Magnesium

Lindsay Mustard Holistic Nutritionist, Personal Trainer, Yoga Instructor 31 May 2019

Magnesium

Magnesium, also known as the chill pill or the magic mineral that helps you drift off to sleep or help take the edge off after a long day. Being a student and entrepreneur, I know first hand the effects of being even the slightest bit magnesium deficient. Talk about sore muscles, high levels of stress and anxiety and mood swings galore!

Thankfully, I learned my lesson about the importance of always having magnesium on hand and make sure to bring extra capsules or powder with me when I’m travelling or in the middle of exams. Magnesium, is a natural mood stabilizer and helps to reduce stress levels. When its not saving the day one bad mood at a time, it is helping to perform over 300 different enzymatic reactions in the body’s cells and aiding in the creation of ATP (adenosine triphosphate). In order for ATP to be active and utilized in the body, it needs to be bound to a Magnesium ion. This magic mineral also helps to regulate neurotransmitters which act as our communication line between our brain and nervous system. Magnesium regulates melatonin, an important hormone that is secreted by the pineal gland and helps to guide our sleep-wake cycles. If that’s not enough, Magnesium binds to GABA receptors (gamma-aminobutyric acid) which is produced in the brain. It acts as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, lowering brain activity and the activity of neurons in the central nervous system (CNS) resulting in reduced stress levels, increased relaxation and deeper sleep!

My rule of thumb, “when in doubt, Magnesium it out!”

Supplementing with Magnesium:
Not everyone can swallow capsules or pills, so I’m here to save the day and help you get your Magnesium in, one delicious sip of a smoothie at a time!

Being a nutritionist, I will always encourage my clients to seek Magnesium sources through food first in addition to supplementing with Pure Lab Vitamins Magnesium Glycinate. So, that in mind, I blended (literally!) two of my favourite things together to create my delicious “Sweet Dreams Smoothie” to help you get your beauty sleep!

SWEET DREAMS SMOOTHIE
INGREDIENTS:
● ½ cup kale
● ½ cup frozen cherries
● ½ cup frozen raspberries
● ½ avocado
● 1 scoop of protein powder
● 2 scoops Pure Lab Vitamins Magnesium Glycinate Powder
● 1 tbsp almond butter
● 1.5 cups almond milk or water

DIRECTIONS:
1. Add all of the ingredients to a high speed blender and blend until smooth.