Yoga is a movement therapy with origins in India dating back more than 5,000 years.  It is also relatively new, in that little was heard of it in Britain until the 1960s, when the Beatles came into contact with the yogi Maharishi Mahesh.  This is concerned

particularly with the exercise aspect of yoga, known as hatha yoga. 

Precautions:

-        Do not practice the headstand when pregnant or menstruating.

-        Allow three hours to pass after eating a meal before practicing yoga.

-        Be wary of following a practice that does not seem to agree with your mind or body.

The Facts

            A Holistic Approach – The slow, calm movement, the controlled breathing and the purpose behind the various postures (asanas) used in yoga bring balance and tranquility to the body, mind and spirit.  Most yoga teachers mention these holistic benefits as the basic aim of yoga, which in turn profoundly improve health and vitality.  A huge attraction of yoga is its accessibility in some form to nearly everyone from young children to men and women in their seventies and eighties.  Neither fitness nor strength is required in its practice, and most classes are suitable for people ranging from complete beginners to those who have mastered some of the more complicated asanas.  You simply go at your own pace; following the teacher and doing the best you can, usually with plenty of help ands encouragement from both teacher and other students. 

            Benefits – Yoga exercise improves both posture and breathing, which in turn benefits the circulation of the blood and the body’s intake and utilization of oxygen.  Like most other movement therapies, it also increases the rate and efficiency with which waste material is excreted from the body via kidneys, bowel, kin, liver and lungs, thereby strengthening the immune defense system in its fight against infection, cancer, and allergies.  Certain asanas, such as the Corpse, the Fish and the Plough, aim specifically to improve bowel regularity, for instance.  All enhance breathing and improve blood supply to the kidneys and liver.  Yoga also boosts the body’s nervous and hormonal systems, and improves both flexibility and muscle tone by reintroducing the habits of stretching and bending after, perhaps, years of a sedentary lifestyle. 

            Classes – Unlike aerobic workouts and dance therapy sessions, you are extremely unlikely to hear music played during a yoga class.  The target is to bring mind and body into harmony with one another and you have to concentrate to achieve this.  A popular asana for beginners since practically everyone is capable for it is the Corpse (all asanas have Indian names and most also have Western equivalents).  The name is suggestive of the shape your body assumes in following the asana; for example, Coil, Cobras, and Fish. For the Corpse, all you do is lie flat on your back, with your arms and hands by your sides and legs straight out in front, slightly parted at the ankles.  This is normally chosen for both the beginning and the end of a yoga  session, as it ‘quietens’ the mind helps focus your attention before you start and, at the end, allows you to relax fully before returning in mind and body to everyday affairs.

          Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid, is water soluble. It functions as an antioxidant that lessens the harsh effects of harmful chemicals in the body.

          Here are some other benefits of vitamin C. 

1. It synthesizes collagen. A weak collagen allows bacteria and toxins to infiltrate the body.
2. It enhances the body’s physical and immune system defenses against infections.
3. It increases the body’s production of glutathione, an antioxidant that stimulates the immune system and detoxifies bacterial waste products.
4. It increases interferon levels and antiviral substances produced in the body, increasing the antibody levels in the bloodstream and boosting the activity of the thymus gland. Mega vitamin C therapy is used in the treatment of AIDS, cancer, and other disease in which boosting the immune function is of primary importance.
5. It increases the immunity and T cell activities in elderly people.
6. It is vital to white blood cells in destroying invading viruses and bacteria. I infection is present, infusion of vitamin C shortens the duration and severity of an infection.
7. Regular intake of Vitamin C contributes to the development of healthy bones to prevent periodontal diseases.
8. Eating vitamin C-rich fruits and fresh vegetables substantiates the depleted vitamin C caused by stress or infection. 

Mix up a nice fresh fruit drink or smoothie using a Blendtec blender.

This Blog Post is used by permission of http://BeatingStrong.com

The term “vegetarian” can mean different things depending on the types of animal-based foods-if any-eaten. One common factor in all vegetarian diets is the emphasis on plant-base foods. There are several types of vegetarian diets, although some might argue some of these diets aren’t truly vegetarian: 

• Lacto-ovovegetarian. This diet includes eggs, milk, and milk products, such as cheese and yogurt. No red meat, fish, or poultry is eaten.
• Lactovegetarian. Milk and milk products are allowed. No eggs, meat, fish or poultry is eaten
• Vegan. The only foods eaten are fro plant sources. No foods from any animal source or with ingredients from an animal source are eaten.
• Pescovegetarian.Fish is part of this diet. No red meat or poultry is eaten.
• Pollovegetarian. Chicken is included in this diet. No red meat or fish is eaten.
• Semi or demivegetarian. Meat is avoided for the most part, but may be eaten on rare occasion.

          For some, being a strict vegetarian may relate more to individual preferences or even ethical concerns. But from a health standpoint, a diet rich in plant-based food-even one that includes some meat, fish, or poultry on occasion- can offer real benefits.

          Numerous studies show that a plant-based diet is associated with lower cholesterol, lower blood pressure, less heart disease, a lower risk of some cancers, and decreased weight. With that in mind, some people have simply reduced their consumption of meat and in its place have enriched their diet with a wide variety of plant-based foods.

If you want to prepare great ingredients and food, try our K Tec Kitchen Mill or one of our Blendtec Blenders.

This Blog Post is used by permission of http://BeatingStrong.com

            Nutrients are wrapped in tasty food packages.  Besides being enjoyable, your food choices also have a major effect on your health!  The dietary guidelines put those facts about nutrients into advice about healthful eating – for your teen years and for your lifetime! 

            The dietary guidelines for Americans provide advice about food choices for all healthy people age two and over.  The guidelines can aid you, your family, and your friends in making food choices for wellness.  Follow them to help you meet your nutrient needs, to reduce your chances of getting certain disease, and to live a healthful, active life. 

            An eating plan, also called a diet, includes everything you eat or drink.  The dietary guidelines offer recommendations to get the nutrients and food energy you need for wellness during your active, growing teen years.  Following the guidelines now may also provide benefits as you get older – your chances for developing some health problems may go down. 

Keep Trim, Keep Active 

            Staying at your appropriate weight and being active throughout life – these are two basics for fitness!  This advice helps you be more productive, enjoy life, and be your best in all you do.  Active living helps you use food energy, too.  That’s one way to keep your body weight at an appropriate level. 

            While you’re a teen, your body is growing rapidly.  You will be putting on weight as your body develops and as you grow taller.  Weight gain needs to be looked at in relation to your overall growth and physical development.  Keep in mind that your body is changing from that of a child to that of an adult. 

            As you get older, being overweight with too much extra body fat increases your chances for heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, arthritis, and other health problems.  Keeping an appropriate weight throughout life is wise. 

            When your overall food choices provided more calories than your body uses, the extra calories get stored as body fat. On the flip side, if your body uses more calories than you eat, you may be underweight.  For the weight that’s right for you, balance how much you eat with how many calories your body uses.  And stay active!  To be active: 

• Enjoy at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days.  Aim for 60 minutes. 
• Look for active ways to have fun, such as dancing or in-line skating. 
• Move more in your daily life.  Use stairs.  Walk with your friends.

             Variety is important.  No single food or type of food provide all the nutrients you need in the right amounts for a day.  Enjoy many different foods for all the nutrients and healthful substances they provide.  Besides, eating a variety of food means you get to enjoy different flavors, textures, colors, aromas- and have more fun!

            Food nourishes your body with carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and, water.  Within these six major categories of nutrients are many specific nutrients – each with a unique job to perform in your body.  In this article, you’ll learn more about the specific nutrients your body needs for energy, health, and growth. 

            Your body’s main source of energy is carbohydrates, which are grouped in two categories: simple and complex.  Sugars are simple carbohydrates because they’re made of one or two sugar units.  Starches are complex carbohydrates they’re made of many sugars, all attached together.  During digestion, your body breaks down starches into single sugars, which are taken into your blood to make energy. 

            If you skip meals or limit foods high in carbohydrates, your body may run short on energy.  If you eat more than you need of foods high in carbohydrates, you may get more calories than you need.  Eating too many calories from any source may lead to weight gain. 

Food Sources of Carbohydrates 

            Sugars are a natural part of some foods.  For examples, fruit and milk contain sugars.  Foods with natural sugars also carry other important nutrients.  Some foods, such as candy, are high in added sugars and have few other nutrients. 

            Good sources of complex carbohydrates are: 

• Grain products, including breads, rice, and pasta.
• Vegetables such as squash, potatoes, and corn.
• Dry beans, peas, and lentils.

Fats: Essential to Your Health  

            Have you ever wondered why your fingers feel slippery after eating foods like potato chips or fried chicken?  It’s the fat in these foods that you’re feeling.  Fat is both a food and a nutrient.  As a food, it gives your meals flavor and texture.  As a nutrient, it supplies energy and has other important roles. 

            Fat promotes healthy skin and normal growth.  It also acts a partner as a partner with certain vitamins, carrying these nutrients to wherever you body needs them.  The fat stored in your body acts a cushion to protect vital organs such as your heart and liver. 

Food Sources of Fat 

            Fats are naturally present in meat, poultry, fish, dairy products, and nuts. Vegetable oil is a liquid from fat.  These sources of fat are often used as in gradients in foods such as salad dressings, gravy, cakes, cookies, many other baked foods, and ice cream.  Foods fried in oil are typically high in fat, too. 

            Fat in foods is considered either saturated or unsaturated.  Most foods with fat contain a mix of the two.

• Saturated fats – are hard at room temperature.  Examples include butter, stick margarine, and the fats in meat, poultry, and dairy products. 
• Unsaturated fats – are liquid at room temperature.  Foods with mostly unsaturated fat are vegetable oils, nuts, olives, and avocados.  

Proteins: Your Body’s Building Blocks 

            Proteins help your body, repair it, and fight disease.  Your body can also use protein to provide energy if needed.

            Amino acids are the many small units that make up protein.  Think of amino acids as the notes in music.  The same notes can make up a rock song or classical symphony – they are just arranged differently.  The same is true for the body to make the different proteins it needs. 

            Your body makes some amino acids.  The ones your body can’t make – called essential amino acids – must come from the food you eat. 

Food Sources of Protein 

            You can get protein from both animal sources, such as meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products, have all the essential amino acids.  For this reason, they are called complete proteins.  Plant sources of proteins include dry beans and peas and nuts.  Grain products also have some protein, but not as much.  Foods from plants lack one or more essential amino acids, so they’re incomplete proteins.  However, eating a variety of plant-based foods can provide all the essential amino acids you need. 

            Most people get plenty of protein from their everyday food choices.  When you eat more protein than you need, it’s stored as body fat.  You don’t need to eat extra amounts of protein, even when you’re growing.  Eating more protein won’t build bigger muscles either – only physical activity does that.

            Have you heard about the so-called magical or effortless ways to melt away body fat?  Many fad diets make that promise but can’t deliver.  Fad diets are weight-loss plans, often based on misinformation, that are popular for a short time.  Most won’t effectively help people reach or stick to a weight goal for long.  Fad diets don’t help people develop healthful patters of eating and enjoying physical activity, which are the long-term way to maintain weight.

            Some fat diets restrict the amount and type of foods too much, so they don’t provide the nutrients and food energy needed for growth and health.  When people follow one fad diet after another, their weight may “seesaw” up and down, which isn’t healthful. The weight they lose may be muscle.  Without exercise, it may be replaced with body fat. 

            If at some time you need a weight-loss diet, look for one with sensible advice for a long-term way of eating.  Avoid these risky ones: 

• Liquid Diets – A very low-calorie liquid diet does not provide enough food energy.  You may feel tired, and the diet may have other harmful side effects.  You won’t get all the nutrients and fiber you need from food.

• Fasting – Denying your body food, even for a short time, means you miss out on nutrients and energy.  Your body uses up some protein, which is stored in the muscles for fuel.  You may become dehydrated without fluids.

• Diet Pills – Diet pills may suppress appetite.  However, they can have harmful side effects, such as making you drowsy or anxious or giving you a rapid heartbeat.  Some diet pills increase water loss, promoting dehydration.  Some may be addictive.  

One last tip, smoking, as a substitute for eating, is poor way to lose weight or maintain a low weight.  It robs the body of nutrient-rich food.  Besides, smoking is linked to many health problems, including cancer and heart disease.  It’s not smart to start!

            Does everyone you know eat and enjoy the same foods? Not likely. You may have favorite foods in common with others, but your overall eating style is unique. Whatever your food choices are, keep in mind that any food can be included in an eating plan that promotes wellness. 

            There are many influences on your food choices. When you know what those influences are, it’s easier to make healthful decisions. 

            People around you – Your family probably has influenced your food preferences and eating habits more than anyone else. You’ve grown up eating the foods your family likes and learning family food traditions. Your friends influence your food choices, too. Are you a good influence on their choices? 

            Culture connection – Take a mental trip around the world. Think about the different forms of music or art you hear and see. Like music and art, food is an expression of culture. Culture includes the shared beliefs, values, and behavior of a group of people. The group might be in your part of the world. Different cultural groups have different food traditions. What are the cultural connections of foods you enjoy? Why can any food be considered a cultural food?

             Available food supply – Think of the foods you can buy or grow where you live. What’s available in grocery stores, local markets, restaurants, and perhaps your own garden? 

            Schedules, energy, budget – The foods you buy and how you prepare them are affected by your resources. Resources are things such as time, money, and personal energy that help you reach a goal or complete a task. If you’re short of money, ground beef might be a better choice than steak. To prepare a quick family meal, you might use foods that are partly or fully prepared. 

            Food advertising – how many food advertisements do you read or hear each year? Probably thousands! Ads make you aware of new foods and may provide useful information about nutrition. These same promotions may lead you to buy foods whether or not you really need them. 

            Knowing about food, nutrition, and wellness – What you know affects the foods you buy, prepare, and eat. The more you know, the more able you are to make food and lifestyle choices that promote wellness. 

            All about you – Your age, attitudes, emotions, health, and goals all affect what you choose to eat.

            Being fit gives you a chance to look and feel your best.  You can feel the benefits of active living today – and for a lifetime! 

Looking Good  

Smart eating and active living can have a positive effect on how you look! Physical activity helps you manage your weight by burning calories so that the extra you consume won’t get stored as body fat.  You may use up some energy reserves stored and body fat, too  By building muscle, physical activity also helps your body become more firm and toned.

Moving with Ease and Speed  

Your muscles help you control your movements and posture.  As you work your muscles and joints through regular physical activity, you become stronger, more coordinated, and more flexible.  You have better balance and you move with more steadiness.  Strong muscles and joints allow you to move with agility – and with speed. 

Managing Stress 

Physical activity is a healthful way to cope with stress.  It gives you stamina so that you feel energetic and ready to handle whatever comes your way.  It helps improve your mood, making it easier to concentrate and think positively.  You’ll sleep more soundly and feel more refreshed when you wake up.  Being physically active helps you feel good about yourself, and that’s bound to be reflected in everything you do! 

Staying Physically Healthy 

A physically fit body is often better able to fight disease and illness.  Make physical activity a habit now – you’ll reduce your chances of health problems as you get older!  For instance, you can strengthen your bones with weight-bearing activities such as walking, soccer, or dancing.  Combine this with getg enough calcium from your food choices, and your strong, dense bones will be less likely to break. 

Having Fun 

Physical activity should be fun!  Try different activities until you find some you enjoy doing.  If it seems like a chore, you won’t stick with it.  Being physically active with friends and family is a great way to spend quality time together.  Team activities offer more than fitness, too.  You build friendships and learn how to interact with others.   

So now, do you know how you can be stronger, feel more energetic, and look at your best?  The answer is quite simple – active living!  These are just some of the rewards that come with being active.  If you’re not yet active, challenge yourself to get up and get up moving!

For purposes of a cure, the management of a person’s diet is most important and must therefore receive the greatest attention.  Strictly speaking there can be no general formula or rule on diets, since the nutritional requirement will vary for every individual.  The only considerations that may have general application are the following: 

Restoration of the body’s lost health is impossible as long as the blood and lymph glands are laden with toxins and harmful acids coming mainly from an unnatural diet. A healing or restorative diet is one that has the ability to purify the bloodstream and nourish the body.  Fruits and fruit juices are nature’s body cleansers and eliminators. They contain sulfur, chlorine, fluorine, and other mineral substances.  That promotes a cleansing and antiseptic effect in the body.  You will be receive great benefits by   eating plenty of fruits in your diet.  It is best to eat them raw (uncooked), but fully ripe.  We recommend any fruit in season.  And especially citrus fruits like limes, lemons, grapefruits, and oranges.  Their juices must be consumed between meals in great abundance. 

Raw vegetable salads may be eaten with your regular meals to promote peristalsis of the colon and hasten elimination.  Raw garlic and onions are excellent cleansers of the mucus membranes and of the blood. They are best eaten with meals to improve the appetite for your food as well.  Among the vegetable family, radish and horseradish are excellent cleansers of the mucus membranes and are therefore prescribed for nasal and respiratory congestions.  Carrots and tomatoes are also good to eat and are best eaten raw. 

An hour before breakfast or just before retiring for bed at night, herbal teas may be taken, like avocado leaves tea, peppermint tea, and guava leaves etc. 

Common sense will dictate that in order to help with the elimination and purification of the body successfully, one must stop eating unnatural foods because they are the primary sources of toxins which cause irritation in the body. 

Do not use when using the eliminative diet the following:  milk, sugar, gravies, butter, free fat of any kind, macaroni, spaghetti, tapioca, corn starch, meat, tea, coffee, chocolate, ice cream, pastries of any kind, sugar products, all kinds of liquor and tobacco. 

When the body is toxin-free, it can be left to heal itself.  Very little local treatment is required.  When the bloodstream is pure, no needless energy is expended in the cleansing work. 

The eliminative or healing diet is also a preventive diet, since generally speaking, no disease can thrive in a body which is toxin-free.   And the more toxic the body, the longer one has to stay on the eliminative diet.  The longer a person sticks to this natural heath way regime, the more abundant and lasting the results. 

Try it and see for yourself.

To make food taste better, look brighter, smell sweeter and even last longer, we have refined, concentrated, colored flavored, juggled, preserved, canned, bottled, pickled, heated and frozen every thing that can be eaten under the sun. But in thus trying  to improve on the manner Nature prepared our food, we merely produced the opposite effect by manufacturing chemicalized, devitalized, dead “foodless” food or food that delights the appetite and the senses.  But we have sadly depleted and robbed the food of all that is good but we can never improve on nature.  This is the result of unnecessary tampering, or “manhandling” these wonderful products. 

Ignorance is often the cause of most health problems.  People have not been taught how to eat and live right.  And we are often sick from the food we eat because we will not read or understand what it says on the labels of the grocery stuff we are buying.  We seldom care about the make-up of the food that will soon become part of our blood, our cells, and our tissues. 

Some of the ways we get diseases can be traced to the diets we have listed below. They are known to occur in western countries in a greater predominance than in the less developed countries.  This is due to the food we eat that is so unnatural and by the pattern of living in such an artificial and complicated way.  Anemia, appendicitis, cancer, colitis, constipation, diabetes, gout, heart disease, pellagra, pneumonia, rickets, scurvy, rheumatism,  tumors, varicose veins, etc.  And there are many more we could add to this list. 

The modern diet

Many of the foodstuffs that can be found in the civilized diet are nothing but “empty calorie” foods. These are foods that will provide heat energy to the body, but will barely provide a store of nourishing vitamins and minerals.  The following foods fall into this category. 

1. Concentrated starches – like flour, white bread, biscuits, doughnuts, cakes, pies, spaghetti, macaroni, etc.  All made with refined flour.
2. Refined and bleached cane sugar and its products – white sugar, confections, chewing gum, artificial sweeteners, etc.
3. Narcotizing and stimulating beverages – like coffee, tea, alcohol, tonic drinks, beers, etc. 

All of the above listed foods and drinks share one “beautiful” thing in common.  They all start maltreating the body as soon as they gratify and vacate the taste buds, and materialize in the stomach.  Refined starches and sweets are constipating and mucus forming.  They also deplete the body of its calcium.  It has been once said that constipation is the “motor of all disease.”  Prolonged subsistence in concentrated starches and refined sugars eventually leads to asthma, acne, catarrh, gastritis, indigestion, diabetes, dental caries, hyperacidity, fermentation, ulcers, premature ageing and many others.  We could say it’s enough to make you sick … and it does. 

Coffee, tea, colas, alcohol and cocoa all belong very strictly to a drug category and not food, according to many nutritionists.  All contain narcotizing substances such as caffeine, all of which damage the nerves, heart, liver, spleen, stomach and practically every other part of the anatomy after long use.  Coffee drinking predisposes to cancer of the pancreas.  And incidentally, cancer of the pancreas is the number four cause of mortality in the United States today. 

No treatment can ever be successful unless an attempt is made to correct our faulty diets. Many times, as we have proved by existence, changing the diet of the patient is the only cure needed.  We also have proved by experience, that since people are generally unable to control the dictates of perverted taste, “it is easier to cure the disease, but not the patient.