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Research of the Week

Manure from cows given antibiotics makes for substandard soil.

Bonobos are bigger meat eaters than we thought.

The Neolithic revolution was more about private property than productivity.

Night owls have worse blood lipids.

For psychiatric symptoms of dementia, non-pharmacologic therapies work better.

New Primal Blueprint Podcasts

Episode 382: Dr. Robert Zembroski: Host Elle Russ chats with Dr. Robert Zembroski, a world-renowned expert in functional medicine and chiropractic neurology and creator of a unique way to enhance conventional cancer treatments.

Primal Health Coach Radio, Episode 30: Laura and Erin chat with Emily Schromm, a serial fitness entrepreneur with a lot of things going on—brick and mortar gym, online courses, and physical products.

Each week, select Mark’s Daily Apple blog posts are prepared as Primal Blueprint Podcasts. Need to catch up on reading, but don’t have the time? Prefer to listen to articles while on the go? Check out the new blog post podcasts below, and subscribe to the Primal Blueprint Podcast here so you never miss an episode.

Media, Schmedia

Dutch farmers take to the streets.

Baby food, now with lead and arsenic!

Interesting Blog Posts

Why ketogenic diets as clinically practiced are unhelpful for mitochondrial diseases.

Are Nike’s superfast running shoes a problem?

Social Notes

I recently participated in Dr. Bill Schindler’s Modern Stone Age Diet online summit and had a great time. Check out talks from me, Robb Wolf, and dozens more.

Gorgeous and majestic.

Everything Else

Why does flu peak in winter?

The rush to harvest organs is affecting death investigations.

Even though some residents left city limits to buy cheaper soda, a soda tax in Philadelphia reduced overall soda consumption.

Pigs are using tools.

Things I’m Up to and Interested In

Video I enjoyed: Sioux chef.

Another video I enjoyed (well, sorta): Why seed oils are so harmful.

I’d try it: Bog butter.

I’m not surprised: Persistent low-grade inflammation is a common feature of depression.

Ancient humans didn’t mess around: Not only were we utilizing brain tissue and bone marrow, we were processing and consuming “dental pulp.”

Question I’m Asking

With Google stopping development of its glucose-monitoring lens and all the other failures and dubious advancements, tech is realizing that biology’s a hard nut to crack. Do you think technology will ever figure out human biology and vault us into sci-fi territory?

Recipe Corner

• Taco chili? Taco chili.
• Paleo eggs benedict won’t betray you.

Time Capsule

One year ago (Oct 12 – Oct 18)

• Why “Is It Keto?” Is the Wrong Question – It’s not the point.
• Dear Mark: Omega-6 Deficiency and Saw Palmetto – A couple questions.

Comment of the Week

“Hey Mark,
You’re usually way out in front but my 13-year-old son actually beat you to it this time. He, like most his age, is an avid Youtube watcher and has recently gotten into watching the ways of searing the perfect steak.

He’s been hammering me to get a cast iron skillet. Lol.
If it were up to him we’d eat steak every night.

Gotta say, of the obsessions I’d want my 13-year-old son to have, the perfect sear on a Steak works for me!”

– Now that’s awesome, Joel.

The post Weekly Link Love — Edition 51 appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

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In this article, you’ll learn about the risks of artificial birth control, common myths of fertility awareness-based methods (FABMs), and the basics of how FABMs track fertility.

The post Understanding Fertility Awareness Methods of Birth Control appeared first on Chris Kresser.

http://www.thealternativedaily.com/

It’s picture time. You know the drill, keep your mouth shut at all costs. Over the years, you have perfected the closed mouth smile for fear that your yellow teeth will get the better of you. No one wants to have yellow teeth, but the methods that we often use to whiten them can be […]

https://www.girlsgonestrong.com/

Did you know that by age 60, more than one-third of women will have had a hysterectomy, and about 11.7% of women ages 40–44 will have had the procedure?¹ In other words, if you primarily work with women, you’re likely to work with someone who has had a hysterectomy.

As a coach, gaining a better understanding of what your client has undergone is important, as having a hysterectomy will have an impact on a woman’s health, training, well-being, and goals. Not to mention that you’ll be concerned about your client’s ability to return to exercise safely after her procedure.

Unfortunately, how to return to activity after surgery is not very clear. So how do you help your clients when they want to return to resistance training, cardio exercise, or other activities or sports?

In this article, you will:

• Find out the common reasons why your client may have had a hysterectomy.
• Learn the different types of hysterectomy.
• Understand the different procedures used.
• Learn the guidelines for returning to exercise after a hysterectomy.
• Find out more about scar care and why it matters.
• Better understand the potential psychological impact on your client, and how you can help.

What Is a Hysterectomy?

While we’ll jump into the different types of procedure in just a moment, what’s often forgotten is the “why” behind the hysterectomy. The most common reasons include:

• Fibroids
• Cancer
• Endometriosis
• Uterine prolapse (lack of support for the uterus)
• Urinary incontinence (with a uterine prolapse component)

Typically, hysterectomies prompted by noncancerous reasons are only performed when other treatment options have been unsuccessful.

What Are the Different Types of Hysterectomy?

A hysterectomy is a surgical procedure that removes the uterus. There are many types of hysterectomies that are classed depending on which additional organs are being removed. They are usually categorized as ^4,5:

• Total hysterectomy
• Partial hysterectomy
• Radical hysterectomy

Let’s look at each of these in more detail.

Total Hysterectomy

A total hysterectomy (also called a simple hysterectomy) includes the removal of the uterus and cervix. It may or may not include the ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Partial Hysterectomy

A partial hysterectomy leaves the cervix and takes the uterus. While this procedure is common for women who have fibroids, it does continue to leave a woman at risk for cervical cancer.

Radical Hysterectomy

Finally, there is the radical hysterectomy. This is where the surgeon removes the uterus, cervix, fallopian tubes, and ovaries, as well as the upper part of the vagina and lymph nodes along with possibly some tissue from the pelvic cavity.

This is usually only performed when the patient has a pelvic cancer.

Understanding Different Hysterectomy Procedures

To better support your client, it’s important to know why she had the surgery and how the procedure took place. Depending on her diagnosis, she may have had other procedures done concurrently, and she may have other associated pain or symptoms as she returns to activity. The incision location may also affect her areas of pain or the extent to which her abdominal wall was impacted. You will need to adapt her training accordingly.

Before we go into detail about how to adapt her training, let’s talk about the different ways the surgery can be performed. There are three main types of procedure:

• Abdominal hysterectomy
• Vaginal hysterectomy
• Laparoscopically assisted hysterectomy

Abdominal Hysterectomy

An abdominal hysterectomy is performed through a 4- to 6-inch incision usually right above the pelvic bone. This approach gives the surgeon a clear view of the abdominal cavity and is often used if the patient has large fibroids or other abdominal adhesions (such as those resulting from endometriosis).

The surgeon either cuts the abdominal fascia from the pubic bone or uses their finger to dissect an opening in order to remove the uterus. This procedure typically leaves a scar.

Vaginal Hysterectomy

With a vaginal hysterectomy, the surgeon makes an incision near the top of the vaginal tube and removes the uterus through the vaginal opening. Overall, this procedure is reported to be less painful and leaves no visible scar.

Laparoscopically Assisted Hysterectomy

A laparoscope is a viewing tube that is inserted via a small incision that allows your surgeon to see the structures within the abdomen and pelvis. Laparoscopically assisted hysterectomies are becoming more common since the incisions are relatively small and pain, scarring, and recovery time are typically much shorter than when a full abdominal hysterectomy is performed.²

A laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomy uses the laparoscopic camera to guide the removal of the uterus and other organs through the vagina.

A laparoscopic hysterectomy is performed using a laparoscope and other instruments inserted via other small abdominal incisions. The organs are then cut and removed through these small incisions in tiny pieces. If the uterus is removed abdominally in this way, the incision is slightly bigger than that of laparoscopically assisted vaginal hysterectomies, and the surgeon would most likely have done some separation of fascia and muscle, which can be a source of pain and scarring. The considerations are the same as an abdominal hysterectomy when it comes to returning to abdominal strengthening.

Guidelines for Returning to Exercise

Now that you know more about the why and how of hysterectomies, it’s time to talk about how your training plan will be affected. Keep in mind that every woman responds to surgery and recovery differently, so while we will give you some guidelines, it’s important to listen to your client and modify your plan depending on how she feels.

Physically, she may experience:

• Pain
• Pelvic weakness
• Urinary incontinence
• Scarring and incision sensitivity

Lifting can also feel significantly more challenging when your client is recovering the strength in her abdominal muscles, while things like stretching can put unfamiliar tension on the scarring. This can lead to pain, limited mobility, and neurological symptoms like tingling.

Additionally, it is important to note that if your client has her ovaries removed before she has started menopause, she will start menopause after her hysterectomy. This is because the ovaries secrete estrogen (even small amounts after menopause!), and removing them will take away this very important hormone.

The symptoms of menopause can include:

• Hot flashes
• Mood swings and crankiness
• Vaginal dryness
• Changes in sexual desire and enjoyment
• PMS
• Cravings
• Acne
• Hair Loss
• Wrinkles

Estrogen is important for heart health and muscle bulk. A lack of estrogen can lead to a decrease of bulk around the urethra, as well as a decrease in the urethra’s ability to compress, which both increase the risk of urinary incontinence. This happens gradually in women going through normal menopause.

When a woman is suddenly thrown into menopause, this effect can be much more significant — especially if she already has pelvic floor issues. If your client has a tendency to hold her breath while lifting, or if she tries to go back quickly to what she was lifting before undergoing surgery, she may experience symptoms she isn’t prepared for.

Note from GGS: You can learn more about how to work with female clients during menopause and beyond in this article.

Recovery Timeline

After a hysterectomy, most women are given specific instructions on activities they can or can’t perform for certain periods of time depending on the extent of their procedure.

Generally, these guidelines are organized into three timeframes:

0–2 Weeks: Rest and Recovery

The first two weeks post-op are for rest and recovery. While women are encouraged to walk (starting with short distances) as soon as they are cleared by their doctor, they may feel easily fatigued and will need to rest as much as possible. They are typically given a 10-pound or less lifting restriction.

2–6 Weeks: Recovery and Rehabilitation

After two weeks or so, most women will be able to recommence their normal activities of daily living. The worst of the pain should have passed, but their incision will still be healing.

You probably won’t be working with your client in person during the first six weeks, but she may consult you for some advice or support.  As long as your client’s doctor gave her clearance — and if your client feels up to it — she can do some breathing exercises and gentle movements during this period.

Depending on what she’s feeling up to, exercises she can incorporate include:

• Gentle stretching (e.g., basic neck stretches, shoulder girdle circles, thoracic rotations)
• Kegel exercises (e.g., incorporating breathing with gentle contractions of the pelvic floor muscles, gradually increasing the number of repetitions and the length of the contraction in order to help restore pelvic floor muscle strength, endurance, timing, and responsiveness)
• Breathing exercises (e.g., Connection Breath)
• Pelvic tilt
• Walking (e.g., gradually increasing time and distance)

6–8 Weeks and Onward: Return to Exercise

Most women will be allowed to “return to all activities” around 6–8 weeks. The real-world feasibility of this will depend on the surgical approach. Studies show that many women do not feel ready to return to rigorous activity that early, particularly with laparoscopic and abdominal hysterectomies.³

After a laparoscopic or abdominal hysterectomy, your client may have to start at a lower resistance with her abdominal training. While the muscle bellies themselves are not cut, the procedure can still lead to repeated discomfort when she returns to abdominal strengthening. This discomfort could also be from incision sensitivity or scar tissue. Keep in mind that while discomfort does not always indicate damage, it may mean that you need to take it easy with her for a few weeks as she recuperates.

The case is similar after a vaginal hysterectomy. After the 6–8 week period, your client shouldn’t need anything more than encouragement and some adjustments to her routine as appropriate for returning to exercise after almost two months of rest.

For all types of hysterectomy, as long as there are no complications (or she is told differently by her surgeon), there should be no other restrictions after the 8-week recovery period.

Keep in mind, however, that your client may not feel ready to do full-range movements right away. Remember that she hasn’t done anything other than walking or light stretching for the last 8 weeks, so she may be deconditioned and could benefit from a more gradual return.

Recommended Movements and Exercises to Help Your Client Re-Adapt

There are several exercises that may help your client as she returns to her fitness program after her surgery.

Here are some options you can try:

Abdominal Wall Assessment and Strengthening

Many women feel that their abdominal muscles are weaker after an abdominal hysterectomy, and some find it difficult to feel a good connection to the lower abdominal muscles. Start some gentle exercises to connect and strengthen the abdominal wall — this may include exercises in a crook lying position, such as knee fall-outs or leg slides.

Gentle Mobility and Breathing Exercises

The types of gentle mobility movements your client was doing during the 2-6 week recovery period may be suitable as her warm-up now. Try starting your training session with breathing exercises and gentle stretching for moving into more strenuous activity.

As your client returns to training, she may need some additional instruction on avoiding high intra-abdominal pressure (Valsalva) or breath-holding while lifting. If this is the case, she may benefit from learning to practice the Connection Breath. You can learn more about the Connection Breath in this article.

Cardio

Your client may do some cardio at this point, but the intensity should remain low or moderate at the start of this phase.

By 8–12 weeks post-op, your client may be able to walk up to 45 minutes per day at an easy, restorative pace. Check in with her on how she’s feeling as you go. She may be able to ease back into some moderate-intensity and high-intensity training if she feels up to it and has no other complications or contraindications.

If your client enjoyed running before and during pregnancy, she may be eager to start again. Encourage her to return to it gradually by increasing distance or time, and then speed, over several weeks and months. Girls Gone Strong often recommends a slow progression such as using a beginner “Couch to 5K” program and monitoring for symptoms.

Before your client returns to jogging and running, include some lower-impact exercises to master the technique and minimize any pain or discomfort. Exercises such as:

• High knees
• Arm swings
• Thoracic rotations
• Single-leg squat variations (which can progress to include alternating arm swings and thoracic rotations to simulate running).

Strength Training

Your client may participate in strength training two to three days per week, and we recommend staying within 2–3 sets of 8–12 reps to work at a load that elicits tissue changes and minimizes the risk of causing damage. You may also want to try having her incorporate pelvic floor contractions with exercises like squats, lunges, and bridges. It may be beneficial to plan progressions into her training sessions that will help her safely transition into more intense exercise.

Red Flags to Watch For

If your client has had an abdominal incision, she should make sure the incision is well-healed before starting any resistance abdominal exercises that use a full range of motion, either in flexion or in rotation. Your client shouldn’t feel pulling on her incision during the healing phase. Once her incision is healed, the sensations around her scar will be different (keep reading for more information about this!)

Your client should be aware that vaginal discharge may be a sign that she’s doing too much, especially if it is tinged with bright red blood. During the first six weeks, her tissues are healing. While she can do some light walking, any bright red-colored discharge may indicate that she’s too active. If there is any greenish or yellow color to the discharge or a smell, it may be a sign of infection and your client should contact her physician.

Additional Considerations After a Hysterectomy

As a practitioner training women after a hysterectomy, you need to keep a couple of additional things in mind.

If a woman has had fibroids, cancer or endometriosis, there may be scarring or other sources of pain. In general, this doesn’t need to change your training regimen. If your client experiences unusual pain, it may warrant a referral to a pelvic health physical therapist.

When the surgery is from prolapse or incontinence, your client may have a lifting restriction that is longer than the standard eight weeks, particularly if any other surgical procedure was performed. Also, the underlying cause may be from pelvic floor muscle and hip weakness. The surgery would fix the symptoms but not necessarily the problem and the weakness could still be there.

Incisions and Scars

Patients rarely get any instructions regarding how to take care of their surgical incision(s). As such, women may be surprised when their scars cause increased sensitivity or discomfort. The good news is that scar management does not have to be complicated.

Once the incision is healed (usually about 6 weeks) you can tell your client to massage the incision site in a circular way and use various fabrics (such as silk, cotton, and terry cloth) to improve the sensitivity of the area. The pressure should not be so much as to open the incision, cause redness that lasts more than a couple hours, or result in bleeding.

This scar massage technique helps improve pain and mobility restrictions by encouraging the collagen that caused the scar tissue to loosen up and become less restrictive.

You can also visually assess her scar and how the scar site feels for her as she moves. The scar should be well healed, with no fluid leaking. The skin around the scar should not look red or inflamed. If you or your client have any concerns, refer her back to her health care practitioner.

Note from GGS: This article on C-section scar care can give you good pointers on how to care for a hysterectomy scar as well.

Psychological Impact and How You Can Help

After having a hysterectomy, your client may experience some unfamiliar feelings as she recovers from her surgery.

Often, women are scared that something is “going to fall out” or they are going to “ruin the surgery.” It’s important to be encouraging and empowering in a safe space. It takes a lot to “ruin” these surgeries once they are healed!

While we expect the physical symptoms and the need for the body to recover from surgery, as coaches and trainers, we also need to take into account the psychological and emotional changes that may be spurred by this procedure. Just as a start, pain can be a cause for mental distress in and of itself.

Your client may feel the loss of her uterus; after all, this is the loss of her ability to bear children. Surgery and diagnoses like cancer can also cause depression and anxiety.

Moreover, your client might be worried about injury or frustrated by her “loss” of endurance or strength after two months of rest.

If you are worried that your client is experiencing depression, anxiety, or another mental health issue post-surgery (or in general), it’s important to refer her to a mental health professional.

Person-Focused Training

Girls Gone Strong recommends taking a person-focused approach by focusing on your client and her lived experience, rather than treating her based on her life stage or surgical history. We want to avoid an “over-focus” on her hysterectomy so as not to make it seem like it has defined her or her worth in any way.

When your clients share some of the issues they might be facing, you need to be sensitive to them while respecting their desire for privacy. Ask them how they are feeling, inquire about their energy level, and be prepared to change exercises on the go if you feel like they are struggling to be successful.

Being aware of the emotional component of training a client post-hysterectomy will take you from being a simple personal trainer to being a full-fledged coach.

Maintaining meaningful connections and open communication will help you build trust with your client so that you can best help her achieve her goals. Part of this is also gaining as much knowledge as possible that you can also share in a clear and well-received way. This means being able to explain complex health information in terms they can understand and use while also communicating with empathy, compassion, and understanding.

Referral Network

As you help your client return to exercise after a hysterectomy, it is important that you stay within your scope of practice. While you can help guide her in her training program and provide some basic advice on scar care, most coaches and trainers are not able to diagnose problems or post-surgical complications. A client’s return to exercise should also always be approved by her doctor first.

If you are concerned that your client may be dealing with either a physical or emotional issue that is out of your scope of practice, it is important to refer her to an appropriate health care provider. This may be her primary care physician or surgeon or someone new, such as a licensed mental health counselor or a pelvic health therapist.

Note from GGS: To find a pelvic health physical therapist in your area, search through one of the following websites.

• Australian Physiotherapy Association
• Canadian Physiotherapy Association
• Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (United Kingdom)
• Physiotherapy New Zealand
• Section on Women’s Health, American Physical Therapy Association

If nothing comes up in your area, try a general Internet search using one of the following terms: pelvic health, pelvic floor, women’s health physical therapist, or women’s health physiotherapist and the name of the city will provide some leads. In the U.S. use the term physical therapist. Outside of the U.S., use the term physiotherapist.

In Conclusion

Many women have anxiety and hesitation when returning to exercise and training after their hysterectomy. Their concern is understandable, and you’ll need to take their unique situation and feelings into consideration as you help them return to activity.

In general, after the initial 6–8 week recovery time, training doesn’t need to be greatly altered. Changing the workout resistance for the time off, encouraging her that she is strong and capable, and asking her to listen to her body and give you feedback will be the perfect combination for training any woman after a hysterectomy.

If you’re a health, fitness, or nutrition professional (or you want to be)…

Learning how to coach clients, patients, friends, or family members through confusing health, fitness, and wellness information — like the implications of returning to exercise after a hysterectomy — is both an art and a science.

If you’d like to learn more about both, consider enrolling in our GGS Level 1 Certification, which opens for enrollment VERY soon.

Learning how to properly coach women could transform your career — and change the lives of your clients.

And our Girls Gone Strong Level 1 Certification is the most respected coaching certification in the world for working with women.

Most coaches and trainers don’t realize that coaching women is different from coaching men.

The truth is, coaching women requires a different set of skills and knowledge that goes beyond understanding the anatomical differences.

This certification gives health, fitness, and nutrition professionals — and aspiring professionals — the skillset, knowledge, and toolkit they need to successfully and confidently coach women.

Our Coaching and Training Women Academy has certified thousands of professionals in 60+ countries around the world. Their results have been astonishing.

Now, we’re offering all that knowledge and training to you.

Interested? Add your name to our no-obligation pre-sale list. You’ll save up to 33% and secure your spots 24-48 hours before the public.

On November 12th, 2019 we’re opening enrollment to our GGS Level 1 Certification to a limited number of students.

To learn more, check out our pre-sale list which gives you two huge advantages:

• You’ll pay less than everyone else. The students who are most eager to level up their coaching skills are our most successful students, so we like to reward those who join the pre-sale list by offering a discount of up to 33% off the general price.
• You’ll get to enroll early. We only open enrollment twice per year, and spots always sell out FAST. By joining the pre-sale list, you have the chance to enroll 24-48 hours before the general public, increasing your chances of getting a spot.

Women want to work with coaches who “get it.”

They’re looking for health, fitness, and nutrition pros who understand them, know how to support them, and are committed to making a REAL difference to their health.

And our GGS Level 1 Certification is the solution. This is your chance.

Stand out. Build a thriving career. And make the kind of difference you were born to make.

JOIN NOW

The post Training Clients Post-Hysterectomy: What You Need to Know appeared first on Girls Gone Strong.

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Today’s post is offered up by the good people at Joovv, a company devoted to researching and harnessing the science of red light therapy. I’ve gotten to know (and love) their technology over the last year, and my family has, too—especially my daughter and son-in-law. Today I’ve invited Scott Nelson and his team to share some of their research into red light therapy, a topic I’ve written about now and then over the last few years. It’s an area of ancestral health I find fascinating—and one where modern science can help us recreate or even enhance natural ancestral inputs to foster better well-being today. Enjoy—and be sure to check out the giveaway below.

Diet and fitness are the pillars of a healthy life built on ancestral principles. But food, water, and exercise aren’t the only factors that affect your health and function on a day-to-day basis. Natural light is also a major pillar of a healthy, ancestral lifestyle, and unfortunately, many people don’t get nearly enough of it.

You can complement your diligence in the kitchen and your hard work in the gym with the “nutrients” that come from natural light. This post gives an overview of photobiomodulation (aka “red light therapy”), a natural health intervention that’s helping people get the light their bodies need for optimal health and fitness.

The Problem With Modern Light Exposure

Our Ancestors Lived with an Abundance of Natural Light. We Don’t Get Nearly Enough.

One of the biggest differences between our modern lives and those of our ancestors is the amount of time we spend outside and how much natural light we experience every day. Even if you’re eating well on a Paleo or Keto diet and exercising every day, odds are you spend most of your days indoors. In fact, the average American spends more than 90% of their time inside. [1] That’s not nearly enough natural light for our bodies, and it’s a far cry from our ancestors’ lifestyles.

In the past, people were outdoors every day out of necessity. The human body and our biology evolved in the presence of lots of sunlight, and light is still essential to our health. It helps regulate our sleep cycle, powers our cells and energy production, which allows our bodies to function as they were intended.

To make matters worse, we’re currently faced with a modern light problem as well. All of our overhead lighting, plus the bright blue light from our phones, TVs, and computer screens, is negatively affecting our health. Many of our sleep problems can be traced back to the abundance of bright, artificial light we take in at all hours of the day. [2]

Similar to how our diets have grown to include more grains and processed foods, and our physical activity has dwindled as we became more sedentary, the negative effects of artificial light combined with a lack of natural light have separated us even further from the roots of good health.

Using Red Light Therapy to Get the Natural Light You Need

Jobs, school, busy schedules, and changing seasons prevent many of us from getting outside every day, even if we want to. That’s where red light therapy comes into play: it’s a natural, noninvasive health intervention you can use in your home to get a full day’s worth of natural light, even if you can’t get out in the sun.

Light therapy is a non-invasive, convenient treatment that powers your cellular function with concentrated, natural light. This natural light stimulates the mitochondria in your cells, which helps you produce more adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is used by your body for muscle and skin healing, pain relief, and clearer skin. We’ll get into detailed health benefits later, but check out Joovv’s learn library now if you want to dig in now.

Many people are still in the dark when it comes to red light therapy. There’s a lot to know and a lot of misleading information out there. Let’s explore what red light therapy is, how it works, and how it can help maximize your health and Paleo goals.

How Does Red Light Therapy Work?

A quality red light therapy device—like a Joovv— delivers concentrated wavelengths of natural red and near infrared light directly to your skin and cells. All you really have to do is sit or stand in front of the light for a few minutes every day. In other words, red light therapy is very easy to do, but it produces some pretty incredible health results that have been demonstrated across hundreds of peer-reviewed clinical studies.

On top of ATP production, red light therapy increases circulation and reduces oxidative stress associated with cell injury and things like muscle fatigue, joint pain, and inflammation. A treatment only takes 10-15 minutes with a professional-grade device. Because red light therapy is natural and non-invasive, there are virtually no side effects or risks either.

Red light therapy is backed up by a large base of clinical research, originally driven by NASA’s involvement in the 1990s. After that, red light therapy devices could only be found in expensive and exclusive spas. With advancements in LED technology, combined with more awareness of the therapy, there are now many light therapy devices on the market. We’ll break down some of the most important factors to consider in a light therapy device towards the end of this post.

Natural Health Benefits of Red Light Therapy

The benefits of red light therapy are backed up by a large base of clinical research. Here are some of the most studied and well-documented health benefits, complete with links to the published and peer-reviewed studies:

More Restful Sleep and a Healthy Circadian Rhythm with Red Light Therapy

Light exposure is one of the biggest factors in our sleep quality, and it also has a major impact on our sleep cycles, a.k.a. our Circadian Rhythm. Our bodies and brains take cues from the light we’re receiving at any given time. For example, when we get way too much bright, artificial light in the evenings, our bodies get the signal that it’s time to be awake. [3]

Light therapy helps your body produce more natural melatonin, unlike artificial blue light, which hinders your body’s melatonin production. Many people will take supplements and sleep aids to boost melatonin, but it’s much healthier and more effective for your body to make its own melatonin. [4]

Light therapy has also been found to improve sleep quality and duration for people suffering from severe sleep disorders due to migraines as well as traumatic brain injuries. [5,6]

For a full overview of how red light therapy helps you sleep, check out this post.

Improving Physical Performance and Muscle Recovery with Natural Light

Muscle cells require a lot of energy, and show significant improvements with natural light treatments. In study after study, red light therapy has been found to enhance physical performance when paired with exercise. [7] That’s a big reason why so many pro athletes and personal trainers have incorporated red light therapy systems into their training facilities.

Red light therapy improves speed, strength, and endurance for women and men, and people at every level of fitness. [8,9] Researchers looking at red light’s effects specifically on middle-aged and older women of all fitness levels saw the same performance enhancing qualities. [10] And after an intense workout, red light therapy reduces post-exercise muscle fatigue and has also been found to help people recover more quickly after exertion. [11,12]

It only makes sense that when you give your body and muscles the fuel they need, they’re going to perform better, and heal and recover faster. Check out this article for a rundown of all the ways red light therapy enhances physical performance and muscle recovery.

Red Light Therapy for Joint Pain and Inflammation

Light therapy has a natural anti-inflammatory effect. [13] Natural light treatments increase circulation and helps clear out the swelling that keeps us feeling sluggish. This anti-inflammatory effect is what helps people recover from surgery while reducing their pain. [14] Reducing inflammation has a big effect on joints and pain too. Researchers have also found red light therapy to be a helpful natural treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, hand osteoarthritis, and knee osteoarthritis. [15,16,17]

Here’s an informational article to learn more about joint pain relief with red light therapy. And here’s another helpful article about reducing inflammation.

Better Cognitive Function with Natural Light

The most important muscle of all—your brain—also performs better when your body is exposed to healthy, natural light. In one of the first human studies to test cognitive performance and red light therapy, researchers found the light treatments improved reactions times, increased memory, and boosted positive moods. [18] Light therapy has even been found to help treat Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia symptoms in some very encouraging preliminary research. [19,20]

Check out this article to learn more about red light therapy’s positive effect on brain health and cognitive functions.

More Collagen and Healthier, Younger-Looking Skin with Natural Light

Collagen is essential to your physical function. Red and near infrared light has been found to naturally increase collagen production, which is critical for skin health too. [21] Thanks to the collagen increasing properties of light therapy, treatments have been found to reduce fine lines and wrinkles as well as other signs of aging, leading to all-around clearer, younger-looking skin. [22] Researchers have found specifically that light therapy is beneficial in helping children recover from scars and helping middle-aged women look younger. [23,24]

These collagen and skin benefits are why you’re seeing more skincare professionals like estheticians and dermatologists offer red light therapy treatments in their practices. Here’s an informational article you can check out to get the full picture on the rejuvenating benefits of red light therapy.

What to Look For in a Red Light Therapy Device

There are numerous red light therapy options out there. So where do you start? What should you look for in a red light therapy device? The basics are size & coverage, power, and design quality. Let’s look at these major factors to help you pick the best device for your health needs.

Bigger Devices for More Coverage

The most important and simplest thing to remember when it comes to red light therapy devices is that bigger is better. Medical professionals and independent diagnostic testing labs agree that bigger devices that offer full-body coverage are more effective than smaller devices that only treat targeted areas.

A larger coverage area translates to more of your body that is able to take in the energy in natural light. And the more your body can take in, the more your cells can use that energy and the more positive health effects you’re going to see. Don’t fall for a cheap, small device that advertises big power and benefits.

With a larger device, you’re getting more total light energy, which takes irradiance and surface area coverage into account. Harvard Medical School photomedicine researcher Dr. Michael Hamblin, a member of Joovv’s scientific advisory board, explains why total delivered energy is needed:

“Total light energy is the most accurate and comprehensive way to measure the power of light therapy devices and treatments,” says Dr. Hamblin. “If you only account for irradiance—versus how much total energy a device delivers—you miss the larger picture of how light therapy positively benefits the person using it.”*

Power Matters, and So Does Independent Verification

Beyond size, the main spec you’ll want to look for is total energy, or how much clinical power the device can deliver to your skin and cells. One issue you might run into with power stats is how easy it is for a company to throw out a big number without much behind it. You’re going to see a lot of red light therapy companies make claims about the power of their devices. One quick way to see through their claims is to make sure they have had these power specs verified by an independent testing lab.

Joovv contracted ITL (Independent Testing Laboratory) to conduct a series of radiometry tests on our devices and the devices are other light therapy brands to verify the claims made by different companies. Those independent results showed that Joovv offered the most powerful light therapy available.

So many of the small and cheap devices you’ll find haven’t been tested independently. There’s no way to know if the numbers they throw around are valid or not. What’s worse is that a lot of these devices aren’t registered with the FDA either, nor do they follow GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices), which makes sure products are up to the industry-regulated quality standards.

Design Quality and Versatility

There are a wide variety of red light therapy devices on the market right now. Some look like space-age showerheads, some look like orbs you hold in your hands and move around your body. There are even some that you wear like a belt or a shirt.

Most companies offer a single device that is meant to be your only purchase, a one-and-done approach that amounts to “you get what you get.” Joovv’s patented modular design is unique in the light therapy world, and allows you to start with a smaller device and build it into a larger one over time by adding more lights for more power and coverage, as needed. Joovv’s devices work together and can pair up to form larger, full-body systems like the pros use.

Joovv is known for its larger, full-body devices, but we also make a portable handheld model called the Joovv Go that’s ideal for clinical-grade light therapy away from home.

Better Health and Fitness with Red Light Therapy

Our ancestors thrived on lots of natural light, and our bodies are still designed to function that way. We’ve gotten away from these principles and surrounded ourselves with unhealthy artificial light almost 24/7. With red light therapy, it’s possible to still get the natural light your body needs every day, in the comfort of your home.

Red light therapy is backed by hundreds of peer-reviewed, clinical studies and analyses that show significant improvements in sleep quality, skin health, muscle performance and recovery, joint pain relief, inflammation relief, and improved cognitive function. A common theme across these studies is that natural light treatments from a medical-grade device like a Joovv have virtually no side effects or risks.

If you’re looking for a natural health intervention that fits the paleo or keto lifestyle, consider getting more natural light every day with a quality light therapy device.

Now, For the Giveaway…

Intrigued? Interested to learn more or give it a go? Why not enter to win a Joovv device?

I’ll be choosing two random winners to receive a Joovv Go, plus $100 in Primal Kitchen® products.

Enter to Win:
1. Follow @marksdailyapple + @joovvsocial on Instagram
2. Tag your buddies in the giveaway announcement IG post.

The winners will be announced and contacted via direct message on Instagram on October 22, 2019. Good luck, folks!

Sources and References:

[1] Klepeis NE, Nelson WC, Ott WR, et al. The National Human Activity Pattern Survey (NHAPS): a resource for assessing exposure to environmental pollutants. J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol. 2001 May-Jun.

[2] Lunn RM, Blask DE, et al. Health consequences of electric lighting practices in the modern world: A report on the National Toxicology Program’s workshop on shift work at night, artificial light at night, and circadian disruption. The Science of the Total Environment. 2017 Dec 31

[3] Moore, R. “Suprachiasmatic nucleus in sleep-wake regulation” Sleep Med. 2007, Dec 8

[4] Morita T., Tokura H. “ Effects of lights of different color temperature on the nocturnal changes in core temperature and melatonin in humans” Journal of Physiological Anthropology. 1996, September

[5] Loeb LM, Amorim RP, et al. “Botulinum toxin A (BT-A) versus low-level laser therapy (LLLT) in chronic migraine treatment: a comparison.” Arquivos de neuro-psiquiatria. 2018 Oct

[6] Naeser MA, Zafonte R, et al. “Significant improvements in cognitive performance post-transcranial, red/near-infrared light-emitting diode treatments in chronic, mild traumatic brain injury: open-protocol study.” Journal of Neurotrauma. 2014 Jun

[7] Leal-Junior EC, Vanin AA, et al. Effect of phototherapy (low-level laser therapy and light-emitting diode therapy) on exercise performance and markers of exercise recovery: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Lasers in Medical Science. 2015 Feb

[8] dos Santos Maciel T, Muñoz I, et al. Phototherapy effect on the muscular activity of regular physical activity practitioners. Lasers in Medical Science. 2014 May

[9] Dellagrana RA, Rossato M, et al. Photobiomodulation Therapy on Physiological and Performance Parameters During Running Tests: Dose-Response Effects. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2018 Oct

[10] Paolillo FR, Corazza AV, et al. Phototherapy during treadmill training improves quadriceps performance in postmenopausal women. Climacteric. 2014 Jun.

[11] Leal Junior EC, Lopes-Martins RA, Dalan F, et al. Effect of 655-nm low-level laser therapy on exercise-induced skeletal muscle fatigue in humans. Photomed Laser Surg. 2008 Oct

[12] Borges LS, et al. Light-emitting diode phototherapy improves muscle recovery after a damaging exercise. Lasers in Medical Science. 2014 May

[13] Hamblin M. “Mechanisms and applications of the anti-inflammatory effects of photobiomodulation”. AIMS Biophys. 2017

[14] Langella L., Casalechi H., Tomazoni S., Johnson D., Albertini R., Pallotta R., Marcos R., de Carvalho P., Leal-Junior E., “Photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) on acute pain and inflammation in patients who underwent total hip arthroplasty-a randomized, triple-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial”. Lasers Med Sci. 2018 Jun.

[15] Brosseau L, Welch V, et al. Low level laser therapy for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis: a meta-analysis. The Journal of Rheumatology. Aug 2000

[16] Paolillo AR, Paolillo FR, et al. Synergic effects of ultrasound and laser on the pain relief in women with hand osteoarthritis. Lasers in Medical Science. Jan 2015

[17] de Paula Gomes CAF, et al. Incorporation of photobiomodulation therapy into a therapeutic exercise program for knee osteoarthritis: A placebo-controlled, randomized, clinical trial. 2018 Oct

[18] Barrett DW, et al. Transcranial infrared laser stimulation produces beneficial cognitive and emotional effects in humans. 2013 Jan.

[19] Berman MH, Halper JP, et al. Photobiomodulation with Near Infrared Light Helmet in a Pilot, Placebo Controlled Clinical Trial in Dementia Patients Testing Memory and Cognition. Journal of Neurology and Neuroscience. J Neurol Neurosci. 2017 feb.

[20] Saltmarche AE, Naeser MA, et al. Significant Improvement in Cognition in Mild to Moderately Severe Dementia Cases Treated with Transcranial Plus Intranasal Photobiomodulation: Case Series Report. Photomedicine and Laser Surgery. 2017 Aug.

[21] Barolet D, Roberge CJ, et al. Regulation of skin collagen metabolism in vitro using a pulsed 660 nm LED light source: clinical correlation with a single-blinded study. Journal of Investigative Dermatology. 2009 Dec.

[22] Wunsch A and Matuschka K. A Controlled Trial to Determine the Efficacy of Red and Near-Infrared Light Treatment in Patient Satisfaction, Reduction of Fine Lines, Wrinkles, Skin Roughness, and Intradermal Collagen Density Increase. Photomedicine and Laser Surgery. 2014 feb.

[23] Alsharnoubi J, Shoukry K, et al. Evaluation of scars in children after treatment with low-level laser. Lasers in Medical Science.

[24] Kim HK, Choi JH. Effects of radiofrequency, electroacupuncture, and low-level laser therapy on the wrinkles and moisture content of the forehead, eyes, and cheek. Journal of Physical Therapy Science. 2017 Feb.

The post The Power of Red Light Therapy (and a Giveaway…) appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

Originally Posted At: https://breakingmuscle.com/feed/rss

We abuse our feet. Every single day. Whether we’re Olympic weightlifters or we’re just normal people trying to log 10,000 steps a day, if our feet aren’t functioning effectively, our lives—or our sports performances—will suffer. 

Yet with the exception of ankle flexibility, which we sometimes dive into via stretching and calf raises, we don’t generally pay much attention to foot health.

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If you are like many people, you start your day out strong and ready to take on the world. Come mid-afternoon, however; it’s like you hit a brick wall. The zip drops out of your step, and the brain fog sets in. The midday blues, as some call it, come upon you like a rock […]

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Hypertension is a problem. It raises the risk of heart disease; it’s one of the most consistent risk factors for that condition, as well as others like kidney disease. But before you start freaking out about your high blood pressure, make sure you actually have it. A single elevated reading does not a hypertension diagnosis make. Readings are snapshots in time. They can be a part of a trend, or they can be an isolated case. Don’t assume based on one bad reading.

I can remember going to the doctor about ten years ago for a routine checkup, showing 140/100, and almost getting a prescription based on that. It was absurd, so absurd that I took matters into my own hands and got a fancy blood pressure device to measure my own over the next couple weeks. The result?

There was almost no pattern. Maybe it was a lot lower after dinner, due to relaxation, but other than that there weren’t any trends. Sometimes it was high, mostly it was low-normal. It all depends on stress

Okay, say that’s not you. Say you have a legitimate problem with protracted and consistently high blood pressure. What can you do in addition to (or besides, if your doctor says it’s safe to wait) opt for the prescription?

1) Eat More Potassium

A common cause of salt-related blood pressure increases is inadequate potassium intake. Very few of us eat as much potassium as we evolved eating.

The pre-agricultural environment was potassium-rich and sodium-poor. That’s why we have a physiological taste for salt, and why salted food tastes so good: we had to seek it out. That’s why we don’t have a physiological taste for potassium: it was everywhere. Loren Cordain estimates some hunter-gatherer groups got upwards of 10-12 grams of potassium a day, whereas the average American gets about 2.5 grams.

Studies show that both sodium-sensitive and potassium-deficient subjects with high blood pressure see the biggest improvements with increased potassium intake.

I love sodium, and it’s actually beneficial for endothelial health when consumed with enough potassium, but you have to eat potassium too.

2) Improve Your Insulin Sensitivity

Ever since earlier studies established that hypertensive patients tend to exhibit abnormally high insulin responses to standard glucose loads, researchers have wondered about a connection between insulin and blood pressure.  It turns out there is a powerful connection.

• In non-diabetic people with normal blood pressure, insulin levels and shifts in blood pressure are related—higher insulin, higher blood pressure; lower, lower.
• In both diabetic and non-diabetic subjects, lower insulin sensitivity predicts elevated blood pressure.
• Insulin increases sodium retention in the blood, which increases blood volume and pressure. The less insulin sensitive you are, the more insulin you’ll release in response to a given stimulus, and the more sodium you’ll shuttle into the blood.
• Both insulin resistance and the compensatory hyperinsulinemia (elevated insulin levels) that results have distinct pro-hypertensive effects.

Luckily, there are dozens upon dozens of ways to improve your insulin sensitivity. Choose a few, or all of them (a better proposal, actually), to not only improve your blood pressure but also your health and life in general.

3) Earn Your Carbs With Physical Activity

The ones you earn through physical activity, that is. Let’s look at two scenarios.

First: You eat way more carbs than you actually earn through training. You haven’t trained, so you’re more insulin-resistant than the You from the alternative universe who did train. This means any carbs you eat will cause a greater spike in insulin, which has been shown to increase blood pressure.

Second: You only eat the carbs you’ve earned through training. Since you’re training, your insulin sensitivity is high, and you don’t actually secrete all that much insulin in response to the carbs. Training also upregulates non-insulin dependent glycogen repletion, meaning you can shove glycogen into muscles post-workout without even using insulin.

Once or twice, this isn’t an issue. But if you’re consistently eating more carbs than you need, the resultant elevation in insulin will raise blood pressure. At the very least, it won’t help.

Not only that, but regular training improves endothelial function and reduces the risk of high blood pressure on its own.

4) Eat Fermented Dairy

Milk fermented with the L. helveticus bacteria has been shown to lower blood pressure in people with hypertension in a number of studies.

In one, they drank the fermented milk for 21 weeks.

In another, they drank the milk for 10 weeks.

Look for products that include Lactobacillus helveticus, such as kefir, aged cheese (Swiss, emmental, pecorino romano, cheddar, parmigiano reggiano),

5) Get Your Zinc (Red Meat and Oysters)

Zinc is an essential nutrient for regulating the nitric oxide synthase system in the body. Without adequate zinc, your ability to produce nitric oxide—which increases blood vessel dilation and thus regulates blood pressure—is hampered.

6) Get Sunlight

There are consistent relationships between adequate vitamin D levels and normal blood pressure, though it’s unclear whether this is causal. Studies haven’t found a consistent blood pressure effect of actually supplementing with vitamin D. What might be going on is that vitamin D is acting as a marker for sun exposure, because we know that sunlight increases the production of nitric oxide, a compound that improves the function of your blood vessels.

Sure enough, human studies show that sun exposure causes the conversion of nitrogen oxide in the skin to nitric oxide, lowering blood pressure and improving endothelial function.

7) Address Your Stress

Stress might be the biggest trigger for hypertension, especially since most of us live lives laden with hidden, inevitable stressors—commutes, jobs we don’t like, bills, and the like. It’s everywhere, we can’t really escape it entirely, so we have to figure out how to deal with it.

I know how I do it (paddling, Ultimate, walks, quality time with family, smart supplementation). There are other ways, like adaptogens, or this, or this. You can rethink stress entirely. You can meditate, or try alternatives that achieve similar things. What are you going to do?

If your blood pressure is resistant to dietary, exercise, or lifestyle changes, make sure you manage it with your doctor.

8) Take ACE Inhibitors or AR Blockers If Warranted

The body uses a hormone called angiotensin to raise blood pressure in a couple ways.  First, by directly constricting blood vessels and increasing flow pressure. Second, by promoting the release of aldosterone, a hormone that shuttles sodium to the blood to increase blood volume. ACE inhibitors inhibit angiotensin secretion and AR blockers block angiotensin receptor sites. While I know we’re usually suspicious of drugs that block or inhibit the secretion or action of hormones, ACE inhibitors and AR blockers appear to be quite safe and effective. And there’s even evidence that normotensive subjects who take them live longer than normotensive subjects who don’t.

They do tend to lower zinc status, though, so keep up with your zinc intake.

That’s it for today, folks. The good news is that high blood pressure is manageable with diet and lifestyle changes, and even if that doesn’t work, the available medications seem better than most.

How do you manage your blood pressure? What’s worked? What hasn’t?

References:

Sebastian A, Cordain L, Frassetto L, Banerjee T, Morris RC. Postulating the major environmental condition resulting in the expression of essential hypertension and its associated cardiovascular diseases: Dietary imprudence in daily selection of foods in respect of their potassium and sodium content resulting in oxidative stress-induced dysfunction of the vascular endothelium, vascular smooth muscle, and perivascular tissues. Med Hypotheses. 2018;119:110-119.

Filippini T, Violi F, D’amico R, Vinceti M. The effect of potassium supplementation on blood pressure in hypertensive subjects: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Cardiol. 2017;230:127-135.

Takano T. Anti-hypertensive activity of fermented dairy products containing biogenic peptides. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek. 2002;82(1-4):333-40.

Seppo L, Jauhiainen T, Poussa T, Korpela R. A fermented milk high in bioactive peptides has a blood pressure-lowering effect in hypertensive subjects. Am J Clin Nutr. 2003;77(2):326-30.

Jauhiainen T, Vapaatalo H, Poussa T, Kyrönpalo S, Rasmussen M, Korpela R. Lactobacillus helveticus fermented milk lowers blood pressure in hypertensive subjects in 24-h ambulatory blood pressure measurement. Am J Hypertens. 2005;18(12 Pt 1):1600-5.

The post A Primal Guide to Blood Pressure: 8 Common (and Not So Common) Interventions appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

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For today’s edition of Dear Mark, I’m answering five questions taken from this Twitter thread. First, does collagen offer anything special above and beyond glycine? Second, what’s the relationship between keto and gallstones? Third, do I recommend eating raw liver, and why or why not? Fourth, why does one reader’s scalp itch when eating stevia? And finally, what’s the best way to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

Let’s go:

If collagen is broken down into amino acids in the gut before being absorbed, is it just the amino acid profile (i.e. high glycine) that makes it so beneficial? Anything else?

Glycine is a major reason why we need collagen in our diets, but it’s not the only one.

When you feed people collagen derived from pork skin, chicken feet, and cartilage, many different collagenous peptides appear in the blood. You don’t get any of these from isolated glycine:

Proline-hydroxyproline, a peptide with protective effects on osteoarthritic cartilage degradation.

Glycine-proline-hydroxyproline, a peptide that makes it into the blood and turns into proline-hydroxyproline, which makes it into the skin.

Collagen peptides have beneficial effects above and beyond glycine alone—although glycine is great for balancing out methionine intake from muscle meat consumption. It’s also been used in several studies to improve multiple markers of sleep quality.

A family member has a complicated health history including cancer and wants to eat keto. But, now she finds she has gallstones. Any thoughts on a good way to attack this complicated issue?

Has your family member already gone keto? Did going keto come before the gallstone reveal?

If so, that’s actually normal.

The primary role of the gallbladder is to collect bile from the liver, concentrate it into potent super-bile (my term), and release the concentrated bile to break up incoming dietary fat into smaller molecules that lipase can attack and digest. Dietary fat is the biggest driver of gallbladder emptying.

If the gallbladder isn’t regularly emptied, gallstones can form. Usually made of hardened cholesterol, gallstones are quite common and often produce no symptoms. Problems arise when normal gallbladder emptying flushes out a stone small enough to make it into but too large to pass through the bile duct and a blockage occurs. Gallstones can also directly damage the walls of the gallbladder, leading to cholecystis, or gallbladder inflammation.

A high-fat diet can exacerbate or even uncover gallstone issues by increasing gallbladder emptying. Remember: the more fat you eat, the more often you empty your gallbladder—and everything in it.

But high-fat diets don’t generally cause gallstones to form. They only reveal pre-existing ones. The biggest risk factors for gallstone formation are:

• A high intake of high-glycemic carbohydrates.
• High estrogen levels, which concentrate cholesterol deposition in the gallbladder. This is why women, especially pregnant women and/or those taking hormonal birth control, are more likely to have gallstones.
• Obesity, which also increases cholesterol levels in the gallbladder.
• Weight loss, with a caveat: high-fat weight loss diets reduce and even prevent gallstone formation. In fact, when you compare people who lose weight on a low-fat diet to those who lose it on a high-fat diet, research shows that 45% of the low-fatters develop gallstones while none of the high-fatters develop them.

Once the gallstones are all clear, keep up with the keto eating, as eating more fat will keep your gallbladder regularly flushed and clear of stones.

Is Raw Liver safe to eat?

I’ve eaten raw liver before. I know people who eat raw liver. I can’t recommend it, however, because I don’t know what kind of liver you have access to. Who raised the animal? What did it eat? What were the processing conditions?

But because I know people are going to try this…

Freeze it first for several days.

Buy from a trusted source.

Buy only liver from well-raised, grass-fed, organic animals.

If it looks unhealthy, it probably is. I would never eat a pale, flaccid liver with ugly spots, cooked or raw.

Don’t eat raw (or even medium) pork liver. A huge percentage of pigs carry the Hepatitis E virus, which is transmittable to humans and concentrates in the liver.

Why does stevia make my scalp itch?

Stevia can be an allergen actually. It’s not very common, but as more and more people use stevia, more will be revealed to have an allergic reaction.

I’d just skip it.

Is it possible to gain muscle and lose weight with properly timed IF around workouts?

It is possible, although you may not actually lose weight, but rather body fat (which is better).

The best way I’ve seen people do it is the classic Leangains method.

Fast from 8 p.m. to 12-1 noon.

Fasted workout in the afternoon, perhaps with a little BCAA or whey isolate before the workout. Lift heavy, compound movements.

After the workout, walk for 20 minutes. Brisk pace to utilize all the free fatty acids swimming around.

Then eat. If you’re going to eat carbs, do it in this meal and keep the fat low-to-moderate. Load up on protein.

Eat as much as you like until 8 p.m.—the end of your eating window. Favor protein and, again, if you’re eating carbs keep fat lower than usual.

Maintain the fasting period every day. On rest days, eat low/no carb and higher fat. Protein always high. Go for walks on rest days.

That’s it. That usually works really well, but it presupposes you have a flexible schedule and can actually train in the afternoon whenever you want. Your mileage may vary—though it will work at any time.

Muscle gain won’t be as rapid as it would drinking a gallon of milk a day, eating pizza smoothies, and cramming ice cream made with whey protein at night, but it will minimize fat gain and perhaps even help you lose fat as you gain muscle. No guarantees, but it’s the best method I’ve seen.

That’s it for today, folks. Thanks for reading, take care, and be sure to leave a comment down below if you have any questions.

The post Dear Mark: Collagen or Glycine, Keto and Gallstones, Raw Liver, Stevia Itching, and Gaining Muscle, Losing Fat appeared first on Mark’s Daily Apple.

Originally Posted At: https://breakingmuscle.com/feed/rss

In the fitness world, much emphasis is placed on being able to squat below parallel—meaning squatting to a depth where your hip crease is below your knee.

And not just because failing to squat below parallel equals a no rep at a powerlifting or CrossFit competition….

There’s a way more important reason everyone SHOULD have or work to regain the ability to squat below parallel: The very simple life task of sitting down and standing up. And as importantly, for bowel health!

Bowel health?

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