Good Morning World!
I am excited to be alive.
Yesterday's Juicing:
1 1/2 quarts of romaine lettuce, celery, cabbage, cilantro, coconut oil, nori seaweed shake, cayenne, tumeric, tandoori masala spice, Himalaya sea salt
2 quarts of mango, carrot, apple and celery with mesquite powder and shilajit powder - with water
Total 3 1/2 quarts
30 tabs of chlorella
Well, the juicing is going great. I am experiencing the feeling of being in another world; the world of transformation. I am here but also a little outside of myself.
Yesterday I ran 2.1 miles. Just so you get an idea, my typical morning runs are 3.2 miles with lots of energy. Right before the feast I ran 4 miles with ease. Now I am running 2.1 miles with fatigue and muscle ache the whole way; it's fantastic!
Ok, so you might think I'm nuts for saying that, but really, I am so powerfully in my experience. I spent years in my earlier life battling and suffering over changes, and thinking things like, "Why is this happening?", or "how could I be feeling like this today when yesterday I was able to...". It wasn't until I was fully able to embrace my body (physically, emotionally, energetically and spiritually) on all levels and receive its messages as gifts, that I had a major shift.
Is it hard to run all achy and tired? yes...
Would I love to be whipping up and down the hills? sure...
but Really? No, not really, because I am filled with gratitude for every minute of this cleansing process. I am grateful that I can still get out the door and shuffle a couple of miles in the sunshine by the water and that my body is receiving exactly what it needs.
I love myself and honor this body and psyche that I live within.
This life that we are given is a fantastic journey of self development, and the most powerful part is to look at our own accountability in our lives and stop blaming the world. We get to witness our own self-development! We get to be pioneers and choose our lives every day, no matter what the circumstances. We get to decide how we will walk through each day and how we will be with every single moment. And, we also get to see our own humanity and allow for gentleness and love. To me, that's as powerful as it gets!
By the way, the enemas are still feeling really vulnerable and depleting, and I'm just staying with them.
Wishing you all a magical day of your own!
Friday, April 13, 2012
Thursday, April 12, 2012
5 Girls Juicing Day 3
Juices:
1 quart cabbage, celery, cilantro, with lots of cayenne, nori seaweed shake, Himalayan sea salt lemon, poured into a soup bowl
2 1/2 pints of morning juice
1 1/2 quarts of bi-colored chard, dandelion greens, parsley, cilantro, navel oranges, carrot, apple and cocnut oil, with water
10 oz. lemon water
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 2 3/4 quarts
I am fascinated by the process of detox/cleansing. My enemas are getting better, but emotionally, they (I) feel very vulnerable to me. I'm trying to get in touch with what that's about, as I never felt that with colonics. It feels like I'm invading my inner sanctum, where all my secrets lie, and leaves me feeling a little tired with a desire to be held. Still lots coming out!
I was focused for counseling and other aspects of my practice yesterday. I skipped exercise and gave my body a rest. This is so strange as I usually bound outside to run. Honoring my body right now is number one.
I was supposed to go over to Irina's for sauna and juicing in the late afternoon, but as I contemplated going, I was gripped with an unknown fear and no desire to leave my home. I called Irina and told her I was going to take a nap and would call her when I awoke. As soon as I lay down, I thought about the fact that each day of juice feasting brings the body and psyche back 120 days. That is why you can re-experience aspects of where you were physically and emotionally at at various times in your life. You might smell something from the past or feel a sensation or symptom in your body from another time. Trust that this is part of the detox process and an amazing opportunity for core healing on a cellular level. As I was sharing this with a client in session yesterday, I said, "It's really another way to rewire trauma." So we get to go back there and heal deeper yet being kept safe with high health at the same time. If you are familiar with EMDR, it does this in a different way, using eye movement. Well, in my assessment, this type of detox can do this as well; heal the trauma on a cellular level.
So, back to my bed. As soon as I lay down, I realized that it was Day 3, which would be 360 days back, which would have made it April 16th of last year. This is when I had just gotten to Sedona and would be going to the Moab desert in Utah as well. I actually had debated going on that trip, even though I was excited, because of some things going on in my life which were bringing up fear. And even though the trip was remarkable and life changing, it was a journey that called upon all of my inner strength at times to walk through. Fear was definitely present for me on a core level in a way I hadn't experienced in many years. As soon as I realized this while laying in bed, I was completely fine. I understood the source of my fear.
I took a three hour nap to cleanse, and when I awoke, I felt great and filled with energy. I went over to Irina's, where we took a forty-five minute sauna together and sweated like crazy. Then we juiced for an hour, the whole time (sauna and juicing) talking and sharing about our lives. After watching a movie I left, feeling energized and alive!
It is extraordinary to be living in these houses we call our bodies and experience the miracles they bestow upon us each day if we only stay present to the process. I am enormously grateful.
1 quart cabbage, celery, cilantro, with lots of cayenne, nori seaweed shake, Himalayan sea salt lemon, poured into a soup bowl
2 1/2 pints of morning juice
1 1/2 quarts of bi-colored chard, dandelion greens, parsley, cilantro, navel oranges, carrot, apple and cocnut oil, with water
10 oz. lemon water
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 2 3/4 quarts
I am fascinated by the process of detox/cleansing. My enemas are getting better, but emotionally, they (I) feel very vulnerable to me. I'm trying to get in touch with what that's about, as I never felt that with colonics. It feels like I'm invading my inner sanctum, where all my secrets lie, and leaves me feeling a little tired with a desire to be held. Still lots coming out!
I was focused for counseling and other aspects of my practice yesterday. I skipped exercise and gave my body a rest. This is so strange as I usually bound outside to run. Honoring my body right now is number one.
I was supposed to go over to Irina's for sauna and juicing in the late afternoon, but as I contemplated going, I was gripped with an unknown fear and no desire to leave my home. I called Irina and told her I was going to take a nap and would call her when I awoke. As soon as I lay down, I thought about the fact that each day of juice feasting brings the body and psyche back 120 days. That is why you can re-experience aspects of where you were physically and emotionally at at various times in your life. You might smell something from the past or feel a sensation or symptom in your body from another time. Trust that this is part of the detox process and an amazing opportunity for core healing on a cellular level. As I was sharing this with a client in session yesterday, I said, "It's really another way to rewire trauma." So we get to go back there and heal deeper yet being kept safe with high health at the same time. If you are familiar with EMDR, it does this in a different way, using eye movement. Well, in my assessment, this type of detox can do this as well; heal the trauma on a cellular level.
So, back to my bed. As soon as I lay down, I realized that it was Day 3, which would be 360 days back, which would have made it April 16th of last year. This is when I had just gotten to Sedona and would be going to the Moab desert in Utah as well. I actually had debated going on that trip, even though I was excited, because of some things going on in my life which were bringing up fear. And even though the trip was remarkable and life changing, it was a journey that called upon all of my inner strength at times to walk through. Fear was definitely present for me on a core level in a way I hadn't experienced in many years. As soon as I realized this while laying in bed, I was completely fine. I understood the source of my fear.
I took a three hour nap to cleanse, and when I awoke, I felt great and filled with energy. I went over to Irina's, where we took a forty-five minute sauna together and sweated like crazy. Then we juiced for an hour, the whole time (sauna and juicing) talking and sharing about our lives. After watching a movie I left, feeling energized and alive!
It is extraordinary to be living in these houses we call our bodies and experience the miracles they bestow upon us each day if we only stay present to the process. I am enormously grateful.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
5 Girls Juicing!
"5 Girls Juicing"
The Holistic Empire
Welcome!
It's been a few months since I've written. I took a Winter break to hibernate and enjoyed every minute of my introspective time. Now I'm excited to blog once again, and there's lots going on!
Yesterday gave birth to the start of "5 Girls Juicing," A Community Juice Feast, from April 9th to May 9th! If you click on the link for it (above) you can join (no cost) and be inspired to add some juicing into your life and have the support of over 100 people who are partcipating and growing our community of health. There you will find all of our posts, pictures and videos on our personal juicing experiences. Whether you juice every day or have no idea what a juicer even looks like, it's an opportunity to go a little greener this Spring and cleanse your body with daily support.
Below are my Facebook blog-posts from today.
If you click on The Holistic Empire page and "Like" it, you will also get to read and see of videos, of "Ask the Holistic Health Counselor," with health tools and tips to support your well being. You are welcome to write in there with a question or comment, or connect with others on either Facebook page.
Here's what I drank for the past 2 days:
April 9th Day 1:
1 quart Lacinato Kale, dandelion greens and celery juice with unrefined, unheated coconut oil, lemon and cayenne
1 quart Lacinato Kale, dandelion greens and celery juice with unrefined, unheated coconut oil, lemon and cayenne
1 quart red chard, bok choi, parsley, apple and carrot
1 quart grapefruit, navel orange and carrot
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 1 gallon
April 10th Day 2:
2 quarts celery, red leaf lettuce, cilantro, carrot, lemon, coconut oil and cayenne
1 quart strawberries and red chard
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 3/4 gallon
Part I:
Yesterday I drank a gallon of juice and had 2 pounds of leafy greens, celery and also fruits. My juice was 1 bunch Lacinato (dinosaur) kale, 1 large bunch dandelion greens, 1 large head of celery, 1 teaspoon coconut oil (...unrefined, unheated, organic) and some cayenne to move my blood. I went running at 5:30 AM and felt filled with energy. After drinking all my greens, which were 1/2 gallon, I had incredible focus, energy and clarity. I counseled and completed my taxes. I then went too long without drinking; 4 hours instead of 2, so I could really feel hunger, fatigue and a little spaciness, which picked right up when I drank my next quart, which was red chard, parsley, bok choi, apple and carrot. After my final quart of mostly fruit (I'm still playing to see how my body responds to different combos), which was a delicious, grapefruit, navel orange and carrot, I waited a while and then went to enema. While I have had many colonics and loved them, I really haven't utilized enemas. I already see the value just from one! I followed Irina's guidance to lay on the floor on my right side, so that the water would reach and flush my descending colon, then after all the water was in me, to move onto my back, draw my legs up to my chest and rock back and forth to swoosh the water around. When I finally eliminated everything, it was intense and went on for quite awhile. The thing is, I am normally super regular in my eliminations; meal in, meal out, as much as four or five times a day. So it came as a real surprise that it kept coming out, along with some abdominal pain, which I never experience anymore. Because I knew it was detox, I just trusted my body to move through it, and after awhile, it did. Interesting, I was left completely exhausted, feeling like I had been on a journey. This morning, I decided to sleep in a little. When I woke up to prepare my juices and for counseling, I was really wiped! I thought I would run after session, but I was exhausted and decided to juice and drink instead and let go of my run for the day. I made a half gallon of red leaf lettuce (1 large head), cilantro (1/2 bunch), celery (1 large head), carrot (1/2 large one), lemon (1/2), coconut oil (1 teaspoon) and cayenne (some shakes) and drank it all, while sitting on my porch and talking to a friend. As soon as I drank, energy started soaring, my whole energy system (chakras) opened up big time, and here I am about to go for my run! And I'm feeling a bit sexy in my lower chakras :) I'm still detoxing in my eliminations, but I feel great! All in the life of a juice feaster...
Part II:
The Holistic Empire
Welcome!
It's been a few months since I've written. I took a Winter break to hibernate and enjoyed every minute of my introspective time. Now I'm excited to blog once again, and there's lots going on!
Yesterday gave birth to the start of "5 Girls Juicing," A Community Juice Feast, from April 9th to May 9th! If you click on the link for it (above) you can join (no cost) and be inspired to add some juicing into your life and have the support of over 100 people who are partcipating and growing our community of health. There you will find all of our posts, pictures and videos on our personal juicing experiences. Whether you juice every day or have no idea what a juicer even looks like, it's an opportunity to go a little greener this Spring and cleanse your body with daily support.
Below are my Facebook blog-posts from today.
If you click on The Holistic Empire page and "Like" it, you will also get to read and see of videos, of "Ask the Holistic Health Counselor," with health tools and tips to support your well being. You are welcome to write in there with a question or comment, or connect with others on either Facebook page.
Here's what I drank for the past 2 days:
April 9th Day 1:
1 quart Lacinato Kale, dandelion greens and celery juice with unrefined, unheated coconut oil, lemon and cayenne
1 quart Lacinato Kale, dandelion greens and celery juice with unrefined, unheated coconut oil, lemon and cayenne
1 quart red chard, bok choi, parsley, apple and carrot
1 quart grapefruit, navel orange and carrot
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 1 gallon
April 10th Day 2:
2 quarts celery, red leaf lettuce, cilantro, carrot, lemon, coconut oil and cayenne
1 quart strawberries and red chard
30 chlorella tabs
Total: 3/4 gallon
Part I:
Yesterday I drank a gallon of juice and had 2 pounds of leafy greens, celery and also fruits. My juice was 1 bunch Lacinato (dinosaur) kale, 1 large bunch dandelion greens, 1 large head of celery, 1 teaspoon coconut oil (...unrefined, unheated, organic) and some cayenne to move my blood. I went running at 5:30 AM and felt filled with energy. After drinking all my greens, which were 1/2 gallon, I had incredible focus, energy and clarity. I counseled and completed my taxes. I then went too long without drinking; 4 hours instead of 2, so I could really feel hunger, fatigue and a little spaciness, which picked right up when I drank my next quart, which was red chard, parsley, bok choi, apple and carrot. After my final quart of mostly fruit (I'm still playing to see how my body responds to different combos), which was a delicious, grapefruit, navel orange and carrot, I waited a while and then went to enema. While I have had many colonics and loved them, I really haven't utilized enemas. I already see the value just from one! I followed Irina's guidance to lay on the floor on my right side, so that the water would reach and flush my descending colon, then after all the water was in me, to move onto my back, draw my legs up to my chest and rock back and forth to swoosh the water around. When I finally eliminated everything, it was intense and went on for quite awhile. The thing is, I am normally super regular in my eliminations; meal in, meal out, as much as four or five times a day. So it came as a real surprise that it kept coming out, along with some abdominal pain, which I never experience anymore. Because I knew it was detox, I just trusted my body to move through it, and after awhile, it did. Interesting, I was left completely exhausted, feeling like I had been on a journey. This morning, I decided to sleep in a little. When I woke up to prepare my juices and for counseling, I was really wiped! I thought I would run after session, but I was exhausted and decided to juice and drink instead and let go of my run for the day. I made a half gallon of red leaf lettuce (1 large head), cilantro (1/2 bunch), celery (1 large head), carrot (1/2 large one), lemon (1/2), coconut oil (1 teaspoon) and cayenne (some shakes) and drank it all, while sitting on my porch and talking to a friend. As soon as I drank, energy started soaring, my whole energy system (chakras) opened up big time, and here I am about to go for my run! And I'm feeling a bit sexy in my lower chakras :) I'm still detoxing in my eliminations, but I feel great! All in the life of a juice feaster...
Part II:
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
A Gift for You! 10 Tools to Take You Through the Holidays
Here's a little gift for all my readers, supporters, friends, family and loved ones...that's you!!! It's from my
soon-to-be-completed book, "Ecstatic Eating!" The tools are from a talk I used to give each year during this time. I hope you enjoy them and that they help you in eating ecstatically and feeling amazing now, into the New Year and beyond!
With Immense Gratitude to Each of You for Being in My life,
Hope
10 Tools to Take You Through the Holidays
1. Take a Breath; Pause between bites:
Notice how much more important the food has become than the connection and conversation.
Know you can have more to eat, and take a breath to engage in conversation.
Introduce yourself to someone you may not know or connect with a dear relative without the clutter of food thoughts taking up space in your brain.
If you are by yourself, take five minutes to do some deep inhales and exhales before going back for more food.
2. Balance your holiday meals with your typical way of eating.
Have at least one meal a day that supports your body with balancing and energizing foods. Have this meal be a meal like the one you would normally eat the other three hundred and sixty four days of the year. If possible, sit quietly by yourself when eating this meal, and really tap into yourself. If you are with others, chew your food slowly and engage in an "active meditation."
3. Surround and honor yourself with some of your Core Foods.
If you are going away for the holidays, bring along a cooler with a few of your "balancing" foods. If you normally eat steel cut oats for breakfast, bring a bag with you. Go to the market the first day you are there, and pick up a few foods that support your normal way of eating.
This does not set you apart from others; in fact, by taking really good care of yourself, it allows for you to truly appreciate the holiday foods that you eat and know they are cooked with love; so eat them and enjoy.
Others may see you eating leafy greens and want to try; let them into your world, too, but don‟t have expectations. This is about taking good care of you.
4. Never skip a meal.
Meals are usually skipped because we are "punishing" ourselves for being "bad" with food; now we must deprive ourselves to pay the piper.
Deprivation promotes unhealthy eating, and ultimately, weight gain and mood imbalance. We want to stay consistent in our eating during this time of year; consistency creates balance.
We are never "bad." We just make choices each day. Honor that whatever food choice you make is the right choice and enjoy your next meal without guilt.
If you are too full to eat your next meal, take a break or eat a smaller portion.
5. Drink water each day.
Increase the amount now. It will both help satiate your hunger and move all the holiday foods through your digestive system.
Notice the difference it makes in your level of energy versus fatigue.
Notice any other changes with mood, desire to eat less and becoming full more quickly. Make a note of these differences in your holiday journal.
6. Engage in one calming, relaxing, balancing practice each day.
Yoga, meditation and deep breathing are a few options. Taking a run, journaling or getting a massage is great, too. Even if you are very busy with holiday shopping, cooking and entertaining, take five to ten minutes early in the morning or at night before bed to just "be" with you.
Do a breathwork/meditation, with some nice, deep inhales and exhales. Get in touch with how your body feels when you allow it to slow down and get "core connected." Notice the rise and fall of your belly as you breathe in deeply; then let it all go. Visualize your favorite place of relaxation; the perfect beach where you vacationed; the top of a mountain or maybe just a special room in your home. Picture yourself standing, sitting or laying down with complete peace in this place. Breathe in and out as you see the image.
You can take this "feeling" and bring it into the rest of your day or night.
The more you give yourself the gift of breath and meditation, the more you will have the energy and focus for the rest of your day.
7. Exercise for thirty minutes each day.
Our bodies were not designed to be sedentary; this is why we have legs!
Exercise this time of year is even more valuable in its ability to balance the mood, as we get our heart rates up and endorphins are released. It facilitates healthy digestion and elimination and balances the new foods
we might be eating. And, it feels good! We are taking care of ourselves and accomplishing something in the process.
If you have an exercise you do regularly, continue with it. If you are out of town and not near your gym, see if you can use a family member‟s guest pass.
Try some winter holiday exercises, like ice skating, snow shoeing or taking a run or cross country ski with someone you haven‟t seen in awhile. If you are in warm climate, go over to the beach and walk or swim, hike in the early morning or tuck a jump rope in your suitcase and do twenty jumps outside.
When you start to hesitate about getting out for your workout and turn to head for the kitchen, put your fleece and sneakers on and head out the door!
8. Make a list of things you‟ve accomplished this year.
As the year closes, we tend to look to resolutions for the New Year. These are all about what we feel we haven‟t done well and want to alter.
Why not stop to see all the wonderful, powerful ways in which we have made forward movement in our lives?
Run through the past year in your mind; what actions, conversations and decisions brought you even a little bit closer to your goals and dreams? Write them down.
Where did you make a difference in another person‟s life?
What did you let go of that allowed you to move forward?
Where did you walk through your fear and venture ahead?
Write down even the smallest of actions…they count just as much!
9. Make a Gratitude list.
What are you grateful for this year?
Who are you grateful for this year?
How has that helped shape your life?
Sometimes even acknowledging a special sunrise or the movement of the trees outside your window can connect you to being present.
10. Language your thoughts positively. I cannot say enough about how our self-talk creates our world.
We are so quick to speak and think negatively about ourselves; this affects how we process our lives and our ability to move forward and move through obstacles.
Instead of saying, "I am bad. I am wrong." try saying, "I made this choice."
Believe it or not, even a simple change in how we speak or think about ourselves can alter the way we feel.
When we say, "I am ugly. I am fat," we are telling our body to process who we are as ugly and fat. The body responds accordingly.
When we allow ourselves to speak with self-love about ourselves and our bodies, we now create a space for change.
Find something you love about your body and say it out loud to yourself.
Remember: There is no "good or bad"; there is only the choice you make at this moment. You can make another one next time.
Bonus Holiday Tools: 11. Get together with one person who knows you, „gets you‟ and appreciates your magnificence!
Have a "sharing" time where you say everything going on for you and hold nothing back, and allow them to do the same. Let yourselves cry, laugh and connect deeply with one another. If you cannot do this in person, call this person on the phone (once a day, if you need to) and let it all out. Then ask them to remind you who you are. A support system is vital. When holiday time thrusts us into a-typical relationship environments, having someone who knows you completely, honors your greatness, loves you without judgment and is your champion for growth and well being is a powerful "grounding" tool for remembering who you are in the rest of your life.
12. Lighten your expectations of others.
This is harder said than done, but is the root of much unneeded suffering throughout the holidays.
If we can "meet people where they are at," we can be present to the quality of spending time with them.
Holiday time is not the time to bring up or "work through" old wounds and deep-rooted conflicts with a family member or friend. It is a time to stay as centered and grounded as possible so that you can feel the gift of connection rather than the painful alienation of emotional separation.
Emotions run high this time of year for everyone. There is plenty of time the rest of the year to engage in those tender familial conversations. If you are struggling, choose someone else close to you to listen and save the deep processing conversations for after the holidays.
Notice how you feel with whatever comes up, and just allow yourself to observe it. Journal on it or share it with your friend. Once you have some distance, you can address it from response, rather than reaction.
Holidays are also a time to be present to love, gratitude and joy. If you can meet your mother, brother or friend "where they are" right now, it will allow you to receive the connection of just being with them.
Remember: They are still who they are; don‟t expect them to be otherwise. It is you who is evolving, which is a gift.
13. Ask for what you need.
This might be a hug, some quiet time, the space to cook one meal of your choosing or anything else that doesn‟t leave you wanting. As Esther and Jerry Hicks say through Abraham, "Ask and it is Given." The more we stuff down our needs, the more the body responds accordingly with food, weight and ill-health.
14. Honor your choices.
Choose powerfully for yourself. Feel joyous about whatever you choose.
Any choice that will leave you tired and depleted, or filled with shame, sadness or anger is not a healthy choice, so choose from your core and with self-love.
Then embrace whatever you choose, and know that it is exactly the right choice at this moment!
soon-to-be-completed book, "Ecstatic Eating!" The tools are from a talk I used to give each year during this time. I hope you enjoy them and that they help you in eating ecstatically and feeling amazing now, into the New Year and beyond!
With Immense Gratitude to Each of You for Being in My life,
Hope
10 Tools to Take You Through the Holidays
1. Take a Breath; Pause between bites:
Notice how much more important the food has become than the connection and conversation.
Know you can have more to eat, and take a breath to engage in conversation.
Introduce yourself to someone you may not know or connect with a dear relative without the clutter of food thoughts taking up space in your brain.
If you are by yourself, take five minutes to do some deep inhales and exhales before going back for more food.
2. Balance your holiday meals with your typical way of eating.
Have at least one meal a day that supports your body with balancing and energizing foods. Have this meal be a meal like the one you would normally eat the other three hundred and sixty four days of the year. If possible, sit quietly by yourself when eating this meal, and really tap into yourself. If you are with others, chew your food slowly and engage in an "active meditation."
3. Surround and honor yourself with some of your Core Foods.
If you are going away for the holidays, bring along a cooler with a few of your "balancing" foods. If you normally eat steel cut oats for breakfast, bring a bag with you. Go to the market the first day you are there, and pick up a few foods that support your normal way of eating.
This does not set you apart from others; in fact, by taking really good care of yourself, it allows for you to truly appreciate the holiday foods that you eat and know they are cooked with love; so eat them and enjoy.
Others may see you eating leafy greens and want to try; let them into your world, too, but don‟t have expectations. This is about taking good care of you.
4. Never skip a meal.
Meals are usually skipped because we are "punishing" ourselves for being "bad" with food; now we must deprive ourselves to pay the piper.
Deprivation promotes unhealthy eating, and ultimately, weight gain and mood imbalance. We want to stay consistent in our eating during this time of year; consistency creates balance.
We are never "bad." We just make choices each day. Honor that whatever food choice you make is the right choice and enjoy your next meal without guilt.
If you are too full to eat your next meal, take a break or eat a smaller portion.
5. Drink water each day.
Increase the amount now. It will both help satiate your hunger and move all the holiday foods through your digestive system.
Notice the difference it makes in your level of energy versus fatigue.
Notice any other changes with mood, desire to eat less and becoming full more quickly. Make a note of these differences in your holiday journal.
6. Engage in one calming, relaxing, balancing practice each day.
Yoga, meditation and deep breathing are a few options. Taking a run, journaling or getting a massage is great, too. Even if you are very busy with holiday shopping, cooking and entertaining, take five to ten minutes early in the morning or at night before bed to just "be" with you.
Do a breathwork/meditation, with some nice, deep inhales and exhales. Get in touch with how your body feels when you allow it to slow down and get "core connected." Notice the rise and fall of your belly as you breathe in deeply; then let it all go. Visualize your favorite place of relaxation; the perfect beach where you vacationed; the top of a mountain or maybe just a special room in your home. Picture yourself standing, sitting or laying down with complete peace in this place. Breathe in and out as you see the image.
You can take this "feeling" and bring it into the rest of your day or night.
The more you give yourself the gift of breath and meditation, the more you will have the energy and focus for the rest of your day.
7. Exercise for thirty minutes each day.
Our bodies were not designed to be sedentary; this is why we have legs!
Exercise this time of year is even more valuable in its ability to balance the mood, as we get our heart rates up and endorphins are released. It facilitates healthy digestion and elimination and balances the new foods
we might be eating. And, it feels good! We are taking care of ourselves and accomplishing something in the process.
If you have an exercise you do regularly, continue with it. If you are out of town and not near your gym, see if you can use a family member‟s guest pass.
Try some winter holiday exercises, like ice skating, snow shoeing or taking a run or cross country ski with someone you haven‟t seen in awhile. If you are in warm climate, go over to the beach and walk or swim, hike in the early morning or tuck a jump rope in your suitcase and do twenty jumps outside.
When you start to hesitate about getting out for your workout and turn to head for the kitchen, put your fleece and sneakers on and head out the door!
8. Make a list of things you‟ve accomplished this year.
As the year closes, we tend to look to resolutions for the New Year. These are all about what we feel we haven‟t done well and want to alter.
Why not stop to see all the wonderful, powerful ways in which we have made forward movement in our lives?
Run through the past year in your mind; what actions, conversations and decisions brought you even a little bit closer to your goals and dreams? Write them down.
Where did you make a difference in another person‟s life?
What did you let go of that allowed you to move forward?
Where did you walk through your fear and venture ahead?
Write down even the smallest of actions…they count just as much!
9. Make a Gratitude list.
What are you grateful for this year?
Who are you grateful for this year?
How has that helped shape your life?
Sometimes even acknowledging a special sunrise or the movement of the trees outside your window can connect you to being present.
10. Language your thoughts positively. I cannot say enough about how our self-talk creates our world.
We are so quick to speak and think negatively about ourselves; this affects how we process our lives and our ability to move forward and move through obstacles.
Instead of saying, "I am bad. I am wrong." try saying, "I made this choice."
Believe it or not, even a simple change in how we speak or think about ourselves can alter the way we feel.
When we say, "I am ugly. I am fat," we are telling our body to process who we are as ugly and fat. The body responds accordingly.
When we allow ourselves to speak with self-love about ourselves and our bodies, we now create a space for change.
Find something you love about your body and say it out loud to yourself.
Remember: There is no "good or bad"; there is only the choice you make at this moment. You can make another one next time.
Bonus Holiday Tools: 11. Get together with one person who knows you, „gets you‟ and appreciates your magnificence!
Have a "sharing" time where you say everything going on for you and hold nothing back, and allow them to do the same. Let yourselves cry, laugh and connect deeply with one another. If you cannot do this in person, call this person on the phone (once a day, if you need to) and let it all out. Then ask them to remind you who you are. A support system is vital. When holiday time thrusts us into a-typical relationship environments, having someone who knows you completely, honors your greatness, loves you without judgment and is your champion for growth and well being is a powerful "grounding" tool for remembering who you are in the rest of your life.
12. Lighten your expectations of others.
This is harder said than done, but is the root of much unneeded suffering throughout the holidays.
If we can "meet people where they are at," we can be present to the quality of spending time with them.
Holiday time is not the time to bring up or "work through" old wounds and deep-rooted conflicts with a family member or friend. It is a time to stay as centered and grounded as possible so that you can feel the gift of connection rather than the painful alienation of emotional separation.
Emotions run high this time of year for everyone. There is plenty of time the rest of the year to engage in those tender familial conversations. If you are struggling, choose someone else close to you to listen and save the deep processing conversations for after the holidays.
Notice how you feel with whatever comes up, and just allow yourself to observe it. Journal on it or share it with your friend. Once you have some distance, you can address it from response, rather than reaction.
Holidays are also a time to be present to love, gratitude and joy. If you can meet your mother, brother or friend "where they are" right now, it will allow you to receive the connection of just being with them.
Remember: They are still who they are; don‟t expect them to be otherwise. It is you who is evolving, which is a gift.
13. Ask for what you need.
This might be a hug, some quiet time, the space to cook one meal of your choosing or anything else that doesn‟t leave you wanting. As Esther and Jerry Hicks say through Abraham, "Ask and it is Given." The more we stuff down our needs, the more the body responds accordingly with food, weight and ill-health.
14. Honor your choices.
Choose powerfully for yourself. Feel joyous about whatever you choose.
Any choice that will leave you tired and depleted, or filled with shame, sadness or anger is not a healthy choice, so choose from your core and with self-love.
Then embrace whatever you choose, and know that it is exactly the right choice at this moment!
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Let the Sun Shine In!
Exercise: 2.2 mile morning run with ecstatic sunshine
Breakfast:
1/2 cantelope chunked with unsweetened shredded coconut sprinkled on it
Lunch:
Manna Fruit and Nut Bread sliced with raw almond butter "schmeared."
32 ounces of water
Do you want to know one secret to staying warmer in the wintertime? Go running outside!
This might sounds completely implausable, but is sort of similar to the homeopathic concept: Give your body an essence of the thing it typically responds to with aversion and it will thrive.
The last couple of years, having gone back to running outside all winter long, my body heat has really stepped up to warming and protecting me from the elements.
Dressed in light layers topped with fleece, I run every day, usually in the early morning. Lately, I've done some 5:30 AM runs under the stars, which is an extraordinary experience. I get to view the constellations pre-dawn as they light up the night sky with twinkles and streaks. Today my run was at the civilized hour of 9:00 AM; yesterday at noon. It all depends on my schedule, but I do what I need to in order to run, because my entire day shifts mentally and physically from this ritual.
I am always filled with energy and vibrance after my run and throughout the day. I can feel the cells in my body waking up, stretching and shining. My mood lifts upward, and most importantly, I am not cold later in the day, even if the temperature drops.
I've built a "relationship" with the cold air; I honor it by breathing it in and it honors my body by becoming my friend.
You don't have to be fast (I'm not) and you don't have to be an expert. You only need to have a desire to be happier in winter and a willingness to try a new approach. If you've ever listened to runners talk about running and wondered what it would be like to try, I say, it's your time to run! If you are just starting out, run slowly (sometimes called jogging!) for 15 minutes with intermittent walking. Increase your time or distance by ten percent each week. Eventually, you will build up to 45 minutes outside.
The vitamin D we get from those 45 minutes outside (and even the 15 minutes) is enough to feed your body and soul with sunshine. The reason we need to take so many vitamin D supplements is because we've developed a fearful relationship with the sun. It's ok to have protection in the strong sun of Summer, but start to build up your body's natural immune system by integrating sunshine. The winter sun is a great place to begin, as the sun's relation to the earth has shifted, and it's perfect for letting the sun caress your face without sunscreen. When I run and it's dark out, I still believe that I get "starshine" on my face. I'm illuminating my body with the sky's healing powers.
In the cold, I have a face mask, which covers my whole head and neck, leaving an opening for my face. In very cold days, I can pull the mask up over my nose and face; in warmer weather, I expose my whole face while keeping the extremities warm. When we cover our hands, head and feet well, we insulate our bodies from the cold.
Some other wonderful outdoor exercise for winter is snow shoeing. You step your hiking boots right into your snow shoes, which have "crampon spikes" on the bottom, and you can walk into feet of snow and ice. It is quite beautiful, as you become part of the winter wonderland; a truly magical world.
Even if you think this sounds really impossible, try it for one week; just one week. I used to be cold from the end of August until April, never getting my body to be able to quite warm up. Compounded with underactive thyroid, I was freezing! Not only that, I was a candidate for SAD (Seasonal Affect Disorder) spectrum lighting, because my whole mood would lower during the winter. Now I no longer have hypothyroidism because of the food and lifestyle changes I made throughout the years. I consider winter an extraordinary time of contemplation, hibernation and introspection. At the end of last year's snowy winter, when I heard people saying, "No, not one more snowstorm," I found myself thinking, "this isn't so bad. I could go for another month of Winter!"
Write in and let me know how this experiment goes...I welcome your comments and personal stories.
Warmly :)
Hope and The Holistic Empire
Breakfast:
1/2 cantelope chunked with unsweetened shredded coconut sprinkled on it
Lunch:
Manna Fruit and Nut Bread sliced with raw almond butter "schmeared."
32 ounces of water
Do you want to know one secret to staying warmer in the wintertime? Go running outside!
This might sounds completely implausable, but is sort of similar to the homeopathic concept: Give your body an essence of the thing it typically responds to with aversion and it will thrive.
The last couple of years, having gone back to running outside all winter long, my body heat has really stepped up to warming and protecting me from the elements.
Dressed in light layers topped with fleece, I run every day, usually in the early morning. Lately, I've done some 5:30 AM runs under the stars, which is an extraordinary experience. I get to view the constellations pre-dawn as they light up the night sky with twinkles and streaks. Today my run was at the civilized hour of 9:00 AM; yesterday at noon. It all depends on my schedule, but I do what I need to in order to run, because my entire day shifts mentally and physically from this ritual.
I am always filled with energy and vibrance after my run and throughout the day. I can feel the cells in my body waking up, stretching and shining. My mood lifts upward, and most importantly, I am not cold later in the day, even if the temperature drops.
I've built a "relationship" with the cold air; I honor it by breathing it in and it honors my body by becoming my friend.
You don't have to be fast (I'm not) and you don't have to be an expert. You only need to have a desire to be happier in winter and a willingness to try a new approach. If you've ever listened to runners talk about running and wondered what it would be like to try, I say, it's your time to run! If you are just starting out, run slowly (sometimes called jogging!) for 15 minutes with intermittent walking. Increase your time or distance by ten percent each week. Eventually, you will build up to 45 minutes outside.
The vitamin D we get from those 45 minutes outside (and even the 15 minutes) is enough to feed your body and soul with sunshine. The reason we need to take so many vitamin D supplements is because we've developed a fearful relationship with the sun. It's ok to have protection in the strong sun of Summer, but start to build up your body's natural immune system by integrating sunshine. The winter sun is a great place to begin, as the sun's relation to the earth has shifted, and it's perfect for letting the sun caress your face without sunscreen. When I run and it's dark out, I still believe that I get "starshine" on my face. I'm illuminating my body with the sky's healing powers.
In the cold, I have a face mask, which covers my whole head and neck, leaving an opening for my face. In very cold days, I can pull the mask up over my nose and face; in warmer weather, I expose my whole face while keeping the extremities warm. When we cover our hands, head and feet well, we insulate our bodies from the cold.
Some other wonderful outdoor exercise for winter is snow shoeing. You step your hiking boots right into your snow shoes, which have "crampon spikes" on the bottom, and you can walk into feet of snow and ice. It is quite beautiful, as you become part of the winter wonderland; a truly magical world.
Even if you think this sounds really impossible, try it for one week; just one week. I used to be cold from the end of August until April, never getting my body to be able to quite warm up. Compounded with underactive thyroid, I was freezing! Not only that, I was a candidate for SAD (Seasonal Affect Disorder) spectrum lighting, because my whole mood would lower during the winter. Now I no longer have hypothyroidism because of the food and lifestyle changes I made throughout the years. I consider winter an extraordinary time of contemplation, hibernation and introspection. At the end of last year's snowy winter, when I heard people saying, "No, not one more snowstorm," I found myself thinking, "this isn't so bad. I could go for another month of Winter!"
Write in and let me know how this experiment goes...I welcome your comments and personal stories.
Warmly :)
Hope and The Holistic Empire
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Step out of the Closet
Exercise: None! I let the rainy day pull me into taking a break from my daily runs. Mmmm, it felt good to listen to the calling of my body to rest
Breakfast:
2 slices Mestemacher Sunflower Seed Bread smeared with 1/2 avocado, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with Himalayan Sea Salt
Lunch:
A banana and a bowl of organic Flame raisins and raw almonds
32 ounces water
Dinner:
Salad with organic mescalin greens, radish, carrot, Sproutman Alfalfa sprouts, purple cabbage, grape tomatoes; with herbs, olive oil and sea salt
Morbier raw French cow cheese with vegetable ash and goat gouda
32 ounces water
A couple of weeks ago, I had dinner with my dear friends at their home. We frequently eat together, as they love the foods I do and it's always meaningful to share food and explore conversation.
I suggested: "Let's play a game," and they said ok.
I posed this question to each of them and myself as well: "If you didn't do what you do in life, what would you like to be doing?"
He, an art teacher at a private school and a very talented potter said: "I'd be a pilot."
She, a gifted healer, reflexologist and counselor said, "I'd be a lawyer."
I, the holistic health counselor said, "I'd be a modern dancer."
We each shared the original longings and desires we had, sometime in the past, that had us imagine these vastly different choices than those we had made.
It was an expansive conversation, tapping each of us into a part we pushed away. I observed my friends' expressions as they shared the reasons behind their answers. Their eyes lit up with desire and imagination; their mouths turned upward with joy.
Each of them is already present and powerfully connected to happiness in their lives, and the choices they did make, and the ones I made, have each of us loving what we do every day.
But the experiment of this conversation was valuable on a whole other level.
What parts of ourselves do we put away in the linen closet of our lives, all neatly folded and in piles?
What do we stick away that we stop longing for?
I am ecstatic to counsel people every day; the sheer gift of it permeates every cell of my body.
But what if I took the towel of modern dancer out of the closet every once in awhile and cloaked my body it it? What if I went through one day a month breathing in the energy of modern dancer?
David Deida, in his brilliant book, "Dear Lover," speaks about walking, talking, sitting and standing as if we are making love with ourselves each day, regardless of whether we are in a relationship or not, and regardless of whether that relationship offers us that level of intimacy and sexual satisfaction.
It is from cultivating it inside of ourselves that it is born; not from waiting for others to fulfill it in us.
There is definitely a pilot inside of my friend; there truly is a lawyer inside of his wife, my dear friend. There is a dancer inside of me, who dances across the stage of Lincoln Center like Martha Graham, moving with complete freedom and abandon; my body soaring across the stage like an eagle.
I encourage you to tap into those parts of yourself; take a towel out of your life's "linen closet" and wrap yourself in it for a day.
Please write in and share how that feels.....
In Dance,
Hope & The Holistic Empire
Breakfast:
2 slices Mestemacher Sunflower Seed Bread smeared with 1/2 avocado, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with Himalayan Sea Salt
Lunch:
A banana and a bowl of organic Flame raisins and raw almonds
32 ounces water
Dinner:
Salad with organic mescalin greens, radish, carrot, Sproutman Alfalfa sprouts, purple cabbage, grape tomatoes; with herbs, olive oil and sea salt
Morbier raw French cow cheese with vegetable ash and goat gouda
32 ounces water
A couple of weeks ago, I had dinner with my dear friends at their home. We frequently eat together, as they love the foods I do and it's always meaningful to share food and explore conversation.
I suggested: "Let's play a game," and they said ok.
I posed this question to each of them and myself as well: "If you didn't do what you do in life, what would you like to be doing?"
He, an art teacher at a private school and a very talented potter said: "I'd be a pilot."
She, a gifted healer, reflexologist and counselor said, "I'd be a lawyer."
I, the holistic health counselor said, "I'd be a modern dancer."
We each shared the original longings and desires we had, sometime in the past, that had us imagine these vastly different choices than those we had made.
It was an expansive conversation, tapping each of us into a part we pushed away. I observed my friends' expressions as they shared the reasons behind their answers. Their eyes lit up with desire and imagination; their mouths turned upward with joy.
Each of them is already present and powerfully connected to happiness in their lives, and the choices they did make, and the ones I made, have each of us loving what we do every day.
But the experiment of this conversation was valuable on a whole other level.
What parts of ourselves do we put away in the linen closet of our lives, all neatly folded and in piles?
What do we stick away that we stop longing for?
I am ecstatic to counsel people every day; the sheer gift of it permeates every cell of my body.
But what if I took the towel of modern dancer out of the closet every once in awhile and cloaked my body it it? What if I went through one day a month breathing in the energy of modern dancer?
David Deida, in his brilliant book, "Dear Lover," speaks about walking, talking, sitting and standing as if we are making love with ourselves each day, regardless of whether we are in a relationship or not, and regardless of whether that relationship offers us that level of intimacy and sexual satisfaction.
It is from cultivating it inside of ourselves that it is born; not from waiting for others to fulfill it in us.
There is definitely a pilot inside of my friend; there truly is a lawyer inside of his wife, my dear friend. There is a dancer inside of me, who dances across the stage of Lincoln Center like Martha Graham, moving with complete freedom and abandon; my body soaring across the stage like an eagle.
I encourage you to tap into those parts of yourself; take a towel out of your life's "linen closet" and wrap yourself in it for a day.
Please write in and share how that feels.....
In Dance,
Hope & The Holistic Empire
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
It's OK to Increase Your Fats!
Yesterday:
Exercise:
Great 2.2 mile run in the Autumn weather
Breakfast:
Steel Cut Oats and chopped walnuts, soaked in water overnight, with a sliced banana and Forbes Wild Foods Pure Maple Syrup #3 Dark (Canadian)
32 moz. mason jar of water
Dinner:
salad of mixed mescalin greens, Sproutman Alfalfa sprouts, carrot, purple cabbage, grape tomatoes with olive oil and Himalayan sea salt
Morbier French raw cheese and goat gouda
Treat: Cocoa covered almonds
32 oz. mason jar of water
Today:
Exercise:
5:00 AM 2.2 mile run under the stars
Breakfast:
2 pieces Mestemacher German Sunflower Seed Bread with raw almond butter and sliced banana
32. oz. mason jar of water
It's that time of year again, where I talk about Eating with the Seasons. All Summer long I was happy to have big chunks of watermelon in the morning; now my body craves almond butter. In the warm weather, a fruit and greens' smoothie was filling; now I soak steel cut oats to ground and warm me as the temperature cools. Add to that a little maple syrup, some nuts and a banana and I'm filled.
My body is getting ready for hibernation; it's loading up on more fats and carbs to protect it from the cold elements.
Let yourself increase your fats. We are really quite similar to the animals. Every winter my body weight and body fat increase a little and every spring they naturally decrease; no diet necessary. Keep your exercise moving and you'll be fine.
Some great fats to add are: hemp or olive oil, 1/2 avocado, some raw goat cheese, soaked nuts or seeds, nut butters, tahini
Some complex carbs for fuel: Millet, quinoa, barley, steel cut oats, chia seeds (which are a protein and must be soaked in water to expand), brown rice pasta or soba noodles.
Before I went raw, this used to be my favorite breakfast:
1/2 cup cooked millet, drizzled with organic olive oil and Herbamare seasoning
Steamed Swiss chard, beets and carrots drizzled with Bragg's Amino Acids and tahini.
This breakfast offers both grounding (calming) and sprouting (revitalizing) energy; Yin and Yang. It also supports balanced blood sugar levels.
Embrace the change in seasons and let your food reflect it.
Write in and share what new food choices you've made this week....
In Health,
Hope
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