Spring is finally here - I hope you've gotten outside to enjoy some of the wonderful sunshine we've had recently here in BC. This issue I have some great information for you.

First I've put together a valuable ebook to help take your fitness to the next level. And second, I'll discuss three important though often overlooked aspects of fitness - rest, recuperation & rejuvenation. And finally I'm passing along news about Granville, a great new sustainable living magazine that's about to be lauched.

Please forward this newsletter to anyone you know who's interested in learning more about how to improve their fitness, sports performance and health.

Free Fitness E-book!
Click on the link below to download your free copy of my UFIT (Ultra Fitness Integrated Training) e-book. It's filled with tips on training, nutrition and goal-setting to help you get the most out of your workouts. The booklet is jam packed with the latest information on improving your fitness, health and performance for sport or life.

UFIT E-Book

The Three R's of Fitness - Rest, Recuperation & Rejuvenation
Everyone is aware that you must get out of your comfort zone if you want to improve your fitness, health and performance. You must push your limits. This may mean running a 30 mile run in preparation for an ultramarathon or simply going for a 15 minute walk after years of being a coach potato.

However, many people are unaware of the importance of recovering from all your training. Athletes are especially susceptible to the trap of overtraining. Some athletes believe they must continually push hard to keep improving in their sport. They only thing this guarantees is a burnt out and/or injured athlete.

But I've also seen my fair share of burnt out white collar athletes (sometimes also referred to as desk jockeys). Busy professionals who put in long hours at work to the detriment of other areas in their lives. If they choose to devote time to exercise, they bring the Type A attitude of going hard at it. In the end, they often fall short of their goals, burnt out and/or injured as well.

Did you ever wonder when & how the body improves from your training? It's not during the actual workout that your fitness improves; it happens AFTER your workout when your body's systems work at building up your resources in preparation for the next workout.
Exercise is a stimulus, in other words, a stress on your system. Your body adapts to any stress by getting better at handling that stress. However it needs time between bouts of stress to do that.

If you are continuously stressing the body, you are continuously tearing the body down and not doing enough to build it up. Your sympathetic nervous system (SNS) goes into overdrive and you can wind up in a hormonal and biochemical imbalance. During periods of stress your body produces certain hormones to help deal with the situation. Cortisol is one of the primary stress hormones. In the short term, cortisol is needed and not harmful. However if you keep your system chronically stressed through excessive stimulus and not enough recuperation the primary stress hormones build up and remain at elevated levels impairing your body's function.

Elevated stress levels may make it harder for you to lose weight, thinking and creativity can be impaired and your immune system supressed making it easier to get sick.

The counter balance to the SNS is the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). When this kicks in, your body balances out its hormone and biochemical levels. However, the PNS can only work when you're at rest. This means getting enough sleep and taking "stress breaks" throughout the day - mentally unwinding and shutting down the left brain hemisphere for a few minutes.

The Vancouver Sun recently ran an article on the importance of sleep. Physiologically speaking most people need 7-8 hours of sleep per night. I know many people don't get anywhere near this amount and I've heard many argue that "I can get by on 4-5 hours per night". Well, I hate to break the news to you but this likely isn't the case. The rare individual may get by on such little sleep but the majority of human beings need more.

People may develop the HABIT of sleeping less but like many habits, it may not be a wise and healthy one. Your PNS needs this time to help rebuild your body and repair any damage that may have been done during periods of stress.

Another aspect of recuperation and rejuvenation is nutrition. On top of an already stressed out system, many people stress it even further by eating poorly. Your body takes a double hit with poor nutrition. First it doesn't get the nutrients it needs and second, with all the CRAP (Carbohydrates, Refined sugars, Additives and Preservatives) in a typical diet your system has to work that much harder to deal with the "food".

I recommend you eat fresh fruits and vegetables (organic if possible), free range poultry & meat, wild fish and as much unprocessed foods as possible. My e-book has a whole section on nutrition to help you with this as well as a resource page on where to find quality foods in the Lower Mainland.

I encourage you to enjoy an active lifestyle and push your limits if you're an athlete. However, don't neglect the Three R's. They will only improve your performance.

FREE Subscription to Granville Magazine (limited time only!)

Introducing Granville magazine. A New Magazine For The New Vancouver.
In May 2007, Canada Wide Media is launching Granville magazine: part city magazine, part lifestyle magazine, and all about sustainability.

We are inviting select people to receive a FREE one-year subscription to the magazine. Granville magazine is going to be hip, contemporary and urban, but with a distinct difference: everything will have a focus about sustainability.
To sign up for your FREE subscription visit www.granvilleonline.ca

Granville explores all the qualities we love about Vancouver and the West Coast, while at the same time asking, how can we ensure that those qualities endure? Editorial is lively, funny and thought-provoking, and every story also brings sustainability to the foreground.
Our lifestyle decisions have an enormous impact on the region we inhabit, from the cars we drive to the clothes we wear and the food we eat. Granville explores the options and gives readers the tools to make informed decisions. Regular sections cover local food, fashion and homes, while in-depth features research some of the more serious issues like housing, transportation and energy options.

If you care about our city and its future then Granville is for you. To sign up for your FREE subscription visit www.granvilleonline.ca or call 604-299-2116 or 1-800-663-0518 to request your FREE one-year subscription.

Granville is published by Canada Wide Media Limited, Western Canada’s largest magazine publisher. It publishes over 40 magazines & directories, including BCBusiness magazine, TV Week magazine, GardenWise magazine, BCHome magazine, Award magazine and many more.

Take care until the next newsletter & get out into the fresh spring air!

Stay fit, stay healthy,
Curb Ivanic, M.Sc, CSCS

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