ReVibe Fitness and Wellness

07/14/2026

Welcoming a familiar face back to ReVibe! Dr. Gavin Spennewyn is now available for appointments with expanded scheduling.

Book your visit now!

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07/11/2026

Does acidity in the human body cause disease and does alkaline water help?

That was the question of the week here at Revibe. And the answer is more complicated, because certainly a high seed oil and processed diet causes a change in the body's acidity, but in general we can handle it by stealing minerals from the bones to neutralize that acidity. And yes, that does increase the risk of osteoporosis.

But the main culprit is not just food, it is also pharmaceutical drugs! So, just when you thought drugs had really bad side effects, we discover another one! Yep, turns out that many pharmaceutical pills contain a substance called propylene glycol. Big word, but let's look at it and it's influence on human tissue.

Propylene glycol is found in many oral drugs, and it makes up 40% of intravenous phenytoin (Dilantin) and other injection meds. But its also used in many moisturizers and cosmetics too. And here's the crux, it's also used in cheaper liquid vitamin as a stabilizer!

As an absorption facilitator or excipient, propylene glycol acts as a solvent, humectant and preservative for pharmaceutical drugs. The question is, is it toxic?

Well, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), propylene glycol can cause a whole host of problems. It is rated a 3 by them, which is categorized as a “moderate” health issue. It has been shown to be linked to cancer, developmental/reproductive issues, allergies/immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption, and organ system toxicity. It has been found to provoke skin irritation and sensitization in humans as low as 2% concentration, while the industry review panel recommends cosmetics can contain up to 50% of the substance. It has also been classified as “expected to be toxic or harmful” by Environment Canada. Biologically speaking, propylene glycol is metabolized in the human body primarily into lactic acid.

As lactic acid builds up in cells, a state of acidosis is created in the human body, establishing an environment where disease can thrive.
Now lactic acid is usually changed into glucose in the liver, so working out is perfectly safe; however, lots of drugs overwhelm the liver, so that's where it gets tricky.

The immune system can become suppressed as lactic acid builds up. So yes, we can become more acidic, and this can be compounded if the diet is also high in seed oils, processed carbs and sugar.

While the drug's active ingredient is transported through the body, the inactive ingredient of propylene glycol is metabolized into an acid, causing the cells to swell, bringing fatigue. This alone renders pharmaceutical drugs less effective over time and sometimes even counterproductive, as they suppress the human immune system!

In one study, lactacidosis was found to be a major mechanism of cytotoxic brain edema and brain damage. In this study completed at Duke University Medical Center and the Universite catholique de Louvain (UCL), researchers found that lactic acid is an important energy source for tumor cells. The most dangerous tumor cells in the experiment were destroyed by preventing lactic acid from being transported and thus starving the cells.

So, yes, lactic acid is created by working out too, is that bad?
The answer is no. A small amount of lactic acid will simply lead to muscle fatigue in order to allow your body to not overwork. By exercising we literally train the liver and the cells of the body to handle more lactic acid accumulate and convert it back into glucose in a process called gluconeogenesis. So, if anything, working out is a protector not an enabler.

But, a large amount of lactic acid, sustained over time, is debilitating to the cells. The body cannot convert it all back to glucose so the excess hangs out creating an acidic environment for the body.

So, how can we stop this? Drink alkaline water? Well, exercise reduces the need for drugs, so that should be choice number one. In fact, adequate sleep, sunshine, moderate exercise and a whole foods diet not only keeps you healthy but also prevents the need for many of those drugs. Also, don't buy cheap vitamins, check your labels and steer clear of seed oils (some vitamins use seed oils to stabilize them), don't drink soda, steer clear of fast and processed foods and excess sugar.

Statistically, 70% of food purchased at the grocery store is processed, so this plays a huge role in our health.

Will the alkaline water help? No. First place it goes is into the stomach, which uses acid to digest the food. That renders the alkaline water ineffective.

07/03/2026

Happy 4th of July tomorrow everyone. And with July 4th coming upon us, and as a person not born here, but born in that country that we gained independence from, I take special note of its significance and value.

Today, America is the freest country in the world. We don't rank number one in education, we don't rank number one in medical care, but we do rank number one in freedom, liberty and justice for all. We should remember that!

America is still a country that allows its citizens to own guns if they choose to. It still allows people to disagree openly with the government or any other group, if they choose to. It is a country of freedom of choice, not tyranny or dictatorship, no matter what the media tries to have you believe. It is a place where anyone can be successful if they choose to. Where anyone can start their own business, work in any area they choose, because they have the freedom to choose.

Saturday is the Fourth of July and America's 250th anniversary. We’re supposed to be celebrating Independence Day. But many have forgotten what that means. It's more than simply when the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress in 1776.

Did you realize that the signers of the Declaration knew full well that the British army would be descending on their relatively defenseless colonies because of this decision? They knew their scattered colonies didn’t have the numbers or arms or training to stand against the British, much less defeat them militarily. Yet they put their signatures, and their lives, their families, their destiny, on that parchment anyway. Because they needed to make a stand. A stand for liberty, a stand for freedom. Because the freedom to make your own decisions and not be dictated to is more important than living under the rule of tyrannical leaders. That's right, and we still don't have them.

The real importance of the 4th day of July, then, is that it marks the birth of the United States of America, land of the free, home of the brave. It also delivers the birth of the greatest nation on Earth. A nation that has helped the freedom of many other nations in its short 250 year history.

The early Americans simply wanted to be free, to make their own decisions, to govern themselves and breathe the air of liberty, opportunity and yes, capitalism. The opportunity to worship as they pleased, to start and build their own businesses and earn a living.
To be free.

Most people do not realize that the first celebration of American Independence took place just four days later in Philadelphia, where the Continental Congress was still meeting. The ceremony began with a public reading of the Declaration of Independence. Then, from the tower of the State House, now called Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell rang out as the coat of British arms were removed.
The celebration was about people being free to govern themselves, to live as they wanted to live within the parameters of their own laws.

John Adams thought that Americans should henceforth celebrate a “great anniversary festival.” In a letter to his wife Abigail he wrote, “It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forevermore.”

Don't misread the devotion to God part. This country may have wanted religious freedom, but it did not intend to be free of religion. The phrase “separation of church and state” appears nowhere in the Constitution, and the Founding Fathers saw nothing wrong with having religion in American culture. What is stated is that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.” The founders wanted to protect against government “control of religion" and they never objected to symbols of faith being present in the public square, and especially not in education.

In 1788 after the final draft of the Constitution was completed another celebration was held. But that was after many battles, many deaths and many people lost everything they had to make you free today.

Today we are still fighting against tyranny both domestic and overseas. We are fighting against people who are trying to destroy the American family, to turn this country into a socialist country, to lock out God from the American people. To destroy the church and everything it stands for, not one of freedom founded by those who gave their all to give us what we have today.

On July 4th we celebrate the birth of our nation But we also need to give thanks to the founding fathers for their sacrifice. We celebrate that seemingly impossible dream of the founding fathers, of one nation under God, with unalienable rights, endowed equally to all — among these life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, for all. For all.........

Surely this Saturday is a time for all of us who really cherish that original dream, the one for which so many have died, to individually and collectively re-declare our independence from tyranny, despotism, taxation without representation, and debts that no free society should ever bear. An allegiance to the blood-bought foundation of government of, by, and for the people . . . people who are determined to live free, think freely and pursue happiness as they see it.

So celebrate openly. Celebrate your freedom, celebrate those who gave their all so that we could have it, and if you know a vet, shake their hand. We have what we have because of all they gave.

Have a safe and happy July 4th

06/25/2026

You don't have to be Italian to love garlic......... Raw garlic is a food that should be on your menu daily. It boosts your body's natural abilities to protect you from hypertension and osteoporosis, and research is mounting that it decreases your risk for various forms of cancer. It is a potent antimicrobial as well, working as a natural antibiotic, antifungal, antiviral, and antiparasitic agent. Garlic must be fresh to give you optimal health benefits, though. The fresh clove must be crushed or chopped in order to stimulate the release of an enzyme called alliinase, which in turn catalyzes the formation of allicin.

Research has revealed that as allicin digests in your body, it produces sulfenic acid, a compound that reacts with dangerous free radicals faster than any other known compound. To activate garlic's medicinal properties, compress a fresh clove with a spoon prior to swallowing it, or put it through your juicer to add to your vegetable juice. A single medium size clove or two is usually sufficient, and is well-tolerated by most people. The active ingredient, allicin, is destroyed within one hour of smashing the garlic, so garlic pills are virtually worthless. You also won't reap all the health benefits garlic has to offer if you use jarred, powdered, or dried versions.

Fermented black garlic is another option that will provide the active ingredients in a more usable form

06/23/2026

You may have heard about two foods — chicory root and Jerusalem artichoke — that are widely recognized as providing health benefits for our digestive tract. Haven't heard? Well alrighty then!

These health benefits involve a special area of digestive support called "prebiotics" offered by a compound known as inulin. Both chicory root and Jerusalem artichoke contain rich concentrations of inulin, a unique type of carbohydrate called a polyfructan.

Unlike most other carbs, inulin doesn't get broken down in the first segments of our digestive tract. It passes undigested all the way to our large intestine. Once it arrives at our large intestine, it becomes an ideal food source for certain types of bacteria (like Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli) that are associated with better nutrient absorption, lower risk of allergy,stronger immune systems and lower risk of colon cancer.

Researchers now know that asparagus belongs among the list of foods that contain inulin, so eat that too. While approximately 5% lower in inulin than chicory root and Jerusalem artichoke, asparagus is a food that contains a valuable amount of unique carb and may provide our digestive tract with some equally unique health benefits.

Fiber is also considered a prebiotic by the way.

05/16/2026

Did you know that blood sugar responses can be different from person to person? They can. In 2015, researchers at the Weizmann Institute studied 800 adults by connecting them to continuous glucose monitors. They then watched what their blood sugar did for a full week after they ate. Each participant ate the same standardized meal four times: 50 grams of carbohydrate from white bread. Identical portion. Identical timing of meals. But, what came back in the form of blood sugar curve data was not identical at all.
People react differently to high carb foods.

The average 2-hour glucose response across the cohort was 44 mg/dL·h. The bottom 10% of responders averaged under 15. The top 10% averaged over 79. Same bread. Same dose. same time of day. But some had more than a fivefold spread in how much their blood glucose rose.

Why?

More important, Zeevi and his colleagues weren't measuring fringe cases. The 800 participants were broadly representative of a Western adult population: 54% were overweight, 22% were obese, 24% with HbA1c in the prediabetic range. None had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but the cohort wasn't strictly "healthy" in any rigorous sense. They were, well, normal.

But the different responses reflect what essentially is going on in the average person. Sure they reflect underlying differences in insulin sensitivity, beta cell function, and metabolic state, that would be expected, especially as the lean mass drops. But, not surprising, people with the higher body fat, higher HbA1c (inflammatory markers), and higher waking glucose tended to spike more.

Again, not surprising, the poorer the physical condition, the worse the response.

What was surprising to the researchers was that the variability extended into the people who had normal blood sugar too. That means that two different adults with the same fasting glucose, the same age, the same body composition can still produce post-bread curves that looked like they belonged to different studies.

Here's the not real surprising part. Most of the residual variation traced to microbiome composition, sleep duration the night before, physical activity around the meal, and what the person had eaten at the previous meal. Each was independently predictive after the standard clinical variables were accounted for.

That means there's a part that doesn't reflect on a nutrition label. The glycemic response of the individual! the index, normally assigned to white bread (around 71 in standard tables), comes from averaging responses across a small group of test subjects, but it's an average and clearly individual responses vary. So, the label tells you about the food, not about your reaction to it. A "high GI" food predicts a high response on average. But, it predicts nothing about your personal response.

A few things to note about this finding. It is not "Glycemic Index useless" it's just an average. For population-level diet research and food-labeling shorthand, it still works as a general guideline. Be assured, it is not telling us that carbohydrate foods and labels are necessarily deceptive. What it does tell still us is that carbohydrates are overall bad for inflammation, and they still remain the single strongest predictor of glucose response, in general. It just doesnt tell us the whole story, your personal response.

It also does not predict anything, other than tell us that the occasional spike in blood sugar is normal, but that repeated spikes still lead to inflammation, insulin resistance, leptin resistance and a higher risk of disease.

But, it does tell us that some foods are more damaging to some people than others. Those people usually have less sleep, lower lean mass, higher body fat and gut dysbiosis (leaky gut). But it still tells us that continuous spikes, day after day and year after year lead to glycation, oxidative damage, mitochondrial dysfunction, accelerated aging and increased risk of disease.

What can we do?

For most people, the most important thing you can do is to get a CGM or continuous glucose monitor. You can now buy a continuous glucose monitor without a prescription. Stelo (Dexcom), Lingo (Abbott), and Libre Rio (Abbott) are all available over the counter, run roughly $50 to $90 per sensor for two weeks of data, and need no clinical justification. Wear one for two to four weeks.
Eat the foods you normally eat. The patterns are usually obvious within a few days. The foods that consistently spike you are not necessarily the foods that spike anyone else, and they are not necessarily the ones with the worst labels. They are just foods you should avoid.

Keep in mind that the same person eating the same food on different days will likely produce somewhat different responses depending on their sleep, prior meal, hormone cycle, activity and athleticism. Within-person variability is very real, and Tom Wolever has argued, fairly, that part of what looks like between-person variability in studies like Zeevi's is actually day-to-day noise. But the fivefold spread Zeevi documented is too large to be explained by noise alone. The signal is real. The eater shapes the response as much as the food does.

The good news is that we finally have tools cheap enough to find out what our own metabolism actually does. We can use them on the foods we eat most often. The ones that show up over and over are the ones worth knowing about and eliminating. But don't just eliminate, fix. Fix your health, fix your resting glucose, fix your gut.

References:
Zeevi et al., Cell, 2015 (PMID 26590418)
Wolever, Eur J Clin Nutr, 2016 See less

05/16/2026

What do we know about osteoporosis?

I actually just sent out a newsletter on this, so if you got it you already know what I'm going to say. If not sign up for the newsletter online at the ReVibe website.

My point is that many people have a developing bone demineralizing condition and don’t even know it, until it's too late.
There are the obvious reasons for osteoporosis, such as lack of strength training and a high processed carb, high sugar diet, but there are a few you may not be aware of.

One in four Americans 45 and older take cholesterol-lowering statin drugs for instance. But doctors often fail to warn patients that statins interfere with vitamin K2’s bone-building functions in your body and increase your risk of deficiency. Yep, crazy huh? These statin drugs actually do more harm than good, especially in light of new evidence with different forms of LDL. And yes, the new guidelines are too low in my opinion and only designed to put more people on drugs without evidence of improving their risk.

And then there’s antidepressant drugs. These drugs act by altering your serotonin levels, which likely lead to dementia in later life but also lower bone density according to a recent review of current evidence.

And then there’s osteoporosis drugs. You know, the ones you take to stop osteoporosis! But, contrary to what you’ve been told, most osteoporosis drugs actually weaken your bones, not strengthen them. That’s right, the fracture risks go up on these drugs over a 5-year period, not down.

Why? Because the bisphosphonate impacts your normal bone repair process by killing off your osteoclasts (bone destroying cells), which, yes, does make your bones denser, but because the osteoclasts are killed the bone is actually weaker because it increases the rigidity of the bone, which makes you, in the long run, MORE susceptible to fractures.

And then there’s the not so obvious risks.

The grains you’re eating for instance may be contributing to less-than-optimal bone health? If you have undiagnosed gluten intolerance, you may not be absorbing the nutrients you need for bone health. Because your gut health is affected. Even if you eat well!

Did you know that when study subjects follow a gluten-free diet for one year, their bone density improves?

Crazy right?

But it's not crazy if you understand that processed carbohydrates with all their added calcium are part of the problem!

Another big contender is smoking. Smoking increases your rate of bone loss. In fact, joint replacement recipients are often told not to smoke during the recovery process because it impairs bone repair!
Consuming grain alcohol can also interfere with your body’s ability to absorb minerals, slowing new bone formation, and it makes you more acidic which forces minerals out of the bones to neutralize your acidity.

Finally, animal studies show that phosphorus in soda weakens your bones by promoting the loss of minerals. And diet sodas might even be worse. When I taught classes at the university I would sometimes put a chicken bone in some Coke at the beginning of the semester. By the last day the bone was a jelly like substance; all the minerals had been sucked out of it. I think that woke a lot of students up.

It works the same in the body too. Researchers found that human parathyroid hormone concentrations rose strongly following diet soda consumption, leading to a greater release of minerals from bone.

Then there's the blood sugar. Yep, a chronically elevated blood sugar over 100 will also reduce bone formation cells and accelerate bone destruction cells. Having an elevated blood sugar level is also six times more predictive of heart disease than elevated LDL levels!
So, the only way to know for sure if your bone health is at risk is to have your bone density tested regularly. But whatever your test results, you’re never too young – or too old – to support your bone health.

Some things you should be doing include strength training, especially whole body vibration training. Vitamin D3 intake at appropriate levels, vitamin K2, magnesium glycinate and liquid minerals.

Just keep in mind it’s not a calcium thing. It’s a strength training, clean diet liquid mineral thing……..

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03/17/2026

Let's chat about olive oil.

But before I do that, I want to clarify some terms used to define olive oils since these terms are often a source of confusion for many people:

Extra-virgin: means derived from the first pressing of the olives (has the most delicate flavor).

Fine virgin: created from the second pressing of the olives.
Refined oil: unlike extra-virgin and fine virgin olive oils, which only use mechanical means to press the oil, refined oil is created by using chemicals to extract the oil from the olives.

Pure oil: a bit of a misnomer, it indicates oil that is a blend of refined and virgin olive oils.

Ok, now we have that out of the way, if you’re cooking over high heat, don’t choose olive oil. Olive oil has a lower smoke point—the point at which an oil literally begins to smoke (olive oil’s is between 365° and 420°F). When you heat olive oil to its smoke point, the beneficial compounds in oil start to degrade, and potentially health-harming compounds form.

Use it when you’re making salad dressing or sautéing vegetables over medium heat, olive oil is an excellent choice. Since it has a distinct flavor, use it in dishes where you want to taste it—drizzled over steamed vegetables, soup or bread, for example.

Olive oil has more monounsaturated fat than other oils, making it a great choice for heart-healthy cooking.

But, there's a bad side to it all. Fraudulent oil, that is, oil that is not 100 percent olive oil but a mix of olive oil and seed oils is an ongoing problem in the U.S. University of California at Davis did a study and found out almost 70 percent of the store-bought olive oils were found not to be extra virgin.

In Europe, you’re breaking the law if you’re mixing refined oil with extra virgin and still labeling it 100% extra virgin. Producers can be fined and penalized for that. But in the U.S., no one is pulling oil off the shelf to test olive oils. If that did happen, there would be little to no repercussions.

OK, so how do you find pure oil? Good question and not as easy as you think.

First, try looking for Identifiers of Authenticity — Unfortunately, to give it the smell and taste test, you first have to buy the bottle. But there are a couple of ways to identify imposters without spending any money on companies that mislead you.

First, buy only olive oil labeled “extra virgin.” Other words like "pure", "light", "authentic", or even "cold-pressed" are meaningless and have no official industry definition.

Next, pay attention to the harvest date. Olives are harvested once a year in late fall. If your bottle has a harvest date within the last 12-14 months, it is as fresh as possible and likely real. Bottles without harvest dates are typically a mix of oils.

Look for darker glass bottles, but avoid plastic bottles.

Also, look for labels with specific details about the olives—not just the country, but the region they were grown in, the specific olive varietal used, flavor and tasting notes, and so on. Bottles with more specific information are less likely to have been diluted with fillers.
You can also look for producers that have third-party testing run on their oils and report important data, like polyphenol count and free fatty acid levels, which are important measures of quality.

Finally, look for a seal from a third-party certifier, such as the California Olive Oil Council (COOC) or the International Olive Council (IOC).

Enjoy

02/17/2026

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We've waited for this day for a long time. Power Plate is BACK! Learn more about what makes Power Plate such an upgrade.

02/16/2026

Power Plates are BACK!!!

We've waited for this day for a long time. Power Plate is BACK! Learn more about what makes Power Plate such an upgrade.