DIY Deodorant

I came across a really easy and cheap recipe for deodorant a couple months ago and have been using it ever since! If you are fussy about how smoothly your deodorant goes on, this might not be for you. However if you are more concerned with the chemicals and/or metals that might be lurking in your traditional store bought deodorant then this is the prefect homemade solution for you! My sister and I have a running theme lately when we talk about new makeup or products that we find and we always ask "could you eat it"? Basically if you wouldn't eat it, you probably shouldn't put it on your skin. Skin is the barrier protecting the rest of our organs but it also happens to be pretty absorbent and while our skin does its best to keep the majority of substances and microscopic particles out of the body, it is impossible to keep all toxins out. Over time a build-up of toxins can cause other health problems, including cancer which in recent studies has shown a correlation between deodorant and breast cancer. This easy to make alternative has 3 ingredients that you probably have in your house right now....cornstarch, coconut oil and baking soda. I also added a couple drops of lemon essential oil for fragrance. Like I said it doesn't roll on like normal deodorant, you have to rub it in with your fingers but so far it has worked fantastic for me and I won't be going back to the store-bought stuff anytime soon!

To get the recipe click HERE

(BONUS! This is one of my favorite blogs. It's basically a family blog written about their everyday life,  but the author has the most hilarious wit and is able to see the humor in everyday situations)

Summer Salad

Prepping a few lunches the other day and decided I better blog this yummy salad. Its kind of a rip off of a Paradise Bakery salad and is one of my favorites this summer!

Summer Salad

Spring Mix Lettuce

Alfalfa Sprouts

Avocado

Apple

Blueberries

Feta

Walnuts

Poppy Seed Dressing

1/4 Cup Extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar

1 Tbsp Honey

1 Tsp Poppy Seeds

Pour dressing ingredients into a jar and shake until combined. You can play around with the ratio of ingredients if you like it sweeter etc. I put the measurements here as a reference but rarely do I measure out ingredients for a dressing. I rather use the taste and adjust method! Also this recipe only makes enough for about 3 or 4 salads so you might want to increase the ratios to make more and then store it. I am always changing my dressing and I really like it best when its fresh so I only make a little at a time. Drizzle over Summer Salad and enjoy!

Mediterranean Spaghetti Squash

Mediterranean Spaghetti Squash

Ingredients:

1 small to medium spaghetti squash

Dried Italian Herbs

extra virgin olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

3-4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 zucchini, diced

1 Cup Kale (torn into bite size pieces)

1 can artichokes in water, cut into quarters
1/2 Cup marinated sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped

Pepitas

Feta cheese

Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut Squash in half length ways and remove seeds. Place on a baking tray cut side up, spray with non-stick cooking spray and then sprinkle with italian herbs, salt and pepper. Bake 45 min-1 hour until soft. While the squash cools down prepare the rest of the ingredients. In a large pan sauté onions, garlic and zucchini in olive oil on medium-high heat for 4-5 minutes. Turn heat down to low and add kale, artichokes and sundries tomatoes. Now shred the spaghetti squash by combing through it with a fork and add to the pan with the other ingredients. Stir another 4-5 minutes until everything is well mixed and heated through. To serve top with feta cheese and pepitas. Delish!!

First Detox of the Year

Last week I finished my first detox as I have a goal to do at least 3 over the entire year. Since coming home from our Australia vacation in January, I haven't been eating the best or exercising! Its been hard trying to motivate myself and get back into that whole routine. I did find a workout routine that I've been pretty consisted with for about a month, now I just need to get my diet back on track. So for this detox I decided to do 2 days juice detox and 2 days fruit and veg fast. In the past I have been really good about being strict while on a detox, however this time I was a little more relaxed. So the first 2 days I actually drank raw fresh juice the entire day and then at night allowed myself to have dinner with the family which was still a really healthy dinner of chicken and vegetables. Same thing on the second day as well. Then the third and fourth day during the fruit and veg fast I also ate a healthy dinner those nights (with meat) and on one of the days even had a peanut butter sandwich at lunch time. So like I said, it wasn't the most super strict detox but was still above and beyond how I had been eating before! It really helped me to refocus my eating pattern and reprogram my impulse to grab fruit and vegetables before other unhealthy snacks. Detoxing doesn't have to be a strict vegetable juice only diet for 7 days straight! Even incorporating vegetables into one meal a day can start a good habit that will build over time. I highly recommend a fruit and vegetable fast for anyone thinking about doing a detox because you can have unlimited amounts and can prepare it anyway you want so you end up feeling pretty satisfied throughout the day. Any of the 5 people who read this blog interested in doing a detox? I'm thinking about starting up a support group for the next one I do so we can all do it together!

Kale Salad

Kale is my new leaf of choice for salads. I love the taste, I love the texture and I love the nutrition! Kale works especially well for making meals ahead of time because you can dress the leaves and let it sit in the fridge for a day or two and it won't go completely soggy.  I am obsessing over this salad I made the other day and had to share.

Kale and Butternut Squash salad with Feta and Caramelized Onions

1 Bunch Kale - washed and torn into bite size pieces

1 Butternut Squash - peeled, seeds removed, and cut into large chunks

1 Yellow Onion, sliced

Feta Cheese

Sliced Almonds

Dressing:

1/2 lemon

1TBS Honey

Drizzle Olive Oil (maybe 1-2 TBS)

Preheat oven to 400F and place the onions and squash in a large baking pan. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper then place in the oven for 45min-1hour (or until the onions are nice and caramelized and the squash is soft). Meanwhile place the Kale in a large bowl, drizzle with the dressing ingredients, and massage together until evenly coated. Don't just toss it but really work those leaves with your hands! Kale is very sturdy so this trick helps it to relax a bit and makes it taste amazing! Once the squash and onions are done, cool slightly before plating - Kale, squash/onions, then sprinkled with feta cheese and sliced almonds. Serves 4. 

Free-Range Eggs

I made the best discovery yesterday that I am so excited about....a local lady who sells free-range eggs! This is fantastic for me considering I have a goal to eat organic/free-range meat this year and especially because we eat so many eggs at our house! Its actually one of the most ethical forms of protein since there is no killing of the animal and yet they are so rich in protein and nutrients. I have seen signs for these "fresh" eggs on a road that I frequently drive near my house, but never really thought to investigate it. Then I saw a good recommendation for her on a community Facebook page that I am apart of, so I thought it can't hurt to just check it out and see how much she charges.  For anyone who has never seen backyard eggs before you probably think what is wrong with those hens?!...

You can see I have a whole range of colors here, blue, green, brown and white, something you most definitely would not see in the grocery store. It simply has to do with the genetics of the bird. If you are interested in a more in-depth look at how eggs get their color check out this ARTICLE. 

Not only is her price very affordable ($3 a dozen) but the color and taste of these eggs speak for themselves. The yolk is a rich dark orange and very thick and creamy, compared to commercial eggs that are a pale orange or yellow and no where near the same texture. Besides the obvious nutritional difference in these eggs, the thing I like most about them is the integrity of where they came from as well as supporting a local farmer. Yes you can buy free range eggs at the grocery store, however there is always a little skepticism in the back of my mind as to just how "free" the hens are and without visiting the farm myself I could never be sure. These hens are super happy! They are kept in a large pen with tons of room to run around but she even lets them out a few times a week so they get to scratch around the yard for a bit. Contrary to many of the industrial egg farms who still use wire battery cages with 3-4 hens per cage, among other abuse. The hens are barely able to stand up let alone flap their wings, build a nest, perch, and perform other activities that are in their nature to do. There is no watchdog for these places. The only information that even comes out is from undercover animal rights activists. The worst part about it is that for all that suffering the eggs are not as good quality. It's all about the company maximizing their resources to make a bigger profit.

I am not against the consumption of animals and I do believe animals were put on this earth for man to use, but I also believe there is a right way and a wrong way to treat every species on this earth, no matter how simple or powerless they may seem. A large part of my organic meat goal is about opening my eyes to how the industry really is instead of ignoring it for the sake of convenience and price and realizing that I do not need to contribute to the problem. One day I would love to have my own chickens, but until then thank you local egg lady!

Health Goals 2014

Who doesn't love a new year and a fresh start?! Now that we are home from our amazing 5-week Australia vacation, I am ready to get back on track with my health. I think we did pretty good while we were away. We ate whatever we wanted but stayed really active and even worked out a little over the 5 weeks. We had an amazing time and as fun as it was to be free those 5 weeks, I am ready to get back into our routine. It is so much easier for me to be heathy in a routine! Learning about health is a continuous project for me. I am constantly reading about or hearing new things that challenge my ideas and shape the way I look at health. As such, I have created 3 goals for this year to help me enhance my healthy lifestyle journey.

1. Juice detox 3 times a year. 
The juice detox I did last November gave me an incredible insight to what detoxing can do for the body. I lost 5lbs doing that detox, which doesn't seem like a lot, but for me, this was 5lbs I had been struggling to lose for about 6 months. I was very happy with my weight, appearance, energy, etc, but I just had this number goal in my head that I really wanted to reach. That last 5lbs would not budge no matter how strict I was on my diet or how hard I worked out. After the detox I was happy to see I had lost the 5lbs, but didn't think much of it and assumed it was water weight that would quickly resurface within a week or two. As weeks then months went by the weight never came back. The crazy thing was I was not eating perfect either. It was smack in the middle of holiday season and I was happy to indulge where the occasion seemed fit. Even with more indulgences than usual that 5lbs still never came back. This is what detoxing does. It allows the cells in your body to let go of the toxins they are holding on to and as a result allows the body to function more efficiency.This in turn contributes to how well the body fights infection and decease, hormone regulation, emotional health, as well as energy, vitality, and longevity.

2. Buy 100% of our meat from grass-fed/organic/free-range farmers by the end of the year.
This goal came to me after coming home from Australia and eating American meat again. The quality of food between these countries is so different! And I'm not talking about organic versus normal (in fact very rarely do I buy organic) my comparisons are of the cheapest you can buy. All the food tastes better in Australia but I noticed the biggest difference between meats.  I've actually known for a long time what the meat is like in America, just chosen to ignore it. I've watched several documentaries and read many articles about it and I basically have accepted what the companies are doing in order to maximize their profits. This information never stopped me from buying those meats before. My lazy/cheap side overruled my healthy side and I would rather get what was cheap from my local grocery store rather than drive all the way to the organic store just so I could pay more. But it's not worth my money anymore and I feel more willing now to give my support to farmers who actually care about the quality of meat and better treatment of the animals. These ideas run parallel with my belief that our society eats way too much meat, but I'll save that in-depth discussion for another post. Knowing what I know, its quite sad I haven't attempted this goal before, but I guess sometimes it just takes time and baby steps to really make a change.Want more info on this subject? Watch Food, Inc or Forks Over Knives, two very eye-opening documentaries about health and the meat industry.

3. Exercise Consistently
No doubt this will always be a goal of mine every. single. year. Exercise has so many health benefits its not even funny! It does so much more than help you reach weight loss goals. It improves your immune system, burns off toxic cells, aids in digestion and simply makes you happy thanks to endorphins! And these are just a few of the benefits! I know without a doubt our bodies were meant to move and be active, however technology has made it way to easy for us to just sit back and relax, hence why we must organize time to get moving.

If you have time for Facebook or TV, you have time for exercise! It doesn't have to be hours of lifting heavy weights or running 5 miles, just a 10 minute stroll around the block can give massive benefits to the body. The hard part is being consistent, and consistency is the key to really reap the benefits. I find when I set small reachable goals throughout the year, it helps me stay focused and motivated. First small goal this year is to complete P90X-3!

What are your goals for 2014?