January 2008 Newsletter from your Favorite Holistic Health Counselor

To insure good health: Eat Lightly, breathe deeply, live moderately, cultivate cheerfulness, and maintain an interest in life. – William Louden

With apologies for being late w/ the January newsletter . . . . . .

What with the post holiday, winter time sluggishness, this month’s quote is a good reminder of how to get back on track after the holidays, especially the cultivate cheerfulness part. At times there’s an argument for faking it until you make it. Assuming nothing of any importance is wrong, faking a bit of cheerfulness (especially in the midst of a grey winter afternoon) some how changes the chemical relationship of the body with itself that you might find yourself genuinely feeling cheerful and interested in life.

Getting back on track after the holiday season ? The pros and cons of fasting and cleansing diets.

After the diet excesses of the holidays, there might be some thought of some type of cleansing diet or fast. Cleansing & fasting are related though different exercises both needing to be approached with much thought. As there is much detailed information available on both topics, I’ll focus on the high level designations of both.

For centuries, most religious practices have included fasting to various degrees as a spiritual practice. These can vary 24 hour water fasts to 3 week water and juice fasts. Generally speaking a 24-48 hour water fast can be approached with a sense of adventure, of course assuming your overall health is good. As anything more than a 48 hour fast should only be conducted with the assistance of a medical professional, I’ll only discuss 24-48 hour fasts. The purpose of fasts is not specifically to lose weight, though that might happen in the short term. Some find that occasional fasts help clear their systems after a bout of illness and nutritional indulgence. Thought and preparation need to go into the pre-fast stage, the fast itself, and the post fast stage. Pre-fast preparation includes a diet of high quality fruit and vegetables with little if any meat consumption. Use this time to stock up on fresh fruit and veggies that can be juiced and to clear your calendar and clean your house, so there will be nothing to induce any sense of stress or the “I should be doing .. . . . .” Fasting is not the time to catch up on your to-do list. It’s a time to indulge in gentle reading, resting, & meditation. This allows your body to focus it’s energies on clearing your system of built up toxins. The 2 – 3 days after a fast should include very simple, basic fruit & vegetables, ideally raw but perhaps steamed, slowly introducing back into your diet protein (animal or otherwise). Some benefits some find with fasting is recalibrating their tastes to simple foods, losing or lessening their taste for sugar, salt, fat, & caffeine. Some allergies might disappear as will some respiratory issues. Others find a spiritual rejuvenation with a short fast. Some practice water fasts, though much of the literatures cautions against it.

Cleansing diets are similar to the pre & post fast diet, high quality, fresh vegetables & fruit for a prescribed amount of time. While cleansing might not have the same level of spiritual satisfaction, it serves a similar purpose as fasting. They should also be approached with a similar sense of caution. Though they can last a bit longer (no more than 2 weeks) augmented with more water than ususal, a similar level of preparation is required. You might not need to completely clear your calendar, but you still need to clear your calendar of anything too stressful and prepare your family and friends for the fact that you will need a bit more down time than usual. Gentle exercise in the form of easy yoga, tai chi, and perhaps strolling can be beneficial.

Most western medical professionals advise against fasting or cleansing for anything except spiritual purposes as their view is that the body is self cleaning and regulating requiring nothing in the way of extra cleansing. Some with specific medical conditions shouldn’t consider it (diabetes, pregnant, any type of eating disorder, etc.) I’m of the opinion that an occasional well planned; well executed; 24-48 hour can have some benefit for a general healthy person. But it isn’t something to take lightly and should only be undertaken if all preparations can be made. Feel free to check in with your doctor before undertaking either a fast or cleansing diet. To re-iterate, if you’re curious about a lengthier fast, only do so under licensed, medical guidance. Fasting is definitely not for everyone, but some might find an occasional gentle fast good for their body and soul.

Easy to Digest Foods
In the spirit of easing your digestive system out of the holiday excesses, this month’s recipe is very simple with simple ingredients. While OK before going into a fast, this recipe would be better on day 3 or 4 after your fast, as the first few days should be a gentle easing into your diet with raw or gently steamed vegetables.

Feel free to leave out any of the spices as need be. This and a serving of steamed vegetables would be a complete meal.

Baked Curried Brown Rice & Lentil Pilaf

recipe is ready in 1-2 hrs Ready in: 1-2 hrs (mostly unattended)
Serves/Makes: 6
1 table spoon butter
1 cup brown basmati or brown jasmine rice
4 1/4 cups water
1 cup brown lentils
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 cinnamon stick
4 slices (1/4-inch-thick) peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons red curry paste
OR
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
4 scallions, sliced

Directions:

Place rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 350°F.

Melt butter over medium-high heat in a large ovenproof Dutch oven; add rice and cook, stirring, until lightly toasted, about 1 1/2 minutes. (If using curry powder, add it now and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 15 seconds.)

Add water. Stir in lentils, garlic cloves, cinnamon stick, ginger, curry paste, if using, and salt; bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the curry paste.

Cover the pot tightly with a lid or foil. Transfer to the oven and bake until the rice and lentils are tender and all the water is absorbed, 50 to 55 minutes.

Fluff with a fork, removing the cinnamon stick and ginger slices. Serve garnished with scallions.

Send This On!
I hope you have found this newsletter to be as informative and inspiring to read as it has been for me to share it with you. Please feel free to forward it to those friends, family and colleagues in your life that you think might also be interested and inspired by it. If you refer someone who signs up, it?s $100 in your pocket or a free exercise session.

Toni Taylor
Holistic Nutritional & Exercise Consultant
212-586-0681
ttatpdt@mac.com