Hiking

My sister and I went hiking in the desert the other day. We had a great hike and really got our heart rate up hiking up a slippery gravel hill. When we got to the top we found a rattle snake.

He was hiding in some weeds and camouflaged so we did not see him until I heard his rattle. He was moving towards my sister so she slowly/quickly moved away from him and we got out of there. It didn't take us very long to get down the hill after that! We had been warned to watch for snakes this time of year. They were right!

LiveSTRONG

LiveSTRONG has several meanings to me.

I'm wearing my yellow LiveSTRONG bracelet 24/7 for my Uncle Vic who is going through Radiation & Chemo treatment. I love you Uncle Vic! I think about you everyday and pray that you will be 100% STRONG when this is over. I also pray for strength for my Auntie & cousins because this is not easy on them either. I love you guys!

The other meaning is Living-STRONG. It is amazing what our bodies can do and we treat them like crap. We make them stretch to unbelievable widths and we only ask them to do a fraction of what we can achieve. Lance Armstrong is the inspiration behind these bracelets and he proves that our bodies can overcome cancer, be pushed to the limits and thrive! I loved watching him ride in the Tour de France a few years ago. Watching the Olympics is also a great way to be inspired to push your body to the limits. The athletes train many more hours than what a "normal" person would be able to do, but they are awesome! Well, we can train to be GREAT and we can be HEALTHY! Don't blame your "genetics" for making you unhealthy and overweight. Heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, allergies, asthma, autoimmune illnesses (including lupus) and headaches, can all be the result of your diet. I choose to eat a strict diet. I choose to eat healthy and be fit...I'm living STRONG!

10.8 Miles in 45 Minutes!

I rode my mountain bike today. I did the first 5.4 miles in 20 Minutes! I went slower on my return trip and I was going up-hill and off-road part of the time so it took me 25 minutes. It was overcast today (very unusual in the desert) so I had a nice cool ride! I rode to my sister's house to see her new little dog. She rescued him from the pound. His name is Papi (after the little Chihuahua in the new Beverly Hill's Chihuahua movie). He's so cute! Both of her dogs are part Chihuahua. Our Humane Society has lots of Chihuahua waiting for adoption.

The China Study

I'm reading a book called, "The China Study" written by T. Colin Campbell, PhD & Thomas M. Campbell II. My husband and I kept hearing about this book while we were researching raw foods and vegan foods. The book and the video I found on YouTube.com (link pasted below) go into great detail about why we should be eating a plant-based low protein/low fat diet. During his studies Dr. Campbell found that they can turn Cancer on and off based on the amount of protein and type of protein they used. If you are going to use animal proteins you should keep the levels lower than 10% of your total dietary needs. The amount of protein consumed on a plant-based diet didn't increase the cancer numbers. Good news for us Raw Foodies!

Quotes from their website:
"Respected nutrition and health researcher, Dr. T. Colin Campbell
reveals the truth behind special interest groups, government entities and scientists
that have taken Americans down a deadly path"
The New York Times called the China Study the “grand prix of epidemiology” and “the
most comprehensive large study ever undertaken of the relationship between diet and
the risk of developing disease.”

I woke up this morning thinking that someone needs to spread the word about this research! I went on youtube and there it was! I'm so glad we have the Internet! LOL I first heard about this research in the early 90's after reading John Robbins book, "Diet For A New America". (Also a great book.) But, Dr. Campbell had not published his book until January 2005. I'm really looking forward to his next book!

Colin Campbell speaks at GRCC Wellness Forum (In Grand Rapids, Wisconsin)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XzDOGZKI68

I have not consumed red meat since 1980. But, I've been eating dairy (on and off) and even fish in the past few years. After reading this book I'm going to go back to a plant-based diet with fish on rare occasions as a "garnish" instead of the main focus of the meal. In China they eat less than 1% animal protein (out of about 64g) in their diet. They also eat much more fiber (about 33g) and much less fat (about 14% of calories). They are also more active than people in the U.S. and they consume more calories because of this. Take the time to watch this video or go buy the book!

Coffee Detox

I started a coffee detox today. This is just another step I'm taking to see how much better I feel. I'm also hoping it will help with my hot flashes and heart palpitations (an extra/large beat). I've been reading a lot about adrenal gland function. I think mine might be stressed. LOL

I don't do white flour, rice, pasta, wheat, alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, etc., so coffee and sugar are my only vises. I eat very little white sugar and I'm very careful about eating natural sugars so it doesn't spike my blood sugar.

This morning I had some Bengal Spice tea with some almond milk in it. Yummy! It even looked like coffee with cream. LOL

I put a book on hold at the library called, "Raw Food Detox Diet". I should be getting it in a week or so. You can check it out at: http://www.therawfooddetoxdiet.com/about_rfdd_book.php

Oh, I almost forgot to mention. I finally found Oat Groats in my town! I soaked a cup over night, drained it and put it in the food processor this morning. I blended it with 1/4 cup of water until it was smooth. I added cinnamon, some walnuts and a banana. It was very good! Hubby could not handle it. He had hot oatmeal this morning so I put the other half in the refrigerator for my breakfast tomorrow.

Yikes, Frozen Pipes!

It was only 16 degrees in New Mexico this morning and we woke up to no water. It really makes you realize how much we depend on this precious resource. We were not prepared for this. We could probably go a month or more on our food storage but we don't have enough water. We quickly went through the couple gallons we had. Luckily we have some great neighbors and they brought us some to use until our pipes thawed. Washing hands, washing fruits & veggies, flushing toilets, water for the cats, bathing! Things are going to change for us now.

The Cat's Meow!

I had a simple green drink today. It was just apple and a few handfuls of baby spinach blended in the blender. Yummy!

Sprouting Buckwheat Groats

I started sprouting some buckwheat groats the other day so I can make some buckwheat crispies. I love them on fruit salad for breakfast. They are slightly crunchy and it stays with me until lunch time. They have sprouted for about two days now and they have tails (you can see some in the picture) so they are ready to go into the food dehydrator.

Sprouting Buckwheat:
Rinse buckwheat groats then soak in clean water for about 6 hours (or overnight). Make sure you have enough water. They swell and turns slimy while soaking. Rinse and put it in a cool dark place to start the sprouting process. Rinse several times over a two day period. You will see "tails" of about 1/4 inch. Rinse again (the slime thing...) and drain well. Dehydrate at about 105 degrees for a few hours (until dry). Experiment with your dehydrator temperature. Some may be able to dehydrate at 90 degrees and get the same results. If you live in the desert you can put them out in the sun to dry. (I have too many doves in my yard so I can't dry them outside. LOL) You can also use them (un-dried) right away in fruit salads.

My dehydrator has the fan on top and is pretty efficient. I prepare the buckwheat in large batches so I can just put it in the pantry and scoop out what I need. You can use them on top of fruit salad, veggie salads, or anything else for some extra crunch. You can also use them in living bread recipes. I added some un-dried sprouts to a "Green Bread" I made the other day with some flax meal, almond meal, spices, leftover kale and wheat grass pulp and it turned out great.

Update: I've discovered that I love these sprouts better fresh! I soak them overnight, rinse them several times then let them set on the counter for a day. I then put them in the refrigerator and rinse them once a day. They keep three days or more. I keep smelling them to make sure they don't go sour.