Birthday Boy

Still talking about the weekend,
We finally arrived back home and enjoyed dinner with my parents.  Chuy’s birthday is Tuesday and my family was so kind in celebrating his birthday with him while he was in town.  They made his favorite, a lemon cake.  Word to the wise: if you want something to be a surprise, do not tell my dad.  They made the cake Saturday, but we were going to celebrate on Sunday.  But as soon as Chuy walked in my dad said “Did you see your cake?” so much for surprise. 

As soon as Chuy knew there was a cake in the room he couldn’t keep his eyes off it!  He even asked my dad if we had another refrigerator which my dad replied “No” so Chuy suggested we eat the cake now because it probably won’t fit back in the fridge. 
So we ate the cake Saturday….

As the family is singing happy birthday and Chuy is ready to blow out his candles, the cameras are ready.  I step in and ask my sister to take a picture of Chuy and I with his first birthday cake at the our house.  To which my mother grabs me and pulls me out of the picture saying “It’s not your birthday!  Don’t steal the spot light Rachel!” and she makes Chuy blow out his candles while her nails dig into my skin keeping me from him as I scream “I’m going to be his wife!” and she replies “Not yet!!”  oh my, only my family, only my family….  Chuy thought it was hilarious but he did really want a picture of the two of us celebrating his birthday.  Next year I’ll be sure not to sit by my mother ;)

Following the HUGE dinner we shared, salmon, saffron rice, strawberry spinach and feta salad, lemon cake with lemon simple syrup and berry compote…we all fittingly passed out on the couches.  It was a snore-fest with Chuy, my dad and me.  I didn’t wake up and move to my bed until 11pm.  That's when you know life is good.

Living Life to the Fullest with a loving and fun family.
-Rachel

fat secret

Next Tuesday is the last day for our in-office Biggest Loser competition.  
With a $20 buy in and the last winner getting $300 at the end, 7 weeks ago I decided this was my opportunity to make some extra moola!  


However, this is the last week to lose weight and it's too little too late!  I can only hope while everyone is taking vacation days for Spring Break, they are stuffing their faces and not at the gym all day.  And while I'm sitting at work in front of a computer all day I am going to do a 5 day detox  - a.k.a. a Reset .  My doctor said I should eat 5 meals a day, so the Reset is a great option for that....sure beats starving myself like most of those diets.  And it's SUPER easy - the fruit juicing I was doing was great but these Usana shakes are fast and filling!!




I also ran across this website www.fatsecret.com .  Turns out I used it in 2010...stopped using it and then gained weight, so maybe I should have kept up with it.  

You create an account, enter your weight, height, what you ate that day and what exercise you did.  It has TONS of food items and registers the calories for you.  It even has Usana products!!  But it doesn't have hot yoga. 


Wish me luck!  I need to get in the habit of working out...there's alot to look forward to this year!


Living Life to the Fullest one RESET at a time


-Rachel

Juicy Juice

My office is hosting a 'Biggest Loser' competition.  $20 to enter and $1 for every pound you gain.  Talk about motivation!  So far I've lost 4 pounds (or 2.3%) and haven't had to pay anything more than the $20.  Thankfully the winner is chosen based on percentages so it's pretty fair.  

I wanted to share with you my secret weapon: Whole Living

Starts with juices - this Grapefruit, Carrot, Ginger - DELISH!

And this Apple, Beet and Mint juice - Tastes like beet more than apple

Next on my list to try Green Juice - broccoli, celery, cucumber, parsley

Just TRY a juice - I don't think you'll be disappointed!!

Dr Oz says:

Well, Oprah had her last show and it looks like Dr Oz is taking her time slot.  Why?  Because everyone wants to talk about healthy living.  Not everyone can relate to Nate the decorator or Dr. Phil the psychologist, but health - everyone is concerned about their health and their future. 

and The OZ talks health!

I've always been a fan of Dr. Oz and now that I'm with USANA I decided to see what he had to say about nutritional.  Dr. Oz says to include these in your daily diet:

Baby Aspirin

Vitamin D

Sunshine vitamin!
Multivitamin

Calcium

Milk, Yogurt
Omega-3

Salmon, Fish Oil

Remember this is Dr. Oz's  DAILY recommendation

 

In a good week I'll eat salmon once a week.  Turns out I'm missing out on Omega-3's 6 days of the week- yikes!.  And milk, well who are we kidding, no one drinks milk without eating cookies.  So instead of eating cookies everyday to get milk/calcium intake, looks like I'll need to take a supplement instead. 
 
You may be thinking, ugh a pill?! this is sad....can't I get my nutrition from the food I eat?  Unfortunately we can't.  Well, we can we just need to eat ALOT of food.  

For example: The US Food and Drug Administration recommends ~2,400 IU of Vitamin A.  Spinach is a great source of Vitamin A and maybe you like to eat spinach salads.  1 cup of spinach has 2,813 IU of Vitamin A. reference So as long as you eat one cup of spinach a day, you are good to go!  Are you going to do that?  Oh wait - where are you going to get your Vitamin B?  and your Vitamin C?  and your Iron? and your Calcium?  Do you really want to plan out your meals every day to be sure you are meeting all of your vitamin requirements?  It's ridiculous!! I don't know about you but spinach every day for a week does NOT sound appetizing.  I would probably end up hating spinach after that month. 
 
But honestly, I don't have the time to count calories and vitamins and minerals in my food!  There's no app for that (yet).  And as you read above, even Dr. Oz says to just take a multivitamin to be sure you're on the right track.  This multivitamin will do more than get your on the right track... It will allow you to enjoy that spinach salad once a week.  You'll be able to enjoy your meals, your extra time without counting calories, and you will enjoy your life!  Your healthy life full of all the vitamins and minerals you need to function as the human being God created in his likeness.
 
You'll see on here that the medical world is unsure how to respond to the fact that the FDA does not regulate supplements.  Dr Robin Miller says:

"I believe there is a bias in conventional medicine against nutritional supplements. Part of the reason for this is the fact that supplements are not regulated by the FDA so it is often hard to know the quality and quantity of each supplement. In addition, conventional physicians like to see extensive scientific evidence when it comes to supplements that their patients use and often that evidence is not available.



However, there are some supplements that are making their way to conventional medicine. For example fish oil is recommended by the American Heart Association for heart health. SamE was studied by researchers at Harvard and found to be helpful in depression. Coenzyme Q10 is recommended by many mainstream physicians to help protect the muscles of patients taking statin drugs.


Despite the bias, there are supplements that will become part of conventional medicine as they continue to be studied."

I find it interesting that the FDA (the government) won't regulate supplements, but it will regulate the food grown in the US.  And even though the food is "regulated" it doesn't mean it's the best product out there.  It just means they know how it's grown and it meets standards: governmental standards. 
As you know there are plenty of supplements out there and they meet standards too - their own company standards.  I'm proud to stay USANA meets standards too: standards for the USA Olympic team, standards for Medical doctors, standards for Pharmacists, potency standards and they've met my standards too.  I hope this blog post got you thinking and I hope the thought of missing out on a healthy life sticks with you.  I hope it leads you to make smart choices in your meals throughout this week and weekend.  I hope you may even consider visiting the USANA website to learn more about nutritional supplements. 

and I hope you remember, it's time to ENJOY your meals and ENJOY LIFE!

Living Life to the Fullest - and enjoying every minute!
-Rachel

http://www.livinglifetothefullest.usana.com/

Happy Memorial Day!

What types of memories did you make today?  Did you remember who this day is for?  In case you didn't know this day is for the military men and women who have lost their lives in combat.  Could you imagine being in the military?  Is your body in the kind of shape that "when duty calls" you would be able to answer?  Not many of us can say "My body is ready for duty!"  Wouldn't it be great if we could?!?  There is no longer a military draft in the USA, so we wouldn't be called to duty - but that doesn't mean we can't call ourselves to our own private mission.  Our mission to get in shape - our mission to become healthy in mind body and spirit. 

So as we remember those who've given the ultimate sacrifice today, let's think of what we can sacrifice in our own lives.  A trip to McDonald's?  An extra cup of coffee?  Could you sacrifice 30 minutes a day to take a walk?  Try!  And if you're willing to start that journey, consider the USANA journey as well.  By joining USANA you help your friends and family get healthy.  So that days like today hanging by the pool, at the lake, in the backyard...these days are full of memories of healthy friends and family for many years to come!

Rachel
http://www.livinglifetothefullest.usana.com/


Living Life to the Fullest....while creating healthy memories this Memorial day!

USANA

I am so excited to be making a huge change in my life!  I've had a fortunate past and really took alot for granted.  Now that I'm out in the "real world" I've realized nothing is handed to you on a silver platter.  Don't get my wrong, I have a great job and I love going to work every day!  However, there is a part of my life that is empty...I've been anticipating something (or someone) to come into my life and change it for the better.  But I've never been willing to manifest that occurring!!

Well - now I am manifesting my destiny.  I am creating the second income I always dreamed of.  No, it won't hug me through the night to keep me warm, but it will help pay the electricity bill!

I look forward to sharing my journey with USANA on this blog.  If you'd like to learn more about USANA visit my website at http://www.livelifetothefullest.usana.com/ or call/e-mail me!!  I'd love to experience this journey with you!

-Living Life to the Fullest with USANA!

Savoring Every Moment

For a Christmas present my mother subscribed me to a magazine about a meaningful and balanced life.  This magazine provides monthly yoga poses, vegetarian recipes, inspirational stories and an insight into the variety of spiritual lifestyles.  For example I took a quiz on Modern Ayurveda and my Dosha.  I was a little bit of everything.   I take on Vata's "Big-Thinker" traits and Pitta's "conquer the world" mentality.  So which am I?  A Big thinker who can't conquer the world or a little thinker who's only going to conquer a miniature version of the world??  And while I feel a connection to the earth mother Kapha with my love of hiking, walking, running, and climbing in the outdoors, Kapha is also a compassionate lovebug which has never been a term used to describe me.

Because I'm not ready for an Ayurveda definition on my life right now, I decided to try another method in this magazine.  I've heard this next "fulfilled life" method before but I never had the guts or patience to try it.  So I headed out to lunch today, chose a local deli, ordered the salad bar, filled my plate and sat down.  I picked up my fork, looked at a piece of broccoli and thought to myself

"broccoli.....green, ..... raw, ......fuzzy....... broccoli"

I put the broccoli in my mouth and continued to think about that piece broccoli as I chewed.  I was being fully present in this one piece of broccoli full of nutrients, vitamins, and God's good green earth in my mouth. 

Swallow. 
Repeat.

"Garbanzo bean .....round, .....creamy, .....nutty, ........ small ...garbanzo bean"
etc, etc, throughout my entire meal, repeating even when a repeat vegetable was found on my fork.
The concept is to treasure and savor every piece of food in your mouth.  Actually use your taste buds for what they are made for and not as a scorched landing strip for food with a final destination to your stomach.  This new concept allows all the senses in your body to be engaged and appreciate what you're putting in your body by seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, tasting, and - wait for it......satisfying your body (and soul).

While I'm trying to find satisfaction in this moment at the restaurant, my evil twin is rolling her eyes and telling me that I am really very hungry and I should just chomp down on a fork full and get it over with.  She's telling me that I'll do this for the first plate, but I'm going back to the salad bar for seconds and I'm going to get that pasta salad with all the processed foods I shouldn't eat.  However, in the end, I finish my plate, I drink my tea and I walk away surprisingly satisfied. 

Satisfied with my meal, my self control and my commitment to an open lifestyle. 

-Rachel
Living Life to the Fullest and Savoring Every Moment!

It's not a Need it's a Network

I'd like to point out that I am still very good friends with many of my ex-boyfriends.  I choose to do this for the following reasons:
     a) they are someone you let into a private part of your life....You wouldn't want someone to share that private side of you out of spite
     b) they are very talented and good men who I am honored to know personally
and
     c) you never know when you might need something. 
One is a chef, one is a clothing designer, another is in politics, one in real estate, another does alot with the church and yea, there are some who are just there - but I'm sure they'll do something GREAT in the future.  You never know....

For example, the other day I went out to dinner to my ex's restaurant.  He said business was slow, so I invited a girlfriend and we went out to eat there.  It was nice to see him, he gave us an appetizer sample along with a dessert sampler, and the food was delicious! 

A few weeks later I bought a chicken for $4.00.  I could have bought 2 chicken breasts for $7.00 but an entire chicken (which comes with 2 breasts, right?) for $4.00?!  My mother didn't raise an idiot.  I understand you are paying for the convenience of the 2 breast being cut, skinned and packaged but I don't have a deadline for dinner time.  I can sacrifice a few more minutes in the kitchen for the $3.00 I saved. 

Photo courtesy of: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1024418

So I bring home my whole chicken and I realize - I have an entire chicken in my refrigerator!! And I have no idea how to go about cooking it.  I should obviously use some type of fat (oil, butter) and some seasoning, probably some herbs because I like herbs.  But at what oven temperature?  For how long?  Do I cover it or leave it open for the heat to seep in?  Come in ex-boyfriend who is a chef!  "Hey, how's is going.  Thanks for everything you did at dinner the other day.  It was a great seeing you.  I'd like to repay the favor by inviting you over for dinner on one condition 1) you teach me how to cook a whole chicken and what to do with all the extra pieces to make it last."

You may be happy to hear I successfully cooked a chicken and enjoyed a thigh and a leg with a healthy sweet potato.  I will be having chicken stir-fry tonight with the breast meat and some rice and veggies.  I also created a broth from the roasting product including the bones, so I'll enjoy chicken soup sometime this week and probably save some for a later date when comfort food is needed.  My friend also wins on this because now I can/will rave about his restaurant and the fact that he can do private cooking lessons.

Moral of the story: you never know when you might need to reference your past.  And when you do, don't think of it as a need, think of it as a networking opportunity. 

Living Life to the Fullest - with my network of friends!!

-Rachel