NARA ROSSER Into The Ordinary

Nov 18 - Day 13 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Back on the juice track.  Bought collard greens by accident instead of kale.  I was thinking they were going to be potent.  But if you take three big leaves, half a lime, an apple, a cucumber and a beet it's really good.  The lime was a good change of pace from lemon.  Lime works just as good, if not better it turns out, in balancing it out and making it taste delicious.  Banana for breakfast.  Mixed nuts for snack.  For lunch I was without food and luckily the cafe here at the studio had vegan vegetable soup. No dairy, meat or wheat.  It did have white potatoes which is really the only vegetable I've been steering clear of.  That was my first time relying on a restaurant, besides Thai and I was glad there was something for me or I would have been stuck with more  mixed nuts.  I had prepared a salad for book club but there was a chef preparing a meal that looked beyond amazing and I went for it.  The most perfect looking fried chicken I have ever seen, mashed potatoes and gravy, sauteed asparagus and yellow squash and homemade apple pie and vanilla ice cream for dinner.  The next part of my blog was going to be about the importance of balancing cleansing diets, yoga and nutrient based food choices with pleasure.  So I guess it comes a bit sooner: 

the pleasure of eating

It started with deciding, oh i'll have the asparagus and yellow squash and then realizing they had been sauteed in butter and garlic, and then I thought, let's go for it.  This was my experience:  the chicken skin was perfection and delicious, as was the chicken breast connected to it.  I didn't eat the rest cuz without the skin it's really just neutral and doesn't have much taste.  Plus I felt like I had had enough. The mashed potatoes of course are good with some gravy.  But I noticed the same thing as I did with the chicken without the sauce there's not much there.  So I left the rest of that.  Surprisingly after what one could consider deprivation of these things and a major surplus of veggies, that was my favorite part.  Mind you garlic and butter was involved.  But there actual taste was the best on the plate.  I first opted for apple pie without the vanilla ice cream, and then reconsidered and went a la mode.  I didn't finish it either. The chef did an excellent job but I was full.  And that's what I noticed in general- I didn't eat until I was stuffed and feel compelled to eat everything on the plate which I typically do because I don't like waste.  I didn't eat out of habit, like oh I've been deprived of chicken and gravy, better stuff my face.  I just took my time and ate what tasted good to me right now and left the rest.  I also didn't have the feeling, oh I fell off the wagon, it's all over now.  And I really enjoyed it.  It was a festive occasion, we were all having fun and laughing.  It was well prepared.  I think so many times we're rushing and end up stuffing a stale bagel we don't even like in our mouth just cuz.  To me that's the balance to find.  Having to eat only fruits and veggies, has reacquainted my taste buds with how good it is, how good it feels and got me more creative about my choices.  It also helped me enjoy my chicken dinner tremendously.  My palette felt kind of cleansed, like I could really enjoy it.  And allowed me to eat for taste and pleasure rather than just being on auto pilot. I think my perfect way to eat right now is preparing meals for nutrition that make me feel good and when I eat for pleasure and social enjoyment to choose the best of the best, stuff that is really going to please me.  And knowing there is always more.  If I'm full or it's some part of it isn't hitting the spot I can have more again whenever I want.  It's all about feeling good and for me that requires food that is power for the cells and food that brings pleasure sensation and social connection that also makes me feel good.  

This reminds me on Saturday night I was at a pot luck.  Another festive occasion honoring a friend who had passed away.  There were 2 homemade desserts, one cranberry and the other apricot. Fearing I would somehow be letting myself down if I had a piece, since I hadn't yet strayed from the parameters of my program I opted to have a bite of each. Looking back I wish I would have just had a piece and let myself enjoy it in the company of such an occasion.  Might as well just go for it or not. The apricot desert was one of the most heavenly creations I have ever tasted.  One bite didn't do the chef or the occasion honor.

yoga

This is my first weekday with no yoga, aside from my flu day.  I intended to come to morning yoga and then got called in to sub both the morning and afternoon classes.  After a day in the office and book club I was wiped and headed for bed.  I felt it at the end of the day.  I've been craving yoga the last few days like I started craving my morning juice.  Will have to make it up this weekend.  

Nov 17- Day 12 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

No juice today.  I opted for thirty more minutes of sleep.  Aside from my flu morning it's my only day missed and in the end it wasn't worth it.  I felt like I hit the ground running and felt rushed all day.  I did manage to pack some food with me for the rest of the day.  I had the other half of my left over squash with pesto (no parm: basil, olive oil, sea salt and pine nuts blended up real quick) and marinara on it.  The health food section at Fred's has some really simple jared versions with organic ingredients and basically no more than tomatoes and some seasoning.  So far besides miso it's the only prepared product I used but better to find satisfaction than be fundamental and when cooking for one I'm not going to whip up a pot of sauce.  I had strawberries and mac nuts for snack.  Watched a movie with mom and sis and they were understanding about ordering Thai takeout instead of pizza.  Sauteed mixed veggies.  Jessica's curry looked good but since it had coconut milk I assumed it had sugar since most are sweetened and passed.  Had some mac nuts for snack a little later.  

yoga

Since I had evening plans I knew it best to catch yoga in the morning with Susanne at 9:30.  She did another great supported version of Bridge Pose using blocks.  I helped relieve some of the neck pain I got from my neck adjustment earlier in the week.  I also got some great shoulder openings in the rest of her postures.  Anusara focuses a lot on opening the heart, literally and physically and works with loops in the body to align different areas.  I've had an ongoing awareness about my head and shoulders being pitched forward after finally getting the ankles and hips aligned over the last few years.  The chest and shoulder openings with awareness of positioning the head has caused my upper body to find it's alignment with the lower half over the last week or so.  It's been about 5 years in the making and is a great feeling.  It reminds me that we can start with the body and let the mind follow or start with the mind and let the body follow, but ultimately you can't leave them out for very long, before one or both starts causing mischief.

Nov 16 - Day 11 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Friday night I made a spaghetti squash and put some simple marinara sauce on it, as well as some of the pesto I had whipped up earlier in the week.  It really looks like spaghetti.  I wanted something warm and hearty and it did the trick.  Tasted good too.  Monday I made a juice using apple, half lemon, 1 cucumber and three big collard green leaves.  It had the same potency as kale but it didn't taste like grass.  The apple and lemon balanced it out.  It was good and definitely green.  I had a banana and nuts for snack.  I tried acorn squash with spinach and roasted pumpkin seeds for lunch.  That wasn't the same hit at alI so  I had some blackberries and Coconut Bliss for snack.  You can find Coconut Bliss in the natural food  freezer at Fred's.  It's simple and as delicious as real ice cream, unlike substitutes made with soy or rice milk which I find revolting and to be a big let down.  It has coconut milk, vanilla and agave.  If you are unfamiliar with agave it's a great natural refined sugar substitute.  Unlike honey or maple syrup it doesn't have a distinct flavor so it's more neutral like sugar.  It comes from a cactus plant used to make one of my other favorite products, yep, tequila. And unlike honey or maple syrup it doesn't spike the blood sugar as much so it's released more evenly.  Plus you get coconut which is a great protein and fat for the body.  Yes desert is good for you and still tastes really good.  I ended up being at the studio late and having a kiwi and getting home to have a dinner of roasted almonds and sugar snap peas.  I was too tired to bother with dinner.

yoga

I've been doing yoga at home on Mondays.  I teach two yoga classes in the eve and usually catch up personal paperwork and errands during the day.  Monday's are slow go for me.  There is a 9:30am class at the studio that I always have the best intentions of attending but so far it hasn't happened.  After Thursday and Saturday evening bouts with the flu my body was worn out anyhow.  So I did a low key restorative practice and focused a lot on deep breathing.  I got a major neck adjustment in passive seated forward bend, so my head sits more square over my shoulders and my shoulders are back and chest is more  open without effort.   But there was certainly some pain over the last day or so as that  lifetime pattern loosens us.  I think taking Susanne's Anusara class is partially responsible, as there is a lot of focus on opening the chest through integrity of the neck and shoulders.  I caught the last $5 Friday class which I was happy about since I missed yoga on Thursday when I was wrestling the flu and also go a home practice in on Saturday.  So I still got my five days of yoga in after all.

Nov 12 & 13 - Day 9 & 10 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Thursday morning I felt sick to the stomach.  I made a serious green drink; kale, grapefruit and 2 cucumber.  The kale was so strong it reminded me of wheat grass shots which I have a strong aversion to after a retreat I attended to years ago that required using ample amounts wheat grass for a couple weeks.  It was not good tasting but it seemed to hit the stomach OK. I ate an apple for snack and went to an appointment.  I returned home for lunch and tot feeling well, ended up taking a nap and trying to calm my stomach down with a strong ginger ale (soda water, ginger, honey, pineapple juice) diluted with water.  I roused myself for a run to Sam's Club.  At the counter I had to get myself to the floor to keep from passing out and make a bee run for the b-room.  So not the place for the full glory of flu to happen.  Made a little miso soup with carrots and spinach for dinner which my system seemed to agree fine with.  The flu continued on through the night and into the morning.  Today I had a banana and kiwi throughout the morning while the flu continued to evacuate everything from my system.  Then like a storm clearing it seemed to end out of nowhere.  I was left ravenous and ordered up some Thai mixed vegetables with cashews.  No juice for me this morn.  Didn't think the system would agree.  Took it easy on the herbs the last couple days too.  I asked for a cleanse and I guess I got more than I bargained for.

yoga

There was no way yoga was happening on Thursday- any compromising position was out of the question, as to not encourage the inevitable.  Today the same fear has persisted.  Fearing the need to use a public restroom unexpectedly I chose to lay low and stay close to home for the most part and be in recovery mode.  So far no yoga today.

Nov 11 - Day 8 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Rainbow chard, lemon, apple, beet for breakfast makes a tasty and beautiful drink.  It's a vibrant magenta color.  A zucchini chopped into sticks and some baby carrots dipped in pesto.  I used it as a dip rather than tossing the veggies in it.  Had a banana and kiwi for snacks during the day.  Went to a friends house for "dinner" and to watch my favorite show Top Chef.  I salted and chopped my kale before teaching class and then chopped and added the avocado on the spot.  Kate was making a delicious Indian dinner that smelled so good as I walked in.  It was hard to pass up.  I didn't pass up the glass of organic white wine.  I figured it's organic and it's a fruit!  I thought watching all the gourmet eats on Top Chef would be torture but it wasn't so bad but maybe that's because I had wine in hand.  I have to say though that the reuben inspired eggs benedict I might have to recreate.

yoga

Well after a major surge in energy last week and over the weekend, this week was a different story.  My cycle started which always brings my energy level down and as it turns out I was also coming down with the flu that revealed itself in full glory on Thursday.  I've been enjoying Kundalini class on Wednesday's but knowing it's high energy I opted for a restorative practice at home with poses good during the menstrual cycle.  And a lot of deep breathing. 

Nov 10- Day 7 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Well for dinner Monday night I actually came up with something pretty good.  I was craving pesto and whipped up one of my best batches ever- just pine nuts, basil and olive oil.  Used sea salt instead of parm and you couldn't even tell  the difference.  I sliced up a zucchini in the fettuccine size slices and chopped up a tomato and tossed it together.  Yum!  Rainbow chard, apple, cucumber, carrot lemon for breakfast.  Banana for snack.  Snap peas and cashews for lunch on the road.  Made up a much better version of miso soup for dinner.  Threw a carrot in some water.  Let the carrots get a little tender. Added baby spinach and mixed in miso paste after I removed it from the heat.  Forgot the ginger I bought at the store.  I was still hungry.  Ended up having more cashews, snap peas and then dried apricots.  I feel like I might be cashewed out.  I felt like a recurrence of the bladder inflammation Sunday night so I got some cranberry concentrate that I've been adding to my water bottle throughout the day and night and all traces are gone.

yoga

Did Susanne's 9:30am Anusara class at the studio.  I've been kind of burnt out on alignment but there's something about the way Anusara lays out anatomical and energetic alignment cues that can lead to really powerful experiences of yoga postures.  Susanne led an evolution of Bridge pose I never experienced before.  When I have a new experience of a pose I've done over and over many times, that's what keeps me coming back to yoga.  I also got a nice little neck adjustment in Standing Side Angle which has never happened before.  Later in the day I had a private session with Kaiopa who was visiting from Arizona and holding a Continuum workshop over the weekend.  There's really no abbreviated way to describe Continuum but it focuses on the fluid, non symmetrical qualities of the body.  It reignited old parts of me that loves forms of expressive movement beyond yoga and let  me focus on the suppleness, organicness and fluidness of the breath and body.  I got breath into areas of the body that haven't seen the light of day in a long time.  And after focusing on straight spine and coordinated breath it felt good to let go of that.  I actually had a point where I felt reptilian.  It was fun.  

Nov 9- Day 6 of 21 Day Challenge

weekend report

Let me just say for the record that though I didn't do yoga over the weekend I was still on my diet and supplement schedule so really it's longer than a 21 day challenge when it comes to eating....  The highlight of things so far is the amount of energy I have.  For the first time in over a year I have energy when I wake up.  I usually try to steal sleep over the weekend when I can sleep in.  But both days I woke up before 9 ready to bound out of bed.  Me getting up anytime before 11 on a weekend is a miracle. In general I've noticed that just by taking time for yoga and to fix myself some food I end up feeling like I have more time. Maybe it's because I'm not trying to eek more moments of sleep out of the day because I'm so exhausted and maybe it's because it's caused me to be more prepared and to do less rushing.  But it's amazing that adding things has made me feel like I have more time.  Slowing down feels good.  

Some old recipes from the days when I studied and ate Live Foods (all raw fruits and vegtables, and sprouted nuts and seeds) is coming back.  I soaked sunflower seeds and blended them with dates for a cereal I remember being pretty good from back in the day and topped it of with blackberries.  NO! The berries were good but the "cereal" was not good.  I'm not sure if it's cuz I made it in the morn and didn't eat it until lunch or just that it's really disgusting.  On the other hand I had one of the most delicious dishes I've had in the last 6 months, veggie or otherwise.  Chop up kale and rub sea salt and a little water into it and it breaks it down as if it's been cooked but maintains a really great flavor and then you chop up avacado and add it in.  It's reaaaaaaaaaaaally delich and simple.  Who would have known.  

eats

I went shopping Sunday night and the total was $81.  A few supplies will last longer than a week and I'll have to drop by the store once during the week for some more greens and a few things but that's pretty much a weeks supply for one person and, pretty much all organic (which is expensive in these parts).  I typically spend more than that in a week between the grocery and going out to eat so that's not too bad. It seems like Fred's has better produce than Safeway but I prefer the Safeway shopping experience.  So I've been trading off.  I actually crave my juice in the morning now.  This morning it was especially great. Rainbow chard, half lemon, cucumber, apple, carrot.  Banana for snack.  Didn't take lunch with me when running errands.  Big mistake, as I was hungry with no kibble to munch in the car.  Got home and ate up a bunch of cashews and sugar snap peas.  Now I'm eating up a Honeycrisp apple which is my new favorite apple, introduced to me by Angela, following teaching yoga class and will have a late dinner now that it's 9:30pm.  Will report on that tomorrow.  

yoga

Mondays are tough for me.  I usually get caught up on personal paperwork, bills and errands.  And all the sudden it's time to teach my two evening yoga classes.  So it seems I end up practicing at home before I head off to teach.  Got in 45 minutes of a low key practice.  Just got down on the wood floor with no sticky mat and did what felt good.  It was hard to let go of planning class and just get into my own zone. But even with my distractions it made me feel better.  

21 Day Challenge- The Guidelines

the background

After struggling with abdominal inflammation, skin issues and periodic immune breakdown over the last year, I've decided to make use of my training, the support of Naturopath Susan Godwin, ND (Woodland Wellness Center) and challenge myself to 21 days of yoga and clean eating.  The last bout of staph left me out of work and in bed for nearly 2 weeks, an aggressive antibiotic treatment and the motivation to try something different.  CAT scans, blood work and a host of other food allergy, parasite and bacteria tests over the last year have yet to diagnose an underlying condition.

nara's orders

YOGA 5 DAYS A WEEK

For a long time I've wanted to start a 21 Day Challenge at the studio so students could benefit of practicing yoga 5 days a week for 4 consecutive weeks.  Then I realized I'm not doing it for myself.  I know the benefit but I'm not benefiting.  Every time I experience a breakdown in my immune system I can feel it coming.  I take on too much, get run down and then don't make the change I need to before my body gives out completely.  It's stress induced each time without fail.  Stress is a token phrase these days but it's real and I know from this experience that when it reaches thresh hold it can have very real and chronic physical effects.  This 21 Day Challenge is a challenge to myself to buy out of the modern-day way of living that has us choose cramming more into a day than is humanly possible at the diminishment of our quality of life in every way.  So I'm taking an hour a day for my body and my sanity.  

doctors orders

ONLY FRUITS, VEGGIES, SOME NUTS & SEEDS AND HERBAL TEAS

FRESH GREEN JUICE IN THE MORNING 

Susan suggested only fruits and veggies, some nuts and seeds, herbal teas and lots of water, and some supplements.  Yep, no dairy, meat, grains, beans, coffee, sugar etc. And fresh green juice every morning. (i.e. chard, kale etc. w/ cucumber, beets, carrots etc. & a little apple or honeydew).   I was schooled in using food as medicine in my herbal medicine/natural health background and particularly this style but it's been a looooooooooooooooong time since I've put it into practice.  (See my post Introducing the 21 Day Challenge below to read more about that.)

SUPPLEMENTS

Vitamin D- 4000 i.u. in the morning to support the immune system and counter sun deprivation

Olive Leaf Extract- 4x's a day with food as an antibacterial

Wandering Traveler Herbal Tincture- dropper full morning and night to support the adrenals 

Powdered Magnesium- a spoonful before bed to regulate digestion and calm the nervous system

Nov 4- Day 3 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

My breakfast juice was perfect this morn: red chard, half of a lemon, 1 apple, 1 cucumber, some parsley. Got the formula right this time so there wasn't too much lemon, but I do prefer lemon and apple together- it makes it taste just right. So I pureed my vegetable soup in a blender and it turned out to be a pretty good soup since it had things in it like carrot, sweet potato and zucchini.  Still had too much onion.  I packed it for lunch but wouldn't you know it when I picked my Mom up from work after her car refused to start in the morning she offered to take me out for Thai food.  At first I declined but then realized I could have some stir fried veggies and pass on the rice, so that's what I did, and some hot jasmine tea. I complain about the lack of suitable restaurants in this town but it's amazing how much wonderful Thai food we have to choose from.  Bahn Thai served it up.  Had the soup for dinner.  It worked.

yoga

Kundalini yoga has been a treat for me, because it differs from my normal teaching and practice style which is typically Vinyasa.  I went to our 5:30pm class in my jeans because I forgot my yoga pants, or as a little 3 year old friend of mine says, "soft pants", but luckily it didn't stop me, as it was just what I needed.  I confess I'm growing wary of sun salutations and feel like I've hit a plateau where I have to step out of teacher mode and into student mode for awhile to reinvigorate things.  It's nice to have a break from focus on alignment and give more attention to yoga's ability to work with the glands, systems and energetic system in the body.  With yoga's relocation to the west it's easy to forget that yoga was mostly used to prepare the body for meditation or as a meditation itself and to open the energy channels and centers in the body.  Kundalini always challenges me in the way that other yoga practices don't.  The repetition is a welcome change from holding poses but I thought my arms were going to break off which caused me to burst out into laughter as a coping mechanism.  Luckily others could relate to my lack of arm strength.  But I hit that sweet zone a few times where movement ceases to be directed by my mind which is one of my favorite places to be.  And final relaxation was bliss.  It wasn't like the rest you get from laying down or even a good nap.  It was that kind where I can't feel the edges of my body and there is absolutely no discomfort of this or that needing to be moved or altered.  

Nov 3- Day 2 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Juice for breakfast was good but too much lemon.  1 apple, beet greens, 1 lemon, 1 cucumber.  I'll go for half a lemon next round.  Nice to have a real juicer.  Cleaning them- not so much fun.  But this Juiceman Juicer is easier to clean than my Champion that's locked away in a storage unit in Ashland.  I munched on grapes for a snack.  Had my leftover avocado - tomato salad for lunch.  Not as tasty the next day.  Munched on more grapes.  I forgot that fruit is pretty tasty.  For dinner I had a vegetable soup.  I had put an onion, sweet potato, couple zucchini, celery and garlic in the crock pot the night before, thinking then it would be ready and i could just reheat portions and add miso.   I realize now it would be easier to just make individual portions and then I don't have to eat old soup.  Miso and some Bragg Amino's (kinda like tamari or soy sauce) finished it off.  It was good but the a whole onion was way too much.  Not feelin' the onion.  My digestion is already showing signs of improvement.  No bloating like usual.

yoga

 I went to Yin/Restorative class at 5pm with Gretchen who is subbing while Trista is at her AcroYoga training.  The music and her voice and the fact that we didn't have to leave the floor were perfect.  I'm reminded how yoga everyday is necessary for me to stay sane but I forget when I've been away from a steady practice, like as of late, and often don't remember until I put myself back in the saddle again.  It's not only my body that feels better but I can feel my whole system decompressing.  The class is perfect after being out of commission and in bed for days.  I'm relieved not to be pushing through sun salutations.  

Nov 2- Day 1 of 21 Day Challenge

eats

Well I wasn't prepared, not having brought my loaned juicer home yet.  The doc told me to start each day with a green drink so I blended spinach and frozen blueberries in water.  Sounds gross but really it was just benign and neutral. Lunch came and still unprepared.  Raw almond butter in celery sticks.  Also boring.  I recovered with putting pieces of dried dates on top.  Pretty tasty actually once the dates entered the picture.  Don't know if your mom ever packed ants-on-a-log in your lunch box when you were a kid  (same concept: celery sticks, peanut butter and raisins).  Well in school I tended to pass those by to get smashed and smeared in their zip-lock bag but heah, now at the age of 33 it's good enough for me. Dinner- once again unprepared and starving after teaching and getting done at 9:00.  Head to the store and pick up some supplies and open a bag of cashews for munching (which I forget at the store, great investment).  I make an avocado-tomato salad by chopping up an avocado and a tomato and tossing it with sea salt and apple cider vinegar.  Something quick and surprisingly tasty.  After a path of indulgence this summer I think my tongue may actually need a break from Bearnaise sauce and is quite enjoying the taste of fruits and veggies... for now.

yoga

Well I almost bagged yoga for the day and decided I would just start the whole thing tomorrow and then decided that's probably not the way to kick things off so I decided to pull myself out of bed.  Well not really... I stayed on the bed and did about only four poses in that 45 minutes; seated forward bend, bound angle, child pose, one legged forward bend (each side) and then final relaxation.  I held each pose for a long time and at the end I did feel better, I was ready to get my but in gear and teach.  I had reached a new level of exhaustion after a two week stretch of staph and a busy previous Friday and Sunday before I was ready to hit high gear again.  Not a great start on either fronts but I did it.

Introducing The 21 Day Challenge

Since the beginning of the year I have envisioned creating a 21 Day Challenge at the studio.  It would consist of an initial Saturday Foundations class followed by yoga five days a week for four weeks.  Having experienced the benefits of a daily practice I wanted others to have the same experience of how much yoga can change your body and life in a short amount of time requiring no more than an hour and fifteen minutes a day, weekends off.  With 3-4 classes offered a day, as well as a Sunday class it seemed plausible that each person could craft a schedule that fit into their own lifestyle. 

Up against my own health challenges I've decided to be the guinea pig, posting each day to report the reality of it.  Though I love yoga, I also love staying up late, cocktails and dancing, and the pleasure of taste sensation and so the next part of the challenge I will also post about candidly.

Too boot I have decided to up the ante by embarking on a cleansing program as developed by Dr. Susan Godwin, ND. at Woodland Wellness Center simultaneously. All my training and background is in Natural Medicine and Yoga so one would assume no big deal.  But over the years I have developed an oppinion that being overly restrictive in an approach to health, acting as if everything that touches your lips needs to be organic, didn't float with me anymore, especially after being in areas where people were happy just to eat and drink and seemed very healthy despite their violation of "all natural standards". At the same time I have experienced in my own body and in observing others both acute and severe  medical conditions turn around through Naturopathic and Yogic means.  Once again I'm on the fence straddling two worlds.  Knowing the amazing benefits and knowing the risks in becoming fundamental. If pleasure, fun and spaciousness gets taken out of the sensual experience of living that's not good either.  Ask and the French and Italians who take time to enjoy their food and wine. 

I have tried many different ways of consumption: eating vegan (i did miss cheese and ice cream); ruling out sugar (hard at first, beneficial, but a big bummer when the chocolate mousse pie shows up); no empty carbs (not that big of a deal but so not gonna be one of those ordering my hamburger without a bun people); live foods- nothing but raw fruits, vegtables and sprouted nuts and grains (man did i feel great in puerto rico but started to crave meat when I hit AK- 3 weeks great, establishing it as a regular thing-extreme diligence); eat-anything-you-want diet (my prefered- i figure if you don't create a bunch of restrictions your mostly going to choose food that makes you feel good or tastes good and a balance of both are important- health and pleasure); the rum-lobster-jerk chicken-beans & rice diet (you start to miss vegtables after awhile but tasty and lots of foreign fun, and fun is indeed, according to me, a vital ingredient of health)... the list goes on but the punchline is...

As soon as I decide yes this is the way, it's not the right way anymore.  Life keeps moving, requires adaptability and asks something new of me.  And right now I'll try anything because stress has taken it's toll and for a year now I have been encouraging my immune system back to it's full strength.  So far what has brought the most relief is yoga; vacation with sun, fun and dancing; stess reduction through saying "no" and "hell no-more" when i need to; dare I say it,  "good lovin" (there I said it); and yes cocktails (I have a European standard when it comes to that). So I'm going to see how Green Drinks and supplements fit into this which strangely I also enjoy and eliminating some of the previous for a 21 day stretch.  I like to feel good and everyone has to find their formula.  So here goes, I'll keep you posted.