Spinach: Popeye's "Whup Ass" Superfood

Spinach...that muscle-building, can of "whup ass" that Popeye would bust open every time he was getting a beat down from Pluto. Although this was a tad bit of an exaggeration, spinach really is a super food that does wonderful things for the body!

Spinach Facts:
One cup of spinach contains almost 20% of the RDA of dietary fiber. It aids in digestion, prevents constipation, maintains low blood sugar, and curbs overeating.

 Spinach is abundant with flavonoids, a phytonutrient with anti-cancer properties. It has shown significant protection against the occurrence of aggressive prostate cancer.

Spinach has a high amount of vitamin A which has promotes healthy skin and can fight against psoriasis,  acne and even wrinkles!

That same one cup of spinach  contains over 337% of the RDA of vitamin A that protects and strengthens "entry points" into the human body, such as mucous membranes, respiratory, urinary and intestinal tracts. So it is an excellent immunity strengthener.

What...you don't like spinach? Why not incorporate it into a smoothie! Try this recipe:

• 8 oz coconut milk
• handful of raw spinach
• 4-5 frozen strawberries
• 1 banana
• Blend until smooth

Delicious! So in the future, try opening up a can of "whup ass" spinach  and start your own "beat down" to health!

Take Out the Trash

Not too long ago I picked up some old journals that I had kept from a few years back. It was fun reliving some of good times that I had. I even laughed out loud at some of the things my kids or my husband had said or done. All was well until I started reading one particular year that was not so good. It was during a really rough patch in my marriage of almost 40 years. As I sat on the bed reading some of the stuff I had written, I started getting angry.  I was as angry as if it had happened yesterday. All of sudden my happy mood had turned sullen and blue. I could feel the anxiety in my body as I tensed up reliving some of those bad times. My jaw was tight and my teeth were clenched. I was angry at my husband all over again, who was downstairs watching TV, totally oblivious to what was going on upstairs...that I was reliving some old, ugly stuff.

As I sat there with my mouth poked out, my hands clenched, I decided right then to stop...stop reading, to stop reliving a part of my life that was no longer relevant. I knew then that some things that happen to you, you just don't need to keep reliving over and over. We had gotten through that rough patch, why relive it again? I decided to throw that particular journal away. It had served its purpose. I had moved on...we had moved on.

Our lives should change for the good.  If we keep recycling the trash of our lives and reliving the bad over and over, we destroy the opportunities for a brand new start.  We have the opportunity to make a fresh start now. So take the garbage out of your life. Set it out with the trash and keep it out!.

If You're Not Buddha That Belly Ain't Cute!

We've all seen the Buddha with his big belly! In ceertain cultures rubbing his belly is thought to bring good luck. But research shows belly fat increases your chances of developing heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, and even cancer. Researchers found that people with the most belly fat had about double the risk of dying prematurely as did people with the least amount of belly fat. And the bigger the belly, the death risk increased whether the participants were overweight or not.

So why is stomach fat so dangerous as opposed to lets say, thigh fat?  It's dangerous because it is often visceral fat. This is the kind of fat that surrounds the abdominal organs and is very hard to detect. Thigh fat, which is usually subcutaneous fat, may not be that good to look at, but it's not as risky. This is the kind of fat you can see and grab onto. You know like those love handles and beer bellies. It doesn't look so great, but it's not so risky.

So what can you do if you're a Buddha look-alike, start with the suggestions below and soon that Buddha belly will be a thing of the past!

1. Check your waist-to-hip ratio. If  measurements show that your waist is bigger than your hips, you must try to lose some of your belly weight. Women should epecially watch out if your waist expands beyond 35 inches because this increases your risk for heart disease. To check you ratio:  http://www.healthcalculators.org/calculators/waist_hip.asp
2. Make sure that your diet has no more than 20% to 35% of your daily calories from fat. Try to make it the good kind of  fat - either mono- or polyunsaturated fats. 
3.  Moderate exercise helps to fend off the fat, and more strenuous activity burns off existing fat. The good news is that belly fat is usually the first fat to go once you start losing weight.

2012 - The Year of Grace & A New Beginning@

We have all heard the dire predictions for the year 2012.  Everybody has been talking about the Mayan calendar predicting the so-called end of world on December 21, 2012! I’ve been giving that a lot of thought lately, even talking about it with family members. We all expressed that we “felt” like something was going to happen. Life had gotten so crazy and the news was just filled with horrible stories of things going on the world around us. We all felt like the world just could not take it anymore and something is going to happen. My family and I concluded that maybe the Mayans were right.

I'm one of those people who sees the glass as half full and not half empty! There was just no way the Mayans were right. In the last few days, I’ve been looking at the number 2012. I’m no numerology expert, but I do know that 2+0+1+2 = 5.  So I decided to do a little research and see what the Bible has to say about the number 5. According to many bible experts, the number 5 means GRACE. Grace means favor. There are many kinds of favor, but the favor we are talking about here is unmerited favor, or undeserved favor (http://goo.gl/uZldV)

Hmmm, this is getting interesting! Let's see what else is being said about the year 2012. So I kept digging and further research shows that many believe the year 2012 will be the beginning of fresh start for man, the dawn of the Golden Age for man. Some say our collective consciousness as human beings will start to shift. 

Edgar Cayce calls 2012 as the beginning of the “Age of Purity”. This new age will be known for three things: purity, global consciousness, and a height of spiritual consciousness that we have yet to encounter. Cayce suggested that we would become aware of our responsibility to one another; that regardless of the nation we were in, or where we were in the Earth, we would become aware that we had to help someone on the other side of the world. (http://www.edgarcayce.org/2012/)

So as we enter into a new year, I am feeling hopeful once again. 2012 means Grace is on my life and yours! 2012 is the start of new awareness that we indeed are family! So there is no need for gloom and doom! This New Year of 2012 is not about an ending of our world, but a new beginning. I’m ready, are you?

Take the Garbage Out Your Life!

Not too long ago I picked up some old journals that I had kept from a few years back. It was fun reliving some of good times that I had. I even laughed out loud at some of the things my kids or my husband had said or done. All was well until I started reading one particular year that was not so good. It was during a really rough patch in my marriage of almost 40 years. As I sat on the bed reading some of the stuff I had written, I started getting angry, as angry as if it had happened yesterday. All of sudden my happy mood had turned sullen and blue. I could feel the anxiety in my body as I tensed up reliving some of those bad times. My jaw was tight and my teeth were clenched. My husband was downstairs watching TV, totally oblivious that his wife was upstairs mad as hell!

As I sat there with my mouth poked out and my hands clenched, I decided right then to stop...to stop reading, to stop reliving a part of my life that was no longer relevant. I knew that some things that happen to you, you just don't need to keep reliving over and over. We had gotten through that rough patch, why relive it now? I decided to throw that particular journal away. It had served its purpose. I had moved on...we had moved on.

Our lives should always be changing for the good.  If we keep recycling the trash of our lives and reliving the bad over and over again, we destroy the chances for a brand new start. So take all that garbage out of your life and set it out with the trash! Make a fresh start in the Here and Now, right now! 

An Apple a Day

     In this day of ever-changing technology, good old words of wisdom sometimes seem out-dated. Many people think they have no place in the world of iPads, cell phones and the Internet.. The same holds true for modern medicine. We have turned our backs on Grandma's herbal remedies in favor of the new pharmaceutical wonder drug. They bombard us in television ads, billboards and when we go to the doctor we ask for them by name. Many of the home remedies we once used, are now long forgotten and have been replaced by over-the-counter and prescription drugs.

I remember when I was growing up, a favorite saying was "An apple a day keeps the doctor away". Moms and Grandma's had been telling kids this for years. I thought maybe it was  some trick to get you to eat more fruit. But now it seems that Ma and Grandma really knew what they were talking about..
A new study came out a few days ago that gives credence to what they've been saying all along. It seems that apples not only keep the doctor away, but they also prolong life. Scientists are reporting the first evidence that apples have a healthful antioxidant that extends the average lifespan of test animals, and does so by 10 percent! http://tiny.cc/bch7u   The findings also show that apples helped the test animal's ability to walk, climb and move about better. There have also been findings that apple juice can boost brain function as well.   All this from an apple, not the latest drug flavor of the month! Just think, a simple everyday apple may not only prolong life, but make the quality of life even better. Hey, I don't know about you, but I'm off to the fruit market to get my daily dose of fujis, pink lady's, granny smiths, galas,red delicious, and golden delicious.
     So an apple a day really does keep the doctor away and they just might be the fountain of youth we've all been looking for!
   

The Only One Who Can Beat Me....Is Me!

     The only one who can beat me... is me, is a favorite quote of mine. I don't know who the author is, but  I first saw it on the signature line of a fellow Weight Watcher. For such a simple statement, it is a powerful one. When I first read it, it hit me dead in the gut because it summed up some of the missteps and things that I had left undone.
     I remember reading something about how many people are afraid of success, so they sabotage it themselves. I believe that is a true statement for a lot of people. Now we don't consciously set out to ruin our efforts, but on some level, success scares us. Take diets for example. We have all fought the good fight, lost 20 or 30 pounds and then one night over margaritas and chips, we blow it. Not that they in themselves are bad, because they're not. But we use it as an excuse to keep on drinking and eating, till we gain those pounds back and some!

     Sometimes I think it's easier for us to be mediocre. After all, we don't have to put much effort into being average. Anybody can do it, matter of fact, most people do. So when we are on the verge of a breakthrough or about to do something we have never done before, we STOP! There wasn't anything or anybody that stopped us, we did it. Stopped ourselves from becoming who we were meant to be! Stopped ourselves from experiencing the success that was meant for us!
Nelson Mandela wrote "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be?"