Cleansing Healthy One Bowl

Posted on by

20160104_130914_002

I’m a big fan of getting all the nutrients from a meal in one dish; I like one dish casseroles, soup and stew and absolutely a “Buddha” bowl of health!

Since the holidays have come and gone there’s no better time to either start a healthy body, healthy diet regimen. All it takes is making the right choices, portion control and a little bit of exercise every day. Today I’m going to share a simple strategy for making a Healthy One Bowl for lunch or dinner. Don’t be fooled, this might not seem filling and satisfying but I promise you it is!

Pick a base layer:

Brown rice, quinoa, rice noodles, barley, bulgur

Pick a protein:

Beans (rinsed well and drained or fried that has been soaked overnight and simmered until soft), tofu, lean chicken or fish, or omit this option depending on what you feel like or have on hand that day

Pick your veggies: (and fruit if you wish)

Steamed, sautéed or raw – sweet potato (baked), squash, kale, spinach, pea sprouts, beets, carrots, celery, asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, bean sprouts, other sprouts, any greens you enjoy… Fruit choices, sliced or chopped apple, pear, pineapple, mango, kiwi, orange/Clementine

Choose your toppings:

Hard/soft boiled eggs-chopped, chickpeas, avocado, berries, nuts, seeds

Add a sauce, olive oil salt and pepper work well, *tahini paste blended well with olive oil, lemon juice and nutritional yeast makes a great drizzle for any “One Bowl”.

*thin it with water if needed until it’s thin and syrupy enough to drizzle.

Leftovers from dinner, or make extra for a few lunches following, make great addition to a Healthy One Bowl. The only rules to a healthy one bowl are choose low-fat/fat-free, whole, natural foods. Make meal time easy for yourself and remember that mealtime is merely a time to fuel your body.

Taking Time to Breathe

Posted on by

Having been exposed to poor breathing issues both personally and secondary to family members since childhood, I’ve come to appreciate the art of breathing more than ever. As a young child I was hospitalized for 21 days with pneumonia and my lungs haven’t been the same since. My younger brother has suffered from severe asthma since infancy and as an adult I was diagnosed with exercise induced asthma. Illness can affect the nature of your lungs greatly.

Smoking. Those who smoke never want to hear the words, “you should quit” and most often they already know they should but as I’ve been told many times over, quitting isn’t easy. I’ve never smoked so I cannot and will not judge; I will only urge and offer my best support.

Most recently I’ve experienced close up the effects that a long term smoker is suffering; this makes me want to be able to wave a wand over those I know and love who smoke causing them to quit cold-turkey without cravings or urges to ever smoke again. In order to help you imagine what I saw/see and experienced this person dealing with, name & character withheld for privacy reasons, I’ll mention that this person has been in and out of the hospital often for the past year and a half, they suffer from severe COPD and without going into details, they are suffering greatly. COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is a combination of chronic bronchial infections and emphysema. COPD affects your breathing through the breakdown of lung tissue and as it advances it causes breakdown of the capillaries in the lungs. Oxygen going to the heart decreases causing the body to make more red blood cells that the heart has to pump at a higher rate which often leads to heart conditions and failure.

If your resolution for the year or the month or even for the day is to quit smoking, take it seriously. Do anything you can that will help you quit and learn and practice ways to increase and deepen your every breath. Even if you don’t smoke begin a practice as well. Meditation and yoga practices are great ways to learn to breathe.

When you learn to breathe fully and practice doing it on a daily basis you can experience, less fatigue, less fogginess, you’ll feel less tired and less depressed. Proper breathing helps you center yourself, detoxify your body and become one with your thoughts. Breathing affects every aspect of your life because life is breath; it sounds crazy maybe but we need to remember to just breathe.

Detoxifying Baked-Stuffed Winter Squash

Posted on by

cropped-htc-10-10-12-082.jpgEating lean and clean after big celebrations such as winter holidays and summertime barbeques can be beneficial to keeping yourself in good health. Here is a wintertime squash recipe that can help your body get rid of toxins and sluggish cells.

Choose Acorn, pumpkin, butternut or buttercup squash

1 cup Brussels sprouts cleaned and cut into quarters (use frozen if fresh aren’t available)

1 cup mushrooms (optional) sliced

1 small red onion

1 large clove garlic –chopped

Olive oil

Seeds – sesame, sunflower, poppy, ground flax, pumpkin

1 small apple – diced small

Salt & pepper to taste

Cut squash in half, oil cut side, sprinkle with salt and lay cut side down on baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 45 -60 minutes until knife goes in easily. Remove from oven.

While squash is baking, sauté Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, onion & garlic for about 20 minutes.

Place each squash half on dinner plate and spoon sautéed mixture into each half – sprinkle with seeds and apple. Season with salt & pepper and serve.

*Optional: sprinkle with nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor.

Resolutions

Posted on by

I’ve never been one to make New Year Resolutions; I’m not sure why other than I like to make daily or weekly resolutions and I teach my clients to do the same. Making a daily/weekly resolution seems more reachable. Each year, each month, even each day is a great place to start over. Decide what biggest change you want to make and renew your resolve every morning..every hour if that helps.

Let’s look at what a resolution is. As a verb, resolve means to 1-find a solution to a matter 2-decide firmly on a course of action. As a noun, resolve means 1-firm determination to do something. They work together when you make a list of resolutions; a sort of “bucket list” for the year.

Have you made any resolutions? How reachable are they? What steps will help you resolve your “bucket list for the year”?

Even though it is past January 1st, don’t throw it away, use the next 2 weeks to decide on your new year resolution(s), don’t make them too overwhelming, and don’t over-do it with the number of things you want to resolve this year. Take a step at a time, and if you feel as though you fell back, forgot, cheated, slipped…or whatever word you use, don’t sweat it, there is no failure, just brush your thoughts off and continue on. Write your resolution somewhere you can read it every day. Set reminders on your phone, your calendar or anywhere throughout your home.

Chin up with a smile and forward bound!

Happy, Healthy, New Year to you!

Diet & Disease

Posted on by

Diet is whatever you eat, it’s not something that you go on and go off of, it’s not cheating, it’s not depriving, diet is food. The foods you choose to eat can help keep you healthy or make you sick. Not all food causes disease and not all food stops disease. Food choices play a large role in your overall health. Food fuels our cells, it either helps to generate healthy cells to feed the body or degenerate cells to harm the body. The general health of your body depends on the way you choose to eat.

Disease is illness within your body that causes your body to lack ease. Dis-ease can range from a mild cough or cold to a full-blown illness in which your body needs treatment in order to fight off whatever is attacking it. The foods we eat and the environment we live in can greatly increase the negative effects of disease or greatly improve our body’s ability to fight disease.

It’s not that cut and dry but the basics are that if we eat well and live a clean life, we can expect better overall health than if we simply ate and breathed without care and quality.

The foods we choose to eat, when choices are healthy, whole foods, will help regenerate healthy, strong cells which in turn will help us fight off simple cold and flu symptoms and help us stay stronger during major illness. Foods that contain chemical additives and preservatives clog up our cells, gunk up our blood and intestinal tract and weaken our immune system among many other things. When our body is fed a chemical wild-storm, it cannot fight intrusion as easily as it was made to do. We become sluggish, stressed, moody, our sleep is interrupted, our digestion is off, and we have cravings that we can’t seem to satisfy. All this and more is your body begging for nutrition. We are an overfed, under-nourished nation; all because of our food choices.

Eating to nourish isn’t as difficult as it sounds. Eating whole natural foods without the addition of processed, boxed, frozen and canned convenience foods is fast and easy and a whole lot more beneficial. Start slowly by ditching one item a week or a month – replace that item with one (or more) healthy food choices. Baby-step your way to limiting take-out, candy/junk food binges, and unhealthy lunches and over-sized portions.

When you learn how to eat healthy and to fuel your cells properly, you don’t ever have to diet. You don’t have to deprive yourself of self-indulgences, you won’t feel guilty or cheating. Balance is key.

Learn what true whole foods are, learn what works best for your body instead of the latest diet trend and learn why you have cravings and how to combat them.

Here’s to your happy, healthy year ahead! Contact me if you would like help getting yourself on track and into a new healthy relationship with food and good eating and living habits. Dawn@initiatewellness.com

Carb Wars

Posted on by

Carbohydrates are the enemy–quality and quantity is the enemy. Fast food, donut shops, cupcake bakeries, Frozen, boxed convenience foods found in the freezer aisle of your local grocery store, and boxed/canned dry convenience foods found in the middle aisles of your grocery store and chemicals disguised to look like food that’s the real enemy. We have become a society where more is better and where quality suffers because quantity matters.

I feel my best when I follow a more Mediterranean based diet than I do following the latest health food trend diets where carbs are nixed, where fats are nixed and where sugar is craved but not welcome in the diet. Carbs, fats and sugar has become the evil past love while animal proteins and complicated drinks have become their “bully”. I don’t disagree with a lower fat, low sugar diet, I simply believe that when you eat to fuel and workout regularly, there’s no need to eliminate such things from your diet altogether. When you eat a balanced diet and get regular exercise, many of today’s illness and disease such as Type II diabetes and heart disease, often are not present. A tremendous number of studies have proven that artificial sweeteners are far more hazardous to your health than plain, simple sugar. I’m not suggesting that you start eating all kinds of sugary snacks like you might have done when you were a child, I’m simply suggesting that it’s okay to eat desserts once in a while; homemade desserts is the better option because the ingredients are controlled. Our diet needs to consist of a good balance of all food – unless of course you have allergies to a particular food.

Try several ways of eating and determine which way makes you feel your best. Not every-body can run smoothly on a low-carb, high-protein diet just as not every-body can run on vegetables and fruit alone. We are all individual and what fits one, doesn’t always fit you – and it shouldn’t; you’re unique, embrace it.

When you focus so intently on the types of food you eat more than the quality and proper quantity of food, you miss the whole point of eating. You set yourself up for binges and self-judgement. You sabotage your efforts and the meaning of your meals. You end up missing out on the big and small moments of life; you forget to enjoy it.

Stay Active Despite the Cold of Winter

Posted on by

Staying active & happy during the cold, dark winter months is a challenge for some of us. If you’re not an outdoor winter sports kind of person, the winter can seem long and depressing. Personally, I’m not and I know I’m not alone so what can we do to help us through the colder, darker days of winter?

Of course we all want to stay in shape and especially in control during the holidays with their parties and food, food, food! So let’s check out a few things you can plan for a happy winter season.

Stay in shape:

Bundle up and walk outside, down your street, at a park, in the city – just be safe on snow lined sidewalks and streets.

Window shop! Drive to your local mall and walk laps. It will lift your spirits just being around other people that are not co-workers or your kids! Everyone needs time to breathe and be.

Dance. Keep your radio playing upbeat music with friendly DJ’s that help you feel a little more connected with the outside world. Get up and dance when your favorite upbeat song is played; at work? Take a bathroom break and dance your way down the hall!

Set Goals. Make a list of projects that you’d like to get done and work on them. Clean closets, organize storage space, organize the garage, organize kid’s toys, declutter your closets from clothes you haven’t worn, your kitchen from tools, pans, dishes etc. that you don’t use, clean out your pantry.

Ward off the blues:

Don’t eat lunch alone, in your office or at home. Invite a friend over once a week and eat with co-worker instead of at your desk at work. Break the feeling of being isolated.

Plan a getaway. Even if you can’t get away for a week, plan an overnight or a full day trip to somewhere you love being or somewhere you’ve wanted to visit. You’ll be amazed at how refreshing a change of pace and scenery can be!

Plan monthly outings with friends. Have a “girl’s day out” or a “guy’s day away”. Stay connected to those who feed your spirit and make you feel alive and well!

 

Root Vegetable Stew

Posted on by

20151028_1934322-3 carrots
4-5 yellow beets (red will ‘stain’ the whole meal
2-3 yams/sweet potatoes
1-2 white potato
1 small celery root (celeriac)
1 large onion sliced thickly
2-4 large garlic cloves

1” piece of ginger peeled and sliced
handful green beans, peas and or corn if desired.
Any other root vegetable you have on hand.
6-8 cups of water or broth.
2 Tablespoons mixed herb spices such as Italian or other savory mixes. It depends on how you want it to taste each particular time you make it. Freedom to cook!

Cut all veggies into bite sized chunks, but not too small as they will cook down a bit. Add them all except the yams and beans, corn & peas to a large stockpot and simmer for about 40 minutes. Add the yams and rest of ingredients and simmer about 10 minutes more until yams are soft.

Serve over brown rice, quinoa, farro, other whole grain or alone as it is.
I served it over baked spaghetti squash – it was deliciously healthy!

*You can add black beans, Cannellini or kidney beans for added protein, fiber, vitamins and substance.

Enjoy!

Quick Tips on Staying Warm

Posted on by

20150526_202602With winter months comes the chill factor. Sometimes even layering up doesn’t seem to chase that chill away, so what else can you do to get warm?

Let me first start by admitting that while it might sound like a fun way to warm up, though not very healthy, a shot of whiskey doesn’t actually make you warm; here’s why: “Alcohol may make your skin feel warm, but this apparent heat wave is deceptive. A nip or two actually causes your blood vessels to dilate, moving warm blood closer to the surface of your skin, making you feel warmer temporarily. At the same time, however, those same veins pumping blood closer to the skin’s surface cause you to lose core body heat – the heat you need to survive, especially if you’re stuck in a snow-drift. This effect could lead to fatal hypothermia.” (http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/mythbusters-database/alcohol-warms-up/)

Here are a few quick tips:

  • Layer up, yes, it does help a little bit.
  • Stay well-fed, it stokes the body’s furnace – make sure you eat quality food, fruit, veggies, nuts, lean proteins, etc.
  • Drink water! Staying hydrated even in colder months keeps your body water balanced
  • Acclimate – reduce your ‘set point’ by exposing yourself to cooler temps which in turn increases your body’s calorie consuming “brown fat” which releases energy as heat.
  • Increase humidity in your home or office – humidity increases temperature.
  • Eat hot soups and stews – they warm you from the inside out!
  • Use a bean bag or rice bag heat pack. Warm it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes and keep it close, in a pocket or hold onto it near your stomach to warm you. They are simple to make, fill an old sock and tie it or get more creative and sew together a few attractive pouches for pockets, laps, and even your bed. Make various sizes. Make a few for your kid’s pockets for those cold days of waiting for the school bus.

I have found that fleece sheets are a necessity in my home. They’re warm when you get in and they keep you warm all night!

Stay warm!

Dry Skin, Eczema, Psoriasis Routine

Posted on by

goathoneyoats

I make my own soap and sell it at a local shop. Being in the hair, skin & nails industry as well as the whole food health industry, I’ve become a fan of natural ingredients rather than chemicals. I was going through some information on making goat’s milk soap and such and I have learned this!

Goat’s milk benefits:
Alpha hydroxy acids-help remove dead skin cells
Vitamin A and more – but A repairs damaged skin tissue, reduces lines, controls acne and offers some psoriasis relief!
Cream – helps boost moisture quality
Minerals – esp. Selenium which helps prevent skin damage

Honey Benefits:
A natural anti-bacterial
Moisturizing, soothing and is a probiotic

Oatmeal benefits:
Anti-inflammatory
reduces itching
exfoliates gently
lipids & proteins that naturally moisturize
anti-oxidants,
helps heal psoriasis

You can buy goat’s milk from someone who has goats, from the grocery store or in dry powder form to make a mixture to use on your hair and skin.

My suggestion for hair alone is:

  • 1 cup goat’s milk (if using dried, mix 1-2 ounces with 8 ounces water)
  • 1/4 cup steel cut oats ground in coffee or spice grinder until powdery
  • 1/4- 1/3 cup honey

Mix well and work onto scalp after hair is washed. Leave on for 30-60 minutes, preferably wrapped in plastic and a towel to keep heat and moisture inside.
Do this at least 2 times a week.

For skin, you can use the same mixture amounts and apply if you’re able to stand it under a robe for at least 30 minutes. Or you can increase the amounts and soak in the tub; if you choose the tub, don’t forget to add some peaceful music and low lighting to make it a calming spa-like treat.

I’m going to experiment and try to make a natural bar of soap with goat’s milk, oatmeal and honey. I will post an update when it’s ready in case you would like to purchase some.

*As always, if in doubt about using or eating something that you’re not sure about, seek advice first. What works for one person doesn’t always work for the next.