Can You Believe The NERVE of Tom and Katie???

Yesterday, I took a little jaunt into town for what I thought was going to be a quick in & out trip at the local grocery store. I just needed a few things... it should have only taken me 20 minutes or so. Unfortunately, I get fooled into thinking this everytime I visit this particular establishment! If I've ever been in and out in 20 minutes or less, it's because I forgot something in the car and had to run back out!

I'm convinced that this store provides advanced training for its personnel, teaching them how to take the longest possible time to get people through the check out line. It's maddening! I was the third person in line and it took 25 minutes to check out!!

Apparently, I needed to vent! Sorry - it's nothing personal!

Anyhow, while I waited ever so patiently in line, I had the chance to thoroughly investigate my surroundings. I was flanked by coolers of pop, shelves of candy, chocolate bars, chips, a variety of other snack 'foods' and the almighty mega magazine rack!

Ah yes, the magazines! Those cover stories are such a crack-up! I don't get to indulge in all that 'stuff' during my regular trips to Whole Foods Market! The headlines are hilarious - and pathetic - and insane... I was mentally exhausted by the time I checked out yesterday!

One particular magazine really caught my eye right away. It had a photo of the sweetest little girl... so I took a closer look. It was Suri Cruise, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes' daughter. What a cutie!

The headline next to her read, "NO T.V. ! NO Happy Meals!" Then it alluded to something like, 'read inside for more bizarre parenting by Tom and Katie'. I thought, "now this I've gotta' see!" I quickly searched the magazine for the Suri article. What I discovered in the story is that Suri's parents are crazy! They're insane! Their parenting choices are bordering on child abuse!!! (At least that's what this particular publication would have me believe!)

Apparently, these nut-job parents of hers choose not to give her drugs... they'd rather use herbs and homeopathy when necessary. They choose not to let her watch television or play video games. They're very picky about the circle of friends Suri is allowed to play with - they'd rather she socialize with families who share similar philosophies and beliefs. They keep her rather sheltered and choose to have her spend the majority of her time with THEM, her parents. They don't feed her junk food or fast food.... the list is very long and very disturbing!!!

Give me a break!

Sounds like I'M going to have to locked up right alongside the Cruise-Holmes parents for mis-treating and damaging my children!

I shook my head and laughed as I returned the magazine to its rack. The lady behind me asked, "Aren't those stories so unbelievable?" I responded, "Yes, especially this one! (pointing to the headline) It's crazy!" She glanced at the cover then knowingly stated, "Oh, I know! Isn't it so sad how they're treating that little girl? Poor thing!"

I smiled... at least I think I did (!)... and slowly turned around to mind my own business, inside my own little world. Somedays I'm convinced that I live on the wrong planet!

"The Junk Food Made Me Sick!"

Every once in awhile, God's timing fits my 'mommy' timing just perfectly!

Last week, my daughter had a Valentine's party at her school. We talked about it ahead of time... discussing the importance of making healthy choices and the options of just trying a bite of the sweets that would be offered to her, or even saying "no thank you"!

As I've said a million times before, I don't believe in teaching my kids "NEVER" when it comes to sweets. I firmly believe in teaching them to choose wisely - to fill up with health first. Obviously, the fewer toxins they ingest, the more potential they have to create optimal health... but that's neither here nor there!

So, last week, I had the honor of joining my little girl at her Valentine's party. Part of the festivities included decorating a chocolate cupcake with frosting and Valentine's sprinkles and other decorations. I kept my opinion to myself... I knew what she had eaten for breakfast and lunch and felt confident that she had done a great job of filling up with healthy foods first.

Then I was informed that earlier in the day, the class had also decorated and consumed Valentine's cookies with another teacher!

Then there were the Valentine's goody bags given as gifts.... you get the picture!

As I was putting the kids to bed that night, I mentioned to my daughter that I sure did hope her body could handle the toxic load she put on it that day! (tough being the kid of a Wellness doc!) I just suggested that she really needed extra rest and water to help her system cleanse.

Well, what do you know! The very next day, she started with a little sore throat. By that night, it was a cough. The following morning, she woke up and announced, "Mommy, I know what's making my body adapt like this and making me feel sick... it's the cookies and cupcakes and all the junk from Valentine's Day!"

Music to my ears!

Obviously, I know there are a million variables as to why a person will start to express symptoms like these... I made the motherly decision to let her believe that there was ONE main reason why her body was behaving this way... JUNK!

God was definitely in mom's corner that day! Hopefully, she'll get this "healthy choice" thing soon... this is exhausting for her mommy!

The Real Truth About the March of Dimes Girl

I thought you might find this story interesting. Too bad it's not widely known.

Winifred Gardella's Experience

In the early 1950's, Winifred Gardella was a poster child for the March of Dimes. Nearly all of us are familiar with her picture that was published in the newspapers to raise huge sums of money for the March of Dimes in San Francisco. Nationally, her image raised millions of dollars to help fight the dreaded crippler, Polio. Her sad, innocent face and her tiny body supported on crutches and leg braces made many Americans reach into their pockets to donate.

But the March of Dimes could not help Winifred. After two and a half years under their Doctor's expert care, her parents were told "There is no hope". Despite this dire prediction, her grandparents were determined to find a cure. They were not about to accept the opinion of so called "Medical Experts."

They decided to choose their own Healthcare and they took Winifred to Dr. Lewis Robertson, a Chiropractor in Glendale, California. She was adjusted daily, and in less than six months of having her nerve interference corrected Winifred Gardella threw away her crutches and braces, and went for a walk with her chiropractor. She has been walking ever since!

The irony of this story is that not one dollar of the millions she raised for the March of Dimes went to pay for the Chiropractic care which allowed her to walk again!

This is not a "medical miracle". Personally, I don't believe in "medical miracles" anyway - I believe in miracles... the God kind! Winifred's body simply responded normally to Chiropractic adjustments by re-establishing its ideal balance and optimal function. It's a natural response to Chiropractic.

Regular Chiropractic care is an obvious part of a healthy lifestyle!

Valentine's Day "Treats" For Kids

By now, you're aware that I have food "issues"! I prefer to think of it as making healthy choices for my family... but most just see it as "issues"!

Here's another example. I can't stand holidays and occasions where the tradition has become junk-food-centered for the kids... like Valentine's Day. I know it's what's socially expected, but that doesn't make me feel any better about going along with it.

My daughter was asking me if we could buy lots of candy for her classmates, because she was told that's what everyone else was doing. (Insert motherly eye roll here!) I explained that, knowing what I know, I just couldn't find it in my heart to hand out toxins coated in sugar to all her friends... I couldn't knowingly contribute to their loss of optimal health.

Why couldn't we just gift her friends with coloring books and pencils and fun games...? (Insert daughter's eye roll here!)

So, we compromised. My daughter wanted to give 'food' - a treat. And it had to look special for Valentine's Day. I wanted to do something that wouldn't shorten their life spans! We agreed upon raspberry yogurt covered pretzels from Whole Foods Market - no high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, artificial sweeteners or colors. We both taste-tested them and agreed we had found a winner!

She's happy - they're pink and pretty. I'm happy - she learned another valuable lesson in making healthier, but not necessarily perfect, choices.

I'm also happy because I stashed a few for myself!

Eat Your Breakfast and Lose the FAT Pants!

I hear it all the time in the practice – “I’m too busy for breakfast. I’m not hungry in the morning. By the time I get everyone else ready, I just forget to eat!” Does this sound like you? If you’re wondering why you haven’t been able to lose weight, read on to find out why breakfast is your fat-fighting ally.

Hey, here’s some new advice: Breakfast is THE most important meal of the day! OK, so it’s not even remotely new! So why is it that it’s most likely the #1 meal that busy parents skip?

No, coffee is not a meal!

Science has repeatedly proven that people who skip breakfast and eat fewer times during the day tend to be heavier than people who eat a healthy breakfast and eat four or five smaller meals throughout the day. Skipping breakfast is an inefficient, unsuccessful way to lose weight and shed fat.

Instead, give your body some fuel within and hour of waking, and every 3 to 4 hours throughout the day. This jump starts your metabolism and keeps it revved up throughout the day. When your metabolism is working efficiently, you burn fat like it’s nobody’s business! Your metabolism is like a furnace – the stronger and steadier it burns, the more fat you can release. Supplying your ‘furnace’ with healthy fuel on a regular basis throughout the day keeps it functioning at its best. This gives you more energy, regulates your blood sugar levels, elevates your mood and keeps you lean. Frequent, healthy meals keeps your body out of the "fat storage mode".

If you choose to skip breakfast, you’re programming your body to store more fat. You’re sending the message to your body that you may not be feeding it again for quite awhile, so it goes into survival mode. The body is never stupid. It will hang onto all the fat it can so it can burn it as fuel… just in case you don’t feed it food for fuel for a long time. Not only will your metabolism be sluggish for the rest of the day, those who skip breakfast are more likely to struggle with, moodiness, stress and uncontrollable cravings which lead to binging later in the day.

Oh just eat, would you! ‘Geez, I don’t want to be around sluggish, moody, stressed out, hungry people all day!

What are the best energy boosting breakfasts? Clean, pure protein is one of the best ways to start your day. Organic, free range eggs are a great choice (with the yolks). A handful of raw almonds is also an easy way to go.

If you’re not an “egg person”, or don’t want them every day, choose a pure protein powder and make a fruit protein smoothie. My favorite protein powders are IsaLean Shake by Isagenix (www.GetCleanandLean.Isagenix.com) and Dream Protein (www.GreensFirst.com/4251)

Fruit is an energizing, refreshing breakfast choice to accompany your protein. High fiber, minimally processed, organic grains are another good choice. The more refined and processed the grains are, the more harmful they are, both to your health as well as your weight loss goals. It bears repeating – protein is the most important food group to start your day with.

Stay away from refined sugar, artificial sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup.

My 3 favorite “power” breakfasts:
1) Protein smoothie with organic blueberries, strawberries, banana and fish oil, of course!
2) Organic hemp granola (it ROCKS!), organic French vanilla yogurt, blueberries and a sprinkle of ground flaxseed. Heaven!
3) Organic, free-range egg sandwich made with organic flax, spelt or Indian Grain bread.

Don’t give me those eye rolls, missy! You’ve got to eat breakfast… preferably something that contributes to your health! It’s not hard; it just might take a little planning and getting used to. Big deal! Set your alarm and get up 5 or 10 minutes earlier. A healthier, happier, leaner YOU is certainly worth it!

Are Almonds The Miracle Cure For Diabetes?

Recently, my husband and I gave a Wellness Nutrition talk at a local school to a mixed group of students, teachers and parents. The title was “Nutrition for Achieving Optimal Health and Peak Performance.”

About halfway into the talk we were giving examples of healthy snacks the kids could have at school as opposed to all the junk they were used to eating. One particular food we mentioned was raw almonds… a personal favorite of mine!

One of the kids in the audience asked a good question that led to an even greater lesson. He said, “I have diabetes, and I’ve heard that almonds and cinnamon are good for diabetes. Is this true?”

The poor kid had no idea the can of worms he had just opened up!

First, almonds and cinnamon are good foods. The cleaner they are (organic, raw) the better they are. They are real food, so that inherently makes them ‘good’. They’re also, generally speaking, good for everyone because they are real food… not just for diabetics. They are not drugs.

The point to be made is that in the Wellness lifestyle, you can’t look at foods in isolation like that. This kid could have been eating a ton of starchy carbs, very few vegetables, trans fats and drinking pop… yet if he ate almonds and cinnamon it would help his diabetes?! That’s not how it works.

Thankfully, he said he does ‘fairly well’ keeping his diet ‘kinda’ healthy for the most part’. It's a good thing, because the only chance he has of reversing the diabetic situation he has gotten himself into is a complete lifestyle overhaul... the way he eats, moves, and thinks, for starters.
The answer is NOT almonds and cinnamon! Almonds are great, but they are not little miracle nuts! You need a solid foundation first.

But this is how our society thinks, isn’t it? “Eat whatever I want, then just take ‘this’ and I’ll be fine”. For the masses, it’s a drug, or several drugs, that they think will fill the gap left by their incomplete approach to Wellness Nutrition. Unfortunately, with the rise of the health industry in recent years, more and more people are using supplements/vitamins and foods in isolation in the same ineffective way.

Do you see the irony in the scenario of the person at the fast food restaurant who orders all the high fat, high calorie,processed, low nutrient-density ‘food’… in fact, they “supersize” it all… yet they order a diet pop, thinking that somehow makes the meal better or ‘healthier’??? Crazy!

I see the same irony, and sadness, in the way people choose supplements, take their drugs, treat their disease and feed their families.

You can’t ignore the principles of Health and Wellness and achieve optimal health or prevent sickness. Our innate nutritional requirements are for ample pure and sufficient real foods, and little-to-no toxic and deficient foods. This is the one and only formula that produces health.

If you don’t have that basic foundation, you can eat all the almonds and cinnamon you want and it ain’t helping a thing! You can drink all the diet pop you want along with your fast food meals, and you’ll still have excess toxic fat as a result.

The body is not stupid. Its requirements are quite simple, actually. Increase purity and sufficiency – decrease toxicity and deficiency. It just takes a shift in the way we think about food… a shift to a Holistic view… seeing how it all comes together to produce health.

The more you can incorporate this Wellness perspective to your diet, the less you have to worry about individual foods, supplements and drugs to fill in your gaps. In fact, you’ll probably not have many gaps once you make this paradigm shift in thinking!

What Exactly Does "Natural" Mean?

I came across this little interesting tidbit when researching some nutrition information. I know there’s so much confusion in the food ‘industry’ these days… I thought this might shed a little light on the subject.

When it comes to most foods, there is no definition of “Natural”. You can pretty much throw together any combination of mystery ingredients, chemicals, and toxins, and get away with labeling it “natural” or “healthy”.

While there are strict government requirements that must be met before a food or beverage can be labeled as "organic", the Food and Drug Administration does not have a strict definition for "natural."

Isn't it funny how so many folks are ultra skeptical of the organic label, yet it's the only one that actually means what it says and is held to extremely high standards!

Only meats and poultry must be free of artificial ingredients to be labeled "natural". Other foods, including potato chips, ice cream and cookies, can be labeled as "natural" without a precise definition. A little misleading, don’t you think?

In the last couple years, several junk drinks, 7-Up to name one, have come under fire for trying to convince us that their product is “natural”. Although the company did drop a few of its toxic, artificial ingredients, it still contains high fructose corn syrup – one of the most toxic substances in our food supply… now directly linked to obesity (and childhood obesity), failing immune systems and altered mental and emotional function, as well as countless other sicknesses.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) officials say high fructose corn syrup is not natural because you couldn't make it in your own kitchen "unless you happen to be equipped with centrifuges, hydroclones, ion-exchange columns, and buckets of enzymes." The non-profit group also objects to scenes in 7-Up's TV ads that depict cans of the soda being picked from trees or harvested from the ground, as there is no fruit juice in 7-Up.

I remember those commercials. One of the many examples of why I should just keep a “barf bucket” next to me whenever I choose to watch television! Better yet, I probably shouldn’t watch any television! It would probably be better for my blood pressure to avoid it all together!

Cadbury Schwepps maintains that 7-Up is natural because high fructose corn syrup is made in a similar way to other ingredients that are called natural.

What exactly does “similar” mean? Heck, we haven’t even determined what “natural” means yet… who cares how similar they are if we haven’t a clue what they really are!

Point of the story – don’t be fooled by misleading and dishonest marketing claims that label foods as “natural”, “healthy” or “nutritious”. Flip the package and read the ingredients before determining if it’s truly healthy.

Of course, the ideal scenario is that we’re not buying packaged food in the first place! I’ll let you know if I ever become that perfect mom who can actually pull this off!

This Can't Possibly Be Healthy!

In preparation for a very low-key Superbowl celebration at our house, the kids were absolutely thrilled that they would be able to partake in “party food” with mom’s blessing!

My socialized daughter was a little stone-faced when I broke the news to her… “party food” in our house consisted of homemade organic guacamole and salsa with organic blue chips, as well as bison burgers (without buns) and the usual array of veggies. BUT, they got to eat in front of the television for a change!Woo hoo!

Hey, give me a break! We don’t usually snack on chips and dips in the middle of the day… it really was a special occasion for them! Not necessarily what the rest of the armchair quarterbacks in the country were eating, but “party food” in this house, nonetheless!

Do you know how long any menu-related disappointment lasted? Less than a minute. As soon as I recruited the kids’ help in mashing and smashing avocados and squirting lime juice, they were all for my Superbowl party! I have to admit, I talked up the guacamole so much, they may have actually been salivating in anticipation of tasting mom’s homemade recipe! I went on and on about how it’s my most favorite food on the whole entire planet… you know, Superbowl hype!

(By the way, I made the most boring version of guacamole today – only used fresh lime juice and garlic sea salt. I didn’t want to overdo it with my usual ultra garlic on behalf of the kids! I just made it sound really exciting so they’d have fun with it!)

My daughter used to eat avocados like they were going out of style. Of course, ever since her school socialization, that’s one more thing on “the list”… the “I don’t like that anymore, mommy” list. I despise that list!

So today I was tickled when she took the first bite of guacamole and exclaimed that it was the very best guacamole she had ever tasted in her whole entire life! She had inhaled nearly half the bowl when I decided to announce that this particular homemade version of guacamole was actually HEALTHY and good for her! Them are fightin’ words these days with this kid!

She looked up at me in utter disbelief and blurted out, “this can’t possibly be good for me – it tastes WAY too good!” It was hilarious! My little nutburger proceeded to chow down on her 'new favorite food', trying her best to eat it all before her brother could get his fair share!

Mission complete for today. We made it through Superbowl Sunday relatively unscathed! In fact, my kids have a new, fun, healthy definition of “party food”!

Wake Up And Smell the Diet Coke "Plus"!

Diet Coke ‘Plus’ with added vitamins? Have we gone totally insane???

Does anyone else see the insanity in this ridiculous marketing scheme? If we were that concerned with getting our healthy quotient of vitamins and minerals, wouldn’t we look elsewhere? Gosh, I really hope so!

Diet Coke and all other conventional pops are junk, plain and simple. If you are trying to achieve better health they don’t belong in your body. How can you take one of the most toxic ‘foods’ on our supermarket shelves and suddenly try to spin it as a “health food”? Craziness. The sneaky and misleading marketing makes me want to toss my cookies! Vitamins come from ‘real’ food – not toxic chemical water.

I know, I know… this is just one of countless examples of shady, underhanded mass marketing when it comes to health and nutrition. It still ticks me off though!

Just thought I’d see if anyone else is seeing what I’m seeing!

The Results of the 30 Day Cleansing and Fat Burning System are IN!

Well, January 31st marked the last day of my Isagenix 30 Day Cleansing and Fat Loss program. Once again, this Isagenix system never ceases to amaze me!

Things were different when I began the program this time around. I could tell that my body had changed (for the worse) in the weeks following my mom's passing. I felt gross... and toxic... and fat. When I stepped on the scale to "weigh in" at the beginning of the 30 day program, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn't weigh as much as I had thought I would.

It was a short-lived happiness though when I saw my body fat percentage! How did that happen?! Also, I remembered that muscle weighs more than fat. OK, now this was really not good. In the weeks I had spent in the hospital with my mom and following her death, I had obviously lost some muscle mass as a result of slacking off on my fitness routine.

Interestingly enough, I was able to maintain my cardio routine of running, but not so much my resistance routine. I was still running approximately 4 or more times per week. Pretty good, wouldn't you think? Based on my measurements and stats, this is certainly not good enough!

So what do you know... cardio without much resistance training DOES prevent you from burning fat efficiently! I experienced this first hand. I'm like my own little science experiment at times!Although I hadn't really gained any weight, I had gotten 'fatter' and my body shifted in a rather obnoxious way!

The other thing I experienced first hand is the fact that STRESS makes you fat! The short version of the story is that the physiological response to chronic stress is for the body to hold weight centripedally... that means in your midsection! Stress creates a toxic environmment. toxins "live" in fat. Since I was way more stressed than usual for a long time, my body hung onto extra fat in my abdomen. As if the stress isn't bad enough!

Once I got back into my healthy environment, things started to change. Adding workout strategies from my personal gurus, Mike Geary (www.SmokinHotAbs.com) and Holly Rigsby (see her fabulous program on the right side of this page, "Fit Yummy Mommy"), helped me feel a million times better, and I very quickly felt my body changing back to its pre-stressed form!

BUT, I could have exercised 'til I was blue in the face and it wouldn't have done the trick completely because I was still TOXIC! If you have any accumulated toxicity from the way you eat, move (or don't move!), sleep, think, the environment around you... then your body simply cannot get rid of those last few pounds of toxic fat. It needs the fat to contain the toxins, simply stated.

So in my Isagenix 30 day program, although I only lost a handful of pounds this time, I really only had a handful I needed to get rid of in the first place! The great news is that I dropped some major FAT!! Bigtime results again -Yahoo! I can see a definite difference in all the right places!

AND, I'm ecstatic to say that I no longer feel gross or toxic! Thankfully, that was very temporary and most likely directly related to the toxic hospital environment. I feel healthy again!

As we continue to teach our Practice Members in our Wellness practice, it's no longer a question of "Do I need to cleanse?", but rather "How often do I need to cleanse?" Everyone needs to cleanse... unless you've lived an absolutely perfect life in the way you eat, move, think and what you've been exposed to in the environment!

For more information or to order your Isagenix 30 Day Cleansing and Fat Burning Program, go to www.MarcandColleen.Isagenix.com. Or, email me at powerzon@sbcglobal.net with any questions or concerns you may have. I'm happy to help get you started.

Remember, check with me first if you're ready to order - I can make sure you get the right program AND the best price!