What your craving is REALLY telling you…

Hi friends! Happy FRIDAY!!!!!!!

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Anyone have fun plans for the weekend? I’ve got a colonic scheduled for this afternoon (fun, fun, I know) then I’m going to my friend’s bridal dress fitting! Her dress is GORGEOUS! I can’t believe her wedding is coming up so fast! I think I’m going to hit up the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale right after work today, to see if I can find some shoes for my bridesmaid dress! (and then try to stop myself there… because that sale is just TOO tempting!!)

Since I was too busy to blog yesterday, here’s a quick recap of my eats:

A lovely juice filled with romaine, beet greens, 1/2 a beet, a small apple, and 1/2 a lemon:

Served in a stemless wine glass with a glass straw. Fancy Shmancy.;)

I love buying fresh beets for my juice, because I feel like I’m getting a “2 for 1″ deal– since you can use the red beet roots AND the beet greens! I used to be a little intimidated by beet greens, but once I learned they contain large amounts of vitamins K and A, along with large amounts of anti-oxidants beta Carotene and Lutein [source], I figured I should really use them up! Plus, juicing is a great way to “sneak” more veggies into your life!

I enjoyed a huge salad for lunch:

The usual combo. What can I say? I like what I like.

I didn’t feel like repeating my No More Trouble Zones workout yesterday afternoon, so I decided to switch it up by doing a different strength workout:

Anyone watch the TV show Workout on Bravo? My husband and I love Jackie Warner!! I’m not sure if the show is even on anymore, but thank goodness her workout DVD’s are available– I forgot how much I love this one!! This particular DVD, One-On-One Training with Jackie, offers three 20-minute workouts: Upper Body, Lower Body, and Abs. You can choose to do just one section, or customize your workout with more than one:

I did the Upper Body circuit yesterday, and it was AWESOME! I’m feeling a little sore today (which I love) and plan on doing the Lower Body circuit today. Sometimes I like getting my whole strength session done in one day, with a workout like No More Trouble Zones, but sometimes that can seem overwhelming to me and I’d rather break it down into more manageable chunks each day. Right now, I’m more in the mood to work one half of my body each day– so that’s what I’m gonna do! I also think it’s very effective to switch up your workout routine, so that you don’t wind up doing the same moves all the time! My husband laughs at me every time I buy a new workout DVD, but I love having options!!

Post-workout, I had a quick green smoothie:

Simple combo: Blender full of spinach (2-3 cups?), 1 banana, 1 T. cocoa powder, 1 cup almond milk, handful of ice. It tasted like chocolate milk!!

And for dinner, my husband really wanted to go out, so he twisted my arm and dragged me to Granville. I happen to LOVE their Lemon-Oregano salad dressing, so it really didn’t take too much convincing for me to go. I had a glorious salad of organic romaine, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, and fresh basil:

It was divine. Normally, I enjoy this salad with goat cheese, but I knew I had some raw almond butter cookies waiting for me at home… and I didn’t want a stomach ache later from mis-combining!

These almond butter cookies were really just an experiment out of my head, trying to use dates instead of maple syrup as a sweetener:

I let them set in the freezer before DEVOURING a few many of them.

The dates definitely gave them a different texture! I actually still prefer maple syrup (even though it’s not technically “raw”) since it adds a really nice depth of flavor, but I’m going to keep experimenting with dates in my free time! I see some fudge babies in my future.

Yesterday afternoon, I sat down to read my book on Natural Relief for Anxiety. Even though I’m only a few chapters in, I feel like I’ve already gotten some really great tips for coping with anxiety, and preventing it in the first place! The first chapter focuses on relaxation techniques, such as Progressive and Passive Muscle Relaxation, and breathing techniques, including the Calming Breath which is supposed to be helpful during an anxiety attack:

Calming Breath

1. Breathing from your abdomen, inhale through your nose slowly to a count of five

2. Pause and hold your breath to a slow count of five

3. Exhale slowly, through your nose or mouth, to a slow count of five (or however much longer it takes to exhale FULLY)

4. When you’ve exhaled completely, take 2 normal breaths in your normal rhythm, then repeat the first three steps again

5. Keep up this exercise for 5 minutes. (if you start to feel light-headed, take a 30-second break and begin again)

[source]

If I experience any anxiety during my drive this afternoon, I’m definitely going to try to use this! The author also points out that relaxation is something we need to practice– it takes effort to learn how to relax! He also stresses the fact that sitting in front of the TV does NOT count as relaxation (he calls it distraction instead). He suggests taking 20-minutes in a calm, quiet space so you can fully-focus on how your body feels when it’s truly relaxed. I must say, relaxing in quiet is not something that comes naturally to me– but I’m trying to make it a priority!

Exercise and diet can also play an important role in managing anxiety, according to this book. Here are some of the suggestions I’ve read so far:

• Exercise 30 minutes a day, 3-5 times a week to release excess adrenaline in your body
• Cut out caffeine, sugar, and food allergens (common ones are gluten, dairy, chocolate, peanuts, soy, and eggs) — According to Dr. Bourne, one of the most telling signs of food allergy is CRAVING. You tend to crave the very foods you are allergic to! Isn’t that crazy?!

Hmmm… does that mean I’m allergic to chocolate? I hope not!   (of course, if that were the case, I think most women are allergic to chocolate!!)

I’m really excited to get further into my book, and I’ll be sure to share any other interesting tidbits in future posts!

Hope you’re all having a great day so far!