Michelle's Picks

If you're someone like me, where ingesting turmeric root is too harsh on the stomach or its just not convenient to create a digestible process through mixing it in smoothies and/or milky concoctions- then taking a high quality turmeric root extract supplement is the most efficient way for you. Listed below are 2 supplements containing the highest amounts of the anti-inflammatory agent curcumin per capsule I've seen and trust.

Here are links to help you find them for purchase:

• Organic India Turmeric Formula
• Sport Research Turmeric Circumin

Both brands have high quality processing and I've personally relied on them for quite some time. Organic India Turmeric Formula is one of my favorites because of its purity and quality. It really helped my recovery from an unexpected knee reconstruction. My other favorite Turmeric supplement is Sport Research's: Turmeric Curcumin. One of these capsules is 5mg short of what I take in 6 capsules of India Organic, plus it has BioPerine along with its capsule made from coconut oil to increase absorption. Both of these are my favorite products, and I take at least 1-2 pills twice a day. 

Turmeric has been proven through clinical research to help increase the body's ability to deal with inflammation, helps lower the risk of brain diseases and conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. I encourage everyone to read about turmeric and the many studies published in respected medical journals. In fact, India has less than 1% out of every 100,000 people die of Alzheimer's or dementia related diseases. Studies have concluded that a big reason for this is their daily consumption of high quality turmeric. 

Personally, I take turmeric for it's anti-inflammatory benefits, but the added bonus of anti-aging and brain protection benefits are something I will never complain about.

Please check with your doctor, physician's assistant and/or nurse before trying these or any new supplement.

Taking Collagen is part of my daily routine. It's that important to me. I prefer to take Collagen Hydrolysate because it dissolves easily in any liquid. I've put 2 tablespoons inside my coffee, juice and nutritional shakes for years. The list is endless to what you can add collagen hydrolysate. It's virtually tasteless and since its hydrolysate it won't turn into firm jello texture. I've done quite a bit of research on which type and brand of collagen I prefer to use. 

My favorite brand is Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate. It's a Type II hydrolyzed collagen. Type II collagen is attributed to help rebuild joints, cartilage and regulate the body's metabolism. Many take collagen hydrolysate for other medical reasons such as osteoporosis and arthritis. 

These are not all the benefits, but they are the main reasons why I take it. The hydrolyzed aspect makes this high protein supplement easier to absorb. If you have elderly family who has difficulty chewing meat, this may be a way to get more protein into their systems too - 

however please be sure to check with their doctors before adding this to their diet. 

Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate does get its bovine gelatin from Argentina and Brazil so please make sure you are comfortable with the quality of ingredients in this product before purchasing it. 

Below is a link to help you find it for purchase:

  Great Lakes Collagen Hydrolysate

Please check with your doctor, physician's assistant and/or nurse before trying this or any new supplement.

Rolling out immobilized fascia or scar tissue is a part of keeping mobility and reducing pain in the body. We build scar tissue for several reasons such as injury, tears, cuts, repetitive motion and at times for stabilization of weak areas of our structure. Using a foam roller is just one way to maintain mobility and reduce pain caused by immobility. 

Let's keep it real, it's not going to feel good the first few times you roll out parts of your body using a foam roller and/or massage stick. Also, a good thing to remember is that daily foam rolling is not good for the tissue once you've freed up areas for better circulation and use. 

In addition, you should also find ways to strengthen and re-educate the body with flow style movements such as Pilates with the Reformer machine, Feldenkrais Techniques, and many forms of yoga when taught by instructors who understand how to address your personal needs. They must also be able to focus on finding modifications for working through your past injured areas. Of course these are not the only forms of flow movement techniques, but most of these are a staple for myself  and the people I work with. 

It is also important to note that no matter how good your regiment and form is, you can still injure yourself and/or have hereditary weaknesses which can cause injury or compensations leading to scar tissue  overgrowth on the body's fascia. 

Scar tissue can also develop over time due to extreme activity, or activity on a body unprepared to work in a certain way. Aside from the obvious injuries, scar tissue often develops from repetitive motion, like sitting for longs periods of time, or standing for long periods of time. The human body, and most mammals, thrive on movement. If full body movement is limited for long periods of time, scar tissue develops in areas meant for range of motion, along with other areas already compromised. 

Using a foam roller and/or massage stick 1-2 times a weeks can help free up tissue areas with constricted  function and circulation also leading to pain in areas supported by those dysfunctional areas. 

The tissue rolling products in the photo above, are my favorite products currently. I like them because they are not only functional, durable, and moderately priced, but they are also the most travel friendly products I've used yet. 

Below is a list of those products with links attached to them so you can find them for purchase:

• GRID Trigger Point Foam Roller
• Tiger Tail massage stick
• The Morph by Brazyn

Attention - Please check with your doctor, physician's assistant, physical therapist, and/or nurse before trying this product or any other device meant to help your soft tissue.