There are so many nutrients and vitamins that our bodies need, and it’s nearly impossible to know which one we aren’t getting enough of, and which we need to work to get more of. For those of us that are trying to lose weight and get healthy, I want to encourage you to start adding a couple of supplements to your diet.
Flavored Water: I start out with a flavored water. I like to use Propel, which is a Gatorade product, but there are plenty of others out there that are zero calorie, zero sugar.
MSM Powder can be added to plain or flavored water.
MSM (methylsulfonylmethane): It’s an organic mineral with a sulfur base, so don’t use it if you’re allergic to sulfur. I could write an entire blog post on why MSM is good for your body, but I’ll just stick with the ones that pertain to healthy weight loss and maintenance.
-Restores the gut: It’s been about two years since my mom started learning about Leaky Gut Syndrome and warning me about what I should and shouldn’t be eating to maintain a healthy gut. Well, MSM helps to restore the lining of your gut and helps with digestion.
-Reduces muscle pain: When you exercise, your muscles hurt. This helps to prevent them from hurting as badly, and helps them to recover more quickly.
-Tightens skin: MSM helps your body produce collagen, which helps keep your skin healthy.
-Improves flexibility: When I first heard about MSM, it was because a friend who had recently undergone knee surgery was told by his doctor that he needed to take MSM to help his joints and tendons recover. Studies sho that MSM improves joint and muscle flexibility, and limber muscles are happy muscles.
-Eliminates waste: Yep. It’s gonna help your bowels move. If constipation is a problem for you, this might help you out. But it also makes your cells more permeable, which allows toxins to move out of cells to make more room for nutrients that your body needs.
I add about 1 tsp. of MSM powder to a 16.9 fl oz bottle of Propel. However, you don’t want to start there. You need to give your body time to get used to it, or you’ll be spending more time than you’d like to in the restroom (keeping in mind that it helps you eliminate waste). Start off with about 1/4 tsp. for a few days, then go to 1/2 tsp., and within 7 to 10 days, depending on how your body is reacting, work your way up to 1 tsp.
I encourage you to do some of your own research and see for yourself just how good MSM is for your body.
Vitamin C Powder: We all know that Vitamin C is good for our immune system, but it’s also great for your endocrine and muscle systems. It helps with collagen production and muscle recovery, including alleviating chronic muscle and joint pain.
Together, MSM and Vitamin C can also help to regulate blood sugar. If you have Type 2 Diabetes or are Pre-Diabetic– these minerals are for you. Of course, you’ll want to check with your doctor to make sure they won’t react to any of your other medication. If you don’t have diabetes or pre-diabetes, it will still help regulate your blood sugar, which can help you avoid those afternoon sugar cravings when your energy is waning, because it will be more stable throughout the day.
I add 1/4 tsp. of Vitamin C powder to my bottle of Propel, which is about 1000 mg, much more than recommended by the U.S Food and Nutrition Board.
I also add Creatine powder to my water, but only when I’ve been exercising. Creatine doesn’t help you build muscle, not directly anyway. It hydrates your muscles, helping them work more efficiently when you exercise, and helping your muscles to recover more quickly. If you aren’t exercising regularly, the creatine will still hydrate your muscles, but it’ll show up as water weight-gain, as your muscles retain the water without the help of strenuous exercise to work it out.
There are plenty of other things that you can take as supplements, but these are things that have helped me. I notice a difference in my ability to shed pounds when I’m consistently adding these to my water, and exercising regularly. This little concoction should just be a once-a-day thing. I’ll drink it first thing in the morning as I’m getting ready for work or driving in to the station. You should also work up to drinking about one gallon of water a day, in addition to the Propel.
Do you have a supplement that you use that you’ve found helps you with your weight loss?
If you want to read more about the different supplements, here are some sites I found that address what they can do:
http://theshawnstevensonmodel.com/7-benefits-of-msm-the-miracle-supplement/
http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-and-supplements/msm-methylsulfonylmethane-uses-and-risks#1
http://www.livestrong.com/article/430674-benefits-uses-for-msm-vitamin-c/
http://www.nowloss.com/creatine-fat-loss.htm
http://www.livestrong.com/article/472970-can-you-lose-weight-while-taking-creatine/
Cheering for you!
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