Raw Thoughts

Peeling those lashy lids open,

Smelling the sweet scent of your pillow,

And inhaling your first few, conscious breaths of your day.

Stretching your sleepy limbs overhead and embracing the gift of life,

You begin to notice your thoughts. 

Where do they lead you? Negativity? Positivity?

Each thought that passes through your mind alters your personality.

Alters who you will be, and who you want to be that day.

The mind is lovely and it has so much control over our body. Life is chaotic, especially today. Between work, play, family, friends, working out, it is extremely difficult to hold some type of balance. 

Balance.

We all fall victim to balance some way or another. I myself am guilty of an unbalanced life, but all can take the time to change that.

Maybe if we cleared our thoughts for just ten minutes, the mind would simply open. Imagine the possibilities. Meditate. Envision a bright future. Rid your mind of all things that do not benefit you and surround yourself with love and optimism. 

Let your breaths soften, and let the mind wander and dance in creativity. 

Love the medulla oblongata. 

It is not our body that determines who we are, it is the mind.

The food we consume can also help better our focus and clear thinking. The food I choose to eat promotes that. Juicing is a big part of my diet. I strongly believe that vegetables and fruits, and all the plentiful foods from mother earth can cure any sickness or disease. 

Don't believe me? I don't blame you, but check out some documentaries on juicing, your opinion will surely change.

Like Hippocrates said, "Let food be thy medicine."

My all time favorite juice: 2 carrots, 1 cucumber, 3 granny smith apples, 2 oranges, 2 handfuls of kale and cilantro, 1/2 of lemon, and a slice of ginger (perferably all organic).

I try to drink two 32oz. juices a day along with one smoothie.  

When you feed your body these natural foods, your whole mental and physical being will change for the better. 

You are beautiful. 

Your body is beautiful, and deserves to be fed only the most natural, exquisite foods.

Baby Steps

Twirling around on the grass
And embracing today's gift of life.
Feeling the warmth of her big bright sun-rays, kiss the skin on your palms.
Raising those big innocent eyes and staring blankly into the chilling clouds, into space.
S p a c e .
Why are we here? No wait, why are you here?
We're placed on earth to do what, work and slave over things that we think will make us happy?
Our human race spend days, years, a lifetime, working at things that build to sadness.
Life is rad.
And a lot of consideration should be taken as to how you go about living your days.

What do you do to make yourself happy? I don't mean Friday payday, or hitting Urban Outfitters on your way home from work, or fantasizing about how you want to look. What I mean is, what are the things that bring a smirk to your lips by just one thought? Take a moment to reevaluate your own life and really question yourself.
Your strongest debater is your self, your being, your mind.
And by now, I hope you would know that the act of being happy is entirely in your hands.

Over these pass few months I've truly found my passion, my happiness. Yoga.
Not only does one practice yoga, but one also lives yoga. You can't live zumba, or crossfit or any other physical training, but with yoga you can.
Yoga is so much more to me than just a series of repeated poses. Okay, so maybe I also find the positions I can get my body to climb into enticing and just so rad, but there's more to that.
It is also a spiritual journey within myself that is beginning to transform me into something quite unexplainable. When I say "transform", I not only mean physically, but mentally. My whole thoughts on life have changed tremendously. I am certain that this is where I'm supposed to be and what I am destined to do. I strongly encourage everyone to give it a try.

Link your sweet, precious breaths to your own movements and feel that powerful surge of calmness and serenity, beam through your limbs.
Sound interesting?

It is my greatest hope that you too find something just as exhilarating.

Now for some grub.
What did I have for breakfast this morning? Wouldn't you like to know...
Delicious vanilla soy yogurt topped with fresh berries, hemp and chia seeds, and raw, local honey lightly drizzled on top (with a tiny mason jar filled of fresh squeezed oj).

And, like I always do, threw back some homemade trail mix consisting of nuts, seeds and berries throughout the day.

For lunch I had a kale salad with a scoop of tunafish, chopped tomatoes and onions, and olives.

Quinoa stir-fry, my favorite, for dinner. My boyfriend makes it the best; mixed with roasted red peppers, onions, mushrooms and all around yummy spices and flavors. I'm incredibly lucky.

As I end this blog I just want to leave you with one simple phrase...
Don't live for your life, make your life live for you.
And, as one great yogi said to me before, "Don't serve the poses, have the poses serve you."
Namaste.

Being Born

You are present, you are healthy, you are happy.

You are healthy, you are happy, you are present.

As we repeat these words over and over again to ourselves, we get lost. Lost in a trance that takes us to our true mental being. 

Can we really define being present, happy or healthy?

If we can, do you yourself, follow those own explanations?

I do believe that for the people to succeed in all of those aspects, one must be in sync with the body, physically and most importantly, spiritually. This process does not simply happen, it occurs over a lifetime and only some of us are so lucky to start this rejuvenating journey at a young age.

Eating, indulging, nibbling, inhaling; however its happening, the food you consume is slowly traveling down to your stomach, shaping your body and soul, making you happy or sad. The media sends us messages telling our brains that being healthy is obviously being skinny. We see twiggy models and glamorous movie stars everywhere we look. It is so important to know that that is so beyond the truth, in fact, it is complete garbage. Take a couple major moments to really choose what you want to fuel your body with. Because, after all, food is fuel.

What foods do I consider healthy? Well I'm glad you asked. Organic FDA approved labeled foods is a start, but even then how do we truly know it is really farm grown or farm raised. Just don't buy anything packaged or pre-made. Work a little for your food and in return the food will work right for you. I myself am a pescetarian and also gluten, and dairy free. My boyfriend on the other hand, can eat as clean as a whistle, or chow down on some filet mignon and top off the night with a pint of delicious vanilla ice cream lavished in dairy. But hey, some people get to have their cake and eat it too. For the most part he and I live a life of simplicity. To my great benefit, he also happens to be an amazing chef, specializing in gluten free and vegan dishes. Logging our meals will hopefully benefit or inspire you to be a little more food conscious. Whole, real, raw foods are the most nutritious, fantastic foods.

For breakfast you can start off with your basic bowl of quinoa. From there, spice it up, play around, make it you. For example: quinoa as your base, a scoop of hazelnut spread (to give it a thicker consistency), chopped bananas warming in the quinoa, and to top it off, some energizing seeds like hemp seeds, flaxseeds and chia seeds.
This mouth-watering breakfast bowl will keep you warm on a chilly winters day, while keeping you focused and satisfied.

Nibbling throughout the day is just as important as sitting and eating a full meal. Snacking throughout the day speeds up your metabolism keeping you satisfied. By snacking I sure as hell don't mean eating an order of fries from Mickey Dee's on the go. I'm talking about the real, WHOLE, snacks. This could range from fruits to veggies to nuts to seeds; the list of healthy snacking is endless.

For lunch lets have a hummus sandwich on gluten free bread with your choice of veggies and sprouts. Maybe add a spicy sauce to make it fun. Spicy harisa is what I'm currently obsessed with, it's a Middle Eastern dip that my boyfriend mastered. It's so delicious and spicy I can't help but add it onto everything.

And for dinner, a melt-in-your-mouth seared Ahi tuna steak atop of mixed veggies, including kale (super green) and topped of with some fresh salsa and avocado. Mmm, just typing it makes me a little anxious for that taste.

Last but not least, dessert. Try a sweet potato with some dairy free, soy yogurt, topped with hemp seeds, chia seeds and flaxseeds, and drizzled with some organic maple syrup. I promise you'll love that one.

Food is so important to our bodies, but that's not all. As much as I'll write about food, physical workouts and spiritual growth is also just as important and I'll tell you why. Stay tuned...