happiness, freedom and yum

We have tried to stay pretty close to eating clean since we ended the cleanse.  There are definite lapses - last night we ate pizza and drank beer.  But after experimenting with days when I am eating clean, and days when I am not, it is shocking to me the differences in how I feel on those respective days.

As human beings we strive for happiness and freedom.  Our lives are basically a search to find that which will make us happy, and we want the freedom to make our own decisions about how to find our happiness.  It is well known that money doesn't buy you happiness, but what about a really cool and fun job?  Or a happy relationship?  Having children?  Not having children?  Having lots of friends?

It is well documented through various religions and beliefs, that instead of searching outside of ourselves for our happiness, all that we need to do is look inside.  Throughout the cleanse, I felt happy.  I would wake up in a good mood, and for the most part, stay happy throughout the day.  When it came time to go to sleep, I would be looking forward to sinking into my bed and having a deep sleep.  My body was healthy, and that resulted in my mind being joyful.  Of course, we know that our minds and bodies are intimately linked.  But many times we separate our minds from our bodies.  We get consumed by our busy lives, and almost become annoyed with having to take care of ourselves.  We get frustrated because we don't have time to exercise, or we don't have time to sit down for a meal so have to eat on the run, or we feel tired when we wish we had more energy so we consume caffeine and sugar in hopes that it will give us a boost.  At those times we need to be reminded of the obvious fact that if you treat yourself well, it is easier to find the happiness that we desire.  If you eat well, your body will pay you back tenfold.  You are what you eat, and that applies to your body, your mind and your spirit.

If you have cheated on the cleanse, or if you have finished the cleanse and fallen back into bad habits, try to find your way back to the right track.  Just start right now, this instant.  Make a good decision the next time you feel an urge to eat.  Are you really hungry?  If so, what does your body want you to eat?  I'll bet making that good decision will immediately put a smile on your face.

Here are some delicious, good decisions that I have made lately:

CINNAMON AND PECAN CRUSTED SALMON

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound of salmon

• 1/4 cup raw pecans

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 1 tsp paprika

• 1 tbsp whole grain mustard

• 2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a food processor, pulse the pecans until the they are finely chopped and crumbly. Pour them onto a plate and add the cinnamon and paprika. Mix the spices into the pecans with a fork. In a cast iron pan, I use Le Creuset's 10" fry pan and love it, heat your oil on medium-high heat. Spread the mustard evenly over the flesh of the salmon. This will give you a nice "sticky" layer to bind with the pecans. Coat the top of the salmon with the crust by placing the filet skin side up in the pecan crumbs. Make sure to crust all sides of the fish (except the skin) to get the full flavor of the crust.

Place the crusted side down in the hot oil. Let it sizzle for 3 minutes, careful not to let it burn. When there's a nice brown coloring to the pecan mixture, flip it over (skin side down) and place the skillet in the oven. Bake it in the center of the warm oven for 8 - 10 minutes depending on the thickness, until the fish flakes easily.

Relish in the sweet smokiness of this fabulous recipe.

MUSHROOM SOUP

6T olive oil (adjust to preference)

2c onions, finely chopped (I used red onions)

6 oz* crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, chopped

6 oz* shiitake mushrooms, de-stemmed, chopped

6 oz enoki mushrooms, bottoms cut off ( these are like long thin stalks)

1T thyme, fresh, chopped

3T wine, white, (optional- or substitute frozen apple juice concentrate, or balsamic vinegar to taste)

2T brown rice flour

4 c veg broth (or whatever flavor organic broth you prefer)

Add olive oil and onions to a large pot, med-high heat.  Sauté until golden ~ 5 min.  Add all of the mushrooms and thyme.  Sauté until mushrooms begin to brown ~ 8min.  Add wine or apple juice concentrate or balsamic.

Stir ~30 sec.  Mix in flour  Slowly stir in broth while mixing.  Bring soup to boil.  Reduce heat.  Simmer uncovered ~10 min.  Season with sea salt and freshly ground peppercorns.

Ladle into bowls.

Can be served 'as is' or with a dollop of almond milk (etc.), and/ or with a few drops of truffle oil.  The presence of the Enoki mushrooms mimics thin pasta and adds to the complexity of the dish.

For a thicker soup* (although the soup is fairly thickened), buy 2-3 ounces extra, each, of thE crimini and shiitake mushrooms, finely chop them and let them cook them in enough broth to cover them (use a saucepan), while you are preparing the soup.

Then after you 'slowly stir in broth while mixing', place the additional hot broth and chopped mushrooms from the saucepan in a blender and blend until liquified. Add this 'pureed add back in' to the large pot before you 'bring soup to a boil'. yum. Enjoy!

GLUTEN FREE CHICKEN PESTO PIZZA

Bob's Red Mill's Guten Free Pizza Crust (Post Cleanse -due to a few ingredients, but may

also be made with Clean Pizza crust)

Sauce: Clean Pesto (in Clean Book)

Toppings:

Sautéed Chicken Breast

Sautéed Shitake Mushrooms

Tomatoes (post cleanse option)

Kalamata Black olives (optional)

Once pizza is out of oven top with Arugula + fresh black pepper (optional)

GRILLED HALIBUT FILLET WITH GINGER, SESAME OIL AND CHOPPED GREEN ONIONS

Note to fish lovers: The fish worked wonderfully under the broiler.

Brush a mixture of Sesame Oil, freshly grated Ginger, Tamari Soy Sauce on the fish (free-hand this. I did a big splash, ginger and another big splash) and grill the fish for about 5 minutes (depending on thickness - mine was 1 1/2 inches thick) Check for doneness. Properly cooked fish breaks easily with a fork. You want it at the point where it only needs another minute of cooking.

Sprinkle chopped green onion on top and grill for about 1 minute more.

Enjoy!

Very nice with Quinoa Tabouleh and Grilled Asparagus or Steamed Green Beans

ARTICHOKE DIP

1 14 oz. can artichoke hearts (try to find in glass if possible)

1 15.5 oz. can great northern beans (buy dry beans, soak and cook if possible)

2 tbs. olive oil

3 tbs. lemon juice

2 cloves garlic

6 pitted Kalamata olives

1 tsp. dried thyme

Sea salt and pepper

Place all ingredients except for salt and pepper in food processor. Puree until only very

small pieces of artichoke are visible. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with a drizzle of

olive oil and kalamata olives. Serve with cut vegetables and brown rice crackers.

CLEAN AND RAW CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

1 1/2 C of walnuts or pecans

Dash of salt

1/3 C of Raw Cacao powder

12 medjool dates

1/2tsp of vanilla

In the food processor, process walnuts with the dash of salt until the walnut mixture

resembles a flour-type mixture. Add the dates, cocao powder and vanilla and process

until the mixture becomes crumbly and sticks when pressed between your fingers.

Roll into balls for truffles and roll in finely shredded raw coconut or cacao powder. I am

sure you could use carob also.

Keeps in Refrigerator 5 days or freezer 2 months - but they won't last this long. What a treat. 

During and after cleanse: grocery list

I probably should have started with this sort of list, but I guess better late than never.  Some people have asked about the basics for getting started, and there are some consistent ingredients that are in most of the recipes.  I am sure this is not exhaustive, but it gives you a foundation from which to start your shopping.

DURING CLEANSE
(The "co" next to some items means to get them at Mountain People's Co-Op in bulk.  Always much fresher and tastier than what you can get at the grocery store.)  Also, always buy organic whenever you possibly can.

unsweetened almond milk
coconut milk (I wasn't able to find pure, uncanned coconut milk so I just used canned)
coconut water - this is a really nice alternative beverage
raw almonds - co
raw almond butter - co
chia seeds - co
flax seeds - co
sesame seeds - co
raw cashews - co
frozen organic blueberries, raspberries, peaches
brown rice syrup
quinoa - co
brown rice - co
carrots
lettuce
spinach
avocados
dates - co
currants
garlic
scallions
really good olive oil (you'll be using this a lot)
sea salt
grapeseed oil
cold pressed sesame oil
kale
kalamata olives
parsley
sprouts
lemons and limes
green tea (if you are using caffeine)
herbal tea
Perrier (I believe the only carbonated water that doesn't have carbonation added but I could be wrong)
Lara Bars - if you are an athlete and need something like this, these are all-natural.  Many of them only have clean ingredients
garbanzo beans - co
adzuki beans - co
chicken (if eating meat)
hemp protein powder - co

ELIMINATION DIET
rice crackers
rice bread
rice pasta

TIPS
- I would cut up and cook 3-4 chicken breasts at the beginning of the week to put on/in recipes during the week.  Sometimes if I didn't have a lunch planned I would just do the Big Green Salad and put chicken or extra nuts on it.  Or do the same with quinoa or brown rice - throw a bunch of veggies in, add olive oil, salt, pepper and combine.
- Always carry something that could be a snack in case you get stuck somewhere without being able to eat.  Lara Bars or Odwalla Juices can help in an emergency.
- Nori seaweed Sheets are great to make a wrap with.  If you have leftover salad from the night before, put some hummus (or any dip) on the nori sheet, then put the salad inside and wrap.  Really, it works with nearly any ingredients - just use as an alternative to bread.

Day twenty-two: The Day After

I didn't make it a full day yesterday.  Last night we decided to break our cleanse with a good bottle of wine.  I had made some chicken and pasta for the kids, so Matt had some of that with the broccoli and arugula soup, which happens to be really good: http://goop.com/newsletter/15/

I had a bite of the wheat pasta, and it felt like a rock going in my stomach.  So I decided to have some rice bread on the side of my soup.  After dinner I remembered that I had two chocolate bars in the pantry - and the wine would be a perfect complement to them, right?  At this point, my judgement was questionable due to the wine, so we opened them both.  Of course we were justifying our actions by reasoning that both chocolate bars were relatively healthy: dark chocolate with cherries and milk chocolate with cranberries and almonds.  They were good.  But after two squares of each, my body really couldn't take any more sugar with the wine/chocolate combination.

About six months ago I went to our natural foods store with a variety of different health ailments.  I was asking the store owner about each one separately, and he said, "Do you eat a lot of processed sugar?"  My gut reaction was to say no.  I am not the type of person who throws a candy bar in the cart in the check out line.  But processed sugar is everywhere, and if you break down what you eat each day, it can be surprising how much can sneak into your diet without you realizing it.  He said that eliminating processed sugar can do wonders for health, and would basically clear up all of my issues.  So after those chocolate bars are gone, I'm going to get right on that. 

I am looking forward to my smoothie this morning.  I should be excited about eating something else, but I don't want to.  For the most part, I plan to stay on the elimination diet.  I already know the things that are easy for me to avoid: wheat, caffeine, dairy and peanuts.  As a vegetarian (when I'm not on Clean) I have a hard time avoiding soy, and it seems to agree with me when I eat it.  My challenges will be alcohol and processed sugar because I really love them both, but I know that they affect my body negatively.

In a section of his book when he discusses the poor health of the average American due to our diets, Dr. Junger mentions how Mother Earth is sick, and humans are the virus.  A lesson learned from this journey is to live with a closer bond to Mother Earth.  We are animals, therefore we have a strong tie to nature.  If we can start a cycle of healthy living with just our diet, other practices fall into place by doing things like recycling, spending time outside, and turning off screens and interacting with one another face to face.  The further away we drift from our tie to nature, it seems the more scattered and sick we become.  Eating whole, unprocessed foods agrees with our bodies, because that is what our digestive system is made to process.  When we go outside in nature to ski, walk, bike or just run around, there is a profound happiness that results because humans have a biological tie to nature.  When we stop texting and emailing and actually talk to each other, there is warmth and happiness that can't be experienced with a screen.  Just a smile at a stranger or a hug for a friend can completely change someone's mood from dark to light.

For those of you still on Clean, keep up the good work!  At our last meeting on Wednesday we talked about how this experience is life changing, and how the key is to take the practices with you.  It isn't just about what you eat, but more importantly about being mindful when, why and how much you eat.  Find your emotional triggers and realize that you are the only one who is control of what you put in your mouth.  No one is forcing you to eat - it is your decision.  So maybe have a cup of tea and a deep breath the next time you get the urge to dive into the pantry and finish off that chocolate bar.

Namaste.

Day twenty: almost there

Tomorrow is my last day of the cleanse, and for some reason it has seemed harder during the past few days.  I have been hungrier, and more tempted by food.  We had our last detox yoga session tonight, and others shared that feeling as well.  But I still feel great, and I know it is because of the amount of food and the type of food that I am putting in my body, so I am staying the course.  Feeling clear and energetic is now my "normal."  The memory of lacking energy in the evening and having a hard time getting out of bed in the morning seems distant. 

I remember last year when I went off the cleanse I ate a peanut M&M.  Now, in a normal situation, peanut M&Ms are one of my favorite candy.  But in this rare case, it tasted absolutely terrible.  The first thing I tasted was the peanut - old and stale.  Then the fake-chocolate taste kicked in and it wasn't even pleasurable to eat.  I thought maybe I just had a bad one, so tried another.  Same thing.  Of course, during the course of the following year, I somehow convinced myself that they tasted good again.  I guess it wasn't really that they tasted better, but that I was much less able to taste the nuances of the old stale peanut because my taste buds had been partially numbed again by toxins.  Nice thought.

When your palate has not tasted processed food in such a long time, it becomes really sensitive.  That's why it is important to introduce foods slowly when you finish Clean, because during this very rare window of your life, you acutely notice what agrees with your body, and what does not.  During our busy lives when we are eating without thinking, our body becomes so used to digesting all sorts of difficult foods, adding a peanut M&M on top of the pile is no big deal.  Taking advantage of these clean taste buds when you finish makes you steer toward higher quality, pure foods. 

If you are still on the cleanse, keep it up!  Here is an excerpt from Clean about week three:
"You feel the natural high that comes with detoxification; your skin glows, your eyes are whiter, your clothes are a little looser, and friends ask you if you've just been on vacation (or had a face lift)."

Okay, no one has asked me if I have had a face lift this week - what gives? - but I have noticed all of the other details that he listed.  And strangely, someone did comment on how white the whites of my eyes are.  I know, sort of an amazing thing for someone to notice, therefore I took it as quite a fantastic compliment.

Namaste.

Day eighteen: contentment

It is difficult to explain how I feel during this cleanse, because I don't feel hungry, but also don't feel full.  Last night I was reading Judith Lasater's "Living Your Yoga" and I found the word.  The chapter I was reading was about greed, and she said, "A friend once translated a Chinese expression for me. 'Have you eaten to contentment?' This seems a powerful orientation to satiating hunger, be it for food or anything else.  It calls on us to shift our focus from filling an emptiness to experiencing contentment."  Hence, not being greedy with food, just because it is constantly readily available to us.

When we are experiencing contentment (or any emotion for that matter) we have no choice but to live in the moment.  There is no way to be laughing or crying without actually being in the present moment.  When Lasater mentions "filling an emptiness" with food, that emptiness could be actual hunger, or it could also be filling an emotional emptiness or eating out of boredom or habit.  Eating can be a way to fill our time, our bad day, our empty heart, our unhappiness with ourselves.  But the irony is, when we do eat this way, it only results in feeling even worse afterward.

Michael Pollan published a great little book called, "Food Rules," in which he lays out 64 rules of eating to be healthy and happy.  One of the rules that I think is important is, "Pay More, Eat Less."  Good, fresh food is expensive.  But by changing the types of food that you eat (less meat, more vegetables and fruits), and not eating as much, it is possible to spend about the same amount, and still buy organic.  Pollan says that eating less has repeatedly been shown to slow aging in animals, and many researchers believe it offers the single strongest link between diet and cancer prevention.  "We eat much more than our bodies need to be healthy, and the excess wreaks havoc - and not just on our weight."

Here are a few more of his food rules that are my favorites:
- Avoid food products containing ingredients that a third grader cannot pronounce. (e.g. ethoxylated diglycerides, calcium propionate, xanthan gum).
- Don't eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food.
- Don't ingest foods made in places where everyone is required to wear a surgical cap.
- It's not food if it arrived through the window of your car.
- Don't eat breakfast cereals that change the color of your milk.
- Buy smaller plates and glasses.
- Do all your eating at a table.
- Break the rules once in a while.

So enjoy the contentment of living in the moment while you eat.  Having liquid meals for two meals a day during this cleanse, makes you ENJOY the one meal of solid food.  Lunch is heavenly.  And contentment many times happens automatically when we have a delicious meal - taking the first bite and saying, "Mmmmm" and just lingering on the flavors and texture.  My grandfather used to say when I was little and wanting more dessert, "What, did you forget what it tastes like?"  The first bite is always the best.  The key is to simultaneously enjoy your food, and also be able to recognize when the feeling of contentment is approaching.  Remember, you can always eat the rest for lunch tomorrow. 

Day sixteen: cheating (!) and getting tired of smoothies

Yes, I cheated this week.  On two different occasions, I was working remotely at a coffee shop, and I ordered decaf coffee AND put milk in it.  To make matters worse, the coffee shop did sell tea - even herbal tea.  But the coffee tasted pretty damn good.

The way that I found out about The Clean Program was from an Outside Magazine article, published December 2010.  The issue was about giving things up and becoming healthier.  The article about Clean was written by a guy in his late-30's who was really cynical (and hilarious) and wanted to try this cleanse to see what all of the hype was about.  He was a doubter, and of course, he was totally sold on the program by the end of the three weeks.  It was so convincing, that we tried it.  But at one point in about the middle of the cleanse he goes out to dinner and has fish tacos and a few beers with friends.  He then calls Dr. Junger to see how much damage he has done.  Dr. Junger tells him, "Well, let me put it this way.  If you're trying to tidy up a room, and it is nice a clean, but then someone sprays lard all over the walls, that is going to do some damage.  But you'll eventually be able to clean it up." 

I think I cheated because I am getting bored.  I knew before I started that I wasn't a big fan of the soups on the cleanse.  We had made a few of them last year when we did this, and none were as satisfying and delicious as the smoothies.  And juice just doesn't have enough body to be something to look forward to as "dinner".  So, for the past week or so we have been making smoothies for both breakfast AND dinner.  And that can be very, very boring.

Another issue is laziness.  After making a fairly complicated lunch, I really don't feel like getting the pots and pans and mixer out to make a complicated soup (because only the complicated ones are tasty).  It's much easier to throw some ingredients into the blender and press mix.  In addition, you know that you are getting some good nutrients with all of the many ingredients that you can add: fruit, flax seeds, chia seeds, nuts, hemp protein, almond milk, coconut milk, avocado, spinach, brown rice syrup, dates, currants, almond butter, cocoa... the possibilities are endless. And the best part of making a smoothie?  The Vitamix blender.  That thing is amazing, but I guess it should be for how much it costs.  We are borrowing ours from a friend, and I am going to go through withdrawl when we return it.  I think we are going to have to make the investment.

But I think I am tired of all of the smoothie options, and I am acting out as a result.  Maybe tonight for dinner I'll just have some sushi, beer, and sake.  That sounds great.  Then I'll finish it off with cake and ice cream.  Yum.  That would spray some serious lard on my internal, clean room.

I do plan to make it to day 21 of this cleanse, but I might need just one more cup of decaf to get me there.

Day fourteen: anti social aspects of cleaning

It is fairly to easy to do a cleanse if you are either an excellent planner and always remember to bring all of your food with you, or if you just don't leave the house much.  Finding three weeks where you don't have much planned can be challenging.  Parties, celebrations and big dinners can be trying when you want to stay loyal to the plan. 

The first time I went out to dinner on the cleanse with a group of women, after ordering mineral water and herbal tea, my friends thought I was surely pregnant.  Why else would you restrict yourself so much?  And then ordering food had it's own ordeals.  It is challenging to ask about if a fish is wild caught or a meat organic, without being so annoying that you end up with spit in your food.  "Oh, she wants wild caught fish cooked in only olive oil?  Let's see how she likes this!"

And then there is the aspect of telling people (who ask) that you are doing a cleanse, and them nodding their heads and secretly thinking that you are a total freak.  "Mmmm Hmmm, okay, sure... sounds really horrible, but good luck with that."  The time period of, "after the cleanse" becomes an exciting time when you begin to make plans with friends, and you look at the calendar longingly.

But another way to look at the experience is to live life as normally as possible during the cleanse, because that puts in place an easy way to keep up this sort of lifestyle after the three weeks are over.  Of course, the three weeks of cleansing are challenging, but the lessons learned about your body and your diet during the process are very eye-opening.  When you feel great, and you know what you need to eat and drink to feel this way, then why not keep it going?  "Nothing tastes as good as feeling good feels."

So even though you are cleansing, you can still have fun... to a certain degree.  Pick up that smoothie or juice and bottoms up!  Here's to sleeping well and feeling clear and healthy.

Cheers.