Statement: "I Am On A Mission!"

The road I am on is becoming populated with beautiful faces, challenging questions, informative rest stops and love.  I have reached my first of four tests in school this week with enthusiasm.  I have also scheduled 5 Health History consultations over the next seven days.  Only 30 weeks until my certificate naming me a 'Health Coach' arrives in the mail; there is much to accomplish and learn and practice before that end.

First thing on the list: Keep Going!  Every gaol I set has speed bumps that slow me down and make me rethink the route.  There are questions I have overlooked, complications I couldn't have predicted, set backs, I even get discouraged.  My blog doesn't generate comments, my Facebook page isn't attracting much participation, my technological savvy isn't getting much savvier, and I am afraid, at times, to solicit clients.  There is nothing to do but to keep going;  I will never get beyond where I am if I stop~

Next things next: Clarify my goals.  As a Health Coach my objective is to actively hold my clients accountable to their goals regarding health.  My platform is food, but good health is not achievable through food alone.  I will encourage my clients to explore all facets of health through healthy shopping (guidance and financial applications), healthy cooking (education and confidence applications) and healthy eating (self awareness and body image applications).  Each area has social, emotional and spiritual aspects to consider just as each individual manifests a different relationship with food.

Another lead to follow: Listen to my Intuition!  I love helping people find a happier, healthier, more confident version of themselves by listening and offering advice.  Every question that I am asked to answer fuels my passion!  "What should I eat?"  "What do you eat?"  "How can I stop feeling sick?"  "What foods will help keep my cholesterol down?"  "What is all the hype about gluten free?"  "From a nutritional standpoint, how do you feel about a cleanse?"  "How do I feel less tired?" "Can I clear acne with food?"  "GMO?"  "Arsenic?"  "Why am I fat?"   Every question and concern is fascinating!  I need to listen to my intuition and keep answering these questions for the sake of those asking and for my own.

I believe health is not weight, diet is not a fad and you are what you eat.  I believe we should all eat real food, we should all drink plenty of water, we should all make sure we give our vitamins their vitamins, and, to be considerate, we should all remember to wash our hands.  Health may actually be just that simple!

Anna~

I Welcome It!

Today is my birthday.  Thirty-Six.  I want to complain and whine and roll my eyes at my progression toward 40 but I can't really find all that much to complain about.  The hills I have had to climb have given me strong legs to stand on; the tears I have shed have washed in fortitude; the the lines on my face give me more character; the mistakes I've endured have provided knowledge; the abundance of happiness, joy, love and prosperity has kept me warm and looking forward to many more accumulating birthdays.  Thirty-Six years seems only the beginning!

Fun facts that have become me over the last third of a century~  I have not have a traffic ticket in nearly 14 years.  In June, 2000, I was driving up to Myrtle Beach to pick up my sister so she could officially meet Kylee, my niece, her grand-daughter, in SC.  While driving with the flow of traffic I was singled out as a speeder; a tactic used, I am sure, to slow down the flow of traffic.  I contested the charge to an officer who then graciously rewarded me with a reckless driving charge instead, thank you very much.

-I am also suffer from stage fright. That may not seem important because I am not an American Idol star or on any other stage, but I do have a wish on my bucket list to sing the National Anthem before a professional stadium event.  When I give a speech, deliver thanks, talk in front of a crowd or enter an event fashionably late, my palms sweat, my heart races, my face turns bright red, and I nearly come to tears.  I do not, however, mind volunteering others to take center stage~  my husband and children and many friends can attest to that...

-I eat at McDonald's from time to time.
-I dislike cold beverages 83% of the time (and making up random numbers and percentages for effect).
-Rather drinking apple cider vinegar to wearing deodorant.
-Socks, red wine and coffee are a few of my favorite things.
-My least favorite place is the post office.
-I wish I had a garden.
-My straightforwardness is most commonly labeled as rudeness, which I regret.
-I have a very confusing sense of humor, one even my family can't quite get.
-I have called 6, soon to be 7, states home.
-Love to Ski downhill but hate the cold.
-I prefer board games to video versions.
-Afraid of swimming in the ocean, though I am scuba certified (does that expire?).
-Prefer eating in to eating out.

Mostly though, I try and eat real food with really wonderful people as often as I can, drink herbal tea and hot water to stay hydrated, am interested in vitamins and how they need their vitamins, and practice washing my hands daily of all the things I haven't done yet or done well.  Today I have the chance to make nourishing decisions that will leave me satisfied and well fed...  and I welcome it, even after 13,146 days...

Anna~

InFlammation!

Exercise: activity requiring physical effort, carried out esp. to sustain or improve health and fitness. Seems simple, right? Jump on a bike, assume the plank position, crawl across the pool, turn some cartwheels, don the running shoes, handle the bars, or take your dog for a walk. It's all fun and games until sore muscles kick in. Is the soreness worth the serenity? You bet, but it is important to know why your muscles get sore and how to lesson the pain in order to get back on the horse or treadmill or yoga ball.

Let's start with muscle movement: adduction and abduction;  flexion and extension; rotation and circumduction.  The human skeleton is strapped with muscles in a way that allows a range of motion limited only by muscle and tendon length, strength and vulnerability.  All muscles are connected, although groups of muscles can be isolated during exercise.  When one group of muscles is worked and others neglected, a size imbalance occurs and vulnerabilities in the system develop.  Equally true, when one action, say adduction, is exercised more often than abduction, muscle and tendon lengths will vary and vulnerabilities will occur.  

When muscles are taxed, they tear or break down.  The body then creates more muscle tissue from amino acids and other nutrients within the body and fills the gaps to lengthen the muscle or build the muscle for strength.  During exercise oxygen in the body decreases and muscles are then used to boost energy by an anaerobic process during which muscle cells produce lactate.   The acidity within the muscle cells then increases. The long and short of it is when you exercise you over use muscle tissue and the process causes pain, both immediate pain that alerts the body stop and recover, an delayed pain referred to as DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness).   

Inflammation is the root of the problem but can be treated in a number of ways.  Water.  Plant based foods (skip animal based foods for they cause inflammation within the body as well).  Sleep.  Message.  Cold compress.  Patience.  Education.  A series of soothing stretches that cover all muscle movements might be the best medicine for a sore muscle structure.  All of these treatments are great after work-out remedies.  Eating fueling, reparative foods before your workout is also good practice.  (Men, this is a better source of information for you.)  A cup of black coffee, a bowl of real oatmeal with bananas, a glass of water and an orange are great an hour before any work out no matter what gender you are!

Eat real food, drink plenty of water, give your vitamins their vitamins and remember to wash your hands.  Then Go get your Work-Out On!

Anna~

Need a source for anti-inflammatory foods?  Check this out!  

I Wonder What the Cat will Say?

Nameless Black Puppy Boy
Dec- 2013 - 3 Weeks Old
Mama Yellow Lab in the background.

So, we are getting a puppy.  Hazel, our yellow lab, is 11.5 years young so we decided it is time to add a new member to the family.  The nameless little black puppy boy comes home tomorrow with papers, a pedigree, and a dirty little face.  Meet nameless black puppy boy~

The house is ready.  We have a large dog kennel propped up in the corner partitioned off to puppy size.  Chew toys, puppy shampoo, treats, collar and leash all rest in a basket awaiting their owner.  We have had 6 weeks to get ready for him but we still can't decide on a name.  Four of us agree on a couple of different names, but there is always one lone wolf in the pack thwarting our naming efforts with Veto power (I swear his name will end up being Veto).

This doesn't have a lick to do with food, I know.  We are not going to eat the puppy, nor are we going to let him join us at the table, but health is a multifaceted application.  Joy. Love. Affection. Kindness. Consideration.  Exercise. Boundaries. A spouse, child, friend, relative, neighbor, or a dog can bring all of these essential ingredients to the table.

Jan, 2014 - 5.5 weeks old

I am not suggesting you run out and get a dog, but if you are thinking about adding a member to your family there are several avenues to consider.  Save a Lab, ASPCA, your local animal adoption league, shelter, or reputable breeder.  During our search we were even introduced to a breed we'd never heard of before called the Pudelpointer; our friends actually breed them come to find out (Lone Pine Pudelpointers, in AL).  We have also spent a lot of time spying on my sisters kennel (Rockhaven English Springer Spaniels) in Wisconsin via Facebook.  Puppy planning is a labor of love;  one rewarded in puppy breath and unconditional companionship.

Monday I will get back to real, naturally occurring food, I will discuss the importance of water, I may even present a vitamin or two.  Until then I will be playing on the floor with puppies, laughing at our children as they witness silly milestones, teaching manors and cleaning up accidents.  Don't worry, I will certainly remember to wash my hands...
Have a Great Weekend!


Anna~

Throw Back Thursday: Are Labels Healthy?

From April 9th, 2013, which was actually a Tuesday, but I like the message so much it is worth tagging in a Thursday Throwback~

Let's be realistic.  There is no need to sugar coat or complicate the fact that we all apply labels to the people around us and to ourselves.  They are automatic.  She is beautiful.  He is Successful.  She is a Failure.  He is a Con Artist.  I am Angry.  You are Perfect.  My sister is a Health-nut!  All of theses thoughts and words go through our heads and out of our mouths daily.  We are Labelers!

Labels are one of three things: harmful, helpful, or indifferent.  If you keep your labels to yourself they probably fall into the indifferent category, but you may be placing these labels in order to empower or disempower yourself; harmful.  "I am thinner than her, so I'm okay."  "She is much more successful than I, so I must be a failure!"  We label to quantify and categorize objects (in this case, people) in order to rhetorically place ourselves between them on an imaginary, ever changing totem pole of assumption.

Helpful labels encourage others while they encourage ourselves.  If you are placing labels on others to make them feel better while making yourself feel worse, stop.  Compliments and positive observations are important.  So is constructive criticism.  Give others a boost.  Pay others compliments.  Be observant of an other's abilities and empower them to expose their talents to the world.  But, while you lift others up, do not compare your own abilities and talents to theirs.  If an other possesses a talent or ability it is worthy of recognition.  Period.

Harmful labels are completely unnecessary.  Assigning a detrimental label to another  in order to control or contain an other's success or happiness is just plain mean.  Placing limiting labels on yourself that contain or inhibit your own happiness interrupts growth!  Don't do that!  We all, at one time or another, succeed.  We all fail.  We all lie, we con, we help, we dream, we yell, we soar.  Does that mean I am a Liar?  No.  A Failure? No.  A Dreamer?  I don't think that applies either.

Remember, the labels we apply to others and to ourselves allow a behavior to be acceptable.  If you have labeled yourself as Shy you have given yourself permission to be Shy.  Don't like the label?  Undo it by choosing to be more out-going when the opportunity presents itself.   Wondering how your label reads?  Introduce yourself to someone new...  and listen to the words that come out of your mouth.  You will be face to face with the labels you wear and you can then decide if they fit or if they don't.

You know what to do...  and remember to wash your hands.

Anna~

The Lunch Bunch~

Lunch; the Western idea of a mid-day meal.  While lunch should be the largest, most substantial meal of the day, lunch is typically glanced over, purchased at fast food restaurants and taken from vending machines.  Lunch should be more than take-out and frozen cuisine for it has to replace energy and nutrients used during active morning hours, and has to provide fuel and nutrients needed for a productive, positive afternoon.  Is lunch the most important meal of the day?  Just incase the answer is yes, let's bring this lunch bunch to the table to ensure good nutrition.

Let's start with rice.  Brown rice; a whole grain providing fiber, manganese, tryptophan, B vitamins, magnesium, selenium and it's versatile.  One cup of brown rice in your lunch box works well with berries and dried fruit, plant and animal protein, roast root vegetables, sprouts, shrooms, condiments, or all by itself.  On Sunday afternoon prepare eight or 10 cups of brown rice; warm gently on the stove top to reheat.  Before you run to work, grab a mason jar (a thermos works well, too), fill with warm rice and preferred accompaniments, wrap in a towel for insulation and lunch is served.

Next, real fruit salad.  On Sunday, while your rice is cooking, call the family to the table to cut up apples, a cantaloupe and a pineapple.  Add a bunch of grapes, raspberries or blackberries, and blueberries to the bowl.  Peel and separate three tangerines to finish.  Vitamins, phytonutrients, antioxidants, water, enzymes, fiber, and healthy sugars are all present and accounted for.  Fruit salad is an essential lunch staple; select as a side, use as a main dish over cottage cheese on a hot day, blend into a protein smoothie for 'no time for lunch' days, or simply nibble on it at your desk (wherever that may be).

Now, add a bowl of vegetable things!  Spinach, carrots, celery, lil' tomatoes, broccoli, red onion, any cabbage, asparagus, cauliflower, peas, peppers, cucumbers, herbs and garlic play nicely in a large bowl in your refrigerator.  When the fruit salad is finished, take seven more minutes to get these guys together.  Salads mean very little waste, very good, whole food nutrition, and, again, they are versatile.  Even better, line a 13x9 (or larger) tray with your cuts of choice and use them for soups, green smoothies, even dinner prep throughout the week.  It'll start like this:

Because health is as individual as its beholder, coming up with universal nutrition suggestions is no easy task.  I do hours of reading and research and always arrive back at my simple yet holistic motto:  Eat real food, drink plenty of clean water, give your vitamins their vitamins, and, as always, remember to wash your hands.  This lunch bunch satisfies the body's need for whole foods and vitamins, all you have to do is add water and wash...  health may actually be just that simple!

Anna~

A Juice, a Smoothy and a Soup!

Friday is a fantastic day for Girl's Night Out, Saturday is great for  'guys night in', Sunday is football and beer and wings and chips and salt and salt, where's the gol'darn salt? By Sunday night you're bloated, full, tired, constipated ... and left hungry to boot~  Here are three recipes to help get you through your weekend without assaulting your body.  

Juice.  I don't mean 'apple' and 'orange', I mean gather a colorful blend of fruits and veggies and juice them.  If you don't have a juicer, don't worry;  plop the blender on the counter, add the ingredients, blend with clean water (non-chlorinated, chemical-ized) and strain the concoction through a cheese cloth or fine strainer.  Try an Apple Crisp for breakfast:

Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

Apples - 5 medium (3" dia) 910g
Celery - 2 stalk, large (11"-12" long) 128g
Oranges (peeled) - 2 fruit (2-5/8" dia) 262g

Directions:

Process all ingredients in a juicer, shake or stir and serve.  

From  http://juicerecipes.com/recipes/apple-crisp-84

Smoothies are instant sources of nutrients, energy and nourishment.  Saturday morning is a great time to reboot your system, add some hydration, replace lost nutrients and balance your electrolytes.  Try this recipe on for size:

Green Smoothie Monster 

Victoria Boutenko 

4 leaves kale, stems removed 

4 leaves chard, stems removed 

½ bunch fresh parsley 

1 leaf aloe vera 

½ bunch dandelion greens 

3 pears 

1 banana 

3 cups water 

Yields 2 quarts - 

See more at: 

http://www.rawfamily.com/recipes#sthash.WgxvytkH.dpuf

By Sunday night your body has had enough; enough salt, enough meat, enough fat, enough sugar, enough calories.  To satisfy leftover hunger, enjoy a nice, quiet bowl of nourishing soup.  It's hydrating, healing, balancing and delicious.

Spicy Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1-3 teaspoons hot paprika, or to taste
2 14-ounce cans vegetable broth
4 medium plum tomatoes, diced
1 medium yellow summer squash, diced
2 cups diced cooked potatoes, (see Ingredient note)
1 1/2 cups green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 cups frozen spinach, (5 ounces)
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, or red-wine vinegar
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil, or prepared pesto

Preparation:

Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add paprika and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add broth, tomatoes, squash, potatoes and beans; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender, about 12 minutes. Stir in spinach and vinegar; continue cooking until heated through, 2 to 4 minutes more. Ladle soup into bowls and top with fresh basil or a dollop of pesto.

All of these are made with real, naturally occurring foods.  Wash them in with water, give your vitamins their vitamins, and remember to wash your hands.  Monday morning will not feel so thick after a juice, a smoothy and a nice, spicy bowl of soup~  Have a Great Weekend!

Anna~

Your favorite weekend recipes are welcome!

Throw Back: Thursday; Not quite in the Present!

Every day is a gift.  We all get to wake up and change something we dislike or adopt behaviors we admire.  We can do things exactly the same in order to perfect a craft or we can erase, start over, and reflect.  Each day starts anew~  except when it comes to what we ate!

The human body is functioning today on things we put into it yesterday.  Some things are utilized immediately, like water and juice, and some things, like meat, take six to 12 hours to digest.   Processed foods typically linger the longest in the intestinal tract due to the disguise of artificial ingredients, fillers, binders and additives.  That is precisely why some diets suggest an initial cleanse, three days of fasting, an enema or a liquid start.  Your body is kind of like Thursday; not quite mid-week, not quite the weekend, not quite in the present!

How do we make our bodies function in the moment?  Water, soups, juices, or smoothies made with fruits, veggies, and herbs and spices.  Think of it like this; if you can drink it, your body can absorb it!  Everything else has to be digested or broken down into a liquid and then absorbed.  The more solids we ingest, the more water we must drink in order to properly liquify the nutrients to promote absorption.  It may seem impractical to drink our diet, but it is possible to add more liquid to our food~

This morning, after perusing my weekly meal planning page, I blended up some oatmeal, protein mix, skim milk, strawberries, blueberries and some ice.  It was a thick breakfast, a texture I am not used to. My normal shake of choice is dark cocoa powder, protein mix, skim milk, ice, and natural peanut butter; a little thinner and more decadent than oatmeal and strawberries.  Both are delicious, both full of vitamins and minerals, both with fat and fuel, both ready for absorption; maybe I will just skip the oatmeal the next time I whip up a smoothie.  Adding one or two liquid breakfasts a week can help the body finish digesting yesterday's steak and become present - not a bad idea~

So, eat real food, drink lots of water, and give your vitamins their vitamins~  Try a few new liquid recipes!  Have some soup!  Make a smoothie!  Leave the things that come in a box...  instead enjoy things that come out of a garden~  And, as always, remember to wash your hands.

Anna~

Comments and Recipes, Favorites and Questions are Welcome~

From In Five Paragraphs or Less, by Anna Burrill, on 3-10-2013

Magical or Just Plain Science?

Have you noticed the news lately?  There has been much talk about why certain foods are good for the body and if certain foods are good for the soul.  Broccoli, spinach, Kale, avocado and acai berries as super foods; cheese, wine, sugar and chocolate as soul foods.  Root vegetables are promoted for warmth, tropical fruits to keep cool, healthy fats, toxic chemicals and everything in-between.  Let's try and make sense of all that the media suggests.

We are animals.  Long ago, humans relied on their instincts, their local food sources, their hunter/gatherer abilities and the season for food.  Food wasn't something picked over and perused at the super market.  You may think I am looking back behind the annals, but it wasn't that long ago when every house had a varietal garden where dinner was found and by which winters were stocked.  It was common to have a cow, or a neighbor with a cow, and chickens for eggs and meat.  Meat was consumed at a rate of a half a pound per week, and fruits and veg were grown with cow manure and compost as fertilizer.

The length and heat of the growing season dictated what was grown and consumed.   Minnesota's diet differed from California's, from Florida's, from Maine's, from Oklahoma's, from Peru's.  Then cities came to be, farmers came into demand, intrastate shipping became common place and now it's a global market.  Instead of waiting for a chicken to mature at its normal rate of growth, growth hormones are utilized to support demand.  Varietal gardens are no longer necessary, for now separate regions are supplying separate things; Wisconsin farmers provide cheese to the nation; Florida, oranges; California, avocados; Maine, blueberries; Idaho, potatoes; Georgia, peaches; Texas, beef; etc.

Today, with broccoli and acai berries on the news, it sounds like science is delving into foods with magical medicinal properties that can't possibly be true.  Let me tell you, dear reader, science is taking foods we ate organically 80 years ago and foods found on the global market today and explaining what we now know about their nutritional benefits in a scientific way.  That is it.  Science is taking apart our food, as our body takes apart our food, identifying vitamins, nutrients, minerals, elements and how long it takes the body to burn its energy (caloric value) then describing them to us in a fresh new way backed by science.

I am not sure if it matters much if we know the scientific breakdown of food stuffs.  My grandmother ate food right from the garden, before science named broccoli a superfood.  It is because of her my mom has a nourishing garden in her back yard full of asparagus, rhubarb, strawberries, tomatoes, peppers, onions and a dozen green vegetables in-between.  She is keen to what grows well in her area and consciously tweaks her methods to get the best produce she can.  Real, naturally occurring food, and I bet if you ask her what they offer nutritionally she would say, "I'm not sure, but they sure do taste good!"  That's all the description I need~

Anna~

Did I Ever tell you How "I5PoL" got its Name?

I have been blogging for about 6 years.  My first blog was called 'The Burrillo Pad'.  It was a beautiful spot where I shared military deployment milestones, family pictures, anecdotes for the life of a housewife, and my own journey as a military spouse. Some mornings, as the children would race around the house chasing the cat or running from the dog, I would type my thoughts and aspirations.  And, some evenings, as the children would pop out of their beds to my voice telling them to get back to sleep, I would reveal my mistakes as a mother so my husband, serving in Iraq, could better understand life as we knew it.  I closed 'The Burrillo Pad' when Scott came home and have regretted it every day.

I continued blogging with 'Starting in the Middle'.  I view the world, and all things in it, in terms of the now.  Now implies that something came before and some things are yet to come; even in the grand scheme of things, there was only one beginning.  I am mid-thirties, somewhere in the middle of wife, mother and self, in love with the middle of my life, the middle of my marriage, and the middle of my education.  I love the middle of a wine bottle, the weather in mid-August, the pages that come before the conclusion of a novel, and sleeping in the middle of the bed.  I declare new beginnings quite often, but those beginnings start in the middle of my journey, no matter how declarative I get.  'Starting in the Middle' is still open, but I haven't posted there in a while-  I must be the middle of a long pause.

Then I discovered that my passion, my purpose, is in food.  Nutrition.  Wellness.  Phronesis.  Eudaimonia.  I started devouring blogs, articles and opinions about nutrition. I watched numerous documentaries about food, the facets of health, the global impact of farming and bees.  After a time I found myself scanning the headers and skipping to the end of information;  simply put, I became impatient in the middle.  I thought to myself, "It would be great if all of this information was more concise, like an essay," and 'In Five Paragraphs or Less' was born.  A position, three supporting details with supporting details, and a conclusion consolidating wide ideas about nutrition.

You are what you eat; let food be thy medicine; the body is designed to heal itself; calories do not measure health; diet is not a fad; nutrition is individual but common threads are present.  The human body cannot make what it cannot make so we have to add nutrition to the body, as though assembling a recipe for the perfect cake, the best lasagna, or the ultimate sundae.  Doses of happiness, satisfaction, motivation, love, joy, education and passion are nutrition for the soul, just as a celebration calls for cake, the family table calls for  lasagna, and a hot romantic evening calls for a sundae.  That is what I5PoL is made of.

Lastly, I figured, if you are like me, you might become impatient in the middle and skip to the end so my conclusion, too, needed to be fortified with wholesome, nutritious advice.  Something like 'eat real food, drink plenty of water, give your vitamins their vitamins and remember to wash your hands'.  I know I can't tell you what will make you healthy or what will make you well, but I can highlight and a thousand ingredients you might use to achieve health and wellness...
one ingredient at a time ...
in five paragraphs or less...
and conclude with cleanliness...

...and that is how I5PoL got it's name.

Anna~

Weight-loss Resolutions

Resolutions often come in the form of a personal wish to lose weight.  Many television programs are on the waves this season highlighting the Biggest Loser and Extreme Makeovers (weight-loss edition) while the news is broken apart with calorie counting tips, food swaps, and manufacturer promoted 'healthy choice' meal options.  Health is not weight and nutrition is not measured in calories; that being said, here are some tips for fulfilling the weigh-loss resolutions.

Your body has a basal caloric need to complete functions like breathing, thinking, growing, excretion, circulating fluids, digestion, temperature maintenance, blinking; anything your body does automatically.  Those caloric needs are easily calculated.  For women, take your weight times 10 (men, weight times 11), whatever the number is is roughly how many calories your body will use to complete basal metabolic function.  You can choose how many of these calories come from food and how many calories you use from storage, or adipose, tissue (body fat).  

Choosing calories is not the same as choosing nutrition.  When you eat mainly animal protein, animal calcium and animal fat, you are ingesting much in terms of calories and very little in terms of nutrition.  If your basal caloric need is in the ballpark of 1600 calories (160 lbs), you can easily dent this calorie count with one steak, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich and a chicken caesar salad with a glass of milk [4 oz. steak (320 calories), 1 T of butter (102), 1 oz of cheddar cheese (110), 2 large eggs (148), 1 T of mayo (57)] [4 oz chicken breast (120), 8 oz of 2% milk (122), 2 T caesar salad dressing (120)]; two meals totaling nearly 1100 calories loaded with salt, saturated fat calories and cholesterol.  -That does not include the bread, croutons, parmesan cheese, romaine, and other condiments-

So how do you choose better calories?  Three simple rules may help.  First: if you select animal food sources, the calories you consume will be high in fat and calories, low in nutrients - if you choose plant based foods the caloric value is typically low and nutrient value is high.  Second: fats that are liquid at room temperature are good fats, fats that are solid at room temp are less healthy.  Third:  when choosing foods that limit calorie consumption, choose foods with color - colorful foods are nutrient dense compared to their white, starchy counterparts.  May these three simple rules boost your energy and lower your calorie intake. 

If your wish is to loose weight this season, may I suggest you start with real, whole, naturally occurring foods.  Wash them in with water.  Give your vitamins their vitamins - B vitamins especially are a good addition to your day.  And, as you forgive your own mistakes and embark on new goals, remember to wash your hands of negativity.  Every step forward is a success!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, dear reader.  I have taken a great long vacation from writing, from researching, from giving, and have enjoyed observing, enjoying and receiving.  Thank you for all of your visits, your insights and your inspiration in 2013; 2014 will be better because of it.  

The New Year's Resolution is a typical way to launch into the new year.  New goals and resolutions provide energy to normalcy; motivation to common action; inspiration to routine.  Some resolutions come in lofty packages wrapped in running shoes and mile markers while others are marked in inches and pounds.  I love the word resolution: 1. the act or an instance of resolving  2. the condition or quality of being resolute; firmness or determination  3. something resolved or determined; decision.  Whatever your resolution, use it to propel yourself into 2014 with a renewed sense of joy, positivity and determination.

As I stated above, I spent some time in observation this last month.  Excuses fall on both sides of diet choice, exercise commitment, wardrobe selection, happiness, work ethic, participation and enjoyment.  Scapegoats are often assigned to feelings and culprits to actions.  As I watched, I reflected on my own participation in this unnecessary cycle of blame and absolution.  This year, instead of deflecting responsibility for my own choices, I will take full authority of my actions.  I wish to be present, without regret, and without casting nets of condemnation.  To be happy.

I have also witnessed much, much, much negativity, both in my immediate surroundings and in the far corners of where only ears can reach.  Negativity is poisonous; it turns good company into arguing enemies and joyous conversation into spiteful competition.  Happiness and appreciative consideration can quickly dissolve poisonous positions and soften negativity.  Happiness, joy, also releases dopamine on the brain which has a lasting 'goodness' effect; a feeling that is addictive and sought after the more often you feel it.  Again, a choice is involved.

While you settle into the New Year, enjoy some real, delicious, naturally occurring food.  Wash it in with water so the nutrients can be absorbed and distributed effectively.  Give your vitamins their vitamins to fortify your blood.  And, as always, remember to wash your hands of negativity and be in appreciation of all that you come in contact with.  Within it all is a resolution!

Anna~