How Not To Go On Vacation (plus some easy spring eating tips)

Tulum last night restaurant sceneSo I was cruising for the finish line. I’d worked. Taught classes. Pitched articles. Visited my in-laws and extended family for holidays and emergencies, checked on my upstate house. I had 5 days to work hard at the day job, teach more classes and get everything organized and packed and set up so nothing fell down around my ears while I was away with family in Mexico when…BAM, the flu. Or something very like it. Yeah. That kind of knee-capped me. READ MORE >

Why I Won’t Offer You Perfection in 6 Easy Steps-And a Healthy Shamrock Shake

Can we talk about this whole inspirational healthy living thing? I’m beginning to be annoyed. If I see one more post about how to be better, happier, healthier, wealthier, thinner and more spiritually evolved  with “6 easy things you can do today” I will spit.

I understand these posts, and why they’re titled this way. Hell, they get even me to click. But the items are never what I’d think. And if they are, then I’m almost always already doing them.

And I’m not perfectly healthy, wealthy, skinny, evolved and spiritual. Go figure.

Drink lemon water? Don’t eat on the run? Get up early? Schedule in my mat time? Get rid of processed/packaged food? Check, check, check, check and check.

And oh, green juice is the ANSWER. Green juice is the DEVIL. Meat is bad. Meat is good. Plant milks are better. Processed plant milks are the path to destruction with their added emulsifiers. Can you really get to the bottom of it in 6 easy steps?

I tell you what, health does not come in pre-packaged sound bytes. No my friend, health and wellness and spiritual connection are hard. They are not linear and straightforward paths and there is no one answer for everybody. Also, there is no one answer for you at all times in your life. There’s still a lot of mystery to how the human body works, no matter how much we may have learned. And no one has the one, easy perfect answer.

On the other hand, there are some things we know. Real food is better than chemicals. Eating while stressed out isn’t a great idea. Moving your body is important. People who feel loved are healthier.

Ok, there’s somewhere to start. Go hug your husband/wife/dog/child. Stop texting or working on your report while you eat. Take a walk in the lovely spring weather. Oh, and make this smoothie. It’s jam packed with real food. No creepy food coloring, processed sugar or conventional dairy. Also, I didn’t replace the dairy with icky GMO, pesticide rich, mucus producing soy milk, as so many of the vegan shakes do. It’s pretty simple, a spin on my cashew milk, nog and hot chocolate recipes (which you can get by subscribing to updates in the sidebar, or if you’re already subscribed, by contacting me here). And it’s healthy enough to have for breakfast.

This shake is one step closer to a whole foods lifestyle, in a goblet or jar or glass. And it’s delectable. That’s my big idea.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Go drink your greens (and I don’t mean Midori or Jaegermeister).

Love,

Me

shamrock shake

Clean Green Shamrock Shake
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A healthy spin on the Shamrock Shake with only whole foods. Healthy enough for breakfast!
Servings Prep Time
1 3minutes
Servings Prep Time
1 3minutes
Clean Green Shamrock Shake
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Votes: 0
Rating: 0
You:
Rate this recipe!
A healthy spin on the Shamrock Shake with only whole foods. Healthy enough for breakfast!
Servings Prep Time
1 3minutes
Servings Prep Time
1 3minutes
Ingredients
Servings:
Units:
Instructions
  1. Measure all ingredients except cacao nibs into jar of blender.
  2. Blend well until completely emulsified.
  3. Add more ice, avocado or water to desired consistency.
  4. Taste for flavor and add more peppermint extract if desired.
  5. Measure cacao nibs into blender and blend briefly on low, just to break up slightly.
  6. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes

I like 1/4 teaspoon of peppermint extract for a mildly minty flavor, but you can add more if you're a big mint fan!

For extra sweet, you could add a little maple syrup or stevia.

For a little caffeinated morning kick add 1 teaspoon of matcha powder.

For extra decadence replace the raw cacao nibs with chopped super dark chocolate.

And, feel free to share, as dessert instead of a meal. But I bet you won't want to!

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Happy New Year!

I’m a few days late. The New Year has already started, obviously. I was taking a couple of days to really be just where I was, rather than planning, thinking, scheming and marketing. And, it was pretty awesome. Practice. Hiking. Cooking. Eating. Fireworks. Books on tape. Bubble baths. Not a bad way to send out the old year and bring in the new. But I couldn’t let the week go by without saying a big HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I’m a little relieved the last year is over, to be honest. READ MORE >

Getting Comfortable in my Skin (or leotard, or dress…)

natarajasana tahoe modifiedIt took me way too long, but I finally embraced my perfectly quirky/pretty, wear a leotard for yoga style. We all want to look and feel our best, whatever that is. And when we find what makes each one of us feel most comfortable, it’s more likely to happen, with less pushing and pulling and sucking in of stomachs and discomfort and spackle… READ MORE >

Can I Wine?

Savor WineI have a taste for some of the finer things in life. Especially when it comes to food. Though I don’t care what my car represents as a status symbol, I do care what my plate looks like! You won’t catch me throwing together rice and beans and calling it a night. And even when I just serve salad I top it with something interesting and arrange the colors “just so”.

What in the world does this have to do with wine?

Well, for me it’s all about being present.

There was a time when I didn’t drink at all. I felt sure this was the way to be fully awake, fully present, fully yogi. But in the end, I’m not sure that hard and fast “rule” was actually working the way I’d intended. READ MORE >