Andrea the Gastronaut

• David’s website.

• Listen to David on Adam Carolla’s podcast. I subscribed to Carolla’s podcast before Wolfe was really on my radar.

Food, events, health cleansing, David Wolfe, detox, raw food

Two days until Meghan’s Green Smoothie Cleanse! See my blog post from earlier this week.

The cleanse starts on Sunday. Sign up today!

Gearing up for it, Meghan talks about Brussel Sprouts in her blog today. Yeah, I know you might not like them but they can taste good (or maybe I just like them). Meghan’s post also features a clip from The Cosby Show.

I’ve been eating raw for two meals out of three most of this week. Last night after getting full at dinner (healthy, consisting of salmon and vegetables) I had a second, unhealthy dinner. I need to remember to eat during the day and eat more. That part of the Green Smoothie Challenge will be a challenge. I’ll have to be constantly drinking.

To participate, download the e-tutorial and leave a comment in her post.  The cost is only $12. I like that she charges a small fee for her e-tutorials and classes. By charging she applies – and implies – value to what she’s offerign while maintaining her position as a business, but by making the charge small it’s financially accessible to almost everyone.

Meghan is a nutritionist and, in talking to her and reading her blogs for months, I trust her. Some people say that eating raw is detox enough, others are into the Master Cleanse (or similar) system. A smoothie cleanse is in between.  You’re neither starving yourself nor eating whole food. You can drink multiple servings of fruit at one time. At the risk of sounding like Jack Lalaine, imagine the nutritional benefits!

Why smoothies rather than juicing? Meghan explains:

Why Smoothies and not Juice? The difference between a smoothie and juice is that juice has the fibre removed, where as a smoothie has the fibre left in. This means that in this cleanse you won’t necessarily experience the same hunger as you would with a juice cleanse and may also not experience the same lightheadedness, headaches or nausea that can come from more extreme juice or water fasts and cleanses.

Also- quality juicers are expensive and most people have blenders or access to a blender so it makes this cleanse more accessibly and viable to more people. All about inclusion!

There’s more Q & A on that web page. Check it out, even if you’re just curious, and then decide. I don’t advocate just anything but I advocate this. You know that I’ll be blogging my experience.

Edit: I want to add a Twitter exchange that I’m having with Gary (user names omitted):

Read more…

Uncategorized cleansing

One of my new favourite people, Meghan Telpner, is leading her second Green Smoothie Cleanse starting this coming Sunday, June 7. There’s excellent information on the cleanse here where she answer the questions, “What Is a Green Smoothie Cleanse? Why Smoothies and not Juice? Why Three Days? Who Should Not Do This Cleanse?”

This time she’s offering prizes! But really, do you really need a prize as an incentive?

(Personally, I really want to try her granola and see how it compares to mine, even though for the last couple of months my weekday breakfasts have been exclusively smoothies.)

I’m in this time and I encourage you to as well, and not just because I get five extra chances to win if I get someone to register. If you do register, send Meghan an email with subject line “Cleansing Thanks To (your name here)”.

Go read her post and then register!

I’m drinking a fruit smoothie right now: Apple, pear, peach, banana, cocoa nibs, flax seeds, an EFA oil blend, the greens powder that I like so much, coconut water and water. Sadly, I recently had to throw out an entire pineapple that was showing mold. I look forward to living 2 blocks from a year-round weekly farmer’s market and up the street from Fiesta Farms. This Saturday I’ll have to check out the market at the Don Valley Brickworks to stock up for this cleanse!

It’ll be interesting to see how I handle 9 consecutive smoothie meals. I know I can do it once daily and that my breakfast lasts through lunch time. I know that I can eat raw three meals a day. Snacks might be a challenge. Maybe I need to look at it as a liquid version of my raw diet, thinking of salads but blended with water. I recall Meghan’s mother and others saying that they missed chewing.

Who can resist joining a cleanse that’s lead by someone this adorable (YouTube videos embedded, sorry if you work for the OPS and are reading this at work) and has a bike that’s decorated with flowers (the context for that photo is here)?

Reminds me, I bought a coconut at Fiesta Farms on Friday and need to open it. Maybe I should take it to Meghan. (Check out this video to see what I’m talking about.)

Uncategorized cleansing

So, on May 12 I fell of my detox wagon, hard. Sushi for lunch was just the start. Fermented foods are forbidden in ht official “Wild Rose” detox, and combining grains and flesh (rice and fish) is not recommended in the raw food diet or in general optimal digestion terms. Things got much worse, though.

The croissant is chocolate (double – or more – whammy!) and the frothy drink is a decaf cappuccino with lactose-free (cow’s) milk. Wasn’t so good for my wallet either.

On to part 3 of this series, because I’m committed to it. Really, it was the laxative one that interested me the most:

Cleansaherb (tabs) – Red Clover blossoms, Burdock root, Echinacea herb, Mullein leaf, bearberry leaf, Parsley leaf, Marshmallow root.

Red Clover blossoms:
Red clover is also known as a blood purifier, useful for improving the overall health of the liver. It may also act as a digestive aid and stimulator of digestive fluids and bile production. It also does so much more!

From the product web page:

Red Clover, the primary herb in this formula, has been used successfully in many cases of heavy metal toxicity, lymphatic toxicity and mucous congestion. Cleansaherb is an excellent adjunct to fasting and other cleansing programs.

Burdock root:
A blood purifier which cleanses the body of bile, helping to detoxify the liver, kidneys and gallbladder. [Source]

Echinacea herb:
An immune system enhancer. I couldn’t find information that related it directly to detoxification, so I’m guessing that its role in the process is to help those who might experience “sick” symptoms during the detox process.

Mullein leaf:
The leaves and flowers have been used for treating respiratory problems such as dry coughs and bronchitis for many years. Mullein was a traditional treatment for diarrhea and rheumatism, and ointments for bums and earaches. [Source] I think that’s supposed to read “burns”, not “bums”. “Bums is too colloquial.

Bearberry (aka Uva ursi) leaf:
A diuretic and treatment for urinary tract infections.

Parsley leaf:
Parsley Root is an old-time remedy for digestive disorders, kidney and liver problems, menstrual irregularities, and cleansing the blood and body of toxins. It’s also a diuretic.

Marshmallow root:
See Part 2 of this series.

Uncategorized cleanse, cleansing, detox, health

Truthfully, I’ve been using this one the least. Sometimes I throw some tablets in a bag to take to work but don’t take the extract. It’s liquid, it’s alcohol based, it tastes terrible. Smoothies mask the taste.

“CL Herbal Extract – Licorice root, Yarrow herb/ flowers, Uva Ursi leaf, Juniper berries, Corn Silk styles, Burdock root.”

All of the following are taken from the Wild Rose website.

Licorice:
Licorice has been used as a detoxifier for thousands of years by the Chinese, it is known in China as the “Great Detoxifier”. It is also well known as an anti-inflammatory and antibacterial herb. It has a tonic energy and revitalizes the body while supplementing and balancing the internal regions of the body.

Yarrow:
Yarrow works on cleansing the system, both through the urinary tract and by it’s well known diaphoretic action (diaphoretic-an agent that causes one to eliminate toxins through sweating). It’s diaphoretic action enables it to purify the blood of morbid waste material. Yarrow also regulates the function of the liver, and is especially beneficial through its influence on secretions throughout the entire digestion process. Yarrow has also been shown to have mild antibiotic action against bacteria.

Uva Ursi leaf (aka Bearberry):
Uva Ursi (Bearberry) is specific for the urinary tract, both toning and cleansing it. It is an effective urinary disinfectant and has been shown to be strongly antibiotic against many organisms including Staph. and E. coli bacteria.

Juniper berries and corn silk:
Juniper and corn silk are effective diuretics which means that they will cause a general increase of urine flow. This is beneficial in that is cleanses or flushes any infections or bacteria that may be present, or that are being discarded by the body because of the anti-bacterial and cleansing actions of the other herbs in the formula. Corn silk is also very soothing to the urinary tract.

Burdock:
Burdock has been used for centuries as an excellent blood cleanser with an especially positive effect on the liver. It rids the body of long term toxic material and is an antidote for acute poisoning. Burdock is also employed to cleanse the lymphatic system and soothe the kidneys.

Uncategorized cleanse, cleansing, detox, health

Part 2 is pretty boring but I already committed to the series…

Biliherb (tabs) – Black Radish root bark, Dandelion root, Ginger root, Parsley root, Marshmallow root, Cramp bark, Wood Betony herb.

From the product web page:

Biliherb Formula stimulates bile production by the liver and its release from the gallbladder (where it is stored) into the small intestine. Bile is necessary for proper digestion as it serves to emulsify dietary fats, enhancing their absorption. It also makes metabolic wastes and toxins water-soluble, preparing them for elimination from the body.

Biliherb helps to decrease cholesterol buildup in the gallbladder and aids in the prevention and dissolution of gallstones. It is an excellent formula for detoxifying and strengthening liver function. This herbal combination additionally supports the spleen which, in turn, leads to greater overall blood cleansing and enhancing liver function.

Black Radish root bark
Black Radish contains a variety of chemicals that increase the flow of bile which play an important role in the digestion process. It also has an antibacterial effect on our digestive flora. Source.

Dandelion root
Dandelion has been found to stimulate mucus membranes, sooth the digestive tract, absorb toxins from the bowel, help friendly flora to thrive and inhibit unfriendly bacteria. Source.

Dandelion root is one of the safest and most popular herbal remedies. It’s supposed to strengthen the entire body, especially the liver and gallbladder, where it promotes the flow of bile, reduces inflammation of the bile duct, and helps get rid of gall stones.  It helps indigestion caused by insufficient bile. Source.

Ginger root – see part 1.

Parsley root
Parsley has been used since ancient times to improve both the digestion and assimilation of food and is said to settle the stomach after a meal. The volatile oil in Parsley increases circulation to the digestive tract, easing stomach problems, indigestion and flatulence.  Source.

Marshmallow root
Used to relieve local irritations, stimulate the immune system, slow down lung congestion in sore throat with dry cough, and relieve mild inflammation of the mucous membranes of the digestive tract. its tea is considered soothing to an upset stomach. Source.

Cramp bark
Muscle relaxant. Works to relax intestines. Considered the most potent uterine antispasmodic of the various Viburnum species. Source.

Wood Betony herb
Centuries of European herbalists used wood betony as a calming remedy and to treat eczema, hives, and shingles. Wood betony teas also treat sore throats caused by allergies or colds, heartburn, and inflammation due to infections of the urinary tract. The herb is used in combination with other treatments to remove intestinal parasites. Source.

Uncategorized cleanse, cleansing, detox, health

Whedonverse reference included in the endnotes.

After reading about the affects that the cleansing kit that I’m doing have had on other people (I went down the rabbit hole of internet searching and links) I decided to research the ingredients in each bottle included in the Wild Rose Herbal D-Tox Kit. For each ingredient description I’ve used one source, unless otherwise indicated. I googled, I found the sources I liked best.

At the bottom you’ll find a list of sources and notes, though I’ve linked to the source throughout.

Part 1: The Laxative.

Laxaherb (tabs) – Cascara Sagrada bark, Turkey Rubarb root, Buckthorn bark, Barberry root bark, Ginger root, Fennel seed, Red Raspberry leaf, Cayenne fruit.

Read more…

Uncategorized cleanse, cleansing, detox, health

[Post created on Monday morning but not published until the evening.]

My spring cleanse has begun. I’d been considering a spring cleanse when I spotted The Raw Food Detox Diet in a bookstore. I’d bought a Wild Rose Herbal Detox kit when they were on sale awhile back in anticipation for the spring cleanse and last week increased my raw food intake while I was reading  the book.  I started the detox kit contents today. Yesterday did a little colon/bowel cleanse and am intrigued by the idea of colon hydrotherapy. The fact that this intrigues me disturbs me a little.

Stimulating the economy:

Spent a crapload of money yesterday loading up on fruits, veggies and the like (I’m trying to decide if the word “crapload” is ironic in this case). I went to a number of less expensive stores, finally ending up at Whole Foods. Whole Paycheck indeed. I bought three young coconuts there. The first I unwrapped was moldy. The second didn’t seem right when I cut into it and tasted it. It didn’t taste like a coconut and seemed drier than it should. I have no idea how it’s supposed to be, but it just seemed wrong.  I’m going to return the moldy one and the third one. I didn’t think I could return the one I already cut into so into the green bin it went. I might need to give up on the coconut idea.

At Essence of Life in Kensington Market I earned that as long as dried fruit is labeled “organic”, it’s sulfite-free. Good to know. I bought some snacks there and am looking forward to trying the Mary’s Organic Crackers Sticks and Twigs, Chipotle Tomato variety. Wheat-Free Gluten-Free, whole grain, and not in the way that General Mills calls their cereals “whole grain”. Mary’s uses  amaranth, millet, two types of quinoa, as well as flax seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds and brown rice. The tomato powder and ground chipotle chili are organic. I like that the phrases “natural flavours” and “natural colours” to not appear. Transparency on food labels is important to me.
[Edit: OMG, The Sticks and Twigs are so good except for the pieces that were too salty.]

I bought a mandoline slicer. Again. The last time I bought one I returned it without using it but yesterday evening I used my new Zyliss folding mandoline to julienne vegetables for today’s lunch. I also bought a spiral slicer. I hope I actually use it. Here are instructions on how to make your own using components of a deodorant stick and a razor blade. It’s a pretty neat video with funky music.

This morning’s smoothie: 1.5 apples, 1 fresh banana, some mango, EFA oil blend, 2 tbsp greens powder, flax seeds, a bit of pulp from a carrot-ginger salad dressing that I’d made yesterday, agave nectar and water.

My Facebook status from Saturday is “Liking today’s smoothie so much that I want to cuddle with it.” In addition to the regular apples and bananas I used strawberries and raspberries that had been in my freezer since last summer when they were in season. They’d been lost and forgotten in my freezer and tasting them in the smoothie made me happy. The smoothie also contained fresh mint and hazelnut agave nectar. It was phenominal.

Lunch: A base of EB herb salad + carrots, purple cabbage, yellow pepper, a small beet, all of which were sliced julienne-style on my new mandolin, and a blend of sprouts. Dressing is a carrot-ginger dressing from the raw food book, although I like my simple lemon-walnut oil drizzle. The beet stained my green t-shirt.

I intend to go back to hot yoga this evening. It’s been awhile. I could use a good yoga class today because my shoulders are sore, plus the sweat is detoxifying.  I also need to get back to the gym. It’s been months since I’ve done a proper workout.

I realize that I can’t go on a health kick without exercise. One thing that  bothers me about the raw food book is that Natalia repeatedly talks about how much weight people lose on that lifestyle but makes no mention of exercise/calorie burning as a weight loss tool. Yoga for cleansing, yes, but the repeated idea in the book is that the waste that people carry inside them is extra weight and that once the weight is gone, so will weight. Be that as it may (and I’m not sure I believe the concept- maybe seeing is believing), fat makes you fat¹ (see footnote for Buffy reference that popped into my head).  The eating regime is a lifestyle change and not just a diet, but I feel that if you’re going to tell people that they’re going to lose weight you should also mention fat burning and muscle building. Of course, I’m not trying to lose weight (not sure I have any to lose) but I’m not in good shape these days.

I’ve looked at my schedule and put some workouts in my calendar for the week. I’ve already had to rearrange one, but can change my schedule accordingly. Hopefully it will become a habit.

I’ll leave you with that.
Eat well, be well.

¹Buffy reference:
Sorority girl vampire #1:”Does this sweater make me look fat?”
Sorority girl vampire #2: “No, your fat makes you look fat. That sweater makes you look purple.”

Uncategorized cleanse, cleansing, detox, health

Today’s was the same as yesterday’s but I forgot the EFA Oil, and added another half apple, a second tablespoon of Greens, the last of a Meyer lemon and some fresh mint leaves.

It filled me up more.

When I do a cleanse this should be the basis of it with some other fruit occasionally thrown in. I bet peaches would be good.

I’m thinking of visiting Lettuce Eatery for lunch, although the fact that they rebranded as Freshii leaves a bad taste in my mouth – no pun intended. Well, a little intended.

Uncategorized breakfast, cleanse, cleansing, detox, fruit, health, healthy eating, smoothies

As mentioned previously, I’ve been reading The Raw Food Detox Diet by Natalia Rose after buying it second hand at ABC Books. I’m at the beginning of part 3 of 5 in the book. I won’t go into details about the book right now (I’d like to do a more dedicated post in the future), but I intend to put it into practice short term as a cleanse and then decide how much of the principles I want to adopt longer term. The book reminded me about starting the day with fruit and the quick digestion time of fruit. Usually my breakfast routine consists of bringing oatmeal ingredients (oats and additives such as nuts, seeds and dried fruit) to work in a container, nuking it around 9:30am and eating it throughout the morning. Today I decided to forgo my usual oatmeal breakfast and begin my day out with fruit.

Problem is, I don’t have much fruit at home right now. It’s on my shopping list. What I do have, are apples that I bought in the fall and stored in Debbie Meyer Green Bags that I bought at Canadian Tire (most of the apples were still good months later), and frozen bananas.

This morning before work I made a fruit smoothie and drank a glass. It gave me lots of energy until hunger set in and I drank the second cup, brought to work in a Magic Bullet cup with lid. Smoothies are great. They’re easy and super-nutritious. Meghan had her Green Smoothie Cleanse last week, and my buddy SDM of In the Weeds has been blogging about his daily concoctions at work. I’m envious of his access to fruit, and the varieties of it.

Here is what I made this morning:

In my Magic Bullet (using the blender) I combined

• 1 apple, cored and chopped but mostly unpeeled.

• 1 frozen banana thawed a little bit because frozen bananas are solid (I know, one once attacked my foot and won).

• Half a lemon peeled but not juiced, as much pith removed as I could.

• 1 heaping tablespoon of Barleens Greens (also see product info – PDF)

• A couple tablespoons (or however much I poured in) of Vega Antioxidant EFA Oil Blend.

• Approx 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds.

• Coconut water (bought in a tetra pack).

• Regular water.

• A squirt of hazelnut agave nectar.

The nuttiness of the agave provided great flavour. It was an awesome smoothie, one I’ll repeat until I buy more fruit. I correctly guessed that the coconut would taste good with apple and banana but I didn’t realize how much flavour the hazelnut would impart or how good it would be. I could use less next time.

I’m a fan of Vega products.  The Barleens Greens are new, bought  on Saturday after scrutinizing product labels. I tried drinking it in water on Monday and didn’t like it, so I’ll keep using it in smoothies. When I run out I might try the Berry version. I had a bottle of Barleens cinnamon-flavoured flax oil last year. While I found the taste too strong on its own, it was good on oatmeal with honey.

I did bring oatmeal to work today but didn’t eat it. I drank the first smoothie around 8:15am, the second in mid-morning (10? 10:30?) by 11:30 I got hungry. I don’t get hungry at noon like other people because I graze on my oatmeal all morning and the slow release carbs get me going. However, it’s almost 12:30 and I’m ready for a salad.

Smoothies are definitely a way to help stay hydrated and keep things easy on the digestive system, which I taxed on Tuesday evening with breaded tofu fingers (like chicken wings) and a grain-based veggie burger that was more dense than expected. By making little changes to what we eat and drink, even if they don’t become habitual, we can change our health. Going back to the Raw Food Diet, and I’ll get more into this another time, I’d like to try eating all raw until dinner time or mostly raw, with salads topped with sprouted grains or eggs and/or cheese (but not grains and one of the others because they’re poor combinations for digestion, while vegetables can combine with anything). I think I could do quinoa on my salads even though it’s technically cooked.

Lunch today is what remained in a box of salad (a box of Earthbound Farms salad appears to yield 4 meals worth of salad), the last of my cucumbes and baby carrots from the fridge at work and the last of the can of sliced beets that I opened yesterday. I figured that if I was using up the salad I may as well use up everything that goes on it and on Fridays I like to eat out so I’ll stock the fridge again on Monday. As per my usual this week, the dressing is a squeeze of lemon (used that up too and there wasn’t much left) and a drizzle of walnut oil.

Uncategorized breakfast, cleanse, cleansing, detox, fruit, health, healthy eating, lunch, salad, smoothies