So You Think You Eat Healthy?

If I had a dollar (even at these deflationary rates) for every time someone told me they eat healthy when the reality was quite different, I’d be at Miraval spa every winter!

It’s not that people are lying to me. While sometimes they are lying to themselves, as a general rule, people have no idea what healthy eating truly means. We’ve been brainwashed by TV ads and food marketing. We read the same recycled fitness and health magazines that promote deprivation and exercising harder, not smarter.

If I see one more person eating egg whites or kashi brand products and smug that they are healthy, I might finally laugh back!

No more – get the scoop thats been helping my clients get healthy (think energized, focused, joyful and confident) and lose weight in a natural and fun way. It’s time to work with your body and life.

Here’s your chance:

Total Health Make-Over: Take Control of Your Mind, Body and Spirit

Join Health Coach Ali Shapiro, Psychologist Nicole Lipkin and Premier-Philly Trainer Brandon Mentore for an afternoon that will inspire the natural, best you.

You’ll walk away with:

• A solid yet flexible healthy eating strategy
• How to apply the cutting-edge science behind sustainable weight-loss
• Exercise routines that have you working out smarter, not harder
• Proven solutions to lead your life fully
• Action plans to improve your relationship with your mind and body

When: Saturday April 25, 1-5 p.m.
Where: Equilibria 525 South 4th Street, Suite 471 Philadelphia, PA 19147 Investment: $195 per person/$175 if you bring a friend.
RSVP by April 18. To do so, sending a check, made payable to:

Equilibria
525 South 4th Street, Suite 471
Philadelphia, PA 19147

Once your check is received, you will receive a confirmation email that your spot is reserved.

Any questions, contact Ali Shapiro at alishapiro@pyournutrition.com or 215.279.7491

Recipe for Radiant Skin

Stop wasting your money on ineffective skin products and get to the root of the problem. Skin issues are a sign of an internal imbalance. Making a few tweaks to the foods you eat can clear up your skin and that drug store habit.

Learn how with my Recipe for Radian Skin on NBC.

Sneak In Your Greens Smoothie

So by now, you know greens are important. Especially during Spring! Here’s a quick and easy recipe to help you get them in on the fly.

Sneak In Your Greens Smoothie

Yield: 6 servings

1 granny smith apple, washed, cored but with skin
1/2 pear, washed, with skin
4 stalks celery, ends & tips removed, use leaves
2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
1/2 large Haas avocado
1/4 bunch cilantro, stems removed
3-4 cups filtered water

Chop fruits and vegetables into 1 inch pieces for easy blending. Fill blender with 3-4 cups filtered water (more or less water depending on how thick you desire your shake). Add all ingredients into blender. Puree till smooth or desired consistency.

* You can also add lemon, lime or a dash of ginger juice

Detox!

Spring, according to the calendar, has arrived! With that, every year, I do a liver cleanse. In Chinese medicine, each season corresponds with an organ, or a system or organs (the Chinese view things in groups of organs, more of a “systems thinking”). And Spring matches up with the liver.

Carlos, bless his heart, did this one with me. It makes such a difference when you have a partner. We tried the Metagenics 10-day detox plan (for tips on how to gently detox yourself, click here.) It was great. The gist of it was eliminating processed foods, the top allergenic foods (gluten, egg, dairy, nuts) and animal protein, while eating lots of fruits, veggies and some cleansing herbs and vitamins. Except for the lethargy, it was smooth sailing for me. But, I do detox every season and keep a pretty healthy lifestyle. However, I feel like a new person and am motivated to stick to a lifestyle of slowing down, and less animal protein and chocolate.

Carlos had a rougher time with some detox symptoms (chills, sweats, nausea), but as a result, I think he’s a new man…and one dedicated to going without coffee! If anyone knows Carlos, this seems like I’m writing the fiction that he writes. But nope, he is enjoying not feeling the ups and downs in his moods that come from excessive coffee intake.

The hardest part for me wasn’t the food plan but the slowing down. It was the slowest I’ve been in probably three years. It made me realize what a break neck pace I’ve been keeping and I’m ready to bring more stillness. During the 10-day detox, I got a massage, read some great books, really enjoyed catching up with friends on the phone and reading trashy magazines like US Weekly and those other star magazines that recycle the same drama every month at Barnes and Nobles (I won’t pay for them!). It was so much fun!

So as Spring brings new beginnings, what would make life feel brand new and guide you toward the life you want to lead? I think all of us should look at how we can take better care of ourselves. And then do it…and pass on that energy to others. What a wonderful world this would be.

One Bean Guacamole

This recipe is so wonderfully quick, simple and delicious. I adapted it from a Moosewood Cookbook. I ate it with a Sunshine burger and some broccoli for a very filling spring time lunch.

Serves: 4
Ingredients

One ripe avocado
1 can of kidney beans (15 ounces)
1/2 cup of salsa
1/4 cup of cilantro
sea salt and pepper to taste

1. Slice avocado in half. Scoop out each half and set in dish.
2. Rinse kidney beans and smash together with fork. Mix salsa, cilantro, sea salt and pepper to taste
3. Pour over avocado slices.

Pharmacology

I didn’t even know what Pharmacology was until this past weekend. I attended a leadership retreat with other Penn grad students and had a chance to mingle with people from all the different graduate schools. I ended up hanging out a lot with the scientists, some who were getting their Ph.Ds in Pharmacology. These were amazing and incredible women doing really interesting work – and lots of it.

It was really interesting to be around them. They look at life very differently from me. Not better or worse, just different. We had great discussions around health, the body, nutrition and why I don’t think drinking milk is healthy with a Veterinarian/Pharmacology Ph.D who didn’t agree. The weekend definitely kept me on my toes!

What was the most interesting to me was talking to the two Pharmacology Ph.D’s. These people study drugs for a living. Both of them told me they won’t take prescription drugs after reading all of the side-effects and what really goes on in the body. This was shocking to me. I know I try to avoid medication the best I can but I also know I’m looking at this through my life experiences and education. I found it fascinating that people who were interested and passionate in this subject enough to get a Ph.D also felt the same way.

We arrived at it probably from different thought processes – mine being experiential and intuitive and theirs in large part based on clinical lab work and intricate knowledge of drug interactions with the body. But regardless, it was the same conclusion.

I still believe everyone has to personally choose what healing route they prefer. That’s the one I believe has the most likely chance of working. But I also wish there was more public knowledge about the ramifications of relying on pharmaceuticals and there was more awareness around drugs never enabling you to feel as wonderful as eating well, exercising and having fun.

Maybe if there was,whole foods, clean water and exercise would have more of a level playing field and be the first line of defense for colds, high lab numbers and depression. At the very least, we’d all have more confidence in our intuition.

Beat the Sugar Blues (NBC TV appearance)

Sugar consumption is a sour problem in America – excuse the pun. The average American eats 3/4 cup of sugar per day. And if babies, healthy people (yes, we are out here!) and diabetics aren’t eating sugar, I bet that number is MUCH HIGHER!

So we know it’s a problem, now what?  Find the solutions here right now!

Apple and Berry Crisp

Here’s another delicious recipe from the Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Cookbook by Susan O’Brien. I made this last weekend and plan on whenever I’m craving something sweet with some crunch. It is delicious! And to make this recipe easy, use whatever fruit you have in the house. That’s what I did. It all worked out!

Ingredients:
Fruit
4 cups apples, peeled,cored and slice
5 cups strawberries, fresh or frozen
3 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 T arrowroot (you can use cornstarch too)
1 T o.j. (I used lemon since I didn’t have orange juice)

Topping:
6 T agave nectar
2 cups oats or rice flakes (I used Eden’s rice flakes – my first time, turned out great!)
1/2 cup brown rice flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp all spice
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup butter (calm down, it’s for the entire recipe!)

Preheat oven to 350

In a large bowl, combine fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg and arrowroot. Squeeze the orange juice over the fruit and toss again. Place the fruit in a 9 x 13-inch pan that has been lightly coated with olive oil (I used the biggest dish I had that would fit all the fruit and it still turned out for me)

Cover with foil and bake for about 45 minutes, until hot and the fruit is beginning to bubble (I don’t like to use aluminum so skipped this too)

While the fruit is baking, mix together the agave nectar, oats, flour, cinnamon, allspice and walnuts. Cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly.

Remove the pan of fruit from the oven and spread the topping over the fruit. Return the pan to the oven and continue baking, uncovered, for another 20 to 30 minutes, or until the topping is browned.

Serve hot or at room temperature. The crisp will thicken as it cools.

Daylight Expansion!

I know everyone calls the clocks moving forward Daylight Savings Time but aren’t we expanding daylight…and on the March 21 equinox, when we have equal hours of daylight and sunlight, it marks the time until the fall solstice in September that we will now have more daylight. We are expanding our brightness as we speak!

In honor of having more light, I think it’s time to feel more lightness in our lives. I know it can seem difficult with the perceptions about our economy, the environment and insert top anxiety here. BUT – it can be done, starting with our food.

As we enter the Spring season, it’s time to shift what we’ve been eating and help our bodies de-congest from the heaviness of winter. I know I’m adding in even more greens and decreasing my animal protein consumption. Even after a couple of days, with the warmer weather, I feel lighter in my steps. It’s also time to look at life off of our plate.

Eating is a metaphor for how we live. Do you have too much on your plate from a lifestyle perspective? How can you lighten your load? Pick one thing – maybe it’s cleaning out a closet. Maybe it’s giving up anger towards a friend or family member. Or maybe it’s adding in more fun! You get to choose – it’s your life and it’s time for expansion.

Gluten-Free Gingerbread

I found one of the best cookbooks this past weekend – Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free Cooking by Susan O’Brien. The recipes are easy and super tasty. I’ll probably be posting recipes from this book for weeks to come.

This bread comes out amazingly well and the orange zest adds a refreshing flavor. Try this as soon as you can!

Ingredients

1/2 cup of pecans or walnuts, chopped finely
1/2 cup of agave nectar
1/4 cup of grapeseed oil (this is a change I made rather than use canola oil)
2 eggs
1/2 tsp of orange rind (I used 2 tsps)
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups of brown rice or sorghum flour
1/2 tsp of salt
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of baking soda
2 tsps of ground ginger
1 1/2 tsps cinnamon
1/4 tsp of grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine agave and oil. Mix together thoroughly. Add eggs, one at a time. Be sure to mix well between additions. Add the orange rind and vanilla. Blend well together. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 350, and grease a 9-inch square pan with oil (I used a standard bread pan and it turned out fine)

3. Sift together dry ingredients, including the nuts.

4. Add some of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, a little at a time, blending well. Add 1/4 cup of  the applesauce, blend, then add more of the dry mixture. Continue until you have added all the ingredients.

5. Pour batter into the pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until the ginger bread is done. Check by inserting a fork or touching lightly on the center. If it springs back, remove to a cooling rack.

The bread freezes well or will last in the fridge for about a week.