#avocado #banana #smoothie

Avocado Banana Smoothie

Is it just me or do you always have a rotten banana and a really ripe avocado on hand?  I know I do.  

So I got to thinking, why not combine them in my gently used Vitamix?  Now you might be thinking, wow - I can't afford a Vitamix.  At $600 a pop, neither could I.  Luckily I was talking to a friend of mine who had a Vitamix that he was no longer using and offered to sell it to me for $75.  Talk about the gift that keeps on giving! 

Skipping breakfast or missing nutrients in your day is not an option.  Luckily, you've landed on my blog and can take advantage of this simple and nutritious smoothie that I created for my sister and I after a morning workout.  I'm happy to share this deliciousness with you.  

This smoothie is perfect for all of you breakfast skippers and on-the-go types.  Isn't that most of us these days?  If you think that skipping breakfast is the first step in losing weight, you are defeating the purpose and causing the opposite effect.  If you think you can't possibly be healthy while on-the-go, you can.  It just takes a small amount of time to plan.  I can help.

Ingredients:

2 ripe bananas

1/2 ripe avocado

12 almonds

2 tablespoons, hemp hearts

1 container Dreaming Cow Grass Fed yogurt, plain or vanilla agave

1 container of water (use yogurt container)

Assembly:

Put all ingredients in Vitamix or high speed blender in no particular order.  Blend and serve with a straw.  

Enjoy.

Would love to hear your feedback and see photos in the comments below.

Sheila

www.lifeelemental.com

"I help you upgrade to a happier, better feeling and more successful you in six months guaranteed or your money back."

Ever heard of #hemphearts? Try them in this delicious #smoothie.

Recipe for Healthy Living

'Tis the Season for Sugar

Is sugar toxic? It is when you consider the levels the average American swallows each year—a whopping 130 pounds of added sugars ingested annually. That's about 22 teaspoons a day.  It's the added sugars that are affecting your body in all sorts of strange ways.

Just look at the list of ingredients above (or below) for this holiday frosting.  

Ingredients: Sugar, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Cottonseed Oils, Water, Corn Syrup, Corn Starch, Contains 2% or less of: Salt, Artificial Color(Including Yellow 5, Blue 1 and Red 40), Artificial Flavor, Modified Cornstarch, Mono and Diglycerides, Polysorbate 60, Potassium Sorbate and Sodium Benzoate (preservatives), Soy Lethicin, Citric Acid - must I go on for the ingredients in the candy bits?

Not one of these ingredients except the water is beneficial to your health.

Simple Sugar Tip:  Read the ingredient list.  Food colorings cause hyperactivity in children. Processed oils wreak havoc on your digestive system and your arteries.  Last but not least, preservatives - this product expires in 2015.  

Click here to read the 11 Weird Things Sugar is Doing to Your Body.

Now, I'd love to hear from you.  Do you crave sugar and want to get off the sugar roller coaster once and for all?  Was that a yes?  Then please visit my website at www.lifeelemental.com and schedule your initial consultation today for just $97.  

I will help you upgrade to a happier, better feeling and more successful you in 2014!!

Sheila

Comfort Food Slowing You Down? 4 Steps & 5 Ingredients to Get Back to Feeling Good.

Lymph Salad

4 kale leaves, cut into strips

4 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 beet, quartered

3 slices organic rotisserie chicken

4 strawberries, cut in half

Garnish with balsamic vinegar, olive oil and salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

Snow on Tuesday, sun and 60 degrees by Sunday.  It's November and I think winter is here.  For some it means chamomile, curry lentil soup and chunky, cozy scarves.  Did I forget a 'c'?  Ahhhhh, yes, comfort food.  Enter pimento mac and cheese, honey butter fried chicken and thai chili cream corn to keep warm.  While these foods are definitely warm and comforting, my body is quickly feeling the effects.  Sometimes we need to go back to our childhood ways of eating to remind us to get back on track and eating whole foods.

So, today I made a cleansing salad for the lymphatic system.  Click here to read more about keeping your pipes clean 'aka' the lymph.  


1.  Add red colored foods to your plate like tomatoes, beets and strawberries.  

2.  Don't forget your greens.  Try kale, collards, arugula or spinach.  Or dice up a mix of all 4 for an extra boost.  All that roughage helps to regulate your digestion and elimination, and keeps your gut clean, by sweeping all the nasties out.  A happy gut is an extremely important element to your overall health, so take care of it! 

3.  Try cutting down on inflammatory foods such as dairy and gluten. See Dr.Weil’s Anti-Inflammatory Food Pyramid to get you started. And make sure you are eating PLENTY of veggies and fruits.  

4.  Choose a high quality protein like chicken, grass fed & grass finished beef or beans.

Sheila Petersen, CHHC, AADP, founded Life Elemental in 2012 and is a Certified Holistic Health & Lifestyle Coach.  

To schedule a 60-minute consultation with me for $97, Click here.  Once I receive your appointment notification, I will send you an invoice.  If you're not into the online scheduling/payment thing, not to worry. I like human connection too.  Call me now @ 312.620.0186 and I'll get you all setup and on your way to upgrading your life.

If you don't walk out of this session with a new understanding of how you can begin to benefit from your Life Upgrade, I will refund your money.  Join with a friend and get half off your initial consultation.  

3 Things You Can Do Now to Prepare for Fall

The leaves are turning vibrant shades of red, purple, yellow, and orange. Cozy sweaters, pumpkin lattes, and Halloween decorations are popping up everywhere. That’s right, it’s October! And October means we are making the transition from the hot, hectic, longer days of summer into the slower, cooler, shorter days of fall.

That feeling is the energy and activity of our surrounding environment, the flora and fauna, as everything transitions from summer, slows down for fall, and prepares for winter.

As humans, and as participants in this cycle of nature, it is also our time to focus inward; shed unwanted and unnecessary items, ideas, and emotions; and sift through and separate out what is truly important in our lives: our friends, our family, our loved ones.

Here are three things you can do now to help transition and prepare for fall:

1) Let Go. Let go of emotions you may be harboring – regret, resentment, guilt, bitterness, or anger. Let go of outdated and tired ideas so your brain has the power to manifest fresh dreams.

2) Do some Fall cleaning. Fill a few bags of clothing no longer needed. Gather extra blankets and comforters to donate to a homeless shelter. Get rid of clutter and make space for useful things and novel ideas.

3) Practice abdominal breathing three times a day. As you inhale, fill your abdomen up like a balloon, expand your ribcage, feel your abdominal muscles stretch. Hold for a second, and then slowly, gently exhale completely, forcing your breathe out at the end. This will further increase your ability to relax and let go.

Once you start letting go, whether it be physical or emotional, you’ll be making room for the truly important things, easing the transition, and embracing the power of Fall. 

Money - Good, Bad or Neutral

Is money good or bad?  What experience have you had with money?  Do you live in fear of money, lack of money or have superstitions around money?

The world of form is backed by your beliefs and filters within you individually and are fueled and propelled by something.  Think back to your childhood and you may recall hearing one or all of these statements.  You could probably fill in the blanks to the following:

Money doesn't grow on _______.
Money is the ______ of all evil.
We just can't keep up with the __________.

I'd like you to think of money in a new way.  What if it was neutral?  When you understand money to be neutral, it's a much better place to be.  Ever notice as humans we like to label everything - be it good or bad, it's a label.  What if you could remove the label and call it for what it is?  Remove the emotion of good or bad and let it flow.  Money is just energy.  It flows in and it flows out. 

Yes, we need money to survive as life's currency to have a home, food and clothing.  But what if you removed all of the beliefs and emotions around money that are no longer serving you?  

Adapting a belief such as this - nothing is personal, nothing is against me - life is unfolding and occurring.  It's the belief that I place upon something, that label, that defines it.

Thanks for reading.

I work with people and their beliefs, patterns and habits around money.  Schedule an initial consultation today and let's map out your money.  Click here to schedule a one-hour consultation with me today!  

Why Do You Crave Salt?

Cravings for salt can occur when you're used to eating a lot of salty foods and then try to cut back on your salt consumption, simply because your body is used to having a lot of salt. Salt cravings can also be the result of a range of medical conditions, some more serious than others. Here are some of the reasons why you crave salty foods. Your Body Needs Salt Your body consists of over 60% water. Salt is one of the electrolytes that helps your body maintain an appropriate balance of fluids. You need to eat about one teaspoon of salt each day to maintain healthy salt levels in your body. You get much of your daily salt requirement from salty foods. Eating too much salt can lead to high blood pressure. Choose a high quality sea salt like the ones shown above.  Salts come in an array of colors like gray, pink or black. Common Reasons for Salt Cravings You may find yourself craving salty foods when you try to cut these foods out of your diet for health reasons. That's because your body is accustomed to salt, and these sorts of salt cravings will go away eventually when you lose the taste for salty foods. Natural salt contains a number of trace minerals not found in table salt. (Please don't eat table salt.)  If you're craving salt but don't have any additional medical symptoms, your salt cravings could be the result of a trace mineral deficiency. Eating salty foods temporarily relieves cravings of this type, but they come back when your body fails to absorb any trace minerals from the salty foods you eat. Salt cravings can also be the result of mild dehydration. When you sweat, you lose salt from your body. If you have salt cravings after exercise or after sweating on a hot day, you've probably lost too many electrolytes. Drink kombucha(not Gatorade), or another electrolyte-rich beverage, to replace the electrolytes in your body.