Daily Inspiration
December 19th, 2007
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Archive for December, 2007
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December 19th, 2007
Young people invited to ‘Change the World’
December 19th, 2007
| Kids asked to design “an action”
We Are What We Do is asking every child and young person in every school across the country: “What simple action would you ask one million people to do to change the world?” This massive national search will uncover the next generation of Change the World ideas – small actions that have a positive impact on communities, families, the environment and the world at large. Every action will be put on the map and the most powerful actions will form the core of the next product in the Change the World series. The very best action will sit at the centre of a national campaign in May 2008 that will inspire as many as ONE MILLION people to take part in the action and have a gigantic impact. This is a perfect opportunity for every young person to showcase their social creativity and to fashion the future with an action of their choosing. More information: www.smallactionsbigchange.org.uk |
Last year We Are What We Do made a simple canvas bag to influence how people shop.Our ‘I’m NOT A Plastic Bag’ made the national news. Earlier it had written a simple book to influence how people behave. ‘Change the World for a Fiver’ sold a million copies. Now it wants a simple action that one million people can do. And it want kids to design it for them!.Tuna Tartare
December 19th, 2007
by Michele Morris
Yields 20 appetizers or 4 salads
Because tuna is rich tasting, a small portion leaves your diners feeling satisfied. Serve in Asian soup spoons for a pretty appetizer or plated as the first course of an elegant meal.
½ pound sushi-grade tuna, diced in ½-inch pieces
½ avocado, diced
¼ cup minced red onion
¼ cup very thinly sliced green onions, tops only
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Hot sauce, optional, to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Place tuna, avocado, red onion and green onions in a large bowl. In a small covered container, shake together vinegar, soy sauce, canola oil and sesame seeds, then pour dressing over tuna and gently toss to coat. Add hot sauce and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. To serve, place a small spoonful of tuna tartare in each soup spoon and serve immediately. Alternatively, serve in a bowl with crackers.
Per Appetizer: 39 Calories; 3g Fat (62.2% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 4mg Cholesterol; 108mg Sodium.
To serve as a first course, divide evenly between 4 plates using a ring mold to mound the tuna; garnish with fresh parsley sprigs or chives.
Per Salad Serving: 197 Calories; 14g Fat (62.2% calories from fat); 15g Protein; 4g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 22mg Cholesterol; 541mg Sodium.
Running, the Tai Chi Way
December 19th, 2007
A friend of mine is learning how to run. Or maybe I should say that she’s re-learning how to run. Like most people, she assumed that she already knew how to run. But after working with a fitness coach for a few weeks, she realized that she had much to learn. And now she tells me that running—a form of exercise that we’d previously agreed is no fun at all—is awesome. Personally, I’ve never once thought running was fun or experienced any kind of runner’s high. In fact, running is something I can’t do at all, and it’s embarrassing to admit it. I can sprint through an airport when the situation demands, hike up steep mountains for hours, and ride my bike for 50 miles without much trouble. But I’m pretty sure that I couldn’t run a mile. I’ve always envied people who are able to run, because it seems like a perfect workout: it’s simple, quick, effective, relatively gear-free, and doesn’t require a gym membership. Due to “bum legs,” however, my cardio workouts are limited to cycling (requires a lot of gear and time), spin classes, and the elliptical trainer (requires a gym membership.) Countless attempts to start jogging have only resulted in a lot of wincing and groaning (the result of painful shin splints), expensive running shoes, and, inevitably, defeat. But it never occured to me that the problem is that I might not know how to run. After witnessing my friend’s change of heart, however, I am optimistic once again. I’d heard about Chi Running, a form of running that promises to help athletes who suffer from pain or injuries. The concept draws from Tai Chi, yoga, and Pilates and helps a runner focus on form, posture, alignment, using core muscles, and tuning into your energy, or chi. There is a lot of buzz about the idea, as well. People who’ve tried Chi Running like it, at least based on the articles and firsthand accounts from Health.com, WebMD, NPR, and (the feedback I trust most) a bunch of opinionated Amazon reviewers. There are lots of ways to learn how to run with chi, ranging from a $15 book to a $225 workshop, along with DVDs and gadgets.
The Yoga Of Fertility
December 19th, 2007
Break through the “Pregnancy or Bust” Cycle By Elizabeth Marglin
All too often, women trying to conceive get caught up in the frenzy of time running out, as if their bodies were bombs ticking away, about to detonate into an explosion of birth or an implosion of infertility. The focus relentlessly aims toward the future-starting with the hope for two blue lines on the next pregnancy test and reaching forward to thoughts of nurseries and strollers to come.
It seems the ideas of motherhood and expectation are inextricably linked. Interestingly, the word uterus comes from metra, the Greek word for measurement, which is also the root of the words time and mother. A healthy relationship to time-without a sense of graspiness or expectation-forms the essence of a fruitful approach to life and motherhood.
Yoga, with its spotlight on dropping into the present moment, helps people avoid becoming fixated on future. It helps would-be parents in other ways, too. One of its main benefits-reducing stress levels-takes the body out of its fertility-hindering fight-or-flight mode. If the body has to concentrate its resources on controlling stress, energy gets diverted away from reproduction. Since stress can constrict blood vessels, including those in the uterus, a yoga practice designed with the intention of lowering stress can only help with overall health and fertility.
“Stress plays a part in every single illness,” Judith Lasater, PhD, a yoga teacher, practicing physical therapist, and author of Living Your Yoga: Finding the Spiritual in Everyday Life (Rodmell Press, 2000) says. “If you are in a stressed state, you don’t have the hormonal profile of someone who is likely to get pregnant.” She says she would emphasize a yoga practice that pays special attention to the qualities of “opening, softening, and yielding.”
Regenerate with restorative posesWithin the yoga lexicon, inverted poses shine as excellent asanas for balancing the endocrine system, soothing rattled nerves, clearing the mind, resting the heart, and increasing circulation. Normally performed at the end of a practice, they can also stand alone as a quick time-out. One of the simplest and most effective poses, Legs Up the Wall Pose (Viparita Karani), restores beginners and advanced yogis alike.
Lasater also believes that quality rest, like the one found in Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose or in Corpse Pose, in which you lie on your back, palms facing up and feet spread apart, are the most important poses for fertility. “We live in a state of low-lying anxiety all the time,” Lasater says. “It’s so important in our fast-paced society to rest consciously everyday-it reestablishes hormonal balance.” The quintessential restorative pose for everywoman is Reclining Butterfly Pose, in which you lie over a bolster with the soles of your feet together.
Nourish fertility with forward bendsForward bends like Baddha Konasana tone and stretch the pelvic floor, improve circulation to the lower body, and stimulate blood flow to the kidneys. Yin yoga, a style that concentrates on the body’s deep connective tissues through long-held, passive poses, uses a lot of forward bends. International Yin yoga and mindfulness teacher Sarah Powers says that this style of practice draws out the passive, calming qualities that pregnancy requires.
Powers notes that a body’s prime state for pregnancy comes when all organs are in equilibrium. “Yin yoga targets the kidney chi, which is directly related to the vitality of the reproductive system and the major organs,” she says.
Powers recommends holding forward bends for three minutes and working up to five. Holding the poses that long, she says, creates a pulling action on the body’s connective tissues, increasing overall circulation and nourishing the organs. While opening the pelvis and hips, forward bends also draw the senses inward, inspiring a more internal focus. Many yoga teachers, including Powers, suggest that women use visualizations for the areas that feel constricted. For a basic visualization, imagine the breath flowing down to the pelvis and infusing it with energy.
Twist into tranquilityYogis believe that prana (life force, vital energy) moves through the body in two ways: upward as prana, which centers in the chest, and downward as apana, which centers in the pelvis. “Apanic energy is responsible for elimination, ejaculation, menses, and the power of childbirth,” Colette Crawford, a yoga teacher, registered nurse, and co-founder of the Seattle Holistic Center says. Connecting this downward flow of energy to the heart, she adds, opens the doorway to conception.
Twists can increase apana by massaging the organs, stimulating the ovaries, and toning the abdomen. The gentle wringing action of twists soaks the organs with fresh blood, allowing them to function at optimum levels in preparation for conception.
Surrender to the processAlthough yoga can be a helpful companion on the road to pregnancy, if you go into a yoga practice thinking that certain poses will magically produce a baby, you are bound for disappointment. Yoga teaches surrender to the process, not obsession on results. It’s a framework that provides women with a space to cultivate their own intelligence and appreciate themselves without judgment.
“Yoga is about the deep listening we often ignore because so many people are telling us what to do,” says yoga teacher De West, who specializes in yoga therapy. “It allows you to tap into and stay with your own intuition.”Sometimes, the missing piece in the fertility puzzle boils down to the quality of a woman’s relationship with herself. If you are in a vortex of self-loathing or condemnation because of difficulties with conception, yoga can help bring those thoughts out of the shadows and into awareness in a safe way. “Acceptance is what’s necessary for transformation,” says Crawford. “It’s not about blaming the body, but letting the soul open to something deeper than oneself.”
In the stillness of a yoga pose, women can appreciate their own fullness, the substratum of their being. Written over 2000 years ago, the Isa Upanishad nailed the fertility enigma on the head: “That is whole, this is whole. From the whole comes the whole.”
Pose descriptions
Viparita Karani
Lie on your back with bent legs, feet towards the wall, with a bolster underneath your feet.
Swivel your hips to one side, inching them closer to the wall, and then take your legs up the wall one at a time.
Position the bolster underneath your buttocks, so it lifts and tones the pelvis. Your head and shoulders are on the floor.
Stay as long as you like in this pose, letting the sense of deep relaxation steep through your cells.
Baddha konasana
Sit with a straight back, knees bent to each side like wings, and the soles of the feet together.
Hold the tops of your feet, which will spread open like a book, and slowly bend forward, trying to keep your back from rounding.
Stay there as long as you feel comfortable, remembering to use your breath to breathe into the pose, not to fight against it.
Seated twist
Sit with your legs crossed in front of you.
Put your right hand against your left knee and your left hand on the floor behind you.
Extending your spine upwards, inhale.
On the exhale turn your abdomen, ribs, chest and shoulder to the left.
Take several breaths and then change sides.
This article reprinted with the permission of Alternative Medicine Magazine
A Guide to Truly Sweet Skin
December 19th, 2007
by Su Avasthi 
I’ve got a serious sugar craving, but it has nothing to do with a sweet tooth.
Instead, I want creams, scrubs, lip balms, body butters, shower gels, and all sorts of other skin care products that are loaded with sugar.
My cravings started when I got free sample of Sugar Face Polish and Brown Sugar Body Polish, both from Fresh. I have to admit that, along with smelling wonderful, these sugar-laden products did an amazing job of softening up my skin. They even managed to revive the perennially dry patches on my heels and elbows.
But I didn’t fully grasp how powerful a beauty secret sugar can be until I leafed through a Whole Foods brochure. It turns out that sugar cane is a natural source for the real muscle in modern-day cosmetics: Alpha-hydroxy acids or (AHA).
Several years back, I switched to a moisturizer with glycolic acid (one type of AHA) and became an absolute convert because, to put it simply, I started to get carded when I order a cocktail.
After discovering that sugar is a natural source for the AHAs, I understand why so many organic beauty products sound so tasty. Especially when it’s combined with cherries, apricots, pumpkins, grapes, and many others for added boost of citric or fruit acids.
For instance, Alba Botanica has a complete line of all-natural spa products that blend sugar cane enzymes with pineapple, mango, papaya, and other tropical fruits and nuts for products that exfoliate and soften skin.
Sugar is also part of the secret recipe at Archipelago Botanicals, which makes yummy-sounding products like mango sugar hand cream and lip gloss that has both brown and vanilla sugar.
Before I splurge on one of these luscious but expensive treats, however, I’m going to raid my kitchen. There are lots of intriguing recipes to make your own sugar bath products online. In fact, I’m always looking for an opportunity to dip into the still-full five-pound bag of white sugar that I bought a few years ago.
Some of the recipes seem complicated (just where does one find chocolate cherry scented oil, anyway?) But a few sound good and basic, like this one for a vanilla sugar body scrub that requires nothing more than sesame oil, vanilla extract, and a cup of sugar. (It also calls for a teaspoon of coconut oil, but I’m not worried about leaving it out.)
The best part about whipping up this delicious-sounding treat? No calories. No guilt. And no sugar crash after I’ve indulged.
1-2-3 Detox for Radiance
December 19th, 2007
Look radiant in 24 hours, luminous in 48, and positively sparkly in 72. This step-by-step detoxification plan from “The Little Book of Detox Tips for People on the Go” includes one-day, two-day or three-day variations on the cleanse and includes seven recipes.
1-day cleanse for radiance
Whether you use this fast as a regular radiance boost or because you’ve just had a weekend of rich food and too much alcohol, you’ll find it’s really worth the effort—just take a look in the mirror 24 hours later to see the difference.
On waking A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Breakfast A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon; a large glass of Radiant Juice; a mug of nettle tea
Midmorning A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Lunch A large glass of Tomato Juice with Garlic and Green Onions; a mug of mint tea
Midafternoon A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Supper Mango, Kiwi, and Pineapple Juice; a mug of nettle tea
Evening Carrot and Beet Juice
Bedtime A mug of lime-blossom tea
2-day cleanse for radıance
Start by following the 24-Hour Cleanse for Radiance regime. On Day 2 have:
On waking A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Breakfast A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon; a large glass of Radiant Juice; a mug of nettle tea
Midmorning A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Lunch A glass of Radiant Lemonade; a mug of mint tea
Midafternoon A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Supper A large bowl of fresh fruit salad, to include apple, pear, grapes, mango, and some berries—but not banana; a handful of raisins—chew them very slowly—and a handful of fresh, unsalted cashews; a mug of mint tea
Evening A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Bedtime A mug of any reputable brand of chamomile tea with a teaspoon of organic honey
3-day cleanse for radiance
When you wake up on day 4 after this cleansing regime, your body will feel lighter, your system cleaner, and your eyes and skin will have a sparkle and luster you haven’t seen in ages. You’ll also be overflowing with all the protective antioxidants you need and you’ll almost certainly have lost more than 2 pounds in weight.
Start by following the 48-Hour Cleanse for Radiance regime. On Day 3 have:
On waking A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon
Breakfast A large glass of hot water with a thick slice of organic unwaxed lemon; fresh fruit salad—a mixture of any of the following: apple, pear, grapes, mango, and pineapple and any berries, with 2/3 cup plain yogurt with live bacteria and a tablespoon of unsweetened muesli; a cup of weak Indian tea or herb tea midmorning 6 dried apricots; a glass of fruit or vegetable juice
Lunch Watercress Soup with a chunk of crusty wholewheat bread, no butter; a cup of weak Indian tea or herb tea
Midafternoon An apple and a pear
Supper Zucchini Pasta; a salad of tomato, onion, and yellow bell pepper; a cup of weak Indian tea or herb tea
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