You all know how passionate I am about maintaining our physical health, but I’ve also really been loving learning about all the ways we can improve our brain health. Which, FYI…it’s NEVER too early to start thinking about!!
Your brain runs the show, so let’s give it some love! Here are a few simple ways to keep it sharp and happy:
👉 Move a little every day – walks, workouts, even dancing in your kitchen count!
👉 Get good sleep – your brain needs that reset button just as much as your body. Aim for heading to bed just 15 minutes earlier each week until you hit the 7-9 hours of recommended sleep (always a work in progress for me).
👉 Learn something new – puzzles, books, or even a new hobby to keep your mind strong.
👉 Stay connected – chatting with friends and family boosts brain and mental health too.
👉 Chill out – stress weighs on your brain, so make space for calm. Daily gratitude journaling and meditation are my fave ways to incorporate this.
👉 Drink your water – hydration = better focus + energy. And make sure you’re adding CLEAN electrolytes!!
👉 Supplement smartly – things like omega-3s, vitamin D, magnesium, creatine and nootropics can give your brain an extra boost—just make sure to choose quality and check what’s right for you. You know I’m always happy to share my fave brands!
✨✨And, if you’re free this Saturday, join my friend Cherie at this incredible brain health workshop. You will learn SO much and come away with practical tips to implement in your life.
I’m currently focusing on consistently taking my omega 3 supplement, using clean electrolytes every day and spending time engaging in a hobby a few times a week instead of working in every moment of spare time. I’d love to hear what you’re incorporating to boost your brain!
Little things add up—your brain will thank you later 💛
How bout this?? We get to get STRONGER every decade 💪💪💪
Long post, but if you or anyone you love is just feeling “off”, this is worth the read!
This past weekend, I attended a conference where there was a huge focus on women’s health and the lack of research that has been done over the years. As a woman in my early 40s, I’m really starting to feel the effects of hormone changes, and I’m watching many of my friends, family and clients go through the beginning stages of perimenopause and menopause. And having worked with clients navigating this stage of life over several years, I’ve learned so much and am excited to share some of the important research being done.
But first, let’s talk about some (crazy) facts: 😡women were excluded from clinical trials until the 1990s. Like, what the actual…??? 😳 Only 8.8% of funding from the NIH goes to women’s health. 🤦🏻♀️For many, many years, women were labeled as hysterical when talking about the symptoms they were experiencing at certain stages of life, and hysterectomies were actually performed to help women “calm down” in the past. 👎Currently, only 25% of clinical trials today include women, and less than 20% of OBGYNs are trained in menopause. Less than 7% of internal medicine doctors get trained in menopause.
And yet… ❤️many women, age 35 and up, are in perimenopause ❤️women spend 40% of their life in perimenopause! ❤️and it is this optimal time, the most important time of life, to take care of our health.
Why?? ✅ During perimenopause and beyond, we start to see a huge increase in cardiovascular risk factors. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women and much of this has to do with the decrease of estrogen that we experience. ✅Perimenopause lasts, on average, 2 to 10 years.
Common symptoms of perimenopause: -vasomotor (like hot flashes and night sweats) -sleep disturbances -joint and muscle pain -genitourinary symptoms -weight gain -anxiety -Increase in visceral fat (the dangerous kind around our organs) -Increases in cholesterol and triglycerides -Decrease in HDL cholesterol -increased risk of type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis and cognitive decline
So it is so important that we start talking about what we can do in our 30s and beyond to prevent some of these risk factors. Because we CAN do SO MUCH!!!
So where do we start???
✨ It’s really important that women are getting a comprehensive blood panel done in perimenopause and beyond, including LPa and APOB markers. Ask your doctor for this! ✨You’re going to want to optimize your body composition to decrease pain, decrease vasomotor symptoms, and protect your heart. ✨And then we’re going to talk about things that you can do every day through nutrition. This is the area that I love to talk about:
Number one is protein pacing. You’re going to bookend your day with protein. I do like to use a protein shake in the morning and something called a tri-release protein at night. That’s super important because it’s low in sugar, low in carbs, and high in protein, which is important to do before bed.
You’re going to make sure you’re using clean forms of protein. I could talk about this all day. Super important that we’re not using things with artificial sweeteners, artificial colors, excess sugars, et cetera.
Adaptogens to help mitigate your hormone spikes. They can also help with sleep, stress and mood
And then a supplement called Harmonia, which can be used alongside HRT (when that’s indicated).
You’re going to use creatine, which is so important for our brain health, bone health, and muscle health (all things that start to decline in our late 30s)
And you’re going to hydrate!! 🥥🥤love using electrolytes. It just helps your cells absorb water better.
Lastly- do not forget the importance of strength training. Gone are the days of hours of cardio, under eating and skipping the weights 💪💪💪
Let’s not wait till we start experiencing severe symptoms to act on this!! I am offering 20% off my “women’s wellness pack” this week to celebrate the fact that women’s health is being talked about more and the fact that we have solutions that empower us to take charge of our health and prevent some of the symptoms that older generations have had to go through.
So please reach out. I will send you a link for 20% off your women’s wellness bundle. I’ll share recipes and grocery lists, share customized tips with you, and will throw in some workouts for you too.
Today’s fitness post is also important for most everyone- all about the supplement you may not be using yet but likely will want to add to your routine!
A few fun facts about this incredible supplement:
✅️Creatine is actually the most researched supplement, with 500+ peer-reviewed studies backing its safety and effectiveness. ✅️This powerhouse supplement goes well beyond body building, with support for cognition, aging and recovery. ✅️Creatine combats age related decline – Natural Creatine levels decrease as we age, so supplementation becomes more and more important 💪💪
✨✨What Is Creatine? Creatine is a naturally occurring compound used by every cell in the human body. 95% of the body’s creatine is stored in muscles. 5% is found in the brain and other organs.
Creatine helps produce cellular energy. It helps regenerate ATP, the body’s main energy source for muscles and brain function.
As always, be mindful of where you’re getting your supplements!! When purchasing your creatine supplement, look for: ✅️Micronized. For fast effective absorption and smooth mixing. ✅️A 3rd party tested supplement with one ingredient (creatine mono hydrate) ✅stimulant free and flavorless (so it’s easy to mix in anything!) ✅️Clinical Dose – up to 5g Creatine Monohydrate per serving
Now, let’s chat about creatine benefits:
💪💪FITNESS AND ATHLETIC PERFORMANCE – Increases power output, strength, and high-intensity exercise capacity across various sports and training styles. Creatine also helps with muscle recovery and decreasing post exercise fatigue and soreness. ❤️❤️LONGEVITY SUPPORT – Helps maintain muscle mass and function as we age, as well as joint integrity and brain health, contributing to better quality of life and independence in later years. 🧠🧠COGNITIVE FUNCTION – Supports mental clarity, memory, and focus- especially valuable during mental fatigue or for vegetarians with lower baseline levels 💃🏃🏻♀️WOMEN’S WELLNESS: particularly from peri menopause on, as creatine helps to counteract menopause related muscle and bone loss 🏋🏻♀️🚴🏻♀️METABOLISM SUPPORT and HELP TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN LEAN MUSCLE ☀️☀️SUPPORTS ENERGY 🥗🥒SUPPORTS PLANT BASED EATERS by filling in nutritional gaps in an easy to absorb, high quality daily dose.
I mean, part of me is just mad I waited so long to add this to my routine 🤦🏻♀️
I’m so excited to be integrating this incredible supplement and welcome any questions I can answer! Reach out, friends!
Tell me- are you using creatine yet?? And if not, try this one at a pretty darn good price:
You guys – it’s nice outside! Finally!! Spring is, like, the best time of year and when I really start planning all things summer…vacations, summer camps for the kids (not as fun to plan, amiright??!) and…our summer garden!!
We’ve been gardening for the last 15 years or so (or, to be honest, my husband has been gardening and I’ve been enjoying the harvests). It started back in our days of living in an apartment in the city, where we did container gardening on our patio and realized how very cool it is to be able to pick veggies for dinner, make a salad for lunch each day and have goodies to give away to friends and family.
And, let’s be honest…home grown veggies are SO much tastier than what you get in the store. And a good year’s harvest leads to some pretty decent savings over the summer too.
If you haven’t gotten into gardening yet, here are some pretty cool reasons you might want to consider it:
Gardening:
Has been shown to improve mental health
Can improve the gut microbiome
can provide vitamin D, which is so important for overall health and immunity
can be a super fun family experience and can support healthy eating for the whole fam (studies show that exposing kids to a variety of fruits and veggies and inviting them to participate in the whole process, from seed to plate, can do wonders for making kids more likely to try new foods
can limit our exposure to harmful pesticides and toxins
can improve stress levels
can provide increased physical activity and mobility
From an early age, our kiddos have been working for their dinner 😂
My favorites every year are the cherry tomotoes, cucumbers (SO much better than the ones at the store) and eggplant. But the year we did potatoes was pretty cool too…
What are you growing this year in your garden?? Share your faves and give us a new idea to try!
For every time a client asked me “but how do I get rid of my belly?”
Well, first – I always like to remind people that health looks so different on everyone. And if you’re working with me, I really hope your primary goal is HEALTH.
But, 20 years of training/coaching clients, and the question still comes up all.the.time.
20 years later, and my answer remains the same:
Abs are made in the kitchen. Truly. It’s true. I promise.
80% of our efforts for achieving body composition goals should be focused on what we’re putting in our bodies. My secrets are protein pacing, significantly decreasing processed foods and eating more veggies. Like, 5-7 servings per day. These strategies will keep you full, keep things moving, help you build muscle and give you more sustained energy. The system I use incorporates high quality protein, organic greens and undenatured, well tested supplements to help me meet these goals. Message me if you want to give it a try for 30 days, risk free…
A day in the protein pacing life…never about deprivation over here!!
Next, I recommend strength training. I know…I went through all those phases in life where I tried to run, ride, row it all away. I don’t recommend. Cardio is SO important for health, but when it comes to building lean muscle (which we want to do to help burn more calories overall), we need to lift. We need to lift often. And we need to lift heavy enough with progressive loading over time. I can’t recommend enough the benefits of proper deadlifting, squating and heavy upper body lifting, but make sure your form is solid and you build up appropriately. If you want to know what this means, reach out!
Lift correctly, lift often, lift heavy- and your abs will work harder than you realize
Now let’s talk about stress and sleep. I’ll often ask clients how many hours of restful sleep they’re getting a night. Less than 7? This could definitely contribute to belly fat. Excess stress does the exact same thing, as the stress hormone cortisol contributes to weight around the belly that can be stubborn and hard to release. For this, I recommend daily walks (nature plus movement plus sunlight is a powerful combo), meditation/gratitude journaling/yoga and adaptogens.
Powerful morning combo: gratitude + adaptogens
You’ve heard me talk about cellular cleansing before. For good reason. This supported intermittent fast releases toxins, which tend to reside in fat cells in our bodies. It also lowers overall inflammation, and who doesn’t want that? This is a gentle cellular cleanse, it will not have you living in a bathroom, it improves energy and mental clarity and it includes yummy snacks you get to munch on while your body is doing the hard work of detoxing. Pretty great, right??!!
I know. It seems too good to be true. Best.detox. Ever 🙌🏼
Ok, ok…I guess we can talk about ab exercises now. Trust me, I did used to be that girl that did 1,000 crunches a day and I am here to tell you that it was pretty much a waste of my time. I do like tacking on a quick 5 minute ab workout to my workout routine 2 days a week maybe, but it’s really not a focus of my exercise these days. That being said, when I’m choosing ab exercises for myself and my clients, I choose wisely. Functional movements are my fave – rotation, woodchops, that sort of thing. I also have a solid appreciation for pelvic floor conditions and diastasis recti that so many of my postpartum mamas (including myself) have had – so I’m also hesitant to recommend full sit ups, constant flexion and excessive forward planks without real attention to what’s happening in the abdominal region. But, some of my faves that are safe for most everyone:
Side plank variations (side plank hold, leg lifts in side plank, “thread the needle”, side plank crunches…)
Oblique work (oblique v ups are a fave, but check with a pelvic floor PT first if you have any of the conditions mentioned above)
Russian twists (with or without weights and I prefer to keep my feet on the floor to ensure good form and muscle activation)
Ok, so there you have it. Tried and true advice that has worked for my clients and myself over the last 20 years, and that I expect will work for many more years. If I hear of anything revolutionary, I’ll let ya know. But in the meantime, lay off the 10,000 hours of ab work, focus on what’s going in your body and try one new nutrition, strength training or stress management/sleep strategy at a time.
Let us know what works for you or what you’re trying. And let’s all collectively agree to leave spot training in the far, far away past…
Last weekend, my little girl had the stomach bug. All she wanted was to cuddle, read books, have me sing her back to sleep. All I wanted to do was comfort her and remind her that she would feel better soon.
Fast forward a few days, and I started wondering “ok, when are the rest of us gonna get this?”Cause we all know how that works, right??
And, while I fully recognize we may still get this virus, or any others, this winter, that isn’t stopping me from doing all the things I can to keep our immune systems as robust as possible. You all have read many of my blogs before about habits you can include in your daily life to best support your body’s natural immune defenses. So, I won’t sit here and remind you to get 7-8 hours of sleep and eat 5-7 brightly colorized fruits and veggies today (but please- keep aiming to do that). Instead, I’ll share all that I’ve learned over these past few years about specific supplements that support the immune system.
Mushroom extracts: It can’t be just me they gets inundated with these ads, right?? Well, it’s for good reason. I’m still learning about these powerful ingredients. Reishi, turkey tail, shiitake, maitake…all such good varieties for supporting the immune system!
Fruiting bodies: Make sure your mushroom supplements include this. Supplements that include this part of the mushroom can be up to 30-50% more effective
No sugar! No gummies!: I’ll spare you my whole explanation about this. But sugar is definitely not supportive for the immune system, so having a supplement with too much added sugar wouldn’t be helpful either
GMP certified and third party tested. Again, this goes for all supplements. So so so important!! (Rule of thumb- don’t buy your supplements where you buy your toiled paper).
This time of year, most of us are starting to think about ways to enhance our immune health. Working in healthcare and schools, and having two young kids, it’s definitely top of mind for me…
My fave tips for my clients this time of year are to focus on the basics:
✨exercise
✨stress reduction (I tend to favor gratitude journaling and daily meditation)
✨high quality sleep
✨quality nutrition
Do we notice a trend?? These are the basics for feeling amazing any time of year. These are ALWAYS the priority for me. But, I’d be remiss if I didn’t share what else I do to enhance my body’s natural immune defenses this time of year: ✨effective supplementation!!
I typically use an immune booster in my daily superfood shake, but I’m super excited about a new product that uses some key ingredients-
We’ve long known that vitamins C and D are powerfully supportive of our immune health, but NAC is another supportive molecule, as it is a precursor for glutathione (an important antioxidant for our immune systems). Which is why I’m pretty psyched that my favorite electrolyte drink now also has all three of these super important immune system supporters. What a convenient way to stay hydrated, help combat dry winter skin AND boost your immunity as we head into the winter months 👌👌
Raise your hand if you grew up on Flinstones vitamins too?? 🙋🏻♀️🙋🏻♀️
Maybe had some Lucky Charms or Pop Tarts for breakfast growing up? 🙋🏻♀️🙋🏻♀️
Guys, you’re not alone! I was a child in the 90s, and back then, we didn’t know what we didn’t know. Vitamins were vitamins, right? As long as we were eating something for breakfast, we were well nourished and ready to learn, right?!? 🤷🏻♀️
Thankfully, we’ve come along way and so has the nutrition and supplement space. Now, you still have to sift through rows and rows of sugar laden or artificially sweetened vitamins, and we still need to REALLY look at nutrition labels when deciding what to feed our families, but we have knowledge – and options- now, and that’s a beautiful thing!!
One thing that I’ve learned more and more about is the difference between naturally sourced and synthetic vitamins. I won’t bore everyone here, but here’s a few cool points to know:
✨if your vitamins are listed in the nutrition or ingredient label with parenthesis around them, they are synthetically made!
✨synthetic vitamins offer only a portion of the whole food vitamin, so synthetic vitamin B is not the same as getting your vitamin B from a whole food.
✨whole food vitamins, on the other hand, allow for a slow release of nutrients, making them easier to digest
✨there are now whole food vitamins that offer diverse and bio active vitamins and minerals 🙌🏼🙌🏼
Supplementing with a good vitamin and filling in the nutritional gaps in our food supply is more important than it’s ever been. I’m excited to try these innovative new whole food vitamins and would love to offer you a discounted price on them as well!! Follow this link to read more about these cool Pura Plant vitamins and to try your own pack, risk free: https://jessicatreadwell1.isagenix.com/en-us/shop/daily-nutrition/pura-plant?pid=14362b1208ab4bbb98d7a92657b105bc
Here’s to a new season of focusing on our health, boosting immunity and finding joy in the everyday moments 🍁🍁 To your health, friends!
Hey friends!! Please welcome my friend Lior to this week’s blog! Lior is a functional herbalist who I’ve had the pleasure of learning fromover the past year. I invite you to read this blog and share one tip you’re gonna try this summer!
From my kitchen window, I look at my garden. It is summer, and the garden is filled with an abundance of vegetables and herbs. Bees are zooming between the tulsi and lavender; birds are chipping on the trees, and butterflies hover over the Mexican sunflower.
Staying connected with the season is not just about the physical changes but also about tuning in to nature’s energy or vibe. It’s about stopping, observing, and feeling the rhythm of the natural world.
What are the energetics?
Ancient cultures all over the world observed the ebb and flow of the seasons. They paid attention to details and looked for patterns. The Western tradition, descended from the alchemists and herbalists of Europe, identified six foundational states called the energetic.
The six energetics were used to describe the patterns in plants, people, health conditions, and the seasons.
The energetic/vibe of summer
Summer is associated with the fire element. While in some places, the heat of summer is dry, like in Africa, in others, it is hot and humid, like in India. But all over the world, summer is a time to relax and have fun.
The Taste of Summer
Drinking cold lemonade can give you a clue to how sour food and herbs can counter the relaxing effect of heat on the body. The sour taste is astringent, meaning it tightens tissue and reduces fluid leakage. Some cooling foods and drinks you might want to consider in the summer are berries, citrus, kombucha, and vinegar.
Food tips:
What to do in the summer?
Like the sunflower, people chase the sun. Not literally, but because sunlight is essential for many bodily functions, from regulating appetite and sleep to balancing our mood, people celebrated the sun and nature, especially in the summer.
Be it in the garden or on a camping trip, summer is when you spend time outdoors, stock up on vitamin D, and enjoy the abundance of vitality and growth. Like a butterfly, I am attracted to the garden’s colors, forms, and sounds. My heart is filled with joy and reverence for the creative forces of nature.
Summer is a good time to build an altar in the garden using sticks, stones, and dried plants. You might want to plant a special plant next to your altar, like tulsi, burn incense, and offer prayers of gratitude to the forces of nature that sustain us.
This is the time to follow your passion, manifest your inner fire, and follow your dreams. The organ associated with the energy of summer is the heart and the circulatory system. It calls upon you to leave the comfortable safety of your home and step into an adventure. Explore new possibilities and create from the heart.
Don’t be afraid of being messy playing with finger colors or making a lot of noise while drumming. Summer is for letting your soul soar.
Being in tune with nature means stopping and noticing the changes in light, temperature, moisture and tune in the ecosystem around you. As you slow down, you will observe how different seasons resonate differently with your body.
Ok, so yesterday felt like Spring in Boston and I am here for it! 🌸🌼☀️
With the warmer weather on its way, I can’t help but noticing so many more people out and about running, biking, playing sports. The trainer in me loves this season- when we all crawl out from under the winter hibernation and start reaching for our health goals again, start spending more time outdoors, start MOVING as our bodies have been craving for months.
Simultaneously, I am noticing the marketing for “sports drinks” more and more these days. I see kids and adults walking around with many very popular electrolyte brands. Having concerns about some of the ingredients in these drinks, I decided to do some investigating at the grocery stores this week.
I’ll leave out names, because I’m not a fan of putting any company down, but there’s a very popular “sports drink” that came out recently (in the last few years) that has some benefits. Some forms of this super popular drink include branch chain amino acids- GREAT for muscle repair after workouts. This brand also has less sugar than the other popular sports drink that’s been around for decades. So that’s good 👌
However, this brand also carries some beverages that have a high amount of caffeine- so kids and teenagers should be very careful. Adults too- especially if they already drink other forms of caffeine or are drinking these later in the day. Also, I have some definite concerns about artificial sweeteners and the reason many of these drinks are lower in sugar is because they contain artificial sweeteners. You can do your own research on these, but I’m personally concerned between the relationship between these ingredients and very significant chronic health conditions and dis-eases. Just an automatic no for my family- especially when there are better options out there!!
I have equally concerning thoughts about artificial colors. There are ways to color foods and drinks naturally, so if you see Red #40 or something similar in a product, you’d be doing your body a huge favor by putting it back on the shelf!!
Almost every other brand I found on store selves included some form of artificial sweeteners or TONS of sugar. One brand lists sugar as the first ingredient and had 12 grams of added sugar. Like, what?!!?
Sooooo…what do I hydrate with instead and give to my kids???
First- water is great! Some people don’t need electrolytes with every workout, but our cells do absorb water better with them, so… AMPED HYDRATE is what we use- here’s why:
Didn’t wanna name any names- leading store brand on the left/ my hydration choice on the right
💫Adults’ bodies are 60% water, and kids’ are 70%, so it’s important to hydrate and replenish with beverages that don’t have excess calories and sugar. 💦 💫It provides FUNCTIONAL ingredients that contribute to the daily intake of important vitamins and minerals 💫It also contains Antioxidant vitamin C, vitamin B complex, zinc and super fruits. Amped hydrate contains: * 10-15 calories.* 0 g sugar.* Superfruit electrolyte blend.* Vitamin C.* Vitamin B complex.* Zinc.* natural ingredients. No artificial flavors, colors, or sweeteners!! Can I just emphasize this one again, friends?!! For us, it’s a huge win!!!
Share what clean energy you’re fueling yourself with these days. And, if you’re ready to switch to a cleaner brand, message me for a 25% discount off resale pricing 🤗🤗
Cheers to Spring, movement and healthy hydration for our bodies!!
Jessica's Fitness 