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Lead Stories: Sunday, September 7, 2008

ASK LARA: Serotonin- Effects, sources, and suggestions for a healthy, active lifestyle

Posted September 8th, 2007 at 5:30 PM by Lara Johnson

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Columns, Ask Lara

Need advice? Injured? Confused? Overwhelmed? Bored? ASK LARA!
ASK LARA is a free advice column to help you with all of your running, fitness and nutrition inquiries. To ASK LARA — simply fill out the form at the conclusion of the column.

Q. I know that there are specific foods that help serotonin in the brain. What are they? Chocolate is one. Thanks.
~Michelle from Georgia

A. Interesting question. Since I am not a serotonin expert, I turned to some other sources for help in answering this one. Serotonin is defined as:

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, or 5-HT) is a monoamine neurotransmitter synthesized in serotonergic neurons in the central nervous system (CNS) and enterochromaffin cells in the gastrointestinal tract of animals including humans. Serotonin is also found in many mushrooms and plants, including fruits and vegetables.

Basically, serotonin is a chemical in the CNS that carries signals from one nerve cell to the next (hence, a neurotransmitter), thus allowing the brain to communicate. It is also one type of neurotransmitter that is highly sensitive to what we eat and influential in affecting mood. Other “moody” chemicals are dopamine and norepinephrine (source: the Mood-Food Connection).
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ASK FLASH: Questions regarding nutrition, diets, supplements and more…

Posted March 31st, 2007 at 1:41 PM by Joshua Flash Gordon

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Supplements, Columns, Ask Flash

Need advice? Injured? Confused? Overwhelmed? Bored? ASK FLASH!
ASK FLASH is a free advice column to help you with all of your running, fitness and nutrition inquiries. To ASK FLASH — simply fill out the form at the conclusion of the column.

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The most frequent topic that I get asked about is nutrition. We are all in search of ‘the perfect food‘ or ‘the ideal diet’ to complement our training.

Furthermore, many runners, and athletes in general, are looking for the ‘quick fix’ or supplements that will lead to certain improvement. It is a topic worthy of considerable discussion, but also one that can be difficult to fully grasp and/or resolve.

However, there a few fundamental concepts (that many of us are already familiar with) that everyone should keep in mind:
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Bear Naked: Ideal choices for fueling your active lifestyle

Posted March 5th, 2007 at 10:30 AM by Paul Petersen

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating

Runners like myself are constantly searching for foods that can both fuel our bodies for optimal performance and yet also satisfy our cravings and hyperactive metabolisms.

Unfortunately, the plethora of high-end and natural food choices in today’s marketplace often fail to meet those criteria by being tasteless and/or prohibitively expensive. However, one emerging player that seems to have finally gotten it right is neophyte brand Bear Naked.

Whether you’re looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle, are vegetarian or vegan, prefer organic, or are just plain hungry - Bear Naked is likely to offer something that will fit your fancy and power your workouts.

Bear Naked, a hip, home-grown business based out of Norwalk, CT, produces three primary food products: granola, low-sugar cereal, and organic hot cereal.

Their granola line features “Fruit and Nut”, “Peak Protein”, “Banana Nut”, “Apple Cinnamon”, as well as, the new and intriguing “Blueberry Walnut” and “Peanut Butter and Jelly”. The low-sugar cereals come in “Triple Berry Crunch” and “Vanilla Almond Crunch”, while the organic hot cereal is available in “Medley” and “Rolled Oats”.

Although differing in flavor, all of the Bear Naked products embody one, essential attribute: high-quality nutrition to super-charge your performance.

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Crunch Time: Optimum nutrition for runners

Posted January 25th, 2007 at 8:00 AM by Christopher Jack

Section: Running & Training, Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Race Prep & Recov

Find yourself dragging through those morning runs? Your 10k pace not where you want it? Sprinting toward the porta potties on race day? There could be an easy fix and it all starts with your diet.

Every runner’s training regimen, regardless of experience level, should have a focus on proper nutritional maintenance. When and what you eat can significantly affect your workout and performance will suffer without the proper balance of nutrients.

A common mistake made by runners, especially those early morning warriors, is running before fueling up. Without the proper nutrients in your system, your body will suffer from lowered glycogen and blood-glucose levels; depriving the body of essential energy and sustenance.
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Portable electrolyte tablets: What’s all the buzz about?

Posted December 16th, 2006 at 6:19 PM by Jonathan Faccone

Section: Nutrition, Hydration, Race Prep & Recov, Supplements

Since the advent of Gatorade, manufacturers have been in fierce competition to one-up each other with new and better ways to fuel athletes. This has created a very saturated market; one that features a plethora of choices for competitive athletes. As a result, athletes vary greatly, especially in the world of endurance sports, about which option they believe is the most effective.

One alternative that has begun to slowly, pick-up steam in the market is the electrolyte tablet. There has been a lot of buzz surrounding these portable tablets, such as Nuun and Zym, because they are quick and convenient mechanisms for obtaining vital replenishment of electrolytes and other vitamins.
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What’s the Deal with Nutritional Bars?

Posted November 18th, 2006 at 4:00 PM by Jonathan Faccone

Section: Nutrition, Healthy Eating, Supplements

protein bars.jpg Trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle while simultaneously managing all of the stresses in your life can seem like a daunting task. This is the main reason why many people don’t even try, or quickly give up on, eating frequently throughout the day. They believe they just don’t have enough time to prepare, or even think about, five or six moderate meals. However, as an increasing number of studies point out, this type of nutritional lifestyle can significantly benefit your health, your waistline and even your mood.

Everyone is short on time, but as I mentioned in my Healthy Eating Guide (Parts One and Two), there is a solution: SUPPLEMENTS. Supplements provide you with an already made, no cooking required mechanism for eating small, nutritious meals throughout the day. The most popular and effective means of supplementation for people on the go are nutritional bars.

However, it’s important to keep in mind that “Not all bars are created equal” . There are a plethora of nutritional bars; each claiming to help with a variety of nutritional goals: adding muscle, losing weight, staying fit, gaining energy, etc. It can be quite arduous trying to figure out what’s best for you and/or what nutritional ratios fit your personal needs. That’s why I’ve put together this brief guide about what to look for and some of the best bars for your particular goals: Read the rest of this entry »

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