Body

Why Sleep? Your Adrenals Need a Break

October 29, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

The “fight or flight” syndrome – you’ve heard of it, right? Accompanied with the image of the saber-toothed tiger dashing after a hunter, getting ready to attack. You often get into this situation, don’t you? In modern times, we’re not literally in that frantic position, but our bodies are often reacting as if we were fighting for our lives. Our adrenal glands, located on top of each kidney, are forced to work overtime in an effort to deal with stress from all sources: injury, disease, work, family, finances, environment, etc.

What Adrenals Do

It’s hard to imagine these small endocrine glands, essentially the size of a walnut, responsible for the manufacture and secretion of vital hormones such as cortisol, estrogen and testosterone. The cortisol production is crucial for the body to combat stress. Whereas thousands of years ago the stress was a finite amount of time – you either outran the predator or survived or you were eaten – nowadays, stress seems to be a state of being for so many people.

Although not getting along with a boss or missing a bill payment are not life-threatening like the saber-toothed tiger, our bodies react to the stressors in a similar fashion. The body starts to feel unsettled. More and more cortisol is produced because the body believes it needs massive amounts of energy to run for its life. This happens over and over again throughout the day: getting the kids ready for school and getting yourself ready for work, traffic, spilling coffee on your new suit, your assistant calls in sick and you’ve got to send out 20 packages today, the babysitter is late picking up the kids from school and taking them to soccer practice, your late afternoon meeting runs over and you leave the office late so family dinner becomes you eating leftovers alone. And all this is going to happen again tomorrow!

The Warning

Here’s the problem: chronic stress can overload the adrenal glands to the point of exhaustion. For some, the fatigue will become overwhelming and the adrenals will no longer function properly to provide the energy and resources the body needs on a day-to-day basis. When someone is exhausted, a natural suggestion is to get more sleep. That’s not always easy with adrenal problems because insomnia is a common symptom. There are, however, steps you can take to prepare yourself for sleep, which is certainly one of the best ways to refresh and rejuvenate your body, mind and spirit.

Set a Sleep Routine

For better sleep and to heal your adrenal glands:

Go to bed at the same time every night between 10-10:30pm.
Avoid stimulants such as caffeine and sugar in late afternoon/evening (or remove them completely from your diet to avoid any rollercoaster-like blood sugar surges).
Keep a gratitude journal near your bedside. Every night, list five things for which you are grateful. Remind yourself that even though you may feel fatigued, there are wonderful aspects of your life and many reasons to heal.

How is your energy level throughout the day? Do you wake up feeling tired? Give your adrenals some love and they will love you right back. Take care of yourself, please. I’m here to support you be your most vibrant self! 😉

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6 Superfoods For Age-Defying Beauty!

October 15, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

1) Goji Berries

goji berries on a tree — Fresh Goji Berries

Goji berries, Hollywood’s hottest new food, are one of the most nutritionally dense foods on earth and house a staggering concentration of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, phytochemicals and essential fatty acids. With such an awesome constitution it is not surprising they are reputed anti-aging marvels. Originating in Tibet and greatly favored in traditional medicine these dried berries have many documented health benefits including boosting immunity, lowering cholesterol, enhancing vision, fighting cancer cells, relieving depression and aiding weight loss.

Goji berries contain 500 times more vitamin C than oranges by weight and more beta-carotene than carrots making them a superb source of vitamin A. Together with vitamin E and essential fatty acids, these berries are ideal for any anti-aging and beauty regime. They also contain polysaccharides, one of which has been found to stimulate the secretion of the rejuvenating human growth hormone by the pituitary gland, as well as B vitamins, 21 minerals and 18 amino acids.

The most well documented case of longevity is that of Li Qing Yuen, who lived to the age of 252. Born in 1678, he is said to have married 14 times with 11 generations of posterity before his death in 1930. Li Qing Yuen reportedly consumed goji berries daily.

A study cited in Dr. Mindell’s book Goji: The Himalayan Health Secret, observed that 67 per cent of elderly people that were given a daily dose of the berries for 3 weeks experienced dramatic immune system enhancement and a significant improvement in spirit and optimism.

2) Aloe Vera

Forget Botox, Aloe Vera increases collagen production 100% naturally for a youthful, wrinkle-free complexion and plump, beautiful skin. The ultimate Botox alternative!

The inner gel of the Aloe Vera leaf contains around 200 active compounds with over 75 nutrients. These include 20 minerals, 18 amino acids and 12 vitamins (even vitamin B12 ñ one of the very few plant sources of this vitamin). Aloe Vera also has anti-microbial properties fighting fungi and bacteria and houses anti-inflammatory plant steroids and enzymes. Aloe Vera is known to aid digestion and elimination, boost the immune system, and be highly effective at healing, moisturizing and rejuvenating the skin, naturally stimulating the production of collagen.

Aloe Vera is best eaten fresh when possible (you can order large Aloe Vera leaves which last a few weeks refrigerated). Scrape out the inside gel, avoiding the outside of the leaf which is a strong laxative, and blend with fruit for the ultimate beautifying smoothie. Aloe Vera has a mild flavor though a slight bitter edge, hence is best combined with fruit.

3) Avocados

Avocados are smoothing and softening for the skin and easily absorbed; compared with almond, corn, olive, and soybean oils, avocado oil has the highest skin penetration rate.

Avocado also contains vitamin E (excellent for the skin), antioxidant carotenoids and the master antioxidant glutathione that is exceptionally powerful and has anti-carcinogenic potential. High levels of glutathione are found in the liver where the elimination of toxic materials takes place.

Glutathione is effective against pollutants such as cigarette smoke and exhaust fumes as well as ultra-violet radiation. Research is currently exploring the potential benefits of glutathione for numerous conditions including cancer, heart disease, memory loss, arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, eczema, liver disorders, heavy metal poisoning and AIDS.

4) Chlorella

The nucleic acids RNA and DNA in Chlorella (one of the highest known sources of such) direct cellular growth and repair and enable our bodies to utilize nutrients more effectively, eliminate toxins and avoid disease. The production of nucleic acids in the body declines progressively as we age, which is no doubt why their intake is recommended by Dr. Benjamin Frank in The No-Aging Diet. Paul Pitchford in Healing With Whole Foods writes that insufficient nucleic acid causes premature aging as well as weakened immunity, Research at the Medical College of Kanazawa in Japan found that mice that were fed chlorella had a 30 per cent increase in life span. Replenishing RNA and DNA can be key to overall health, immunity and longevity.

In addition to nucleic acids, chlorella is jam-packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, enzymes and amino acids, making it an incredibly rejuvenating and health-promoting super food. Spirulina is a virtuous equivalent.

5) Bee pollen

When it comes to young and beautiful skin, bee pollen has outstanding gifts. Swedish dermatologist Dr. Lars-Erik Essen uses bee pollen to successfully treat acne and other skin conditions and observes it’s beautifying and anti-aging effects. He reports that bee pollen seems to prevent premature aging of the cells and stimulates growth of new skin tissue. It offers effective protection against dehydration and injects new life into dry cells. It smooths away wrinkles and stimulates a life-giving blood supply to all skin cells. He believes it’s skin rejuvenation properties are due to its high concentration of nucleic acids RNA and DNA, as well as its natural antibiotic action.

Bee pollen has a host of other health-promoting benefits that include fighting infections, lowering cholesterol, strengthening the blood, Boosting the immune system, increasing physical strength and stamina, aiding longevity and enhancing libido! It has been called a ‘prefect food’ because it is so nutritionally complete.

6) Coconut oil

Coconut oil speeds up your metabolism and can actually help you loose weight. It is also incredibly beautifying and moisturizing for the skin and has antioxidant properties which protect against free-radical damage, keeping the skin youthful and healthy. Taken internally or externally coconut oil is a great ally for any beauty skin care regime. It also contains lauric acid, an anti-microbial fatty acid that kills bacteria, viruses and fungi.

Ageless Beauty from the Inside Out

Just like your food choices effect your hips they also make a difference in the speed with which you age. Try adding a super food into your daily rotation and watch what happens. That glorious glow comes out to play!

I’m here to support you . We’re here to support each other. So, drop a comment to let us know what your favorite super food for anti-aging is.

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Why Diets Don’t Work

October 9, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

Does this sound familiar? You hear about this wonderful diet that will guarantee weight-loss, so you try it, only to gain even more weight back once you’ve lost it?

Don’t feel bad. You are not alone. Just because a diet works for one person, does not mean that it will work for you. Diets are destined to fail, and it should come as no surprise. After all, the word “die” is within the word “diet”. That should be your first sign. You want to live your life.

Here are the top 5 reasons that diets are doomed to fail:

People choose to use a diet to achieve a short-term goal. That goal is usually to lose weight before an upcoming event. Diets are perceived from the onset as a temporary action used to obtain an immediate result. Once that result is achieved, the diet is stopped and old eating habits return.
The yo-yo diet or weight cycling. As mentioned, many people go on diets, lose weight, and then gain weight, often more than they lost. And, for some reason, the cycle is repeated. To quote Albert Einstein: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” This repeated failure can have negative effects on a person’s mental health and could result in an eating disorder.
Many diets are based on the premise of counting calories using a formula meant for the general population as opposed to the individual. Everybody processes calories differently. This formula supports that caloric expenditure exceeds caloric intake and will therefore promote weight loss. It has become clear that this premise is no longer true. Every calorie is not created equal. Calories consumed from spinach or sweet potatoes are much more nutrient-dense than calories consumed from a processed, low-fat muffin. In addition, if you were to consume too few calories, your body goes into survival mode, slowing down the metabolism. You run the risk of your metabolism remaining sluggish once you start consuming more calories.
Before even starting a diet, people believe that they will be depriving themselves of foods they love. Entering into a program with this mindset clearly does not support success. This constant experience of deprivation will bring on food cravings that will be difficult to ignore.
This brings me to the last reason why diets do not work. They do not address food cravings and how to handle them. Everyone has cravings. Having the tools to help navigate through those cravings and reach for healthy food alternatives will help to eliminate them.

Unfortunately for many individuals, diets only offer a quick fix to a larger problem. Learning which foods nourish the body and which don’t is the best approach to eating in order to obtain weight-loss and optimal health.

If you’re ready to explore what works for you, I’m here to help. Just click HERE and set up a Discovery Session and we will make it happen.

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Simple Ayurvedic Practices for Daily Detox

September 5, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

You’ve been working hard on your detox and you want to be sure that the effects of all that effort last. You can also set yourself up for your next seasonal detox, primed, and ready to release toxins on a deeper level.

If you have never heard of Ayurveda, here’s the skinny: Ayurveda translates to ‘knowledge of life’ or ‘science of life’. Ayurveda is to India what Traditional Chinese Medicine is to China. Ayurveda is about living in communion with the shifts of the seasons and the rhythms of the sun and moon throughout the day. It is an ancient practice that both supports wellness and recovers health. The principles are universal and can be practiced by anyone with a desire to feel more connected to their health and wellbeing.

When you join one of my seasonal detoxes, you’ve already begun to practice one of the Ayurvedic principles, so adding these 3 simple daily practices will increase your body’s ability to withstand the stress of daily life and the toxins you can not help but be affected by.

Daily Detox Practices

If you haven’t already, begin to add these 3 practices into your routine. Do them sequentially and stay with it.

Banish Bad Breath – Upon rising, eliminate, brush your teeth and scrape your tongue. Did you know that you will remove more sticky plaque from your mouth with a metal tongue scraper than you will by brushing your teeth? Here’s a simple video to show you how it’s done. Do this before put anything into your belly.

Rinse Your Belly – By now, you have an understanding that a clean digestive system works so much more efficiently and uses less energy that a clogged up, gummy one. To keep your system clean and start with a clean stomach, drink 16 – 20 ounces of warm water first thing. This has three primary effects for your body.

Number One – Okay, actually it’s about ‘number two’. It is especially helpful to promote movement and train the body so that will eliminate through the bowel more easily. Do you have to add lemon? No. Will it hurt to add lemon? No. Just make the water body temperature and you will get the greatest benefit.
Number Two – Clean pure, warm, body temperature water first thing in the morning will help to clear out any leftovers in the stomach. This way yesterday’s food that may not have fully digested will not mix with today’s undigested food, kind of like getting a new plate for your breakfast instead of using the dirty one from last night’s dinner.
Number Three – It hydrates you! Your body wakes up dehydrated. It’s been starved for water for at least 8 hours. Because optimally, your body is about 70% water when you start your day with all your internal electrical systems flowing, you will think better. Which means you will make better food choices. Better food choices now mean that your next seasonal detox will release a little more deeply.

Oil Up – The daily practice of Abhyanga is a hot oil self-massage. This one practice will nourish your skin and body on a level that is superior to any other skin treatment. Remember, you skin is your largest organ. Once you start the habit, you’ll find it doesn’t take long to add it to you daily morning routine.

How to Abhyanga 101

Warm your oil to body temperature.
Pour a small amount into your hand and add oil as you need it.
Massage into hands. Then begin with the neck, working your way down towards your feet, because this is a grounding massage. Long strokes on the bones and circular strokes on the joints. Until you reach the feet.
When done, get into a hot shower and let the hot water rinse over you. The hot water will open your pores and press the oil into the skin. This is not only nourishing but protective. If you want to use soap, use it on your pits and privates. There is enough chlorine and other detergents in the water to ‘clean’ you.
Dry off as you normally would.

These are so simple, easy, and actually elegant ways of taking care of your body that will promote daily detox in a toxic world.

Enjoy them!

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10 Steps to Better Digestion

June 5, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

Do you feel like your food is just sitting in your stomach for hours after you eat? Or is the opposite happening, and you are running to the bathroom before you have even finished your meal? You are not alone, and there are things you can do improve the situation. Here are ten steps to take now to get things moving properly through your gut:

Tips That Actually Work

Food Combining – When foods are combined properly, they do not sit in your stomach and rot. That rotting food feeds the bad bacteria and yeast that everyone has residing in their digestive tract. To combine food, you eat protein with vegetables or grains with vegetables, never proteins & grains together. Also, fruits should be eaten alone on an empty stomach.
Fermented Foods – These are naturally fermented foods such as kefir, sauerkraut, pickles, etc., that, when eaten, will feed the good bacteria in your gut and balance your inner ecology.
Enzymes and Probiotics – I suggest that everyone take digestive enzymes and probiotics to help with the digestion of their food and build up their immunity.
Water – We all know we need to drink plenty of water. A little known Ayurvedic trick is to drink a glass of water 15 minutes before your meal. This will get your digestive juices flowing and your food will get digested better.
80/20 – This rule is to eat until you are 80% full. That leaves 20% of the room left in your stomach for your digestion to work. No one likes that uncomfortable full feeling and your tummy will thank you if you stop just before you are full.
Eat Loads of Fiber – Your body needs fiber to carry out toxins, excess hormones, and junk. Eating lots of water-soluble fiber, found in veggies, will ensure that you get plenty of fiber. Just don’t forget step #4! Drink lots of water, too, so that you don’t end up with bulky stool.
Short Fasting Period – Don’t worry, I am not suggesting that you don’t eat for a day. What I am suggesting is that you take some time between meals. Give your system about 3 or 4 hours to let the food get assimilated. When your gut is constantly bombarded by food all day long, it gets confused and doesn’t work properly. Give it some time to work on that last meal before you head to the kitchen for a snack.
Cut Sugar and White Carbohydrates – These foods will feed the bad guys in your gut. Avoid them for less gas and bloating – and you don’t want the insulin spike that comes with them either.
Gluten – A large percentage of Americans are gluten intolerant and do not know it. Try going without and see if your digestion works any better.
Bone Broth – The #1 most soothing and healing drink that you could ever ingest. Homemade bone broth contains all of the nutrients you need to heal your gut if it is leaky and also provides the minerals you need for strong bones. It’s a win-win, must-consume food!

If you incorporate some or all of the tips, you will ease in to better digestion and the tummy troubles will disappear.

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7 Ways Juicing Can Help You Lose Weight

April 4, 2019 by Joni Leave a Comment

Unless you have been living under a rock for the last few years, you would have no doubt heard about the amazing health benefits of juicing. But did you also know that a juice elixir can also be a healthy and safe way to lose weight? When consumed in complement to an existing weight-loss plan, juicing provides a high level of quality nutrition, which will assist in weight-loss. Read on to find out how.

1. Easy Digestion

One of the best benefits of juicing fresh fruit and vegetables is that drinking them (as opposed to eating them) makes them really easy for your body to digest. If you are to juice say a couple of tomatoes, celery, cucumber, spinach, and carrot, you will make a delicious and easy to drink fresh vegetable cocktail that will provide a huge amount of nutritional benefits to your body. If you were to actually consume those same vegetables raw, from a plate, in one sitting, you would find the process to be quite difficult. It would take a lot of effort to eat and digest the same quantity of food. But by juicing those vegetables, you get to drink in one glass a dense quantity of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients really easily.

2. Reduction in Cravings

When you drink a glass of freshly made vegetable or green juice, you are loading every cell of your body with detoxifying minerals. By drinking your veggies and fruit, you are giving your body all the amazing nutrients that it needs to heal, stay healthy, and reduce the risk of illness. In turn, you will also find that you experience a reduction in cravings, particularly for sweets or processed foods. This is because you are feeding your body all that it needs. Your body won’t be sending messages to your brain that make you crave particular foods that contain certain minerals or vitamins that you might otherwise lacking. It is in this way that you will start to lose weight, often quite quickly. You simply won’t be eating the bad foods that make you gain weight, and you won’t feel like you are even depriving yourself of these foods like you might if dieting.

3. Tasty Fuel

It is also handy to know that green juices taste great! You can make your juice really flavorful by adding in lemon, mint or ginger to really add a tasty punch to your juice. You will enjoy the flavors of the juice so much that you will choose to make a juice rather than eat another less healthy snack food. It is also worth noting that juice you make at home on your own is a much better option than that which is store bought. Fresh juice made with a base of vegetables is going to contain much more nutrition than the kind that comes from a carton. Even fresh, store-bought juices will often have sugars and other additives as well as preservatives added to the juice. This kind of juice means you are drinking a lot of unnecessary calories. On the other hand, a homemade vegetable and fruit juice delivers nothing but goodness that is healthy fuel for your body.

4. Filling Snack or Dessert

Another amazing thing about juicing is that by drinking a freshly made juice, your appetite shuts off. This is because your body (which is amazing at knowing just what it needs!) is getting all that it is looking for. You will feel satisfied and satiated, much more than you would by eating empty calories in junk food. Your body will feel revitalized, not sluggish or heavy, and instead of searching for more food even after you have just eaten something, you will find that you don’t really want or need anything more.

5. It is not a fad diet

Once you start making juicing a regular part of your lifestyle, and start to experience all the health benefits and begin losing weight without a struggle, you will realize that incorporating fresh juicing into your life is definitely not a diet fad. Unlike regimented diets that are difficult to follow and which can often make you gain weight, juicing works in such a remarkable way that you will want to include juicing in your life forever. Unlike fad diets, you will never feel deprived or hungry. Not only that, but other aspects of your health will also improve. You might notice your skin is clearer, your eyes are brighter, and your nails and hair grow more quickly. You will also have more energy and you will start to feel amazing. Juicing will seriously become a way of life you will want to follow forever!

6. You invest in your health

In order to start juicing regularly, you will need to invest in a juicer, which initially will mean setting aside a bit of money. You might feel like this is an expense you don’t want to have, but by making that purchase, you are committing to your health and weight loss. It gives you a reason to stick to the concept of juicing for long enough that you will start to notice the difference in how you feel. It is also an investment in your health and well-being, so not only does juicing help you to lose weight, but it will save you money in medical fees in the future.

7. Fun and Variety

In order to lose weight and to stay motivated, life needs to be fun, right? Juicing is the ideal way to bring this into your life. As you start to get into juicing, you will find it great fun making new combinations of fruit and vegetables cocktails. You will make all kinds of unique and interesting drinks, and you will find that you never get bored from the endless variety of beverages that you can make for yourself and others. You will also want to share these drinks with others, which will also mean getting encouragement and support from those around you as you continue your weight-loss goals. Support is super important when it comes to making, and sticking to, healthy changes in your life.

Really, juicing is a fabulously fun, easy, and healthy way to shed those unwanted pounds without any struggle or deprivation. You have got nothing to lose by starting to make green juicing a regular part of your lifestyle. To get you started, here is a delicious and easy juice to kick-start your weight-loss:

Trim and Delicious Green Juice

4 carrots

2 apples

1 cucumber

½ beetroot (peeled)

1 rib celery

1 lemon

1-inch piece of ginger

Run the vegetables through your juicer and enjoy!

Looking for some tasty juicing recipes? Joe Cross from, Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead fame has a fabulous website full of amazing juice recipes.

Ready to Learn More?

The addition of a green juice daily has helped me ditch the cravings and get my glow on! Here are a few ideas to help you burn more fat each day.

Ready to make the next step to becoming the most VIBRANT you? Let’s connect

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Why Sleep? Your Adrenals Need a Break

What Adrenals Do

The Warning

Set a Sleep Routine