Foods That Help You Glow and Fight Aging

The Healthy Skin Prescription:
Foods That Help You Glow and Fight Aging

Of course, exercise is also an important component to looking younger than your real age.  30 minutes of daily activity is all it takes to keep your youthful appearance.  Anything that makes you sweat and gets your heartrate up will do the trick.

According to dermatologist, Joely Kaufman-Janette assistant professor and director of the Aging and Geriatric Skin Center at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, “Part of choosing a diet for good looking skin is just eating to keep yourself healthy because your health is reflected through your skin. Many of the nutrients and “good” fats we eat as part of a healthy diet enhance the skin’s elasticity and help create the appealing glow of healthy skin. Eat well and avoid foods high in saturated fat and you’ll see how it can result in good skin.”

In addition to eating an overall healthy diet, the following healthy foods can keep you looking your youngest:

1. Drink Plenty of Water – okay, so water isn’t technically a “food,” but dehydrated skin becomes dry when it loses too much water.  You need to make sure you are drinking water and avoiding sugary sodas which can affect your skin by causing insulin levels to rise and fall dramatically.  Keep an eye on your alcohol consumption too as alcohol will dehydrate you. When you do drink alternate between an alcoholic beverage and then have a glass of water. As a general rule, aim for 8 – 8 oz. glasses of water per day. Eating foods that are high in water content such as watermelon also counts for your daily water intake.

2. Eat Blueberries – These little summer beauties back a powerful antioxidant punch! They help fight the sigs of again skin since they are rich in vitamin C.  Enjoy them with some low-fat yogurt or on your favorite cereal or salad.

3. Eat Sweet Potatoes – It’s the beta-carotene that gives sweet potatoes their orange color that contains a healthy dose of vitamin A which has been found to reduce wrinkles and other signs of aging. You can enjoy sweet potatoes in a variety of ways to reap their health benefits.

4. Eat Broccoli – You may have a love/hate relationship with broccoli or only like it covered in cheese, but broccoli and other green vegetables are great for the skin.  The darker the veggie the more likely they are to contain higher concentrations of vitamins A and C both of which help fight fine lines and wrinkles.

5. Eat Avocados – Avocados enhance your complexion since they contain not only healthy monounsaturated fat but also vitamins A, C and fiber.  This makes avocadoes the almost perfect healthy food that helps fight aging skin. Enjoy your guacamole or your avocado diced in a salad or mash some avocado and use it as a sandwich spread instead of mayo.

6. Get Plenty of Vitamin D – It’s easier to get more vitamin D during the summer months with more outdoor activities, but this is a vitamin that we need plenty of throughout the year. Vitamin D slows skin aging and is important for healthy skin, especially as we age according to Dr. Kaufman-Janette.  Drink vitamin D enriched beverages, eat foods fortified with vitamin D or take a supplement to help slow the aging process in your skin.   Vitamin D also helps with the absorption of calcium to keep our bones strong as we age.

7. Eat Low-Fat Yogurt – You are probably already aware of the healthy probiotics or the “healthy” bacteria beneficial for digestive health that yogurt contains, but you may not be aware that yogurt may help ease digestive troubles that can help related skin conditions such as rosacea or skin inflammation, according to Dr. Kaufman-Janette.  She recommends anyone suffering from these skin conditions to include yogurt in their healthy diet plan.

8. Go Fish – Fish such as salmon that are high in omega-3 fatty acids are a great source of oil for the skin without clogging the pores, says Dr. Kaufman-Janette. If you try to cut out all fats from your diet, your skin may suffer and appear as dull, dry skin.  Omega-3 fatty acids are considered healthy fats and if you do not get enough through your diet, then you should add an omega-3 daily supplement.

9. Have a Cup of Green Tea – To replace one of your 8 oz. servings of water a day, it is fine to have a cup of green tea which contains two healthy skin benefits. It contains antioxidants which may fight the effect of aging and drinking it is a good way to stay hydrated.

10. Eat Whole Wheat or Whole Grain – Dr. Kaufman-Janette says, “White breads and white pastas create a spike in insulin, which isn’t good for your skin. Whole grains are packed with fiber, which promotes healthy digestion and digestive problems are often reflected in unhealthy skin.” Choose whole wheat or whole grain products for not only a healthier body, but skin too.

If you are not a fan of one of these healthy foods, my suggestion is to add it to a smoothie where other fruits and vegetables can mask it’s taste.  That way you are enjoying the benefits of the food in disguise. This is also a great way to reshape your taste. After adding it to several smoothies, the next time you taste the food you might surprise yourself and actually like it.

Enjoy your summer, use lots of sunscreen, wear a hat, sunglasses and protective clothing and eat your way to better skin health and overall health!

Healthy Regards,
Stacy

Source: The Healthy Diet-Healthy Skin Link by Madeline R. Vann, MPH, Everyday Health

My Review of Chalene Johnson’s Chalene Extreme Workout

What I liked:
I am trying to increase my upper body strength and this program contained several strength training workouts every week. I liked that she focused on using heavier weights with less repetition.  The movements were also slow to maximize the use of your muscles and not momentum. I also liked that she focused on certain muscles on certain days.  For example, one day was biceps and triceps, another day shoulders and back, etc.  Everyday included lower body exercises such as lunges and squats with the upper body workouts to get your heartrate pumping!
By the 2^nd month, the amount of weight increased and there are even less repetitions. I also enjoyed the cardio days. One of the cardio days included lightweights and several repetitions to increase muscle endurance.
This workout was only 5 days a week and I am used to working out 6 days a week. On one of the rest days, I added a day of yoga or Pilates to help stretch my sore muscles from all the strength training.  I would recommend that you take some extra time to stretch your muscles which will also help to increase your flexibility.

What I would improve:
The main thing I would improve would be the cooldown.  Even though you are doing a lot of upper body strength training there really isn’t any stretching in the cooldown for the upper body, only the lower body.  I added a few minutes of upper body stretches after each workout which helped with soreness. Also, during the 4^th month, she repeated one workout from each of the previous month’s workouts, but the workout always focused on the shoulders and I would have liked for one of the days to have focused on the biceps and triceps.

Overall recommendation:
If you are looking to improve your strength or lose weight, then I would recommend this workout program for you. What I love about strength training is that the more muscle you have the higher your metabolism so you burn more fat even when you are at rest! If you have any specific questions about the workout, I would be happy to answer them for you.

Healthy Regards,
Stacy