By Nikki Burnett, CC Yogi and nutritionist and owner of Taste Life Nutrition. Food can be the safest, most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison. I’ve been searching for years to find the perfect foods to eat before my workouts. As a nutritionist, one of the most important misconceptions about exercise is the thought that there is a necessity to “carb up” before a work out. In my professional opinion, this has created a lot of damage and blood sugar issues for the novice and pro alike when the best carbs actually come in the form of vegetables and fruits. Another important fuel for the body before a workout, and in life is fat, that’s right,healthy, full fat. Not all fat is created equally, which is a whole separate blog post, but let’s hit the highlights.
1. Pastured eggs, cooked in coconut oil with veggies such as multi colored sweet bell peppers. This is a great option as it incorporates a healthy, complete protein, health fats and healthy carbohydrates. It may also be worth boiling eggs to keep in the fridge for days when you’re in a hurry. In the picture below, the peppers were smoked in our smoker which added amazing flavor to the dish! The softer the yolk, the more nutrition you receive. Most times, I cook the white and leave the yolk raw. 2. Protein shake – coconut water, coconut milk, 100% grass fed whey protein, spinach. This is a fun one to play with. You can add different spices – think pumpkin pie spice with organic pumpkin, macha, or raw cocoa nibs (very high in antioxidants!). You can also add different types of greens. If necessary, you may consider adding a little banana for sweetness but it you have blood sugar issues, keep it to a minimum. 3. Veggies and homemade hummus. You can purchase some good quality hummus at the grocery store but you want to be sure to check the ingredients. Canola oil is not a healthy oil and should be avoided at all costs. Many commercial products use canola oil as a cheap alternative to olive oil. It claims to be “heart healthy” but in fact, it is highly inflammatory…far from heart healthy. A little money saving tip – instead of tahini, I use broth. I was out of my homemade bone broth so I bought store bought bone broth. This increases healthy nutrients and saves on cost as tahini can be quite expensive. 4. Smoothie. This is one of the easiest and best ways to increase the amount of veggies in your diet. A small amount of fruit is ok to sweeten a bit but focus on berries. You may also add a scoop of 100% grass fed whey protein. All of the veggies left over from the veggies and hummus can be used in your smoothie! 5. I’ve come to love the beef and buffalo jerky that is now carried in most of the health food stores. Be sure to read the ingredients and of course, only purchase 100% grass fed jerkies. They are quick and easy and great for a pre-yoga snack! And lastly for a little more info about proteins and protein powders – they are not created equally.
If possible, find a practitioner that has accounts with professional companies. Many of these companies have standards that far surpass those of mainstream companies found at retail stores. If tolerated, 100% grass fed whey protein is far superior to any other protein. What’s important to remember is in order to get the most out of your protein, with no toxicity, a grass fed/grass finished whey protein is best. Always keep an eye on sugars, keep them low and stay far away from synthetic sweeteners. Acceptable sweeteners include stevia, xylitol, luo han guo fruit extract, and coconut sugar. Very small amounts of fructose can be acceptable but it can raise blood sugar significantly so keep it to a minimum. Nikki Burnett, CC Yogi and nutritionist of Taste Life Nutrition. “I love food! I also love life! Without food, there is no life. For this reason, I named my company Taste Life Nutrition. A favorite quote of mine by Ann Wigmore is, “The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison”. It is critical to be aware of your body’s needs and understand what you eat impacts every part of your life. I am a nutritionist that earned a Master of Nutrition and Master of Science degrees and have worked in health, wellness and medical fields for almost 15 years. My passion is natural health and wellness. Through my professional and educational experiences, I gained a high level of understanding regarding the science behind nutrition and the intricacies related to biochemical individuality. I am also the nutritionist for www.lifestylesocial.com. Health is a very individualized condition. No two people are alike; even in the same family. Factors that play a part in your health include lifestyle, environment, eating habits, exercise, stress, toxic burden and genetics. In order to understand your body’s needs, it is necessary to understand, as best as possible, all of these factors. My #1 objective is to positively impact the lives of those I come in contact with. Food can be fun and healthy. Understanding this is the first step toward a healthy relationship with food and enjoying a healthy, food filled life. If you would like to contact me directly my email is: nikki@tastelifenutrition.com and phone: 303-929-8926.
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READ the Article on the Denver Post Website HERE! Interview with Brittany Hopkins, owner/teacher Q: How did you get involved in this business? A: I have been moving and dancing my entire life and started teaching dance in 1998 and yoga in 2006. I’m originally from Texas. I went to college outside of St. Louis, and danced professionally in Chicago. Coming from a dance background, yoga instruction has been a beautiful and natural transition for me that makes my heart happy to bring movement to people who would be extremely intimidated by a dance class, yet want the same benefits of bending and strengthening and finding your center. Also, having worked for other people for so many years, my husband and I have wanted to be our own bosses for some time and this last August, I finally decided to take the leap. Q: What distinguishes you from other businesses in your category? A: What I’ve been told that sets me apart as a yoga teacher is that I can articulate things to people in a way that inspires them and challenges them, while at the same time making them feel comfortable in their very own and beautiful skin. I teach Baptiste power vinyasa yoga. It is a style of yoga that, by the end of the practice, you will have gotten your heart rate up, strengthened your core, arms, legs and back, balanced on one leg, stretched your entire body, and have changed your perspective for a bit, all while breathing on purpose. What sets us apart as a yoga studio, bike shop and coffee, tea and beer bar is that our business will be housed in used shipping containers. Q: What do you like best about your line of work?
A: One is a common scenario in my life, and one is a really beautiful fact. First, I recently convinced a male hockey player to take a private yoga lesson with me. He said that he had never done yoga and had always been curious, but was extremely afraid. We met in the Denver City Park on a Sunday evening… Long story short, at the end of the practice we bowed our heads with a “namaste” and then I looked up at him — he was sweating bullets and grinning ear to ear. Second, that I can wear stretchy and comfy clothes to work every day. Q: What is your business’ biggest challenge? A: I’m new to the Denver area, so building up a cliental from scratch has been quite the process, in addition to learning all of the other things that go into starting a business. But it’s also a super fun adventure. Q: Something people might be surprised to learn about you or your business: A: People are often surprised to know that my husband/business partner and I drive cars that run on waste vegetable oil and we built a straw bale house with our very own hands. We are currently partnering with the Lakewood Dance Academy to offer classes, but once we find a property our business will be built out of used shipping containers and will house yoga, bikes and brews. Profile Business: Container Collective Yoga Address: 9635 W. Colfax Ave., Lakewood Hours: Seven days a week Founded: August 2014 Contact: 720-484-9867, cc360denver.com I’ve never jumped and not landed safely. That’s what I told my friends and family last April when I announced that I would not be returning to Beijing to teach dance and yoga for the 2014-2015 school year. People would say, “Why would you leave a comfy steady income and great job?!?! I thought you liked it there.” I would say, “Well, for lots of reasons but the two main ones were that my body is really not well from the pollution and I really really miss my dog, Ava. The next question was, “So what are you going to do?” My answer, “Open a yoga studio, bike shop, bar (coffee, tea, and beer) in a shipping container structure!” Awkward silence… followed by an even more awkward, “That’s great!” That’s when the, “I’ve never jumped and not landed safely.” always came in. Thankfully, I’ve never really been afraid of hard work and have been blessed with an incredible stubborness/persistence streak. And also thankfully, that I have a life partner/husband/Russ with a similar commitment to “doing things”. We both worked really hard with a ton of love and to created a thriving dance program (me/Brittany) and Russ created a photography program at a college prep boarding school in central Utah. We also teamed up and put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into successfully building a straw bale house with our very own hands. After about eight years we began to get ansty, we needed a new challenge. That challenge came to us in the form of teaching our respective subjects at an international school in Beijing, China. Before we left for China, we were dreaming about all of the possibilities of the future. While we were in China for the 2013-2014 school year, we began narrowing our focus on the possibility we were going to focus on next. At this point we were 33 and 34 and knew that we were competent and capable and that we should use our talents and skills to create something big and beautiful that reflects us as individuals and could also support our lifestyle independent of having a boss. I have fallen in love with yoga over the course of the last 10 years and always make my friends and community do it with me. Russ loves bikes: fixing them, building them, teaching kids about them. I love tea. He loves beer. Other people like coffee. And we love hosting community gatherings! So why not start a business that incorporates all of those things?! With all of that being said, it is a fact that I tend to be more impulsive and Russ is way more practical. So I packed my stuff and moved to Colorado to get the yoga portion of the business going and Russ stayed in China to save up some cash. I am truly astonished in this moment as I reflect on the last six months as an entrepreneur. Here’s the summary:
We are still in search of a property to put our shipping containers on and Russ is building a master plan for the bike shop with kids bike building workshops for this summer. Man oh man am I STOKED!!!!! I’ve had my head down the last six months maintaining a website, designing and marketing, accounting, going to teacher trainings, and business workshops, networking. So when I looked around the room last night at the community of yogis, I thought my heart was going to explode! I’m beyond grateful for my parents support throughout every “wild” idea I’ve ever had. I’m grateful for the support of friends around the country and world, I’ve felt your loving energy all along the way. Thank you for your, “If if any one can do it it’s you and Russ.” comments. I’m grateful for the really long list of new friends that have offered so much fun and wisdom on this new adventure. And in this moment, most importantly the CC YOGI’s. Without students in the classroom, who would I share yoga with? and how would I pay my bills? Seriously, if this is what it looks like after 6 months I can only imagine how wonderful it will be in a year or two and beyond?!?! I am truly blessed and open to all of the wonderful possibilities that life has to unfold!
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