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What To Do If You Fall Asleep During Meditation

  Do you every fall asleep during meditation? If so, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Even advanced practitioners do it, even monks-in-training do it 🙂

When I first started meditating, falling asleep about 10 minutes in to my session was pretty standard for me. Some of it was because I just wasn’t sleeping enough in general, but most of it was because my mind was so used to racing around that when I gave it the chance to slow down it just shut down because it didn’t know what else to do.

These days, I still doze off occasionally. But now when I fall asleep I don’t try to fight it so much because after a few nods off, I really start to notice that feeling of dozing as it approaches, as well as that feeling of being jolted awake when I start to tip over on my cushion. I explore the texture of the feeling a bit and become aware of it. And then the feeling just goes away naturally, and I’ll have gained a tiny bit of insight into what was going on with my mind during that session.

That being said, there are definitely some tips that I’ve learned over the years to work with dozing during meditation, both as it’s happening and in general. I shared these tips in this article for mindbodygreen. I hope it helps you. Please let me know!

What To Do If You Fall Asleep During Meditation

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Why Eating Local & Organic is Better for Your Health and the Planet

This Saturday is Earth Day, and what better way to celebrate than to look out how we can contribute to the well-being of our planet with the choices we make everyday? Eating organic and local benefits the environment in a number of ways, and it just so happens that it is also good for our own personal well-being, so it’s a win-win!

First let’s look at the effects of eating organic.

Organic food is better for the soil, air and water. Pollution from non-organic farming harms not only humans, but also birds, bees and animals. Organic produce contains very few pesticides that can harm your health and in some studies have been shown to contain higher amounts of nutrients. Organic animal products do not contain growth hormones and antibiotics. Consuming antibiotics in animals contributes to antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria that are then harder to cure.

Organic foods are not grown from GMO (genetically modified organisms) seeds. Although though there is little scientific evidence that GMO foods are categorically harmful for humans, there is some evidence that glyphosate, an herbicide called Roundup, can be harmful. This weed killer pesticide is used on corn and soybeans grown from seeds that are genetically modified to survive glyphosate spray. That being said, there are some genetic modifications used to breed other crops, for example larger or sweeter apples, that may not cause harm.

Read more about what to look for when buying organic and non-GMO in our previous blogpost here.

Why buy “local”?

When you buy directly from farmers at your local farmers market, you become an empowered shopper. You can ask the farmers how their foods are grown, what type of seeds are used, if the animals such as cows and chickens are humanely raised (cage free, pasture raised, grass or grain fed). Even if crops are not “certified organic” do they use pesticides? Keep in mind that organic certification is expensive and not all small farmers bother to get this even if they do not use herbicides and pesticides in growing.

Buying local is also better for the environment:

Poultry and livestock raised by small farms generally result in fewer health and environmental impacts. Large AFOs (animal feeding operations that cannot even be called farms at this point) for the most part disregard animal welfare, rely on chemicals, medicines and hormones that pollute the environment.

Your carbon footprint is smaller if you eat what is in season from local sources rather than from sources that need to be transported from thousands of miles away. Also the longer the time between picked to table, the more nutrients are lost.

Shopping at a farmers market or with a CSA (Community-Supported Agriculture), you can get “farm to table” produce that is usually picked at the peak of ripeness and within a day of sale. A CSA consists of one or more farmers and many individual purchasers who pledge financial support for the farming operation, sometimes by subscribing to purchase vegetables throughout the growing season. This not only affects your carbon footprint but also your taste buds – those super-fresh fruits and veggies really do taste better and are at their peak nutrient level!

Local foods promote a safer food supply and reduce waste. The more steps between you and the source of your food, the more chance for contamination and spoilage. The potential for contamination happens during harvesting, washing, shipping and distribution. According to the NRDC, 40% of food produced in the US is wasted. This spans the entire life cycle of the food, from farming procedures to how we throw away foods in our homes, but food lost or spoiled in transport is a meaningful part of that. One estimate shows that 1 in 7 truckloads of perishables delivered to supermarkets is thrown away. This food obviously could be going to feed millions of hungry people in the US, and this wastage also uses up water, chemicals, energy and land.

Farmers who produce for local markets have the freedom and demand to produce a greater variety of produce and livestock, promoting biodiversity and soil health. In a mega-industrial agriculture system, less variety is grown and only fruits & veggies that are specifically bred to survive packing transport are offered.

Local foods help build communities—at CSAs, farmers markets, farms and gardens. Farmers as well as like-minded customers all come together around growing, buying and cooking local foods. Buying local also supports the local economy and local farms, helping them to stay viable in a world dominated by large food behemoths.

Although I am an advocate of buying local for all of the above reasons, there are some disadvantages. The main reason people don’t buy local is because it is more expensive and less convenient than shopping at a grocery store. In reality, it costs more for the local farmer to grow produce or livestock than large grocery store providers, so they do charge more. In terms of convenience, shopping is limited to market or CSA days and to spring and summer season in colder climates. Buying from the farmers market usually means going to additional stores to pick up other groceries and household staples.

Overall, I’d say buy local and be adventurous as much as you can given your budget and circumstances. Some stores like Whole Foods do make a point to buy from farmers that are local to each store, so seek out those products when possible. Try new vegetables that are locally in season. Be curious about how and where your produce is grown and how animals are treated and fed. Be an informed consumer and be aware of how you can take care of yourself and take care of the planet.

–Lea

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Product Review: Happy Campers Cravin' Raisin Cinnamon Spice Gluten-Free Bread

Natural Factor 5/5

Taste Factor 2/5

Fullness Factor 3/5

Overall Rating 3/5

Macros (per serving): Total Fat: 2g / Total Carbs: 39g / Protein: 4g

Good with: Toasted with butter, or in french toast.

Other Flavors: Classy Slice, Hemp Hemp Hooray, Super Bread, Stampin’ Good Seedy Buckwheat Molasses

Why We Love It: Unfortunately, we didn’t love it as much as we wanted to. The slice itself was small – smaller even than a slice of Udi’s, and the first few bites tasted great once toasted. But after the first few bites the graininess of the texture got in the way of the flavor. And it was graininess like sand rather than like grain that is typically in bread, possibly from the pea protein that is in there. We love the ingredients though – the first ingredients are all organic ancient grains and there’s even inulin and psyllium husk for extra fiber and pea protein for protein. It’s also made in a dedicated gluten-free facility, making it safe for celiacs and those with severe allergies.

Meet the Makers: Based in the Portland, OR, Happy Campers was founded in 2011 by married couple Jan and Lacy, two outdoors-loving healthy bakers who started Happy Campers as a school project, then continued after both receiving diagnoses of gluten intolerance. Their mission is to provide delicious healthy bread that is free from gluten, wheat, dairy, egg, soy, sugar, rice, and corn. www.happycampersgf.com

Fun Fact:  Jan’s last name, Taborsky, means “camper” in his native Czech.

Certifications:

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Why Do We Crave Sugar?

These days sugar seems like the bad guy in almost every story about health or medical conditions. The average American consumes 22 teaspoons of sugar per day, four times the amount recommended by the World Health Organization.

From diabetes to weight loss, most diets recommend a decrease in sugar consumption. But that can be easier said than done. Much easier. There is something about sugar that is addictive for most of us, and those cravings we get for sweet things can be as powerful as if we had fallen under a spell.

The good news (or bad news, depending on how you look at it) is that there are actual scientific reasons that we crave sugar. Our bodies and brains need carbohydrates to function, it’s just a matter of not overdoing it. Rather than beating ourselves up for those cravings, let’s look at the actual theories out there and maybe we can be a bit more understanding to ourselves.

1. Stress

Stress-eating is something that affects many of us – eating to push away a negative feeling or fill a void. When we’re experiencing short term stress (i.e. an immediate threat), our adrenaline levels go up and our appetite decreases. Think: being chased by a tiger or almost getting into a car accident. Not usually times when we think of eating.

However, long-term chronic stress is a different story. Persistent stress causes the release of the hormone cortisol, which increases appetite and sugar cravings. Stimulated by stress, the increase in cortisol raises blood sugar levels needed for a “fight or flight” reaction. Then carb and sugar cravings kick in to replenish the body’s used up glucose, and a vicious cycle is created.

In addition to cortisol fluctuations, neurotransmitters that are sensitive to stress may also play a role. In both human and animal studies, cravings for high fat and high sugar foods often kick in when we are stressed or anxious. Carbohydrates (and sugar) boost our levels of the “feel good” neurotransmitters serotonin, dopamine and endorphins that improve mood and ease anxiety.

Once a sugar “fix” works a few times, our brains then begin to make the connection that sugar makes us feel good. There is even research that shows that in times of stress, sugary and fatty foods inhibit brain activity in the areas of the brain that produce and process stress, therefore creating an association between sugary/fatty foods and temporary stress relief .

2. The Type of Sugar You Eat

The type of sugar that you eat may influence what you crave next. Glucose blunts hunger signals whereas fructose increases hunger. Many carbohydrates (e.g. table sugar, fruits and vegetables) are combinations of glucose and fructose. Fructose is found in concentrated amounts in high fructose corn syrup and agave. Grains contain glucose but no fructose. The take away message? Eat whole foods, particularly whole grains, more often than sugary foods.

Also, using artificial sweeteners may actually increase your sugar craving. It is thought that sugar substitutes may perpetuate your sweet tooth merely by being sweet.

3. How Much Protein Do You Eat?

Another theory about sugar cravings is that you are not eating enough protein or your body is not digesting protein properly (for example due to low stomach acid). Eating enough protein helps to sustain your blood sugar over a longer period of time, avoiding a blood sugar crash which can result in the biological response of a carbohydrate craving.

4. Your Stomach

One of the newer theories about food cravings is that your gut bacteria sends signals to your nervous and endocrine system, prompting you to eat food that contains the nutrient the bacteria needs, often being sugar. If you have an imbalance of “good bacteria” vs “bad bacteria” in your digestive tract, the bad bacteria could be causing the craving for sugar and sweets to feed on. If this is the case, consider taking a probiotic supplement or eating more probiotic-rich foods (e.g. sauerkraut, kefir, yogurt, kimchi).

5. Evolution

Yes you read that right, evolution! This theory states that your sugar craving may be just a natural part of human evolution. Millions of years ago, our ape ancestors survived on high-sugar fruit. It provided not just energy but was effective in storing fat. Later on, humans (for example in the Paleolithic era) had a better chance of survival and passing on their genes if they were able to store more fat from less food. That magical combination was present in sugary foods like fruit. The problem is that today, we don’t have a shortage of food or sweets, but have inherited the evolutionary craving.

HOW TO COUNTERACT SUGAR CRAVINGS

1. Pay attention to the cause of your cravings to determine whether they’re from physical hunger, dyspepsia or are stress and emotional related. If you think your cravings may be stress related, the logical approach is to deal with your stress. Meditation, exercise, and getting enough sleep are all helpful for reducing stress-related food cravings. Also try these tips for avoiding stress-eating.

2. Eat enough healthy, nutrient-rich food so that you are not hungry. Eat 3 regular meals a day and several snacks if needed. Include whole grains, fruits, vegetables, fiber, protein and healthy fats (omega-3 fats, nuts, olives, avocado). Eat low glycemic with green vegetables, lentils, beans and fiber rich whole grains. Don’t skip meals. All this will help maintain healthy blood sugar levels.

3. Some micronutrients are known to help curb sugar cravings. Zinc, Vitamin C, Tyrosine and Niacin help in releasing serotonin to curb the cravings. Food sources of zinc include oysters, crab, and beef. Vitamin C is found in citrus fruit and strawberries. Niacin is in fortified cereals and fatty fish.

4. Drink a glass of water. It will fill your stomach and help you know if you are hungry or dehydrated or you have an upset stomach.

5. Have healthy snacks on hand. Keep unhealthy and sugary snack foods out of the house. If you suspect that your sugar cravings are linked to blood sugar fluctuations, eat meals and snacks containing a balance of whole grain and unprocessed carbs, higher fiber foods, protein and healthy fats.

If you find yourself eating too much sugar, be gentle with yourself, let go of the guilt and keep trying. As you can see from the above, many causes of sugar cravings are not within our immediate control. But that doesn’t mean how we respond to these is out of our control. The best thing we can do is to nourish our body with healthy foods and to develop true compassion towards ourselves.

Lea Basch is a registered dietitian and has been in the nutrition industry for over 30 years, most of which she spent at Longmont United Hospital in Boulder, Colorado, where she was one of the founders of the facility’s nutrition program. Longmont’s Planetree philosophy of caring for the body, mind and spirit of patients is very much in line with Lea’s interest in both traditional and alternative therapies for treating chronic illnesses. Gluten-intolerant herself, Lea now focuses much of her time on the latest research and issues relating to gluten-free diets and other food intolerances. She is a diabetes educator and is a Registered Dietitian with the American Dietetic Association. Lea’s lifelong passion has been combining the science of nutrition with the heart that it takes to change lifelong habits.

Lea received her BS and MS in Nutrition and Dietetics at Florida International University and BA in Education at University of Florida. Ask Lea your nutrition questions at DearLea@tastefulpantry.com

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Product Review: P-Nuff Crunch

Natural Factor 3/5

Taste Factor 4/5

Fullness Factor 3/5

Overall Rating 3/5

Macros (per serving): Total Fat: 6g / Total Carbs: 17g / Protein: 5g

Good with: Straight out of the bag.

Other Flavors: None.

Why We Love It: Anyone who loves the combination of salty and sweet in a snack will love these puffs. They’re crispy, light, and are just a little salty and a little sweet. The peanut flavor is very present but not overpowering. The first ingredient is navy beans, adding another source of protein in addition to the peanuts. The reason it didn’t get a 5/5 on the Taste Factor is because there was a limit to how many I felt I could eat – after about 6 puffs I had had enough and distinctly did not want more. Maybe because it wasn’t salty enough or sweet enough to trigger that craving sensation.

Meet the Makers: Based in the West Orange, NJ, P-Nuff was founded in 2015 by Juan Salinas, leading sports nutritionist with a PhD ins food science. After spending 20 years working in product development for several of the nation’s top food companies, he slowly grew disheartened by the food industry’s deception of the word, “healthy”. Although his well-known products graced the shelves of every grocery chain in the U.S., they lacked in what Dr. Juan truly believed in. He then developed P-Nuff as a snack that contained healthy transparent ingredients and that would provide active nutrition with every ingredient. www.pnuff.com

Fun Fact:  The peanut protein in P-nuff Crunch contain high levels of BCAA (Branched Chain Amino Acids). BCAAs are important because they are metabolized in the muscle and therefore provide quick energy to the working muscles and reduces muscle breakdown.

Certifications:

None.

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Gluten-Free Flour Alternatives

Valentine’s Day is almost here, and we can feel the love in the air. There is a special aura around this day (whether you celebrate it or not) and we love to feel the love in our hearts AND in our stomachs. But instead of eating unhealthy desserts filled with gluten that will leave us bloated with a food baby, we’re looking into flour alternatives that still give a great taste and texture. Many gluten-free recipes may call for a blend of these flours, but here we’ll give you the (honest) down low on our opinions about each flour so you can understand the different components of your recipe. Read on!

Almond flour. Almond flour is high in protein, healthy fats and fiber, low in sugar, and one of our favorite gluten free flours. It is moist and easy to work with, and bakes similar to wheat or white flour. It works well in anything from pancakes to biscuits, and is great in both sweet and savory baked goods. One of our favorite brands is King Arthur, so try some with these heart shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day!

Brown Rice Flour. Brown rice flour is pretty much a staple in gluten free baking. You will find rice flour used a lot in pizza crusts and savory dishes. It’s high in fiber, vitamin B, protein and iron, however it can be a bit grainy at times, and is higher in carbohydrates than the other flours. You can also use it to thicken sauces, or coat fish. Bob’s Red Mill produces our favorite brand, and we can’t get enough of it! One of our favorite brown rice flour recipes are these gluten free brownies!

Tapioca Flour. Also known as tapioca starch, is the starch extracted from the cassava root. It is used as a binding agent, and acts like gluten in many baking mixtures. We love that it has a naturally sweet taste, and love to use it to make waffles! The downside is it’s an extract, and so is slightly more highly processed than other flours. It also usually isn’t used in a recipe by itself, and best when mixed with another flour.  

Coconut Flour. We already know the benefits of coconut, so why not incorporate it into your desserts? Coconut flour is finely ground dried coconut meat, and is pretty low on the glycemic index. It has a rich flavor that resembles coconut without a strong coconut flavor. Because of its high fiber content, it absorbs a lot of liquid, and could leave desserts a bit dry and crumbly. When baking with coconut flour, be sure to use enough liquid, or egg to ensure it will hold together and be moist. It typically isn’t the only flour used in recipes, and is usually paired with tapioca flour or almond flour. What’s our favorite recipe? Chocolate cake of course!

Garbanzo Bean Flour, aka Chickpea Flour. Now you may be thinking, “isn’t this what’s used to make hummus?” Yes, you’re right. But due to its versatility, it can also be ground into flour and used for gluten free baking! It’s high in protein, fiber and iron, and works well with strong flavors like chocolate and pumpkin. Try out these raisin spice muffins!

Often, many of these flours are combined to form an ultimately tasty and moist baked good! Many companies like Cup4Cup sell packaged flour mixes to take all of the hard work out for you and to allow you to replace regular wheat flour in a recipe on a 1-to-1 ratio! And if you would like to combine flours yourself, you can do so and make something delicious like this gluten free pizza. We definitely urge you to experiment with these flours to achieve the ultimate texture and taste of your choice. After all, the best part of experimenting is getting to eat the finished product!

What gluten free flour is your favorite?

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A Truly Green Smoothie

Sometimes you just need a little greenness to help you feel cleansed and reinvigorated! This often happens to me the day after a heavy dinner, or when I just feel I want a simple healthy snack in between meals. Smoothies also make a great breakfast on the go on pre-workout energizer! However, watch out for a common smoothie recipe trap of overusing fruit juice, sorbets or sweetened yogurts, which creates a high carb and sugar beverage – a 16-20 oz fruit-based smoothie can contain 500 or more calories!! Also if you’re going to buy a smoothie or green juice, watch out for those bottles that look green but actually just contain a tiny bit of green veggies and a lot of the above sweeteners. One trick that some manufacturers have taken advantage of is that a little bit of green veggie turns the whole drink green, so it’s hard to tell how green it really is just by looking at it.

The recipe below contains LOTS of yummy greens, as well as a bit of lemon and peanut butter for healthy fat and protein (and a little bit of sweetness). The kale provides an anti-inflammatory effect (as well as lots of other nutrients), the romaine provides adrenal support, the celery helps regulate body temperature, the lemon helps detox and provide vitamin C, and the coconut water provides a natural source of electrolytes. You can also add in some chia seeds for some extra fiber, protein and antioxidants…plus they’ll add some thickness to the texture! Just soak them in a bit of water for at least 10 minutes to hydrate them before adding them to your smoothie.

Ingredients (1 serving): 2 cups curly kale 1 cup romaine lettuce 1 celery stalk The juice from 1/4 lemon (microwave just before squeezing for ease of squeeze) 1 tablespoon peanut butter or peanut butter powder (for ease of blending) 1 cup coconut water (you can use more depending on how thick you want your smoothie to be) Optional: 1 tablespoon chia seeds

After washing your veggies thoroughly, add all the ingredients into the blender (or food processor) and blend to your desired consistency. Stir in your hydrated chia seeds last. You can also thin out your smoothie by adding more coconut water, or thicken it with more chia seeds. Enjoy!

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A Dietitian's Favorite Spring Fruits & Veggies

These days, it may seem that you can get any produce at any time of the year—grapes from Chile in December, strawberries from Florida in February, tomatoes grown year-round in hot houses. Eating seasonally, though, can help you eat local foods, reduce your carbon footprint, save money and the biggest bonus of all—fresh food is more nutritious and tastes better! Produce starts to lose nutrients and flavor after picking so the sooner it is eaten, the more nutritious and tasty, plus when produce travels long distances there is the chance of quality degradation and spoilage.

Growing seasons vary region to region throughout the world and if you live in a cold winter climate you may still want to opt for some tropical fruits and warmer climate veggies, but eating mostly in season is good for you and good for the planet.

Spring is a great time to boost your seasonal eating! My personal goal is to choose what is in season at my local farmers market and supplement with a few tropical items that I can’t do without. Here are my top 9 Spring fruits and veggies:

Cauliflower is a good source of vitamin C, vitamin K, fiber, antioxidants and folate. Cauliflower recipes these days are plentiful, and gluten-free cauliflower pizza is a tasty way to use cauliflower. You can also very simply roast a whole head of cauliflower – just wrap it up in foil with lots of garlic and drizzle with your favorite oil and salt and pepper.

Scallions and green onions are a fresh change from the onions I have been using all fall and winter. Scallions have the same anti-oxidants as garlic and the rest of the allium family, they’re good for your heart, blood pressure and they also contain vitamins A,C, and K. These Korean green onion pancakes showcase green onions nicely.

Artichokes are a good source of iron, potassium, folate vitamin C, fiber and magnesium. Never cooked fresh artichokes before? I love eating roasted artichokes as a healthy snack instead of chips or popcorn – just stuff a bunch of garlic in between the leaves, drizzle with oil, salt and pepper, wrap in 2 layers of foil, and roast at 425 degrees for about 1 hour!

Asparagus, whether white, purple or green, are a good source of Iron, B vitamins, vitamins C and K as well as a prebiotic that feeds your healthy gut bacteria. Check out the Food Lab for shopping and cooking tips and try this recipe for Asparagus Artichoke Mushroom Saute.

Snap peas and snow peas. Snap peas are high in vitamins C and K, snow peas feature vitamin c, iron and manganese. To get a nutrient wallop from 2 kinds of peas try fresh green peas and snap peas in sesame dressing.

Rainier cherries from the northwest are my favorite kind. Cherries have great anti-inflammatory nutrients from anthocyanin, an antioxidant found in red and purple produce. Both Bing and Rainier cherries start their harvest season in May!

Strawberries are at their peak in April. Just 1 cup of these delicious berries meets 100% of your daily Vitamin C needs. I love this Strawberry basil macademia nut salad from Reboot with Joe.

Apricots are a late spring harvest fruit that contain beta-carotene, vitamin C and potassium.

Herbs. Spring brings a burst of flavors with herbs like parsley, mint, tarragon, cilantro, and chives. Garlic scapes, the stalks that grow from garlic bulbs, come into season in late Spring / early Summer. You can eat them raw or cooked, and use them just as you would garlic, but a milder sweeter version.

MORE ON VEGGIES

Veggies like fennel, beets, kohlrabi, cauliflower and broccoli thrive in the colder temperatures of Fall and mature in early Spring. Spring is also the perfect time to up your salad intake! Spring greens like butter lettuce, red lettuce, watercress, arugula (aka rocket) and radicchio add a mix of flavors to my salad bowl. Leafy greens like these, as well as spinach, chard, and kale tend to bolt, or flower, and become bitter after spring when the weather gets too hot.

Quick-growing veggies like radishes and rhubarb are ready to pick in the Spring. Fabulous, fun watermelon radishes, aka heirloom Chinese Daikon radishes, resemble a watermelon when sliced. They are used in this Green Goddess salad created by Heather Cristo along with other spring veggies like pea shoots, green onions, peas, and parsley.

MORE ON FRUITS

In warmer climates such as in Florida, Arizona, Texas and Southern California, citrus – grapefruits, oranges, lemons – as well as kiwifruit, mangoes, strawberries and kumquats, grow all Winter so are available through Spring. They are all high in vitamin C and in addition, mangoes are high in vitamin A and kiwifruit in vitamin E and potassium.

–Lea

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10 Everyday Mindfulness Practices

Mindfulness and meditation go together like muscles and strength-training. Mindfulness is an attribute we exercise during meditation, and meditation is a practice (I believe the best practice) to cultivate mindfulness. However the rubber really meets the road when we can bring that mindfulness off the meditation cushion and into our everyday lives. Mindfulness doesn’t have to be limited just to the times we can set aside to meditate at home or at the local meditation center. We can start to blur the boundary between our practice and our lives, living more and more in the present moment and appreciating the richness in the world around us.

So how do we do that? We can actually bring mindfulness to EVERYTHING we do, but it can be tough to remember to stay mindful every second. So we can try setting our intention to do a few specific activities mindfully, and to use them as reminders to come back to ourselves, to come home. Below are my favorite activities to practice mindfulness with.

Eating. Admittedly this is probably #1 because eating is one of my favorite things to do. It involves all 5 senses, and the senses are great really simple tools to help us tune in to what’s going on now rather than getting lost in the past or worrying about the future. Eating gives us smells, textures, and tastes to play with, to bring us back to our bodies. It’s also something we often do with other people, so if we can be mindful when we’re eating, maybe we can bring some of that mindfulness into our interactions with other people. Eating is something many of us do automatically and mindlessly, so bringing mindfulness to this activity can truly enrich our eating experience and our everyday lives.

Walking. At Shambhala, every session of meditation alternates sitting meditation with walking meditation. When we stand up off the cushion and start to move through the room as part of our meditation, we take a step closer to bringing our meditation into our everyday lives. If you like, you can try bringing your attention to the soles of your feet as you take each step, again bringing yourself back to the present moment through your body and senses. Try this when any time you’re walking – you don’t even have to slow down your pace, you can just flash on the bottoms of your feet!

Looking at the sky. Our connection to the earth and nature can make us feel small and infinite at the same time. Whether we’re looking at a sky full of stars or at the clouds on a grey day, looking up, even just for a minute, can connect us to something larger than ourselves and help us approach our situation from another view that is expansive and open.

Washing dishes. I’m not joking. This is actually an amazing one and is similar to eating mindfully in that there are many senses at play when we wash the dishes – we can feel the warmth of the water, the smell of the soap, the sound of the running water. These are all ways to come back to our bodies and to bring some space and relaxation to a normally mundane task. It’s also a great lesson in impermanence – how soon after we wash the dishes are they dirty again? How often do situations that we thought we fixed shift again? Maybe there’s a theme here 😉

Transitions. I recently attended a meditation retreat where the teacher reminded us to be mindful as we stood up from the meditation cushion. This was a great practice because it created a fresh start of sorts when we reached standing, and from there it was easier to maintain that sense of mindfulness as we walked out of the meditation hall and into our lives. Every time we make a transition, from sitting to standing, from standing to walking, from walking to running, we’re giving ourselves a chance for a fresh start!

Rolling out of bed. This is our first transition of the day and doesn’t require any additional work! We’re gonna roll out of bed no matter what, right? So why not pay attention to our bodies as we do? Many bodyworkers advise rolling onto your side then swinging your legs out of bed first, instead of sitting upright in bed then getting out. The rolling way is much easier on your back, and it just feels more gentle and easy. So as you remind yourself to roll, I invite you to just flash on your entire body and check in with how you’re feeling before you rush into your day.

Creative endeavors. Creativity isn’t just for art (although art is a wonderful direct way to experience creativity) – you can exercise creativity in business, in parenting, even in driving. To me, the common thread is a sense of space and getting out of your own way to allow outside-the-box experiences to arise. When we’re being creative, we have an opportunity let go and to tune into what’s going on right now in our environment, rather than being stuck inside our own heads.

Waiting, waiting, waiting. In line at the grocery store, in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, on the freeway in traffic. When we’re “stuck” in one of these situations, we can use this as an opportunity to practice. We can notice what our minds automatically start to do –  do we get fidgety, impatient, start to make lists or complaint letters in our heads? As soon as you notice, you can then come back to the connection between your body and the earth – if you’re standing in line it’s through your feet, if you’re sitting it’s your bottom on the chair.

Drinking coffee or tea. There is something oddly calming and nourishing about drinking hot drinks, even if you’re drinking them to wake up. And because they’re hot, you HAVE to be mindful as you take your first sip to make sure you don’t burn your tongue! So use it as an opportunity to slow down, back up, and just breathe.

Confrontations. This one may be the most interesting one to wrap your head around. When we encounter difficult situations with other people, whether it’s a sig-o, co-worker or even a stranger, the emotions that follow usually jolt us awake, right? Well what if we could use that jolt to our advantage? What if we could use it to remind ourselves to check in with what we’re feeling or fearing underneath the knee-jerk reaction? What if we could use it to remind ourselves that we’re all just doing our best at this being human thing? I was recently in a car accident (don’t worry, I’m ok, although my car isn’t so much), and if you’ve ever been in one, you know you get shocked out of your mind when it happens, even if it’s a minor accident. Rather than resorting to my initial reaction of wanting to blame the other party (it was in fact her fault) and make sure she admitted it, my mind and heart went to checking if she was ok and connecting with her as this other person who had experienced the same shock I just had. I don’t think that would have happened without my meditation practice and being on this path of mindfulness.

You really can apply mindfulness to everything you do in your life. The list above is just my favorites that you can use as specific reminders. If you’re new to this type of thing, I suggest you start with 1 or 2 of your favorites and commit to them, then you can add on. Let me know how it goes in the comments below!

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13 Surprising Uses for Citrus Peels

You’ve probably heard about all the health benefits of eating citrus fruits – oranges, lemons and grapefruit – including boosting immunity, healthy skin, decreasing risk of heart disease, cancer, anemia and even kidney stones. But did you know that the peels of citrus fruit also have a ton of vitamin C, riboflavin, B6, calcium, magnesium, fiber and potassium, as well as anti-inflammatory flavonoids? I’m not suggesting you go and make a meal of citrus peels – they’re bitter and difficult to digest – but there are other creative ways to use them in cooking and around the house to make use of their nutritional profile, save money, and limit your food waste.

Freeze or dry the zest. Many recipes call for a small amount of lemon or orange zest that don’t take up the whole fruit. But you can just use what you need now and save the rest for later. Preserve your zest by either freezing the extra in an ice cube tray, or you can dry it by leaving it out on a plate for a few days or toasting it in a 200 degree oven.

Add the dried peels to black tea or your favorite chai recipe.

Grind the citrus peels up and use as a vitamin C powder to add to smoothies or juice.

For extra flavor, add dried peels to meat braises or in the cavity when roasting a chicken.

Make your own lemon pepper seasoning with ground dried peels, a pinch of sea salt and ground pepper.

Make lemon oil. Use a grater or vegetable peeler to peel a thin layer of skin and add to coconut oil or olive oil for 2 weeks, then strain. Add garlic or fresh herbs for extra flavor!

Citrus peels are antibacterial and antimicrobial, making them great household cleaners. To make a general household cleaner, soak some lemon peel in white vinegar for 2 weeks, strain, then mix with water in a 50/50 ratio.

Clean your microwave naturally by cooking lemon peels in a bowl of water in your microwave for about 5 minutes, remove the bowl and wipe the surfaces clean.

To bring back the shine to chrome, stainless steel, copper or brass, pour salt, cream of tartar or baking soda over your surface and scrub using a lemon peel.

Use chopped citrus peel mixed with water to repel ants and other pests.

Citrus peels are also great for your skin! Just rub citrus peels on your skin to brighten and tone.

To soften dry elbows sprinkle a half lemon with baking soda and place your elbow in the lemon half and twist. Rinse and dry.

Make yourself a nice moisturizing foot soak by boiling citrus skins for 5 minutes, cooling and straining them, then adding them to 1/4 cup milk or almond milk and 2 Tb. Olive oil. Soak your feet for 20 minutes then pat dry.

Not only are citrus peels great for your body, skin and home, but using them also helps the environment by minimizing food waste. So next time you pick up a lemon, orange or grapefruit, use the list above to get the most out of your fruit!

Do you have a unique way you like to use citrus peels? Share in the comments below!

— Lea

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10 Awesome Winter Workouts

It’s winter and it’s cold, dark and wet outside. But that doesn’t mean your workout has to fall by the wayside. In fact, you may be surprised at how AMAZING you feel after a good sweat, and how it heats you to your core! The gym is of course an option for your winter workouts, but that can get real old, real fast. So what else can you do to keep things fun and lively?

The good news is that there are plenty of indoor non-traditional-gym workouts available, and if you search in the app store, you’ll be sure to find lots of exercise apps providing guided workouts. But there are also some outdoor workouts that you may want to give a try. Exercising in the cold burns slightly more calories since your metabolic rate increases to warm your body. The cold fresh air can also invigorate you, waking you up and stimulating your senses.

Below are my favorite indoor and outdoor winter workouts!

INDOORS

Spin. Well this one’s a no-brainer since I teach the stuff. But imagine this: a warm dark room with heart-pumping music and an already-choreographed ride led by a motivating instructor. There’s no planning or clothing layering involved, the only work you have to do is to throw yourself into the workout and sweat. You’ll forget that it’s freezing outside in no time. My average zero-to-sweat time is about 8 minutes.

Pilates. Talk about good pain. Pilates strengthens the muscles you’ve been wanting to strengthen (abs, quads, glutes?) and the ones you didn’t even know existed (why does it hurt when I sneeze?). I’m talking about pilates on a reformer machine here (mat pilates is also great but typically less intense), or in my case the PROformer machine which is like normal pilates on steroids. Pilates is also great for enhancing balance, flexibility and coordination.

Rock wall climbing. Looking to satisfy that adventurous spirit? Find an indoor rock climbing all and put your mind and body to the test at the same time. Strategize on the best placement for your hands and your feet while working your shoulders, arms, legs and back muscles!

Yoga. Here’s where you can really nurture your mind and body at the same time. With its original foundations in meditation, yoga gives you an opportunity to slow down and bring your attention to your breathing, while also working on strength and flexibility. There are many types of yoga classes that emphasize different elements of the practice (e.g. more or less focus on fitness), and different teachers have a big impact on how you connect with the class, so try a few different teachers and classes (there are online classes available too) and find one that suits your objectives and that you resonate with. Try a hot yoga class if you really want to counter that cold outside.

Dance-oriented classes. There are a number of dance-themed classes popping up in cities all over the US these days. My favorites are barre and zumba. Barre is similar to pilates in that it’s more of a strength-training workout and really gets your legs and core. Zumba is just pure fun cardio.

Indoor rowing. You don’t need to be outside in a cold river to experience the benefits of rowing. An indoor rowing session essentially combined a leg press with a dead lift with an upper body row so you’re truly getting a full body workout. Your speed and resistance determine how much of a cardio workout you get as well. Some gyms have indoor rowing classes where you can do this with other people in unison. And keep an eye out for the machines that actually have water in them. It sounds and feels like you’re actually on the water!

Interval training apps. As I mentioned above, there are lots of fitness apps in the App Store that provide a variety of workouts that you can do right at home. You may need to buy a few pieces of equipment but typically it’s not much. My favorite is the Nike+ Training app. The BBG (Bikini Body Guide) app is another recent hit.

OUTDOORS

Running. Yes it’s cold outside, but running is still a great option. Believe it or not, people tend to run faster, and therefore burn more calories, in the cold. You just need to prep a bit more than you do during warmer months: buy some trail-running shoes for that extra tread, and of course all the cold weather clothing (especially hat and gloves). Run slower and avoid downhills if you live in a snowy/icy area. Be flexible with the timing of your workout – avoiding the coldest and wettest parts of the day and opting maybe for lunch-break runs  – and be flexible with your route. Make sure to warm up for a good 5 minutes before ramping up gradually, and listen to your body. Let it ease into the run and you’ll be sweating in no time.

Skiing/snowboarding. The perfect winter sports that happen to burn up to 500 calories an hour. Skiing and snowboarding are great workouts for your core and lower body (glutes, quads). The side to side motion also targets the areas around your hips and your oblique muscles!

Ice skating. Ice skating is a great low impact (read: easy on the joints) workout that also improves your balance and coordination. It also employs a lot of small stabilizer muscles that don’t get a workout in day-to-day life, for example the muscles around your hips, knees and ankles. Ice skating outdoors gives you the added obstacles (and calorie-burners) of the wind and bumpier ice. Just be sure to bend your knees and stay loose to minimize the chances of falling!

So make the move to get off that couch and get your sweat on. And most importantly, have fun!!

What’s your favorite winter workout? Let us know in the comments below!

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Does Sweating Burn Calories?

Hot yoga. Packed spin classes. Steam rooms and saunas. Often we come out of these feeling like the more we’ve sweat, the more calories we’ve burned. But does just the act of sweating, if you separate it from the physical activity that causes it, burn calories or result in weight loss? Many people (including myself) just assumed that it does. After all, I often feel as spent as if I’ve just worked out whenever I get out of the sauna. So there must be something to it.

Not so fast. I explored this more in this article for mindbodygreen. Yes sweating has some health benefits. But it has nothing to do with your weight.

Read more: Let’s Settle This: Does Sweating Actually Make You Lose Weight?

— Jennifer

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Easy Bone Broth (GF, DF)

Bone broth has become quite the rage these days, and it’s no wonder given its healing properties for anything from the common cold to stomach issues. It’s high in minerals that support the immune system and contains healing compounds like collagen, glutamine, glycine, and proline. The collagen is known to heal your gut lining and reduce intestinal inflammation. And there’s something just so comforting about it.

Broth is something I make every time I make roast chicken* (sometimes I make roast chicken because I want more broth) – I make a big pot of it, freeze it and whip it out if I’m feeling under the weather or if it’s cold outside or if I just want something comforting the drink. I have a friend who makes and drinks broth on a regular basis – like she carries it around in a water bottle and sips it throughout the day. And why not? It’s delicious and healthy! You can then make different recipes from it if you don’t just want it to sip – you could make soup noodles or stew, or even use it to make quinoa and rice instead of water.

*if you don’t have time to make a whole roast chicken, you can buy some drumsticks and replace the carcass in the recipe with them

INGREDIENTS:

1 chicken carcass from a roast chicken (or 2 pounds of beef bones or chicken drumsticks)

5 cloves garlic

1/2 onion

4 tsp salt

3 slices ginger

10 cups water

Place all the ingredients in a large pot.

Bring to a boil, then simmer on low for at least 8 hours.

After the pot has cooled, place it in the refrigerator and refrigerate over night.

In the morning, skim off the fat that will have accumulated on the top of your broth.

Strain your broth and pour into containers to freeze or refrigerate if you’re planning to use within a week.

When you’re ready to serve, add additional salt and pepper to taste, and whatever seasoning and ingredients you like.

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Product Review: Zupa Noma Organic Carrot Coconut Lime

Natural Factor 5/5

Taste Factor 3/5

Fullness Factor 5/5

Overall Rating 4/5

Macros (per serving): Total Fat: 8g / Total Carbs: 21g / Protein: 3g

Good with: Straight out of the bottle with lunch

Other Flavors: Yellow Pepper Habanero, Tomatillo Jalapeno, Beet Orange Basil, Cucumber Avocado Fennel, Tomato Gazpacho

Why We Love It: At first I was a little skeptical about the concept of soup in a bottle – I just thought it would affect the taste to not drink it out of the bowl with a spoon. But turns out I love this new trend because it’s an easy portable way to get in my veggies without having to cook or make a salad. It’s perfect if I’m eating a small sandwich for lunch that has maybe a few pieces of lettuce in it, and therefore way short of the 50% ratio I try to maintain of veggies vs other foods at my meals.  As for flavor, we tried all 6 of Zupa Noma’s varieties – many of them had a slight kick to them with the peppers they use, and most of them had a nice thick consistency. The most interesting-tasting flavor to us was the Carrot Coconut Lime, the others were more simple and basic in their flavor profiles. The Carrot Coconut Lime was also the most filling given the fat content that the coconut milk provides.

Meet the Makers: Based in the Sonoma, CA, Zupa Noma was founded in June 2016 by Jon Sebastini, the founder of Krave Jerky. While traveling throughout Europe, Jon noted that gazpacho was everywhere from fine restaurant to roadside stores. Growing up in a Sonoma, CA, he felt that he could combine the culinary traditions of Sonoma with the European roots of gazpacho to revitalize the soup industry with an on-the-go, high fiber, low sugar option. www.drinkzupa.com

Fun Fact: The soups are processed using HPP, a method that involves no heat, only water pressure. This preserves the nutrients of the contents, so in addition to  the fiber content of veggies, you’re still getting all the phytonutrients associated with eating whole veggies.

Certifications:

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Keeping Your Healthy New Years Resolutions

Did you make a New Year’s resolution to be healthier, to lose weight or to change your diet? If you saw our previous post on 10 Healthy New Years Resolutions, you may have gotten some good ideas to kick off your New Year in a healthy way. Many of us charge into the new year with ambitious goals to change our lifestyles; in fact almost 50% of Americans make New Year’s resolutions, but less than 8% are actually successful keeping them longer than a month. Now that’s a bleak statistic! But fear not, below are some tips to help you harness that enthusiasm and help you succeed in 2015!

BE REALISTIC

Make one or two specific goals. If your resolution is to eat healthier, begin by making one or two changes in your diet at a time, not by eliminating all unhealthy foods. You could choose to eat less simple sugar or to eat more vegetables. Then commit to your goals and make a plan to reach those goals.

Orient your goals around adding something positive rather than eliminating a negative. For instance, choose eating more vegetables vs eliminating soda. Over time, these additions will leave less room for unhealthy habits and it is a more positive approach.

Make sure your resolution is something you can incorporate into your daily life. Ask yourself “If I make this change in my eating, can I continue to do this the rest of my life and be happy?” A resolution is bound to fail if it isn’t something you can actually live with and enjoy!

PLAN

If you fail to plan, plan to fail!

Once you have a goal, figure out how to put it into action. Ask yourself these questions: What is my first step? How long will it take? Who can help me? Think about your immediate, intermediate and long-term goals: what you would like to achieve in 1, 3 and 6 months.

Plan rewards for yourself when you have met these step-by-step goals.

Be specific. Resolving to “lose weight” is too general and can be difficult to stick to. Instead, think about what you could do differently at each eating occasion. What are foods to increase or decrease could help you reach your goal? Could I be more mindful when eating? Choose one or two specific behaviors such as eating more meals at home, adding protein to breakfast or eating healthier snacks.

Be informed. Similar to being specific, make a goal that you truly understand. If you don’t know if a change is really healthy or not do a little research and make sure it’s the right goal for you. You don’t have to understand everything about it, but just have a general idea of how it will benefit you – after all, it’s hard to be motivated if there’s any confusion or ambiguity about why you’re doing it.

SUPPORT, ACCOUNTABILITY AND MOTIVATION

Surround yourself with people who will support your healthy choices.

Write down your goals and post them on your fridge or on your phone so you can keep in mind what you set out to do. Keeping a daily diary of what you eat is a tool that can help you be mindful of what you eat.

List your motivating factors for keeping your resolutions. Why do you want to make changes? To feel better, be healthier, not develop a chronic illness, to have more energy to travel, to play, to work?

Don’t use fear and guilt as motivators. This one is important! Forgive yourself if you transgress and return to your resolve. Guilt leads to giving up. The solution to this situation is self-compassion. If you forgive yourself you are less likely to make it worse.

Make better day-to-day decisions by putting things in proper perspective. Psychologists talk about “framing”. Narrow framing means you tell yourself that today, just eating one candy bar won’t be all that bad. But if you use broad framing, you tell yourself that if you keep eating a candy bar a day, you’ll be eating more than one hundred pounds of candy bars during the year, and by the end of the year, you’ll be ten pounds heavier as a result. As you think about eating that one bar, put an image in your mind of what you’ll look like after eating one a day for a year!

Sticking to your New Year’s resolution all year long is about making small, sustainable habit changes for a healthier you. By personalizing your goals, you’ll be more successful with your resolutions. Remember to adopt only changes you can live with, surround yourself with supportive people and to forgive yourself for slips, and you’ll be flying through the year with success, health and confidence.

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Meditation and Exercise: More Similar Than You Think

As a spinning instructor and meditator, I’m often asked how I reconcile the two. After all, meditation is all about stillness and silence, and if you’ve been to my spinning class, you know it’s all about moving and pushing yourself past your boundaries. Meditation is peaceful and exercise is…not.

Of course how accurate the statements above are depends on the type of exercise or meditation you do. But the type of meditation and exercise I do have more in common than you might think. To me, both of them are about taking a break from your normal daily activities to dedicate time to working on yourself. Both of them can touch on what has been dubbed the “zone” where it seems like the rest of the world doesn’t exist, or you’ve made a conscious decision to put it aside for a period of time. You set an intention to hit the pause button on all the planning, analyzing, and worrying that seem to occupy the backs of many of our minds in this speedy society.

The type of meditation I practice is called shamatha, or peaceful abiding. What we learn to do in this type of practice is to abide with whatever comes up when we turn off our entertainment and give ourselves the space to sit silently doing nothing. We don’t repress anything or try to push away thoughts, rather, we allow our minds to do their thing (i.e. think, feel, fantasize, plan, etc.) and the practice then lies in training our minds to come back to our breath and bodies when they do wander. Sometimes what our minds wander to can be an unpleasant thought or emotion. We treat that the same as all other thoughts or emotions, ie we let it go and come back to our breath and bodies. And actually, once we’ve been practicing a while, we might start to get familiar with some of those challenging emotions. Their repeated visits might even teach us a thing or two about the way our minds work.

In my spinning class, I like to give people a heads up when we’re about to climb a hill. That means grabbing some water, shaking things out, or taking some deep breaths. But I also ask them to flip around what is a pretty normal habitual response to things getting tough. Rather than running away from the challenge, or backing off on the resistance, I ask them to get ready lean in, to welcome the challenge, as painful as it might be as it’s happening. And that’s because underlying it all, they know that this resistance, this hill, is going to make them stronger and faster when we’re through with it. The same thing can be said of difficult situations in life. As painful and all-consuming as they may be as we’re going through them, the silver lining is that we will ALWAYS learn from them. I learned that through my meditation practice and the awareness it helped me to cultivate, of my mind and of my life.

Last year I wrote a piece for Livestrong.com on why you need meditation and exercise in your life. Here’s the link – I hope you enjoy and would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

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Product Review: Art of Tea Plum Oolong Tea

Natural Factor 5/5

Taste Factor 5/5

Fullness Factor n/a

Overall Rating 5/5

Macros (per serving): Total Fat: 0g / Total Carbs: 8g / Protein: 0g

Good with: A cold day

Other Flavors: They carry all types of quality teas. Check the website below for all their flavors.

Why We Love It: This tea has the perfect balance of sweetness from the fruit and depth from the tea. As soon as you take a sip, you can taste the quality of the ingredients, and we love that it’s organic as well. The first ingredient in this tea is organic schisandra berry, which is is used as an “adaptogen”, meaning it doesn’t matter whether you’re too sleepy or too nervous; either way, schizandra will redirect you from an extreme to an ideal, balanced state. It is also known to have many other health benefits, including increasing resistance to disease and stress, increasing energy, and increasing physical performance and endurance. The oolong tea used has a flavor that is on the lighter side, but you can definitely still taste the toasty flavor. Overall a beautiful balance. In addition to the Plum Oolong, we also tasted the Pumpkin Spice Chai and Earl Grey Creme. Both of these also exhibited the same delicious balance of sweetness and depth, and also tasted lighter on the caffeine front.

Meet the Makers: Based in the Los Angeles, CA (our home town!), Art of Tea is a tea importer and wholesaler founded by Steve Schwartz shortly after he began his journey of extensive study in preventative medicine at the Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico. Steve is known by many authoritative figures in the tea industry as a Master Tea Blender, and through his travels in Asia, India, Africa and the Middle East, Steve and Art of Tea have developed close relationships with farmers and distributors, ensuring top tier organic teas and select botanicals. www.artoftea.com

Fun Fact: In addition to offering all sorts of teas, Art of Tea also offers customized blends and tea sommelier training!

Certifications: None.