Exercise

The Importance of Exercise to Bone Health when Gluten-Free

Gluten free exercise and bones

Exercise retains & improves bone strength!

When you see gluten-free fruit and nut bars in the airport newsstand, you know we’ve come a long way in our society’s awareness of food sensitivities.  In my mere two years without gluten, I’ve gone from stuffing my suitcase with Larabars to ensure I don’t starve while away, to, well, still packing them, but knowing that I likely won’t be completely reliant on them the whole trip.

In addition to newsstand snack options, I recently discovered a Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport restaurant having a gluten-free menu.  I was thrilled!  I would sooner have expected to see a glatt kosher dining area!

The dramatic increase in gluten-free offerings makes me wonder: why the recent influx of news about gluten? Is it that so many more people are getting tested for celiac disease? Are more people questioning their ailing guts and attributing it to gluten? Read More »

Refuel with Homemade Electrolyte Drinks

Do you remember the first time you drank Gatorade?

I do! I was at a track and field meet. After the race, my coach passed me a bottle of Gatorade and told me to drink it to avoid feeling sick.

The neon color should have been enough to raise a red flag, but I drank it anyway. 5 minutes later I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. Sugar overload! I could feel the  Read More »

How Do You Own Your Health?

This is the article I wrote on Health and Wellness for the Autism Community Magazine. 

I recently heard Rebecca Onie speak on TedTalk about the current healthcare system in the US. She poses the questions: “What if our health care system kept us healthy? What if waiting rooms were a place to improve daily healthcare? What if doctors could/would prescribe/facilitate diet and lifestyle change and improve health?” The work the patient needs to do is not done after the prescription is Read More »

Gluten-Free Diet Provides Murray and Djokovic with Recipe for Success

Andrew Murray and Novak Djokovic

Tennis Stars Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic credit the gluten-free diet for their improved play

Since our last post about gluten-free Olympic athletes, other athletes and celebrities in the spotlight have come forward with their own decisions to go gluten free, whether it be a gluten sensitivity or a health and wellness decision. With this new surge in the spotlight, it’s fitting that two names highly regarded in tennis have openly spoken about going gluten free. Read More »

Gluten-Free Athletes Bring Home the Gold

dana vollmer gluten free olympics

Dana Vollmer has Celiac Disease and a Gold Medal in the 100 Butterfly. Photo: EPA

Celebrities and athletes living gluten-free are casting a much-needed light on the lifestyle changes that accompany a gluten-free diet. With their openness about their symptoms, dietary changes and more, athletes and celebrities in the spotlight are proving that celiac disease and gluten sensitivity are more prevalent than is currently known, that these conditions affects all kinds of people, and that abiding by a gluten-free diet does not stop them from living the life they love.

Dana Vollmer, U.S. swimmer and 2012 Olympian recently brought home a gold medal and set a world record in Read More »

FSU Quarterback Clint Trickett Goes Gluten Free After Celiac Disease Diagnosis

Clint Trickett Gluten Free Celiac DiseaseAt 6’2″ and just 165 lbs, Florida State quarterback Clint Trickett was consuming 4,500 calories a day earlier this summer to try to put on weight.

It wasn’t working.

“I had some blood work done, I had a biopsy,” Trickett said during a recent  meeting with Florida State beat writers. “And they said, ‘You have Celiac disease.’ And it started making sense.”

Trickett adopted a gluten-free diet and within a month started to see results.

“You just have to stay away from any kind of breaded food,” Trickett said. “Already I’ve seen two pounds a week gained. I’ve been putting on pounds ever since Read More »

Novak Djokovic #1 Tennis Player in the World Dispels Myth That Gluten-Free Diet is Deficient

Novak Djokovic: #1 Tennis Player in the World & Gluten-free!

On September 12, a gluten-free Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal to win the men’s US Open Final.
Djokovic, the #1 men’s tennis player in the world, credits his adoption of the gluten-free diet at the recommendation of a nutritionist in 2010 for his incredible success in 2011. He has won an astounding 64 out of 66 matches and 3 out of 4 Grand Slams in 2011.

Djokovic said in interviews that removing gluten from his diet has resulted in his increased speed, endurance and improved play. In his own words, he feels better, moves better and thinks better.

While watching the grueling 4 hour and 10 minute US Open Final and listening to the announcers repeatedly describe it as one of the most intense they had ever witnessed, a nagging thought begged the question…  Read More »

Gluten Free Spells Success for Big Time Athletes

Finally it seems that athletes have become savvy to the benefits of a gluten free diet.  As the general population has started to become more aware of the prevalence of gluten sensitivities and Celiac Disease, there has been a noted increase in the number of athletes turning to the gluten free lifestyle in an attempt to maximize their training and find greater success in their respective sports.

Among the most notable athletes making the gluten free switch are Raul Ibanez of the Philadelphia Phillies, Cedric Benson of the Cincinnati Bengals, and tennis player Novak Djokovic, the 2011 winner of Wimbledon who went on an unprecedented 43-match win streak.  Most significant about their decision to go gluten free is the marked improvement in all three athletes after the switch. Read More »

Gluten-free GU Products: Energy For Athletes

The name certainly doesn’t sound appetizing, but GU is an essential part of many endurance athlete’s fueling.  When running longer distances, biking or participating ih triathlons athletes must consume some type of fuel to keep their bodies going.  Gu provides one such product for that purpose.  

GU Energy Gels are gluten-free and dairy-free, perfect for the Celiac athlete.  There are 10 different flavors of GU energy gels: Read More »

Osteoporosis and Pilates

As baby boomers segue from child-rearing to retirement, they find themselves bombarded by the media with information about osteoporosis. It makes sense, considering that more than 44 million American men and women age 50 and older have osteoporosis or its precursor, osteopenia. So between news articles about calcium and vitamin D, Sally Field promoting the drug Boniva on TV commercials and the now-ubiquitous term “weight-bearing exercise,” we are all hearing a great deal about this epidemic.

Yet controversy abounds, with new findings questioning the benefits of calcium as well as the risks versus benefits of osteoporosis medications. The conflicting information is enough to overwhelm even the most media-savvy consumer. But the one continuously advocated method of addressing the condition is exercise. Not only does exercise help to maintain and build strong bones, but it can improve balance and reflexes and thereby prevent falls, the most dangerous threat to those with fragile bones. According to the International Osteoporosis Foundation, 60 percent of those who fracture a hip still cannot walk independently a year later. Clearly, the goal should be to stay strong, agile and upright. Read More »