When I’m coaching people through life transformation, one of the primary issues is usually a bitterness or toxic emotion they need to let go of in their life. Cleansing our lives simply means taking a deep breath and taking time to stop, think, pray, evaluate, and even let go of triggers in your life.

What is it you need to let go of? Maybe it’s a person, a place, or a thing. It can be a habit or a toxic friend or attitude. Maybe it’s something as simple as a habit that is taking time away from the one thing you love the most. The bottom line is that it’s up to you! No one knows your body better than you do.

This year I’m on day 15 of a 21 day liquid fast and all is going well. I drink a lot — a lot of water and sometimes other healthy liquids like tomato juice. When I’m fasting, I develop a love for milk again, perhaps because when we were babies we drank it for a year! I love milk during the fast, though I don’t drink it normally.

At the end of the fast my body, mind, and spirit feel amazing. For me, fasting works. It’s a time to detox and let go and it’s also a time of deep contemplation and lightness. It requires discipline but the interruption of the traditional ways we indulge is a great recalibration for me. Is there anything I miss? Yes, I miss cheeseburgers, sonic chili cheese dogs, and little Debbies.

Why did I ever think I needed to gorge myself on three meals a day Or six small ones, as some “experts” tell you? No, it doesn’t halt your metabolism. No, it doesn’t make you lose weight and regain it. No, it doesn’t deprive your body of nutrients. I know because I do it. Dr. Schulz, an M.D. and foremost medical expert on the subject, have a lot to say on the power of fasting to clean out your digestive system. He writes about the dangers of “sludge” and toxic waste that builds up in our bodies creating disease.

Yet, still, my aunt Ethel will comment on the danger of fasting the minute I upload this post. So as soon as I end my fast, Aunt Ethel, I’ll have a little Debbie chocolate snack just for you. And believe me, I will enjoy every moment of it!

Have you ever done a cleanse? What things do you want or need to detox from in your life?

Picture courtesy of flickr.

Tammy Kling is a life coach, crisis management expert, and advocate for the homeless. She is an international author of 37 books including The Compass. Tammy is also the founder of The Homeless Writers Project, an organization that helps those living on the street write out their hopes & dreams via writers workshops, free journals and other resources. In addition to writing and coaching, Tammy is a mom of two boys, an avid trail and mountain runner, blogger, and adventure travel writer.

Tips for Living a Heart Healthy Lifestyle

Today, I would like to provide some easy steps to take to live a more heart-healthy lifestyle. Prevention is always best in my book! The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that in 2010, coronary heart disease alone was projected to cost the United States$108.9 billion (Source: www.cdc.gov.) The American Heart Association has designed a program called Life’s Simple 7 with the goal of improved health by educating the public on best to live a more healthy life. The seven points they developed include: Get Active, Eat Better, Lose Weight, Stop Smoking, Control Cholesterol, Manage Blood Pressure, and Reduce Blood Sugar. There is even a test you can take to see how well you are doing at protecting your heart! (Source: http://mylifecheck.heart.org/) You can read more about their recommendations on their site here.

Get Tested

According to studies cited by the authors of Alternative Medicine – The Definitive Guide, 85 percent of all heart disease is caused by vulnerable plaque, which unfortunately cannot usually be detected by conventional cardiovascular diagnostic tests. They recommend that to effectively screen for vulnerable plaque, ultra-high-speed magnetic resonance imagining (MRI) may be required. Don’t feel you need to run out and get an MRI, but if you are at a risk for heart disease, keep this tool in mind.  The authors also recommend that people at risk should also be screened for infectious agents, as well as oxidized cholesterol, fibrinogen and homocysteine levels, and free-radical damage. These are all tests you can discuss with your doctor (Source: Alternative Medicine).

Eat Organic Foods

As far as diet changes or additions, try to make sure you eat organically as much as possible as organic foods are free of pesticides, herbicides, steroids, and antibiotics. Also increase your fiber intake with leafy green vegetables, fresh raw fruits, and psyllium. I could write pages upon pages about the benefits of monounsaturated oils such as olive oil, omega-3 oils such as fish oil and flaxseed oil, and omega-6 oils such as borage oil and evening primrose oil.

Eat Less Processed Foods

Try to avoid processed foods as much as possible.  I absolutely promise you will start to feel better the cleaner your food is. One trick I taught my five year-old is to look at the number of ingredients listed. If there is a long list of ingredients, especially ones you can’t even pronounce, then it is probably heavily processed.

Take Nutritional Supplements

Some nutritional supplements known to improve cardiovascular conditions include: beta carotene; vitamins B3 (niacin), B6, B12, C, and E; folic acid; the minerals calcium, chromium, magnesium, potassium, and selenium; the amino acids L-arginine, L-taurine, and L-carnitine; coenzyme Q10; and pycnogenol. (Source: Alternative Medicine.)  A good multivitamin can provide many of these nutrients listed above. It would be best to work with a health provider to determine the best amounts to take for your body!

Make Healthy Lifestyle Changes

Though heart disease causes half of all deaths in the United States, many health professionals feel that it is one of the most preventable chronic degenerative diseases. Heart healthy steps include making healthy dietary changes, exercise, stress reduction, and nutritional supplementation. Little changes can be made daily and always talk with your health provider if you have questions or concerns.

 What are you doing to prevent heart disease?

References:

1. Goldberg, Burton., Trivieri, Larry, and Anderson, John., Alternative Medicine- The Definitive Guide. Second Edition. Celestial Arts.
2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  CDC – DHDSP – Fact Sheets – Women and Heart Disease Fact Sheet.  www.cdc.gov
3. The American Heart Association. Life’s Simple 7 Sheet. http://mylifecheck.heart.org/

Photo courtesy of flickr.

Melissa Northway, M.S. Human Nutrition, is a mom, writer and her storybook app Penelope the Purple Pirate has been chosen as a Top 10 Must-Have eBook by lilsugar of Popsugar.com and a Top 10 Educational iPad App by Digital Storytime.  She does consulting work for companies interested in marketing their apps or eBooks. She can be reached at: mcube@sbcglobal.net and http://www.melissanorthway.com or @melissanorthway. See my review of The Hunger Games coming next week.

Frigidaire and Jennifer Garner Partner With SavetheChildren.org

Last month, Frigidaire launched their Kids’ Cooking Academy. This new initiative is geared toward encouraging moms to provide their children with healthy lifestyles and nutritious snacks, and centers around the website MakeTimeForChange.com. It is in partnership with the nonprofit Save the Children, whose mission is to save childrens’ lives after natural disasters with food, medical care, and education and stay to help communities rebuild through long-term recovery programs addressing poverty, hunger, illiteracy and disease.

Specifically, how it works is this: Frigidaire and Jennifer Garner are supporting Save the Children’s CHANGE program, which promotes healthier lifestyles for children living in poverty in the U.S. by providing nutritious snacks and regular opportunities for children to be physically active. Frigidaire has committed to donate $500,000 to this worthy cause. Each day you visit the Kids’ Cooking Academy website, Frigidaire will donate $1 to Save the Children to help provide nutritious snacks and promote healthier lifestyles for children living in poverty in the U.S.

3 Resources the Kids’ Cooking Academy Website Offers Moms

If you’re anything like me, as a mom, you’re always looking for quick and simple tips on how to raise healthy and nutritious children. The Frigidaire website provides three resources for moms that do just that:

1. Tip of the Day: I love that they feature a tip of the day for cooking with kids. Today’s tip? To bake muffins with your children and have them offer up healthy snacks to toss into traditional recipes. For example, add dates and raisins to blueberry muffins.
   X
2. Featured Recipe: They provide one featured recipe with a how-to video and written instructions. Today’s was a Zucchini Parmesan Frittata. Mmmm!
   X
3. How-To Videos: Chef Mary Sue Milliken offers hands-on instructions for how to make some of the great recipes featured on the site. What I love the most is that they are kid friendly. The goal is to get your kids in the kitchen with you and to cook healthy meals together. My son would especially love these Apple Cinnamon Hand Pies.

What tips do you have for helping your kids eat healthy and nutritious meals an snacks?

Make a Difference

1. Visit the Kids’ Cooking Academy website and Frigidaire will donate $1 to Save the Children to help provide nutritious snacks and promote healthier lifestyles for children living in poverty in the U.S.
   X
2. Visit our Health and Wellness forum to share your ideas for teaching kids to eat and live healthy.

Well, I was wrong. I was nowhere near meeting my daily fiber requirement. And you can only imagine how disheartened I was when I learned that while raw spinach is a great source of fiber, it requires eating a lot to get the daily amount you need. In fact, it only has 3.5 grams of fiber per serving (1 cup, raw) compared with some beans that have as high as 19.4 grams per serving.

Because I wanted to eat healthier, I started looking for other ways to increase my fiber intake. After a bit of research, I came across a fiber chart, identifying foods that had any amount of fiber in them.

Foods Rich in Fiber

Here are some of my favorite foods that top the list (the entire list is found at WeHealny.org):

• Blackberries (5 grams per half cup serving in canned, juice packed packages)
• Broccoli (7 grams fresh, cooked half cup serving)
• Figs (10.5 grams for 3 dried)
• Garbanzo Beans (6 grams per half cup or, check this out, 12 grams for 1 cup when you cook them!)
• Lentils (6.4 grams for 1 cup, red cooked lentils…  soup anyone? mmmm!)
• Macaroni (1 cup whole wheat, cooked equals 5.7 grams)
• Potatoes (5 grams for 1 medium white Russet baked potato)
• Rice (5.5 grams for half cup cooked brown rice)
• Spaghetti (6 grams for whole wheat with tomato sauce)

I’m not going to lie. I wasn’t happy to see that pineapple only had .8 grams and cheese wasn’t even on the list. What???

What was on the list was fiber bars. It didn’t call out the different brands or flavors, but you can get that information easy enough by reading the nutrition facts on the boxes at your local grocery store.

So, I went about comparing bars. At the same time, Kellogg’s sent me some Fiber Plus bars to try. Every flavor included chocolate, which made me turn up my nose immediately. Call me crazy. But to be fair, I tried them. Here’s what I found.

Other brands had flavors I liked better, the non-chocolately kind, but those bars weren’t high in fiber even though they claimed to be. In fact, I can get 9 grams of fiber when I eat a Fiber Plus bar, but only 3.5 eating the flavors I preferred from the other brands. Because flavor is important, I went to the store and bought every variety of Fiber Plus and while my family loves them all, the one I landed on, and ended up really liking, was the Choloately Peanut Butter with Caramel Coconut Fudge coming in at a close second.

3 Tips for Adding Fiber Into Your Diet

Now that you know some awesome options for foods high in fiber, I want to point out a few simple tips for incorporating fiber into your daily diet:

1. Eat a cereal high in fiber for breakfast to start your day out right. All-bran cereals are the very best and some have up to 10.4 grams. But even Raisin Bran has 5 grams.  If you are a Bulgar or Kasha fan, you can get 9.6 grams to kick off your day.

2. Eat a fiber bar as a snack, not as a meal replacement. Fiber bars are awesome at snack time, because they are so filling and get you a ton of your fiber grams for the day. My personal favorite is to eat a Fiber Plus bar after working out when I am hungry and need to stay hydrated, but don’t want to stuff myself or drink something other than water.

3. Couple two fiber-rich foods for side dishes and meals. For example, spinach salads are yummier with garbanzo beans. And get triple goodness when you add in artichoke hearts! Soups are great with lentils and whole-wheat macaroni noodles. Black beans are an awesome side dish with tortillas. Baked potatoes with broccoli make an awesome meal.

How do you help your family get enough fiber in their diets?

Disclosure: Kellogg’s provided two boxes of Fiber Plus bars and compensated me for this post. The comments, opinions, and other 5 boxes of Fiber Plus and other brand product I bought came from my mind and pocketbook!

5 Ways to Avoid Extra Holiday Weight

Here are simple tips for finding the balance between celebration and glad tidings without overindulging.

1. Plan ahead. Having a game plan in place can do wonders for you. Not only does it keep you organized but you can also strategize ways to keep healthy foods on your plate and fist fulls of chocolates off it. If you know you won’t have control over the food that is served, have a small, healthy snack, such as raw veggies and hummus before dinner. That way, when the wonderful aroma’s hit your system, you’ll be more likely to eat with your brain, not your eyes.

2. Schedule Your Workout. Treat them like appointments. You don’t skip appointments so if the time is scheduled, you won’t be as inclined to push it aside or forget about it. Take it a step further and post it on your calendar or family to-do list. That way everyone knows that you won’t be available for those set times. And the added accountability will help keep you from skipping out.

3. Make “Me” Time. As busy as you are, as demanding as this time of year is, it is critical to take some “you” time every day. Even 5 or 10 minutes of uninterrupted time can do wonders for your stress and mental well-being. If all you have is a few minutes, take it. Find a quiet place and do some deep breathing. You’re less likely to overindulge if your stress levels are controlled.

4. Don’t Deprive Yourself. Rather, exercise moderation. It is perfectly ok to enjoy the holiday food and drink. Just don’t go overboard. The holidays are meant to be enjoyed, so enjoy yourself. A great tip is to put a spoonful of each treat food on your plate. That way you get a taste of all the goodness without overloading your body with too many empty calories.

5. Be Proactive. Not sure if there is going to be healthy alternatives at dinner? Offer to bring a dish with you. This is a great way to ensure that there will be something healthy on the table and it’s one less dish your gracious hosts have to make. You might even surprise a few people with how tasty and flavourful clean foods can be.

And most importantly, always remember that the holidays are about great friends and family, not simply great food.

Have a Happy and Healthy Holiday Season!

Stephanie is a married mother to a beautiful baby boy. When she is not blogging about her health and fitness journey, she is chasing after her son, growing her photography business and cheering on anyone and everyone working to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter and Facebook.

10 Tips for Being Diet-Free Over the Holidays

As the Mom, who is most likely organizing and orchestrating your family’s merriment, you deserve to indulge…and these “diet” rules can help you feel good about every delicious moment:

1.  Leafy, green vegetables are known to be among the most healthy and nutritious foods. Therefore, all foods that are green in color must naturally be of equal nutritive and caloric value. For optimal health, eat pistachio and mint chocolate chip ice cream in abundance.

2. Any foods that are consumed during a Holiday meal, movie, sporting event, concert, or vacation are considered part of an all-inclusive package deal. Calorie totals and fat grams are irrelevant. That said, it’s like throwing money away if you don’t eat that second slice of pumpkin pie or order extra butter on your popcorn at the movie theater. In fact, be sure to opt for cheesy nachos at the stadium and decadent desserts on vacation. Don’t be wasteful.

3. Anyone who does not order a dessert at a group meal gets the calories from the treats of all those who did.  So there.

4. If you order an ice cream cone and walk while you enjoy each savory lick, you automatically burn every single frozen calorie.  “I’ll have two scoops and a casual stroll, please!”

5. Has your doctor advised you that red wine is good for your heart?  Do you know a friend, relative, or person on TV who has received this advice?  If so and you drink, wine = medication.  Bottoms up.

6. Speaking of wine, there are no calories at Girl’s Night events.  An evening—both online or offline—with your best friends is good for the soul and therefore, calorie-free.  Cheers!

7. Any foods that are consumed along with a diet soda or water have only as many calories as the beverage.  Drink wisely.

8. Everyone knows that you burn calories while you sleep. It follows logically, then, that any foods consumed while in bed have calorie-burning, metabolism-charging properties. For example, eating French toast, served breakfast-in-bed style, is like running five miles on a treadmill!

9. Let’s say you are at the grocery store and you see a great sale: buy one, get one free on pints of Ben & Jerry’s. No diet rules can excuse you from the 1,000 calories in the first pint, but refer back to the sale sign: the second pint is FREE!

10. If you take the time to pack exercise clothing and/or gear for a trip, but then don’t get around to unpacking or using them, you still burn the same number of calories that you would have, had you worked out. After all, it is the thought that counts!

Follow these simple diet rules (feel free to pick and choose and elaborate as necessary) for a fun, guilt-free holiday season. Remember! No one is counting the inches on your waist or the size of your thighs. Rather, they are too busy noting the smile on your face and the gleam in your eyes, wondering what it is you know that they haven’t yet learned.

*Warning: These tips are not guaranteed to take inches off of your waist, but they will sure make you feel better about adding them on!

Recently I’ve been looking for ways to actually address the lack of energy, not just try to power through it with a skinny caramel latte, as delicious as it may be.

A Cleaner Diet

The most important change to make to amp up your energy is making changes in food choices.  Processed foods, even seemingly healthy ones, can drain your energy. Choosing foods that are whole and natural makes a huge difference.  Try to choose foods that are as close to their natural source as possible – fruits, vegetables, eggs, beans, lean meats, and nuts should make up the majority of your diet. Anything that comes in a box is pretty far from it’s original source, either in the ground or from an animal, and most likely has gone through lots of processing and contains lots of preservatives.

Water

Sometimes when you feel like you are dragging it is your body’s way of telling you to get hydrated! Drinking enough water can be hard to do when you are busy but proper water intake supports proper organ and body functioning. Keep a large container at home and one at work to fill up a few times a day.

Exercise

Sometimes when you are tired and busy the last thing you want to do is exercise. Even if you feel too drained to exercise you will be surprised by how much energy you’ll actually get out of it. It doesn’t have to be anything hugely strenuous or structured. A 20-minute walk each day can be enough to boost your energy and positively affect your sleep.

It’s hard to make changes as a busy mom. Between work and home it seems like it may be tough to fit in change, but even small changes such as these can provide great benefits.

Join Chiquita Bananas Tuesday, June 15 from 9-11 ET (8CT, 7MT, 6PT) to learn tips and tricks for how your whole family can live healthier and happier. And, be sure and check out the details below about this week’s giveaway.

• What: Girls’ Night Out (#gno) Twitter party (Click here to learn about #gno!)
• When: Tuesday, June 22, 9-11 p.m. EST (8CT, 7 MT, & 6 PT)
• Where: Party with us on our very own Custom Tweetgrid! Check back Tuesday for the link. (Use hashtags #gno and #chiquita.)
• Topic: Healthy Living
• Who: Brand Panelist:  @chiquitachatter Community Panelists: @amnichols @bookieboo @skinnyjeans @twopeasandpod @cookingwithcaitlin Moderators: @jylmomIF @Dadventurous @troypattee and @momitforward
• Party Favors: Enter for a chance to win a Chiquita prize pack, including a gift card (ARV: $250). (Deadline: Wednesday, June 23 at midnight PT)
• RSVP: Use Mr. Linky below (enter the twitter URL and your twitter ID (e.g., http://twitter.com/jylmomIF).

Note: Mom It Forward accepts paid sponsorships for most #gno Twitter parties. During the parties, brand sponsors provide tips, techniques, expert advice, and information on party topics. Mom It Forward is grateful for the giveaway prizes, coupons, and discounts that sponsors also provide to the Mom It Forward community in conjunction with #gno Twitter parties.

1. Move more.
Get extra movement in any way you can. Turn the music on and dance. Park at the far end of the parking lot. Run up and down the stairs more. Studies have shown that adding extra steps to your day will burn more calories and keep your metabolism higher.

2. Get a support group.
Find a group of women that will support you in your healthy goals. If you are in need, we welcome all moms to the Mamavation Sistahood. You only need to have a desire to learn about healthy living and a positive attitude. We can be reached any time of day on twitter by using #mamavation.

3. Offer to bring a food item to the party.
Whether it’s a preschool party, family get-together, or office party, offer to bring a healthy alternative. Then bring something you can eat, like salad, fruit, or a low-fat appetizer.

4. Do your food research.
Know what it is you are eating. Do research and find out what the average calorie/fat count is to a certain food you like. Then ask yourself what you want to eat and what you want to skip. Don’t cut out everything, but cut out things you know aren’t worth the calories. For instance, did you know you will have to do over 2,000 jumping jacks to work off every cup of homemade stuffing?

5. Don’t drink your calories.
The holidays bring the best drinks of the season, but It’s very easy to drink your calorie allowance for the day without even knowing it. Check the nutritional count on what you are drinking BEFORE you drink. Wouldn’t you rather blow your calories on food instead? Dropping soda for the month is an easy way of cutting out a grip of extra calories. Stick to coffee, tea, red wine, and water. And for the diet soda lovers out there, studies have shown diet drinks actually make you gain weight, not lose weight. So don’t bother.

6. Control your portions.
Don’t get out of control. You can eat your favorite foods by using sensibility and portion control. Sometimes it is better to eat what you want and limit it, rather than deny yourself and overeat later.

7. Get a shoe that supports your needs.
Get a shoe this month that allows you to burn more calories as you are walking, like Earth Footwear. With a tool like this, you will be able to go about your life and the shoes will do a lot of the work for you.

8. Have a plate strategy.
When you load up your plate, fill half with veggies, ¼ protein, and then samples of whatever else you want. That way you aren’t depriving yourself and will feel full at the end of your meal. Another strategy is to use a smaller plate. You might be eating less, but you will feel more satisfied.

9. Add in more fruits and vegetables to every meal.
Make a conscious effort to eat more vegetables and fruit this month. Think about more ways you can incorporate them into every meal. Filling up on veggies will keep you satisfied and full and the end of your meal.

For more tips on how to live a healthy lifestyle and incorporate that in your family life, join the Mamavation Sisterhood.

Picture courtesy of Pink Sherbet Photography.

Studies demonstrate that Earth Footwear increases the rate of fat-burning inside the body.  Women wearing Earth Footwear burn 4x the fat than normal shoes.  The difference is in the Kalso Negative Heel Technology, which positions the toes 3.7º higher than the heels. The slight angle shifts weight subtly back over the heels, and help strengthen and tone the body while also burning more calories.

This is why Earth Footwear is so useful during the holidays.  While you are shopping, running errands and caring for the family, the shoes do the work for you.

Entry Requirements

You can earn up to three extra entries in this week’s giveaway by doing the following (one extra entry per completed item):

1. Follow @earthfootwear on Twitter.
2. Become a fan of the http://facebook.com/earthfootwear page and leave a comment there, sharing tips on ways to have a healthy holiday season.
3. Tweet and/or post a message on your Facebook profile page the following messages:

GIVEAWAY! Enter 2 win a pair of Exer-Walk shoes from @earthfootwear (3 winners!). http://bit.ly/73vJay #gno PLS RT

X

Join #gno Tues 12/1 (9-11 pm ET) 4 tips on how to enjoy a healthy holiday season w/@earthfootwear RSVP: http://bit.ly/7NOZ4H PLS RT

Entry Requirements

You have the option of getting three extra entries in this week’s giveaway. Make sure to leave a comment for each extra entry on this post.

1. Leave a comment on the Earth Footwear Whrrl story.
2. Tweet and/or post a message on your Facebook profile page the following message (one extra entry each):

Become a fan of the http://facebook.com/earthfootwear FB page for tips on enjoying a healthy holiday season! #gno PLS RT

The Fine Print

No purchase necessary to enter. Winners will be selected randomly through http://random.org. Earth Footwear and Mom It Forward employees are ineligible to participate. All entries received after Wednesday, December 2 at midnight PT will not be considered. Entries that do not follow all of the entry requirements will not be considered. Winners will be notified and will have 24 hours to confirm receipt of the e-mail. If they do not reply within 24 hours, another winner will be selected. Open to participants in the US and Canada 18 years and older. One entry per person.