Craving Cookies to Cake

Soy Stops Sex

2011-04-10T12:40:00.004-04:00

I figured that would get your attention.

Here’s the deal. Unfermented soy products, such as soy milk, soy ice cream, or soy nuts, are endocrine disrupters and mimic hormones in your body. They block the receptor sites in your cells for naturally produced hormones to lock into and interrupt the feedback loop throughout your entire endocrine system.

When this happens, hormones run amok. It’s the equivalent of a ship without a captain: none of the shipmates would know what to do without the captain’s direction. If you’re hormones are off, you’ve got the same situation going on inside your body.

To make matters worse, xeno hormones in our environment like BPA (Bisphenol A) found in plastics and the ink on register receipts; petroleum byproducts in food, candles, and personal care products (think petroleum jelly for 1); and even household furnishings like carpet, disrupt hormones too and create a new hormone called Sex Hormone Binding Globulin.

Sounds icky right? Well it is. SHBG, for short, occurs as a result of being exposed to xeno hormones, or estrogens, and bonds with testosterone so it can’t be absorbed, rendering it unusable. So even if your body is making testosterone, it can’t be used.

This sets the stage for an increasingly common condition known as estrogen dominance, for women and men.

It’s bad enough testosterone drops 10% a year for men as it is, now this? And too much estrogen in a woman can result in break outs, excess fat, and even worse – breast cancer.

There’s mounting evidence too that breast cancer in men is on the rise as well thanks to xeno hormones. Join the club guys.

Historically the emphasis has always been on women, but with an overly adulterated food supply, hormonal imbalances are cropping up in more and more men nowadays. They’re wrestling with unexplained feelings of depression, crankiness, and bouts of crying, and can’t seem to figure out why.

And to top things off, all of this leads to low libido. Ee gads!

So what do you do? No worries, I wouldn’t leave you hanging. Here are my top 3 tips to help you reduce or eliminate soy from your diet and steer clear of xeno hormones:

1. Use nut mylk instead of soy milk. A lot of people shop the health food store thinking that puffed brown rice cereal and soy milk = healthy. Wrong. It’s better than Cap N’ Crunch and homogenized cows milk, but it’s still processed and it’s still soy.

My suggestion => try nut mylk, such as almond, hemp, or coconut, instead. They’re a better source of protein and healthy fats, and most importantly don’t mess with hormone levels or production.

2. Eat fermented soy only. Fermented soybeans are a staple in many Asian cultures, but in the US we’ve mass produced the soybean without fermenting it first. Fermented soy doesn’t block protein digestion like unfermented soy does, and it isn’t a threat to your thyroid.

Unfermented soy has goitrogens, which are anti-nutrients and suppress your thyroid, plus inhibit healthy thyroid function. Fermented soy includes tofu, natto, miso, tempeh, shoyu, and tamari, however I recommend eating it no more than twice a week.

3. Detox your liver quarterly. Without a healthy functioning liver, it’s hard to be healthy. Your liver processes your hormones, and is also responsible for converting T4 into T3 thyroid hormone so that your thyroid activates. With xeno estrogens in the mix, it’s very hard for your liver to break them down and do its job properly.

I’m a big fan of detoxification. With the toxic burden we’re under every day, it’s impossible to experience true health if you don’t clean out your system on a regular basis, so I suggest doing a liver cleanse every 3 months. A great 1 I know of is from Biotics Research, simply called the Biotics Cleanse, which can only come from a health care practitioner. My clients get great results on this cleanse. E mail me for more info.

It’s my mission to help 1 million people by 2012 restore full function to their bodies so that they’re not reliant on drugs or harmful medications any longer. If you want to learn more about how hormonal imbalances can be easily corrected, contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com.

What Do The Guys of Ghost Adventures Have To Do With Stubborn Weight Loss?

2011-03-23T09:17:00.006-04:00

I have a confession to make. I’m freakishly fascinated with the supernatural.

Ever since I was a kid, I can remember having a secret soft spot for the paranormal. I never wanted to admit it, but the truth was deep down inside I was completely turned on by anything ghostly, ghastly, or out of this world.

So last fall when the crew from Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures paid a visit to the Mansfield Reformatory, my curiosity was piqued and I made my way there not only to meet them in person but to walk the halls of 1 of the worlds’ most haunted hallows.

For being celebs in their own right, I found them to be charming and quite humble, accepting the adoration of their fans with heartfelt appreciation. But in my mind, I couldn’t help but think how each 1 of them was sacrificing their body for their job, an all too common case for people and 1 I’m familiar with myself.

I spent 14 years as a claims adjuster for the 3rd largest insurer in the US and due to the high demands, often worked upwards of 90 or more hours a week. During my 3-year stint as a catastrophe adjuster at the tail end of my career, I traveled extensively too, working natural disasters around the country including both Hurricanes Ike (2008) and Rita (2005) in Houston, and the California Wildfires in 2007.

Each 1 was massive, causing large scale destruction, leaving thousands homeless in its wake. As an adjuster, it was my job to restore function to the lives of hundreds of people in an orderly and timely fashion all while paying minute detail to accuracy. Billions of dollars were on the line for the insurance industry, and regardless of the event, there was no excuse for sloppiness when it came to estimating the damage.

Needless to say I was on overdrive 24/7. My personal life completely fell by the wayside in favor of my career and my body took a toll. Due to the sheer exhaustion of late night dates with my computer, coupled with an early morning ritual of running through the Starbucks drive-through to refuel, ultimately my system shut down.

As a result, I suffered from severe adrenal fatigue, low-functioning thyroid, and an inability to lose excess weight. Any other time I had found myself in this state, I’d been able to easily pull myself out of it. But this time was different. My body was in shock, and demanded I change or die.

I knew I had to leave or the long term consequences would become irreversible. So I did, and totally revamped my life, switching to a much less stressful job but 1 that is much more rewarding. I learned the hard way that being a slave to a career that inhibited my health was 1 that was not worth it, no matter how much it paid. Lack of sleep, disconnected from my life at home, and an unrelenting schedule caused my body to implode on itself.

The uphill climb to get back on track has been 2 years and counting.

It’s easy to see that the guys from Ghost Adventures love their jobs, and it’s essential that they work graveyard shift so that they can effectively capture otherworldly images to prove to us all that they exist. But no doubt they’re launching an all out attack on their anatomies by defying their natural circadian rhythms that will eventually land them in the same set of circumstances as I was in.

You see, your body has a regular sleep cycle predetermined by the laws of physics, and if you disrupt it, it’s like messing with Mother Nature.

Adrenal exhaustion doesn’t play favorites either, therefore everyone is susceptible. If you’re always reacting to stress, because you’re running late, worried about a deadline, or maybe even ghost hunting into the wee hours of the morning, you’re continually in flight or fight mode and constantly flooding your system with excess cortisol.

The physical manifestations include stubborn weight, chronic fatigue, sugar and carb cravings, brain fog, irritability, and anxiety, amongst others. Reversing the damage can take months, sometimes years, and the effects are felt throughout your entire physiology.

I didn’t want to be the 1 to burst their bubble, figuring they’d find out for themselves someday. And they will. The human body is amazingly resilient, but it can only go on so long before it breaks down.

In the meantime, there are a few simple steps they could take to support their adrenals in an effort to prevent more damage and make a noticeable difference that’ll work for you too:

1) Take adaptogenic herbs. These include 1’s like ashwaganda, Dong Quai, or holy basil that help to combat stress. Try supplements from Apex Energetics such as Adaptocrine or Planetary Herbals Rehmmania Vitalizer.

2) Eat sufficient amounts of protein. Adrenal glands thrive on protein, but it’s imperative that you eat high quality protein, such as organic, grass-fed meat, unfermented soy as in tempeh or tofu (in limited quantities), or beans or nuts. Don’t go overboard on protein though because it’s extremely acidic, so stick to about 25-50 grams a day depending on your needs.

3) Get adequate sleep. Your adrenal glands need their beauty sleep so aim for 8 hours a night and be sure to get to bed by 10pm whenever possible!

GAC might be targeted for a fall out 1 day, but you don’t have to be. Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome is a complex condition but 1 that is entirely reversible, not to mention preventable, if you’re willing to do the footwork, which might require making a big change like I did.

Either way, unless you plan on joining the ranks of millions of other Americans who forsake their bodies for extreme stress, it’s wise to start a protocol to maintain healthy adrenal function sooner rather than later.

How To Become A Defensive Eater

2011-03-02T09:06:00.003-05:00

Defensive driving is driving characterized by prudence, diligence and reasonable cautiousness with the goal of making the road a safe place not only for a defensive driver but for other people as well. Anyone who holds a driver’s license should be well-versed in this concept.

So how in the world does it apply to eating? Well, considering the fact that the North American food supply has become tainted by genetically-modified organisms, chemicals, and processing, let me count the ways.

The food landscape in our culture has become a virtual mine field. There are hidden toxins and preservatives disguised as harmless healthy foods throughout. To the average consumer, nothing seems to be amiss however upon further examination, the scene gets pretty scary.

Foods claiming to be enriched or fortified are a prime example. In fact, they’re 1 of the biggest offenders! Food manufacturers first strip them of vitamins and minerals in the manufacturing process in order to increase shelf life only to add them back in in the end.

In the case of wheat flour for instance, found in most commercialized breads, the bran and the germ (the parts of the wheat that contain vitamins and minerals) are extracted and as a result, your body absorbs it differently.

How is this bad? Instead of the process being slow and steady, providing sustainable energy along with a high supply of B vitamins, your body breaks down enriched flour much more quickly, thereby flooding your blood stream with too much sugar at 1 time.

Your body then has to work overtime to absorb the excess and ultimately stores it as fat. This results in sudden highs and lows in your blood sugar level which increases your chances of Type 2 Diabetes and obesity. Not good.

When you’re out in the matrix, confused about your choices, consider these 3 tips to help you become a defensive eater and ensure you’re getting the highest quality foods:

Tip #1: Read Labels
Believe it or not, this can be a really hard 1 for most folks. Whereas not too long ago the average ingredients on a food label were around 5, now you’re likely to find as many as 25 or more – most of which you can’t even pronounce!

A good rule of thumb here is if you can’t pronounce it, it’s not meant for human consumption. 5 ingredients or less is a good target when you’re reading labels, and they should be 1-word ingredients like broccoli, cabbage or kale. Smart shopping doesn’t require a PhD in nutrition, but having savvy shopping skills is wise.

Tip #2: Buy Whole, Organic Foods Often

I know a lot people complain about the price of organics, but did you know you pay more for conventional foods in your tax dollars?

They use a lot of pesticides to grow conventionally grown foods, and there's a price to pay for the hazardous waste cleanup. And guess who’s paying it? Certainly not Uncle Sam! It’s YOU.

Fruits and vegetables only have half the nutritional value they used to in the 1950’s nowadays because the soils have become so depleted, which in turn depletes your body of much needed nutrients and minerals.

Organics are worth the investment, not just health wise but dollar wise too. Here’s a comparison to show you what I mean:

•2 medium sized organic sweet potatoes @$1 or small fries from a fast food joint loaded with fat and salt
•2 organic red peppers @$1 or a supersized can of highly refined, overly sweetened pop
•6 organic chicken breasts @$10 or a sub combo from Subway
•2 wild caught salmon fillets @$15 or a large pizza
•18 organic eggs @$3.50 or a McDonald’s burger injected with antibiotics and hormones* (yum)

You get the gist? Most people don’t bat an eyelash at the cost of a new pair of sneakers, but $.65 for an organic apple? No way!

Food is what makes you who you are. Your hair, your skin, your nails, your ability to think and function – everything! You’re worth the investment. I’d personally rather spend my money on quality food than co-pays.

Which brings me to,

Tip #3: Cook Like Your Life Depends On It, Because It Does

With our busy, fast-paced hectic lifestyles, you’re probably thinking who has time to cook! But cooking doesn’t have to take up too much of your time if you use your time effectively.

You only need a few hours a week to batch cook and have pre-cooked prepared meals on hand. For example, make an entire pot of brown rice and quinoa and use in salads, as a side dish, or a breakfast porridge throughout the week.

Or, make a double pot of chili or twice as much baked chicken as you normally would and freeze it if you have to. My theory is cook once eat twice!

Put these time-saving techniques to use and you’ll spare yourself boatloads of unwanted toxins and allergic substances in your food that are causing outbreaks of indigestion, psoriasis, bloating, constipation and more.

Access to health food has become rather complex but it doesn’t have to be if you arm yourself with the right information and make it a top priority every day. As a health coach, 1 of my main goals with my clients is educating them on where to find superior food sources that are cost effective.

If you would like a free Initial Nutrition Assessment to find out for yourself, then contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com to get started.

* Courtesy of Scott Tousignant’s fitness blog

Oxytocin: The Love Bug

2011-02-14T09:10:00.004-05:00

There’s a little known secret between men and women that explains why women seemingly fall in love more easily than men.

It’s called oxytocin, otherwise known as “the bonding hormone.”

Oxytocin stimulates contractions during the birthing process, is responsible for milk ejection while lactating, and is released during orgasm.

Difference is the effects last up to 3 weeks in women and 3 days for men. Hence the theory of fatal attraction finally gets retribution.

Each time a woman has an orgasm, oxytocin is released and she becomes adhered to the man who caused it. Or at least was there when it happened.

So every time the same man and woman have sex, she’s bonded to him. Over and over again.

It has to do with instinct, when women were more reliant on men for survival. Until she realizes she’s not pregnant by him, or perhaps is, she’s bound to him for protection of her unborn fetus. But when she finds that she’s not pregnant, and her hormones have once again stabilized, she’s basically lost that lovin’ feeling and is left wondering why she was attached to him in the first place.

Don’t you wish you knew this years ago?

Now it’s not always that she finds she’s not interested. It’s possible of course that a true bond may have genuinely formed, however most women I know sleep with a man and think he’s The One until a few weeks later and they’ve gotten to know him a little better.

And can’t figure out why they were ever attracted to him.

Oxytocin is basically a mind f*ck if you ask me!

I could’ve spared myself so much needless emotional turmoil over the years, not to mention downright humiliation, had I realized I had oxytocin streaming though my system!

I feel cheated, and yet, it’s all become crystal clear.

When body chemistry takes over, it’s uncontrollable. No matter how much you try to fight the feelings, they persist. But the good news is they’re not your fault.

It’s oxytocin’s, until it wears off.

Personally, I think it’s totally unfair that guys get away with the short end of the stick. At the same time though, it explains how they’re not as attached to women after sex as women are to men.

Oxytocin may be the single greatest discovery between the sexes since Adam and Eve. It clears the confusion of unreturned phone calls, ignored text messages, and no 2nd date.

Next time you broach the subject of sex, or dare to dabble, remember the effects of oxytocin. It’ll save you loads of heartache and keep your emotions in check.

Eat Fat For Weight Loss, Not Low-Fat

2011-01-28T10:03:00.005-05:00

There’s a reason Essential Fatty Acids (EFA’s) has the word essential in it. It’s because our bodies don’t manufacture them, yet they’re required for good health, so the only way to get them is to eat the foods that they’re found in.

Healthy fat shouldn’t be feared. Back in the 90’s when everyone gave up fat, they all got fat, so avoiding fat is not the answer to weight loss. In fact, a symptom of a deficiency in fat is an inability to lose weight!

1 reason they’re so essential is because they store energy. There’s more energy packed into a gram of fat than there is in a gram of either protein or carbs. About 40% of the average American’s energy comes from fat.

Greeks are a great example of how good fat can lead to lifelong health. About 40-60%of their diet comes from fat and they have no increased diabetes, cholesterol, or weight gain.

There are 3 kinds of EFA’s: Omega 3’s, Omega 6’s, and Omega 9’s. Omega-3 fatty acids are derived from Linolenic Acid, Omega-6 from Linoleic Acid, and Omega-9 from Oleic Acid. Omega-9 is necessary yet “non-essential” because the body can manufacture a modest amount on its own, provided the 3’s and 6’s are available.

EFA’s support the cardiovascular, reproductive, immune, and nervous systems. Your body needs EFAs to make and repair cell membranes, enabling the cells to obtain optimum nutrition and discard of toxic waste products. A primary function of EFAs is the production of prostaglandins, which regulate body functions such as heart rate, blood pressure, blood clotting, fertility, and conception, and play a role in immune function by regulating inflammation and helping to fight infection.

Omega 3 is the most deficient EFA because of our over-processed diets. An ideal intake ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 fatty acids is between 1:1 and 4:1, but most Americans only obtain a ratio between 10:1 and 25:1. The minimum healthy intake for both linolenic (Omega-3) and linoleic (Omega-6) acid via diet, per adult per day, is 1.5 grams of each.

An Omega 3 deficiency can lead to depression, which affects 15 million people in the US alone, plus decreased memory and mental abilities, tingling sensation of the nerves, poor vision, increased tendency to form blood clots, increased triglycerides, impaired membrane function, hypertension, irregular heartbeat, learning disorders, menopausal discomfort amongst others .

Alpha Linolenic Acid (ALA), the principal Omega-3 fatty acid, will be converted into eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) in your body, and later into docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). EPA and the GLA synthesized from linoleic (Omega-6) acid are later converted into hormone-like compounds known as eicosanoids, which aid in many bodily functions including vital organ function and intracellular activity.

Good sources of Omega 3’s can be found in flaxseed oil (flaxseed oil has the highest linolenic content of any food), flaxseeds, flaxseed meal, hempseed oil, hempseeds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, Brazil nuts, sesame seeds, avocados, some dark leafy green vegetables (kale, spinach, purslane, mustard greens, collards, etc.), EVOO, grapeseed oil, and salmon.

Linoleic Acid is the primary Omega-6 fatty acid and is also found in flaxseed oil, flaxseeds, flaxseed meal, hempseed oil, hempseeds, and grapeseed and olive oils, as well as pumpkin seeds, pine nuts, pistachio nuts, sunflower seeds (raw), olives, borage oil, evening primrose oil, black currant seed oil, chestnut oil, and chicken.

Omega-6s help with diabetic neuropathy, rheumatoid arthritis, PMS, skin disorders like psoriasis and eczema, and aid in cancer treatment.

Monounsaturated oleic acid, or Omega 9, lowers heart attack risk and arteriosclerosis, and aids in cancer prevention too, and is most richly found in EVOO, olives, avocados, almonds, peanuts, sesame oil, pecans, pistachio nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, and macadamia nuts. 1 -2 tablespoons of EVOO per day should provide sufficient oleic acid for adults.

Don’t believe the myth that fat makes you fat. The truth is the more fat you eat with your meals, the more satiated you are and the longer you can go in between without snacking. And if you want great hair and skin, eat more good fat. So in other words, don’t forget the fat.

The health benefits of eating fat are a principle concept covered in my Revision Weight Loss 90-Minute Breakthrough Immersion Session.

In this session you’ll discover the keys concepts to natural weight loss, including:

• What Vitamin P is and why it’s essential to weight loss
• Why willpower is a non-factor when trying to lose weight
• How to become a Dining Diva with the 3/3/30 rule
• What your “gut brain” is and how it effects eating
• The #1 most important component to your metabolic power and how to harness it
• Easy-to-implement tools that are intensely transformative and provide real results

If you’re ready to make 2011 the year that you finally “get it” when it comes to weight loss, sign up for your session today!

Who Has Time To Slim Slowly?

2011-01-20T10:13:00.006-05:00

I caught this tagline in a commercial the other day from a well-known giant in the billion dollar weight loss industry.

I chunked it down to yet another way of convincing people into believing that there is a long-term and lasting quick fix for weight loss.

It’s thinking like this that has brought America to its knees when it comes to winning the war on obesity and only serves to benefit the hotshot advertisers who stand behind it.

Being in the weight loss biz myself, I immediately countered that question with, “Who doesn’t?”

I know that I wound up way worse off after years and years of fad diets, false beliefs and the stress I put my body through in the process.

The chronic low level stress I felt inside from living a life completely out of alignment with my life’s purpose and the constant abuse and self-torture I inflicted upon myself as a result manifested in symptoms such as binge eating, excess weight and fatigue.

And none of it changed until I changed.

Every time I went on 1 of these diets, I put my body in starvation mode and it reacted as if I were on a desert island, slowing my metabolism and holding on to fat, thereby shutting off my fat burning mechanism.

In the end, not only did I gain the weight back, but an extra 10 or 15 pounds on top of it to boot.

Ironically, you would think that with all the diets out there, we would be the thinnest nation in the world. But we’re not.

With 72% of adult Americans overweight and 34% of kids, we are in fact the fattest nation on earth, and unless we begin to address the reason why and stop buying into fictitious ads it’s only going to escalate.

There are so many slick promos out there, especially right now, that use gimmicks, celebrities and fast fixes for weight loss, and want to you to believe that you’re overweight strictly because you eat too much, you don’t exercise enough and you have no willpower.

Weight loss goes much deeper than that. When you’re not relaxed, eating too fast and stressed, you can gain weight regardless of how much you eat.

There’s such a huge misunderstanding out there around this topic that it really irks me these ads are on the airwaves!

To counter it, I’ve developed my own personalized 3-pronged approach to weight loss that will free you from the shackles of food deprivation, calorie counting and punishing exercise:

1. Balance your Primary Foods first. Your Primary Foods include healthy relationships, a fulfilling career, spirituality however you define it, and physical activity. So what’s that mean? It means this. If you’re in a toxic relationship – or you hate your job it – leave it. And if you’re not exercising, find something you like to do that gets your body moving. If it’s not 2 hours on the tread, then find something else. Don’t force your way to weight loss. Plus, don’t forget your connection to Source. We all need Divine Guidance in our lives. Hallelujah.

2. Kick the sugar habit. What’s worse than being hooked on cocaine or heroin? You guessed it. Sugar. It’s that addictive. But those sneaky little food manufacturers don’t want you to know it! They would prefer you skip through life believing it makes you happy and gives you good juju, but it doesn’t.

Sugar messes with your mind and makes you crave more, and skyrockets your blood sugar so high that when you come crashing down you wind up feeling like crap. I used to be the biggest sugar junkie on the planet, but now I reign supreme over this delicious little deity. If sugar’s got you in its seductive snare, check out my 4-Week Sugar Shakedown and learn how to break free without feeling deprived.

3. Go gluten- and dairy-free. Now hold on to your hat. I know this might seem a bit overwhelming but stick with me on this 1. When I first learned I was gluten intolerant, I was downright pissed. No more oatmeal? WTF? But what I found out later surprised me.Over 40 years into life, I had no idea what gluten was doing to my digestive tract.

It completely tore it up, made me bloat, and caused boatloads of inflammation. Not good. And dairy’s no better. Aside from causing inflammation too (1 of the 5 root causes of disease by the way), dairy makes you gassy and creates a lot of mucous in your system. Not too hot.

Just dropping sugar, gluten and dairy alone will result in weight loss, but don’t discount the importance of balancing your Primary Foods too. Emotions drive behavior, and until you figure out why you crave, overeat, or binge, your weight won’t budge.

Most importantly, understanding that it took time to get where you are and that it will take time to get back is crucial to the process. I know we all want it now, but your body heals in its own time, not yours, so be patient.

My clients experience an average 10-15 pound weight loss in my 1-on-1 Reshape Your System Coaching Program. If you’d like to learn more about how my coaching programs can support you in 2011, contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com for a complimentary 20-Minute Natural Weight Release Discovery Session.

Relax Into Weight Loss

2011-01-13T10:26:00.005-05:00

Typical weight loss regimes involve pushing, forcing and shoving your way to success, coupled with denying yourself pleasure from food along with your natural instinct to slow down. As a culture, we tend to seek out low calorie diets, or the latest fad, vowing each time will be different, and punish ourselves at the gym as payback for our indulgences because for so many, enjoying food is a crime.

Where and how have we gotten so off course around the issue of weight loss? Since when should we torture ourselves in an effort to maintain our vanity and our health? Of course we all want to look our best, but are militaristic approaches really the answer we’re all looking for?

I used to take these exact approaches myself, but have since come to a whole new level of understanding around weight loss. My instinct cried out for years that something was amiss, and that how I went about tackling the issue of excess weight was skewed, but I didn’t know anything different at the time.

Now all that’s changed.

My new approach to weight loss is simply put – more me. It’s stress-free. It’s submissive. It’s natural and organic. It’s about being in the Divine Feminine and allowing my body to course correct on its own, without my interference or misguided direction imposed upon me by mainstream media.

The path to natural weight loss doesn’t involve shakes, meal plans or chemicalized, pre-packaged food. It doesn’t demand strenuous exercise that induces more stress on your body that outweighs any benefit you may be procuring at the time. And it certainly doesn’t require you to deny yourself the innate pleasure of food.

What it does require is relaxation. Letting go of the intense desire to lose weight altogether, and learning to slow down in all ways. Chewing. Trusting more. Developing healthy boundaries and learning to say no when appropriate.

However, 1 of the biggest keys to losing weight naturally is that you’ve got to own it. You’ve got to stop trying to fight it and claim it as yours. Your own personal power and potential energy that once released will invoke magnitudes of creativity and imagination on levels you never thought possible.

As women, it’s not natural for us to employ masculine strategies to weight loss that involve weighing and measuring food, counting calories, and militant exercise. How you express your feminine polarity strongly effects how you calorie burn. There’s a certain soul place for men and women that has the matching polarity and when men are expressing their masculine there is more of a sense of flow and the same applies to women.

When you express who you are your body naturally starts to shape shift, so it’s about so much more than just food. Until you let go of the notion that weight loss is just about food and exercise, you won’t change.

Slowing down and relaxing into weight loss is a new concept for most people, and takes time to take root, but it’s totally available to you with the right support and coaching. My clients experience an average 10-15 pound weight loss in my 1-on-1 Reshape Your System Coaching Program. Plus, they report miracles around relationships, cash flow, and tremendous soul victories that they’re not able to access on their own.

If you’d like to learn more about how my coaching programs can support you in 2011, contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com for a complimentary 20-Minute Natural Weight Release Discovery Session.

Feng Shui: My Ancient Chinese Secret

2010-12-27T10:05:00.003-05:00

I credit Feng Shui as the #1 source of my good luck over the past year. Ever since hiring my Feng Shui consultant and neighbor, Cara Gallagher, to rearrange my house according to the principles of this ancient art, I have been inundated with unsolicited recognition for my achievements in business and have earned a respectable profit in a reportedly unstable economy.

Not bad for a newbie ;)

Not only that, but my health has improved dramatically in ways I never thought possible! Here Cara submits an article below on how Feng Shui can enhance your environment and offers practical advice to make it easy to implementing.

FENG SHUI is the ancient Chinese environmental art that uses geography, interior design and common sense. It not only can bring balance to our surroundings, but it can bring balance to our physical self. FENG SHUI is a lifestyle tool that can transform our lives.

We are connected to our environment and our homes should be that link between our physical body and our surroundings. If we don’t have a healthy atmosphere to live in then we can’t live a healthy lifestyle. Our homes are foundations for good health. A healthy home gives us energy and stability. We need that healthy foundation to build upon. We need to be surrounded by a space that helps our well-being and encourages good health. Our homes should do more than just protect us from the outside world. They should nourish our spirit, reflect our dreams and inspire our aspirations.

Our home ought to be a place where we can rest, relax and restore our bodies. Just as our physical body needs a check up, so does our environment. We should review our environment to see if there are aliments that may be affecting our spaces. Reviewing a building as a body is not a new concept. Temples and places of worship for centuries have been referred to in a human form. European cathedrals were designed to reflect a human with outstretched arms. In the Hindu culture, the body is referred to being in the shape of a temple as a way to bring man closer to God. If we think of our home as a representation of the human body, it can give us a better understanding of the ancient art of FENG SHUI.

If we begin with the most important part of our house, it would be the front door. The front door is the mouth of the house. This is where all the energy or Chi enters the homes and exits the space. We want to make sure that the front door is in good working order and that there is nothing blocking that beneficial Chi from entering the space. Ideally, we want to be able to see the front door from the street. We want to highlight the front entryway. Have something by the front door that captures the attention of that good energy or Chi. For example, a wreath on the front door, potted plants positioned on the front porch or good lighting accenting the area will ensure that we capture the positive energy and utilize its powerful forces.

Next, we want to look at the kitchen. The kitchen is the most important room of the house. The kitchen in FENG SHUI is considered the heart of the home. It houses the most important appliance in the home, the stove. The stove gives us life and keeps us healthy. We want to make sure our stove is in good working order, it is clean and free of clutter. We want to be able to open the door without it banging into something else. The stove represents abundance in FENG SHUI. If we want to increase our wealth we should make sure our stove is properly taken care of. We want to honor that powerful energy that the fires of FENG SHUI can ignite for us.

If the kitchen is the heart of the house then the dining room is the stomach. Our dinning room should be welcoming and relaxing. In order to digest food properly we want to be able to eat slowly and comfortably. In FENG SHUI, we look for calming colors such as green, blue and earth tones. We can always add accent colors to the space. However, ideally we look for colors that will slow us down and make us savor our meals.

Try to avoid red and fiery colors in the dining room. The color red is popular in all the design magazines, however too much red brings in the fire element and that can cause indigestion and heartburn. Picture an expensive restaurant. They have comfortable chairs, soothing colors and a quiet atmosphere. They do that to get you to stay awhile and enjoy the meal. That’s what you want to achieve in your home at mealtime.

These are just a few examples of how we can utilize the principles of FENG SHUI to bring balance to our surroundings. If we have stability in our environment, then we will have a balance in our lives and in our physical bodies as well. We want to honor our living space. We can utilize the beneficial energy or Chi that surrounds our space in order to ensure harmony in our life.

Our home should be a place where we can get away from the outside world. Our body needs a place where we can restore the energy and our home should be a place where we can rest and relax. Using Feng Shui effectively can accomplish just that.

3 Smart Reasons to Hire a Health Coach

2010-12-16T09:11:00.005-05:00

Health coaching is a term that’s slowly gaining momentum nowadays, and with good reason. Millions of people nationwide are finding that Western medicine is often times leaving them without answers to their ills and they’re repeatedly finding themselves frustrated, disappointed, and depressed.

It’s estimated that as much as 81% of the population takes at least 1 medication a day, with most people averaging closer to 2-3 meds daily. Reasons include symptoms such as high anxiety, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, stroke, stress, heart disease, insomnia, heart burn, hypothyroidism and the list goes on and on.

Hiring a health coach can help you bring your body back into balance without having to pop pills, however the top 3 most common reasons that people find themselves turning to a health coach vs a doctor these days are probably not why you think.

1. I can’t do it on my own.

You know what you should be doing, but are you actually doing it? The #1 reason people hire a health coach is to get the support they need to reclaim their health that’s lacking. Your mom or your brother or your best friend have the best intentions for you, I know, however they’re not trained nor are they as proficient at kicking you in the pants every once in a while when you’ve fallen off the wagon and you need to get back on.

Eating right and exercising is not a new concept, and everyone knows the basics of nutrition, but the problem is very few are actually following the rules. Having weekly check-in calls makes a huge difference in your follow through, plus it’s much more likely you will implement the actions steps set up for you when you’ve got someone holding you accountable for your goals.

Remember Rome wasn’t built in a day though! It’s a gradual process, over time, that incorporates a bunch of smaller changes that equal up to 1 big transformation in the end.

2. Hiring a health coach is not the same as hiring a diet center.

Hallelujah! This is a good thing. Now I’ve been down this road myself and can tell you that no Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, or Physicians Weight Loss consultant I ever went to told me that in order to drop fat permanently, I really needed to work on my adrenals, my thyroid, and balance my hormones. Oh, and that maybe I should throw in a digestive enzyme or 2 along the way to optimize my digestion. What they did instead was get me hooked on packaged, processed pretend food that only made things worse and tasted like cardboard.

With over 80% of Americans in adrenal exhaustion, and 70% – mostly women – suffering from thyroid dysfunction (regardless of what those blood tests say), it’s imperative word gets out that these conditions must come first when it comes to weight loss or any other health-related symptom. They’re actually the most common reasons I find that my clients have excess weight that won’t budge and they’re clueless about them until we start working together.

It takes a skilled practitioner to not only identify these conditions as root causes of low energy, cravings, moodiness, and embarrassing flab, and to then help you face them head on so you can reverse them for good. Because unless you do, that dream body you so desperately crave will continue to elude you.

3. Nutrition is super confusing anymore.

Been there, done that – know just how you feel. When I was in corporate, I was trying to be a part-time health coach and didn’t even know it. I read as many articles and books as I could get my hands on and had the time to read in between trucks stops, airports, and my own backyard, but I myself was super confused too.

There are hundreds of dietary theories out there and with nutrition a constantly evolving paradigm, figuring out which 1 was best was beyond me until I had the proper training. Health coaches break it all down for you, and if they’re anything like me, they like to make it fun! Nutrition doesn’t have to be boring or stodgy. That’s old skool. Time to get with the program! Health coaches are much more progressive and work from the concept of bio-individuality meaning what works for one doesn’t work for all.

So disregard the flack your husband gives you with confidence when you decide to go vegan because that’s what your body responds to best. Everyone is different and it’s a personal choice whether 1 theory is right for you. In my coaching practice, there’s no judgment. Just real, honest answers that are customized to your specific needs. Any experienced coach should be able to guide you down the path that is most suitable for you as a unique individual.

Don’t try to go it alone this January once the newness of those New Year’s resolutions wears off and you’re not sure where to turn. I have 1-Month, 2-Month, and 3-Month Coaching Programs available to suit a variety of needs and I’m currently accepting new clients. But I only have a few spots open and my practice fills up fast!

Contact me today to set up a time to discuss working together and see if this opportunity is right for you. Imagine life without counting calories, weighing or measuring, and still reaching your ideal weight and energy levels. It truly can be your reality. I should know – it’s mine every day.

Going Gluten Free is Easy as 1, 2, 3...

2010-11-21T20:13:00.005-05:00

Our friends, OVitaminPro.com, have been living gluten free for years now and with my recent gluten sensitive, I thought what better resource than to reach out to them about this topic. I’ve been hesitant to make the change to a gluten free lifestyle but with the tips they’ve provided below, it just may not be as hard as I imagined it would be!

According to recent research, 1 in 7 individuals are gluten sensitive. As many individuals who have been following a rigid gluten free diet, it comes without saying; improvements in their own immune systems have led them to lead much healthier lives. If you are or you are suspect that you may be the 1 in 7 who suffer from gluten sensitivity, don’t let adapting to the gluten fee lifestyle overwhelm you. With any lifestyle change, such as changing up your exercise routine or your diet program, it can be a challenge, but that challenge doesn’t have to be at all difficult if you prepare in advance and understand the changes that need to come into effect in order to achieve a better you.

The first step upon finding out you’re gluten sensitive is to educate yourself. Do your research on gluten sensibility, gluten intolerance and celiac disease and understand the lifestyle and meal routines for those who rid gluten from their diets. Perhaps question and reach out to other fellow family members and or friends to see how others have dealt with and adapted to the diagnosis. With Thanksgiving dinner right around the corner, this is the perfect time to stir up this topic among a gathering of guests.

Understand what foods you can and cannot eat. In many cases, you may have to look through and clean out your kitchen cabinets of those foods containing gluten/wheat. Don’t throw away what’s in your cabinet that you yourself cannot consume though. Instead, send a few care packages over to a neighbor’s home for their enjoyment or send a few bags to your local food shelter. Keeping a well-balanced, healthy diet doesn’t mean to have to avoid all the foods you’ve come to enjoy. You can still enjoy a gluten free meal that consists of plain meats, fish, rice, and most importantly, fruits and vegetables.

Lastly, familiarize yourself with the labels. As more and more restaurants and grocery stores are becoming more gluten friendly, in many cases you can find a gluten free meal selection at your favorite restaurant and don’t be surprised to find a gluten free section at your local grocery store. As you understand what foods you can and cannot eat, you will soon be able to shop with ease during your next visit to the grocery store.

You may learn about new foods that you otherwise wouldn’t have considered with your existing lifestyle and diet. As we head into the holiday season, with dinner gatherings and holiday parties on your calendar, don’t let these social events interfere with your gluten free diet. Keep an eye on the foods you consume to ensure they don’t contain gluten and in no time you’ll be gluten free and gorgeous!

Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Vitamin P for Pleasure

2010-11-03T11:33:00.004-04:00

Did you know that our bodies are hardwired for pleasure as an essential part of the nutritive process?

It’s true. All organisms on the planet are programmed at the most primitive level of their nervous systems to seek pleasure and avoid pain.

One of the biggest sources of frustration and confusion for my clients is around overeating. But surprisingly, it’s a simple dilemma to solve once there’s an understanding that the innate connection between the brain and digestive system demands a certain amount of satisfaction.

This system in and of itself works incredibly efficiently by sending out a signal that tells us when we’re full, satisfied, and pleasured and essentially have hit the sweet spot. Yet often times we’re seeking more and more pleasure, which results in overeating, and we go past the point of food that our digestive systems can handle.

It’s natural to think overeating is due to a lack of willpower, but the truth is we’re simply trying to satisfy our desire for pleasure and a need to keep things tidied up for ourselves. 1 easy solution to solve this riddle is to RELAX while you’re eating.

It might surprise you to learn that relaxation has a powerful metabolic value, particularly when it comes to getting the pleasure you want and need from food. Stress de-sensitizes us to pleasure and disrupts the undeniable connection between pleasure, appetite and the need to relax when we eat, and with the enormous amounts of stress most people are under these days, it’s no surprise they lack in this essential nutrient, otherwise known as Vitamin R.

Any time we’re rushed, fearful, anxious, or drown ourselves in self-judgment, we immediately shift into the stress response and our bodies release the stress hormone cortisol which blocks our pleasure receptors. Therefore we inevitably need to eat more food in order to register the usual amount of pleasure we would get when we eat in a relaxed fashion.

This makes senses according the theory of evolution. In a true fight-or-flight stress response, the body needs to be highly aware of pain and injury and not tuned in to pleasure. Therefore when a saber toothed tiger is chasing us, we don’t normally stop to eat chocolate…

The bottom line is if you want more pleasure from food, try breathing first, then relax, and most of all enjoy, and your body will naturally derive the pleasure that it seeks without the temptation to overeat.

To find out more about how you can slow down and put an end to overeating, contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com.

I get asked this all the time...

2010-10-31T15:17:00.006-04:00

People ask me all the time where I got my training as a Health Coach and I'm happy to share with them because it was a pivotal turning point in my life and 1 I'll never forget.

My back story involves quite a bit of misdirection in life, mainly thinking there was only 1 way to earn a living which meant spending years in an oppressive job that sucked my soul out of me and left me uninspired and underwhelmed.

After a life-threatening situation 5 years ago, I had an awareness that ultimately led me to my life's purpose, and I found it by way of a school called Integrative Nutrition in NYC.

When I first found the school, I was definitely interested but all of my upper limiting beliefs went up such as how am I going to pay for it? How will I get there? What if it's a big waste of money in the end? All I can say is thank God I didn't listen to my head and listened to my heart instead, because I took the plunge and went for it anyways.

As soon as I did, I started to see ways I could make it happen vs ways I couldn't, and the money became secondary to the experience I had. Within 2 weeks of attending, it was more than obvious what I had stumbled upon. For the first time ever, the angels overhead were singing loud and clear. This was my Holy Grail.

Before the program was even halfway over, I bailed on my 6-figure corporate job in the middle of the worst economy since the Great Depression and decided to go it alone in a whole new career as a Holistic Health and Nutrition Coach.

(Might sound nutty but I'm a bit of risk taker by nature and settling for the status quo just ain't my thang ;)

Low and behold here I am still, a year and a half later, and the Universe has had my back the whole time - just like I asked.

So, what's all this mean for you? Well here's your chance to get in on the same action and for way less than it cost me.

Not only will you get world class training under the mentorship of the most well-recognized holistic health and wellness practitioners in the world, including Andrew Weil, Deepak Chopra, and Dr. Mark Hyman, but IIN has now completely switched their format up to a Distance Learning Program so you don't even have to leave the comfort of your own home to get there.

Plus, be 1 of the first 3 referred by me between now and November 15th and you get to attend the Miami Conference in February as my distinguished guest PLUS you'll get $500 off tuition - woot woot!

If you want out of a dead end job, a doomed relationship, or a bleak future, and are ready to rock this lifetime, call IIN today and become part of a movement of movers and shakers who are really shaking things up out there.

Attending IIN was the most transformative experience of my life. If you still have questions and want to know more, just E MAIL ME and let me know.

I'd love to chat with ya about it.

Peace, love and gratitude,

~ Angela

PS: View a PDF version of the IIN catalog by CLICKING HERE.

PPS: Be sure to tell them I sent ya to be eligible to hit SOBE this winter
as my honored guest AND to get your $500 Gratitude Scholarship!

Who's My Favorite Scream Queen?

2010-10-18T10:31:00.004-04:00

Anyone who knows me knows that Halloween is my all-time favorite holiday of the year. The more creeps, willies, and heebie jeebies the better. When I was a claims adjuster, I traveled a lot and I could’ve cared less if I had to work on Christmas but Halloween? Unacceptable!

One time, on a trip to Seattle, I was waiting to get through the security line at the airport and little did I know my favorite scream queen of all time was standing right in front of me. She’s quite diminutive in stature, which surprised me, but by the time I realized it was her, I was pretty stunned. Some people may get excited to meet dignitaries from foreign lands, or the president of the United States himself, but not me. The most famous damsel-in-distress to grace the big screen? I could barely contain myself.

She had been pulled out of line to be searched and when she came up behind me to grab her bags off the conveyer belt, I looked her dead in the eye. She gave me a knowing look and I knew right then not to shout from the rooftops how excited I was to meet her, but at the same time so disappointed that I couldn’t let her know how big of a “Weenie” I was!

But I let her be and just admired her from afar, and later confirmed, without a doubt, that it was her when I saw her walking down the concourse to her gate. She has a familiar walk that I recognized from the movies and I felt a tinge of familiarity sneak up my spine. I’m a devoted fan through and through.

So, can you guess who it is? Leave me a comment and let me know who you think it might be. The first 1 with the right answer gets a free copy of handy dandy Super Foods vs Not So Super Foods Food Guide!

3 Surefire Strategies to Scare Sugar Cravings Straight!

2010-09-27T20:34:00.005-04:00

Wish you could look at cake and not care about it? So do most people, but the problem is they don’t know how to stop sugar cravings. If sugar has you in it’s seductive snare, it’s likely you’re prone to food frenzies, food comas and an all out war of the battle of the binge.

People who crave sugar tend to associate it with a lot of guilt, shame and downright embarrassment when in reality the ones who should really be embarrassed are the food conglomerates who shove so much sugar in food nowadays your blood sugar doesn’t stand a chance unless you’re pretty keen at detecting it.

Here are some of my best real-life strategies to help you combat your cravings without leaving you feeling deprived.

1. Eat more protein. This is so overlooked and yet so simple! You want to eat clean, organic protein. Eating protein will slow the absorption of carbs in your system and keep your blood sugar stable, so never eat carbs alone – this will put a great deal of stress on your blood sugar and even tax your adrenal glands, as if they’re not under enough stress nowadays! But this is imperative.

If you’re experiencing digestive issues, you’re gonna want to make sure you optimize your digestion too because you could be eating the best diet but if you’re not digesting it, it’s garbage. Make sure you’re eating complex carbs too like whole grains, not simple, refined carbs.

2. Eat raw chocolate. I’m all about not depriving myself or denying myself so my next technique – and you’re gonna love this 1 by the way – is to eat raw chocolate! Raw chocolate is so good and so good for you and is made with natural sweeteners. It nourishes your heart because it’s high in magnesium, which most Americans are deficient in, and a magnesium deficiency is linked to diabetes, joint problems, PMS, and heart disease which is the #1 cause of death in the US.

Raw chocolate is also great for enhancing your mood! It has an array of neurotransmitters that control appetite, concentration, motivation, hormones, sleep, memory and mood. Plus it’s the highest food-based source of antioxidants on the planet! See? Controlling sugar cravings doesn’t mean life has to be bland or boring.

3. Eat breakfast. Now you’ve heard this one before but it’s an important reminder. You want to make sure you eat always breakfast. Now I want to put a different spin on this to really encourage you. One reason you may tend to not want to eat in the morning is because you’re in adrenal exhaustion. With healthy functioning adrenals your cortisol levels are higher in the morning which contributes to a lack of appetite in the morning, but adrenal exhaustion also suppresses liver function and this will in turn suppress early morning hunger.

Adrenal exhaustion is a condition brought on by stress and up to 80% of Americans have some form of it, but as far as balancing your blood sugar goes, it’s crucial to eat breakfast because it sets the tone for maintaining balance throughout the day and it’s going to replenish your stored blood sugar supply after the previous night’s energy requirements. The goal here is to keep your blood sugar stable – that’s your #1 defense against sugar cravings.

Eating sugar is like waking a sleeping giant. It’s as if you’ve awoken a beast within that seems unstoppable but I’m here to say it’s not impossible to quell your cravings and you don’t have to give up cake either! Employing these simple techniques will make a dramatic difference in the way you look, the way you feel and your overall health.

If you struggle with uncontrollable sugar cravings, CLICK HERE for information on my 4-part teleseminar series Crack the Code on Sugar Cravings: 4 Simple Strategies to Slim Down, Shape Up and Regain Control in Less Than 30 Days!

8 Causes of Cravings

2010-08-30T19:20:00.004-04:00

The body is amazing. It knows when to go to sleep, wake up, go to the bathroom, maintain 98.6 degrees and tighten your eyes when the light gets bright. It knows the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth. Your heart never misses a beat. Your lungs are always breathing. Simply put, the body is a super-computer, and it never makes mistakes.

Certain foods, deficits and behaviors in your life are no doubt the underlying causes of cravings. Many people view cravings as weakness, but really they are important messages from your body meant to assist you in maintaining balance. The key to deterimining why you're craving sugar, or anything for that matter, is deconstructing it. Instead of running to the cupboard, try asking yourself what your body wants and why first.

In my experience working with clients, I have found that there are eight primary causes of cravings:

1. Lack of primary food. Being dissatisfied with a relationship or having an inappropriate exercise routine (too much, too little or the wrong type), being bored, stressed, uninspired by a job, or lacking a spiritual practice may all cause emotional eating. Eating can be used as a substitute for entertainment or to fill the void of primary food.

2. Water. Lack of water can send the message that you are thirsty and on the verge of dehydration. Dehydration can manifest as a mild hunger, so the first thing to do when you get a craving is drink a full glass of water. Excess water can also cause cravings, so be sure that your water intake is well balanced.

3. Yin/yang imbalance. Certain foods have more yin qualities (expansive) while other foods have more yang qualities (contractive). Eating foods that are either extremely yin or extremely yang causes cravings in order to maintain balance. For example, eating a diet too rich in sugar (yin) may cause a craving for meat (yang). Eating too many raw foods (yin) may cause cravings for extremely cooked (dehydrated) foods or vise versa.

4. Inside coming out. Often times, cravings come from foods that we have recently eaten, foods eaten by our ancestors, or foods from our childhood. A clever way to satisfy these cravings is to eat a healthier version of one’s ancestral or childhood foods.

5. Seasonal. Often the body craves foods that balance the elements of the season. In the spring, people crave detoxifying foods like leafy greens or citrus foods. In the summer, people crave cooling foods like fruit, raw foods and ice cream, and in the fall people crave grounding foods like squash, onions and nuts. During winter, many crave hot and heat-producing foods like meat, oil and fat. Cravings can also be associated with the holidays, for foods like turkey, eggnog or sweets, etc.

6. Lack of nutrients. If the body has inadequate nutrients, it will produce odd cravings. For example, inadequate mineral levels produce salt cravings, and overall inadequate nutrition produces cravings for non-nutritional forms of energy, like caffeine.

7. Hormonal. When women experience menstruation, pregnancy or menopause, fluctuating testosterone and estrogen levels may cause unique cravings.

8. De-evolution. When things are going extremely well, sometimes a self-sabotage syndrome happens. We crave foods that throw us off, thus creating more cravings to balance ourselves. This often happens from low blood sugar and may result in strong mood swings.

Once you're able to accurately determine exactly what it is you're craving, it's much easier to feed yourself right. Get out of your own way and eliminate the guilt and shame so often associated with cravings by just tuning in to your body and you'll have your answer in no time.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Hormone Help for Men

2010-07-31T18:16:00.007-04:00

That’s right guys – it’s not just us ladies who get hormonal!

Male testosterone levels start to decline beginning in their 30's, and drop steadily at approximately 1% per year. Testosterone is not just important for libido, but is also essential for heart health, proper brain function, maintaining muscle tone and bone density, mood and more. Low testosterone levels are a symptom as well as the primary cause of metabolic syndrome and diabetes. But what about other hormones levels for men?

While evaluating and treating suboptimal or low testosterone levels is important, the function of other hormones should not be overlooked. Estradiol and progesterone levels also play an important role, and like testosterone their levels change with age. Male estradiol levels increase in older men because body composition shifts and higher levels of adipose tissue can convert testosterone into estradiol. Increasing estradiol levels often cause a rise in SHBG, a glycoprotein that binds to sex hormones, specifically testosterone and estradiol, but preferentially to testosterone. This amplifies a testosterone deficiency as more of the testosterone becomes bound, rendering less of it "free" or bioavailable to interact with target tissues.

Additionally, a recent Italian study found that estradiol levels are independently associated with metabolic syndrome. A group of 452 men ages 65-69 were evaluated for free and total estradiol levels and markers of metabolic syndrome. The data was adjusted to account for additional variables including smoking history, alcohol consumption, physical activity and BMI, however the results indicate a high estradiol level is an independent risk factor for metabolic syndrome.

As estradiol levels are increasing, progesterone, like testosterone levels, are declining, establishing an estrogen dominant state. This imbalance influences prostate health as estrogen causes the prostate cells to grow in size and in number. Progesterone helps to balance this proliferation and is protective to the prostate. The risk of prostate cancer is growing and the incidence of benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is remarkable. Approximately 80% of men over the age of 80report some hypertrophy of their prostate! The symptoms associated with BPH include urinary retention and urgency that can result in an increased likelihood of infection as well as disrupted sleep pattern.

Men are certainly not exempt to the stressors of life. In addition, adrenal dysfunction is likely a factor in their symptoms and the pathophysiology of endocrine imbalances so it is prudent to evaluate cortisol and DHEA levels. The best way to test for adrenal exhaustion and DHEA levels is through an ASI Stress Test, which I offer to my clients in my health coaching practice.

Shocked? Don’t be. I have a lot of men coming to me these days who are feeling out of sorts, overly emotional, and downright depressed, and it can almost always be linked to a hormonal imbalance.

The good news is that if you take a holistic approach to balancing your hormones, you can restore function to your endocrine system without harsh medications that only exacerbate the problem.

Hallelujah! Take that Big Pharma ;)

Wanna know more? Contact me for a FREE Strategy Session to discuss your healthy history and strategize ways to set you on the straight and narrow. E mail me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com to set it up.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Lose Weight, Increase Energy, and Kick Sugar Cravings - Plus Save Money - All At The Same Time!

2010-07-26T14:14:00.049-04:00

Feeling sorta guilty about eating a few too many Push Up Pops and Strawberry Shortcake Bars this year?

Embarrassed to join the rest of the moms at the pool because your suit's a little too tight?

Not sure how you're gonna make it through the rest of the summer without having late night dates with Ben and Jerry?

Don't sweat it! I've got just the solution to get you back in shape and feeling sexy in no time!

If you're looking to:

• Shed excess pounds
• Balance mood swings
• Bust through sugar cravings and regain control
• Feel more confident
• Improve relationships
• Make more money (believe me, the way you feel effects your cash flow ;)
• Improve digestion
• Reduce stress
• Freedom from food addiction

and tons more, then check this out!

I was once in your shoes. I suffered from low energy, dangerous mood swings, 20+ excess pounds and a salacious sugar addiction so devious I could barely get through the day without biting someone's head off if I didn't get my fix.

But that's all changed.

You see, at the root of feeling better is your physical health. Without it, it will be virtually impossible to live your life’s purpose. You won’t even recognize it until you start to improve your health and I guarantee life will be much harder than it has to be until you do. The way you feel right now is effecting EVERYTHING! Your cash flow, your relationships, even your career!

Trust me. I know from firsthand experience. I spent the first 41 years of my life making it very hard on myself, which led to a whole host of premature long term illnesses that I spent an entire year reversing.

The good news though is that it's entirely possible to put things back in perspective and regain your health, and it doesn't have to be overwhelming, confusing or exhausting!

I did it myself, and can show you how to too.

I had slow digestion and sugar cravings for a long time and I knew they had an effect on my health but I wasn't sure what to do. After 10 weeks in Angela's program, I was able to lose the cravings and noticed a big improvement in my digestion! No more belching, bloating, or gas for me!

Working with Angela has really helped me get clear on issues that I need to focus on in order to maximize my health and keep moving forward. I realize now that my physical health is the foundation for everything - healthy relationships, career, and overall good quality of life - and feel confident I know what to do to stay focused. I appreciate your help Angela!

Michele McCoy
Dallas, TX

Look, there’s no easy way to say this but in order to start feeling better NOW, you have to work on your physical health first. Those sugar cravings aren't just gonna go away on their own. That weight isn't just going to mysteriously drop off, and your energy isn't going to skyrocket out of the blue. You gotta do something to make it happen. There’s just no way around it.

Believe me, if I could do it for you, I would! But the truth is I can’t do it for you. It all comes down to you and your commitment to yourself. What I can do though is be your cheerleader and keep cheering you on every step of the way and provide the support and accountability your current approach is lacking.

My all-new Wellness With Angela 10-Week Group Coaching Package is just the solution to address these challenges head on.

My Group Coaching Package includes:

• (10) 90-Minute Weekly Recorded Coaching Calls starting every Tuesday beginning August 3rd at 1pm EST or every Wednesday, August 11th at 11am EST –you pick! The program runs through October 5th and 13th respectively. You get 15 minutes per call for individual coaching and targeted feedback, plus an additional 15minutes of general health coaching on specific topics. These sessions are meant to be challenging and open you to new ways of thinking with a whole new understanding of what’s affecting you physically, emotionally, and mentally.

• Access to a Google Group forum where you'll get unlimited e mail support from me, plus other group members, to make your results inevitable!

• My secret weapon handouts and protocols that I use in my 1-on-1 coaching focused on the most common health conditions effecting us today including adrenal exhaustion, insulin resistance (Syndrome X), hypoglycemia, digestive disorders, Candida, leaky gut syndrome, PCOS, hypothyroidism and hormone balancing

I’m known to under promise and over deliver, so believe me, you’ll get all the tricks of the trade that I’ve got to get you where you want to be. Just think of me as the liaison between where you are now and the doctor’s office, prescription drugs, and serious disease.

You don’t have to be a statistic, but you do have to TAKE ACTION!

Before working with Angela, I was uncertain as to how to take to care of myself and which foods worked best for my unique body. Angela used that as a stepping stone to catapult me to the next level of overall nutrition and health. I enjoyed working with her because she really helped me see how everything I eat is connected to who I am and how I feel.

I easily lost 15 pounds, have a clearer understanding of how to shop for food and what to buy, and feel more relaxed and calmer around food. I am much more balanced and in a place with food now that is really enjoyable. Best of all, I have rid myself of the inner critic of what I say when I eat. Moreover, I was delighted at the fact that my entire family benefited from what I learned too!

I loved this program and would recommend it to anyone looking to make simple lifestyle adjustments that have a big impact.

Leslie Kubancik
North Olmsted, OH

This program would normally cost $897, however I’m offering it an Early Bird Savings if you sign up by July 30th of only $777! That’s over $100 off and only $77 bucks a week - less than you’ll spend eating out or at Starbucks every day!

EARLY BIRD SAVINGS SOLD OUT!

I set up 3 payment options for each group to make it easy for ya.

Group Program Starting August 3rd:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option
2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

Group Program starting August 11th:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option
2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

Now here’s where it gets juicy. I LOVE spoiling my clients, so check out these KICK-A$% BONUSES I’m offering!

BONUS #1! My 23-page Shopping Cheat Sheet to help you make rock solid choices in the checkout line. No more wondering what’s “good and bad" in the grocery store! This comprehensive guide covers everything from fermented foods and sea veggies to natural body care and cleaning products. There are even recommended resources and recipes! Have a blast on your next trip!
($47 value)

BONUS #2! A FREE Fitness Strategy Coaching Session with my friend, Susan Vezina, of Fitness by Phone! She knows how to turn exercise haters into exercise lovers. Believe me, she can get you unstuck and back on track. (I know because it worked on me :) A $150 value!

BONUS #3! My food guides and meal planners to help put what you learn to good use and make mealtime fun and easy! A $47 value!

BONUS #4! You get access to my good friend and business partner, Rose Cole’s, Live Check-In Calls for her 10 week transformation program! These calls are packed with info and perfectly compliment the work we’ll do together in my group coaching program. I’ve not only been on these calls myself by the way, I’ll also be hosting them in September when she’s on her honeymoon! These calls alone are valued at over $600!

KILLER 5th BONUS! An ASI Stress Test that will help you determine where stress has settled in your body and what damage it’s done in the process. It normally retails for $295, but as part of this program you’ll get it for the low wholesale price of just $120! That’s a $175 savings!

Plus, the first 5 people to sign up get (1) FREE 30-Minute Nutritional Coaching Session with me anytime during your program! This is another $150 value!!!

And the combined total of all the bonuses is (drum roll please) - $1,169.00! TA DA!

The program itself costs almost $300 less than that!!!

Am I crazy? I just might be. But here’s the deal - I really really really want to make this a no-brainer for you. There’s no hokey balogney going on either, just a genuine bona fide offer that could make an enormous impact on your entire life!!!

And not just your life, but your whole family’s life too! The work we do together creates this cool ripple effect that goes beyond just you. Your spouse, your kids - even the dog will benefit!

I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet either! Man, I’m on a roll… Listen, I’m not one of those cheesy-sign-on-the-dotted-line-no-refunds kinda gal. If you’re not happy at any time during the program, you just let me know and I’ll be glad to pay you back for any unused sessions or stop the payments. It’s that simple.

Group Program Starting August 3rd:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

Group Program starting August 11th:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option
2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

So all the risk is on me! I don’t want you wasting your money on something that’s not right for you. You’ve probably already tried a dozen or more diets, let countless gym memberships fall by the wayside, and have gotten so frustrated with your overall lack of success that you’re hesitant to buy into anything else.

Fair enough. I get it. Been there, done that myself. But if I didn’t think what I taught actually worked, you can bet I wouldn’t be out there preaching it.

I’ve wasted a ton of cash too doing the same things. And I got fed up and sick of it. I’m living proof though, through my own results, that my techniques and strategies really do WORK.

I’m so confident about the results you’ll get with this program that I’m willing to offer a no-risk guarantee to prove it. Ain’t no doctors out there doing that!

So, if you’re ready to lose weight, increase energy, and kick sugar cravings - plus save money - all at the same time, sign up today!

Imagine yourself all spruced up by fall, having complete confidence that you’ll sail through the holidays this year with a fab new bod and craving free!

The reason I do what I do comes from a very deep place in my heart. It was born out of an experience 5 years ago that happened to me as a result of medical malpractice and it changed me in ways I can’t even fully describe other than to say that it drives me to do what I do with a vengeance.

As a result, I want people to realize what is going on there with food and drugs nowadays so they don't go through what I went through and just say no! So if you’re spending money on doctors, prescriptions, surgeries, or fast food, then it’s time to re-budget your cash and invest it in something that will give you a lot more bang for your buck!

You’ll end up saving money on all that nonsense by the time I’m done with ya!

You’ll get the keys to the kingdom of vibrant health in this program. Everything you want is just outside your comfort zone and I can make it comfortable getting there.

There's no time for excuses anymore! It is time to step up for yourself and take action though and there's no better time than now.

Get ready to transform in ways you never have before. Won’t you join me?

Group Program Starting August 3rd:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

Group Program starting August 11th:

1-time full pay option $897 – Best value! - Full Pay Option
2-pay option $487.00/mo 2-Month Installment Payment
3-pay option $327.00/mo 3-Month Installment Payment

Peace, love and gratitude,

~ Angela

PS: The DEADLINE TO ENROLL at the Early Bird Savings of $777 is July 30th. Any participants who enroll on July 31th or later will be charged the full investment of $897. Financing options are available at both pricing levels.

Are you ready for 2012?

2010-07-25T15:03:00.006-04:00

I'm sure you've heard about it. Armageddon. Doomsday. The end of the world.

Well, kinda sorta.

2012 is an important year but not because the world is slated to blow up and it'll be the end of mankind as we know it.

The truth is we're switching things ups a bit and moving into another dimension. A heightened awareness you could say. A new time space reality. Whether we like it or not ;)

Will you be ready?

(REGISTER NOW for The Antidepressant Anti-Cure 7/28 @8pm EST now to learn more.)

It's imperative you come to this understanding if you haven't already because the less people on prescription drugs and toxic food, the more there will be moving forward.

To get a better idea of what's going in the food and drug industries these days, sign up for my call The Antidepressant Anti-Cure happening this Wednesday, July 28th at 8pm EST.

You can sign up HERE.

BBQ night? Soccer game? Bunko with the girls? No sweat! I always record my calls so no one has to miss out. I'll send out the replay right away.

I'll be laying it on the line so there's no more confusion, and you'll get to hear straight from the horse's mouth how I overcame anxiety and depression once and for all without meds, without doctors, and without losing my mind.

Drugs aren't a mandatory part of life, but don't think Big Pharma wants you to know that. They're responsible for one of the biggest crimes against humanity to date.

And I was a victim of it.

CALL SIGN UP

The good news is I survived, and my life couldn't be better.

One more thing! I just added a KILLER BONUS OFFER that only those on the call will be privy to.

If you've been dying to work with me, this is the time! You're gonna love what I've been cooking up behind the scenes...

See you then!

Peace, love and gratitude,

~ Angela

PS: Don't forget to register! CLICK HERE.

PPS: Don't keep this one a secret. If you know anyone who needs
to hear this message, please forward this e mail on. It could save
their life.

The Antidepressant Anti-Cure

2010-07-17T07:06:00.005-04:00

Happen to know anyone taking Prozac?

How about Lexapro, or Paxil, or Zoloft? Or maybe a little cocktail of all 3 thrown into one big heaping scoop just like Big Pharma likes it?

If you're taking an antidepressant, you're not alone. Chronic depression is widespread. 15 million Americans are depressed and 28 million, or 1 in 10, are on some type of SSRI.

I used to be one of them.

REGISTER HERE

My experience on these medications was profound. It changed me
forever and in ways I never expected - and nearly cost me my life.

But I survived.

And for a reason.

If you've ever heard me say, "Out of my greatest adversity has come my biggest passion," but never knew why, this is it. Please join me on Wednesday, July 28th at 8pm EST for a tell-all story about my personal experience with antidepressants that ultimately led me in the direction of alternative health.

Call SIGN UP

Not too many people know this about me, and for good reason. To be honest, it's not an easy story for me to tell. In fact, I avoid it at all costs. But I'm feeling that it's time to come clean.

I can't guarantee it'll be pretty, but it's part of my back story and needs to be told. There's a much bigger reason why I do what I do than just to work for myself. In all honesty, this experience made me who I am today.

Too many people are suffering needlessly on these medications and don't know what to do about it. I want to offer hope.

CLICK HERE to register.

I hope you'll join me.

Peace, love and gratitude,

~ Angela

PS: Don't forget to REGISTER in order to get access to the call and the recording!

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Your Internal GPS Knows Best

2010-07-15T08:25:00.007-04:00

I always teach my clients that no matter what I or anyone else says, they know best. Learning to listen to your own intuition and guidance is paramount to figuring out what your body needs and ultimately being able to live up to your true potential. This past weekend on a trip to Michigan to visit my brother and his family for my nephew, Jackson’s, baptism, I was yet again proven right with my theory.

Having been on the road a lot working catastrophe claims when I was in the insurance biz, I came to rely heavily on my GPS. I never left home without it. It was the first thing I packed before I left for a trip, and the last thing I’d pack on my way home. I only needed it when I was out and about working claims, especially in the smaller Podunk towns that always seemed to be right in the eye of the hurricane and the worst hit. But once my work was done, I no longer needed it so I’d pack it away and fly home.

Now don’t get me wrong – technology is great. I couldn’t get by without my Blackberry, HP, and the internet. I do have to say though, none of it is foolproof and darn if that doesn’t prove true for my GPS too. I don’t know how many times it’s steered me right into a dead end and I end up having to figure out how to get where I’m going anyways! Grr…

I’ve been to my brother’s house enough times to know the area pretty well, but on my way home from visiting with a fellow health coach, Cheryl Heppard, during my visit, I needed a little help figuring it out because I was well across town and unsure of where to go. So I popped his address in and off I went.

The ride was fine for the first 15 minutes or so, but as I got closer to his house, it started to point me in a direction that I knew wasn’t the way to go. I ignored its insistence that I make a U-turn at the next street and thought if I kept moving forward, it would force it to realize I was right and correct itself. Well it didn’t.

I found that so odd! How could it not see the path straight in front of it? I knew without question that I was going the right way. I’d been down those roads many times before although I started to question myself! Confirmation came though when I began seeing landmarks and parks that were familiar and the stoplight where I turn left to get to his street. By this point, I had turned my GPS off, shocked at its lack of ability to perform the very function it’s intended to do.

Too often in life we find ourselves in these situations, and it seems that most people neglect to listen to their own inner knowing, which will in fact never steer them wrong. We tend to think everyone else is right over what we think and know to be true for ourselves, and will succumb to beliefs and practices that don’t really resonate with us yet we follow anyways.

I’m continually perplexed by this phenomenon. People know what to do but don’t do it. As a race, humans are incredibly intelligent, however I’ve noticed that intelligence does not necessarily equate to being sensible, especially when we’re trying to please others instead of ourselves.

Whether it’s your doctor, your spouse, your kids, or your boss, if something doesn’t feel right to you, then it’s not. That little voice inside your head, a.k.a gut instinct, is the only real GPS you have. You can try to let go of the reigns and let someone else take control, but I guarantee you’re setting yourself up for failure. No one knows what you need better than you do.

So the next time you’re trying to find your way, my best advice is not to look very far, because you’ve got everything you need right inside of you.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

The Best $10,000 I Ever Spent

2010-06-30T16:29:00.044-04:00

People tend to do things backwards in life, and for a really long time, I was definitely one of them.

Like most people, I grew up thinking that there was only one way to live and that meant going to college, getting a job, and working til retirement, and that was it. There was no room for creativity or discovering what truly fed my soul. It was about benefits, a pension, and a steady paycheck. Everything else was just a pipe dream.

So for over 20 years, I did just that. And with each passing year, I could literally feel parts of me dying inside. Whenever I would get inspired to pursue another path in life (which was often), I always came up with an excuse as to why I couldn’t do it, and every time I did I would yet again deny myself the luxury of living up to my true potential.

Sure there was the occasional momentary lapse of reason when I actually began to nurture the idea that maybe there was something else out there and I would begin to formulate a plan as to how I was going to make it happen. But then sure enough my rational mind would take over and I’d listen to it, forever keeping my divine right to happiness a fleeting thought.

At the age of 42, after stumbling upon what I consider to be my life’s purpose - holistic health coaching - I finally realized that my entire life has been a mere dress rehearsal for all that is yet to come. With this knowing, I summoned up the courage to leave behind a life filled with misery, disdain, and angst, and that truly didn’t belong to me, and decided to bust loose in a big way.

To be honest, it was actually easier than you might think because in reality, once you discover the purpose for your life, you don’t ask too many questions. It becomes very clear what you need to do and you just do it.

Therefore, I made an unprecedented decision to leave my job in one of the worst economies since the Great Depression and go for it. 6 figure salary, company car, home office and all. That’s not to say that I didn’t have fears or doubts when I made the leap, or that I didn’t question my own sanity at times. I mean, after all, I had no safety net to break my fall, if I did in fact fall...

Yet whenever I checked in with my gut instinct, it reassured me every time that I was doing the right thing.

In all fairness, it’s only fitting that I pay homage to my former career as it was there for me when I needed it, but the reality is that the reason I chose it in the first place was one based out of fear – just like I made most decisions throughout my life up til then.

I struggled for many years with the pain of a tormented past that clouded my judgment and my thinking and in an effort to be accepted and loved, and to maintain the status quo, I did what everyone else thought I should do.

Thinking this way led to years of intense anxiety, depression, and an overall lack of fulfillment. Five years ago began my journey into alternative healing which was born out of an experience that nearly cost me my life. Up til then, I had been on prescription medication for those very symptoms.

I finally came to realize that the more I ignored the feelings and tried to suppress them, the more they would tug at my shirttail and demand my attention, much like a crying child. Moreover, trying to mask them with medication that ultimately made the situation worse was not the answer either.

Ironically, even under the false disguise of a cure, my feelings and behaviors would still manage to surface, which I found perplexing and self-defeating. I would binge on everything from food to alcohol, from shopping to travelling, and consistently found myself in relationships with men that should’ve been illegal. But for 7 years, I dutifully followed directions and swallowed a little green pill every single day, thinking it would make it all better.

The truth is, I was more broken, sad and lonely than ever before. The toll it took on my body and mind was even worse. I was confused, disoriented, and downright lost. For as many years that I had gained in life, I had little to show for progress.

Rewind 30 years. I can remember being 5 years old and knowing that the only thing I wanted to do was write. I wrote books for my mom, my brother, my sisters, and my dog. It was total bliss for me. I wrote 1 page books, and 10 page books, and dreamed of being a best-selling author someday.

So why is it that so many of us abandon our true destiny as we get older and lose the safety and security of what it means to follow our hearts? Why does the world teach us that we’re supposed to live our lives pleasing others instead of pleasing ourselves and doing what truly nurtures us?

Over the course of the past year, I’ve found that when you tap into your one true meaning in life, there is no loneliness, fear, or uncertainty. Instead, everything flows. There’s no resistance. There’s no hard work. And best of all there’s no confusion.

It's laid out before you and all you have to do is take the first step.

Ironically, at a time when most people were clinging to their jobs for dear life, I willingly walked away from mine. I was at the top of my game too, making close to $200,000 a year, driving a company car and working from home. I was well respected and a valuable employee within the company.

But I wanted more. To some, it might’ve sounded like I was crazy for leaving, but to a small minority, it made perfect sense.

Just as soon as I left, I was able to see more precisely what I wanted. It all became crystal clear, but as with everything, first things first. Without even realizing what I had been doing, I had managed to blow out my adrenals, my thyroid, and my capacity to focus, concentrate, and just plain think straight with all the stress I put myself through going upstream instead of downstream.

Shortly after leaving and as soon as my body realized it was over, I could barely get out of bed in the morning - literally. Often times I would sleep until 10 or 11am and with just having opened my own practice as a health coach, it scared me. If I couldn’t work, how would I ever support myself?

I was generating 100% of my own income for the first time in my life, and it was then that I understood that the only way I could ever possibly attract a successful coaching business, along with everything else I wanted, I had to fix myself first.

I later came to understand that I was suffering from severe adrenal exhaustion, and this picture depicts the damage done to my body as a result in the form of excess abdominal fat which is an all too common side effect, as well as low energy, cravings, and insomnia.

My health then became my #1 priority. Over anything else, restoring balance to my body and my mind took precedence. I recognized that even though the first year in business may not be the best time to invest $10,000 in anything but my business, unless I healed myself, there would be no business and I would not be physically able to have the career I so desperately wanted.

So I decided no more excuses. Not money, not time, not fear. It was time to play full out and this was my one chance to do it. If I truly wanted to make my dreams come true and really rock this lifetime, I had to start somewhere and since all the places I started before never got me where I wanted to go, it was time for a new direction.

It was then that I decided to join Rose Cole’s VIP 3-Month Intensive Powerful Women Powwow. I realized that if I didn’t take a stand for myself, no one else would, but it was without question one of the biggest decisions of my life. With a hefty price tag of $10,000 and no guarantee of what the outcome would be, I wasn't sure if I had made the right decision or not. It felt right, but I still wasn't convinced. Yet in the end there was no turning back and I dove in head first.

I have too many things I want to do in life to let something like money stop me, and the reality is that money is simple to attract. Our society has set us up to believe it’s not though, and with recent news of a slumped economy and persistent layoffs, everyone’s running scared that there’s a lack of money. Truth is it’s all around us, we all just need to learn how to reprocess our thoughts and tap into it.

Thank God I had that realization because I am now on one of the most amazing journeys of my life. The vision board I created on April 6, 2008, sits before me as I type this, and includes a great guy, a house on the beach, a best-selling book and a dream body, not to mention all the other things that have already happened.

Unbeknownst to me at the time I made it, there was a system set up that would allow me to bring it all in focus so that I would be able to live in alignment with my true self, and for me, it started with eliminating my biggest source of stress. My job.

The key to making it happen though is remembering to trust.

I ultimately decided to join Rose's program not just for me, but for all the people that I coach as well - present and future. They benefit from what I learn which only makes me better at my job. I want to embody health and prove how important it is to make it a top priority, above anyone and anything else in your life.

Not only that, I've gotten the chance to live out some of my dreams through her program. I've already broken through limiting beliefs that were holding me back in ways I never even realized, I've befriended women who I consider my soul sisters, and I had a photo shoot on the beach in California that truly left me feeling like the diva I am inside.

It's been pretty cool so far, and I've got 2 more months to go!

Your physical health is the foundation for achieving your dreams and without it, it’s virtually impossible to move forward. I know the money I spent will come back tenfold, so I'm not worried. I've never felt freer in my life and no amount of money can replace that.

I feel like my life is about to take off. There's a lot more writing to come, and my business is about to go into a whole new stratosphere.

Oh, and I lied. The program didn’t cost $10,000. It actually cost more like $12,500, all expenses included. But as the saying goes - I’m worth it!

I can’t wait to share the results with you ;)

If you want to be part of the next Powerful Woman Powwow, you won't want to miss Rose's “High Priestess Training” Free Teleclasses Series For Conscious Women starting July 7th.

The Universe is inviting you to step it up and play a bigger game, and in order to do that, you’ve got to increase your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual vibrations. This is the way to become a spiritual warrior so we can bring about HUGE change to the planet. The time is now!

She’s doing these free calls as a gift to help elevate the feminine consciousness (and what a gift she is). You'll elevate your conscious awareness just by being on the calls!

CLICK HERE to sign up for the calls. If you can’t make them live, she will be sending out the recordings afterwards if you sign up for the series. I'll be a featured guest speaker on 3 of the calls so be sure to sign up!

My favorite part of summer

2010-06-23T16:07:00.004-04:00

Being a foodie, I'm always staying in tune with what foods are in season and summer brings my most favorite one of all - heirloom tomatoes!

An heirloom tomato is sweeter than other varieties and is higher in vitamins A, C, K, potassium, fiber and lycopene. They're available in an abundance of shapes and sizes and add rich flavor to summer salads.

Try this recipe from Natural Health Magazine and see what I mean!

Ingredients

1/4 c Champagne or white wine vinegar
1/4 c shallots
6 ears white corn
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
8 c arugula
5-6 heirloom tomatoes

In a large bowl, mix the vinegar and shallots together and let stand for 10 minutes. Next, cut kernels from the corn and whisk together with the olive oil and vinegar mixture. Add the arugula and toss with the dressing. Lastly, dice the tomatoes and toss gently. Transfer the salad to a large platter. Serves 8.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Cleveland, Ohio: Bad Town or Bad Press?

2010-06-22T11:44:00.013-04:00

It’s funny how life goes.

Too often we neglect to see what’s right in our own backyards. As kids, we grow up not knowing what else there is in this world to explore, but as young adults the realization sets in. When that happens, it seems we can’t get enough.

I grew up in an upper middle-class family in the suburbs of Cleveland, OH. I loved it as a kid, thinking it was the coolest place on earth. I was so proud of the house I lived in and can even remember walking up the driveway every day after school, beaming with pride. I imagined in my mind how impressed everyone else must be when they laid eyes on my house too. It was nothing more than a 3-bedroom bungalow with 1 bath that could barely contain our family of 6 but it didn’t matter to me. To a 5-year-old, it was a palace.

It was the typical family home in my part of the world and it felt normal and natural to me. I never thought it wasn’t enough so it was quite shocking the day my parents announced we were moving to “a bigger house.” The first thought that went through my mind was why? I’ve got everything I need right here!

But the decision was final and so it was. Falling asleep one night I vowed to return to that house as an adult and buy it back. How I would ever do that I had no idea. It wasn’t important though. In the mind of a child, anything is possible.

Moving day came and went and off we went to what was in fact a much bigger house. With 4 bedrooms and 2 ½ baths, it really was impressive! I even got my own room with the promise that one day I would get to redecorate it. That should’ve made me happy but I never stopped longing for my old house. I thought of it often and couldn’t bear to think about who the new occupants were. Bigger wasn’t always better after all.

My life progressed and I settled in to my new school and made new friends. I still lived in Cleveland and still thought it rocked. But as I got older, a new realization began to manifest that not everyone thought the same thing. People jokingly referred to my hometown as the “armpit of America” or “the mistake on the lake.”

That smarts to a young adult who grew up loving it. How could people say that? What did they know? Those of us who lived here didn’t think so. It held the memories of my youth and young adulthood that I cherished.

Eventually though, over time, my mind started to resonate with that same belief. I began to feel ashamed and embarrassed of the very place that brought me life. I rejected it and laughed about it, disowning it and refusing to see what it had to offer.

It’s no wonder I felt so isolated when I was home.

I did everything I could to leave town as often as possible, but ironically I could never bring myself to leave for good. As much as I complained that Cleveland had nothing to offer, I kept coming back but I swore I would move one day and say goodbye forever! Yet that day has never come.

And now I know why.

It wasn’t until I truly began to appreciate it for what it offered and understand that it will always be a part of me did I make the connection that it’s who I am at the core. It’s coded deep within my DNA and it’s where I belong. There are no mistakes in life and it’s not by accident that this is where my ancestors decided to settle when they came to America. I was meant to live here for a reason.

Of the many times I’ve left Cleveland, Cleveland never left me and it wasn’t until a trip to the local museum did I realize how amazing this city really is. Not only were the people beautiful that night, but of course the artwork as well. To my surprise, I found Monet, and Dali, and Picasso, and Renoir. There was a bigger-than-life sized statue of Marcus Aurelius unearthed thousands of years ago and a gallery of paintings that would rival any in Rome.

I had to ask myself if I was still in Cleveland. I thought I had to travel to the Louvre to get famous artwork! Most memorable were pieces from local artists and I again found myself beaming with pride. Turns out I don’t have to leave home at all to get what my heart desires. Culture, couture, and intellectual stimulation are all right here for the taking.

My belief in my hometown was once again restored, but now from the perspective of an older, wiser woman who understands that it doesn’t matter what others say. For those of us who choose to live here, we’re fiercely loyal. We have a lot to take pride in such as our world class orchestra, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Cleveland Indians and the shores of Lake Erie!

Even though I have yet to buy my childhood home back, I’ve never forgotten the promise I made to it all those years ago. I might’ve been a little girl at the time, but I always keep my promises. I want to hold on to as much of my past as I can to preserve it because it made me who I am today.

I’ll never forget my old house for loving me, even some times when I didn’t love it back. Just like my hometown.

Rock on C-town.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

Raw Foods: New Age Trend or Getting Back to Basics?

2010-06-20T16:23:00.012-04:00

There is a movement on the rise toward reincorporating raw foods back into our daily diets, and from a health coaching perspective, I couldn’t be happier.

Long before grocery stores, tv ads or restaurants came about, we didn’t need anyone telling us what we should and shouldn’t be eating. We just instinctively knew. In other words, we ate food straight from the earth as nature intended - unrefined and pure – also known as raw. And we didn’t have cancer, digestive issues, or diabetes either.

To further clarify, raw foods are foods that have not been cooked above 118 degrees. Cooking food at low temps ensures it will retain enzymes, vitamins and minerals that your body needs in order to properly digest, assimilate and nourish itself.

In contrast, these crucial components are killed off when food is cooked too high, therefore its dormant life force is dull and bland and it does little to provide your body the nourishment is craves.

Raw foods have come a long way these days. As recent as 20-30 years ago, people had little more than fruit and lettuce to choose from when deciding to go raw. Now, a whole new world has emerged that makes it not only enticing but hard to resist too.

Since there is little to no actual cooking involved in raw food prep, it’s a breeze to create some of the same culinary creations you find at fancy raw foods restaurants. Try this quick, delicious smoothie recipe from one of my favorite raw foodies, Ani Phyo, adapted from her cookbook, Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen:

Vanilla Coconut Shake

1 c pecans
½ c pitted dates
1 vanilla bean
2 tbsp coconut oil
3 c water

Blend the pecans, dates, vanilla bean, coconut oil, and water until smooth.

You can also use Thai baby coconuts if they’re available and replace the coconut oil and water with coconut water and the scraped coconut meat. Will keep 4 days in the fridge!

I love this recipe because it’s quick, easy and tastes delish! Plus I know I’m getting fiber and protein from the nuts along with the many benefits of coconut including weight loss, prevention of diabetes and heart disease, lowered risk for stroke, decreased blood pressure, and protection against osteoporosis.

The more raw foods you eat, the more energy you have, the younger you look, and the less you sleep! David Wolfe, the leader of the raw foods movement and founder of SunFoods.com, gained an extra month a year when he switched to eating completely raw. Who couldn’t use that???

There are raw foods restaurants popping up all over the country but you don’t have to travel to LA, NY, or Chicago to find them. I even have one in my own backyard in Cleveland, OH of all places! Do a Google search and see where you might find one, or just hit your own kitchen and get “cooking!” You’ll be amazed at the difference raw foods make in your life and it doesn’t require a massive overhaul either. Even just striving for 50% more raw foods will have a dramatic impact.

To learn more about raw foods from one of the foremost leading experts, join me on my call with Ani Phyo on Wednesday, July 7th at 8pm EST. CLICK HERE to sign up and access the call in info!

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

The Real Culprit of Burps, Belches, and Groans

2010-05-27T08:14:00.033-04:00

What you're about to learn may shock you, because believe it or not the real culprit of burps, belches and groans is not at all what you think.

The antacid companies, a multi-billion dollar a year industry, have got the majority of us thinking that heartburn and gas are due to excess stomach acid, but the truth is it's actually due to low stomach acid, a condition also known as hypochlorhydria. Once again our health has been compromised by the very companies we've come to know, like and trust, just to make a buck.

Symptoms of hypochlorhydria include:

- Heartburn (commonly thought to be due to HIGH stomach acid!)
– Bloating, belching, flatulence and gas– Constipation or diarrhea
– Low energy– Depression
– Acne
– Hair loss in women
– Food allergies
– Dry skin
– Autoimmune disease

Sound like you? Well you're not alone. Hundreds of people nowadays battle with digestive issues on a daily basis and often find themselves reaching for quick fixes such as Tums or Prilosec, which are actually making a bad situation worse and potentially setting things up for more health problems down the road.

It seems counterintuitive to think that LOW stomach acid would be the reason why your stomach is backing up on you, but it is. You see, whenever you eat food, you probably just assume that your body does the work it's supposed to do from there. The problem though is that it's usually not equipped with the right mix of digestive juices and stomach acid anymore in order to function properly.

The first thing your stomach counts on in order to digest food is enzymes. Enzymes are like little construction workers who use raw materials such as vitamins and minerals found in your food to build the most amazing architectural structure you've ever seen - YOUR BODY! However, if the food you're eating has been irradiated or modified, then the enzymes that are normally found in the food have been killed off, thereby disabling your digestive system from working properly.

In addition to that, people are also low in stomach acid due to an increasingly growing condition called adrenal exhaustion. Adrenal exhaustion is driven by stress and will ultimately thin the lining of your stomach, which in turn suppresses the production of stomach acid. Until you restore function to the lining in your stomach, it's nearly impossible for it to digest well.

The end result of all of this is rotting food in your intestinal track! Because the food just sits in your stomach instead of getting broken down and used for fuel, it will begin to ferment. The off-gassing produced by the rotting food then creates pressure in your stomach, which pushes open the valve at the top of your stomach and causes stomach acid to splash into your esophagus, leading to acid reflux, indigestion, and gas.

Hydrochloric acid (HCl), which is the scientific name for stomach acid, cannot be found in food. Therefore eating tomatoes and orange juice does not resolve this problem. One important factor to point out here too is that a lot of people don't even realize they have hypochlorhydria because they don't all experience symptoms, which is not good as too often they neglect to catch the root cause in time to correct it before it leads to more serious illnesses.

HCl's 3 main functions are:

1.) To break down mineral bonds so that they can be fully absorbed into your body. If your blood becomes too acidic due to poor mineral absorption, it will rob minerals from other parts of your body until it gets what it needs. This leads to osteoporosis and other diseases caused by mineral deficiency.

2.) To convert the pepsinogen in your stomach into the enzyme pepsin, which breaks down protein. Protein converts to essential amino acids that your body needs to build muscle, strong hair and nails. The "feel good" chemicals in our brain that make us happy are made from amino acids too, so people who are protein deficient are often times depressed as well.

3.) To kill off any parasites, fungus or bacteria that piggybacked onto your food and thought it might be kinda cozy to take up residence in YOUR STOMACH - blah! Your stomach acid is so acidic it would burn a hole in your hand if you held it. Because the pH in HCl is so low, it will destroy any invaders it comes in contact with and protect your body. Essentially, HCl acts as a first line of defense for our immune system.

So, you can see how important it is to thoroughly break your food down and digest it! Without the proper balance of enzymes and stomach acid, you'll become malnourished, depressed, and drained. Your body requires a lot of energy to digest your food, and uses about 1/3 of your blood supply at a time, therefore if it has to work extra hard to get the job done, it's further depleting your energy reserves leaving you in a constant state of lethargy.

Here are some recommendations to get started in the right direction:

1.) Be sure to drink liquids away from your meals. This may be hard at first, but it's imperative! Since HCl is a liquid, if you drink too much when you eat, it will dilute the HCl and render it ineffective.

2.) Add parsley, ginger or cayenne pepper to your meal. These foods can be highly medicinal and aid in digestion. While some foods make digestion worse, some will actually improve it.

3.) Take a plant-based digestive enzyme with every meal. Plant-based enzymes are much stronger and more effective because they work throughout your entire digestive tract, versus animal enzymes that don't. Look for one made by a reputable company as not all supplement companies are the same!

4.) Work with a holistic health practitioner. Conventional medicine isn't going to get you far on this one! Unfortunately, their approach of just treating symptoms is why you're led to take antacids in the first place. Unless you work in reverse to restore function to your digestive system, you will continue to exacerbate the problem and wind up worse off.

My 10-week Reshape Your System coaching program focuses on these exact issues. Plus, I teach you what to eat, when to eat and how to lose weight effortlessly. You'll regain your energy so you feel like yourself again! I offer a no-risk guarantee so you can make sure it's right for you first without worry. Contact me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com today to set up a 20-Minute Complimentary Strategy Session to determine if it's a fit.

Want to learn how to kick sugar cravings for good? Visit Wellness With Angela to get your FREE AUDIO: The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Plus a FREE 9-day E Course on The Hidden Causes of Sugar Cravings: 9 Reasons Why Sugar Cravings Are Sabotaging Your Life and Time-Tested Tips to Stop Them In Their Tracks!

What Would You Do If You Could Do Anything?

2010-05-24T12:12:00.035-04:00

Most of us have pretty big dreams. The problem is very few of us are living them. We're too afraid of the "what if's" going on our heads to even begin to think about pursuing them. We can think of every excuse in the book as to why we can't go after them, and refuse to think of ways we can.

That used to be me. I used to think that way when I had a regular 9-5, or more like 7-11, going to work every day...shuffling through life like a heard of cattle. But I always had 1 foot in and 1 foot out of my jobs because I never wanted to be there, not even for a minute. I refused to acknowledge any of them as a career because that meant it was for life. And I knew I wasn't lifer. I just didn't know what else to do. Sound familiar?

We tend to get stuck in these mindsets that the only source of income available to us is through a J-O-B. One with "good benefits" (as if those exist anymore) and a "good company" (ditto). But the truth is that that job isn't paying you. In fact, it's not in control of your finances at all. No matter how good the retirement package is, or the company picnics, or the office parties, none of that comes from that company.

So where does it come from you ask? I'll be happy to share. It comes from the Universe. Your Source Energy. Your connection to who you really are, before you were even here. Your job may appear to be the one in control of the cash flow in your life, kinda like a wolf in sheep's clothing, however it's just your chosen source of income. Because the reality is that the money in your life comes from the Powers That Be that you are connected to, whether you realize it or not.

I used to say to myself, "I can't quit my job!!! What would I do for money???" As if there aren't a million and one ways out there to make money. Even if you're married. Even if you have kids. There are STILL a million and one ways to make money that don't require the standard-issue corporate career that is so uninspring you'd rather jab your eye out with an icepick.

If you're reading this, I'm talking to YOU! I'll never buy the fact that anyone working for someone else is truly happy or in a career they love. Never. When I interview my clients about why their weight is stuck, or why they have no energy, or why they eat sugar by the mounds, the #1 reason goes back to either an unhealthy realtionship or an unsastifying job. And usually the unhealthy relationship is WITH the job.

We've been conditioned to think that we go to school, then we get a job. Yet we're poorly advised that misery goes hand in hand. No one ever clearly communicates, except through dire negativity and year after year of declining health, just how miserable we'll be slaving away for a corporate giant the rest of our lives, accepting that our measly little retirement package was worth it in the end.

Get real! Times have changed. Big time. If you think that company you're working for has your back when it comes to the next round of layoffs, think again. They'll drop you like a hot potato no matter how many years you've been working for them. Regardless if you're a teacher, a steel worker, or the CEO. You're just as disposable as the rest of them and they know it.

And if you do get laid off, it could be the best thing that ever happened to you. I was laid off once and I parlayed it into a huge stepping stone into another job I wanted but that had eluded me. The funny thing is that I actually made more money after the layoff than while I was working there between my severance and bonuses. It was the best thing that ever happened to me after all because it got me out of a job that bored me to tears but that I would've stayed in because it was paying me. The problem is that it put me into another job that I couldn't stand and DID stay in for the same reason. From day 1, I knew that job wasn't right for me, yet I stayed put for 14 years.

When I left my corporate gig in March, 2009, to pursue my health coaching business full time, I was shocked at the lack of well wishes I got. I barely got any at all to be honest. People I had known all those years didn't even so much as send me an e mail or call, and they knew I was leaving. Bosses and managers that I thought respected me hardly even said good luck. After being a loyal, dedicated employee for almost half my life, I didn't even so much as get a handshake. What a fine how-do-you-do that turned out to be.

My rationalization was that because they're all so miserable, it makes it hard for them to be happy for anyone else. While I believe that to be true, it still sucked. But it proved my point which is that YOU ARE NOT IMPORTANT TO THEM. You are a number. No matter how secure you think your job is.

I see so many people stuck in the same place I was. If they only knew. I was recently in San Francisco visiting a dear friend who happens to still work for the same company I did. One morning during my visit while she was on a conference call for work, I listened in and overheard the callers discussing statistics and goals, and it was then that I realized how grateful I was for the courage I had to leave.

Speaking of statistics, did you know that every Alzheimer's patient on the planet neglected to follow their own dreams and passions? It's true. That's how powerful it is to use your mind for what it was meant for, whatever that may be, and only you know.

I'm no different than you. I'm not rich, I'm from a middle class family in Cleveland, Ohio, which is consistently ranked as the worst city to live in, and I'm single. I've got the odds stacked against me in other words. And yet I broke convention in one of the worst economies we've seen since the Great Depression to pursue my passion and my dreams. I left a job making close to $200,000 a year - by choice. I had a company car, a cell and I worked from home. And I hated it. And I wasn't downsized, I wasn't laid off, nor was I fired. On top of that, when I left, I ranked 3rd in my zone, which, according to their inane ranking system, is not easy to do.

But I threw caution to the wind and went for it! I didn't know how to make it happen, or even if it was going to happen. I just knew I wanted it.

Even though my gremlins like to rear their ugly heads once in a while, I still know there is nothing I'd rather be doing and that I'll never go back. I love the freedom and the creativity my career (yes, CAREER!) now affords me. I ignored my inner longing for too long that now, I'll never give it up and I protect it at every turn.

Oh, and let me tell you that being single doesn't make it any easier either. So if that's the story that you're telling yourself, you're wrong.

I attached a photo of me in Italy last fall, enjoying my new life! Now, the question is - what would you do if you could anything? Because the truth is YOU CAN. And everything you need to support you along the way will be there for you too.

Leave me a comment and let me know because I'd love to hear it ;)

This got me thinking...

2010-05-15T18:45:00.005-04:00

Someone once asked me a question that was so simple, yet so profound. Here it is...

"What do you really, and I mean REALLY, want?"

Nothing particularly unusual about the question...unless you take it seriously. There are things we know we kind of want, even things we definitely don't want. But how often do we allow ourselves the deep reflection it takes to truly answer that question? I know I hid from that answer for years.

Then one day I realized life isn't a dress rehearsal, and I found the answer for myself. My life changed when I decided to enroll in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN).

As a student (and now a graduate and Ambassador) my time at IIN brought me:

* Strategies to transition from my old job to a satisfying career as a health coach
* Much more revenue and freedom to my life
* A thorough education to make better food and life choices
* Painless ways to improve my health
* Easy-to-understand knowledge that explained nutrition on many levels
* An opportunity to make a significant difference on a global scale

If any of this resonates with you then you definitely want to explore IIN further. They created a Career Starter Kit that you should definitely check out.

This complimentary toolkit includes:

* An up-to-date analysis of the health coaching profession in a
downloadable mp3 format. It's called, "Why Do Health Coaching," and features founder of IIN, Joshua Rosenthal. You'll learn about the emerging field of health coaching and how you could be an important player in the future of nutrition and health. This lecture will give you a well-rounded view of health coaching as a career (as well as the beneficial results you might just get with your own health.)

* An informative excerpt from the book Integrative Nutrition: Feed Your Hunger for Health and Happiness. It's titled, "Primary Food," and clearly explains how to find the work you love and love the work you find. (After reading this, you might find more peace and clarity in what you want to do with the rest of their lives.)

* Detailed Case Histories and stories of IIN graduates. Hear their intimate experiences about the impact they're making in their families and communities. You may even hear a story that resonates deeply with you.

* Options of how to work this exciting training into your life
without sacrificing any of your activities (even if you already have a job). One of the most popular aspects of studying at IIN is the distance learning option so you can learn at your own pace no matter where you live. (AND you'll discover how much ongoing support is built into the program.)

* A complimentary one-on-one career coaching session with me. As a team you will design your potential, personalized career in the health and wellness field. (By the way, there is zero pressure or expectation in this session. It's simply an objective appointment to show you the possibilities and answer your questions.)

The program at IIN is backed by sound scientific research and tons of happy, healthy success stories - one of them is MINE!

CLICK HERE to download your F-R-E-E Career Starter Kit.

Whether you're looking for a new, significant career, want to reclaim your own health back, or simply coach others on how to make better nutritional choices, I believe IIN can do for you what it did for me.

Peace, love and gratitude,

~ Angela Minelli, HHC
Wellness With Angela

PS: If you have any questions you'd like to ask me personally, just email me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com. I'd love to help ;)

Meet my dear friend, Anne

2010-05-12T08:14:00.007-04:00

My friend, Anne McConville, was the best friend I ever had. I was so lucky to have her as a friend. We had a true kinetic connection and she made me laugh like no one else I ever knew. We had almost a 30-year friendship at the time she passed away one year ago today.

I met her in 9th grade and we were fast friends. We sat right by each other in homeroom our freshman year of high school and we connected instantly. Her humor and charm drew me to her and I immediately felt like she was someone I could trust. I knew she’d be a lifelong friend, and she was.

Anne knew the basics of being a true friend. She was honest, loyal, and caring. She always made sure she included me in her life, even after she got married and had kids, which is usually a time when friendships with single girls fade away. She didn’t care whether I was the 3rd wheel, 5th wheel, or 13th wheel! I was her friend no matter what and it was important to her that I was there.

This picture of her is my favorite. I remember when she gave it to me, right after she had her daughter, Meredith, and I fell in love with it. I thought it truly embodied her spirit and moreover her happiness at becoming a new mom. I have it on my desk and look at it every day, knowing that even though I can't see her I know she's still here.

I could not have asked for a better friend. Although she's not with me in person anymore, she is in spirit and I genuinely feel her behind me in my work and in my life. I know she’s up there looking out for me and as much as I wish she was here, it’s nice knowing she’s got my back in the afterlife too.

Today I celebrate her life and the friendship we had. I miss her every day yet I know she’s always with me, supporting me. I love you my dear friend. You are never forgotten and forever in my heart. Please keep my Molly safe and I’ll see you when I get there.

OVitaminPro.com Are True Pros!

2010-05-09T13:04:00.012-04:00

I happened upon this online supplement shop by accident, and I’m sure glad I did. I was in search of supplements that are traditionally only available through wellness practitioners and figured my best chance of finding them would be online. Low and behold, I stumbled upon OVitaminPro and found exactly what I was looking!

My favorite brand of supplements not available anywhere else without access through a licensed practitioner is by Apex Energetics. For starters, they have the most effective plant-based digestive enzyme on the market called Super Digest-Zyme and it’s the one I recommend most to my clients. It’s important to make sure any digestive enzyme you take is plant based as it aids digestion throughout the entire digestive tract and ensures the proper Ph balance. In addition, I found the most healing supplements for adrenal exhaustion around. I start with Adaptocrine and add in AdrenaCalm and AdrenaStim. Adaptocrine is a vegetarian based capsule loaded with adaptogenic herbs that are excellent for reducing stress and maintaining a sense of calm and wellbeing. It includes other cofactors such as enzymes and HCl that aid in digestion too.

AdrenaCalm and AdrenaStim are cream supplements that can be applied as often as 3 times per day to the wrists and neck. AdrenaCalm includes an important brain nutrient called Phosphatidylserine that stems from the hippocampus and is often times compromised due to stress. AdrenaCalm includes additional adaptogenic herbs like licorice root and ginseng to help balance your adrenals, plus L-tyrosine which is a non-essential amino acid used to calm the body and increase energy.

Other supplements I recommend by Apex include Fibromin which is a superior source of fiber and helps to pull out excess testosterone and balance hormones, I also like Glysen which is perfect for helping reverse insulin resistance and improving glucose metabolism. Prosta-DHT is another supplement that can be used for stripping excess testosterone in both men and women and in preventing prostate cancer, plus their newest addition GlutenFlam which blocks that pesky protein found in certain whole grains and wheat called gluten from settling in and causing undue inflammation in your gut, leading to a variety of health conditions including acne, leaky gut syndrome, bloating, indigestion, and more.

Not only does OVitaminPro offer the most affordable deal on shipping at $1 per order, their staff is incredibly helpful as well. Whenever I have a question, I get an immediate response, and truly find the interaction to be a learning experience targeted at making the best selections for myself.

I encourage you to check them out and give ‘em a try - and tell them I sent ya!

The Quickest, Easiest Most Painstakingly SIMPLEST Way To Get Ready for Bikini Season Safely, Naturally, and Effectively!

2010-05-09T11:41:00.011-04:00

Back by Popular Demand! (Ok, that's a little cheesy, but you get the gist...)

How to Safely Detox Your Body: Simple and Effective Ways to Detox Without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew! starting again May 14!

The Quickest, Easiest Most Painstakingly SIMPLEST Way To Get Ready for Bikini Season Safely, Naturally, and Effectively!

CLICK HERE to Download the Preview Call

* Do you find your attempts at WEIGHT LOSS too time consuming and require too much effort?

* Are you on the verge of buying stretchy pants just so you can start FEELING COMFORTABLE in your clothes again?

* Do your BREAKOUTS remind you of your high school days and you are just plain sick of them?

* Is a stick of dynamite about the only thing that can get you out of bed in the morning?

* Have you just gotten used to feeling tired and grumpy, no matter how much you work out or eat right?

* Do you feel that "OLD AGE" is the reason why you have developed all of these sudden aches and pains and have concluded you just have to live with them?

Our bodies are unbelievably intelligent. They are performing hundreds of thousands of functions every second that we are not even aware of. Yet at the same time, they become overloaded with toxins and residue that leads to serious illness and disease, making it difficult for them to function properly.

Side effects from toxic overload are robbing you of your vitality and spunk and include symptoms such as:

•Headaches
•Insomnia
•Ulcers
•Women’s health issues
•Chronic Yeast Infections
•Bronchitis
•Eczema•Toothache
•Thrombosis
•Reduce bacterial growth
•Cancer
•Excess weight
•Diseases of the stomach
...and many more.

Imagine reversing these conditions practically overnight!

In our How to Safely Detox Your Body: Simple and Effective Ways to Detox without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew! 2-Week Cleanse Program starting May 14, you will master the processes to detoxifying safely and effectively and learn practical ways that detox can benefit you and your health.

"I have never been so pleased to follow a program before!"

"My main goal was to change my way of eating - I ate too much and too many of the wrong things. Angela's DETOX PROGRAM was a great jump start for me to change my eating habits to a healthier way of living. The side benefit was weight loss AND I had so much energy I started working out! It helped knowing that she was right there through email and the Google Group for any questions.

"I highly recommend her program to anyone interested in becoming healthier and happier in the easiest way possible! "

Pat Oldfield
Monaca, PA

Sign Me Up! - I’m Ready To Get Started!

If you are looking for solutions that no other procedures have been giving you, then detoxing might be just what you need!

In its most basic definition, detoxification is a cleansing technique that can be helpful for a variety of conditions, including autoimmune and digestive disorders. Typical detoxification procedures involve liquid diets and little else. You can go through shock and withdrawal and experience intense cravings.

In this program, you will discover ways that detoxing can have a positive effect on your life, health and body. This might just be where your healing journey begins!

Get ready for some amazing results, including:

•Drop fat fast
•Break unhealthy habits
•Cleanse your body of years of built up waste
•Get a major energy boost
•Increase mental clarity and focus
•Younger looking skin
•Strengthen your immune system
•More strength and stamina
•Relieve aches and pains
•Revitalize your sex life (RAAR ;)

You’ll have access to practical answers regarding what detoxification is, what is required, what you can expect, and any associated risks and consequences. You will learn everything you need to know about what toxins are and how you can avoid them.

In addition, How To Safely Detox Your Body 2-Week Detox Program includes a comprehensive introductory guide which explains the history of detoxing, the facts behind it, and practical tips and recommendations to help you make up your own mind and utilize all that detoxing has to offer you.

"There is but one cause of disease and that is poison."

"I lost 12-1/2 pounds in 10 days!"

This cleanse was the best thing I've done for myself in a long time. I've suffered from Chronic Functioning Abdominal Pain for the past year, have digestive challenges on top of that, and am addicted to sugar.

In just 10 days on Angela's cleanse, I lost 12-1/2 pounds, my sugar cravings have subsided, and I have so much energy I hop out of bed in the morning! Plus, my friends have noticed how much more lively and sociable I am.

After years of doctor's visits that left me confused and without answers, in just 2 weeks I was able to make dramatic changes in my overall health and wellbeing. At first I wasn't sure what to expect but working with Angela made the whole process simple and easy.

I would recommend this cleanse to anyone looking to make a big impact on their health in a short amount of time.

Fayelou McDonald
Brooklyn, OH

CLICK HERE to Get Started Now!

Your Simple and Effective Ways to Detox without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew! 2-Week Cleanse Program includes the following:

* 70 page e-guide filled with tips, advice, suggestions, and recommendations about the detox and cleanse process

* 3 recordings from Holistic Health Coach, Angela Minelli, to help you understand the process and keep you moving in the right direction

* 14 supportive daily emails filled with tips and articles to keep you motivated
and inspired

Plus, you get the added benefit of detoxing amongst trusted friends by being part of an online Google group. When you enroll, you will receive an invitation to join the group so you can start planning your detox right away.

You will have access to a library of:

•meal planners

•sample menus

•goal trackers

•recipe books

•supplies and resources

•cleansing tips

...and inspirational posters to help keep you on track. Get support and motivation from other program participants plus Wellness with Angela director, Angela Minelli.

EARLY BIRD BONUSES include:

* a 20-Minute Cleanse Consultation with Angela ($97 value)
* Wellness With Angela Meal Planners and Food Guides ($47 value)
* Wellness With Angela set of 7 Daily Affirmations ($47 value)

Sign Me Up for the Bonuses!

EARLY BIRD PRICING* is only $147 until May 11th!

PLUS, KILLER NEW 4th BONUS JUST ADDED!

Are you ready to create your kick-ass dream life?

Leah Shapiro of Defy The Box is a true innovator when it comes to breaking free from your "pre-packaged life" and refusing to settle for the status quo. She’s a real rule breaker running amok in society - but in a good way.

Leah refuses to settle for less than what she really wants. And she wants it all. What makes her different is that she knows she can have it. She did what too many of us are afraid to do and broke free of a less-than- satisfying “good” job and risked it all to find happiness.

Her main goal is to empower you to embrace your freaky-bad-ass-self & to encourage you to feel whole, part of a kick-ass abundant world, and fulfilled beyond your wildest dreams!

She took control of her destiny and can show you how to too in her 30-Minute Complimentary Crash Test Strategy Session (a $200 value!) – an added bonus to your detox program with Wellness With Angela!

Might as well clear it all out at once, right?

Additional Program Incentives:

•Bring a friend and you BOTH get $10 off your program

•BRING 5 AND GET YOUR PROGRAM FREE!

Note: Early bird pricing is valid until Midnight, EST May 11th, 2010. Standard pricing of $167 applies to any newly enrolled participant after May 11th.

Imagine how relieved you’ll feel when you try on last year’s shorts and they actually fit. Or when you’ve got enough energy to run through the sprinkler all day this summer with your kids…nirvana.

Detoxing can be intimidating, but you don’t have to go it alone! We’ll make it easy for ya. You’ve got a big group of eager guys and gals waiting to welcome you, so c’mon and join us today!

I Want to Join!

See you on the inside ;)

Angela

Note: The ideas worded and presented here ARE NOT intended to be medical advice.

How To Safely Detox Your Body FREE TELESEMINAR!

2010-04-27T08:30:00.006-04:00

Back by Popular Demand: FREE TELESEMINAR!

How to Safely Detox Your Body: Simple and Effective Ways to Detox
Without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew!

In this FREE TELESEMINAR, I’ll Reveal The Quickest, Easiest Most Painstakingly SIMPLEST Way To Get Ready for Bikini Season Safely, Naturally, and Effectively!

From: Angela Minelli,
Holistic Health Coach and Certified Natural Holistic Practitioner

Summer is almost here, and I’ve got a few quick questions for ya…

Does the thought of lounging by the pool in your bathing suit make you squeamish?

Are you feeling nervous about whether or not last year’s shorts are gonna fit again?

Would you rather go underground until next winter than show off your back side?

Have you tried everything under the sun to lose weight but still find yourself losing the battle of the bulge?

Have you been dieting since your teens with little to no real results and you’re just plain sick of it?

Are you desperately about to redeem your latest coupon for a lifetime membership to Jenny Craig in order to kick start weight loss in time for sundress season?

If you find diets excruciating, then you’re in the right place. You can say I’ve “been there, done that” more times than I care to recall. And I always came out on the other side wishing I hadn’t wasted my time.

Not only did I gain the weight back and then some, but I felt deprived, restricted, and annoyed. On top of that, diets never did a thing to balance my blood sugar levels which, in the end, still went up and down faster than a speeding bullet.

Here’s the truth. DIETS DON’T WORK. No matter how many times you go back to Weight Watchers, you’re still through with points before noon, and your sugar cravings don’t get any better.

The reason why traditional diets never work is because they fail to address the real reasons why you’re feeling out of control, craving sugar, and ultimately gaining weight.

But detoxes do.

REGISTER HERE.

In my FREE TELESEMINAR How to Safely Detox Your Body: Simple and Effective Ways to Detox Without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew! on Wednesday, May 5th @8pm EST, I’m going to share:

• How detoxing can quickly get you off the diet train for good and help you permanently lose excess pounds and inches
• The #1 way detoxing will help you stop craving sugar and gaining weight
• The SECRETS to an effective detox and cleanse
• The 5 most common myths about detoxing that prevent most people from even attempting one
• The #1 foods to include and which foods to eliminate entirely
during a detox program
• 3 proven detox strategies you can implement right away
• Details about my next GROUP DETOX starting May 14!

You can probably tell by now that I’m a BIG FAN of detoxing and in this call, I’ll be sharing my own personal stories about how I lost weight, stopped craving sugar, and basically changed my life by detoxing.

Don’t worry if you can’t make the live call. Once you register, you’ll automatically receive the RECORDING in your inbox as soon as it’s over.

Are You Ready to Find Out How to Safely Detox Your Body Without Pills, Drugs, OR Drew?

REGISTER HERE.

This call will be RECORDED. So if you can’t make it live, no sweat. Just go ahead and register, and I will email the recording right after the call.

It’s time to GET REAL and learn what really works when it comes to lasting weight loss and busting sugar cravings!

See you on May 5th!

Angela
Wellness With Angela

PS: Don't forget to register! REGISTER HERE.

PPS: If there’s a friend or relative you care about that could benefit from this call as well, feel free to invite ‘em to join in!

PPPS: I’m all about FUN on my calls so consider this play time. Come prepared to learn a whole new perspective on detoxing and how it just might be the missing link you’ve been looking for... ;)

Is Detoxing Right For You?

2010-04-24T12:57:00.008-04:00

There is a big buzz going around about the pros and cons of detoxing. My take on it all? Nothing but pros.

Here are the facts. Toxins are in the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the water we drink. They are in our couches, our carpets, our cell phones, and our computers. They travel by planes, trains, and - you guessed it - automobiles.

There was a time when detox and cleanses were considered odd or weird, but with the amount of toxins in our food and water nowadays, detoxing and cleansing have become necessary to maintain optimal health. Toxins can be found in everything from pharmaceutical drugs to register receipts, and the list keeps growing.

Everyone wants to live a life free from disease and illness, but with toxins on the rise, it is becoming more and more difficult. A toxin is essentially a poisonous substance and can be internal as well as external. External toxins include household chemicals, industrial pollutants, food additives, and pesticides. Internal toxins consist of waste products caused by normal metabolic processes within your body. Toxins also include alcohol, caffeine, and sugar.

Most toxins are stored deeped within the fat tissues. Every person living in an industrialized country now carries an average of 700 synthetic chemicals in their body from food, water and air. Toxin accumulation actually starts in the womb and can be stored for years, robbing you of your vitality, energy, and spunk. Toxins hasten the aging process and cause inflammation as well.

In June 2006, the World Health Organization reported that one quarter of global disease is caused by environmental exposures. But what is better is that they also stated, “Well targeted interventions can prevent much of this environmental risk.”

What are the benefits of detoxing? Where do I start. Try:

* increased energy
* weight loss
* faster metabolism
* better digestion
* decreased allergies
* fewer colds
* clearer skin

or just general "health" insurance for our future to name a few...

I personally have never found a quicker way to stop sugar cravings and drop weight fast. Now, if you don’t have weight to lose, you won’t lose any, but you’ll still benefit by ridding yourself of toxic sludge that’s dragging you down. Plus prevent long-term illness like autoimmune diseases, cancer, and heart disease.

I created a fun quiz to help you determine if you need to detox. CLICK HERE to take the quiz.

In the meantime, join me for my FREE TELESEMINAR How to Safely Detox Your Body: Simple and Effective Ways to Detox Without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew! on Wednesday, May 5th @8pm EST!

To register for the call, CLICK HERE.

Detoxing is a great time to rest and rejuvenate, and focus on YOU. Make time in your busy schedule for this free call and enjoy a guilt-free indulgence on me ;).

Have you gotten your FREE AUDIO on how to stop sugar cravings? Visit Wellness With Angela and grab your copy of The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast!

Wellness With Angela is looking for it's 600th fan!

2010-04-19T08:41:00.004-04:00

Wellness With Angela is looking for it’s 600th fan!

If you're not already a fan of the fan page, CLICK HERE to join. Tell your friends and family about the page and get them to join too! The 600th member will receive my Shopping Cheat Sheet FREE!

My Shopping Cheat Sheet is a 29-page comprehensive guide that covers every area of the grocery store, from fermented foods and sea veggies to natural body care and cleaning products. I use this in my 1-on-1 coaching practice to help my clients navigate through the grocery store with rock solid confidence knowing they are making the best food choices!

NOTE: YOU DO NOT NEED TO PROVIDE YOUR PERSONAL DETAILS TO ENTER THIS SWEEPSTAKES! JUST SIMPLY JOIN THE PAGE!

CLICK HERE for more details about the sweepstakes and to visit the fan page.

Whole Grains: The Latest Superfood

2010-04-18T11:29:00.009-04:00

Whole grains are all the rage. So what exactly are they? And what’s the difference between whole grain and products made with whole grain? Here’s how to cut through the confusing marketing jargon so you can make an informed choice about grains.

Imagine planting a row each of wheat, Wheaties and pasta. The whole wheat, with its germ and hull intact, will grow and flourish. Indeed, whole grains are seeds. However, once a grain is flaked, rolled, puffed or milled into flour, it’s no longer a viable seed. It won’t grow. It’s lost its vital life energy.

So even though breakfast cereals, pasta and bread are often marketed as “whole grain”, they’re processed grain products. Even though these products are made with whole grain flours, they’re still processed and have less life energy than the original grain. So it’s ideal to eat actual whole grains more often than processed grains, whether they’re made with whole grain flour or not. Whole grains will keep your blood sugar and energy levels more even than any kind of processed grains.

Here's the best part: when you chew whole grains slowly, you release the natural sweetness in them thereby satisfying sweet cravings without having to raid the cookie jar ;)

On a side note, many people are sensitive to some grains, especially wheat and corn. If you suspect you have a sensitivity to wheat or corn, experiment with eliminating for two weeks and notice if you have any symptoms when you re-introduce them. While you’re doing your experiment, you can try quinoa, highlighted in the Food Focus below.

Food Focus: Quinoa

Quin-what?! Exactly. Pronounced “keen-wah”, this superfood has been cultivated in the South American Andes since at least 3,000 B.C. Nutritionally, quinoa might be considered a super-grain, although it is actually the seed of a leafy plant that's distantly related to spinach and swiss chard.

Not only is quinoa high in protein, but the protein it supplies is complete protein, meaning that it includes all nine essential amino acids. Great news for vegetarians! And quinoa is especially high in the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair. The grain is also a great source of manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorous. Quinoa may be especially valuable for persons with migraine headaches, diabetes and atherosclerosis.

Quinoa's survival through the millennia may be attributed to the resinous, bitter coating that protects its seeds from birds and insects, called saponin. Most quinoa sold in this country has already been cleansed of its saponin, but quinoa should be rinsed thoroughly before cooking to remove any powdery residue. Place the grain in a fine strainer and hold it under cold running water until the water runs clear; drain well. To increase the digestibility of quinoa, soak for several hours before cooking.

Recipe: Quinoa & Black Bean Salad
Serves four

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup yellow corn
2 scallions, chopped
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced green peppers
1/4 cup diced red onions
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

Dressing:

3-4 Tbsp light vegetable oil (canola)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
cilantro, minced

Directions:
1. Cook 1/2 cup quinoa in either 1 cup vegetable stock or water for 15 minutes.
2. In a bowl, combine the corn, scallions, tomatoes, celery, peppers and black beans.
3. Add cooled quinoa and pour the dressing in. Mix well.
4. Let flavors mingle…best if served cold.

Note:
If using pre-cooked quinoa, use 1 1/2 cups cooked for the recipe.

Sign up for my newsletter and receive my FREE AUDIO: Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Visit Wellness With Angela for more info.

FREE AUDIO Reveals The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast!

2010-04-04T10:16:00.009-04:00

In celebration of the Grand Reopening of my website, Wellness With Angela, I am hosting my first FREE LIVE Ask the Expert Call on Wednesday, April 14, at 8pm EST! You can CLICK ON OVER to the website to get your FREE AUDIO too!

Have you ever wondered if SOY is good for you?

Are you struggling to lose those last 10-15 pounds and can't seem to figure out why?

Does the term "GMO" confuse you and is it even necessary when it comes to healthy eating?

How important is DIGESTION anyways?

What is adrenal exhaustion and is it effecting you?

There is a lot of conflicting information out there, I know. But here is the GOOD NEWS - I am here to help!

Please join me on Wednesday, April 14 at 8pm EST for my first LIVE Ask The Expert Call! In this call, I will be sharing my expertise as a Certified Health Coach as my gift to you for being a valued subscriber to my blog!

It's easy to join the call. Just CLICK HERE.

You will automatically receive the call in details once you sign up.

People are always asking things like:

"Is it dangerous to eat artificial sweeteners?"

"I just eat salads at fast food restaurants. Is that okay?"

"How do I eat for OPTIMAL ENERGY?"

"What can I do to correct low stomach acid?"

Well, here is your chance to pick my brain and get FREE LIVE COACHING. E mail me with your questions before the call and I will be sure to answer them LIVE, or just bring 'em with you!

It only takes a second to sign up. CLICK HERE.

I truly appreciate you and want to express my gratitude by offering this call. It is yet one more way I am here to serve and the perfect way to celebrate the GRAND REOPENING of my new website!

So stop on by Wednesday, April 14 at 8pm EST for my FREE LIVE
Ask The Expert Call!

See you then!

Peace, love and gratitude,

Angela
Wellness With Angela

PS: Don't forget to register to get the call in info! CLICK HERE.

PPS: If cannot make the call, no worries - I will be recording it as always. Go ahead and SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION by e mailing me at angela@wellnesswithangela.com, and then tune in to the replay for the answer ;)

Sign up for my brand new newsletter and receive my FREE AUDIO: Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Just CLICK HERE.

The Miracle of Balancing Your Body Chemistry

2010-03-29T09:03:00.032-04:00

Okay, I admit - sometimes I indulge in a few of life's guilty pleasures, and reality tv is one of them. Just the other night, after a long, mildy stressful day, I decided to sit down and watch tv for about an hour before going to bed. I didn't want to watch anything too heavy, so I decided on a show called "Kendra." Yep, you guessed it, from "The Girls Next Door" with Hef himself...

Kendra is a quirky girl who doesn't seem to take herself too seriously, and I love that about her. She seems very relatable regardless of her celebrity status. At the beginning of this particular episode, her agent called to inform her that she only had about 10 days to get in shape for a photo shoot that she agreed to do after she had her baby, who was born a few months back. She immediately panicked because she was far from being bikini-body ready (in her mind), and the first thing she did was throw open her pantry door and pull out all the boxed, processed food and toss it in the trash.

Kudos for that. She accurately recognized that bagged popcorn and packaged cookies were unhealthy. But then she did what most people do and went into restriction mode. She started to deny herself the very foods she craved the most, which continued throughout the rest of the episode. And that's where the trouble began.

From there, she proceeded to try to grab a can of cake frosting back from her husband and inconspicuously snatched bread off the table when she was out with friends. The sad part was that the underlying feeling I sensed from her was guilt, not one of pleasure or relief. Oh, and a little shame mixed in to top it off and give her that extra jolt of low self-esteem. After all, she went from posing in Playboy to becoming a mother, which unfortunately didn't leave her body in post-model shape, so she should feel like crap about herself, right?

Wrong. How unfair. I like Kendra. She cracks me up. She has a childlike view of the world, so I expect she will live a long time. Yet coming from a Health Coaching perspective, it broke my heart that she thought she could no longer enjoy food in order to release excess weight, which is a common misconception. It became obvious to me though that she not only liked those foods, but that she was addicted to them as well. They were her drugs and she needed a fix - literally. Just how the food manufacturers want it.

Her next step was to hit the gym. Ah, alas, the holy grail of physical fitness. Blah. I'll pass. How boring is that? I found a better way.

The first thing I did to restore my natural shape was to change my diet. Now, I didn't have a baby but I did have a corporate job, which caused so much stress in my life that I sustained myself on the Standard American Diet (SAD). I didn't go to the nearest Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers either. I'd rather poke my eye out with an ice pick than eat that "food." Instead, I switched to real food. Whole, organic food, straight from the earth like nature intended. Things like kale, broccoli, fish, and nuts became my side kicks. And as much raw food as possible, but some cooked, because what's better than a nicely broiled salmon filet with brussel sprouts and a baked sweet potato with REAL butter? Raw is best when it comes to eating food because the nutrients and enzymes are left intact, but you can't eat raw fish, other than sushi. Plus it's just not entirely sustainable 100% of the time, unless you live in a jungle.

My other favorite food is raw chocolate though, which I eat as often as I want. In fact, I make sure I eat it at least once a day, so there's no deprivation here! The most amazing thing that happened when I changed my diet was that my taste buds came ALIVE! My body began craving healthy stuff.

My next move was to start walking. I decided intense workouts at the gym just weren't my style. I never liked the gym but forced myself to go, thinking it was the only way I could truly burn calories and fat. This time, I let myself relax into doing what my body truly wanted to do, and it didn't involve punishment. I chose a softer, gentler route to physical activity that included belly dancing too!

And the most important thing I did, even before anything else, was to identify the root cause of the problem. In my case, it turned out to be adrenal exhaustion. This condition, which effects as much as 80% of the American population, is wreaking havoc in our lives. It's seemingly impossible to avoid considering the amount of stress we are under today too. It threw my thyroid and hormones off, led to a wicked Candida infection, and made my life miserable in general. Unless I fixed it first, I could have eaten celery sticks and exercised all day and I never would've dropped any weight, at least not permamently. Thank God I realized it first off, or I would've just been spinning my wheels.

In the process of healing my adrenal glands, weight just slipped off (with barely any effort), my skin cleared up, my energy soared, and my sugar cravings disappeared. I had finally discovered the "secret" I had been looking for all my life.

The best part is that it's a piece of cake to maintain, pun intended ;) Because I still eat cake! And cookies. And pies. And pastries. And a bunch of other "bad" foods. And I teach my clients how they can too, without restriction or denial.

These days, I enjoy more time for myself, and no guilt or shame about what I eat, plus I easily fit into my skinny jeans every day of the week. I no longer throw my money away on diet plans that don't work, and instead invest it in food that does.

I find it makes more sense, don't you?

Like what you read? Then sign up for my weekly Healthy E-newsletter and get my FREE AUDIO The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast! Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about my 9 Week Total Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment.

Free 4-part series on holistic health via webinar starting March 25

2010-03-20T22:01:00.006-04:00

I have teamed up with Colette Barry of Healthy Fit Studios, an online yoga studio, to present a 4-part series on holistic health and wellness starting Thursday, March 25, at 7:30pm EST!

The first topic presented will be on the health benefits of DETOXING. Toxins are an unfortunate part of our daily lives nowadays as we find ourselves living in a literal toxic soup! Spring is the perfect time of year to start anew and detox, and this segment will help you determine if detoxing is right for you and whether or not it should be incorporated into your health maintenance program.

Another hot topic for Spring is weight loss! With the summer months looming, we all want to look and feel our best and on Thursday, April 1, we will reveal the best kept SECRETS TO NATURAL WEIGHT LOSS! (Hint: it has nothing to do with counting calories or weighing and measuring food!)

Do you suffer from ADRENAL EXHAUSTION? It is estimated that 80% of Americans suffer from some form of adrenal exhaustion (also known as adrenal fatigue) and do not even realize it. It is a commonly overlooked illness because the symptoms are not as obvious as a heart attack or diabetes, and they often include low grade symptoms that are usually dismissed. In our society, we are taught to work through our fatigue and illnesses and this is causing a multitude of health issues that if not addressed, treated and reversed will lead to longterm serious disease. Find out more on this topic on April 8!

If you are feeling addicted to M&M’s and Snickers Bars, it is with good reason. Sugar is a highly addictive substance, and today’s food manufacturers are no stranger to this fact. They launch a daily attack on our psyches with sneaky and misleading advertisements that trick our minds and bodies into craving sugar. For some people, it leads to utter chaos, invoking unnecessary feelings of guilt, shame, and a complete lack of self esteem. However, overcoming sugar addiction does not have to mean restricting or denying yourself. On April 15, we will uncover the top SUREFIRE WAYS TO KICK SUGAR CRAVINGS!

Colette is offering her yoga webinars on her site, Healthy Fit Studio, every Tuesday and Thursday nights at 7:30pm EST for FREE until April 15. Yoga is a stress free form of exercise that benefits your body, mind, and soul and is the perfect modality to complement a holistic lifestyle.

We look forward to sharing our unique gifts with you via webinar starting next Thursday and hope you will join us!

Wellness With Angela

The Body Deli

2010-03-17T22:32:00.009-04:00

I hit the pot of gold in skincare.

I was recently in Palm Desert, CA, and happened upon a shop on Highway 111 called The Body Deli. Let me just tell you, it was complete nirvana.

All of their products are made with fresh, raw, organic ingredients and they are designed to rejuvenate your skin and give it an amazingly healthy glow. Their philosophy for a healthy lifestyle starts with "a diet high in alkaline forming foods, enzymes, minerals, amino acids and rich in raw superfoods." This applies inside and out. Their ingredients include whole leaf barley grass juice, whole leaf wheat grass juice, flax, nettle leaf, calendula, burdock root, blueberries, pomegranate, and even enzymes such as amylase and protease. They sell some of the cleanest, purest products on the market.

I could not stop myself. I bought the Tahitian Vanilla Souffle, the Almond Joy Bar Soap, the Moroccan Mint Bar Soap, Mandarin Infusion Body Wash, and the Glacial Mineral Mud Masque which made my face super silky smooth. All the products have been fabulous though! They are so indulgent, luxurious, and good for your bod. It doesn't get much better than that.

They also offer a free VIP Club which offers discount codes, coupons, weekly deals, and newsletters. Do yourself a favor and check them out. Your body will thank you.

How To Know If You Are Suffering From Adrenal Exhaustion and What To Do About It

2010-03-14T18:44:00.005-04:00

With the amount of stress we are under every day nowadays, it is highly likely you are suffering from adrenal exhaustion and do not even realize it. Conventional doctors fail to recognize this condition as anything more than secondary, but without healthy adrenal glands, your entire endocrine system will malfunction, resulting in a host of side effects that lead to longterm illness if left untreated or reversed.

Your body produces chemicals, also known as hormones,that are used to control certain functions, and the main system that controls these chemicals is the endocrine system. The foundations of the endocrine system are the hormones and glands. The major glands that make up the endocrine system are:

hypothalamus
pituitary gland
thyroid
parathyroids
adrenal glands
pineal body
reproductive glands (ovaries and testes)

The endocrine system influences almost every cell, organ, and function of our bodies. It is instrumental in regulating mood, growth and development, tissue function, weight and metabolism, libido, and reproductive processes. Each gland works synergistically with the others, and when one is out of balance, it affects each of the other organs.

Your mind is unable to differentiate between real and perceived threats and if you experience stress ona regular basis, as most Americans do, it interprets an irate boss or traffic jam the same as needing to outrun a saber toothed tiger. Our adrenal glands, which are tiny walnut-shaped organs that sit on top of our kidneys and produce adrenaline and cortisol, are too small to keep up with the excess cortisol production our bodies produce in response to the stress we are experiencing in today’s society. This ultimately exhausts them and results in the condition known as adrenal exhaustion.

Our bodies react to adrenal exhaustion, or adrenal fatigue, in the form of allergies, lowered immune systems, acne, excess weight around our midriffs, psoriasis, anxiety, depression, irritability, dizziness, dry skin, insomnia, excess fatigue, salt or sweet cravings, poor digestion, difficulty concentrating, extreme sensitivity to cold, amongst others.

There are 7 stages to adrenal exhaustion.

0 Healthy Adrenal Function
1 Atypical Adrenal Response
2 HPA Axis Dysfunction
3 Acute Fight or Flight
4 Early Adrenal Fatigue
5 Evolving Adrenal Fatigue
6 Established Adrenal Fatigue

If a woman experiences a stressful pregnancy and exhausts her adrenal glands, she will then feed off the baby’s. Therefore, it is possible you were born with adrenal exhaustion. If you find it hard to get out of bed in the morning but have energy until late night, your circadian rhythm is working opposite of how it is supposed to which is a clear sign of this condition. And, as you move through life, you may transition into the various stages of adrenal exhaustion, and ultimately wind up in the last stage.

In order to heal them, it is imperative to first eliminate the source of stress, then work to balance your hormones, optimize your digestion, and support your adrenal glands through supplementation. This process could take anywhere from 6 months to a year. It requires patience, consistency, and tenacity.

To learn more about how to heal your adrenal glands, consider working with a qualified holistic practitioner.

Like what you read? Then sign up for my weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about my 9 Week Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

Why Chewing is Imperative to Proper Digestion

2010-03-06T23:07:00.008-05:00

When we chew our food, we just assume it is properly broken down and digested. However, more often than not it isn’t so it’s important to understand why chewing is essential for proper digestion.

The digestive system is made up of the digestive tract, which is a series of hollow organs joined in a long, twisting tube from the mouth to the anus. There are other organs, such as the mouth, esophagus, stomach, and both small and large intestine, that help the body break down and absorb food.

Inside these hollow organs is a lining called the mucosa. In the mouth, stomach, and small intestine, the mucosa contains tiny glands that produce juices to help digest food. The digestive tract also contains a layer of smooth muscle that helps break down food and move it along the tract.

Two “solid” digestive organs, the liver and the pancreas, produce digestive juices that reach the intestine through small tubes called ducts. The gallbladder stores the liver’s digestive juices until they are needed in the intestine. Parts of the nervous and circulatory systems also play major roles in the digestive system.

When you eat food like bread, meat, or vegetables, they are not in a form that the body can use as nourishment. Food and drink must be changed into smaller molecules of nutrients before they can be absorbed into the blood and carried to cells throughout the body. Digestion is the process by which food and drink are broken down into their smallest parts so the body can use them to build and nourish cells and to provide energy.

Digestion involves mixing food with digestive juices, moving it through the digestive tract, and breaking down large molecules of food into smaller molecules. Digestion begins in the mouth, when you chew and swallow, and is completed in the small intestine.

Proper digestion requires four major enzymes:

Amylase – for the digestion of carbohydrates and starches.

Protease – for the digestion of proteins.

Lipase – for the digestion of fats; also assists in balancing fatty acids.

Cellulase – for the digestion of cellulose (fiber found in vegetables and other plant materials).

Improper digestion can lead to a variety of health disorders including gas, indigestion, toxicity, poor cholesterol, acne, and leaky gut syndrome. Chewing your food 20-30 times with each bite will release the natural enzymes in food which will prevent it from sitting in your intestinal track, undigested and rotting.

Another way to help digest your food thoroughly is to take a plant-based digestive enzyme with every meal. Plant-based enzymes are most useful because they aid digestion throughout the entire digestive process. These enzymes cannot be made like synthetic vitamins and minerals, and must be grown in plant form and extracted through a laboratory process.

Like what you read? Then sign up for my weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about my 9 Week Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

Your Access to Nutritional Supplements is Under Attack

2010-02-21T11:51:00.005-05:00

It is sad but true. On February 3, Senator John McCain stood on the Senate floor and proposed S. 3002, the McCain-Dorgan Senate Bill, stating, "The dietary supplement industry is one that is mostly self-regulated"! Which is far from the truth.

There are hundreds of pages of laws and regulations to the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA) that manufacturers must follow in order to keep their products on the market and protect Americans' access to safe dietary supplements. DSHEA prohibits putting adulterated or contaminated foods and dietary supplements on the market and includes detailed and complex Good Manufacturing Practices and requirements for all dietary supplements. Those regulations work as DSHEA regulates foods and dietary supplements/nutrients and concerns itself with safety on all levels.

It appears that Senator McCain wants to over-regulate food and dietary supplements as if they were dangerous drugs instead of enforcing existing, effective food and dietary supplement laws. He is obviously discrediting the safety history of dietary supplements in favor of more and more unnecessary and hostile regulation that will squelch a consumer-driven industry.

Americans hold that dietary supplements are not drugs, they are nutrients, generally regarded as safe, and the government already has the ability to take them off the market if they pose a risk of harm. I encourage the marketing of nutrients. It is our right as Americans to eat nutrients of all kinds without first proving, like drugs, that they are effective to eat. We should have the right to decide what we choose to consume.

This is Big Pharma in action folks, and I implore all of you to help DEFEAT S. 3002! Tell McCain and Dorgan to honor our existing law prohibiting adulterated products and requiring good manufacturing practices. Tell them to aggressively protect dietary supplements as foods and not drugs. Say NO to S. 3002. Stop this bill before it goes any further.

CONTACT YOUR SENATOR ONLINE and send THIS LETTER to them today!

Like what you read? Then sign up for my weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about my 9 Week Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

How to Safely Detox Your Body Without Pills, Drugs, OR Dr. Drew!

2010-02-20T15:44:00.007-05:00

There was a time when detox and cleanses were considered odd or weird, but with the amount of toxins in our food and water nowadays, detoxing and cleansing have become necessary to maintain optimal health. Toxins can be found in everything from pharmaceutical drugs to carpet, and the list keeps growing.

Everyone wants to live a life free from disease and illness, but with toxins on the rise, it is becoming more and more difficult. A toxin is essentially a poisonouse substance and can be internal as well as external. External toxins include household chemicals, industrial pollutants, food additives, and pesticides. Internal toxins consist of waste products caused by normal metabolic processes within your body. Toxins also include alcohol, caffeine, and sugar.

Most toxins are stored deeped within the fat tissues. Every person living in an industrialized country now carries an average of 700 synthetic chemicals in their body from food, water and air. Toxin accumulation actually starts in the womb and can be stored for years, robbing you of your vitality, energy, and spunk. Toxins hasten the aging process and cause inflammation as well.

In June 2006, the World Health Organization reported that one quarter of global disease is caused by environmental exposures. But what is better is that they also stated, “Well targeted interventions can prevent much of this environmental risk.”

Take a short QUIZ to determine if you are too toxic and join me for my call on Wednesday, May 5th at 8pm EST to learn more about toxins and simple, effective ways you can safely to detoxify.

REGISTER HERE.

Have you gotten your FREE AUDIO on how to stop sugar cravings? Visit Wellness With Angela and grab your copy of The Top 10 Secrets to Conquer Sugar Cravings Fast!

How to Stop Sugar Cravings

2010-02-14T21:28:00.004-05:00

If you crave sugar and cannot seem to get a grasp on how to stop sugar cravings, have you ever considered you may have a Candida overgrowth in your body?

Candida is a clinical term for yeast that lives inside your body and may be sabotaging your best efforts to clear your skin and lose weight. I personally suffered from a Candida infection for years and did not even realize it. Doctors did not have the answers and only wanted to prescribe more and more medications, which made the situation worse.

Everyone has a certain amount of candida in their bodies that lives in their intestinal tract. But for some people, Candida has taken over and grown completely out of control, as in my case, having a field day with their gut, skin, weight, and moods. Most people do not even know they have it, much less know what it is.

How do you know if you have a Candida infection? Here are some common symptoms to clue you in:

- chronic yeast infections
- systic acne
- thrush in your mouth
- a white coating on your tongue
- jock itch
- athlete's foot
- a serious sweet tooth

If you have ever taken an antibiotic in your life, it is likely you have a Candida infection because antibiotics not only kill the bad bacteria, they kill the good baceteria your internal environment needs to thrive as well. Both men and women can suffer from Candida but particularly women; recurring vaginal yeast infections are an indication that Candida is overgrown throughout your entire body.

Candida will make every health condition you have worse too. If you have psoriasis, it will get worse. If you are depressed, you will be more depressed. If you have headaches, they will be more severe. If you are trying to lose weight, it will be more difficult. Whatever you are dealing with, it will be exacerbated by the presence of the Candida.

Candida leads to sweet cravings too. Sugar feeds Candida, so if you are craving sweets nonstop, you can almost guarantee you have an overgrowth. If you want to get rid of it, you are going to have to kill it first. And do not be surprised if it takes some time because Candida is extremely stubborn.

To eliminate Candida, you must follow 3 steps. Do not pick and choose - you must follow all 3 steps in order to completely rid yourself of it.

1.Starve it. Cut out all sugar and carbohydrates because that is what Candida eats. Doing a detox will certainly help with this step.

2.Overpopulate it with probiotics. They eat Candida so they will overpopulate it in your gut and intestines.

3.Kill it. Use nutrients, food and supplements that kill Candida like garlic, black walnut, and high doses of oregano.

Having an overgrowth of Candida is not the absolute worst thing you can have, but it certainly makes life unnecessarily more difficult. To explore more ways to eliminate Candida, consider working with a Holistic Health Practitioner.

Like what you read? Then sign up for our weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about our 9 Week Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

How to Safely and Effectively Detox Your Body FREE TELESEMINAR

2010-02-13T11:28:00.005-05:00

There is a big buzz going around about the pros and cons of detoxing. My take on it all? Nothing but pros.

Here are the facts. Toxins are in the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the water we drink. They are in our couches, our carpets, our cell phones, and our computers. They travel by planes, trains, and - you guessed it - automobiles. You get the gist?

Let me help you out. If you visit my website, there is a short quiz on the home page that you can take to determine if you should detox (scroll down to the bottom, you will see it there :)

Click here to take the QUIZ.

I am hosting another free teleseminar on Wednesday, February 24th at 8pm EST on How to Safely and Effectively Detox Your Body.

What are the benefits of detoxing? Where do I start. Try:

* increased energy
* weight loss
* faster metabolism
* better digestion
* decreased allergies
* fewer colds
* clearer skin

or just general "health" insurance for our future to name a few...

To be on the call though, you have to register. CLICK HERE to access the call in info.

On this call, we will review:

* the secrets to an effective detox and cleanse
* the hidden risks and dangers to detoxing
* how to avoid over detoxification
* the #1 foods to include and which foods to eliminate entirely during a detox program
* proven detox strategies you can implement right away

...and lots more.

Bottom line here is that detoxing is essential to health nowadays. There is no way around it. And believe me, I am not one of those fly-by-night health counselors who does not walk their talk. I live and breathe this lifestyle. So if I promote it, I have done it myself and found it to be tried and true.

Click here for the call registration.

I have an archangel on my tail and his name is Metatron. He is the twin guardian of the tree of life and assists us with our journey to higher self and complete unity. It is said he was a doctor when he walked the earth and is the closest archangel to God.

He does not want you to miss this call ;)

Register here.

Helping to clear out the chaos of your mind and body,

Angela

PS: As always, I will be recording the call so you can listen in if you get tied up, but also because it would really stink if you missed out on this.

PPS: There is going to be a fun bonus offer on the call, but it is only good to the live participants so do not forget to REGISTER.

Wellness With Angela

Like what you read? Then sign up for our weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about our 9-Week Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

Angela Minelli, CHHC, AADP - How to Safely and Effectively Detox Your Body FREE TELESEMINAR - Biznik

2010-02-13T11:14:00.000-05:00

Angela Minelli, CHHC, AADP - How to Safely and Effectively Detox Your Body FREE TELESEMINAR - Biznik

Are you too toxic?

2010-02-08T15:45:00.001-05:00

Are you too toxic? » Test maker

The Health Benefits of Chocolate Demystified! FREE TELESEMINAR

2010-02-07T11:54:00.007-05:00

Have you ever wondered if that Snickers bar is good for you? Or
if Godiva truly is the premier chocolate of the world?

Well wonder no more! Chocolate's scientific name is "theobroma cacao," which literally translates to mean "food of the Gods." And in honor of one of the most cherished holidays of the year, I'm hosting a last minute free teleseminar on "The Health Benefits of Chocolate Demystified: Simple Steps to Healthy and Delicious Homemade Chocolate!" sure to befit any God in the solar system.

Join me on Thursday, February 11 at 8pm EST, for a discussion of everyone's favorite topic - CHOCOLATE!

On this call, we'll chat about:

* 16 SEXY substances that make chocolate healthy - raar ;)

* the healthiest kinds of chocolate around

* the health BENEFITS of chocolate

* who should and shouldn’t eat chocolate

* the SECRETS to finding and eating healthy chocolate

* which types of chocolate should be avoided

* whether chocolate can be part of a healthy diet

* how to make the healthiest and most delicious homemade
chocolate in your own kitchen

and loads more!

To register for the call, click here.

In addition, I'm gifting you a FREE RECIPE GUIDE with over 10
different recipes for making the healthiest chocolate on earth just for being on the call! But you have to register to be eligible.

Remember, click here to register.

You CAN feel good about indulging in one of the most mystical super foods on planet earth! Leave the guilt behind and join me next Thursday.

In peace, love and gratitude,

Angela

Wellness With Angela

PS: Don't forget to register! Click here.

PPS: No worries if you can't make the live event, I'll be recording it as always so you can listen in after the show's over!

Pantry Makeover

2010-01-31T10:47:00.009-05:00

What to Keep, What to Toss

Everybody loves a makeover, and your pantry is no exception. Can’t you hear it begging you? “Fill me with healthy, delicious foods! Please, please, please!” Breaks your heart, doesn’t it?

Let’s give your pantry what it’s asking for. Here are some simple guidelines for what to keep, and what to toss, in your pantry.

What to Keep
Here’s the simple rule: Eat foods with ingredients you can pronounce. Easy, right? Here are some suggestions…

Whole Grains: brown rice, quinoa, millet, buckwheat, oats
Beans: lentils, pinto, black, chick pea, aduki
Snacks: LaraBars, Go Raw Trek Mex from Trader Joe’s, Mary’s Gone Crackers Flax Crackers, dried goji berries, Garden of Eatin’ Blue Corn Chips, dark chocolate
Soups: Shelton’s Turkey Chili, Amy’s Butternut Squash
Condiments: Wheat-free Tamari, extra virgin olive oil, sesame oil, dried spices, coconut oil, Amy’s Green Garlic dressing

What to Toss
Simple guidelines here, too: toss anything that has partially hydrogenated oil (be sure to read labels!), high fructose corn syrup, refined sugar, white flour, or an ingredient list a mile long. Not sure if a food falls into this category? Here’s a simple test – if the food in question is heavily advertised, it’s probably in the toss pile. You don’t see a lot of advertising dollars spent on broccoli and quinoa, but there’s some serious bucks behind most processed foods.

Food Focus: Top Five Freezer Foods

We’ve given so much attention to the pantry, our freezers are starting to feel left out! Frozen foods are another great way to keep high-quality meals and snacks on hand. Here are our five favs:

1. Edamame – these delicious baby soybeans are ready in a snap, great with Celtic Seal Salt and fun to eat
2. Organic Frozen Veggies – make a fabulous stir-fry on the fly
3. Amy’s Frozen Entrees and Burritos – almost like mom used to make
4. Rice Expressions Frozen Original Brown Rice – individually portioned brown rice in 3 minutes
5. Organic Frozen Mixed Berries – perfect for yummy smoothies

Recipe: Simple Brown Rice Stir Fry
Use staples from your pantry and freezer. Serves four.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
4 Tbsp tamari (wheat-free)
1-2 skinless, boneless breast halves, thinly sliced crosswise
1 tsp honey
2 Tbsp olive
1 Tbsp sesame oil
4 tsp minced fresh ginger or1 tsp powdered
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups short-grain brown rice, cooked and cooled
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2/3 cup chopped green onion

Directions:
1. Stir walnuts in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat until lightly toasted (3 minutes). Drizzle 2 Tbsp tamari over walnuts: stir until tamari coats walnuts (45 seconds). Cool. These can be made ahead and stored at room temperature in airtight container for 3 days.
2. Combine chicken, 2 Tbsp tamari and 1tsp honey in a medium bowl. Toss to coat and let stand 15 minutes.
3. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add chicken and stir-fry 2 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and stir-fry 30 seconds. Add cooked rice, red pepper and sesame oil: reduce heat to medium and stir-fry until heated through (about 5 minutes). Season with salt and pepper. Divide rice mixture among plates. Sprinkle with green onions and walnuts.

Like what you read? Then sign up for our weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about our 9-Week Nutrition & Lifestyle Complete Transformation System by signing up for an Initial Nutrition Assessment at Wellness With Angela

Eating Healthy On-The-Go

2010-01-17T13:05:00.012-05:00

Let’s face it – we’re busy people! A flight for work, a busy day of errands, a road trip to a friend’s house, back-to-back meetings, a weekend away with someone special…. We’ve got places to go and things to do. So how do we fuel ourselves well when we’re on the run?

It easy! Just remember your “QTQs”. Nope, that’s not a stock symbol for a high-tech company. “QTQ” stands for Quality, Timing and Quantity, three easy concepts to keep in mind when eating on-the-go.

Quality: Aim to have the least processed foods available. The closer a food is to its natural state, the higher the quality.

Timing: Timing is crucial when eating on-the-go. Make sure you eat every four hours. If you’re ravenous, you’re far more likely to fall prey to the siren call of the drive-thru.

Quantity: It’s easy to mindlessly chomp on chow when you’re driving or bored at the airport. Take time to breathe and chew while you eat, so you can really feel when your body has had enough. Aim to eat to the point of feeling like you’ve refilled your energy stores, and then stop. You want to your food to fuel you up when you’re on the run, not slow you down.

So the next time you have a whirlwind day, all you have to remember is “QTQ”. To help you pick the highest Quality travel foods, check out our list below.

Food Focus: Top Ten Travel Foods

Here’s a Top Ten list David Letterman never published. Pack up, kids, we’re going on a road trip QTQ-style!

1.Ezekial sprouted wrap with organic almond butter and sliced dried prunes or figs
2.Veggie Surprise – cut jicama, cukes, celery, snap peas, and bell peppers
3.Fruit – fresh cherries, plums, apples, pears and oranges
4.Hard boiled eggs
5.Ezekial sprouted wrap with organic turkey slices, sprouts & spicy mustard
6.Plain yogurt with fresh berries
7.Hummus with veggies or Mary’s Gone Crackers Flax Crackers
8.Greens Plus Bar with Protein
9.Home Touch Trail Mix (see recipe below)
10.Quesadilla with sprouted corn tortilla avocado, organic cheese and salsa

Recipe: Home Touch Trail Mix
from Integrative Nutrition.

Ingredients:
2 cups almonds, raw
1 cup pecans
2 cups walnuts, raw
2 cups pumpkin or squash seed, raw
2 cups dried cranberries (unsweetened)
1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)

Directions:
1.In a bowl mix together almonds, pecans, walnuts and seeds. Cover with water and soak overnight.
2.Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
3.Rinse and discard soaking water.
4.Add cranberries and add olive oil. Mix until everything is coated well.
5.Spread the mixture out evenly on baking sheet and place in the oven for about 20 minutes or until you can smell the roasting nuts and they start to turn a lot.
6.Cool and store in an air-tight glass container.

Notes:
* Try any nuts and dried fruits you like
* The nuts and seeds can be soaked for a few hours to help their digestibility

Like what you read? Then sign up for our weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

Did you know that most people who don't get the support and accountability to reach their health goals usually fail in the long run? Find out more about our 9-Week Nutrition & Lifestyle Complete Transformation System by signing up for a No Fee 30-Minute Nutritional Breakthrough Session at :Wellness With Angela

Clean With Greens

2010-01-10T21:29:00.011-05:00

You’ve probably heard the words “detox” and “cleanse” a lot recently. They’re pretty big buzzwords in the nutrition field. But what do they actually mean? The words themselves are pretty interchangeable. Let’s start with dictionary definitions from Merriam-Webster.

Cleanse: to rid of impurities by or as if by washing
Detox: to free from an intoxicating or an addictive substance, or dependence on such a substance

Pretty much the same thing, right? So “cleansing” and “detox” mean taking out toxins and addictive stuff, like sugar, nicotine, alcohol, caffeine and chemicals (coined “SNACCs” by detox doctor Elson Haas). But removing toxins is only one side of the cleansing equation. The other side, which is just as crucial, is adding in nutrient dense whole foods. So the formula is simple – reduce SNACCs, increase whole foods.

Now, keeping our formula in mind, there are different degrees of cleansing. You can go out in the desert and live on water for 40 days to cleanse, or you can simply eliminate one food that you rely on every day. It could be your morning bagel, your 3pm mocha latte or the fast-food drive through lane you find yourself in on the way home from work.

Remember, eliminating toxins is only one side of the equation. So you’ve decided which SNACC you are getting rid of. Great! Now what do you add to your daily diet? We suggest green vegetables, and lots of them! Some examples of green vegetables are kale, collard greens, dandelion greens, spinach, and arugula. They are the foods most missing in modern diets, and are loaded with beneficial phytochemicals and cleansing fiber. You may be thinking “But I don’t have time to cook green vegetables.” Not to worry! Wheatgrass is a great shortcut to getting more green veggie power into your diet everyday.

Wheatgrass first became widely known in the West in the 1930s, when a man named Charles Schnabel began touting its benefits. Schnabel claimed “15 pounds of wheatgrass is equivalent to 350 pounds of the choicest vegetables.” Although science hasn’t proven that claim, it has proven that wheatgrass has one of the highest concentrations of nutrients and is the fastest and easiest grass to grow. The best to way to absorb its goodness is by extracting the juice.

Wheatgrass works by filling nutritional gaps in the diet and cleansing the blood. It is high in vitamins A, C and E, containing the same amount of vitamin C as an orange. It is also an excellent source of essential B vitamins, which are necessary for normal brain and body development. Wheatgrass juice also contains many essential minerals (calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron, sodium) that are necessary for healthy bones, teeth, hair and skin.

Wheatgrass juice contains natural enzymes, which help the body’s defense mechanism by strengthening cells and removing poisons from the blood stream. It helps eliminate toxins accumulated from eating processed food, breathing polluted air and drinking impure water. Wheatgrass is approximately 70% crude chlorophyll, which can alkalize the body and have a highly energizing effect.

Wheatgrass also has a dilating effect on the blood vessels, allowing blood to flow more easily. This improved circulation means valuable nutrients can be distributed more efficiently throughout the body. It also has an effect on red blood cells, increasing the iron content in the blood.

Where To Get Wheatgrass
- Juice bars (Jamba Juice, Robek’s Juice) sell shots of wheatgrass
- Whole Foods Markets carry frozen wheatgrass juices in individual containers
- Dynamic Greens

How to Take Wheatgrass
- Take on an empty stomach
- Start with a quarter of a shot and build up to a full shot, gradually
- Follow with a glass of water
- Mix with other vegetable juices, such as celery, parsley and spinach

Recipe: Simply Green Juice
from Wheat Grass For Life

Ingredients:
Stalk of celery
4 large spinach leaves
Half cup parsley
2-3 inch round of wheatgrass
1/4 cup water (optional)

Directions:
- Wash greens thoroughly, cut up celery and juice
- Dilute with water if desired

Like what you read? Then sign up for our weekly Healthy E-newsletter here: Wellness With Angela

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.

2010-01-03T17:25:00.001-05:00

Use Twitterfeed to link your blog to Twitter!

5 easy ways to keep New Year's resolutions

2009-12-27T10:52:00.006-05:00

A lot of people begin the New Year by making resolutions. We’ve all been there. We take a vow to lose weight, exercise more or spend more time with our family. We start the year with great intentions, but then we quickly relapse into old habits. Why is it so hard to stick to those New Year’s resolutions?

Here are some ways you can make your intentions a reality this year:

1. Write down your intentions and keep them in a visible place, like taped to your bedroom mirror or the dashboard of your car.

2. Get to the source of whatever is keeping you in a rut. Are you in a stressful relationship that causes you to eat a pint of Ben & Jerry’s every night? Are you stressed at work and feel too tired to exercise after work? If you don’t tackle the root of the behavior, it will be much harder to accomplish your goal.

3. Be clear about what your life would look like once you achieve your goal. If you resolve to go to the gym more, how will this benefit you? Get connected to the result of your action, and you will be more likely to stick with your plan.

4. Share your resolutions with friends and family. Hold each other accountable for achieving your goals. If you want to go to the gym more, have a friend call you two or three times a week to check on you or invite them to join you.

5. Reward yourself with every little accomplishment. If your intention is to lose weight and you lose 1 pound a week, pamper yourself with a massage.

Big changes do not require big leaps. Permanent change is more likely to happen gradually than through one big restrictive plan. Allow yourself to climb the ladder one rung at a time.

Visit Wellness With Angela to schedule a complimentary 30-minute Nutritional Breakthrough Session and find out more about our brand new 9-Week Nutrition & Lifestyle Complete Transformation System.

Could One Conversation Change Your Life? (North Olmsted, Ohio)

2009-12-22T18:53:00.000-05:00

Could One Conversation Change Your Life? (Nationwide)

Fat-dissolving vegetables

2009-12-18T20:47:00.009-05:00

Need to lose weight or lower your blood cholesterol? Chinese medicine recommends the following vegetables to dissolve fat and get your cholesterol up to par:

* red radish
* daikon radish - daikon is larger and milder than its relative, the red radish. Use the daikon as you would a radish. It may be served raw in salads or grated for use as a condiment (use a cheese grater and grate just before serving), pickled, or simmered in a soup
* turnip
* onion
* green onion
* leek - a plant allied to the onion, having a cylindrical bulb and leaves used in cooking
* shiitake mushroom - a large, meaty, black or dark brown mushroom, native to eastern Asia and frequently used in Japanese and Chinese cookery.

Try this recipe for Braised Red Radishes. When braised, the white flesh of the radishes turns light pink and the sharpness fades. What's left is the pure flavor of the radish. This recipe serves 4 as a side dish:

* 20 medium radishes, leaves, stems, and rootlets removed (about 1 lb when trimmed)
* 1 tbsp unsalted butter
* 1 medium shallot, minced
* 1/2 c vegetable stock
* 1 tbsp honey
* 1 tbsp minced fresh parsley leaves

Unless very small, halve the radishes length-wise from stem to root end. Melt the butter in a large saute pan. Add the shallot and saute over medium heat until softened, about 2 minutes. Add the radishes and stir, cooking until well coated with butter about 1 minute. Add the stock and honey, then cover and cook about 10 minutes until the radishes are tender but not soft. Remove the cover and season with salt to taste. Simmer to allow any juices in the pan to reduce to a glaze, about a minute. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Wellness With Angela

What to eat when there's nothing to eat

2009-12-13T14:24:00.006-05:00

Who wants to leave their house on days like this? It's cold and rainy, on the verge of snow, yet when you need to eat you need to eat! I'm due for a trip to the grocery store but really didn't want to leave the house, so I peered in my kitchen to see if perhaps i could whip something up when my pantry's almost empty.

I literally came up with a new recipe in a flash, what I now call my Salmon Brown Rice Whole Wheat Tortillas! And with just a few ingredients. I sure am glad I was too lazy to head outside today.

Here's what I created:

*1 whole wheat organic tortilla
*hummus, any kind, as much as you want
*organic romaine lettuce
*cooked brown rice (leftover from another meal earlier in the week)
*salsa, any kind, as much as you want
*cooked salmon fillet (again, from another meal earlier in the week) or any lean protein source of your choice

Layer in order of ingredients and enjoy! Oh, and remember to chew slowly for the best digestion and for proper weight management - 20-30 times per bite. Then finish with a few bites of raw chocolate from The Chocolate Conspiracy or Gnosis Chocolate. I had Mint Chip!

Eating healthy doesn't require a lot of work or time, and is better than any fast food meal around. Meals like this require very little effort and are so much more nutritious. Plus, it's especially important to keep on top of your hunger during the busy holiday season and with just a few ingredients on hand, you can have a most satisfying and delightful meal.

Stay frosty.

Wellness With Angela

Water is essential for curbing cravings

2009-12-13T12:02:00.002-05:00

Most of us are aware of the importance of drinking enough water. Getting our daily dose of water helps our organs perform their functions, keeps our skin clear and hydrated, and allows physical action in our bodies to flow smoothly. Even with this knowledge, it can still be challenging to drink all the water our bodies deserve daily. In the summer, when we tend to play hard, sweat and spend prolonged time in the sun, drinking plenty of water is critical. Those who are not drinking enough may experience poor digestion, sluggish thinking, skin breakouts, headaches, bad breath and general fatigue.

To start your day right, set a large glass of water by your bed each night and drink it when you wake up. Drinking water first thing in the morning pulls out toxins from the previous day and freshens your system for the day ahead. Keep a bottle of water accessible throughout the day, whether you are on the go or at a desk. Having a bottle of water close by will remind you to take a sip when thirsty. The first sip will usually let you know how much more water you need. A sip or two may be enough, or you may need a big glass. If you drink most of your daily water before early evening, you most likely will not be thirsty before bed. This is good, because drinking before bed and then waking to use the bathroom disturbs your peaceful night’s sleep.

What about quality? Some people like bottled water, while others prefer filtered water. The key is to like the taste of the water you are drinking, and the water should agree with your body. If the taste of plain water is unappealing, experiment to see how you can make it tasty and drinkable. Try adding a few mint leaves, a wedge of lemon, a sprig of parsley, slices of cucumber, a twist of lime or a squeeze of orange to make water more tempting, or to jazz up your routine. Also, drinking tea or juice and eating raw fruits and vegetables contribute to the hydration process. So make sure you're drinking plenty of water throughout the holiday season, and all year, to stay hydrated and feed your real hunger.

Try this scrumptious ginger drink which makes it easy to get plenty of water into your daily diet:

Ginger Drink
Prep Time: 7 minutes
Cook Time: 24 hours
Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh ginger root
2 quarts water
juice of 2 limes
maple syrup or agave nectar to taste

Directions:
1. Thinly peel the fresh ginger, grate and mix with water in a large saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil and simmer for 4 minutes. Cover the pan and turn off the heat; leave
for 24 hours.
3. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh sieve.
4. Add the lime juice and maple syrup or agave. Stir until dissolved. Serve chilled.

Wellness With Angela

Sea vegetables have tremendous healing powers

2009-12-09T10:10:00.003-05:00

In traditional Chinese healing, sea vegetables correspond to the winter season and to the kidneys, adrenal glands, bladder and reproductive organs. The strengthening, balancing and cleansing properties of sea vegetables are known to help these organs as well as the hair, skin and nails. Sea vegetables (or seaweeds) provide a variety of minerals and vitamins, including calcium, iron and iodine, and can help balance hormone and thyroid levels in the body. Eating too many processed foods or foods grown in mineral-depleted soil can result in a lack of minerals in the body, leading to cravings for salty or sugary foods. Adding sea vegetables to your diet can help balance your energy levels and alleviate cravings.

Try this recipe for Mighty Miso Soup and see how it makes you feel!

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
Cooking Time: 10-15 minutes
Yield: 4-5 servings

Ingredients:
4-5 cups spring water
1-2 inch strip of wakame, rinsed and soaked 5 minutes
in 1 cup of water until softened
1-2 cups thinly sliced vegetables of your choice (see notes)
2-3 teaspoons barley miso
2 scallions, finely chopped

Directions:
1. Chop soaked wakame.
2. Discard soaking water or use on houseplants for a boost of minerals.
3. Place water and wakame in a soup pot and bring to a boil.
4. Add root vegetables first and simmer gently for 5 minutes or until tender.
5. Add leafy vegetables and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
6. Remove about 1/2 cup of liquid from pot and dissolve miso into it. Return it to the pot.
7. Reduce heat to very low; do not boil or simmer miso broth.
8. Allow soup to cook 2-3 minutes.
9. Garnish with scallions and serve.

Note:
Any combination of vegetables can be used in miso soup. Here are some classic combinations:
• onion-daikon: cleansing
• onion-carrot-shiitake mushroom-kale: mildly sweet
• onion-winter squash-cabbage: great in wintertime
• leek-corn-broccoli: great in summertime

Variations:
• Add cooked grains at the start of making the soup. They will become nice and soft.
• Add a tablespoon of uncooked quinoa or millet at the beginning and let it cook with vegetables for 20 minutes.
• Add cubed tofu toward the end.
• Add bean sprouts toward the end.
• Season with 1/2 teaspoon ginger juice for an interesting twist.
• If using dry shiitake mushrooms, let them soak for 20 minutes, slice and add at the beginning.

Wellness With Angela

FREE WEBINAR: Learn 5 Surefire Ways to Control Sugar Cravings Before the Holidays!

2009-12-08T09:59:00.008-05:00

Are you constantly craving sweets and want to understand why?

Do you want to gain control easily and effortlessly and without
restriction or denial?

Are you ready to breakthrough your sugar cravings?

Join Wellness With Angela for a free webinar and learn:

• the physical and emotional reasons why we crave sugar,
especially around the holidays!
• the impact refined sugar has on your body
• why sugar is not the problem, it’s the solution
• the many names of sugar
• the dangers of artificial sweeteners
• the 8 causes of cravings
• how your daily food choices can lead to the 3pm slump!

This webinar will result in an instant understanding of why you
crave sugar and will empower you to become more at peace with
yourself. You'll easily begin the process of finding satisfaction
in forms of nourishment other than food. Without it, you'll end up
stuck in a never-ending cycle of craving and bingeing with no way
out.

If you’ve ever had cravings for sweets, this is the webinar for you. You will gain a better understanding as to the causes of your sugar cravings and you’ll receive practical tools for dealing with them. It’ll be an informative event that will permanently change your relationship with sugar!

Title: FREE WEBINAR: Learn 5 Surefire Ways to Control Sugar
Cravings Before the Holidays! by Wellness With Angela

Date: Monday, December 14, 2009
Time: 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM EST

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now! After registering you will receive a confirmation email
containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Wellness With Angela

Chewy Banana Oat Cookies

2009-12-06T17:17:00.007-05:00

These cookies are courtesy of fellow Holistic Health Counselor, Stacey Weckstein. They're a great substitute for any cookie that contains refined sugar because they're sweetened with bananas, a natural sweetener. I add raisins too for extra sweetness because remember, you'll always want sweet - it's one of your taste buds. It's really just a matter of improving the quality of what you choose to eat.

Chewy Banana Oat Cookies

1 1/2 cups of rolled oats
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pinch of cinnamon (optional)
2 Tbsp chopped raisins or nuts
1 Cup bananas mashed
3/8 cup organic canola oil

Preheat oven to 350. Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl mix mashed bananas and oil until incorporated then add this mixture to the dry ingredients. Drop heaping teaspoons onto an un‐oiled cookie sheet and bake 10‐15 minutes.

Variations to this recipe: use 1 cup mashed sweet potato or mashed acorn squash in place of banana. You can also create other whole grain varieties by eliminating the oats and replacing with rolled wheat flakes, barley flakes, rye flakes, spelt flakes or kamut flakes.

So simple and SO good!

Wellness With Angela

The 4 Hidden Secrets to Reducing Cravings, Clearer Skin, and Increased Energy Without Giving Up Chocolate!

2009-11-29T21:04:00.006-05:00

Do you find yourself craving cookies and cakes at times when you know you're not hungry, especially after you just ate a full meal?

Do you feel residual guilt or shame when you eat, even if what you're eating is considered "healthy" food?

Are you tired of struggling with diets that don't work, and just wind up back in square one right where you started? (Hint: that's because diets don't work!)

Have you visited dieticians time and time again, only to be given the same blanket approach to nutrition that you know doesn't work for your unique body, yet you just don't know where else to turn?

Do you follow "doctor's orders" word-for-word and still don't see the results with your health that you desire?

Would you love to find a different path to health and wellness altogether, one that specifically addresses the root causes of cravings, stress, and excess weight, and works to reverse them so you set yourself up for a lifetime of change?

For more info, click here.

Baked Bananas

2009-11-26T10:14:00.005-05:00

If you are looking for a delicious dessert that you can enjoy without the guilt, try this tasty treat!

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients:
4 firm bananas
1 teaspoon olive oil
1-inch piece grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon nutmeg
1/2 cup raisins

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Peel and cut bananas in half, lengthwise.
3. Oil a baking pan and arrange bananas.
4. Sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and raisins.
5. Cover and bake for 10 to 15 minutes.

Notes:

* Wonderful with chocolate sauce, naturally sweetened of course...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wellness With Angela

FREE WEBINAR: Healthy Eating at Work and Stress Management 101 by Wellness With Angela

2009-11-25T22:49:00.002-05:00

Job stress got you down? Bingeing on too much sugar and caffeine, hoping to find even a drop of energy after another late night slaving over your computer? And what makes it worse is you never seem to find relief, because artificial forms of energy just wind up leave you feeling sluggish, defeated and depressed.

Stress is one of the leading causes of death in the US. It's time to slow down and focus on YOU! Join Wellness With Angela for a free webinar on Healthy Eating at Work and Stress Management 101.

In this webinar, we'll explore:

* the current state of health in the US today - are we healthy?
* what's gone wrong
* The Ideal Meal
* the negative effects of refined sugar and healthy alternatives
* simple ways to reduce stress and improve your health

The paradigm around healthcare is changing, yet the choice to maintain your health is up to you. Take charge by attending this free webinar and say yes to reclaiming your health!

Title: FREE WEBINAR: Healthy Eating at Work and Stress Management 101 by Wellness With Angela

Date: Monday, December 7, 2009
Time: 8:00 PM - 9:00 PM EST

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/941597248
After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Wellness With Angela

A killer green smoothie even kids would love

2009-11-24T20:49:00.009-05:00

I'm big on greens. Kale, spinach, romaine - all of 'em. Greens are naturally detoxifying, they boost your immune system, and lift depression. They're super high in fiber and calcium (yea, more than dairy and less offensive to your diet), they improve circulation and are proven to prevent diseases such as cancer. So do yourself a favor and make this recipe every day. You'll thank me for it.

1 cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk
2 scoops Love and Peas Protein Powder
1/4 frozen berries
a handful of spinach
2-3 ice cubes
a whole lotta love

Blend on highest speed, preferably in a Vita Mix. Enjoy.

Wellness With Angela

2009-11-22T12:28:00.001-05:00

Work out then off to mom and dads!

5 simple Thanksgiving holiday survival tips

2009-11-20T08:30:00.007-05:00

Thanksgiving is one of the most prolific times of year when it comes to our capacity to consume food, especially candies and pastries, and yet there are simple tactics available to help you survive that won't leave you feeling defeated, ashamed, or simply worn out.

1. A simple way to ward off cravings when confronted with the inevitable deluge of sweet deities you're sure to encounter in the coming month is to take 3 deep breaths, then drink a glass of water. Check to see if the craving is still there and repeat as necessary.

2. Incorporate sweet vegetables in to your holiday feast, such as sweet potatoes, carrots, onions, or even beets. Sweet vegetables will satisfy your cravings while providing vitamins, minerals, and fiber at the same time instead of robbing your body of essential nutrients as with refined sugar.

3. Make your desserts with natural sweeteners this year. Try agave, stevia, or brown rice syrup. Natural sweeteners are lower on the glycemic index, so they don't rush your blood system compared to their refined counterparts, and won't leave you craving more later on.

4. Create a nourishment menu and tack it to your fridge. A nourishment menu includes anything you like to do that is a non-food source of pleasure, such as reading, walking, or connecting with a friend. When cravings hit, check it and see if something on your list would satisfy you instead.

5. Don’t condemn yourself if a craving hits. Instead, deconstruct it and try to determine what’s behind it. Are you feeling overwhelmed or stressed out? Trapped in an uncomfortable conversation that's making you squirm? Feeling like you'd rather die than go to another annoying office party?

Often times when we have a craving, it's not actual food we want. Too many times we try to use food to fill a void it never can. But don't deny yourself! If there's a decadent treat you really want, go ahead and indulge. Because it's not about what you do every once in a while that matters - it's about what you do every day that really makes a difference.

Wellness With Angela

Flu Tips

2009-11-16T23:28:00.001-05:00

Flu Tips

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Coca-Cola Sued For Sugar Laden VitaminWater Sold As Healthy Alternative

2009-11-15T10:58:00.000-05:00

Coca-Cola Sued For Sugar Laden VitaminWater Sold As Healthy Alternative

Expert Pediatrician Exposes Vaccine Myths

2009-11-14T07:29:00.000-05:00

Expert Pediatrician Exposes Vaccine Myths

2009-11-12T10:24:00.001-05:00

Quick work out then off to client meeting!

How to satisfy common food cravings with the food your body is really craving

2009-11-10T21:55:00.001-05:00

How to satisfy common food cravings with the food your body is really craving

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Why Antidepressants Don't Work

2009-11-10T14:51:00.000-05:00

Why Antidepressants Don't Work

Do you know GMOs?

2009-11-07T17:31:00.001-05:00

Do you know GMOs? » Quiz School

Cravings

2009-11-07T13:59:00.011-05:00

They're back, hmm what's going on. I thought I had conquered my temptations. It's all about balance right? Let's see. Satisfying career - check. Healthy relationships - could be a little better but for the most part, but check (still waiting on Mr. Right though :) Spirituality - check check! Love the Universe. Physical activity - GONG.

What's wrong with me? This was supposed to be straightened out months ago. Grr. I was going along great, and now kerplunk. Well, I suppose they can still sneak up on ya, when you least expect it. So can we really have what we want all at the same time? Is that really possible so that my food doesn't call to me when it's not really food that I want? Call me Pollyanna, but I still believe it is.

I left my job in March to pursue health counseling full time. Do I regret it? Not for a flippin second. Do I wish I was over the hump? You betchya! Being in business for yourself is rewarding yet wildly challenging, in ways I did not expect. Where's my support staff? Where's my overnight success? Hey this was supposed to be easy!!!

I was a claims adjuster in my former career and a year ago today I was just returning from Houston, Tx after working Hurricane Ike for 3 months. I left 2 days before I was scheduled to come home because I couldn't take the stress another day. It was excruciating, and although I was paid well, I had decided enough was enough and it wasn't worth it. I remember sitting in my hotel room, dreaming about a different life, and I wrote on a piece of paper, "I want a career that I love, that I can't wait to get out of bed every day to go do, and that sustains me." Right now, I'm halfway there.

These are the "growing pains" as they say. And man, do they hurt. It's all a labor of love, and yet the uncertainty is killing me. I've been here before in life, and I've always landed on my feet. I keep thingking I have so much to offer, how could anyone turn me away? I know I'm well-suited for this lifestyle - more so than many others - so no worries. But tell that to the demons in my head who like to tell me otherwise.

So it's no surprise that right now I'm not at my best. That's right, the health counselor needs counseling. Granted my cravings come in a much different form than they used to years ago. I don't garbage up on Snickers, Oreos, or Hostess Cupcakes. Nah. It's more along the lines of 70% cacao dark chocolate, natural peanut butter sweetened with brown rice syrup, or whole grain breads. But they're cravings nonetheless and they're trying to talk to me. They're sending a message that somethings needs fixin and fast. I don't ignore them, but rather I pay attention, and know immediately they're saying.

Now I just gotta listen and go do it.

Wellness With Angela

2009-11-05T16:16:00.001-05:00

Conducting workshop tonight, eating grounding foods such as root vegetables to keep me focused and on track!

Shower talks

2009-10-31T11:28:00.007-04:00

For some reason, whenever I take a shower, my mind opens up and thoughts just flow through me. Answers to dilemmas, problems or situations become obvious and I can barely get out fast enough to write them down.

How odd! Or is it? Maybe it's the warmth of the water that makes me relax and start listening instead of trying to direct. I'm always trying to make things go the way I think they should, but realize later they happened exactly as they were supposed to and in the right order - aside from my better judgement. Sure, I know what I want from life, but actually getting it isn't always my area of expertise. I have a tendency to mess that part up sometimes and wind up regretting it. If I would only pay attention to the signs.

Moving into this new phase of my life is challenging. I readily admit that I never anticipated half the situations I've experienced so far. It's been a bit bumpy and undoubtebly I've questioned myself and my decisions many times over. Yet one constant remains, which is my passion. My new career is unbelievably rewarding and the one thing I have never doubted is my commitment to it. To be called to a career that is so fulfilling is magic. I truly never thought it was possible.

While it will take hard work and persistence, I'm in it for the long haul. I finally feel in alignment with my life's purpose and absolutely nothing else can take it's place. The creativity I'm unleashing is fierce, but resiliency will be key in making it happen. Against many odds, I plan on being a success and writing to tell about it. Let the journey begin.

Wellness With Angela

Healthy oils and fats

2009-10-26T21:51:00.007-04:00

Not all oils and fats are created equal. Heavily processed, hydrogenated, “trans” fats and oils that are used in prepared, packaged foods can be extremely damaging to the body. However, fats and oils from whole foods and other high-quality sources can steady our metabolism, keep hormone levels even, nourish our skin, hair and nails and provide lubrication to keep the body functioning fluidly. Our bodies also need fat for insulation and to protect and hold our organs in place.

A healthy percentage of high-quality fat in a meal satisfies and leaves feelings of energy, fulfillment and warmth. When there are excess fats and oils in the diet, especially heavily processed fats, symptoms can include weight gain, skin breakouts, high blood pressure, liver strain and an overall feeling of mental, physical and emotional heaviness. Signs of insufficient high-quality fats are brittle hair and nails, dry skin, hunger after meals and feeling cold.

There are many sources of healthy fats and oils. For sautéing and baking, try butter, ghee (clarified butter) or coconut oil because they do not break down when used at high temperatures. When sautéing foods at moderate temperatures, try organic extra virgin olive oil. Oils like flaxseed, sesame, toasted sesame, walnut and pumpkin seed are best used unheated in sauces or dressings on top of salads, veggies or grains. Other healthy fats are found in whole nuts and seeds and in their butters like almond butter or tahini. Whole foods such as avocados, olives and coconuts are great sources of healthy fat, along with wild salmon and omega-3 and omega-6 organic eggs. Experiment with these healthy fat sources and see which work best for you and leave you satisfied.

When selecting oils, buy the highest-quality organic products you can afford, since cooking oils are the backbone of so many dishes. Good words to look for on the label are organic, first-pressed, cold-pressed, extra-virgin and unrefined. Words to avoid are expeller-pressed, refined and solvent extracted.

Get to know GMOs

2009-10-24T10:10:00.008-04:00

Fall. What a beautiful time of year. My favorite actually! The cooler weather and colorful leaves often evoke feelings of reflection, indicating a time for change. Nothing could be needed more when it comes to the US food supply, particularly regarding GMOs.

Serious health problems linked to Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) in our food are skyrocketing. Since 1996 Americans have been eating genetically modified ingredients (GM) in most processed foods. GM plants, such as soybean, corn, cottonseed, and canola have had foreign genes forced into their DNA in order to increase food production.

The inserted genes come from species such as bacteria and viruses, which have never been in the human food supply. GMOs have been linked to toxic and allergic reactions, thousands of diseases, and damage to virtually every organ and system studied. The methods used to genetically engineer plants are imprecise and extremely dangerous.

80% of food sold in North America already contains ingredients made of GMOs that have not been adequately tested for safety. In contrast, we want healthy, happy whole foods, just as they are straight from the earth - like what you see in this picture of me from my recent trip to Italy. When the tipping point of consumer concern about GMOs was achieved in Europe in 1999, within a single week virtually all major food manufacturers committed to removing GM ingredients.

There is a movement toward the same change in the US. Visit websites such as Seeds of Deception or The Institute for Responsible Technology to learn more and find out what you can do to help put a stop to this issue. It's critical for our own health and that of others. There is no substantiated evidence that GMOs are safe or help feed the worlds hungry; to the contrary, they're contributing in large part to the lack of safety in our food supply and catastrophic disease.

My intention as a health counselor is to bring awareness to this issue to effect positive change. I invite you to join me in this cause.

2009-10-19T18:06:00.001-04:00

C'mon Universe - I'm waiting (tap tap tap :)

2009-10-17T18:58:00.001-04:00

I am always amazed at how the Universe responds to my requests when I cooperate

Oops, I did it again

2009-09-15T12:29:00.009-04:00

Phew, that was close. I almost led myself to believe that failure was not only an option but inevitable, and that the Universe was not in fact supporting me as I had come to believe. Doubt took over and made me think that my dream of achieving success would never materialize, and I trusted that feeling instead. Temporarily.

I love my new career as a Holistic Health Counselor, more than any other career I've tried on for size. When I'm counseling, I'm aligned with myself and have no question I am doing what I am supposed to be doing. I'm a natural helper and healer and nothing gives me more satisfaction in life than to educate others about their health. So why would I question it and attempt anything else?

Fear! It's pesky and annoying but it's there. It's in all of us and enjoys scaring us into believing we're not good enough and we'll never get what we want. Moreover, it also wants us to think that we're crazy for not following the status quo and instead daring to be different and following our passions. But that's boring, and I don't want to be boring.

I've drawn the conclusion that the fear will always be there, no matter what I do. I just need to learn to live with it, and embrace it even. I can try to rail against it and defeat it, but I've done that my whole life and guess what? It's still there! I understand now that whatever I do, there will always be an element of fear and doubt and that those emotions actually fuel me to survive. No going back this time I've decided. I'm trusting this feeling in spite of everything and have no doubt for sure I am headed in the right direction.

So I have to ask, are you?

Ugh

2009-09-07T23:10:00.004-04:00

I wish I had never stopped exercising. It's only been a year or two since I quit but what a difference. I remember telling myself in my early 30's, when I started back up after a 5-year hiatus, that I would never quit again. And yet I did. I worked out regularly for almost 10 years before that, but when my job became my life, it all came to a screeching halt. I missed it and tried haphazardly to fit it in but it didn't stick. Now I have the time again, and a whole new attitude, but my knees haven't quite gotten the message yet. Damn.

I've made a commitment to myself to get back on track. Not only is it affecting my body but my mind as well. It feels great to exercise, both during and after. I notice the effects immediately. I no longer view it as another task or chore to accomplish either, but rather time well spent with myself that I need and deserve. I no longer feel a disconnect between my head and lower extremeties and realize they are one. I don't punish myself for not pushing as hard as others; instead, I go at my own pace and know I will get better and better in time just like each time I started up before. Most importantly I appreciate the effort I make each and every time and my body for being strong and supporting me. I can't neglect it any longer and need to love and nurture it like a beloved friend or relative.

My blog is a great place to track my progress! I can easily document my physical and emotional changes as I go along. I've never been one to journal so this is the next best thing. Today I completed a half hour cardio workout, tomorrow an hour! I look forward to it.

Slowing down

2009-08-27T21:19:00.010-04:00

My life is so incredibly different than a year ago this time, for the better. I simplified it drastically and I'm loving every minute it.

Why do we so often feel that doing more and being stressed out means we're better at life? This was my life for so long until I finally figured out I was doing it all wrong. That's not how it's supposed to be. I wouldn't have listened if someone tried telling me that before, but now I get it. Thank God! I love my own version of "The Simple Life" - a normal 9-5 (sort of but close enough) in a job I love, time with friends and family, and regular exercise . The cons? Not as much money, less travel, starting over. Ok, the money stinks but I still travel some. And I love starting over. I love how uncomplicated my life has become. I've literally regressed to my mid-20's in my career and general lifestyle and can't get enough of it. No ridiculously tiring work weeks in an uber stressful and thankless job, enjoying summer in my own house, and seeing my pets every day makes anything I've sacrificed worth it.

How did it get so out of control in the first place? Thwarting my intuition, plain and simple. Not listening to that little voice inside that we all have that was trying to lead me in the right direction but I thought I knew better. Life would be so different if I had paid attention but I guess this is how it was meant to be. It all happens just like it's supposed to, even if it doesn't seem to make sense at the time. I let money drive me and was trying to avoid my true feelings and desires. Something knew better though and took over, forcing me to stop the insanity and redirect. I literally could not deny it. I see now that being uncomfortable and uncertain are both good feelings because they mean I'm getting answers to what I've asked for, by making me change my circumstances. If I had stayed stagnant, nothing would've change right? So now I try to just go with it and have learned to recognize and trust the signs, both good and bad.

Of course there's more I want. The desire for wanting never goes away. We're constantly changing because energy is constantly changing. I've learned to like it though now that I understand it. It keeps me moving ahead. It'd be nice to have everything I desire all at once and I do believe it's possible, but I'm still getting there; being brave and taking chances is the only way to make it happen though. Sounds cliche and yet it's entirely true. I've made some pretty bold moves over the course of this past year and I'm proud I had the courage to because my life has improved tremendously as a result.

I hope to inspire others to awaken to changes they need to make so their lives improve too. It's so rewarding to break free of binds that don't serve and find balance and happiness. I'll never give it up again.

Dreaded sugar again

2009-08-20T19:39:00.012-04:00

I'd been doing so well, sugar-free for nearly a month. I was so proud and relieved that I could actually do it and not even so much as want a nibble. After about 3 weeks though, sure enough - it found me. It apparently missed me and claimed me against my better judgement. Not really wanting to give in, I indulged anyway because the truth was I missed it too. First a Chunky Monkey smoothie, then two delicious thick and scrumptious frosted cookies. Nirvana. And last but not least, a Godiva peanut butter chocolate egg - the Queen Mother of Sugar.

What threw me off? Too busy. Not paying attention. Needing to slow down and ignoring my inner voice. How true it is we need to listen to our cravings! However, ironically, none of it satisfied me like it had before. I was shocked. I went from one delectable treat to the next, assuring myself in the process that each one's successor would give me the sweetness I so desired. Hmm. I was perplexed. How was it that none of it made me feel even temporarily good ?

Then comes the backlash. It started with a super intense sugar rush that felt like I was on crack, literally. Next a total nose dive in my energy and a few sleepless nights from a good dose of sugar-driven high anxiety, one of my least favorite side effects. Of course I couldn't get out of it without a little road rage for about a week. Lastly, it wreaked havoc on my face in the form of a nasty break out. Not just one or two spots mind you but more like four, in one day, which took over a week to go away. Really pretty...ugh.

When will I ever learn? All I can say is life gets complicated. It's hard to be perfect every day of the week. My theory on this one: de-evolution, also known as self-sabotage syndrome. Simply put we crave foods that throw us off thus creating more cravings to balance ourselves. Huh? Why would we do that? I don't know, but we do. Things were going so well for me I just had to shake it up and give myself something to be miserable about. I don't get it either.

One good thing that came out of it is that I realized I'm basically over sugar. It just doesn't do it for me anymore. Woohoo! What a relief. It was all worth it to find this out. I thought it would never happen. Now, there is no reason for me to ever partake in a full-on sugar fest knowing it does nothing to appease my taste buds. I prefer the calm, peaceful feeling from eating and living in balance instead.

That's the true sweetness I crave anyways.

Food Focus: Natural Sweeteners

2009-08-15T21:24:00.001-04:00

Who among us doesn’t love sweets? The sweet flavor releases serotonin in our brains, the chemical responsible for our sense of well-being and contentment. But when it comes to sweeteners, not all are created equal. There are side effects and health risks from refined sweeteners like white table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup, and from artificial sweeteners like NutraSweet, saccharin and Splenda. Since refined sweeteners have been stripped of vitamins, minerals and fiber, they can spike blood sugar, which can often lead to cravings and mood and energy fluctuations. Instead, using naturally and minimally processed sweeteners can reduce cravings for sugary things.

Here are a few natural sweeteners to substitute in drinks, food and baking. Since they are all approximately 1.5 times sweeter than refined sugar, you can use less. You can find them in most supermarkets or natural food stores. When replacing sugar with liquid sweeteners in a recipe, reduce the amounts of other liquids.

Raw Honey
Everyone seems to love honey, one of the oldest natural sweeteners on the market. Honey will have a different flavor depending on the plant source. Some are very dark and intensely flavored. Wherever possible, choose raw honey, as it is unrefined and contains small amounts of enzymes, minerals and vitamins.

Agave Nectar
Agave is made through the extraction and purification of the juice of the agave cactus. It does not stimulate insulin secretion as other sugars do, so it does not create a "sugar rush." It has a delightfully light and mild flavor.

Maple Syrup
Maple syrup is the concentrated extract of the sap of maple trees. It adds a rich, deep flavor to foods and drinks. Make sure to look for 100% pure maple syrup, not maple-flavored corn syrup. As with all sweeteners, organic varieties are best.

Adapted from "The Cane Mutiny," New Age Magazine, March/April 1999.

Deconstructing Cravings

2009-08-15T21:14:00.002-04:00

The body is an amazing source of intelligence. It is always there for you, pumping blood, never skipping a heartbeat, digesting whatever food you put in it and maintaining homeostasis. Is this reliable, intelligent bio-computer making a mistake by craving ice cream or a hamburger or chocolate? Are cravings due to lack of will-power or discipline? I’d like to suggest that cravings are not a problem. They are critical pieces of information that tell you what your body needs.

The important thing is to understand why you crave what you crave. Perhaps your diet is too restrictive or devoid of essential nutrients. Perhaps you are living a lifestyle that is too boring or stressful. Your body tries to correct the imbalance by sending you a message: a craving. A craving for something sweet could mean you need more protein, more exercise, more water or more love in your life. The key to stopping the sugar craving is to understand and deliver what your body really needs.

No book or theory can tell you what to eat. Only awareness of your body and its needs can tell you. Of all the relationships in our lives, the one with our body is the most essential. It takes communication, love and time to cultivate a relationship with your body. As you learn to decipher and respond to your body’s cravings, you will create a deep and lasting level of health and balance.

The next time you have a craving, treat it as a loving message from your body instead of a weakness. Try these tips to respond to your body:

· Have a glass of water and wait 10 minutes.
· Eat a healthier version of what you crave. For example, if you crave sweets, try eating more fruit and sweet or root vegetables.
· What is out of balance in your life? Is there something you need to express, or is something being repressed? What happened in your life just before you had this craving?
· When you eat the food you are craving, enjoy it, taste it, savor it; notice its effect. Then you will become more aware and free to decide if you really want it next time.

2009-07-25T22:37:00.001-04:00

Graduation weekend in NYC!

Why weight? Diets don't work

2009-06-24T09:15:00.001-04:00

You can’t turn on the TV, drive down the road or go to a party without being confronted with America’s hottest obsession: weight. Diets are a billion-dollar industry; companies spend millions and millions luring you to try the latest diet (low carb, high protein, low fat, no fat, you name it) with promises that this will (finally!) be the solution—your shortcut to a thinner body. Advertising efforts also deeply affect our children, who develop distorted body images and are often on diets as early as nine or 10 years of age.

Our culture touts diet pills, celebrity workouts, convenience foods and trendy diets to help us achieve our desired weight, but these quick-fix solutions have backfired. America’s populace has reached its highest weight in history. About half of Americans are overweight; one-third are obese. Diets steer us away from our common sense and dip deeply into our pocketbooks while eliciting few, if any, lasting results.

Diets don’t work because each person is unique, with different needs based on gender, age, ancestry and lifestyle; how could one diet be right for everyone? Diets don’t work because they are extreme solutions. As in physics, if a pendulum swings to one extreme, it has to swing equally to the other. A diet might work for a short amount of time, but research shows that almost all diets result in a 10-pound gain once off the diet. Diets don’t work because they are too restrictive. People who fail on diet plans are not flawed or weak. Diets by nature require discipline and restriction at levels that are unsustainable by a healthy human body.

Most people are disconnected from why they gain weight and see diet as the only culprit. For example, ignoring or discounting emotions is often the first thing to cause weight imbalances. In our fast-paced world, we have lost sight of many aspects of life that truly nourish and balance our bodies, such as slowing down, eating a home-cooked meal and spending quality time with loving people. Eating consciously and making simple lifestyle changes will create positive results and release you from the endless cycle of dieting.

Given half a chance, your body will balance out by itself, but this is only possible by getting out of the diet mentality and listening to what you truly need. Imagine taking all of the outward energy you expend on diets, fads and gimmicks and turning it inward, so that you can listen to your heart and inner wisdom. There is no such thing as a quick fix; you already have everything you need within you. With careful thought and loving reflection, you can feed yourself in a nourishing way. Working with your body rather than against it will bring you increased energy, stabilized weight and sustainable health.

Food Focus: Raw and Cooling Salads

2009-06-21T10:45:00.000-04:00

Why is it that in the summer we naturally crave more fresh and raw foods? These foods have a cooling effect on the body. The lightness and high water, fiber and vitamin content work together to act as our internal air conditioning during these warm months. At this time of year we also need less dense, high-energy food because we get so much energy from being outside in the fresh air and sunshine.

There is no better season than summer to have fun creating your own fresh, tasty, creative salad combinations. By simply tossing together several of your favorite raw veggies, naked or with a light dressing, you have a perfect meal for a hot summer’s day.

Try your favorite leafy lettuce with various sliced, diced or grated veggies. The possible combinations are endless. Fresh herbs are a wonderful option to mix in, as they are packed full of flavor. Experiment with adding diverse forms of protein to your salads, such as nuts, seeds, beans, tofu, fish or poultry. Pick up a light and healthy dressing at your local health food store, or mix up something easy, like lemon juice, black pepper and olive oil.

This is a great opportunity to try a new vegetable from your market. What are some creative flavors you’ve never tried before? Fennel and mint? Daikon radish and arugula? Summer squash with watercress? Whatever you choose, have fun with your food and stay cool. Happy summer!

Try something new

2009-06-21T10:38:00.001-04:00

Summer is finally in fully force, and the living is easy! Do you notice in summertime how everything seems promising? The plants are in full bloom and the sun feels glorious on your skin. The longer days give you boundless energy, making you feel like it’s possible to achieve all your desires and dreams. Why not harness this energy, ride the wave of summer and try something new?

Throughout the year we live at an intense pace (physical, emotional and mental), and we often get stuck in routine, either for the sake of efficiency or out of fear of unfamiliar territory. The lack of variety in doing the same things over and over stagnates not only our minds, but also our bodies and hearts. Are you hesitant to break your routine? Fear and excitement have the same physiological expression in our bodies; it is our mind that classifies the feeling as either positive or negative. So the next time you consider a change in routine and your mind says “scary!” see if you can re-frame it as “exciting!”

What is something you have never done before or that you have wanted to do for a long time? Choose your own adventure: organize a kayak trip, take a dance class, do some exotic traveling or set a goal for a new personal challenge. Or try something simple, like playing flashlight tag with your kids and neighbors or reading in the sunshine. Maybe it’s time to discover a new vegetable dish or to visit a new town, restaurant or beach.

Whatever adventure calls to you, use this summer to make it happen and enjoy yourlife. Increasing new experiences and excitement in your life can decrease your dependence on artificial stimulants like caffeine and sugar, leading to more vibrant health. Watch out for massive improvements in physical well-being, mental acuity and motivation, plus a full portfolio of fun.

Fruit nut smoothie recipe

2009-06-17T22:52:00.002-04:00

Prep time: 5 minutes
Yield: 2 servings

Ingredients:
1 banana
1 cup soy or rice milk
1 cup berries
1 cup diced melon
1/2 cup almonds
2-4 ice cubes

Directions:
1. Mix in blender for 1-2 minutes and serve.
Note: You can add other ingredients for added nutrition such as a spoonful of bee pollen, coconut oil, flax seed oil, spirulina powder or a scoop of protein powder.

Sugar again!

2009-06-14T18:21:00.004-04:00

Standing at Au Bon Pain in Laguardia airport last weekend, returning home from the 7th of my 10 weeks of classes at Integrative Nutrition in New York City, I was feeling a bit hungry. As always, I was taking the evening flight home and being close to dinnertime, I stopped at a stand close to my gate. As I perused the menu items, I made the best possible choice from the available delicacies - a tuna salad. Yum! I then had the option of adding salad dressing to it, so I chose balsamic vinaigrette. Now regardless of the enticing flavor on the front of the package, being a health counselor, I of course flipped it over and read the ingredient list. And low and behold, what’s the first ingredient? Sugar! How strange…why not balsamic vinegar? That’s what the name inferred so certainly that would be the main ingredient, right? Think again.

I’ve drawn the conclusion that many people simply don’t care about the quality of their food and what's in it. Others may be aware but choose to overlook it. In my case, I put the dressing back and let the food dress itself. But it certainly left me to ponder - if more people were better educated about the harmful effects refined sugar has on their bodies, would it make a difference in their choices? If they truly understood how it spikes their blood sugar, leaves them lethargic, angry, depressed, and irritable, and causes premature aging, amongst a host of other undesirable side effects, and they clearly made the connection that what they’re eating effects them on so many levels, would they do the same and make a better choice? I did, because I do understand. I hardly did before but now it’s what I preach. What's worse is that not only did the salad dressing contain mostly sugar, but there were a whole mess of other ingredients too, most of which I couldn’t even pronounce. Blah. Personally, I know sugar makes me crazy. I feel like things are out of control when I’m eating sugar. I get anxious, worried, annoyed, and depressed. I have irrational thoughts and feel hopeless. I never made that connection to food so deeply before but now it’s undeniable. Bottom line? It’s just not worth it! Who wants to feel that way anyway?

There are definitely alternatives to refined sugar that provide just as much sweetness in life and do not cause the same reaction. My favorites include:

Agave - Agave nectar is a natural liquid sweetener made from the juice of the agave cactus. It is 1.4 times sweeter than refined sugar, but does not create a sugar rush, and is much less disturbing to the body’s blood sugar levels than white sugar.
Stevia – This leafy herb has been used for centuries by native South Americans. The extract from stevia is 100 to 300 times sweeter than white sugar. It can be used in cooking, baking and beverages, does not affect blood sugar levels and has zero calories. Stevia is available in a powder or liquid form, but be sure to get the green or brown liquids or powders, because the white and clear versions are highly refined.
Brown rice syrup – a delectable alternative that I use to make “healthy” brown rice krispie treats. This product consists of brown rice that has been ground and cooked, converting the starches to maltose. Brown rice syrup tastes like moderately sweet butterscotch and is quite delicious. In recipes, you may have to use up to 50% more brown rice syrup than sugar and reduce the amount of other liquids.

In my health counseling practice, I show clients how to make gradual shifts from their dependence on refined sugar to incorporating more natural sweeteners into their diet so they don’t feel like they’re giving anything up yet they’re still benefiting from the vitamins and minerals left intact in unrefined sweeteners. Your body doesn’t have to work as hard to absorb natural sweeteners like it does refined sugar because it doesn’t draw on its own storage of vitamins and minerals to process natural sweeteners that are stripped from their refined counterpart. Plus, they’re absorbed more slowly and evenly so you don’t crash shortly after ingesting them. The best part is they taste better.

I’m so thankful to have been introduced to natural sweeteners. They've enabled me to easily break free of my own sugar addiction, knowing I can always have something sweet when I'm craving it and not cause damage to my body or overall health in the process. Ahhh nirvana...because that's the real treat.