IKSC Weekly Links: March 28, 2020
Every one of this week’s links has to do with strengthening your immune system in one way or another. Always good advice. Here’s something I posted the other day on FB:
Mindset matters. Part of that begins in the way you move. One of the things I notice about all this virus panic is people’s posture and gait when out in public. They all look (just slightly worse than normal) like distressed, caged animals.
Try this: Stand upright, shoulders back chin up, eyes up. Take a deep breath and walk strong and confidently wherever you go. Walk like you own every room you enter and command the ground in front of you.
It reminds me of a samurai maxim that insists that a good samurai only be found with arrows in the front of his body. You might catch something bad or you might not (more than likely not), but walking around like beaten dogs only makes even healthy people sick.
The point is not to be stupid, but be strong and confident. Don’t act wounded or you will be.
Ignore the ads in this article on ZMA. You can get it from lots of sources. The kind I like is made by Vitamin Shoppe and also has theanine in it (which is an adrenal support supplement), but I don’t really have a brand preference.
I’ve taken ZMA to get my magnesium, zinc, and B6 for years. I always took it for more strength and better sleep, because it’s been proven to help that (directions say to take at bedtime).
I’ve also just bought magnesium, zinc and B6 separately and taken those at night before bed. Not a big difference whether you buy them all together or separately.
Anyone who follows me or has been to some of my nutrition classes hears repeatedly about magnesium, vitamin D, and zinc.
Stress weakens your immune system. Stress about things you can control, but not those you cannot. Control your emotions, or they will control you.
Stress and Immune System
It all starts in the gut. That’s really the whole point behind a paleo diet or ancestral health diet when you get down to it, and why it works so well (or it did, until you could make “paleo” cookies, brownies, etc.). Now is a good time to dial in what you are eating, and spend extra time preparing meals. I know I am dialing in my diet hard, because I know I just don’t have the normal “cheat room” I would otherwise due to the stressful situation we are all under.
Gut Health
Vitamin C is important when it comes to general immune system health. I take 2,000mg per day. This article has to do with it lowering cortisol, which relates back to the article above about stress and immune system. And yes, vitamin D is just as important as C. I’m also hearing chatter about high doses of vitamin C being used to treat our latest fun virus threat, but I’m trying to avoid diving into that specifically, since I just don’t know.
Vitamin C and Cortisol
This week’s video:
I’ve shared this before. This is really important right now. I know it’s easy to fall into a stress and stress eating rollercoaster. We all have a challenge to meet right now. It will only be made worse by going off the rails into a junkfood abyss. It is about more than just a few pounds around the waistline. For some, it is the difference between falling into a much more dangerous condition.
