In a hot yoga studio. I got turned onto it a couple of months ago by a friend of mine, and I tell ya….. it’s a drug. Imagine a world where homes or businesses were being raided for the illegal distribution of yoga mats. But seriously, I was a doubter at first. Didn’t think I’d be able to make it an hour and a half in a nearly 110 degree room, but I made it, and I was a different person coming out than I was going in. In a really good, non-narcotic induced way. Read more »
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27Aug
Categories: Inspiration & Motivation Comments: 2
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27Aug
Categories: Inspiration & Motivation Comments: 0
It’s amazing how quickly one can fall into downward spiraling patterns. With just 2 days of excess, and a hiatus in the exercise routine of weeks past, I’m feeling weighed down in almost every respect. The past few days have been filled with social gatherings and heavier than normal meals. I’ve been over the limit with my alcohol, and I have not worked out since Saturday. I know my body really well, and like the flip of a switch, I know I’m not in peak condition. My digestion feels slowed, my moods have been lower, I can’t get myself out of bed in the morning. Normally I’d be on the treadmill right now, feeling great as I get a good sweat going. So that’s when I know it’s time to manually flip the switch the other way. I’m supposed to go out yet again tonight to some networking event at a fancy roof-top Manhattan bar, but I know in my gut that I should break this cycle right here right now. So, trying not to feel guilty about it, I will back out on plans with friends so that I can go to hot yoga and clear out my body and head. I’ve just brewed a cup of Traditional Medicinal Every Day detox, with a splash of Schisandra root extract (from a fruit, used in Chinese medicine with lots of great immune and liver cleaning properties). I’m thinking about cleansing today, as I have a lot of lemons left in the fridge, not much food, and I’m traveling this weekend, anyway, so we’re not inclined to go buy many groceries. Ameesh and I made it through a 6 day cleanse a couple of months ago, 3 days of all veggies, followed by 3 days of the Master Cleanse, and boy did we both feel great. Him, a skeptic, putting some mild hunger pangs aside, by day 6 fully admitted to feeling better. My system is definitely congested a bit at the moment, so I may spend the next couple days “cleaning house”. Just thinking about feeling rejuvenated again motivates me, even as I lazily sit here in my bathrobe and procrastinate getting ready for work. Hmmm….if I’m going to procrastinate anyways, I may as well run around the block as a time waster. Now where are all my sports bras?
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24Aug
Categories: Daily Life Comments: 0
So we’re on our way to New Jersey for a BBQ. That’s always difficult for me. I’ve been trying to go gluten free all year, and I’ve had a few pretty successful stretches, but this time I’m not prepared. Buns and pasta dishes might be abound, and I don’t have time to get some back up munchies to bring with me. Luckily, I’m nice and full from breakfast. Repeated yesterday’s meal, with one egg this time, and chopped avocado and tomatoes. So good. Alright, time to catch the bus. Hopefully there will be crudite!
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23Aug
Categories: Meals and Recipes Comments: 2
So I woke up at 8 this morning. Then I woke up again at 10:30. It wasn’t even a late night last night, but maybe the weeks leading up to my board exam this past Thursday got to me. And celebrating the board exam being over on Thursday night may have had something to do with it. So after searching for a quick “go-to” breakfast for over an hour, it was on to Operation: Clean Out Pantry. With not much left from our Trader Joe’s mission 2 weeks ago, I was left with few options. There were 4 eggs. I wanted something more special than toast. There was a nearly full box of vegetable stock I opened almost 7 days ago, the “use within 7-10 days” warning on the top evilly pressuring me. I’ve had a bag of quinoa* with exactly 1 cup left in the pantry for longer than I should admit to. We have no more fresh veggies to dip into our supremely spicy hummus, so I was on to something! Two eggs, sunny side up** on a small bed of veggie stock cooked quinoa. 1 cup quinoa to 2 cups liquid- simmer until liquid is absorbed and the grains expand. A scoop of spicy hummus on top, and a sprinkling of sea salt, pepper, and some nori flakes. I like to use those to hide nutrients and added nutrition into salads, soups, etc. They don’t exactly have a lot of flavor, but tons of really important minerals! You can find them in seasoning aisles of health food stores near the salt, or near where packaged seaweed is found. It was delicious, easy and quick. A drizzle of olive oil on top would have been a nice touch as well, but the runny yolks mixing with the hummus was enough healthy fat to be satisfying. Top it off with some left over veggies from last night’s dinner. I chose steamed red cabbage and chopped cherry tomatoes. Anything would work, though. Mmmmm…. enjoy.
*Quinoa (keen-wah) is a great grain to have on hand. While most grains need to be soaked for hours prior to cooking to release phytic acid and make more digestible, quinoa does not. It is also gluten-free. Tastes great when lightly toasting in a pan before cooking to enhance it’s naturally nutty flavor. Use instead of couscous or rice for something new.
** Raw eggs, contrary to popular belief, pose virtually no threat to salmonella contamination. This is particularly true of organic, free-range eggs. In the very rare case that an egg is contaminated, it would be the surface of the shell, as salmonella lives in the intestines of chickens, and does not penetrate the interior egg. It is also in the raw egg that that the amino acids and nutrients are most available to our body. Take lutein for example, a potent vision enhancer. Lutein, like other egglicious nutrients, are deactivated in the cooking process. So next time Aunt Lucy’s making those famous kitchen sink cookies….go ahead. Lick the bowl.
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23Aug
Categories: Uncategorized Comments: 1
Welcome everyone as I enter the world of blogging! As I imagine, only my friends are reading this right now, and introducing myself would be a bit unnecessary. However, for those who may have stumbled upon this through some distant social networking connection, I will make my first post brief and to the point. My name is Caitlin Grater, and as a holistic nutritionist, and health world enthusiast, people are always asking for advice. Have I read this book and that?; how much fruit is too much?; what do I eat on a daily basis for breakfast, lunch, dinner? The list goes on. My mission is to educate and inspire people to make healthy changes in their lives through diet, exercise, and by just thinking more positively. I hope to reach a regularly attending audience through this blog and to open a window in my life to those reading. I won’t always be healthy, and I won’t always be happy, but that’s important for people to know. Life isn’t always a bowl of cherries, but I make a daily effort to stay balanced. In this blog I plan to write about really basic things, for example meals I’ve had that day. Not to be boring (which sometimes it will be), but to give people ideas to think outside the cereal box. I’ll also use it as a forum to answer questions that I may get during the day, or as an outlet to express frustrations in the struggle against Big Food. I make dietary suggestions to clients regularly, but I could secretly be waking up every morning to doughnuts. I want people to know that I really live what I preach: whole, unprocessed foods, dietary experimentations, trying not to get too down-trodden when stressors intensify, etc. Health isn’t just about what you eat, and how much you move. It’s a complex scientific equation, and everyone’s equation is different from the person next to you. I’m not trying to say emulate mine and you’ll be healthy, but to look into the life of a generally healthy person so that you can say, “it’s worth a try.” Thanks for reading, and here’s to your health!
