This article was originally published for Freed Marcroft, an award-winning law firm in Hartford, Connecticut, as part of a series they posted to support their clients in taking care of themselves while going through a divorce.

This article speaks to the importance of eating healthy, with their previous posts on the benefits of yoga and spending time outside and exercising.

Yoga, combined with meditation and spending time outside in nature are foundational credos that I too teach my clients. These practices are grounding. These practices will bring you back to your most powerful self, especially during stressful times.

Both practices set a mighty stage for you to choose healthy for you and your family.

But, they are just one aspect of wellbeing. Proper nutrition is essential for you to maintain healthy balance.

So how can you take all the lessons you learn in meditation and yoga off the mat and onto your plate?

I offer you three nutrition-based ways to do just that, to take your lessons from the mat to your overall healthy lifestyle goals.

Just breathe = Just prepare

Like your breath is important in your meditation or yoga practice, preparation is important in your stay-healthy game. Preparation will ensure you eat healthy and nutritious foods no matter what the day brings.

I recommend choosing two days a week (like Sunday and Wednesday nights) to prep healthy foods, to have fresh, delicious options easily at hand. Here’s a few of my favorites ideas:

• Wash greens and store in salad spinner, or an aerated plastic bag.
• Wash, slice, chop and cut veggies and store in sealed glass bowls.
• Wash berries and store in a colander,m which will prevent spoilage.
• Pre-package smoothie and juice ingredients the night before, so you’re ready in the morning to blend them up.
• Make a few dips, like guacamole or pumpkin seed pate. They will turn your veggie snacks into a treat!
• Pack a green apple in your desk drawer at work, in your brief case or handbag, in your car. Vow to eat your green apple before you eat the junk food that is screaming your name, and I promise, you will be surprised how many times this one tip can save you!
• Always have a ripe avocado ready to go. Healthy fats satiate and can hold any stressful craving at bay
• Pack a paring knife in your car to cut your avocado, veggies or fruit when you’re on-the-go.

You are not your thoughts = Healthy is fun

This is one of the mightiest lessons meditation and yoga teach — you are not your thoughts. Like the thought, “the posture is hard to do, I’m just a novice,” it’s just your thoughts that the posture is hard that makes it hard for you to do.

Like the thought, “meditation is hard, I don’t like it, I can’t do it,” it’s just your thoughts that meditation is hard that makes it inaccessible to you.

Indeed, like the thought, “taking time to prepare healthy foods for the week ahead is hard, I don’t have enough time,” it’s just your thoughts that taking time to prepare healthy foods is hard that stops you from doing it.

Wayne Dyer said, “Change your thoughts, change your life.” If you nail this practice from yoga and meditation, and start recognizing them to shift your thoughts about eating healthy foods, you’ll accomplish your goals in half the time you ‘think’ it will take.

There is no wrong way to do things = The Wholly Trinity

One of yoga’s guiding credos teaches there is no wrong way to do things. My guiding credo to optimize your health and nutrition and reduce stress is what I call the Wholly Trinity. This is my playful, whole-foods spin on getting green in your body everyday in three ways through green juice, green smoothies and green salads.

Greens reduce inflammation and rejuvenate, remineralize and rebalance. Pound for pound, greens offer more nutrition than any other food so they are an excellent food to include in all the ways I recommend.

Green Juice is my top recommendation for clients to add into their diet. Green vegetable juice requires no digestive energy, so even if you are stressed green juice ensures optimal nutrition. Think an IV infusion of pure vitamin and mineral-water-rich, enzyme-active and phytonutrient laden fuel directed straight to your cells and tissues.

Green Smoothies are a whole-foods, fiber-rich, nutrient-dense ‘meal-in-a’glass’ and likely one of your best meal-on-the-go options. Green smoothies are akin to a salad in a glass, with endless ways to ‘beef up’ the nutrition you most want. They also retain all the fiber of it’s ingredients that satiate longer than juice.

One of my clients favorites is Instant Glow, a smoothie loaded with ingredients to bring your cells to life, and balance to your body, so you radiate health from the inside out! This recipe makes about 64 ounces — a full Vitamix pitcher full, so cut back if you want a smaller portion.

Green Salad: My third recommendation for the Wholly Trinity is a meal-sized Green Salad everyday. Include your favorite greens and/or wild lettuces, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and especially sprouts, avocados and olives. Here’s one of my favorites.

You can even make a salad of just simple greens, but do note that ingredients like sprouts peak in nutritional value, and avocados and olives will satiate you and satisfy you because of their healthy plant-based fats.

To dress your salad, I recommend two of my favorite, but ‘atypical’ mouth-watering delicious ‘dressings’ as new lighter fare recommendations — fresh marinara or fresh salsa. Both ‘dressings’ will transform your salad to a whole ‘next-level-healthy-salad-experience’ while keeping fat to a minimum (Healthy fats are essential, but layering an oil based dressing on top of olives and/or avocados is more than you need.)

If you follow my three tips for taking your meditation and yoga lessons “off the mat” and onto your plate, I promise you’ll find yourself not only in a healthier body with a healthier mindset as you learn to navigate your way through divorce, but also feel full of energy and confidence to create you newly!

Would you like more smoothie recipes to help you on your way? I've got you covered right here!

It is not only possible to embrace your age and look 10 years younger, it’s a slam-dunk, sure shot, if you follow all that I recommend on my blog, especially my numero uno recommendation to drink green juice!

But because I focus on creating radiant skin from the inside out, I’ve not yet offered up a few of my favorite skincare recommendations.

I know, it’s about time!

Do you know that your skin literally eats what you put on it? So, like making clean food choices, I recommend avoiding products with chemicals, sulfates and even fragrances that are not essential oils in facial cleansers, masks, serums and moisturizers.

While green juice will always be my number one skincare recommendation because of all the ways it nourishes us on a cellular level, when we feed our skin high quality nutrients from the outside, we promote supple, glowing youthful looking skin.

And make no mistake about it, in an age where skincare is mass-produced in factories, the products I recommend here are as luxurious, restorative and as high-performance as any exquisite anti-aging product on the market, sans the pseudo-science advertising that appeals to your insecurities! Plus, my recommendations are clean and chemical free!

Here are a few of my favorite skincare recommendations, and PS – they are all Unisex = super awesome for men too!

 

Cleanser

 May Lindstrom, The Clean Dirt

The beauty industry refers to The Clean Dirt as the Holy Grail of facial cleansers. I couldn’t agree more. It’s addictive, but good addictive. It refines like a microdermabrasion treatment but never tears or stresses the skin. Instead of feeling, “scrubbed” your skin will feel soft, toned, plumped & smooth as your pores start to disappear and blackheads vanish. It’s a little pricey, but like any product that costs a little more, I use it ‘carefully.’

 

 

 

Toner

Dr. Alkaitis, Organic Herbal Toner

Another beyond a ‘current’ favorite skincare product, Dr. Alkaitis Organic Herbal Toner, this could be one of my all-time favorite toners! I love how my skin soaks up this herbal skin toner and absorbs its nutrients quickly, leaving my skin feeling fresh, smooth and plump. This is a toner that you don’t want to skip, since the long term results on skin balancing are absolutely uhh-maaazing! Because it smooths & plumps, lightly hydrates, re-balances oiliness, it’s perfect choice for everyone, even men! Use it in the summer as a light moisturizer.

 

 

Facial Oil

Evan Healy, Rosehip Treatment Serum – Rose

While I’ve used some very high-end facial oils that I love, Evanhealy’s Rosehip Treatment Serum is one of my all-time favorites. It’s sweet, rosy-leaf geranium and earthy, vitalizing carrot seed combine to balance and regenerate diverse skin conditions. This silky oil of rose hip seed absorbs beautifully and literally promotes a noticeable healthy glow! I use this oil in the morning.

 

 

Jason, Natural, Extra Strength Vitamin E Skin Oil, 32,000 I.U

This recommendation hails from one of my teachers, that it’s the best facial treatment for our skin. Vitamin E skin oil helps minimize the appearance of scars, stretch marks and other problems to reveal smoother, healthier skin. This formulation is a super rich, anti-oxidant packed, emollient treatment that will leave your skin feeling soft and deeply hydrated. Since this oil is very thick and a bit sticky, I use it at night!

 

 

 

Moisturizer

Cosmedix EMULSION Intense Hydrator

Cosmedix Emulsion is a combination of science and botanical ingredients that help firm skin and smooth lines and wrinkles, with conditioning moisturizers that help attract and retain vital moisture in the skin. Oo-la-la! I love this moisturizer because it’s a deep-dissolving facial moisturizer that the skin soaks right up without leaving a shiny finish. It formulated with a renewing blend of jojoba oil & shea butter and is a beautiful pre-makeup treatment.

 

 

Mask

Dr. Alkaitis Organic Exfoliating Enzyme Mask

I love Dr. Alkaitis’s Exfoliating Enzyme Mask. Add a teaspoon to a small bowl and whip up with a little water to activate all it’s vital nutrients! This organic Exfoliating Enzyme Mask is ideal for skin that needs to be renewed, refreshed, and rejuvenated. It’s a super gentle, yet effective enzyme peel similar to those used at a spa with zero down time or irritation. It exfoliates & removes dead skin cells, delivers essential skin nutrients and brightens & lightens the skin.

Any specific questions or skincare needs you want to address? Pop your Q's in the comment box below! I'd love to help you choose!

And … if you want to do the real work of creating radiant skin, join me in my upcoming, More Than a Detox program! Get on the list now to grab the early-bird special!

Smoothie bowls are one of the biggest breakfast trends these days — and for good reason! Smoothie bowls are power-packed with nutrient dense fuel you to rev you up for the day and they taste super delicious! Plus, they satiate your hunger and satisfy your need to chew!

Include leafy greens like spinach, kale or romaine for alkalizing nutrition. Include your favorite fruit for sweet fiber! Add avocado or cashews to make it super creamy, and add coconut oil for an extra boost of energy!

Best part? Because they’re in a bowl, you can top them with more of your favorite healthy ingredients … and take them on the road with you!

Three of my favorites? A drizzle of almond butter, a sprinkling of bee pollen and a healthy portion of hemp seeds!

Serves 2

Smoothie Bowl Ingredients: 

• 2 cups baby spinach
• 2 bananas
• 1 cup strawberries
• 1/2 – 1 avocado or small handful of cashews
• 1 date (soaked)
• 1 Tablespoon raw, unprocessed coconut oil
• 1 Tablespoon chia seed
• Almond milk (to achieve desired texture)
• 1 serving of HealthForce Naturals Green Alchemy Protein (or clean protein powder of choice)

Topping Ideas: 

• Sliced fruit
• Chia seeds
• Hemps seeds
• Pumpkin seeds
• Cracked walnuts, pecans or almonds
• Bee pollen
• Drizzled almond butter
• Drizzled tahini

To Make: 

Blend all ingredients for the smoothie bowl until thick and creamy. Pour into a bowl, add your favorite toppings and enjoy!

Want more healthy and delicious recipes to increase your energy and look uhh-amazing in your jeans? Sign up here to learn about my upcoming seasonal detox that offers way more than just losing weight, More Than A Detox: Fall. 

How many times have you put off something you wanted for ‘some day’?

Or until next week? Or even just waiting until tomorrow?

If getting healthy is your primary goal, whether that means losing weight or slowing down the progression of a chronic disease, remember …

‘Some day’ is not guaranteed.

This lesson sideswiped me last week. Actually, it rocked me to my core for days.

Back in July I saw a past acquaintance on the news, in a wheelchair. Though I only met her a few times, and though I didn’t know the progression of her disease, I emailed her immediately to offer her my services.

From the outside, she had it all. Brilliant. Highly regarded business acumen. A loving family. Prestige and international acclaim in the business world. Pioneering success. Unlimited wealth.

But I learned that she was very sick with a disease that the medical community describes as “progressive” and “fatal.”

So I reached out and proposed a very simple plan to help her change her diet, to reduce inflammation in her body and to heal her digestive wall, two necessary steps for any one of us to take to reclaim vibrant health.

I proposed moving in, or moving nearby to her home for 30 days, to prepare and cook very specific, healing, restorative meals to help her slow down and reduce the impact of the disease.

We exchanged several emails and talked on the phone, and while she was pondering whether or not to start working with me, I learned that she passed away.

This news shook me. To my core. I was full of such optimism, so much hope.

I am not an Executive Health Coach to simply help you look great, although that’s an awesome perk!

I am an Executive Health Coach to help you live a full, meaningful and very long and healthy life!

But you have to start NOW.

Because even waiting until tomorrow could turn into the next day, and the next could turn into some day.

And as I just painfully learned, someday may not come.

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I hope that this story inspires you to choose you and your health today. If you’ve been circling around and know you’re ready to take action – click here for your complimentary consultation.

When I was diagnosed with Leaky Gut Syndrome, Adrenal Fatigue, Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism, chronic constipation, acute anxiety, chronic urinary tract infections and more … I wasn’t looking to change the way I ate.

I wasn’t looking to align with any particular dietary style. And I surely wasn’t looking to go against the grain and eat differently from everyone I knew, including all my family and friends.

I was simply looking for a way to feel better.

My body was sick and I needed to find a way to feel good again.

After spending hours in exam rooms, going from doctor to doctor for each different symptom, it made sense to me to look beyond the symptoms I experienced and start looking at why I felt so poorly.

That’s when I discovered that reclaiming my health was really very simple, just basic common sense.

Some foods are very hard for the body to digest and literally cause obstruction within, and some do not.

Some foods generate energy. Some don’t.

Some foods elevate. Some don’t.

Some foods cause blockage. Some don’t.

Beyond family traditions and cultural norms, personal favorites and the latest gastronomic obsession, food is, in it’s most primal sense, fuel to help us be who we want to be, what we most want to create, what we most want to feel and experience and accomplish.

My impetus was never about food, but only about feeling better.

But as I began to feel better, I began to use food as fuel to leverage opportunities and experiences that would have otherwise likely never happened.

That’s when I discovered that self-mastery was the lowest common denominator for me to be my best me.

That when I am aligned with my highest self, when I am crystal clear on what matters most to me, when I own my power and am in the driver’s seat of my life rather than reacting to people, circumstances and events, every choice I make flows from an empowered place. I am self-possessed. Clear.

After that revelation — how could I continue eat foods that do not serve me and my larger goals if I am aligned with my highest self?

Thus began my life long obsession with using food to create vibrant health, increase productivity and live an extraordinary life.

So, think about what you have been fueling your body with lately and ask yourself:

Do your food choices serve you?

Do the foods you eat energize and stimulate your mind and creativity and highest self?

Do others in your life inspire you to be your very best you?

Could you look and feel better for your age?

And lastly, what is your lowest, common-denominator? What is that single thing that pulls you towards being, looking and feeling your very best you?

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Did your answers to any of the above surprise you?

If you’re ready to stop making excuses and start using food to fuel your highest self, let’s have a conversation about how you can get started. Click here to schedule a complimentary consultation.

During my years in school while working in the restaurant business, I learned how to combine different ingredients to prepare extraordinary meals. Oh yes, straight-up, pure bon vivant, epicurean style! I love delicious foods, but when no doctor could tell me why I was experiencing so many chronic symptoms several years back, I was forced to consider how food impacted my wellbeing and learned how to prepare delicious foods that heal and delight!

I offer you 5 foods that are my top healing food recommendations … plus a recipe! But don’t let my one recipe limit you! Look for ways to incorporate these ingredients everyday in your juices, smoothies and salads! You will love the glowing benefits from the healing they promote!

Avocado: Yes, avocados are high in fat, heart-healthy monounsaturated fat, but are also loaded with soluble fiber (promotes gut health) and insoluble fiber (promotes regular bowel movements), 20 different beautifying vitamins and minerals, with disease-fighting antioxidants and more potassium than bananas!

Healthy fats reduce inflammation in the body and are essential for healthy brain function.

Plus, avocados offer a water-rich source of healing fats and fiber which dramatically promote nutrient absorption from other plant-based foods, and supple tissues and cells.

Sunflower Sprouts: Sunflower sprouts offer extraordinary nourishing benefits. They provide all essential amino acids, a balanced, absorbable form of a complete plant protein (25% protein), 100x the amount of beautifying enzymes provided by other greens and high levels of free-radical scavenging antioxidants. They boost your immune system, promote vitamin absorption and are a nutritional powerhouse packed with healthy fats, vitamins A, B-complex, D, and E, and minerals including calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus!

Like all sprouts and micro greens, sunflower sprouts provide a concentrated source of chlorophyll, the substance which makes plants turn green. The chemical structure of chlorophyll most closely resembles the chemical structure of hemoglobin, which nourishes healthy blood, reduces inflammation, calms the nervous system, revitalizes and cleanses tissues, and balances pH levels in the body.

Sunflower sprouts offer a high ratio of plant fat and calories, also making them a perfect addition to your fitness and beauty regiment.

Lacinato Kale: According to the Andi Score Chart, pound for pound, kale provides arguably the most nutrient-dense, healing benefits of any other food on the planet. Kale is anti-inflammatory, promotes detoxification at the cellular level, is high in antioxidants, Vitamin A and C, B-Complex and vitamin-K (supports calcium uptake and promotes neuronal function in the brain).

Lacinato Kale (also known as Dinosaur kae) has dark blue-green leaves and a slightly wrinkled, firm texture (the darker the blue-green color, the higher the phytochemical, Anthocyanin antioxidants concentration). Lacinato kale is slightly sweeter and more delicate taste than the curly kale.

Carrots: Carrots and carrot juice offer amazing healing benefits. Carrots lower cholesterol, increase absorption of nutrients from food, boost the immune system, reduce inflammation and protect the body from free radical damage, harmful bacteria and viruses. Carrots provide overall tonic and alkaline benefits to purify and revitalize your blood. They nourish, remineralize and balance your entire system.

Carrots, and especially carrot juice offer a highly energizing and beneficial effect on the kidneys and liver.

Wheatgrass, Barley and Alfalfa Grass: Wheatgrass, Barley and Alfalfa grasses contain all known vitamins and minerals, including 30 times more vitamin B1 and 11 times more calcium than in cow’s milk, 80 micrograms of vitamin B12 (excellent source for plant-based eaters) per 100 grams of dried barley plant juice and up to 1000 enzymes the body needs to regulate and function at the cellular level.

Grasses provide nutrients unavailable in full grown leafy greens, with the most bioavailable forms of nutrients to increase absorption, even in sluggish digestive systems. Barley grass offers whopping levels of the enzyme SOD (superoxide dismutase), which protect against premature aging.

And here’s the recipe I promised you…

Be True Heal You Salad

• 2 cups kale, chopped chiffonade
• 2 cups sunflower sprouts, chopped hearty
• 2 avocados, cubed/diced
• 1 cup carrot, finely diced
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 green apple, diced
• 1/2 jalapeno, minced

When chopping vegetables, create a range of textures, as suggested above

Lemon Vinagrette Dressing:

• 1 lemon, juice
• 2 Tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon raw honey
• Sea salt and pepper, to taste

Garnish: Raw pumpkin seeds, sprouted seeds if you can get them

Whisk ingredients together until well-combined and lightly thick.

Toss with chopped salad ingredients. Garnish with pumpkin seeds.

Buono Appetito!

Want more healing and beautifying recipes? Want to learn more ways to eat your way to your healthiest you? Ready to uplevel your get-healthy game? Get on the 'first to know' list about the special early offer I will make for my upcoming More Than A Detox program here.

With the Summer Olympic tryouts this past week, I was reminded when 2008 Olympic all-around champion Nastia Luikin fell flat on her face during her routine in 2012.

From flat on her face, this mighty, blonde powerhouse reached up and grabbed the bar to complete her routine.

Whoah.

Pure awe.

Nastia’s fall and rise were a classic phoenix rising from the ashes story.

I love stories like her’s because they remind me that “it’s never over, until it’s over,” that we get to say how we are going to ‘finish the game,’ that we get to say how ‘it’ all goes.

Olympic athletes are a mighty metaphor for how to live life.

What empowered Nastia to continue in the face of a such a fall? What roused her to get back up to finish her routine, even though she likely new her chance to join the ranks of Summer Olympic athletes was no longer possible?

I suspect what roused her is her training to never quit, to complete what she started.

Whatever it was, she was fierce.

Her fierceness reminds me of my client Marianne who reached out to me for a touch-base, coaching call recently. Marianne is committed to her health and wellness, like a bonified Olympic Athlete no doubt, but she fell off the get-healthy wagon since our working together last year. Busy schedules. Deadlines. Fatigue. She got pulled out, but now candida has taken hold and caused imbalance in her body.

Or maybe even like my former client and ginormously successful business mogul Robert who texted me, “I need accountability, what can we create? I want to lose weight and totally up level my get-healthy game. I’ve fallen off track.”

Here are 6 lessons I learn from Olympic athletes and my clients on an ongoing basis about all the benefits of staying in the game, 5 things you can use to up level your commitment to becoming your healthiest, most vibrant self:

1. Winning isn’t a standalone endgame. Every time you ‘try,’ you flex your get-healthy muscle and you get stronger, more convicted, more resolute in your commitment. So what if you fall off the healthy wagon! Get back on! Begin again.
2. Become an ongoing learner. Olympic athletes and every one of my clients spend an enormous amount of time studying their area of expertise AND what they most want to master by hiring coaches who help them take their career and their health to the next level (like me), listening to or reading books, studying those who have achieved mastery and even create personalized daily rituals to help them stay in the game!
3. Think BIG, bigger than this moment. Olympic athletes go into the competition with BIG dreams. I guide clients to create the ‘classic’ S.M.A.R.T. goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-based), BUT I also guide them to create unreasonable, outrageous, even preposterous goals … goals that thrill and excite them … goals that might seem impossible in the moment. Think about it, would most have thought Gandhi as smart to think he could contest England’s colonization over India initially? Or, Martin Luther King goal’s in challenging social norms that excluded Black Americans from public spaces achievable? Or Gloria Steinem’s efforts to help women gain equal opportunity relevant? Creating unreasonable goals, reaching for the BIG and lofty is as important as creating smart goals!
4. Be congruent. Olympic athletes and my clients create actions to meet their word, especially when they falter. They reach up for the bar and get back in the game. They find mentors, resources, others like them to help them, anything to help them put the rubber on the road, even when they fall. They do what it takes to move the dial forward!
5. Preparation. Preparation is the game changer. Abraham Lincoln seemed to have the same formula as Olympic athletes, and one that I impress upon my clients. Lincoln said, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.” Preparation take the lead when it’s show time.
6. Never quit. Quiting is no longer an option. You burned the boat. You closed the door. Anything less than completing what you set out to achieve is no longer possible.

I know what it took for Nastia to reach back up for that bar. I know what it took for Marianne and Robert to reach out to me to up level their game.

I too have had to do get back up over and over and over again, with failed launches, missed business opportunities, utter free-falling without a steady paycheck as an entrepreneur and even battling my sugar addiction! I know what it’s like to fall ‘on may face’ repeatedly.

But I can’t begin to tell you how much I’ve grown from flexing my commitment to expanding my message of healing and wellness, from staying in the game of learning and thinking BIG (think crazy BIG), from preparing, preparing and preparing, from burning the boat, while aligning my actions to my word. I can’t begin to tell you the ginormous, life altering results my clients have experienced from getting back in the game.

Your get-healthy game and life will dramatically shift if you keep flexing your get-healthy muscle, especially when you fall, especially when you lose your way … if you keep learning and growing, if you think BIG, bigger than this moment might say is possible, if you take your commitment serious and do what it takes to prepare for success, if you burn the boat, AND if you get congruent with what you say you are going to do, when you say you are going to do it.

Leave a comment: What lesson resonates most for you? Do Olympic athletes inspire you too? What idea do you think we help you best?

Chocolate Sunbutter Protein Balls

How have I not shared this More Than A Detox favorite with you yet?

Everyone loves these Chocolate Sunbutter Protein balls because they’re so easy to make, they taste amazing, they are the perfect after-workout snack and they’re ready to go, when you are!

Make a double batch to have at-the-ready for even a midday snack! You’ll be happy you did! Promise. As all detoxers learn, preparation is a game changer for your get-healthy goals!

[Makes 8-12 bars or balls]

Ingredients: 

• 6 Tablespoons sunbutter
• 4 Tablespoons cacao (or unsweetened cocoa)
• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 Tablespoon ground flax seeds, chia seeds, or raw almond meal
• 1 scoop plant-based protein powder
• 15 drops of liquid stevia OR 1 Tablespoon honey (to taste)
• Pinch of sea salt
• Water (as needed)
• 1 Tablespoon raw cacao, shredded coconut, or crushed almonds (for rolling)

Preparation

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl (except the 1 Tablespoon of raw cacao or shredded coconut). Stir and slowly add water until you get the desired consistency of your protein ball (you want the dough a thick rollable texture, go easy with the water). Mold the dough into little balls. Roll in nuts or coconut, or dust with raw cacao.  Place on cookie sheet lined with wax paper and freeze or fridge for 10-15 minutes. Eat, or store in a sealed container for later use.

Buono appetito! 

Have an allergy that you need to replace an ingredient? Let me know in the comments below and I'd be happy to help you make this recipe to suit your needs! And ... even if you don't, I'd love to hear how you like this recipe after you make it!

You say you drink a lot of water everyday, but you also notice that every time you look over at your water bottle sitting on your desk, it’s empty. And it’s noon.

In between calls, reports and running to your next appointment, you simply didn’t think about drinking water.

Do you think you could be one of the 75% of Americans who is chronically dehydrated today? How about one of the 37% of Americans who eats when they’re full, when it’s really dehydration that causes them to feel hungry?

Dehydration is no joke.

Dehydration causes fuzzy, short-term memory. Dehydration is the #1 reason for daytime fatigue. Even mild dehydration slows down your metabolism. Just a mere 2% drop in body water can trigger cognitive dysfunction.  

Maybe you’ve heard me talk about Dr. Batman, the water expert? Formally known as Dr. F. Batmanghelidj, author of “Your Body’s Many Cries For Water” discovered the curative powers of water when he was a political prisoner in Iran. He says, “You’re not sick, you are thirsty: don’t treat thirst with medications!” 

Research shows that dehydration can cause, asthma, allergies, arthritis, hypertension, depression, headaches, diabetes, obesity, MS and even premature aging.

The healing remedy is water and the awesome new and free app is Waterlogged.

Try as you might, you know you are not drinking enough water, but this app will change your water-drinking game! It provides awesome charts and reminders (this is a $3.99 upgrade and well worth the small investment) to help you track and improve your daily water intake.

Waterlogged helps you:

• Track your water consumption by the hour, day, week, or year, and see at a glance how you’re doing.
• Snap a picture and add your own glasses and water bottles. This feature makes logging your water even faster – it’s kinda’ crazy how easy and effective this app works!
• Get reminders when you need them to build a good water habit – meeting your daily quota is super easy – I have mine reminder set for every hour, and it’s made a HUGE difference = why I am blogging about this fantastic app!

Waterlogged is designed for both iPhone and iPad, has 4.5 rating on iTunes and is ranked as one of the top 3 water apps across the board – I did the research for you! 

Moreover, I LOVE it! After reviewing many apps from the top 5 list, I chose Waterlogged for it’s ranking, reviews and visual cues! After one month of using it, I heartily give you my seal of approval! It’s easy, it’s effective and as the pictures below show it’s very helpful for we visual learners!

The Buddhist monk who my Catholic priest and beloved friend Fr. Ed introduced me to, the monk known as “an apostle of peace and nonviolence,” Thich Nhat Hanh is a renowned Zen master, Vietnamese monk and poet who inspired my Faith through my journey from illness to wellness since our ‘meeting‘ in 1985. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize by Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1967, and is the author of many books, including the best-sellers Peace is Every Step and The Miracle of Mindfulness.

When I was sick, Hahn taught me that to feel my best was a holistic journey, a journey that includes healing the mind, body and Spirit, a journey far beyond just clean eating and personal development. Hahn taught me that if I breathed deeply, that if I learned to pay attention and live in the moment, to practice mindfulness and interbeingness (that we are all one), that my health problems would dissipate. He said, “Go home to yourself (Carol) and breathe in and out deeply. Get in touch with your suffering and ask yourself, “Why am I suffering? Where is it coming from?”

His words were like a balm on my weary Spirit and unhealthy body. I stopped ‘doing,’ and started practicing just being, being with whatever I was experiencing without making it right or wrong, without struggle. His directive made all the difference as I moved through perplexing times with my health.

I offer you 30 quotes and excerpts that encapsulate the quintessence of Thich Nhat Hahn that continue to bring me back to me, but for you really. I own several of his books, but maybe you don’t, and maybe you too could benefit from this beautiful teacher as you move towards greater health and vitality.

Hahn taught me that to restore my health, I had to go home to me, that they were inextricably linked to each other and that mindfulness was my ticket.

Make no mistake health and healing are a holistic journey. When we create health and healing, peace and balance within, we are able to extend health and healing, peace and balance in the world.

The quotes and excerpts from Thich Nhat Hahn:

• Every morning, when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand-new hours to live. What a precious gift! We have the capacity to live in a way that these twenty-four hours will bring peace, joy, and happiness to ourselves and others.

• Smile, breathe and go slowly.

• Be yourself. Life is precious as it is. All the elements for your happiness are already here. There is no need to run, strive, search or struggle. Just Be.

• Understanding and Love are not two separate things, but just one. To develop understanding, you have to practice looking at all living beings with the eyes of compassion. When you understand, you cannot help but love. And when you love, you naturally act in a way that can relieve the suffering of people.

• In our consciousness, there are many negative seeds and also many positive seeds. The practice is to avoid watering the negative seeds, and to identify and water the positive seeds every day.

• Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

• You are like a candle. Imagine you are sending light out all around you. All your words, thoughts and actions are going in many directions. If you say something kind, your kind words go in many directions, and you yourself go with them. We are transforming and continuing in a different form at every moment.

• Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible.

• We have to walk in a way that we only print peace and serenity on the Earth. Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.

• People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.

• You are what you want to become. Why search anymore? You are a wonderful manifestation. The whole universe has come together to make your existence possible. There is nothing that is not you. The kingdom of God, the Pure Land, nirvana, happiness, and liberation are all you.

• Hatred and fear blind us. We no longer see each other. We only see the faces of monsters, and that gives us the courage to destroy each other.

• Freedom is not given to us by anyone; we have to cultivate it ourselves. It is a daily practice…

• Every path, every street in the world is your walking meditation path.

• If you look deeply into the palm of your hand, you will see your parents and all generations of your ancestors. All of them are alive in this moment. Each is present in your body. You are the continuation of each of these people.

• Mindfulness helps you go home to the present. And every time you go there and recognize a condition of happiness that you have, happiness comes.

• Walk and touch peace every moment.

Walk and touch happiness every moment.

Each step brings a fresh breeze.

Each step makes a flower bloom.

Kiss the Earth with your feet.

Bring the Earth your love and happiness.

The Earth will be safe

when we feel safe in ourselves.

• Enlightenment is always there. Small enlightenment will bring great enlightenment. If you breathe in and are aware that you are alive—that you can touch the miracle of being alive—then that is a kind of enlightenment.

• Mindful Consuming

Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I vow to cultivate good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking and consuming. I vow to ingest only items that preserve peace, well-being, and joy in the body, in my consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family and society. I am determined not to use alcohol or any other intoxicant or to ingest foods or other items that contain toxins, such as certain TV programs, magazines, books, films, and conversations. I am aware that to damage my body or my consciousness with these poisons is to betray my ancestors, my parents, my society, and future generations. I will work to transform violence, fear, anger, and confusion in myself and in society by practicing a diet for myself and for society. I understand that a proper diet is crucial for self transformation and for the transformation of society.

• We have to learn to die in every moment in order to be fully alive.

• My actions are my only true belongings.
  I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.
  My actions are the ground upon which I stand.

• The way we live our daily lives is what most effects the situation of the world. If we can change our daily lives, then we can change our governments and can change the world. Our president and governments are us. They reflect our lifestyle and our way of thinking. The way we hold a cup of tea, pick up the newspaper or even use toilet paper are directly related to peace.

• The buddha called suffering a holy truth, because our suffering has the capacity of showing us the path to liberation. Embrace your suffering and let it reveal to you the way to peace.

• Continue until you see yourself in the cruelest person on Earth, in the child starving, in the political prisoner. practice until you recognize yourself in everyone in the supermarket, on the street corner, in a concentration camp, on  a leaf, in a dewdrop. Meditate until you see yourself in a speck of dust in a distant galaxy. See and listen with the whole of your being. If you are fully present, the rain of Dharma will water the deepest seeds in your store consciousness, and tomorrow, while you are washing the dishes or looking at the blue sky, that seed will spring forth, and love and understanding will appear as a beautiful flower.

• Breathing in I calm my body.  Breathing out I smile. Dwelling in the present moment, I know this is a wonderful moment!

• We should be able to bring the practice of meditation hall into our daily lives. We need to discuss among ourselves how to do it. Do you practice breathing between phone calls? Do you practice smiling while cutting carrots? Do you practice relaxation after hard hours of work? These are practical questions. If you know how to apply meditation to dinner time, leisure time, sleeping time, it will penetrate your daily life, and it will also have a tremendous effect on social concerns.

• When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That’s the message he is sending.

• Jesus said, “If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you.

• Each second of life is a miracle.

• Be still and know.

• Be still and know.

To close, I include a short video with Oprah interviewing Thich Nhat Hahn to experience for yourself, this kind and generous teacher.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJ9UtuWfs3U

What quote speaks to you? Does 'coming home to yourself' resonate with you, for your get-healthy, healing journey? I'd love to hear how in the comments section below.