OneHealthyGirl.com - Carla Golden's Get Healthier! Blog

MY ABSOLUTE FRUSTRATION WITH EATING A HEALTHFUL & ETHICAL DIET

As my blog states, I'm one healthy girl getting healthier. Like happiness, health is a journey, not a destination. There is no end point, but rather something to move towards every day.

While I consider myself to be fairly healthy - no sign of illness, adequate energy, clear eyes and skin (occasional blemishes), physically fit, happy - I know there is MUCH more I can do to be even healthier. 

But it's so hard. Waaaaa! Boo.Hoo.

Wherever you are on your journey, the presence of challenge is the same. Change and self-discipline are required at each and every step. It doesn't necessarily get easier the healthier you get, but it certainly becomes more rewarding and enlightening. 

Here are my current complaints challenges:

1. Lack of FABULOUS food purchasing options in my town

I read, listen and watch others in life and online live out their health stories and I learn about superfoods and organic everything and I cry a little cry inside because that stuff is not available here. I could mail order it...but then there's the carbon footprint, the expense, and the packaging. I could grow it....well, some of it may grow here. Very few restaurants are vegan friendly...oh, to be indulged locally by knowledgeable vegan chefs like at The Laughing Seed in Asheville, NC or Cafe Gratitude in San Francisco, CA. Waaaa!

2. So many organics come packaged in plastic

Plastic may save your head in a bike fall or regulate your heartbeat in a pacemaker, but I am sick and tired of so many good, delicious foods being unnecessarily packaged in plastic. "I don't feed myself junk, but I'm oblivious to the fact that I make the planet eat indigestible junk at the land fill." Do plastics really get recycled? Can't we - us so-called superior thinking species - think of a better food packaging than plastic?

I question the morals of any health food/organic food company or store who packages their pristine food in plastic. Who cares how healthy you are if you choke the planet with litter. Really. 

3. It was to be expected, but the vegan critics are maddening

I've had several omnivore's who wish to convince me that having a house pet (dog, fish) or riding a horse is equally as cruel as slaughtering and eating an animal. While imprisoning a dog, cat, horse or fish certainly robs that animal of it's rightful freedom, I don't think it is anywhere near as cruel as the treatment received by the animals in CAFOs.

Their logic is that if I'm willing to have a pet dog or ride a horse then I might as well eat meat. Veganism is not a black and white issue, there are many, many, many shades of gray.

While I may not be a perfect vegan, I certainly feel that I am doing the right thing by the environment by not supporting a system that destroys forests, pollutes water and produces pharmaceutical infused meat from sick, diseased, maltreated animals.

4. The raw food diet plays with my mind and heart strings

There's a lot of good to be said for the raw food diet. Amazing stories about people who have overcome major diseases like cancer, heart disease, and diabetes with nutrition generally employed a raw food vegan diet. I have yet to read studies of anyone who employed the Atkins Diet (meat based) or similar to overcome any one of these diseases. Meat does not heal. I do not read about meat smoothies.

The body loves plants. The body loves raw plants. I would like to eat more raw plants. See #1. The organic section in my main grocery store is sad. All the organic produce sections in my small town put together make for a marginally decent produce section.

Tangent: Yesterday in the grocery store there were white grapes on special. The sign read "Product of the USA"....well, how local. It does make a difference when you're in South Carolina whether those "local USA" grapes came from California or Georgia. Local does not equal USA, guys. What's really funny is that the bags of grapes actually indicated that they were from Mexico. Well, in this case I guess "USA" meant North America! Is there such a term as "LocalWashing"??

5. The "if I only knew then what I know now" self-destructive kick-yourself mental tape

I certainly did not eat as well as I do back when I birthed and nursed Bella. It is a huge regret of mine. The breast milk she received was built off chicken, steak, pizza, bread, cheese and ice cream. I didn't home grind her baby food of fresh, organic sweet potatoes or avocados. She didn't pinch little goji berries into her precious toddler mouth. Her first birthday cake wasn't a raisin sweetened bran muffin.

I didn't introduce these natural flavors to her until she was already set in her ways. I have radically changed my diet because I consciously understand the benefit, but those reasons don't fly with a 7.5 year old. 

"I'm the mommy and you eat what I tell you to eat" is not my approach. I hope to encourage Bella to adopt at least some of my eating patterns. She's as proficient at saying "NO, I won't eat that" as I am with saying "NO, I won't buy that." I can at least cut myself a break by knowing that she has never eaten a Happy Meal, never drank a Coke and never been on antibiotics.

Bella is not a mini-Carla in the food department. But she, like we, is on her own journey, and I am merely her guide....until she's 18. (Oh dear, I must get busy!)

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I share all this with you because I struggle every day, learn every day and make the best choice with the information that I have. It is a full-time vocation to stay up to date on food options and health studies. I am but one source and one opinion and I hope that my findings and experience help you in making the best decision for you.

None of us live in a food utopia. (I hear from all the raw food gurus food utopia is actually in Ecuador where they're all relocating.) I don't want to move. I don't think that abandoning a broken system is the way to fix the system. It may be in an individual's best interest to abandon the system, but for the benefit of all, I believe it is important to stay in the broken system and work on fixing it from within. I am an idealistic optimist, I know.

These are ways that I intend to help improve my local food system: encourage vegan meals in local restaurants, support local farmer's markets and encourage expansion, and get more bold and creative in the kitchen and find vegan/raw recipes that my family loves for the taste, if not for the ethics or nutritional benefit.

Live Light, xo-C. 

MAY 11th JUMP & JUICE FAST FEAST FEST plans!!

As you may have noticed, I've made mention of my upcoming SIX WEEK Jump & Juice Fast Feast Fest which I will start on Monday, May 11th. 

I've title it thus because I will be actively employing my new rebounder (the JUMP) and my relatively new Jack LaLanne juicer (the JUICE) for six solid weeks. These are my rationales and objectives:

1. Spring is the time for liver cleansing and I was totally taken when I heard Deepak Chopra tell that it takes six weeks to regenerate new liver cells. I want to feed my body extremely health giving foods in liquid form (for optimal assimilation) for six weeks for total liver renewal support. I don't think my liver is in a compromised state, however, the liver always needs extra love for all the good work it does for us everyday - over 600 functions!!

2. I've already written about the benefits of juicing and will be referring to Natalie Savona's the big book of juices: more than 400 natural blends for health and vitality every day for recipe inspiration. I aim to stick to the juice recipes and maybe the quenchers, though I'm not a big fan of ice cold beverages, but not the smoothies because they contain dairy. I will also drink my beloved matcha green tea, coconut water, kombucha and perhaps vegetable broth.

4. If I can get my daughter off my Needak rebounder long enough, I aim to jump three 10 minute sessions daily and/or 2 minutes each hour (when feasible). Confession: I have discovered that my bladder is not as strong (ie: leak proof!) as it used to be, unfortunately. This came as quite the surprise and has made me hesitant to bounce often. I believe if I work through an uncomfortable phase (TMI: wear a washcloth while I bounce!) that I will strengthen my bladder...and my other internal organs too! One of the many benefits to rebounding!!

5. This six week phase will mark for me my transition into a whole food (much raw) vegan diet. Dr. Will Tuttle's World Peace Diet has convinced me that this is the most enlightened and spiritual way to eat in our world. Because I care about my health, world hunger, the environment, peace and the respect for life, it makes sense for me to transition now in order to do my part toward these causes. 

I will take "before" and "after" photos to see if my body composition visibly changes. I will document my daily food and exercise. If you are interested in joining me in your own version of this project, I welcome you. It may be helpful to beging one day after I do so that you can benefit from my juice recipes which are distributed by blog the morning after I post.

If I get the craving to chew on something, I'm not going to chastise myself for eating a piece of fruit, a salad of veggies or munching on some dried goji berries, but I will try to make it six weeks just on liquid. I hope to feel renewed and cleansed. I aim to GLOW and inspire you to modify your diet to help improve your wellbeing, physical health and perhaps the world. 

Change Vegan Believe In! ;o)

Live Light, xo-C.

HORN TOOTIN' and SOME eVEGANgelism

First, I am thrilled and honored to have been featured in this month's edition of Hilton Head Island's CH2 magazine.

Words of Wisdom-"Do What you Love"

You can read the entire article by clicking on the blue link above. Thanks, CH2!!!

Secondly, I wish to share with you a bit about my experience seeing and hearing Dr. Will Tuttle speak about his World Peace Diet book and philosophy on Sunday. I am more convinced that ever that a non-animal product diet (ie: vegan) is optimal for our planet, to reduce world hunger, for our health and for our global ethic.

This topic is a sensitive one. Most people don't like thinking about it, much less talking about it. Changing one's diet even slightly can pose great challenge for many people, let alone radically changing it to a vegan diet. However, I must share what I have learned.

To clarify: I am not yet vegan. I still eat eggs, anchovies, organic sour cream, butter, parmesan cheese and occasionally yogurt. But after my Six Week Jump and Juice Fast Feast Fest starting May 11th, I plan to transition into a fully vegan lifestyle. 

Will it be easy? Hell no. If you know me, you know how much I love eggs. Not long ago I wrote a post justifying my eating of them. Do I wear leather shoes and carry a leather handbag? Yes. These are real issues I will have to address if I am to live in accordance to my ever re-calibrating beliefs and understanding. 

Am I brave? Yes. Am I braver than you? No.

Now I'm going to get a little eVEGANgelical on you....

"When we buy eggs we instigate theft and violence against horribly abused females and contribute to environmental contamination, social pathology, and disease." Will Tuttle

I was certain to purchase my eggs from a local, small farm operation that allows the chickens to live like chickens as to avoid the common, yet inhumane, treatment of factory farm chickens and I felt at peace about that. However, I have now been confronted with the issue of feminism. 

I am not what I'd consider a feminist in the stereotypical sense, but certainly a humanist in that I believe we all have equal worth. Being the mother of a daughter for the past seven years I have become more sensitive to issues that I may have ignorantly absorbed and accepted in my own youth, but would vigilantly oppose for my daughter's sake. (She is unknowingly helping me to grow.)

Taking an egg ~ whether fertilized or not ~ away from a mother hen is robbing her of a sacred feminine cycle. Would I want this to happen to my daughter with or without her consent? Or to me for that matter? Supporting this act remotely by purchasing the eggs from the person who did swipe them passes along the ethical burden to me. I have stolen a potential baby from a mother whose very existence lives and breathes with the instinct to reproduce and nurture. I have interrupted her actualization of motherhood. Repeatedly.

Some people say chickens are stupid and that they don't think or feel. Here's an article that will illustrate that chickens do think, just differently than we do. They are not stupid. We're stupid for comparing their thinking abilities to that of humans as if the way we think is the only way to think.

Don't even get me started on the cows!

We eat how we live. With awareness and compassion or with ignorance and denial, with many stops in between. Life's a journey, indeed. Taste Peace. Try Veganism. 

"To meditate for world peace, to pray for a better world, and to work for social justice and environmental protection while continuing to purchase the flesh, milk, and eggs of horribly abused animals exposes a disconnect that is so fundamental that it render our efforts absurd, hypocritical, and doomed to certain failure....Cultivating awareness, we can transcend the imposed view that animals are mere food objects. With this, we will see consumerism, pornography, and the disconnectedness that leads inexorably to slavery and self-destruction evaporate. As the mentality of domination and exclusivism fades, we will be able to heal division of gender, race, and class." Will Tuttle

Or you can live in fear and doubt. It's just a choice. Be the change.

Live Light, xo-C.

FIRST HARVEST FROM THE GARDEN! A pictoral.

I am an excited first time gardener! Look at these darling radishes just peeking a sweet hello from the earth:

And here are a few radishes, freshly harvested, on the chopping board:

And here I am getting ready to take a bite of the very first food I have EVER grown:

Bite!

OMG! Ewwww! Did I plant Horseradish??

Hot and Spicy! OK, tell me what to do with radishes now. Recipe call!

And while in the garden, I captured the beans reaching out and grabbing onto support. The beauty and sweetness of the inherent miracle nearly broke my heart.

What's your support system? 

Live Light, xo-C.

CONFESSIONS OF AN EX-FOOD JUNKIE

I am still in sunny Florida enjoying family time with my daughter and parents...my younger brother too! What a bonus. Before I left for my trip I had mentioned in my blog post that I would be sharing some information of a more personal nature.

Weekly I read other wonderful health blogs and am so inspired by others' sucesses: overcoming illness, losing weight or meeting athletic goals. And sometimes I am criticized that my blog posts are too harsh: over opinionated, too judgemental or filled with unrealistic expectations. Let me, if you will, bridge what I admire and how I've arrived at my "blogging voice."

I am a recovered bulimic. For five solid years I stuffed myself silly with horrible food and threw it up, often several times a day. I had one of the clinically worse relationships with food that a person can have. I lied, I concealed, I stole and I was full of shame day after day. I had mastered which food combinations had the highest rate of binging satisfaction while still being easy to throw back up. Hours were spent in drive-thrus and I'd eat meals on the sly on the way to meet with family or friends for the "real" meal. Drug store pharmacists started keeping their ipecac syrup (vomit inducing medication) behind the counter to make it harder for me to get...all pharmacies in my area. Sometimes I'd stock up when I was out of town where they didn't know me.

For years I had all the behaviors of a drug addict. I lived out of my mind always consumed with the next high (binge), I went through money like water, I poorly managed my obligations and responsibilities to family, friends, school and work and I even sneaked into people's houses to eat their food. I created chaos and spewed it freely on others. It was an ugly time of my life and I still suffer some long term dominoe-effect consequences of those bad choices and circumstances.

Evenutally I was helped with medication and pshychology and I quickly weaned myself off the drugs. It was during this transition, when I was grasping for answers, that I began to consider the biochemical and physiological effects of food on the body, especially the brain chemicals. The hardest part about recovering from bulimia (or anorexia) is that you just can't abstain from your nemisis of addiciton unlike alcohol, drugs, shopping, sex, or gambling. You have to learn to have a healthy relationship with food if you want to live.

This is a brief rendition of where I've been. I can share more with you if you think it could help you or anyone you know. But this is my success story. I've never wanted to flaunt or exploit it, but I now wish to give myself credit for overcoming a very grave illness. I have been on the down side of food and am on the up side now and feel that I do have the experiences and the knowledge to help others, if not from bulimia, then from emotional eating and/or poor dietary habits. Sometimes I can lack the sugar-coating in my advice or opinions and it's not because I think i know everything there is to know about food, but because I've seen, felt, and lived it's disasterous and also it's beneficial effects on my body, mind and soul.

I belive that the current state of health is 60% based on what you put into your mouth (food and drink). Genetics, fitness and stress affect the rest. According to Deepak Chopra in Quantum Healing, our bodies regenerate 98% of their cells EVERY YEAR. The liver regenerates in six weeks and the stomach lining in 3 days! The body is in constant state of renewal.

DNA provides the blueprint, but food provides the building material. If you've been given a great design and try to build with marshmellow puffs and soda, your temple will crumble. If you've been given a decent design, build it with fruits, vegetables, grains and smart oils while giving it movement, water, sunshine and rest, you will be the best illuminated temple you could possibly be.

That's my story, that's my goal and that's my voice.

Live Light, xo-C.

GETTING READY TO DO THE HAPPY BOUNCE...ALL THE WAY TO FLORIDA!

It's Friday and I'm especially excited for two big reasons. First, later today I get to pick up my spanking new rebounder!! Do you know what that is? If not, it's a personal trampoline which is used for exercise, especially for the healthy movement of the lymph fluid. More in a minute...

And secondly, tomorrow my daughter and I are driving to Orlando to visit and stay the night with family and then Sunday heading to Coral Gables to see my parents FOR A WEEK...the sun, a pool, grandparents who want to spend oodles of time filling their granddaughter's day with endless entertainment. ;o)

Back to the rebounder....

I'm going to defer to excerpts from an excellent article:

The Exceptional Exercise that Really IS for Every Body: Rebounding by Sylvia Dreiser Farnsworth with Commentary by Donna Gates, Founder of Body Ecology

• Rebounding is a revolutionary form of exercise recognized by NASA as one of the most efficient forms of physical activity.

• Rebounding provides an aerobic workout that tones the cardiovascular system. But, unlike other forms of aerobics, it doesn’t stop there. The gentle bouncing motion of Rebounding actually stimulates the circulation of lymphatic fluid, the body’s waste disposal mechanism, providing direct support to your immune system.

• Gentle bouncing helps to move the lymph, creates space between the disks of the vertebrae, helps lubricate painful joints, increases bone density and improves the structure of the feet.

There are many rebounders on the market from which to choose. The most important features to look for are a well made frame with high shock absorption mat and springs. My friend Jenni of Oasis Life Spa here on Hilton Head Island is a distributor for the Needak rebounder used at the Hippocrates Health Institute in Florida. These models have steel frames, are portable (inside! outside! home! work!) and have a 85% shock absorption rate.The special price is $250 purchased through Jenni at 843.342.3361. I know that she'd love to talk with you about the rebounders, let you try one and I think she has some future group classes in the works.

When I went to Jenni's rebounder demo class last week I was able to try the rebounder for the first time. I've been wanting one for a while knowing that I would love it...and indeed I did. And more than I anticipated! So I am exceptionally excited to pick up my rebounder this afternoon. It will be traveling with me to Florida and I hope to do some joyful bouncing pool side while getting my daily dose of sunny Vitamin D.

Here are some more excellent resources:

The Detoxification Effect of Rebounding

Exercise on the Rebound

33 Benefits of Rebounding

While I'm away I have a few goals: to make some progress with my school work, to relax and repair my recenty strained lower back (gardening + bad pillows + jogging = ouch!) and to go on a blogging inner journey that I must take and I hope you'll come with me. My posts next week will be of a very personal nature but I think they'll help you better understand where I am coming from in regard to my sometimes staunch opinions about food choices and eating habits. 

Live Light, xo-C.

COW FARTS, TYPOS and FOOD SCHOOL!

• First of all, let me apologize for all the typos in yesterday's post! Whew! It's waaay too obvious today that I wrote that post waaay too late last night. (I have corrected the typos, so don't go looking for them now!)

• I'm happy to announce that you can now reach me on Facebook in one of three ways:

1. My personal profile - connect with Everything Carla!

2. My OneHealthyGirl.com public profile - connect with OneHealthyGirl.com as an extension of my blog where I'll share more health tips and get into interesting wellness conversations!

3. WellnessDestinationsCentral.com public profile - connect with me as I promote my NEW online alternative healthcare directory and be the first to know about promotions, give aways and Treasure Hunt Tuesdays!

Feel free to choose one, two or three ways to connect!

And while you're on Facebook, be sure to join my Alternative Healthcare Campaign to help holistic therapies become more mainstream!

• To my readers who are local (Hilton Head Island) don't forget to secure your space in my Food School on April 23rd. More information is here on my blog or here on Facebook. I look forward to helping you make smarter food choices. 

Now....here's an EXCELLENT video by Mark Bittman, author of Food Matters. It gives you an entertaining and informative quick history of how we arrived at our current Standard American Diet. It is worth your time to watch it or listen to it while you tidy up your desk.

Live Light, xo-C.

TETRA PAK RECYCLING, GAS RATIONING & A JOKE!

A kind reader wrote in regarding my dislike for the presumed non-recyclable Tetra Paks in which is packaged the yummy, yummy, yummy Vita Coco coconut water. Below is what she shared which was received from the company when she inquired about recycling:

o-------------------o

Thank you for your recent inquiry regarding the recycling of Tetra Pak aseptic cartons.  Unfortunately, there are no curbside programs in PA that include beverage cartons.  However, we do have a facility in Virginia that we work with, that will accept cartons that are mailed to them.  If you are interested in pursuing this option, please place rinsed, drained, and flattened aseptic and gable top cartons (traditional milk and juice cartons) in a cardboard box and mail them to:

 

Tidewater Fibers

12206 Old Stage Road

Chester, VA 23836

 

Please write the word "Cartons" on the box with a marker.  Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any further questions, and thank you for your interest in recycling.  Best regards.

 

David Hurd, Director

Office of Recycling Outreach and Education (OROE)

51 Chambers Street, Room 228

New York, NY 10007

212-341-9894 (Direct)

212-788-7900 (Main)

212-788-7913 (Fax)

dhurd@cenyc.ord

 

And there you have it!  If you ever buy soup in a box, like veggie broth, sometimes they are in Tetra Paks too. 

 

I just rinse them and let them drain upside down in my dish drainer for a few days then I flatten them.  

I typically send in a wine box from the liquor store and when they are flattened, you can fit a lot of Tetra Paks in there.  The cost of shipping is on you but I don't mind paying.  I always put a note in stating that I was told I could send the cartons there for recycling and if this is no longer correct to please contact me. Happy recycling!

o-------------------o

Thank you, Kiri!!! So not only could you send in Tetra Paks, you could also send in traditional milk and juice cartons. I think the obnoxious kids' juice boxes qualify too!! Hoorah!

Today was a rainy day, so I drove my car. I noticed that I have approximately 120 miles left to go on the tank I started conserving on March 16th when it was just under 3/4 of a tank. I'm sure I'll make it to a week from Friday (April 10th) when we head out on a road trip and will fill up. Not bad, less than tank in less than a month by riding bikes more to the grocery store, to school, to work and to the post office.! 

Ok....here's the joke sent to me twice this week. It was too funny not to share! Thanks WVS & GMC! 

A doctor, on his morning walk, noticed an older lady sitting on her front step smoking a cigar, so he walked up to her and said, "I couldn't help but notice how happy you look!  What is your secret?"

"I smoke ten cigars a day," she said.. 

"Before I go to bed, I smoke a nice big joint.  Apart from that, I drink a whole bottle of Jack Daniels every week, and eat only junk food. 

On weekends, I pop pills, get laid, and don't exercise at all."

 

"That is absolutely amazing!  How old are you?"

 

"Thirty-four," she replied.

Take care of yourselves!! Live Light, xo-C.

A TALE OF TWO READERS

This business of blogging is an interesting exercise in repeatedly exposing myself to praise and criticism. Today's post is a reflection of two such experiences.

Have you been noticing my "PS - Please vote for me, blah, blah, blah" at the bottom of my recent posts? Have you noticed my forewarnings to Jane? Finally a friend asked me the other day "Who's Jane?"

Jane is a reader. Or I should say "Jane" is a reader. Her name is in quotation marks because it is not her real name as far as I can tell. Several weeks ago I wrote a post about Dr. Mercola's people telling me that I had to use his banner ad whenever I referenced him (by the way, I fought that issue and won). "Jane" left a comment on my blog after that post. Here is what she said:

"I agree with you that it is unreasonable for him to expect a graphic.
I'd also like to mention that although I love your blog and subscribe to it on google reader I find your closing sentence begging us to vote for you completely obnoxious and is almost enough to make me unsubscribe."

At first I was taken aback. Oh dear, am I asking too much of my readers? Am I being a nuisance? After sharing and giving day after day, is it wrong of me to ask for something back? (Remember, my blog is free to read and I do not utilize third-party advertising for revenue.) This blog simply gives (well, sells) me the platform to listen to myself about the things that matter to me and, every now and then, my musings and writings help somebody. 

After I sent myself on a mini guilt-trip, I quickly came to my senses and realized that Jane must have some issues that have nothing to do with me asking my readers to vote for me in a contest that could help propel my WellnessDestinationsCentral.com project out of its infancy. 

But what saddened me the most is that "Jane" wrote from a ficticious email address (123@yahoo.com or some such) and I don't believe that "Jane" is her real name. I wish that this reader had felt strongly enough and confident enough in her opionion to use her real name and her real email address so that I could better understand her viewpoint. 

Interestingly enough, I just "met" a new reader, Jean, who uses her real name, leaves excellent feedback and writes her own blog titled MindfulEats.com. Jean is relatively new to the blog scene, but she is gooooood. Read her story on the journey to wellness here and read about her favorite things here.

Jean and I share many of the same philosophies of and approaches to health (no wonder I like her so!) but she is definitely the city version to my island self. I drool over her stories about shopping at Whole Foods! One thing I really admire about Jean is her willingness to share with her readers the foods she ate for the day. What has kept me from doing this is the self-imposed embarassment of the quantity of food that I can consume in a day (if you've ever eaten with me, you know I have a man-size stomach)! 

However, seeing Jean's lists, I feel a bit better. It just goes to show that when you feed your body real, wholesome food, you can actually eat quite a bit. The food gets put to use, cleans out your system and fuels productive days. 

Here is what I ate yesterday: two farm raised eggs with two slices of Ezekiel toast, fresh pineapple juice, matcha green tea, a small handful of Bella's whole wheat Annie's bunny crackers, two bites of an organic chocolate chip cookie, two of Bella's salty pita chips, two sweet potatoes with black beans and a little organic butter, a bag of goji berries and ample water. 

Last week a friend and reader suggested that I post what I'm having for dinner and share the recipe. Sometimes on the weekend I get excited about cooking something special, but during the week my diet is so boring. I told her it would be a grave disappointment. 

Does it help or entertain you to read what I eat during the course of a day? Are you interested in what I consume? Do you wish to see if I actually "walk the talk?" Give me some reader feedback and I'll comply. 

Thank you Jean for the comraderie and inspiration. And thank you Jane for the reality check.

Please vote for me in the StartUp Nation's Leading Moms in Business contest which ends Tuesday, March 31st!!!

Live Light, xo-C.

BONUS POST: PARSNIPS, POLLAN & PROMOTION!

I normally don't blog on the weekend ~ family time, ya know? ~ but I had to share an awesome recipe! Last Produce Tuesday, I secured some parsnips as my I've-never-had-'em-so-I'm-gonna-buy-'em vegetable. I like to try one foreign (that term is relative!) food each time.

Knowing not much about parsnips, I went to Google and found Jamie Oliver's Roasted Potatoes, Parsnips and Carrots recipe. OMG! Even my husband ate the foreign food and we concluded that parsnips are carrot potatoes - shape and texture of carrot, but the taste of an almost-sweet potatoe. It was all so, so, so good and I ate a mountain of the delicious medley.

 

And I wanted to share Michael Pollan's excellent 7 Rules for Eating:

1. Don't eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. "When you pick up that box of portable yogurt tubes, or eat something with 15 ingredients you can't pronounce, ask yourself, "What are those things doing there?" Pollan says.

2. Don’t eat anything with more than five ingredients, or ingredients you can't pronounce.

3. Stay out of the middle of the supermarket; shop on the perimeter of the store. Real food tends to be on the outer edge of the store near the loading docks, where it can be replaced with fresh foods when it goes bad.

4. Don't eat anything that won't eventually rot. "There are exceptions -- honey -- but as a rule, things like Twinkies that never go bad aren't food," Pollan says.

5. It is not just what you eat but how you eat. "Always leave the table a little hungry," Pollan says. "Many cultures have rules that you stop eating before you are full. In Japan, they say eat until you are four-fifths full. Islamic culture has a similar rule, and in German culture they say, 'Tie off the sack before it's full.'"

6. Families traditionally ate together, around a table and not a TV, at regular meal times. It's a good tradition. Enjoy meals with the people you love. "Remember when eating between meals felt wrong?" Pollan asks.

7. Don't buy food where you buy your gasoline. In the U.S., 20% of food is eaten in the car.

Please read the whole article from whence the above was excerpted. It's full of truly useful information.

Lastly, if you're on or near Hilton Head Island, sign up for my Food School class to be held on April 23rd. I will be discussing practical, every day ways to make smarter food choices. You can learn more here or on Facebook here.

And really lastly, if you're not Jane, please vote for me this last weekend of March for the StartUp Nation's Leading Moms In Business Compeition. The contest ends Tuesday.

Have a healthy, happy weekend! Live Light, xo-C.