Monthly Archives: May 2017
Is your thyroid making you fat and tired?
If you are experiencing significant weight loss resistance, despite your best efforts with a healthy low carb eating plan – you may be suffering from an underactive thyroid. Other signs that your thyroid is not working as it should include: fatigue, brain fog, depression, hair loss, achy muscles, painful joints, sensitivity to cold, dry skin and constipation. The thyroid gland produces hormones that regulate the body’s metabolic rate, muscle control, bone maintenance as well as heart, brain and digestive functions. Unfortunately, when it comes to your thyroid, the road to optimal health can be a long and frustrating one. Many people are told that their blood test results are completely normal and have been sent home with a prescription for an anti-depressant or instructions to get more sleep, eat less and exercise more. This isn’t very helpful when you consider that every single cell in your body requires thyroid hormone in just the right quantity. If you have too little your metabolism will slow down, leading to weight gain or severe weight loss resistance as well as low moods and poor concentration.
Tips for achieving your weight loss goals
You feel rather proud of yourself when you stand on the scale and assess the progress you have made. Wow, 5 kilos lost in a month – fantastic! Then your colleague brings a delicious chocolate cake to the office. Ten minutes later, while you wipe the crumbs off your top lip, you think to yourself, “What just happened?” One cheat leads to another and before you know it you are sliding down the slippery slope back into old habits and your track suit pants with the elasticized waist. Why is it that our motivation levels ebb and flow like the ocean? What mistakes are we making that lead to poor choices and what can we do to ensure it doesn’t negatively impact on the achievement of our goals? Read the rest of this entry
Why sleep is so critical for optimal health
Do you scroll through your Facebook or Twitter feeds just before you go to sleep? When you wake up during the night, do you reach for your phone and check your emails ? Are you in the habit of watching TV or working on your computer till late at night? These habits and routines could be the reason you feel so tired when you wake up in the morning and why you struggle to get to sleep at night. If you think the reason you are up till midnight every night is because you are a night owl – think again. There is no such thing. You are more likely experiencing an upset circadian rhythm. Trying to “get away with” 4 hours of sleep to meet a tight deadline might be OK in the short-term, but ultimately we all pay the price for lack of sleep. It is usually our health, memory, waistlines and energy levels that suffer. Our early ancestors never had these concerns. Their day started at sunrise and ended when the sun went down, which synchronized perfectly with their circadian rhythm.
Primal Perks 