Happy 4th of July
Check out this great recipe for some paleo burgers for your 4th of July cookout!!!
What is a GMO?
Here is Christa Orecchio from The Whole Journey giving some information about “What is a GMO?”
And here is the trailer to the fabulous documentary “Genetic Roulette”
Breaking Habits
I spent some time with Dee this weekend! She looks great and is feeling confident and down 15lbs. She is keeping it off and doing it the right way. Here is one of her great posts on breaking habits. Happy Saturday!
Dee writes:
Breaking a Habit
When you are in the middle of a challenge, it’s hard to imagine coming through the other side. If you are looking at getting healthy this year, you may remember all of the times you’ve failed. But take a moment and remember other major obstacles that you’ve encountered and conquered in life. When you are in the midst of the crisis it seems insurmountable. But you lived, the crisis is behind you and you probably learned that you are stronger than you thought you were.
Remembering those triumphant times will help you know that you have the strength to do this too. My downfall has always been at night. I can normally spend all day eating well, including a decent dinner. After dishes, some laundry and household chores, I tend to sit down for television with my family for an hour or so before bed. Sixty minutes can undo 14 hours of hard work.
To substitute this bad habit with a good one, I’ve come up with some ideas to keep from snacking on junk food at night.
- Skip TV if it’s associated with food (plus commercials showing food make you want to eat)
- Pamper yourself and get to sleep earlier than normal for a well-rested night (sleep aids in weight loss plus you won’t be around temptations)
- Brew hot decaffeinated tea and read a good book
- Light a candle and listen to favorite music
Getting Your Greens–by Dee
Getting Your Greens
I am so excited about spinach right now I can’t even stand it. It’s a beautiful sunny day in Florida and most normal people are excited about body surfing in the Gulf of Mexico. But I’m not normal, so I am happy that I just found two great ways to put spinach in my lunch.
Keep this in mind when you get out your blender — can I add a handful of spinach? If it’s a margarita, the answer is no. But if it’s homemade fruit vinaigrette or a smoothie, throw it in. I made pear vinaigrette (one peeled pear, one orange squeezed plus the zest, a pinch of thyme, 2 T of pear infused balsamic vinegar and 1 T of olive oil). It was really good but when I blended in a cup of spinach it was even better.
I bottled it up and went to get a bowl of bean soup for lunch out of my Crock Pot. Before ladling in the soup, I chopped up another handful of spinach. Pouring the hot soup on top caused the spinach to wilt, which is what I wanted. It added a pretty color to the beige soup and added a whole lot of health. Only 7 calories per cup adds half a day’s supply of Vitamin A, 14% of your Vitamin C, 5% Iron and a gram each of fiber and protein. Best of all, your mama would be so proud!
For more posts by Dee–visit http://www.gettingthebestoffood.com
Wellness Clinic Props!!!
A big shout out to Donna and Steve for sharing their testimonials!!! A huge shout out to Kathy Taylor who makes a great cheerleader and advocate to changing lifestyles!
Here is this weeks article in the IU Health Matters
Wellness clinic leads patients to healthier habits
“I’ve learned a different way of eating, and I’m enjoying more fresh fruits and vegetables,” says Donna Tipton, a patient who participates in the free wellness clinic offered by IU Health Physicians Internal Medicine at Indiana University Health West Hospital. Tipton continues,
“I feel so much better; I’ve lost inches and I’m slowly losing weight.”
The brainchild of Angela Henriksen, MD, the clinic came about because Henriksen found herself advising “diet and exercise” to her patients
year after year during their annual exams—and not seeing any positive results. “I know
how hard it is to change yourself, and
the trouble that I have doing it,” Henriksen says. She wanted a way to help patients take responsibility for their own health. A year ago, she established a program whereby all of the practices’ patients who are interested can first see their respective physicians and then meet with medical assistant Kathy Taylor on a regular basis for wellness consultation.
Today, 70 patients participate in the popular program, talking with Taylor for 15 minutes to an hour once or twice a month during office hours. Many of the patients report that
they like the accountability and encouragement the wellness clinic offers, and have gained healthier habits—resulting in being able to eliminate their diabetes medicine or losing weight. “It’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle change,” says Tipton. “It’s about learning what your body needs and feeding it what it needs.”
The wellness and lifestyle modification tips offered not only help prevent disease, according to Henriksen, but also provide cost savings in the long run by aiding with compliance issues. Taylor uses the visits to check patients’ medications, food logs and more. She also offers ideas about local resources, such as fresh fruit and vegetable delivery services.
As for the future? Henriksen shares that she would like to like to incorporate more exercise, such as yoga, into the evolving program. It’s all part of her personal wellness concept: “The best way to change the world is to change ourselves.”
For more information, contact the office of Angela Henriksen, MD, at 317.217.2600. IU Health also offers free personal health coaching to all team members. Health coaches can help you identify ways to improve your health and/or manage your health challenges. Call 317.963.WELL.
The Domino Effect
You all remember our dear real, honest, dedicated friend, Dee who has shared her weight loss/health struggles with us over the past few years. She has done amazing and lost quite a bit of weight by making simple lifestyle changes. Unfortunately, (like me and I am guessing everyone) life gets in the way of prioritizing our own bodies and health and we fall off the wagon. Dee and I had an unusual circle of events this last week. I sincerely believe they were signs from the Universe telling us not to lose site of the mission at hand. Yesterday, Dee’s blog post read as follows——-
THE DOMINO EFFECT:
Today started with a call from my sister on my way to work. I should preface this story to say that I’ve felt isolated in my attempts to take care of my health and isolation equals failure to eat well and exercise. So at 8:20 am my little sister mentioned that her friend commented on this blog, something about someone being helped with the right message at the right time. Before looking into the message, I received another little jolt of encouragement from my friend who is also my dentist. She is a beautiful woman (inside and out) who is determined to get the best of her health through exercise. I know she has adapted a routine of walking regularly and has been successful at weight loss (congratulations Dr. M!) Before I left her office today, she instructed me to walk for 30 minutes when I get home. I like a challenge so I halfheartedly mumbled “OK”. Then when I was half out the door but still close enough to hear she said, “if you don’t you have to do double tomorrow.” And — because I had no other choice — I replied “deal!”Here’s the fun of that story. I did come home and walk two miles. Without her direction to do so, there was a zero percent chance that I would have exercised. I invited my husband to walk also, and he did. He commented that he has been wanting and needing to get back into the routine of exercising and this was just the push he had been hoping for. So some stranger in Indianapolis, who encouraged my friend Angela to remind me to keep going prompted a discussion with my dentist who challenged me to exercise which involved my husband who in turn prompted me to continue to walk the next day. What a great chain reaction. You never know who you might help or impact. Sometimes the right people are in the right place at the right time saying the right things.
Visit her site at http://www.gettingthebestoffood—she may be “still a small voice”–but, a powerful one indeed!
Thanks Dee for sharing
Freezing Lemons
Did you know that the lemon peel contains 5-10 more vitamins than the juice alone. Lemons are a great source of vitamin C and they help to alkalinize the body (lower the pH–a good thing). Lemons have been proven to help in weight loss; improve bone health; and have anti-depressant qualities. Ironically, it was only a few years ago when I started learning to cook that I actually learned what lemon Zest was!
Here is a tip that I recently came across –If you buy Organic lemons–you can freeze them after a good washing and actually grate the entire lemon (peel and all) over salads or really any dish to add flavor and nutrients!
Lemons are considered excellent antimicrobials against fungal, parasitic and bacterial infections.
They are also used in cancer treatments. Some studies actually show that they may have more benefit than actual chemotherapy drugs. That valuable source of information comes from one of the largest drug manufacturers in the world. I won’t call them out now but let’s just say that dietary nutrients are pretty good at preventing and curing disease.
So here are my lemons ready to freeze. They are all organic and washed with vinegar to remove any possible wax or chemical residue. And don’t forget a nifty little stainless steel grater ready for action!!!
How to start your morning!
Here’s Drew’s Saturday Strategy–some good tips in this one! Remember to visit http://www.fitlifetv.com
Toxic Emotions
Which of the following will cause you to get sick first?
1. Eating Sugar
2. Carbs
3. Lack of Exercise
4. Toxic Emotions
Yep –you got it—-Hatred, Guilt, Negativity, and Lack of Self Love—All of the above will cause you harm way before anything else.
I watched this Mindset Monday video by Drew Canole from FitLife.tv and it really hit home. I love his positive energy and honesty. Check out his site and the iPhone App called fit life tv which is free and has tons of great juicing recipes!
Here is a little background on Drew—
“Drew was born and raised in the small, rural community of Lake City in northern Michigan. After attending Central Michigan University, he launched a successful career in finance before recognizing that his greatest talent lied in motivating others. He currently resides in San Diego, where his work as author, fitness specialist and has made him one of the most reputable Personal Coaches in southern California.
Drew is committed to the conviction that people are at their best when challenged. He pushes others to bust through personal barriers and reach new heights in physical, mental and spiritual well-being.”
And with a quote from Drew—We’re in this together
Zits Gone Wild
I’ve been meaning to start dry brushing my skin. Sounds crazy but I continue to hear about the benefits for detoxifying the body. I first read about it in the “Crazy Sexy Cancer Diet” by Kris Carr. She’s that gal that overcame an incredibly rare cancer by changing her lifestyle and diet for the better. There is no doubt that the skin is the largest organ of the body and I have recently discovered a new appreciation for it. I spent a few weeks dairy and grain free realizing that cheating with grain or dairy causes my skin to break out. My skin is like my wing man, detoxifying me from that potentially bad beer goggled hook up. So in my extreme efforts to avoid nasty zits gone wild, I’ve continued to maintain a healthier (ish) diet. I’ve developed a whole new respect for my main squeeze, wing man, skin suit which has me interested in better ways to nurture and care for it.
The benefits of dry brushing:
1. Detoxification of the skin
2. Improving lymphatic flow
3. Increasing circulation
4. Exfoliation
Emma and I headed to the local health food store and bought a natural bristled dry brush. The techniques always include doing it first thing in the morning and brushing in motions toward the heart. This stimulates lymphatic drainage and aides in detoxification. We will keep you updated. In the grand scheme of things, I’m not sure how it could hurt. The plan for the next 2 weeks will be to try dry brushing before a shower and using coconut oil as a moisturizer. It’s non-toxic and remember that Bath and Body Works/ Victoria’s Secret body lotion may smell amazing but they still contain toxic chemicals —if you can’t eat it, don’t put it on your body.
