Viewing entries tagged
healthy foods
Personally, I am a huge fan of chia pudding of sorts. I eat it for breakfast multiple times per week. It is easy, quick, tasty and very good for your digestion.
Chia seeds are a great source of plant-based protein and omega-3 fatty acids. AND, when you make chia pudding with full fat pure coconut milk, it is divine. Add a taste you favorite fruit and voila! A heavenly breakfast jar that is portible, tasty, and power-packed with goodness.
Enjoy this tasty and simple plant-based breakfast treat!
I know most of you are busy and on-the-go folks. These make-and-take fall insprired salad jars are both super easy to make (layering included), portable, and seriously fall-lcious. Roasted pears, toasted pepitas, and those yummy root veggies make for a great salad theme.
Be sure to take note of the salad jar layering for best keeping and a crunchy fresh salad!
An exciting new dressing is the best way to spice up your basic everyday salad! With a perfectly creamy consistency that everyone can love, enjoy this a big beautiful salad with any meal!
Fun fact: Eating more beets is a great way to boost your immune system, and antioxidant levels while maintaining healthy blood pressure, nerve and muscle function!
Brighten up your salads with these colorful, healthful, and perfectly textured ingredients.
Memorial Day weekend is usually spent basking in the healing summer sunshine. Whoever you decide to spend this holiday with, there will surely be a need for plenty of snacks to enjoy outdoors. This perfectly creamy and filling hummus is the ideal snack to dig in with everyone!
Chickpeas are a great source of plant based protein. Matched with healthy fats from the oil, nutritious garlic, and loads of vitamin C from lemon, this hummus is the perfectly nourishing and yummy spread that everyone can relish.
Be sure to take note of our special secret ingredient: chickpea water! This liquid, also known as aquafaba, is the upcoming trend especially in the vegan community. It is commonly used as a binder substitute for eggs in baking. It is the perfect ingredient to make this hummus as creamy as desired.
No need to stress over what food to bring to your weekend get together! Look no further than this delicious dip that is sure to be a hit!
Get ready of a little slice of guilt free heaven. In just one batch of these there is an entire avocado, a big dollop of coconut oil, and a few scoops of raw cacao powder. You can thank me later when you have pampered your palate and powered up your spring energy!!
If you are a chocolate lover like me, this will surely do the trick. These little bites of pleasure are very chocolaty. With all the good fat, high quality coconut flour, and pure raw cacao you will feel balanced, energized and satiated. I like to make mine in those mini muffin tins.
Pure raw cacao is not only a great antioxidant, aphrodisiac and energy boost, but it was also considered food for the Gods (and goddesses). So, why not eat like the goddess you are? I say go for it!
*RECIPE INSPIRED BY FIT MITTEN KITCHEN
These savory drumsticks are a delicious, easy meal to whip up for a crowd. The green curry lends the perfect amount of spices and a little dash of sea salt brings it all together.
It's important to buy free-range or pastured chicken, to ensure the meat you're eating is more nutrient dense and free of harmful toxins, like hormones and antibiotics which are pumped into conventionally raised animals.
Chicken drumsticks also provide you with minerals like selenium, an essential antioxidant that benefits thyroid and prostate health. These drumsticks can be baked or grilled, just serve them up with some fresh veggies and you've got a healthy, balanced meal!
Get the recipe HERE, on my friend, the amazing Ailsa Cowell's healthy food blog, Food to Feel Good.
Hope you enjoy!
She arrived about 20 minutes after our first yoga session started on Friday evening.
Surrounded with a sacred circle of women, a beautiful goddess yoga room, majestic Colorado mountains, and the hint of fall in the air, she tiptoed in quietly to join the circle, moved into child’s pose and began to settle in.
I slowly walked over amidst teaching my class, sat down beside her and started to slowly rub her back. Tears began to stream. Big full exhales followed.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “This is exactly what I have been needing.”
I had personally reached out to her quite a few times to remind her of our upcoming women’s retreat weekend. I was so glad I did.
Apparently she needed a little nudge.
Even though we know what is best for ourselves, know what we love, how to treat ourselves and what feels good, we so often succumb to our resistance.
Our minds love to point out the reasons why we can’t, why we shouldn’t or why our resistance is logical.
Repeatedly, our resistance takes the form of fears and doubts that prevent us from taking the steps towards what we really want. They are complicated, sneaky and tenacious.
We have our go-to excuses, stories, limitations, fears, and self-doubts that know exactly how to do their jobs – keep us stuck.
I want you to live a life you love.
I want that for you, for me, and for all of us.
I want lives where our desires, our intentions, our diligence and our self-care are greater than our resistance to them.
When this is occurring, we manifest our dreams. When it is not, we most often stay stuck.
So let’s chat ...
What is holding you back?
In just one week from today I will be heading out of town to explore the wild feminine, enjoy the harvest full moon and eclipse, and to rest and restore on our fall women's full moon retreat weekend.
With the time and space to reconnect with ourselves, tap into the transition of the season and create an eagle-eye view on life and things – we can reset.
There are endless gifts of being on retreat...
Maybe this little nudge will help you overcome your resistance << Test First Name >>.
Maybe this little reminder will create an opening for you to imagine yourself fully embodying your health and happiness.
Are you feeling the call?
If so, come share in the journey with us next weekend.
Reconnect and restore in the majesty of the Colorado Rocky Mountains with a retreat designed for your health, nourishment, and body-mind-spirit connection.
Soak in the sacred waters of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, enjoy the delicious organic home cooked meals, and share in the sisterhood of connection and ritual.
Come and watch the LIVE Q and A that I did earlier this week with my special guest, Helen Knight, and just hit reply if you have any questions.
We have just 3 spots left. Is one of them for you?
There is still time to join us.
I've got a few spring secrets for you.
We picked an aromatically pleasing purple lilac and carried it with us along the creek path, taking turns inhaling its sweet spring scent all the way through our evening walk.
Walking on my neighborhood creek path is my favorite way to unwind at the end of the day. I find solace in listening to the creek ripple by, and witnessing nature’s articulation as everything comes to life for a long awaited spring.
Something as simple as the sweet scent of a lilac activates the senses, and connects us to the deeper currents of spring.
The 8 limbs of yoga are steeped with teachings and guidance to uplift the heart and mind.
Some of these 8 limbs are very well known amongst the most common yoga practices – for example, the physical practice of ASANA: the practice of the holding yoga postures – whilst others are less trendy and even thought of as the forgotten limbs of yoga.
Pratyahara is one of my favorite limbs of the yoga practice.
This particular limb is defined as the practice of refining of the senses.
Pratyahara includes both the discernment of gaining mastery over the senses in the face of distraction, as well as the refinement of the senses through a heightened awareness.
When we refine, heighten, and savor the sensory experience, we become more present – the senses can only be experienced in the present moment – and we heighten our experience of the world around us – more pleasure, more bliss and more embodiment in all the things we do.
I will tell you how this applies directly to our eating, our bodies, and the beauty all around us in
The 6 Sweet + Sensual secrets of SPRING
You are a pleasure based being. You are designed to feel pleasure, enjoy pleasure, and embody pleasure through your senses. With just a little attention on this and some tips to cleanse your sensory palate, you too can refine your sensory experience and enjoy the ride just a little bit more.
We all know today’s world is fast paced and full. We can’t really change that in the big picture. What we can do each day is gift ourselves the time to slow down. Slow down when we eat, slow down when we walk in nature or slow down when we do our self care practices.
Take a deep breath. It sounds simple but something as simple as a few deep breaths allows us to be in the moment, get centered, and relax our minds.
One major downside of eating highly refined and processed foods is that our palates become less sensitive to the subtle flavors of natural food.
Choose foods that are made from nature’s naturally sweet flavors or natural mineral rich salt.
When the flavors are varietal and pure, they not only heighten our sense of taste, but they also energetically attune us into more inner balance and harmony.
Sweet – Nourishment and love
Salty – Courage and fearlessness
Bitter – Purification and detoxification
Spicy – Passion and excitement
Sour – Spiritual fire and passion for life
Watch the chocolate meditation here
Bringing all of my senses into my eating is on of my favorite exercises. I filmed this video with the release of my book, Health Wise, in 2014. You can apply the concepts of the Chocolate Meditation to any eating you do.
Make your eating more sensual.
When we spend all of our time looking at our devices, our Facebook page, our Instagram account and the latest HBO series, it becomes less likely we are going to notice the sensory experience of a beautiful bouquet of flowers, a purring kitty, or the crackling of a warm fire.
Give yourself some screen free, device free, electronic free time each day.
As we know, there are many ways to touch ourselves. Some are more arousing and sexual then others. What I am talking about here is waking up our bodies to sensual touch.
You can practice this with gentle coconut oil self massage. You can practice this with self-pleasuring. You can practice this with warm comforting aromatherapy baths.
You choose.
One therapeutic practice to try is to up your sensory experience in your sense of smell.
It is said that the olfactory sense, our sense of smell, is our oldest sense from the viewpoint of evolution.
Our sense of smell creates strong memories with its powerful, swift and precise presence.
Cool fact ** The sense of smell is even more developed in a woman than it is in a man.
Our sense of smell is deeply connected to our sensual relationship to food, to a woman's eroticism, and to our intuition.
Some doctors call this "scent therapy". This can engage new receptors in your nose, improving your sense of smell over time.
Scent therapy infuses your olfactory system with delightful, potent scents, refining your sense of smell while enjoying benefits of the aromas on your entire body, mind and spirit.
Some scents are more therapeutic than others, while others are more pleasure based as well.
Try essential oils, strong smelling flowers or raw foods that when lightly cooked emit a strong aroma – such as garlic, ginger, tumeric.
Spring is the most sensual and lush time of the year. We can open the spring nuances more fully as sensual sensory beings through all things food, body, sensuality, and self-love with the activation of our senses - pratyahara.
Do you MOTHER yourself ?
The ambrosial scents of spring have been rolling over me like ocean waves this week.
Instant BLISS.
With a little (or a lot) of spring fever lighting me up, I decided to park my entire mobile office outside on my back deck. Usually, when I notice any resistance to my usual day-to-day stuff – writing, finances, paperwork – I ask myself the question: "What would it take to inspire me?"
This week my answer was SPRING.
Not only did my move outside to work uplift my motivation, but it actually had me looking forward to the writing hours I had allotted for myself this week.
This is one way I MOTHER myself
To really take care of ourselves and tend to ourselves, we have to give ourselves the love we want and deserve first and foremost.
Self Love.
As we embark on Mothers's Day weekend, this year I invite you to practice MOTHERING yourself.
No matter where we are in your lives, what our relationship is like with our mothers, or whether we are a mother, mothering ourselves is the best way to love ourselves this Mothers Day.
Mothering ourselves reminds us we are our own best friends, our own fierce protectors, and our own wise teachers.
Do you have your own back?
Intuitively we know what we need. It takes a little practice – like strengthening a muscle over time. The practice is in the PAUSING, being curious, and self inquiry into what we really need and want.
Here are 4 easy and quick 'MOTHER YOURSELF' questions:
What does your physical body need to be nourished?
What does your heart need to be fed with happiness and joy?
What does your mind need to be free, clear, and inspired?
How can you feed your spirit with peace and calm?
If part of mothering yourself requires a little hand holding, don't be afraid to ask.
If mothering yourself involves aligning your health from the inside out with the energetics of SPRING, check out my Spring Fever Cleanse Programs below.
You can read ALL about the Spring Fever programs HERE.
Here's to all the mothers that have come before us, mothering ourselves, and celebrating the beauty of spring...oh and Mother's day mimosas.
With the warm Colorado sun warming me through window at Boulder’s local tea shop – Pekoe Sip House – I sit this morning, (with my Mate Latte) and start to clear off my emails from the past month.
My email is, as usual, overflowing with my favorite writers and bloggers, and today, almost all themed with the new beginnings of 2016.
The New Year is always full of so many opportunities to renew.
Whether you are a goal setter, a resolution lover, or one who strives to live with intention each day, we are bombarded with hundreds of ways to create a fresh start, even if we are half way through January.
Social media, emails, articles and advertisements are rolling in with a brilliant range of options.
So today, I decided to offer you a perfectly FREE and favorite way of mine to remember #healthisourgreatestwealth.
In the spirit of supporting you in your health goals for the year, whatever they may be, I want to share with you my top 10 ways to setting up your sacred space, the center of your health, with just a little more mindfulness.
I have found after working for over 12 years in the field of mind-body health and nutrition, that there are a few “set yourself up for success” gems that I want to be sure you know about.
"The CENTER of your HEALTH is in your CONSCIOUSNESS and in your KITCHEN"
Creating sacred space for yourself crafts the energy to expand our visions into in reality.
A sacred space brings forth a container for your coming year of self-care, nourishment and vitality.
Creating a sacred space for our lives and our health can be two fold:
My top 10 ways to create sacred space for vibrant life and health:
1. Eat nourishing whole food that is free from processed sugars, additives, preservatives, and refined ingredients.
2. Create mealtime rituals that give you the time to sit down and enjoy a peaceful meal.
3. Craft a positive affirmation about your body.
4. Take some time each day to nurture yourself. Try asking the question: “What can I do to nurture myself today?".
5. Sit peacefully and reflect each morning on how to customize your day to match your health goals, your energy and your to-do list.
6. Listen to your body – it is always your ally.
7. Drop the guilt - I know this one is tough, but living wrought with guilt is even tougher.
8. Give yourself down time each day, leading up to and including a good night sleep.
9. Give yourself permission for pleasure. (all kinds of pleasure)
10. Make YOU your #1 in 2016.
Join us for a MAGICAL week in BALI this spring.
Some inspiration for you today:
Over the past few months I have been a busy bee restructuring a lot of my business so I can better serve you.
This process has led me to finding new partnerships and collaborations that feed MY inspiration, match my mission, and better fuel my TRIBE mentality. It has left me feeling so powerful and uplifted.
This past month in particular, I have really been diving into this idea of collaboration, cooperation and win-win type relationships that can create an energy and support system like never before.
You see, I am a gal who has leaned towards (over) independence, always doing things all by myself. My asking for help felt like a burden.
WHOA was I wrong...
What I am realizing is that most of my life I have forged ahead without the TRIBE mentality.
Having spent a lot of time on this lately (personally and professionally). I am realizing that not only can we be more supported in collaborations and cooperative efforts, we can also be more powerful in our own lives.
My mantra lately has been ..."Lean In"
Thanks to my awesome business coach, this month I have hired an assistant (go Ashley!) a new (bookkeeper (thank you Bettsee), and kindled some amazing partnerships with awesome organizations such as LuLulemon, Isagenix, and Radiance Power Yoga.
(p.s. This has also been very good for my relationship.)
Today with that in mind, I am going to share with you a very special collaboration I am working on because this one really pulls at my heart strings, fires me up, and leaves me so excited and energized at the powerful work people are doing in the world.
Feeding Fearlessness is just that.
This week I chatted over tea with one of the founders of Feeding Fearlessness, Kaitlin Mulligan.
Feeding Fearlessness is a student run support group at CU that aims to both provide a safe space for open conversation regarding eating disorders and body image, as well as help educate the surrounding community about the prevalence of these problems.
These women are extremely passionate about personal transformation, the TRIBE mentality, and women finding their power with eating and body!
Last week they were on the front page of the Daily Camera!
Here is all the details:
Feeding Fearlessness is open to both men and women, and isn’t exclusive to just those struggling with defined “eating disorders,” but to anyone who may be struggling with food, weight, body image, etc.
FF holds weekly support meetings, where members are encouraged but not required to share a bit about their successes and setbacks.
FF maintains an atmosphere of positivity, as we are all striving to achieve better health and happiness.
Feeding Fearlessness also participates in fundraising events, such as walks for the National Eating Disorder Association, and helps to raise awareness throughout Boulder by participating in National Eating Disorder Awareness Week, and the like.
Unhealthy relationships with food, weight, and exercise are often overlooked, especially in the Boulder Colorado community, and we aim to bring more attention to these relationships, and support each other in bettering them.
You can find them on Facebook HERE, email the leaders HERE, and read the exciting article from the Daily Camera HERE.
Rachael Quirke, left, and Kaitlin Mulligan, have started a new club at the University of Colorado that focuses on eating disorders. (Cliff Grassmick / Staff Photographer)
Thanks for spending a few minutes of your day with me ...
Stay tuned over the next few months, and I will share with you some stories of other amazing TRIBES that may also stoke your inner passions. I am so excited.
If you are like most women, you have heard a similar voice in your head before. The one that looks in the mirror and cringes, or the voice who tells you you are UNLOVABLE because of your many imperfections.
This type of internal dialogue might drag you down. Some days it’s likely louder than others, some days it runs the show, and some days it may even have you in tears on the phone talking to your best friend, your sister or your mother saying “What is wrong with me???”
MOST women struggle with this voice at least some of the time. Feeling less than, not pretty enough, not fit enough, not good enough, and ... unlovable. This is an epidemic of our time, our culture, and women everywhere.
I have been there plenty. An off day, a rough night of sleep, PMS, or one of the many triggers that can pop up in my day-to-day.
What has changed for me is not making the voice go away entirely, but rather my relationship to my self sabotaging voice.
Do I give it POWER?
Do I BELIEVE it?
Do I spend the day LISTENING to it?
Can I TURN IT AROUND, change my reaction to it, or even love it as part of being a woman?
I have a few favorite FEMALE FRIENDLY ways to fine tune - from the inside out - that have been working for me. I find these important to share, perhaps they can help you too.
It is never totally EASY, but with consistency and practice it is surly EFFECTIVE and ENGAGING.
YES, this CAN mean your voice QUIETS.
Don’t miss this.
These simple yet profound tools may be just your ticket to more inner freedom and self LOVE.
MOJO MOVEMENT
One of most effective ways to connect with your beautiful body is through energizing movement. How is your MOJO? Practices such as YOGA, BRISK WALKING/HIKING and DANCE can move energy in big ways. Get yourself out of inertia and MOVE IT, SHAKE IT, GROOVE IT. Enliven your spirit and up your MOJO with some juicy movement of your own.
“Daily practice becomes more and more relevant for the modern woman as she sits at a tiny desk, eating food on the run, all the while performing the dance of mother, sister, lover, wife, and many more roles. Now we reclaim the feminine by running in nature, nourishing by a satiating meal, sitting on our meditation cushions and dancing our bodies to our hearts content. ”
Angela Grace
~Eat Pray Yoga Guest Teacher
Have your own private dance party, take a walk in the beautiful fall leaves, or inspire yourself with your favorite yoga teacher. Learn to FEEL good in your body to then LOVE your body.
EMPOWERED EATING
Feeling empowered around food is almost every woman’s dream. We are so often known to take everything out on our relationship to food: the good, the bad and the ugly.
Empowered eating means we clean up our relationship with food and who we are as the EATER using mindful practices such as making your eating an awareness art of it’s own. We STOP abusing our bodies with food, and START loving ourselves with every bite.
Food is a faithful resource for love, but things become problematic when we expect food to compensate for a lack of love.”
Marc David
~ Psychology of Eating
and Eat.Pray.Yoga Guest Teacher
ATTENTIVE ADORNMENT
How do you feel when you take a little time to adorn your goddess self? What is it like to tend to yourself in attentive beauty and reverence? The practice of adorning yourself daily can dramatically change how you feel in your body and about your body.
“Where we're at with who we are, is how we dress. How we dress is a direct reflection of our multi-faceted inner landscape . . . This beauty has the power to heal, balance and renew. Cultivate the qualities of beauty in your thoughts and actions. “
Colleen Vistara ~
Vistara Designer
Whether this means putting on a special necklace as a meaningful ritual, buying a sexy new pair of panties or rubbing some of your favorite lotion or essential oil all over your skin – attentive adornment brings you closer to the beautiful body that is yours. Sacred ritual and loving touch for your body is breakthrough material.
FEMININE FELLOWSHIP
Do you have a supportive group of women in your life? Are you able to find connection, like mind, and the art of the feminine healing in your circle?
When we are able to connect outside of our marriage, relationship and family to women of like mind we begin notice our needs being met in a whole new deep and fulfilling way.
“As women begin to find our way back home to each other – to the divine feminine, and to our sisters – things begin to align all around us. Energy shifts in large waves, and we find ourselves with more courage, more trust, and more support to do what it is we are called to do here on the planet.”
Sue Van Raes~
Quote from Health WIse
No other support can replace the way that women tend to each other. You don’t have to do this alone. You can give, you can receive and you can bask in the beauty of women coming together in support of each other in pure radiant living. Check out our upcoming online program:
GIRLY GUSTO
Did you know there is no faster way to restore vitality to the body then some healthy sustainable pleasure. You can call this joy, laughter, GUSTO, or inspiration. Many women do not know how to find enough pleasure in their lives. Is that you?? If you are stuck, restrictive, blah, or feeling uninspired, this may be the perfect remedy for you.
Pleasure is the way we thank the universe for what we are grateful for. Pleasure is the expression of self-love.
Sex, chocolate, shoes, laughter, tea dates, time in nature, and meditation are just of few of the infinite ways we can find pleasure. RECEIVE, ENJOY, and REVEL in your own personal pleasures.
“I want you to know that it is pleasure, not pain, that is your birthright.”
Dr. Christiane Northrup
~ Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom; Goddesses Never Age ; The Wisdom of Menopause
I sat in bed Sunday morning drinking tea, reading, and savoring the coziness of my down comforter.
I made soup.
I took a long walk in the woods to see the brilliant trees changing to vibrant oranges and reds.
I adore AUTUMN.
You may feel the desire to pull inwards and reflect, rest, and restore a bit more as well.
You may have noticed that urge for more warming fall foods to nourish your body as well.
Now that another fall season is upon us, you may feel ready to let go, forgive, and heal as you watch the leaves fall to the ground yet again.
All of these intuitive knowings are exactly why SYNCHING up with the SEASON is a brilliant practice. When we SYNC up with nature we also maximize our MOJO.
Our life force lights up.
Each season in Traditional Chinese Medicine is linked to a specific energy, organ, color, sense and element.
Fall is the season of downward and inward energy, lungs and large intestine, letting go of sadness and grief, the metal element, our sense of smell, and the color white.
As we descend this fall, we have the opportunity to both let go and purify physically and energetically for the rest of the season to bring us more vibrant health and radiance.
The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let the dead things go.
Here are my favorite 5 HEALTH HABITS to SYNC up with the SEASON to make a magnificent impact on your health, harmony and happiness.
Warm
Keep you lungs and chest warm (and the rest of your body). You can try:
Warming foods: Foods that are slow cooked, root veggies that carry the downward and inward energy such as ginger, onion, leak, garlic and beats.
Herbal Teas: Many herbal teas are good for their lung support, immunity and warming qualities. (ginger, nettles, cinnamon spice, chai, osha root, spiced mate, or mullein)
Essential oils: Oils are great to use during the fall season. You can difuse the oils, use topically, or even in your cooking: Frankinsence, vitiver, cedarwood, sage, fennel, or oregano oil
Wear Warm clothing: To insulate and nourish the lungs we must be warm. Even if the weather is warmer than an average fall day, stay attentive to the season, the cooler nights, and the need to take deep care with warming up the core. Your immune system will thank you.
Breathe
As I mentioned, fall is known as the season associated with the lungs in Chinese medicine. It is often a time when children come home from school with upper respiratory coughs and weakness as the weather changes. It is important to strengthen the lungs in the fall. This can be done in a variety of ways but here are a few of my favorites:
Make sure you and your family exercise regularly. Pump the lungs often so they are strong and cleansed with rigorous life-giving breath.
Many foods in the fall are known to support the lungs. Root vegetables such as onions, leeks, and ginger are supportive to the lungs. Fruits such as apples and pears care for the lung tissue as well. Eating with the season is the perfect way to maintain healthy lungs.
Detox
The season of fall is the perfect time to gently detoxify and cleanse our bodies, our homes and our minds.
We all come across toxicity each day in our foods, in our environment, and with our daily stresses.
When we cleanse our body, you strengthen your immune system for a healthier fall and winter season. (Check out the Fall seasonal SYNC up here)
When we cleanse our homes and our environment by cleaning with natural cleaners, letting go of old clutter and creating a sacred space in our home, we have the perfect place to rest and restore as the season often pulls us to spending more time at home resting and restoring.
When we cleanse our minds through meditation and mindfulness practices, we create a healthier and more calm relationship to daily stressors that can throw us off balance. We deepen our connection to ourselves, and we stay more centered in our lives.
Ground
As you watch the leaves falling from the trees and becoming the earth‘s nutrients for next year’s planting, it becomes obvious that fall has an energy that flows downward and inward (as opposed the upward and outward energetics in the spring). What are the aspects of your life that ground you? Make a list and practice these grounding activities regularly in the fall.
It is a nice time to take long walks in the colorful forest and feel the leaves crunching under your feet. Consider collecting nuts, pinecones and fall treasures for an altar or a fairy garden with your children. These small autumn rituals and habits help us harmonize ourselves with autumn. It is natural to sleep more, rest more and begin to turn inward towards introspection and healing.
Gratitude
Lush sunflowers, tucked in with the plump orange pumpkins, are an abundance to celebrate. The colors, foods and celebrations of fall are profuse. Feel gratitude for the beauty of the harvest. Set a seasonal outdoor table rich with a cornucopia of color and nature’s gifts to warm the heart for any celebration. Share a gratitude blessing before your meals, as it promotes health and happiness.
Light a bonfire to take away the chill of the evening and join in a circle of friends celebrating fall in its glory.
Take it in! The abundance is around you and within you. Your only job is to notice and appreciate its radiance. Remember all you need exists within. You are the strength, you are the love.
Want to take your FALL practices a little deeper?
Check out the FALL COZY Seasonal Sync up (Local or Remote)
If you want to join our group, we start October 12th (introduction October 11th). If you are ready to begin on your own, just let me know, we have you covered.
If you have been a Boulder Nutrition reader for a while, you probably already know how I feel about breakfast.
This summer I published a summertime breakfast blog called Breakfast Bliss and Blood Sugar that became the most read blog in the history of Boulder Nutrition. I am so glad you all liked it!
What I am really interested in is WHY?
I have a good hypothesis as to WHY for you today, and an even more exciting breakfast menu for you to explore this fall.
Listen, I would be surprised if your mornings are totally serene, peaceful, and quiet.
I know some of you are the exception and have your morning routine down, but if you are like most of us, mornings can be hectic, scattered, and rushed .I have focused my attention on my morning routine for years.
As I have shared before, the mornings when I am on my game I am good at giving myself at least 30 minutes to rise and shine before my kids, to have some time to meditate, practice, and nourish myself well.
I have found mindful mornings tend to make ALL the difference.
The truth is, sometimes it just doesn't go that way. Did you forget you were out of milk? Push the alarm one extra time? Have a teenager whose hair just wasn't working out? Or forget about that extra stop you have to make for gas on the way to work or school? All it takes is something small to throw our mornings into a tail spin.
Can you relate?
These reasons (plus many more) might be why breakfast is the most challenging, rushed and stressful meal of the day.
So with the idea of giving you more of what you seem to really like reading, here are my 5 favorite FALL COZY breakfasts to settle into this fall.
Each of these breakfasts have a little flavor of the weather changing, fall seasonal energetics, and of course you can trust me to keep the glycemic index LOW and your blood sugar BALANCE and BLISS in mind.
Quinoa Apple Pie Bowl
Health Nugget: What I love most about quinoa (pronounced KEEN WOA) is that it is a complete protein and the highest protein content of any grain. It is also known to dry up dampness in the body according to TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine). What does that mean? Well, dampness is like a code word for inflammation or phlegm. The less we have of this during the fall season - the season with the most coughs and colds - the better.
1 Cup Cooked Quinoa (easiest if cooked ahead of time for morning efficiency)
1 Steamed apple warmed with cinnamon
1 Tsp butter or coconut oil
1/4 cup pecans
Pinch of sea salt
1 tsp maple syrup or raw honey (optional)
Toss all ingredients in a bowl and enjoy.
Chai Chia smoothie
Health Nugget: Smoothies are one of my favorite ways to pack your breakfast of all the food groups and super foods you want to add to your breakfast. Smoothies are also easy to transport to your office. My favorite feature in this smoothie is that it is not frozen but rather warming as the weather changes those brisker fall mornings. The warm chai tea and warming spices are perfect to synch up with the fall season.
2-3 leaves of romaine lettuce
1 TBSP Chia seeds
1 fleshy fruit of choice (i.e. 1/2 banana)
6-8 cups Herbal Spice Chai tea (warm)
Vanilla protein powder or raw egg
1 T chopped ginger, cinnamon, and cardamom (optional)
1 T fresh grated ginger
Place ingredients in the blender and mix well.
Paleo Zucchini Muffins
Health Nugget: These high protein muffins, disguised as a carb, are a quick and easy breakfast for on the go mornings. Spread with some organic butter or almond butter for another boost in good protein and fat and you will notice that your energy is even keeled all day. Pack all of that nutrient dense zucchini in there and get an extra couple servings of veggies. Prepare them ahead of time, freeze if you like, and enjoy.
1 cup of garden fresh zucchini
3 organic eggs
1 1/2 cups almond flower
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 organic chocolate chips (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup raw honey or coconut sugar
Mix ingredients and bake at 375 for about 45 min or until golden brown.
Pumpkin Protein Pancakes
Health Nugget: These pancakes are a great way to get a sweet breakfast without sacrificing your blood sugar in the process. Adding in the scoop of protein powder is a trick I have been using with my kids for years to ensure pancake breakfasts still include a healthy dose of protein. Along with the yummy seasonal pumpkin, a great source of vitamin A and beta carotene, full of fiber, and potent antioxidants, these make for a great fall breakfast.
2 cups gluten free pancake mix
2 scoops vanilla protein powder
2 organic eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 1/2 cups liquid (milk, almond milk, coconut milk or water)
pinch of salt
1 TBSP maple syrup (for top)
Mix together ingredients and fry up in your ideal pancake size in a cast iron pan until golden brown. Top with organic butter and maple syrup.
Caprese Scramble
Health Nugget: Organic eggs are chock full of the amino acid, tryptophan, which is a key player in a good mood and inner calm. The protein in eggs is one that will not only satiate your blood sugar due to its delicate balance of protein and fat, but will also keep you feeling brighter and cheerier all day long.
1 small organic tomato
1 3-5 basil leaves chopped fine
3-4 slices of raw mozzarella cheese
2-3 organic eggs
Pinch of salt
Saute the tomato and basil in a pan in butter or olive oil. Stir in the eggs to scramble. Toss in raw mozzarella at the end until it begins to melt slightly. Serve up.
Want to take your FALL practices a little deeper?
Check out the FALL COZY Cleanse Program (Local or Remote)
If you want to join our group, we start October 12th (introduction October 11th). If you are ready to begin, you can start anytime you are ready.
While the dry weather of fall (in Colorado for sure) comes with the need for a little beauty and skin attention, there are many brilliant and simple uses for this super food that I want to share with you that you can use all year long.
First, before we get to the miracle makings of my favorite of natures remedies, I want to be sure we clarify just a bit on the confuse about coconut oil:
Cooking with coconut oil is safe, nutrient rich and tasty. Coconut oil is a saturated fat, making it very stable to light and heat. Use coconut oil in your sauté, stir fry or baking.
Additionally, coconut oil consists almost entirely of medium chain fatty acids. These fatty acids go straight from the digestive tract to the liver, where they are likely to be turned into ketone bodies and provide a quick source of energy.
Coconut oil has many health benefits when used on the outside of the body as well. Known for it skin repair qualities, as well as its perfectly balanced PH naturally, coconut oil is a wonderful addition to your skin care regiment.
High in both vitamin E and medium chain fatty acids, your skin will thank you for the moisture, softenss and long term wrinkle control. I use coconut oil regularly on my skin especially during the warmer and dryer months of the year.
Put a dollup of coconut oil right into your morning smoothie, and you will notice your blood sugar remain stable for longer, a boost in your energy, and a nice smooth texture and flavor. If you have a blood sugar related health issue such as hypoglyciema, diabetes, PCOS, or acid reflux, coconut oil might be just the right addition to your morning smoothie.
Coconut oil in your breakfast is a great way to increase brain function, minimize sugar cravings, and keep your digestion healthy and strong.
Oil pulling is an age-old remedy that uses natural substances to clean and detoxify teeth and gums. It has the added effect of whitening teeth naturally and evidence even shows that it is beneficial in improving gums and removing harmful bacteria!
For now take about 1-2 tsp on a spoon and place into mouth. Swish for about 20 min. You will want to find something to occupy you like a meditation, folding some laundry or getting dressed. After about 20 min, spit oil into the sink ridding your mouth of toxins and bacteria. ** DO NOT SWALLOW.
YES! Coconut oil is great for your YONI ...and beyond. Coconut oil is by far the most natural, the most effective, and the most safe for lubrication and we know how good it is for your skin.
Keep a jar on your night stand for sensual massage, lubrication, tasty fun and delights to the senses. Bonus: because coconut oil is also an antibacterial remedy, you will find it helps with candida, yeast infections and other bothersome imbalances in the body.
I was never much of a coffee drinker, because coffee would mess up my blood sugar and leave me feeling wired, hyper and slightly ADD. The recent trend of bullet proof coffee (adding butter and coconut oil to your coffee + a few other goodies) has made my weekend coffee ritual very exciting.
Adding coconut oil to your coffee (or tea) will sustain your blood sugar and your energy much more effectively, while also boosting up the nutrient density of your favorite morning beverage.
Coconut oil is known to effectively support wound healing due to its medicinal antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, moisturizing and healing properties. Coconut oil can also keep infections at bay and prevent scarring with its perfectly balanced and moisturizing qualities.
Be sure to clean the would thoroughly first.
Each Friday, I wake up and head over to teach a morning yoga class filled with the amazing women whom I look forward to seeing each week. Friday then becomes my day to catch up on 'Sue self care' and some 'Sue self love'.
As women, many of us struggle with BODY NEGATIVE thoughts all day long. We find ourselves in a battle with our bodies constantly seeing the negative and looking at ourselves through the eyes of the inner critic.
Hating our bodies has many repercussions. Living this way can truly bring us down, distract us from our authentic selves, and keep us stuck in thought patterns that surely do not serve us or others in our lives.
It is a challenge. I see it in myself as well. Staying in a BODY POSITIVE space takes commitment and focus.
Whether it is your thighs, your stomach, the number on the scale, how your skinny jeans fit, or how you see yourself in the mirror, this BODY NEGATIVE lifestyle is never going to feel good.
We all deserve to feel good in our bodies. We deserve to be free to be who we are in all our expressions of the feminine, regardless of what our culture dictates. Valuing ourselves in a way that goes beyond outer beauty and size is a mission worth pursuing.
Change may not happen overnight, but with these consistent practices, you will find you can overcome your old patterns and make living BODY POSITIVE your practice.
Observe How You Feel
Our bodies are wise.
How we feel after we eat, after we exercise, of even after spending time with a friend or family member is important to note. Observing gives us information. If we consistently eat something that sits in our stomach giving us digestive upset, bloating or pain we are not going to find it easy to be body positive. If we over exercise or under exercise and feel tired, lethargic or stuck in our bodies it is hard to stay body positive. If we are eating out of alignment from what we know to be healthy, ethical, and energy producing we are going to find it hard to be body positive.
Aligning your with your health and your body from the inside out creates BODY POSITIVE living.
Question: What are the things you do in your day that leave you feeling GOOD? What are the things you do in your day that leave you feeling less than GOOD?
Create an Intuitive Self Care Plan
Each of us has a unique personal recipe for success and self care. Some of us need 9 hours of sleep, whereas some of us need only 7. Many of us love to take long baths, whilst others would rather drink a cup of hot tea. There is no need to conform to self care that is not right for you, but what is important is examining what would serve you as intuitive self care.
Are you a retreater, a spa gal, a nature forest fairy or a backyard babe? Do you enjoy reading juicy novels, getting your nails done or taking spontaneous naps?
Question: What is your personal recipe that leave you feeling refreshed, rejuvenated and restored?
Let Go of What Does Not Serve
To let go of our old thoughts and habits surrounding body image and replacing them with a positive mind makes us ask, “Well, that’s easy to say, but how do I DO it?”
We are so emotionally attached to these negative thoughts that the best way around is to simply imagine letting them go; whether that is focusing on certain parts of ourselves or our bodies that we dislike, mirror-checking, overusing the scale, or using food to deal with stress, the list goes on.
Once we can observe our negative and harmful thoughts, we can work to replace them with self-love and positivity. Instead of looking at our thighs in disgust and calling them fat, we can appreciate the power and ability that our incredible legs give to us: the ability to walk, to run, to jump, to climb, to play.
We need to begin to thank our bodies for the amazing things they can do for us and look beyond what we dislike on the surface, instead focus on the parts of our bodies that we love, even if it’s something as small as our eyes, nose, hair, even pinky finger.
Be mindful of negative thoughts surfacing and counter them with loving thoughts, even if we need to say it out loud. (more on this below)
Quickly, we love ourselves more and more, while negative thoughts and habits become rarer and rarer. And now our beauty and confidence shines into the world for all to see.
Affirm your Positivity
Daily beauty and body positive affirmations are an important piece to get yourself replacing those old negative thoughts with positive ones. As with any transformation, practice and consistency is where we are going to see sustainable lasting changes. Trying to subtract a thought or habit with no substitution usually leaves a lot of room for old habits to creep back in. Substitution is the secret.
Once you have decided on your positive affirmations, be sure to put them in very well viewed locations. The bathroom mirror, the refrigerator, your meditation alter, your car dash board or your computer to name just a few. Surround yourself with the positivity you so deserve.
Question: What are your most common negative thoughts or internal dialogue? How can you replace those negative thoughts with positive thoughts?
Surround Yourself Intentionally
We all know that we feel better when we surround ourselves with positive people. Even better when these folks understand what we are up to, and lend a bit of accountability or reflection. It is helpful to feel safe, secure, supported and even boosted up by those in our lives.
Creating a community of women that align with you and your body positive intentions will drastically impact body positive practices more than you would think!
Question: Who gives you the most support and security when it comes to body, health and lifestyle? Who doesn't?
If you want to practice the art of BODY POSITIVE living and being...join us this August for the Eat.Pray.Yoga Colorado weekend retreat. Give yourself a gift of self love and care that will rejuvenate your body, mind and spirit.
Is WINTER faking you out? This morning I was driving my son to school on the icy roads and he said:
"Sheesh, really Boulder? "
These crazy weather patterns we experience here in Boulder are a little hard on the system and hard to predict at this time of year. One day it is springy and warm and I feel my spring fever bubbling up, and the next we are shoveling 2 feet of snow off of our driveway and I am back in hibernation mode.
Even though my son was born and raised here in Colorado, it still boggles his mind to witness the Colorado weather patterns. It is a confusing time of year for the body and immune system and so many people have been struggling with cold and flu this year.
There is a saying in Chinese Medicine that says:
"Dress for the season, not the day."
I have adopted this moto and added my own little spin:
"Eat for the season, not the day."
It is still winter for most of us, and although I am excited about the upcoming spring season and enjoying the occasional warmer day, it is still helpful to stay warm and well nourished for the remaining days of winter.
February and March are often the months with the most irratic weather. Our bodies are going through a lot to keep ourselves strong and healthy.
We have to be sure to stay AHEAD of the weather.
How you may ask?
When we stay in the season with our eating, our self care, body care, we will naturally be more attuned to the season, and strengthen our immune systems for this final push of winter.
Want a few immune boosting tips?
Keep reading...
Just tired of Winter?
Come with us on a goddess journey to Bali. We have a few spots left. Click here for details.
Winter Immunity Insights
1. Stay warm.
Keep your kidneys and bladder warm (and the rest of your body as well). You can use warming foods, teas, topical essential oils, sesame oil, and warm clothing to insulate and nourish the your core. Scarves are a nice addition to protect the windgate – the space at the back of your neck – where pathogens can enter.
Even if the weather is warmer than an average winter day, which often happens in my home state COLORADO, be sure to “DRESS FOR THE SEASON, NOT THE DAY”. Stay insulated to keep the immunity strong.
2. Oil of Oregano
Are you fighting the common winter cold, or flu this winter? Oil of Oregano is one of my favorite treatments for both immune boosting and anti-bacterial and anti-viral support.
Did you know just a few drops of Oregano Oil in the diffuser or vaporizer can give you some relief?
Even better – add a few drops to your cooking and enjoy the delicious flavor and immune boosting qualities with your dinner.
Because this potent oil is so strong, make sure you dilute it substantially or take it in a protective capsule. With my big pot of homemade chicken soup I only use 2 drops…3 is too many, and too strong. (See recipe below)
(avoid if you are pregnant, or breastfeeding or an infant)
3. Ritual Baths
There are many many benefits to baths at this time of year. Aside from the warming and relaxing qualities there are also deeper support from certain types of baths. You can always resort to the simple Epson salts bath if you like, but here I am going to provide you with some specific and unique baths to use to synch up with winter – mind, body and soul.
If you are anything like me, you probably have some pretty big hopes and dreams for how your time is going to play out here on earth. You likely want to feel good so you can give back to your great circle of life + you probably want to be able to look back and feel like you lived out your purpose, love, and passions as much as you could have.
Living a fulfilling life not only feels good in the moment but it can have a HUGE impact on our health, happiness and our relationship with food.
One of my favorite questions to ask my clients is:
"What are you REALLY hungry for?"
Why? Because so often when we are lacking fulfillment in our day-to-day lives we are then trying to eat our way to comfort and pleasure.
Sound familiar?
Unfortunately this approach to fulfillment (i.e. food) doesn't work. I have tried it, and I have witnessed hundreds of women who keep turning to food for pleasure, love, and comfort and it doesn't work for them either.
So, if you were to work on creating the life that would fulfill you, what would that look like?
What are YOU hungry for?
We are going to start with #1 (you can read the original blog post here).
For me, one of the biggest tools to finding fulfillment in my life begins with how I spend my time. What do I do with my schedule to support what I WANT in my life?
For example... If I want more yoga in my week, I have to SCHEDULE it! If I want more time to write for my business, I have to SCHEDULE it.
"If it isn't scheduled it isn't real."
So this week I am giving you a BLANK IDEAL CALENDAR template to create your IDEAL week, and include everything you can to make your life exciting, fulfilling and balanced.
Bonus: I am also attaching MY IDEAL CALENDAR in case you missed it last time.
I just finished mine for the fall a few weeks ago, and I have to say, life DID get more fulfilling. I love my new schedule.
{Do I always make it happen just right? Absolutely not. But it is a great template with which to work towards my fulfillment and it includes almost every single thing I want in my life..}
Here are your Ideal Calendar Instructions:
1. Write a list of all the things you want to include in your ideal week. Be sure you are being reasonable! It is important to be realistic here. What are your priorities? Make sure you include work, free time, and downtime.
2. Prioritize the list with the most time consuming stuff at the top and the least time consuming at the bottom.
3. Download the template. You can do that above on the link. It is customizable, meaning you can change colors, the font, the size of the time modules. If you do not know excel, you can just click each box and type in your event. You can also create your own calendar if you want to use your artistic side.
4. Start with the largest time events first. This is the part that is like putting together a puzzle. This is the puzzle that = your fulfillment so take your time. Be patient. Stay with it. Believe in possibility and happiness.
5. Share it with us! We can all use some fresh perspective. If you save this as a PDF or take a picture you can post it to our FaceBook page.
Yes, it is true. Yes to all of the above. I know these feelings inside and out.
It can happen so easily with just one little thing that throws me off balance, or it can just BE the way I see everything about life sometimes.
Busy, Stressed, Overwhelmed used to be my middle name.
I feel it, I know it well and boy does it know me.
Back in the day, when my kids wee little tikes, I was still figuring out single parenting and my business was just launching (2003) - I was ALWAYS overwhelmed.
Not only was I overwhelmed in my life, but I am pretty sure I talked about, complained about, and lived OVERWHELM in every part of my being.
Looking back, I was complaining about this, crying about this, and wishing things were different for quite some time. I was a mess.
I was constantly juggling 2 small kids, child care, logistics, making food, cleaning up the constant mess, and trying desperately to take care of myself while still giving everything else I had to my business and my vision.
Why am I telling you this?
Well, the one thing I know is that if I can find balance, so can you.
It is not always easy, and sometimes I had to truly dig deep, cry it out and ask for help (not easy for me), but taking care of ourselves, feeding ourselves (and our families) and fitting in the things that make life flow a little smoother are totally possible, even if you can't imagine how.
Today I am going to share with you just a few things I learned (the hard way) so that you can find your own balance, radiance, health and ease in this life - with maybe less bumps in the road then I had.
In fact, what I truly want for you is GRACE, HARMONY and JOY in your life especially in your relationship with food and your body so that you have the energy and passion to share all the gifts you have in all aspects of your life.
1. Create your DREAM calendar. Now this is NOT a calendar that will SOMEDAY be yours - like a dream house. This IS a calendar that reflects what you want RIGHT NOW. Include your intentions, your work schedule, your self care, all into your ideal week.
I do this every season. I change some things based on the weather, my kids schedule and what I am currently working on.
THIS is the NUMBER 1 thing that took me out of everyday OVERWHELM. I am attaching my Ideal calendar - Fall 2014 here (I just finished it last week for the fall quarter) and I hope you sit with what yours might look like. We will dig in to this more next week so get ready to create the life you love.
2. Get some SLEEP. So often we are exhausted. Fatigue contributes to the overwhelm like nothing else. Sleep is the one things that raises our tolerance for life and all the tasks at hand. Shoot for 8 hours minimum - no I am not kidding. Even if you think that is impossible, you will find that you can get WAY more done during the day and handle all the curve balls that come your way when you are well rested.
**There is one exception. If you are a new mom, and you cannot get anywhere close to that amount of sleep, know that you are not alone. I honestly did not sleep through the night for almost 6 years. I know fatigue well. I also know that we have to get the most sleep we can and that this phase passes. I highly encourage NAPPING, asking for support, and giving yourself a break in the first year of mothering (or fathering) any chance you get. (I just didn't want to trigger you if you who have no control over your sleep.)
3. Eat HIGH VIBRATIONAL FOODS - Quick, easy and HEALTHY meals are totally possible. As I said above, we are going to dive into this one full on in 3 weeks, BUT It is so important to know that YOU can eat healthily EVEN if you are busy. If you want to live a high vibrational life, you need to feed your body just that. High vibrational food. In fact, it is how you are going to get through the business like a superstar. If BUSY is your primary excuse, get ready to let it go.
Food can be prepared in big batches, used as left overs for lunches, frozen in the freezer for those long days when you don't have time to cook, and can still TOTALLY fit into your budget. I will show you how I PROMISE.
4. SIMPLIFY. Are lives are so full of STUFF, EMAILS, PHONE CALLS. and CLUTTER. It is WAY over the top. There are so many wonderful ways to have BOUNDARIES around this, while still getting things done, keeping things tidy (less overwhelm) and deciding when we are available to our electronic communications.
Try cleaning up your space, getting rid of the old, and making room for the new. FALL is a great time for a fresh start so clean our the pantry, give away some old clothes, or de-clutter your living room. Then take a big EXHALE. Clutter is a HUGE contributor to overwhelm.
One of my favorite practices is turning off electronics for a one or two hours every evening. Take an official BREAK. Turn OFF your phone, SHUT down your computer, and simply live in the spaciousness of your freedom to relax your nervous system. Pick your times and then close up shop for just a bit.
5. Find some STILLNESS - Daily meditation for me is like my daily shower. I cleanse my body in the shower, and I cleanse my mind in my morning meditation. I shoot for 15 minutes each morning. Sometimes I can do 30, but other days I squeeze in just 5-10 minutes. I am so committed to this practice. Every morning I wake up (30 min at least before my children), take a shower, make some tea, and head to the cushion for a few minutes to find the inner stillness and connection that fuels me through the day.
This one often intimidates people, especially if you have not practiced mediation before, but I know you can find 5 minutes in the morning to begin this practice. In the upcoming weeks I will share with your some brilliant meditation tips to get you started, and a starter guided meditation. For now, just sit, turn on your timer, and breath. That is it. 5 minutes a day will change your life.
This is what I did, and that does not mean it is going to work 100% for you, so if you get an absolute "NO" when you read this, it's okay, we all have our own path to health and happiness.
AND...
there ARE also some universal truths to gain from this. You can distill what sounds like the right place for you to start. I will be cheering you on.
I will be sending you major kudos and knowing that you can find the eye of your hurricane, the inner peace even amongst the chaos and most of all the ability to take care of YOU first and foremost.
We live super busy lives these days, and it takes practice figuring out how to navigate the overwhelm. In just a few short steps and a few extra minutes per day you can create the life you LOVE and find some peace in the process.
Also, if you have any challenges to acknowledge, stories to share, and of course success to celebrate please post them here, share the wealth of your knowledge and wisdom with us.
The stores are shouting back to school, the air starts to have a slight nip in its evening breeze and the yearning for a life with some sense of structure and rhythm is before us. Summer is fleeting. The long days at the pool and late night BBQ’s drift into our memories and come to an end for another year. We feel the little twinge of letting go as we settle back into another school year.
I always think of the new school year as a new beginning. Many people consider this a time to revamp, recharge and get in gear for a great year with their families, and themselves. Upping the anti in the area of health is a big focus for many families as we start anew.
One of the biggest challenges I hear from parents as we settle back into the fall is: How do I create the every day SCHOOL LUNCH keeping kids happy, healthy and strong?
Don’t fret. It is possible to make lunch box ingredients enticing, nutrient dense and yummy for your kids. You can find your groove; it just might take a little shift in your thinking and a little preparation in your life for the ease to flow this fall.
Your school lunches are never going to be easier, tastier, and more efficient than if you follow these tips below, and, you will also see some great lunch ideas to get you started. You are off to a GREAT start.
1. GO CONTAINER SHOPPING: I know it sounds simple, but having the appropriate carrier makes all the difference in your ease and efficiency.
2. CREATE YOUR MENU: I always think in terms of having some easy default plans. You know, the ones where you have to think very little. Find 3 top lunches (check out the list below) that work for you and your kiddo and try to keep as much of that around for a quick and stress free assembly. It does not have to be gourmet, complicated or require a lot of time to be healthy and for your kids to love lunching.
3. THINK IN TERMS OF FOOD GROUPS: A balanced meal is made of 4 building blocks. A protein, a fat, a carbohydrate (in its whole form is best – includes fruit) and a veggie of some kind. If you can think in this formula you will be golden. Need an example? No problem.
(Feel free to include some flax crackers or carrot sticks for dipping)
4. MAKE A LIST: Being prepared is ALWAYS the best road to success. This is also true in the world of school lunches. Once you get your GO-TO lunches down it is easy breezy, you’ve just got to be prepared. Go to the store EVERY SUNDAY to gather what you need for the week. Then it is a SURE THING. Make your list for the week and don’t forget to include enough ingredients for dinner leftovers – they make the best school lunches.
5. LOVE YOUR LITTLE GUY/GAL: This year, amidst a cold winter dark morning when I had just about had it with school lunches all together, I stood in my kitchen in my cozy bathrobe with my hot cup of morning tea. I stood there blank, empty, and done. “I can’t make another lunch. I am fried.” It took a few mystical moments but soon after my first thought I was flooded with love. Love for my kids, and love and passion for health.
Every school lunch is like a daily practice for me, loving my kids through food and nourishment. So when I totally dry up in the world of creativity, I can dig deep into that well of love, and there it is.
I have made thousands of school lunches at this point. My kids are 17 and 13. They have never eaten lunch from the cafeteria regularly, always homemade. You can do it. Do it for love.
6. TAKE CARE OF SELF: I know we hear it all the time, but sometimes we NEVER REALLY hear it! You have to take care of yourself first. Parenting will drain you. It is joyful and magical, and it is challenging and hard. The only way out of this is to feed yourself, love yourself, and give as much attention to your lunch as you do to theirs.
Keep your cup filled up and you will have more to give. Food is such a primary way we show love to others, and food is such an important way we nourish ourselves.
I have many ideas to share with you. Some have been my go-to’s for years:
Some favorite lunches are gathered from a potpourri of the other health practitioners in this community. When asked what their kids favorite lunches are here is what they said:
“The practice of doing more than necessary works best when packing lunch boxes” ― Josh Stern
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE LUNCHES? SHARE WITH US BELOW AND LET'S MAKE LUNCH TIME LOVABLE...
