Concepts in Wellness

an epidemic

One of my long time great friends shot me an e-mail today telling me that she found out she was pre-diabetic.  It truly is an epidemic...not only for people in my generation...I mean the over 40's but for our young teens as well.  How did we get away from eating wholesome foods?  I know it is easier to eat the convenience foods but really...how hard is it to steam up some brocolli, put some brown rice in a rice cooker, and bake up some chicken or fish.  We just seem to grab for the empty calorie foods, drink soda and forget about water, and watch too much tv instead of going outside. 

This friend of mine...I have known her since I was 10 years old.  When we were kids, the neighborhood where we lived was alive with child play.  What happened to those days?  My daughter is 6 and we have to schedule "play dates"  I don't ever remember this a child.  We just asked our parents if we could go over to someone's house...see if they were home and could they come out and play.  It is sad to me to think about those days being gone.  I don't dare let my little girl play in our own front yard without supervision.  In my childhood days we rode our bikes, roller skated all over town, built forts, and tried to sneak in one more game of tag before our parents called us in for the night.  Now the only stimulus is electronic. 

We really have to get back to basics...More whole foods and more activity outdoors!

Wellness Coaching

Well, it has been quite a while since I posted anything...shame on me.  I am back though with some exciting news.  I am currently getting certified as a Wellness Coach!  What exactly is a wellness coach?  I will be helping people find their motivation, design goals, and get them back on the road to wellness.  This will involve looking at different aspects of their whole self and help them figure out where their blocks are, where they are out of balance, and how they can overcome these blocks.  I can help with their nutritional goals as well as finding tools to deal with stress.  I should be up and running in about a month and will have a website to refer to. 

How to shop for your family

I was shopping today and was amazed at what families had in their shopping carts!  There is a healthy way to shop for your family and the rules are easy to follow.  First...stay out of the middle aisle as much as possible.  The outside of the store has the most nutritious foods...fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, dairy, and eggs.  If you have ever noticed the middle lanes, they have all the processed foods for the most part.  They have a whole aisle devoted to just cereal and most of it is loaded with sugar.  There is a whole aisle devoted to soda!  And yet another to just snack foods.  The only things I go down the center aisles for are bread...whole grains of course, cooking oil (Olive oil is the best), tea, pasta, and condiments (careful to not get those that are loaded with sugar).  It is also a lot cheaper to buy lots of fruits and vegetables.  You don't necessarily have to go all organic to be healthy...just stay away from the processed foods.

I will share how to cook all these wonderful things, how to keep it interesting, and what you should include in your families diets for a healthy start...stay tuned!