Healthy Avocado Chicken Salad

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Who says that healthy salads can't be tasty and satisfying?

Healthy Chicken Avocado Salad

This healthy, delicious chicken and avocado salad is packed with protein, good fat, fiber, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, plant compounds and antioxidants. It's extremely very low in sugar and salt (Less than 1%). 

Benefits of the Chicken Avocado Salad

• Great tasting
• Easy customization according to anyone's taste
• Requires very little preparation and clean up
• Short preparation time
• High in protein
• Low in sugar and salt
• High in micro nutrients like vitamins, minerals and antioxidants
• Lots of fiber to keep you fuller for longer

How to make the chicken and avocado salad

Add a full portion of cooked chicken to diced avocado. Toss in some lettuce, spinach or another leafy green for added nutrition. Spice with garlic, chili, pepper, lemon juice or apple cider vinegar and you're ready to go. Every ingredient in this salad is a super food.

How much chicken or avocado do I add to the salad?

This is up to you. You can add as much chicken or avocado as you want. I add extra chicken to my salad when I have been working hard at the gym for the added protein. Make enough of the salad to keep you full. If you don't have enough, you will crave more food afterwards. This could make you eat something that is unhealthy.

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Do I need to add lettuce, spinach, chili powder, black pepper and lemon juice or apple cider vinegar to the salad?

In reality, you don't. All of the extra ingredients, though, have so many health benefits (which I will focus on in a minute). Play around with these ingredients until you find the perfect combination for your own taste buds.

It is better to use these ingredients instead of salad dressings and sauces. Condiments are high in sugar, salt, preservatives, artificial flavors and colors, flavor enhancers and other unhealthy ingredients that are commonly found processed food. Did you know that there is more sugar in ketchup (tomato sauce) than there are actual tomatoes?

Can I use balsamic vinegar or white vinegar instead of apple cider vinegar?

You most certainly can. Any vinegar that you prefer will do. I like apple cider vinegar because of its known health benefits (more on that below).

Can I use frozen chicken in my salad or should I cook it fresh every time?

I'm all for convenience. To that end, I cook a week's worth of chicken at a time and freeze it all up. To make a chicken salad I simply defrost a bunch of chicken (depending on how many people I am feeding or how hungry I am) and break it into smaller pieces. You can pull it apart or cut it up with a knife.

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Will eating this chicken and avocado salad help me to lose weight?

This is one of the best meals you can eat to lose weight. It is unprocessed, low in sugar and has no refined carbohydrates. One good meal is not good enough for weight loss. You need to make the rest of your diet just as healthy. Eat healthy at every meal and follow a good weight loss exercise program.

Healthy benefits of the avocado chicken salad

Here are the health benefits of each ingredient. I hope that this inspires you to eat healthier every day.

Health benefits of Avocado

Nutrients in avocado

• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin K
• Vitamin B-6
• Riboflavin
• Niacin
• Folate
• Pantothenic Acid
• Magnesium
• Potassium
• Lutein
• Beta-Carotene
• Omega 3

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Avocados are good for your heart and blood sugar

The healthy fats in avocados carry the nutrients listed above. They are good for your heart and keep you satiated for long before you need to eat again. These fats help to stabilize blood sugar. Beta-sitosterol, a nutrient also found in avocados, assists in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels.

Avocados can improve eyesight

Avocados contain lutein and zeaxanthin. These two antioxidants are essential to eye health. Lutein and zeaxanthin are present in your eyes all of the time and low levels of these nutrients lead to optical degeneration. They prevent oxidation within the eye and protect against ultraviolet damage.

Avocados help to prevent depression

The folate in avocados helps to prevent depression because they regulate homo-cysteine. Homo-cysteine, if left unchecked, can reduce the amount of nutrients that enter into the brain. Too much homo-cysteine decreases pro-brain hormone production. 

The hormones that risk being hampered by too much homo-cysteine include dopamine and serotonin. Depression is often caused by a lack of those hormones.

Avocados for strong bones and joints

The Vitamin K in avocados helps with bone formation and bone density because it increases calcium absorption. It also decreases the amount of calcium that is excreted by your urinary track. Saponins, another nutrient found in avocados, may help with osteoporosis in joints.

Learn more about the benefits of avocados.

Health benefits of chicken

Nutrients in chicken

• Protein
• Calcium
• Iron
• Magnesium
• Phosphorus
• Potassium
• Vitamin A (alpha carotene, beta carotene, lycopene and retinal)
• Vitamin E
• Vitamin B
• Niacin

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Chicken boosts your immune system

The nutrients found in chicken are extremely beneficial for the immune system. It is thought that the high antioxidant content of chicken soup, for example, explains why so many people feel better when they have a bowl during times of illness. Chicken strengthens the cells of your immune system. The nutrients that benefit the immune system in chicken include protein, iron, magnesium and calcium.

Chicken is good for heart health

Those with a Vitamin B 6 deficiency are at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Increase your intake of this vitamin to drastically improve your heart health. 4 ounces of chicken breast meat gives you 40% of your daily recommended intake of Vitamin B 6. Niacin, found in chicken, improves good cholesterol levels. The iron, magnesium and phosphorus in chicken are also important for a healthy heart.

Chicken is good for weight loss

Chicken consists of more than 63% water, more than 28% protein and around 9 grams of fat (and 0% carbohydrates). This food is an absolute staple for people who want to lose weight. Protein can eliminate hunger and boost your metabolism. It costs more energy for your body to break down protein than it does to break down simple or refined carbohydrates.

Chicken may improve eyesight

Eyes need the alpha carotene, beta carotene, retinal and lycopene (which are different forms of Vitamin A) found in chicken to maintain their function. These nutrients protect the surface of your eyes (known as the corneas) and prevent damage that could lead to dry eyes, night blindness, degeneration and cataracts.

Chicken is beneficial to people who have anemia

Iron and Vitamins A, E and K help to prevent anemia. These nutrients do so by protecting red blood cells and assisting with the production of new red blood cells. Nutrient deficiency is often the cause of low red blood cell counts. Chicken is rich in these nutrients (including Vitamin K).

Read more about the benefits of chicken.

Health benefits of lettuce

Lettuce is high in fiber. It is made up of over 90% water. This makes it a fantastic food item if you want to fill yourself up without piling on the calories. Even still, lettuce has a large variety of nutrients that your body needs. Here are some of them:

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that supports recovery. It is used to make collagen in the skin and is used in many beauty or skin care complexes for this reason. Bruises that don't heal, for example, can be a tell-tale sign of a Vitamin C deficiency.

Vitamin B 1

Thiamine, or Vitamin B 1, turns nutrients into energy. Every cell in your body needs it to function properly. Low B levels can cause a lack of concentration and constant fatigue.

Vitamin B 2

Riboflavin, or Vitamin B 2, helps the body to grow and develop. Our bodies are always growing new cells to replace old ones. Riboflavin is just as important for adults as it is for children.

Vitamin B 3

Niacin, or Vitamin B 3, controls cholesterol and helps to prevent arthritis in the joints and the bones. Our brains need Niacin for concentration and learning.

Vitamin B 5

Pantothenic acid, or Vitamin B 5, is used to create nutrients. You need it to create fats, proteins and carbohydrates.

Vitamin B 6

Pyridoxine, or Vitamin B 6, forms the neurotransmitter serotonin. B 6 protects the central nervous system from damage.

Vitamin B 9

Folate, or Vitamin B 9, creates red blood cells. It is also needed in the production of DNA.

Choline

It is essential for the production of energy. Choline is also needed for healthy cell walls in every part of your body.

Betaine

Betaine Metabolizes homo-cysteine - which is needed for eye, blood, heart, bone and brain function.

Retinal

Retinal is a form of Vitamin A that has is used for immunity, eye function and healthy growth.

Beta Carotene

This is another form of Vitamin A. It promotes good skin. Beta Carotene is also needed for healthy eyes, immunity, bones and your mucus membranes.

Lutein and Zeaxanthin

These are two powerful antioxidants that are often found together. Lutein and zeaxanthin protect cells from damage. They prevent eye degeneration, for example.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is an antioxidant. It is known for its healing effects on the skin and its ability to cleanse tissues of toxins. It also improves nerve function. 

Vitamin K

Your body needs vitamin K to form bones, regulate calcium and clot blood.

Lettuce also contains the following minerals:

• Calcium
• Iron
• Magnesium
• Phosphorus
• Potassium
• Sodium
• Zinc
• Copper
• Manganese
• Selenium

If you'd like a brief overview of why your body needs these minerals (or to read more about the benefits of lettuce), see my post dedicated to lettuce here.

Health benefits of the other ingredients

I had to cut the section short because the post was getting too long. Luckily, you can still discover why all of the ingredients in the avocado chicken salad are healthy.

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Spinach

Spinach is my favorite super food in terms of nutrient content. See all of its benefits here.

Garlic

Garlic is fantastic because it makes for a great alternative to salt. Low-sodium food does not have to be bland food, thanks to garlic. Learn more about the healthy power of garlic.

Chili powder (or chili seeds)

Using chili powder (or whole chilies) instead of sodium is another great way to add flavor. I use chili powders to spice up food that I don't particularly enjoy. Chili powder is great for people who want to lose weight or burn fat because it speeds up the metabolism. Read more about the benefits of chili here.

Black pepper

Black pepper's benefits are similar to those of chili powder of hot peppers. You can use one or both of them on your healthy avocado chicken salad. This is why black pepper is so healthy.

Lemon juice

Lemon juice might give you more energy than coffee first thing in the morning. I am not the only person who has felt the energy-boosting effects of lemon water. Lemon juice cleans out the kidneys and the liver so that they can focus on other important functions.

A healthy squeeze of lemon juice is a much healthier option than adding dressings or sauces to your avocado chicken salad. Processed condiments contain too much sugar, artificial ingredients and preservatives. Lemon juice is tasty enough to give your salad a good tang without destroying your health goals in the process. Here are the benefits of lemon juice.

If you can't use fresh lemons, it is okay to use the bottled version instead. Fresh is better, but store-bought lemon juice still carries numerous health benefits.

Apple cider vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is great for adding flavor and moisture to your healthy avocado chicken salad if you don't want to use lemon juice. Apple cider vinegar used to be all the rage a few years back, just before coconut oil took over the scene.

It might not be the 'in thing' anymore, but adding a few spoons of this healthful ingredient will do wonders for your health in the long run. This is why apple cider vinegar is so good for you.

Did you enjoy this article about a healthy food option? Should I write another article about easy, healthy dishes? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. Stay Strong!

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Not all fluids keep you hydrated

The importance of proper hydration

The health benefits of water are undeniable. Every cell in your body needs water to function. Cells need substantial hydration levels to function at their best. Your body uses water to detoxify itself. Dehydration is a major cause of a variety of symptoms like headaches, fatigue, poor sleep quality, indigestion and constipation.

Dehydration may lead to weight gain

Dehydration can lead to weight gain. This happens because fat metabolism occurs within the liver. When the liver does not have enough water to clean itself and the rest of the body, it will struggle to perform some of its most important tasks. This is clearly demonstrated by the way that repeated excessive alcohol consumption will lead to cirrhosis (liver damage). Healthy livers are better at metabolizing fat into usable energy. This is why drinking more water is one of my top methods to reduce body fat.

Fatty liver disease

A fatty liver, or hepatic steatosis, is a disease where too much fat has accumulated in the liver. Diet and exercise plays a key role in preventing the development of fatty liver disease. Water does too because it helps the liver to keep itself clean. Water is your liver's best friend.

Drinking the right liquids is essential for optimum health: Many popular drinks won't help to keep you hydrated 

Drinks with too much sugar won't hydrate you

The best way to re-hydrate is to consume enough liquids. The type of liquid that you drink will determine whether or not it will hydrate you. Sodas that are high in sugar, for example, will have a positive effect on hydration. These drinks can actually dehydrate you even more. The reason for this is because your body will need more water to dilute all of that sugar.

It would take 69 liters of water to dilute 500 ml of soda into normal blood glucose levels

Your body has around 5 liters of blood at any given time. Less than a teaspoon (4 grams) of sugar should be in that blood. Compare that to 11 grams of sugar per 100 grams in the average soda. This means that the average soda has 137.5 times more sugar than what is normally found in your blood per milliliter. By that math, it would take 69 liters of water to dilute the sugar content of 500 milliliters of soda to natural blood glucose levels. Of course, most of the sugar isn't diluted. It is quickly stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver or converted to fat to correct the blood-sugar balance. For this reason, drinks that are high in sugar do not hydrate the body very well.

Drinks that are high in unhealthy ingredients like colorants and artificial flavors also have a dehydrating effect on your body

Think about this: Your pee is a lot lighter than the unhealthy drinks that you consume with darker colors. That means that more water is needed to wash away all of these nasty colorants. More water is also needed to cleanse the body from the unhealthy flavorings that aren't reflected in a dink's color. Since more water is redirected to the detoxification process to clear out all of these negative ingredients, less of it is used to replenish the body's hydration stores.

For the above reasons, making sure that your hydration methods contain less harmful ingredients will increase your body's ability to use that water.

Bonus water and hydration tips

It is possible to drink too much water

Your body loses a lot of water through sweat, detoxification, breathing (water vapor is released every time you exhale) and the metabolizing of many chemical and hormonal processes in the body. This is why you should make sure that you give your body enough water to do everything without hindrance. It is also possible, though, to be drinking too much water. This could dilute your blood so much that its nutrient content drops. Too much water can also wash away precious nutrients. Learn more about the possibility of drinking too much water here. 

Dehydration reduces physical performance

Dehydration could be the primary cause of why you might feel cold or sick after exercise (click the links to see more possible causes).

Water is not the only good thing that you lose through sweat

Sweating is beneficial because it helps the body to get rid of toxins and replenish skin health. You need to replenish the good things that sweat causes your body to lose, such as water. Water is not the only thing you lose through sweat. You also lose precious electrolytes and minerals - which also need to be replaced.

Spice up your hydration without consuming unhealthy drinks

Try eating more healthy foods that are naturally hydrating like lettuce and spinach. Add lemon to your water for more health benefits or exchange unhealthy drinks for healthier alternatives like green tea.

You might not think that a single can of soda or an alcoholic beverage will impact your health that much, but these habits become addictive very quickly. These choices might feel like one drop in the pond, until we realize that the entire pond is made up of little drops. Stay Strong!

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How to Get Rid of Freckles Naturally

Can you get rid of freckles without surgery or cosmetic procedures? The short answer is yes.

Freckles… freckles… freckles. People who don’t have freckles and sun spots wish that they did. For those of us who do have them, we’d rather do without these 'beauty spots'. Freckles are nothing more than concentrated deposits of melanin (the pigment in our skin). The bad news is that the cheaper and most natural freckle removal methods won’t take freckles away overnight. The good news is that there are things that we can do to make them fade away over time - to the point where most of them eventually disappear. Here are a few solutions that you can look into to get rid of those sun kisses.

Ways to get rid of freckles at home

Lemon juice

Lemon juice is very healthy thing to drink regularly. Lemon juice, though, acts very similar to a kind of bleach when it gets into contact with the skin because it is acidic. Because of its acidity, it works as a mild exfoliation; removing a small portion of the lop layer of the skin where it is applied. This removes a part of the dead skin cells from the outer layer of skin and encourages the skin to make more new, younger-looking skin. People use lemon juice to lighten the color tone of their skin and freckles, and sometimes on other areas like the arms and torso to soften tan lines. Because of lemon juice’s ability to lighten the skin, it is a great tool to help fade freckles away. Some freckles will even fade to the point where they are no longer visible, although some will fade but still stay slightly visible. Unfortunately, this takes time and will take more than just a few days to work effectively.

Directions and use:

Dab undiluted lemon juice onto the skin to lighten up tan lines or freckles before going to bed and let it dry out. Wash off in the morning after waking up and repeat every night. The skin should start to lighten and freckles can fade – sometimes to the point of disappearing – after a few weeks. If your skin is very sensitive, dilute the lemon juice with water. On your first night, try it out on a small patch of skin to determine how sensitive your skin is and to see whether you have a negative reaction to it. All skin types are different and some people might get burnt from the acidity of too much lemon juice at once.

Exfoliation

Exfoliating the skin removes the outer layer of skin which is made up of dead skin cells. Frequent, thorough exfoliation helps the skin to rejuvenate itself - even to the point where the concentrated melanin deposits (freckles) are removed and new, spot-free skin can replace the area.

Directions and use:

Be careful if you are using another exfoliation method while using the lemon juice method mentioned above. DO NOT use another exfoliation method directly before are after the lemon juice method. This will damage your skin. Depending on the sensitivity and tolerance of your skin (which will improve over time), you should wait from 5 days to 1 full day (and night) for using another exfoliation technique.

DO NOT exfoliate more than once in one session and DO NOT exfoliate for two days in a row. You need to give your skin enough time to rejuvenate and give the new skin which was recently underneath the removed layer time to adapt to becoming the new outside layer of skin. DO NOT scrub until your skin starts to go red or pink (this can lead to permanent damage) and DO NOT scrub until it starts to feel painful. I personally exfoliate until I feel a light tingle. After a good exfoliation, your skin will look polished and glow. DO NOT exfoliate more than twice a week. The reason why you should not exfoliate too much, too often or too hard is because the point of exfoliation is to remove the uppermost layer of skin which consists of dead skin cells and overdoing it will lead to the removal (and damage) of the healthy, living skin layers which you want to get as healthy and untouched as possible. This skin needs to look good and rejuvenate into better looking skin, and can only so this when it is healthy enough to do so. DO NOT focus on scrubbing freckles until they disappear or go lighter. This won't happen and you will end up damaging your skin. You will never notice an immediate difference after a single exfoliation. You can only work towards fading freckles in smaller intervals, since freckles are present in many layers of skin.

Just do a light scrub twice a week with a few days of ‘rest’ in-between sessions. After a few weeks (yes, it does take that long), the speeding up of skin renewal brought on by exfoliation will lead to the gradual removal of the concentrated melanin formations. Again, you will not see any differences after the first few exfoliations, but freckles can fade after a few weeks or disappear in a few months.

One of the most popular exfoliation methods is the use of exfoliation gloves that can be purchased at most supermarkets. These gloves don’t cost too much and can be re-used over and over again. You simply put the gloves on before going into the shower or bath and then lather them with soap and water (which creates a soapy lather like a scrunchy). Rub the skin all over your body with the lathered gloves in circular motions and rinse when done. Do not make the water too hot while doing this in the shower or bath, because intense heat can damage your skin.

Another popular method of exfoliation is through the use of pastes that contain a grainy or sandy substance that can buffer the skin's surface. You can purchase these pastes at stores or make them at home by using household items. Popular combinations include baking soda and water, salt (smooth salt only because the larger, coarse salt can hurt the skin) and olive oil or even mud made with clean, treated sand and water. Rub the exfoliating paste onto the skin in circular motions for a few seconds before rinsing off afterwards.

Some wonder whether exfoliation is a normal or natural process for the skin to go through. The truth is that it is more natural than you would initially think. In the jungle, our skins would naturally brush against trees, leaves, dirt and other things which they are now protected from with clothes and other comforts. Scraping against random things every day paved the way for new skin regeneration.

Increase general skin health

The healthier your skin is, the better it will be able to regenerate itself and the younger it will begin to look in general. This can speed up the methods above and slow down the formation of new freckles. Here are a few things that you should be doing to keep your skin looking as good as possible.

1. Eat a good diet

Eat a healthy diet that is balanced with enough carbohydrates, fats, proteins, fruits and vegetables. Proteins are needed build new skin tissue, fats are needed for proper hormonal function and moisture, carbohydrates ensure that your body has the energy that it needs, and eating fruit and vegetables gives your skin important vitamins like vitamin C. Make sure that you get enough fiber every day, so that your body can eliminate the toxins that obstruct nutrient flow and other key functions.

2. Sweat

Sweating is great for your skin. It helps nutrients to reach the surface and allows for the elimination of impurities that can get trapped in the skin or just below its surface. It also helps the liver to deal with other functions because it eases its detoxification load. Liver spots can appear on the skin when liver function declines.

3. Exercise

Exercise can keep your whole body (including your skin) younger for longer. This will improve your skin's ability to regenerate and stay supple. Other advantages of exercise like stress reduction, blood circulation, and nutrient delivery will directly improve skin health.

4. Drink enough water

Water will help to keep your entire body well hydrated and eliminate excess sodium. This will also hydrate your skin, but also ensure that there are fewer toxins that can damage your entire body and more space for nutrients to reach critical places - from the inside out.

5. Get enough sleep

Sleep is where the body recovers from damage and regenerates itself the most. When your body is forced to cope with less sleep than it requires, it focuses on performing functions that it deems most important for survival and is not able to do things which will ensure its best long-term state. Here are great tips for people who struggle to fall asleep.

6. Stress less

Avoid unnecessary stresses and take the time to do the things that you enjoy. This will help to decrease the amount of stress that your body has to cope with. Stress makes your body think that there is some kind of impending danger and alters its function in order to prepare for the perceived risk. When in a stressed state, the body slows down (and could completely halt) its repair and recovery processes. The steam room helps me to de-stress, sweat, recover physically and detox at the same time.

7. Avoid smoking and alcohol

Smoking increases the toxic load, decreases nutrient delivery and clogs up the body's recovery processes. This increases skin damage and decreases your body's ability to create new skin (or even maintain existing skin properly). The effects of alcohol are very similar. Both of these habits also hamper liver function.

8. Avoid sun damage

I love the sun. I believe that we were meant to be in the sun regularly - just like the rest of nature. This doesn't mean, though, that I let me skin get damaged by the sun. This would be counter-productive. Limit sun exposure, depending on your skin type. Do not stay in the sun for so long that your skin gets red (or even pink) - no matter what kind of skin type you have. Skin damage from the sun leads to freckle and spot formation. If you like to suntan (like me), get out of the sun before your skin goes red or pink. This lets me tan more frequently, avoid freckles and allows me to go brown sooner after every session in the sun.

Cosmetic and immediate procedures

Dermatologists (the skin doctors) offer freckle removal services. If you are interested in this method of freckle removal, ask your doctor for more information and ask for a referral to a good dermatologist in your area.

During a 30 minute to 1 hour session with the dermatologist, he or she will burn off the first (outermost) layers of skin on a freckle to instantly remove it. This does hurt, but the burning off notion takes about a second per freckle and a dermatologist could take off over 50 freckles in a single session. Your skin will need time (usually a few days to two weeks) to heal from this in the areas where the doctor has taken off the freckles. It will look like you have chicken pox with all the red marks. In some cases, scabs can form. After this process your freckles will be no more.

Another method of freckle removal uses intensive light pulses which penetrate through to the deepest layers of skin to break up melanin formations. After this light stimulation, the freckles start to break up and disappear after a day or two. This does not damage the skin or make any marks, and actually helps to make the skin look younger.

Well there you have it, who said you couldn’t have the body you want!? STAY STRONG!

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