Submission Coalition Podcast Interview

Recently I was lucky enough to be interviewed on the Submission Coalition Podcast. Darkwolf MMA's Submission Coalition Podcast is a resource for all things: Jiu-Jitsu, MMA, Kickboxing, Boxing and Combat Sports.

I talked about my fitness workouts and health plans which juggling it all as a homeschooling mum while on lockdown. I discussed my new and exciting BJJ women's group, Girls On Top and many more exciting things that I have in the pipeline.  

Thank you, Melissa and Dave, for the opportunity! 

I would love you all to tune in and let me know what you think!

Listen to the podcast on Spotify, HERE!

What lowers your Immune System and how to avoid them!!

In my previous blog post (here), I discussed foods and methods that boost your immune system. So in this blog, I would like to talk about things that can lower your immune system. So if any of these ring true for you, make the changes to ensure better health.

Highly Inflammatory Foods

When you eat food that creates an inflammatory effect in your body it puts your body in a stressed state that lowers your immune system. Foods that create an inflammatory affecting your body are:

• Refined white flour such as white bread

• Cheese and other processed dairy products  

• Fatty red meat like burger meat and processed luncheon meats 

• Spreads made with partially hydrogenated vegetable oils

• Foods deep-fried in processed refined vegetable oils that are high in omega 6 fats

• Sugary foods such as sodas and foods sweetened with high fructose corn syrup…

So I’m guessing you can deduce that a burger and fries and a soda is a horrible combination for health and keeping your immune system strong.

Basically the inflammation in your gut caused by these foods affects your internal flora, the good gut bugs, the ones that fight off infection. So to keep your gut bugs healthy and ready to fight off external things like viruses, make sure that your internal environment is on point. Avoid the inflammatory foods full of chemicals and trans fats and opt for whole fruits, veggies and healthy proteins. 

Lack of Vitamin D

It is super important that we get a quota of all our vitamins, but if there is one vitamin that acts as a super vitamin (which actually is more like a hormone) that helps to create other components in the body such as minerals and hormones) is vitamin D.  Studies have shown links between vitamin D deficiency and bone loss, disease, mental health issues and immune system function. In an article recently written by Natalie O’Neil for the New York Times, May 1 2020, Researchers at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Foundation Trust and the University of East Anglia in England compared the average vitamin D levels of 20 European countries with COVID-19 mortality rates — and found “significant relationships” between vitamin D levels and the number of deaths caused by this infection. 

More and more evidence is coming up about the overall importance of vitamin D and health. 

Vitamin D can be found in our food and through sunlight exposure. So even though we have all been told to stay indoors, for your own health you must be getting outside and getting some sunlight on a daily basis. 

Lack of Sleep

Sleep is one of the most important things for our health. It is a time where our bodies and our minds are regenerating and repairing. If we don’t get enough sleep then our bodies aren’t healed from the day’s stresses so that when we are awake we are running on empty which compromises our immune systems.

Lack of Movement

I know that we have all been ordered to stay inside for the safety of ourselves and others but there are ways we can work around it so our own health doesn’t suffer in other ways, ie by working out at home or at the park.

Lack of movement affects our circulation and other systems such as our lymph system that uses movement from the body like a pump to move fluids and remove waste from the body. We also miss out on the amazing endorphins that are our body’s ‘feel good’ hormones that positively affect our mood and reduce pain. Many cells in the immune system have receptors for endorphins, and some studies show  that increasing your endorphin levels is a great way to increase your body's immune function.

Negative Emotions

Now this might be a left-field for some but our emotions and our mind set do have an effect on our health and our immune system. Basically being unhappy makes you more susceptible to getting sick etc. Going back to Richard J Davidson PhD, Author on The Emotional Life of Your Brain, he shares results for a test he performed whereby groups received the flu shot and those who reported they were happy and who performed specific stress-reducing practices to keep their mindset’s positive such as focused meditation produced higher antibodies from the flu shot than those who did not practice stress-reducing activities.

Some of these things may be more obvious than others to keep your immune system strong. But the whole body works together as one unit. If there are imbalances or deficiencies in one area then the whole unit suffers which compromises the immune system. In order to stay truly healthy and to be able to fight off any infections, paying attention to all the factors such as healthy eating, moving your body, getting outdoors to get vitamin D, sleeping well and happy thoughts are essential.

Naughty Made Nice E Book COMING SOON!

We've been working behind the scenes and preparing an amazing book full of loads of goodies that not only taste delicious but are good for you! Naughty Made Nice contains my favourite clean, processed sugar- free and flour-free, gluten-free and dairy-free treat and snacks. And the best thing, they are all super easy to make!!

I have included recipes to help satisfy your sweet tooth and keep your health in check. You can make caramel bliss balls, milkshakes, muffins, brownies and ice cream… the list is endless.

Healthy eating isn’t meant to be boring!! It’s about eating real, whole foods, more plants, and gluten-free products. And for the sweet stuff, natural sweeteners are the best!

As you weed out ingredients that cause inflammation and your blood sugar to spike, you’ll see a boost in your metabolism and notice blood sugar levels become more stable. No more sugar crashes and hangovers!!

I will be announcing Pre Order soon. Stay tuned!

Breaking Muscle Article: 7 Core-Strengthening Push Up Progressions For Female Athletes

For those doing my Mat Movement workouts with me here and who are struggling with all the push-ups, here is a great article I wanted to share with you that I wrote for Breaking Muscle Magazine a while back. It is a step by step progression to get you super strong for push-ups. Push-ups are an excellent exercise because a strong core is required in order to execute them properly. Often it's not the upper body that is weak, it's the core. A strong push up helps you frame much more effectively in BJJ and good framing is essential to stop your opponent from closing the space and securing side control - for those BJJ athletes.

Have a read of this article and enjoy the progressions. In the end, I guide you to some really advanced push-up options. I wanna know who can do the ones on the ball!!! 

Girl in Gis Live Workout!

I’m so honoured to be guiding you through a BJJ specific work out at Girls in Gis this Saturday at 10 am PST. Join me for the live workout to help you stay strong and healthy throughout this time! And you may even break a sweat!!

The workouts can be viewed HERE!

I’ll also be available to answer any questions that you ladies might have about health and fitness training for BJJ and making weight for competition. Can’t wait!!

Virtual Personal Training Sessions & a Nutritional Plan with SophiaFIT

I am excited to announce that I will be offering Virtual Personal training sessions via Facetime or Skype. Alongside the training session, you will receive a Tailored Nutrition Plan and Workout Schedule!

My programs are very much geared towards overall lifestyle since feeling great and looking good is about so much more than what you are eating. With a personalized program, I will be looking into your food and water intake, your exercise,  your sleep, your supplements and your schedule/stress levels. My aim is to tailor a program that works best for you personally and make sure that it is achievable for you so you can realistically reach your goals. 

Please email me at sophia@sophiafit.com for details and prices.

Quick tips to keep your immune system strong!

Now more than ever we need to keep our immune systems strong. What people don’t realise that bugs such as microbes, viruses and bacteria are around us constantly. In fact, they are on every inch of our skin.  There are good bugs and bad bugs. The good bugs are the ones in our gut which keep our immune systems strong because they are the ones that fight off the bad bugs. 

What we want to do is keep our immune system strong so that if we ever encounter the virus or other bad bugs, our immune system is better prepared to fight them off. 

Below are my tips and methods that BOOST your immune system!

The food we eat is very important for immune health since our immune system starts in the gut. 

Eat loads of fruit and veggies, particularly green lady veggies that are packed with antioxidants.  Eat good quality proteins from sources where the animals are free to roam, such as eggs from pasture-raised chickens, wild-caught salmon and grass-fed meats. 

Drink loads of fresh filtered water. Personally I don’t agree with bottled water because no one knows how long the water has been sitting around in the plastic bottles and if it’s been exposed to sunlight where the BPA can leak into the water. Purchase a good filter to install at your house and aim to drink up to a gallon a day. 

Sleep is where our bodies recharge and heal. This where your body releases most of the human Growth Hormone for healing and repair. If you skimp on sleep then your entire system suffers because it hasn't been recharged. Aim to get a good 8 hours sleep a night to keep your immune system strong. 

Here are some supplements that are essential for overall health and work to boost your immune system too:

Multivitamins are packed with all the vitamins and minerals that your body needs for optimal function. The brand I recommend is juice plus because they are natural rather than synthetic so your body can readily absorb the nutrients.  Check out their products here.

 Probiotics: foods such as kimchi, sauerkraut and other fermented vegetables. Greek yoghurts with no added sugar is packed with probiotics. The bacteria from these fermented foods adds good bacteria to the gut. Supplementing with probiotics such as acidophilus and Bifidus is an option too. 

Fish oils reduce inflammation in the body which will help to reduce inflammation in the gut. If the gut is inflamed the internal flora is affected which can reduce the number of good bacteria and affect or immune-supporting bugs. 

Stress is a major factor in health. More and more studies are showing that stress is a factor in a myriad of health issues but also your state of mind affects your health. In a study performed by Richard J Davidson PhD, Author on The Emotional Life of Your Brain, he shares results for a test he performed whereby groups received the flu shot and those who reported they were happy and who performed specific stress-reducing practices such as focused meditation produced higher antibodies from the flu shot than those who did not practice stress-reducing activities. This indicated that the stress-reducing group had stronger immune systems responded more effectively to the flu shot.

Reduce stress by meditating daily. Results have shown that by spending as little as 10 mins a day to stop, breath and clear your mind can have powerful effects on your state of mind, your health and your immune system. 

My e book at half the price to say 'Thank You’

7 days of healthy meals and snacks mapped out.

It’s so easy to be eating more while we are all stuck at home. There is far less structure and one of the things most of us tend to do is snack when we are bored. In order to prevent piling on the bounds during lockdown its best to have healthy meals and snacks available, if not we’ll head straight for the crackers or the chips. 

My 7 Day Meal Plan is a very straightforward no-fuss meal plan that discusses the basics of nutrition and maps out delicious yet healthy meals and snacks for 7 days straight. Search day is different so there is loads of variety to keep things exciting. There are over 30 recipes in the books. And as a thank you, I am giving you a special discount coupon code that will allow you to receive this book at half price!!!! 

Enter:  STAYHEALTHY at checkout to grab your copy at 50% Off!