In my opinion, it all started back in 1985 with commercials like the one below for the Doublemint Twins that were selling sexual energy….err, I mean Doublemint gum.

Really? Did any of you ever have the experience of meeting two super gorgeous, super gregarious twin and having an amazing moment of chemistry when you popped this gum in your mouth? Yeah, me either.
Things haven’t gotten any better. Today when I was buying gas, I saw a gum on the counter that I’d never seen before from Extra. It was Key Lime Gum, part of their Dessert Delights lime. Don’t like key lime? No problem, there’s an apple pie option, an orange creme option and don’t forget mint chip. Something for everybody, sugar-free of course.

While some many think of gum as a healthier alternative to actually consuming the real food you desire, I think the exact opposite. To me, chewing gum to get a dessert fix would be like going to a strip club expecting to find love. It’s going to leave you terribly unsatisfied and still wanting the real thing. Between the promise of whisking you away to a refreshing oasis, to preventing your headaches, to offering you vitality, it’s just too much for one 1/2″ of gum to do.

The other issue I have with gum is that it perpetuates the expectation that we should constantly be having complex taste experiences in our mouth at all times. As it is our culture is so biased toward flavor and sweet, we come to expect those flavors in our meals, beverages, toothpastes, breath mints and of course gum. The Trident “layers” gum is an example of that: 3 layers of flavor, all of this overtly or subtly sweet. We just don’t need it. What is it doing to our brains to know we can get a quick rush of flavor like that whenever we want? Won’t it keep us wanting for more (and possibly the really thing, like that piece of apple pie).

Maybe I’m just biased because I haven’t chewed gum since 2005. Yep, I’m “gum abstinent”. It had to happen. I was chewing gum like a fiend, hoping it would quell the craving for what I really wanted, which was an endless supply of donuts and ice cream. I kept hoping for the promise of satisfaction, but got farther and farther from it. I was up to a pack a day of sugarless gum. I chewed it pretty much non-stop and never ONCE did it stop me from eating or tasting the foods I really wanted when they were available to me. If anything, it just primed me to expect flavor and a mouthful of bliss on a constant basis.

What helped me kick the habit? Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT). It’s a form of energy therapy that involves using affirmation statements and tapping on various accupressure points. For me, it was amazing, but I was also really ready to change.

So maybe I’m challenging you to look at why you chew gum, especially if you are a chronic chewer. Gum chewers don’t actually consume less calories than non chewers, and some of us experienced digestive issues and jaw discomfort from the hours and hours of chew, chew, chew. What about you? Is gum a security item for you? Do you feel like you can’t go into a meeting, a long car ride, or just go through the day without your little fix? Does it perpetuate your expectation for flavor experiences during the day, especially those that involve sweet?
I think it’s time to bring a bit of this spotlight to this tiny treat. It may be playing a bigger role in your carb cravings, food addictions, and unhealthy habits that you’ve given credit to.
Don’t underestimate the power of the gum. They don’t make all those flavors and spend all that money on marketing for nothing!

Lately this soup has been rockin’ my world.  Those who know me well (like my huz, who will make fun of me incessantly about it) know that for a soup to be good in my book, it’s gotta be hearty.

That is why when I click on the Pacific Natural Foods website and I see a whole category devoted to “hearty soups”, I’m stoked.  Technically the black bean option, my personal favorite, is in the creamy soup category but who is counting, right?

Why am I so stoked on soup you ask?  Let’s just say that wintertime soup, as an afternoon snack, serves the role that a nice frothy smoothie plays in offering me solace and harmony on a hot summer day.  It’s the Yin to my Yang. It balanced me out.  And after you read below you too are going to want to grab yourself a carton of this ready-made delight OR go for it and make your own.

Let’s say it’s about 3pm and your feeling that mid-afternoon energy lull.  You’re hungry – slightly, but more like you have the munchies.  You’re restless from working all day and a tasty treat gives you the mouth experience of a little vacation from the daily tasks.  Now it would be REALLY tempting at this time to grab a coffee drink (do you need more caffeine?), a crunchy, munchy snack (is it a good idea to go down that carb-craving road?) OR you could satisfy your urge with a modest yet flavorful cup o’ soup.

Here’s what I know:  When I sip on a cup full of this spicy, yet creamy soup it warms my tummy, it satisfies my flavor palate, it gives me a strong sense of having made a good choice for my body, and it keeps me from craving sugar as soon as I’m off of work.  Halleluiah!!

I’m telling you bloggies, do NOT underestimate the power of a little afternoon soup.  PS: I once had a client who ate soup for breakfast every day.  After months of trying to get her diet in balance and avoiding breakfast only to over-eat carbs and soda later, she went the unconventional route and enjoyed about 10 oz of roasted red pepper soup every day before work.  Guess what?  She shed 20 unwanted and unneeded pounds. Soup is no miracle worker, for sure.  But it certainly can be a simple, inexpensive tool in your toolbox that helps keep you on the road to wellness.

Go soup!

PPS: I’d love to you your favorite soups!

Have you Heard of the the Eat More Kale Guy, Bo, out of Vermont?  This guy is a hero of mine.  And like most heroes, there is always a nemesis.   In this case, it’s Chick-Fil-a, a southern-based Fast-food chain that sells tasty bits like the Chick-n-minis, seen below:

Why the conflict?  Because Chick-fil-a seems to think Mr. Eat More Kale stole their slogan, Eat More Chicken.  So they are suing and they have deep pockets.

Personally, beyond the absurdity of their case and my love for supporting the little guy, when I see the picture above and I think about the lush, vibrant green color of kale, there is NO CONTEST as to where I would direct my food loyalty.  Kale wins.  Every time. Maybe that is why Chick-Fil-a is so upset:  Bo and the magic of his T-shirts and stickers up in Vermont are actually raising the awareness around the awesomeness of kale.  Yeah!  Maybe less people will want poor quality fried chicken parts wrapped in a starchy white bun served by a grumpy 19-yr old through a drive-through window.  Maybe more people will see kale is part of a hip, cool counter-culture food choice that says you support the little man and do the unconventional: EAT your veggies!

Well, wherever this Eat More Kale adventure goes, I’m in!  Not only do I have my stickers, ready to share with friends and family (you can buy them on his site for $.50) but I’m also reinvigorated in my efforts to encourage folks to eat more kale.  Why is kale so great?  Glad you asked.  Here are my top 5 reasons for loving Kale:

1.  It’s an anti-sugar craving food.  What?  Yes, that is what I said. The chlorophyll and the trace minerals like chromium and selenium, can help curb sugar cravings.  If you’ve been living on a diet high in refined foods and not listening to mom’s advice to eat your veggies, you may need a  boost of these nutrients and kale is plentiful in trace minerals, chlorophyll, as well as calcium and iron.  Same goes for other cruciferous veggies and dark, leafy greens.

2.  It’s so versatile.  You can kale raw in a salad, throw it in your green smoothie, make a frittata or omelette, sneak it into soups, meatloaf, lasagna, and really anywhere that you would use spinach.  It tastes great raw or cooked, baked or braised. 

3. Kale is a superstar antioxidant.  That means it heals your body deal with something called ROS: Reactive-oxygen-species.  They create a cascade of reactions that end up damaging your cells (aging, disease) Sound serious, doesn’t it?  We all have them in our bodies all the time, but the carotenoids and vitamin K found in kale can kick the ROS right outta dodge and put your body back in order.  This is as GOOD think if you’ve been eating a lot of sugar or processed food, which promotes inflammation.  Kale and other greens, as well as herbs like parsley, can combat this.

4. It’s easy to grow.  This is good news for those, like me, who do NOT have a green thumb.  It’s a very hearty, winter plant that is not very pursnickity in it’s need for ideal climate.  Growing kale means saving money (it can expensive to buy) and having a plentiful supply.  At just 35 calories/cup, you can stand to incorporate kale into your diet every day!

5. It’s so pretty, isn’t it?  Kale comes in all varieties and colors, like these

So, whatever type of kale you enjoy (my fav. is Dino kale), just EAT MORE KALE!

So after a long and wonderful walk with my friend D. I was still stressed and guess what? I craved sugar.  Big shocker, right?  Not just sugar but specifically cake frosting.  Not just cake frosting but the kind at the slices of cake at Safeway.  And even more specific than that – the white cake with the white frosting only, please.  If you’re thinking “….umm, doesn’t she know that is totally gross.  I mean, she is the Off White Living girl…..”. Yes, yes I do.  But what can I say.  When my lizard brain acts up, it want what it wants, and nothing else will do.

So there I stood and D’s house, half of my attention on saying my good-byes and the other half on calculating how fast I could get to Safeway and what kind of line there would be so I could get my cake and eat it too! (Clarification: I don’t eat the cake, just the frosting – which is even more ridiculous, don’t you think!).

I got in my car still plotting my escape into trans-fat and white sugar heaven when a little voice in me spoke up.  It said this “What if….just this once…you saw what would happen if you drove home instead?  All you have to do is make it past Poleline road and you’re in the clear.“

Now, a dilemma began in my brain.  Only 97% of me was on board with this whole cake idea.  I drove away.  Then another voice spoke up “yeah, you just walked and you are feeling so good, and wouldn’t it feel better to see Matt after a long day than eat that cake and feel crappy about yourself?”

Egads! Now only about 70% of me was into this whole cake frosting business.  I’m driving towards Poleline – a new voice, louder than the others.  ”Yeah, you don’t really need that frosting.  What is that going to do for you? Write the grant?  Make you happy?  It never does, does it?”

And it went on like this for approximately 6 minutes until….vioala!  I was home and no cake had been harmed during the time between leaving D’s house and rolling into my driveway.  I DID it!

And you know what??? I woke up this morning feeling SO FREAKIN’ GOOD that I didn’t eat that silly, ridiculous, unnecessary, make-me-feel-bad-about-myself cake frosting.  Instead I went home, kissed Matt, ate dinner and went on with my night!

Score one for yours truly and NADA for that frosting. 

You can do it too.  If I can do it…girl that fantasizes about cake frosting….you can too!!

Today I watched Martin Seligman talk about positive psychology in this really nice, fairly short video:

My take away from it was this:  How can we apply our biggest strength to the food issue that keeps snagging us up?  Instead of feeling defeated or hopeless, what about reframing the situation through the lens of your biggest strength.  For me, I see social intelligence as high on my list of strengths yet I rarely reach out for social support around food issues in the moment of them.  I might be stressed and want to eat a bunch of sugar at a gathering b/c I am stuffing my stress, when maybe I should share and connect around it instead.  Hmm….I am going to try this!

I invite you to look at the food behavior which is hanging you up and see if you can deal with it by harnessing your biggest strength.  Wouldn’t it be interesting to see what could happen, without having any expectations.  Just experiment.  Oh, this could be FUN!

I hope that the goings on of 2012 so far are to your satisfaction.  I know they are mine! 

So, there is no skirting around the discussion of a little thing called new years resolutions.  Not into it?  Okay, how about new years intentions, which seems to be the lingo de jour.  Whatever you call them, a lot of folks out there are making plans, setting intentions, putting energy into making some kind of change in 2012.

And let’s be honest.  A LOT of those resolutions center around weight loss, or rather lifestyle changes, as they are termed now (which I also think is better and more indicative of the process).

Wanna know what the common denominator is in all your resolutions, be them to reduce your sugar intake or stop smoking or lose 20 lbs?  YOU! You are the factor in all those resolution equations.

What I’ve discovered after years of coaching women to make those lifestyle changes that result in weight loss or sugar abstinence or more vitality (or whatever your goal) is that the investment you make in getting your head in the game is far more important than all the extrinsic planning you do around grocery shopping, getting the gym clothes out the night before, etc.

When I was doing my coaching training through Wellcoaches, there was a common saying that worked its way into our training:

MY BELIEF IS GREATER THAN YOUR DOUBT.

Think about this statement.  There is tremendous power in harnessing your inner-faith (or having the unrelenting faith of a  coach) when beginning a change process.  It means that no matte what, you can do it.  You are capable.  The difference between your making the choice that aligns with your goals and the choice that doesn’t is usually a mindset issue rather than a circumstance.

When you begin to claim your own power and truly have more belief in yourself than doubt you will see amazing things happen and your resolutions (excuse me, intentions) will unfold like flowers opening up to the morning sun.  Easy peasy.

In my opinion, the beginning, middle, and end of any diet program also must be accompanied with a mental/emotional program to fundamentally change and align your thinking and cellular experience with your goal.  That is what coaching does.  It isn’t about telling you what to eat or how many sugar gram are in that energy bar – it’s about helping you to feel efficacious so that you can face any situation: the buffet of desserts at a friend’s baby shower or a lonely night and a pint of ice cream in the freezer with the BELEIF that you are capable of handing your emotions, choices and that you are worth it.

I don’t know a lot of you who read this, but whomever you are: my belief is greater than your doubt.  I’m holding space for you that 2012 can be your year.  It is possible, and it’s not about what book you buy or what tool you use to stay on track – it’s about how you feel and think about yourself that will make all the difference.

As for me and my new years intentions – it is really about that phrase entirely : my belief becoming greater than my doubt in all aspects of my life.  When I live and operate from this place several magical things happen: sugar does not call me to soothe my fears, and I am more open minded to possibilities around me.  Aaah….yes, some things are sweeter than sugar!

My contribution to the holiday meal, you ask? Simple.  Now that mom actually trusts me to prepare something other than rolls or wine, I’m making this rice dish as well as an awesome green bean salad from the America’s Test Kitchen cookbook (thanks D. for the borrow!).  It’s an elegant and simple combo of fingerling potatoes, green beans, vinegar and radicchio.  Yum in a bowl.

Before you hoist me up on that food pedestal for the holiday meal, I want to offer full disclosure.  We are making this quiche for Christmas morning, crust and everything.  Hey, it was a compromise. I was able to bargin down from the Paula Dean recipe which makes the one we are choosing look like a weight-watcher’s meal.  Sheesh!

Anyway, if you too are ‘that girl’ at holiday meals, I’d love to know what you are bringing to balance out the dinner table.

No matter what you eat – and even if you eat all your Christmas candy in one sitting only to throw up later (like I did every year as a kid), I hope you have a fantastic Christmas holiday!

But I’m not really talking about the direct costs involved with eating healthy.  Yes, the price of eggs rose 28% in the past year, and supposedly due to a peanut crop shortage we should be seeing a hike in peanut costs (all the more reason to eat Valencia PB, right?  Grown in NM they are aflotixin free!).

I’m talking about the cost of your diet on your indirect cost of health care.  The biggest health care debt burdens of individuals and populations is due to the preventable diseases: Cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes (and obesity, which is linked to these diseases).  Wanna play a little game?  You can download this cost-burden calculator from the CDC and see what the cost burden is in your state for whatever population you put in (or just use their default) for various chronic diseases.  When I played with it for California alone it estimated over 2.5 BILLION DOLLARS in costs for diabetes and heart disease based on current statistics!

Further, when you have a  chronic disease, even when you have insurance, you are still paying out of pocket for some expenses like medications or uncovered treatments AND you might be losing work hours/functionality because of illness.  I am no economist, but I’m thinking this is no-bueno on your pocket book.

So, let’s get back to diet and how it relates.  Imagine just spending an additional $10/week on items like fresh green vegetables, high quality meat and eggs, and whole grain products instead of processed grain products.  Imagine swapping out one sugar sweetened beverage (at say $3) for one more fruit or vegetable or non-sweetened beverage.  We think about the moment-to-moment spending as so burdensome when we are at the checkout, but are we thinking about the return on investment for eating healthy?  

I admit that it doesn’t cross my mind as often as it should to see my food as my medicine.  It is the easiest, tastiest, most diverse way for me to prevent illness, next to exercising and managing my stress.  Oh, and those last two things are also lumped into the category of “I can’t afford”…… meanwhile internally your body is dealing with the burden of NOT having those things and in the end, you will have to pay for them one way or another.

So, I suppose this whole concept is just making me ponder.  Instead of balking at prices of food I should feel grateful that my health, as of right now, can more or less be managed by simply eating well, exercising and managing my stress.  Not too bad.  After seeing my dad have a massive stroke at age 48, where he no longer has the choice of whether or not his diet is going to impact his health, I do see the real-life consequences of neglecting the day-to-day care of the body and spirit.  Oh, and paying those dental bills for having so many cavities filled after years of noshing on sugar all the time…well, those aren’t fun either.  Who knew that those $.50 Mike and Ike candy packets I ate daily in high school would cost hundreds (or is it thousands now) at the dentist.

I think there is a lot to learn from this 20-minute video that can apply to more than just fois gras. For instance, the same laws of nature apply to us as to the geese. When we ‘force feed’ ourselves the quality of our physical and emotional bodies is nothing close to what organically happens when we allow nature to be our guide. WE are more collaborative, connected, heartfelt, healthy, dynamic, and vibrant when we follow the wisdom of our bodies and nature.

As somebody who has spend a lot of time and money studying nutrition, I’ve always been incredibly disappointed in how little attention is paid to the personal experience of eating and relating with food. So much emphasis is put on the importance of ‘experts’ to teach you and I and everybody what we should eat, when we should eat it, and why. Isn’t it a bit ironic that one of the most basic tasks of survival, like eating, is so complex and confusing for so many people? We’re really pushed the nature right out of the whole process, from production to consumption. This is why people are so confused as to what to eat for healthy living. We’re taught to get so caught up in the external fascination with calories, fiber content, vitamins, etc that we forgo the synergistic benefits of treating ourselves as though we are part of the food system and therefore eating in relationships with it.

This video was a beautiful metaphor of how simple the solutions to our food experiences can be. Each of us, like the geese in the segment, have innate wisdom, that when cultivated, can guide us to answers about our own bodies and our own food needs. How can we practice listening more to them, and less to ‘experts’? Do you trust your inner wisdom? Can you tell the difference between a food experience that is born out of innate knowing and trust and one born out of fear or stress or feeling like you ‘should’ do something because somebody told you so?

Don’t get me wrong: there is a time and a place for expert knowledge. But that time and place should be used to compliment the efforts directed to learning about our own intrinsic awareness of our needs. Your body, your DNA, and your cells are very wise. You wouldn’t be here today if your genes hadn’t give you something very powerful to help you survive generation after generation and navigate the complexities of life. It’s true that our modern world changes quickly, but perhaps the answers to the food questions which arise as a result of modernization are really quite simple, just as they were for the geese.

What do you think?

Today a little birdie (thanks G.) suggested that I could send some recipes from coop classes to those who are out of town.  Good idea -yes!  Well, for now, how about I reach a broader audience than just those whom I have an email address for.  Here is a sneak peak at some of the fun, tasty eats we prepare in the Davis Coop teaching kitchen.  Picture coming soon (when I get home!).  PS: these are super kid friendly and full of sneaky veggies.  Hey, you top anything with a little cheese and it’s more delicious. This is a great vegetarian dish because it’s colorful, filling and has a meat-like taste experience because of the cremini mushrooms.  ,

Zucchini boats with rice pilaf
Serves 6

3 large zucchini, at least 2.5-3” in diameter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp pepper
1 tsp marjoram
8-10 Cremini mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1 large celery rib, finely chopped
½ cup shallots, finely chopped

2 tbsp flat leaf parsley
2/3 cup wild rice, soaked for about 1 hour
1.5 cups vegetable broth
2-3 finely chopped Roma tomatoes
2/3 cup Parmesan or other dry cheese to top

Cut each zucchini lengthwise.  Scoop out the middle and set aside for use in the stuffing.  Meanwhile, lightly coat each zucchini with a tad of oil and a sprinkle of salt.  Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes on an uncovered baking sheet.

In a skillet, heat 1 tbsp butter on medium.  Add shallots and celery.  Sautee for about 3 minutes with salt and pepper.   Add mushrooms and marjoram, and cook another 2-3 minutes, mixing well.  Add zucchini and parsley.  Cook another 3 minutes.   Add drained rice and broth.  Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer and cover.  Stir occasionally and let cook for about 15 minutes.  Add tomatoes and continue cooking until pilaf is done (another 5-8 minutes).

Fill each zucchini boat with a heap of pilaf.  Option to top each boat with cheese.  Broil for about 5 minutes, or until top is golden brown.

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