June 2009 Archives

Overworked, exhausted and stressed out are common characteristics of working professionals today. Add economic and job insecurity and the concept of self-care instinctively slides down the priority list.

But easing stress and tension is relatively easy, once you boldly remove yourself from the drama and get to the source of your stress. And a new study funded by the National Institutes of Health and released by the University of Rochester Medical Center reports that people who are more engaged in life are better able to withstand stress, and suggest that extroverts have a "survival advantage" over those who are less engaged in life.

Here are the top 5 ways to relieve stress and become more engaged in life:

1)    BREATHE DEEPLY. On average, adults take 20,000 breaths each day. Yet our breathing is usually shallow and not utilizing the lungs' capacity.  Deep breathing (breathing into the lower abdomen) helps calm the central nervous system and eases tension and stress.

 

2)    ELIMINATE ENERGY DRAINS. Get to the source of your stress. What actions, thoughts, objects or people are igniting the stress in your life? Identify and eliminate the source. Detach or dump them, or set boundaries that will help you move them out of your life.

 

3)    EXPRESS YOURSELF. If you are the person who bottles up your thoughts, words and emotions and then explodes under the stress, start speaking your truth in a gentle and diplomatic manner. Find the middle ground between biting your tongue and exploding.

 

4)    RELEASE YOUR FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS. Hale Dwoskin, bestselling author of the Sedona Method says, "these feelings you have are just feelings. You can let these feelings go just as easily as you can let an object you are holding drop to the ground. These feelings you hold will only prevent you from having exactly what you want for as long as you hold them. Whether you choose to hold them for a long time - or whether you choose to release them now - right now; the choice is yours." Choose to let go.

 

5)    SMILE, LAUGH AND ENJOY THE PRESENT MOMENT. Laughter is one of the most effective ways to reduce stress. Dr. Lee Berk and Dr. Stanley Tan of Loma Linda University in California have studied the effects of laughter on the immune system. Their studies showed that laughing lowers blood pressure, reduces stress hormones, boosts immune function and triggers the release of endorphins.

Fell off the cleanse bandwagon! My niece and nephew are arriving for a few weeks. Oh well, I'll try again soon.

I made it to day 2 and am feeling pretty good! I even made it to the gym for a workout with my trainer. Muscles are fatigued, but I'm not exhausted. We'll see how sore I am tomorrow.

7 am:  herbal tea, glass of water; 1/2 cup leftover millet
11 am: blueberry smoothie with almond milk and one nectarine
1 pm: chopped up cucumber with olive oil and vinegar
3 pm: herbal tea
5 pm: broiled salmon with steamed broccoli
6 pm: cup of yerba mate
 
Off to drink a little more water!

Clean Detox Cleanse

Day One:

8 am: Herbal tea and a glass of water

10:30 am: Blueberry almond smoothie

1 cup blueberries
1.5 cups almond milk
1 teaspoon agave nectar
2 teaspoons carob powder
handful of ice
--Blend and serve.

My energy level is really high, and I'm hardly hungry.

12:30 pm: Garden fresh green salad
A bowl of watercress, swiss chard, arugula and lettuce straight from my garden. Drizzled a little olive oil and white balsamic vinegar. Truly divine.

Felt tired this afternoon, and a little groggy. Kept drinking water to flush out the toxins.

5:00 pm: Alaskan salmon with pesto and millet

5 ounces of fresh Alaska salmon (sockeye is now in season)
Sprinkle salmon with olive oil, season to taste. Broil, 3 minutes on each side.

1 cup millet
2 cups water
Toast millet in saute brown until golden brown. Boil 2 cups of water. Add toasted millet, let simmer for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Pesto
2 cups basil
3-4 TBL olive oil
1 container of pine nuts
Blend in a food processor.

Serve salmon fillet over millet and top with pesto.

It's 7:15 pm and I'm feeling energized, not really hungry...but my muscles are starting to ache. Grabbing another pitcher of water.

I've been reading a lot about different detox diets and have been figuring out the healthiest way to cleanse. After 6 hours (that's all I could handle) on the Master Cleanse, I knew there had to be a healthier way to rid myself of toxins, and eliminate diary (I have allergies), caffeine (a 15-year habit from the workforce) and sugar (a sweet tooth and love of all bread products).

I dusted off a cleanse program that my holistic physician at the George Washington Center for Integrative Medicine gave me a few years ago, and picked up the book Clean by Dr. Alejandro Junger.

The basics of both programs are identical: eliminate processed foods, added sugar, dairy and dairy substitutes, wheat & gluten products, nightshade vegetables, soybean products, caffeine, alcohol, pork and red meat. The purpose: give your digestive system a rest by consuming all natural foods, no processed foods and more liquid meals. Unlike a fast which puts your body into starvation mode, cleansing is designed to support detoxification and allow your liver and digestive tract to rest, while renewing your body's vitality. 


The need to cleanse and detoxify our bodies has grown as the number and quantity of poisonous compounds in the air, water and food have increased. Toxins are obstacles to normal cell function -- and they cause irritation and inflammation. Toxins damage cells and tissues, and can go on to damage the body's systems. By eliminating toxins for a period of time, you allow your body to heal itself, cells, tissues and the digestive lining to help improve the efficiency for absorbing nutrients.

Dr. Alejandro suggests cleansing for at least 7 days, my doctor suggested up to 30 days. I'm trying 7 days, we'll see how it goes after that. And I'll be sharing my recipes and the effects of cleaning out all the toxins.

Recently, one of my clients became very frustrated because he was cutting back on his food portions, but the pounds kept piling on and he was steadily gaining weight. After a little exploration into his daily diet, we found that it wasn't the calories from food, but from the

beverages he was consuming.

 

Do you mindlessly drink soda or other sugary drinks throughout the day? Or hit the coffee shop for a frothy, whip-creamed top beverage? Do you know how many calories are in each cup, let alone the sugar and fat content?

Drinkers beware. Here's a look at the calorie and fat content for popular beverages consumed in the office. Keep your eye on the sugar content too and remember every gram equals 4 teaspoons.

Sip wisely!

SPECIALTY DRINKS

Starbucks:

Vivanno™ Nourishing Blends/Banana Chocolate Blend

Size: Grande, 2% milk

Calories: 270 (45 calories from fat)

Sugar: 28 grams

Fat: 6 grams

Mocha Frappuccino® Blended Coffee with whip cream

Size: Grande, 2% milk

Calories: 380 (130 calories from fat)

Sugar: 47 grams (almost 12 teaspoons)

Fat: 15 grams

Carmel Macchiato

Size: Grande, 2% milk

Calories: 240 (60 calories from fat)

Sugar: 31 grams of sugar (almost 8 teaspoons)

Fat: 7 grams

Café Latte

Size: Grande, 2% milk

Calories: 190 calories (60 calories from fat)

Sugar: 17 grams of sugar (4 teaspoons)

Fat: 7 grams

 

Caribou Coffee

Caribou Coffee Cooler with whip cream 

Size: Medium

Calories: 420

Sugar: 56 grams (14 teaspoons)

Fat: 17 grams

Strawberry Banana Smoothie with whip cream

Size: Medium

Calories: 450

Sugar: 80 (20 teaspoons)

Fat: 11 grams

Panera Bread

Hot Chocolate

Size: Medium

Calories: 390

Sugar: 42 grams

Fat: 17 grams

Mocha Largo

Size: Large

Calories: 670

Sugar: 79 grams

Fat: 28 grams

Jamba Juice

Peach Pleasure

Size: 24 ounces

Calories: 420

Sugar: 81 grams

Fat: 1.5 grams

Pomegranate Heart Happy

Size: 24 ounces

Calories: 450

Sugar: 95 grams

Fat: 1 gram

REGULAR BEVERAGES

Coffee:

Size: 8 ounces

Calories: 2

Sugar: 0

Fat: 0

Decaf:

Size: 8 ounces

Calories: 0

Sugar: 0

Fat: 0

Tea

Size: 8 ounces

Calories: 2

Sugar: 0

Fat: 0

Decaf Tea

Size: 8 ounces

Calories: 2

Sugar: 0

Fat: 0

Can of Cola

Size: 12 ounces

Calories: 136

Sugar: 33 grams

Fat: 0

Have you ever tried to jump-start a weight loss plan by trying a fad diet or following a strict calorie count and menu limitations, only to beat yourself up after the first time you "cheated?" Or maybe you committed to going to the gym every day, only to feel disgusted with yourself when you didn't make it seven days in a row?

As a society, where did we ever get this notion that if we don't follow a diet or exercise regimen to the "T", we've failed and there is something wrong with us? In our Biggest Loser culture if you don't win, you're really a big loser. Even celebrities perpetuate the loser mentality by sharing their humiliation with us when they fail. Oprah told us in the January issue of her magazine that she was "embarrassed" and "mad at herself" because she tipped the scales at 200 lbs. While Kirstie Alley - who lost 75 pounds on Jenny Craig only to gain it all back - declared herself "hideous" after viewing a recent tabloid picture. And if these two women - who have all of the resources in the world to get healthy - beat themselves up when they slip, would you expect anything less from the rest of us? Not exactly the role models you need for a healthy mindset when you're riding a weight loss roller coaster.

It's time to end the "all or nothing" mentality when it comes to eating healthy, losing weight or getting in shape. Drop the stringent rules, the strict diet meal plans and fitness routines that were created by someone else. Do they know your body or your lifestyle? You know the dogmas - eat this specific brand of this specific food at this second on Day 3, and do 500 crunches before you go to bed. If they are not working for you, drop them. Or tweak them to make them your own. And most importantly, drop the harsh attitude towards yourself. If you groan at the idea of having to lose weight or eat better, the first step is to change your attitude. It doesn't have to be hard.

Your health and wellness and how well you take care of yourself is a natural part of who you are, your actions and how you live your life. If you're not happy with how you feel right now and you know you need to improve, take heart...it doesn't have to be a dreaded chore. Healthy living is not about deprivation, starvation or killing yourself on a treadmill. It's about making small changes, one at a time, to improve your life and your health.

Yes, you can succeed and improve your health by starting small and incorporating one healthy habit at a time into your daily routine. Try these tips to slowly integrate health back into your lifestyle.

Take Action Challenge

1. Set a healthy intention. We tend to set goals such as, "I want to lose 10 pounds" or "I want to drop 2 sizes." If you set these types of goals and beat yourself up when you don't reach the number, try setting a healthier intention such as, "Every action I take today is a choice, and I'm going to chose at least one healthier option," or "I'm choosing to nourish myself with whole foods today."

2. Pick 3 healthy habits that you know you can easily incorporate into your day and that will boost your energy, your mood and your health. The key word is easy; set yourself up for success. Here are some suggestions for crowding out bad habits with good routines:

• Drink more water; choose a glass of water over soda or other sweetened drink during your next meal. The average can of cola has more than 10 teaspoons of sugar! Besides the sugar spike, it will also wreak havoc on your teeth.
• Opt for herbal tea or decaf instead of the morning cup of coffee.
• Enjoy 15 minutes of sunshine each day; get out of the office (or house) once during the workday.
• Take a walk instead of parking yourself in front of the television.
• Replace your junk food snack binges with fresh berries or a piece of fruit; strawberries are now in season in most regions!
• Include at least one vegetable in your lunch menu
• Try a green veggie in every dinner this week; experiment with spinach, kale, arugula, swiss chard or bok choy.
• Add a couple of servings of whole grains (barley, millet, oats, quinoa) into your meals.
• If you're a fan of white bread - opt for whole wheat, rye or whole grain the next time.
• Eating out too often? Adopt the rule of 3 - pick only 3 items from the menu, including beverages. (e.g., if you want a glass of wine and bread with your pasta dish, that's it - no appetizer, no dessert.)
• Have a bad habit of scarfing down your meals? Make an intention that you won't eat on the run or in the car. Sit down for each meal and if you can, set the table or at least a place setting. Take an attitude of gratitude and say a blessing or grace before you take a bite. Try chewing your food 25 times before swallowing. You'll slow down and ease the digestion process for your body. The more you chew the more you allow the digestive enzymes in your mouth to break down the food.

3. Repeat your 3 healthy habits every day for the next 30 days. If you skip one or two (or all three), don't stress over it. Smile and appreciate yourself for what you did accomplish during the day. You are a glorious healthy being! And try again tomorrow.

Repetition will help you turn healthy actions into a seamless part of your daily rhythm and routine. So next month, it'll become more natural for you and you can move on to adopting 3 new habits!