It’s a sad fact that we use and abuse our feet, often neglecting them during the winter months.  Then we expect them to emerge looking pretty in the spring.

Marilu offers a simple tip that will help cushion your feet and keep them soft.  Before you put on your work out shoes apply a coat of Vaseline to your feet and cover them with an extra pair of socks. 

You’ll love the soft way they feel and the extra socks will help provide a cushion that will be gentler to your body during any impact moves. 

One more way to be kind to the environment and save money on hair care products:

A BAKING SODA TREATMENT AS A CLARIFYING SHAMPOO

Just add 2 Tablespoons of baking soda to 3 cups of water and use it as a rinse after you shampoo.  OR… sprinkle the baking soda on top of the shampoo in your hand just before you wash your hair. 

Do this monthly, or up to weekly, especially if you have product buildup or dull hair. 

The cost of this is just pennies a treatment !

These pancakes are super simple, so easy to make, vegan, sugar free, and depending on the type of flour you choose, can also be easily tweaked to make them gluten free. 

1 and 1/4  cup oats

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2  teaspoon salt

1 and 1/2 cups almond milk

2 bananas

Place all ingredients in blender and process until just combined.  Fry on a hot griddle with a little Earth Balance margarine.  Serve with your favorite toppings.  We recommend Earth Balance and pure maple syrup, with walnuts for some added crunch and nutrition.

Yes this is the actual name of a restaurant in Las Vegas.  And in fact a patron recently did suffer a heart attack while dining there.  Admittedly the heart attack was a culmination of bad choices, not the result of one bad meal, but there are strong feelings about a restaurant that targets people who have health issues and seems to make a joke of it.  In fact, there are reports that patrons were applauding rather than offering assistance as they thought they were watching a show. 

Many people are offended including The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.  Check out this article in VegNews for Dr. Neal Barnard’s reaction. 

http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do;jsessionid=2D45643ABD5E9FF1DEA31BFF72C09135?pageId=4228&catId=8

Join us on March 9th for a 10 Day BLAST CLASS !!

Three coaches will lead us through the 10 steps of THM.  This is your chance to focus on the areas where you most need change.   All of the steps will be represented but YOU choose where you want to concentrate your energy. 

We’re approaching this as a hard core workout for your lifestyle.  We’ll have a 3 day warm up, 5 day intense coaching and a 2 day “cool down” when we’ll share what’s working and how we’re incorporating the changes into our busy lives.

Our coaches will give you personal attention, honest advice and practical tips to effect lasting change. 

There is strong evidence to suggest that tomatoes play an important role in protecting men agaisnt prostate cancer, according to Dr. Lorelei Mucci from Harvard School of Public Health.

In a long term (20 year) study of 79,000 men it was found that men who consume 2-3 servings of cooked tomatoes per week have a reduced risk of developing prostate cancer; as much as a 40 – 50 % reduction. 

Make an easy tomato soup, simple tomato sauces, or saute chopped tomatoes and spinach to serve alongside poached eggs.  It’s easy to get 3 servings a week onto you table…and well worth the effort

We live in a world where we need to use transportation, and cleaning products,  and merchandise that comes in plastic packaging.  When you order a product on line you have little or no control over how it is packaged or shipped. 

But there ARE ways that we can exercise some control over our carbon foot print.  Diet is one of them.  A plant based diet is environmentally friendly.  If we  look at our day-to-day lives we can find more ways to be kind to the planet we share.

No one is going to do everything but we can each do something more than what we’re doing currently. 

There are any number of products and websites you can check out.  Seventh Generation and Method both make products for the home or you can use your grandmothers method of vinegar and newspaper.  (Even if you’ve gone paperless most of you will be putting unsolicited fliers in your recycling this week.) We’re conditioned to associate the chemical smells with cleanliness but baking soda will do the same job as harsh chemical scrubs without being harmful to you, your children, or your pets.

There are ways to make other household items more eco friendly such as Osmo wood finishes, Bio Paints and Yolo Colorhouse.

Make it more personal. Origins, Aubrey Organics, and Dr. Hauschka all make skin care and cosmetic lines. 

Gaiam offers eco friendly bed and bath products. 

We’re not endorsing any particular brands here…just giving you food for thought. 

Think about your pet products, showerheads, lightbulbs, kitchen products such as wraps etc.

What’s one area where you can make a change this week?

When it comes to exercise it’s easy to make excuses.  The two biggest?  Time and money.  The truth is; you don’t need to belong to a gym, have a personal trainer or high end equipment.  And you don’t have to go at it full force for hours a day.   Find pockets of time throughout your day and make the most of them.  Marilu recommends breaking a sweat for 10 minutes a day.  TEN MINUTES.  If you make time for that, the chances are greater that movement will become a part of who you are. 

As for the trainer and the gym, those are great if that’s what motivates you.  If not, invest in a pair of running shoes and hit the road.  Or rent an exercise DVD at the library at no cost.  There are plenty of other options that are, for the most part, a one time fee.  A yoga mat or jump rope would cost about 20 dollars in most stores.  A stability ball could run anywhere from $8.00 to $40.00.  Resistance bands are anywhere from $5.00 to $35.00.

And of course they often go on sale, in excellent condition,  on-line.   People experiment with different types of exercise before they settle on what suits them.  Chances are you know someone who has some of these items and isn’t using them.

Get moving.  No excuses.

From Healthy Holidays:

2 and 1/4 cups dried kombu or other shredded seaweed (about 1 ounce)

1 cup yellow miso

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 and 1/4 cups, peeled, shredded organic daikon

1/3 cup shredded carrot

4 Tablespoons chopped organic green onions (white part only)

2 bunches organic watercress, trimmed

4 Tablespoons chopped green onion tops

In a large saucepan, over medium high heat, combine the kombu and 8 cups of water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 1 minute.

Drain in a colander over a bowl, reserving the liquid.  Discard the kombu.  In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the reserved liquid and the miso, stirring with a whisk.  In a large saute pan over medium heat, heat the oil.  Add the daikon, carrot, and onion whites.  Cook 3 minutes or until the daikon and carrots are tender.

Add the miso mixture and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. 

Add the watercress and cook 1 minute, until just wilted.  Serve hot, sprinkled with the green onion tops.