66 Sep/Oct 2017 oxygenmag.com.au
4
FORGET THE
JUICE CLEANSE
(HELLO, SUGAR
RUSH!).
Here’s the
standard sales
pitch: you go on
a fasting juice
cleanse and come
out a new and
improved you.
Not so fast. Just
sipping juice for
days on end could
starve your body
of muscle-build-
ing protein,
mood-boosting
amino acids and
belly-filling fibre,
yet you’ll be chug-
ging back way
more sugar than
you need — like,
six Snickers bars’
worth in just one
day. And despite
the purified
promises, juicing
won’t magically
free your body
of toxins: “A
well-functioning
body does a good
job of detoxing all
on its own,” says
Dr Michelle Babb,
author of Anti-
Inflammatory
Eating Made Easy
(Sasquatch Books,
2014). The verdict:
real food equals
real results.3
STOP TEXTING
AND TREAD-
MILLING!
Using exercise
time as a chance
to catch up on
your TV shows
is a bad idea.
“If you’re not
totally focused
on what you’re
doing, you’re
not going to get
the full benefit
of the workout,”
says Devora
Zack, author of
Singletasking
(Berrett-Koehler
Publishers, 2015).
One study found
that perform-
ing mental and
physical tasks at
the same time
can tax your
prefrontal cor-
tex and drain
your energy.
Other studies
have found that
multitasking is
less productive
than sticking to
a single task.
Exercising to
music gets a
pass because
it doesn’t take
conscious effort.
Channel-surfing
on the treadmill?
Skip it.2
BE CAREFUL
WITH “FIT”
FOODS.
We all know
that a tub of
Ben & Jerry’s
or container of
Pringles can be
impossible to put
down, but over-
eating “fit” foods
also can put on
the kilos. One
study published
in the Journal
of Marketing
Research found
that participants
given fit-branded
trail mix downed
more than those
given generic
trail mix and
later burned less
calories on a sta-
tionary bike. The
takeaway: eating
“fit” foods doesn’t
mean you can
forget the impor-
tance of portion
control or use
it as an excuse
to work out at a
lower intensity.1
LUNCH IS THE
MOST IMPORT-
ANT MEAL OF
THE DAY.
Move over
breakfast, hello
lunch! New
research shows
that breakfast
may not be all it’s
cracked up to be.
Researchers at
the University of
Bath in the United
Kingdom found
that breakfast
eaters consumed
an extra 500
calories a day
compared to
skippers. “Lunch
provides a con-
tinued boost to
the metabolism
and keeps us
from a calorie
free-for-all come
dinner,” says Dr
Wendy Bazilian,
author of The
SuperFoodsRx
Diet (Rodale,
2008), who sug-
gests a combo
of vegetables,
lean protein and
whole grains. Try
a bed of greens
topped with
chicken breast
and quinoa or
black-bean chilli
with half a sweet
potato.5
DRINK YOUR
VEGETABLES.
Researchers
from the
University College
London found
that getting seven
or more portions
of vegetabls a
day can cut your
risk of cancer by
25 per cent and
your risk of heart
disease by 31 per
cent, with veggies
four times health-
ier than fruits. For
a simpler way
to cram in more
kale, spin it into
your smoothie.
“Adding vegeta-
bles to smoothies
boosts micro-
nutrients like
magnesium,
calcium and even
iron, as well as
immune-boost-
ing
phytonutrients,”
Dr Babb says.
Our fave com-
bos: jalapeno
+ watermelon,
avocado +
banana, carrot +
mango and beet
+ strawberry.Nutrition