How to Build a Healthy Immune System

Are you interested in learning how to maintain a healthy immune system? We’ve got you covered. During these pressing times, it’s important to keep your health & wellness levels in check.

Since businesses are starting to reopen, many gyms in Boca Raton and the personal gym trainers that represent them, are tailoring their approaches to best serve their clients. Johnny O’s Gym in Boca Raton is a perfect example of this.

Keep reading below to learn more about fitness and how it correlates with maintaining a healthy immune system.

Getting Nutrients from Food

Researchers who understand the importance of maintaining a healthy immune system are now referring to the gut as “the second brain” because of the way it produces hormones and controls our biological responses.

For instance, certain cells in the lining of your gut create some of the antibodies for your immune system, and antibodies are what respond to the foreign agents that are detected in your body.

Having the proper nutrition will help keep your gut healthy enough for an effective antibody response, which will help your immune system work at an optimal level.

This requires getting the nutrients you need through the right kinds of foods. And it’s like going to the gym in Boca Raton: Working out hard in moderation will not achieve the same results in comparison to those who work out multiple times a week with personal gym trainers.

The following are a list of foods that many personal trainers in Boca Raton would recommend to their clients at local gyms in Boca Raton:

• Zinc and selenium: nuts, seeds, tahini, beans, hummus, tofu, whole grain foods

• Vitamin D: salmon, mushrooms, tofu, fortified dairy or dairy alternatives (look at the labels)

• Vitamin A: carrots, mangos, papaya, sweet potato, cooked tomatoes

• Vitamin C: strawberries, blackberries, kiwi, oranges, bell peppers, parsley, kale

• Prebiotics/probiotics: high-fiber foods which include vegetables, legumes, and whole grains; dairy substitutes with live cultures; and other fermented foods (yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, natto, tempeh)

Catch Up on Sleep

We know based on scientific studies that sleepless nights can significantly hinder your cellular immune responses, which could cause an increase in your susceptibility to disease.

Some researchers are finding that sleep quality and chronic sleep deprivation may impact the effectiveness of the commonly distributed flu vaccine. Much like good nutrition, good sleep habits compound over time.

A good night’s sleep can even help your exercise performance and how well you can work alongside personal gym trainers. “Tonight alone might not matter if I don’t get good sleep, says Cheng, “but if it’s a culmination of sleepless nights, then the negative consequences will build-up down the road.” The medical rule of thumb for sleep: 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night.

There are many ways to enhance your sleep, including stretching beforehand and banning your cell phone from the bedroom right before you’re supposed to go to bed.

If a full night’s sleep is not feasible, as a backup strategy, take a 30-minute nap twice a day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

This will help decrease your stress levels and reduce the negative effects that it can have on the immune system. If you aren’t sleeping well, how can you expect to perform well in a gym like Johnny O’s gym?

Reduce your Stress Levels

Last but certainly not least, the topic of stress. The science is clear: When you are stressed at work or by other circumstances around you in your daily life, your body increases its cortisol response, which decreases the number of white blood cells and lowers your ability to fight off infection.

“What stresses people out right now is that they see all the havoc around them,” according to Cheng. “They see people dying and suffering, and they don’t know what to do about it.”

• The recommendation: Work towards creating daily stress-reduction strategies and use them as if they were prescribed medicines. These include:

• Deep-breathing breaks
• Meditation
• Walks
• Exercise

Be sure to adhere to social distancing rules when you are exercising in places like Johnny O’s Gym. Preserving space around you will minimize any exposure to pathogens and can help slow the spread of the coronavirus within your local community.

Many digital options for strength and cardio workouts are available that allow for social distancing: Try GOLD’S AMP™ a digital personal training app, or Gold’s Gym Anywhere, or the on-demand streaming workouts from Gold’s Gym experts, amongst many other programs that function as a personal trainer in Boca Raton.

The key for your personal immunity, says Cheng, is to create habits and stick with them over time. “What can we do to help our world right now?” she asks. “These suggestions might seem like they’re just for us. But keeping our immune systems strong is one of the best things we can do. And it’s not just for ourselves. It’s for the sake of the whole world.”

Looking Towards a Healthy Future

After reading all of this, you should be well on your way towards your journey of building a healthy immune system. It’s especially important to do so, as we navigate through these pressing times surrounding COVID-19. Safety is a priority for both your physical and mental well-being.

In terms of your diet and wellness, this varies from person to person. There is no one size fits all method when it comes to healthy living, but you should be working diligently to find a program that can best accommodate your lifestyle.

Whether it’s rigorous forms of weight training, cardio, intermittent fasting, or any other program, adhere to a protocol if you know that it’s effective for you. Additionally, take vitamins and supplements if you can do so.

In most cases, no matter how healthily we eat, we are still missing out on key nutrients that the body needs to function properly. Many vitamins that are on the market today can provide these essential nutrients that your body is desperately coveting to function.