Tag Archives: yoga

Teff Morning Hot Cereal

A high protein and high fiber breakfast is a great way to start the day as the meal fuels you for early morning exercise or diminished cravings to snack before lunch.

Oatmeal has been a staple in my diet for a long time. Once I needed to eat a Gluten Free diet I started to explore other grains to add variety to my diet (MANY Gluten Free recipes call for oats or oat flour). Teff is a great grain to use in place of morning oatmeal! Like oatmeal for breakfast, Teff Morning Hot Cereal lends itself to many options; it can be customized to fit your preferences and your cravings! Enjoy this YogaLean Gluten Free Breakfast and read more recipes at Healthy Recipe Variations.

This recipe needs monitoring for the first few minutes as the teff is being toasted. After that, it just needs an occasional stir. You can multitask or relax while it is cooking! The picture you see is the addition of seasonal fruit (blueberries), bananas, walnuts, and a teaspoon of Nutella.

If you do not use all of your teff hot cereal, store in an airtight container. Reheat by placing in a bowl with a wet paper towel on top and microwave for 1 minute. Stir and check heat. Heat an additional minute if needed. Serve with toppings of your choice so each meal is different! Have fun playing with your food … your healthy food!

Base Recipe (Serves 2)

1/ 2 Cup Teff (I use Bob’s Red Mill)

2 Cups Water (or milk of your choice)

A Pinch of Salt

1 TBSP Flavoring (I suggest Vanilla, Almond, Maple, or Cinnamon)

OPTIONS: Add seasonal fruit or dried fruit or nuts when serving)

Instructions:

1. Add the Teff to a pot and bring to medium heat. Toast teff, stirring from time to time, for 2 or 3 minutes. This will bring out the nutty flavor of the teff.

2. Add the pinch of salt and liquid to the pot and cook until liquid is absorbed. Stir occasionally.

3. Serve as is or add stir-ins.

Stir-in Options:

Milk of your choice

A spoonful of Greek Yogurt on top

Seasonal berries

Dried fruit (Dates, Figs, Apples work well)

1 TBSP Honey, Agave, Nutella, or Nut Butter

A handful of nuts (Walnuts, Pecans, or Cashews, or Slivered Almonds work well)

5 Ways to Boost Your Metabolism NOW

June 15, 2015 – Beth Shaw, President & Founder | Beth Shaw

It’s Summer time, and many people are trying to renew their fitness programs in a hurry. While its important to hit the gym, take up a new running program and make countless other fitness resolutions, there are things you can incorporate into your daily eating regimen that will help you knock off and keep off those extra pounds.

Certain foods slow us down and make us groggy and tired. Sugar, refined carbohydrates, wheat (if you are gluten intolerant) and alcohol all slow our metabolism. So along with your workout program, there are healthy alternative foods and drinks that will boost your metabolism naturally. Get it going NOW with these few, easy tips.

Eat small frequent meals. Eating every three to four hours, and including a small protein snack, will keep the fires of your metabolism stoked and burning. I like to have an apple and some almonds in between meals or a small bit of protein powder with a half a banana. A bit of a hard cheese and a few carrots are also great snacks.
Take your meal portions to half. If you eat two or three meals a day consider putting less food on your plate than your normally would. In thirty days you can train your stomach to want less and be satisfied with less.
Add hot peppers. Cayenne, jalapeños, and serrano fire up your metabolic system. They will also make your food a lot tastier and you will naturally eat less as a result of not overeating to seek taste and pleasure. Enhancing flavor is a great way for you to get the most out of your meal. If your portions are small you want to make sure that you are getting maximum flavor. A small tasty bite is a lot more enjoyable that mounds of food that lacks in taste and palate excitement.
Drink more more green tea. This hydrating tea is unique in that it has the amino acid Theanine to balance out the caffeine and enhanced mood. Theanine is relaxing and tranquilizing. Drinking green tea throughout the day will keep you happy and energized.
Add small doses of coffee, caffeine and maca – they all increase metabolism. Be moderate. Overdoing certain stimulants like caffeine laden energy drinks and too much coffee will burn out your adrenal glands.

Mindful eating combined with additional portion control and a few changes in your diet will yield positive results. Make this your best summer yet!

Salsa Style Blackbean Pasta

June 1, 2015 – Rene MacVay, Food Blogger | Healthy Recipe Variations

Since I had to become gluten free I have reduced my pasta intake quite a bit. Pasta used to be a great go to for me, as it was a quick meal to fix and great leftovers to take to work the following day. A few Gluten Free pastas have come along that are organic, non-GMO, high in fiber, and cook without getting soggy. I can enjoy pasta again!

Tolerant Black Bean Pasta is a great addition to my pantry as it has great texture and flavor. I was looking for something to make for a quick evening dinner and decided to us up a few ingredients I had from my recent trip to the farmer’s market. I had a little of each ingredient, so pasta was the perfect way to marry the flavors and use the fresh ingredients.

This recipe takes less than a half hour from opening the refrigerator to finishing clean up. Enjoy a healthy meal…or put it in an airtight container and take it with you for a great lunch. Enjoy as a meal on its own or a side dish with a sandwich or salad.

Base Ingredients:

1 ear of corn … corn cut off the cob (yields about 2 cups)

½ Red Onion

½ Red Bell Pepper

1 Tomato (I used vine ripe)

Basil (for garnish)

Pasta – 1 Cup Tolerant Black Bean Rotini

Olive Oil

2 TBSP Butter (unsalted)

¼ Cup Vegetable Broth

Variations in keeping with Salsa theme:

 Add a few cloves of crushed Garlic

 Substitute Shallots for Red Onion

 Add a Hot pepper like a Jalapeño, Serrano, or Habanero depending on your personal interest in HEAT

 Add a cup of diced Mango if you wish a bit of sweet flavor

Instructions:

1. Cut the corn off the cob

2. Use a mandolin to cut the pepper and onion into small slices (or dice small with a knife)

3. Sautee all three ingredients in a pan with 2 tbsp butter and ¼ cup vegetable broth

4. Once onions are translucent turn off heat.

5. Add 3 cups of water to a pot and bring to a boil. Add 1 cup of Tolerant Black

Bean Rotini. Stir from time-to-time. Drain after 5 minutes…reserving ¼ cup of the pasta water.

6. While pasta is cooking dice the tomato.

7. Add pasta water, diced tomato, and pasta to pan with the sautéed vegetables.

8. Cook until water evaporates.

9. Transfer to a plate, bowl, or airtight container. Sprinkle with Olive Oil and/or Basil to garnish.

Enjoy this YogaLean meal and other Gluten Free Recipes on Healthy Recipe Variations.

5 Easy Poses for Weekend Warriors

I’ll be the first to admit that it’s not always easy to fit in a workout during the week. Between your job or school, meetings, doctor’s appointments, taking care of your pets and family, running errands, and cooking dinner, exercise doesn’t always make the cut. Then when the weekend rolls around, you make up for not exercising by going all out on Saturday or Sunday.

Yoga is a great way to boost the energy of those weekend warriors who wear themselves out on those last days. Specific postures can stabilize your spine, soothe tight hamstrings, open the hips and prevent injuries you might incur doing your favorite weekend activities. These 5 poses target the total body, lubricating the shoulder and knee joints, and protecting your back.

1) Bridge – help shoulder misalignment. Lie back with knees bent and feet to floor. Gently walk your shoulders under your body to clasp hands underneath your buttocks and slowly lift the hips about six inches off the floor and breathe deeply for a minute or two; repeat as needed.

2) Knees to Chest – prevent aggravation in the spine: Lie back and bend both knees into the chest, and slowly grasp your legs toward your chest, rocking slowly back and forth through the hips. Also try making large circles in the sky using your knees in one direction, and then switching. This really lubes your back muscles!

3) Upside-down Pigeon – work out tight hips and thighs: Lie back and cross right ankle over left knee and use your hands to push that left knee away from you. Point the toes on your bent right leg and gently grasp right shin to hold it and stretch through the hips and mid-body.

4) Cobra – Alleviate back pain: Lie belly down with straight legs in back of you, and try to touch all toes to the mat. Bring palms to your lower ribs and slowly use your hands and arms to press chest slightly off the mat. Keep looking down and breathe slowly here for 30 to 60 seconds or so; repeat twice.

5) Dancer – Improve Balance: Stand tall on the left foot and bend right knee so right foot touches your butt in the back. Reach back with right hand and clasp the right foot as you try to balance. Keep both knees together and contract the belly. Slowly bend forward, working your torso to parallel and pushing your feet back against your hand for 30 seconds or so. Slowly stand and release, then switch sides and repeat to the left. This is also a great quad stretch for the front of your hips and thighs, and one of the very best injury-prevention postures that we regularly perform in yoga class.

Have a great weekend everyone! Happy Memorial Day.

Twisting Poses to Cleanse and Detoxify

Both athletic and restful, twisting poses offer wonderful benefits for the muscular and skeletal systems, preventing stiffness and injury by improving the spine’s range of movement. They are also extremely helpful in our efforts to detoxify physically and mentally, encouraging the inner organs to expel waste, thus clearing stagnant energy that impedes digestion and a peaceful, effective thought process.

I think of each twisting pose basically as a massage for the inner organs. The twisting motion literally wrings out impurities from the body’s systems, and the compression of the abdomen against the upper thighs increases healthy blood and oxygen flow for improved digestion, immunity, and hormone balance.

Spring is a time of year we when renewing energy and clearing space are particularly important. Here are three of my favorite basic twisting poses, accessible to people at any level of practice and very useful for purifying the body as we enter a new season!

Seated Spinal Twist

Getting into the Pose:

From a seated position, extend your legs out. Bring your right knee up with the soul of your foot on the floor. Place your right hand next to you or behind you and sit upright. Beginning at the base of the spine, rotate to the right, bringing your left forearm around to hold your right shin.

Holding the Pose

Use core strength against your arm to deepen the twist. Lengthen your spine with every inhale; twist further with every exhale. Switch sides.

Modifications

If your lower back rounds, sit on a rolled up yoga mat or folded blanket.

Take it to the next level: Use core strength to deepen the twist. Place your left elbow outside your right knee. Hold and breathe.

Twisting Chair

Getting into the Pose

Start in Chair pose. Lengthen your spine and place your hands in prayer position over your heart. Twist from the waist, placing your elbow on the outside of the opposite thigh.

Holding the Pose

Engage your core to support your lower back. Inhale, lengthen. Exhale, twist. Keep your knees together as you release deeper into rotation.

Modifications

Place one hand on the opposite thigh, the other on the lower back.

Take it to the next level: Place your bottom hand on the floor outside your foot. Reach up with your top arm as you roll your chest toward the sky.

Twisting Lunge

Getting into the Pose

From a lunge position with your right foot forward, place your left hand on the floor close to the inside of your right foot. Stack your right knee over your right ankle. With a straight spine, sweep your right arm up, reaching toward the sky.

Holding the Pose

Press through your back heel. Keep your chest close to your forward knee as you twist from the waist. Look up. Switch sides.

Modifications

Drop your back knee to the mat for a Kneeling Lunge.

Place your bottom hand on a block to help lengthen the spine for rotation.

Take it to the next level: Try a variation called the Twisting Prayer Lunge: Do a Kneeling Lunge, place your hands in prayer position over your heart. Rotate, placing the back of your arm against the outside of your forward thigh. Lift your back knee off the mat and look up for Twisting Prayer Lunge.

These are excellent poses for letting go of excess wintertime baggage in the form of stress or midline bulk and for alleviating back pain. If you suffer from issues with your back, be extra careful to come in and out of the pose gently and listen to your body’s needs. I recommend avidly incorporating these poses into your practice, especially if you are doing a cleanse, as they will support your body’s efforts to rid itself of impurities.