The holidays are a time for family, friends, food, and... hospital visits? Emergency room check-ins have a noticeable upswing during the winter season. Check out a few reasons how the most wonderful time of the year can take a tragic turn. 

Pain can have many causes and because of this, it can be very difficult to treat. A common cause of pain is inflammation. Inflammation describes a bodily condition when white blood cells, along with the chemicals they release, attempt to protect the body from foreign substances. Some of these chemicals cause a leak of fluid into the tissue, which can then stimulate nerves and cause pain.

Inflammation also restricts blood flow, preventing inflammatory bodies from being drained, and therefore exacerbates inflammation. The increased number of cells can also cause swelling of the joint lining and accelerated wearing down of the cartilage – eventually leading to more pain! So, while acute inflammation around an injury or site of infection is protective and beneficial, long-term inflammation is something to be avoided.

The following are guidelines and pointers, and are not guaranteed or suggested for everyone. Please consult with your doctor before starting any treatments and develop a plan that will help you. To drain inflammation, we need to manipulate our body’s vascular and lymphatic systems. This can be done in a number of ways:

Athletic training programs force physiological adaptations, which means it is not uncommon to see abnormal results in athletes. Athletes push themselves to become bigger, faster, and stronger – a process which breaks the body down and can cause biochemical chaos. I recently had a blood test done at our lab with some unexpected results...

Testosterone is possibly the ultimate feel-good hormone. Higher testosterone levels provide you more physical and mental energy, help burn fat and build muscle, improve your sleep quality, enhance sex drive and fertility, and promote a general sense of well-being. Testosterone isn’t just for men either. Women can experience all the benefits of testosterone with a small, natural increase too.

As an athlete myself, the performance-enhancing qualities of testosterone have led me to research how I can achieve a natural increase in the hormone however I can. The results of this are detailed here in my ultimate natural testosterone guide, so let’s get started!