Day 243

Thoughts: Spring clean your bowels!!!

Today was my first experience of the LIBBE Unit - in other words - an open system colonic at The Balance Health and Wellness Center!

The Balance Health and Wellness Center was Long Island's First Professional Colon Hydrotherapy Facility. The Center was established in 1999 and has set the standard for the Colon Cleansing Profession here in New York. At one time, The Balance Health and Wellness Center was the training facility for the Long Island School of Colon Hydrotherapy.

Their staff provides therapeutic treatments to reduce stress and free you to become the healthiest person you can be. Your body, mind and spirit are so intertwined that stress, whether physical, mental or emotional, affects your entire well-being. All of the services they offer are designed to cleanse, detoxify and transform your body from within.

If I have totally lost you already - a colonic is a therapy that both involve introducing water into the colon through to rectum in order to cleanse the colon.

* Colonics cleanse the entire length of the colon.
* Colonics involve mutiple infusions of water into the colon.
* With colonics, fecal matter leaves the body via a tube. The client does not see or smell the fecal matter during the session.
* At the end of the session, the client usually sits on a toilet, and usually passes any residual water and stools.
* Colonics must be administered by a trained colon hydrotherapist and requires professional equipment.



The large intestine is the portion of the digestive system most responsible for absorption of water from the indigestible residue of food. The ileocecal valve of the ileum (small intestine) passes material into the large intestine at the cecum. Material passes through the ascending, transverse, descending and sigmoid portions of the colon, and finally into the rectum. From the rectum, the waste is expelled from the body.

Why you would get a colonic?

You were not born with the body you have right now. Whether you are pleased with your appearance or not, you created the body you live in through your actions and choices.

You have side effects of an unclean bowel:
Constipation
Bloating
Headaches
Stomachaches
Backaches
Skin Blemishes
General Listlessness
Foul Breath or Body Odor
Excessive weight

When your intestines becomes dirty, it can lead to illness and negative health conditions throughout your entire body. Your digestive system also houses the majority of your immune system. Cleaning the garbage out of your digestive system can have a huge impact on how you feel, how you look, and how often you become ill.

If you want to read more check out my blog Day 130 http://theearthdiet.blogspot.com/2010/02/day-130.html

I have had colonics before in a closed system and this was my first experience at the open system. There are basically two different types of equipment available for administering colonics, open systems & closed systems. There are many different manufacturers of colonic equipment, but all systems are either open or closed. The difference between a closed and open system colonic is this:

*A closed system, the water and waste matter you eliminate are carried via tubing directly into the plumbing system so there is no odor whatsoever.
*With an open system you eliminate into a basin or channel that typically leads to the toilet.
*Open systems are typically gravity flow, much like if you were receiving an enema or using a Colema board
*Whereas a closed system depends on gentle pressure, controlled by the therapist, to introduce the water and evacuate the waste.
*Another difference usually is the type of speculum (rectal instrument) used. With a closed system typically the speculum is larger, for an adult between 0.60 and 0.75 inches in diameter, and waste is evacuated through this speculum.
*Most open gravity flow systems use a pencil thin rectal attachment to introduce the water, and elimination occurs around the tube rather than through it.



My experience:

After experiencing both the open and closes system, I prefer the open system colonic! It is generally regarded as more comfortable and private than the closed system. The beautiful Carrie Pearsall who is a Certified Colon Hydrotherapist explained the entire digestive system to me before we begun - the body continues to amaze me!

With an open system I lied on a molded fiberglass table that looks like a recliner - it is very comfortable. The form-fitted table has a basin cut into it & a small, disposable rectal tube, about the size of a pencil is attached at one end. After Carrie demonstrated how to gently insert the tube, she left the room, providing total privacy. Carrie then returned when I was ready & begun a gentle, continious flow of gravity-fed water through the rectal tube & into my bowels. Then when I felt full, I simply pushed out & the rectal tube automatically moved to one side within the rectum allowing the softened matter to flow out. It then flows down a drain in the bottom of the basin & past a three inch clear viewing tube. So yes I could see everything coming out! An odor exhaust system ensures the room remains odor free at all times. Carrie can remain in the room & provide instruction during the first session, but private time can be provided during future sessions.

Carrie looked after me before and after the treatment. Before the treatment she checks in with you to find out what is in your bowels - foods that you often eat. She gave me a chart to fill out (and this is what a typical Earth Dieter's list would look like!)

How often do you eat the following foods?
(A)-Every Day (B)-A Few Times A Week (C)-Sometimes (N)-Never

(A)-Every Day:
Water
Fruit Juice (Home made)
Green Salads
Fresh Vegetables
Fresh Fruits

(C)-Sometimes
Salt & Pepper
Herbal Tea
White Rice
Beans
Chicken/Turkey
Fresh Fish
Shellfish
Whole grains, Quinoa, Millet, Barley, Brown Rice

(N)-Never
Coffee, Chips, Decaf Coffee, Candy, Tea, Cakes/Cookies, Decaf Tea, Artificial, Sweetner, White Sugar, Soda, White Bread, Diet Soda, Bagels, Ice Tea, Pizza, Pasta, Canned Foods, Fast Foods, Fried Foods, Ice Cream, Frozen/Yogurt, Milk, Cheese, Eggs, Rice or Soy Milk, Beef, Pork, Veal, Any deli meats, Canned Tuna, Whole grain bread, Frozen Vegetables

Rice milk, meats, eggs, milk and coffee are items on The Earth Diet however I have written N (never) as I simply do not enjoy eating them. If you do eat meats, eggs and milk on The Earth Diet, it is encouraged these foods to be organic.

After the treatment Carrie gives you information "What to expect after your colon Hydrotherapy Session" and what are the best foods to eat afterwards. The Balance Health And Wellness Center treat their clients with dignity and respect. They have absolutely earned an impeccable reputation for cleanliness, honesty and client appreciation.

Other Services Include:
Acupuncture
Colon Hydrotherapy
Massage Therapy (All styles and techniques)
NAET – Allergy Elimination Techniques
Ear Stapling (Weight loss)
Ear Candling
Ionic Foot Bath
Herbal Medicine

Additional Services:
Hot Stone Massage
Facial Rejuvenation (Acupuncture, Herbs and Facial Massage)
Acoustic Wave Therapy
Moxibustion
Reflexology
Cupping
Ultra Violet Heat Therapy
Electric Stimulation

Specialty Services:
Drug and/or Alcohol Detoxification Treatments
Stop Smoking Clinics
Senior Citizen Specials

Mention this blog and take $10 treatment of your choice!

*All Major Medical Insurance Accepted – provided your plan has coverage
** We Accept NO FAULT and WORKERS COMPENSATION Claims!

Contact Carrie Pearsall or Joesph D'Antona at the Balance Health and Wellness Center
C: 631-BALANCE (631 225 2623) W: www.631balance.com

TWO LOCATIONS:
1. 57 Main st 672 N. Wellwood Ave
2. Kings Park, NY 11754 Lindenhurst, NY 11757



Challenges: Taking life far too seriously! Forgetting that this is all an illusion! I am reminding my self who I am and who I am not, and observing how and when I drop in and out of this.

Triumphs: The entire experience of the open system colonic was relaxing, recharging, and empowering! Any system where one gets to purge toxins out of the body has got to be invigorating!

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: An orange and grapefruit juice mmm mmm mmm!

Food fest 2: A beautiful ripe creamy avocado!

Food fest 3: 3 nectarines (I love summer!)

Food fest 4: Another avocado :)))

Food fest 5: Some sweet chilled cherries

Food fest 6: Beans and Rice - grounding, warm and absolutely fufilling.

Recipe: Recipe for Beans and Rice are on The Earth Diet website www.theearthdiet.org

Exercise: Riding my bike! :) And working/playing/loving/watering my garden ;)

122 days to go!!!

Day 244

Thoughts: There’s not much you can do with $2. In fact, you can’t even buy a beer, a burger, or a bus ticket. Shockingly, the 1.4 billion people currently living below the Extreme Poverty Line survive on this small amount every day.

Internationally, the Extreme Poverty Line is defined as US$1.25 a day – the equivalent of $2 in Australia. 1.4 billion people in our world live below this line –lacking the basic choices and opportunities that most Australians take for granted.

By living on $2 a day, you’ll help Australians understand the obstacles faced by those currently living in extreme poverty.

Nick Dale is taking the challenge from 2nd-6th August, and raise money for life-changing education programs. He is requesting other fellow beings take part and reach out as well...



For a while now, just about everytime I sit down to indulge in a big meal of delicious, healthy food of my own choosing, I am compelled to think how lucky I am, and that in other parts of the world what I am eating would be beyond those people's imagination. I am eating food they could only dream of and I have the luxury of choosing to eat whatever I feel like, whenever I want and how much I want! As I'm about to fork into my eggs benedict, I cant help but think how unbalanced this all is. Why should I get to eat like this and take it for granted while millions of people are sick and gaunt from hunger and are lucky to get a bowl of rice for the day? These are my fellow human beings. As I warm my belly with nourishment, they are in suffering.

I figure I could go on enjoying my life without doing anything about it, but do I want to do that?

Its time to commit to something for once in my life that is beyond my own little world

This August I will be feeding myself with just $2 a day to raise awareness of the challenges faced by people living in extreme poverty, and to support life-changing education programs.

I would love your support! Please click on this link to visit my fundraising page to find out more about the project I'm fundraising for, and what i'll be giving up.

It would also be great to get a group together and start up a team fundraising page!

Anyone interested in this, let me know. Strength in numbers I say!

I would also like to create a project of some kind to help promote this campaign, such as a documentary, or short film on the topic. Or photography/writing project, something creative. I know i have loads of creative genuis friends out there so what do you think guys?

Please help me spread the word about this great initiative.

Thank you very much.

You can visit my fundraising page at
http://www.everydayhero.com.au/nick__dale

Any ideas, feel free to contribute and get back to me! If you wanna take up the challenge too, just click on the website and start up a page! Its easy! Or if you just would like to donate, click on my page above and you can donate anything you like! It all helps to a worthy cause and goes towards making a difference!

Warm hugs! - Nick Dale



Your support can help the following projects:

A Poverty Education Program in Australian schools
The Global Poverty Project is working with the Oaktree Foundation to make sure Australian students have the knowledge and resources they need to lead the movement to end extreme poverty, and usher in a new era in global poverty policy.
In the next 12 months we want to speak to 50,000 students around the country - to ignite the grassroots movement that will improve the lives of 1.4 billion people.

Open a school in remote Papua New Guinea
Yangis is a community in the mountains of Papua New Guinea that is so isolated it is a 3 day walk to the nearest road. The Oaktree Foundation are supporting the community to re-build their school which hasn’t been in operation for 15 years.
Sign up to help train the teachers, refurbish the school building, get great teaching resources and provide everything necessary to give the kids of Yangis an incredible education.

To sign up for Live Below The Line, go to http://livebelowtheline.com/sign-up/

For more information, visit their website at livebelowtheline.com

For direct news from the NSW Live Below The Line team, join our facebook or twitter pages at http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=4727423&id=650381446#!/group.php?gid=131614226854534&ref=ts

and http://twitter.com/belowthelineNSW



Challenges: Google poverty. I read that over 24000 children die every day around the world from poverty.

Triumphs: I realize I have it so easy when I compare where I am in the world to where they are. I turn on the tap and water come out. I have a brush to brush my hair. I have 4 super markets all within 10 minutes on my bike. I have a purse. I have money in my purse.

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: Cherries!

Food fest 2: Chocolate Balls! Ingredients: Almonds, brazil nuts, cocao, water and agave syrup. Healthy, yummy, chocolate!!!

Food fest 3: 5 beautiful nectarines! One of them was absolutely the perfect nectarine! My idea of a perfect nectarine is firm yet soft flesh, sweet all the way to the seed!

Food fest 4: Spanish Beans and Rice

Recipe: Recipe for Chocolate Balls and Spanish Beans and Rice is on The Earth Diet website www.theearthdiet.org

Exercise: Stretching on my bed, acting/playing exercises, yoga breathing, bike riding :)

121 days to go!!!

Visit: www.theearthdiet.org

Day 245

Thoughts: Intention.

Transforming a conversation, just like manifesting a dream, begins by setting an intention. Your intentions will assist you in taking greater control of your life.

Phylameana lila Desy says A working definition for intention is: “to have in mind a purpose or plan, to direct the mind, to aim.” Lacking intention, we sometimes stray without meaning or direction. But with it, all the forces of the universe can align to make even the most impossible, possible. My intention is to transform the conversation around dreams from fear and doubt, to hope and possibility, followed by action and results.

The media and masses say, “It’s time to be realistic.” Consider this. Without our dreams all we have is our present reality. Reality is not a bad thing. We have to know where we are so we can design the appropriate strategy for getting to where we want to be. The challenge is our attitude around “reality” and being “realistic” and what being realistic has cost us. Often that’s our passion and joy, our hopes and dreams.

When should you set an intention? You could set an intention every day. Your intention could be to work less and make more, or to find a new career that you are passionate about. It could be to get healthy and physically fit, or to spend more quality time with loved ones or alone. It can be specific and about something in particular or more like a quality, such as to be more relaxed or involved with life.

Storm from The Garden Diet says "When you eat, eat with intention. When you focus on that apple, and imagine as you eat, that it is going in to each cell, energizing each cell, then the apple works with you to do that.

When you work out, work out with intention. When you focus on the movements you are doing, breathing in to them, realizing how they are sculpting your form, then these movements and your body work with you to do that.

Going through the motions of eating and exercising are not the same as eating and exercising with a goal in mind, with a certain intention, which creates a whole new consciousness about the way you eat and work out. Consciousness, love, are central to all things."

Dr. Wayne Dyer is an internationally best-selling author of more than 30 books including THE POWER OF INTENTION. I wanted to share with you a conversation he had with Wayne Dyer (By Ellen Mahoney).

Mahoney: What common excuses do people use in grappling with their conscience?

Dyer: Excuses are the explanations we use for hanging on to behaviors we don’t like about ourselves; they are self-defeating behaviors we don’t know how to change. In Excuses Begone! I review 18 of the most common excuses people use, such as “I’m too busy, too old, too fat, too scared or it’s going to take too long or be too difficult.”

We spend a big hunk of our lifetimes contemplating what we can’t have, what we don’t want and what’s missing in our lives. What we have to learn is to put our attention and focus on contemplating what it is we would like to attract, and not on what is missing.

Mahoney: You talk about mind viruses. What are these?

Dyer: A virus has three purposes: to duplicate, to infiltrate and to spread from one host to the next. Ultimately, even a single virus can shut down an entire system.

A mind virus is different in that there is no form to it; these are ideas placed in our heads when we are little. We get programmed by well-meaning people like our parents and their parents, our culture, religions and schools. We get conditioned to believe in our limitations and what’s not possible.

After a while, we start really believing these things are true. People who have had self-defeating behaviors for a long time, such as people who have been overweight since they were children or people with longtime addictions, actually believe there is no other alternative.

Mahoney: What’s the payoff for living a life filled with excuses?

Dyer: There’s a payoff for everyone. The reason we hang on to self-defeating behaviors is because it’s easier not to take responsibility. If you’re blaming something or someone else for the way you are, then that person, those people, those circumstances or those energies, are going to have to change in order for you to get better; that’s most likely never going to happen. It’s also a way to manipulate other people.

Usually, making excuses is just something we can get away with, rather than challenging or changing ourselves. If you want to change and you want your life to work at a level you’ve never had before, then take responsibility for it.

I’m not saying that a child who was abused or beaten or abandoned made that happen, but your reaction to it is always yours. While you were four, you didn’t know anything other than being terrified and scared; you’re not four any longer. Now [as an adult] you have to make a choice and recognize that even the abuse that came into your life offers you an opportunity to transcend it, to become a better person and even more significantly, to help someone else not go through what you did.

Mahoney: What is your seven-question paradigm to help people change long-established habits of negative thinking?

Dyer: The paradigm helps a person identify the thought system, which is almost always false, that is behind the rationale for the continuation of excuses. It helps them really look at excuses from an objective point of view and realize that everything they’ve been thinking is just as likely to be not true as it is to be true.

I believe if you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.

Mahoney: When we look at our own lives and think about the lives of loved ones, what is key to living a healthy, happy, love-based life?

Dyer: The key is to trust in your own divinity, to know that you are a piece of God, and that you are like what you came from. As a spiritual being, you have Divinity within. When Albert Einstein was asked about the impact of quantum physics, he said, “It’s just all details, I just want to think like God thinks.” And God thinks in terms of creating, kindness, beauty and goodness.

His newest book, Excuses Begone! How to Change Lifelong, Self-Defeating Thinking Habits, was inspired by the ancient teachings of the Tao Te Ching and says "There is a voice in the Universe urging us to remember our purpose for being on this great Earth. This is the voice of inspiration, which is within each and every one of us."

Challenges: Forgive Everyone. Revenge, anger, and hatred are exceedingly low energies that keep you from matching up with the attributes of the universal force. A simple thought of forgiveness toward anyone who might have angered you in the past will raise you to the level of Spirit and aid you in your individual intentions.

Triumphs: Feel Good. Say "I want to feel good" when you're tempted to indulge in low-energy thoughts. Wanting to feel good is synonymous with wanting to feel God. Remember: "God is good, and all that God created was good." DR. WAYNE W. DYER

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: A beetroot (beet), carrot, celery, ginger juice! Staring the day with a bowel cleanse!

Food fest 2: Cherries!

Food fest 3: 2 sweet sweet nectarines. Half a avocado (I shared the other half with Andrew)

Food fest 4: Another nectarine and some more cherries.

Food fest 5: Spicy Green Avocado Salad! My absolute favourite salad - refreshing and light :) Ingredients: lettuce, baby spinach, lime, coriander (cilantro), coriander seeds, garlic, ginger, green chilli, dash of himalayan salt and olive oil, avocado, cucumber and ginger!

Recipe: Spicy Green Avocado Salad will be available on The Earth Diet website next week! www.theearthdiet.org

Exercise: A 40 minute workout a Big Al's Family Fitness! I exercised with intention and felt every bit of it! I worked on the legs, arms and abs and gave myself a reward of stretching in the sauna mmm mmm mmm! I also rode my bike to the gym and grocery store to buy cherries, avocados and nectarines.

I like to see all the bikes in my community! Beautiful :)

120 days to go!!!

Visit:
http://www.drwaynedyer.com/affirmations/
http://healing.about.com/od/marciawieder/a/powerintention.htm
www.NaturalAwakeningsMag.com
www.theearthdiet.org
www.thegardendiet.com

Day 238

Thoughts: Why do I choose health? I choose health because I choose health. Just like Buddha philosophy says, health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.
-Atisha-

At the end of our life our questions are simple: Did I life fully? Did I love well?

Challenges: Do not speak - unless it improves on silence ;) Learning to speak less ;)

Triumphs: For me I would like life to go like this: happy, healthy, happy, healthy, happy, healthy, happy, healthy, dead. No sickness, no disease, no discomfort. And this is possible! I am making it so ;)

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: A avocado.

Food fest 2: The Green Chilli Avocado salad - yes the same as I had yesterday - if something is so delicious I usually fill my body up on it for a few days before moving onto another variety! Ingredients: green chilli, spring onion, garlic, ginger, lime juice, dash of himalayan salt and olive oil, coriander (cilantro), cubed cucumber, baby spinach and kale ripped into small bite size pieces!

Food fest 3: 4 white flesh nectarines!

Food fest 4: 2 clementines and a avocado

Food fest 5: Chocolate Balls! My favourite sweet! Real chocolate, organic, raw and healthy! Ingredients: peanuts, brazil nuts, almonds, cocao, agave syrup!



Recipe: Recipe for the Spicy Green Salad and Chocolate Balls will be available on www.theearthdiet.org and also in The Earth Diet book available this November!

Exercise: A Zumba class at Big Al's Family Fitness! Zumba is an aerobic fitness program fitness program inspired by Latin dance and is Spanish slang for "to move fast and have fun". At the end of the class I was dripping with sweat, not even feeling like I had worked out! It is so much fun to move my body in new bendy rhythmic ways I usually wouldn't :) Must keep our instrument young and fresh ;) www.bigalsfamilyfitness.com And then I went for a bike ride to the bank - running errands etc

128 days to go!!!

Painting photograph: By me ;)
Visit: www.theearthdiet.org

Day 239

Thoughts: Cheat days!

Some people call it a "Free Day," others call it a "Cheat Day." This blog is thanks to Laura Mac from Big Al's Family Fitness who asked me if I have cheat days. At the time she asked me I thought it was a bizarre question, cheat day, who would I cheat on? why would I cheat? I told her no and then yesterday I discovered I do have 'cheat days' on The Earth Diet!

Being on The Earth Diet doesn't make a 'perfect' diet lifestyle. There is no such thing as perfect, and perfect and imperfect both exist in each other. My cheat day now is different to my cheat days when I was not eating only foods from the earth. I would eat fast foods, Nandos - fried chicken in a wrap with french fries, cookies with white flour and over loaded with chocolate, gummi bears, nutella and tim tams. Eating all this on my cheat day would set me back a day or two as I would usually feel sluggish after so much processed, mega-high calorie and artificially made dead organic matter in my digestive system. After being on The Earth Diet for 239 days I naturally do not crave those foods anymore!

Now, my cheat day involves my favourites; Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls with extra peanut butter (pure crushed peanuts); cooked foods, yes cooked foods are a treat 'cheat' food for me! like rice and beans, walm and delicious! ;and my favourite meat dish: Honey Rosemary Chicken Salad! These are still all inside the Earth Diet, and still only foods naturally provided by the earth. Nothing is processed, nothing high in artificial sugars, it is all entirely made from scratch yet it completely fulfills my cravings!

Some people cheat to ensure their body does not feel deprived. You may have lived your entire life eating certain foods and all of a sudden you are not anymore, so if you dedicate a cheat day once a week, you can reassure your body, here is some of the familiar food you are used to, don't freak out, and know that tomorrow we will stay on track with my new way of being and eating to support my new lifestyle choice. Eventually your body will ween off certain foods and your cheat day will become different to how your cheat day was when you begun. Eventually I would like to not crave meats and cooked foods at all. My goal is to be completely 100% raw and content with that. Your goal may be different, and whatever you are heading for it is ok to have cheat days too.

Another reason why people 'cheat' is that it will keep your metabolism guessing. It is called calorie shifting and theoretically, your body gets use to a certain amount of calories consumed a day and your metabolism adjusts to this number. If you ate 2000 calories one day, the next day your body will think you will do the same but say you don't, you end up losing weight faster this way. Cheating can actually help you lose weight. Remember your body is with you, not against you, always working hard to prevent disease, sickness, cancer, excessive weight gain.

Some say it is definitely a good idea to "relax" your diet once a week and eat something you really enjoy, provided that you do it in moderation. If you try to be too strict all the time, then you are only setting yourself up for cravings and bingeing (not to mention it’s no fun). Consider it your reward after a week of perfect eating and perfect training. If you eat five or six times per day, that's at least 35 meals per week. If 33 or 34 of them are perfect, then one (or even two) "cheat" meals aren't going to hurt.

If you do have cheat days enjoy them! Don't feel guilty about them. Guilt does nothing but make you feel guilty ;) If your cheat days feel like you are indulging in your addictive behaviours, then observe them without judgment. You are whole, perfect (perfect being perfect and imperfect) and complete just the way you are, right now. Be a witness to your thoughts, your moods, your reactions, your behaviours. They represent your memories of the past, and by witnessing them in the present, you liberate yourself of the past. By observing your addictive behaviours, you observe your conditioning. And when you observe your conditioning, you are free of it, because you are not your conditioning; you are the observer of your conditioning.

Even Jinjee the creator of The Garden Diet said she went through a little emotional drama and allowed herself to self-medicate with foods, "and then one night it started to get a little out of control. I had eaten well past a healthful amount of not the best raw foods, continuously, for a couple of days. I was eating anything I could. In contemplating whether to eat some additional left-overs of cashew kelp noodles, I was ready to eat them on "automatic pilot" because I had bought in to the thought-pattern that I was out of control, and I was totally immersed in that reality But then I realized that I didn't have to say yes to every food just because I was labeling myself "out of control". I could still say no to some things if I wanted to!

That is when I realized that we who are in the habit of unhealthy eating are often this way because we are perfectionists. And that perfectionism is our problem. Because we're not able to achieve perfection, we are upset, and give up, and then become even less perfect. Then we become even more upset, and perpetuate this negative cycle. So, I think the answer is that we need to learn to accept our imperfection. We need to learn things like - if we can learn to sometimes say no to foods we want when we're full, that's a good thing. It doesn't have to be all the time. It can't be all the time. It doesn't have to be all or nothing." This is the kind of approach they practice in the Garden Diet Programs (the 21 Day Cleanse and the 28 Day Raw Transition Program) which starts tomorrow! Last day to to sign up! Treat yourself to healthy living! http://www.TheGardenDiet.com/21days

Challenges: No matter how hysterical your environment appears to be, remain alert and sober in your ever present witnessing awareness. Resolve not to get drawn into the melodrama around you. Remind yourself, I am neither superior nor inferior to anyone who exists. None of us are the roles we play. Recognizing this truth, it is easier to forgive all perceived transgressions. We don't feel compelled to label, evaluate, analyze, or judge ourselves or others. When we have no need to label or judge, it's easier to relinquish the desire to control and manipulate others. - Deepak Chopra

Triumphs: Well, if we were already enlightened, there would be nothing to do. It's a process. If you occasionally succumb to your addictive behaviour, understand this too, is part of the process. You keep falling, but you can always get up and continue on your journey. - Deepak Chopra

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: A avocado! I love starting the day with my favourite food!

Food fest 2: Honey Rosemary Chicken Salad! Oh delicious! Ingredients: Organic free range chicken (use mushroom if you are vegetarian), honey, fresh rosemary, garlic, the salad is baby spinach and lime juice. Then when you out the chicken on top all the juices from that dish drizzle down to the salad and you end up with a dressing of lime, honey, garlic, and rosemary. Mmm!



Food fest 3: 4 clementines

Food fest 4: Rice and Beans! (Pink beans) Mmm Ingredients: Rice, garlic, pink beans, coriander (cilantro), garlic, avocado!



Food fest 5: Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls!



Recipe: The recipe for Rice and Beans, Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls and Honey Rosemary Chicken Salad will be in the Earth Diet Book released later this year! Or you can find them on the website www.theearthdiet.org

Exercise: A ride and walk around town to run some errands with Andrew :) Beautiful sunny weather!

126 days to go!!!

Visit:
www.chopra.com
www.bigalsfamilyfitness.com
www.theearthdiet.org

Day 240

Thoughts: Safe-sex vegans will save the planet by By Ingrid Newkirk, ABC Environment.

There are too many humans eating too many steaks in this world. What we need are safe-sex practising vegans, says Ingrid Newkirk.

In 2008, PETA launched an "animal birth control" campaign to promote spaying and neutering and to encourage people to buy animals from the pound, not breeders or pet shops. Millions of animals are euthanised in shelters every year, and steps must be taken to curb dog and cat overpopulation.

Ultimately, though, it is our own species that we really need to keep from expanding, certainly at its current rate. The human population has spiralled beyond a sustainable level, and our practices are wreaking havoc on the environment and other living beings. For ourselves, our planet and animals, we must take seriously the need to keep our own population in check.

There are currently 6.8 billion people in the world, and experts predict that there will be at least nine billion humans by 2050.

Nearly every environmental problem, from climate change to deforestation to pollution, can be traced to meat production. Here's a frightening thought: global meat consumption is projected to double by 2050.

Humans have a knack for procreating and destroying. If we are ever to create a cleaner - and kinder - world, we can't carry on at the rate we are going. We can't expect to have a liveable planet if the population of human beings literally eats its way out of house and home, destroying its own health, polluting waterways (there are already dead zones in our oceans from factory farming) and killing off wildlife and wildlife habitat in the process.

The Worldwatch Institute estimates that the global livestock population has increased 60 per cent since 1961. As the world's appetite for meat increases and people grow fat with cheese toppings, countries across the globe are bulldozing huge swaths of land to make more room for all the chickens, cows and other farmed animals and the crops needed to feed them.

But much more food can be grown on a given parcel of land when we aren't funnelling crops through animals. It takes three and a quarter acres of land to produce food for a person who eats meat and dairy products, while food for a vegan - someone who doesn't eat meat, eggs or dairy products - can be produced on just sixth of an acre of land.

Vegfam, a UK-based charity that funds sustainable plant-food projects, estimates that a 10-acre farm can support 60 people by growing soya beans, 24 people by growing wheat or 10 people by growing corn - but only two people by raising cattle.

And then there's water. Between watering the crops grown to feed farmed animals, providing drinking water for the animals and cleaning away the filth in the factory farms, transport trucks and slaughterhouses, meat production also places a serious strain on our water supply. With fewer humans and certainly fewer meat-eaters, water scarcity would be less of a concern too.

A vegan diet requires only 1,140 litres of water per day, whereas an animal-based diet requires more than 16,000 litres of water a day. As leading climate-change economist Sir Nicholas Stern has said, "Meat is a wasteful use of water .... It puts enormous pressure on the world's resources."

Stern and other climate-change experts have generated overwhelming evidence that meat production causes climate change. A 2006 United Nations report concluded that the livestock sector produces more greenhouse gases than all of the cars, trucks, trains, planes and ships in the world combined. Worldwatch Institute researchers estimate that raising animals for food causes 51 per cent of global greenhouse-gas emissions each year.

With meat and dairy-product consumption putting such an enormous carbon footprint on the Earth already, I shudder to think what things will be like if global meat (and cheese) consumption doubles within 40 years.

I have hope, though. More and more people, especially the young, are switching to a vegan diet as they learn how animal-based agriculture harms the environment, the animals kept in concentration camp-like conditions of intensive rearing and their own health. A collective change in diet will benefit the Earth and all its inhabitants enormously. The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency even believes that climate-change mitigation costs could be reduced by 80 per cent if everyone around the globe went vegan.

This will be easier to achieve when we at least stabilise our population and stop passing along our meat- and dairy-guzzling ways. The Center for Biological Diversity has come up with a good way to remind humans that we aren't the only species around - although we may be if we don't change our over-consuming habits. The group is distributing 100,000 free endangered species condoms in the US. The condom packaging features pictures of endangered animals and messages encouraging safe sex and contraception.

By reducing the human birth rate and choosing vegan foods we can tread more lightly on the Earth. We may not be able to solve all the problems in the world, but we can at least do our part not to leave the world significantly worse off than when we entered it.

Ingrid Newkirk is the founder and President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

Challenges: Things are not what they appear to be: nor are they otherwise. Surangama Sutra

Triumphs: Just as the highest and the lowest notes are equally inaudible, so perhaps, is the greatest sense and the greatest nonsense equally unintelligible. Allan Watts

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: Water with lemon juice. A beetroot (beet), carrot, celery and ginger juice.

Food fest 2: A avocado.

Food fest 3: 2 white flesh nectarines.

Food fest 4: Brazilian Rice and Beans and coriander mmm!

Food fest 5: 2 white flesh nectarines and 3 Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls!

Food fest 6: Lime Salad with Sesame Chicken! Delicious! Fresh and sweet :) Ingredients: Salad; baby spinach, lime juice, Chicken; free range organic chicken, garlic, honey, fresh rosemary, sesame seeds


Recipe: Recipe for Brazilian Rice and Beans, Peanut Butter Chocolate Balls and Lime Salad with Sesame Chicken can be found on www.theearthdiet.org and The Earth Diet book released later this year.

Exercise: A ride around town doing bits and pieces with Andrew :) Listening to the birds and soaking the sun!

125 days to go!!!

Visit: www.theearthdiet.org
http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2010/03/15//2845823.htm

Day 241

Thoughts: Safe Sex on The Earth Diet.

Most would say safe sex is one of the healthiest things you can do. It is nature, and it feels good and you burn calories!

So is there a healthy way to have safe sex? What is the healthiest way to have sex?

Safe sex means making sure you don't get anyone else's blood, semen, vaginal fluids, or breast milk in your body - and protecting your partners too!

How do you protect yourself from diseases and getting pregnant? Is there a natural alternative to the contraception available today?

I did my research:

There are the typical barrier methods of contraception that include condoms - both male and female, the diaphragm and cervical cap. There is also latex surgical gloves and plastic wrap. Then you have hormonal Contraception including the Pill, Mini Pill, injections and implants.

Here are our options:

-Condoms-
There are condoms for anal and vaginal intercourse which are lubricated latex condoms. They also come in lambskin - and aside from having part animal skin ewwww involved in your intimacy they also apparently do not block HIV and STDs. If you're allergic to latex you can use polyurethane condoms.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE FOR CONDOMS:

Condoms for Vegans
Casein is a protein found in milk that many condom manufacturers use to create latex for condoms. Vegans feel strongly about not drinking, eating or using any milk products or any by-products of milk. Currently, there are only three latex condoms currently being sold that do not have casein listed as an ingredient. The Swedish Association for Sexuality Education (RFSU) is a sexual health organization that produces vegan condoms. In 2009, the distributor for this organization’s condoms was able to declare their condoms as being certified vegan by the Vegan Action Foundation in America. Another manufacturer in Europe that produces vegan condoms is called Condomi. Instead of casein, this manufacturer utilizes cocoa powder in their production of condoms; however, these vegan condoms are not yet available for purchase in Canada or the U.S. simply because they are making sure they meet all standards and requirements in order to sale within the United States. Glyde manufacturers vegan condoms that are available in the United States. Vegans also steer clear from any product that has been tested on animals, so some may wonder whether or not that means they also will steer clear of condoms that have lubrication on them. After all, most ingredients that comprise the lubricant were tested on animals at one point in time. In order to avoid this possibility, vegans can choose to buy only condoms that do not have lubricants on them just to be safe.

-Lubricant-
Unfortunately using natural oils as lubricant breaks latex. Vaseline, hand creams, lotions are loaded with chemicals and as a lubricant may get dry and tear.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE FOR LUBRICANT: Wild yam organic lubes!!! Yes they are available!

-Plastic wrap-
If you're going to be licking your partner's parts it is recommended you use a piece of plastic wrap to be safe. All you need is some plastic-wrap, or a condom cut down the side and laid flat. Be sure to cover the entire crotch.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE FOR PLASTIC WRAP:
Unfortunately there is no alternative to plastic wrap. You could put some honey or jam on your side of the plastic wrap to make things a little sweeter.

-Sex Toys-
To avoid using sex toys made from plastic and chemicals in your house and on your skin...
NATURAL ALTERNATIVE FOR SEX TOYS:
Use vegetables!

-The pill- (contraceptive for women)
The main ingredients of the birth control pill are powders containing synthetic versions of the hormones estrogen and progestin. I used to take this, and now refuse to as there are so many side effects of using the Pill that there is not enough room in this article to list them all. Some of the more common side effects are an increased risk of breast cancer, cervical cancer, endometrial and ovarian cancer, liver tumors, blood clots, high blood pressure, cycle irregularities, miscarriages, headaches, migraines, cramps, bloating, nausea, vaginal infections, gall bladder disease, mental depression, loss of sexual drive, etc. In addition, there are also risks for using the other barrier methods, including increased birth defects for women who use spermicides.

-Implants-
For quite a lot of women, the idea of having a contraceptive implanted under the skin of your arm is quite attractive. Why? Because of the fact, that once it’s been implanted, then with luck you can more or less forget about it. You can make love whenever you want to, without worrying about taking Pills or buying condoms! Implants were first used on a wide scale back in the 1990s. They received rather a bad press, partly because they so often caused menstrual problems, and partly because some of them were put in by doctors who had no real idea what they were doing; as a result, some women developed pain or infection at the insertion site. From its position under your skin, it releases a steady stream of the female-type hormone etonorgestrol into your bloodstream. The hormone reaches your ovaries, and prevents them from releasing eggs. It also causes some minor anti-conception changes in your womb lining and in your cervix. Therefore, you don’t get pregnant – or at least, the chances of pregnancy are very small indeed. Other possible side-effects include: * headache * spots * weight gain * breast tenderness * dizziness * depression * changes in level of sexual desire * blood clots. And occasionally, an Implanon can’t be felt where it’s supposed to be – ie under the skin of the upper arm. In this event, you’d need an ultrasound scan to find the device. Frequently, the ultrasound reveals that the implant was simply pushed in too deeply during insertion.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE TO PREVENT PREGNANCY:

-Rhythm method-
In order to count your safe days you need to have very regular period. Lets say that your menstrual cycle lasts exactly 30 days ie that you are getting your period every 30th day. Ovulation (the risky period, when egg leaves the ovaries and is ready for fertilization) takes place 14-15 days before your next period would start. So basically, you need to know when your next period’s coming. Ovulation lasts only 24h but sperm can stay alive for 5 to even 7 days. This means that if you have unprotected intercourse 5 days before ovulation occurs, you could get pregnant. The riskiest days are three, two and one day before or on the exact day of ovulation. After ovulation passes you can have sex. This is perfect theoretic cases but in reality weird things happen avoiding the rules, so basically it is not safe to have unprotected intercourse.

Most females these days unfortunately do not have regular consistent periods due to processed foods, hormones in the food, stress and internal contraceptive that messes with a females natural cycle.

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE #2:

Natural Family Planning is exactly that and is gaining popularity as a safe, healthy, and highly effective (99%) method of birth control.

NFP refers to the practice of avoiding or achieving pregnancy according to an informed awareness of a woman's fertility and concentrates on the Sympto-Thermal method, which is highly scientific. With the Sympto-Thermal method, a woman observes her fertility signs; normal cervical mucus secretions and her waking temperature and then records the signs on a daily observation chart. Using NFP is actually a very simple yet accurate indication of a woman’s fertile time. The method can be used either to prevent or to attain pregnancy. The best part about it is no side effects!

NFP unlike the rhythm technique is based upon your own individual cycle and is perfect for women who have irregular cycles.http://www.gentleparents.com/mccarthy.html http://nfpandmore.org/

NATURAL ALTERNATIVE #3

The Lunar Cycle! The moon can trigger ovulation and bring on fertility at any time during the menstrual cycle - including before, during and just after your period. This phenomena is called the natal lunar fertile phase. The lunar phase at which a woman was fertile depends on the relationship between the sun and the moon at the moment she was born. You are fertile at that time of your cycle when the moon is at the same lunar phase as when you were born. Each individual is born under a particular moon or lunar Phase. Each month when the moon returns to this same position (as it was at your birth) it can trigger your body to spontaneously ovulate even if this time occurs outside your normal midcycle fertile time. Understanding this process can prevent or create a pregnancy. http://www.menstruation.com.au/menstrualproducts/basiclunarcontraception1.html

Challenges: Why safe sex? Perhaps one substantial answer is AIDS. If you had to think what the number one cause of death in women who are between the ages of 15 and 44 was, what would you answer? My first thought would be breast cancer. The number one killer and contributor of disease to women in this age range is AIDS, according to the World Health Organization who recently concluded its first global study on women’s health. And a new study published last month in the journal “Pediatrics” shows that up to 25% of all teenaged girls in the United States have contracted a sexually transmitted disease, usually after their very first sexual experience.

Triumphs: Nobody has a body to die for. Safe sex is always better - It's fun, and you don't have to worry as much.

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: Water with lemon juice. A beetroot (beet), carrot, celery and ginger juice.

Food fest 2: A avocado.

Food fest 3: 2 white flesh nectarines.

Food fest 4: Some delicious sweet dark cherries!

Food fest 5: 4 white flesh nectarines

Food fest 6: Another 2 avocados :)

Food fest 7: 2 yellow flesh nectarines!

Exercise: A 40 minute leg and ab workout at Big Al's Family Fitness. My reward was relaxing in the sauna afterward :) Also went for a bike ride to the store to buy some cherries, nectarines, celery, carrot and ginger mm mm mmm!

125 days to go!!!

Visit: www.theearthdiet.org

Day 242

Alex Grey Art

Thoughts: The Photon Belt.

An Article by Virgil Armstrong ©l995

Lately there has been much talk about the Photon Belt and the accompanying manasic radiation, both scientific terms for this spectacular coming event.

Science first admitted knowledge of this phenomenon in 1962, 33 years ago! As for us, the public, awareness oft his event came much later, and sadly, only to a very small number of people.

Even when I first heard of the Photon Belt, I was inclined, through ignorance, to give it little credence. In fact, my first reaction was, "the ,Wu-Wu's' are at it again. They have invented a new wrinkle to make more money." This was almost a colossal mistake on my part and at this point, I began to take this phenomenon seriously.

The Photon Belt and the manasic radiation have a greater impact than one might imagine. From the scientific point of view, it is the procession of our Solar System and its accompanying planets around the Central Sun, called Alcione, located in the constellation of Pleiades. This counter-clockwise cyclic procession around Alcione requires 25,860 years to make one complete orbit. Our present-day sun, moon, and planets must twice pass through the Photon Belt during this time, that is, once to the North and once to the South. (See diagram, below.) During this cycle, there are two periods of darkness and two periods of light. The periods of darkness, which constitute the vast majority of the rotation around the Central Sun, consist of two periods of 10,500 years each, plus an additional, seemingly optional 430 years for both of the 10,500-year periods. (i.e., 10,500+430 = 10,930 years, times 2=21,860 years).

Following each period of 10,500 years of darkness, we then emerge into 2000 years of total light, which actually constitutes the Photon Belt. In review, we then have 21,860 years of darkness and 4,000 years of light (21,860 + 4,000 = 25,860 years, or one complete cycle/orbit). Again, please refer to the diagram below.

Another way of viewing this phenomenon is that in one complete orbit, we have five sixths darkness and approximately one-sixth light, or a 5:1 ratio, with darkness being predominant. Surprisingly enough, we are now, as a Solar System and planet, once again emerging from 10,500+ years of darkness and preparing to merge into 2000 years of light, which we will begin to experience in the year 2000. The foregoing is a general scientific understanding of the Photon Belt phenomenon, but what about its spiritual significance? A question in your mind might be, "Why does the darkness, or negative aspect, of our 26,OOO-year journey around the Central Sun predominate? Why not more light?" As in all things in the Creators omni-universes, everything has divine purpose and reason. All aspects are in synchronicity with one another: the higher with the lower, the lower with the higher; or, to quote Kabalistic law, "as it is above, so shall it be below; as it is below, so shall it be above." It is important to understand that divine law has intent and purpose. What I am about to relate spiritually will lend greater individual understanding and acceptance of what would otherwise appear to be punitive and unreasonable.

To begin with, the Photon Belt really is nothing new. In ancient history there are many references, particularly by the Greeks and Romans, to a Golden Age wherein there was nothing but light, love, peace and tranquility, a place where death, war, famine, disease, and poverty were unknown. These ancient philosophers were obviously alluding to the Photon Belt, that 2000-year period of light. Once again we are at that point where we are about to enter into this phenomenal period of light, the Golden Age of the past and the future. We are emerging from our oppressive cocoon of darkness and, like the butterfly, can emerge as something extremely beautiful, that is, our light bodies and our total communion with the Christ. That cocoon of darkness, despite its oppressiveness and negativity, has been our teaching and learning vehicle to qualify us once again to return from whence we came, the Photon Belt. We are again being offered the opportunity to break the fetters of this world of illusion to turn the mirror around, and in its place perceive our true reality. With this, the restraints of negativity, illusion, polarities, judgments, control, hate, avarice and greed, jealously, killings and war will all fall away. Our special Earth assignment, which has been to experience and master negativity and illusion, will be fulfilled, and we can go home where we rightly belong. As we approach the Photon Belt and its eminence, the manasic radiation, we will become aware of the Christ consciousness and the call to arms. The call to arms is a declaration by the Christ that we have been in darkness long enough and now it is time to go home into the light. In the final analysis, however, the choice is our though our free will. The going-home process is not as simple as it would first seem, for we must first experience a tremendous transformational process which will enable us to eliminate our negativity and assume our bodies of light. This, in turn, will catapult us out of the enslaving energies of the third dimension into the fourth and fifth dimensions - the Photon Belt.

This quantum leap into the future is not customary but is usually sequential in nature, encompassing one dimension at a time. However, due to our unexplained unwillingness to grow and mature with the dictates of the divine scenario, in contrast to the other planets, we must now play catch-up and attain the level of the other planets in order for the Solar System to remain in keeping with divine intent and scheduled advancement. We must finally be brought to terms in order to insure safe passage by the entire federation of planets into the Photon Belt. We have just a few years until the year 2000 to do this. This is not only the entrance into the Photon Belt but also the fourth dimension. By the year 2005, five years into the Photon Belt, we will have reached our ultimate objective, the fifth dimension! An interesting fact: the Lost Books of the Bible, that is, the original and unabridged version of our current Bible, states that "The second coming of the Christ will occur in the year 2005." This then implies that we will witness and experience the second coming of the Christ only after we have attained the fifth dimension of consciousness. We will by then have long abandoned our bodies of density and will be wearing our garments of light, just as the Christ always has.

Before any of this can happen, we must first experience a complete transformational process here on Earth. Our planet, our bodies, and our consciousness all must achieve and resonate at a much higher and intense frequency in order to accommodate the incoming Christ consciousness. Let's begin with one aspect of our planet's transformation. Our present speed as we as a planet fly through space is estimated to be about 18,000 miles per hour. Consider then the speculation that upon entering the Photon Belt, we will have reached a speed of 208,000 miles per hour, or an increase of 190,000 miles per hour. One does not have to speculate very long to realize this tremendous acceleration will compress time and space into realms of realizations, incomprehensible at this time. What can be assumed is that all things mundane and corporeal in nature will undergo tremendous transformation in order to be in harmony with the compression and accelerated speed. Every cell in our body' every molecule, every atom will be rearranged so as to (hopefully) transform our current bodies of density and morality into a vehicle of transformational light, capable of facilitating the incoming Christ consciousness and its immortality. It is also said that in the transformational process, our DNA system will be rearranged from a system of 2 strands to a system of 12 or 13 strands. Our chakras will also be rearranged and increased, going from 7 to 12 or 13. Our atoms will be increased and rearranged in order to facilitate the incoming light

Perhaps, in the dialog above, I have created an element of fear among you readers. This, of course, was not my intention, but it does serve a point.

Mass chaos and destruction, although present for the many, need not affect you personally. Repeatedly throughout these writings I have ventured that all will be spared if they will acknowledge the incoming Christ energies and strive to walk and talk in love, light, balance, and forgiveness. In the process you will be creating your new and wondrous body of light. As you, "through the above," build your body of light' you will be resistant and ultimately impervious to all physical and archaic laws. Remember that when you have a body of light, you are one with the Christ and the fourth dimension. Therefore, your physical being is not of density and matter, so how can you get hurt? Fear is food for the darker and negative forces and is the vehicle through which they have controlled Us over the millennia.

Without fear, they have no way to control us and so are impotent. Remember this when you most need it.

Notes:

1. In the year 2,000, we enter the Photon Belt and the Fourth Dimension.

2. The photon Belt is what the ancient Greeks and Romans referred to as the Golden Age -the era of Peace. There were no wars, famine, pestilence, etc., only Light.

3. Spiritually the Photon Belt is the abode of the Christ, the manasic radiation (the radiation and eminence of the Christ).

4. The Null Zone is the pre-transformational area where the old and archaic will be transmuted or destroyed. It is the separation of the wheat from the tares. There is a progressive intensity of light.

5. (See Diagram below) The upper right-hand corner represents the new planet Earth for those souls who will not go into the Light. As we ascend, they descend and become the new planet Earth. New life forms repeat another 10,500 years of negativity and darkness.



To read the full article go to http://www.2012.com.au/Photon_belt.html

Challenges: Leave no doubts or uncertainties. Note that thoughts are energy, more real than our physical bodies; therefore they must be controlled and specifically directed. - Virgil Armstrong

Triumphs: Indecisiveness is over. You must declare where you and your consciousness are. - Virgil Armstrong

I am loving lime this summer! It is so refreshing as a salad dressing :)

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: A beet carrot, celery, ginger juice.

Food fest 2: 4 chocolate balls! Ingredients: peanuts, brazil nuts, almonds, cocao, agave syrup, water mmm yum!

Food fest 3: Spicy Green Avocado Salad mmm mmm! Ingredients: baby spinach, lettuce, lime, garlic, ginger, spring onions, coriander (cilantro), coriander seeds, himalayan salt, olive oil, green chilli, cucumber, avocado, tomato (for Andrew)!



Food fest 4: Another avocado and 3 nectarines.

Recipe: Recipes for Chocolate Balls and Green Avocado Chilli Salad are on www.theearthdiet.org and will also be in The Earth Diet book being released later this year!

Exercise: A 1 hour workout at Big Al's Family Fitness. I did some core training, abs, and then worked my arms and legs. The ultimate reward: stretching after wards in the sauna! I rode my bike a lot today too :) This is how I choose to get to and from places! I use my own body to get where I want to go ;)

123 days to go!!!

Visit:
www.alexgrey.com
www.theearthdiet.org

Day 237

Thoughts: Choose challenge!

I think it is time to face myself again. Then again, it is always time.

Just when I was beginning to become satisfied with myself, my health and my body I learn : I will never reach such a place! Today I trained with Ryan Thiel, the Personal Training Manager at Big Al's Family Fitness. I realized there is always space to grow, to discover, to create.

We could become quite satisfied with ourselves because we are sitting in meditation and are endeavoring to practice the spiritual path. Such satisfaction with ourselves is not the same as contentment. Contentment is necessary, self-satisfaction is detrimental. To be content has to include knowing we are in the right place at the right time to facilitate our own growth. But to be self-satisfied means that we no longer realize the need for growth. All these aspects are important parts of our commitment and makes us into one whole being with a one-pointed direction.

It's been a while since I had a personal trainer - it's been a while since I challenged my mind and body! Ryan specializes in strength and conditioning training, upper and lower body toning and core specific training. Today he had me do just that! Towards the end of the workout he had me in plank position - my arms felt weak, my legs shaking, my core muscles struggling to hold me up! A goal of mine is to create inner strength, to be able to hold my own weight, do push ups and pull ups! Just when I wanted to give up, or my mind I should say, Ryan reminded me that it is a completely mental challenge and said "The more you do the easier it gets, the easier it gets the more you will do." I did three sets of the plank and held the last one for 2 minutes! - it's been years since I held for that long! Actually I cannot even remember the last time I had. I usually hold for a minute - but having him there with me today to say "There is no quitting, it's all mental, your body can't even feel it" kept me going. I remembered that our minds have the capability to tell us if we can or if we can't - and in that moment I had chosen to think 'Yes I can!'.

Giving up was not an option and Ryan said 'It will be worse to give up now, you may as well go all the way'!

The experience of going beyond mind like that is one of courage, love and respect towards oneself. Today I was able to stretch my instrument - my body. I wonder how much further it can go?!!! It's challenges like these that make you go beyond the norm. Imagine if you did one challenge a day where you really pushed yourself.

Bernice Johnson Reagon said “Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are.” and today I discovered that here I am and there is my mind - I can choose to be which ever and what ever way I choose.

Like it or not, if you look at your own mind you will discover it is void and groundless; as insubstantial as empty space.

If your mind tells you that you can't do it - good news - you are NOT your mind! He who is able, thinks he is able ;)

What is it that binds you?
You are not bound by any chains now.
Is it just the thought that you are bound that binds you?
Mental chains can only be broken by mental effort.
-Zed-

"The more you do the easier it gets, the easier it gets the more you will do." Ryan Thiel - Personal Trainer

Big Al’s Family Fitness
104 Merrick Rd. Amityville, NY 11701
E-Mail: rtatbigalsfamilyfitness@yahoo.com

Challenges: Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much
as your own unguarded thoughts.

Triumphs: Rewarding my self with a relaxing sauna and a large creamy avocado after my body challenge!!! Mmm divine :)

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: A grapefruit and orange juice! mmm!

Food fest 2: Avocado.

Food fest 3: Another avocado!

Food fest 4: Spicy Green Salad! Mmm! Perfect for my savoury craving I had all day! Ingredients: green chilli, spring onion, garlic, ginger, lime juice, dash of himalayan salt and olive oil, coriander (cilantro), cubed cucumber, baby spinach and kale ripped into small bite size pieces, with hemp seeds and chia seeds for that nutty flavour! Mmm divine :) Mine was a little chilli tonight - felt like a great clean out ;)



Food fest 5: Pineapple.

Food fest 6: Blueberries!

Dessert on the couch ehehe!

Recipe: Recipe for the Spicy Green will be available on www.theearthdiet.org and also in The Earth Diet book available this November!

Exercise: A gym workout challenge with Ryan Thiel! Exercising my instrument today in all new ways ;)

And jumping on the beach at sunset

128 days to go!!!

Carob-Almond-Banana Smoothie

Almond milk smoothie with carob and banana.

It's the little things in life. So they say. And today I would agree- wholeheartedly, in fact, with every rebel piece of my dairy-free chocolate verboten heart. The heart that beats without the comfort of gluten, without the silky swirl of cream, without the sexy burn of Tapatio sauce and raw red onion. The heart that misses Penne Arrabiata and roasted tomato salsa. The pragmatic heart that now beats on a mission, to quell this monkey gut of mine long enough to heal a stubborn duodenal ulcer.

And that is why, Babycakes, no chocolate will grace my tongue. Or peppermint tea (which I drank by the gallon to calm said monkey gut). Apparently chocolate and mint exacerbate little things like hiatal hernias. And, oh yeah. Holes in your duodenum. 

The things you learn. Better late than never.

Read more + get the recipe >>

Gluten-Free Blueberry Crumb Cake Recipe

Blueberry crumb cake- gluten-free summer goodness.

Coffee cake for the road.

Sometimes in life- when you least expect it- the stars are kind. Synchronicity smiles. And disparate pieces of your dreams bump up against one another and nestle snug into place. I'm referring, of course, to my dream of California. Summer by the Pacific, walking the beach, shopping the Farmers' Market, reuniting with my sons. Cooking. Writing. Haunting book stores and coffee shops.

I've been trying to get there for two years.

No, the house hasn't sold yet. But Plan B is under way. We found the elusive summer rental. Just when I thought it wasn't going to happen. A sublet in Santa Monica. In the nick of time. A lovely, light filled creative space. With a sweet kitchen. So I am back to making lists, mapping our drive south to Flagstaff, AZ, turning west to aim for the coast. I am lying in the dark alert, at 3 AM, pondering not the mysteries of the collective unconscious, not the properties of desire and effect, quantum attraction and Zen detachment, but favorite flavors of chocolate chip cookies. I am imagining herbed sandwich wraps (recipe soon!). Bags of salted popcorn. iTunes playlists. And this, a new blueberry cake recipe I felt inspired to bake. With a cinnamon crumb topping.

I think it's perfect to pack for a two-day road trip, don't you? Or even a two minute trip, scooting across the back yard barefoot to visit your best friend and neighbor. She'll make the coffee. Or iced chai. While you unrap the cake you get to eat, too.

Read more + get the recipe >>

Day 236

Thoughts: Understanding calories. Don't stress, The Earth Diet is not a calorie counting diet! Once you understand the calories/energy it becomes second nature. Understanding calories thanks to Big Al's Family Fitness! :)

Calorie has become a household word, although exactly what a calorie does is a mystery to many. Ask one hundred people what a calorie is and most will tell you it is "the thing in food that makes me fat." Calories have gotten a bad reputation and are considered by many to be the enemy. Few people truly understand what a calorie is and why it is so important to their bodies.

By definition a calorie is the energy it takes to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water 1 degree Celsius. The important word to take away from this definition is ENERGY. Calories are ENERGY that fuel our bodies; much like gasoline fuels our cars. Without sufficient calories our heart would not beat, our lungs would not function, and our brain would not work. Many of us have no idea how many calories our body needs just to exist.

I never did - until today!!!

Today at Big Al's Family Fitness I met with Dr John Ruddy, the chiropractor (It is inclusive in the membership!) where he used advanced technology to determine a lot of things about my body.

This is what I found out!

-I am 23 years old and my current health age is 20.
-I weigh 120 Pounds - 54.5 kilos
-That 33.1 pounds (15 kilos) of me is fat
-86.9 Pounds (39.5 kilos) of me is Fat-free mass - bone, muscle, water
-23.1 Pounds (10.5 kilos) of me is lean dry mass - bone and muscle
-Inside my cells I have 16.4 litres of water!
-Outside my cells I have 12.5 litres of water!
-I have 27.6% body fat
-BMI (body mass index) is 19.37

-My basal metabolic rate is 1357 kcal! Which means my body burns 1357 calories without doing anything - so that's how much my body regularly burns.

-That the more muscle I have the more my basal metabolic rate increases and the more I can eat!

-Every 1 pound (.45 kilos) of muscle I gain, I can eat 50 more calories per day with my metabolism eating it right up ;)

My goal is to gain 10 pounds (4.5 kilos) of muscle and bring my body fat % down from 27.6 to 20-23%. This means my basal metabolic rate would be 1857 per day! That's a lot of yummy foods woo woo!

After discovering my basal metabolic rate at current is 1357, I wanted to find out exactly how much I could eat with my bodies metabolism completely doing all the work for me.

I looked at what I ate today:

Orange Juice:
-3 oranges 44 x 3 = 132 calories

Nectarines:
-3 x 30 = 90 calories

Avocado Sweet and Spicy Salad:
-Avocado (160 grams) 330 calories
-Garlic 27 calories
-Onion 10 calories
-Kale 4 calories
-Spinach 7 calories
-Cucumber 3 calories
-Ginger 7 calories
-Dates 54 calories
-Lime 9 calories
Total: 451 calories

Total calories for the day: 673 calories!

When I calculate yesterdays calories:

-2 avocados : 380 calories
-3 orange juice : 132 calories
-2 nectarines : 60 calories
-macadamia nuts : 1540 calories
-1 avocado : 190 calories
-blackberries : 52 calories
-pineapple : 42 calories

Total calories for yesterday: 2396 calories!

Calories and Weight Gain
If you exceed the number of calories your body requires each day you will eventually gain weight. It takes an excess of 3500 calories to gain 1 lb. of fat. For example, if your body needs 2000 calories a day to maintain its current weight and every day you consume 2500 (one 20 oz Mocha Swirl Latte could add 500 calories) in one week you would gain 1 lb. One day of overindulging does not cause instant weight gain.

Yesterday I consumed 2396 calories and today 673. Over the past two days I consumed 3069 calories. If I were to spread those calories out evenly over the past two days I would have 1534.5 each day. Since my basal metabolic rate is 1357 kcal I would require a little exercise and I would maintain my weight. If I did no exercise I would store those extra 177.5 calories as fat on my body. Obviously if I ate less then my metabolic weight I would burn fat.

Calories and Weight Loss
To lose weight you need to use/burn more calories then you consume. Example: If you eat 2000 calories a day, and are maintaining your weight, you would need to burn 250 calories (30 minutes high impact aerobics for a 150 lb. person) per day to lose a 1/2 lb in one week. If, in addition, you decreased your caloric intake by 250 calories a day (a 20oz soda), a 500 calorie a day total deficit, you could then lose 1 lb per week.

Calorie restriction has been shown to promote longevity. People think calorie restriction involves tiny portions, but these people are eating huge amounts of low-calorie, nutrient-dense food. The Earth Diet is eating all whole foods naturally created by the earth which are low-calorie nutrient dense food - so the good news - you can eat!!!

I realized that people on The Earth Diet can eat more foods as they high lower calories and are higher in nutrients. People that eat processed foods compared to Earth Dieters have to eat less if they want to maintain or lose weight. I have certainly dropped some weight since eating 100% raw foods. My last test which was in April, I weighed 131 pounds with 35% body fat. I lost 11 pounds of fat and 5% body fat effortlessly. If you enjoy eating like I do, the more whole raw foods you eat the less calories they have so you can eat and eat and eat! Processed foods are high in calories and so you have to eat less of them - unless you want to put on weight.

My goal is to be consistent with my health and food consumption. I am creating it so I will eat the same amount of calories each day, extra obviously if I am doing exercise.

Don't go too crazy with calorie counting!
I will not be calculating my calorie intake each day. After a few weeks of getting to know the calories for each thing I eat, I will lock it into my memory and each time I eat food I will know a rough estimate of the calories I am consuming. I will also gauge where my body is at, and if more calories are required or less to ensure smooth consistent health!

If you want to find out your metabolic rate contact Big Al's Family Fitness at www.bigalsfamilyfitness.com or call 631 264 711

Challenges: What you eat cannot purify your mind - but is there greed behind your choice of eating? If yes the mind that eats is not pure.

Triumphs: If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your own path.

What I Ate Today:

Food fest 1: Freshly squeezed orange juice!

Food fest 2: A white flesh nectarine.

My favourite summer fruit; white flesh nectarines!

Food fest 3: 2 more white flesh nectarine - beautiful and sweet!

Food fest 4: Avocado sweet and spicy salad. It is Andrew and I's favourite salad - a little spicy, a little sweet, avocado is the meet, so many herbs and flavours mmm mmm mmm! Ingredients: Kale and coriander (cilantro) from our garden, baby spinach, avocado, garlic, spring onion, lemon grass, ginger, dates, green chilli, coriander seeds, cucumber and freshly squeezed lime mmm mmm mmm!



Recipe: The recipe for Avocado Sweet and Spicy Salad can be found on The Earth Diet website www.theearthdiet.org and will also be in The Earth Diet book being released in November!

Exercise: Practicing thinking nice thoughts about myself and being in the space of gratitude. Listening; listening to the birds. Physically: I went to Big Al's Family Fitness and climbed some stairs, did some ab work and some squats with weights, then sweat it all out in the sauna! Beautiful way to start the day ;) I then rode my bike today all over Amityville!

129 days to go!!!

Visit: www.theearthdiet.org
A list of foods and calories: www.patchett.ca/food/calories/cal_fruit_nut.html
Calorie information thanks to: www.superkidsnutrition.com