Thanksgiving is about harvest and gratitude. We each contain many gifts which are the fruits of our experiences here on earth. Some are easy to reach — theya re inherent gifts and talents that come easy to us. Others we have access to but were grown through great challenges and labors. We also have high hanging fruits — talents and attributes we know are within us but feel difficult to reach at times.

What are some of your low-hanging fruits? You easy-to-pick, lush berries that are the effortless talents of your uniqueness?

What gifts have you been given as a result of challenges and hardships you have faced? These fruits are often very important to look at and acknowledge, for they counter the difficulties you experienced in growing them.
Finally, what attributes do you have that feel just out of reach or require greater effort to access? These fruits often inspire us to grow and stretch forward, to evolve to our highest self. They may be what we have always wanted and hoped for ourselves but do not reach for because they take a little extra effort.

Take a moment to write down all your fruits — low-hanging, hard won, and hard to reach. Be grateful for that which comes easy to you, the fruits of your more labourous adventures and the fruits which inspire you to stretch and grow to greater heights. These gifts are unique to you; they are your treasures to use and share as you please. This exercise can bring an awareness of the abundant gifts and talents you possess, the rewards for life’s struggles, and inspiration to grow into your best self in the upcoming year.

I was reviewing a lecture given by Walter Willet of Harvard University and he shared some really profound information about the power of food and lifestyle choices and disease risk. All the data shared here stems from the Nurse’s Health Studies. The Nurses’ Health Studies are among the largest and longest running investigations of factors that influence women’s health.

Researchers taking a  look at the information gathered over the last twenty years wanted to determine how significantly diet and activity can reduce modern diseases of our time. They chose to make their criteria fairly reasonable for the average person to follow, yet scientifically validated for disease reduction. Based on what is known, the following factors reduce heart disease and diabetes:

• A BMI of less than 25. Basically, this puts you at a reasonable weight for your height. A BMI slightly lower than this is optimal, but it was determined that it was fair to ask for Americans to strive for a BMI of 25 if they were not there already.
• Non-smokers. I needn’t explain this one.
• 30 minutes of exercise a day or more (brisk walking is a great example)
• Follow a good diet. What does this mean?

1. A Low Glycemic Diet. This is a dietary lifestyle that chooses foods which do not raise blood sugar rapidly. Whole grains, lean proteins and lots of fruits and vegetables. Basically a whole foods diet with little white sugar, white flour, white rice, soda or candy.
2. A diet reasonable in good fats and low in bat fats. The percentage of fat itself isn’t as important as the quality of fat. Diets high in trans fats (the kind of fat we see as “partially hydrogenated” or “hydrogenated” oils on labels) are far more lethal to the body than saturated fats found in lard, bacon, and palm oils.
3. Consume fish at least twice a week – cold water fish is high in omega-3 fats, which are cardio-protective as well as brain protective!
4. Meet the RDA for folate — folate reduces homocysteine levels, protecting one from heart disease.
5. A diet high in fiber – conveniently, this is also found in foods which have a low glycemic lload – whole grains, fruits, and veggies. The soluble fiber in apple and oatmeal is well known to reduce heart disease. Fiber also keeps the rest of the body running smoothly, so to speak.
6. Limited alcohol consumption: 1 drink every other day or less.

Of the more than 200,000 participants in the study, only 3% met this criteria. And this 3% of the studied population had an 82% less likelihood of having heart disease and 92% less risk of Type 2 Diabetes!

To give you a rough comparison of what this means, the most successful and commonly used drug family to reduce heart disease – statin drugs – reduce your risk by only 25%. And along with the reduction comes a host of nasty side effects.

It’s information like this that inspired me into this field when I was a young girl. Most of the disease that we have in this country is largely avoidable by what we choose to put upon our plate! This is the most empowering knowledge! Each of us, every day, make a vote to improve our health or promote disease with every bite on our fork.

If you or someone you love has already been diagnosed, it certainly is not to late. The human body has an amazing capacity for healing and rejuvenation when given the right nutrition. Begin changing your diet by using the steps above, many which complement and assist one another, and enlist support from your family, health professionals, and friends. All recipes on my website are heart healthy – try one tonight!
It’s never too late to choose differently.

More Sources:
The Nurses Health Study
Willet, Walter. Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy. Free Press, 2001

Slowly, the pantry is being taken over by kombucha.

Since my original kombucha post, many batches have come and gone. I have not been diligent in scientific record-keeping, but each batch is unique. Some are sweeter, some more vinegary depending on length of fermentation. I have used green tea, black tea, blackberry sage tea (yum!) and am fermenting a batch now with pomegranate green tea. I am going to start recording days brewed, flavor, and differences with different teas used. I am also going to start branching out with utilizing honey, agave, and other sweeteners.

Yesterday I received a call from Terri P. in New Orleans. She had gotten my name and number through the world wide web and knew I brewed kombucha. We talked a bit about SCOBYs, brewing, and the differences she has noted since beginning a regular kombucha consumption in April of this year. She drank two bottles a day before brewing her own. Changes she has noted is an increase in fullness and thickness of her hair. Her daughter recovered from torn ligaments and tendons quickly enough to become a follower, and her friend Glenn, who introduced her to kombucha, eliminated 20+ years of adult acne by drinking it. She also spoke of someone she had spoken to who gives it to his two year old, and the child has had no seasonal illnesses since, despite being in daycare. Now THAT is a miracle!

Her enthusiasm rekindled my own, and now I am set to experiment with more flavors, variations, and options. I have kept to my original recipe, although have not been exact in measurements. My SCOBY (Symbiotic Colony Of Bacteria and Yeast) has not suffered. In fact, I have begun the process of giving away “babies” to interested parties. I typically drink my kombucha with frozen berries because I am all about convenience. The berries add a hint of flavor and I do not get the Vitamix dirty.

Upcoming experiements will be posted here. I am glad to have become part of a nationwide kombucha following. I highly encourage everyone spending more than $20 a month on storebought kombucha to begin brewing your own. It really is quite easy!

When I was 17, I sat down and wrote what I wanted my life to turn out like. I envisioned how I would be as an adult. I don’t recall much of what I have written now. I know there was a desire to exercise for the sheer joy of feeling my body move, coming to peace with food and ending my then-daily struggle with overeating. I knew how to garden. I envisioned sunlight, joy, and having a career in nutrition, which was my passion. I put the paper away in my hope chest. It was 1996.

Fast forward to 2004.

I am divorcing my husband and moving to a new apartment because of a mold issue in the basement unit I am in. I have just started my business after graduating from Bastyr University with a  degree in Nutrition and a minor in Exercise Science. While packing, I stumble across a piece of paper I had written when I was 17.  As I read it, I recall my heart swelling with both awe and joy — these ideas I had fantasized for myself so long ago were mostly a reality now! I was about 80% there (but still did not know how to garden). It was absolutely amazing.

That was my first conscious realization of the power of manifestation, or to the power behind making a Magic List. I have since utilized this tool to bring forth more of what I want in my world and do so now with greater intention. I am in a place now where I am devoting time to learning to garden, delving more into herbs and healing plants and spending daily efforts becoming that strong, self-assured woman that seemed so far out of reach when I was a teenager. Having completed many of my goals in this fashion, my lists these days delve into deepening existing accomplishments, tinkering with mastery of new skills (how do I make compost?), and drawing people into my life who embody the kinds of relationships and associations I want to cultivate in my world.

This is an exercise I like to do with my clients as well. It takes many forms, from writing a specific goal list embedded with emotion and intention to free-flow creative writing on how one would choose to live life if there were no limitations and total support.

To make your own magic list, you can refer to the article behind this link (from Oprah Magazine) or sit down in a quiet space and write what you most want from this world. It is especially important when doing this exercise that you hold no limits or judgments on your desires. This is “play” in a sense — all there is is possibility and wild imagination. Your subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between what your eyes see outward and what you tell yourself in your internal world.  So if you tell yourself that you want to learn to garden, take up piano, have a relationship with a partner that is loving, honest, and is wickedly talented in the kitchen your subconscious mind will say — “Okay! Let’s make that work!” Likewise, if you tell yourself you are fat, stupid, and there is never enough money your subconscious brain will find ways to validate that experience for you. You will bring people into your life who are patronizing and do not respect you, weight loss will be non-existent and unexpected financial crises will show up as your subconscious mind says, “Okay! Let’s make that work!”

But that is another post.

As you write your list or tell your story of your life in the future, notice the sensations that crop up in your body. There should be a sensation of excitement, moving forward, reaching for your future. Fear, hesitation and disbelief are counterproductive and will not create what you want. Fluffy, superficial goals will remain unfulfilled, because your soul is not fluffy nor superficial and you were not put on this planet to do superficial things.  When you create a life of intention and live your passion, you create positive energy that emanates from you and attracts more of what feeds you. It is a classic positive feedback loop. We have all met someone with sparkling eyes, a dazzling smile and radiant energy that drew us in and captivated us. This is available to each and every one of us. Write of the things which excite you, pull you forward, and stimulate the small voice within to say, “Yes! This is what I want!”

Then put it away.

It is not your list to agonize over, to diligently check off when a task is accomplished. It is not something for the conscious mind to tinker with. Set the paper aside, bury it in the backyard, put it in an envelope at the back of your underwear drawer. Your subconscious mind will have embedded these instructions and seek to make them so.

If all this seems too far-fetched for you and you are rolling your eyes at me, then please do not do this exercise. You will simply prove your inner skeptic right.  If you have an inkling of hope or inspiration, go for it. You may be surprised!

To the skeptic – write down 2-3 things that you want to get out of the remainder of 2008. An extra $200, a new phone, getting to work on time instead of 5 minutes late or a solution to those nagging skin splints. Put it away and look at it again in January of 2009.  Just to see.

Having just began my third decade on this planet, I have sat down to write some new magic lists. Now that I have the experience of seeing the power behind this exercise, all I have to do now is sit back and watch the magic unfold.

For More Information:

Beck, Marta. The Truth about Magic Lists. Oprah magazine online

Vicente, Mark. Chasse, Becky, dirs. What The Bleep Do We Know!? Perf. Marlee Matlin and Elaine Hendrix 2004. DVD

Wolf, Fred Allen. Mind Into Matter: A New Alchemy of Science and Spirit Moment Point Press, 2000

At VIBRANCE, it is all about small changes. Small changes are the foundation of success and building upon small successes creates powerful transformation in relatively brief periods of time. The body is always striving for health, often all it needs is to be given an opportunity to heal.
Whether you are in fine shape or struggling with chronic health issues, the following 30 things can improve your life by allowing you greater nutrition, less stress, more energy and overall happiness. Try these 30 small changes out and see just how quickly your energy, mood, and productivity can shift! Let me know how these changes work for you!

1. Drink More Water – most of us are dehydrated. Drink until your urine runs clear.
2. Eat More Greens! Aim for at least one serving a day
3. Get Some Fresh Air – we are indoors far too much. And while you are at it…
4. BREATHE! Consciously. Deeply. And often.
5. Express Yourself Creatively! If you don’t think yourslef creative, ask someone who knows you well how you are creative.
6. Visit Your Local Farmer’s Market – get the freshest produce, support your local economy, and see firsthand how your dollar makes a difference.
7. Laugh More – rent a comedy, see a good friend, get tickled!
8. Eat a Meal Slowly – this can singlehandedly shift everything.
9. Create Community – join a team, a knitting group, or come home early and spend more time with family.
10. Let Go of an Old Grudge – and watch your energy blossom!
11. Try a New Vegetable — it may just revolutionize your kitchen…
12. Cut back on your biggest vice by 50% — and put the money you save from those unpurchased lattes, cookies, or cigarettes into a splurge fund…
13. Go on a 5 Day Cleanse – it doesn’t have to be extreme to benefit!
14. Give More Hugs and get more in return!
15. Express Your Gratitude Out Loud and often.
16. Take An Epsom Salt Bath to relax, soothe tired, achy muscles and pamper yourself.
17. Walk at least 10 minutes a Day - a great practice to start the morning or finish an evening, it allows time for intention, reflection, and also fulfills that fresh air requirement.
18. Make a List of things that make you happy. Refer to it often.
19. Sing Loudly. And Badly. Singing, no matter how tone deaf you may be, can shift moods and energy levels in less than 60 seconds. If you find yourself too judgmental of the sound of your voice, try humming instead.
20. Get More Sleep – wherever you can, however you can. I’m willing to bet you need it.
21. Just Say No. Most of us are overscheduled. Say no at least once more per week, even if you have the time to say yes.
22. Stretch. Most of us have tight muscles from extercise, stress, or even sitting all day! Stretch what is stiff, adn get a massage if you need to. A loose body allows energy to flow…
23. Have Some Berries. Seriously. They are amazing.
24. Procrastinate Less – and instantly have less stress and a greater sense of accomplishment!
25. Take a Multivitamin. Our food quality and food choices simply do not give us what we need. take one appropriate for your gender and stage of life.
26. Eat 10 fewer meals made by someone you don’t know (ie – take out, convenience, fast food, etc.).
27. Improve Your Environment – clean your home, workspace, or add something to either place that will make you feel better while you are there.
28. Associate With Those Who Inspire – spend a little more time with people who support, encourage, and inspire you. These are the people you want MORE of in your life.
29. Own it – take responsibility for your part in your life. It isn’t about blame or shame, it’s about giving you the power to change the course of an unsatisfying situation. If you’ve “done wrong” in some way, owning that gives you the freedom and awareness to amend the situation and choose differently in the future.
30. Eat Breakfast Daily – breakfast eaters weigh less, have lower cholesterol and blood pressure, more energy and better moods.

Kombucha is all the rage now. At $4 a bottle, it’s as expensive a habit as espresso, although far healthier. Touted as a miracle tea that cures everything from baldness to cancer, this new “designer drink” has actually been consumed for centuries all over the world.

Originally believed to be Chinese in origin, kombucha has gained a reputation for enhancing longevity, youthfulness, energy and digestion in many cultures all over the world.  While claims of reversing baldness and grey hair are not scientifically proven (nor even really believable unless you are a first-hand witness), what is proven is that the beverage is rich in B vitamins, enzymes, and helpful components such as friendly bacteria and glucuronic acid, which helps the liver and kidneys extract toxins to move them out of the body and is a precursor to glucosamines, those handy structures responsible for lubricating joints and building cartilage and collagen.

If you haven’t had it, kombucha is hard to describe. Each batch varies a bit, depending on time of fermentation, type of tea used, and the kombucha culture itself. My first taste fo kombucha was in the mid ’90s, and I recall it to be not far from drinking straight vinegar. The batch seen here – in the glasses – is more akin to apple cider. Kombucha has a fizz to it and a sourness that can be mild or strong. The longer it ferments, the more potent it is. This is because the culture (a symbiotic relationship of a bacteria and a Saccharomyces yeast) consumes the sugars used and produce the acids as a by-product. After that first taste, I did not consume kombucha again until earlier this year at the insistence of its deliciousness from a friend of mine. Certainly, the addition of juices and fruit purees to kombucha in the pricey designer versions has made it far more enjoyable an experience.

Below is a recipe for homemade kombucha, and some ways to play with the beverage to make it more palatable, fashionable, and fun.

• 1 very wide-mouthed glass jar or glass bowl
• large rubber band
• clean dish towel or ripped t-shirt
• 1 gallon water
• 6 black tea or green tea bags
• 1 cup sugar
• Kombucha baby or 1/2 bottle store-bought unflavored, unpasteurized kombucha, with bits of sediment on the bottom

Thoroughly clean the glass jar with very hot soap and water or by dipping it into a large pot of boiling water. Bring 1 gallon of water to a boil and add the sugar slowly, stirring to dissolve. Remove the water from heat, cool briefly, and allow teabags to steep for 10-15 minutes. Cooling the water slightly before adding teabags prevents the tea from being too bitter.  Remove the teabags and cover the pot of water, allowing it to cool completely.

Pour the cooled tea into the sterilized glass jar or bowl.  Place your Kombucha baby and any liquid it is in (usually obtained as a gift from a friend or online) or the 1/2 bottle of kombucha into the jar.  Cover with clean dishtowel or t-shirt and secure with a rubber band. This will keep dust, flies, and other nasties from contaminating your culture. Place the kombucha in a dark warm place – about 0-74 degrees, and let it work it’s magic.

After 10-14 days you will notice one of 2 things. 1) If you used a full kombucha baby as a starter, a new baby will be growing atop the original. You can use this new baby to start another jar or give it away to a friend who spends too much on store-bought kombucha. 2) If you used the store bought drink as a starter, those sediment bits will have transformed themselves into a large, thick pancake-like culture covering the top of your jar (see photo). This “mushroom” is the kombucha mother, which will in turn create a kombucha baby as it consumes the sugars in the brew.

As the culture grows, it will naturally begin to seperate. I am told it is unwise to pry them apart before ready. To harvest your tea, gather jars and bottles with lids. Wash your hands and a large dinner plate thoroughly. Reach into the jar and remove the kombucha mother and place it upon the plate. Pour the liquid into jars, leaving about 2″ of liquid at the bottom of the jar as a starter for your next batch. Repeat the process as desired. Refrigerate the bottles of kombucha tea until ready to drink.

Learn more:

What is Kombucha?

Kombucha Phenomenon

Making it Fun: Designer Kombucha Recipes

Below are some of the ways I have been playing with my kombucha (the first batch was just finished this morning, so more recipes will be added to this post in time; be certain to bookmark it if interested). If you have your own recipes, I would be delighted to partake in them! Please share in the comments section below.

Kombucha Mimosa

• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 cup kombucha

Fizzy and fun! Pour into a champagne glass and raise a toast to your health!

Raspberry Kombucha

• 1/2 cup frozen raspberries
• 1 cup kombucha

Blend until smooth. You may want to strain out the seeds if you don’t like the crunch.

I’ve spent a great deal of time in airports and other states and have become very familiar with finding food while traveling. Since my travels have mostly been via plane to metropolitan areas, it has been easy for me to pack what I need or find something reasonable in an airport.

Last month, a new challenge came my way — healthy eating while traveling via roadway, cross-country.

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Fiber.

Long touted as essential for heart health, and more recently for digestive health, fiber is also an important ally in the battle of the bulge.

Fiber has a wonderful capacity to assist in appetite suppression. Which is more filling — consuming 8 oz. of freshly squeezed apple juice or the 3 apples it took to make that juice? When we juice, we discard the pulp (fiber) and consume the rest. That fiber is key to keeping us full and happy over the long term. It provides bulk, slows absorption and prevents blood sugar from skyrocketing, preventing strong hunger pangs after the inevitable crash.

Within the stomach lies signals that get triggered when the muscles of the stomach wall stretch, creating a cascade of messages that basically tell our body to stop being hungry. The longer something sits in the stomach, the longer time passes before we receive a signal to eat again. Complex foods which take a lot of time to break down last in the stomach longer. This is why whole foods are so important. They give your belly something to work on, where a refined food like Red Vines or white bread need little effort to get into the blood stream.

Want to see it for yourself? Take a piece of white bread and a piece of 100% whole wheat bread. Place each in a separate bowl of water and wait five minutes. The white bread will collapse in your hands. The whole wheat bread, although soggy, will remain more intact. Imagine what would happen if that water was 98.6 degrees and we added some stomach acid to it!

Aside from sustaining fullness, fiber also stops some calories from being absorbed. By decreasing the time food sits in the digestive tract, as well as binding to bits of food particles, fiber reduces the total caloric load absorbed by the body.

Fiber is actually quite easy to find. Current recommendations for fiber are 20 -35 grams per day. Most Americans get about 10-15 grams a day. Research shows that blood sugar management in diabetes is greater when fiber intake reaches 50 grams a day. For purposes of weight loss, I recommend my clients take in between 30 and 50 grams a day.

So, to recap:

• Fiber helps prevent heart disease,
• contributes to healthy digestive tracts,
• keeps you more full on less food,
• and keeps you fuller longer!
• Fiber inhibits a small percentage of calories from being absorbed,
• and minimizes blood sugar spikes, having a beneficial effect on diabetes and insulin levels.

Where is fiber found?

In whole plant foods! Think fruits, vegetables, whole grains such as brown rice, corn, quinoa, kamut berries, wild rice; beans, peas, and lentils, and starchy vegetables such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and taro root.

Ground flax seed, psyllium husk and various brans (wheat/oat/rice) can be added to oatmeal, smoothies, or other foods to increase fiber intake and fullness.

What are some ways you can sneak more fiber into your day?

TheDailyGreen.com offers a beautiful pictorial of the top 12 foods to purchase organic.

Click here to find out which foods are best purchased organic.

On the flip side, if availability or costs are a concern and it is difficult for you to purchase organic foods, you can still minimize your exposure to pesticide residues by focusing on the following:

I was speaking with a client today about self-sabotage, de-evolution, or what I refer to as the two-year-old within.

De-evolution is essentially a backslide; it’s the obvious slip up we make when things are going really well. If everything else is good – we are well hydrated, rested, eating well and have a vibrant personal life we can still sometimes fall prey to slip ups even though we know better.

Why does this happen?

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