Best Natural Ways to Increase Your Testosterone

Testosterone is the hormone of manliness. Yes, women make testosterone too, yet men make much more to achieve the body size, muscle mass, bone density and strength associated with manhood.

Low testosterone levels contribute to infertility, loss of lean body mass, increased body fat, moodiness and even hot flashes. Yes, men have hot flashes too.

In men, testosterone is a hormone produced primarily by the testicles. As men age, testosterone levels decline. By age 30, stress, lack of exercise, highly processed foods and exposure to xenoestrogens (synthetic chemicals that have estrogenic effects like those found in pesticides) depletes testosterone levels.

In the past fifteen years the norm for blood levels of testosterone in men has dropped dramatically. Most men have no idea what their testosterone levels were when they were young and virile. By the time they seek medical attention with signs of low testosterone including erectile dysfunction, low libido, loss of muscle mass, fatigue, difficulty sleeping, and rising cholesterol levels, their testosterone has dropped significantly.
In severe cases, bio-identical testosterone replacement therapy can be prescribed by an experienced health practitioner. Yet high doses and continual use will diminish your natural ability to make testosterone.


8 Ways to Naturally Increase Testosterone Levels

1. Lose Body Fat

Healthy men should have less than 18% body fat. The American Council on Exercise compares male and female body fat percentages by activity level.

 

graph credit: American Council on Exercise

Notice that women need more body fat to produce hormones specifically estrogen. When men approach female body fat levels, guess what, they produce more estrogen too!

Lose the belly fat by cutting out all refined sugars and starches. Eat only whole grains and get most of your carbohydrate calories from vegetables. Your diet should consist of no more than 30-40% of your calories from carbohydrates. Carbs are fuel. If you aren’t using them as energy, you’re storing them as fat.


2. Exercise Nearly Every Day

High intensity exercise, combined with really slow weight resistance is the best way to increase lean body mass. This means interval training. Do some type of high intensity exercise for short bursts—running, biking, treadmill, rowing, elliptical—about 30 seconds as fast and hard as you can. Then slow down for 60-90 seconds. And repeat the cycle 8-10 times. Do this three times per week and you will burn fat and increase lean body mass.

Once a week, go for a long slow aerobic activity—hike, bike, run, swim. Be sure to stretch after each exercise session and always warm up well. As you get older, you lose flexibility, so warming up for at least ten minutes and cooling down with adequate stretching will prevent injury. Go slow, if you are a former couch potato.

At least once weekly, lift heavy weights really, really slow. Strive for a contraction phase of 40-60 seconds and a release phase of double the time (80-120 seconds). Do just one exercise per body part, and you will increase your muscle strength and endurance significantly. Be sure to get professional help at the gym before tackling heavy weights, so you don’t hurt yourself. And of course, warm up first!

At least once weekly, take a day off. This allows your muscles to repair themselves. You will notice results faster with less injuries, if you give your body a weekly break. Take a relaxing stroll with a loved one, walk the dog, do some light gardening—just no intense exercise.


3. Get Enough Sunshine

Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin. It’s a pro-hormone that allows your steroid hormones to get into the cells. You need at least 15-20 minutes of sunbathing (80% of your skin exposed without sunscreen) to make enough Vitamin D for your daily needs. If your serum levels are low, you may need to supplement with a triglyceride based Vitamin D to optimize your levels. Studies have shown that those populations with the longest longevity average 50 ng/dl of 25OH Vitamin D in their blood.


4. Consume Enough Zinc

Zinc is a mineral that is important for testosterone production. Too much zinc can dangerously lower copper levels, so it is best to get zinc from your diet, rather than supplementation. Zinc is found in meats and fish, raw milk, raw cheese, beans, and yogurt or kefir made from raw milk. Be sure to eat organic grass fed meats and diary products as conventional farming methods rely heavily on chemical fertilizers and pesticides which rob the soil of nutrients like zinc.


5. Eat Enough Healthy Fat

Testosterone is a steroid hormone which means it’s made from cholesterol. As your testosterone levels drop, your cholesterol levels rise specifically LDL cholesterol (the large particle type). You need to eat fat to make testosterone. Be sure to get at least 30% of your calories from fat. And one third of those fat calories should come from saturated fats. Saturated fats help create cells membranes allowing hormones to get into the cells through receptor sites.

Healthy fats include: olives and olive oil, coconut oil, avocado, nuts, seeds, meat, poultry, fish, diary products, and eggs. Fried foods do not count as healthy fats. In fact, high heat adulterates fat and should be avoided.


6. Get Enough Protein

Protein is made up of amino acids which are the basic building blocks of all your tissues. Branched chain amino acids (BCAA) like leucine, isoleucine and valine are needed to build muscle and connective tissue like tendons and ligaments. Whey protein is rich in BCAAs and a safer alternative to using individual amino acid supplements. Animal proteins are the best source of BCAAs, but legumes are a good alternative.
You should be eating 0.5-0.75gm of protein per pound of lean body mass. Your lean body mass can be calculated by subtracting your body fat in pounds from your body weight. For instance if you weigh 200# and you have 15% body fat (or 30# of body fat) your lean body mass (LBM) is 170#. Which means you need at least 85 grams of protein daily to maintain your lean body mass. A 4 oz chicken breast has about 28gm of protein.


7. Reduce Stress

Stress in any form creates a fight or flight reaction. Your adrenals do not know the difference between a tiger chasing you and your worry over a late bill. The reaction is the same—adrenaline surges to get you out of danger, followed by cortisol released to fuel the fight or flight. If you were really running away from a tiger, the stored sugar released by your cortisol surge would fuel your flight. If not, you get to store it as body fat!
Cortisol blocks the effect of testosterone in the body. While testosterone is an anabolic hormone (builds tissue), cortisol is a catabolic hormone (breaks down tissue).

Meditation is a great way to reduce stress. Learning relaxation skills like deep breathing and visualization can help reduce stress. Most stress responses are learned. Seek professional help from a licensed therapist to teach you how to be less reactive to your stressors. Chronic stress is the biggest hormone challenger which will age you rapidly.


8. Balance Your Hypothalamus

Most hormonally challenged men have been testosterone deficient and cortisol driven for so long, their hypothalamic-pituitary axis is disturbed. In the center of your brain, the hypothalamus orchestrates your hormonal response, all of your hormones. The hypothalamus perceives your world through your senses and all the hormones you produce via the bloodstream. It then tells the pituitary what hormones to stimulate according to what is most necessary for survival. If you do not correct hypothalamic imbalance, you will need hormone supplementation for life.

I created Genesis Gold® to help balance out the entire symphony of hormones and optimize hypothalamic response. Plus the whole food phytonutrients help your body metabolize and detoxify your hormones safely. Many of my male patients have been able to achieve optimal testosterone levels by taking Genesis Gold® and following the healthy lifestyle habits suggested above.

Keep Hormones in Harmony with Genesis Gold

Read more about how Genesis Gold® can help you achieve your optimal state of wellness at www.genesisgold.com

Copyright 2015 DMaragopoulos

LIVE LONGER THE GREEK WAY!

I recently got tagged on FaceBook after one of my friends read an article called Secrets From The Island Where People Forget To Die.

My friend said, “Thought of you, Deborah, when I read this article. Sounds like your words of wisdom.”

Well, the island is Ikaria in the north Aegean Sea. The people there live well into their eight, ninth, and tenth decades. Yes, it is common to see one humdred year old Greeks in the market, gardening, enjoying life. In fact, heart disease, cancer, diabetes are rarely heard of on this island. So how is it that these people rarely suffer from the same illnesses that shorten the lives of the rest of us.

In her her new cookbook Ikaria: Lessons on Food, Life, and Longevity from the Greek Island Where People Forget to Die, Diane Kochilas sums up as six things which I totally agree with.

1. Eat locally, seasonally and sparingly. 

The octagenarians, nonagenarians and centenarians on Ikaria ate very little in their early years, because of extreme poverty. Now I’m not saying that people should starve, but clearly first world countries consume too much.

Traditionally, people of the Mediterranean eat very little meat. A goat or a lamb or a pig may be slaughtered for a holiday feast, perhaps two or three times a year. Family chickens were kept for eggs. The young roosters may be slaughtered a few times a month. Goats are milked and the milk is cultured into yoghurt and cheese. And if you’re fisherman or have something to trade with the fishermen, then fish is part of the diet. 

Everyone keeps a garden, which is basically xenoscaped as the island is arid. So people scavenged for herbs, roots, snails, mushrooms, wild greens. My husband describes picking dandelion greens from the park as a kid. His Greek father would sauté the greens- Horta – and we still cultivate these weeds today. Great for the liver and really tasty sautéed in olive oil, with a bit of feta sprinkled on top.

And the biggest factor is that there is virtually no processed food on the island, except in some restaurants.

2. Don’t rush through life. 

This is key to Mediterranean people, especially those my husband and I encountered in the small villages of Italy and Greece. The author describes the pace with which people move on Ikaria to be: slow, deliberate, unhurried, but with enough time to observe and live in every moment.

Once when we were visiting southern Italy, my husband and I were shopping for souvenirs in the coastal village of Amalfi. Suddenly all the village left their homes and shops including the shopkeeper where we were shopping and they all headed to the beach. We followed them to witness the most beautiful sunset on the Tyrrhenian Sea. People were holding hands and just enjoying the beauty. When the sun had set, everyone kissed and went back to whatever they were doing before. We asked the shopkeeper when he returned if this was a usual event.

 “Of course!” He exclaimed throwing up his hands in the Italian manner. “You stop and appreciate your beautiful life!” We have been slowing down ever since and I believe that has helped our aging process.

This slow pace allows us to be more in tune with our bodies. And that is key to maintaining our health. If you’re moving too fast, not living deliberately, rushing through life, then how can you possibly attend to your body’s subtle signals of dis-ease. When patients come to me with an illness, I always point out to them that their body is trying to communicate with them. If they want to heal, it behooves them to stop and pay attention.

3. Enjoy sleep. 

We sleep so much when we are on vacation. Well, living deliberately allows you to really sleep well. Take naps! Pay attention to your dreams. The centenarians of Ikaria relish their sleep. All older Greeks nap.

I recently read a study on bimodal sleep. We are meant to sleep in two phases. When we were in Italy and Greece if we didn’t sleep during the siesta time when all the shops closed down in the late afternoon, then we could not possibly keep up with the lively late night activities that the people enjoy. An afternoon nap is just when your adrenals need to be recharged. So sleep well!

4. Let things go.  

This is a lesson for us all. The Greeks say, "Don't hold the bad in." The negative feelings- disappointment, regret, frustration, anger, fear—slowly but surely tax our resources and feed dis-ease. Remember what we think becomes. So release everything that no longer serves you on a regular basis. My Italian grandparents used to say, “Never go to bed mad. Always kiss and make up.”

Celebrating life is a great part of Mediterranean culture. The Italians and Greeks love their wine. Grown in the heart of the land they love, the grapevines capture the love of the people turning sunshine into luscious fruit. The wine is good and strong and fuels lively celebration with much dancing!  

5. Walk.  Move. Dance.

When we were in Italy and Greece, we were amazed at how many old people walked. No wheelchairs, no walkers, no canes. Once my husband tried to help a tiny octogenarian with her groceries and she turned him away. My old Italian aunts were like that…believing that once they could not longer do for themselves they would die. So they insisted on cooking, cleaning, climbing three stories, walking to the market as long as they possibly could.

No gyms, no heart monitors, no fancy running clothes. Just walk as much as possible, every day.  You won’t believe how much exercise you get if you just walk. Once my father got us a couple of pedometers. He and I walked around Ojai and compared steps. I’m shorter so I had a few more steps. Just before dinner, he asked to use my laptop. While he was perusing his email, I went out to the garden to gather veggies for dinner, fed the animals, watered a few plants, folded clothes, and prepared dinner. At the end of the evening, we compared our pedometers, I had double the amount of steps than him. He thought I had taken another walk. “No, Dad, I just didn’t sit down.” So get up and walk!

6. Turn to nature’s pharmacopeia as your medicine. 

The long-lived Ikarians use herbs for the minor ailments and let their bodies heal themselves. Folk pharmacopoeia may be slipping away in many cultures but it is alive and well on the island where people forget to die.

One of the reasons I created Genesis Gold was because I could not gather all the nutrition my body needed from my organic American diet. Genesis Gold provides my body a potpourri of herbs from around the world to choose what is needed for healing and maintaining optimal health.

 

GENESIS GOLD - NATURE'S PHARMACOPEIA

How to become your own Body Whisperer

What if you could know exactly what your body needs? Without researching on the internet, consulting with medical experts, or running a bunch of tests. What if you could be your own medical intuitive?

Well, you can. Your body has innate wisdom that you can tap into. You have within your DNA all the information needed to heal any dis-ease, age gracefully, in fact live much longer than your ancestors. But how to access that information?

Your body communicates with you all the time. Most of us don't listen to the subtle communication until we become ill. Dis-ease is your body screaming at you when you haven't attended to the whispering. It's ok. It's how we learn. As humans, we are a bit hard-headed. We think we know. And we try to think our way through our body's intricate physiology without really understanding its language.

And the soul speaks through the body. I find that in spite of the best treatments, until the deep soul issue that dis-ease is mirroring can be identified does the true healing begin. Most of my work now focuses on helping patients discover why their body has manifested imbalance in the form of injury or illness. We address the physical aspects with a combination of conventional and alternative medicine. Sometimes patients are so ripe for healing that in our first two hour consult they receive the soul issue and start to do the work.

I believe that my patients have progressed because I have learned to open myself to receive them body, mind, and soul. So in their own sweet time, they learn how to heal themselves, how to trust their body's innate wisdom, and then miraculously it seems they heal.

Becoming innate is a remembrance of our ability to self heal, to know what our bodies need for health and vitality and what our souls need for growth and enlightenment. It's like becoming a Body Whisperer. That is what it feels like to me as a healer. Very similar to reading the subtle messages of a horse or a dog. Someone once called me a Hormone Whisperer. That's where I start...I resonate with my patients and "read" their body's innate wisdom like a vibrational book.

It has always been my intention to tap into the body's innate wisdom. I feel strongly that communication with the genetic blueprint is possible if...and this is a big if...our hormones are in balance. By focusing on the hypothalamus which directs all the hormones, I was able to get my own hormones in balance and hundreds of others over the past eleven years.

By creating then consuming Genesis Gold, I achieved hormonal harmony and became a Body Whisperer. First for my own body and then for others. Because when you're in harmony, dis-ease and imbalance really feels out of tune!

Since Genesis Gold came to market in 2003, I have witnessed many of my formerly "stuck" patients—those unable to heal themselves—start to listen to their bodies and then trust that innate wisdom enough to allow healing to occur.

In fact, I warn my patients before they choose to partake of Genesis Gold that their lives will change as they perceive their lives with more enlightened eyes. As they consume Genesis Gold, their perspective shifts. Yes, many of the changes are physical—people sleep better, their hormones come into balance, their moods stabilizes, their digestion improves, they detox more efficiently, their hair grows, they look and feel more vital—but there's more subtle changes that transform their lives. They start to recognize synchronicity.

Dreams become more lucid and they begin to understand what their subconscious needs to heal. They start to live more peacefully, experiencing greater ease, trusting in their own ability to heal, to transform their lives.

Geneticists have discovered that within the unexpressed DNA are potentials. As if everything we were and will be lies in the blueprint in every cell. What we are at the moment is DNA expressed. What we needed in the past is still in our genetic code...like the genes for hibernation. Still there some 26,000 years since the last Ice Age. We may need it again. In fact some peoples' bodies are expressing that Ice Age genetics today. We call it Insulin Resistance. Yes, in order to survive the Ice Age, your body needs to store fat around your middle with thick sugary blood that acts like antifreeze flowing through your veins and a very slow metabolism.

Unfortunately, because of hormonal miscommunication, the genes of hibernation are turned on. Medicine calls it dis-ease...pre-diabetes...Well, I call it maladaptation.

So why not improve hormonal communication and turn off the "dis-ease" genes and turn on healthy adaptive genes? You can do this by changing your lifestyle—turn off all your lights after dark. That's right, no computer, no TV, no light what so ever shining on or near you while you sleep. Oh, and stop eating processed foods. No sugar at all! Adopt a strict Paleolithic diet AND a very early bedtime. Oh yes, to keep in perfect balance, you must rise with the sun.

And this strict healthy lifestyle may help some achieve their perfect health. But it won't work for all of us. And I, for one, prefer to celebrate life with good food, good wine, (yes, wine—the good stuff, life is about joy so why suffer?)

Recently I had a physical examination, pretty much from head to toe by my local nurse practitioner. We have been colleagues for years, but she hasn't seen me—well, all of me—since 2004. She was surprised. "You're in such great shape. You haven't aged at all." Well, that's not true, but compared to who she usually examines, I guess I've maintained pretty well.

"You must work out all the time! It shows!" Nope, I don't! 

"You must never eat junk food!" That's not true. I love home baked cookies and gelato.

"Then what is it that keeps you so healthy?"

Genesis Gold. It's all I take and I eat what I want and keep active, but no more formal exercise. Unless you count dancing in the kitchen :)

 

Genesis Gold helps your body tell you what it needs. And it may need drastic lifestyle changes...or it may need a more gentle transformation. Either way, you'll be naturally supported and not have to take a ton of supplements to stay well.

The choice is yours. You CAN heal yourself by tapping into your genetic potential.

How to Keep Your Joints Healthy Naturally

Ever notice that just as you start an exercise program, you become really aware of your joints? With the best of intentions you go out and start jogging.  Everything feels fine. Until the next morning when you get out of bed, step on the hard floor and the bottom of your feet complain, or your knees creak a bit, or your lower back aches?

Or perhaps you're too busy to exercise. You spend hours every day working on the computer. And every night you go to bed with sore shoulders and neck. Perhaps your wrists or elbows or thumbs ache, maybe they're even a little swollen sometimes.

Well, it's time to start taking care of your joints! Even if you're too young for osteoarthritis, you can slow down the wear and tear effect on your joints with proper care. And if you've already spent a few decades abusing your body, your joints will definitely benefit from care.

What are Joints?

Joints are where bones meet. Ligaments connect the bones to secure the joints. The ends of the bones are capped by cartilage which keeps the joint space intact by producing lubricating synovial fluid.  Meniscus are crescent shaped cartilage that partly divides a joint. Some joints are hinge joints like your knees. Some joints are ball and socket joints like your hips and shoulders. Some joints are sliding joints like the vertebrae in your spine.

Joint pain comes from many factors. Over-strained ligaments, too little lubrication, worn out cartilage. Osteoarthritis is a painful condition in which the joint cartilage is worn to the point that bone rubs on bone.

A Pain in the Neck

Recently, I've been having neck pain with numbness in my right arm.  It started with all this typing. Writing books, articles, blogging...too many hours on the keyboard  completing my two books, writing marketing articles, blogging, designing labels, graphics for lectures...too many hours hunched over my laptop.

I first noticed my neck issues in 2010. The same time my father was experiencing severe cervical neuropathy that required surgery. Getting my resistant father the care he needed through the medicare system was a symbolic "pain in the neck"! I wrote my neck issues off as empathic.

Now I did have a significant fall a couple years before. My horse tripped going down a muddy hill, went head of heels with me on her back. To avoid getting crushed, I vaulted off her back, tucked, rolled, and landed on my feet at the same moment my athletic horse landed on hers. My riding companion clapped, gave us a 10, and we called it a day. Just to be safe, I started my mare on natural anti-inflammatories (my DMAR Natural Anti-inflammatory Treatment) and had the equine chiropractor give her an adjustment. I did nothing for myself...I felt fine.

But that was the injury that haunts me now. My muscles tightened up to protect my vertebral joints and I added to the chronic tightness by too much keyboarding. About three years after the initial injury, I had enough pain and numbness to seek treatment.

After ruling out that I did not have a disc herniation, I sought chiropractic adjustment. Until my neck issues, I did not get regular adjustments, now I'm a believer. I always warm up first with direct heat or exercise and my chiropractor uses an electric massager that helps my muscles relax.

I also do traction. I apply heat to my neck for fifteen minutes twice daily. Then I "hang myself" with an over the door cervical traction device. It looks archaic and kind of scary...the first time my sister saw me in traction, she screamed, but then she tried it and felt relief from her neck tension. Gentle traction separates the joints. It's important to relax the muscle tension with heat before traction. I do this daily regimen until I no longer feel numbness or tingling which are signs of nerve compression, the slowly wean down the traction. Compressive activities like lots of computer work, horseback or motorcycle riding necessitate that I open up my cervical vertebrae with gentle traction from time to time. 

I've changed the way I keyboard. I use my iPad which I can easily place at a comfortable position in my lap to write all my first drafts. If I need to edit or do graphic work, I raise my desk chair as high as possible, bring my laptop as close as possible and support my dominant hand on a pillow on the arm of the desk chair. I also find that wearing my grain-filled hot wrap over my shoulders while I work reminds me to relax my shoulders.

Regular exercise helps improve circulation. Plus I do stretching and strengthening exercises. For my neck, I do yoga poses that focus on the neck and shoulders. Doing supported back bends over a large physical therapy ball helps to stretch my neck and upper back.

I also take nutritional supplements to support joint healing (my DMAR Natural Joint Therapy) Loss of disc space between the vertebrae is common as we age, so I'm doing all I can to keep my discs plump and my joints healthy.

Three tips to keep your joints healthy:

1) Adopt proper body mechanics

First you must change the way you're doing things that are causing pain. I have to go over my patients' body mechanics in relation to their injury to help them Realize what they need to do to stop aggravating the issue. That may mean buying better running shoes, jogging on soft surfaces like dirt rather than concrete, getting an expo to evaluate your body mechanics during the offending activity. It may mean ergonomic chair, computer placement with keyboard on your lap and screen at eye level. Massage and chiropractic adjustment may be necessary.

2) Strengthen muscle groups that support the affected joints

Exercise - the key to healing. Yes, strong muscles support your joints. Exercise specific for the affected joint is important. Low impact aerobic activity increases circulation and relieves muscle tension. An evaluation with an exercise physiologist or physical therapist may be necessary to find out what specific exercise you need to strengthen the muscles that support your affected joint. Usually the exercises necessary to help heal your pain are not the same ones you've been doing that caused the problem. Many runners with lower back issues have tight hamstrings which need to be stretched.

3) Nourish your joints to help them heal

You may be eating all organic, well balanced meals, but joint healing requires extra nutrients. Many of my older patients complained of joint pain when they ran out of Genesis Gold. The extra nutrition from the whole plant foods in Genesis Gold keeps inflammation at bay.

There are joint specific supplements that have been shown to hasten joint healing. Glucosamine and chondroitin have both been show to help repair cartilage. Hyluronic acid helps lubricate the joints. MSM has an anti inflammatory effect. Collagen can help repair joint damage. Hot herbs like frankincense and turmeric are excellent anti-inflammatories.

All these supplements can be found at most health food stores, pharmacies, or online. Unfortunately many people take these supplements improperly and do not get the full benefit. I've put together my favorite joint supplements in a protocol that seems to do the trick. Check out: DMAR Natural Joint Therapy.

If physical therapy, body work, or chiropractic adjustments do not seem to last, myofacsitis may be an issue. Fascia is a fibrous plane of tissue that holds muscles in place. When you injure a joint, the body protects itself by splinting the area. the muscles become tense and inflamed and eventually the fascia scars and holds the joint and muscles in malalignment. Sometimes the fascia needs to be released with deep massage in order to allow the muscles and joints to heal in proper alignment. If the fascia is softened up for 2-3 weeks before therapy, myofascial release works better and faster. I developed a nutritional protocol to hasten healing of old injuries prevent scarring in early injury that's my DMAR Natural Anti-inflammatory Treatment.

Yours in Health,

Deborah Maragopoulos MN FNP-BC
Intuitive Integrative Health

Best Diet & Exercise for Healthy Hormones

Ever wonder what's the best diet/exercise/lifestyle regime for healthy hormones? Well, so did this woman...

Q: I have been taking Genesis Gold and Sacred Seven for a little over two months now, and I am amazed at the changes I have been experiencing. I sleep better, have more energy during the day, my mood has become more positive, my hair and skin are soft and radiant, and my libido has been improved. I am hopeful that my hormone levels will improve, I will be able to lose weight, and my fertility will increase. Just have to give it more time.

I am not only writing to tell you thanks for the wonderful products, but to ask a question, too. I am wondering if you could give me a few pointers on a healthy diet/lifestyle? There are so many fad diets out there, and each claim to be the best. Some claim carbs are good, some claim carbs are bad. Same goes with fat. I know that it isn't always black and white like that, some carbs/fats are better than others. But all the information I see and hear contradicts each other. I really want to lose weight and keep my heart healthy, but my medical issues make it very challenging. I am hoping that now that I take your wonderful supplements I may have some success. I would very much appreciate your input on what your idea of a healthy diet is. Thank you so much.

A: I am so happy you are experiencing such wonderful effects from Genesis Gold and Sacred Seven. Overtime your hormone levels will improve. The first changes are described as enhanced well being...before the laboratory tests confirm the biochemical shifts. 

It does take time for the hypothalamus to come into balance as your body heals...reproductive hormones are the last to balance... Reversal of insulin resistance, along with adrenal and thyroid regulation comes first as the hypothalamic-pituitary axis corrects. The fact that your mood is more positive suggests increased endorphins which is a byproduct of proopiomelanocortin--the hypothalamic hormone that controls glucose metabolism, adrenal and thyroid function as well as endorphins.

The good news is that your body is readjusting to a healthier state which includes a healthier weight set point. 

Of course exercise is key in increasing metabolism.  Your exercise tolerance and endurance should increase as your hypothalamus balances. In order to burn fat, you must do long slow distances....meaning exercising at a lower heart rate >60% of your max over 50 minutes to mobilize fat stores. That's because you have 400 calories of glycogen stored in your muscle and liver that must be utilized before your body will burn the triple sugars (triglycerides) stored in your fat cells.

Now for the perfect weight loss diet!

Well, there is not One Diet for Every Body... One great thing about optimizing your genetic expression with Genesis Gold is that you will "know" exactly what your body needs. In the meantime, I recommend the Mediterranean Diet.

Not just because I'm Italian (Maragopoulos is Greek), but because the Mediterranean Diet has been shown in studies to be the healthiest for the majority of people. It's plant based, low glycemic, and uses moderate amounts of good fats and has adequate protein. That combination is best for hormone production. Moderate amounts of good fats promotes healthy hormone levels....low fat does not. Plus animal based proteins provide the necessary essential amino acids for hormone production and healthy brain chemistry as well as immune factors. All very important for proper hypothalamic functioning. 

Low fat diets with poor quality proteins are a recipe for hormonal dysfunction leading to hypothalamic-pituitary imbalance.

The secret is to eat less carb calories than you expend. I know calories are calories, but your body can easily break down carbohydrates into glucose, it takes much more work (energy and enzymes) to break down fats and proteins into glucose for energy. If you exercise in Long Slow Distances a few times a week AND consume less carbohydrate calories, you force your body to go into your fat storage for energy. 

Now your weight will not change right away--fat weighs much less than lean body mass (muscle and bone)--but you will lose inches as your body composition shifts.

Another secret is to consume NO CARBS after 4pm. That does not include non-starchy vegetables. Between 3-5pm, your adrenals take a siesta. You will crave carbs, but avoiding them will force your body to use its stored sugar, then is the time to add a second workout...one of those Long Slow Distances...to burn fat. 

Your morning exercise should be more aerobic, even interval training to keep your heart rate up. That will set your metabolism at a higher rate for the rest of the day. If you workout at this pace in the late afternoon, you will have trouble sleeping.

Your metabolism is lowest at night. By sleeping in the dark high melatonin levels will help reverse insulin resistance. You will begin to notice that you wake up hungry in the morning. That means your adrenal function is normalizing and your hypothalamus is waking up and demanding glucose (the only form of energy the brain uses). So feed it! Start with fruit. (After your Genesis Gold and Sacred Seven, of course) After your early morning workout consume complex carb, light protein, a little fat....to keep your metabolism up.

Don't overdo the exercise. Aerobic activity 3-5 times a week. Long Slow Distances at least twice a week. Take one full day off every 5-7 days to allow your hypothalamus to adjust your new metabolic rate.

Yours in Health, Happiness and Beautiful Hormones :)

Deborah Maragopoulos MN FNP

Intuitive Integrative Medicine

Full Circle Family Health

805 640-3340

www.genesisgold.com