Month: June 2020

Categories
Fitness Performance Recommendations Resources Tips

How To Add Fitness Into Your Daily Routine

We as humans, to a lesser or greater extent, crave routine. If you are like most people, your regular routine has probably been completely disrupted as you have been required to work from home. For most people, a change or absence of routine creates more stress. The majority of the population are still struggling with this and, unwittingly, creating more stress for themselves in an already stressful time.

In order to help you with this important and fairly straight forward stress reliever, here are some top tips.

  1. Have a weekday schedule and a weekend schedule.
    1. Monday – Friday, wake up at the same time, eat your meals at the same time and start and stop work at the same times.
    2. Evenings and Weekends – this is your free time and you should treat it as you normally would.
  2. Each morning (or previous evening) plan to accomplish a minimum of two tasks in the day. Ideally, one for the morning and one for the afternoon. The satisfaction of accomplishing these will provide you with a mental boost. If one of your tasks has a physical element, you have the added benefit of a physical boost as well.
  3. Plan some sort of mental break into your day. Exercise, meditate, read or watch a funny clip on TV or Youtube. These mini ‘escapes’ will help to provide you with mental breaks and some variety in how you use your brain and/or body.
  4. Go to sleep at the same time each night. Being consistent with your bed time (within 30min) will help you to get the next day started the way you like, thereby increasing the success level of your routine.
  5. Try to limit your intake of Alcohol and junk food. Both of these things will deplete your energy and make you feel more lethargic the following day.
  6. Take movement breaks as much as you possibly can. Remember that working from home will decrease your overall steps during the day. Eventually this has a negative impact on your health.  Movement breaks can be as simple as going for a walk outside, or even standing up to do a few stretches.

Let’s make things more interesting…

’30 Minute Daily Movement Challenge!’

You are challenged to find a minimum of 30 minutes of physical activity a day, over and above what you have been getting. This can be a walk, a run, stairs in your house, biking, or one or both of the virtual classes Totum is providing each day. It can be a 15 min stretch twice a day. Anything!!

So, if this interests you even a little bit, take action right now with these three simple success producing steps!

  1. In the next five minutes, plan out how you will get that 30 minutes of extra movement each day next week. Build it in right now. It should take no more than five minutes.
  2. Put a sticky on your bathroom mirror with what you have decided on so it’s front and center when you look there.
  3. Just as importantly, let someone else know that you are doing it. As you know, the buddy system builds support and accountability.

It’s as simple as that. So, are you up for it? Great! Let’s get moving more this week.

The most important step is the first one. Take five minutes to decide on your Monday-Friday routine and start implementing it right away. You can adjust accordingly as you go forward, but it is important to give your routine a few days to settle in. If you have children, your family as a whole can benefit from the same sort of routine.

By: Tim Irvine, President & Co-founder

Categories
For your Info Recommendations Tips

The Importance Of Sleep

The Importance of Sleep.
Tara Postnikoff, RNCP, PTS, Coach
Sleep is a key pillar in our health, wellness and athletic performance.  It’s often overlooked, or put on the back burner because we perceive we don’t have time. However, sleep is something we are in control of and making changes cost very little
Sleep allows the entire body to rest and the mind to repair itself. The brain and organs are still active while you sleep but it’s a lower grade activity.  Sleep is absolutely essential to a health. While you are asleep a lot is going on to help your body recover and rebuild.  Sleep is actually a highly metabolic process that helps optimize our brain structure, repair damaged cells in the body and to restore energy levels.

  • Impaired sleep patterns and sleep deprivation impair physical function and performance.  Studies have shown sleep deprived persons experience a 9% increase in reaction time and accuracy when performing tasks and sports.
  • Impaired sleep decreases cognitive functions like learning, skill acquisition, emotional intelligence, decision making and social interactions.
  • Too little sleep increases your tendency to over eat and gain weight. Sleep deprivation causes you to look for additional calories to stimulate the brain and typically when you are tired you make poor decisions about food and look for quick hits of energy from stimulants and sugar.  Studies have shown an increase of 11% in body composition for those who are chronically sleep deprived.
  • Too little sleep also reduces your immune system and increases your risk of getting sick.  Increased inflammation markers, increased risk of disease like CVD, stroke and dementia are all seen with sleep deprivation.

How much sleep is enough?
Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep and try to get a couple of those hours before mid night as this is when you typically get the most deep sleep, where as the REM sleep is more active closer to waking..  Ideally you want to hit 5 sleep cycles per night and each sleep cycle is about 90 minutes.  Women tend to need more sleep them men.   Athletes also need sleep to help with recover from the stresses of training, so consider increasing sleep priority during heavy training blocks or before your big race.
There are 5 stages to sleep: Stage 1 and 2 are light sleep, stage 3 and 4 are deep sleep and stage 5 or stage R is REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.
Light sleep initiates your sleep cycle and is a transition point for deeper sleep stages.  Approximately 45-55% of your sleep time is spent in light sleep.
Deep sleep is where a lot the cellular repair occurs through increased blood flow to the muscles, release of growth hormone, and clearance of waste products from the brain.  Approximately 13-23% of your sleep time is spent in deep sleep.
REM sleep is associated with memory consolidation, learning, problem solving and dreaming.  Approximately 20-25% of your sleep time is spent in REM sleep.
Quality vs Quantity
Sleep quality is just as if not more important than sleep quantity, so if you have trouble sleeping, here are some tips to improve sleep quality.
Create your Optimal Sleep Routine and Sleep Sanctuary

  1. No Screens!  Avoid electronics for 60 minutes prior to bed (TVs, phones, tablets) as these all stimulate the brain.  Blue light actually stimulates the brain (think of the sunrise) and red lights are a bit more calming (sunset).   Melatonin (a hormone which regulates sleep) is inhibited by light.  So you need darkness to sleep well.
  2. Reading is a great way to relax before bed, maybe just not horror stories or true crime.  And choose and actual book vs a device to avoid the flashing/bright lights.  Event on evening mode your brain is still affected by the light.
  3. Routine! Go to sleep and get up at the same time every day (+/- 30-60 mins).  Your body loves routine.

Physical

  1. Sleep in a cooler environment.  Turn your thermostat down to around 16-18 C.  In the evening melatonin levels in the body cause the blood vessels in the skin to dilate, releasing heat into the environment.  Cooling promotes drowsiness and helps you fall asleep.
  2. Sleep in a completely dark room.  Close the blinds and make sure those red dots from your alarm clock aren’t in view.  If your sleep-cave is not dark enough, your brain is signalled to wake up.  No phones or tablets in the bedroom either!
  3. Take a warm shower before bed.  This will aid in a faster cooling of the body which will help promote the release of melatonin.
  4. Exercise.  Regular physical exercise is good to promote sleep quality.  Over training or large amounts of exercise on the other hand can impair sleep. High intensity exercise before bed can also impair sleep, so if you are trying to improve sleep try to do that intensity workout earlier in the day.
  5. Self-Massage.  Try some light foam rolling or rub some lavender oil into your feet to help get you more into your para-sympathetic nervous system.
  6. Clean Linens.  Change your pillow case every three days and sheets weekly.

Food & Drink

  1. Avoid caffeine after 1pm.  This includes coffee, tea, soft drinks, chocolate and energy drinks as well as certain over the counter medications.  Caffeine sensitivity varies greatly from one person to the next, but it’s best to lay off it if you have trouble sleeping.
  2. Avoid alcohol before bed as it impairs sleep by releasing adrenaline and inhibits the transport of tryptophan to the brain (which is the source of serotonin).  While you may feel relaxed you are not.   Alcohol is also sugar which can inhibit sleep further.
  3. Don’t go to sleep with a full belly.  Have dinner at least 2 hours before going to bed.   If you need a small snack have something with a little carbohydrate and protein.
  4. Reduce sugar intake to improve sleep as sugar is a stimulant.  Sugar too close to bed will likely lead to you waking up at 1-2 am due to a hypo-glycemic response (low blood sugar) which causes a response to hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, that do not promote sleep.

Mind

  1. Take 4 slow deep breathes to calm the body and mind.  This is called progressive relaxation, and you can use to help your body reach a state of deep relaxation.  Inhale for 4 counts, pause, exhale for 4 counts.  Repeat 4-6 times.
  2. Write it down! Keep a note pad next to the bed to write down your thoughts and stresses so you can sleep with a clear mind.  Or journaling can also be helpful.

Sleep trackers and interpreting your data.
Wearable devices that track your sleep are becoming more common and more sophisticated, but what does the data mean and how can you use it.  First you can identify how much sleep you are getting night in and night out and compare that over the course of a month, season or year. You can compare the quality of sleep and the performance in your workout(s), race or identify if you are getting sick or burnt out.
Use the data to adjust your alarm / wake up time to be inline with trends you see on your device. For example, if you are being woke up in deep sleep or REM sleep you might feel groggy or shocked. Whereas if you adjusted your wake up time (and maybe bed time) by 15-30 mins you might wake up in a light sleep phase and actually feel more refreshed. Play around with your data and alarm time and see what impact it has.
Nutrients/Supplements to support sleep.
Here are some foods, nutrients and supplements to consider that can help support your sleep. If you have any questions about supplements it is best to consult a qualified health care practitioner and check for any contraindications with existing medications or health concerns.

  1. Magnesium– is a nervous system relaxant that can help you calm your mind and body to produce sleep. Start small with 250mg of magnesium citrate or bis-glycinate before bed and see if that helps. Increase your dosage to bowel tolerance (soft, incomplete stools) then back off a bit to find an ideal dose.
  2. Melatonin can be effective if your levels are low. Dosages of 3-9mg of melatonin can be used short term to help restore your circadian rhythm after time zone changes or periods of stress and impaired sleep.
  3. Cold Tart Cherry juice contains melatonin, the hormone responsible for sleepiness. Cold tart cherry juice can also help cool down the body and help the body release more melatonin.
  4. Herbals.  Valerian root, passionflower, lemon balm, chamomile, and skull cap are all great sleep promoting herbs. Try a blend of these teas 45 minutes before bed to help with relaxation.  There are blends like this in your health food store likely called Sleepy Time Tea.

 
How to Take Action

  • Assess where you currently are. How do you rate your sleep?
  • Analyze what small changes can do to improve your sleep.
  • Put your plan in place, take action and reassess.

 
If you already know you don’t sleep well, identify the areas in your sleep routine that you can improve on.
If you think you sleep well, but are only getting less than 6 hours of sleep, then choose to prioritize you sleep for the next 2 weeks and focus on setting an earlier bed time and see how you feel with more sleep.
Sleep is something we are in control of and making changes cost very little.  Remember, that email can wait until the next day. The TV show can be recorded and the friends you text at night will be OK too. Turn off those lights and go to bed!!

Categories
For your Info Recommendations Resources Uncategorized

Totum Clinic Re-Opening

We are so excited to let you know that our clinic services will be open for in-person sessions as of Monday, June 1st!
This has been a long journey for all of us, but the return of in-person services is an amazing sign that we are on the right track. A big debt of gratitude is owed to all the front line workers who have helped us as a society. To those who have been directly affected by this virus, we send you strength and love.
Safety for you and our team is critically important. We have taken many precautions to help keep everyone safe when you come in.
Book For Your In-Person Clinic Appointment
We feel extremely fortunate that Totum was never built to provide a “mass” model of health care and this should be a significant advantage to our business as we proceed carefully toward the opening. We have many friends in the West that are currently opening their clinics operating in a similar way. We are in regular connection with these experts to find the best and safest path forward for our team and our clients.
Tim and Stacy Irvine and the Totum Family

Physical Distancing Protocols

  • Physical distancing signage and policies in place to keep all of us safe.
  • Reduced capacity in waiting rooms along with outside waiting areas (one person in waiting area only).
  • Staggered appointment times to reduce the number of people in common areas.
  • Plexiglass barriers at reception.

Cleaning Protocols

Totum facilities will undergo a deep clean prior to re-opening.
  • Hand sanitization provided and required before and after sessions.
  • Use of hospital grade disinfectant and cleaning products.
  • Regular and repeated cleaning of high touch surfaces.
  • ‘Fresh Start’ protocol for each treatment room. This includes cleaning and disinfecting of all surfaces within a treatment room.
  • Disinfectant wipes and sanitizer will be available throughout the facilities.
  • Our team-oriented approach is to be constantly cleaning in order to make the spaces as safe as possible.

What To Expect At Your Appointment

  • All clients will be asked to put on a mask when entering the facility. Please come with your own.
  • The Totum team will be wearing protective equipment such as masks and eye protection.
  • Please wear loose clothing that is conducive to various treatment styles.
  • We will have a QR code posted on our doors each day which can be used to check-in through your Totum booking app. This notifies us of your arrival if you need to wait outside.
  • Our inside waiting areas will be limited as noted below. Outside waiting is available at all locations.
    • Roxborough – 1 person
    • King St. – 3 people
    • Medisys – 2 people
  • You will be asked to sanitize your hands soon as you enter the space. Hand sanitization will occur again when you are finished your appointment.
  • Your clinician will come to get you when they are ready for you.
  • There may be separate entrances and exits depending on the facility you visit.
  • Contactless booking/payment (no cards or interactions with the front desk team where possible).
  • Please attend your session alone as no additional visitors will be allowed unless absolutely necessary. Any necessary, additional visitors will need to be screened.
  • **Please note, we are required to screen for signs and symptoms of COVID-19 at the time of booking, the day of your appointment, and at the start of your appointment by your practitioner. The day of appointment screen will arrive in your inbox 2-3 hours before your appointment and must be completed in order for your appointment to go ahead. If you have symptoms please contact us and we will re-book your appointment.