How YOU can live longer NOW!

I don’t have all the answers, but I do have a few suggestions. Last week I had the honour of being a participant in the bi-annual Longevity Now conference hosted by David “Avocado” Wolfe. It is a power packed weekend filled with information to benefit all. I am being asked by my friends and students, left right and center, “what did you learn, how was it, tell me more?” Well now is my chance to share. But first, what I do have to say is that I got out of it exactly what I needed at this time in my life. Since there is so much information presented in such a short span of time, I really had to select what I wanted to get out of it – and I did just that!

There was everything from the new latest supplements to how to sleep in a way that will heal our bodies out of pain. So it’s diverse and very well rounded. I am not going to take you through the entire weekend, but I am going to focus on some helpful tips that you can use NOW to help you on your journey to live a long healthy life. It’s not about living to 120 years of age, it’s about the quality of your life every day from today forward…but if you can live 120 yeas while thriving (not surviving) – all the better!

So here is a list of what I learned, embraced and now want to share with you!

Get Grounded: Connect with mother earth – get outside and go barefoot in the grass. Trust me it feels amazing! On a whole, we have lost this connection with the growth of the shoe industry, cemented homes and high-rise industrial buildings. When our feet don’t make direct contact with the ground, we miss out on true vitality. I encourage you to give it a try. Good thing spring is around the corner. Kids love to be barefoot – so follow their footsteps literally and don’t compromise your health and innate strength.

However since we can’t go barefoot all the time, all year round and even walking barefoot in our homes doesn’t really count, there are amazing devices that help us to re-gain that connection. They grounding products by Earthing! I have just recently become a consumer of their products and it’s just been over a week and  I have already noticed tremendous differences in my energy levels, sleep patterns and overall well being. I have a grounding pad (which my feet are on right now) a mouse pad (which my hand is on right now) and a sheet on my bed – along with some other goodies. Please have a look at the Grounded website for more info and to find out what I am talking about! But if you want to purchase your own devices click here and look under household products!

Nourish with food, superfoods and herbs: Well this should be no surprise! Considering you are on the Fully Nourished website! This is what I am all about! So there was lots of information on food and nutrition, although I consider myself well versed in the area already, there is always more to learn. There are really 3 levels when it comes to food. The first being to make sure you are drinking enough filtered, pure or spring water, then get your essentials in the form of healthy fats, protein and carbohydrates while choosing mainly raw plant based sources for fuel. Get my book if you want more ideas on how to Veg Comfortably .  Then there is the next level – Superfoods – these are the foods that are loaded full of nutrients, vitamins, minerals and other essential nutrients that are vital to long lasting health. This can be in the form of cacao, goji berries, hemp, maca, leafy greens, chlorella, blueberries, brazil nuts, sea vegetables. They are all amazing and should be included in some way, shape or form into your everyday diet! The last level is the herbals . Whether it’s in the form of a tea, a capsule or elixir, herbs are necessary for taking your health  to the next level. Some herbs to think about, research and possibly include are the mushrooms : (chaga, reishi, mitaki, shiataki) shatavari, astragalus, ashwaganda, nettles, tulsi – let’s just start with that! Again this happens to be the start of spring – a good time for herbs – so find out what works for you and your body and go from there!

Cook in clean cookware: This is an extremely important area. Most people don’t think twice about their cookware. They just assume that as long as they have good ingredients, then all is good. Not true. The second you put your gorgeous vibrant organic kale in toxic (I mean tephlon) cookware – then you have not only killed your kale, but you have infused it with toxins and vapours that I won’t even get into in this post. Just cause things don’t stick, doesn’t mean it’s good for you. So investing in quality cookware that is surgical grade Stainless Steel and Titanium is the best choice. This cookware (the cookware I use in my classes) will also not “cook” your food the way that you think it needs to be cooked. Water doesn’t have to boil and oil doesn’t have to splatter to ensure that the heat is high enough, in fact at that point you are again – destroying the nutrients and contents of your food. If you want to learn more about the cookware I use in my class and ask all your questions please click here!

Sleep with-OUT a pillow: Yes you heard right…no pillow! Our pillows have become a drug (according to David Wolfe) we are so dependent on them. We love curling up to them at night, but then complain of neck aches in the morning? So why bother! I have been sleeping with my face on my mattress directly for years…but that still isn’t as good as sleeping on your side with your arm/shoulder held out under your head (if you can picture that). But the distance between your neck space and the mattress should be perfectly filled in by your arm. This is ideal for proper neck and spinal alignment. Just like with anything it will take time to adjust, but once you do this – on your grounded sheet (see home products)- you will start to notice just how well you are sleeping and waking up pain free!

Jump up and down: Sounds like fun doesn’t it! Well you can do it outside and barefoot of course…but what I am talking about here is rebounding! Getting yourself a equipped with a solid rebounder for health and of course longevity. When you rebound you are able to exercise your whole body, even your cells! Everything is targeted, working and strengthening. When we challenge our body against gravity we are also able to stimulate the lymphatic system without any trauma to our skeletal system. Most re-bounders are small enough to have in a room or the basement of your house, some even fold up so that you can travel with them anywhere you go!

Breath in and out: This is probably the most important thing you can do everyday, multiple times a day. and something you may always hear about, but still aren’t doing correctly. Yes we all breath every day, but very few of us actually take in a breath. You will know when you do, because you will feel it. Drawing air in through your nose for a deep inhalation, expanding your belly fully and exhaling your breath out (for longer than your inhale) through your mouth. Sounds simple enough, but you will notice that most of your breaths are through your chest – lifting it up and not fully taking in the air. So try it the right way, through your belly. It will calm you down, bring down your stress response, relax your body and your mind. Something we all need to live a more complete and wholesome life!

Laugh, smile and love a lot – Again this sounds so simple, but most of us can go through each day without laughing, smiling or telling someone that you love them.  As a society, we are too serious. Too caught up with the mundane and don’t take time to enjoy what really matters. It is kind of sad when you look at that way. But think about how good you feel when someone breaks out in laughter, smiles at you or tells you that they love you. You get warm and tingly and can’t help but feel great all over! So why don’t we do this more often? We can eat all the best food in the world,  take all the best supplements, herbs but nothing will have as much an effect as this. This is something I am learning and becoming more aware of myself and the results are profound.

 

So these are just some of my recommendations to get started on a path were you can start LIVING longer today!

Want more guidance?

Join my Delicious Living Retreat in beautiful Bancroft Ontario at Grail Springs!

AND/OR

Join my Raw Rejuvenation Retreat in beautiful Collingwood Ontario in June!

AND/OR

Get my one or both of my Health-E-Books that are jam-packed full of resources and information for better nutrition!

All in one Super Bowl!

Super Bowl Sunday is coming up fast. Although I don’t participate in any part of this event – I can offer some assistance as to how this night can be made that much healthier. We know this is the biggest day for business for fast foods, delivered foods and processed over sugared and over salted snacks. But wouldn’t it just be easier to make your own, to serve and have something healthy to munch on? If your man will be in another room watching the game, take it upon yourself to supply your home or his party with some healthy all in one bowl snacks!

Here are some suggestions:

Make a Trail Mix – (recipe below)

Kale Chips – make at least 4 batches or more. They will win over any “sour cream n’ onion” chip lover, anyday!

Guacamole – with some homemade corn tortilla’s

White Bean Dip – with some crispy crackers

Salsa – with corn chips

Coco Bliss Balls – because they look and taste better than Timbits! I promise

Super Bowl of Trail Mix

1 cup almonds – heart healthy

1 cup cashews – makes you happy, who doesn’t love a cashew

1 cup pumpkin seeds (loaded with zinc – great for prostate health) may as well take advantage while a whole bunch of men will be eating them!!

1 cup raisins or Goji Berries (or both) – some natural sweetness, fiber and antioxidants

1/2 cup hemp seeds – omega rich healthy fats

1 cup cacao nibs or dark chocolate chips – it’s not complete without some chocolate

1 cup coconut flakes – added texture, flavour and crunch

1/4 tsp sea salt – (optional) to balance out the flavours

Toss all ingredients together in a large bowl and serve. Refill when done!

Got other ideas?

What are you planning on having at your party?

The Right Raw Chocolate

Those of you who read my blog regularly know that I am a “chocoholic” like many others. I am always sourcing and looking for the latest and tastiest ways to create chocolate recipes at home and every once in a while I come across a great product that inspires me (and makes a great addition to my purse or travel bag!)

I discovered righteously raw about a year ago, when  friend of mine told me I had to try this raw chocolate bar that wasn’t like anything else. Not only are the ingredients incredibly pure, but each variety is loaded with a layer of superfoods – which makes the bar extra chewy and extra delicious.

It’s not easy to find a raw chocolate that tastes as good as this one. Plus it is nut free and has the added benefit of all my favourite superfoods from goji berries, acai, lacuma, maca and cacao. This would make anyone very happy and of course very healthy!

You can find them at various different health food stores in Toronto, so if you can, get your hands on a bar and test it out. Or WIN one for free (see below). It’s also the perfect time of year to get one to put into a stocking for a loved one or give it as a gift. Your making the RIGHT decision by supporting this pure, organic, vegan, raw, gluten/nut free and kosher chocolate!

Check out their website to find out more on why they created this incredible chocolate bar. And yes, I can call this a chocolate bar – because it is that and so much more!

TELL me why you are eager to try this chocolate – I will send one to you! The contest ends at the end of this week!

There is only ONE winner, so I am looking for a good answer!

Post it on Twitter

Post it on my Facebook Page

Leave a comment below – either way!

I “Heart” Cookies!

I LOVE  that I can make up a batch of cookies without even baking them! Just in time for Valentines Day these little “raw” sweethearts are power packed full of super foods. These are my same “go-to” ingredients that I use to super power my smoothies and snack on throughout the day. Except this time I threw them all into the food processor and blended them into a thick batter and pressed them into delicious yummy little cookies!

You can use anything you want inside. Just pick from wholesome raw and organic ingredients. It is best to use dates to stick them together and then throw in some other goodies like nuts, seeds, goji’s, cacao and super powders (maca, mesquite, cacao, lacuma) which would make them chewy, crunchy, sweet, bitter and scrumptious all at the same time.

It’s nice to know not all cookies have to be baked. These “hearty” bites took all of 15 minutes to prepare and the yield was enough for me to bring to a dinner party of 10 or more. Very little mess was involved plus the excitement of the creation was the biggest part. I didn’t really plan what or how I wanted these cookies to turn out – they just did!

Sweet-Heart Cookies

1 1/2 cups whole raw almonds

2 tbsp hemp seeds

1 cup chopped dates

1/4 cup goji berries

2 tbsp cacao nibs or cocoa powder

1 tbsp agave nectar

1 tsp mesquite powder (optional)

1/2 tsp vanilla powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp sea salt

**for an extra protein boost – add 2 tbsp Sun Warrior Protein Powder

Place all the ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until you get a thick “doughy” consistency. Spread out and cut into “heart” shapes with a cookie cutter or roll and flatten into 2 inch cookies.