Life By Design

You don't need to protect your kids, teach them to be strong. I love this so much. ---Rachelle

Autoimmune disease can be devastating. Autoimmune diseases are challenging to diagnose (at best), can take various shapes and forms (hence the wide variety of diagnosed autoimmune disorders), can affect different organs and systems in the same person, and to top it all off, can act very differently in each person they affect. The management of autoimmune diseases has been equally frustrating.... Some patients respond well to traditional medical approaches; others do not. Treatment can also be time sensitive meaning what worked before does not work now; with no rhyme or reason as to why. Sometimes symptoms can lie dormant for years and then, seemingly out of nowhere, the patient has a massive flare up. But one thing that seems to consistently help everyone with an autoimmune disease is to modify their diet. This is not to suggest that changing your diet is a cure or even a treatment for autoimmune diseases, but it has been shown to help tremendously in some people. The purpose of this podcast is to discuss our recommended protocol for Autoimmune Diseases and why we believe you should give it a try if you have an autoimmune disease.

Is fat bad for you? And is there such a thing as good fat and bad fat? The answer is yes and yes, although not for the reasons that you might suspect... Humans are not new to eating food. This is not meant to be an inflammatory statement, simply a reminder that weve been eating the same things for generations, like 40,000 years. Weve hunted, we gathered and we not only survived, but thrived.... This also means that weve adapted to certain things (fats from real foods), while not knowing what to do with others (fats from artificially created foods). Fat is one of those things that weve adapted to very well over time. Some researchers and anthropologists argue that fat has been such a vital part of our nutrient base that it has made us who we are as humans. Then how can it be bad? Just because fat is a requirement for your life and optimum health doesnt mean that you get to eat it carte blanche. It also doesnt mean that you can avoid the source of it without any consequences or that you can have other bad habits because youre eating fat and thats good for you. The purpose of this podcast is to take a closer look at fat.

I absolutely love everything about BIRTHFIT!! If you are preparing for pregnancy, pregnant, or postpartum these are your go-to ladies for anything you need to know related to exercise! I completed their postpartum fitness program after the birth of Veddie and it was one of the best investments I made. My body healed fully thanks to their restorative exercises. Their blog is a wealth of information, as well they have a podcast and a list of online courses to browse through. ... Just wanted to share something that was so helpful for me! ---Rachelle

Yum!!! Definitely going to give these a try for an after school snack! ---Rachelle

You dont need to protect your kids, teach them to be strong. I love this so much. ---Rachelle

We can hear the debates starting before we even begin talking about this topic... A glass of red wine a day is good for you. Everything in moderation. My grandfather drank every day and lived to be 95 years old. We totally understand, and are not trying to deny your experience or beliefs, but will you just hear us out for a few minutes?... First off, nobody is telling you not to enjoy your favourite beverage...especially when getting together with friends, out on a date, or after a hard days work. However, lets live in reality, please. Alcohol is not good for you. Are there other ingredients in some types of alcoholic beverages that may meet requirements for your body? Possibly, but you can easily get those nutrients from other less toxic food sources. Nobody is telling you not to drink, just to know that drinking is not good for you - thats all. The purpose of this podcast is to discuss the results regarding alcohol consumption from a recent peer reviewed study. ---Rachelle

This looks so good! Im going to give it a try this week! Thank you to Amy Robinson for sharing this! ---Rachelle

You dont have to be fit to start to exercise! I love this! ---Rachelle

Like it or not summer is reaching its end. A new routine will start to emerge, new friends will come, some friends will leave, and the stress of a changing life will continue. Going back to school can be one of the best times of the year and most exciting times of life. Except when its not. Except when the excess stress, pressure, social pressure and expectation adds far too much weight on our kids and breaks down their bodies physically, emotionally and spiritually.... There is nothing inherently wrong with kids experiencing pressure, stress, and responsibility, its how they grow. The issue becomes a problem when there is too much stress and your child can no longer adapt. The purpose of this podcast is to help give you a guide to ensure that your child is the healthiest they can be before they enter the school year, so the stresses and pressure of have as few negative effects as possible. Happy First Day of School everyone! ---Rachelle

Its that time again! Hopefully this can help keep the ideas flowing on what to put in our kids lunches that will leave them energized and healthy throughout the school year! ---Rachelle

Giving birth, whether vaginally or caesarean section, is demanding in all aspects (physical, emotional, spiritual, relationship, everything) of your life. Please give yourself some grace and time to return to the world of fitness. Thats not to say you wont be ready right after giving birth, but its OK if youre not. ---Rachelle

Quick, delicious, healthy dinners on the table fast?! Look no further! I hope your family likes this as much as mine. ---Rachelle

I loved these ideas! Definitely going to give them a try on my boys and Ill let you know how it goes! Ill do some substitutions with the flour (Ill use almond flour) and cross my fingers and hope for a mom-win in the kitchen! Any recipes that your toddlers just love? ... ---Rachelle

Do you want to live a life worth living or are you OK with keeping things the way they are? The fact that youre even reading this and listening to the podcast means we already know your answer...you want an extraordinary life. That decision alone puts you in the top 5% of people living on the planet, which is sad when you really think about it.... That sole fact that you want better your life, means that along the way you are going to pick up many nasty comments, deep exhales, raised eyebrows, pleas to stop and other, sometimes very hurtful and nasty, criticism. The one unfortunate quality of social media is that it has opened you up to every keyboard cowboy in the known universe. Its funny how they all want to tell you how ugly, stupid and ridiculous you are for even thinking that you can (or should) somehow expect better for yourself, while they type their insults behind the closed and safe doors of their room without attempting to better themselves. The most challenging and sad part about facing criticism is not when it comes from partyman6969 on YouTube, its when it comes from your mom or your sister who claim to have your best interest at heart. Its important for you to understand that you will face criticism, thats a guarantee, its how you overcome it, or not, that will propel you forward or keep you back. The purpose of this podcast is to help you deal with and overcome criticism.

Which diet is the best? Should you be a vegetarian or a vegan? What about paleo, is that right for you? Im sure youve heard you could lose a ton of weight doing keto, or maybe Atkins is better?... Is meat OK to eat or does it cause cancer? What about fasting, should you do three days fasts or just a little every day? What if you only want to lose weight? I heard theres a new supplement from the rain forest thats helping people lose 10 pounds in 5 days without having to change their diet. Yes nutrition is very confusing but we dont believe it has to be. We think it can be made to be simple. Simple, however, is not easy. Simple means easy to understand. We believe we can explain nutrition to you in a simple, easy to understand way, that would make perfect sense. The information is easy to understand - its much harder to apply because application takes patience, time and effort. The purpose of this podcast is to give you a straightforward plan that you could follow, and it would help improve your nutritional habits as well as improve your health.

I see some BLTs in my future with this recipe!! ---Rachelle

Lets suppose that you could create a time machine and that you could travel back in time 20 years and visit yourself. What would you say? Other than the obvious, play these lottery numbers, dont visit this part of the world at this time, bet on this team to win the Super Bowl, what would you say? ... Knowing what you would say to your 20 years younger self is a valuable exercise, but paradoxically enough, its not useful to you now, its relevant for your future self. Arent you stunned at how young you feel now? If someone were to tell you 20 years ago that you would feel as young as you do that day at 40, or 65, or 80, would you believe them? If you remember back to when you were a kid, 40 wasnt just old, it was finished, you were done. Now, at 40 you realize that you still feel 20, and have a whole life in front of you. The purpose of this podcast is to help you understand two things: that the same things you would have told yourself 20 years ago apply now more than ever and that regret is the worst human emotion. Failure and fear, the two emotions you think you currently dislike and want to avoid at all costs, are nothing compared to the pain and bitterness of regret.

There was a great article posted from our friends over at T-Nation titled "Do these exercises forever." The purpose of the article, which has been linked below for your reading pleasure, was to give you 5 exercises that you absolutely must do if you want to continue using your body into your old age. The exercises were chosen based on the most common day to day stresses that you will experience.... We love and agree entirely with these exercises, however, there is one crucial thing missing from the article - the motivation. Or, in Life By Design terms, the why behind the what. If youre not motivated to do something, it will never get done. We see more obesity and inactivity than ever before, yet we know more about nutrition and exercise science than we ever have. Youve never had more access to free knowledge and free information regarding what to eat and how to train, still, more and more people are finding it harder and harder to keep their health on track. The purpose of this podcast is to go back to the basics of Move By Design, describe and discuss motivation as fundamental and give you some advice for starting to apply the Move By Design protocol to your life.

Have you ever had one of those days where you just didnt feel like going to the gym? I have, lots of times. But the interesting thing is, every time I felt that way and went to the gym anyway I ALWAYS felt better after! ... Interesting TED talk on how awesome exercise is for your brain. ---Rachelle

"Price is what you pay; value is what you get." -- Warren Buffet What would your life look like if you started thinking about value over cost? What if the conversation was more focused on the worth of something vs. how much you had to pay?... You are an investor. Im not sure if anyone has ever told you that, but it is entirely true. Of course, like a million other ideas and concepts, investing (at least to most) has been linked to money. When you hear investing you think of putting your money somewhere and over time you either get more of it or you lose it. This is true, it is one kind of investing but lets not forget that money is only one kind of value, there are others too. The best part about value is you get to decide whats valuable to you, and whats not as useful. This is why, going full circle, you are an investor. The purpose of this podcast is to help you understand the Value Investors mindset and slowly start to apply this thinking to your life to make you wealthy - not just monetarily but in every aspect. Enjoy!

Trends are always fun to follow...theyre fun because its a glimpse of where the current thinking is at and most importantly where its going. It also gives you good insight into what problems we are facing and how we are trying to solve them. The purpose of this episode is to review the article on the top health trends of 2018 and share our insight into which ones we love, which ones we dont and most importantly, we share what you can do to either buck or ride the trends t...o success. Any trends you have seen this year that you like? Id love to hear them!

Never give up :) ---Rachelle

Do you like Chinese take-out?! I found this as a healthy By Design alternative. Definitely going to give this a try this weekend. ---Rachelle

Are you doing these 5 mandatory exercises? Just curious :) ---Rachelle

If youve ever been to an Eat By Design seminar youll know that one of the principles is to stop counting calories. Thats not to say that calories dont matter as they very much do, however, they are not the most important thing to focus on when you are trying to change your diet and improve your health. The nutrient density of your food is far more critical to your health than the amount of it that you eat.... In this episode we focus on the other side of the picture, specifically the value of "macro counting". We discuss how the amount of protein, fat and carbohydrate that you ingest has everything to do with weight loss, body fat percentage and some health factors like energy and sleep. We also shared some basic recommendations on how you can learn more about how to count your macros if youre interested and which apps we use to track ours. The purpose of this podcast is to give you a basic general overview of macro counting and how to properly use it.

Anyone tried the Egg White Bites from Starbucks?! Ive been loving them lately especially on the go! If you like them as much as I do, but dislike the $5 price tag check this out!... ---Rachelle

I love easy simple one pan recipes! ---Rachelle

"Work hard." and "Hustle & grind." are just some of the slang words associated with success in our culture. Of course, its impossible to have any type of success without hours and hours of hard work. Stress vs. rest might be the one time where the concept of balance is an excellent way to understand the delicate relationship between the two.... Balance is unique in helping you learn what you need to do to obtain your values. The purpose of this podcast is to help you understand the reasons for time off and downtime. It is not always (nor should it be) an extended period of time doing harmful activities to your body, it should time away from your central goals and principle value in life for the specific intent of getting closer to reaching those goals. Enjoy!

Cancer affects all of us. 1 in 4 dies from cancer or cancer-related conditions. Unlike any other time in history however, today, more than 2/3rds of those diagnosed with cancer will live more than 5 years. If you are going to live for years either with or even surviving your cancer, physical independence and the ability to function in the world becomes a sought after outcome! If someone you know could benefit from hearing this message please share it with them. ... ---Rachelle

I know I have shared this before but wanted to again!! Im already planning to use the tomatoes I planted in my garden to make BLT cloud sandwiches I cant wait!! Has anyone tried this recipe yet? ---Rachelle

Coffee is still a topic of huge debate with Life By Design. You might wonder "what does this have to do with coffee and fasting" and the answer is everything. The argument hinges on how coffee is digested and metabolized. Understanding digestion is the cornerstone for understanding fasting and its benefits. The benefits of intermittent fasting are:... Your body is in a state of ketosis Fat burning -Insulin sensitivity -Autophagy - your body killing off unwanted or diseased cells -AMPK - an enzyme that inhibits your body from storing fat Its not that fasting causes your body to do those things, your body would do them anyway, its just that your metabolism uses a massive amount fo energy. When your body is engaged in processing and breaking down food, other aspects of your physiology dont receive the same attention. A similar example is not having an appetite when youre not feeling well. Increased immune system activity is a huge energy cost for your body, so much that suppressing metabolism is necessary to optimize the efficiency of your bodys immune system. The purpose of this podcast is to discuss coffee and how it relates to intermittent fasting.

I loved #3.... "Its the average days that result in the paydays." ---Rachelle

Questions like these are always amusing... Theyre amusing because of the way that its framed and answered. To be clear, we dont talk about exercise for children because it sounds like an intervention. Using that language makes it sound like we are trying to treat and prevent a problem for kids, which is why this CNN article is so very interesting.... All of the CDC, NHS, and other government organizations recommendations for exercise stem from research on how much is required to reduce or prevent a disease or condition from happening, not how much is required to create an extraordinary child. Its like asking "How much money should I save to not go bankrupt" vs. "What do I need to do to be wealthy?" Our goal is to help create extraordinary kids with exceptional levels of health - not just avoid disease and illness. The purpose of this podcast is to answer two important questions: How much exercise do kids need to be their absolute best and how you can make that happen for them. ENJOY! ---Rachelle

Crisp veggies ready to eat all week! ---Rachelle

Vanilla Crepes By Design Ingredients: Makes 4 Crepes -1 scoop of Vanilla Protein (I like the Diesel brand) -2 eggs... Blend together In a frying pan over medium heat, lightly coat the bottom with your crepe mixture and cook for 2 min a side! Its just that easy! For the boys I added almond butter and bananas, rolled them up and served it for their lunch! They were a hit! ---Rachelle

If anyone has been following Inspiralized (the best recipes!! all using the Spiralizer) you may have noticed that Ali has recently had a baby boy named Luca! I am obsessed with following along over on Instagram her adventures in the kitchen. Well, anyway... she has started a new project called Inspiralized Kids and it is AH-MAZING! Take a look!

This week were proud and excited to have back Jadzia Truszkowski! Last year, at almost this exact time, Jadzia and I spent some time talking about her latest achievement - qualifying for her first CrossFit regionals. This year shes back, and its been quite an improvement. Jadzia is ranked 25th in the entire world after the open and 3rd in the Canada East Region.... Most importantly, and she mentions this during the interview, she feels like she belongs with the top dogs now. She no longer feels like shes on "their" floor, but that she has a shot to compete at the highest level. The purpose of this podcast is to get an update on what Jadzia is up to but also to learn and understand what it takes to be the best at what you do. The principles of mastery are universal and it will be powerful for you to hear Jadizas perspective on it. Enjoy!