Supporting Immune System Health for Older Athletes

This post has been sponsored by Wellmune® through Kitchen PLAY.

How to support your immune system health is a topic on the minds of most of us these days, myself included – especially as an athlete over 50 years old! Surprisingly, a heavy training load and being older can both have negative effects on your immune response — despite being fit and “healthy.” To give my immune system a fighting chance to do its given job despite the stresses I put it under, I follow an overall clean lifestyle. This encompasses: a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, regular exercise, no smoking or little to no alcohol, adequate quantity and quality of sleep, and the reduction of personal stress.  Also, staying on the defensive against the onslaught of environmental assaults like allergens, viruses and pollutants is an important strategy, too. I’ve also recently learned that incorporating yeast beta glucans into my daily wellness regimen is a specific, proven way to help support immune health. Read on to learn more about immune health, yeast beta glucans, and the natural ingredient, Wellmune®, which is used by various food, beverage and supplement brands to create immune-boosting consumer products. Continue reading

How More Efficient Protein Powder Can Help Optimize Performance

This post has been sponsored by Deerland Probiotics & Enzymes through Kitchen PLAY. All opinions are my own.

I am all about making my personal world more efficient so that I’m set up for success in all areas of life including optimizing my time, optimizing my money, and optimizing my health! I’ve been known to run to the gym to knock out cardio before strength-training, I “Marie Kondo’d” the heck out of my sock drawer, and I’m all about meal prepping to stock the freezer, fridge, and pantry with foods that support my active lifestyle. All these life hacks save time, save money, and support my physical and/or mental health! How Prohydrolase is helps me digest protein better to optimize my workouts and recovery

You know another thing I’ve got working for me? Optimizing how various types of protein supplements can benefit my body thanks to ProHydrolase. ProHydrolase is an ingredient found in some protein supplements that has been proven to increase digestibility, thusly increasing the potential for muscle-building and muscle-recovery. Read on to learn more about my experience with ProHydrolase:

Continue reading

15 Must Haves in a Keto Diet Kitchen

ad This post is sponsored by iWi but the content and opinions expressed here are my own. This post also contains affiliate links.

The Keto Diet is all the rage, although it’s been around since the 1920s. It’s an extreme diet, not for everyone . . . but devotees sing its praises and show off the results. High in fat (think 75 – 80% of calories), very low in carbohydrates (think 5%), and middle ground in protein (think 15 to 20%). 

Full disclosure, I am not a strict follower of the keto diet, but I am fascinated by it as someone who has been eating high protein, higher fat for years. In fact, I’ve posted many times about becoming fat-adapted and fat-loading for endurance sports. In other words, how to train your body to use fat more efficiently as fuel, thereby sparing glucose for later down the road in a race. The Keto Diet is pretty much the same, restricting carbs so your body sources out other energy, namely fat. Read on to find out some of the must-haves that benefit a keto, fat-adapted, or very low-carb lifestyle. Continue reading

Why Athletes Need Plenty of Omega-3 and Benefits of Algae-based

This post is sponsored by iWi but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.

You run, you lift, you play sports, you lead an active lifestyle. You may also eat clean or follow a diet to help optimize your performance. It’s amazing what certain nutrients can do to help our bodies recover more quickly so that we can jump right into the next day’s challenges.iWi omega 3

“Omega-3s” are one of those buzzwords that you’ve probably heard thousands of times along your health, wellness and/or fitness journey. If you’ve ever wondered exactly what omega-3 fatty acids are, what the do and how they can help you as an athlete, read on! Continue reading

Supplement Strategy of Middle Age Female Endurance Athlete – Peek Inside my Medicine Cabinet

Friends and acquaintances on social media frequently ask me what supplements I use to support my active lifestyle. Partly, I’ve never really answered the question because it feels like opening up my medicine cabinet and inviting strangers rifle through at their leisure. And, also partly because I don’t want anyone to use MY cocktail of supplements as a cookie cutter solution for their needs. That just won’t work, we are all unique people with different needs. Peek Inside My Medicine Cabinet

However, that being said, I think that many of my supplements, considered individually, could help another female athlete (and in some cases, men) optimize wellness and performance . . . and so, I share! But please consult a medical professional if you thing you want to try one or more of these. Read on to learn about my major challenges as an elite master’s athlete (running, obstacle course racing, and CrossFit) and the supplement solutions I use on both a daily and as-needed basis. Continue reading