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What I Eat

debbie (22)Here’s a look at how I eat.  I tend to stick to a 3 times a day meal plan, with no snacks.  I want the hours between meals to pass so that my body can use Fat for fuel instead of Blood Sugar.   I pack my lunches almost every day of the week, and tend to cook batches of food and use these “leftovers” to assemble meals for me and my family of 6. I focus on Whole Foods:  plenty of healthy fats, proteins, and vegetables, with some fruit, some nuts and seeds, and some dairy.   And Paul Newman Coffee.  And Coconut Butter:)

 

 

 

Friday, Oct. 9, 2015

Organic coffee w raw cream and stevia
B – Smoothie:  2 raw eggs, 1 tbsp collagen, frozen cranberries/spinach/banana, manuka honey, flax, walnuts, coconut shreds
L – Leftovers: spaghetti squash/chicken/tomatoes/collards/basil/broth, 1/2 dark chocolate bar
D – zucchini/potato crust pizza w tomatoes/chicken sausage/basil/parm and cheddar,  salad,  a piece of chicken wrapped in bacon

 

Wednesday, Sept. 3 2015

Organic coffee w raw cream and stevia
B – Smoothie:  2 raw eggs, 1tbsp collagen, beets/blueberries/spinach, molasses, coconut and walnuts
L – leftovers from dinner: green beans/onions/tomatoes w olive oil, lemon juice, salt and parmesan
D – spaghetti squash topped with tomatoes/zucchini/onion/garlic/chicken sausage and feta topped w olive oil and salt     watermelon    dark chocolate

 

Monday, January 25, 2015

Green Mountain Espresso flavor w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  raw yogurt/vanilla/2 raw eggs/greens powder/cranberries/pecans/MCToil/cinnamon/coconut flakes
L – Leftover venison sausage w/kimchi and seaweed, homemade low carb macaroon
D – Spaghetti squash w: broth/tomatoes/chicken/onion/mushroom/garlic,  big salad with olive oil and Espresso Balsamic Vinegar

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Central Coffee Espresso flavor w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: Jay Robb/2 raw eggs/flax seed/greens/ half an avocado/blueberries/ginger/nutmeg/coconut flakes/MCT oil and walnuts
L- leftover meatballs and vegetables, chocolate coconut oil treat
D – cod cooked in broth; collards/kale/onions cooked in broth and butter, topped w swiss,  roasted sweet potato

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Central Coffee Espresso flavor w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: homemade yogurt/cranberries/2 raw eggs/greens powder/vanilla/stevia/chia/coconut flakes
L – leftover sausage and vegetables
D – meatballs (venision sausage and beef,) topped with slow roasted tomatoes, w: cauliflower/broccoli/onion/carrot in broth and butter w herbs and parm.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

****Central Coffee, Espresso beans!  I’ve graduated from flavored and ground to unflavored beans!****For my Fauquier Friends, I bought this at Tri-County Feeds ( waay more than just a Feed Store)……Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  Jay Robb Vanilla Protein w/ blueberries/greens powder/2 raw eggs/flax/hemp/MCT oil/cinnamon/coconut flakes
L – leftover chicken and vegetables, homemade chocolate coconut oil treat
D – venison sausage w/broth/tomatoes/collards/onions/garlic/herbs  topped with shredded raw cheddar

Saturday November 8, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  homemade Keifer, vanilla/stevia/  frozen cranberries and chard, 2 raw eggs, flax seed, ginger/cinnamon/mace,  ground rose hips, coconut flakes
L – curry chicken on sprouts,  frozen coconut candy, some of Marks shredded lamb
D – sautéed oysters, roasted sweet potato, collards in broth/butter/w tomatoes and cheese;  macaroons with Trickling Springs chocolate ice cream

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  water/hemp seed/frozen chard&blueberries/JayRobb Vanilla protein powder/1 raw egg/maca powder/ground rose hips/cinnamon/ginger/coconut flakes
L – pork sausage (Crow Foot Farms) w/ broth/yellow pepper/onion/kale;  coconut candy treat (coconut oil w stevia/salt/cinnamon/ginger/cloves/vanilla – frozen)
D – Hunters Head Tavern:  pumpkin soup, a few fried calamari, liver/onions, sweet potato fries, zucchini

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: whey vanilla protein/flax/hemp/frozenbanana and chard/ coconut oil/2 raw eggs/cinnamon/ginger/mace
L – sardines/balsamic/tomato/basil,  coconut oil mixed with cocoa powder, stevia, and salt – frozen
D – leftovers:  spaghetti squash/burger/tomatoes/collards/onion/garlic/zucchini/red pepper/cauliflower  Tumeric/nutmeg/ oregano/S&P

 

 

Monday, August 25, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – Smoothie:  coconut cream, flax seeds, spinach, blueberries, 2 raw eggs, vanilla extract, stevia, MCT oil, nutmeg, mace, cinnamon
L – Sardines w/ Wilderness Mayo, 4 cherry tomatoes, pack of Annie Chung Seaweed snacks
D – big burger with cheese, brussels with bacon, onions w zucchini, all cooked in LOTS of Kerrygold butter, coconut oil treat mixed with cocoa powder and stevia

 

Friday, August 1, 2014, Off Keto; Staying in Hotel for DCAC Fitness Conference

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla with raw cream
B – in a cup: protein powder/flax seed/chia seed/hemp seed/greens powder mixed with water
L – sardines/greens/cuke/avocado/ balsamic; macadamias,  coconut oil treat w lemon oil
D – at Clydes:  fried chicken livers; caesar salad w anchovies and dressing; buffalo burger w/swiss,bacon,tomato, onions, and some french fries – my Ketosis is Over

 

Saturday, August 2, 2014, Hotel/DCAC Conference

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – in a cup: Jay Robb protein powder/flax seed/chia seed/hemp seed/greens powder mixed w water
L – sardines/greens/zucchini/cheese/avocado/ balsamic;  macadamias, coconut oil treat w lemon
D – at Clydes:  fried chicken livers; caesar salad w anchovies and dressing, crispy trout with hollandaise, and sautéed swiss chard

 

Tuesday, July 29, 2014, day 17 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Breakfast Blend with raw cream
B – Smoothie:  Jay Robb egg white vanilla protein/ half large avocado/ big scoop greens powder/spinach/raw egg/cinnamon/nutmeg/MCT oil, water and ice cubes; 10 macadamias
L – big leftover piece of meatloaf stuffed with cheese, basil, and tomatoes; pack of seaweed
D – sausage/zucchini/tomato/cheddar; 3 cream cheese balls

Saturday, July 26, 2014, day 14 of Keto Diet

Safeway Organic Coffee – DISGUSTING.  GROSS. I miss PN.
B – 2 Applegate Organic Grassfed hotdogs, handful Macadamia nuts
L – salad w/ olive oil, balsamic, and lots of pumpkin seeds and almonds
D – hot italian sausage (2) mixed with swiss chard, tomatoes, cauliflower, garlic, sautéed in butter;  2 cream cheese fat bombs
Tuesday, July 22, 2014, day 9 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
B – 1 cup coconut milk, 1 raw egg, 1 scoop Jay Robb Egg White Protein Powder, frozen spinach, 1 scoop Greens Powder, 1 tbsp chia seed, 1 tbsp flax seed, 1 tbsp MCT oil, cinnamon, ginger
L – left over chicken, half avocado, pea shoots, covered with coconut oil, S&P
D – chicken sausage;  in a pan cooked with butter, coconut oil, and some water:  onion, garlic, tomato, zucchini,  topped with parmesan.   1 cream cheese ball.     Saurkraut.   5 macadamias.

 

Sunday, July 20, 2014, day 8 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
B – 2 Applegate grassfed hotdogs cooked in butter, 10 macadamias
L – 1 Applegate hotdog, 10 walnuts ( my appetite is diminishing, and I didn’t workout at all this day)
D – roast chicken – lots of skin!, saurkraut, green beans;  broccoli and cauliflower;  all topped with chopped mushrooms/garlic/onions cooked in lots of butter, coconut oil, and lemon juice; parm.,  2 cream cheese balls

Saturday, July 19, 2014, day 7 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
B – 15 macadamias, 2 cream cheese balls ( check blog post July 19)
L – a few bites of leftover chicken, a few bites of broccoli slaw with Wilderness Mayo  ( literally still full from breakfast, it was 2pm and I thought I should eat something. )
D – 2 chicken sausages, saurkraut, green beans/onions/collards/pepper cooked in butter, topped with butter, cheddar, S&P

Friday, July 18, 2014, day 6 of Keto Diet – I’m Finally In Ketosis!

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
B – Smoothie:  1 c coconut milk (can)/2 raw eggs/ vanilla extract/2 tsp stevia/1 scoop greens powder, handful spinach/cinnamon/nutmeg / 1 tbsp hemp seed;  8 macadamias
L – big piece of leftover meatloaf w 3 cherry tomatoes,  MCT oil,  15 macadamias
D – baked chicken( ALWAYS: skin on-bone in), 2 cups cabbage and cauliflower cooked in butter and water, S&P, topped with lots of cheddar and parm;  2 cream cheese balls ( recipe on site)

Thursday, July 17, 2014, day 5 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – leftover cod, handful green beans, and 1 chicken sausage cooked in coconut oil
L – 1 fried oyster ( scraped off coating), Cobb Salad with Shrimp, oil and vinegar
D – leftover meatloaf, 1/2 c zucchini, big slice of cheese melted on it, cooked in butter

Wednesday, July 16, 2014, day 4 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – Smoothie: coconut milk, spinach, 1/2 scoop protein, 1 scoop greens powder, MCT oil, nutmeg, cinnamon
L – sardines/half avocado/basil leaves/mayonnaise, 10 macadamias
D – meatloaf;  swiss chard/zucchini/red onion/green beans in butter with cheddar;  cream cheese balls ( these were good – recipe on my site soon)

 

Tuesday, July 15, 2014, day 3 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – Smoothie:  1/2c coconut milk ( from can – more fat than carton)/ 1/4 c raw cream/1 raw egg/1 tbsp collagen/1 tbsp MCT oil/ 1/2 scoop whey protein/ ( ran out of eggs and wanted more protein)/1 scoop greens powder (4g carb), frozen spinach/ginger/nutmeg/ice; 10 macadamias
L – 3 pieces of bacon/1 chicken sausage/1 c basil leaves/ butter and cheese
D – Restaurant in Richmond – big hamburger with cheddar, brussels, and asparagus, extra blue cheese and gouda cheese ( from appetizer plate)

 

Monday, July 14, 2014 Day 2 of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w raw cream
B – a few chicken livers, 2 eggs, a lot of cheese, basil, cooked in butter
L- big container of tuna salad with olive oil mayo, onions, and celery ( over a cup full)
D – 2!!   (1) sausage/cheese/cauliflower and broccoli with MCT oil, and (2) 3 sardines, half avocado, saurkraut

Sunday, July 13, 2014  Day 1 Of Keto Diet

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla coffee, raw cream
B – 3 eggs and 2 grassfed/organic hotdogs in MCT oil, with cheddar
L – 1 grassfed/organic hotdog and 1/4 cup Wildbrine Saurkraut
D – ( had a small crowd)  shrimps and scallops wrapped with bacon; meatballs (recipe on blog), baked cabbage with mushrooms, onions, garlic, and Locatelli-Romano cheese;  hot toasted coconut w ghee (blog)

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla coffee, raw cream
B – leftovers:  bacon with green beans/collards/onion/garlic/cheddar, topped with Skinny Fat MCT oil
L – Claire’s Restaurant:  2 fried oysters, Cobb salad: shrimp/bacon/eggs/avocado/blue cheese/greens with oil and vinegar
D – cooked Chinese Cabbage (in water and butter), topped with cheddar; sausage;  1/2 roasted sweet potato, a bowl of coconut milk ice cream

 

Sunday, July 6th, 2014 – Travel Day; visited Mark’s Parents in Richmond

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla, raw cream
B – 2 hardboiled eggs, homemade Pesto made with Skinny Fat MCT oil
L – Restaurant in Richmond:  artichoke and crab salad, omelet with crab/spinach/cheese/arugula, side of bacon
D – on the road, Jay Robb bar

 

Saturday, July 5th, 2014 – Full Day In Williamsburg

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla, raw cream
B – 2 hardboiled eggs, homemade Pesto made with Skinny Fat MCT oil
L – Jay Robb Bar
D- Huzzah Restaurant:  Caesar salad, grilled tuna steak/grilled asparagus and tomatoes/grilled potatoes;   dark chocolate bar

 

Friday, July 4th, 2014 – Full Day In Williamsburg

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee, raw cream ( I travel with my cream, coffee, and stevia)
B – 2 hardboiled eggs, homemade Pesto made with Skinny Fat MCT oil ( packed this too)
L – Jay Robb protein bar  ( packed this – don’t need pouchy stomach for sitting at the pool )
D – Second Street Bistro:  shared shrimp and onion rings appetizers, grilled caesar salad, bison meatloaf, green beans, and potato wedges;  shared a piece of cheese cake

Thursday, July 3, 2014 – Leaving for Williamsburg/ Busch Gardens

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee, raw cream
B – Jay Robb Vanilla protein powder, frozen spinach, frozen banana, Skinny Fat MCT oil, cinnamon, ginger, greens powder
L – pesto, sardines, tomato, basil leaves, whole avocado;  coconut cookie ball Megan and Shelby made
D – Huzzah Restaurant:  3 fried oysters, caesar salad with olive oil and vinegar, grilled wahoo, grilled asparagas/tomatoes,  roasted potatoes

 

Friday, June 13, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w/ Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: Jay Robb organic whey vanilla protein powder, lemon balm leaves, frozen blueberries, half of a frozen banana, half avocado, 1 raw egg, nutmeg, ginger
L – leftovers from Thursday night: sausage burger with roasted tomatoes, cheese, cauliflower, and brussels
D – salad with turkey, cheese, balsamic, and extra virgin olive oil

 

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Jay Robb Organic vanilla whey protein, spinach, blueberries, avocado, 1/2 banana, raw egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, chlorella powder
L – leftover sausage, tomatoes, brocoli, olive oil
D – cauliflower, carrots, red pepper, asparagus, chard, onion, chives, and chicken ( leftover from 2 days ago), cooked in a LOT of broth and butter, topped with cheese

Wednesday, January 22, 201

Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B- full fat keifer smoothie w/spinach, bananas, cranberries, 2 raw eggs, cocoa powder, stevia, cinnamon, ginger, coconut flakes
L – apple with sunflower butter
D – ground lamb in broth w/ cauliflower, onion, parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, S&P, gouda cheese, handful of carob chips ( my new love)

 

Friday, January 3, 2014
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee with Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: full fat keifer, 2 eggs, spinach, bananas, orange, coconut, vanilla extract, stevia, cinnamon, ginger
L- leftover/cold cabbage/onion/sausage   2 paleo chocolate chip cookies
D – sweet potato fries, omelet with onions/kale/mushrooms and cheese, another p.c.c.cookie

Sunday, December 8, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee with Raw Cream
Brunch – Bacon, eggs, avocado, and half an orange
D – Sausage stuffed with roasted tomatoes, topped with cheddar and onions;  brussels roasted in butter with parmesan

Thursday, December 5, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee with Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  keifer, chia seeds, 2 raw eggs, spinach, cranberries, bananas, ginger, cinnamon, cocoa powder, stevia, molassas
L – left over chicken, coconut butter/cocoa powder/stevia
D – sausage, cauliflower, carrots, onion in broth; sweet potato; magic cookie bar

Wednesday, December 4, 2013 (Went to Mount Vernon with Shelby)
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee with Raw Cream
B – smoothie: keifer, chia seeds, 1 raw egg, spinach, blueberries, bananas, cinnamon, nutmeg, cocoa powder, stevia
L – (at the Mount Vernon Inn)  big salad with crab, bacon, cheese, greens,  and balsamic vinegar
D – roast chicken, roast cauliflower, kale/onions/garlic/tomato cooked in broth, topped with salt, herbs, and cheese

Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Had a fasting blood test this morning, brought coffee and breakfast with me:
B – salmon with avocado, Paul Newman Coffee w Raw Cream, apple
L – Chinese Restaurant:  roast pork with crispy skin, white fish, sprouts, and bok choy
D – brussels and sweet potatoes, roasted last weekend and then refried in butter, sausage on side, piece of dark chocolate

Monday, October 21, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie:  1 raw egg,  scoop chocolate protein, frozen kale/banana/cranberries , coconut, kombucha, fish oil, cinnamon
L – apple with macadamia nut butter (ground macadamias, coconut oil, cinnamon, ginger, salt)
D – old frozen sausage vegetable mix, with added broth, broccoli, and carrots, topped with gouda

Sunday, October 6, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
Brunch – 3 eggs on a salad: spinach/beets/parm/olive oil and vinegar
D – pulled lamb, green beans, zucchini pizza (zucchini w tomato/basil/cheese), coconut milk homemade ice cream

Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w raw cream
B – Smoothie: 2 raw eggs, spinach, banana, cranberry, cocoa powder, stevia, ginger, cloves, coconut flakes
L – apple with nutbutter:  used my blender to mix multiple nuts with coconut butter and oil, cinnamon, and salt – DELICIOUS!!!!!!,  plus a couple extra spoonfuls of coconut butter
D – bacon with cauliflower and cheese

Tuesday, September 16, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – 5 eggs (3 yolks) w swiss chard, mushrooms, cheddar
L – ground lamb (leftovers) w whole avocado;  sliced apple with Earths Balance coconut/peanut spread
D – cod cooked in broth with brussels and onions; large sweet potato roasted in butter w S&P

Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – smoothie:  2 raw eggs, kombucha, gelatin, cocoa, stevia, frozen spinach/banana/beets
L – 2 tins sardines w basil, whole avocado;  plum
D – turkey breast, roasted potato w butter and rosemary, salad with balsamic and EVOO, and a paleo cookie

Sunday, September 8, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – scoop of protein powder mixed with water and coconut butter
L – shredded lamb (leftover) roast with cheddar and zucchini, apple
D – shrimp,  broccoli and onions sauteed in broth with cheddar, sweet potato with butter and salt

Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Paul Newman Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: 2 raw eggs, gelatin, cocoa powder and stevia, frozen spinach/bananas, ginger
L – salmon and homemade peach salsa
D – leftover pulled lamb roast, on huge salad: greens, tomato, green beans, corn, zucchini, cheese, w/ balsamic, and roasted potato

Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – smoothie: raw egg/kombucha/frozen spinach/bananas/cranberries/ whey protein/ ginger/molassas
L – leftover liver and onion w/whole avocado, walnuts (a bunch)
D – scrambled eggs w/ garlic and feta, zucchini patties, white potato w/ butter and rosemary

Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – smoothie w/kombucha,spinach,bananas, blueberries, raw egg, whey, collagen, cinnamon,walnuts,   2 coconut flour cookies
D – shrimp, potatoes w/rosemary and butter, grilled plantain,  summer veg mix:tomatoes/3 kinds of squash/onion/basil/thyme

Friday, July 26, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – raw egg/kombucha/whey/collagen/spinach/strawberries/banana/cinnamon
L – salmon w balsamic,   coconut butter w cocoa powder and stevia
D – (restaurant – Mojitos):  grilled calamari on spinach w mustard dressing, fried yucca and fried plantain,  grilled green beans

Thursday, July 25, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – raw egg/kombucha/spinach/flax/coconut chunks/banana/whey protein/collagen powder/nutmeg/ginger
L – (restaurant – Claires)  beet salad with chicken and goat cheese,   handful of almonds
D – sausage/tomatoes (from my garden)/green and yellow squash(friends garden)/onion/thyme/basil (my garden), roasted white and sweet potatoes, cauliflower w cheese

Sunday, July 21, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
L – whole avocado mashed with half banana and scoop of whey
D – baked chicken on salad/balsamic/evoo, with roasted potato in butter and rosemary

Saturday, July 20, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – scoop of whey protein mashed with scoop of coconut butter
L – Food of all Nations/Charlottesville Va: baked salmon with teryaki, roasted brussels, chocolate bar, 60% w cayanne and cinnamon and pepitas
SNACK – Richmond Va/Bevs Homemade Icecream  2 scoops in a cup: pb and coconut
D – Richmond Va/Cafe 821: salad with goat cheese, balsamic and EVOO, burger(no bun) with swiss, mushrooms, and bacon; french fries

Thursday, July 18, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla w Raw Milk
B – Smoothie: raw egg, keifer, whey powder, banana, cranberry, spinach, beets, nutmeg
L – sardines, yellow squash and green with EVOO and balsamic;  chocolate coconut butter
D – scrambled eggs w/ onion, salad with greens, fresh tomato EVOO and balsamic, roasted chopped potato w/ Kerrygold, rosemary and salt

Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee – we’re out of milk and cream:(
B – raw egg, raw keifer, cocoa powder and stevia w/ beets, spinach, bananas, cranberries, cinnamon and ginger
L – whole avocado mashed w half banana and scoop of protein, seedweed snacks
D – sausage mixed with onion, eggplant, zucchini, herbs and salsa,  roasted potatoes (leftover from monday and refried in Kerrygold butter w tons of rosemary) , all topped with grated parmesan

Sunday, July 14, 2013 day 4 of Nutritional Therapy Workshop/Hotel Living
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic w Raw Cream
B – 3 whole eggs fried in Kerrygold butter with half a chopped onion, topped w feta
L – big salad w sardines, EVOO/balsamic and goat cheese
snacked on celery and peanutbutter/coconut butter; handful of walnuts and coconut chips
no dinner

Saturday, July 13, 2013, day 3 of Nutritional Therapy Workshop/Hotel Living
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic w Raw Cream
B – Whole avocado mashed with whey protein and 1/2 banana
L – big salad with sardines, EVOO, balsamic, and goat cheese, LOTS of coconut butter
No Dinner, too full

Friday, July 12, 2013 day 2 of Nutritional Therapy Workshop/Hotel Living
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B -1 whole avocado w 1/2 banana – Mashed with scoop of chocolate whey
L – big salad w sardines, balsamic, chocolate coconut butter, dates (too many!)
D – salad bars at Whole Foods – ate a bunch of different choices, all vegetables, with chicken, and a Justin’s Peanutbutter candy bar

Thursday, July 11, 2013  day 1 of Nutritional Therapy Workshop/Hotel Living
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Chocolate whey with LOTS of coconut butter
L – (packed) big salad with sardines, EVOO, balsamic, goat cheese, and a chocolate coconut butter treat
Snack – lots of fresh black berries, fermented carrots, around 5:30
D – (brought food and cooked in room in my plug-in hot pan) 3 whole eggs in Kerrygold with onion, sweet potato (already cooked at home), basil, S&P, and feta;   zucchini with more feta, 3 dates

Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – Smoothie: raw egg, keifer, cocoa, stevia, spinach/beets/banana cinnamon and ginger
L – chicken (leftover) w avocado
D – sausage w/ onions, peppers, garlic and feta,  sweet potato, green beans with Kerrygold butter, S&P

Friday, July 5, 2013, day 6 at the Beach
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee, w Raw Cream
B – Chocolate whey protein with coconut butter
L – Sardines w/ balsamic, macadamia nuts
D – Shrimp, zucchini and eggplant with tomato sauce and mozarella, sweet potatoes, (also on the table: lamb burgers, corn on cob, salad)

Thursday, July 4, 2013, day 5 at the Beach
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – scoop of chocolate whey protein with scoop of coconut butter
L – salmon w balsamic, pumpkin seeds
D – shredded lamb and shredded chicken on salad, with feta and bbq sauce; roasted squash and tomatoes w mozarella, 4 dates,  small slice of cheesecake from a bakery w sugar/flour/lots of other bad stuff!  27 for dinner again, my house. Also on table: lamb burgers, grilled potatoes, watermelon, cheese.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013, day 4 at the Beach
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – scoop of chocolate whey protein w coconut butter
L – sardines w salad, pumpkin seeds
D – chicken enchilada,  spiced beef, on big salad, w lots of cheese, ear of corn, 10 corn chips, 4 small paleo cookies – there were 27 of us at my house for dinner! Also on table: watermelon.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013, day 3 at the Beach
Paul Newman Organic Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – scoop of protein w scoop of coconut butter
L – sardines w/ salsa, pumpkin seeds and madadamias
D –  (dinner was at my sisters house this time)  pumpkin seeds, chicken, salad, cauliflower au gratin, 5 tortilla chips, SEVERAL small paleo chocolate chip cookies – too many:) ( 21 for dinner, my sister hosted)Also on table: beef burgers, fruit, cheese)

Monday, July 1, 2013, day 2 at the Beach
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic Coffee w Raw Cream
B – chocolate whey protein mixed w heaping spoon of coconut butter and water
L – can of salmon w salsa, pumpkin seeds and cashews, square of dark chocolate
D – (at my house) sausage w eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, onions, garlic, red peppers,  big salad, roasted potatoes and beets,  square of dark chocolate (also on table: sausage burgers, baked chicken w bbq sauce, peaches, cheese) (19 of us for dinner)

Sunday, June 30, 2013, 1st Full Day at the Beach/Duck, NC
Paul Newman Vanilla Organic Coffee w Raw Cream (we brought 2 pints of cream and 5 gallons of raw milk with us)
B – scoop of chocolate whey protein, a bunch of cherries
L – can of salmon mixed with salsa, 2 squares of dark chocolate, peach
D – Big Family Dinner – 17 of us/what I put on the table:  beef and lamb burgers, eggplant with sausage/onions/peppers and cheese, big salad, roasted white/sweet potatoes/beets, watermelon, peaches/blueberries, cheese slices.  What I ate:  the eggplant stuff, giant salad w/feta/olive oil/balsamic, and peaches/blueberries.     Macy made Paleo chocolate chip cookies – had 2.  (made with almond flour and 1/4c honey, no grains or white sugar)

Saturday, June 29, 2013Travel Day, 8 hours
Paul Newman Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – (packed) scoop of protein, 2 tbsp coconut butter, mixed w water
All my kids packed nuts and grapes to eat in the car
L – (packed) big salad w chicken, balsamic, and olive oil
All my kids packed:  3 did sandwiches (turkey/cheese and pbj),  2 did salads
SNACK – stopped at Grandy’s and bought fresh ground HOT peanut butter – delicious! ate on a few peanut-squares
D – meatballs (I’d made them last week and frozen them),  green beans and corn, with lots of garlic in melted butter, cukes/tomatoes/mozzarella, cherries and grapes

Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Paul Newman Vanilla Coffee w Raw Cream
B – 2 eggs w parsley, onion, gouda cheese
L – chicken/avocado/salad   coconut butter/coconut oil/stevia/cocoa powder
D – lamb (shredded and left over from Monday) w corn, potatoes, salad, watermelon

Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Paul Newman vanilla coffee w raw cream
B – chocolate protein w/ kombucha, spinach, shredded beets, banana, blueberries, coconut, cinnamon/ginger
L – chocolate protein powder mixed with coconut butter
D – half baked potato w/ sausage/onion/garlic/broccoli/red pepper cooked in broth, goat cheese

Saturday, June 14, 2013
Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee w raw cream
B -1 scoop chocolate protein with water
L – out, new restaurant in Arlington called Protein Bar – EXCELLENT!!  Big salad w chicken, flax  crisps, 2 big protein cookies  – they had sugar and flour:(
D – shrimp and fish baked in butter and seasonings, zucchini and onions w cheddar, sweet potatoes, corn on cob;  daughter #3/Macy/aka The Baker, made 2 Paleo treats, an amazing paleo brownie and fig bars.  Ate too much!!

Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee w raw cream
B – 2 whole eggs w 4 egg whites/half chopped onion, parsley, gouda cheese;  coconut flakes
L – sardines mixed with whole avocado, S & P
D – sausage/onion/artichoke/garlic   on top of big lettuce/tomato salad with cheddar; roasted white potato

Thursday, June 6, 2013
Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee w raw cream
B – homemade keifer(w/ raw whole milk) cocoa/stevia/shredded beets/blueberries/chia/almonds/cinnamon/ginger
L – sardines/whole avocado      Quest bar
D – sausage (venison/homemade w/ my dad) mixed w/ onions/garlic/zucchini/artichokes/mushrooms/broth served on bed of greens and topped w/ feta, half twice baked potato (made a week ago and froze a bunch)

Monday, June 3, 2013 
Paul Newman vanilla organic coffee w/ raw cream
B – chocolate protein powder (designer whey Naturals), with kombucha / spinach / cranberries / bananas / chia / cinnamon / nutmeg / walnuts / coconutflakes
L – sardines w/ whole avacado, salt & pepper,  2 big carrots
D – roasted half eggplant topped with lamb burger/mushrooms/onions/garlic and cheese w BIG salad, olive oil, feta, S&P

Saturday, June 1, 2013
Paul Newman vanilla organic coffee w raw cream
B – 3 eggs w/parsley, garlic, goat cheese,  banana
L – chicken breast (leftovers from roasting 7 last week), salad with olive oil and balsalmic, chocolate-coconut butter
D – Restaurant – BIG medium rare burger with the works BUT NO BUN/BREAD: cheddar, bacon, onions, bbqsauce, salad with pears and figs and balsalmic dressing, french fries

Monday, May 20, 2013
Paul Newman vanilla organic coffee w raw cream
B – chocolate whey, kambucha, spinach, beets, blueberries, flax seed, cinnamon, ginger smoothie
L – 2 hardboiled eggs w/ pesto and kelp,  coconut chocolate bar
D – big salad with greens, asparagus, carrots, cukes, tomatoes, feta, sauerkraut, canned salmon, balsalmic and EVOO.

Thursday May 16, 2013
Paul Newman vanilla coffee with whole raw cream (got a pint from my dairy – so thick I needed a spoon)
B -chocolate whey mixed with Keifer (fermented tea), spinach,cherries, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, chia seeds, and coconut flakes
L – shredded lamb (pulled from freezer – I made it 2 weeks ago) w half an avocado and half a tomato, S&P, almond butter mixed w chocolate and coconut butter, rolled into balls – delicious!
D – big salad w sardines, cheese, balsalmic and olive oil

Tuesday  May 7, 2013
paul newman vanilla coffee w whole raw milk
B -2 whole eggs plus 1 white w parsley, gouda, S&P, bowl of blueberries and walnuts
L – leftover spaghetti squash w/ chicken and pesto, coconut butter w/cocoa & stevia
D – salad w/slow roasted pulled lamb w olive oil, balsamic, S&P

May 4, 2013   Gone Whole Day at a Lecture
B – 2 scoops Designer Whey chocolate with a tablespoon coconut butter and water
L – (packed)  Salad:  greens, sauerkraut, spring onions, avocado, salmon, asparagus, EVOO and Balsamic, S&P, whole orange, dark chocolate bar
D – out for dinner/Chipolte : salad: chicken, greens, peppers, guac, salsa, dark chocolate bar

April 27, 2013
Away for the weekend at the Homestead, regular room/no kitchen, brought a packed cooler for the weekend.
-Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee with raw/ff/milk
B -1 scoop designer whey chocolate protein mixed with water, 4 dates, 1/2 banana,  1 hard boiled egg
L -salmon packet (2.5 servings, ate the whole thing) mixed with Bubbies relish; 2 carrots, 1/2 dark chocolate bar
D -out for dinner: fried green tomatoes, salad w/ homemade ranch dressing, blackened catfish w / roasted tomatoes, grilled asparagus,  split a piece of cheesecake with Mark

April 22, 2013
-Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee with raw, full fat milk
B – 2 eggs with yolks plus 3 more egg whites, parsley, gouda, 1 banana
L – salmon, Bubbies pickles, pickle juice, half avacado, 2 carrots, 2 dates
D – leftover salad w left over burger, EVOO & Balsalmic, 2 dates

April 17, 2013
-Paul Newman organic vanilla coffee with raw milk (always full fat)
B – 1 scoop designer whey chocolate protein w/ 2 spoons of coconut butter, blueberries, water
L – 2 meatballs (made 3 weeks ago and frozen), a carrot, a celery stalk w/ sunflower butter
D – leftover Cod cooked in chicken broth, roasted potatoes w/ cultured butter, salad w/ EVOO/balsalmic

April 15, 2013
-Paul Newman organic coffee with raw cream
B – keifer, cocoa, stevia, spinach, chia seeds, banana, berries, cinnamon, ginger, cocoa nibs, coconut butter smoothie
L – leftover lamb mixed with leftover cabbage/apple slaw spoonfuls of coconut butter
D – leftover chicken with salad, EVOO

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dandelion, Beet Greens, & Honey Comb; Plus, Is Your Butt Really Your Biggest Problem?

pestoWoop Woop!  I’ve been MIA from my blog, but I’m back, and I have a new Mantra! Instead of just “Food is Medicine or Food is Poison”, I’ve expanded that to:  “Moving Is Medicine, and Not Moving is Poison”, and “Good Thoughts are Medicine, and Bad Thoughts are Poison”.

The science behind each of those phrases is rock solid.  Today, though, we’re just talking about food.

Look at my title, does it sound silly? It’s not. I’m amazed at how many people obsess over their weight/thighs/butt/stomach, when their health/ energy/ mood is dangerously poor; when they’re constantly sick, or sore; when they struggle to get out of bed in the morning.

Feeling good, feeling positive and stable and healthy, that’s the result of our daily lifestyle choices.  Aging… jobs… difficult people.. those are excuses.  Change your thoughts if you’ve been using them to justify your bad habits or poor health.

First thought to change: that food is about calories, and if I could just keep my calories low enough, I’d lose weight, feel great, and be happy.

Load. Of. Crap. Thinking.

Calories-Smalories.  Food is medicine, or food is poison, and American’s eat a lot of poison.  We feed it to our children thinking it can’t hurt them, but it does.

Following is a Recipe Index for Kitchen Sink Smoothies, which is pure Medicine Food.

Americans need more Medicine Food, and here’s why:

The American Institute for Cancer Research predicts a 55% rise in cancer by 2055. The CDC predicts that every single chronic disease will continue to increase through 2030 ( that’s as far out as they predict.).  Depression has been rising since the 1980s and will continue to rise.

It’s not for lack of medications, because we take more medications THAN ANY COUNTRY IN THE WORLD.

Hmmm.  If medications make you healthy – which is the total reason for their existence – than why would all of our markers for health be decreasing instead of increasing?

The problem is NONE of us are “low in medicine“;….  we’re low in nutrients – which literally make every single part of our body.  ( We also don’t move enough or control our thought life in the right direction. More later.)

Enter the “Kitchen Sink Smoothies”, so called because I throw in everything except the Kitchen Sink.  These are Real Whole Food Bonanzas!

Most people begin their Smoothie path with Starter Smoothies, and they’re great!  It’s like walking before you run.

Here’s an example of a Starter Smoothie Recipe:

Good Protein Powder (very few ingredients, NO artificial flavors or sweeteners, maybe even organic or grass fed whey – there’s plenty of good ones on the market.)

Berries & Banana

Spinach

Mix it all in a blender with a few ice cubes and go.  Easy Peasy.  Perfect for Busy Moms who also have to make breakfast for a pack of kids.

Unfortunately, it’s not going to keep you full very long, or at least this never kept me full very long.  There’s no fat, and it’s too easily digested.

Pros:  there’s some good nutrients, and it’s fast and easy

Cons:  there’s limited nutrients, especially because we all tend to get in to food ruts, and eat the same foods over and over.

Kitchen Sink Smoothies are a great way to broaden your range of nutrients, and (honestly) use Medicine Food to fight:  weight gain, Heart Disease, CANCER, depression, diabetes, auto-immune, bacterial/viral infections, aging skin, etc etc etc.

I’m going to give you a list of Greens, Fats, Herbs & Spices, and “Fun Add Ins”, and you should try to use at least one from each column to build your smoothie.

This list is by no means “complete”; these are a few options in a sea of more options.

Make accumulating these ingredients a gradual process; in other words, don’t buy all these this week.  Accumulate them over time, and get in the habit of rotating the ingredients.

Mantra:  My body needs a broad assortment of nutrients.

20160221_163012 (1)Greens (other than spinach):  Beet Greens;  Kale;  Chard;  Bok Choy;  Cabbage;  Dandelion Greens; Sprouts ( aka – sunflower sprouts, beet sprouts, kale sprouts, etc.)

20160221_164352TIP:  Wash (if they’re not already), baggie asap, and then freeze.  Greens become like glass in the freezer:  very easy to crush and dispense into your blender.  And this way they don’t decompose before you use them.

Fats: Coconut Oil; Flax Seed Oil ONLY IF YOU’RE NOT ESTROGEN DOMINANT; all Nuts, and all Seeds; Avocado Oil, Macadamia Nut Oil, Coconut Flakes, Avocado, Eggs/Raw ONLY IF YOU GET THEM FROM A FARMER/NOT A STORE, AND HAVE A GOOD IMMUNE SYSTEM, Real Cream; Real Yogurt; Real Keifer;  ( Check out Rich Food Poor Food by the Caltons if you have no idea what I mean by “real”).

TIP:  Don’t be afraid of using Fats.  Fats make us:  our hormones, our brain, our organs, our tissues, the membrane of every single cell in our body is made from fats.  Fats also assist many nutrients into the cells to be used.

Herbs & Spices:  Ginger ( real/powdered ); Cloves; Turmeric; Nutmeg; 0401162017Cinnamon; Salt; Parsley, Cilantro; Lemon Balm.

Tip:  Herbs & Spices are SERIOUS Medicine Food.  Check out www.greenmedinfo.com and and match your body/health/conditions with different herbs.  It’s a database of Pub Med Research articles.

More:  Cherries; Cranberries; Mixed Berries; Black Berries; Blueberries; Raspberries; Oranges; Carrots; Beets.

Tip: Don’t get stuck in a rut with your berries, their nutrient content is very different, and we need them all.

What else do I throw in?   Maca Root powder; Baking Soda, Greens Powders; L-Glutamine; Magnesium; Rose Hips; Collagen, and any leftover herbs from teas I made the day before.

You can really start your day off with a bang!  Here’s my last tip, and actually, I got this from my daughter Macy over Easter Break: add more water, and make enough to have a breakfast smoothie and a lunch smoothie.

Whew.  That was a lot. I hope you see how creative you can get with your smoothie.  A breakfast of bagels, cereal, or toast is fast, and easy, and….. Poison.

Take the steps, make the plan, do the shopping and the chopping and the prepping, to eat Medicine Food all day, every day.  What are some ingredients not on these lists that you use in your smoothies?

5 Love Languages, Greens, Chocolate, & 10,000 Steps: The Heart Weekend!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAMark and I are on a Healthy Heart Weekend:  paddle-boarding, sight seeing, and a Marriage Conference with Dr. Gary Chapman of the 5 Love Languages.  We’ve slept in 2 different hotels in 2 days, but we packed all our food, so we’ve managed to eat well, move a lot, and do some Positive Thinking.  In other words, we’re traveling healthy.  I get a lot of emails and questions about traveling, and I want to answer them with a leaning towards Heart Health.

Heart Disease is the #1 killer in America, and it’s something we should all be working to prevent.  It’s showing up in children now – moms, here’s where we step in.

Heart disease is a LIFESTYLE DISEASE.  High blood pressure, plaque, heavy-dense cholesterol, high blood sugar, hard arteries….. these are caused by the what we put in our mouth, the exercise we don’t get, and the stress we don’t manage.

No one has heart disease because they’re low in statins.

Whether we’re traveling or home, it’s important to take the steps to make our body healthy.

Let’s start with food.  Our heart primarily runs on fatty acids for fuel.  Surprising? It’s the truth, so feed your heart healthy fats!  Have you read that the new Dietary Guidelines will “un-vilify” cholesterol as a cause of heart disease?  It’s true!

“Previously the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended that cholesterol intake be limited to no more than 300 mg/day. The 2015 DGAC (Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee) will not bring forward this recommendation because available evidence shows no appreciable relationship between consumption of dietary cholesterol and serum cholesterol, consistent with the conclusions of the AHA/ACC (American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology report. Cholesterol is not a nutrient of concern for overconsumption.”

What about the fact that Saturated Fat has NEVER been scientifically proven to cause heart disease?

“Saturated fat has remained the main dietary villain for heart disease for over 50 years. Last year a meta-analysis of 72 studies with more than 600,000 participants determined that there was no association between how much saturated fat people ate and their risk of having a fatal or nonfatal heart attack (Annals of Internal Medicine, March 18, 2014).”

This isn’t carte blanche to eat any thing we want.  Fats are very unique and different; some are great, some are good, and some are horrible.

Stay away from vegetable oils, margarines, and trans fats, they’re always bad, always.

Eat up grass fed butter and ghee, extra virgin olive oil, coconut butter, avocados, and nuts.  Bonus: these fats have anti-fungal/bacterial/viral properties, immune boosting properties, anti-inflammatory properties, and are even healthy for our brain.

The heart also loves amino acids/protein (it is a muscle after all, and needs to rebuild it’s cells), and vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.

You know how I always say “eat a TON of vegetables”?  Herbs and spices too;  Moms, stay strong when it comes to vegetables and picky kids.  You’ve GOT to win this battle.  Here’s why.

The heart (and the arteries in the penis, the neurotransmitters in the brain, the lining of the gut, bone remodeling, and white blood cell function) heavily depends on Nitric Oxide (NO).  NO is a vasodilator that relaxes the lining of the arteries and increases blood flow.  If there’s any damage to the arteries at all, which is where a lot of that NO is made, then there’s NO deficiency.

Here’s a list of foods high in natural nitrates ( which convert to NO):

*Garlic
*Beets
*Greens
*Walnuts
*Cranberries
*Honey
*Black Tea
*Pistachios
*Salmon
*Animal Organs
*Shrimp
*Onions
*Peanut Butter

Cool fact: chew your food well, because it’s the bacteria in our mouth that convert the nitrates to NO – who knew!!!

We want to leverage all the colors of the vegetable (and fruit) kingdom, because they have nutrients, besides their vitamins and minerals which are vital, called phytonutrients, that scientists are really just beginning to discover.  Nutrients called lycopene, lutein, alpha carotene, and beta carotene.

Studies show that bodies with higher levels of these nutrients have less stroke and heart attack.

What’d we pack to eat this weekend?  Chicken (already cooked), eggs, salad greens, zucchinis, cukes, tomatoes, onion, garlic, sea salt, EVOO and balsamic, roasted potatoes (left over from Wednesday- so I just warmed them) dates, peaches, nuts, Jay Robb protein powder, raw milk, raw cream, and kerry gold butter.  Oh, plus organic chocolate and coffee!  We stay in Residence Inns whenever we can because they have kitchens.

Exercise: almost as critical for the heart as food.  Have I told you I LOVE MY FITBIT??  Even on days like yesterday, where we were in a seminar from 9 to 3:30, we managed to get over 10,000 steps in.  We walked on each break, plus lunch, and again after dinner.  Had I not had the Fitbit, we’d never had taken that many steps. Most phones have counters on them if you don’t have a smart watch yet.  Friday we paddle boarded a few miles, and then walked a battlefield and Civil War Park.  Links are attached if you’re looking for fun in Richmond, Va.  Today:  lifting with Macy at the VCU gym!

5 Love Languages – for heart health?  YES!  Have you ever read the book, The Blue Zones?  It’s about the 4 places on earth with the largest populations of centenarians, or people who live past 100.  I’ve been obsessed with it for years, the same with any story I see of a Centenarian, or studies on Centenarians.

What do these people have in common, is it Kale Smoothies or Cross Fit or Veganism?  NOPE!  The biggest common link is community, usefulness, and purpose.  In other words, they’re fulfilled and happy. They have love in their life.

That’s where the 5 Love Languages comes in.  Mark and I are regular pursuers of both Happy Marriage and Happy Minds.  I say “pursuer” because happiness doesn’t just drop on our heads, it’s something we have to focus on and work for.  That’s really what “stress management” is about, right?  It’s how we handle life that matters, and the 5 Love Languages has great advice for communicating and getting along.

On that note, our heart apparently THRIVES on happy hormones and chemicals, and can be destroyed by destructive hormones (cortisol and insulin) and chemicals.  This is a big deal, and an area of growing research.

Meditation is part of progressive heart disease reversal programs because it’s been proven again and again to work.  There’s too much evidence to ignore: if leading with our negative emotions is our normal go-to, then all the good food and exercise in the world could be negated when it comes to heart health.

I’m leaving you with a few really great heart health resources, please check them out.  What we hear in our doctors offices often doesn’t correlate with the latest in the scientific research.

Most research on reversing heart disease, (not merely managing symptoms) is based on Life Style answers, like food, exercise, stress management, and sleep.

NO ONE’S MAKING MONEY OFF THOSE REMEDIES; the likely hood of a stress management rep, or a Real Whole Food rep, walking into our doctors office to sell him/her on the latest and greatest reasons to use these tools isn’t going to happen.

We’re going to have to do this on our own.

Dr. Mercola/fats/heart health.

Dr. Davis/fats/heart health.

Dr. Wortman/fats/heart health.

Podcast/Dr. Kahn/heart health and testing – FASCINATING & INFORMATIVE.

True Grit, Good Eating, and Lots of Pictures!

4 girls after walking cereOur #2 daughter, Amanda, just graduated from college this past weekend.  Graduation is a big deal for everyone, but this is extra special to us.

Amanda’s epileptic, and epilepsy and college aren’t very conducive; she did it anyway.  She graduated from UVa despite more seizures there cumulatively than she’s had since she was 7.  She worked through post seizure migraines and pain, pre-seizure aura’s, and memory loss due to cluster seizures.  She had more trips to the hospital than most people have in a life time.  She missed classes and had to deal with explaining – over and over again – to her professors why.

Some days she called home crying that staying at UVa didn’t seem possible, or healthy.  But she stayed, and she persevered through more obstacles than most of us will ever encounter.20150515_154723
amanda I on step FridayI don’t know why God choose Amanda for these trials.  I do know that coming out on the other end has made her really strong.

Last week, one of my friends put this on Facebook:  “On particularly rough days, when I’m sure I can’t possibly endure, I like to remind myself that my track record for getting through bad days so far is 100%… that’s pretty good.”

That’s Amanda. She literally defines True Grit and No Excuses, and I’m so proud of her.

It’s easy to see how Epilepsy and Lifestyle are super related.  Seizures are20150516_115227 (1) triggered by dehydration, high and low blood sugar, alcohol, lack of sleep, stress, full moons, periods and God knows what else.  No one can control the moon, or a woman’s cycles, but food, water, alcohol, sleep and stress management, they’re all controllable. (Seizures can still have a mind of their own.)

Amanda has big, obvious results if she doesn’t manage her life carefully, but I want to venture that all of us have r20150516_094620esults from not managing our lives carefully: headaches, stomach problems, weight problems, auto-immune issues, fatigue, chronic disease, and pain. They’re just as connected to our day to day actions as Amanda’s seizures.

If my 23 year old daughter can own her health, we all can. Our health should be a priority, and the way we handle that priority doesn’t just affect us, it influences the children and friends and family who watch us.

Now for the Fun Stuff:  Pictures from the weekend in no chronological order, and details on how we stuck to Real Whole Food while traveling:)  20150516_192747 We were lucky to stay in the house of some friends – super lucky.  The house was a dream for me because I love old homes!  So much character!

I brought enough food that we ate all our meals at “home”. (I pretended all weekend that house was mine.)  For breakfast, we had eggs, chicken sausage, fruit, and cheese.  For lunch, we had lunch meats, cheese, saurkrauts, fruit, nuts, and paleo cookies.

20150516_184236It was the dinners that made the weekend!

We catered from a Charlottesville company called20150516_184253 dahcatering – they were FANTASTIC!  Organic and gluten free ingredients, lots of flavor, plenty of food, I can’t say enough good things.  They delivered everything on Friday and I just had to reheat each night.  Here’s a family pic of all of us, Amanda’s boyfriend Ian, my in-laws, and my niece Morgan.  It was party!

amanda and ian after diplomaThe first night we had salmon topped with pesto, a quinoa dish loaded with asparagus and herbs, 20150516_115513gluten free cornbread, and a huge spinach/strawberry/toasted almond/goat cheese salad.  The dessert: gluten free ginger cookies and Trickling Springs ice cream that I brought with us ( thank you dry ice!)

The second night we had chicken breasts stuffed with roasted peppers and mixed cheeses, topped with a mushroom/cream/white wine sauce, a GIANT bowl of roasted vegetables, roasted potatoes, polenta, and coconut macaroons with more Trickling Springs ice cream.

I believe good ice cream is essential to any celebration.

20150516_115035 (1)

Mark and Amanda after the morning ceremony.

amanda in cap gown

 

 

 

Amanda, as an “alumni”.

Guest Post By Megan: How To Eat Well On Vacation Or While Traveling

IMG_20150407_114757I get asked all the time “what should I eat while I’m on vacation in ________?”  Usually, I answer on a case by case basis, but I think the ACTUAL issue, is:  “Usually on vacation I pig out and gain weight, because it’s vacation and that means I can eat whatever I want when I want.”   Ohh, wrong mind set; let’s change it.

My oldest daughter, Megan, has been traveling the world for 4 years this coming May.  Seriously, she comes home and works to make some money for a few months here and there, and then she leaves again.  She’s lived in IMG_20150411_094940Alaska, Hawaii, Central America, South America, and Europe.  Right now, she’s in Guatemala.

She’s been able to do this through a couple “work-for-room-and-food” sites, called WWOOF ( world wide organization of organic farms ) and Help-eX ( Help-Exchange).  I’ll let her tell you more about them in future Posts, but for now, if you really want advice on what to eat while you’re _______, read her Post.  If anyone can answer that question, she can.

As to the actual discipline of eating healthy while you’re away from home and your kitchen and your grocery store, the answer to that is Mind Set and Planning.

Seriously.  If you’ve been dreaming about all the food you’re going to eat and indulge in on your trip, you’re doomed to go overboard, gain weight, and possibly have a hard time getting back on the wagon.  If you don’t plan on eating healthy, and the steps you need to take to do that, it won’t happen.

If you don’t eat processed foods and flour and chemicals and overdose on alcohol, because you think they cause cancer, inflammation, stomach bloat and disease, then it’s really not that hard to stay away from them.  Practice the mental associations that lead to that mind set!

FB_IMG_1428767563713Here’s Megan’s Post, along with some of her latest pictures.  If you’re interested in following this particular journey that started December 31, 2014, check out michaellibis.com blog that I’ve attached at the end of this piece.

Health and travel are two of my greatest passions. I’ve been living and traveling around the world budget-backpacker-style for nearly four years now, and I plan to continue traveling for quite some time. I find deep joy and fulfillment in discovering creative new ways of eating healthily while I’m on the go. Throughout my journey, I’ve learned that it is ALWAYS possible to make healthy eating choices on the road, regardless of location, accessibility, or budget. However it does require taking the initiative, trying new things, thinking outside of the box and the willingness to stay true to your commitment towards a healthy lifestyle. Luckily, it’s a lot easier than you might think, not to mention, the challenge is fun and rewarding on so many levels.

Here are some healthy tips for clean eating away from home:

1. Plan ahead. Stock up on nutrient-dense foods that travel well and are convenient for snacking when you need to refuel on the go. Try packing nuts, seeds, dried and fresh fruits, nut butters, hard boiled eggs, veggie sticks, good quality dark chocolate, coconut butter or jars of fermented vegetables. Before I go on a road trip or hop on a plane I’ll eat a pretty large meal beforehand to avoid buying food at an airport or gas station. If my accommodation provides a place to cook, I always carry along some cooking staple items with me, like coconut oil, salt, pepper, a knife, etc.

HATPICS-003202. Prepare your own meals. If your accommodation or hotel has a kitchen, try to make time to cook and prepare your own meals, it’s always the healthiest option. Bring containers so that you can pack prepared meals for busy days that you’ll be out and about. When grocery shopping, focus on stocking up on whole, fresh foods. No matter where I am, I religiously avoid pre-packaged, processed, refined food items and anything containing gluten, wheat or sugar. I’m also a vegetarian so I personally choose to avoid meat and dairy, but if it pleases you and you have access to good quality meats and/or raw dairy items, seek out these ingredients to incorporate into your prepared meals. Prioritizing high-quality, nutrient-dense food over IMG_20150411_094546prepackaged conveniences is perhaps the most important component of staying healthy on the go. I am currently living in a small apartment on the side of a cliff in a remote village in Guatemala where the nearest vegetable and fruit stand is a 20 minute walk away. I regularly stock up on plantains, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, pastured-eggs, beets, carrots, cucumbers, onions, avocado, lettuce, etc. I’ve created a wide variety of different dishes since I’ve been here just using these basic few ingredients like hash browns, potato pancakes, veggie scrambles, curries, veggie frittatas, roasted vegetables, plantain pancakes, veggie burgers, salads, lettuce wraps, etc. I’ve learned it is really important to be willing to get creative with whatever is available, especially when it feels like the options are limited. If you’re in need of extra help and inspiration for recipes, try websites like Supercook.com where you can do recipe searches based on the ingredients you have in your fridge.

3. While eating out, scan the menu for real, whole food options. Restaurant menus are often filled with plenty of tempting items that don’t serve your health, so scan the menu for foods that you feel genuinely good about putting into your body. Look for dishes that incorporate as many fresh and nutritious ingredients as possible, choose real food options over the processed ones. Most of the time restaurants are happy to accommodate your dietary needs if you speak up, and nowadays most places have plenty of gluten-free, vegetarian and fresh-food options available right on the menu. Free apps like AroundMe and HappyCow are incredibly helpful tools to finding organic, locally sourced, grass-fed or gluten-free restaurant options near you in any city or country around the world.

4. Don’t stress. Be flexible and adaptable. Enjoy yourself. It is likely that there will be different options available to you when you’re traveling than what you’re used to back at home. Don’t let this derail you from your commitment to healthy eating, but even more megbraidimportantly don’t let it stress you out. Sometimes you’re going to have to think outside the box or eat something that normally would avoid, but that’s ok, just try your best. Be sure to spend more of your time enjoying yourself and soaking up the moment than stressing about what you’re going to eat.

5. Utilize the resources that are available to you; open up and try new things. Visiting new places equates to leaving your comfort zone, so use this as an opportunity to open up and try things that aren’t normally as accessible to you. Try foods that are native to where you are, if you’re visiting the tropics, snack on tropical fruit; if you’re in Alaska try the fresh caught salmon, etc. Before I lived in the Caribbean, I had never eaten a plantain but I quickly discovered that they were a main staple down there, not to mention incredibly cheap and nutritious; they soon became one of my favorite foods and I learned how to incorporate them into most of my meals.

lunch on beach6. Listen to your body. Your body may have different needs than you’re used to depending on where you’re traveling, especially if you’re traveling to a different climate zone. I find that when I’m visiting cold places I crave slightly heavier foods that warm me up from the inside out and ground me, like root vegetables, spicy curries, soups, legumes and grains like oats and quinoa. While in the tropics, my body wants lighter, fresher foods, like smoothies, salads, and raw fruits and veggies. Tune in and and listen to the unique and ever-changing nutritional needs of your body.

And there you have it: advice on eating well while traveling the world.

BTW:  The first several pictures were taken recently of Meg by her boyfriend Michael Libis, a Travel and Photography expert; his blog link’s in the Resource links.  The last pic is a phone photo of us visiting Meg last year when she was working at a B&B in Culebra, Puerto Rico, taken by Mark, who’s NOT a photography expert.

However, he is a “eat well on business trips” expert, so I’m going to get him to write a Post on Business Travel soon, as that’s another question I get often.  He didn’t know that til just now, but he loves me and loves to do me favors, so I’m sure he’ll be happy about it.

I also asked my other daughters to write Posts on, 1) eating well when you’re Epileptic and in College, and food choices really DO make a difference in day to day health , and 2) eating Real Whole Foods in college.

Moms and Dads, our examples are ENORMOUS sources of influence and behavior, so it really, really matters what choices we make while on vacation, or travel, and obviously, every day.  Be determined to develop a Mind Set about Food that leads to feeling Healthy and Energetic and happy with ourselves; not Bloated, Tired, Sick and mad at ourselves.

Resources:

Questions about traveling on the cheap, or clean eating in different areas of the world?  Reach out to Meg on FaceBook: Megan Abbott.

Wondering where to go on Vacation, or want to be transported somewhere else right now?  Check out Mike’s Travel Blog, get in touch with him, and yes, he’s a professional, that’s why the pics are so amazing:

http://www.michaellibis.com/

https://www.helpx.net/

http://www.wwoof.net/

 

How Cool! Egg Shell Calcium – Smells Like Dessert, and It’s Healthy!

20150228_081827These are before and after pictures of my eggshells:  whole, and then powered.  Holy Cow do they smell delicious, like meringue. This is my new, favorite way to get my calcium, the most 20150228_081926abundant mineral in our body.

Years ago I took calcium supplements; I actually used them as my “candy”, and so did my kids.  Ugh.  Big mistake.  Most calcium supplements use a form of calcium that doesn’t actually make it into our bones.  Worse, many calcium supplements contain junk we don’t want in our body.  Look at this ingredient list of Viactiv:

 Calcium Carbonate, Corn Syrup, Sugar, Hydrogenated Coconut Oil, Corn Syrup Solids, Sweetened Condensed Milk (milk , sugar), Cocoa Processed with Alkali, Glycerine, Contains 1% or Less of Cornstarch, Artificial Flavors, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Vitamin D3, Vitamin K1

Really?? Yet many in the health profession recommend this to “keep our bones strong”.

Here’s the scoop on calcium in a nutshell.  Our bones and teeth should hold about 90% of our bodies calcium.  When we eat absorbable calcium (like the kind in eggshells, raw dairy, bones, almonds and greens, all Real Whole Foods), our body puts the calcium where it belongs: the bones and the teeth.

When we eat processed foods and calcium supplements, which contain cheap and poorly absorbed forms of calcium, our body puts the calcium where it doesn’t belong:  arteries (that’s what “hardening” refers to), kidneys (stones), skin (scleroderma), eyes (cataracts), joints, even the prostate and ovaries, which also can become “hardened”.

Several recent studies nail calcium supplements for dramatically increasing the risk of heart attack:  “A large study of 24,000 men and women aged 35–64 years published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) in 2012 found that those who used calcium supplements had a 139% greater risk of heart attack during the 11-year study period, while intake of calcium from food did not increase the risk.”  FYI: It’s crappy calcium that’s added to “fortified” foods, like orange juice; another reason to just eat Real Whole Foods.

Most ironic of all, study after study shows that calcium supplementation doesn’t increase bone density, and that countries who supplement the most have the highest rates of bone fractures.

Back to my Egg Shell Calcium beginning, we need good calcium! Not just for strong bones and teeth, but for our nerves, our enzymes, and every cell of our body. Good calcium makes us normal – one of my biggest goals!

Here’s the exciting part: studies show that eggshell calcium actually stimulates bone and cartilage growth, and decreases arthritic pain.

Here’s the DIY how-to’s:

Save all your egg shells in a big cup, and keep the cup in the fridge until you have 10 or more.

Boil the shells in a pot of water for 10 minutes.

Dry the shells in the oven on 200 for 10 to 15 minutes.

Grind in a coffee grinder; a blender or food processor’s blades will be too big.

One teaspoon of eggshell calcium contains about 800mg of calcium, so use accordingly.  Recommendations for adults are around 1000 mg a day, more for pregnant and lactating women, less for kids.

I’ve been putting mine in my morning smoothies or hot drinks, anything with fat because fat is absolutely essential for calcium absorption into the bone, as is Vitamin K2 (not K1, a la Viactiv) and Vitamin D2.

Isn’t nature cool?

Weight Loss, Heart Disease, Sugar Addiction, Plus, How I Stopped My Cravings.

I received some good emails this week that I want to address in the blog.  In one, a 43 year old man described himself as diabetic, overweight, hypertensive ( high blood pressure ), and on a blood thinner (from thick, sticky, blood).  He needs help losing weight, and doesn’t understand why I would say he has Heart Disease.  He’s gained 14 pounds in the past month.

Another email was a plea for help with sugar addiction, from a woman who has chronic fatigue and depression to the point of not being able to get out of bed for 7 weeks.  She’s also gained 28 pounds since September.

While these 2 people seem to present different problems, honestly, their issues are the same:  they’re incredibly nutrient deficient; their cells haven’t received the vitamins, minerals, fats and proteins they need to function normally, and now their bodies are breaking down.

How can you be nutrient deficient and overweight?  Easy.  Just because our fat cells are stuffed, doesn’t mean we’re getting the nutrients our body needs to run correctly.

Imagine putting water in your car’s gas tank.  It’s a liquid.  The tank would be full, but it wouldn’t run. That’s not the right fuel for the car.

Sugar, grains, bad fats, and chemicals aren’t the right fuels for us. Food is medicine, or food is poison.  That stuff is poison and it’ll kill us eventually, after making us sick for years.

Resources and suggestions will be at the end of the Post, but first:

Robert wants to know why I said he has Heart Disease when his doctors have given his heart a clean bill of health.  I’m so glad he asked, because this applies to so many people.

The causes of Heart Disease are being re-identified by modern science.  Inflammation ( anywhere in the body ) that’s persistent or chronic ( i.e., not just a response to a cut or injury ) is damaging, and a huge cause of Heart Disease, the number one killer in the US.

Diabetes causes inflammation from high blood sugar and high insulin, that’s because blood sugar(glucose) and insulin do a lot of damage when they zip too long and too often through the blood stream. Diabetes causes heart disease.  Heart disease and stroke are the #1 cause of death among Type 2 Diabetics.  Think you’re okay because you’re on diabetes meds?  You’re not.  In the studies determining who died of what, the diabetics who died from heart disease were on meds.  Besides that, meds all come with a long and dangerous list of side effects.  Medications address symptoms – not causes.  Diabetes drugs cause pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer, kidney problems and more.  These diseases take years to manifest, just like diabetes takes years to manifest, and while it’s “manifesting”, damage is happening.

Other clues to Robert having heart disease:  high blood pressure (HBP) and thick blood.  This means the arteries are either narrowed or stiff, which makes the heart pump harder, and thick blood is also harder for the heart to push around.  HBP is the #1 cause for Cardiovascular Disease.  Thick blood is on that list too.  Medications mask the symptoms, but the REASON for the symptom isn’t solved by meds, so the problems persist all the while the side effects of the medications are building.

Natasha, you ate a healthy diet and ran 20 miles a week before you fell ill.  I thought that I ate a healthy diet, but I still got blood clots, asthma, fatigue, and horrible IBS ( inflammatory bowel syndrome ). That’s because I actually just “dieted”:  low calorie, low fat foods, many of them processed.  Luckily for me, I’ve always eaten a lot of vegetables, and I’m going to assume you did too.  Unluckily for me, thanks to keeping my fat grams to 20 or less a DAY (except for the days I’d binge), I absorbed very little of the vitamins or minerals in those vegetables.  I also consumed an enormous amount of trans fats and hydrogenated oils in all my fake cheese and dairy products, protein bars, and frozen diet meals. To add insult to injury, I was a big “healthy whole grain” believer/ addict, and did my best to get the 6 to 12 daily servings our government recommended.

I was at a lecture yesterday by the Weston A Price foundation, and the speaker – Sally Fallon – called this kind of diet a Diabetes Starter Kit.  I love that!!

Anyway, Natasha’s struggle with fatigue and depression are the result of her brain, her heart, and her mitochondria/ fuel burners in her cells, NOT getting the fuel they need to function optimally.

Luckily, our body wants to be normal, and our cells are constantly renewing themselves.  For most of us, we can fix what’s wrong.  Robert and Natasha can. I did, you can too.  All we have to do is eat a diet that supplies the nutrients our body craves:  healthy fats, good proteins, tons of vegetables, some nuts and seeds, and a little fruit.  Whole fat dairy, preferably raw, if you tolerate it.

Try this:  Buy Kerry Gold Butter, a good Olive Oil, and unrefined Coconut Oil.  Start using these in Every Single Meal.  For me, this is the #1 key to stopping cravings, losing weight, and changing our cells for the better.  What do you have to lose???

Eggs/sausage/bacon/veggies for breakfast?  Fry them in 2 to 3 tablespoons of butter or coconut oil.  Or add Coconut oil to your smoothie.

Cover your lunch meats and veggies and cheeses with olive oil – and I mean cover.

Make sure every dinner is cooked or covered in these fats.

No more tiny meals either, on small plates with baby forks, THAT’S JUST DUMB. Small meals of insufficient calories slow down your thyroid, something NOT conducive to losing weight.  Use a grown up plate and eat a serving size that makes your brain relax and not go into starvation mode.

Make your own salad dressings, again, using those good fats.  Go through your pantry and THROW OUT all your crackers, cereal, breads, cookies, and junk food.  Anything “snackie”;  this might include NUTS.

Here’s my opinion on nuts (which I literally get asked at least once a week):  nuts have a TON of nutrients.  Unfortunately, for so many, they’re a trigger food, and most people, and ALL ADDICTS, can’t stop at a handful.  Trigger foods in your house will ALWAYS rule you, ALWAYS.  This is a fact, so get rid of your trigger foods today.

Make a shopping list, then shop, chop, prep, and do power cooking ( cook in big batches ) if you need too.  Take your weekly schedule into consideration when you make your list and then make a food plan of when and where and what you’re going to eat in the coming week.  Got a bunch of kid’s activities in the evening?  Put food in a crock pot that morning.  Need to pack lunches but know your morning is going to be rushed?  Do it the night before.  Bake 10 potatoes at one time and refrigerate them.  Make a batch of broth ( another great source of fats and nutrients ) and use that like water in your food all week.  Make and refrigerate chili’s or stews or soups, their flavors intensify after a few days.

The more attention you give to making Real Whole Food work in your daily life, the easier it gets, and the healthier – and leaner – you get.  You can do this.  I met a woman yesterday who, at age 55, lost 70 pounds by switching to Real Whole Foods, and she’s kept if off for 8 years.  After years of dieting, she now eats a ton of fat and is thin.

You can be too, I promise.  Please investigate the resources below; fill your mind with the why’s and how-to’s of feeding your body the nutrients it needs to remake and repair itself every single day.

http://www.rocksolidnutritionandwellness.com/want-to-lose-weight-reduce-inflammation-gain-energy-and-look-younger/

http://www.heartmdinstitute.com/health-topics/heart-disease/424-heart-disease-risks-is-your-doctor-covering-your-bases

http://www.rocksolidnutritionandwellness.com/fat-makes-us-lean-fat-makes-us-smart-fat-gives-us-energy-step-out-of-1980-and-into-2015/

http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/?s=heart+disease

http://www.drugwatch.com/2014/05/12/increasing-side-effects-diabetes-drugs/

http://www.westonaprice.org/health-topics/

Has the Flu, a Cold, Virus or Bacteria Invaded Your Home? Here’s What To Do Now:

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, and a BIG thank you so much for reading my Blog:)

Now on to the topic of about a dozen emails the past several days:  either you, or someone in your home, has the flu, or a bad cold.  It’s a pretty sick December, isn’t it?  Obviously, the first line of Defense is to PREVENT pathogenic virus or bacteria from setting up shop in the first place.  Read these posts on how to do that plus several suggestions for treating illness after it strikes:  (1), (2), and (3).   Then see what I’m doing right now, including a few recipes.

My daughter Shelby is on her 3rd day of illness.  I’m pretty sure it was or is the flu, and she definitely had/has Pink Eye.  I absolutely DON’T believe in the flu shot.  For one thing, it’s LOADED with Mercury and Aluminum, why would I inject that into myself or my kids?  I’d rather get the flu bugs than Toxic Heavy Metals.  And Two: the CDC admitted that this years shot isn’t even that effective for those who did get it.  (I have a beef with vaccines. My daughter Amanda’s first seizure was 30 minutes after her kindergarten shots.  )   I’m not saying that all vaccines are bad, but they’re not all good either.

I also don’t use standard Cold Remedies anymore.  That stuff’s poison, and they have ZERO effect on actually helping your body kill the pathogenic bacteria or virus – ZERO, or boosting your immune system.  Cough and Cold medicines ONLY suppress symptoms, and actually contain ingredients like acetaminophen ( horrible for the liver), food dyes ( cancer anyone? ), and other chemicals that come with a long list of undesirable side effects.  PLUS *** symptoms like fever, coughs, runny nose, and watery eyes, are all DEFENSE MECHANISMS OUR BODY USES TO GET RID OF BAD GERMS.  I don’t want to suppress those;  I want to help her body clear them.

Here’s what I’m doing in my house for my Sick Kid, and here’s her symptoms: low grade fever ( about 100 ), severe body aches, nausea, sore throat, pink eye.  Everything abated within 12 hours, now it’s mostly a cold and fatigue.

1) She’s on 2 homeopathic flu remedies,  Oscillococcimun, and Influenzium 30.  I got both from my local health food store a few weeks ago.  I stocked up because the Influenzium 30 is actually a good PREVENTATIVE.  The past 2 years we’ve done a “take 10 pills 1x a week” routine starting in January, which worked beautifully.  ( I didn’t plan on someone getting sick so early!  Now, it’s a treatment instead of a preventative. )

2) She’s drinking a TON of water, herbal teas, and my TONICS, recipes to follow.

3) I’m using the essential oil blends ( from DoTerra ), Breath, On Guard, and a personal mix from a friend of Lavender/Clary Sage/Myrrh/Frankincense, which I’m rubbing on her feet, and the skin on the outside of her throat.   I’m a BIG believer in Essential Oils; they’re very, very effective.

4) For the Pink Eye ( and it was wicked!), I made a mix of 1 cup water, 1tsp salt, and a tbsp of Manuka Honey.  We’re putting those drops in her eyes every couple of hours; it started working very quickly.  She went from swollen shut with lots of goobers to wide open and no discharge within an afternoon.

5) Hot baths with Magnesium Flakes and essential oils, the same ones listed above.

6) She’s eating eggs, homemade Coconut Milk Bread w/ butter and honey, bananas, chicken, homemade broth, and peas.  Easy foods to digest.

7) For sleeping:  Melatonin, and Herb Pharm Relaxing Sleep Tonic – this puts her out like a light; our body WANTS to sleep when we’re sick, that’s when it can heal best.

8) Lots of Positive Reinforcement and Hugs.

Here’s the Recipe for Elderberry Syrup from the Wellness Mama site:

⅔ cup black elderberries
3.5 cups of water
2 T fresh or dried ginger root
1 tsp cinnamon powder
½ tsp cloves or clove powder
1 cup raw honey (we get from our farmer’s market)

Instructions
Pour water into medium saucepan and add elderberries, ginger, cinnamon and cloves (do not add honey!)
Bring to a boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour until the liquid has reduced by almost half. At that point, remove from heat and let cool enough to be handled. Pour through a strainer into a glass jar or bowl.
Discard the elderberries (or compost them!) and let the liquid cool to lukewarm. When it is no longer hot, add 1 cup of honey and stir well. ( you don’t want to kill honey’s live nutrients )
When honey is well mixed into the elderberry mixture, pour the syrup into a pint sized mason jar or 16 ounce glass bottle of some kind.
Ta Da! You just made homemade elderberry syrup! Store in the fridge and take daily for its immune boosting properties. Some sources recommend taking only during the week and not on the weekends to boost immunity.
Standard dose is ½ tsp to 1 tsp for kids and ½ Tbsp to 1 Tbsp for adults. If the flu does strike, take the normal dose every 2-3 hours instead of once a day until symptoms disappear.

Here’s The Vinegar of the 4 Thieves from the Wellness Mama Site, and yes, it needs to sit and develop.  If you make some this week, you’ll still have it for the last part of the winter.  I put a note on my calendar last year to make it in November this year.  I’m learning to plan ahead!

Vinegar of the Four Thieves Ingredients:

2 TBSP Thyme (dried)
2 TBSP Rosemary (dried)
2 TBSP Sage (dried)
2 TBSP Lavender (dried)
2 TBSP Mint (dried)
4-8 cloves of minced garlic (optional)
One 32-ounce bottle of organic Apple Cider Vinegar with “the Mother”
[Note: Most herbs can be found locally, but are also available online at places like Mountain Rose Herbs]

How To Make the Vinegar of The Four Thieves:

Put all the dried herbs and garlic (if using) into a large glass jar (I used half gallon)
Pour the Vinegar over the herbs and garlic and seal tightly. The vinegar is strong enough to corrode some metal lids, so in this case, consider putting plastic wrap or a plastic bag on top and then putting the lid on.
Leave in a cool, dark, place for 6-8 weeks (for health tonic recipe) shaking daily if possible.
After 6-8 weeks, strain the herbs out using a small strainer and store tonic in smaller jars for easy use.
Uses for Four Thieves Herbal Vinegar:

As I mentioned before, this vinegar makes a very effective (though strong smelling!) insect repellent. If you make it to this strength, just put 1/4 cup of the vinegar in an 8-ounce spray bottle and fill the rest with water. Spray on skin, clothes, etc. when in heavily insect infested areas. We store in the fridge to minimize the vinegar smell and make more refreshing.
In cases of illness, the Vinegar of the Four Thieves is very helpful in quick recovery. Adults can take 1 TBSP several times a day (dilute in water!!) and kids can take 1 Tsp several times a day (well diluted in water/herbal tea).
When a family member is sick, diluting this with 1 part water and putting in a spray bottle will make a potent disinfectant that can be used on surfaces or sprayed in the air.
I’ve had some people report really good success using this vinegar as a soak or topical spray for foot or nail fungus.
Diluted and used on the scalp, this remedy is also said to be effective against dandruff.
This vinegar makes an effective natural disinfectant spray for use in house cleaning.

Hate Your Thighs, Stomach, and Butt? What’s Changed in 2014; Holiday Recipes

thanksgiving2014Last November (2013), I had a theme running called Change Your Brain, Change Your Body.  Here’s the premise:  our every word and action is precipitated by our thoughts, and our thoughts make habit patterns in our brain.  These “habits” are chemical and structural in nature; they’re as real and concrete as a tree or a rug or a skin cell.

If you have Bad Habits that have led to you being overweight or sick ( such as the habit of eating every time you’re lonely or stressed, eating sugar/grain flour, or binging on the weekend); then the simple desire to change, or the feeling of hating body parts, won’t make a dent in the brain patterns you’ve nurtured and developed.  Those things are like steel train tracks, and getting rid of them requires a solid plan that focuses on getting rid of destructive old thought patterns and replacing them with productive new thought patterns.

When I work with a client who needs to lose weight or change eating habits that have led to poor health, I have them work just as much – or more – on their Brain Plan as I do on their Food Plan.

Here’s a quote from a Nov. 2013 post:

It’s been over a week now that I’ve challenged you to Change your Thinking if you want to Change Your Body; and I’m specifically talking about those negative thought patterns that I’ve heard so many people express: I hate my thighs, if only they were thinner; I hate my stomach; I hate my butt; I want to lose weight; If only I could lose 10 pounds…. etc etc etc. Ask yourself how long you’ve been spinning on these exact same thoughts and how well they’ve allowed you to change. How long?

Change doesn’t happen when you keep doing the “same old same old”; negative thought patterns NEVER produce positive results.  Stop thinking about what you don’t like on your body, and start focusing on improving your mind. Focus on being kinder, more loving, more productive, healthier, more energetic – anything other than weight and calorie counts. Use Mantras, Meditation, and Prayer; write positive or meaningful quotes on 10 or 20 sticky’s and post them all over: your mirrors, wallet, fridge, doors, car. PRACTICE changing your thoughts. 

I asked some questions at the end of 2013, and I’ve been thinking about them for the past few weeks:

What did I manifest this year?  What did I change?  What’s stayed the same? What will I work on?

Don’t let 2015 be more of what bugs you about yourself, be different!  Get in touch with me and we’ll develop a plan to free you from destructive habits.    If those destructive habits include food addiction, it’s going to take awhile.  If it’s just a matter of information… not so long.

On to something more fun: Thanksgiving Recipes, and a Paleo Party Invite.

If you’re in my area ( Northern Virginia ), I’m hosting a Paleo Christmas Party on Friday, December 12, from 12-2.  Everyone is invited!  Bring – or don’t! – a Grain Free, Sugar Free, Real Whole Food appetizer, dessert, or main dish.  If you aren’t on the Evite list, send me your email so I can put you on it 🙂

Last, a few recipes we made for Thanksgiving:

Low Carb Green Bean Casserole – this was EXCELLENT!  A few changes:  1. I didn’t use Avocado oil, too expensive and I love the taste of butter.   2.  I added a quarter cup of raw yogurt, it acts like sour cream.  This dish is going to be a tradition at our house.

* My sister wrapped medium sized sweet potato chunks in bacon  and then roasted them- EXCELLENT!

*  Low Carb Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake – OMG Delicious:

CRUST:
1 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 tsp aluminum free baking powder
1 cup coconut oil or butter
3/4 cup Swerve (or erythritol and 2 tsp stevia glycerite)
1 tsp Celtic sea salt
1 egg

FILLING:
3 8-ounce packages Cream Cheese, softened
3/4 cup Swerve (or erythritol and 1 tsp stevia glycerite)
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 dash ground cloves

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
CRUST: In a medium sized bowl combine all the ingredients. Press onto bottom of 9 inch springform pan.

FILLING: Beat cream cheese, 1/2 cup of the Swerve and vanilla with electric mixer until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended. Remove 1 cup plain batter; place in small bowl. Stir remaining 1/4 cup Swerve, pumpkin and spices into remaining batter. Spoon pumpkin batter into crust; top with spoonfuls of reserved plain batter. Cut through batters with knife several times for marble effect.

If using a springform pan, wrap the outside of it with tin foil so any oils don’t leak out into oven. Bake 55 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Cut into 12 slices. Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator. Serves 12

Angel Food Cake! What I’m Eating To Be Ketogenic, Pictures, and Recipes

angelfood cakeHere’s something that for a long time I considered “Healthy”, but it isn’t:  Angel Food Cake.  I remember my mom making it when I was a kid because my dad was told he had High Cholesterol, and Angel Food Cake had zero cholesterol, which meant healthy (in the old days!).  Then she’d make a fat free pudding with skim milk, and Viola!:  Healthy Dessert!

Here’s the Ingredient list for Betty Crocker Angel Food Cake mix:

Sugar, Wheat Flour Bleached, Egg White, Corn Starch, Leavening (Baking Soda, Citric Acid), Calcium Chloride, Modified Soy Protein, Salt, Cellulose Gum, Artificial Flavor, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (A Whipping Aid), Nonfat Milk. Freshness Preserved By BHT And Sodium Ascorbate.

If you cut the cake into 12 pieces, there’s 32 grams of sugar per piece, along side a giant dose of Cancer Causing, Liver Damaging, CHEMICALS.

Here’s the Ingredient list for Jello-O Instant Fat Free Vanilla Pudding:

Modified Food Starch, Maltodextrin, Tetrasodium Pyrophosphate And Disodium Phosphate (For Thickening), Contains Less Than 2% Of Nonfat Milk, Natural And Artificial Flavor, Salt, Calcium Sulfate, Xanthan Gum, Mono- And Diglycerides (Prevent Foaming), Aspartame And Acesulfame Potassium (Sweetener), Tetrasodium Pyrophosphate, Dipotassium Phosphate, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Artificial Color.

Thanks to a big dose of Aspartame, this pudding only has 8 grams of Sugar per serving, mostly, this pudding is a Giant Chemical.  The food dyes alone make it Poison, but the rest of those ingredients are just as bad.

Don’t do it!! Don’t be fooled by pretty desserts that promise no Fat and low Calories.  Our body NEEDS fat, and nutrients!  All those chemicals aren’t just potentially cancer causing, they’re bad for our LIVER ( the BIGGEST source of our Calorie Burn), our Heart ( oxidized cholesterol), our WEIGHT ( all that simple sugar will raise Blood Glucose right out of the normal range), and our Brain ( some of those chemicals are “excito-toxins”, and literally stimulate brain neurons to death!)

At the bottom of this post I’m attaching a recipe for an AMAZING Angel Food Cake from Maria’s Mind Body Health blog;  Shelby says it’s the best thing I’ve ever made, and Shelby’s a tough critic 🙂

I keep getting questions about What I’m Eating to put myself into Ketosis.  It’s been 19 days on the Keto Diet, and I’ve been updating my What I Eat page pretty frequently.

Monday, my Ketones finally hit the “Medium” range, ( took a while!), my weight’s been incredibly stable at 129/130, my energy and sleep are great, and I’m finding this really do-able. That’s probably because I was already Real Whole Food/Paleo for the past few years, and said goodbye to grains and sugars a long time ago.

That said, on August 1st, I’m going back to my Real Whole Foods diet, with my occasional Potatoes, Bananas, and any vegetable I want! I’m glad I dove into the Keto Diet to figure out the nuances, because I think it’s incredibly Therapeutic and Beneficial for a number of health conditions, including:  Insulin Resistance, Cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Thyroid disorders,  and Diabetes, to name a few.  Oh, and for those who are having a difficult time losing weight:  It’s fantastic!  

Before I show some food pics, and post the Angel Food cake recipe, here’s a little info on my upcoming weekend.

I have the DCAC Fitness Convention Thursday night through Sunday; I’m packing my breakfasts and lunches, but I’ll eat out each night.  I’ll be sure to update food and workouts though out the weekend.  I LOVE the DCAC!!

Here’s some of my Keto Meals from the past several days:

chicken:cauliflower

 

This was bone-in/skin on Chicken that I cooked on foil ( less pans to wash), and in the skillet: 6 tbsp butter, 1/4 c water, a whole head of cabbage, cauliflower, onion, and chives.  Topped with Cheese:)

 

sausage:onion:cauli

 

 

To the right, that’s crumbled sausage, zucchini, cauliflower, chives, and garlic cooked in butter and you can’t tell, but there’s a whole skin from one of those chickens cut up and cooked in the pan too.  Topped with cheese of course!

And here’s the Angel Food Cake recipe, my notes are in BOLD throughout the recipe:

“HEALTHIFIED” ANGEL FOOD CAKE
12 egg whites
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 pinch salt
1 cup Jay Robb strawberry protein powder (or EGG WHITE powder if Dairy Free) ***I USED VANILLA, NOT STRAWBERRY BC I DON’T HAVE IT**
1 cup Swerve confectioners’ sweetener (or powdered erythritol) (I USED REGULAR SWERVE, NOT CONFECTIONERS – WORKED FINE)
1 tsp strawberry extract (or other extract) ( I USED LEMON EXTRACT BC I DON’T HAVE STRAWBERRY)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift whey protein and confectioners erythritol together and set aside. In a large clean bowl, whip egg whites with a pinch of salt until foamy (save the yolks for “healthified” creme brule, “healthified” coconut custard, OR “healthified” ice cream). Add cream of tartar and continue to beat until very stiff (you will be able to put bowl upside down and the whites won’t fall out). Add your favorite extract flavor. Quickly fold in whey mixture. Pour into a greased 10 inch tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes. Makes 14 servings.

 

*****MY OVEN WAS TOO HOT – LAST NIGHT I BAKED AT 325 FOR 38 MINUTES******

“HEALTHIFIED” CUSTARD

12 large egg yolks
1 cup unsweetened almond milk *****I USED COCONUT MILK FROM CAN – WORKED PERFECT
3/4 cup Swerve (or erythritol and 1/4 tsp stevia glycerite) I USED HALF SWERVE, HALF STEVIA
1/2 cup butter or coconut oil, melted – **I USED HALF OF EACH**

Whisk egg yolks, almond milk, and sweetener in medium metal bowl to blend. Slowly mix in the melted butter so the eggs don’t cook unevenly. Set bowl over saucepan of simmering water. Whisk mixture constantly and vigorously until thickened and instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 140°F for 3 minutes, about 5 minutes total (or coats the back of a spoon). Remove mixture from over water. Serve warm or chilled. (If serving chilled, it can be prepared 1-3 days ahead and refrigerated. Re-whisk before serving.) Makes 4 servings.