Should Eating Be Fun?

Vegan German Chocolate Cupcakes from

Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

Last week I published a new ad to local email lists.  I personally thought the ad was a brilliant bit of copy-writing.  In the ad I used my delicious wit to describe my view of a healthy food as more than just the sum of it's calories, points, and macro-nutrients, but rather one that gives us pleasure on many levels.  I said that sometimes even mom's apple pie might be the healthiest thing in the world if it's made for you with love and enjoyed by you with happiness and free of guilt.

The ad totally tanked.  I didn't get even one click.

It got me thinking about how often I feel like I'm fighting an uphill battle:

• I tell clients to stop dieting and start learning to eat and they tell me I'm nuts.

• I say "Here are the keys to diet jail, free yourselves!"and they toss the keys back and lock themselves back in.

• I tell new clients, let's ADD IN healthy foods before we even think about taking away the unhealthy ones.  They say "That's too easy, that will never work." and don't even give it a try.

• I teach simple, doable sustainable changes, but some folks want the hardest strictest meal plan they can cling to until their white knuckles get numb and they fall into the sugar bowl.

Sigh...

OK, so if you don't want to listen to me, here are the words of a few of my clients who are un-dieting their way to permanent, sustainable weight loss:

"Dear Emily, 
I don't know where to begin.  You have taught me to listen to my body.  You have guided me towards healthful habits and smarter choices.  I feel as if I have a renewed lease on life.  I feel great and I am full of energy.  And it is fun to learn how to put different ingredients together to create a meal. I have to admit I never understood how food effects the body.  I guess I didn't want to know.  But it really does - you are what you eat!  Saying thank you isn't enough but I'm saying it anyway.  Words cannot express how much you have helped me and how you helped me to help myself.  I am so grateful for your wisdom, knowledge and kindness."                   -Anne G.


"Working with you, Emily, has been about the positive things, not deprivation.  I enjoy fresh healthy food more since meeting you and I feel better.  I see that this endlessly rich palette of food and the new recipes you have provided add freshness and excitement.  Most importantly, I reclaimed myself as a priority though this lesson about food which is really about so much more.  My life is better for having met you."  - Susan M.


(Both of those ladies have lost significant amounts of weight by the way).

Food is Fun.  Eating is a Pleasure.  There is no reason why losing weight and keeping it off should mean 100% abstention from your favorite foods for ever and ever.  Who can do that?  I certainly won't!

Cinnamon-Sesame Oats & Chai with Rice Milk

But healthy food is also fun and eating in moderation and for hunger, rather than for emotional reasons, is an even greater pleasure.  Getting appropriate physical exercise is one of the greatest pleasures of all!

BBQ Lentils & Eggplant and yes, that's a piece of challah and yes I ate it

from Vegetarian Meat and Potatoes

Please don't think it's all or nothing - It's balance.

Please believe that you can make the simple changes that will greatly improve the quality of your life. - You can.

Please make peace with food. - It's not the enemy.

Please make peace with yourself. - It's not worth all this struggle and pain.

Macaroni with Garlic, Peas, Chickpeas, Sun Dried Tomatoes & Rosemary

No recipe there, just saute all in olive oil and toss together.  (It's gold because of the sunset)

For the love of Schmukinuck

My friend Christy wrote me that lovely comment about what a great mom I am cooking my kids all this home-made food, and well, I've got to come clean:  When I excitedly announced to my family that I had joined Vegan MoFo....

...they GROANED.  Collectively.

And just last week in fact, before this Vegan MoFo business even began, my husband whined pathetically that I don't cook enough "Dude Food".

So although it might look all Happy Healthy Homemaker from the outside, I've got the same problems as the rest of you.  I perhaps, am just really good at ignoring them.

No but seriously, "how to get the kids/partner to eat healthy foods" is a question that comes up a lot with coaching clients.  So let's talk it through.

Many of you have already heard this story, but my mother says that my first word was Pop-Tart and my love of junk food and all things processed and packaged just grew from there.  Do you guys remember something called "Space Food Sticks"?

Mercy me, these things were a 1960's Space-crazed version of giant tootsie rolls to fuel us young astronauts through our busy days of moon rock collecting.  I actually became so addicted to them that my mom had to stage an intervention.  I am NOT kidding.  She had the entire family corroborate the lie that the company that made Space Food Sticks (Pillsbury) had gone out of business.  And because I always did the grocery shopping with her, she had to constantly invent growing subterfuge to keep me from wandering down that aisle and uncovering her deception.  I eventually did and have yet to forgive.

My mom was a gourmet cook and ahead of her time whole-foods wise (Pop tarts and space food sticks notwithstanding). I of course hated everything she made and invented a name for healthy veg-filled meals:  Schmuckinuck. Yes for real, and if any of my childhood friends are reading you are surely cracking up right now.  For about 15 years I subsisted on scrambled eggs, grilled cheese and tuna fish sandwiches with the crusts cut off.   The daily Schmuckinuck that appeared on our dinner table along with those objectionable bread crusts, rarely passed my lips.  When at age 16 I announced I would no longer be part of the animal cruelty machine and was from here on out Vegetarian, my mother chuckled and said "OK, good luck with that."  The only vegetables I ate were tomatoes, corn and potatoes. PB and J became my new stand-by although my discrimination of bread crusts continued.  Yet through all my pickiness and food-stage-weirdness, my mom kept cooking the healthy stuff and I got pretty used to seeing it there on the table.  Now I understand this was Brain Washing.

So what's the point of all this?  I just want to encourage you to keep cooking healthy meals despite your kids' grumbling.  They'll survive and may end up coming around eventually and be Schmuckinuck lovers just like me!  But if you NEVER introduce them to healthy food, then they don't stand a chance as adults.  I'd say that like 90% of my clients never ate veggies, not as kids and not as adults.  And now they're sick and overweight with 40 years of food habits to change.  Think of yourself as Jaimie Oliver and step forth boldly and with humor, involving the kids in your healthy kitchen experiments.  Tell them your afraid of Brussels Sprouts too but you'll try them if they will and then make edible green sprout snowmen and bite their heads off.

At the same time, keep up a steady stream of grilled cheese, PB and J, and tuna fish sandwiches with the crusts cut off.  You have to make some concessions to prevent all out rebellion.  Case in point:  Yesterday was my husband's birthday and I made him a Flan.  Eggs, butter, milk, sugar.  I am not veganizing it because I don't want to be divorced.  Or murdered.

Vegans, avert your eyes!

Birthday Flan (NOT Vegan)

But I'm also made this:

Egg-less Egg Salad (with the crusts cut off for old times sake)

THIS is Vegan!

Egg-less Egg Salad
1 container firm tofu, drained and crumbled with your hands
2-3 T vegan mayonnaise
1 T mustard
1 tsp turmeric
salt and pepper to taste
Mix it all up.  Easier than egg salad and just as tasty!

C is for Cookies and for Calcium

A couple of weeks ago I was the guest nutrition expert for the Bracha organization at the Raanana Breast Cancer Prevention Walk.  Bracha is an organization educating and supporting women  about the BRCA gene mutation that can cause genetic cancers, especially of the reproductive organs.  If you have a mother or sister who has had breast cancer, you probably want to educate yourself about this issue.  I know it's scary to find out you carry such a genetic problem and it would be far easier to bury your head in the sand, but knowledge in this care could literally save your life.  You can find info on Bracha in Israel here.  International readers, here is your link.

The Bracha organizers asked that I focus on nutrition and lifestyle tips for strong bones, as women who have their reproductive organs removed or damaged during cancer prevention or treatment, are often thrust into quite premature menopause.  So I gave out a tip sheet on bone building and a chart with calcium levels in many, many foods (such as the figs, poppy seeds and tahina in the below recipe), recipes including calcium-rich ingredients and of course, food samples!

One of the recipes I created for this event is these calcium-rich, sugar-free, VEGAN tahina cookies.

The recipe below calls for a fig-filling which is delicious and high in precious calcium.  But for this batch in the photo which I made for my own dry-fig hatin' family, I filled them with all-fruit (no-sugar) blueberry jam.

Calcium-Rich Tahina Cookies
1 cup dried figs, chopped
2/3 cup water

Put figs and water in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat 5-10 minutes until the figs are soft and the water absorbed.  Set aside to cool.

2 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup poppy seeds
1 cup tahina paste (or almond butter if you prefer)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup vegetable oil
dash sea salt, optional

Preheat oven to 180C.  Combine all ingredients (except figs, which are cooling) in a large bowl.  Puree figs in food processor until a smooth paste.  Roll dough into walnut-sized balls and place on a ungreased baking sheet.  Stick your finger in the middle of each ball to make a little indentation.  Fill the indentations with about 1 tsp fig puree.  Bake 10-12 minutes.  Cool on a rack.  Enjoy!

Next, I wanted to take a minute to tell my blog readers about a special I am running.  You all know by now that as a Health & Nutrition Coach, I work with clients on creating and implementing healthier habits.  My specialty is permanent weight loss, but I also work with specific health issues and even just with people who'd like to adopt healthier habits for themselves and their families.  Some of the issues we cover, aside from the food stuff, is stress reduction methods, relationship issues, career counseling, personal and spiritual growth...  obviously not just food and cooking!

In the past, the first trial session was the same price as any session, 200nis / hour ($100/hour for International clients).  But now I am going to try something new:  I am now offering a 20-minute introductory phone or Skype session for only 50nis! ($25 for International clients).  This will give folks a low-cost, low-time way of meeting me and hearing if my approach is right for them.

Again, please know that I work with clients here in Kfar Saba, face-to-face, but I also have a growing number of phone or Skype clients both here in Israel and abroad.  I've got clients all over the United States!  It's pretty cool.  But it also enables folks who are really busy and not able to schelp over here to KS, to work with me the exact same way in-person clients do.

If you are interested email me at Emily@TriumphWellness.com and we'll set up your 20-minute phone trial session.  Better health and happiness could be just a phone call away!

The Wall

I want to start today's post with a clip from one of my all-time favorite movies, Run Fat Boy Run.


In the clip, you see our hero Dennis trying to finish a marathon, injured, dejected, out of shape and pretty hopeless.  He's been running away from responsibility all his life - taking the easy way out - and this race represents his attempt to take a new direction.  With 9 miles left, he "hits the wall", that famous brick obstacle we hear about in connection with endurance events.  As Dennis stares up at this seemingly unsurmountable obstacle in his path, he is overwhelmed by hopelessness and besieged by all the voices, real and imagined, telling him that he has always been and will always be, a loser.

There are 2 things I really love about this clip:
1.  Only Dennis can see the wall.  Everyone else sees a free and clear roadway ahead of him.
2.  A brick falls out of the wall and Dennis sees himself on the other side waving and encouraging him forward.

When I was in nutrition school we were told "Clients come to you because they are trapped in their story.  You, as the counselor, need to find a way to help them see that it's just a story and that they can re-write it any way they choose".  We all have our stories - the ones we tell ourselves and the ones others have told about us, telling us who we are.  The problem is that we don't see that they are just stories.  We think they are real and permanent.  We often mistake a Story for a Wall.

Yet, when I sit there listening to the client tell her story, I see a free and clear roadway in the place where my client sees a wall.  I then offer the client my perspective.  I tell her that the wall in front of her is made of paper, not bricks and all she has to do is blow it over gently and walk right on through.

Some people see it right away.  They are able to see that it was just a fiction they were stuck on, or just a habit that they mistook for a truth.  They say "Oh!  Why was I making such a big deal about that?  Thanks!"  I do a victory dance and feel like the best coach in the world.

But other people don't see it or don't believe, or don't WANT to, I'm never sure.  Some folks really like their story and they have become so comfortable with their wall that they know every brick and every crack in the mortar.  There is no way in heck they are moving through it.  It seems crazy that someone would hire me because they want to make changes in their life but then be unwilling to actually make any changes in their life - but truly it happens!

In total honesty, I did it myself a bunch of times before I was ready to knock my own walls down.  For one, I had totally bought the story that yo-yo dieting had wrecked my metabolism.  That was my Wall and my reason why I could not lose weight permanently.  Then my coach said to me "Do you KNOW this for a fact?  Have you ever had your metabolism checked?  Because the fact is that overweight people have FASTER metabolisms than smaller people from carrying around so much more weight for so many years."

Wow, I never though of it like that before.  So if it's not my metabolism holding me back, it must be...  hey, the road ahead of me is free and clear of obstacles!  Ta-Da..

So I want to offer you a different perspective today and it's this:

Our walls are the boundaries of our comfort zones.  They are the white picket fences around our familiar, known present.  We know that the thing we desire is "out THERE" but are not sure it's safe to leave the gate and cross that Interstate running through our front yard.  I mean, what if we get flattened by a speeding semi?

It IS scary.  They don't call it a "comfort zone" for nothing!  Now imagine stepping out there with a trusted supportive coach holding your hand, preferably one who has already crossed this road and emerged unscathed on the other side.

That's what I do.  I am the chaperon and tour guide on the bus pulling out of Struggle on it's way to Achievement.  The ride can go as slow or as fast as the client wishes, but she has to get ON the bus first!

So, that insurmountable-seeming wall blocking your way?  I am here to tell you that YOU are the only one who can even see it!  The road ahead of you is in fact, free and clear as far as the eye can see.

Now, how do you feel when you hear me say that?  Do you start in with all this mental chatter that goes "But, but, but...You don't know me!  You don't know my problems!  My problems and obstacles are worse than anyone else's.  Things are not as simple as you make it!"  Yeah?  Something like that?  OK, so you're right then.  Don't call me.  I can't help you when you are not willing to board the bus.

But if you read what I wrote and thought "I would like to believe that but am just afraid, skeptical, sad, beaten, all-alone, insecure, or hurt" then hon, you could use a great coach to stand behind you and say "Yes, you can and I've got your back".

Your wall is just your story, your picket fence, your safety helmet, your doubts and fears.  Knock it down and come out to play!

October!

Wow, I went from Lazy Vacation-Mode to Full-Tilt Back-in-Business in a blinding flash.  Suddenly, I seem to have programs to run, clients to see, speeches to give, recipes to test...Yikes!  But it's all good.  I'm going to re-cap the goings on below for my own sake as much as yours.

But first...  Vacation!

We did some of this:

and this:

There was this:

and I saw one of these:

We ate some of this:

(My Tofu Scram with Kale and Mom's Piroshkis)

and I adored this:

That's me with my awesome big sis.

You can visit her website and buy her book.  Pluggin' the fan-damily.

So we're back here in Israel now and it's back to work.  Here's a recap of the month we've got planned here at Triumph Wellness.  I hope to see some of you at the following events.  Wherever it says to email, you can send that to me here:  Emily@TriumphWellness.com

Firstly, if you've been paying attention at all, you will know I have been promising a new fully-featured, fabulous website.  Well....  not yet.  That's all I can say.  We shall make do like this for now.

On Thursday, October 7th I am speaking to the English-Speakers of Kfar Saba Group meeting at 7:30pm.  The topic is "Clearing the Nutrition Confusion".  You know how one day "they" tell us something is good for us and a month later the same thing is the worse thing anyone could ever eat?  I'm going try to clear that up in 30 minutes  ;-)  No sweat.  If you live in Kfar Saba and are an English-speaker, email me for the location.

On Tuesday, October 12th I am starting another 30-Day Detox Group Program.  Four 90-minute meetings on Tuesdays from 10-11:30am.  Each meeting includes 60 minutes of class time and 30 minutes of cooking and eating some seriously delicious and healthy chow.  This is a program I run several times a year and people just love it.  They come in terrified that they could live a day without sugar, wheat or dairy and I make it so easy and fun that the month just flies by.  This is a great way to get yourself back on track and feeling tip-top fast.  Cost is 500nis.  Email for more info or to register.  More details can be found here.

On Wednesday, October 13th I'm teaching a Fresh Feasts Cooking Class entitled Family-friendly Feasts.  Class is 7:30-9:30pm in my home in Kfar Saba.  My kitchen is Kosher and all the food is Parve/Vegan and your family will LOVE it.  We cook and talk and then we eat, yum!  Cost is 150nis and you MUST register in advance.  More details here.

On Friday, October 15th, I will be the guest nutrition expert at the Bracha booth during the Raanana Breast Cancer Walk.  Info on the walk can be found here.  Info on Bracha can be found here.  They asked me to do an interactive cooking demo having to do with calcium-rich healthy foods.  I'm predicting something involving sesame...  Come on down to visit, to eat something with me and of course to support a good cause.

On Saturday, October 16th I am having a nervous breakdown.  Just kidding.  Sort of.

Monday, October 25th is the first day of the 8-week Total Body Transformation Program.  Classes meet every Monday from 11:00am-12:30pm.  We will get right down to business and teach you how to get thin and stay thin for the rest of your life.  This program is only for people who are really ready to change their behavior, eat better, exercise, and build a healthy lifestyle for good.  This is NOT a diet with some random generic meal plan.  You will learn to eat, to craft your life to support you forever, and to bust through your fears and obstacles.  The cost for 8 meetings and unlimited email support in between is 1200nis and can be broken into payments.  Admission is by application only and the application deadline for this program is Oct 21st, no exceptions.    More info here.

Phew!  When all that's done, I'm going to need more of this:

so I don't end up like this:

8-Week Total Body Transformation Program

WooHoo!!!

Questions about this program have begun to trickle in, so I figured I'd cough up the details here.  It's still pretty early, but maybe this will plant a seed you can mull over in the next few weeks.

Here's the deal:  When clients come to work with me individually, we work at their own pace, which is usually gentle and slow.  Clients make changes one or two at a time as they are comfortable and we don't add new challenges until the previous ones have been accomplished.  This is a very successful approach for many people who have failed before on programs where they were required to bite off more than could chew or sustain long-term.

I continue to offer this kind of very successful program on a one-to-one basis and I welcome you to make an appointment to try it for yourself. I work in person, via phone or Skype.  Emily@TriumphWellness.com or http://www.triumphwellness.com/

But this summer everything changed for me personally.  I'll write more about in a another blog, but I can say that I have had a TRANSFORMATIONAL few months.  I've lost some stubborn weight, gotten fitter than I've ever been before, and made huge leaps in my mental and spiritual growth.

I am committed to no longer playing small in the world and I'm looking for clients who feel the same way.  Is anyone else out there?  Ladies, who wants to play big with me?!  Who is sick and tired of not having the body she wants and letting it stop her from being her greatest and best?  Who is sick of being a slave to food, to being a slug on the sofa, to wishing things would be different?  Who is super ready to do what it takes to change it all?

The 8-week Total Body Transformation Program will be:
-in Kfar Saba

-8 Monday mornings from 11am - 12:30pm beginning October 25th

-A very small group of committed women who will hold themselves and each other accountable, give and receive support

-There is no prescribed, one-size-fits-all meal plan.  I do not tell you what to eat.  Rather, I help you devise an eating plan that suits your unique needs, tastes, and individual calorie and nutrient requirements, which I will help you understand.

-Each participant will be required to log her food and exercise online daily.  Studies show that people who keep food logs lose TWICE as much weight as those who don't!  The food logging people are much more successful at keeping the weight off for good too.  I will teach you how to do this.  It is fun and easy.  The only exception I will make to this is for those who do not have computer access daily and will instead log their food on paper and present it to me at meetings.

-Daily exercise is required to the ability of each participant.

Lots of my clients balk at the idea of logging their food, but there is NO OTHER WAY to fully understand what you are eating and why you are carrying excess weight.  Do you know that frustration of "thinking" you ate really well all week and then getting on the scale and seeing no downward progress or even a gain?  You will never again have to experience that terrible feeling once you understand exactly what you are eating and how it affects you.

I know some of you think "This is too hard.  Just give me a diet to follow."  So let me be Dr Phil for a sec and ask "Well, how's that workin' for ya?"  If it never worked before, why do you still think it WILL?  If it only worked while you were on the diet and then fell apart when you fell off the diet, then it wasn't a sustainable solution.

Here's me, before and after.  This took considerably longer than 8 weeks!  In fact it took 2 years.  But if you can get the first 8 weeks down pat, the rest is a walk in the park.  I am going to give you all the tools you need to continue on your own, but of course am always here for anyone who needs further support.

I only lost the 70 excess pounds I was carrying when I STOPPED following someone else's diet plan and learned to eat the food that I liked and that worked best for me.  And I know it was the right thing to do because it's 8 years later and the weight is still off.

Did you know that only 7% of dieters will ever reach their goal weight?  And of those who do, only 3% will maintain their goal weight for longer than a year.  I'm not so great at math, but to me that looks like a 97% long-term failure rate!  Think about all your friends who are always trying the latest diet.  Those statistics pretty much ring true, right?  There is always one or two women in a group who have lost weight by dieting and maintained it.  And then the other 97-98 women who stand there scratching their heads wondering "Why Can't I?"

The point is, we have to learn how to EAT, not how to NOT eat.  But we can't eat crap and have a dream body.  And we can't sit on the sofa dreaming of change, we have to actually get off of behinds and DO IT.

Here are a few questions to help you determine if this program is for you.  You would be a good candidate for this program if:
-you are a woman, 18 years or older
-you are really ready to drop the excuses, move beyond your fears and self-limiting behaviors, and finally step into the life and body you have always wanted.
-you are ready to give up the quick fix, short-term diet mentality
-you are willing to get in the kitchen and cook
-you are willing to try new foods and reduce the amount of processed foods, restaurant foods and sugar you currently eat
-you finally understand that you may be using your weight as an excuse for not accomplishing other things in your life or as an excuse to stay stuck, and be willing to stop
-you want to be held accountable and learn from a a certified nutrition professional who has helped many, many people lose the weight for good AND done it herself
-you want loving support and firm honesty to help you on this journey

But this program is not for everyone and that's OK too.  If you have any of the following feelings, I can tell you right up front that this particular program is NOT for you:
-you are someone who "already knows it all" and isn't willing to hear possible new ideas or actually APPLY what you know
-you are a negative person in general and would rather complain and stew than do something about it
-you are unable to let go of past hurts and pain and move beyond them.  You are stuck in your "story of woe" or think you are broken or defective and will never be able to change
-you are not ready to accept responsibility for your weight and would rather blame your thyroid, your hormones, your eating disorder, your husband or your family,. etc.
-you don't want, or are unable to take any steps outside of your comfort zone
-you want to hold onto diet mentality, and beat yourself up because it doesn't work. 
-you absolutely will not log your food daily and committ to daily exercise


All that makes me sound like a mean ball-buster and really that is so not true.  I have been there myself and there was a long time that I myself was in the "not" category above!


I want you to know that there is nothing wrong with you if you are not there yet.  I am not judging you.  In fact, if you read that list and feel you are almost there but it is all just too scary and impossible sounding, then come to me as a private client and I will help you move forward out of "stuck".  Whatever you do, just don't give up!

Shut up already and tell us the price, Emily!

1200 nis gets you eight 90-minute very small group meetings (4-5 women probably) and unlimited email support between.  It also gets you amazing, family-friendly, life-affirming recipes, handouts, worksheets and all my very best success-proven techniques from years of helping women just like you reach their weight and health goals!

Think about what it would really be worth to you to solve this problem once and for all. 

If you are interested in the group and would like an application, email me at Emily@TriumphWellness.com

If you are interested in the group but need to speak with me in person first, email me at Emily@TriumphWellness.com.

This  program is available by application only to ensure that participants are well-matched and are in the right state of readiness.

Application deadline:  Oct 21, 2010
Program Start:  Oct 25, 2010

I hope to have you aboard this amazing journey!  Now, whether or not you are interested, we can ALL use a good song and dance and nobody says it like Natasha B!  I ADORE this song and if you do too, I think we're on the same page.  Enjoy!

10,000 Hours

In the book Outliers, author Malcolm Gladwell explains that the most successful people in any field, get to the pinnacle due to many factors, one of which is that they have put in 10,000 hours of practice.

We often don't SEE the hours of practice the person has put in though because we don't meet them until they have already arrived at the top.  We see the celebrities on the red carpet but don't see them working for hours with in the gym and saying "no" over and over to sweets.  We see athletes compete at the top of their game and conveniently forget the years of training that got them there.  We look at the CEO of a company with envy and think she/he was just born lucky or ambitious and don't give a second thought to the many hours she/he spent in obscurity toiling away at ground level.

Likewise, if you want to be the kind of person who has a normal weight, enjoys physical fitness, and eats healthy food, you have got to practice it over and over again.  You don't just wish to be that person and hope it accidentally happens.  You have to actually do it. 

Every day that you start the day with exercise or go to the gym, you are practicing your new desired habits.  Every day that you come up with excuses about why you cannot do those things, you are practicing the old undesired habits. 

Every shopping trip you make for healthy food and every meal you take the time to cook with lots of veggies and healthy stuff, and every time you decide to NOT eat your feelings or binge, you are practicing your new desired habits.  Every time you eat junk food or stuff your feelings down with food or buy crap "for the kids" wink, wink, you are practicing the old undesired habits.

Every night when you get to bed at a decent hour you are practicing the new desired habit.  Every night when you stay up too late watching TV or surfing the net, you are practicing the old undesired habit.

You get the point.

One of my mentors on this journey had a slogan that went:  Every Step.  Every Rep.  Every Meal.  Every Mile.  Every Day.  I ADORE that and use it often as my mantra.

That's all it is, practice and repetition.  You can practice the old ways or you can practice the new ways, your choice.  And according to Malcolm Gladwell, when you have put in 10,000 hours of practice on a certain skill, you will be a Master. 

In this Nike commercial, Michael Jordan talks about how maybe he makes it look easy, but the fans don't see the hours of practice he has spent honing his skills:



… “Maybe I led you to believe it was easy when it wasn’t. Maybe I made you think my highlights started at the free throw line, and not in the gym. Maybe I made you think that every shot I took was a game winner. That my game was built on flash, and not fire. Maybe it’s my fault that that you didn’t see that failure gave me strength; That my pain gave me motivation. Maybe I led you to believe that basketball was a G-d given gift, and not something I worked for… every single day of my life…”– Michael Jordan

What are YOU working for?  Just know that there is no way to master it unless you practice it.

love,
em

Inspiration in the Strangest of Places

Last night I went with one of my sons to see The Last Airbender.  I expected to be bored and almost brought a book with me.  My kids have been watching that animated series for years now and I never really paid it much mind.  I had also heard some pretty negative reviews...

Well, air bend me backwards if that wasn't an amazing movie!  I kept wanting to take notes for Pete's sake!  I am NOT kidding!!  It was like an Eastern Philosophy seminar with M.Night Shyamalan as professor.  And it made me realize several Things.  Big Things.  So as usual, I seem to be learning Life's big lessons through kid's movies.  Let's just say, I take my Inspiration from whence it comes.

In the movie there are 4 worlds within our world, each dominated by one of the four elements:  Earth, Water, Fire and Air. The Avatar is the one being who can control all 4 elements and thus bring harmony and balance to the world.  The Avatar is always cycling through life and re-birth, but the current Avatar "upper limited" himself (that's psych talk, for he freaked out at his own greatness and I'm planning an entire post on that soon!) and ran away for 100 years, throwing the world into chaos.  In the movie, he returns, but because he ran away at age 12, he had only learned how to control the air element and needs to learn the other three elements to become the master he was born to be.

So in this one little innocuous movie, we have the whole issue of accepting one's life purpose which as you know from past posts, is something that has been engaging me for quite some time now.  Then we have the Upper Limiting Behaviors (ULB's) that cause us to self-sabotage.  Again, more on that coming up soon.  And then the whole 4 element thing...

As a Holistic practitioner, I am very familiar with Element Theory.  Chinese medicine adds a 5th element to the above quartet, Wood.  Ayurveda consolidates them into just 3, combining Earth and Water into the Kapha dosha, which just happens to be MY dosha.  I'll do another post all about Ayurveda one day because it really is useful and wonderful.  And in both systems, of course the bottom line is about balance, just like the Avatar.  The ways in which the Avatar is taught to control the water element and to overcome his ULB's, well this is where I found my insight.


Other people cross deserts to reach enlightenment, I just go to the movies.  Life is Sweet.


Anyway, back on Planet Earth...

Yesterday, I also made Vegan Granola Bars Ala Mama Pea.  I changed her recipe a bit because I didn't have powdered stevia. 

Totally YUM!

The recipe is here.  And that's not laziness, I'm just tired of blogger crashing whenever I cut and paste!

And lastly, just wanted to share some photos from our weekend up North.  We stayed in Moshav Betzet in the cutest little cabin!  We were surrounded by fruit trees.

Oranges

Papaya

Avocado

Fruit of my loins

Fruity McFruit

When I asked the proprietor why the commercial lime season is so short here in Israel, she gave me a whole basket to take home with me!

And she said that limes are just not that well-known here which is why they only appear in markets for one month out of 12.  And I buy them ALL.

And finally, for those of you who don't live here and think "Israeli Breakfast" means sand and pita, I give you....

The Israeli Breakfast:

I LOVE this country!!!

Cardio Vs Strength Training: Who Wins?

As a cardio addict, I myself have been guilty of neglecting weight training.  And it shows.  Although my weight roughly stays the same, my shape has not.  I'm flabbier than I was 8 years ago.  And I work out.  Imagine what would be if I wasn't exercising at all!

Something else interesting happened too:  The number of calories it took to maintain my weight 8 years ago, versus the number of calories it takes to maintain my weight now, has dropped.  Meaning, I have to eat less to stay this same weight.  Ugh.  Who wants that?

So last year, I began to take a closer look at the role our muscles play in our metabolism and how not building them, can lead to both of the above problems.  And I started lifting weights.  It's been start and stop, but the past month I have been much more consistent and am VERY pleased with the results.  Plus I get to throw around phrases like "super set" and "chest press" and that makes me totally cool.  Or a geek.

In last week's GOOP, Gwenyth Paltrow's excellent weekly newsletter, she had the following interview with Dr Oz Garcia.  It explains this muscle business perfectly:

Q:  “How might a 40 something jump start a sluggish metabolism?”



Dr. Oz Garcia, who I've been working with, gave us his answer:


A:  Staying slim and fit is always a challenge but maintaining your girly figure after age forty can be an all out battle. Even maintaining an exact diet and fitness regimen will not beat the penalty of aging.


On average, women gain 25 pounds between the ages of 30 and 60 and it’s not from eating those extra Twinkies. During the course of the natural aging process, women shed lean muscle mass. These lean muscles are the force from which calories are burned even while sitting around and just blinking.


Technically speaking, a pound of lean tissue burns 35 to 50 K’s each day. A loss of just a half-pound of lean muscle could cause you to gain three pounds in just one year, 25 pounds in 10 years, 50 pounds in 20 years and a hefty 75 pounds in 30 years.


So in order for women to stay lean well into their 40’s, 50’s and 60’s they need to maintain those lean muscles. This means working out every day. Yes, every day. Exercise with increased resistance and lower reps will provide increased muscle density and bone strength.


Interval training, when you get your heart pumping at maximum capacity and then slow down for a period of recovery, is great for losing weight in your 20’s and 30’s. Once you’re a bit older, however, you want to regulate your cardio training into a steady bell-shaped progression. Start off slow, work to a crescendo and then work you way back down.

Dr. Oz Garcia is a New York city based nutritionist. He is an expert in anti-aging nutrition and the author of several books on the matter including, “Redesigning 50: The No-Plastic-Surgery Guide to 21st-Century Age Defiance”

So, have I convinced you yet, to pick up some dumbbells?  Here are some great resources to help you design a weight program and get started on re-building your lean muscle mass:

The Body Fat Solution by Tom Veunto
http://www.tomvenuto.com/  (It's worth clicking that link just to get a gander at Tom's AMAZING physique!)

The New Rules of Lifting for Women - Alwyn Cosgrove and others
http://www.thenewrulesoflifting.com/

E-program, Turbulence Training by Craig Ballantyne who gets brownie points for recently going Vegan!
http://www.turbulencetraining.com/presentation.shtml  There's a good video presentation when you click that link.  This is mostly body weight exercises, so a good place to start if you're afraid of the weight room. 

You can get a free 4-week trial of Turbulence Training through fellow blogger Swigg:  http://skwigg.tripod.com/TurbulenceTraining4WeekBWW.pdf

Now, this wouldn't be a post by yours truly if I didn't take a minute to have an honest REAL heart-to-heart with ya'll, right?:

Experienced Exercisers:  If you aren't getting the kind of results you want even though you workout regularly, YOU HAVE GOT TO CHANGE YOUR WORKOUTS!  Sorry about the yelling, but you would not believe how often people complain to me "I already workout a ton and am STILL overweight!"  They use this as excuse to give up or as proof that they really cannot be as lean as they'd like.  Bollocks I say.  Not getting the results you want mean it's time to change something, not throw in the towel completely.  Open Your Minds, people!

Beginning Exercisers:  Don't worry too much about everything I wrote in this post.  You just need to begin building the exercise habit.  Start with walking if that's all you can do.  Start slowly but consistently.  Try to workout every single day.  This is the fastest and most effective way to build this habit.  Don't do so much that you get injured.  Keep it small, keep it slow, but do it daily.

OK, let's build some muscles!

I've Got Butterflies in My...

I finally had my appointment last night with the Gastroenterologist and that was the official diagnosis:

"Butterflies in Tummy"

No, that's my SELF diagnosis.  His was more medically accepted:  An infection that damaged the stomach lining. 

I am getting better.  I asked him the question so many of you ask me:  How could a person as health conscious as me, get so sick for so long?  He replied that the speed at which I have recovered is actually quite remarkable.  I guess it's all how you look at a thing.

But I want to run with the whole butterfly metaphor for a minute if you don't mind. 

Back when I was in the midst of the 100-Day Vegan Challenge, I tried to express that something was happening to me on the Spiritual Plain, that I didn't quite understand or know how to explain.  I felt, like I was, well, turning inside out.

And then I got sick.

And while sick, I had this deep need for turning my energy inward, getting quiet, circling my wagons, being still....

Sound like anything familiar?

We all know that when the caterpillar enters the cocoon, he rests there before undergoing his metamorphosis.  But did you know that he actually turns to MUSH??  His entire body dissolves before it re-forms.  Ick, right?

Well, that resonates pretty strongly with me right now - the icky mush thing.  I'm still in it, but I do feel that I am slowly solidifying and that the person who cracks out of this thing will be very different than the person who went in 4 months ago.

Do you guys think that's totally weird?  Well, too bad.  It's my blog and I will babble on mystically as much as I want, because GUESS WHAT?  I've got even more to say and it turns out that being fully who I am and not apologizing for it, is an enormous part of all this!

You see, one of the healing modalities I study is the Chakra system.  Chakras are energy wheels that run along the center of the body.  There are seven of them and if one gets unbalanced, energy gets stuck in that area and causes emotional, physical and spiritual problems.

The 3rd Chakra is the yellow one up there called Solar Plexus.  It's located right over the stomach, right up there high center abdomen.  You can find it by putting your three middle fingers right in the soft spot where the sternum ends.

For four months, as I have traveled from doctor to doctor, they have all asked me "Show me where it hurts"and I point exactly to the center of my 3rd Chakra.  Do you want to know what the 3rd Chakra represents?  OK, I will tell you anyway:

3rd chakra = The Seat of One's Personal Power  3rd chakra directly affects one's ability to project their will into manifestation. (Holy Yoga Batman! This is exactly what I have been struggling with!)  This center is one that is constantly challenged in humanity . The majority of people are constantly having their power chakras challenged whether it be at work, in our relationships, or simply within ourselves. Power struggles are constant in our daily grind. An under active third chakra can lead to a true feeling of powerlessness. An over active 3rd center can be just as detrimental as an under active one and may result in the over powering of others, typically for selfish desire.


The root of this problem stems from not transferring the energy of the 3rd center up through the heart center. The power that stems from the third chakra, balanced in love will lead humanity to a grand state of peace and well being.  The 3rd center is commonly associated with the “core” balancing activities that many aerobics focus on. The focus on this core, or power center, allows people to feel in control of their own destiny.

As it is located in the belly it is also tied into the digestive system.  When the 3rd chakra opens, there can be tremendous emotional upheaval. Lots of painful unconscious material can erupt. Vomiting, diarrhea, stomach cramps, nausea and other digestive troubles can accompany this opening.  The newly unfolding 3rd chakra can make one emotionally and psychically hypersensitive.

(Source)

So why blather on about all of this butterflies and yoginis and bright balls of yellow light?  Because it illustrates perfectly what I do for a living.  When a client comes to me they often have some sort of physical complaint: over-weight, poor digestion, fatigue, bloating/gas, high cholesterol...  and what is happening to them physically is never just about the physical.  We see Western doctors to heal our bodies and believe you me, when I am sick I want an MD to help me get better!  But beyond the cure of symptoms they offer, is the root of the problem, which unless addressed, will just keep manifesting in a variety of ways.

I don't suppose it's always about chakras, but when I look this kind of thing up for people, they are usually pretty surprised at how well it matches up with what they know to be true inside.

So, me?  I am happy now to just hang out here in my mushy cocoon, doing my sit-ups and core work, channeling the 3rd chakra energy up to the 4th - the heart - and when I'm done, something really cool is going to emerge.  So, I hope you'll stay tuned!

The Spirit of Fortitude

Yesterday I finished reading The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.  It got me thinking.  The story, basically, is about an extremely dysfunctional family:  parents who are unfit to parent, and their kids who could have followed in their depressing legacy of alcoholism, poverty, and hopelessness, but instead rose up and built adult lives of achievement and financial security.


I adore stories of people over-coming the odds.  I always root for the underdog.  I am utterly captivated and fascinated by the process whereby one decides to push past the barriers and accomplish the seemingly impossible.  I am totally obsessed with it, if you want to know the truth.


Lucky for me, it's also my job.


Day after day, I meet women who have been trying all of their lives to reduce their size and become the slim woman they dream of.  Not just slim of course, but also at peace with food, no longer hungry, no longer obsessed, no longer a slave to counting each calorie eaten and burned.  These women have been working on this ONE unaccomplished goal for 15, 20, 40 or even 50 years.  They have met with so much other achievement in life - phenomenal careers, the raising of amazing children, over-coming heartbreak, disease, financial crumble - and yet this one goal of SLIM has never been reached.  Or, even sadder, it has been reached briefly and then lost again.  Those woman forever cling to the memories of that brief shining moment when they were who they always wanted to be.


By the time they come to me, most women have usually tried a million diets and workout plans, some sensible, some crazy, each one going to be THE THING that will finally bring them what they want.


And it's not like they didn't try!  Holy cow, these are the strongest, bravest, most tenacious and stubborn women you will ever meet!  They work their asses off in pursuit of this one single all-consuming goal.  But it evades them time after time.


I often hear them say "I am so frustrated by this, I could just scream!" or "I just do not have the strength to give this one more try."


I get it.  I know this pain too.  I have been there too.  I screamed and cried and pounded my fists and pleaded with The Creator to please let me have this one thing I wanted so badly from the time I was 16 years old and chubbier than the rest of the girls.


And one day, seemingly out of the blue, I turned it around for myself.  One day "blammo" it all became clear and all I had to do was walk the walk.  Everything else fell away and step by step I walked all the way to my goal and stayed there.


But why?  What made me have "blammo" and why don't some other people have it?  Why do some of my clients sit across from me and I watch quite literally as their entire expression changes and they take this big deep breath and say "I get it.  I'm going to be OK now" and suddenly all the power they were using on the "battle" gets channeled into the success?  Yet others sadly go on struggling and fighting and doing the one-step-forward-one-step-back dance?


I wish I knew.  If I knew the answer to this question, I would bestow it on the world for all to share.  I study the question constantly.  I read book after book on the psychology of achievement and motivation, I pick the brains of my clients who have gotten it.  I ask "What was it that finally got through to you?" and they all say "I don't know." which is what I say too. 


For a long time, I was obsessed with survival literature.  You know, stories of the folks who get lost in the wilderness or in a disaster and some live and some die.  In the fascinating book Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies and Why by Laurence Gonzales, the author puts forth that there is some internal survival mechanism that only about 10% of the population seem to possess.  They do not see Death as an Option.


They do not see Death as an Option.


I did not see Fat as an Option.


I looked in the mirror and said "NO!  This isn't me.  This is not my life and I don't care how hard I have to work and how long it might take, I will never, ever, EVER give up, give in, or accept a different conclusion than the one I seek."


Blammo.


When the chips are down.  When it feels as though the entire world is against you.  When you have failed a billion trillion times.  When you think you have no strength left.  When you feel so humiliated you can't even look yourself in the eye.  When you are lost at sea in a tiny life boat.  Will you be the one to accept the fate that seems inevitable?  Or will you be the one to scrape your own guts off the pavement, stand up and say "NO, I am not finished yet."

FeeFiFoFum, I smell the blood of a Vegetari-un

Thanks so much everyone for all the get well messages!  I don't have any answers yet, but as the lab results come in, I can certainly share what is good about them.  Here are some of my blood values from now compared to one year ago, before the 100-day vegan challenge:

Glucose:  1-yr ago = 85     today = 84
(In 2001 I was bringing in blood sugar numbers way over 100 and brought it down with diet and weight loss, so yay me!  And I just want to point out that I get these kind of blood sugar numbers even though I am eating a lower-protein, whole grain carb and fruit-heavy VEGAN diet.  You don't have to go low-carb to control your blood sugar, folks!)

Total Cholesterol:  1-yr ago = 162     today = 156

HDL:  1=yr ago = 69   today = 61

LDL:  1-yr ago = 84  today 83

Triglycerides:  1-yr ago = 44     today = 50

So all that's pretty great, right?  I'm probably not going to get diabetes or die of heart disease in the near future.  Unfortunately, the panel gets less brag-tastic after that.  I don't know what a lot of it means so I'll wait to get more info before I blab on.

But enough about me...


So before I get into the whole Fermentation discussion, I wanted to share a recent recipe.  These are Banana-Orange-Corn Pancakes and Strawberry Sauce.  The kids loved 'em!

Banana-Orange Corn Pancakes
1 cup stone-ground cornmeal
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 banana, mashed
3 eggs
juice of one orange
pinch of cinnamon
few sprinkles of any whole grain flour to make a thick batter

Mix together all the ingredients.  Fry em up in a lightly oiled pan and serve with or without...

Strawberry Sauce
1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
1/4 cup water
1 T ground flaxseeds or agar agar powder to thicken

Blend all in blender to desired thickness.

Next subject is Fermentation:
So, what's the deal with fermented stuff and why would I want to eat it?  Fermented things are pickles, pickled vegetables, kimchee, kefir, sauerkraut, sourdough bread starter, rejuvelac, kombucha, yogurt, etc.  These are all kinds of different items that we can make in our homes and as they ferment, they are enriched with helpful yeasts and bacterias from the air, such as the all-important Lactobacillus acidophilus.  Sure you can buy these products from the store, but then they will be pasteurized and it's questionable how many of the good germs survive the process.  All of those good bacteria help us with proper digestion and keep harmful diseases and other bacteria in control. 

In fact, whatever my problem is health wise at the moment, is probably due to some of the bad guys who have run rampant and done some damage.  Most digestive disorders, such as Crohn's, IBS, ulcer, Colitis, chronic diarrhea, bloating and gas, leaky gut syndrome, food allergies and intolerances, parasitic infection, Celiac, Candida, and even some cancers, often take hold in a poor digestive flora environment.  If you were not breastfed, have taken a lot of antibiotics in your life, have eaten a poor diet with lots of sugar and processed foods, or have been on hormonal birth control for a long time, you too may have an imbalance in your gut bacteria.

I have long wanted to try making some of these items and getting sick has been the impetus to get on it.  Here we have some sourdough starter bubbling along...

and here is some kimchee

I will let you know how they come out.  I'm a little dubious about the sourdough.  I can't decide if it smells horrible (which means it got invaded by bad bacteria) or if just smells sourdough-y?  At any rate, if these turn out good and I don't kill myself eating them, I will definitely pass along the recipes and how-to. 

If you are a successful fermenter yourself, PLEASE share your tips and advice with me and the readers!

(Disclaimer:  Remember folks, I am not a doctor and whatever you read here is my opinion.  Always, use your own common sense and the advice of a trusted medical practitioner!)