Hey everybody, it’s back and it’s here to stay, sorry for the absence over the last year.

Spring is here, time to get outside and get your dose of Vitamin D or “the Sunshine Vitamin”, you need the sun’s rays to manufacture Vitamin D (as you age it becomes increasingly difficult for your skin to produce Vitamin D).

Vitamin D has been reported to help protect against many health conditions including overactive immune system, heart disease, osteoporosis and depression to name a few

Sleep

To build muscle, burn fat, improve circulation and increase energy it is essential that you get a minimum of 7 hours sleep a night, the ingredients in this smoothie help you sleep. Bannanas contain tryptophan which the body converts to sleep boosting hormones, kale is high in calcium which helps the brain process the tryptophan effectively, kiwis contain antioxidant’s such as vitamin C that improve the onset, duration and quality of sleep. Avocado is high in magnesium which will help to calm the nervous system and prepare it for rest. Honey produces small insulin spikes, which cause the tryptophan to enter the brain.

Ingredients 

• 1 banana
• Handful of kale
• 1 kiwi fruit
• ½ Avocado
• 400ml of Almond milk
• 1 tbsp. honey

WORKPLACE

Research has shown that repetitive motion, poor posture and staying in the same position can cause or worsen musculoskeletal disorders. Habits we build at work, especially when sitting can contribute to discomfort and health issues, inclusive of

* Neck and Shoulder Pain * Obesity

* Musculoskeletal Disorders * Stress

* Lower Back Pain

To combat these issues try and add these stretches into your workday, set a timer to remind you, they can all be done at your desk and they may even increase productivity.

RUNNING

Your running regime may be making you fitter but have you experienced your times slowing, this could be due to a lack of balance in your body, many runners become blinkered by their need for training on the road and neglecting their time resistance training in the gym. A new study in the journal of strength and conditioning confirmed that traditional strength training can be more effective at increasing your speed than running alone, also a study by the Ruhr University in Germany found that strength training also boosts your endurance.

Try swapping a couple of your road days for days in the gym strength training and you should see your times speed up, your cardio increase and also fewer running related injuries.