ANCIENT SECRETS BY JOEY BULL ARE YOU FIT? ARE YOU TRAINING HARD? ARE YOU A TROJAN, A WARRIOR, A FIGHTER AND PUSHING ON WITH SESSIONS EVEN THROUGH BOUTS OF FATIGUE? Are you taking your supplements, your vitamins and refuelling yourself? Are you a workout addict and proud of it? Congratulations – you must be on fine form! Or are you? Would you know if your body was on overload? Where is the warning light on your dashboard and would you recognise it if it went on? More often than not people are toxic and don't even know it. Working in the fitness industry I come across some hard-working exercisers, dedicated trainers and for all their efforts, they are not the sparkling examples of health that we'd expect. Despite frustrations with slow progress in gains, they just train harder without questioning why their body is less responsive. The fact is that toxicity impedes the body from responding at its optimum level. It is the same as never changing the oil in your car and expecting a smooth running engine, or using pure alcohol instead of petrol to gain more power. The latter will work in the short term but will eventually melt the engine, and the former will result in gradual seizure. So, to keep our energy levels nice and high, the adrenal system comes to the rescue and allows us to continue with our athletic expectations. Not for long though. Once the adrenals kick in a series of warning signals occur. The digestive tract's ability to absorb nutrients is the first to flounder and leaves the body ill-equipped to fight off infections. Mood swings, poor motivation, constipation and cravings for food types like bread, pasta and other simple carbohydrates are other signals. The temptation at this point is to reach for supplements or topical treatments to knock these irritations on the head. But symptoms are a sign of something more serious going on which the body needs to fix. Don't go putting masking tape over your warning lights! The body's regeneration rate is fast. For example, your stomach lining is renewed every 5 days and your skin every 6 weeks; even the skeleton is constantly being renewed. Bearing this in mind, it may be time to re-write our mental approach to our health and habits. If our cells are giving us this much opportunity to rejuvenate and improve our glow, let's help them to give us perfect health. If you'd like your body to respond to all your concerted efforts, be kind to it and start with clearing and nourishing your digestive tract. I met a lady not so long ago who sparkled with energy. She was healthy and glowing and her secret was something that mankind has benefited from for over 4000 years - aloe vera. Now here is something that rebuilds you from the inside out. Further impressive testimonials lead me to start my own research into this therapeutic plant. Aloe vera contains as many as 75 of the 90 nutrients the body needs every day for optimum condition. I have longed for the day when I could dump the expense of costly vitamins, especially amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and out of the twenty-two that exist, our diets require eight to avoid deficiency. Aloe vera contains 18 (including seven of those vital eight) and is also rich in minerals and a wide range of vitamins, and some authorities suggest it is one of the few plants to contain B12. On top of all this, it has anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory and pain-killing properties. Extracted correctly, this is an extremely human- and animal-friendly product. Go to your local health-food shop and you will enter a minefield of advertising, yet unless you understand nutrition how do you know what to buy? The body can't break down some supplements so they are a wasted expense for starters. Investigating aloe vera further, I found that the quality of the source is important as there are over 300 plant species but only a handful have medicinal properties. Although their prices may be attractive, many aloe products are also very diluted – not beneficial to wallet or body. After digging deeper I found some organic, unadulterated high potency products (not bulked up by other ingredients), under the name of Future Living Products. The brand is extensive and boasts the finest bee products too (not to mention a non-toxic and effective deodorant, so you can train smell-free!) but, annoyingly, is not available in the shops. A daily swig of the aloe juice on an empty stomach has been known to clear up toxicity-related complaints such as eczema, colitis, asthma, cramps, IBS and headaches (just to name a few). It also appears to help the wear-and-tear types of arthritis known as osteoarthritis. Almost all people notice an increase in their energy levels by taking the gel too. Promoting healthy cell growth and reducing viral load is part of aloe's natural healing quality and this will allow you to train and build your body efficiently and safely. Remember: 98% of the total number of atoms in your body are replaced yearly. Think of this as you train, and look after your insides as they will help you improve your outside! M&F Joey Bull is a 4-time UK Fitness Champion, adventure athlete, personal trainer and TV presenter. Visit her website on: www.joeybull.com. For the recommended aloe vera products please contact joey@joeybull.com