Today, as I was cutting a lemon into my smoothie, and I smelled that fresh, bright scent – I found myself wondering, how do I know if a lemon is ripe? It made me laugh a little when I answered myself with… “If it’s sweet, it’s not ripe.” Right? Stands to reason, don’t you think?

I decided to Google it. Even though I grew up in San Diego, and lemon trees are in many backyards… I had no idea what I should look for in a ripe lemon.

Turns out that color is an important  indicator. Lemons on the tree are green. As they get ripe, the richer yellow their color. So, if like me, you live in the PNW and have to buy lemons from your local grocery… Here’s what you want to look for:

• bright, glossy yellow color
• firm, but not over-hard or too soft or with squishy spots (it’s too far gone at that point)
• sounds simple, but it should smell lemony
• choose lemons that are heavy for their size
• peels that have a finely grained texture

The only potential flaw with using how the fruit looks is that lemons are often waxed to lengthen shelf life, reduce bruising, and increase the aesthetic, visual appeal. Oranges are sometimes dyed in addition to waxed, but I couldn’t find reports of dyed lemons.  The most helpful information on oranges and dye that I found was at Earthbound Farms website:

Color is not necessarily an indicator of ripeness or quality. Oranges are always picked when they are ripe, but Florida oranges (with the exception of organic fruit) are often dyed with food color. This is not true of oranges produced in California or Arizona, where state laws prohibit adding color to citrus fruits. Also, fully ripe oranges can sometimes turn green, especially Valencias. “Regreening” is a natural process that can occur if there is ripe fruit on a tree at the same time the tree is producing blossoms. The tree produces chlorophyll to feed its blossoms, and the mature fruit also receives some of this chlorophyll, which contributes a green tint to the skin. Oranges that have “regreened” tend to be extra sweet because they were not picked early and are tree-ripened.

Okay, back to lemons and waxes. From WHFoods.com:

Plant, insect, animal or petroleum-based waxes may be used. Carnauba palm is the most common plant-source wax. Other compounds, such as ethyl alcohol or ethanol, are added to the waxes for consistency, milk casein (a protein linked to milk allergy) for “film formers” and soaps for flowing agents. Since you may not be able to determine the source of these waxes, this is another good reason to choose organically grown lemons and limes.

The rule is that if dyes and/or waxes are used, the grower is supposed to include it on the list of ingredients. Problem is, when was the last time you saw a list of ingredients for the lemon or orange you bought at the grocery?

The good news, lemons don’t rank on EWG.com’s Shoppers Guide to Pesticides. So if you aren’t going to use the peel, you are probably okay buying the non-organic lemons. The oranges are right in the middle of the list… so if you are zesting, opt for the organic. If you are eating just the fruit, and your budget won’t allow – buying non-organic is an understandable choice.

Dandelion Greens

I’ve tried creating dandelion greens smoothies before and have thrown away entire batches. Today, I found and made one (after harvesting aka “weeding” some lush dandelions growing in my front yard). I gave a small glass of it to my husband, Paul, who said: “It tastes summery.” It’s the lemon that does it, I’m sure. But as I type, I’m sipping down this smoothie and it is yummy!

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch dandelion greens (I used 6-8 large leaves)
• 1 med lemon (peeled)
• 2 apples
• 1 banana
• 2 cups of water
• cinnamon to taste
• a little stevia to taste
• pinch of kelp (optional)

And blend!

After I posted my recommitment to embracing my health – I got ready for bed. As I was brushing my teeth, I created the intention to remember my commitment. I know myself . I can be so disconnected with my own commitments that I will “forget” them by morning. More than once, at the end of a day, I make a commitment to eat healthy and do what supports my body physically and my heart spiritually. But then the next day, maybe sometime around 1 or 2pm, I’ll suddenly stop and think: “Wait! I was going to do better today!!” It’s as though I’ve thrown all my intentions and commitments right out of my mind, as if they never existed. Once I remember, I feel disappointed and want to back up the clock and start the day again. Ugh, what a cycle, right?

But today, I remembered and quickly. I made myself a yummy green smoothie (watermelon, strawberries, and spinach with all the healthy goodies). It tasted and felt great. I was feeling good.

Fast forward to dinnertime. We had cabin fever and decided to head out for dinner. We went to Taco Del Mar. Because I had been so good all day and eaten so sparingly, I thought it “wouldn’t hurt” to have a bigger dinner. So instead of a smaller portion and the healthier ingredients of say, two soft tacos or a taco salad… I had a chicken quesadilla. And not just a chicken quesadilla, but a chicken quesadilla platter! It was tasty… (but so are the tacos).

How I went from a too large and nonnutritious meal to thinking I needed something for dessert is lost in the mysterious workings of my addict-addled mind. Trust me when I say… when it comes to sugar, I’m not sane. Seriously! Ask my husband, Paul. He’ll vouch for it. In fact, he gamely and bravely tried to talk some sense into me while I stood perusing the various ice creams (looking for the brand with no HFCS – a form of insanity right there – but we can talk about that later…) in the freezer section. But I rationalize it away and carried on. I picked up two quarts of Breyer’s All Natural ice cream, one flavor for Amira… and one for me, since I wanted a flavor that had wheat in it and my daughter is allergic.

With the ice cream safely in the car on its way home with me… Paul starts to get through. He talks about how I help and consult my friends and family with their health challenges. He talks about how I spend hours researching and coming up with suggested plans and “prescriptions” for their healing. Then Paul says to me: “You need to do that for yourself.”

And I realize he’s right.

If I take even a cursory look at a file with my health concerns and issues… ice cream wouldn’t be on my recommended list. But I’d rationalize with you that I want to eat the occasional cup of ice cream. Don’t buy into my addict talk, though. The problem with that approach? Two things. One: quite honestly, my definition of “occasional” is a unfortunately loose. If there is a carton of ice cream in the house, you can be pretty certain I’m having more than a cup of ice cream more than maybe once or twice a week. And two: Healthy people CAN eat an occasional bowl of ice cream without harm or detriment to themselves. But me? I’m not healthy. I’m not healthy physically or spiritually. The dinner and then the ice cream right on its heels – it was a physical filler and numbing agent – in hopes that it would carry over and fill and numb my spirit too.

There you have it – not even 24 hours out from my declaration and I hit my own resistance to what I said I wanted! When I’m disconnected with myself, a rote and habitual form of resistance runs me.

I realize now, as I’m thinking it over and sharing it with you – what I have ahead of me is the work of being connected with the healthy life I want. Embracing my health is more than eating the right foods and exercising. It’s not really about that. It’s being awake. When I slow down, meditate and am listening and present to my life and my spirit – the work I want to do is no longer work or agonizing resistance. Instead, it is pure joy and passion again.

I’ll close with a version of the “tagline” I created for this when I first started out…

This is me, signing off and Embracing Love and Life! Embracing My Health!

PS – It wasn’t the most economical thing to do – but after having a cup of ice cream, I threw out the rest of my carton of ice cream.

I’ve been mentally composing this post for a good couple of weeks. I’m so glad to be sitting down to do it now.

The work I’m starting, as I type these words, is a renewal of commitment to embracing my health (personally) and Embracing My Health (the website). Since I started the Embracing My Health website, I have lost 40 lbs and am eating healthier than I ever have. Yay me! It’s a start and a good one. I want to acknowledge that. It was a start and not continuing journey through to the finish though. That’s why this is the time to reconnect to the journey of my love and desire for personal health.

Those of you who know me, you know I’m a health and fitness research junkie. I love to read articles, research journals, magazines, and books. I watch documentaries and religiously follow blogs of experts in the field. I love to do research and help my friends and family as they seek their own optimal personal health and well-being. This is all awesome stuff. I love it.

In fact, just last night, I watched Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days. What an inspiring, honest and human, documentary. I cried when the subjects went off insulin and achieved healthy, undreamed of milestones in improving their health. I was struck by how tightly their health was tied to their sense of self, their spirituality, their dreams and hopes for their tomorrows.

Getting to watch these people transform not just their physical health but to also launch a new path of spiritual vitality was beautiful and moving. Getting glimpses into what they were going to create moving forward was exciting and inspiring. Seeing it – being around it – it lights me up! I started getting geeked out thinking about the people in my life being healthy, vibrant, and engaging their world from a platform of energy, fitness, and optimal health. My brain began to spin. How can I help people do this? How can I help them into and through their next steps? What can I do to help my friends and family understand the importance of personal fitness, the necessity of eating the yummiest and healthiest foods, and experience the joy and satisfaction these things bring to our spirit. I went to bed with these things spiraling through my mind, my thoughts and dreams reaching out and asking for an answer. As I was about to fall asleep, I thought, maybe I don’t need a perfect, magic-bullet answer. What I need is a path. My prayer, as I drifted, was for a path to put my feet onto.

Ask and you shall receive! It’s no accident that this morning, one of the first things I read was this quote by Ramana Maharshi:

Correcting oneself is correcting the whole world. The Sun is simply bright. It does not correct anyone. Because it shines, the whole world is full of light. Transforming yourself is a means of giving light to the whole world.

Um.. yeah. Yeah. YEAH! That’d be that path I asked for! Thank you!!

As I read and reread those words, I realized something. See, I turned 40 this past March and while milestone birthdays like this one are prime and often good reasons to recommit to what I believe in – they’ve never held adequate motivation for me. As I read those words, I realized what does hold motivation for me. It’s my family and friends. It’s my community. It’s you!

With the answer I was given today, and with this post – my Embracing My Health journey begins again – or continues (depending on how you look at it).

Transforming my health and my life for myself – it seems like it should be more than enough for me to follow through on the desire I have to embrace my health. It’s not. What IS motivation to me is this; that through my journey, my struggles and achieved milestones and my stories – that these beautiful, amazing people who are in my life – that they see paths to health, fitness and spiritual growth. And if they want it, it is possible for them because it was and is for me.

Most of us probably don’t need a graphic to tell us this news.

• 67% of Americans are overweight
• Medicare/Medicaid costs attributable to obesity: $39,003,000,000

This graphic reminds me of the documentary I watched this weekend: Killer at Large: Why Obesity Is America’s Greatest Threat. (I streamed it on Netflix.)

Click on image if you want to see the image at a larger size to read the finer print.

Created by Online Education

Having a healthy metabolism is an important component of being optimally health and fit. Metabolism is the amount of energy the body uses to run. More specifically, it involves a complex network of hormones and enzymes that take the food we eat and then convert it into build blocks that we use for energy. That energy is used for everything from cellular reproduction (which affects how our bodies age) to muscle building and repair.

Metabolism is one of the many catch words in the weight loss industry. You’ll see metabolizers, metabolism boosters, metabola-this and metabola-that. And it’s true that having a healthy metabolism is important to being right weighted. However there are some myths to uncover too.

One of the largest myths: if you are overweight, your metabolism is slow. The opposite is actually true. If you are overweight, you have a higher metabolism than the right-weighted person next to you. The more weight the body has, the more energy the body has to use to keep it running. That’s why when many go on a diet they initially lose a lot of weight quickly and then plateau. The body is revving at a high level so even a modest reduction in calories brings weight loss. The plateaus begin when the body realizes there is less to “run” and it slows down the metabolism. To continue weight loss, understanding what in your lifestyle helps or hinders your metabolism is important. In addition, the things that slow down our metabolism are the very things that challenge our optimal health and fitness from A to Z. Our body is a whole and there isn’t one thing that doesn’t impact another.

That said, and considering how a healthy metabolism is critical to ideal health… let’s look at what we know that slows our metabolism:

1) Age. The first is one we can’t do a blessed thing about and that’s our age. As we age, our metabolism slows. However, the reasons for that, we can control. Typically, as we age, we slow down our physical activity which in turn reduces our muscle mass and fitness. That’s a one-two punch to the metabolism.

2) Eating too much OR too little. Life, in every facet, requires balance. The quantity of food we eat is no exception. If we eat too much food, we give our body more calories or “energy” than our body can use and it is forced to store it as fat. This includes how much you eat at each meal. Eating your calories in three large meals a day will slow your metabolism. On the other hand, eating those same calories in 5-6 smaller meals through the day will increase your metabolism.

Now eating too little – this is the first way most people want to lose weight. The adage is the less calories the more weight you lose. And while it is true that if you expend more energy than you consume, you will lose weight, there is once again a balance of approach to take into consideration. Eating too little is counterproductive to weight loss goals. This is true for a couple of reasons:

• The first is that the body, when not given enough food, will conserve its resources and slow down the metabolic process.
• When you do lose weight, it isn’t fat but instead lean muscle mass (the very last thing you want to lose if you want to have a high-charged metabolism).
• We deprive our bodies of critical nutrition.

3) Lack of sufficient sleep. Not getting enough sleep reduces the amount of Leptin in our bodies and increases Ghrelin. Leptin is created at night while we sleep. Leptin is responsible for telling the brain that whether there is fat in the body. When leptin isn’t produced, the brain doesn’t know there is fat in the body. In turn, the lack of leptin signals the body (i.e. the appetite) that more food is needed when it isn’t. Simultaneously, Ghrelin is increases. Ghrelin is hormone that both increases our appetite and suppresses use of fat as a source of energy for our bodies. It’s a double-whammy. Leptin isn’t there to tell our bodies that we have enough fat and to slow down our appetite and Ghrelin increases and intensifies the bodies cravings for more food. In addition, if we skimp on sleep, we put ourselves at increasing risk for diabetes. Ghrelin has been found in recent years to play a key role in balancing our insulin and glucose levels.

4) Skipping breakfast. Our bodies are literal in their translation. We skip food in the morning and it assumes we are starving. The metabolism slows to a crawl to make sure that we aren’t losing and begin storing energy. That energy storage… yeah, it’s fat. The other problem, when skipping breakfast, most people tend to overeat the rest of the day.

5) Stress. Hormones are at the core of so much of our bodies function. Keeping them in balance and working correctly and all goes well. If they get out of whack, a domino effect begins and our health can deteriorate. An example of this is cortisol. Cortisol is a powerful hormone that is elevated when we are stressed. During times of stress, cortisol can overpower the rest of our hormones. At appropriate levels, cortisol is valuable and even provides a boost to our bodies. But when it periods of prolonged stress, overproduction of cortisol creates reduced mental clarity and ability, thyroid suppression, blood sugar imbalances, reduction in bone density, loss of muscle mass, lower immunity, increased abdominal fat, and of course, higher blood pressure.

Next post on metabolism: let’s get our bodies humming! We’ll cover what we can do to increase our metabolism.

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Sources:
http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Slows-Down-Your-Metabolism&id=753095
http://worldfitnessnetwork.com/index.php/diet-slow-metabolism/
http://chronicle.uchicago.edu/991202/sleep.shtml
http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=10875
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-ghrelin.htm
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/05/060510091429.htm
http://www.alive.com/4320a12a2.php?subject_bread_cramb=150
http://stress.about.com/od/stresshealth/a/cortisol.htm
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Here in the Pacific NW, the last week has been dark, windy and wet. Did I mention dark? The forecast for the next week or so, more of the very same. It doesn’t typically bother me unless it continues on for a very long time. However, I’ve been conscientious of our weather because we have a lot of family here this week for Thanksgiving. And, all of them are from Southern California…

In talking about this, one of my friends mentioned that she’s been feeling the effects of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) where she lives. She asked: “Any natural remedies for that?”

Setting out to find out what there is to do, naturally, to help counteract SAD, here’s what I found:

• Lightbox, or any bright light – flood your space for a time each day with, ideally, bright full-spectrum lighting. There are specialized lightboxes made just for treating SAD. It takes as little as 30 minutes a day of sitting in front of these boxes to make an impact on your “winter blues”.
  • If you work at a desk, you might consider a desktop lamp. That would be an easy way to get your light time in… while simply sitting and working as you normally would.
• Get Great Nutrition – Eliminate sugar and refined flours and fill your diet with dark leafy vegetables (rich in B vitamins and folic acid), Omega 3s and high tryptophan foods like bananas, avocados, legumes, quinoa, and nutritional yeast.
• Vitamin D – Vit D, the “Sunshine Vitamin”, is what our bodies produce when we are in the sunlight. It’s critical for optimum health. When we lose out on regular sunshine exposure, our Vitamin D levels tend to plummet. Take 1,000 – 3,000 IUs a day of D3 (cholecalciferol) and not only will you help support your mood, but you’ll be reducing your risk of cancers like colon, prostate, breast and more. Because Vit D isn’t found naturally in many foods and where it is found… it is in such small amounts, taking a high quality Vit D supplement is the best way to go. *Note: Many health professionals recommend taking a break from Vitamin D supplementation on the weekends (or two days a week).
• Get outside – take every chance to get outside, 30 minutes or more, in the sun if possible, but do it regardless.
• Exercise – do some kind of aerobic exercise… walking or other type that you enjoy!
• Yoga – Yoga creates an energizing effect as well as mitigating and relieving stress. Many yoga meditations are thought to act on the pineal gland which controls circadian and seasonal rhythms. Yoga is a great practice/discipline anytime, but especially during the darker, shorter winter days.
• Sleep – Get adequate and consistent sleep. Sleep is critical for cellular repair from damage caused by stress, pollutants, infection and so on. it’s also important for creativity, memory, mental clarity, maintaining a healthy weight and heart heath. Sleep isn’t something you should scrimp on.
• Essential Oils – Jasmine essential oil is anti-depressant and euphoric. It stimulates beta brain wave activity as measured by EEG. Also helpful are citrus oils such as lemon, bergamot, lime, neroli, tangerine, and mandarin. Citrus oils stimulate the autonomic nervous system which helps with alertness, mood support, reduced anxiety, relieving stress and creating mental clarity.
• Laugh! – Laughter relaxes the body, boosts the immune system, triggers the release of endorphins (especially helpful for helping reduce SAD symptoms), protects the heart, and more. The saying “Laughter is the best medicine” really is more than just a nice sentiment.
• Other methods that have helped SAD sufferers:
  • Spend time with family and friends
  • St. John’s Wort, SAMe
  • massage
  • hot baths
  • counseling/psychotherapy
  • more sex (really? cool!…)
  • short afternoon power naps

Bottom line, do what works for you. Everyone is individual and the reasons why you are affected by the shorter, darker days varies. So how you treat it may very well be different than a person next to you who is also affected.

On the Embracing My Health Facebook fanpage, I shared that I had chia cereal for breakfast. In reply, I got this comment: “Tell us more about chia cereal, and why you think it’s good.” So here you go, in a information dense, “cliff-notes” fasion — here’s what’s so good about chia:

Chia seeds are 21 percent easily digested protein which is greater than other grains such as oats (15.3%), amaranth (14.8%), wheat and corn (both at 14%), barley (9.2%) and rice (8.5%). Chia seeds are the only grain with 18 of the 20 amino acids, including the 8 essentials for humans. *Other plant sources that include the 8 essential amino acids, and therefore considered complete proteins, are quinoa (16.2%), buckwheat (12%), hempseed (23%), and amaranth (15%).

Chia seeds are a rich source of B vitamins, calcium, phosphorous, potassium, iron, magnesium, zinc and copper. One serving of chia seeds (2 tablespoons) gives a large amount of the recommended daily allowance of fiber, molybdenum, chromium, selenium and biotin. Chia is gluten free, high in fiber, supports low blood pressure while improving blood sugar control.

Chia is high in omega-3 essential fatty acids.

A few of the things I use chia for:

• a cereal, as well as adding it into other raw cereals
• adding to smoothies (as chia gel)
• as a fat and egg replacer

There are many, many other healthy ways to add it into your diet. I’ll share some of these for another post.

Follow-up post coming shortly – chia versus flax, is one better for you than the other?

I posted to Kevin & Annmarie Gianni’s Renegade Health blog yesterday. Kevin asked the question which raw foods couldn’t be eaten raw. I mentioned that cruciferous veggies like cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and kale are problematic because of their thyroid suppressing enzymes. (Surprisingly, peaches and pears have these enzymes too.) Also mentioned in my comment were greens like beet greens, spinach and chard, that have oxalic acid. Oxalic acid block calcium and iron absorption and can irritate the mouth and intestinal tract.

It stirred up quite the conversation and confusion with the commenters. It’s understandable. The rub is all of these vegetables and greens are nutritional powerhouses and are valued and renown for their anti-cancer fighting abilities. And who doesn’t want food that has great nutrition and inhibits cancers?

So what do we do?

It’s the age old truism. All things in moderation. And for those who don’t have existing thyroid issues, chance are you will be unaffected by the thyroid suppressing enzymes in cruciferous veggies and greens provided you don’t overdo. For those who currently suffer from hypothyroidism, if you eat a lot of these vegetables and you will likely find yourself experiencing hypothyroid symptoms.

Donna Gates of BodyEcology recommends that, in lieu of cooking them, raw foodists eat raw, fermented cruciferous vegetables. However, Weston A Price’s article on crucifers asserts even fermentation does not get rid of the thyroid suppressing effects. Weston Price’s recommendation:

“An increased dietary intake of iodine compensates for the consumption of moderate amounts of crucifers but cannot reverse the effects of large amounts of crucifers.”

Add natural iodine into your diet with foods like asparagus, dulse, garlic, kelp, sea salt, sesame seeds, and interestingly… check it out… cruciferous veggies spinach, swiss chard and turnip greens. Hmmm… maybe nature was helping us out on those last three.

I found it interesting that the Weston Price article points out that there may be some additional cancer-fighting properties to even goitrogens – although that is still unknown as of right now.

Again, I believe the key is all things in moderation. If you have hypothyroid, you’ll want to be especially careful. The wonderful thing is nature has given us such an amazing diversity of nutritious, cancer-fighting foods… that we don’t have to rely solely on cruciferous veggies. So bottom line, mix these amazing vegetables into your diet, just not too much.

Embrace Love and Life. Embrace Your Health!

I’ve known for a long time the importance of clean water and believe in and support the work of organizations like charity : water.

The documentary FLOW, For the Love of Water has completely left me changed.  Opening up a new angle on the water issue, documenting what is happening with water and water rights around the world, this film is a must see. From the website:

(FLOW) builds a case against the growing privatization of the world’s dwindling fresh water supply with an unflinching focus on politics, pollution, human rights, and the emergence of a domineering world water cartel.

After watching it, I wanted to DO SOMETHING. I didn’t want to have all this knowledge, all this information and have nothing I could do. The first thing I did was sign Article 31. Article 31 is a call, a petition upon the United Nations to establish access to clean and potable water as a fundamental human right.

Okay, done. But now what? I felt (and still feel) the need to do more. The FLOW website has links to organizations, non-profits and activism sites where you can partner, donate and volunteer to make a difference. You can be sure I’m going to be clicking those links and learning more.

But the first instinctual responses I had after watching FLOW were:

1) I will not buy/drink bottled water. Whatever it takes, I’m not going to do it. I’ll buy portable filters for road trips and and fill up my jugs at the local tap, wherever I may be. Whatever it takes, I’ll do it – I will not buy bottled water again.

2) I will not buy any products from Coca-Cola, Pepsi or Nestle. (watch the film and you’ll learn why I’m boycotting these three companies in specific) The harm they are causing here at home in the US and around the world is wrong. I will not support them or any of their brands until they stop their horrific, inhuman and environmentally damaging business practices.

Given the enormity of these three companies, it’s going to be interesting to avoid all the brands and products they make. But I’ll make a freakin’ master list if I have to. Thankfully, my lifestyle and diet already keeps most of their products off my shopping list… but I will be sure to keep an eye out and avoid any that might happen to appear.

I share all this for two reasons:

1. Please watch FLOW. You may not have the same reaction I did – but I think the information they share in that film is important for all of us to know.
2. I’m curious, what gets your goat? What topics or issues have made you get up out of your chair and do something, anything!… because you couldn’t imagine sitting still about it one more day?

Embrace Love and Life. Embrace Your Health!