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#MoveThatBody Inspiration from Jack LaLanne

exercise

“I train like I’m training for the Olympics or for a Mr. America contest, the way I’ve always trained my whole life. You see, life is a battlefield. Life is survival of the fittest. How many healthy people do you know? How many happy people do you know? Think about it. People work at dying, they don’t work at living. My workout is my obligation to life. It’s my tranquilizer. It’s part of the way I tell the truth — and telling the truth is what’s kept me going all these years.” ~Jack LaLanne

Sometimes I come across women or men that inspire me to take my level of fitness or eating habits to the next level. A couple weeks ago I came across a great article on Jack LaLanne “The Godfather of Fitness” that was really inspiring. Besides the fact that he opened the first real gym in 1963 and is the reason why we have a lot of the machines available in gyms today, he was the driving force behind the fitness movement in America with his national television show The Jack LaLanne Show that encouraged people to get moving daily and offered fitness and exercise tips. By the 1980’s he had over 200 health clubs in the U.S. which he eventually licensed to Bally Total Fitness. Jack was also a vegetarian for some part of his life and was a champion for vegetable juicing when he started selling his brand nationwide. He was about a whole foods diet and warned against the dangers of processed foods, so even later in his life he was a pescatarian but ate a lot of fruits and vegetables. His basic rules for nutrition? “If man made it, don’t eat it”, and “if it tastes good, spit it out.” Not only did he preach the gospel of proper diet and regular exercise, he practiced what he preached. He worked out every single day of his natural life for two hours a day. Talk about devotion. Hearing about the incredible physical feats that he accomplished throughout his life due to his super strength, definitely will have you wondering why it is you can’t seem to make it to the gym at least once a week.

Here’s a brief list via Wikipedia:

1954 (age 40): swam the entire 8,981 feet (2,737 m) length of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, under water, with 140 pounds (64 kg; 10 st) of air tanks and other equipment strapped to his body; a world record.
1955 (age 41): swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco while handcuffed. When interviewed afterwards he was quoted as saying that the worst thing about the ordeal was being handcuffed, which significantly reduced his chance to do a jumping jack.
1956 (age 42): set what was claimed as a world record of 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes on You Asked For It, a television program hosted by Art Baker.
1957 (age 43): swam the Golden Gate channel while towing a 2,500-pound (1,100 kg; 180 st) cabin cruiser. The swift ocean currents turned this one-mile (1.6 km) swim into a swimming distance of 6.5 miles (10.5 km).
1959 (age 45): did 1,000 jumping jacks and 1,000 chin-ups in 1 hour, 22 minutes, to promote The Jack LaLanne Show going nationwide. LaLanne said this was the most difficult of his stunts, but only because the skin on his hands started ripping off during the chin-ups. He felt he couldn’t stop because it would be seen as a public failure.
1974 (age 60): For the second time, he swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf. Again, he was handcuffed, but this time he was also shackled and towed a 1,000-pound (450 kg; 71 st) boat.
1975 (age 61): Repeating his performance of 21 years earlier, he again swam the entire length of the Golden Gate Bridge, underwater and handcuffed, but this time he was shackled and towed a 1,000-pound (450 kg; 71 st) boat.
1976 (age 62): To commemorate the “Spirit of ’76”, United States Bicentennial, he swam one mile (1.6 km) in Long Beach Harbor. He was handcuffed and shackled, and he towed 13 boats (representing the 13 original colonies) containing 76 people.
1979 (age 65): towed 65 boats in Lake Ashinoko, near Tokyo, Japan. He was handcuffed and shackled, and the boats were filled with 6,500 pounds (2,900 kg; 460 st) of Louisiana Pacific wood pulp.
1980 (age 66): towed 10 boats in North Miami, Florida. The boats carried 77 people, and he towed them for over one mile (1.6 km) in less than one hour.
1984 (age 70): handcuffed, shackled, and fighting strong winds and currents, he towed 70 rowboats, one with several guests, from the Queen’s Way Bridge in the Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary, 1 mile.

To add in another fun fact, when he was 54, he beat the then 21-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger “badly” in an informal body building contest! Jack eventually passed in 2011 at the age of 96. When asked why he did all those crazy unimaginable things he said “to show that anything is possible.” There really are no excuses; our human bodies are designed to move, and Jack Lalanne’s legacy is great example of the fact that we can use our minds to transcend what we think is possible. Are you inspired yet? It’s important to remember that diet is only one piece of the puzzle and that in order for us to truly thrive we must, must, #MoveThatBody. -XoXo Raw Girl

Kale is the New Beef

calcium

Kale is such a staple in my diet, that I often forget to sing its praises. A friend asked the other day, “So what’s the big deal with kale, anyway?” After going through the laundry list of health benefits and nutrients, and ending with the declaration that kale is one of the most nutrient dense leafy greens on the planet, I realized I needed to show kale some public love. Apparently I am not the only one. Have you seen all the t-shirts and stickers available on the web for you to express your infatuation with kale? I used to work as a fashion designer, it seems ages ago, and black was the staple color that you compared everything to. One season grey may be the new black, the next it was red. Well in the old paradigm food world, beef and animal products were the standards, leaving all of us hippie veggie lovers on the outskirts like the weird kids in class. But times are a changing! Just like those popular kids in high school who were really cool back in the day but are now overweight and boring, those who preach the gospel of animal protein are starting to look shabbier than all the lean, energized, and bright-eyed vegetable eaters. Yeah, we were once the weird kids in class, but now we’re totally hot and our sexiness is way more sustainable. As a part of this shift, kale is becoming what beef was, a staple. Although I sometimes still go through the checkout line and have to explain to the person ringing me up what Lacinato (also called Dino kale) or green kale is, more and more people are singing the gospel of kale because, frankly, it’s awesome. Below are a couple of reasons you may want to join the new cool kids and learn more about purple, green, and dino kale and how you can incorporate them into your diet. If your already on team kale, I salute you. -XoXo Raw Girl

Supports Weight Loss. Kale is incredible low in calories, high in fiber, and has zero fat. Unlike a slab of steak on your plate, eating kale isn’t going to add anything to your waistline. In fact the fiber and nutrients will promote better digestion and proper elimination, all while providing you with some essential nutrition.

Potent Anti-Inflmmatory Food. Kale is a power green leafy vegetable which solves a major issue that is plaguing the majority of people with chronic diseases or common skin issues: inflammation. Kale is an incredibly effective anti-inflammatory food and its omega-3 content adds to its anti-inflammatory properties. One cup of kale has 10% of the RDA of omega-3 fatty acids which is a key missing ingredient in standard modern diets leading to arthritis, autoimmune disorders, and other health problems.

Relieves Constipation. For those who have never incorporated kale into your diet, one of the first things you’ll notice is that kale will get waste moving out of the body and induce a bowel movement fairly quickly. Why is this great? Because most people are full of s&%$# thus leading to chronic health problems, skin issues, and other conditions that could have been solved by getting waste moved out of the colon.

Nutritional Powerhouse. Kale is an excellent source of nutrition including vitamins A, C, K, E, B1, B2, B3, calcium, beta-carotene, phosphorous, iron, copper, magnesium, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, and the carotenoid lutein. This cruciferous veggie is one of the richest sources of lutein which has been proven by research to be effective in protecting the skin from UV rays. The vitamin A content promotes the repair and maintenance of the skin, maintains healthy vision, and protects against lung and oral cancers.

The A Word. You cannot claim to be devoted to living a healthy, disease-free, and youth maintaining lifestyle if you are not getting enough foods with antioxidants. Kale is full of antioxidants which protect against cancers, fights free radicals, and promote youthfulness.

Kale Takes the Prize for Iron & Calcium. The next time a meat-eater taunts you for loving on your veggies you may want to serve up these facts to make them consider spending a little more time in the produce isle. Kale is high in calcium, in fact, kale has more calcium per calorie than milk and helps to prevent bone loss, osteoporosis, and maintain a healthy metabolism. So much for those “got milk” ads! That’s why I always say “got chlorophyll?” In addition to this kale has more iron per calorie than beef! Although most people think of veggie lovers as being anemic, more and more meat eaters are becoming anemic and could probably use a little kale in their lives. Iron is important because it is necessary for cell growth, the formation of hemoglobin, transporting oxygen throughout the body, and more.

DC Raw/Vegan Spot: Everlasting Life

DC vegan restaurants

Last weekend went with some friends again to Everlasting Life Cafe, which was named Best Vegan Restaurant in DC for 2013. The food is really flavorful and well seasoned; good enough that you may excuse your customer service experience there which may be less than ideal. Every trip to Everlasting seems comes with its own amusing anecdotes that you can tell your friends about later. For this most recent trip we had checked what time they closed online because our last visit resulted in us squeezing in an order at the last minute. Their website said 9 pm, but when we arrived, friends noted that their sign said 8:30 pm. Determined to still get some grub we headed in the restaurant around 8 pm. Glad we did that because we ended up staying well past 9 pm and they had no signs of closing shop when we finally left. When we arrived to order we were told to wait a bit and then we explained to our friends how to make their plates from the hot or cold bar, which was confusing on the first visit. This was my first time staying in the restaurant to eat the food, and besides the good grub I also enjoyed the playlist of early 90’s R&B which was the soundtrack for our meal.

Despite the fact that you may or may not make it in time to get some food depending on whether or not they choose to close earlier or later, and that there are no signs on the food and so you have to point to things and ask the server (who hopefully knows) for certain dishes, going through the drama of getting food on your plate becomes worth it when you finally can sit down and eat. There aren’t too many raw options, but there are really good salads in the cold bar and they also make juices and smoothies. The vinaigrette kale is to die for, love the artichoke salad, garlic spinach with sesame seeds, cucumber tomato salad, curried chickpeas, and black beans. The hot bar has cooked vegan food and friends tried and gave two thumbs up to their veggie “steak” with mushroom gravy, collards, cornbread (which looked amazing), mac n’ cheese, and vegan carrot cake. Everything is super affordable and you get large portion sizes; enough sometimes to save a little food for the next day. I enjoy the food, but still yearn for at least one raw or vegan spot in DC that has excellent customer service, sit down dining, and a slightly upscale ambience. Until then, Everlasting Life Cafe is definitely on my list of places to dine occasionally, and if you are in DC I recommend you give them a visit and try it. -XoXo Raw Girl

For more details on the location and menu offerings on their website: http://www.everlastinglifecafe.com/

The Art of Being Social While Staying Vegan

Living la Vida Raw

Sometimes going veg can be the easiest part of the journey. You’ve finally taken that leap and cut meat, dairy, or processed foods out of your diet. You feel great, but you start to realize your old environments and old friends don’t mesh with your new lifestyle, or that it’s just more difficult to hang out with your favorite partners in crime. In the worst case scenarios you may even receive resistance from friends and family who don’t get while you’re so veg crazy and energetic all of the time. A lot of times people we love can’t adjust or make the extra effort to take into consideration our new passion for all things green and organic, and so we may get invites to a local steak or fast food joint. When this happens we may as well have vegan tattooed on our foreheads because we find ourselves the only one at the table nibbling on a scary looking bed of lettuce or a plate of steamed veggies that still has butter on it because the waitress didn’t realize that vegan means, no butter. Although it can be tough, getting through these social growing pains can be the final test that determines whether or not you will have the stamina to go the distance. Below are a few tips I brainstormed from my personal arsenal, that may assist you in still finding social balance. Sometimes you may have to compromise, but the goal should be to never completely forego your dietary requirements just for the sake of pleasing others. When you take a stand for your choices longterm, and keep bringing those yummy veg dishes to gatherings potluck style, you’ll be surprised, everyone may eventually start eating off of your plate. -XoXo Raw Girl

BYOV: Bring Your Own Veggies. This is a golden rule, especially at family gatherings, and even to parties or potlucks. If you are going to someone’s home and there will be food, BYOV. It can be a dessert, a salad, whatever, as long as its something you enjoy and can have on your plate if there are no other vegan options available. It’s always essential to over prepare, because you don’t want to be stranded with no vegan rations in sight, and have to hungrily watch everyone else eat full plates of food. It may disrupt your joie de vivre and leave you cranky.
Go Ethnic. The hardest places to find veg options are all American restaurants, fast food joints, or restaurants that are clearly dedicated for meat lovers. If the place has a giant smiling pig on the sign out front, beware. When and if you have to brave eating out at places like that, I would recommend going with veggie plates that are cooked, because you never know how their greens are handled or if they are cross contaminated with meat products. I avoid places like these altogether or eat beforehand and just enjoy the company. Most of the salad options will also include meat and cheese, so you may be able to piece together a salad but you’ll probably have to be that chick that asks the waitress to hold everything but the romaine. Ethnic is always the way to go for more veg options unless you are going to a restaurant that has vegan options. I usually go for Thai, Japanese, or Mexican because in restaurants like these I know I may be able to piece together a salad or get some seaweed.
Take Charge of the Venue. This is the most fun because you can take your friends or fam to a veg certified spot where you know you can stuff your face with yummy organic raw or vegan goodness. It will also give your skeptical friends a chance to try some gourmet veg dishes that may leave them so satisfied they stop making fun of you, permanently.
Prepare Your Protein Speech. If you’re a hardcore vegan, I know you already got this covered. For the newbies, get ready to answer this question. Some days you may want to roll your eyes when you get asked where you get your protein yet again, but hopefully you’ll be so blissed out from your morning green juice you’ll just smile and recite your speech. It’s essential to be able to defend your choices in group social situations so you don’t feel pressured to cave in, and it also gives others the opportunity to learn that it is possible to get adequate protein on a vegan diet and thrive.
Eat Before You Leave Home. Cyber stalk or call whatever restaurant you are going to and find out what options or substitutions are available. If you know they have absolutely nothing plan ahead, eat at home before you leave so your stomach isn’t growling later.

Juice! Carrot Lemon Blast & Benefits of Juicing Lemons

health

Carrot Lemon Blast

Carrot Lemon Blast

6-7 carrots

1/2 head of celery

2 Lemons

1 pear

1 apple

Juice all ingredients. Serve, strain, enjoy!

Why is it never a bad idea to O.D. on lemons? Lemons are powerful citrus fruits that are effective as a food and as medicine. Ancient Egyptians believed that consuming lemons and lemon juice protected them from poisons and toxic substances. Although it’s easy to disregard lemons because they are so readily available, like that good old friend from back in the day, you always can call upon a lemon when you need it to combat a virus, a cold, ease digestion, and more. They contain vitamin C, citric acid, and B vitamins. The benefits relevant to clearing your skin include purifying the blood, cleansing the kidneys, and assisting in elimination of toxins. Lemon juice is one of the most highly antioxidant juices so drinking it helps to slow aging and deactivate free radicals. Lemon juice applied directly on the skin (would need to be diluted for sensitive skin) can help to reduce scarring, age spots, and gently exfoliates and removes dead skin cells. Need to get more lemon juice in your diet? Add lemons to your daily vegetable juice, squeeze lemon over your green salad, or start the day with a tonic of filtered water with lemon juice squeezed in. -XoXo Raw Girl

Need a spring cleaning? More awesome recipes with power ingredients and a full regimen in Raw Girl’s 7 Day Detox for Beauty, Weightloss, & Rejuvenation.

Core Power Yoga: The One Stop Yoga Shop

core power yoga

Since late March, I’ve been getting a weekly dose of yoga at Core Power Yoga Georgetown. Core Power Yoga has studios all of the country and offers power yoga classes in a variety of styles from beginner to more advanced levels. What makes the classes so special? I love that besides the fact that there are a range of styles to choose from including: Hot Power Fusion, Yoga Sculpt, C1, and C2 classes, all of the classes include core work so you won’t have to worry about neglecting your six-pack in favor of yoga arms. Hot Power Fusion has more standing sequences, is reminiscent of Bikram (with slightly less heat), and incorporates more flow into the practice. Yoga Sculpt is an awesome challenging class that mixes yoga with free weights and cardio and can save strength training junkies from having to leave the yoga studio to get their fix. C1 and C2 are the vinyasa flow style classes that are for beginners and intermediate yogis. All Core Power classes are in a heated room, and are also set to music, with the playlists varying depending on the instructor. Unlike many yoga studios where you can get stuck in a rut, the variety of classes at Core Power allow you to challenge yourself each week, break a sweat, and change up your routine.

Yesterday I got an insanely awesome and intense workout with back to back Hot Power Fusion and Yoga Sculpt taught by Sihnuu, one of my favorite teachers at Core Power Yoga Georgetown. Her classes are simply a revelation. If you need a challenge and have already practiced yoga for some time, her C2 and Yoga Sculpt classes will push you to your limits to a really great soundtrack. Also look on the Georgetown schedule for another favorite teacher of mine, Adeoye, he teaches a really wonderful and energizing Hot Power Fusion and a Yoga Sculpt class that’ll whip you into shape.

For more info on Core Power, or to check if there is a studio near you visit www.corepoweryoga.com. If you are in the DC area Core Power Yoga has the studio in Georgetown and also one in Bethesda. Check them out for free for the first week and when you do tell them Esosa E. A.K.A. Raw Girl sent you! You can also email me at rawgirltoxicworld@gmail.com if you would like to take class together. Come prepared to sweat. Namaste. -XoXo Raw Girl

Read this past post for more on The Benefits of Hot Yoga.

Smoothie! Mango Citrus Cooler

fruit

The best part of waking up? A fruit smoothie in your cup! A great way to get more fruit in your diet, especially in the spring and summer months is to blend up some yummy concoctions. They don’t have to be fancy to taste amazing, and are way better for you than store bought smoothies which in most cases are pasteurized, contain harmful preservatives, and even indigestible fibers (Naked juice was found guilty of this). It takes no time at all to put some fruit frozen or fresh in the blender add a little water and start a smoothie party at any time of the day. What I love about fruit is that unlike refined sugar, you get sweetness with substance in the form of nutrients and fiber. This weekend my smoothie was all about mangoes. If you need some good reasons to love mangoes, check out this past blog post: 6 Reasons to Get Down With Mangoes, The King of Fruit. -XoXo Raw Girl

Mango Citrus Cooler

Ingredients:

3-4 cups frozen Mango

2 bananas

2 oranges (peel and remove seeds)

1 cup filtered water

Blend all ingredients, serve, enjoy!

Juice! Broccoli Blast

broccoli

Have you ever tried juicing broccoli? Although I love eating broccoli raw it is also a great addition to your daily dose of greens! Broccoli comes from the gangsta family of cruciferous vegetables with includes cauliflower, brussel sprouts, and the almighty kale. It has an awesome amount of calcium and vitaminK, in addition to vitamin C, vitamin B-complex, manganese, phosphorous, zinc, and iron. Juicing broccoli can be useful for any sort of digestive disorder including indigestion, gastritis, or ulcers. It is also beneficial in preventing breast cancer because it helps to rid the body of excess estrogen, and has a high level of antioxidants which of course slow the aging process and prevent macular degeneration. -XoXo Raw Girl

Broccoli Blast

Ingredients:

2 Large Stalks of Broccoli

1 Head of Celery

3-4 Kale Leaves

1 Apple

Ginger

Run all ingredients through a juicer. Serve, strain, enjoy!

Sweet n’ Scrumptious Summer Salad w/ Orange-Strawberry Dressing

fruit salad

Spring is here, and hopefully summer is around the corner real soon. This weekend in honor of the beautiful weather outside, I decided to whip up a delicious summer salad. If you are a raw foodie or not, it’s always great to lighten up your diet a bit when the weather gets warmer. For those not on the raw bandwagon, spring and summer is a lovely time to incorporate more raw foods into your diet, while also soaking in the wonderful energy of the sun. This salad was AMAZING, took no time at all to prepare, and the dressing was so tasty on it’s own, it doubled as dressing and smoothie. Below is the recipe, feel free to have fun with your versions and add in whatever fruit strikes your fancy. -XoXo Raw Girl

Sweet n’ Scrumptious Summer Salad w/ Orange-Strawberry Dressing

Salad Ingredients:

Green Kale, Spinach, & other Mixed Greens

1/ 2 Mango

8-9 Strawberries

Almonds

Dried Cranberries

Orange Wedge

Sea Salt

Wash and dice all ingredients however you prefer them. Add all greens into salad bowl, add two capfuls of extra virgin olive oil, squeeze wedge of orange onto greens, and add a few pinches of sea salt to taste. Massage greens. Layer over greens all your toppings.

Dressing Ingredients:

2 Oranges

4 Basil Leaves

8 Strawberries

2 Tablespoons Agave or 3-4 Pitted Dates

Blend the ingredients together, pour over salad and enjoy! Remember this by itself makes a pretty awesome smoothie. Will experiment with other versions of this, but adding in a cucumber works well. -XoXo Raw Girl

Dandelion Greens for Glowing Skin

acne

Dandelion Kale Acne Fighter

Dandelion has been used since ancient times to achieve a natural glow. It’s official name is “Taraxacum Officinale” which means official remedy for disorders, a well fitting name for a very powerful plant. Dandelion juice is a good detoxifier, diuretic, stimulant, and anti-oxidant. These four properties make it a great treatment for acne. Dandelion root and leaves are very powerful diuretics, meaning they stimulate urinary function and rid the body of excess fluid. This also makes it great for PMS and water weight gain. What makes Dandelion an awesome acne-fighter is that it is a blood purifier and protects, nourishes, and detoxifies the liver which the body uses to get rid of toxins, including those that are causing your blemishes! Dandelion juice can also help regulate proper secretion of hormones, increase sweating and widen up pores to facilitate removal of toxins through sweating. Dandelion greens contain a great deal of awesome nutrients including Vitamins A, B2, C, D, and minerals like potassium, calcium, sodium, phosphorous, iron. It is also natures richest green vegetable source of beta-cartone. Adding this juice and variations of green juices with dandelion with give your skin a major boost and also helps with conditions like eczema and psoriasis. Beyond improving the quality of your skin, dandelion also can assist in weight reduction, relieve constipation, prevent and lower high blood pressure, prevent or even cure anemia, lower your cholesterol, and help control diabetes. When you juice dandelion greens, they have a bitter taste, and they are also very powerful so you don’t want to juice too much in one sitting. A small handful or less is a good rule of thumb. When combined with other veggies and maybe an apple to sweeten, you can easily mask the bitter taste and still get the beauty boosting benefits. -XoXo Raw Girl

Recipe for the Dandelion Kale Acne Fighter & many other juices to help you get that natural glow in The 3 Day Acne-Free Detox Plan!

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