Tag Archives: healthy living

The Healing Benefits of Lotus Pose

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Photo from HealLoveNow

Sometimes it is good to just sit still and do nothing. Daily life can be so hectic if moments are not taken to simply be and nothing else. Motionless sitting in the easy version of the yoga Lotus pose can bring about a centering of the mind, body and spirit.

This pose can open up a congested heart and free a troubled mind, bringing about an expanded sense of awareness while decompressing the body. Taking time to consciously relax is what we all need, away from the TV, internet, phone and other distractions. When seated in this asana you will find that tensions stored in a compressed, anxious and tight body begin to release immediately. A more positive and trusting outlook is established and maintained by continued practice of advanced Lotus, as well as its beginner variations. A great position from which to pray or meditate, Lotus pose is like a flower whose petals open at dawn revealing more beauty which each expression.

If you are uneasy, stretching into Lotus can bring serenity.

If your mind is racing, easing into Lotus pose can bring peace.

If you have back or hip pain, Lotus can help relieve it.

If you suffer from exhaustion, Lotus pose can increase vitality and bring on more restful sleep.

This simple, easy pose is synonymous with tranquility, peace and joy. Try it and experience these benefits first-hand.

– Sia

To learn more about Sia, click here

Got Parasites? Signs That You May Have Intestinal Worms

anti-parasitic diet

Do you know what it feels like to have your life force being sucked out of you daily? Most people do, and they don’t know what the source of their woes are. Parasites! If you have been a long term reader of this blog, you know how much I hate the buggers. Although it seems hard to believe, the parasite or intestinal worm problem is not only real, it is one of the leading causes of health problems. It is estimated that over 80% of Americans and an even higher percentage of people worldwide are infected with parasites. In many developing countries parasites can claim the lives of entire villages. There are thousands of species within the major categories of parasites. Because of the wide range of types and depending on the area and degree of infection in the body the symptoms can be really wide-ranging. In many cases people are treated for other diseases when in fact their problem stems from having a severe parasite infection. Besides leeching nutrients from their hosts, parasites also produce toxic waste that affects the body and compromises the central nervous system.

Some key symptoms of parasitic infection are outlined below. If you believe you have parasites, you need to first confirm that it is the source of your health concerns, and then discern what may be the root cause for your imbalance before you begin cleansing. After slaving tirelessly for the past year, Parasites, Be Gone! my comprehensive guide to cleansing the body of parasites is now available in the Raw Girl Store. The goal of the book which includes a 14 Day Parasite Cleanse was to not only share my journey, but to compile extensive research combined with my personal experience to create a guide that would save want to be parasite-killa’s time and money weeding through the riff-raff. There are so many products, theories, diets, and foods that are aimed at solving the problem, and I wanted to a way to give anyone looking to become parasite-free to have a clear and thorough road map of how to begin. To celebrate the launch below is a tidbit taken from chapter one in the book which describes some of the symptoms you may experience when infected by worms. -XoXo Raw Girl

Stomach & Intestinal Complications like those mentioned below are caused by large amounts of parasites in the lower digestive system and the toxic waste they produce.

Constipation
Diarrhea
Gas & Bloating
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Abdominal Pain
Leaky Gut
Bloody Stools
Mucus in the Stools
Nausea
Hemorrhoids

Fatigue or lack of energy happens when the toxic waste overloads and overworks the eliminative organs and strains the nervous system and can cause:

Chronic Fatigue
Low Energy
Lethargy
Excessive Weakness

Skin Disorders or Allergies can be caused by parasites that penetrate the skin and can cause itching. When the bodies’ defense system kicks in and white blood cells increase the reaction can cause rashes or food sensitivities to appear and symptoms may include:

Acne or skin reactions like Rashes or Hives
Dry Skin or Dry Hair
Food Allergies
Hair Loss
Itchy Anus
Itchy Skin
Crawling Sensations Under the Skin
Sores
Swelling

Mood and Anxiety Issues can arise from the negative impact that the toxic metabolic waste from parasite activity has on the nervous system and can cause:

Mood Swings
Nervousness
Depression
Foggy Thinking
Slow Reflexes
Anxiety
Forgetfulness

Sleep Disturbances can be caused by the mere presence of parasites or the body reacting to them during restful periods. This can cause symptoms such as:

Teeth Grinding
Bed Wetting
Insomnia
Waking in the middle of the night
Drooling while asleep
Itching around the anus (especially at night)

Weight & Appetite Problems are very common among those infected with parasites. Most people may have no idea this is the source of their ravenous appetite or inability to gain weight, and so the problem remains undetected. Some symptoms include:

Excessive Hunger/Increase in Appetite
Excessive Weight Loss
Strong and frequent sugar and carbohydrate cravings

Sankalpa: Reflect and Resolve

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Photo from skylarlester.tumblr.com

Pop quiz! What is one of the most important tools when doing yoga?

While most of us are always on top of making sure we have our mats, and some of us are making sure that we have on the latest workout get up before hitting the studio, almost all of us are forgetting the item that holds the most value. Our Sankalpa. One should never leave home without it.

Sankalpa is the inner work of the practice; it is the prayer or the good intention that orchestrates the movement. Seeking out and setting the intention is an essential component in anyone’s yoga, without it, one cannot reap the full benefits of their practice. By utilizing the greatness of Sankalpa, we can work to align our spiritual truths with our worldly behavior.

“The essence of your intention is stored in a cosmic database, every dedication that is in line with your destiny will eventually be released into fruition.”

When setting your intention, be mindful of keeping it just that. Try not to turn it into a request for something tangible by setting a goal. With an intention we always start where we belong. The beginning. The other wonderful thing about an intention is that you can set it up so no matter what direction life takes you, you are content and receptive to its many rhythms. An example of an intention could be the ability to express joy no matter what adversities you face.

How to turn a goal into an intention:

“My goal is to open up a cafe because I’m passionate about making people happy with my delicious foods.”

Turn it into an intention by saying:

Through my practice, it is my desire to generate happiness.

Now you try!

~ Sihnuu Hetep

To learn more about Sihnuu, click here

Why Your Body Needs Prebiotics & Probiotics

good bacteria

Photo by www.targetwoman.com

Most often when you hear about maintaining a healthy gut, the conversations are around probiotics and increasing good bacteria in your colon. However our body needs much more than probiotics to create an optimal internal environment, it also needs prebiotics. Prebiotics are a type of fiber or non-digestible carbohydrate found in edible plants that are food for good bacteria in your colon. They help maintain blood sugar levels, aid in maintaining healthy weight, and can prevent constipation. However not all foods high in fiber are prebiotic. Some great prebiotic foods include leeks, dandelion greens, garlic, Jerusalem artichokes, tomatoes, soybeans, oats, asparagus, onions, and unfiltered apple cider vinegar.

How does your body use these prebiotics? Prebiotics are made up of carbohydrates called oligosaccharides, (oligo means few and saccharides means sugars). When you eat these foods the body moves the fiber that was not digested all the way down to the large intestines, where it is fermented. Through the fermentation process your body breaks down these carbs and produces short chain fatty acids, or acids that are made up of 2-6 carbons. These fatty acids then become very important for colon health because they regulate the pH or balance of alkalinity and acidity within the colon and one fatty acid called butyric acid actually serves as an ideal energy source for the cells of the colon.

Having an abundance of these critical short chain fatty acids then in turn can reduce inflammation, support immunity, and maintain a health gut flora environment. So, it’s incredibly important that you maintain a whole foods diet that is comprised of both prebiotic and probiotic foods, because they work together to keep your colon happy. Some simple ways you can incorporate prebiotic foods into your routine include: drinking an apple cider vinegar tonic that consists of a glass of water and diluted ACV, steam sautéing greens with caramelized onions and garlic, having steamed asparagus as a side dish or chopped up in a salad along with tomatoes, adding artichokes to salads, or just adding garlic often to meals. Now the next time sometime goes on a rant about how bad you need your probiotics, you can say “Got Prebiotics?” –XoXo Raw Girl

The Ultimate Prebiotic Salad

1 bunch kale
Arugula
Garlic (2-3 cloves)
Pea Shoots (or any sprouts)
6-7 stalks of asparagus steamed
artichokes
Sun Dried Tomatoes
Dulse
Himalayan Sea Salt
2-3 capfuls of unfiltered organic apple cider vinegar
turmeric ½ teaspoon

Chop kale and wash along with arugula thoroughly. Add finely diced garlic, olive oil, turmeric, apple cider vinegar, and sea salt to taste. With your hands massage the greens thoroughly for a few minutes. Chop steamed asparagus and then add the rest of the ingredients into the salad: tomatoes, artichoke. Top with sprouts and sprinkle dulse. Serve & Enjoy!

Yoga: Fullest Expression

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As you ground and grow in your much less wobblier vriksasana, you hear the instructor utter the words you least look forward to.

“Fullest expression!”

Feeling confused and alone, you’ve now lost your drishti. Your eyes wander about the class and eventually toward home girl two mats over, who has somehow managed to get her arms into some kind of contortionist style prayer fold.

With your teacher’s presence near, you make a conscious effort to reset your focus. You frantically throw your arms in the air and think to yourself, this will work for sure.

“Lovely yogis,” your teacher replies.

You feel charged as your hands make their way back to anjanayasana. You’ve made it through another class without flaking out in your expression.

When an instructor calls “fullest expression,” what is being asked of the student? Is the teacher looking for the craziest arms in tree pose? Or perhaps the straightest and highest kicked leg in one-legged wheel? It is very easy to get caught up in the aesthetic of a yoga practice when those words are said in class.

I believe that pouring self: heart, mind, and body, entirely into practice is the way to access one’s fullest expression. At times, coming into one’s fullest expression could mean staying in the in the most basic form of the posture, tapping into the sounds of the heart and the deep rhythm of inhales and exhales.

There is no need to do anything overly taxing, be gentle and allow yourself to flow freely so that you may connect with your inner guide. This is a part of the practice cannot be orchestrated and should be full of your authenticity.

Trust in your breath and be.

~ Namaste, Sihnuu

To learn more about Sihnuu, click here

3 Little-Known Secrets About Candida

candida

Candida Albicans Photo from neogen.com

Secret #1: Candida can live in your face!

Have you had persistent inner ear itching that always makes you have a q-tip on hand to alleviate this torment? Do you experience tightness in your jaw, sometimes so bad that it prevents you from opening your mouth or smiling fully? Are your eyes ultra sensitive, always red, often swollen and plagued by itchy, watery, or dry bouts? Is your nose constantly running or stuffy and clogged? Are you extremely sensitive to chemical odors or perfumes? Do you have an itchy throat with a coated white tongue and bad breath in the morning? How about problems with your teeth shifting, grinding or yellowing? What about terrible, relentless acne, eczema or hives? If you answered yes to all or most of these, you can assume that Candida has very likely made a secret colony inside your facial tissue and mucous membranes.

Secret #2:Candida can harbor in your brain!

Do you feel depressed all the time for no good reason? Are you always irritable, easily annoyed or moody? Is your motivation and drive much less than what it used to be, making you sluggish, lazy and procrastinating? Are you cloudy in your thinking, overwhelmed by crowds and averse to people and social situations? Have you become reclusive, judgmental and negative-minded? Answer yes to all or most of these questions and you could have Candida overgrowth in your brain tissue affecting your cognitive and emotional abilities. These organisms send distorted information through your brain pathways as they proliferate, feed and die-off. This faulty information is destabilizing for your body system, which is being misdirected by foreign yeasts and pathogens.

Secret #3: Candida can eat your vitamins!

Are you always on expensive high quality supplements that never seem to work? Do you take lots of vitamin C, probiotics and superfoods, but to no apparent lasting benefit to your body? Are you still constipated with bad skin, dry breaking hair and low energy? Do you have trouble sleeping, tossing and turning all night with insomnia? Is finding foods that don’t cause allergic reactions a constant battle for you with even “healthy” items being difficult for you to digest? Are you nauseous after eating, ravenous for snacks in the evening and unable to ever get a feeling of satisfaction? Do you eat healthy, vegan or raw and yet still always feeling undernourished, bloated and toxic? If you answered yes to all or most of these questions, then the pathogenic yeasts called Candida may be using the undigested, unassimilated vitamins rotting in your belly as their food! If the yeasts are not brought into balance, none of the healthy nutrients you ingest have a chance of reaching your vital organs where they’re most needed.

– Sia

To learn more about Sia, click here

Make Your Health Your Best Accessory – Part 2

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When you are on the healthy living path, it can sometimes seem like everything is against you. At the beginning you may experience resistance from friends and family, feel lost in your social circle, and find it hard to find sustenance when you are traveling. It’s important to stay committed, despite the naysayers, despite the fast food on every corner, and despite the extra inconvenience of finding the freshest whole foods. Why? Because your well-being is worth it. You deserve to be energized enough to follow your purpose, look your best, and live disease-free.

As more of us commit fully, the more the world will have to adapt. When enough people get sick and tired of being sick and tired, through with obesity, or just plain over not having access to the best quality foods, the more you will see improvements in the world as a whole. Why shouldn’t healthy nutritious foods be inexpensive? Why shouldn’t salad joints replace fast food chains on every corner? Why shouldn’t there be veg options at most if not all restaurants?

This week again, I challenge you to be the change you want to see. Without dogma, without making your choices a religion and preaching to anyone, just fully commit to your health and you’ll see how quickly others will be running behind you trying to get your secrets. -XoXo Raw Girl

DC Raw/Vegan Options: Founding Farmers

Although it’s usually best to steer clear of restaurants that sell meat dishes if you are a die hard veggie lover, there are definitely some pleasant exceptions to this rule. About a week ago, I had the pleasure of enjoying a meal at Founding Farmers for the second time, and it was again well worth the hype. Founding Farmers is located in the Foggy Bottom area and is known for serving food made from high quality natural ingredients, which in some cases may be local and organic, and in others are just the best quality food that creates the smallest carbon footprint. If you live in DC or are simply visiting and you are vegetarian, this is a wonderful place to meet up with friends so that you have more options than a romaine lettuce salad because they have an entire separate veg-friendly selection.

If you are 100% vegan, raw, or just taking a break from cooked food, it will be harder to enjoy the deliciousness they offer because there are fewer vegan options. I chose the Veggie “Meatloaf” which was listed as vegan on the veg-friendly menu for lunch and would give it two thumbs up. It was savory and very filling. They also had a limited selection of fresh fruit and vegetable juices, which I always appreciate. Unfortunately the majority of the menu involves lots of starch, meat, refined flour, and foods cooked in oils or butter so this is not the place you want to come to treat your sweet tooth if you are avoiding white sugar, white flour, or dairy. However, both of the vegan dishes I have tried on two separate occasions were pretty fantastic, so if you are in the mood for cooked veg fare or hanging out with meat-heads that don’t want to compromise this may be the perfect place in the District to break bread without sacrificing your taste buds. -XoXo Raw Girl

Make Your Health Your Best Accessory – Part 1

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Dearest Readers:

Welcome to the all new Raw Girl site! Huge thank you and much love to all of you who supported the campaign to upgrade the site, will be contacting you soon about perks. I am ecstatic about this new phase and all of the wonderful contributors on board to add some additional flavor to the content. To celebrate I’ve taken my juice photo shoots to the next level and partnered with Puree Juice Bar. They are based in Bethesda and also just opened up a new location in DC inside of Mint Health Club at 1724 California Street NW. If you are local to the area, go support them and try their delicious juices or one of their amazing cleanse packages and tell them Raw Girl sent you!

The theme of the shoot is “Make Your Health Your Best Accessory.” So often these days we rely on “stuff” to make us look and feel good. Whether it’s the latest fashion trend or smart phone gadget we are programmed to find the next best thing we must have. This can become a vicious cycle of insatiable consumption unless we learn to stand in a centered and grounded space within ourselves knowing that who we truly are is powerful, whole, spirits, who have everything within us that we truly need to thrive.

I used to be a fashion designer and while I was studying I came to the conclusion that for me, fashion was more than dress. It encompasses your world view, self concept, and goes beyond clothing. Health is an accessory that many people do not have the luxury of flaunting these days. The media has taught us to make things like alcohol and cigarettes our accessories, to up our cool factor. Well, it’s a new day, and the cool kids are wearing their vegan glow and toting their juices on the way to yoga proudly. I hope that this site will inspire you to join the club, and start focusing on creating the healthiest, most gorgeous version of you, starting from the inside out: mind, body, and soul. If true health is wealth, I want to be a billionaire. Who’s with me? -XoXo Raw Girl

How to Make Raw Tacos

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If you’ve gone VEG or even if you are 100% raw, sometimes cravings for familiar textures and flavors of S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) or dishes traditionally made with meat may creep up on you. Rather than succumb to your cravings while sacrificing your commitment to health, the great news is that there is always a way to create raw and vegan meals that can satisfy your taste buds. Check out my buddy Aiya of BlackVeganLove.com, on the “Healthy Food, Happy You,” television show demoing how to make delicious raw tacos. -XoXo Raw Girl

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