 A lot of women feel like they need to keep up with other people. If you don’t feel like partying four nights a week after a ten-hour workday or exercising for two hours every single day, you might think there’s something wrong with you. You might even beat yourself up or feel ashamed and lazy. Ignoring your body’s signals and writing them off as laziness is not productive or helpful – it actually drains your energy even more. If you’re dealing with chronic fatigue, low sex drive, intense premenstrual syndrome (PMS), cystic acne, mild depression, or other “random” symptoms, going against your natural rhythm might be the issue. Here are some symptoms that commonly appear when you have been pushing your body rather than honoring your limits:
1. Empower yourself. When symptoms pop up, it’s easy to feel like there might be a bigger or more complex issue going on or you’re broken and can’t heal. The first step in healing is acknowledging that nothing is inherently wrong with you. You are whole exactly as you are. From a place of confidence in your body’s ability to heal itself, you can get curious about what’s going on for you and tap into the endless toolbox that is primary food. Embodying the mind-set that you are healthy now and you can become even healthier takes a huge weight off your shoulders and allows your body to naturally reach health. 2. Get real about rest. Are you chronically exhausted, trying to push through the day? Maybe you’re actually tired. Starting with weekends, let yourself sleep as long as you want. You might notice that you wake up naturally without an alarm clock during the week. Some people will be rejuvenated after one long deep sleep, while others might need to take some serious time off to come back into balance. Sleep is a requirement for good health. Listen to your body and sleep when you’re tired.  3. Balance your nervous system. Most modern people spend the majority of their lives in the sympathetic nervous system state, aka the “fight or flight, stranger-danger” zone. That feeling you get when someone creeps up behind you and surprises you – or, perhaps less likely, when you’re getting chased by a bear. Your body doesn’t know the difference between those literal stressors and chronic stress related to work or difficult relationships. When your body is in this sympathetic state, it can’t repair. When you are relaxed and calm, your body is in the parasympathetic state – referred to as the “rest and digest” system. This state is brought on by sleep, laughing, meditation, qigong, reiki, and physical touch with a loved one. Your body has to be in the parasympathetic state to heal and evolve. The more you can activate your parasympathetic nervous system by relaxing and having fun, the healthier you’ll be – physically and mentally. 4. Evaluate exercise. It might surprise you, but sometimes the harder you work out, the more stress you actually put on your body. Depending on your constitution and condition, you may actually need gentle exercise, like yoga or tai chi. Certain forms of rigorous exercise trigger the stress response, so make sure you balance your hard-core workouts with practices that are easier on the body.Gentle exercise might include yoga, meditation, or dance. You might discover that your body responds really well to these more gentle practices. Experiment for a few weeks and see how your body feels. Take some time this week to experiment with more rest, relaxation, and community connection.
Remember, there is nothing wrong with you; your body innately knows how to heal itself. You are healthy and taking empowered steps to become even healthier!  There has been lots of dialogue around Body Positivity recently, but what does that really mean? In todays' culture there is no problem telling us how to take care of ourselves, but not always in ways that are healthy and sustainable. We're constantly bombarded with perfected and altered images of ideal skin and sculpted bodies. Not only is this impractical to obtain and maintain, but it is also an unrealistic ideal based solely on the ego and psychical appearance, making us feel like once we get healthier we will look "better" and that we will be happier once we get "fit". The bigger picture is that body positivity is all about self love, which come from within. Over the years, I have had my own ups and downs about my own body image. I always had an athletic build, but during times of high stress, I would do less exercise and would supplement with more unhealthy foods and drink. Eventually adding on extra pounds. There were times I would beat myself up, or feel ashamed. But as I got older I realized, that my inner confidence in myself allowed me to overshadow my shame around my appearance. Overtime, I learned to love myself overweight or not, because I loved WHO I was. I gave myself permission to find happiness and peace. Through that self-love, I started exercising to get stronger. Through that self love, I started eating more vegetables. Through that self love, I allowed myself to eat pizza, or ice cream, or etc...all without judgement or fear The goal was no longer about losing weight, but how to feed my soul so that I could become the healthiest version of ME...on that day, and as I am! TOP 7 TIPS TO PROMOTE A BETTER POSITIVE BODY IMAGE WITH SELF LOVE
GUILTLESS spring BAKING - {LOW CARB} Carrot Cake + {PALEO} {LOW CARB} Chocolate Beet Donuts4/26/2019 I promised awhile back that I would post a couple of recipes. Sorry it took so long...it has taken abit to catch up to spring. In Northern California, the rain has lingered for far to long. The sun is finally shining and it is the perfect weather for these guilt free treats, since they are VEGGIE-FILLED, GRAIN-FREE, PROCESSED SUGAR-FREE, MOIST and ohh-sooo yummy!!! Your kids will be asking for more...mine do!
{LOW CARB} MOIST CARROT CAKE
CAKE INGREDIENTS 1/2 cup of Golden Flax meal 1/2 cup of Coconut Flour 1/2 cup Almond Flour 3 tsp Cinnamon 3/4 tsp Baking Soda 2 tsp Baking powder 1/4 tsp Salt 3/4 cup low carb sweetener of choice 1/2 cup Coconut Oil, melted 2 Tsp Vanilla Extract 3 eggs 1 Cup Hot Water 1 Cup grated Carrots Optional - 1/4 Cup Walnuts, chopped FROSTING 16 ounces cream cheese, softened 5 Tbsp low carb sweetener of choice 1/8 tsp Cinnamon 5 Tbsp heavy whipping cream METHOD: Preheat oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl, mix all the dry cake ingredients together. Add melted coconut oil, vanilla, eggs, hot water and carrots and mix well. Stir in chopped nuts(if using). Cut a circle of parchment paper to place in the bottom of each 6" circle cake pan, then spray the sides of the pan with coconut oil spray. Divide batter between 4 6" round cake pans (it may be thick). Bake in preheated oven for 23-25 minutes, or until center top of cake is dry. Allow cake to completely cool. Remove cakes from pans. Beat softened cream cheese until fluffy. Add sweetener and heavy whipping cream and beat for 1-2 minutes. Fold in cinnamon. Spread half the frosting onto top of one of the round cakes. Place the second cake on top and add remaining frosting to the top of that cake. *Recipe can also be divided into 2 8" round pans {PALEO} {LOW CARB} CHOCOLATE BEET (RED VELVET) DONUT INGREDIENTS 2 med. red beets, cooked and peeled ⅓ cup milk of choice 1 cup almond flour 1 cup sweetener of choice ½ cup cacao powder ⅓ cup tapioca flour ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon sea salt 2 eggs room temperature ¼ cup coconut oil, melted 1 tsp vanilla extract Method: Preheat oven to 350ºF and lightly grease a donut pan with coconut oil. Place the beets in a blender along with the non-dairy milk (I used almond milk). Blend until smooth and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, sweetner, cacao powder, tapioca flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk all dry ingredients together. In a separate mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, coconut oil and vanilla extract together. Whisk in the pureed beet mixture. Pour the wet ingredients into the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Use a piping bag/ziplock bag with the tip cut off and pipe the batter into the pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool completely before carefully removing from the pan. Repeat with remaining batter. *If you don't have a donut pan, you can bake these in a muffin or mini muffin pan. Adjust baking time as necessary. Enjoy! |
