Meditation and Making Space for Choices

/
Meditation and Making Space for Choices

"Mindfulness gives you time. Time gives you choices. Choices, skillfully made, lead to freedom."

-Bhante Henepola Gunaratana 

When Tom and I started a daily meditation practice a little over a year ago, we didn't really have expectations for results. Honestly, we did it because- like eating kale- we'd heard it was good for you. 

After about a month of regular sessions we noticed a shift. We both reported experiencing an overall, steady sense of calm. We were less reactive in our jobs.

Read More

Eat Fat and End Diets

/
Eat Fat and End Diets

Like many people in the United States, I spent most of my adult life on a diet. Sometimes the diets would "work" for a little (I would lose weight), but the process sucked. I was always hungry and fixated on my next meal. This lifestyle was so difficult to sustain that I was constantly on the lookout for the true answer to effortless weight maintenance.  Fortunately, in my quest for the next best diet, I found Eat Fat Get Thin and The Primal Blueprint. Thanks to Mark Hyman and Mark Sisson, I learned that fat is actually our body's preferred energy source. The Standard American Diet emphasizes utilizing glucose for energy, which often equates to empty calories that leave you hungry, with your body producing too much insulin. Too much insulin equals inflammation; too much inflammation equals disease. 

Read More

Looking Inside to Transform the Outside: Body Image and Freedom

/
Looking Inside to Transform the Outside: Body Image and Freedom

Adopting a primal lifestyle transformed my life in countless ways. I solved digestive issues, I felt nourished and satisfied with delicious food, my body learned how to use fat as fuel, I ended a sugar addiction, I stopped dieting and started living my life fully, moment to moment. 

But honestly, this lifestyle change would not have been possible without addressing internal issues as well. I had to look inside to transform my outside. This is how I began my transformation:  

Read More

Easing the Sugar Detox with Bling Bombs

/
Easing the Sugar Detox with Bling Bombs

Tom ran out of healthy food on his week long fishing in Yakutat. Upon his return, he sheepishly reported back to his drill sergeant (me) that he had indulged in junk food and was ready for a detox. He'd noticed a few things during his food free for all: once he started in on the sugar his thoughts became controlled by the greedy bacteria in his gut demanding more sugar. It was difficult to stop once he'd started.

Read More

Sacred Mornings: My Hour of Power

/
Sacred Mornings: My Hour of Power

I love morning time: the quiet, the peace, the unlimited potential of starting anew. I heard the term "hour of power" on a podcast a few years ago and I thought it was the perfect way to describe my morning rituals. I've always been an early riser, but it wasn't until fairly recently that I realized the power in an intentional start to the day. I now know that I create every single day with my thoughts and actions upon rising. There are so many beautiful ways to begin a day; I will share my routine as an example. 

Read More

Cauliflower Hummus

/
Cauliflower Hummus

If you run in a similar social media circle I'm sure you have heard "Cauliflower is the new kale!" Well, how about, "Cauliflower is the new garbanzo bean!"? Perhaps not quite as catchy, but I will explain why that is my phrase of the day. 

Hummus has been off the table for me since I began my Primal Health Coach certification and I learned more about legumes. While they don't affect everyone in the same way, they can be problematic and they totally unnecessary for optimal health.

Read More

Water and Creativity

/
Water and Creativity

The focus of this morning's yoga class (courtesy of YogaGlo) was creativity. The instructor encouraged body movements that mimicked the flow and ease of water. Gliding through the poses, I could indeed feel an opening to that meditative, creative channel that gives birth to inspiration. 

Read More

Intermittent Fasting and Discovering What Works for You

/
Intermittent Fasting and Discovering What Works for You

I was reading an Outside magazine article entitled “We have Found the Cure! (Sort of…)” in which the author describes her adventures in cleansing treatments including fasting. The treatments leave her glowing and feeling beautiful and young, but then she asks doctors about the science behind the treatments. When asked about fasting the quoted doctor rolls his eyes and states, “There are no proven health benefits from fasting.” Another doctor said it might be okay as long as you don’t do it too often. I found these statements interesting, particularly when compared with the research described in The Complete Guide to Fasting by Dr. Jason Fung and Jimmy Moore.

Read More

Fiddleheads Five Ways: Part 5

/
Fiddleheads Five Ways: Part 5

I love red curry. I especially love easy red curry. After transitioning to a primal lifestyle I took a close look at the ingredients of my favorite Thai Kitchen Red Curry Paste. This is what I found on the label: Red Chili, Garlic, Lemongrass, Galangal (Thai Ginger), Salt, Onion, Kaffir Lime, Coriander, Pepper. No sugar, no MSG, no fructose high corn syrup, no scary vegetable oils.

Read More

Fiddleheads Five Ways: Part 4 (Cali'flour Pizza!)

/
Fiddleheads Five Ways: Part 4 (Cali'flour Pizza!)

The pre-primal me (see My Story) never would have eaten pizza: too high in calories, too high in fat, too high in guilt. Fortunately the primal me doesn't give a damn about calories and consumes healthy fat with wild abandon and pleasure. And life is really too short not to eat pizza. My digestive system really enjoys the grain free life, so figuring out the pizza crust situation involved experimentation.

Read More