Spring Clean your Body!

I look forward to the weather changing! Winter is harsh, your body suffers and your mood suffers. Spring is fresh, new and full of vitality all around you! It is one of the best times of the year to change your eating and lifestyle practices. Start with a 3 day cleanse and if you can tolerate a 5 or seven day cleanse that rids your body of sugar cravings, salt cravings, meat cravings and fat cravings. It can be a homemade juice cleanse or one that consist of delicious fruit smoothies, salads with lemon juice dressing, bean soups and stews. No matter what kind of cleanse you choose it should not include anything processed, any sugars other than what is found naturally in fruits and vegetables, no carbohydrates unless it's of the vegetable variety and no, potatoes are not included. Avoid adding salt or other sodium products to your foods, drink plenty of water 6-8 cups, snack on raw nuts, seeds, dried fruits and absolutely no meat or animal by products such as milk, cheese, yogurt and butter. You can do it! Let's Go!

Green Monster Smoothie consist of: 

1/2 green Granny Smith Apple 

1/4 cup kale

1/4 cup carrots chopped 

1/4 cup frozen pineapples and strawberry 

Water can be used to adjust thickness. Blend and drink! 

Sex and Nutrition

It's been so long! But here I is.

I recently caught a snippet of a rapper who will remain nameless and his wife, yes, his wife, some rappers actually do believe in marriage but I digress. They were doing one of those solacious, late night talk shows and the topic of oral sex came up. Well, this unknown rapper said and I quote, " I love performing oral on my wife, she tastes good, she tastes like mangos, fruity, it's true you are what you eat." Hhhmmmm, I liked said rapper before but that interview garnered a new found respect for him. Men don't often discuss why they like to perform fallacio much less how it tastes.  His statement is the definition of, you are what you eat, and often times what you eat secretes through your biggest organ your skin! Body odors though widely hormonal also has a lot to do with your diet. Hence the reason someone might smell garlicky, smell like pungent seasoning or just plain foul. 

There's no complicated remedy other than to eat healthy, drink plenty of water and sweat as much as possible. Eating healthy means eating a variety of whole foods, fresh fruits, vegetable, whole complex carbohydrates, limiting meat intake which takes far longer for your body to break down and process than most foods, limit pungent herbs and spices and I say this with bitten lips because I love to flavor my foods with garlic, cloves, cayenne and I am a curry freak! Drinking plenty of water will help balance out your intake of pungent herbs and spices by flushing and cleansing the body. Eat raw nuts and seeds for added protein and fiber. Try a new exotic fruit paying attention to the flavor and the smell and imagine that's how you want to taste. 

Good nutrition serves to promote good health but it's also important for our sexual health, sexual pleasure and flavor 🙊. 

Thanksgiving Survival 101

 

1.    First and most important forget the diet!

 

2.    Take the guilt out of eating more than you normally would by:

a.   Preparing  foods in a healthy way

b.   Eating smaller portion of all foods selected

c.   Waiting at least an hour, to an hour and a half before having seconds

d.   Avoiding large amount of fluids before, with or after meals.

3.   Oven fry chicken is just as tasty as pan fried chicken.  Use a dry batter in place of a wet one when frying in the oven.

4.   Make steamed or roasted vegetables as sides. Avoid using bacon, smoked meats with your vegetables. (see below for great vegan collard greens recipe)

5.   Use natural ingredients; avoid using process foods as much as possible.

6.   If you feel sluggish after dinner due to over eating, go for a quick brisk walk or entertain

yourself, family and friends with a game of musical chairs, or a 15 minute dance off.  Dancing for 15- 30 minutes burns anywhere from 60 to 150 calories.

Recipe!

Vegan Collard Greens

 

2 large bunches collard greens

3 garlic cloves crush and chopped

1 small onion chopped

2 tbsp. Olive oil

¼ tsp. dried rosemary

Dash of salt for taste (optional)

Dash of black pepper

 

Wash and chop (or tear) collard greens.

In a tall stock pot heat olive oil, add chopped onions, garlic and dried rosemary, sauté for about 3 minutes then add collard greens.

Add one cup of water, cover stock pot and let simmer on medium heat for about 10 minutes.

Once collard greens are cooked add small amount of black pepper and salt, simmer for 5 more minutes then remove from heat.

 

*If you prefer your greens soggy cook longer (it is better to steam your vegetables than it is to cook them in water). For collard greens add just enough water to keep it from burning or sticking to bottom of pot.  If water dries out before greens are cooked add water as needed. Kale and turnip greens can be used in place of collards as well!!

Curry Tofu with Pumpkin or Butternut Squash

I love tofu. A lot of people find it tasteless and not very appetizing at all. The trick with tofu is seasoning because it takes on whatever flavor you add to it. My curry tofu is simple and delicious. You can use extra firm tofu or firm. If you want a different texture for your tofu freeze it the night before and watch what happens.

Curry tofu and pumpkin recipe:

1 pack of extra firm tofu drained and cut into cubes

1 cup pumpkin or butternut squash cut into smaller cubes

1 tbsp curry powder

1 dry bay leaf

2 clove garlic crushed and chopped

1/2 of a small onion chopped

1 sprig of thyme optional

1/2 tsp white pepper

Salt to taste

Heat olive oil in a nonstick frying pan. Add bay leaf, thyme, garlic, onions and curry to heated oil. Sauté ingredients for 3-5minutes then add squash. Sauté squash for another 5 minutes then add tofu. Stir gently to prevent tofu from falling apart (if tofu was frozen the night before it will not crumble easily). Add 1/2 cup water cover and let simmer until squash is cooked.

This can be eaten with 1/2 cup brown rice and greens such as kale, or spinach.