What do love and oxygen have in common?

Love fuels the soul they way oxygen fuels a fire.

Love is what lifts us.  Inspires us.  Ignites us.  Love commands growth (never demands). Change.  Compassion. Empathy and understanding.  Love is it.  It is what fuels our soul.  It's vital to the evolution of our soul.  For the illumination of our soul.  If you don't allow it in your life, your soul is oppressed the way a fire is put out once you remove oxygen from it.  Allowing yourself to feel love is a choice.  It is in everything!  We find it not only in our loved ones and friends but in our breath, in the bird singing outside your window.  Love is in the vibrant colors of your favorite flower.  That smile you get when you look at something you love or listen to your favorite song or drink your favorite cup of tea.  That is all feeling  the love.

So surround yourself with everything you love, mundane and grand.  From people you love to your favorite pair of pj's!  Just surround yourself with whatever makes you feel love and joy. That is what feeds your soul.  And after a while, when you're in a consistent place of feeling love, you begin to see things differently.  You respond from love, you inspire more love, you attract more love.  It's contagious! So go out and feel love!

XO  Joy

Respond to life. Don't react to it.

It's so important to live in 'the now'.  To be fully conscious of each moment.  To live in awareness.  That is the only place where peace comes from and the ability to handle any situation that comes your way.  When you are fully present, you can respond to things as opposed to reacting to them.  When you live from the place of ego or your mind, you react to situations.  You're on autopilot. Your thoughts, words, and actions become a reflex without thought of their consequence.  When you live from a place of awareness being fully present and now, you respond.  You don't react.  You have that gap of silence that allows you to witness what just occurred and then choose how you will respond to it...if you respond at all. Sometimes, not responding is the best response.  When you do this, conflicts can be diffused or avoided, relationships can be deepened, you're aware of your intentions, and you begin to flow with your life not against it. 

Try to live from the seat of your soul.  Be fully aware.  And respond to life.  Not react to it. When you do, life will support you the way the pond supports the vibrant green lily pad.

XO  Joy

The 12-hour eating window. I knew it before I knew I knew it! ;)

Find your window and stay in it

Clients of mine know I'm not a fan of counting calories.  Of course there are those occasions when it may be necessary (used as a teaching tool for estimations, acute need for weight loss, personal preference) but in general...I'm not a fan.  I don't believe it's necessary.  Our society makes things so much more complicated than they actually are and confuse us with mixed messages.  If you're eating healthfully and mindfully, counting calories is not a necessity in order to lose weight.  In addition to eating healthy, real food, and eating mindfully, I tell clients to watch portion sizes (see previous post on portion distortion) and eat in a 12-hour window.  I found for me the 12-hour window helped with not only digestion but weight maintenance and caloric restriction.  

Well, recently in my 'recreational reading' the other day, which is never truly recreational because I'm always thirsty for knowledge, I came across an article in my daily emails from The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (of which I am a member) that discussed this exact theory!  It was an article in the New York Times about a study that was published in 2012 on mice.  In this study, two groups of mice were given the same diet but one of group mice at whenever they wanted (varied hours) and the second group was restricted to a 12-hour window.  In short, the 12-hour window group of mice gained little weight and had no metabolic problems while the 'eat whenever' group became chubby and developed symptoms of diabetes. And this was while consuming the same type of diet.  They furthered the study by allowing the time restricted group to cheat on the weekends.  The results showed that those mice remained sleek and healthy even with cheating on the weekends!  The study also reflected that eating a time restricted diet can not only prevent but reverse obesity and obesity related symptoms.  That's amazing!  If you think about it the concept makes sense, which is why I've been eating this way for years.  Our bodies, and meal times, are directly effect by circadian rhythm. Simplicity and nature at its best.

This has taught me even more to listen to my intuition.  I have known for years that my body responds to an 'eating window' with optimal health.  It's so encouraging and exciting to now find studies that confirm this.

The message here....listen to your intuition....and find your 12-hour window and keep your meals in that.  Let your body rest, heal, and repair the other 12 hours.

XO  Joy

Power Snacking!!

This is one of my favorite go-to snacks! It feels like a treat because of the chocolate chips but it's also a superfood. The key is portion size. It's hard sometimes to stop at the proper amount so I usually make my portion size baggies ahead of time. That way when I'm hungry and in a hurry I just grab and go and am not tempted to over indulge. I do this with several variations of homemade trail mix BUT this is the one that can get me in the most trouble:)

I use 1/4 cup (~1oz) of walnuts and 1 1/2-2 Tablespoons of 70% dark chocolate chips. Divine!!

Remember when using chocolate it's 70% and higher that contain all the health benefits we read so much about. If you're not a fan of dark chocolate but want to be, try training your tastebuds. Start with your preferred intensity and start adding a higher percentage each time you eat chocolate. I've had a couple clients try this approach and although it may take a while, it works! And is SO worth it!

Here are the stats below for this delicious healthy snack and treat:

• 255 calories (that may seem high but the fiber and the several "good" kind of fats walnuts contain are the reason and very much worth it)
• 5g/protein
• 4g/fiber
• Iron
• B6
• Magnesium
• Calcium
• Potassium
• L-arginine (which has cardiovascular benefits)
• ALA (omega-3)
• Cancer fighting properties
• Antioxidant (in walnuts this type of antioxidant, polyphenols, helps lower cholesterol)
• Anti-inflammatory 

Honestly, I could go on with the health benefits of eating walnuts and dark chocolate but I think this is a powerful persuasive start! So the next time you're grocery shopping pick up some walnuts and dark chocolate chips and create your go-to power snack. Set yourself up for success!!

XO  Joy

Green Goddess Breakfast Shake

                                 

                     My Green Goddess Shake!

Last year I started replacing my breakfast with shakes.  I love it because I can get in 5-7 servings of fruits/veggies in this one glass of goodness! Plus, I've noticed a difference in my skin and on the scale.  I am a huge fan of shakes!  I use the Nutribullet.  I've had mine for a year using it daily and the blades are still super sharp.

When a client wants to lose weight, one of the first things I suggest is replacing their breakfast with a veggie/fruit packed shake.  The variations are endless but the results are the same; dramatic increase in vegetable and fruit consumption, increase in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory intake, increase in fiber intake (which leads to longer satiety), and generally weight loss (when in conjunction with other life-style changes)-just to name a few.

Here's what I put in my Green Goddess Shake:
1/4 of an avocado
1/2 C Kale
1 Pear
1 Green Apple
1/2 Banana
1 t. Ginger
1 C Almond milk
(amounts are estimates and can vary depending on personal preference)

Do you have a delicious shake recipe?  Post it here or email me and I'll share it on my blog!

XO  Joy