The more I know the less I know!

This past weekend was a DOOZY! I mean...whew! and WHOA! and WOW! And it was all a little bit much. An emotional wipeout! But I can say that with all of that came some goodness, some clarity and some peace. Funny how that goes. Also exhausting because I had no time off. Full day of class Saturday AND Sunday! Massage class Saturday and aromatherapy Sunday. Saturday's massage class was a very challenging exercise about how pain and trauma, emotional or physical, shows up in your body. It's fascinating to be sure. But it was a tough tough class for me. I'm glad I did it and participated fully but I think it just about wiped me out!

While I was at class Sunday one of the other participants said, "I feel like the more I know the less I know!" Oh, yes, that resonates with me 100%. Does it ever amaze you how much you don't know and how much there is to learn? And on the flip side does it ever amaze you how much you already know? It's shocking to me sometimes. Like when you have the answer for something that you didn't know you knew. I have definitely felt this way about my massage school. There are so many facets to massage, bodywork, energy work, etc. that I either didn't know existed or didn't know the extent all these different things can help you. I feel like such an infant in my knowledge base on how we can heal ourselves and/or live a much younger and healthier life. There's SOOOOO much to learn! Then I get anxious and overexcited about learning and want to know it all now. Does this happen to you? Please tell me it does. Or is this what being obsessive is all about? Haha! I was really glad I went to this class because now I know that the Raindrop Technique, while being extremely amazing to receive is not something I would be inclined to give. It's just not for me. But at least now I know what it's all about and that I really enjoy it being done and also know that I have no desire to practice it. I will of course be incorporating some essential oils into my massage practice though. And for my own personal use of course.

I've had a pretty big shift over the past couple of weeks about working out and my body in general. I hold a lot of muscle and don't lose it too quickly. Yet I think I've kind of been living in fear of losing my muscle since you do lose muscle as you get older. That seemed to be my reason for lifting weights. Well, it eventually was working against me and I had no desire to lift weights. And my desire to work out kept dwindling. Finally about a week and a half ago I decided that enough was enough and I was just going to have to do what sounded good to me and felt good to my body regardless of if I thought I was going to lose my muscle. And then I started blading and dancing and I already feel so much better. We often forget to honor what our bodies and/or mind are telling us.

Then last week I went to get an AMAZING massage. This therapist taught me that I have a whole helluva lot left to learn in this field. It was amazing and inspiring. And he said to me something that made me stop and think. It was about doing weights. And he said to me that I didn't need anymore muscle. Now he didn't say it in a mean way as if I'm too big and muscly. He just said it matter-of-factually and it struck a nerve. And I had to question myself and my reasons for doing weights in the first place and then I realized that I don't need anymore muscle right now and I really don't need to fear the loss of muscle. Yes, I think it's important to be strong but I AM strong and I do have a LOT of muscle. And after thinking about this I basically breathed a sigh of relief. How crazy is that? It's like I needed "permission" to not lift weights.  And now I'm totally fine not lifting weights or even going to a gym right now. I'm thinking more skating and dancing are in the works for me. And I think I'll even bring back my Pilates practice that I love so much. And even some yoga again. I actually haven't been going to yoga because the best time for me is on Tuesday nights and I've been in massage class on Tuesday nights. So now I'll be able to go back to yoga on Tuesday nights. Yay!

There's so much to learn about myself, my body, my mind, and life in general. I feel like such an infant right now. Everything is new as far as all the bodywork stuff goes. But that's what life's about, right? Finding something that you really enjoy and just learning all you can until the next thing comes along that you want to learn about. Kind of fun, don't you think? Wow! I can't believe I only have two more classes and then this part of my massage school is over. I'll be taking more classes to get my certification but this part will be done. It's been quite a ride!

Hiho, hiho...it's off to the gym I go!

Yes! I'm back! Back to me and my life. My crazy month of March has ended. Let us all breathe a big sigh of relief. Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

Seriously, March was a little much for me. Just too much going on really and no time off either. As much as it's nice to be that busy I really was ready for it to end and ready to have the time and energy to get back in the gym and help myself out a little. But I had lost a lot of motivation and needed it back. I contacted Kellie at motherfitness.com. She put together a plan for me that works with my schedule. I have done two of the workouts so far. I'll be doing the other one tomorrow. And I LOVE it! So far, so awesome! I'm so glad that I was referred to her. Well, actually I knew all about her because I follow her blog but my friend Iris referred her and I emailed her ASAP. She sent me a great questionnaire that I filled out and returned. Then like magic my new workout plan appeared in my inbox. It has quite a few exercises I've never done before so that was exciting. I love that the workouts are hard but not completely draining. And of course they're hard since I've been slacking in the gym big time for the past 2-3 months. And she even put in prowler sprints since I remarked that I love the prowler. Woohoo!

For me it's really just a matter of having a program when I'm in the gym. And to be honest I just haven't had the wherewithal to put a program together for myself. I could do it but I just didn't want to. I really needed help. And I suggest that to anyone. If you're struggling with motivation, not seeing results, or really just don't know how to get the most out of your workouts, definitely look for someone that has the knowledge. It seems silly to pay someone for something you can do yourself but the truth is that if you're not doing it yourself then it's even sillier to not pay someone to do it. 

School is going along very well. We had our first "coaching" the other day where we practice massage on the instructors. That was intimidating by thought but not intimidating at all in reality. And I got great feedback. I just love that school because it's not intimidating and really provides a great learning environment. I have a couple of things to work on but my instructor is pleased with my progress. Yeah! I am loving school and loving learning about massage and anatomy. It's just cool. Oh! Speaking of anatomy, how many of you have seen this awesome site? getbodysmart.com. Very cool. It will show you the action of different muscles, tell you origin and insertion, and nerve information. Quite fascinating, especially for people that work out or do any kind of body work.

My food is off and on. Sometimes I'm better than other times. No rhyme nor reason but now that my crazy month is over I'm sure I'll do better generally speaking. I made a yummy shake this morning. Still like to have yummy shakes every once in a while. I have no idea the portions really but I'll try to remember.

Pumpkin Pie Breakfast Shake

8 oz unsweetened vanilla almond milk

1/3 cup chia gel (basically 1/4-1/3 cup water and 1/2 tablespoon chia soaked overnight)

1 tablespoon hemp protein powder

small handful cashews

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

3 dates, pitted

Mix all those in the blender. Add ice to texture you like (I used about 14 smallish ice cubes). Blend again. Pour into glass. Add a handful of dried mulberries and goji berries. They get a little crispy and it's so tasty. This made two glasses for me.

I look at that recipe and think it wouldn't hold me over for long but it does and did. I really wasn't hungry for a long time after eating that. It's crazy how much less food we need than we think we do.

I just finished dinner and it was so yummy that I must share. I stole this vegan pesto recipe and made it my own.

Pesto Soba with Zucchini and Tomatoes

Pesto

3/4 cup packed fresh basil

1/3 cup olive oil and pumpkin oil mixed (about half and half)

1/2 cup pine nuts

2 very large cloves garlic

3 tablespoons nutritional yeast

sea salt

pepper

Mix all but salt and pepper together in a food processor. Process till combined. Add salt and pepper to taste. Process again. Set aside. 

8 oz. 100% buckwheat soba noodles

2 zucchinis, very thinly sliced

2 roma tomatoes, chopped

Cook noodles till done, being careful not to overcook. Remove from pan to a colander. Add zucchini to noodle water and boil for 1-2 minutes. In the meantime rinse noodles in cold water. Drain zucchini. Add hot zucchini to bowl and add desired amount of pesto. Add noodles and chopped tomatoes and mix. Serve and enjoy!

That's about it for me. Hope you're all having a good week. I'll let you know how my last workout of the week goes. And then it's more massage school on the weekend! Wahoo!

Whole Foods Plant-Based Diet

How does that sound to you? Doesn't roll off your tongue very easily, does it? But if I had to describe myself, that is what I would say is closest to the way I am eating these days. And after this past week I would say I'm more committed to that way of eating than ever before. Let me explain.

For the past five days I've been in Portland in a hotel working on a meeting with my friend. I was really busy before I left so I really didn't have time to make a bunch of great healthy snacks to fill in the holes while my diet was going downhill fast. We stayed and worked at the Nines Hotel in Portland. It's a cool hotel in the heart of downtown Portland. They have two restaurants in the hotel, one named Departure that's Asian Fusion and the other is Urban Farmer. So, my question to you is what type of food would you expect "Urban Farmer" to serve? When you think of a "farmer" don't you think of fresh produce? Or is that just me? Well, so far I've asked four people this same question and we're all in agreement. Yet when we went there for lunch the first day we were there, what was on the menu? Mostly steak and animal protein with very little vegetables. I later looked up how they define themselves and it says "Urban Farmer redefines the modern steakhouse." So apparently urban farming now means meat farming! Ha! The joke's on me I suppose. I mean I know dairy farmers exist but in an urban setting? I don't think so. At any rate we had little extra time to really get out and enjoy the city and find great restaurants. Also my friend is not vegan at all so it's challenging to find restaurants that serve food that I can enjoy and she can too.

So I ate a lot of salads but also a lot of items that aren't really what I'm used to eating anymore. I was never a really big cheese lover. I liked and probably still do like cheese from Spain and also Gruyere is delicious. But generally speaking for me I never did eat a lot of cheese. So although I wasn't eating vegan most of the time I was eating vegetarian. Well, guess what? I'm not much of a vegetarian. I haven't eaten eggs in a long time nor any butter or dairy. And definitely not cheese. So over the week I would end up eating things like that because that's really all that was available. I did have a bag of nuts and some dried fruit to supplement what I was eating. Luckily I had that because otherwise I would have eaten even more food that really wasn't great for me.

My stomach felt bloated almost all the time. My energy wasn't what it normally is and I wasn't sleeping well. Now some of that I attribute to traveling and staying in a hotel. However, my stomach really didn't feel good. And that was the biggest thing for me. So I have decided to really keep doing what I've been doing because I know that I feel so much better eating the way I've been eating. I couldn't wait to come home and eat right for ME! So I've eaten a lot of whole foods today. The more I learn the more I love to eat this way.

It's easy on my body and easy on the environment. So although I would basically categorize my diet (in the true sense of the word - "manner of living") the same as the title of this blogpost: whole foods plant-based, I don't want to pigeonhole myself and say that's all I eat. I think it's important to everyone to eat what they want to eat but to pay attention to how different foods make you feel. If you eat animal protein and you feel great then I say go ahead and eat it. However if you are looking to feel better, try going back to basics.  When I say basics I mean just really anything that is a whole food. I think a great diet for today would be something heavily plant based but still have some meat every once in a while. This frees up some money to buy high quality meat. That's just my opinion. I'm not saying that I wouldn't eat meat but honestly, I probably wouldn't eat meat. So weird for me! Who knew? Particularly because on New Year's Day this year I had such a completely different view of animal protein.

I also continue reading The China Study and other items around the internet about different foods and how they affect you. I guess any reduction in inflammatory foods seems to be the goal. I have kind of made this my goal. Sure I would like to look better than I do but mostly I want to feel amazing so if by changing my eating (and eventually getting my workouts back to something I'm interested in!) I feel amazing and the side effect of THAT is looking better then so be it. But that is truly not my goal for now. I just love finding foods that really enhance my health and it feels good to feel good!

Hope you are all off to a great start for April! I can't wait to get back to my massage school tomorrow. I missed it while I was gone! It has such great energy! In the next couple of weeks I'm going to be getting a new workout plan so I'll let you know how that goes too. And so away we go into the FOURTH month of the year! WOW! Where does the time go?!?

Well, it's official...I'm a STUDENT again! And plant-based eating!

Sorry I've been MIA for a while! For some reason I seem super busy and this month is going to be general craziness so I'll do what I can but April will be better! At any rate, last night was my first night of MASSAGE SCHOOL!!!!! And I LOVED it! It was cool and the vibe in the class is good. It's fairly small. There are only nine students, including me and one instructor plus two teacher assistants. That's a good ratio to me.

So, what did we learn last night? Well, important things like class and school conduct, how to set up a massage table, how to drape a client, and how to have them rollover without seeing their nakedness. These are all important things. I think what I like best is the way the class is taught. Sit down and learn a little then get up and move while learning more. Take a short break then back to the floor for more "book" items then maybe do some hands on, etc. That's the perfect learning environment for me. It will be different when we are on the massage table and then have to get off the massage table and practice what we're learning. But it's all good.

My friends and family are going to benefit here because I need to practice often so I'm going to need to get that practicing going. If you are my friend or family and I haven't already asked you to be my guinea pig, feel free to let me know. I need as many bodies as I can get my hands on...literally! Haha!

As for other news in the plant-based diet world, I made the yummiest meal last weekend. I'm going to do a separate post for it because it was that tasty. It was Ani Phyo's Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps. You know me. Representing! For the K's! (That means Koreans for you that aren't in the know!)

I feel like I'm finally getting in the swing of eating mostly plant-based whole foods. It's not an easy undertaking, in my opinion, but I've definitely felt better since eating this way. These are the benefits I've seen so far for me:

• Constant energy throughout the day - no afternoon lull or post-meal comas
• Deeper sleep
• Increased clarity
• Little or no sinus problems
• Cleaner feeling mouth (who knew?)
• Few to no cravings

These are what I would consider hints for introducing more plant-based meals into your life if you have any inkling to go this way:

• Start small - one meal a day (or week if day is too much) have a big salad with lots of fun seeds and/or nuts, add some brown rice or grains, and beans
• Have a "Meatless Monday" (Tuesday, Wednesday, etc) one day a week
• Find a recipe with no meat that sounds divine and make it (maybe try the Black Bean Hemp Patties by Julie Morris...they are soooo yummy!)
• Add a great dessert like Julie Morris's No-Bake Brownies
• Add a side salad to whatever your animal protein dish is and keep increasing the size of the salad and decreasing the size of animal protein

These are the challenges I've faced in this shift:

• For me it was an overnight change so that was more challenging than starting with one meal at a time
• Getting carried away with all the yummy raw vegan desserts you can make (and apparently consume in my case)
• Eating much more carbs than greens
• Eating much more fat in the way of nuts, seeds and avocados
• Eating enough - simply because I didn't know what to eat sometimes or had nothing made. It's like any other way of eating. You have to be prepared to eat right.

I'm very happy with the way I'm eating. I know it's weird to a lot of people because it's unknown and "extreme" to some. To me, the more I learn about the health benefits of whole food plant-based diets the more I never want to eat animal protein again. Some of you may be wondering what am I eating these days and/or what am I not eating. It's going something like this:

Eating: any vegetables, any fruit, any nuts and seeds, whole grains, pseudo grains, legumes, super foods, yacon syrup, agave, coconut palm sugar, whole foods

Not Eating: animal protein including fish and seafood, dairy, eggs, processed foods

So that's about it. I don't like to put myself in a category nor would I say that I will never eat meat again, but if I had to I would be leaning toward Whole Food Plant-Based. I'm not really a vegan per se because I still wear leather and such. It's also not to say that I won't at times eat cheese or butter. The biggest thing that I almost forgot to mention is that since starting this I haven't craved french fries! Those of you that know me know that this is huge! In all honesty, I haven't had much cravings for anything out of the ordinary. I haven't any huge salt OR sugar cravings. Hmmm...I should put that in my bullet list above. Let me do that now...okay...I'm back.

And as a funny note to end on, this is how focused I am on "plant-based". The other night I was playing games on my computer and I looked at my houseplant and thought, "Hm, I wonder if that would be good to eat." Hahaha! Yes, I clearly am losing it but it truly was funny to me and I truly DID have that thought.

Dental Health Update, Exciting News, and New House Rule!

So, since I work in a dental office I get to have my teeth cleaned every 3 months so it's fantastic. I got my teeth cleaned yesterday and guess what? My hygienist said that she's never seen my gums so healthy. Isn't that fantastic? She thinks it might be my changing to a plant-based diet but we're not certain. We'll see in another 3 months. I've basically been doing a plant-based diet for about 5 weeks. It will be interesting to see what another 3 months does to the health of my mouth.

Now on to exciting news...are you ready? Today I finally had my interview for massage school! Yes, I'm going to massage school and it starts in the middle of March! I can't wait. It's going to be so much fun. The school, teachers, and students are rather "granola" and "flower child" like but in some ways so am I. It's a smaller massage school and I like that. And I LOVE that half of my class time will be me getting massaged! Win win if you ask me!

And finally some new house rules! I decided that I've become way too sedentary and I need to put a stop to that. So I made a new "house rule" to get myself going. The rule is that if I'm doing something sedentary (watching TV / computer time / reading) I need to get up every 15-20 minutes and do something...anything, just move. Tonight I did just that. I was watching some TV and so I got up at the commercials and did some bodyweight squats, a little dancing, some marching in place, and some planks. I like this new house rule. It's been great. I actually went to the gym the other night to watch my trash TV and walk on the treadmill. It was perfect. I walked at a moderate pace for 45 minutes. I'm not trying to get a "cardio" workout per se, just moving instead of sitting still. I'm trying to extend this new habit at work as well since I sit for a good 8 hours a day.

So that's my brief summary of changes and such happening in my life. Any of you starting something new? Any new challenges you're facing?