Summer is officially here! Naturally, this season brings about many opportunities to get out there and be active. I hope this article goes to show you that there are numerous ways to improve your fitness & enjoy nature. You don't need to be stuck indoors lifting weights at a gym if that isn't your thing! Find the activities you enjoy and stay consistent with them and I promise you will see improvements. With that being said, here are 10 outdoor exercise ideas for you to enjoy in North Vancouver.

Do you ever find yourself becoming overly focused on the number on the weight scale? Are you measuring your self-worth based on this number? Do you have a certain goal weight that you are striving for? Are you constantly telling yourself that you won't be satisfied with your body until you reach it? If you answered 'YES' to any of the above questions... then I am sorry to announce that you have the wrong mindset around losing weight. The weight scale is simply a tool. It does not measure everything when it comes to fat loss.

Around 20 years ago, something odd occurred: Iceberg lettuce started appearing on “ foods to avoid ” lists. Yes, you read that correctly. Refreshing, crunchy, near zero-calorie iceberg lettuce made it onto the list. Websites proclaimed that it had “ zero nutritional value ” (which is completely false) and that you should always eat baby spinach instead. (This was before the kale revolution, by the way) This was without knowing whether or not you actually enjoyed baby spinach. Which just goes to show: Those universal “ foods to avoid ” lists? They are nearly always a terrible idea. (Well, I suppose things like poisonous foods should appear on these lists at least!) Now let’s take things one step further, and take a look at why someone may choose iceberg lettuce over kale, the reigning champion of leafy green superfoods (sorry, baby spinach!). To be completely transparent, kale does beat iceberg lettuce in a head-to-head comparison of nutritional value. Kale is especially rich in vitamins A, C, & K, and also several disease-fighting compounds like quercetin, lutein, zeaxanthin, & sulforaphane. However, that doesn’t mean iceberg lettuce is completely devoid of nutrients. It’s considered a great source of vitamin K (though it does have much less than kale), and it is also rich in apigenin, a phytochemical which thought to be protective against cancer . Here’s where context comes in. When you take a look beyond the nutrition label, there are other more important factors worth considering. Iceberg lettuce might be the better choice if you… - Are more likely to eat a salad if you use it as your base - Can only stomach kale with an excessive amount salad dressing or oil - Will gladly eat a large quantity of it, but can only manage a couple of bites of kale - Are looking for a little extra crunch in your meal - Want more volume with few calories and lots of water, helping you feel more satiated - Are trying to increase your veggie intake and iceberg lettuce is one of the only ones you enjoy Kale may be better option if you... - Enjoy it - Like the thick texture it provides in your smoothies - Want to expand your vegetable repertoire and try something more exotic PS: Baby spinach is a great food that has lots of health benefits to it. So please enjoy all the leafy greens and don't discriminate! Or at least the ones you enjoy the taste of. I hope this post helped shed some light on the fact that there is no perfect, universal diet out there.

With B.C wide travel finally opening up today, it got me thinking... People travel from all over the world to experience the beautiful hikes we have access to here in our own backyard. Why don't we take advantage of these scenic & refreshing opportunities for fitness? I think sometimes we take for granted just how lucky we are to live in this area!

Do you struggle with regular muscle cramps? This can be your body's way of telling you that you are missing something. Often muscle cramps can be caused by lack of exercise or movements that your body is unaccustomed to. This can be remedied quite simply by stretching more regularly, exercising more often, or massaging the cramping muscles...

Typically, your immune system does an incredible job at protecting you from disease-causing viruses, but occasionally it can fail. When this happens you can get very sick. Is there a way to affect this process and augment your immune functions? What if you try to improve your diet, or take special vitamins or supplements? What if you make other various lifestyle changes with the hope of optimizing your immune functions? Let's take a brief look at some actions you can take today to improve your resilience and reduce your risk of becoming sick.

People tend to believe that the lifestyle switches needed to improve our wellbeing must be drastic, uncomfortable and take staggering amounts of discipline, patience & time. What if I told you that it doesn’t have to be that difficult? That you can take small steps in the right direction and develop exceptional improvements to your health? Interested to find out more? Read on to discover 5 simple lifestyle changes that you can make right away.