Immunity Building Apple Cider- How I Keep My Family Healthy During the Cold/Flu Season

Use any pure apple cider you like and add to it:

 2 parts dried elderberries (great for coughs)
1/2 part dried orange (for taste)
1 part echinacea  or astragalus root (for immunity)
 a couple of cloves (for taste)
1 cinnamon stick (for taste)

I used parts because sometimes I make the whole gallon of apple cider, and sometimes I do small batches. The easiest and best way to prepare this is in a crock pot. You can let it simmer all day, allowing all the goodness to be released from the plants. If you can't do this, bring the mixture to a boil then simmer for as long as you like.Serve warm and enjoy!

*You can find any of these herbs at your local health food store. If you are in Oakland try The Food Mill, they have a great selection of bulk herbs. You can also order your herbs online. www.mountainroseherbs.com is my favorite supplier.

Update on my Juice Fast: Day 1

So as most of you know, I have been on a juice fast for the past few days. So here is the low-down of how it has been:
Day 1
Breakfast- Smoothie consisting of bananas, strawberries, and kale. Yum!
Lunch - Berry up'Beet smoothie from Jamba Juice. (It was a lifesaver, and served as inspiration.)
Based on my experience at Jamba, I decided to juice and blend. In the beginning I was just planning on blending, so that I would also get the benefits of the fiber, but then thought it would be even better if I did both.
Snack - I juiced (1/2 beet, an apple, a pear, 4 carrots, and handfuls of kale and broccoli). I set some aside even though  I know that oxidation starts quickly, and the health benefit reduce tremendously as time passes. I reason that even if the benefits are reduced it is still better than commercial or store-bought juice.
Dinner - I added the juice I had on reserve to a plantain, cantaloupe, and kale smoothie. (Not one of my favorites! The plantain overpowered everything.)

Helpful Hints and Other Info


I made sure to drink lots of water, and noticed that it was running through me. I thought that eating all that fruit  would have had my colon working overtime, but surprisingly I had no BMs (probably because of those bananas and plantains!).

Energy Level - moderate
BMs - 0
Conviction - 10/10
Pounds lost (I should probably say water weight lost) - 0

Hydration Challenge Update Day 23

Hydration Day 23

I have totally fallen off the wagon, and am having trouble getting get back on. I still have not drank anything aside from water, juice, and tea, however my consumption has been way down. I talked to my water drinking buddy, and she also had been feeling like a fish and was sick of drinking so much water. I feel bad that I haven't yet made my goal, so I am really going to work hard to finish strong.

As I approach the final week of the challenge. I am going to buckle down, and get in my gallon a day. Wish me luck!! How are you'll doing?

Hydration Challenge Update Day 16

Wow! Last week was an eventful one. Sick kids + finals in school + testing = Stress! Despite it all, I have remained up to the challenge, well sort of. I have stuck to drinking water, juice, and tea only (didn't even pop the bubbly to celebrate finishing grad school); however, I have struggled with drinking a gallon of liquids a day. I usually get in about 96 oz., and am working on getting  that last 32 oz in.

Benefits thus far

• Less thirsty (Duh!)
• Less hungry
• Increased cardio (as I sprint to the restroom!) 
• Increased lubrication of the small and large intestines. (Please put 2 and 2 together for this one. LOL!)

Hydration Challenge Update Day 4

This has been an interesting couple of days. I have learned several things:

1. I need more discipline. I thought just listening to my body's cues would be enough, however that was not the case. In hindsight, if it was that easy no challenge would be necessary, right? I am now going to make myself a goal of drinking at least 1 gallon of liquids a day (that's 16 cups, or 128 oz, almost two 2 liters.) Wish me luck! 
2. Making the citrus cooler with fresh squeezed juice is a weekend-only venture. LOL! I am going to *cheat* and buy fresh 100% juices and dilute them.
3. Rooibos tea is the bomb! (Well I already knew this, but just feel so good since we have been reunited.) I love rooibos a.k.a. red bush tea; it is so tasty and good for you. In short, rooibos in whatever from you drink it gives you all the antioxidant benefits of green tea without the caffeine, and its mellow slightly sweet taste makes it a winner! I drank this stuff daily when I lived in Africa, and am so happy to have it back in my life. Lately, I have been drinking Ginger Peach Red Tea by The Republic of Tea - 36 tea bagsdiluted with water about 2:1, and without added sweeteners (to me it's sweet enough on its own, but a little agave or honey would make an awesome sweet tea.)
4. Loading up on water first thing in the morning really helps, getting a good 32 oz. in first thing in the a.m. is a great way to start the day. Plus, I have noticed that I wake up thirsty, so it's easy to get it in. (On a side not, adding citrus to the water and drinking it warm keeps me from feeling water-logged or nauseous.  

In other hydration news, I picked up a watermelon, and am looking for a good recipe for watermelon agua fresca. Once I find one I'll post it. I also picked up some cucumber, which makes a lovely addition to water.Yum!

 I gotta run and try to get some more water in today before it gets too late. 

~Riss

P.S. If you are up for the challenge comment. The more of us there are to support one another, the more successful we will all be!

Drinking Your Deodorant.........Hmmmmmmm?!

For years I have heard about how bad aluminum in deodorant is, but have not really done much about it for fear of the FUNK. I am not one to be walking around Matthew McConaugheying it. In the back of my mind though I have really been wanting to make a change because I know the sweat just like urine is waste, and to keep it in the body (antiperspirant = blocking you from sweating) can't be a good thing. 


I bought a natural deodorant and have been using it, but definitely noticed a difference. I need to carry it around with me and reapply several times throughout the day. Conversely, when I was wearing Dove I smelled baby powder fresh from dusk 'til dawn.


The other night I was in a forum for natural hair, and began reading a discussion on chlorophyll. You all remember this from high school biology. Chlorophyll is the stuff in plants that makes them green, and helps them convert sunlight into food. Anyways, in this discussion a girl mentioned that she didn't wear deodorant she just drank liquid chlorophyll, and that she stayed fresh all over (she said EVERYWHERE, and that we could verify with her boyfriend *blush*).


A lightbulb went off in my head. My hubby and I were also taking chlorophyll when we did the raw food cleanse, maybe that was why the poop didn't stink. Hmmmm?! I digress. So back to the chlorophyll as deodorant. I was shocked to find that several people in the discussion also gave up deodorant for chlorophyll. Then I got an idea. I will try to combine the natural deodorant and use it with the chlorophyll, and see what happens.


I am starting a challenge/experiment to see if chlorophyll really is an internal deodorant. Wish me luck, and dry pits. LOL!!


I'll keep y'all posted! 
~Riss

Try It Tuesday: Ch-Ch-Chia - The Little Seed That Could! (updated)

Years ago, I did this post on chia. Since it is now commonplace on the shelves, I felt a remix was needed and probably highly anticipated. Many chia products have sprung up on the shelves, and I for one, am excited to see this little wonder seed get its 15 minutes of fame.

 Last week, I came up with a great chia drink recipe I was loving that had 3 simple ingredients: chia, water, and 100% cherry juice. It was so good. However, as I was touting this wonderfulness to my hubby I mentioned how sweet it was even without added sugar. This lead me to check the sugar content on that cherry juice, and lo and behold, it had hella sugar (50 grams per 8 oz.)  in it! So I decided to stop drinking that, and opted for just adding chia into my water. Boring maybe, healthy definitely! 

Chia seeds do much more than grow cute little houseplants, they are super-nutritious and are a powerful diet aid. I discovered them (in a Columbus sort of way) when I did the raw food cleanse. They are these tiny little seeds that are so powerful that they can absorb nine times their volume in water. Because they are such powerful absorbers you have to make sure you soak them before you eat them. Once you soak them they form a gel that is 90% soluble fiber which aids digestion and can help lower cholesterol more effectively than oatmeal. The fiber also helps you feel fuller longer. 

Chia seeds: 

• Have twice the protein of any other seed or grain
• Have 5 times the calcium of milk
• Contain omega-3 and omega-6 oils
• More magnesium than broccoli
• More iron than spinach
• And the list goes on and on...

Chia is a best kept secret. It is truly a super seed! No wonder it has been used for thousands of years for endurance. The word chia actually comes from the Mayan word chiabaan, meaning strengthening. 

So, Riss, How do You Eat Chia?

The easiest way to prepare chia is to make it into a gel. Chia seed gel is super easy to make. I mix a big batch when I make it because we use it in everything smoothies, yogurt, salads, we even eat it straight (it tastes a bit like flavorless Jello). All you have to do to make the gel is mix 1/3 cup of chia seeds with 2 cups of water. Let it sit for a few minutes shake it up, then let it sit for about 20 minutes. We use so much I usually use 1 cup of the chia to 6 cups of water. Then just store it in jar in the fridge where it keeps for up to two weeks. Be careful though, if it starts to grow sprouts it is no longer edible, and should be transferred to the nearest clay pottery cat you can find.

If you don't try anything else I share, TRY THIS! It is truly amazing.


*Remember never eat them without soaking or they can absorb your bodily fluids and cause digestive issues and dehydration.


XOXO,
Riss


Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Share them below.