The whole snack-happy, “six-small-meals-a-day” dieting philosophy is one of the worst things to have happened to Western food culture, and is pretty much the bane of my existence as a nutrition counselor. Basically, this phenomenon has created a nation of perpetually hungry, moody hypoglycemics, and although this is great for my business, it is terrible for the health of this country. Allow me to persuade you that snacking is one of your biggest food woes, and to show you a much better way!
Daily acts of self-love aren’t just fuzzy, feel-good luxuries. They are what is standing in between you and the body, life, and love that you are so desperately seeking. They are a necessity, and their lack leaves a huge gaping hole in your life that you then fill with ice cream, TV, wine, unfulfilling sex, and potato chips.
I know all your excuses, I’ve heard them all before. “But Natasha, I can’t afford massages!” or “I don’t have time for picnics in the park!” That may or may not be true, but each and every one of us has some time and some money to dedicate to the fundamental cause of our own happiness. So I’m doing the work for you! I’ve compiled a list of daily acts of self-love that fit any budget, any schedule. Make it a priority to pick one every day.. start small, and before you know it, daily acts of self-love, mindfulness, and joy will be a habit as natural to you as brushing your teeth.
These amazing gluten-free, flourless pancakes are moist, absolutely delicious, and loaded with healthy fats and antioxidants. An Organic Beauty weekend favorite!
Flourless Blueberry Coconut Pancakes
Serves 3
3 large ripe bananas
5 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup shredded dried coconut, plus more for garnish
1 cup fresh blueberries, plus more for garnish
½ teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons coconut oil
Pure maple syrup or agave (optional)
In a medium bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Whisk in the eggs and coconut until combined. If needed, you can add a little more coconut to achieve desired pancake batter consistency. Stir in the blueberries and cinnamon. Heat coconut oil in a large nonstick pan, over medium heat, until melted. Working in batches, pour ¼ cup portions of the batter onto the skillet (you should be able to cook 4 pancakes at a time). Cook the pancakes until the bottoms are golden brown, about 2 minutes. Gently flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown on the second side, about 1 minute longer. Transfer the pancakes to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter. Stack the pancakes and garnish with additional coconut and blueberries. Garnish with maple syrup or agave, if using, and serve immediately.
Living a fabulous life is amazing, and of course, something we’re all striving towards (or should be!), but with all the emphasis on going out, doing, and taking over the world, we sometimes forget the therapeutic effect of a good night in.
Now I don’t mean the kind of sad, pathetic night in where you’re wishing you were somewhere else and bury yourself in reality TV and a pint of ice cream.
I’m talking about the luxurious, pampering, thought-out, fabulous kind of night in that leaves you feeling like there is no where you’d rather be! Lower your stress levels, feel more in-control of your life, calm your sweet little soul, and get some much needed self-love. Here’s what you’ll need:
(Clockwise from top left)
1. Delicious, organic popcorn like Hudson Valley’s Bjorn Qorn, or better yet, make your own (see below)!
2. A favorite, classic movie or book (you can’t go wrong with Clueless or The Secret Garden!)
3. An amazing, detoxifying face mask, like Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay ($8)
4. A cup of delicious, calming tea, like Yogi Kava Stress Relief tea in Honey Lavender ($3.46)
5. Comfy and luxurious loungewear (no dumpy sweats here!), like these Bamboo Dreams Sugar Pie Pajamas ($99)
We spend more time at work than we do with our families, with our friends, relaxing, and traveling. So it stands to reason that if you are spending the majority of your week, and therefore, the majority of your life doing something that stresses you out, something that you hate, your health and happiness are bound to be effected. Negative emotions, stress, and anxiety have measurable impacts on your waistline, mental health, blood pressure, your immunity and your ability to heal. So if your happiness and peace of mind aren’t a good enough motivator to rethink your work situation, maybe wrinkles, longevity, and disease prevention will do the trick.
Doing something you love and making good money doing it isn’t a luxury, it is your right as a brilliant, vibrant human being. {Tweet it!} If you are talking yourself out of that fact, you are doing yourself a major disservice. We all have a million reasons for why we can’t change something negative in our lives. We convince ourselves that our responsibilities outweigh our need for fulfillment. We tell ourselves that no one loves their job, and we just have to do what we have to do. We tell ourselves that now just isn’t a good time. This kind of negative, limiting self-talk is exactly what keeps you stuck, and what keeps you going back to that bottle of wine, that slice of pizza, or that pint of ice cream after a long day of uninspiring work that you hate.
So for just one minute, let yourself move past all the reasons why you can’t, and think about why you must. What are you sacrificing in your life to stay at that job? How would your life be different if you were actually excited about going to work every day, and felt satisfied and fulfilled at the end of a long day. This reality is a lot closer than you think.
But where to start? Getting clear on exactly what makes you miserable about your job, as well as what you need from your career are a vital first step. Whip out a notebook and follow the six steps below to start on the path towards finding a career you really love.
Write down the five things about your job that drive you the craziest. Maybe it’s your boss, or the hours, or just the reality of what you’re doing all day long. This will help you to understand what exactly it is about your circumstances that isn’t working for you. Maybe you’ll find that it’s not really your job that you hate, but the culture of your workplace. In that case, finding a similar position in a different company, perhaps one that is more aligned with your ethos, is all you need!
So now that you know what isn’t working, get super clear on what you absolutely need. Perhaps your salary is non-negotiable. Health insurance, vacation days, etc. But think about what you need on a deeper level as well! A creative outlet, a self-directed work style, a flexible schedule. Write down all of these must-have’s, and if you’d like, you can even expand your wish list to include aspects of a job you would really like to have realized, but aren’t deal-breakers.
It totally breaks my heart that so many of us separate our passions from our careers. Let me reiterate: You will spend more of your life working than doing anything else. So why would you settle for a career that doesn’t speak to your passions? Write down the three things you are most passionate about. Travel, health, beauty, art, child welfare, human rights, photography, film, writing… If you’re having trouble, think back to your high school and college years. What electives did you take, what extracurricular activities were you most excited about, what were your obsessions (other than that guy in history class)? Thinking back to a time when you allowed yourself to pursue your passions can provide wonderful insights into your calling or your life’s work.
Sometimes this is in line with your passions, and sometimes it isn’t. But if you are amazing at something, it comes easy to you, and that makes for a much smoother work experience than the uphill struggle of fitting yourself into a mold that just isn’t you. Maybe you’re awesome with numbers, or you’re amazing at inspiring people. Perhaps you have great powers of persuasion, or are an amazing listener. Think about what your friends come to you for. Are you the person people call when they need help solving a problem, dealing with a difficult person in their life, or when they need the benefit of your wisdom and support? Finding a job that plays to your strengths will be more enjoyable, easier, and you’ll be just plain better at it
Often times, the biggest culprit for being in jobs that we hate is that we’re doing the completely wrong thing for our personality. A shy introverted person is going to miserable in a sales position, where they have to present to others and be outgoing. A born leader is going to be miserable in a position that positions them as just one of the crowd, forced to take orders from a long chain of superiors. What characteristics define you? Your creativity? Enthusiasm? Calm? Write down what you come up with. Sometimes we need a little guidance figuring out these aspects of our character, and luckily there are tons of super enlightening tools out there to help you. Start with Oprah’s self-assessment quiz, Who Are You Meant to Be? Or jump into something more compressive, like the Myers-Briggs Personality Assessment, and do some reading about your type. Many profiles will list the types of careers that are best suited for your type, which is an awesome place to start.
Objectively look at all the information you wrote down… What picture is starting to emerge? If you wrote down that what you hate about your job is the tedious computer work, one of your must-have’s is an active workday, you’re passionate about travel, you’re good at problem-solving, and you’re the type of person who needs freedom and creativity to feel fulfilled, what kind of career could fit that profile? Perhaps something with travel and a self-directed work style like a consultant position where companies fly you in to solve some specific issue that you’re amazing with. If nothing is coming out at you, hand your list over to a trusted friend or loved one, and ask them what career they think your list describes.
Simply taking the first step of allowing yourself to dream of a different career is huge. Really accept and sit with the idea that you deserve to do something you love, and that it is totally possible!!
By Callie McBride
So, if you didn’t know already, check this out: the Department of Health and Human Services recognizes September as National Yoga Month, and Yoga Health Foundation is offering up one free week of yoga in celebration. Over 2,200 yoga studios around the country are participating, and all you need to do is type in your email address, find a studio, and sign awn’ up. Upon receiving your beautiful yoga month card, you get to choose one week in either September and October (they are extending the dates to accommodate those super busy folks) and visit a new studio (you can’t be an existing member) for a full week of lovely yoga! This celebratory month is meant to educate people on the incredible benefits of yoga and yogic healing. Let’s review, shall we?
*increased flexibility
*better brain function
*better skeletal alignment
*strengthened joints
*weight loss/maintenance
*LESS STRESS!
*peace of mind
*mental focus and clarity
*deeper spirituality
*mind-body integration
*and so much more. From relieving PMS symptoms to correcting back aches to remedying an off day; the healing powers of yoga seem to be endless. Visit Yoga Health Foundation for more info, and head over to this link to get your Yoga Month Card now! Namaste.
Some of the most exciting research in health and nutrition these days is around the vital role our gut flora (read: healthy bugs and microbes in our stomach) plays in our overall health, beyond just digestion. Having enough beneficial bacteria in your gut is linked to healthy weight loss, better moods, less anxiety, stress, and depression, increased immunity, clearer skin, and better bladder and reproductive health. Of course, fermented foods also make you more regular, eliminate gas and bloating, and relieve stomach aches!
Taking an effective, broad-spectrum probiotic, like NOW Dairy-Free Probiotic-10 25 Billion, is one great way of making sure you’ve got enough healthy bugs in your system. But as with all nutrients, food-based sources are even better! Fermented foods are naturally high in beneficial bacteria and they are the best way of getting more probiotics in your system. Eating fermented foods every day has amazing, immediately noticeable health benefits, and unfortunately, none of us are getting enough of these powerful health foods! Check out our favorite fermented foods below, and keep in mind that quality matters. Typical supermarket brands of these foods are pasteurized and heated, which kills the beneficial bacteria.
One of the first questions I ask my clients is how much water they drink. And one of the most common answers I get is “well, I drink lots of tea and VitaminWater!” Guess what guys, VitaminWater and other “enhanced,” flavored water-type beverages are NOT water, they are really no better than soda, and they have the same negative effects on your body! Don’t believe me? Pick up a bottle of Vitamin Water and read the ingredients. The 2nd and 3rd ingredients are sugar! With the additional additives of color, flavor, and “stabilizers,” you are drinking a beverage that is really no different from soda, no matter how many vitamins they add.
What about the other guys on the market? Mio Liquid Water Enhancer, Skinny Water, Propel Fitness Water, Dasani Drops are the watered down equivalents of diet soda. Instead of sugar, they feature artificial sweeteners like sucralose, dextrose, or aspartame, which are linked to obesity, digestive problems, neurological issues, diabetes, and cancer. These guys kill off the beneficial bacteria in your gut, which wreaks all kinds of havoc on your system, and can lead to an overgrowth of candida (read more about candida overgrowth). They’re also loaded with a whole bunch of questionable ingredients that definitely don’t pass the basic food rule: “If you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it.”
So-called “enhanced” waters are yet another in a long line of marketing ploys designed to get you to poison your body under the guise of health. Be smart. Read your ingredients. Don’t be a victim of false advertising! Water — pure, filtered H2O, gives your body all the hydration it needs, and does not need to be a source of vitamins in your diet. Eat healthy, and take some high-quality supplements if you need a vitamin boost! (Check out our Basic Supplement Guide to find out which supplements you may need.)
So what do you do if you just aren’t a big water person? There are definitely safer and more natural unsweetened, lightly flavored waters out there, like MetroMint and Hint Water, but the safest and healthiest option is simply to flavor your water yourself! A squeeze of lemon or an infusion of yummy berries and herbs is delicious, and gives you control over factors like quality, organics, and intensity of flavor. Check out our review of the adorable and eco-friendly Glass Water Bottle with Infuser from AdNArt.
By Callie McBride
For all the dedicated health foodies out there who devote large amounts of time and energy to maintaining a healthful and active lifestyle, it usually feels like its simple 90% of the time, and nearly impossible 10% of the time. For a number of days in a row you wake up early, eat a good breakfast, get a great workout in, and make a homemade dinner at the end of the day. Then, out of nowhere, you wake up one morning and find that it can be incredibly challenging to keep up consistency with exercising, or to find variety in the kitchen, or even the motivation to drink lots of water! You feel distraught that you’re craving trashy TV and a big bowl of cereal; you feel anxious that your momentary break from veggies and 6am yoga may throw you off track. You feel surrounded by those pesky little things called vices.
Do not fret; there is a solution!
In my own personal experience, trying to fight through cravings and vices never works. I attempt to go without coffee for a month, and suddenly my 5am wakeup calls become positively dreadful. I ban any sugar or chocolate from my diet, and magically I crave sweets as though they’re oxygen. I mentally order myself not to miss a day in the gym, and in effect my bed becomes that much more comfortable. It seems that all of the restrictions or rules we place upon ourselves only backfire and cause us to fall into bad habits or take less care of ourselves. This happens when we strive for perfection in our health and fitness. We aim too high and forget that we are only human! While it’s wonderful that we delight in eating right, staying active, and maintaining a lifestyle meant for optimal wellness, we can get too caught up in the midst of it all. This, in turn, leads to a temporary lapse that leaves us feeling lazy or uninspired. I’ve been there, and I know how upsetting it is to feel like your goals were thrown off by a long holiday weekend or an unnecessary TV binge.
Instead of warding off all potential vices in our lives, I say we embrace them. Um, what!? Don’t write the idea off just yet. Accept your vices as they come, and learn to control them instead of let them overpower you. I, for one, have a strong vice for coffee. Though I am aware that it’s highly acid forming and addictive (not to mention costly), I cannot seem to give it up. Instead of steering clear of all Starbucks (an impossible feat in NYC) and vowing never to sip the drink again, I can allow the vice into my life in a healthy way. I hopped online, did some research, and found an amazing way to make your own cold coffee concentrate. Since no heating is involved in the process, it is much less acidic which leaves me feeling guilt-free and satisfied! Mixed with ice and some homemade almond milk, and my coffee vice has just transformed into a delicious pleasure.
Another vice of mine, that I am venturing to guess could be yours too, is ice cream. Is it the devil? The angel? We’ll never know. Since becoming vegan a number of years ago, I was immediately excited to hop on the health train and learn all that I could about feeding my body perfectly and becoming as healthy as possible. There’s that word again-perfect. After I while, I grew exhausted from always “being good” and refraining from this nighttime snack or cool summer treat. I became nostalgic for the delicious taste of creamy, cold ice cream that always hit the spot. However, I still am not interested in a dairy-filled, sugary pint that is chock full of artificial flavors, fillers, or thickeners that don’t do anything for my body. Again, I turned my vice into a pleasure by taking the time to control the situation, instead of avoid the treat and eventually break. I discovered the Raw Ice Cream Company, which offers multiple flavors of cashew and coconut milk-based ice cream. Sold in half pints to control portions, this ice cream is entirely good for the body and the planet.
Whatever your particular vices are, I encourage you to accept them as a form of self-challenges. If you don’t have any, then I am convinced you are a robot. Imperfection is part of being human, so take these pesky habits and turn them into ways to further your quest for healthy living. Just as I can now enjoy my iced coffee guilt-free, you can also change your perspective on your own vices that get under your skin. Be creative, be resourceful, and be active in maintaining health and wellness as a large part of your lifestyle.
Willing to share your vices, and possible ways to turn them around? Comment below!
In my holistic health counseling practice, the excuse I hear most often for why someone just can’t make time for a healthy breakfast, a morning workout, or meditation is “I’m not a morning person.” I’ve got news for you: That’s a load of hooey! Any staunch night owl can become a super productive person before 9am if they want to. I’ll tell you how I know this.. I did it! I come from a family of night owls. We stayed up LATE in my house, and mornings were a time to sleep until the very last minute, rush around getting ready, and frantically arriving late wherever we needed to be. I kept up this M.O. well into my late 20’s. And then I decided to change. I craved calm, nourishing mornings. I craved time. I hate the feeling of rushing. So if I can do it, so can you, if you choose to. Here’s how:
This is so obvious, but always overlooked. If you want to wake up, totally rested, before your alarm, with time to get some stuff done in the morning, you need to get to bed earlier. Don’t kid yourself into thinking you do ok on less than 7 hours of sleep. You don’t, and pretending is what’s making you a tired, grumpy zombie in the mornings. Figure out when you ideally would like to wake up, leaving time for whatever you would like to accomplish in the morning (see below), and get thee into bed at least 8.5 hours before that time (leaving yourself a 30 minute buffer to actually get to sleep). If you have trouble getting to sleep, check out my article, How to Sleep Better, Naturally!
Morning is a perfect time for exercise, meditation, a healthy breakfast, and some chill time before work. Figure out what your priorities are and set your intentions for the morning. Figure out how much time you want to dedicate to these activities, and go to sleep accordingly the night before (see above). Create a little morning ritual for yourself that incorporates everything you would love your morning to include. A ritual is an amazing way to create and stick to a new habit, injecting it with calm and meaning (check out my article, The Power of Ritual!). Here’s my morning ritual: I wake up, walk the dog, feed him, take my morning vitamins, meditate for 15 minutes, make breakfast and watch the news for about 20 minutes… all before even starting to get ready for the day! I set my alarm to leave myself time for my ritual, and make sure I get to bed at the right time to allow myself at least 8 hours of sleep (preferably 9 ; )
Regardless of what you want to accomplish in the morning, leave yourself enough time to do it all calmly.T he number one way to ruin your morning is to rush, or even just to feel rushed. So always give yourself a buffer to account for any unpredictable events, as well as all the basics of getting ready. The more time you feel like you have, the calmer you will be.
Make sure your morning includes something you find pleasurable (like meditation, checking your favorite blogs, or watching the news). You’re not going to be motivated to get up early for your awesome mornings if they’re not pleasurable, or if they’re filled with more stuff you have to do. Morning is an amazing time to start the day with some you time, which sets the tone for a more enjoyable and less stressful day. So dig deep and connect to what you’re really craving in the mornings. Maybe it’s tons of time to do your hair or pick out the perfect outfit. Or sitting down at the table for a real proper breakfast. It’s YOUR morning, so make it count! The more enjoyable your mornings, the more you will look forward to them. And, wait, what? Suddenly you’re a morning person.
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I'm Natasha Uspensky, holistic nutritionist, Ayurvedic practitioner and healthy lifestyle expert. I created The Organic Beauty to be your resource to celebrate and learn about everything from healthy eating and living for your whole family, to natural beauty and sustainable style. I hope to inspire you to live beautifully and healthfully, in a life you love!
Click here to learn more about me!
xoxox
