge affect on your health and quality of life

Symptoms of poor blood sugar regulation, that is reason to step back and see what in your diet/lifestyle needs to change are:

  • Crave sweets
  • Excessive appetite
  • Sleepy in the afternoon
  • Irritable between meals
  • Shaky if meals are delayed
  • Frequent thirst and/or urination
  • Wake a few hours after falling asleep
  • Crave coffee or sugar in the afternoon
  • Headache if meals are skipped
  • Fatigue that is relived by eating
  • Binge or uncontrollable eating

The number one way to help control your blood sugar is by what you eat and drink. You can manage insulin surges by adjusting your macronutrients ratios (less carbohydrates, higher good fats, moderate protein) so your body will use fats and ketones for energy instead of glucose. We call this being a fat-burner rather than a sugar-burner.

FOUNDATION THREE

FATTY ACIDS

Fats have received a lot of bad publicity, and it’s true that eating large amounts of fried foods and eating poor quality fats cause health problems. However, fats are essential to the body and have a number of important functions.

Fats that are necessary for good health and cannot be manufactured by the body are called Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs). They are called essential because they must come from our diet. 

Good fats in our body provide the following for us:

  • Absorption of fat-soluble vitamins: A,D,E & K
  • Needed for good liver function (building healthy cholesterol & bile)
  • Managing our inflammation process
  • Helps to slow down the absorption of food for energy regulation
  • Building blocks for our cell membranes
  • Good source of energy
  • Protective lining for our organs
  • Are needed for proper use of proteins
  • Required for hormone function
  • Makes our food taste good!

The essential fatty acids we are focusing on are:

  • Omega-3 - alpha-linoleic acid (ALA)
  • Omega-6 - linoleic acid (LA)

A balance, 1:1 of these essential fatty acids is needed for good health. Unfortunately the average American diet is out of balance.  With all our processed foods, proteins that come from poor meat/fish sources, use of vegetable oils, etc we are getting an excess of Omega-6 and few omega-3 fats. This results in the ongoing inflammation underlying most chronic diseases seen today.

Omega 6 fats are needed and help with brain function, muscle growth, and hormone production, but they also cause inflammation, and they compete with omega 3s in the body. You need both, but because of the inflammation factor, it’s optimal to maximize omega 3s and minimize omega 6s.
 

Why is this important?

Keep in mind that inflammation is necessary for us for the healing process. When you get an infection or get injured, our amazing body jumps into gear to sends the forces to promote healing in the form of inflammation - the good inflammation, until healing has occurred and then the body anti-flames. 

Essential Fatty Acid deficiencies can lead to a variety of issues: musculoskeletal, like arthritis, cardiovascular issues, immune issues, allergies, skin problems, depression to name a few.

You can work to balance your Omega 3 : Omega 6 simply by cutting back on all vegetable oils and processed foods, which are loaded with vegetable oils, and begin consuming sources of high-quality omega-3 fats daily. You can do this through foods or supplementing.

Foods that containing Omega-3: Cold-water/Wild-caught - Salmon, sardines, anchovies, mackerel….flaxseeds, walnuts, chia seeds, egg yolks, grass0fed meats and butter to name a few.
 

"...our amazing body jumps into gear..."

Supplements you might need: 

  • Biomega-3
    High quality, natural fish oil supplying Omega-3 fatty acids. 
  • Optimal EFA
    Which is a balanced blend of Omega-3,6 & 9.

FOUNDATION FOUR

MINERALS

Although minerals only compose about 4% of our body they are essential for a variety of bodily functions. We consider minerals the “spark plug of life”. 

Minerals are key to building strong bones and teeth, blood, skin, hair, nerve function, muscle and for metabolic processes such as those that turn the food we eat into energy.

103+ known minerals
18 are necessary for good health

Here are some of the awesome things minerals do in our body:

  • Tissue growth
  • maintain proper nerve conduction
  • contract & relax muscle (like your heart pumping!)
  • Provides structural & functional support (your bones!)
  • Act as cofactors for enzyme reactions - which means enzymes need minerals to work properly
  • maintain the proper PH balance in your body (acidic vs alkaline)
  • facilitate the transfer of nutrients across cell membranes

Important Minerals

On the top of the list of minerals is Calcium. Calcium makes up 50% of the mineral content of our body! 99% of calcium is stored in bones. The other 1% is in your blood.

The workings of your bones and calcium are so much more. Your body is constantly working hard to maintain homeostasis - balance. Calcium is released from your bones and deposited into your blood when the blood is too acidic and conversely calcium is deposited into bone from the blood when your blood is too alkaline. Potential problems occurs if it gets deposited in inappropriate places.…think bone spurs.

DOWNLOADNOW

List of Minerals, their functions,
food sources, uses and more

It is important to know that we CANNOT produce minerals, we must get them from our food or supplement where needed. By eating a whole food, nutrient-dense diet, eliminating processed foods & sugar, sipping bone broth and incorporating de-stressing practices into your diet is important.

Equally important is insuring that your digestion is working properly with adequate hydrochloric acid (HCL) so you are ingesting the minerals in your foods. Balanced fatty acids are needed to transport the minerals across cells. And good hydration means your blood is fluid enough to efficiently transport minerals thought your body and tissues.

FOUNDATION FIVE

HYDRATION

Water is the most important nutrient in your body and makes up 55-60% of your total body mass.  Proper hydration is key to your overall health!

Some of the amazing things water does for us are:

  • Removes waste and flushes out toxins
  • Lubricates & cushions our bones and joints
  • Helps absorbs shock to our joints and organs
  • Moistens our oxygen for easier breathing
  • Improves oxygen delivery to cells and cell-to-cell communication

  

  • Transports nutrients
  • Regulates our body temperature
  • Improves oxygen delivery to cells and cell-to-cell communication
  • Empowers our body’s natural healing process

So just how much water should you be drinking?

 Did you know you can go 8 weeks without food but only days without water?

So just how much water should you be drinking? A good rule of thumb to strive for everyday is to drink the following in ounces.
 

BODY WEIGHT (lbs)

2

Something else to keep in mind...

Drinking 8 oz. any of the following diuretic beverages will add 12-16 oz more water to your day.

  • Caffeinated teas
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Packages fruit juices
  • Coffee
  • Soda

This is important because many people are walking around thinking they are drinking enough water and they are actually in a dehydration state. Some early signs of dehydration are:

  • Fatigue
  • Anxiety
  • Cramps
  • Hunger
  • Depression
  • Irritability
  • Headaches

If dehydration continues your conditions will become more sever and progress to:

  • Migraines
  • Constipation
  • Back & joint pain
  • Heartburn
  • Colitis

Your hydration and electrolytes

When we talk about hydration it is important to talk about our body’s electrolytes. Water depends on electrolytes for proper absorption and we want our electrolytes to be in balance.  The major electrolytes found within the body include calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, phosphate and chloride.

To help get these electrolytes, you would benefit from making sure your diet includes some vegetables such as: leafy, green vegetables & lettuces; broccoli raab; celery; sweet potatoes or squash and avocados (technically a fruit) that have a higher water content and provide potassium and magnesium.

Good salt

Adding some good sea salt or pink himalayan salt that contains over 84 minerals and trace elements, including calcium, magnesium, potassium, copper and iron to your diet does more for you than just make your food taste better!

Quality is important

The last very important thing to take a look at is your quality of water. Do your research. If you use tap water, have it tested to see what you are ingesting. Better yet research some good filtration systems for both your drinking water and your shower.

So let’s raise a glass of good, pure water and say “cheers” to good health!