Stand Up Straight: The Power of Good Posture for Health and Wellness

Article written by guest author: Brad Krause. You can find more of his work on his website selfcaringinfo.

 

Many people often overlook the significance of good posture when considering their overall health and wellness. However, keeping proper alignment has a profound impact on various aspects of your well-being. In this article, we will delve into the benefits of improved posture, such as increased blood circulation, enhanced breathing, and greater self-confidence. Additionally, this article suggests valuable tips to help you achieve better posture, including investing in ergonomic home office furniture, stretching throughout the day, practising correct standing and walking techniques, and being aware of your body's signals.

The Advantages of Proper Posture

A Boost in Blood Circulation

One of the key benefits of supporting good posture is improvement of blood circulation. When your body is aligned correctly, your blood vessels are less constricted, allowing blood to flow more freely. This increased circulation delivers essential nutrients to your cells and promotes the removal of waste products, contributing to better overall health (Chaddha, et al, 2019).

Breathing Better, Living Better

Another advantage of proper posture is its positive effect on your breathing. When you stand or sit up straight, your lungs have more space to expand, enabling you to take deeper breaths. This increased oxygen intake can lead to heightened energy levels, reduced stress, and improved mental clarity (Ma, et al, 2017).

Confidence That Shines

An often-underestimated benefit of good posture is an improvement in self-confidence. When you stand tall with your shoulders back and head held high, you exude an air of assertiveness and poise. This increase in confidence may lead to better performance in various aspects of your life, from professional endeavours to social interactions (Mayo Clinic, 2021).

Practical Tips for Improving Your Posture

Embrace Ergonomics in Your Home Office

One vital step towards better posture is ergonomic home office furniture. A well-designed chair that supports the natural curve of your spine and a desk at the right height can make a significant difference in promoting proper alignment while seated. You might also consider a standing desk or an adjustable workstation to help alleviate strain on your back and neck during extended periods at the computer (Johnson, et al, 2019).

Stretch Your Way to Success

Incorporating regular stretching into your daily routine is essential for maintaining good posture. Stretching keeps your muscles and joints flexible, preventing stiffness and discomfort that can lead to poor alignment. Focus on stretches that target your back, neck, and shoulders. Classes in yoga, tai chi, and Pilates are good sources for further training or instruction in proper posture (Desjardins, 2016).

Stand Correctly for Improved Posture

A common habit that contributes to poor posture is leaning on one foot while standing. This uneven weight distribution can result in muscle imbalances and strain on your spine. Counteract this tendency by consciously standing with your weight evenly distributed between both feet and try shifting your weight from one foot to the other at regular intervals to keep balance (Medline, 2017).

Walk Tall and Proud

Finally, paying attention to your stride can help improve your posture while walking. Aim to keep your heels slightly apart and ensure that your toes point forward, rather than inward or outward. This alignment allows for a more natural gait, alleviating pressure on your knees and hips (Mayo Clinic, 2021).

Listen to Your Body

One crucial aspect of improving posture is being aware of your body's signals. If you notice any discomfort, stiffness, or pain, take a moment to assess your posture and adjust as necessary. By tuning into your body's needs, you can prevent long-term issues and promote better alignment (Nerurkar, 2013).

By prioritising your posture, you are investing in your long-term health and wellness. Implementing the tips provided in this article will enable you to enjoy increased circulation, better breathing, heightened self-confidence, and a stronger connection with your body. So, stand up straight, invest in some ergonomic office furniture, and embrace the many benefits of proper posture for a healthier, happier you (Schnapp & Mays, 2023).

3 Spheres Harmony provides lifestyle modification support for your mind, body, and spirit.

References

American Lung Association (2022). Breathing exercises. Retrieved from: https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/wellness/breathing-exercises.

American Migraine Foundation (2016). Biofeedback and Relaxation Training for Headaches. Retrieved from: https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/resource-library/biofeedback-and-relaxation-training/.

Chaddha, A., Modaff, D., Hooper-Lane, C., Feldstein, D.A. (2019). Device and non-device-guided slow breathing to reduce blood pressure: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Complementary Therapeutic Medicine;45:179-184. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2019.03.005. Epub 2019 Mar 15. PMID: 31331557.

Desjardins, D. (2016). How yoga can help with flexibility and muscle tone; on the Power Health Chinook website. Retrieved from: https://powerhealthchinook.ca/yoga-can-help-flexibility-muscle-tone/.

Gerber, L.M., Sievert, L.L. & Schwartz, J.E. (2017). Hot flashes and midlife symptoms in relation to levels of salivary cortisol. Maturitas;96:26-32. doi: 10.1016/j.maturitas.2016.11.001. Epub 2016 Nov 3. PMID: 28041591; PMCID: PMC5215844.

Hetterich, L. & Stengel, A. (2020). Psychotherapeutic Interventions in Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Frontiers In Psychiatry;11:286. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00286. PMID: 32425821; PMCID: PMC7205029.

Johnson, A., Roberts, L., Elkins, G. (2019). Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Menopause. Journal of Evidenced Based Integrative Medicine;24:2515690X19829380. doi: 10.1177/2515690X19829380. PMID: 30868921; PMCID: PMC6419242.

Ma, X., Yue, Z.Q., Gong, Z.Q., Zhang, H., Duan, N.Y., Shi, Y.T., Wei, G.X., & Li, Y.F. (2017). The effect of diaphragmatic breathing on attention, negative affect, and stress in healthy adults. Frontiers In Psychology;8:874. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00874. PMID: 28626434; PMCID: PMC5455070.

Mayo Clinic (2021). Chronic Stress Puts Your Health at Risk. Retrieved from: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress/art-20046037.

Mayo Clinic, (2021). Stress symptoms: Effects on your body and behavior. Retrieved from: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress-symptoms/art-20050987

Medline Plus (2017). Guide to good posture; Health Topics. Retrieved from: https://medlineplus.gov/guidetogoodposture.html.

Nerurkar, A., Bitton, A., Davis, R.B., Phillips, R.S. & Yeh, G. (2013). When physicians counsel about stress: Results of a national study. JAMA Internal Medicine;173(1):76–77. doi:10.1001/2013.jamainternmed.480.

Santino, T.A., Chaves, G.S., Freitas, D.A., Fregonezi, G.A. & Mendonça, K.M. (2020). Breathing exercises for adults with asthma. Cochrane Database System Review;3(3):CD001277. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001277.pub4. PMID: 32212422; PMCID: PMC7096190.

Schnapp, M. & Mays, K. (2023). Learn on iposture.com. Retrieved from: http://www.iposture.com/learn.php  

Tindle, J. & Tadi. P. (2022). Neuroanatomy, Parasympathetic Nervous System. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; PMID: 31985934.

Ubolnuar, N., Tantisuwat, A., Thaveeratitham, P., Lertmaharit, S., Kruapanich, C. & Mathiyakom, W. (2019). Effects of breathing exercises in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Annual Rehabilitation Medicine 43(4):509-523. doi: 10.5535/arm.2019.43.4.509. Epub 2019 Aug 31. PMID: 31499605; PMCID: PMC6734022.

Learn to Relax again any moment of the day

Because most in our modern society rarely give their breathing 'the time of day' and breathing being the primary act of physical life and health, I thought I would share this lovely video by The Breath Source. 🩻🩺
In our fast-paced modern world, we tend to breathe in short rapid bursts, especially when in front of a computer or while perusing the internet via a device. What we are doing when we do that is stimulating our sympathetic nervous system...which kicks in the fight or flight response! 🧐😮

While there are certainly times that we need that level of energy output, we must balance it with the rest and relaxation response, by initiating our parasympathetic response. ⚖️
Or- - -live with the consequences of wearing down our body's health over the years. In what way? difficulty falling to sleep at night or staying asleep, not sleeping deeply enough to wake refreshed; developing anxiety or other nervous conditions; wear and tear on our immune system; hypertension; and many other conditions have been linked to an overactive nervous system.❤️‍🩹

I chose this breathing exercise video because, he does a good job of keeping it simple, and leading you through it effortlessly enough that you do not have to keep your eyes open, if you prefer.

Click on this link below to go to the video.

The Breath Source

How to manage and remain in charge of your own equilibrium

Topic: Relaxation and stress ~ the connection

How to manage and remain in charge of your own equilibrium

Practice Mindfulness –

This has become a focus across many different jobs, lifestyles, and situations today.

Mindfulness itself is a concept long practiced in different spiritual paths and even in Indigenous peoples discovered at the turn of the last century. A simple definition of it is –

Non-judgemental attention to the current Present moment… in Each current present moment.

If that sounds like a lofty goal, it certainly is! Yet, it is a technique that is incorporated into many kinds of people’s lifestyles today as well as in the past. Mindfulness, and the various methods to teach its practice through the centuries, are a way of truly staying closer to spirit.

There are numerous practices, skills, or habits to choose from that can become part of your mindfulness practice—

o   Yoga

o   Tai chi

o   Meditation

o   Self-guided relaxation exercises

o   Spending time in nature

o   Gardening

o   Singing, chanting, or humming alone

o   Quiet walks with no talking

o   Turning off the cell phone for specific lengths of time

o   Creating down times from the internet

o  Keeping a journal to reflect on your mindfulness exercises

o   And many more like these

Disconnect to Reconnect to yourself and your own private personal needs.

The benefits to these various practices are incalculable, but the primary gift is the shift in your own personal consciousness to begin Right NOW taking care of yourself… before you reach out to care for anyone, or anything, else. This only takes a few moments once you have the practice ingrained.

The extraordinarily important corollary to this mindfulness practice is –

NOT beating yourself up if, when, you forget to ‘come In.’

Because, you see, the bottom line is learning to truly respect yourself, and eventually, to love yourself unconditionally. This is evolved learning, rather than hardcore discipline.

Incorporate Accessories

Dharna, a relaxed concentration method from India, means consciously holding one’s focus on the chosen perspective that you intend to achieve. In practice, one creatively brings reminders of the point of view into your environment. For example, you might set aside one room or a place in a room that directs your attention to your mindfulness habit. If you have chosen yoga or tai chi practice, create a workout outfit just for this! as a reminder to fix the new habit into your self-concept. If gardening is your one activity of ‘getting away’ …consider gifting yourself gardening gloves that are flexible, sturdy, and attractive to your eye. Let yourself know you are taking care of you. Or you might prefer the introspection of keeping a mindfulness journal. This is so popular that there are many types available to choose - from simple notebooks to device journal apps. A lovely, keepable, and sturdy one I found on Amazon is called Mindfulness Journal: A Daily Diary for Women & Girls to Practice Gratitude, Meditation, and Breathing and to Relax & Reduce Stress and Anxiety. You can view this journal by clicking on the name. I like this one because it focuses on gratitude, which I have found is a vital perspective to incorporate for when I catch myself not being mindful!

References

British Society of Lifestyle Medicine (BSLM), (2023). Social prescribing in lifestyle medicine – Of the community by the community. Retrieved from: https://bslm.org.uk/social-prescribing-in-lifestyle-medicine/

Didonna, F. (2009). Clinical Handbook of Mindfulness; 26 chapters. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-09593-6

Kuan, T. (2007). Mindfulness in early Buddhism : New approaches through psychology and textual analysis of Pali, Chinese and Sanskrit sources. Florence, UNITED STATES: Routledge.

Kuyken, W. (2023). University of Oxford Mindfulness Research Centre. Retrieved from the University of Oxford at: https://www.psych.ox.ac.uk/research/mindfulness

Lawrence, B. (2004). The Practice of the Presence of God.

Tripathy, R. R., (2018).  Anthropology, 6:4. Retrieved from: DOI: 10.4172/2332-0915.100020

Janni's Reminders and Links to Resources When Getting Started with Keto

Keto details for the beginner

 Every new to keto client has different concerns…

Ask yourself - what are your concerns?

Any other health concerns that influence how you eat today?

Typical concerns:

Cravings? Hunger?

How do I get my vitamins?

How do I get a balanced amount of all the vitamins?

How do I cook for me AND my family?

How does keto work?

Is this nutritional evidence-based science or a fad?

Support for keto?

Ask Janet for resources -- To assist those new to keto or to the concept of a scientific method of eating, I have created this short list of resources and tips. I actually created this as a PDF for friends, family, and clients. But there has been a new wave of people asking for this type of information. So, I am sharing it here.

Listen — this is very abbreviated! And I would rather chat with you live to make sure you understand the ins and outs of this change in the way you eat. For some this is going to be a radiacal change with radical effects… the best being: losing weight, feeling energetic again, becoming healthier, sleeping better, and feeling a lot better about yourself. But you will have to understand what you are doing and that cheating will not work with this kind of change.

The following list includes links or books for the science (it is really simple but there is also the detailed science of metabolism in the human body and definitive answers to physiological questions); resources for support; videos; recommended books; recipes…lots of recipes!

Remember:

Goal – ketones replace glucose in blood by 2 – 3 weeks

Every meal – 70-75% Whole Fat; 20-25% protein; 0-10% low carb veggies … E V E R Y meal!

Avo steak cauliflower

dins! yum

Quick links for quick resources –

Dr. Unwin’s Twitter, -- over 50,000 followers.

“From 2017 to 2018, his practice saved £57,000 on drugs for type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and other conditions by offering patients a dietary alternative to medications.

"Also in 2018, Dr. Unwin was named the ninth most influential general practitioner in the UK by GP magazine Pulse." (“Dr. David Unwin, MD - Diet Doctor”) Moreover, he is a clinical expert in Diabetes at Fellowship of the UK Royal College of General Practitioners where he was elected as a Fellow back in 2008.”

NHS team for supporting https://www.lowcarbprogram.com/meet-the-team/

https://www.stilljanet.com/blog/fat-the-old-new-truth-about-healthy-eating Just a blog of mine that I penned to answer my client’s questions about why keto.

https://www.stilljanet.com/blog/imagine-our-world-if-we-taught-it-how-to-eat This is a good Medical Conference lecture I attended… not too science-y and yes, smart, and inspiring. . . on keto and changing the way we think about earing.

https://ninateicholz.com/ketogenic-diet-myths-vs-facts/  Tina is known for her books, lectures, and campaign to spread the word about what healthy eating really looks like.

https://ketosummit.com/ Just a useful resource for links on keto including to recipe sites.

https://youtu.be/cz4uZha3xt8[JS1]  Maria Emmerich is another big keto teacher. Here she shares a tip to get the fat burner increasing your body fat burn.

Dr Jake Wilson -- https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/ketogenic-dieting-frequently-asked-questions.html

https://fatfiction.movie/ The Fat Fiction movie… two hours arrghh but full of valuable info. Maybe take it in chunks like I did.

https://www.bodybuilding.com/content/ketogenic-dieting-frequently-asked-questions.html From an athlete’s point of view.

Speaking of Dr Unwin, one of the things he is great is creating glycemic index infographics. Easy to understand and helpful for the quickie check on foods you are considering/eating. https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1397638180678078465.html

A Few Good books –

And these are full of resources to keep you reading a long time, if you are inclined…

https://ninateicholz.com/ketogenic-diet-myths-vs-facts/ Speaking of Nina Teicholz and The Big Fat Surprise … this link is to her most well-known book.

The Real Meal Revolution by Prof Tim Noakes, et al https://realmealrevolution.com/

Low Carb, High Fat by Dr Andreas Eenfeldt

Substituting ingredients –

You will find many sites sharing either their favourite sweetener substitutes in their keto recipe pages or also sites that explain how to decide about sweeteners, and other food substitutes like flour and non-high carb veggies.

https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/recipes/substitution-guide Diet Doctor is a useful site for many tips… but the focus of his site is for his paying clients. Join or not, but all the same this link gives the basic advice to keep in mind when substituting ingredients.

https://konsciousketo.com/blogs/keto/your-ultimate-guide-to-keto-cooking-and-baking-conversions-or-substitutes Useful information. I do want to warn you to be careful of using new ingredients you have not tried before though. For example, xylitol and erythritol cause bloating and uncomfortable flatulence in some. ... (like me)! I do not use these. So, check the ingredients carefully for known issues in humans.

I almost never see stevia included as a sweetener on keto internet and social media pages anymore, but I use a fine powder version to a liquid version and only need the teeniest tiniest amount. Once the satiety sets in with the switch from insulin production to ketone production in your metabolism, you will not have cravings…. And sweeteners are too much for the most part.

Recipes:

https://linktr.ee/ketocheatmode

https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/recipes/bread

https://www.wholesomeyum.com/keto-low-carb-pasta-alternatives/

Always use the best quality sources for your foods that you can find. https://www.wholesomeyum.com/keto-low-carb-pasta-alternatives/

I just found loads of typos… And there is so much more I feel like I should share.

Bottom line: Please contact me with questions.

BE Healthy and BE Happy!

Diet’s Connection to Our Own Health

photo by jstill using iphone 6SE

Thank you, Nina Telcholz 🙏🙏🙏
All of you that are sincerely reaching out to understand how to get your health balanced and to return to a sense of equilibrium in your physical body.... Ms Telcholz is very good at simplifying debate. Here, in the article linked below, not only does she address myths; at the end of the article she provides a loooong list of citations and direct links to experts in this vital new understanding about diet’s Connection to our own health.
Be well! 💃💖🕺

https://ninateicholz.com/ketogenic-diet-myths-vs-facts/

Autumnal Splendor

photo out my office window

‘Wrapped in the Fold of Thy Embrace, I know Not fear but the deepest surrender. What appears a paradox to mind is soul’s unabated joy and peace …regardless outer limitations and even physical death. This singular experience is simply the Greater AIM… Freedom of Consciousness.’

My 60th year is upon me now, 3 months in. Some of you are aware that, recently, I gave almost 5 years to midwifing my mother-in-law’s transition from the physical. Perhaps there is nothing unusual then in my contemplations of my own approaching transition. Autumn is my favourite season since childhood. Reflection on the symbolism of the circle nearing its end is often attributed to this season.

There are so many works on the topic, so I refuse to beat any used-up drums. Instead, I quietly turn around my own viewpoint to welcome all experiences. In deep dreams as I wake each morn, I observe the wordless imagery of my mind attempting to push against an invisible barrier where I can go no further. I have lost any sense of objection to this fact.

When I wake I recognise that I am the mental viewpoint …and yet much more.

Who is this viewpoint? that embraces both the archetypal imagery yet exists beyond it? I am the Experiencer of all these experiences…and not the varying experiences of this lifetime! I am a silent witness to something like a storm that overtook consciousness somewhere my mind has no words for either. Considering the storm that childbirth is, I laughingly decide that is when I forgot my greater self. However, I make no claims.

Today, I choose to open my private contemplations a tiny bit. After having midwifed many deaths now, I understand the many ways that, both, the one transitioning and the others who watch, cry, deny, and fight their loved ones’ transitions are often unready. Like birth, death also comes unbidden…. Or so our minds might say.

If you are at peace with death, we share a smile. If you are at peace with life! You already know laughter, tears, solitude, and welcome these experiences. And if you cannot face these topics without a storm warning, I understand why. So, I am just offering a tiny peek at something ...a perspective that is always present, in case you ever need it.

Words will never express the depth of my gratitude to all the souls who shared this point of view with little ole me, and how to make it my own. … …

Freedom of Consciousness is the experience that solves all storms.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 BE Well and Be Content

[Please feel free to share my writing as long as you share a link back to myself as the author.]

Super Nurturer

[Photo by friend of Janet and family.]

A talent I did not know I have is caring for others. Those that have known me a long time are laughing right now, I hear you! Apparently, I came into this life with this innate understanding of how to remove myself completely in crisis in order to help another. But, honestly, I did not recognise this until after years of people reflecting this to me in specific situations. In fact, I still perceive I am not perfect in any way at this giving thing.

Okay, why talk about it now? Some of you are aware that my husband and I lived with and took care of his mother full time as she died over the last five years. I will come back to that dying over five years in a moment. Now, his only brother who lives down the street from us has turned a corner in his ability to care for himself. Yes, he has kids, no wife, but caring children. As fate would have it, their lives are overwhelmed with new children right now.

I understand most people say things like, ‘why do it? Isn’t there some system in place to do that instead? I don’t have time. I am no good at that.’ And for every individual these answers matter. We all must follow our own path. In my path, I did not see any benefit in this tendency of mine. The big Clan I grew up within simply utilized all members to take a part in caring for the Whole. Sweetly, there were more than enough of us that no one was pressed into family duty beyond the level of their maturity.

On becoming a mother, however, the mystery of wholeness unraveled. Again, pressed into duty! But on a level about which I had no comprehension. Early on when my husband could not take the sleep deprivation, he just walked out. Slammed by the sudden realization, I perceived: the buck stops here for who else is going to care for this tiny newborn? I would like a break too; but there is. no. one. else.

Nurturing life from its onset revealed hidden rewards…because I wanted them, I looked for them, I Needed them. These rewards became gems that I learned to cling to, as all my own childhood dreams fell to the wayside. Unknowingly, I built a repertoire of skills… in unconditional service. Where did I come up with this? In retrospect, I see how every example and role model of unconditional Love and mentorship that I had received, floated to the forefront of my awareness. I used these moments, again, because these were all I had to survive.

Yes, Janet, but you do have a choice. O yes! I do. That is the crux, is it not? All along anyone’s path comes moments for choice. Why did we take whatever fork in the road we took? Some years ago, a very special mentor of mine asked me a most vital question. He said, Janet, you are such a good nurturer, so much so that you are a super-nurturer… but, perhaps what is more valuable and pertinent to your own growth is when are you going to turn that super-nurturing around and apply it to your Self?

Back to how, above, I phrased the description of our care for Mum … “dying over five years.” What do I mean – Five Years?! Consider, if you will, this choice idea… when you contemplate where you are in your life’s goals or whether you ought to consider having some goals! What is the purpose of life, of being born at all? Nothing at all against anyone avoiding giving service to others; the popularity of that trade is declining. There certainly seems to be quite a few examples of service to Self these days.

As I have written many times, what does your life amount to when your turn comes to die? When do we begin to die? And, if one is avoiding it, what exactly are you avoiding? Why? Though we may have many people by our bed as we pass from this life, only one person dies, only One gives up the outer world. Will you have discovered a way to fill your chalice with meaning that keeps you, true You, whole through such a crisis as your own death!

What if the meaning of life is far more multi-dimensional than collecting a pocketful of trinkets… There is a mystery! In my viewpoint, consciousness is the child that, like all children, requires nurturing. We do not even take anything from this life when we die, except consciousness. If you have not experienced freedom of consciousness … to choose, say, not being dragged down by others’ negativity or to find a way around obstacles and fixed conditions, I have a pertinent suggestion for you. … …

One of my mysterious gems: learn who this consciousness is… and nurture it.

A Rose by any other Name

my roses reaching...

Dad taught me a lot about growing roses. He actually knew nothing about growing roses when I was a kid. At least that is what he told me. At that age when the ‘why’ question applied to everything, naturally I asked, “why are you growing them then?” His answer: there is nothing so beautiful and rare as a rose.

Suddenly, my child mind desired only to realise what this rare and beautiful thing might be.

I started following him every time I saw him headed to the rose shrubs, scrawny twigs really, that he had carefully pushed into the ground on the far side of our house. Usually my insatiable curiosity drove him mad and he would send me off. But, when it came to roses, his focus remained on the pitiful twigs he tended. I was not always certain he even heard my chatter. His focus is what remains uppermost in my imagery to this day.

While I watched and questioned poor dad’s every move, my eyes took in the strange things he did for those rose shrubs. ‘Why are you adding dirt, dad? There’s already dirt.’ Each plant requires its own form of nutrients, he answered. ‘You don’t look sure, dad.’ He always agreed by saying, “I’m learning. Learning means making mistakes. Not all these shrubs may live.” This one was a real shocker… Dad is saying he is not perfect! I did not notice then, but that revelation invited me to become his associate in learning about growing and tending roses.

It dawns on me now that becoming my Father’s coworker in growing roses evolved into much more than roses. Some of the first twigs died eventually, despite dad’s efforts. ‘Now what, dad?’ before recognising that he already had another twig to push in the ground. ‘Why didn’t those other rose plants die, dad?’ Good question, he informed me. In the south, the word ‘ruminate’ was popularly used. When dad stood observing his plants, doing nothing else, and I asked why, he answered, “Rumination is good for the soul.” Whatever that meant! but that sort of reply took root in my awareness too.

Over the years I watched him push rusted nails in the dirt close to the base of the twig; carefully press coffee grounds around the base of the plant; clear out any weed whatsoever that dared to push up within the vicinity of the shrubs. And much more, all to get these obstreperous plants to grow. When I helped by mimicking his rose tending, the thorns often nabbed me. Complaining to my Father about this attribute of his favoured plants, he explained the thorns are the rose’s way of protecting itself.

The whole thorn thing really bothered me. How could anything be worth going through thorns? The illusive answer to this mystery simply cannot arrive in the mind that is uninterested in the outcome. Explanations seldom explain. My attention wandered often from dad’s rose project. School demanded so much time and effort, avoidance of effort in my case. Winter and the twigs lost all their leaves. I figured they were a lost cause. Besides, I was having a hellish time in grade school.

The outdoors, beyond the windows of prison, I mean school! called and called my attention away from the barking of my frustrated teacher. Staring out those windows, I used to visualize in detail which route to run when the final school bell rang. The day came when I arrived home to drop my homework before escaping outside to play, that my stepmom said, “Go outside to see your dad. He’s waiting for you.” I found him by the, still small, rose shrubs. Smiling, he wordlessly beckoned me closer. Near the top of the shrub, a yellow rosebud radiated surprising colour.

The shrub was still covered in thorns; however, now I understood their purpose. This rosebud just opening was a delicate thing, a purity. This rosebud promised uncompromised beauty. This rosebud manifested through contemplative intention that never lost focus on the reward. Dad clearly gained much joy from his rose projects. We moved into a bigger house later and right away, he started planting roses there too. He used to photograph my sisters and I every Easter by the rose bushes in bloom. We tittered over his sweet declaration each year, “My beautiful and rare roses, each one of you.”

Years later, I started planting roses wherever I resided. Until recently, I forgot to ask why. What makes the experience of a rose so rare and beautiful? How did those words capture my imagination? Surely, we all experience the answer to my questions, while simultaneously taking the momentary wonder and joy of anything beautiful for granted. Dad sincerely desired to multiply the rare experience of beauty in his own life. And the only way to fuel such a goal is by giving focused love to it. Nothing else has the power to get one through the thorniness of life’s wild storms.

There’s an old poem that I never quote correctly, because there is only one line that I know by experience. All souls will crawl across the barren, hot, and unforgiving desert for just …one …single …. drop …of love.

There is a potential rare gift at the end of every effort...when one pours their own love into realising this kind of beauty. Is it worth it?

Esoteric Baking

Making an unusual bread recipe, that actually is not bread at all, I remembered the internet comments on the recipe I first learned that led to this current personal version. “Don’t read the comment section, Mom!” my kids warn me, because there is often unrestrained negativity expressed in comments. I have learned to practice neutrality in order to patiently get to the gems within the ranting. I hope you will find some useful wisdoms in this note for your own experimental contemplations.

As happens when a project is more difficult than one’s mind hoped for, this particular recipe evoked quite a bit of complaining among the readers. I made note of the repeated themes, both positive and negative. Then happily set about my first attempt. Because the ingredients were far from ordinary in baking, the various stages of the bread’s production did not appear ordinary either. I repeatedly warned my husband in the next room, “I’m not sure this will be edible!”

Even when first removed from the bread pan, the initial appearance troubled me. Per instructions, we gave it time before intrepidly taking our first bite. The pretend bread turned out better than better! My husband and I became instant converts. Our first meal of the day always includes a hunky slice of this psyllium-based bread slathered with butter.

As happens, the market is not able to keep up with demand. Psyllium bread has become a “thing” due to the rise of keto and paleo diet popularity. Necessity is the mother of invention, the old saying goes. And my history of cooking bears this out. My recipe evolved into a unique version personal to our local market and our tastes. Every time I make it, I remember the fuss and stink of the upset commenters on that first posted recipe. And I ponder why they experienced trouble and I did not.

Life is such a huge mirror; at least it is, if one relaxes and looks for the lessons. I am just as guilty as anyone when it comes to frustration with my own ignorance. What are these bloody obstacles? I. just. need. my. happiness! We all do. And O! what a gamut of shenanigans we get up to in attempting to get what we think we need. Or we give up. Giving up can be viewed as weak, but, in my experience, giving up is the first step to opening up my willingness to be taught.

I could teach you all kinds of secrets and tips on baking. I took up the learning of it about age 20. Not sharing how many years that has been now! But this rumination initiated from pondering a deeper lesson from interacting with today’s version of community. Learning, improving one’s experience of life, or advancing oneself in this everchanging world, has not changed. Nor is it anything new for folks to complain and struggle about their perceived inability to learn. And that blaming the teacher? Yep, that is not new either.

The big obstacle is giving up ego. Of course, everyone can make the decision that this activity is not their path. But, guess what? Sooner or later, when you are honest, you begin to notice you learned from that failure so long ago. Maybe you will never attempt baking again, but that lesson keeps evolving every time one revisits the memory. The lesson expands whether one remembers the experience of frustration with life or not.

Some are never going to give up fighting the idea that life is unfair. Others are going to submit to their sense of failure and identify with it. There are others who, somewhat annoyingly at times, believe current successes support their right to barge forth over the top of others’ real needs for balance. Going back to my description of how necessity insisted I adapt the original recipe so that I could keep cooking. I did not consciously think about adapting the recipe, except upon those moments I discovered a new obstacle. In the moment, I just looked for another way. But first! I surrendered, completely, the idea of making the bread. I stepped away before allowing my ego to interfere with creativity.

And I kept reminding myself: this may not be palatable! as I consciously tried out various ideas. Experimentation means learning from failure. Did you hate science labs because you could never get to the correct result? I did, but I decided the challenge was far more interesting than being an A student. Laughing at mistakes turned out to be as much fun as finally figuring out why my experiment failed. In truth, laughing eased the way for learning to occur. And where does laughing come from?

Understanding we are here, alive, to learn, to grow and evolve, and to continue to learn from our mistakes, is the secret ingredient. This special ingredient paves the way for humble receptivity to others’ greater experience…. Not to give up our true selves; rather, to discover our true selves. . . by giving up what is holding one back. Dive In to whatever is your private joy. The single intent to create your perfect loaf of bread, today, keeps rising and expanding, and what an aroma! Neighbours will walk more slowly past your window while You Are Cooking. Cooking up the happier You.

Keep raising your loaf of bread, higher, wider. Life is no longer perceived as unfair upon discovering how to play. . . instead of objecting.

Learning to Ride a Bicycle

Photo by Ramakrama at : ramakrama.deviantart.com

With a smile, I often return to, what was for me, a special personal experience of learning to bike. I begged my dad for my first bicycle with all the typical excuses and promises. Finally, the day arrived when I received a classic red bicycle and headed out immediately to try it out, making a confident ceremony of ‘giving’ my big trike to my sister as I rolled ‘my’ bicycle to the street. And, right away after getting on the bike, I crashed.

And I crashed quite a bit before becoming disenchanted. Putting the bike away that day, I even used some of my dad’s excuses for why I was not ready for a bike after all. Dad’s expression is still priceless to remember; so is my mother’s laughter at the whole exchange.

I did not pick that bike back up either … for some time. As dad’s objections became more eloquent, I became reflective on my reasons. At some point, I explained to my dad that it was the pain of falling on asphalt that I could not let go of. As an avid athlete, dad found that reason an insult to his good genes. Mom’s love found the way to give us both a matrix for me to get back on the bike. The game plan became that dad would run along behind me with his hand on the pannier as I pedaled “as fast as” I could.

The momentous day arrived. I still remember I was not exactly looking forward to it. Dad’s reluctance was evident too. Though I half-heartedly reminded him a few times on Saturday, I suspect mom, once again, prevailed on him to make it happen. Sunday, he came to me after church and said, “Lets do this.”

Dad earnestly coaching me as I slowly rolled the bike to the street was only a background hum to the loud noise of my fear. One of the more rambunctious neighbourhood kids jeered at me. My sister may have shut him up. She was always defending me, but I barely noticed so great was this challenge. Seated on the bike, I took a deep breath, and dad started a sort of chant that even the kids on the street took up. “You can do this. Pedal as fast as you can. I’ve got your back. I am with you.”

I took off a bit wobbly at first, but pedaling as fast as I could, per instructions. Fear of falling quickly dissolved as speed picked up. Dad’s voice kept saying, “I’m right here. You can do this. You are doing this.” When I saw the upcoming steep hill, I even pedaled harder, because my father behind me and the accompanying chorus of the kids on the street urged me on. Before I could roll back, I stopped and got my feet on the ground. I looked around and saw my dad, grinning widely, far back down the road.

This all took place around my seventh birthday. Some much harder experiences occurred in the following year. Experiences that rocked my seven-year-old world to the foundations. Life is like that. And childhood may or may not prepare us for how to handle the roiling ups and downs that continually assault one’s hopes. Yet, if one sincerely desires to get above the cycle of pain and pleasure, there is always a reflection of this simple story … if you allow your will to liberation to fuel your search.

Recognition is enough. We all have to persist in refining our ideal of the highest version of our goal. This is how learning takes place. And support comes from the ones who recognize your ideal. Recognizing the support is crucial too. But ultimately, recognize that the journey begins before you notice it has begun! Because you have committed to your aim.

You can do this. Do not take my word for it. I am just a voice in the chorus that is urging you on. Can you hear it? Hear what? The Sound of your attention merging into who you truly Are. No one can tell you what to do. Casting about for your own truth is part of the voyage to realizing it. Sure, falling down hurts. As a baby, you got right back up and kept trying to figure out that walking thing. I am just suggesting another viewpoint. Listen … to the Love, rather than the fear, anger, and naysayers…especially the naysayers in your own head. Just Listen … and do not allow focus on the bullseye to veer off. Pedal as fast as you can.

You Can Do This.

Insurmountable Obstacles

by J.Still

Swans at Buckingham Palace ©jstill photographer

In younger years, I explored every avenue that opened up before me. The wilderness of mountains and forests where few tread increasingly became a living metaphor for me. Through all my experimentation with the physical, emotional, and psychological worlds, I persistently found privacy and deep contemplation in nature’s beauty. I, also, experienced the most remarkable elation just being in nature.

Naturally, I pursued such an experience over and over again. As a result, unexpected experiences perpetually unfolded. Consequently, I kept setting up the conditions to get back to the wilderness. I accepted jobs and roles that I did not conceive of myself being involved in ...prior to stepping in to the various positions. Of course, every job required me to expand my own idea of what I was capable of! and took me down new paths of learning and increasing my awareness.

It was only a matter of time before I found myself pursuing a more responsible version of being in the wilderness. Why not make the wilderness my occupation? So, I signed up for mountaineering school. I don’t recall how I chose the mountaineering school I chose; however, I absolutely recall my astonishment at how rigorous my chosen school turned out to be. Again, another opportunity to break my mental conception of what I can do.

You may have anticipated that this is not a sharing of the specifics of rigorous mountaineering though. My dad fondly called me “fearless.” But I knew differently. I saw the external worlds of humans as intolerable, as unwelcoming, as a constant defeat before I rose from my bed each morning. All the same, I set about succeeding at this mountaineering stuff, because of this dread of my failure to know any real happiness in life.

Initially, technical rope climbing to reach the peaks of bald mountains floored me by its danger. Am I really willing to die for this? I asked myself. At every peak, a new level of elation spurred me further and so much deeper IN to my purpose in being here. There were challenges too in the competitiveness of my fellow students. I recognized the core of their challenge. Like myself, like all humans, they were desirous of outer confirmation, of external world approval. I surprised myself by meeting their challenges and receiving some acclaim for my accomplishments.

Yet, there were challenges in which I had to address, my perception of as insurmountable. My purpose in sharing this experience is to humbly express …gratitude and recognition to anyone who, like myself, is climbing the proverbial mountain, flagging some times, going through all kinds of emotions and intellectual obstacles, falling backwards, stopping, and giving up. You are all a reflection of something vital to me. You are, whether you perceive this or not, coming Home to your true self, to your true nature, to your own version of unconditional Love. Over this odd and peculiar lifetime, these experiences caused me to recognize that who I am was embedded in me long before I was born. Who I Am is embedded in the core of my being. . .. in all of our beingness.

I cannot confirm for you the Truth and the value of this revelation. I am just standing here staring at an overhang and suddenly, I have it! There is another path to my peak experience. Simply stop resisting who I Am. The Real win is Knowing my true Self, not the limitations of the external world. At the “top of the mountain,” the view is unutterably amazing. Easily I perceive I have never been alone. I am whole and, therefore, free to love my true self. Now, I can love ALL of the experiences that brought me here.  

Momentum Despite Resistance

Changing your lifestyle meets resistance from the outer world in odd and surprising ways.

Anyone trying to lose weight is well aware of this resistance! One's very own body seems to rise up like Darth Vader standing in your pathway. Like a monster in your dreams, former unhealthy choices hound the best laid plans. Hunger, cravings, comfort foods, and well meaning friends and family seem to come out of the woodwork carrying temptation on a platter ... a very 'yummy-looking' platter. Help! the dieter is heard moaning, as he/she crumbles again. And asks me, "What momentum?"

To achieve momentum despite resistance, the hopeful healthy soul could use some back-up. Self awareness, educated support, clever strategy... all are truly beneficial. But in my journey to health at a new phase in my life the last decade, I hit upon something almost akin to magic! that made this whole temptation thing see-through, basically stealing my habits' power away. Hunger. ...as in Real satiation! I mean to say, satisfying my body's hunger. Let me explain...

I knew that, since my teens, I had not actually felt real hunger anymore. My teen years is the timing of when the whole low-fat fad became promoted. My family, being good folk that wanted to support health for the whole family, fell right in with the new protocols. Of course they did! Low fat options were somewhat limited initially, but the big labels got busy filling the gaps. Shortly thereafter, my athletic teen body started putting on weight! Heaven forbid! I was a follower of Seventeen magazine! Fat was simply wrong, so I set about dieting at the tender age of 14.

Long story short, my own cycle of dieting, weight gain, dieting began.... but also, a constant search for the true healthy way to eat. I tried everything, vegetarianism, veganism (12 years of it), pescatarianism, fruitarian, fasting regularly, Atkins & South Beach, macrobiotics, more.... the list is too long! Through it all, I never actually experienced real hunger again (yep, even fasting). Years later, after nearly starving myself for years, and more overweight than ever!! I took a good long look at myself in the mirror before my birthday. I did not recognize this body. Thinking of my kids as well as personal goals, I made a covenant to get after nutrition research more deeply yet.

Deep research meant current research as well as research into the history of how we arrived at the current conflict between research, disease, lifestyle, regulatory bodies, and food manufacturers. As I read, I followed a mostly macrobiotic style of eating and worked hard at losing weight, working out, exercising, and firmly refusing temptation. Still I only lost 9 and 1/2 pounds in a year. Meanwhile, I discovered this thing called Banting; also known as High Fat Low Carb (HFLC), ketogenic diet, and a host of other names. Suspiciously, this sounded so much like how my family ate BEFORE the low fat fad took off. When my spouse took off for a long work trip, I took the alone time to try out Banting.

Bottom Line: In the following four months, I lost 40 pounds.

Holy Moly! Now I remembered hunger... NOT from starving but from satiation! Real satiation of my body's nutritional needs. Happy satiation that made cravings disappear! Satiation that made when and how much to eat vividly obvious.  Coinciding with this wonderful experience, energy returned, mental clarity returned, frequent illness and allergic inflammation became minimal now, and the chronic pain of an old back injury with its associated fibromyalgia and rheumatism dialed down to very tolerable.

Lifestyle Modification Support (LMS) has been sharing the research some years now in these blog pages. So, I will not take this blog to go over it right now. But I would like to share a heartfelt post from someone who has recently experienced success. This share comes through the twitter community that is very active around HFLC (See Richard Lesar's happy tweet in the photo below). I also would like to share some of the resources 'out there' of medical and nutritional experts spreading this way of eating in detail.

The last thing I want to share is, as ridiculous as this is going to sound, I actually already knew of how to use ketogenics for medical reasons. In my nursing and medical practice, I referred certain patients to specialists who advised this very diet to manage epilepsy, inflammatory conditions, diabetes, and rapid weight loss management for those scheduled to go through bariatric surgery. But as I described above, my own body's long journey away from balanced health had become a monster I could only run from, rather than face. I had to turn around and face my monster directly, with dead seriousness. What is it going to take for you? to stop running scared and make a controlling decision to face down your overwhelming reason for dieting?

I wish you all the Best in your goals of rediscovering Balance. If I can answer questions or help you find what you are looking for to accomplish your goal, please contact me and ask. I am honoured to help.

Photo of Richard Lesar’s excellent results taken and used with Richard Lesar’s permission.

https://www.dietdoctor.com/

https://www.dietdoctor.com/authors/dr-jason-fung-m-d

http://www.total-health-fitness.com/blog/tim-noakes-diet

http://realmealrevolution.com/

Remember: Be Well and BE Happy!

~ J. Still MSN/FNP

Check List for Losing Weight by Banting

https://realmealrevolution.com/real-thinking/real-meal-revolution-membership

Click the link above to see what RealMeal Revolutions members do to lose crazy weight fast ... while staying very Well-Fed!

I have summed it up here, but loads of awe-inspiring links are including in the article by RealMeal Revolution to help you stay on top of your weight loss and to love doing it. This way of eating is all the yummiest food that truly satiates. Eating this way improves your health! You must understand the 'diet' and comprehend the medical science and/or have informed support to be one of the many many success stories. I lost 40 pounds in 4 months by changing the way I eat. Note: I did NOT increase my exercise; in fact, I did NOT even create an exercise program for myself! I am not advocating no exercise, but I want you to understand... the ketogenic way of eating is about altering your metabolism back to its balanced state. IS it a 'diet'? In my experience, this is returning to the old way of eating, not a diet but Balance.

Monday : throw out the trash from your kitchen .... and Eat Something Delicious.

Tuesday : track your intake (before making changes) .... and Eat Something Delicious.

Wednesday : Weigh and Measure .... and Eat Something Delicious.

Thursday : Check in to the forums of others banting so you can be inspired! ... and Eat Something Delicious.

Friday : Get a new meal plan for the week, mMMmmmm! and Eat Something Delicious!

Saturday : Keep watching the videos & reading the stories online that teach the HOW for all types of bodies & constitutions .... and Eat Something Delicious.

Sunday : Make a special Sunday meal .... and Eat Something Delicious!

Having trouble believing this is possible? or just wishing for more direction or support? or just need some answers to your concerns/questions? Please do contact me.

Remember: Be balanced, and BE well.

FAT - the old New Truth about healthy eating

Number 1 Cause of Obesity? Watch video

Smile... there is always a way to find balance! [Photo by Wylan Werth]

What is UP with the news lately? How to make heads or tails of it? Eat Fat? not sugar.... and Sugar DOES cause obesity, and can lead to diabetes, hypertension, poor immune response, as well as contribute to a host of other diseases "on the rise" since the 1960s. As usual, all the news stories can become a bit heady. Stick to the basics. But what are the basics anymore? (Be sure to click on the orange lettered link above the kewt kitty photo! for a very informative video by Dr Robert Lustig about fat's role in Your Good Health).

And read labels! Another necessity to be healthy??? The trick on us has been exposed. Reading labels is the only way to get ahead of eliminating sugar from your diet. But no worries! Right here in this blog, and in the blogs of many many others sincerely doing our best to get the info in your hands and the healthiest food In your body, the science is revealed. Food manufacturers can rename sugar and even place it lower in the ingredient list by splitting up the types of sugar they added to a food substance to trick your tongue and brain into ...WANTING MORE.

Bottom line: In late 1950s, early 1960s, some research about the impact of eating sugar was brushed under the rug. The sugar industry paid some influential folk to say that fat is the problem-causing substance, not sugar. [ See these links as well as others provided throughout Lifestyle Modification Support : Sugar Lobby Paid Scientists to Blur Sugar's Role... and JAMA's articles ] Then food manufacturers got busy! Changing food into food substances that would be so addictive (as the lab rats revealed) that people just could NOT get enough became as easy as train robberies in the old wild west!

So, if you cannot get enough of that food you are eating, ask yourself, what about this experience is any different than being hooked on drugs, alcohol, or gambling? We do have the chemistry to become an addict. We also have consciousness, if we wake up and decide that: balanced and healthy, life might actually be doable. If we do decide we have at least an obligation to do the best we can do, we can make an effort to use REAL science to return to health. And realise something really sweet.... You have been doing your best. But misleading information has been hand-fed to you. Question authority! Do NOT take my word for it. There is so much information now, there is not far to go to find it. The video that I began this article with, Dr Robert Lustig's third episode on "The Skinny On Obesity" is made for regular people to listen to and understand. And go to your search engine and start looking up things like "Whole Fat" and "The Sugar Problem"...

One more thing, before I go. I cannot reiterate enough that low fat products have LOADS of Sugar in them! Look up the many other names for sugar that can be used on the ingredients lists of foods. STOP eating low fat foods! That is, stop eating them, if your goal is to lose weight and, literally, feel much much better.

Be Well, friends

Janet's Eye on the media

Need To Know!

"Enzymes exist on raw foods, meats and milks. Enzymes eradicate biofilms. When we have a diet deficient in enzymes, while we eat processed packaged foods, we are feeding pathogens and promoting biofilm growth." ¬Becky Plotner from her article Internal Biofilms May Be Making You Sick.

A colleague of mine, who has been experiencing a multitude of chronic symptoms over recent years, an aftermath from an exposure to a deadly pathogen, shared a link with me on using enzymes to break up the biofilm in my intestines as a way to end so many of the symptoms that I, too, have been attempting to balance since arthritis became the recent winner of a few health battles. I tell arthritis that it may have won the battle, ...but the war is not over! The article sparked a flurry or research reviews. As I do, I looked for an article that is easier to understand to share with my audience in this website.

Becky Plotner's article, Internal Biofilms May Be Making You Sick, is easy to understand and quite specific in the last portion where she kindly shares many natural sources of enzymes that you can use now (without buying into a costly supplement program).

http://www.nourishingplot.com/2015/02/05/internal-biofilms-may-be-making-you-sick/

Always, BE Well! in spirit, mind, heart and body... Balance is the key. ¬janet

Always, BE Well! in spirit, mind, heart and body... Balance is the key. ¬janet

Holiday Eating Tips:

 These ideas are smart AND balanced for Anyone! <3 Be healthy and happy this celebratory time of the year! All the very Best to you and Yours!!

These ideas are smart AND balanced for Anyone! <3
Be healthy and happy this celebratory time of the year!
All the very Best to you and Yours!!

http://realmealrevolution.com/real-thinking/seven-ways-to-bant-like-a-christmas-champ-this-season?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=14december16_mailer

Why You Want to Break Your Sugar Addiction

Hah! you harumpf, I have no such desire... I love sugar. Yes, you and anyone that has been persistently ingesting sugar, knowingly or unknowingly, definitely have learned to "love" sugar! And currently, you may be pulling off remaining free of disease, illness, obesity, and/or discomfort. Meanwhile, within your body, sugar is busily converting your metabolism. Oh please! do NOT take my word for it! Just educate yourself on the facts.

As a Medical Provider in California, we educated the parents of children to NOT give fruit juice, ever, to their children. Yep, fruit juice. Contemplate the evolution of humans. Sugar was a rare commodity in nature; and when it did make an appearance, it was quickly gobbled up by many different species. Then, all of a sudden in history, sugar became wildly available...in many different types and forms. However, human physiology does NOT adapt that suddenly to environmental changes. Sure, we had a way to take care of the effect of glucose in our bodies, but we had not developed a way to keep the body constantly metabolising the effects indefinitely.

I have chosen this particular report of the "dirty science" that went down in the 1960s, financially brought to you by your friendly sugar industry! because it is going to be easier to read for the non-science crowd. There are also many links to documents and the peer reviewed reports on the whole history in this particular article I've chosen to share with you. Over the next few years, I truly hope this will become common news. In the meantime, I will keep adding info and links here in the blog.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/apr/07/the-sugar-conspiracy-robert-lustig-john-yudkin

Bees on our wild berries in the backyard.

Always, BE Well! in spirit, mind, heart and body.... Balance is the key. ¬BIG LOVE from janet

Protect Your Gut! for your gut protects you...

Pearl the Golden... loving the sands and Ocean... origin of our elemental bodies.

If you are reading this site for the first time, you either are wondering when I might get off this subject!! Or you are curious as to how I could be making such a claim as this: Protect Your Gut! for your gut protects you...

I am including yet another review of the ongoing, ever blossoming revelations, of research on just how vital our gut's ecology is to our physical well being. In fact, there is an increasing body of data to support that the microbiome of the gut is very much the contributor to our mental well being as well.  So, please, dear readers, read these shares and contributions on the widespread expansion of knowledge regarding the intricacies of how to support your intestinal health in order to improve many many types of symptoms you may be experiencing... especially this upcoming winter season in the northern hemisphere.

And, always, dear readers, Be Well!

From Shann's Chuckling Goat site.... "Scientists have found that supplementing with probiotics can: 

1. Shorten the duration of cold by two days
2. Lessen severity of cold symptoms by 34%
3. Result in a higher quality of life and fewer missed school days 

"Probiotics are secret weapon for fighting symptoms of the common cold in college students, study suggests."  - University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ)."

See the article on Medscape:

The Rise of the Microbiome: The Relatively Short Road From Hunch to Hype to Hope

by John Watson, posted September 12, 2016

http://www.medscape.com/features/slideshow/rise-of-microbiome?src=WNL_infoc_160914_MSCPEDIT_TEMP2&uac=89108HN&impID=1196444&faf=1

How You Eat Greens

Heads Up! my, sweet juicers and green-drink, peoples.....

My herbalist guru, Susun Weed, always a step ahead of the misinformation crowds, is speaking up on the TEN Worst Diet & Healthcare Choices. This one addresses a pet peeve of mine. Whipping up your greens to quickly get them down, done, and off your check list is not very smart for a number of reasons. I will let Susun explain it to you via this link. Her words, also as always, are backed up with current research. In this quickie blurb, the CDC wholly supports her redirection. Not to worry, Susun doesn't leave you without alternatives!

http://wisewomanmentor.com/wise-woman-ezine/4168105

Thanks to openphoto and Nancy Moore for the kale photo!

"Watch the Low-Carb Movie: Cereal Killers"

Good to be back!

My apologies for the absence! First of summer is always about solo caring for my mother-in-law who has dementia... wow! that is seriously time-consuming!!! Then I decided the time had come to transfer from my domain server (because they were so NOT socially aware) to supporting a more balanced domain server. I had no idea how much time that would take or I would have slipped in a blog before I initiated the change.

So, what have I been up to? (I mean besides caring for mum). In that interim, I lost ten, that's right, count 'em, 10! pounds easy as can be. And I am not finished. From late last August to when I started the low carb high fat 'diet' I had only managed to lose ten pounds over ten & 1/2 months...a pound a month is not bad, but it is hardly sustainable. I lost those ten pounds so achingly slow eating a macrobiotic diet of mostly carbohydrates: pasta (gluten-free to be sure), rice (LOTS), beans and legumes, and veggies. Gosh, folks, I was still so sluggish and in pain so frequently that it was really impossible to get much done in a day. [Edit point: Remaining on the HFLC way of eating, I lost 50 pounds in 5 months.]

Low Carb High Fat or LCHF... or also known as the ketogenic diet is not new nor a secret. There are plenty of studies to support the benefits of real fat, whole fat. But the concept of relying mostly on whole fats as most of one's diet: to lose weight/obesity; and to prevent, alter, or manage diabetes is at least 100 years old (actually older). To manage inflammatory conditions and also prevent cardiac and cholesterol imbalances, the LowCarbHighFat diet has been used in varying permutations over the years. And prior to bariatric surgery, patients are placed on this diet to get ahead of the massive over-insulin condition of obesity, which can be dangerous to anyone, but is especially so when recovering from the surgery whilst losing weight in crazy fast amounts.

But you don't have to take my word for it!! There are so many sources now to assist one in this diet. The focus is simplifying the concept in order to get more people healthier and happier. That is, if you WANT to be healthier and happier? I recognise that some people really seem more at ease in their dis-ease. So, this information is shared only for those ready for serious change. I will be adding my before and after pics in here and on facebook in a bout a month. Why? heads up, people! - I have dropped two sizes in clothes just since I lost my second ten pounds in 6-8 weeks.

I will be posting links at the bottom of this article, like I always do, of resources and legitimate references. For now, I leave you with this very helpful film. The "Cereal Killers" is one of a series of five very helpful LCHF educational videos on this way of eating and living. All of these are well produced and made for the layman to make easy use of them. Enjoy!

  In the meantime, stay Balanced and stay alive!