Tag: #health

Autoimmune issues, Diet, Fitness, Health and Fitness, Healthy Eating, NonGMO, wellness

GMO Corn – Are you eating it?

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After watching the very informative film, Genetic Roulette (you can stream this on Amazon for $3.99), I realized that most gluten-free people have been making a grave mistake with our gluten free diets.

For ten years, corn has been my carb-of-choice because it was “safe” for me. Tex-mex restaurants were my go-to for dining out, but guess what? Unless it’s an organic Tex-mex restaurant, we’re adding to the health problem that’s forced us to be gluten free in the first place.

Corn is the most compromised grain when it comes to GMO’s. Everything I’ve read and watched has convinced me that my auto-immune disease is a result of the chemical companies and what they’re doing to our grains.  “Leaky gut” syndrome is a result of the chemicals (BT toxin) on corn that are designed to explode the stomach of the bugs that get on the corn. Problem: those same chemicals have worked great on our small intestine, breaking down the lining of the small intestine, allowing our food to leak into our bloodstream and then confusing the immune system’s function of determining what is an actual virus or bacteria and what is simply our food that has not been digested correctly. Our small intestine is ultimately our immune system and once it’s comprised, it takes daily focus to repair it.

Protect your kids, save yourself and learn more about the chemicals that are in some of our most common foods and what they are doing to your body. The increasing cancer, diabetes, autism and heart disease rates are not a coincidence with our changing food supply. Our health issues rising correlate almost exactly with the introduction of chemicals into our food supply. Keep in mind that most of the chemicals, antibiotics and hormones in American food are not allowed in other countries. GMO’s are more dangerous than anyone wants us to know. Start healing your immune system today by not buying anything except Non-GMO foods. Every time we purchase a GMO product, we support the chemical corps that have infested our food with their chemicals.

I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of being a science experiment. Check this out: http://www.nongmoproject.org

Healthy Eating, Recipes

The Kale Kleanse starts tomorrow- Recipes

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It’s time to get Kale Klean! I know it seems intimidating to eat so specifically for a week, but if you jump in and stay on the program, you’ll have big rewards at the end of the week including shedding some pounds, reducing cravings and fortifying your body in the very best of ways.

Cleaning up your diet, eating specifically and cleansing your body is a great start to the new year and a new you! You can do this. Take it one meal at a time and remember to eat all of the veggies you want. You will have more energy, less hunger and your week will fly by if you eat plenty of veggies at meals.

The things we’re specifically avoiding this week include gluten, sugar, dairy, grains, chocolate and coffee. Getting these craving-causers out of your meals for the week will help you identify what might be causing you some problems.

After the 7 days, if you want to reintroduce some of these foods, do it slowly, no more than 1 restricted food every 3 days. It’s a mini-elmination diet and you can handle it for such a short period of time. Just stay with the program and notice how you’re feeling. Keeping a food journal on a cleanse and following a cleanse can be a huge help.

Seasonings and condiments for the Kale Kleanse

Apple Cider Vinegar

Olive Oil

Wheat-free tamari

Simply organic taco seasoning

Sweat Leaf stevia – liquid

Herbs de Provence

Salad dressing recipe

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup of water

1/2 lemon juice or

2 tablespoons of wheat free tamari

1/2 tablespoon Herbs De Provence

3 drops of Sweet Leaf stevia

Place all ingredients in a jar, shake to mix

Tasty Taco Chicken Breasts and Kale Salad

2 chicken breasts

1/2 packet of Simply Organic taco seasoning (following directions on packet for half the packet, add to chicken)

Place chicken breasts in a 9×9 baking pan, add the mixed taco seasoning, cook covered at 350 for 25 minutes, then uncovered for 10 minutes, or until cooked through or until thermometer reads 165.

Cut chicken breasts in two, you want a 3-4 ounce serving size for each meal. This first recipe should give you 4 lunches, depending on the size of the breasts and  if you are not sharing. Cut into bite size pieces, add to your kale salad.

Kale Salad

Recommendation: Wash and prepare all vegetables so they are easy for you to grab and throw together in a salad in less than 5 minutes. It’s like your own personal salad bar. Place prepared veggies in storage containers in your refrigerator and you’ve got quick meals and snacks at hand.

2 cups kale (stems removed) add 2 tablespoons of salad dressing and massage the dressing into the kale until it softens. This will make the kale tastier.

1/4 cup chopped bell peppers (any color except green)

1/4 cup chopped carrots

1/4 cup chopped cucumber

1/4 cup chopped celery

Toss your chicken in, add 1 more tablespoon of dressing and YUM, you’ve got a perfect meal. This salad is a perfect portion of protein, nutrients, vitamins and fiber. Eat up and eat even more salad (not chicken) if you’re still hungry.

Here’s a reminder of a day on the Kale Kleanse

7:00 – Wake up – 1/2 lemon in 16 ounces of water

7:30 – Kale smoothie for breakfast (notice this is a smoothie, not juice, we want the fiber, here’s the link to the smoothie recipe in case you missed it: https://mardeecalkins.com/2015/01/11/kale-kleanse-shopping-list/)

10:30 – Apple with tahini snack

1:30 – lunch LARGE Kale Salad (as much as you want) with 3-4 ounce protein serving

4:30 – snack jicama or celery (as much as you want) with 1/4 cup almonds or almond butter 2 tablespoons

7:30 – Kale smoothie

Glass of water with lemon and supplements by 9:00

Bed by 10ish- getting sleep is so important, especially when we are kleansing.

We are eating every 3 hours with a 12 hour fast from supper to breakfast, allowing our digestive system to rest.

Let me know how you’re doing on the Kale Kleanse! You will be leaner, lighter and Kleaner in 7 days.

 

Healthy Eating, Recipes

Kale Kleanse Shopping List

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Green smoothie picThe Kale Kleanse starts Monday! I hope you are ready to get Klean after some holiday indulgences and excited to feel leaner after this awesome 7 day, nutrient dense, fat-burning program.

Want to prep your kitchen? Great idea. Start by cleaning out the processed foods (any easy, go-to bag or box that might break you in a moment of weakness) and then go shopping. Here’s what you’ll need for 7 days (these estimates could vary per person and are for 1 person)

12-14 heads of Kale (about 2 per day, depending on size)
7 green apples
7 apples (any type)
7 pears
Blueberries, fresh or frozen 2-3 cups
Yellow, red or orange bell peppers (7 total)
7 cucumbers
7 jicama
1 lb of carrots
1 jar of tahini (sesame seed butter) and/ or raw almond butter
7 3-4 ounce servings of poultry protein
Vegetarian option- homemade hummus- 1/4 cup serving times 7
Protein powder- please get organic (for smoothies)
10 lemons

That’s a lot of healthy food! There’s no need to be hungry to lose weight and get healthy.

Depending on your location to a grocery store, buy your groceries as close to the day that your going to eat them as possible. Planning on at least two shopping days during the kleanse will help keep things fresh and nutrient dense. Always buy organic when possible.

Here’s the first Kale Kleanse smoothie recipe

4 cups of tightly packed, washed kale (remove stems)

2 green apples

1 lemon

2 cups of water

Place all ingredients into a Vitamixer or high power blender. It’s an option to add 2 tablespoons of almond butter or 1 scoop of protein powder to a smoothie. This recipe should make enough smoothie for one day, if you need more, it’s fine to have more, but only add the almond butter or protein powder to one smoothie a day. This is a delicious and nutrient dense smoothie that’s full of fiber and great for your body.

Please send questions! I’m excited to hear how the Kale Kleanse goes for you!

Healthy Eating

7 Day Kale Kleanse Challenge

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Can I get a “woot, woot” for kale? Anyone? No, okay, okay, I get it. Maybe kale isn’t the sexiest food in the world, but when you look at what kale can do for your body, it IS the sexiest food around and your body can’t get enough of it!

Kale

Kale is a nutrient-dense green leafy vegetable that is not only full of vitamins, calcium, folates, healthy omega-3’s and fiber, it can help us build muscle as it helps the body burn and clear out fat. So, if getting lean, fortified and healthier sounds like a good start to 2015, let’s do this Kale Kleanse together!

Get Klean in 2015!

So honestly, kale is my nemesis. I wish so much that I loved everything about the flavor and the texture, but it’s just not my favorite, in spite of the fact that I know how good it is for my body. But, I have found that if I prepare it in some of my favorite things, such as kale pesto, kale-o-mole and kale smoothies, it tastes great! So, it’s my 2015 resolution (and first resolution I can remember) to eat 1.5 lbs of veggies each day, the majority of those being green. I know this nutrient-dense plan will fortify my body in the way it deserves to be fortified. I ask a lot of my body, and this year I’m going to give it my gratitude by giving it nutrient-dense foods.

If you want to join me on my journey, come on! Let’s get started with the Kale Kleanse!

The Kale Kleanse officially begins Monday, January 12, 2015. But start your preparations now by cleaning out your pantry, cutting anything artificial out of your diet, especially colors, sweeteners and MSG and go grocery shopping for clean foods. If you drink coffee, switch to decaf to minimize withdrawal symptoms. Eat gluten free grains, cut refined sugar and no dairy. Starting to clean things up before a cleanse can really help you feel better during your cleanse.

Tell me how you’re getting ready to start your Kale Kleanse. I’d love to hear your favorite kale recipes and what you might like to see during the kleanse.

 

 

Healthy Eating

Make 2015 A Nutrient-dense New Year

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We can’t see the forest for the trees. The world is in the middle of a pandemic like it has never seen before and unlike any other pandemic in history, it is the gateway to almost every other disease pathway known to the human body. The pandemic is obesity and although you will rarely see “obesity” as the cause of death on a death certificate (if ever), rest assured, obesity is killing people by the millions around the world.

Why do we deny it? Why do many traditional doctors continue to push their pharmaceutical “solutions” as opposed to the common sense solution that the food we eat can do just as much good or harm as any pill they would have us ingest? I’ve never understood this oxymoron of western medicine. I know dozens of very smart doctors, some of whom I consider good friends, who continue to act as though being healthy is a game of luck and genetics and there’s not much anyone can do about being healthy. They seem to think it has nothing to do with what individuals are eating. There is a total disconnect.

One thing I can promise you, you don’t have to be a victim of your family history, a bad diagnoses or anything else. You have the power to turn your healthy genes on and there’s only one way to do it. More than anything else in this world that we can control, we can control our health by choosing the right foods.

Make the choice to control your health through nutrition. It will continue to get harder every year to sift through the ingredient list on packaged foods and know what is good or dangerous, at least until the FDA and USDA start changing the regulations of our food supply.

We don’t have to wait for those changes. The food you need is available now, it is in the produce section primarily, some organic protein, fruit, healthy ancient grains and filtered water. There is so much good food. It is nutrient-dense, lower in calories and everything your body needs to fight disease, build the immune system and live life to the fullest. Save “no” to processed non-food, sugar, gluten, dairy, GMO’s and trans-fats. You have control, all you have to do is take it.

What are you going to do in 2015 to take control of your health?

Fitness

Pull Your Navel into Your Spine

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Why do Pilates teachers love to say that?

Well, try it right now- pull your navel into your spine and see how long you can hold it.

Whew…harder than you thought and boy was that good for you!

How was it good for you? You got a stronger core, a stronger back, increased strength in the pelvic floor…wow, the list goes on and on! Try it a few more times.

When you pull that navel into your spine, you engage your deep core muscles and that helps to support your spine. Our spines are meant to be flexible, thankfully, but they do need support and that is what the core muscles do for us. Those muscles include stabilizing core muscles (transverse abdominus), flexion and extension core muscles (the 8 pack), the obliques (rotation), and your deep core moving muscles, the psoas (which connect to the top of your leg bone and help to pick your legs up). More muscles that work with the core are the back muscles, latissimus dorsi (largest muscle in the body), back extensors, inner thighs and the glutes. The core is actually made up of a lot more than just abdominals, but all of these muscles work together to support your spine and that helps us age better, move better and feel better.

Athletes need strong cores to swing (bats, gold clubs, tennis rackets, throw baseballs, you get the idea), to run (the psoas), to do yoga (oh yeah!), it’s called the core for good reason, it’s the powerhouse of the body, and the stronger yours is, the better off you’ll be and that’s a promise!!!

Do you have any supercharged core exercises? What’s your favorite way to work you abs? We’d love to hear about it :O)

Healthy Eating

Why Is Nutrition So Confusing?

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Eating is easy, eating healthy has become a full-time job. I love nutrition. As a health coach and fitness trainer, I’m constantly having conversations with people about food. My clients are educated people with the best of intentions for their health and nutrition, but everybody is confused about what exactly is good for them, and I understand why.

As a constant researcher of nutrition, I’m shocked by the toxic substances that are allowed in even our “organic” foods. The labeling is tricky, the ingredients are hard to say, which usually means they’re bad for you, but not always. We know red #40 causes everything from ADD to tumor growth, but food makers continue to use it. What??? And don’t even get me started on all the other food dyes (but, please check this out: http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/02/24/are-you-or-your-family-eating-toxic-food-dyes.aspx). I get it, they’re trying to make money, but come on, at the expense of the American people? The good news is that we choose. We vote with our dollars, so every time you’re grocery shopping, remember that.

So, who is looking out for us? Who is allowing this? Why isn’t the control of these terrible substances regulated and kept out of our food supply? Aren’t we protected by the “powers that be?” The answer is a simple “no.” If you want to protect your family from the myriad of health problems food is causing, including death, you’ve got to educate yourself and your family. As parents, it’s our job to teach our children to become responsible people that can go out and function in the world. What’s the primary thing they need to function? Nutrition, and if they don’t know what that is, how can they be living life to the fullest? Finally, here’s the definition of nutrition in Medicine per dictionary.com, December 2014:

nutrition nu·tri·tion (nōō-trĭsh’ən, nyōō-) 
n.
1. The process by which a living organism assimilates food and uses it for growth, liberation of energy, and replacement of tissues; its successive stages include digestion, absorption, assimilation, and excretion.

So the next time you or your kids are about to drink a soda (20oz contains 16ish packets of sugar) or eat oddly-colored snack foods (the food companies refer to processed snack foods as “negative calories” because they’re designed to make you hungry for more junk) think about that definition, read the ingredients and ask yourself “How is this nourishing me and family?” Are those artificial sweeteners causing behavioral issues, are those artificial colors causing an inability to learn? Is so much sugar making it hard for your body to regulate insulin? These things are BAD and you don’t have to eat them. You choose what goes into your body and for the most part, that of your family. If you offer healthy foods, they’ll crave them, because that’s what the body needs. If we eat junk foods, we’ll crave those because they’re made to make you crave them with chemicals. Our nourishment comes from vegetables, fruits, nuts, meats, eggs, ancient grains (gluten-free), and water. Don’t underestimate what nutrition can do for you and what  bad “food” can do to you. Help your kids grow strong, grow smart and become educated on what food means to them. This is how we can change the future of food, and thereby our world.

If you want more information on how the food companies are much more concerned about dollars than your health, please check out Pulitizer-prize winning author Michael Moss’s book, Salt, Sugar, Fat, it’s a real eye-opener: http://michaelmossbooks.com/books/salt-sugar-fat/. Remember that when a food is making a health claim, it’s not for your benefit, it’s just their marketing efforts.

Are you eating a nutrition-dense or calorie-dense diet? Can you feed yourself or your family without processed foods? Why or why not? I’d love to hear from you.

 

wellness

Living With Intention- 5 Simple Steps

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A favorite phrase I use when teaching fitness is by Joseph Pilates, (I’m paraphrasing) “Movement without intention has no value.” It’s impossible not to think of how that carries over into every moment of the day, if we’re living consciously or want to live consciously. Here are some ways that every day can have more value, more awareness and more intention in everything we do.

1. Breakfast- I find that if I start my day with a cookie (even a healthy cookie, and that does happen) the rest of my day is shot. I know there are many common sense reasons having to do with the chemical reactions in my body, but there is unequivocally a thought process for the rest of the day that says “oh well, I had cookies for breakfast.” On the other hand, if I start my day with eating a healthful, fuel-filled, nutrient-dense breakfast, I find myself craving healthy foods for the rest of the day. And worst of all, if I skip breakfast, I tend to have no appetite. Not eating breakfast (within 1 hour of waking) is the fastest way to gain weight and it’s so disrespectful to my body. Eating with intention is probably the most important thing we do because it fuels our lives.

2. Kindness- I love to listen to a positive, inspiring book on Audible on my way to work. This inevitably makes me a better person in every circumstance. It is my intention to be kind and helpful to everyone I see (even the person that cuts me off on the road), but it’s not always easy. Listening to positive messages of love and acceptance helps me to remember that the best I can be is when I find patience, understanding and positivity within myself and offer that to anyone and everyone else.

3. Exercise- If I can just do some intended movement before starting my day, I’ll move better the rest of the day. Being a fitness teacher is gift from that perspective, but I have a lot of days that I’m working from home or on the computer. Consciously getting up, moving and caring for how my body works makes me more productive, thoughtful, creative and free all day, even if I don’t break a sweat. I’ll do a plank to down dog, a back stretch, maybe some lunges and hip flexors stretches, any movement early in the day keeps my intention of moving my body in a healthy way on track.

4. Work- I work for myself, so staying focused and keeping productivity high is a must. Having a productive work day is kind of like having breakfast. If I start my day off with some work-related goals, I find I’ll not only accomplish those goals, but each goal leads me to several other things that add up to a very productive day and that helps me sleep better. Sometimes my best approach to work productivity is to make myself a list the night before on my phone and then I can check off each item through the day. It’s a great feeling when I’ve checked off every item and I’m ready for the next day, bring it on.

5. Sleep- Getting up early and to bed on time requires setting a schedule and sticking to it. Fortunately, I grew up on a farm, so getting up early was just part of the day. It’s carried over with me and getting up early makes going to bed early easy, because I’m tired. Sleep is truly everything to our health, positivity, energy levels, exercise and how our body metabolizes food. Stay busy during the day, break a sweat when you can and you’ll have a good night’s rest.

These may seem like simple things, and they are, but living with intention requires awareness in all of these areas of life and when we can set our goals and accomplish them, we are happier, healthier people with so much more to offer to this amazing world. I love the book from years ago “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff,” it’s so true, but live for the small stuff, it’s what makes the big stuff.

Fitness

Start Your Day Like a Cat

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If you have a cat, watch them wake sometime. They don’t hop up like we do. Cats take their time. They stretch, one foot reaching forward, the back leg reaching back. They arch their back, they extend their back, then they go. It’s a smart way to start the day. Once they’re up and moving, they typically have a little play time, running around, getting the blood flowing, another really smart way to start the day. Then they settle back down until they start that whole process over, several times a day. What could that mean for you? It could mean that you stretch, that you get your blow flowing (heart rate up) and then you settle back down, several times a day, just like the other smart predators. So here’s your challenge:

Before getting out of bed, curl your hip bone towards your bottom rib (low back pushes down into your bed) then press the pelvic bowl away from your ribs (low back arches up). Do this 8-10 times, using the abs to make the movement happen. Then try dropping one hip bone down then the other hip down, knees bent, legs still, moving the pelvic bowl side to side. It feels funny at first, but you will feel a stretch across your low back. After releasing your low back, stand up and do 20 squats, right off the side of your bed. Make sure your knees stay behind your toes, engage your core and simply bend your knees, and straighten, pressing up through your heels- 20 times. Your heart rate will go up, but you won’t break sweat. Then start your day. Try doing this 5 times a day, but when you’re at your desk, just do the pelvic bowl rolls standing. You will draw your navel to your spine, feeling your hip bone curl up towards the bottom rib, then release it, press your belly out and feel your low back extend. Do this 10 times and then your 20 squats. If you don’t want to do your pelvic rolls standing, try them sitting, but you’ve got to get up and do the squats.

Doing this simple routine will get you off to a great day. It will release some muscles that might be tight from sleep, and start your metabolism with the increased blood flow created by the squats. We are the smartest animals, we just need to follow our instincts for movement to keep our beautiful bodies healthy.

Have questions? I’d love to hear them. Thanks for reading and have a STRONG day!

Healthy Eating, wellness

Are you eating consciously?

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Are you eating consciously?

Today we run through life. We are busy, our kids are busy, work is busy, technology is busy and we seem to think we don’t have enough time for food. So we buy junk and we inhale it. So many people unconsciously drive through fast food windows and grab food and eat in their car. We grab boxes off of shelves that state silly and misleading things like “low-fat” or “low-carb.” Whatever the latest diet says is best for us.

If we are reading boxes from food marketers, we are in trouble. They do not care about our health. They care about their bottom-line, and it is large (yours will be too if you follow their advice). We must slow down and think for ourselves. Can we grow this, can we hunt this? Can we pronounce these ingredients? If you can’t grow it or hunt it, it has very little nutritional value for you. If you can’t pronounce it, you don’t have the enzymes to digest it. Are you eating nutritionally dense foods or calorically dense foods?

Your body is your vessel. It is what you are traveling through this life in. Every morsel of food you take into your precious body feeds your cells. Respect the importance of that for you and your loved ones. We are indeed what we eat. Do not allow yourself to become made of chemicals. Allow yourself to become made of positive energy. Plants that were grown with respect and care. Animals that were raised in positive environments. Fish that come from healthy bodies of water. As these natural and real foods become part of you, you will become stronger, healthier and more conscious of what it feels like to be well.

Don’t be too busy to feed yourself or your family. Take care in your choices and take time to prepare your food and enjoy it. Eating slowly and consciously with love and gratitude. Don’t wait to become sick and wonder why or what you can do to get better. Slow down, think of food as medicine and plan on health. You can save a lot of time and a lot on doctor’s bills by being conscious.