Sorry, that heading really has no relevance to health - there is no way I could manipulate that connection, I just happened to be listening to him and I just happen to need to emphasize how great he is!
I have talked, and probably will talk, a great deal about ayurveda but never really explained what it was. Without taking big measures to do so, I will just outline in basic terms. Ayurveda is a term that really when broken down means the science of life: Ayu = life, veda = knowledge.
It is basically a health system that comes from India, you can kind of tell just by the sound of the word.
Ayurveda focuses on the three doshas which are basically the three categories and most people have a primary dosha and a secondary dosha that is almost as prominent. The doshas are based on your physical build of matter but also include an energy level. As I have said reluctantly in the past, my primary dosha is Kapha - which to no surprise, on the physical level is stomach and lungs...astonishing isn't it...with all my sinus congestion in the winter and my digestive issues in general. My second dosha is vata which is the colon on the physical level. In ayurveda, the doshas are often looked at as what is "not in balance" so when you are having particular things not going so well, it is because one or more of the doshas is not in balance. Therefore you would eat, or otherwise, in order to reach that balance.
With my dosha, it recommends warm drinks and foods. One of the things it suggests is having a warm or hot cup of water every day, a few a day if possible, with lemon. That is simple enough, and it is pretty soothing really. So today instead of just starting the day with a cold glass of water and a coffee, I went with a hot cup of water with lemon. And I liked it. This isn't to say coffee isn't in my near future as well, but this is one of the little things I will try to implement in my daily life. I am thinking a hot cup of water with lemon in the morning and then at work in the afternoon, a cup of green tea, will be part of my new routine.
The funny thing is that my body type with all the different books I am focusing on right now whether by blood type, dosha or just dr. oz's methods - they all tell my type specifically to stay away from sugary, fat, oily foods specifically and moreso than the average joe. Okay already!! Got it!! Thanks for nothin'! The thing is, when I truly give something a try, and actually do stick with it, I will usually end of liking it. So maybe I will like this new non ice cream way of life. Can't quite see it that way yet. But I could.
The other thing is I need to get this under way if I want to get back on track in the next month or two to train again for the next half marathon. I have been tossing around a couple of different popular ones that are in the spring but I think I am really leaning towards the dexter-ann arbor one. We'll see, but I am predicting that is going to be the chosen race.
This is Ottis Redding fan, signing off. Wishing balance to all. Namaste.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Monday, December 8, 2008
The Sun Rises...The Sun Sets...
Dr. Chopra is one of my favorite authors on the topic of health. As I have explained in earlier posts, he writes quite a bit on the topic of Ayurveda. I have evaluated myself in the charts of Ayurveda, and to no surprise I am the kapha dosha which is the suckiest of all three doshas. In one of his chapters he discusses going through the cycles of each and every day. This is one of the things I think people just aren't conscious of. Everyone wants to think about tomorrow or next month, but rarely are our thoughts truly in the here and now. As he said, every day the sun rises and the sun sets, and inbetween that that are hundreds of things that happen. There are many cycles that occur within each of our amazing bodies. There are reasons why people tend to weigh more in the morning, or why the temperature in our hands is higher in early afternoon.
There are many cycles that occur, and of course it then makes sense that we can live more in tune with nature and with our bodies by paying attention to these daily patterns. The concept in the chapter is much too large to spawn a conversation about in my simplistic little blog...but I must say, I never cease to be amazed while learning more about how we all tick. And just think, I barely know anything! My stuffy-ness is lingering and it is a bit annoying. Yet I have nothing else at all wrong with me, just the congestion. If it weren't for my beloved netty pot, I would most certainly have a sinus infection by now. The thing is my best friend. So, I have been using it probably about 2 times per day. Let me tell ya, the other day I felt only slightly congested but figured it was just good due diligence to go ahead and run the netty pot through. Well, when I blew my nose afterward...amazing. I will not be gross and describe what I saw, but let's just say - WOW. I will leave it at that.
When I went to the ear, nose and throat doctor last year, he did an x ray of my sinuses and said there was no reason he could see that I was getting these chronic sinus infections - except that my nasal passages were fairly narrow. All he could suggest was the netty pot, which I had been dying to investigate anyway. I have been a happy girl ever since.
Today I packed a fairly healthy lunch. I made some quinoa last night so i had that with some steamed vegetables of green beans, peas, broccoli, cauliflour and carrots. Then for breakfast I had a rice cake and coffee, then for my afternoon snack I had some celery sticks with peanut butter. I have enough of these leftovers that I can pack the same thing for tomorrow. For dinner I just had some mrs grass chicken noodle soup, because honestly it just sounded like exactly what I wanted, and it actually isn't very high in fat but probably heavily processed and preserved, but whatcha gonna do, right?
So the articles I have to write tonight are the first ones that put me in a bit of a moral dilemma. I have to write "positive" articles and reviews on various HGH supplements. Ugh. I am not a fan. Basically, HGH stands for Human Growth hormone. This is a naturally occurring thing in your body already, but it gradually decreases after the age of 30. So the whole reason people want to take this, and they can get it injected, or get supplements that are slow release tablets or whatever, but the reason they take it is basically to fight the effects of aging which do happen as the HGH starts to decrease its stimulation.
Who am I to say this is wrong, I mean, people take it to keep all those youthful benefits - leaner muscle, less fat, better skin, sleep better, etc., etc. But I feel apprehensive about writing a positive review about these supplements. I think there is a lot of healing power and natural methods for all of those things through herbs and aroma therapy and various foods. I just innately do not feel compelled to say we should take an injection or a pill for a HGH. I am not the type of person that likes to do that sort of thing. I am sure some are better than others, but I don't like the fact that my articles tell me what stance to take on a subject instead of just give an objective, balanced look at it. I guess that just wouldn't sell the product, now would it? Well, anyway, I am going to do it and try to remain factual. This is why you shouldn't trust what you read on the internet sometimes - you really don't know who is writing the stuff....could be contractors like myself who are paid to be nameless and write what they are told!
Signing off for now. Stay warm and sleep well.
There are many cycles that occur, and of course it then makes sense that we can live more in tune with nature and with our bodies by paying attention to these daily patterns. The concept in the chapter is much too large to spawn a conversation about in my simplistic little blog...but I must say, I never cease to be amazed while learning more about how we all tick. And just think, I barely know anything! My stuffy-ness is lingering and it is a bit annoying. Yet I have nothing else at all wrong with me, just the congestion. If it weren't for my beloved netty pot, I would most certainly have a sinus infection by now. The thing is my best friend. So, I have been using it probably about 2 times per day. Let me tell ya, the other day I felt only slightly congested but figured it was just good due diligence to go ahead and run the netty pot through. Well, when I blew my nose afterward...amazing. I will not be gross and describe what I saw, but let's just say - WOW. I will leave it at that.
When I went to the ear, nose and throat doctor last year, he did an x ray of my sinuses and said there was no reason he could see that I was getting these chronic sinus infections - except that my nasal passages were fairly narrow. All he could suggest was the netty pot, which I had been dying to investigate anyway. I have been a happy girl ever since.
Today I packed a fairly healthy lunch. I made some quinoa last night so i had that with some steamed vegetables of green beans, peas, broccoli, cauliflour and carrots. Then for breakfast I had a rice cake and coffee, then for my afternoon snack I had some celery sticks with peanut butter. I have enough of these leftovers that I can pack the same thing for tomorrow. For dinner I just had some mrs grass chicken noodle soup, because honestly it just sounded like exactly what I wanted, and it actually isn't very high in fat but probably heavily processed and preserved, but whatcha gonna do, right?
So the articles I have to write tonight are the first ones that put me in a bit of a moral dilemma. I have to write "positive" articles and reviews on various HGH supplements. Ugh. I am not a fan. Basically, HGH stands for Human Growth hormone. This is a naturally occurring thing in your body already, but it gradually decreases after the age of 30. So the whole reason people want to take this, and they can get it injected, or get supplements that are slow release tablets or whatever, but the reason they take it is basically to fight the effects of aging which do happen as the HGH starts to decrease its stimulation.
Who am I to say this is wrong, I mean, people take it to keep all those youthful benefits - leaner muscle, less fat, better skin, sleep better, etc., etc. But I feel apprehensive about writing a positive review about these supplements. I think there is a lot of healing power and natural methods for all of those things through herbs and aroma therapy and various foods. I just innately do not feel compelled to say we should take an injection or a pill for a HGH. I am not the type of person that likes to do that sort of thing. I am sure some are better than others, but I don't like the fact that my articles tell me what stance to take on a subject instead of just give an objective, balanced look at it. I guess that just wouldn't sell the product, now would it? Well, anyway, I am going to do it and try to remain factual. This is why you shouldn't trust what you read on the internet sometimes - you really don't know who is writing the stuff....could be contractors like myself who are paid to be nameless and write what they are told!
Signing off for now. Stay warm and sleep well.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Sarah's Got Her Groove Back...
Today was a great day. It just was. I really had no reason to think so but I just felt good. I am still kicking my sinus congestion, therefore I am holding off on my second gallbladder cleanse. I can do that later in the month when I am stronger. But today I felt my energy coming back and I was so excited about it. Unbelievably, I have not needed to take any cold medicine this week at all. I think that is a first in quite a while. Sure there was a day or two where if I had a clariten D handy I would have popped it, but it wasn't convenient so I just went on and it was fine. Basically, I just listened to my body and I am getting better. I drank a lot of hot tea, a lot of water, some soup and some regular foods too. In fact, if I was able to make myself go to bed at a normal hour, I think I would have recovered much more quickly if given normal hours of sleep. I am actually feeling up to probably about 20-30 minutes of exercise tonight but I will try not to over do it. I am feeling restless from not doing any in the last week or so.
So back to the B6 unanswered questions from the last post. If you will remember, I was perplexed at the fact that an adult my age needs 1.3-1.6 mg per day and when looking at my multivitamin it said 25mg. I thought for sure one of my sources had misprinted something. But no, upon calling Whole foods market vitamin dept. I was assured those numbers were correct. He then told me, "is there a percentage next to that number of mg?" Sho' nuff, there sure was. When looking at the column with percentage of daily value for B6, it said 1250! So on some vitamins and minerals it doesn't hurt to exceed the daily amount by obviously a great amount. He also said that he only takes his vitamin a few times a week, not on a strict every day basis. This was a relief to me, as I am fairly regular about taking all of my vitamins but there are usually a day or couple days in a given week that I don't. It is more cost effective, too, to spread them out just a little bit more!
I've started reading that book, The Seven Pillars of Health, and it is basically set up like a 50 days of health tips sort of thing. The first one asked that you spend the entire day thinking about your drink selection. What a great first lesson, it gave me a little boost, because this is the one thing that I absolutely rule at. I pretty much drink water all day, and that is his point, to make sure you are drinking enough water. I have my coffee in the morning but then I pretty much drink water all day. I feel bad that I never have interesting drinks to offer people at my house. At home I buy low fat milk for bree and soy milk for me and then usually one juice like an apple juice to mix with water for her in the morning. That is really all I need. So it is this small aspect that I have very good habits in! At least that is something!
Tonight at dinner I didn't really have anything planned so I just sort of winged an easy whatever meal. I asked bree if she wanted peanut butter and jelly or tuna fish sandwich for dinner. As I was getting the supplies out she insisted that she had told me turkey. Whatever, that wasn't even one of the options! But luckily I did have some in the fridge so I went with it. So we each had a turkey sandwich ( i put a slice of cheese on mine and I am not supposed to, so i guess i lose 5 points for that) then I looked for stuff to put on the side. I just put some low fat cottage cheese on one section of our plates, sprinkled a little cinnamon on it and a couple of raspberries on top. Then put a couple raw veggies on the other section, of broccoli, carrots and cauliflour. It turned out perfect. And bree ate everything. I sat so satisfied - what a good kid, ate all her veggies and everything on her plate. Then I smiled about myself - what a good mom, served up a low fat dinner and set a good example. More times than not, if I am eating something, she is interested in it too. I am just very lucky that I like most healthy food. I just can't let her see those cookie binges of mine! Or hopefully I will eliminate that habit altogether! Today at work I didn't even feel interested in the treats sent in by our customers. I didn't have any. It was great. I had a Healthy Choice Low sodium vegetable soup and it was much better than I thought it would be.
So yes, I feel I have my groove back, my energy is good, my attitude is positive and although things are beyond crazy at work, I enjoyed it a lot today. You want to add 20 additional things to each loan we have to scrutinize?? Bring it, I am ready! I did awsome today. One girl had the day off and another left early and I was the only one funding one section of our department's loans and I just cranked, it was so great. I was like an efficient, number crunching machine - there was no loan I couldn't trouble shoot. Well enough of my nerdy life. Tomorrow is my favorite - Saturday morning with bree! To all good health, and remember, drink your water, lots of it, every day.
So back to the B6 unanswered questions from the last post. If you will remember, I was perplexed at the fact that an adult my age needs 1.3-1.6 mg per day and when looking at my multivitamin it said 25mg. I thought for sure one of my sources had misprinted something. But no, upon calling Whole foods market vitamin dept. I was assured those numbers were correct. He then told me, "is there a percentage next to that number of mg?" Sho' nuff, there sure was. When looking at the column with percentage of daily value for B6, it said 1250! So on some vitamins and minerals it doesn't hurt to exceed the daily amount by obviously a great amount. He also said that he only takes his vitamin a few times a week, not on a strict every day basis. This was a relief to me, as I am fairly regular about taking all of my vitamins but there are usually a day or couple days in a given week that I don't. It is more cost effective, too, to spread them out just a little bit more!
I've started reading that book, The Seven Pillars of Health, and it is basically set up like a 50 days of health tips sort of thing. The first one asked that you spend the entire day thinking about your drink selection. What a great first lesson, it gave me a little boost, because this is the one thing that I absolutely rule at. I pretty much drink water all day, and that is his point, to make sure you are drinking enough water. I have my coffee in the morning but then I pretty much drink water all day. I feel bad that I never have interesting drinks to offer people at my house. At home I buy low fat milk for bree and soy milk for me and then usually one juice like an apple juice to mix with water for her in the morning. That is really all I need. So it is this small aspect that I have very good habits in! At least that is something!
Tonight at dinner I didn't really have anything planned so I just sort of winged an easy whatever meal. I asked bree if she wanted peanut butter and jelly or tuna fish sandwich for dinner. As I was getting the supplies out she insisted that she had told me turkey. Whatever, that wasn't even one of the options! But luckily I did have some in the fridge so I went with it. So we each had a turkey sandwich ( i put a slice of cheese on mine and I am not supposed to, so i guess i lose 5 points for that) then I looked for stuff to put on the side. I just put some low fat cottage cheese on one section of our plates, sprinkled a little cinnamon on it and a couple of raspberries on top. Then put a couple raw veggies on the other section, of broccoli, carrots and cauliflour. It turned out perfect. And bree ate everything. I sat so satisfied - what a good kid, ate all her veggies and everything on her plate. Then I smiled about myself - what a good mom, served up a low fat dinner and set a good example. More times than not, if I am eating something, she is interested in it too. I am just very lucky that I like most healthy food. I just can't let her see those cookie binges of mine! Or hopefully I will eliminate that habit altogether! Today at work I didn't even feel interested in the treats sent in by our customers. I didn't have any. It was great. I had a Healthy Choice Low sodium vegetable soup and it was much better than I thought it would be.
So yes, I feel I have my groove back, my energy is good, my attitude is positive and although things are beyond crazy at work, I enjoyed it a lot today. You want to add 20 additional things to each loan we have to scrutinize?? Bring it, I am ready! I did awsome today. One girl had the day off and another left early and I was the only one funding one section of our department's loans and I just cranked, it was so great. I was like an efficient, number crunching machine - there was no loan I couldn't trouble shoot. Well enough of my nerdy life. Tomorrow is my favorite - Saturday morning with bree! To all good health, and remember, drink your water, lots of it, every day.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Seriously....
Now really, why do I do it? That cubicle...it is haunted or something! I am fine, level headed and together - but put me in that cubicle around 2:30 - 3p.m. and I am thinking chocolate is the only way to survive. It is no surprise at all to me that I am sick right now. But that is okay.
I am currently reading a few books that I haven't sifted through before.. one is the liver cleansing diet by Dr. Sandra Cabot and the other is the seven pillars of health by Don Colbert, MD. Both seem pretty good but have a ways to go.
Let's talk just for a moment about Vitamin B6, shall we? This vitamin has many tasks to perform in your body. Colbert says that studies show a whopping 28 percent of women ages 19 years and older do not have an adequate intake of this vitamin. Some of the things in your body that are affected by B6 are enzymes involved in protein metabolism, red blood cell metabolism, the nervous and immune systems, increases oxygen carried to your tissues, and helps keep your blood sugar levels in normal range.
So where do you find B6? It can be found in fortified cereals, fish, poultry, red meat and some produce. The recommended intake for adults 19-50 yrs of age is 1.3 mg per day. I just checked my women's multivitamin and it says it has 25mg of b6...what the?? Something is off with these amounts so either there is a mispring in this book or something is weird.
I am currently reading a few books that I haven't sifted through before.. one is the liver cleansing diet by Dr. Sandra Cabot and the other is the seven pillars of health by Don Colbert, MD. Both seem pretty good but have a ways to go.
Let's talk just for a moment about Vitamin B6, shall we? This vitamin has many tasks to perform in your body. Colbert says that studies show a whopping 28 percent of women ages 19 years and older do not have an adequate intake of this vitamin. Some of the things in your body that are affected by B6 are enzymes involved in protein metabolism, red blood cell metabolism, the nervous and immune systems, increases oxygen carried to your tissues, and helps keep your blood sugar levels in normal range.
So where do you find B6? It can be found in fortified cereals, fish, poultry, red meat and some produce. The recommended intake for adults 19-50 yrs of age is 1.3 mg per day. I just checked my women's multivitamin and it says it has 25mg of b6...what the?? Something is off with these amounts so either there is a mispring in this book or something is weird.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Just Another Maladjusted Genius
I haven't had time to write this week, I am really just trying to keep up at this point. I have been busy after work writing articles which I sign off my rights to and am drastically underpaid for. I am congested and this concerns me as my second gallbladder and liver flush was to be under way this friday. At this point I think i will still go for it unless things get much worse. I used my netty pot to flush my sinuses out and I sure am clogged up.
The good news is that a bath and bed are in my near future. Right now, at the depth of the season where we are in enclosed and heated rooms almost constantly, it is more imperative than ever that we eat well, hydrate well and get enough sleep. Unfortunately, it is the sleep part that never quite falls into place for me, no matter how well intentioned I might feel that I am. This aspect of my life may actually take more planning and preparation than my nutritional supplements and meals! But it is day by day and piece by piece that I am approaching these values, otherwise it is just too overwhelming and way too easy to give up and throw in the towel.
The good news is that a bath and bed are in my near future. Right now, at the depth of the season where we are in enclosed and heated rooms almost constantly, it is more imperative than ever that we eat well, hydrate well and get enough sleep. Unfortunately, it is the sleep part that never quite falls into place for me, no matter how well intentioned I might feel that I am. This aspect of my life may actually take more planning and preparation than my nutritional supplements and meals! But it is day by day and piece by piece that I am approaching these values, otherwise it is just too overwhelming and way too easy to give up and throw in the towel.
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