Watching the world series or not, sometimes Chips is just what sounds good!
Try a healthier alternative, Kale Chips!
Crispy, tasty and nutritious!
Quick and easy recipe:
Preheat oven to 425〫
Tear Kale into pieces
Place on a sheet tray
Sprinkle with Olive oil, nutritional yeast and himalayan crystal salt
Bake 8-10min (until crispy, without burning!)
Enjoy!
You can’t go wrong with this Pineapple Coconut Blueberry Smoothie!
It’s that simple. You blend fresh pineapple, blueberries, coconut milk and some ice cubes together in your blender and VOILA! Enjoy!
Pineapple is an excellent source of manganese, which is an essential cofactor in a number of enzymes important in energy production and antioxidant defenses. One cup of fresh pineapple alone supplies 128% of the DV for this important trace mineral. In addition to manganese, pineapple is a good source of the B vitamin, thiamin, that is important in enzymatic reactions central to energy production. Pineapple being very rich in enzymes is also great for strengthening your digestion.
If you love pineapple just as it is, also try blending pineapple alone in your blender with only a few ice cubes. If your blender is strong enough, you will have one foamy, smooth, sweet treat! It’s Delicious!
Mothers Day Gift idea:
IS YOUR WIFE’S or MOM’S LOVE LANGUAGE ACTS OF SERVICE?
Flowers and chocolate are always nice but what if it was doing something for your spouse or Mom that really made them feel loved and special?
For example cooking a meal, rubbing her feet, washing dishes, taking out the garbage, mowing the lawn, changing the baby’s diapers, cleaning the closets from all the clothes that will have no more use?
If this is your spouse’s primary love language, nothing speaks as loudly as these acts of service. You may give him or her words of affirmation, but they are thinking, “Cut the talk. If you loved me, you would do something around here.” For them, actions truly speak louder than words.
-from 5 Love Languages by Gary C.
Find out what Her Love Language is by doing the test here.
Personally, I love making space in the closets and getting rid of useless things! Specially at this time of the year, Spring, where one is just burning to get rid of old and make space for the new!
If you happen to have outgrown kids clothes you can bring them to your closest consignment store. A new one is just opening up here in Chicago called Kangaroo Kids by a mother of three. I know it would make her Spring if she had a flow of kids clothing and maternity apparels coming in to her just opening store!
Closet cleaning is not one of my husbands joys, however at times, he helps me and I feel like we get so much more done! The new, fresh space and energy is just flowing in our home, bringing joy and a sense of team work and accomplishment!
This can be a wonderful Mothers Day gift, being of service to your Mom or the mother of your children in one way or another.
The bonus with this gift is that it is both economical and ecological. It does take a little more effort than buying a gift, which only makes it a more meaningful act of love from you.
HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL WONDERFUL MOM’S OUT THERE!
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In health and happiness,
S.I.V.
How can you show love and respect to mother nature today, on earth day or even daily? How can YOU be less of the problem and more of the solution?
Here are just a few easy to apply suggestions:
- Eat less meat and animal products
- Eat local and seasonal organic fruits and vegetables
- Save money and energy by consuming less electricity when ever possible.
- Buy a refillable stainless steel bottle or keep refilling any water bottle you have and stop buying plastic bottles. Refill, Reuse and Rehydrate!
- Reuse anything you can at least once, such as plastic or paper shopping bags.
- Recycle your waste (paper, glass, steel, plastic) and compost anything plant based that was living at one time such as greens, leaves, vegetables and fruit.
- Ride a bike or walk where ever you can. Better for you, better for all!
- Use pure and organic cleaning products and cosmetics.
- Limit the length of your shower. Shower in colder water as it is better for your hair, skin and blood circulation too and only wash your towels after several uses.
- Travel green by choosing public transportation and hotels that care about the environment and unplug your own home electronics (chargers, DVD players etc. and turn your thermostat off/down before you leave.)
And just keep these 3 in mind as a green slogan for yourself:
Reduce- Reuse - Recycle
Happy Earth Day!
Fennel Orange Spring Salad!
Prep time: 15min
Cut off the green tops and the base of the fennel bulbs (about 1/2 inch). Wash the bulbs and slice thin and small.
Peel and cut the orange in small pieces and cut radishes thin and put in a salad bowl with the fennel and spinach.
Prepare a vinaigrette with the juice of the lemon, vinegar, olive oil, mustard, salt and pepper. Pour this on the salad and toss to mix. Optionally you can ad 1 tsp of tahini sauce and a touch of agave syrup and water to the dressing.
Enjoy with awareness and appreciation~
Today if you’re needing some extra energy, a mood lift or just craving chocolate, try this highly satisfying and uplifting Cacao Smoothie, it’s one of my favorites!
How to eat healthy on a budget:
Most of us may think it is too expensive to eat healthy. I want to share a few tips to support you in your health goals while you keep your grocery store budget!
- Consider a healthier and cheeper diet by limiting the amounts of animal products you consume. Meet, fish, cheese and poultry is not only quite expensive, it raises your cholesterol levels, increases your risk of heart disease by clogging your arteries. Get your protein and calcium from far more nutritious plant based sources instead such as beans, legumes, leafy greens and nuts and seeds! Did I mention it is cheaper for you?
- Think a little bit further than the very moment or the very hour. Yes, you may be able to fill your stomach quick, easy and cheap by passing through a fast food restaurant. But since the food is so nutrient deprived and raises your blood sugar sky high, you will be hungry in no time, you will want to eat much larger portions and be so tired you’re unlikely to get anything productive done. Eating nutrient rich foods, high in fiber will allow you to feel satisfied with much smaller portions for a much longer period of time and will give you the energy you need to be productive and get something done!
- You can shop organic and cheap in Chicago! You can find online stores that sell in bulk, for great prices. You can buy in bulk also from Whole foods. You can get pretty nice prices for healthy foods at Trader Joe’s and you can buy many bags filled with organic fresh fruits and vegetables for a great bargain at Stanley’s Fruit & Vegetables! Ideally you want to buy all organic and local if possible but we all know that can be a challenge both seasonally and for the wallet. How ever a few items I certainly want to stress on being organic at all times as they have been found to be the fruits and vegetables with highest levels of toxic chemicals.
TOP FOODS to buy ORGANIC:
- Peaches and Nectarines
- Apples- Strawberries and blueberries
- Grapes
- Celery
- Spinach and other greens
- Cherries
- Sweet potatoes and other potatoes
- Make simple dishes. This is very cleansing to your body and specially if you have had a hard time digesting foods or are looking to get in shape, your body will appreciate the simplicity in your meals which allows it to digest better and therefor use more of the nutrients your meal provides.
For instance: Cook one grain such as Quinoa or Brown rice that you bought bulk (add little salt and some olive oil when cooked for flavor), choose two of your favorite vegetables such as sweet potatoes and broccoli and sautee them with onions, garlic and olive oil (in order to use less oil, water sautee the veggies first start with onion, then add the minced garlic, then the cut sweet potatoes and finally the broccoli and only add 1Tbs of oil at the end)! Use sea salt, pepper, umebushi plum vinegar or your favorite dried herbs to add flavor.
A very simple, nutritious, tasty, quick and cheap dinner to make casually instead of the salmon with 4 different sides..
LOVELY CRAVINGS!!
Cravings (during pregnancy or not) can sometimes be particularly specific!
Today I was craving lemon pie, cheese cake, or something smooth, mid-sweet, but I’d like it to be VERY healthy and was turned off about the idea of baking myself, buying a cake from somewhere and giving my body and my baby any processed flours and sugars.
So I paused and just listened carefully to my craving and went through some of the foods in my kitchen… Lemon? Yes! Chocolate? no! (surprisingly). Vanilla? yes! Coconut? Yes, but not sweet, the cultured one is perfect-should be little sour! Banana? Yes! and just something extra to boost my immune system and energy levels… -Bee Pollen!
There it was, curious to see how this would work out I threw these few items in the blender and made EXACTLY the smoothie by body was asking for! And did this HIT THE SPOT or WHAT! :) Wow! - Happy girl and belly!
DELICIOUS, QUICK, HEALTHY & SIMPLE! Try this smoothie or make up your own carefully listening and trusting your body and it’s signals.
Coconut-Lemon Smoothie
1 Cup of Cultured organic coconut milk
1/2 Lemon peeled
1/3 tsp Bee Pollen *
1 spoon of Oat bran *
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 Banana
( * are optional)
Blend and enjoy!
♡
Join our fun & interactive Sweet Craving Seminar Tomorrow, March 10th from 7 pm to 8pm on the 9th floor of 111E Chestnut street in the heart of Chicago.
This informative event will empower you with healthy tools for a lifetime!
Siv Sjöholm, a Columbia University & IIN certified holistic health counselor and the founder of Success Is Vitality lectures to us on this sweet topic!
· How to stop sugar cravings and binges naturally
· What happens when we put sugar in our bodies
· Why we crave sugar and sabotage our health by eating sweets
· How to distinguish what your body is trying to tell you when you have a craving
· How to balance up’s and down’s and eliminate mood swings
· The Top Proven Solutions for dealing with a sugar attack and support on how to deconstruct them naturally.
· Sugar lecture handouts
· A sweet and nutritious treat with Real Deal Chocolate that will lift up your mood!
· And a gift card for a 50 min private health consultation with Siv.
Reserve your seat asap by emailing: Siv@successisvitality.com.
We look forward to seeing you at this sweet event and in creating a healthier community for all the 111 E Chestnut residents!
An interesting conversation on reconnecting to our roots by Peak moment Tv and Linda Buzzell-Saltzman - Psychotherapist/ Eco-therapist and Larry Saltzman - permaculture practitioner.
Linda uses Eco-psychology, a study about broken human-nature relationships in her therapy with great satisfaction. She talks about people being so disconnected from nature, relationships and family these days. We used to live so differently, spending so much more time out in nature, where we bonded with others and lived in a community.
In this therapy she looks at your relationship to nature and encourages you to keep a “time-diary” for instance, to track how much time you spend doing different things such as being with your family, being in nature, being outside, being with animals vs. being inside around technology and work stress, void of the things that relax and are healing to you.
She brings up a few other shocking and interesting facts:
We may wonder why divorce rates are so high today, but knowing that most couples only spend 15min in each others company a day and that is not even necessairly spent as high quality time… makes it much less surprising no?
Larry Saltzman also gives deep insight to the practice of permaculture and the very healing qualities of growing your own food and spending time in the garden and creating a sustainable way of living together with a supportive community.
How inspiring to see people bravely living out their ideals and setting a great example to the rest of us!
I had the great joy to meet the wonderful Blackbirdnaturals team in Paradise Valley, Arizona a little while back and this company and family truly moved and inspired me!
They believe in taking matters into your own hands and working together with mother nature! They have an incredible garden filled with superfoods, fruits, herbs and vegetables as well as some very happy and healthy chicken! You can see and feel that one of the common ingredients in all their recipes is LOVE. The family team is made up of Andrea, Alexandra, Amanda and Anthony , who launched Blackbird Naturals from their commitment to healthy eating and sustainable living. They distribute organic high quality seeds and have created an inspiring example of how you can grow your Food Forest in your own back yard!
I could certainly see the passion, love and comittement they all have for healthy, natural and sustainable living! Check out their goodies and reach out to them if you have a garden or even a tiny back yard and are considering to start to grow your own wonderful veggies and superfoods! They will get you started with the best seeds and the know how to go along. They also distribute some other products such as my favorite Cacao - Vanilla- Naked Body Stick, an efficient and pure way to moisture your skin from deep within.
Most of us make New Years resolutions, yet we fail to keep them and beat ourselves up for doing so. This only takes our spirit down and is a very poor motivator. One reason why the resolutions we set for ourselves don’t work out is that they are often unrealistic or something we may think we want, but we are not ready to take responsibility for and be committed to in the long term. Here are a few tips on how to set realistic goals and make sure you are able to keep on track and avoid self-sabotage heading into 2011: Be committed to a goal that inspires you without being attached to the result. Focus on the things you want to be eating or doing instead of focusing on all the things you are NOT wanting to do or are trying to avoid. Build a pattern of success! Get Support
- Reflect on what you truly want for yourself and why. When we are committed to something, we can enjoy taking daily steps toward our goals and stay committed even though we may have some setbacks along the way.
- When we are attached to a certain result, (eg. fitting into our old ‘skinny jeans’), we are resisting what is ‘now’ and come from a place of un-acceptance and self loathing. This is a very unsuccessful approach because, as you may know, “what you resist, persists!”
- Every choice we make takes us either closer to, or further from, our goal; but, you can still accept where you’re at and enjoy the journey. Accept and take responsibility for choices of the past without trying to ‘fix it.’ Doing this will allow you to have space to create a new inspiring future.
- If you wish to be eating healthier and exercising more in the New Year, think about, plan and buy wonderful healthy vegetables, fruits and whole grains; sign up for salsa classes you’ve always wanted to take.
- Clean out the kitchen cupboards and replace all of the artificial junk food with healthy, fresh organic produce of the season. Set yourself up for success to start your daily lifestyle/routine.
- Set up reasonable and tangible goals, specific enough so you can determine whether you’ve achieved them or not.
- Establish easy action steps for you to take on a daily basis you know you can achieve.
- Believe in yourself. Reinvent yourself and your life creating new possibilities that move and inspire. You will only truly love your life and take responsibility for it when you feel you’ve created and chosen it!
- Support is a very important factor when you’re choosing to change any lifestyle habits. Share your goals with your loved ones and ask them to support you. Consider getting professional support from a health counselor or coach.
In the Success Is Vitality program we set goals and work hand in hand to achieve them in a non restrictive, fun and empowering way. Ninety-eight percent of our clients not only achieve the goals they set for themselves but find the program gave them much more value than they could have imagined. Clients love their healthy lifestyles of success and vitality!
Be responsible for your health and set yourself up for success.
For more information and additional tips for achieving optimum health, visit www.SuccessIsVitality.com
During the holidays it’s nice to be able to enjoy a Crepe for breakfast or dessert!
Crepes don’t have to be that unhealthy. Michelle, my sweet mother in law, is a real crepe master and helped me figure out a much healthier crepe recipe so I can truly enjoy this treat as well! This has been a great success. The whole family and friends love them!
Try this yummy oat crepe recipe and compare how you feel after this vs. after a regular crepe made with wheat, milk and plenty of butter! This one is much better for you!
Yummy Oat Crepes:
Prep. time 10min.
Makes approx. 8 small crepes.
Mix together 1 cup of oat flour, 2 organic eggs, 1 cup of oat milk, 1/3 tsp himalayan crystal salt. Mix well and let it sit for just a few minutes.
- Warm your pan and add 1 tsp of Coconut oil on the pan
- Poor 2/3 of the size of a crepe you want of mixture in the pan and lean from side to side to have it spread out to a thin even crepe.
- When it is firm and colored enough, flip sides until it has the golden color of your preference.
Enjoy the crepe with your favorite berries, banana or apple sauce and a touch of maple syrup, honey or agave.
Another option as a topping for the winter season is: slice 1/3 of a banana, spread 1 table spoon of almond butter on the crepe and a touch of your favorite sweetener and enjoy with a cup of herbal rooibos chai tea!
Bon Appetit!
