Everyday Yogini

Once again, my friend Monica Silvestro, integrative health counselor is hosting a fabulous tele-class. This time the class is all about dealing with cravings! Who DOESN’T need this class?

Deconstructing Cravings

“I can’t keep peanut butter in the house. If I hit that jar with a spoon at the end of the day, it’s all over.”
“I have a sweet tooth. My husband is a salt addict. Which is worse?”
“A meal just isn’t over until I have something sweet for dessert.”
“I eat popcorn after dinner every night, even if I’m not hungry–I just can’t “not have it”!”

Do any of these sound familiar to you? If so, you have cravings. Everyone does! Cravings don’t mean that you are weak. Or that you lack will power.

Food cravings are simply your body trying to tell you that it needs something–but what comes to mind isn’t always what you really need.

Want to learn how to interpret your cravings to find out what it is your body’s asking for? Want to learn the healthy options that satisfy specific cravings so that you can feel better about “giving in?” Want to ask about a particular craving you have?

Join the teleclass! See below on how to register.

The Nitty Gritty:
Date: Tuesday, July 15th

Time: 8:00pm - 9:15pm (Eastern Standard Time)

Place: The comfort of your own home. This is a teleclass, so you call in from wherever you are.

Cost: $10 (summer special!)

Too bad for me it’s at 2 in the morning, otherwise, I would be on the call!

Figs. I “discovered” figs in Colorado. Yummy, black mission figs, cut in half, drizzled with honey and sprinkled with goat cheese. (Ahh, those were the days of cheese) Here in Italy, the figs are a different variety. Big, juicy, sweet, and green, they have a milder taste than the black mission variety, but they are absolutely delicious!

When they arrive in the markets, they are ready to be eaten- right this second- so what’s a girl to do when she loves to buy more than one day worth of precious figs? Well, freeze them, of course! My friend Wendyshared this little recipe with me and so, dear Yoginis, I thought I would pass on the fig-liciousness to you.

Frozen Fig Delight
1-2 figs, frozen whole
your milk of choice (I used plain rice milk), to consistency

Put figs and a bit of milk into your blender. Blend it up until creamy and smooth. Ours resembled ice cream consistency (and was a bit chunky, which I like), and it was truly delightful!

This evening I watched an amazing talk by Mark Bittman from TED- Ideas Worth Spreading, a website that offers talks from different speakers on a wide variety of topics. My friend Lilalia posted this 20 minute talk on her blog today, and I loved it so much- and believe what he says so passionately- I felt I must share it here, with my readers!

This, Yoginis, is, in my humble opinion, one of the greatest ways to live our Yoga practice today. What an inspiring video, don’t you think?

Miso soup is one of those things I love to get at Japanese restaurants.  I always feel so, well, nourished after eating miso. Yummy in my tummy.  Over the years, I’ve purchased miso to make soup at home, but honestly, it’s mostly gone to waste.

Until now.

Enter South River Miso a traditional miso production company right in the heart of the USA. That’s right. And let me tell you, it is worth every single penny. Every one.

I began getting interested in miso as a part of healing my tummy- but many miso products out there actually have gluten in them. Not South River. Some do, but they are clearly labeled on the website. No matter, the varieties without gluten? To die for. Seriously. Erick begs me to make chicken marinated in the Sweet Tasting Brown Rice Miso with garlic, tamari and lemon juice.

Here is a great intro to all the great things about miso (taken directly from the South River website):

 Miso offers a nutritious balance of natural carbohydrates, essential oils, minerals, vitamins, and protein of the highest quality, containing all of the essential amino acids.

Unpasteurized miso is a “living food” containing natural digestive enzymes, Lactobacillus, and other microorganisms which aid in the digestion of all foods, and which have been shown to ward off and destroy harmful microorganisms, thereby creating a healthy digestive system.

In traditional Japan, miso gained a special place in the minds and hearts of generations who came to rely on miso soup as an essential part of their daily life. In Physical Constitution and Food, Dr. Shinichiro Akizuki, director of St. Francis Hospital, Nagasaki, writes:

I have found that, with very few exceptions, families, which make a practice of serving miso soup daily, are almost never sick…. I believe that miso belongs to the highest class of medicines, those which help prevent disease and strengthen the body through continued usage…Some people speak of miso as a condiment, but miso brings out the flavor and nutritional value in all foods and helps the body to digest and assimilate whatever we eat…. 
-The Book of Miso, page 25.

I ordered the Miso Sampler with cookbook and a special miso made with garlic and red pepper that is seasonal and unavailable now (our jar is gone and we are all sad we can’t get more!). Each of the miso products we’ve tried has been delicious. I’ve had simple broth for breakfast (in place of coffee) and before bed, we’ve marinated chicken and tofu in it, and, yes, I’ve eaten it straight out of the jar!

Let me know if you decide to try and tell me what you think…  believe me, you won’t regret adding these delicious miso products to your diet.  Your body will thank you, too!   

Note: I stand corrected.  I went back to the South River website, and the oh-so-delicious red pepper and garlic miso  is still available! Happy days!

Look, I don’t like chain restaurants. Thank god I don’t have to deal with that here in Italy. But recently, we stopped at the military installation in Naples to pick up some items on base, and resigned ourselves to eating at Applebee’s. Truly, it was horrible. I don’t eat there stateside, and it’s shocking and offensive to eat there when you can eat delicious, fresh, Italian food. It reminded me of all the things that are very, very wrong with our food production and preparation in the United States…

But I digress. Sometimes, you can’t get to a local, fresh restaurant. I know. Our little family has moved across many states and struggled to make good food choices in very remote places. It can be tough. Enter Wellternatives, an online service that provides a free healthy eating service that recommends healthy alternatives for your favorite dishes at hundreds of thousands of chain restaurants. It is designed so that anyone can use their cell phone to receive suggested ‘Wellternatives’ along with calorie and nutrition information for free. It’s quick, fun and easy to use, and works from any cell phone (in the United States)!

So starting today, anyone with Internet access or a mobile phone can get nutrition information for their favorite chain restaurant’s menu items, and even a recommendation for a healthier alternative – for free. One of the keys to making this helpful for people is that the recommendation algorithm not only considers key nutritional factors, but also takes into account taste preference profiles, portion sizes and types of food. That way people can find healthier alternatives from the same restaurant that they will find just as satisfying and delicious as what they usually eat.

Wellsphere is a health site that I have recently been asked to contribute to. I am slowly learning more about their vast mission and I am honored to be part of the team! Check it out and see what you think! And, the next time you eat out? Give Wellternatives a try!

This week is our long-overdue vacation… we are heading down to the Amalfi Coast for some time on the beach and in the nature preserve. No internet, I don’t even know if our phones will work. I will be back with you next week.

In exciting (to me, anyway) news here in Rome, asparagus has shown up in the markets full force! Young, tender shoots just begging to be eaten. We have been complying, and this delicious marker of summer days to come has been gracing our dinner plates each night for the last three nights. Concurrently, juicy, ripe, strawberries are also here- and we’ve been eating a lot of those, too!

Compliments of one of my favorite cookbooks, here is my absolute number one way to prepare asparagus. Enjoy!

Sauteed Asparagus with lemon and garlic

1 lb asparagus, *trimmed, and cut into 2 inch lengths
1-2 T olive oil
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1-2 T fresh lemon juice
1/2 t salt

*tip from my Dad on trimming asparagus: take a hold of either end of the asparagus and bend. It will break off at exactly the right point to rid the asparagus of the tough bottom!

Heat olive oil in a large skillet with garlic. Warming until garlic is fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add asparagus and saute until crunchy-tender, about 5 minutes. Add lemon juice and salt, cooking for a minute or so more. Enjoy immediately!

My friend Monica is a health counselor and has given me great tidbits and morsels of very practical, useful advice regarding my diet. She regularly hosts tele-classes on different topics and this one caught my eye as something some of you might be interested in. For any of you out there who struggle with feeding your family nutritiously, check out this class:

Super Nutrition for Moms!

Are you a parent struggling to eat healthy?

We’re here to help you bring more to the table.

Please join Health Counselors Monica Silvestro and Rebecca Pilot for a teleclass* while we discuss:

– Eating for energy: why do I crave sugar and caffeine?
– Super nutrition for you and your family
– How to help you make it all happen!
– Bonus: Eating to support lactation

Tuesday, April 22nd
8:15-9:30pm Eastern Standard Time

The cost is $15.
To register, email yourintuitivehealth@gmail.com

*A teleclass is a 75-minute interactive conference call on a health topic.

My Dad and I share a deep and abiding love of food. I think I’ve mentioned that we get on the phone and we end up talking recipes and menus, with nothing but a cursory discussion of weather, children, and events. Food IS the main event. I love it.

I have no idea where he gets most of his recipes, but he sends me some great ones. Since getting serious about my dairy intolerance and also avoiding gluten, food has been less pleasure and more work than I care to admit. But last night, I finally pulled out this recipe that my Dad sent. It was quick and easy, but more important, it is supremely delicious. I served it with lentil pie, compliments of Dreena Burton and mixed greens, finished with possibly the most delicious brownie recipe I’ve ever tried. (Erick was begging me to make these… they are that good!)

In any case, this recipe has no measurements, it is “per serving” and should be played with. I made ours on the mild side, but it could be hotter…

Dad’s Curried Waldorf Salad

Celery, chopped
Apple, chopped
Pecans, chopped a bit

per serving add:
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of allspice
pinch of tumeric
pinch of mild chili powder

~tsp lemon juice
~tsp Coconut Milk Powder

Sweetener (I used agave syrup)- enough to make it sweet
Mayo as preferred

Mix up and enjoy!!

Even after years of practicing Yoga, I am skilled at the art of ignoring my body. Which is evidenced by my shoulder injury recently while practicing. This is also evidenced by my recent and amazing binge of all things pizza and dessert, which has led me back into a health crisis. Seriously.

I had a follow-up endoscope on Friday, so the doctors could see how the opening between my bile duct and duodenum is healing up. Well, it’s not. It is still very inflammed and I’m still experiencing intermittent pain. To add to the love, I have an ulcer in my stomach. You see, my body can yell and scream and I will whistle and cover my ears (and keep drinking coffee with pastries).

Again, my dear body is working so hard to teach me how to best live fully. In order to actually be in this moment, I have to be willing to listen and respond to what I hear. It requires a level of honesty, surrender, and respect (for myself) that is unprecedented for me. The only thing that helps diminish the pain I experience is being extremely careful with what I put in my body (which I am decidedly opposed to). I am working with a nutritional counselor as well as listening closely to what my body is saying.

And it’s working. Now that I’ve been eating nothing but whole foods and no coffee for a week and a half, I feel a lot better. The tests don’t line up with that (obviously), but they will. I believe in my body’s ability to heal itself. Some days it’s hard to muster up enough love for myself to continue with this, but I have motivation outside of my own self, thank goodness: Erick and Clara. I have found myself over the last year, increasingly distracted by pain or alternatively, eating pastries and drinking lots of coffee. Of course there has been some Yoga thrown in, but my inner experience has been this crazy pendulum: pain —– comfort self with food ——— pain ——-comfort self with food. There hasn’t been an abundance of emotional energy for Clara or Erick.

So, for now, I am gluten, dairy, soy, and coffee free. By freeing myself from these yummy, delicious things, I am (relatively) free from pain. I am also learning to drop into the discomfort in my body instead of trying to wiggle away from it. I am learning to surrender and breathe and let the pain tell me it’s story. The irony is that the more I learn to stay with the discomfort, the lesser it becomes. The more I learn to stay with my body, the more I am able to stay with Clara and Erick. I feel more awake to my life than I have since we left Colorado.

May you be well. May you all be skilled in the art of listening to the lessons in your lives. May you find yourself awake and filled with boundless gratitude for your gifts.

I really, really love coffee.

This is my third day without coffee and I’m sad. I miss it. That zingy, sharp feeling of being buzzed and lively. But seeing as this is all about learning to listen to my body and cultivate a deep sense of loving-kindness in life, I have to give it up.

See, over the last weeks, I’ve had recurrences of the pain and discomfort that I was having pre-surgery. It’s been frustrating and exhausting and I’ve been fighting it. And losing. Which isn’t a very kind way of being with one’s body: battling and all. The only way I seem able to be pain-free at this point is with dietary changes, so, as much of a bummer as it is, I have to let go of some things that I love to eat (and drink, as in my beloved coffee).

So, in the process of giving in to the reality of the situation, there is loss but there is also this sense of stopping long enough to say, “Hey, body, what do you need? What works for you?” And I’m getting some good answers and doing my best to really listen. I’m extraodinarily grateful that I’ve been practicing Yoga and meditation long enough to be able to tune in. Ten years ago, this would not have been possible for me, that is for sure.

Surrender is an okay place to be, much to my suprise.