Most people say they would like to change the circumstances that cause them to suffer. Often, we know this involves changing our own behavior in some regard, and many times we may embark on a plan to do just that, only to find that in very short time, we revert back to making the same choices, and experiencing the same familiar consequences.

Getting unstuck is not a one-time endeavor, because life’s natural experiences of loss and change require us to let go, shift our thinking, and implement new ideas and plans from time to time.

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Your grandmother was right—there is nothing like chicken soup for boosting immunity and helping to activate our natural defenses. Making a stock at home, using bones, some pieces of meat and fat, vegetables and filtered water is the best way to ensure maximum benefits. This kind of food remedy can be kept on hand for frequent use during the cold and flu season. According to the highly-esteemed nutrition researcher, Sally Fallon, stock contains minerals in a form the body can absorb easily, including calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, sulphur and trace minerals. And due to the inclusion of broken-down material from cartilage and tendons, your stock will be full of substances like chondroitin sulphates and glucosamine, now sold as expensive supplements for arthritis and joint pain.

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The foundation of any wellness program must revolve around people learning how to have food support health instead of destroy it, reducing excess amounts of fat on the body and supporting any bio-chemical deficiencies with effective nutrition. Everything else is just a band-aid.

There is no question that being at your ideal weight significantly lowers your risk for heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, and other chronic illnesses. Fat around the belly area, known as visceral or intra-abdominal fat, is particularly linked to elevated levels of cholesterol, insulin, triglycerides and blood pressure; all markers for the development of disease conditions.

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Are you ready to get serious about improving your health, increasing your energy, and avoiding disease conditions by finally getting to a healthy weight?

The program includes:

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• Initial 30-minute screening & consultation to assess your suitability for this approach
• Five weeks of a structured eating plan, focusing on real whole foods, for which you’ll receive all the guidance and monitoring required to make it work for your specific needs
• Five, weekly, hour-long sessions with me, in-office or via phone/skype, to monitor progress, weight, measurements, and work on all related concerns
• Health Assessment to identify underlying conditions with recommendations as appropriate

Having difficulty allowing and dealing with our feelings is a common problem that can contribute to our tendency to self-sabotage by making unhealthy choices in all areas of our life. The anxiety created by resisting feelings and allowing them to get stuck, rather than relaxing into them so that they may flow through us and naturally pass, can cause us to crave distraction and comfort in things that do not serve us. Ultimately, those poor choices only contribute to our unpleasant feelings, creating a vicious cycle of continuously feeling bad and endlessly seeking relief.  And of course, a tendency to get stuck in bad feeling has nothing but negative impact on our relationships, our ability to work most effectively, and our capacity to feel joyful and at peace.

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I know — we’re all busy in the morning! For most people, full breakfasts of omlettes, whole-grain pancakes, etc. are for days off or leisurely weekends. But that doesn’t mean you need to skip THE most important meal of the day. If you don’t have a well-balanced meal in the morning, you’re setting yourself up for sluggish metabolism, sugar imbalances, and cravings that will make it impossible for you to stick to your eating plan.

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This moist, delicious, and easy to prepare bread, which can be transformed into a healthy cake with the addition of some naturally-sweetened cream cheese frosting, is wheat and sugar-free and can be made dairy-free with the use of an alternative milk (nut, seed, or soy)

Ingredients:

1 & 1/3 cup almond flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

1/4 cup honey

1 jumbo egg

1 Tablespoon milk of your choice

1 banana (not too ripe)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

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In my experience, adding whole grains to a diet, particularly when they are replacing any kind of refined version, can have a significantly positive effect on energy, mood, and one’s ability to maintain a healthy weight. For busy cooks, grains lend themselves well to cooking in batches and providing multiple meals with less effort. Furthermore, they are a great bargain relative to their nutritional value, especially if you purchase them in bulk.

The basic steps to preparing grains are:

1) measure and check for unwanted material and rinse in cold water using a fine mesh strainer

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If the idea of a liquid cleanse or more extreme plan for detoxifying has you avoiding the whole idea, know that there are many ways to promote cleansing and give your body a rest from overindulging in foods that may be difficult to digest or contain toxins you don’t need. To whatever degree you focus on whole, natural, unprocessed foods, you are doing something good for yourself.

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This is an easy to prepare and really delicious plant-protein (tofu) and leafy greens (chard) dish. As the tofu is already baked  and usually seasoned (you can buy these packages in most health food stores) and the greens are raw, it’s a no-cook option for when you’re pressed for time or don’t want to heat up your kitchen (the walnuts can be toasted, but don’t need to be).

Ingredients:

Salad-

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Where to begin? I feel I have worked with so many professionals in the field of health and wellness both body and soul and I can honestly say without reservation that Beth is by far the most superior for me. She clearly has a passion for what she does and lives the whole lifestyle. Beth does not preach but prompts you to reflect on your own needs related to physical and mental health. She does this in a way that is truly non-threatening, non-judgmental and completely individualized and personalized.

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This is a super easy way to satisfy a craving for sweet and cold without all the added sugar and fat of ice cream. All the ingredients can be kept on hand and ready to go anytime (so you don’t even need to run out for the fresh fruit, as you’re using frozen).  Any “creamy”  frozen fruit can be substituted for the banana (mango or peach would work well), and the cherries could be replaced with your favorite berry. If you use the highest quality, most natural maple syrup for your sorbet you’ll be assured the best taste and most nutrition (a good maple syrup is high in minerals). Regarding the frozen bananas, you can prepare these ahead and store them in your freezer (already peeled, in an airtight container).

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Natural Sweeteners 

The average American consumes well over 20 teaspoons of added sugar on a daily basis, which adds up to an average of 142 lbs. of sugar per person, per year! That’s more than two times what the USDA recommends, and is proof of sugar’s addictive nature. Here you’ll find information on natural sweeteners, all of which are gentler than the refined white stuff, easier on blood sugar levels, and available in most health food stores and some general markets. All of these products would be preferable to artificial sweeteners, in my opinion. 

Honey

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I first met Beth at my local library when she gave a talk on SUGAR.  I thoroughly enjoyed her talk and remembered her.  When I knew it was time to get serious about dealing with my terrible eating habits I checked out Beth’s website and was intrigued by what I saw and read.  I finally decided to get in touch with her and see what she was all about.  I was concerned about my weight which just kept going up no matter what I did or didn’t do (at least that is the way it seemed to me) and there is a history of diabetes in my family.  I wanted to prevent that from happening to me.  I felt tired all the time and it seemed like I never felt rested, no matter how much I slept each night.

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A whole grain, natural sweeteners, healthful herbs — wholesome enough to go from dessert one night to breakfast the next morning.

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked brown rice
1 1/2 cups firm tofu
2/3 cup raisins
1 cup rice milk of your choice (if you don’t drink cow’s milk, goat’s milk has the most similar consistency)
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon kuzu*, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

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