Today, I’m happy to introduce for the first time, the Save Our Bones Daily Double Challenge. I'm super excited about this as it'll allow me to be more personally involved with the little details that can make a big difference in your bone-building success.
My goal is to keep you motivated and to help you stay on track, to insure that you’ll apply bone-healthy actions now, not later.
What’s more, it'll also tap into the power of our community and by leaving your comments and ideas below, it'll greatly help everyone to stay motivated and actively involved.
Here's How It Works
On Daily Double Challenge days, I'll send you two challenges that are easy to apply. You'll do them, then come back here and leave a comment on your challenge completion. This will greatly motivate the rest of the Save Our Bones community. Simple!
My hope is that as you practice the bone-healthy habits for one day, chances are they’ll become second-nature to you.
So let’s get started now with…
Challenge # 1
What: Chew your food really well
Why: It may sound silly or perhaps way too easy, but trust me, it’s not. We have a tendency to chew food in a rush, sometimes gulping it down – without even realizing. However, it is very important to chew food really well. Because the more you chew, the more alkalizing your food will become.
Digestion actually begins in the mouth, where saliva does a lot more than just moisten food so we can easily swallow it. Saliva contains amylase, also known as ptyalin, which helps digest carbohydrates, and in particular, starches.
And there’s more; bicarbonate ions are also present in saliva, helping you with your alkalizing goals. Plus bicarbonate seems to activate another enzyme: cellulase, which is involved in breaking down cellulose, commonly known as fiber, found in many veggies, fruits, grains, legumes and seeds. So chewing your food well also helps digest it better.
How: For this challenge, be more aware of the length of time you chew your food for, and when you would normally swallow the food, chew a few times more.
Challenge # 2
What: Take deep breaths throughout the day
Why: As I write in a blog post titled ‘Breathe This Way and Help Your Bones', deep breathing has many benefits that relate to your bone health and to your general health.
In essence, and as it relates to your bones, deep breathing is a great way to lower stress, which as I explain in the Osteoporosis Reversal Program, can harm your bones. It can also help your body get rid of acidifying toxins.
If you happen to be a shallow breather, you’re not taking in as much oxygen as you might need.You are also not exhaling sufficient carbon dioxide out of your body.
How: The challenge is to pay special attention to the way you breathe. Every hour or so take some deep breaths, and concentrate on feeling each one reach your abdominal area. Then take your time to fully exhale.
So here’s your Daily Double Challenge for today, and I’m looking forward to getting your feedback, motivational ideas, and more below. And look out for more Double Daily Challenges to come.
Till next time,
Dear Vivian, I definitely need to heed your advise about chewing my food and breathing deeper. I’m always in a rush to get dinner on the table and find myself rushing to eat it, can’t seem to slow down. I’m also a shallow breather but I’m trying to remember to take deep breaths once in a while , think I wil set an alarm every hour to remind me. Our son said if we chewed our food slowly we would get full faster, is that true? Thank you so much for all your advise, looking forward to your daily tips. Valerie
Easy, I can do this!!! Thanks, Vivian for your many tips!
Easy suggestions; chew more, breathe more deeply; great! I have to tell you about Aunt Hattie, who used to tell us to “chew your milk”! I already disliked the taste of milk, so “chewing” it was NOT what I wanted to do. But I tried. The result was, I liked milk even less, and didn’t drink it at all after that. Wish they’d had almond milk around when I was a kid; I still avoid milk, which I guess is not such a bad thing.
I love doing the deep breathing while walking in the mornings – very refreshing for me and makes me feel awake and renewed. Also, I have always been known as a slow eater – I guess I overchew my food.
Thanks for the consistent encouragement…I am a newbie to your program and very excited to find it! Thanks for being here!!
Thanks for your frequent emails with tips and hints for bone-building, Vivian. I look forward to them, and they make me think about my bones on a daily basis. I feel connected to you as my “bone coach” and I don’t feel like I am doing this alone. I am sitting at the computer now and doing the deep breathing. It feels cleansing. Today I will chew my food slowly! Thanks!
I did not know much about the chewing and deep breathing. I will definitely do it starting today. Thanks for the challenges!
I try to take deep breaths often, especially when I take a walk outside. I never knew the significance of them until I started your program. I also try to chew food for longer periods of time, as it helps with intestinal troubles too. Thanks for the reminders though. We often forget how simple it can be to help oursselves.
I need the daily reminder. It will help so much. A very good idea. People are busy and stressed and we forget. Keep reminding us. 🙂
Yes, I agree whole heartedly, please keep reminding us.
Thank you so much for reminder of chewing and deep breathing. I’ll try it today.
I have always chewed my food well. I learned that in third grade. Others finish their meal when I am only half done.
I go to exercise class twice weekly. Deep breathing is emphasized. I still need to work on this.
This is a great idea to be reminded now and then of the many things we should do or do correctly in order to preserve our bones.
I also wanted to express my thanks for the many excellent recipes in the Save Our Bones book, which I am trying one after the other.
I have to say thank-you so much for those reminders. I will definetely work hard at trying to make this a part of my day. I read all your emails, and look forward to new information.
Thanks for the reminder. I take more time to chew my food than I used to and I will pay more attention to deep breathing.
Thanks for the reminders! They can be easy to forget.
Once I learned about the deep breathing, I started doing it. It happens to me now and then throughout my day without planning it. It seems to come naturally now after practincing for some months.
I am stuck on the challence of chewing food thoroughly though. When one has 20 minutes for a lunch period and has to spend that time making sure their students select thier food items without problems and redirect students during lunch, there isn’t but a few minutes to eat. I want to chew thoroughly but if I do, I don’t get enough to eat. I don’t function well if I don’t get enough food to energize my mind and body. Any suggestions from anybody as to how I can get enough to eat and chew thoroughly during a short luch break would be helpful. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Great question, Carol! When you have a limited time to eat, it can indeed be challenging to chew properly. Just try to chew a few more times. As I said in the article, when you’re ready to swallow, go for just two or three more chews.
Becoming more conscious of the chewing process will help, even if you don’t have a lot of time. If you normally eat with a group of people and chat while you’re eating, you might try eating alone for a while and simply focusing on your food. That alone will make it easier to slow down just a bit.
Of course you need enough food, but I think you’ll find that slowing down just a bit and chewing just a bit more will enable you to digest your food better and wring every ounce of nutrition from what you eat. 🙂
Hi Vivian, thank you so much for all the tips and advice you give us. I am always confused about the deep breathing………when you inhale should your abdomen go in or out ?
Good question, Buntie. When you inhale, your abdomen should expand. Think of it like this: When you inhale, you’re bringing the air IN to your body and filling it up, like blowing up a balloon. When you exhale, the air leaves your body, deflating the balloon. But don’t force the breath or “push” your abdomen out; your diaphragm area (just above your abdomen) should naturally expand as you inhale — if you tend to be a chest breather, think more in terms of visualizing the air moving lower until it become a natural process.
Your comments about breathing deeply are perfect. I have been doing Pilates for over a year now to help with my asthma and with osteoporosis. I have exercised to have better posture, hence, better breathing. Most asthmatics have poor posture and are shallow breathers. I do a short set of deep breathing exercises every morning and the last time I saw my pulmonologist I had a normal reading on the spiromometer,which measures lung capacity and oxygen, which is unusual for me. So, I cannot say enough good things about Pilates. I have high hopes that it will strengthen my bones too. I am sure that it will on my next dexa scan in a year.
Vivian, thank you so much for the helpful tips. I need reminding to breath deep as I am a shallow breather and to slow down when chewing my food. Perhaps I’ll be more noticable of these now that I know I’ll be helping my bones.
Wow! This is a true eye-opener. It’s no wonder why I have osteoporosis. I will start making a conscious effort to CHEW my food for longer periods of time and to take as many DEEP BREATHS throughout the day as I can remember! Thanks, Vivian.
Thanks you so much.
Why do I tend to forget two very simple things to do in my daily life. For me it is stress and anxiety.
Thanks for remembering me.You woke me up.
I read all of your emails and thanks for the reminder about chewing your food longer. We all tend to get in a hurry in this fast paced world, thanks again…keep up the good work and i am anxious for your cookbook to be released.
An not too hard challenge. Thanks for the reminder
Sending these reminders is a great way for reinforcement. As soon as I read these I remembered them, but have forgotten to do them. Thanks for the reminders!
Thanks Vivian –
I will work on both. Breathing…………….
Thanks for the reminder about chewing food. All suggestions will be taken. I don’t get a dexa scan because I will not take a drug for bone loss. What’s the point?
I don’t plan to take any of the drugs but had a DEXA scan. I can’t take them because I already have so many of the side effects of the drugs as symptoms of other problems. In hindsight I had it to prove I didn’t NEED the drugs. But, I learned I have osteopenia of my femoral heads. Knowledge is power. I now know now I need work. I am a woman with a passion. As a registered nurse working in a preoperative surgery area I am around lots of women my age as they are getting ready for surgery or are the family member. I can share the message with them to get their DEXA scan, have their serum Vitamin D level checked, do light weight lifting and make dietary changes.
Ouch, you got me there! I’m a food-gulper and hard-driven in lifestyle. Trying to change all that. Confused, however, about the meat issue. My nutritionist tells me protein at every meal is essential in causing all the minerals to work in the body properly.
While I don’t feel it’s necessary to have animal protein at every meal, Eileen, you certainly can if you choose. Just make sure to balance the usually acidifying protein foods with plenty of alkalizing fruits and veggies. Nothing’s off limits in the Osteoporosis Reversal Program — it’s all about balance. 🙂
Thank you Vivian for the reminder – I am practicing both. I feel better when remembering to deep breathe. I am making a conscious effort to eat slowly.
Vivian…How did you know?,,, These are two of my problems…I am a very stressed person these days because of the growing problems of being in business and “Sales not so good” for an importer like me that resales to other people not doing so well in sales either…. But I tend to “Gulp down my food” because I’m thinking about the problems while eating and I was diagnosed with “Hyperventilation’ when I was much younger…(I’m 72 now).. Thanks for these reminders. I will try hard to think about both of these problems during the day, hopefully I can because I know they will be good for me. I wrote to you recently about a film my husband and I looked at: “”Food Matters”…Since seeing it we have become Vegetarians and can visibly see improvements in the way we feel. Because of getting your book and starting with your ideas, this film just added to our reasons for cutting out meat.
I look forward to your e-mails. Edna
Thanks, Vivian!
I really appreciate your natural ways to improve bone health. These two are especially simple and ones so easily forgotten. Great daily reminder!
Susan
Canada
My husband has agreed to join me in the Day #1 challenge of chewing slowly. We had a time of ‘laying down our forks’ and chewing our food well where we both lost weight. This is a welcome challenge as we both need to lose. Breathing shallow is a habit I want to break – looking forward to reporting back with good results!
Thanks for helping us keep our bones strong. I look forward to incorporating these changes into my day.
Thanks for the easy tips which all of us can remember without having to go look something up in a book. I really need both of them as my husband always tends to rush through everything and, when you are around others who are rushing, one tends to rush right along with them–even at meal time. Now I have a good reason to take life at my own pace and perhaps I can convince others to do likewise. Patricia from NC
It is not difficult – more chewing food and deep breath.
I remembered I followed a man to learn “Qi gong” It means breath. He was 95 years old,
But looked around 70, no sick, he could stand one hour to explain his “Qi gong” to the
Students and didn’t feel tired, but I could’nt learn.
Thank you Vivian, such simple daily tasks with rewarding results
Mary
This is a great idea…..one or two specific tasks a day on which to focus. Good reminders. I have a routine of doing deep breathing/slow exhaling (more exhale than inhale) for a few minutes before I go to sleep at night. Good for the breathing and I often fall asleep before I’m done (relaxing!).
Thanks for the good advice. It is a wakeup call for me to chew my food so much more. I will be more conscious about it now. I am going to have a sign up at the table.
Also taking deep breaths is good.
Thanks so much for thinking about us so we can improve our bone health
I’m excited! Love this idea and look forward to all daily-double-challenge-days!
Chew your food and take deeps breath are often forgotten in busy life styles. They also enhance relaxation and thus decrease stress.
Great idea..
chewing and breathing for today
Hi Vivian
Many thanks for your emails, from Australia. My Father, my Brother and myself have to be the slowest eaters of all time, we just chew for ages and we are all also very thin!!!
As for breathing, I have Asthma so breathing is not something I do well. So my goal is to make more of an effort in that area.
Best Wishes
Jane
Yes I need the challenge as I don’t always think to breathe deeply. Sometimes I feel I almost forget to breathe especially if stressed. Thank you for all the help you give us
Funny you should say ‘forget to breathe’. A long time ago, I must have had a time of being stressed, though I didn’t realize it. I would find myself forgetting to breathe during the night. I was afraid to go to sleep. It scared me to death. My Dr gave me a prescription for Valium and I only took 1/2 a pill. I did get over it but I know now that it was a stress problem. Just neat hearing someone say they sometimes forget to breathe. I am sitting here eatiing my breakfast and reading the posts and chewing my food better. I am a shallow breather too and will work on that today too. Thanks.
Dear Vivien,thanks so much for this program which is such an inspiration to me.. I have so much to share with you but for now will restrict myself to the challenge. I live in Sydney and there is lots of sun and fresh air but I don’t remember to breath deeply as recently have been so stressed. I also tend to rush my food so these two practices are going to take high priority, chewing and breathing deeply. Thanks again.
Thank you Vivian. You make these challenges very understandable and spur people on to help themselves, far better than just swallowing pills
Many thanks
Joan UK
Thank Vivien – I can’t wait to start putting these suggestions into practice. Good idea to have just two points per day – I think we are more likely to remember them.
Hello Vivian, from Glasgow, Scotland and once again thank you for your caring and your emails. It keeps me on track and away from drugs, and your chewing food/breathing deeper I will now apply daily which will then become a daily thought.
Thank you, youare blessed.
There’s another bonus I’ve discovered by following your advice to chew more – no more hiccups! Thanks for these very easy to do challenges Vivian. Simple but effective!
I like those challenges as well. It is good to be reminded to breath deeply. When I walk almost every day I make sure that I go up and down sloped areas so my breathing is deeper.
Thanks for your help.
Sylvia
Dear Vivian, not only are these absolutely Super ideas; I want to Thank You personally for having the caring to share your thoughts in the way that you do.
Richard from the UK
Your first challenge I totally agree with as I had started to do this about 2 weeks ago and have noticed an enormous difference in myself as well but the difference will be when I go for my scan next Tuesday to see how things are improving.
I tried one of you drinks(rockmellon as they are classed here) last week when it was very hot here and found not only being good for me that it was so thirst quenching I was stunned. Thank you so much it was wonderful and have passed it on to many people not only that have bone problems but just as a beautiful drink.
May I comment on your emails as they are so great to receive as you never know what interesting things you are going to read, my doctor is one that believes that if it doing some good then stick to it. I am sure that he will be supprised when he reads my scans as there has to be an improvement with the natural food that I am eating as I have started the purple food as well considering I have bone cancer as well, at the moment I feel great and doing lots more than I have been doing.
A big thank you for your inspirations in dealing in this feild.
Well, that’s not too difficult! I was a shallow breather.
Thankyou