My number one tip is to make friends with menu planning. This may sound like a time-eater to you now, but give it a go and you will be amazed at how much time and brain cells you save wondering what to prepare next.

Before we go any further, I must clarify that I’m a qualified nutritionist but I’m certainly no master chef. Nor do I like to spend more than 15-30 minutes in the kitchen preparing a meal. Here are some of my favourite go-to meals after a long day or when the sun’s waiting for us to get out there:

Basic method: prepare a grain base (millet, quinoa, buckwheat are my favourites), add whatever vegetables, herbs, spices you have. Whip up a dressing or just add olive oil or just tamari.

Buddha Bowl: red rice, green leaves, sprouts, cashews, hemp seeds, avocado, dressing

Raw Rainbow Plate: fermented red cabbage, baby spinach, red bell pepper, carrot, sprouts, parsley, dressing

Buckwheat Noodles – 15 minutes

• Put water in a saucepan on to boil. During this time chop some mushrooms. Open a tin of coconut milk. Chop some sun-dried tomatoes
• Add buckwheat (or rice) noodles to boiling water. Whilst cooking lightly fry mushrooms in coconut oil. Add the coconut milk once the mushrooms are done
• Take mushrooms off the heat. Add sun-dried tomatoes. Add a spoonful of umboshi plum paste. Add drained noodles
• Sprinkle pepper. Add a sprig of parsley or coriander

Buddha Bowl – max 15 minutes

• Cook up some rice, quinoa, millet, buckwhat or (gluten-free) pasta
• Add all sorts of chopped veggies, whatever you have (frozen veggies allowed). Steam/sautee the vegetables = optional. Add fresh herbs if you have them. Add your choice of chopped garlic, onion, ginger
• Make a dressing with whatever you have (or just tamari), e.g olive oil, apple cider vinegar, tahini, lemon. Add your choice of spices, herbs, coconut oil. The sky’s the limit!

Stir Fry – 15 minutes (with or without grain, if you use enough veggies I find it’s enough without)

• Put your grain of choice on to cook (rice, millet, quinoa, buckwheat)
• Chop up a ton of various veggies including green leaves, onion, garlic
• In your pre-heated wok fry (in ghee or coconut oil) the onion, herbs of choice. Add the veggies. Add garlic and green leaves at the end. Sprinkle of tamari.
• Drain the grains, add to the wok for a couple of minutes. Top with sesame seeds.

Raw Sprout Plate – 5-10 minutes (requires that you have sprouts on hand)

• Salad leaves/baby spinachtopped with your choice of sprouted chickpeas, mung beans, lentils
• Add a selection of chopped raw vegetables, avocado
• Add nuts/seeds
• Make up a dressing as above

No need to run out for a take-away, just combine a whole load of vegetables + options + dressing

If you don’t have sprouts on hand, you can also just make a big mixed salad, eggs optional.

How about a big platter of roasted vegetables, once you’ve chopped and placed them in the oven you are free to get on with another task whilst they cook. I like to add coconut butter, onion, garlic to the roasted vege platter.

These are really simple meals. My theory is just mix and match, be brave, as long as you like all the ingredients going in there it’ll turn out great 9 times out of 10! Creating delicious meals does not have to take up copious amounts of time or resources. Keep it simple. Keep it easy. Keep it practical. Keep it enjoyable.

What’s your number 1 go-to meal when you’re short on time and imagination?…or do you panic and run for the take-away?

Nature really is bountiful and does provide, as long as you know where to look and what to look for. Along with Spring comes picking and foraging, activities that I have recently added to my healthy habits. As someone who really doesn’t know much at all about flower, plants, trees, this is really so easy, if I can do it, anyone can do it! You can read a bit more about my late summer adventures in finding and using wild and homegrown herbs for health in this article.

Here are a few weeds that you will find growing in abundance at this time of year – you don’t even need your own garden as you will find these growing in any big park, public gardens, meadows, woodlands, wastelands and other wild places. Pick from areas that are away from busy, polluted main roads and away from the immediate edge of walking paths where cats and dogs may have done their business! Remember to bring gloves, scissors, bag with you so that you can safely pick them without being stung.

Nettle – this is one of my favourites. This weed grows pretty much everywhere and has so many healthful qualities.
Benefits: It is a diuretic, contains zinc, iron, vitamin C and a whole host of vitamins and minerals. It increases milk production in nursing mothers and is a natural anti-histamine, helping in cases of hay fever and other seasonal allergies and helps to relieve joint pain.
How to eat them: Add it to soups and steep it to make a herbal tea.

Dandelion – dandelion leaves are at their best when they’re just growing up from the ground and this is the time to pick and eat them (don’t eat the weeds when the plants is flowering – although you can eat their yellow flowers. They have an early and late season so you have a second chance to catch them in late Autumn if you don’t catch them in early spring). More mature plants can be recognised by their bright yellow flowers and those fluffy, white ‘balls’ that children (and bigger children) love blowing on to see all these little fluffy bits float gently to the ground (you do know what I mean, right?!).
Benefits: The leaves are higher in beta-carotene than carrots and their iron and calcium content is higher than that in spinach! They contain most of the B vitamins plus others. Used as a tonic, they are especially beneficial for liver and gallbladder health, promoting the flow of bile. Diuretic, a general digestive tonic, helps to regulate sugar levels. Avoid dandelion if you have an irritable bowel, stomach or suffer from acute inflammation.
How to eat them: Add dandelion to your salads, smoothies, juices, steam and sautee them. They can taste quite bitter.

Bishop’s Weed (also known as goutweed, herb gerard) – this grows as an edging around gardens and it really does grow, forming massive low lying bunches (…a real farmer’s plague!). It can be recognised by its little white flowers.
Benefits: Apparently considered to be an aphrodisiac in India. Medicinally it is beneficial in cases of goat, arthritis, rheumatism, is diuretic so helpful for bladder disorders.
How to eat them: Add to your salads, juices, smoothies, soups. They have a rather aromatic taste.

Daisies – we all know what these look like!
Benefits: Make a daisy chain then eat it, your liver will thank you for it. You can also eat the leaves. Daisies are beneficial in cases of respiratory problems.
How to eat them: Add these to salads or decorate any meal with them.

If you’re interested in seeking out and gathering wild edibles I would strongly recommend that you pop down to your local bookshop and have a browse through guides that can help you identify various herbs, weeds, flowers, berries and what time of year to go foraging for them. This can be so much fun and brings a whole new level of awareness to your healthy living and eating, bringing you closer to nature and the wonders it has to offer your health.

Are you a wild edibles gatherer? What tricks and tips can you share with us? What’s your favourite way of preparing them?

Warning: before you go out gathering nature’s wonderful wild edibles, make sure you are certain of what it is you are picking. Many herbs, weeds, plants and flowers have protection mechanisms which make them poisonous. You don’t want to eat those. For obvious reasons. Make sure you do a bit more research before you head out to make sure you know what you’re picking. If you suffer from a particular illness, check how these weeds interact before adding them into your healthy eating plan.

Family holidays such as Easter, Christmas and other major holidays can be challenging when it comes to healthy eating and can leave you feeling bloated, sluggish, with a bit more of a belly than you had a few days ago, moody, with poor digestion, perhaps spotty skin and generally feeling slow and low on energy. Although you enjoy it at the time, for some, overeating at family meals leads to subsequent feelings of guilt or disappointment in themselves.

Days and events like these happen and will happen again. That’s life. Healthy eating and living is not about locking yourself up in your own home forever denying social eating events as these will break your healthy eating routine. A very important part of being healthy is making space for flexibility and taking enjoyment in that. Where you can choose healthier options that feel better for you, do so. When you can’t, go with the flow* and remember that it is what you do most of the time that counts, not what you do some of the time. I follow and encourage my clients to follow an 80/20 rule. When you’re on holiday, staying with friends and family, invited out for meals, fully enjoy the food that is in front of you. Do not judge it or analyse it. Instead, be grateful and wish that everyone may enjoy sharing meals with family and friends. This is what being healthy is all about and what turns it into a lifestyle.

Changing habits to create greater health and well-being for ourselves can be difficult at times and lead us to feel like outsiders as we choose to stay away from certain common, everyday ‘normal’ foods such as dairy, wheat, gluten. If friends and family ask for your reasons, kindly explain why you personally choose to stay away from these foods including some basic facts on how they affect the body. This will create greater understanding and room for acceptance without judgment – for both parties.

I remember the days where I would indulge and fully enjoy the actual moment of eating – having analysed the food in the moments before I took the first mouthful – and then analysed all over again once the taste of the food was no longer in my mouth. In so doing, I took full enjoyment of each mouthful away with my judgments on how ‘good’ or ‘bad’ that particular food was simultaneously placing judgment on myself for eating them, and probably eating a massive plateful.
Now, I am fully present when I tuck into that big slice of chocolate cake that is offered to me. I truly and fully enjoy it. Without any judgment or negative thought. This is part of choosing to live a healthy lifestyle allowing room for foods you might not usually eat without using words such as ‘bad, cheating, naughty’. Changing our mindset is a huge step in establishing positive long term habits.

Indulgence, flexibility and spontaneity are all part of healthy living and deserve our full enjoyment. You’ve had your cake, and eaten it, now here’s how to get back on track if you’ve overdone it and want to get back on tip top form:

1. Drink 2-3 liters of water in-between meals. This will help your body to re-balance hydration following a (most probably) large ingestion of dehydrating foods such as sugar and alcohol. If you have a couple of kilos to lose, this will make a massive difference and set you well on your way. Our body’s hunger signals are often just a cry for water.
2. Start each morning with a big glass of green juice. This will give your body a lovely, reassuring alkaline message first thing in the morning to re-balance excesses of acidic foods such as sugar, alcohol, coffee, animal products, grains which strip your body of precious vitamins and minerals. Green juices also provide an instant fix of minerals and vitamins to help clear congestion and help your body to cleanse. Green juices provide your body with an instant energy boost and will help to set each day off on the right foot.
3. Replace one meal a day with a green smoothie. As well as providing a healthful serving of nutrients, smoothies also contain fiber to help clear your bowels of waste, literally sweeping it along and in so doing will benefit digestion and proper elimination. There are other types of simple detox that you can incorporate into your daily life for a few days to help you get back on track.  To learn a bit more about the difference between juices and smoothies

What are your favourite methods to help you get back on track after a few days of excesses?

* unless you have allergies of course, in which case you do need to plan ahead so that you can avoid those particular foods. Tell friends and family ahead of time what you are allergic to and what you can eat instead or what you can prepare yourself to bring along.

My lovely friend Raw LouLou's super easy raw cacao/carob bite sized chocolates - click on the picture to go through to her recipe and website filled with other delicious raw gems

Easter is next week and if you’re not thinking of Easter bunnies or painting eggs, I can guarantee you’re thinking about chocolate. Just because we do. Not matter what time of year.

The majority of you reading this post are doing so for two reasons. 1. you are a health enthusiast who always has an eye or ear out for tasty new healthy recipes or 2. you’re keen to avoid your customary guilt, feeling sick, mood swings (easily observable when it comes to seeing how your children react to regular versus healthy chocolate treats) and general ‘oh no, I did it again, couldn’t resist, overate chocolate now I feel bad’ routine. Preparing healthy chocolate treats in advance to have at home for visiting guests (and yourself) or to take with you when visiting friends and family is one way to ensure that you keep up with healthy eating, even when the Easter chocolate frenzy beckons.

Why ditch regular, commercial chocolate in favour of healthful raw cacao or carob?
The reason regular commercial chocolate is harmful for our physical and emotional health (and beauty)  is due to all the added dairy, sugar, other additives and processing and heating the raw cacao which destroys many of its benefits.

5 benefits of raw cacao:

• powerful antioxidants are preserved, even more than are found in blueberries! (great for immunity, anti-aging, general illness prevention)
• high in chromium which helps to regulate blood sugar (when you’ve had enough raw cacao, you’ve had enough. Your body will tell you so you don’t just carry on stuffing yourself with it and overdo it. Yes, even for the most stubborn chocaholic)
• high in magnesium which helps with heart health, mental clarity, relaxing muscles and tends to be lacking in approximately 80% of the population’s diet, hence one of the reasons we crave chocolate (especially related to PMS, ladies, when our muscles and nerves are tense)
• contains no sugar in its natural form (which means that you dictate how much natural sugar you use in your recipes)
• caffeine free although it does contain theobromine, a stimulator

5 benefits of carob (from the carob plant. tastes more or less like chocolate but isn’t chocolate):

• doesn’t contain any caffeine or other stimulant (which means it can be enjoyed without subsequent restlessness, irritability etc)
• high in calcium which is required for healthy bones and teeth
• contains pectin which lowers cholesterol
• shown to be beneficial for digestion
• shown to be effective in cases of asthma and other lung issues (smokers – carob acts as an expectorant)

Here are two of my favourite, super easy homemade chocolate recipes:

• Rawtella This is a great one to have either instead of your regular nutella spread, as a chocolate sauce on ice cream, as a chocolate dipping sauce for fruit, to make chocolate covered nuts or, popped in the fridge in small chocolate moulds (bunny shaped or other), it becomes regular hard chocolate
• Easy homemade chocolates – scroll down to number 13.

Indulge. Being healthy doesn’t mean giving up on the foods we love. It means choosing the healthiest options of these foods. And enjoying them. 100%. What we eat nourishes us, fuels us and allows us to live with energy, zest, health and beauty. Our food should not be a cause of anxiety, stress and guilt. Choose foods that help you to thrive and live the life you want.

Do you have any healthy chocolate recipes to share with us? For those to already eat or decide to give raw cacao and/or carob a go, please share your thoughts – did you notice a difference in satiety, moods etc?

ps) tune in next week for simple tips on how to get over the excesses of Easter, for those who didn’t make their own healthy chocolates!

Let me reassure you. I know that some of you think I’m a ‘posh hippy’ with my nature & planet loving ways, but I do draw the line. Yes, I do use deodorant. I use natural, safe deodorant that works, whilst maintaining my health.

I will admit that I was nervous at first. How do you ‘experiment’ with this kind of thing without alienating friends and family in the mean time? Well, sometimes in life, when there’s a good enough reason, you just gotta do it. So I did. Much ado about nothing really.

What makes conventional deodorant so bad?

Aluminium, parabens, phthalates and many other nasty synthetic ingredients (more about these nasties in my e-book More Than A Pretty Face: Planet-Friendly Holistic Skin Care)  found in commercial deodorants have been linked to Alzheimers, breast cancer, birth defects, allergies, hormonal imbalances. We don’t want to be actively smearing or spraying these on our delicate pits, only to be absorbed into our bloodstream in under than 30 mins and taken around to each and every cell in our body.

Aluminium is an an anti-perspirant. It stops you sweating. You may not like it, dainty dames, but there is a reason we sweat. It helps our bodies get rid of toxins. Toxic build up is one of the root causes of all illness – mental and physical.

Being a ‘health person’, I say: why not sweat properly? In style? That means choosing and using products that allow our bodies to do what they’re meant to do, whilst still being effective. There is always an answer to be found in nature.

A note: aluminium is usually only found in anti-perspirants, not deodorants. However, deodorants still contain a host of other harmful chemicals so you want to choose natural options regardless of what you use.

What can you use instead?

Toddle off to your local health food shop and have a browse of the deodorants. Read the labels. Choose one that doesn’t have all those nasty sounded chemicals in it. If in doubt, crystal deodorants (without aluminium please) work a treat. Weleda also has a natural deodorant and the fragrance in it comes from essential oils so it’s safe to use. For some more choices or to check how yours rates on the toxin-free scale, check out Skin Deep‘s database.

Or make your own…

1/4 cup baking soda
1/4 cup arrow starch or corn starch
4-6 T coconut oil, mix in with a fork, 1 T at a time. Add coconut oil as necessary (in solid form, not melted)
10 drops essential oil of your choice

This recipe takes 5 minutes to make. Less time than it would take you to nip down to your local corner shop.

I tried re-using an old deodorant stick container but this mixture totally solidified and wouldn’t budge. Instead, I mold it either as shown in the picture or just make a ‘flat-sided’ egg shape with it. Ladybird shape. And use it as a solid deodorant bar.

I’ve also used this homemade balm as a deodorant. Did the job.

* Warning: coconut oil melts at high temperatures so this one isn’t great for traveling unless you’re staying in cold climes.

Other benefits

• Natural products are friendlier on the environment
• No stinging when applied to freshly shaved pits
• No white marks that stain: although be careful, don’t go wiping your new black top on it just to test it out before a big night out. You might find that it could leave white marks on synthetic materials – but then again, it brushes off easily
• If you’re saving the pennies this is a much cheaper way to sweet smelling underarms
• It’s fun to make. Well at least I think so
• Yes, it really does work. I ran not 1, but 2 marathons using only natural deodorant. I may have arrived more than exhausted but my armpits were as fresh as a proper lady’s…a lady who had run a marathon

It really is through making simple, small changes that we greatly contribute to our overall and lasting health. As a Naturopathic Nutritionist specialising in cleansing and a toxin-free lifestyle, my aim is to show you how you can improve your daily choices to make positive change in your life and health just by changing one thing at a time. The road to increased health and well-being is deceptively simple yet so profound.

Do you think that making your own deodorant is too ‘out there’? Are you going try it? Knowing that synthetic products harm your health, has this post inspired you to search for alternatives?

Either you know that you have sugar cravings because you simply can’t get through the day without it, or you may be suffering from any of these symptoms: mood swings, energy highs and lows, skin issues, depression, anxiety, adrenal fatigue (you’re pushing yourself to the limit with stress), you eat or drink caffeine on a daily basis, you crave bread and other grains, you feel lethargic. These are all a sign of unstable blood sugar.

Unstable blood sugar is the root cause of many illnesses which is why it is so important to bring it into check, as well as the daily angst it causes. Sugar cravings and unbalanced blood sugar can really seem to take over your life. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Whilst eating certain foods will help to balance your blood sugar, it is also important to look at the root cause of your sugar cravings as they could very well be emotional and not physical at all. Are you really tired, hungry, bored, feeling a little low, lonely or could do with a hug? So often we reach for a sweet food to fill gaps when our emotional needs are not being met. Check in with yourself and see how you’re feeling right now. What do you really need?

5 Simple tips to help banish sugar cravings:

1. Eat regularly: you are far more likely to reach for a sugary snack for a quick energy fix if you haven’t eaten for a while, when all you need is some proper food. Eating regularly will prevent energy dips throughout the day. 3 meals a day is ideal – add in 2 snack, one mid-morning and one mid-afternoon if you find that 3 meals isn’t getting you through the day.

2. Include good quality protein and fat in every meal: this will ensure that your body receives the full signal and the nutrients it needs and help to control blood sugar.

3. Drink water: what you perceive as a sugar craving is often times your body’s cry for water. Our bodies need water for each and every function. If you don’t hydrate adequately your body is going to cry out in one way or another.

4. Cut out caffeine and refined grains (e.g. white breads): these bring your adrenals on a roller-coaster ride of high energy followed by low energy meaning that you reach for the sugar again.

5. Use spices: our bodies have a natural desire for sweet taste. Satisfy this desire by adding naturally sweet tasting spices to your meals such as: coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon (fantastic at balancing blood sugar), vanilla powder.

ps) sweet potatos are great to satisfy a sweet craving – try it for dinner and you’re unlikely to crave sweets
pps) snack on almonds, they are great at balancing blood sugar

Are you fed up with blood sugar levels controlling your physical and emotional health?

For those suffering from persistent, strong sugar cravings I would strongly advise working with a nutritionist to get to the root cause of your blood sugar imbalance. It is vital to get this under control as it affects not only our overall health and more serious illness but also our emotional health and well-being. I’d love to help you re-balance your blood sugar and free you from your sugar cravings once and for all! Schedule in your FREE 30 minute phone/skype consultation to see if working together is the best option for you.

Do you have any tried and tested tips to help you control your sugar cravings?
What are your sugar-balancing go-to recipes?

However quick n’ easy it might be to whip up as a snack, for the kids’ lunch, for your lunch or even dinner, the bread which notably keeps the other ingredients neatly packaged in causes grief to many in the form of bloating, energy slumps, brain fog, poor digestion, skin issues, cravings, wind, IBS and other symptoms (including a pot belly). Most people are not even aware that their humble or most sophisticated sandwich could be causing these issues as this is just ‘the way they feel every day’. I invite you to feel how your body feels before eating a sandwich and after. 30 mins after. 60 mins after. 2 hours after. How do you feel? Energised? Tired? Nicely full? Uncomfortably full? Hungry? Cravings? How about your children – are they hyperactive, low on energy, how do they behave? Bringing awareness into what we eat can do wonders to help us figure out how certain foods affect us.

Although the filling could also be playing a role (high sugar content, dairy), it is the wheat and other gluten grains we are interested in today. As well as the symptoms outlined above, commercial bread is full of sugar and other additives whilst virtually all the goodness in it has been removed through the refining process. Yes, even ‘brown bread, multigrain, wholemeal bread’ has had the beneficial nutrients removed. Don’t be duped by the brown colour – more often than not this is dye. ‘Added fiber, vitamins etc’ – are not in a form that is recognised and usable by the body.

Of course there are healthy alternatives to choose from: sourdough bread, sprouted grain bread, gluten free bread made with quinoa, chickpea, amaranth, buckwheat etc flour or make your own from scratch. As a transition you could switch to 100% wholegrain bread (check that any bread you buy doesn’t include added sugar or other dubious sounding ingredients) but if you experience any of the symptoms above on a regular basis, you could try cutting out the wheat entirely for at least a couple of weeks to see how you feel.

So, now for the exciting part! How about a sandwich without the bread? I love these. They are so easy to make and leave you feeling fresh, nourished and energised. Greening-up any meal brings huge health benefits and this is one very simple way to add more greens into your day.
Children love these and often enjoy making them.

Here are my top 3 no-bread sandwich suggestions:

1. The Cabbage Leaf Wrap

Choose a cabbage with big leaves.
Wash the leaves.
Spread your choice of spread on the leaf. Here I’ve used miso paste & almond butter.
Top with the rest of your ingredients (don’t go over board, you can always add to it). I’ve added egg, lentil sprouts, red bell pepper, cucumber, paprika, turmeric.
Roll it up.
Eat it. Eat it.
Tip: cut the hard end piece off and fold the corners in to ‘seal’ the end and prevent mess.

2. The Nori Roll

Spread your choice of spread on the nori sheet. My favourite is miso paste & tahini.
Add your toppings, thinly sliced, away from the edge of the sheet – try 1/3 of the way in. I like to use carrot, avocado, cucumber.
Roll it up: ignore the ‘edge’ where you would usually start to roll something, instead bring the edge way over so that it goes past your filling, press down just after the filling so that it sits tight. Continue rolling. Dab the end of the nori sheet with a drop of water and stick it together. I just eat it like that in one big piece without cutting it into these little pieces shown here. Sounds complicated. It isn’t. Try it. Dip in tamari.

3. The Cucumber Stick

Hollow out a cucumber (the ends are best as the filling doesn’t drip out) with a knife and tea spoon (or however works for you).
Stuff with your filling of choice – make sure to get it right down the end before you add to it. I chose hummus here and topped with paprika.
Crunch and munch.
These are also great as an ‘open sandwich’. Just cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, hollow it out and add your filling of choice.

So easy. So tasty. Everyone likes fun food. Be creative with your fillings. How about peanut butter, guacamole, zucchini, grated beetroot…

What do you think – are you ready to give these a go instead of your usual bread sandwich, just to try it out?

What’s the difference? Which one is healthier? What kind of machine do I need for what? Does it require a lot of complicated piecing together and cleaning of equipment? Don’t these pricey machines just clutter up the kitchen? Does anyone actually use them?

Let me tell you a little story:
My journey began with juicing. My brother Charlie lived with me a few years ago and had bought himself a super duper expensive juicer (designed by Porsche I believe. Go figure). I was happy to sip on any juice he made but drew the line at making my own as he lost me at step 2 of the clean up process. Things that need to be plugged in usually cause me some sort of increased heart palpitation or brow sweat, especially if there’s more than 1-2 steps to the whole process. Anyway. Charlie went on holiday one day and when he came back, I declared “I’ve made friends with the juicer”. You should have seen the proud smile on Charlie’s face. I don’t know how we became friends, who made the first move etc, but the result was that I learnt to LOVE juices.
Charlie moved out, taking said juicer with him.
My love, Dominic moved in. We bought our own juicer. Not as expensive as the Porsche cousin but still does the job nicely 2 years on. We also bought a blender. My loyalties are split. No favouritism in this household. We tend to juice more during the Summer and Spring and prefer to blend more in the Autumn and Winter. Personal choice and there’s no real hard and fast rule about it.

So you see, I know what it’s like to hesitate for ages about trying something new and finally incorporating it as one of THE most sacred parts of your daily routine.

Here’s the low down on the benefits & differences of juicing and blending so that you can get started:

Juicing

• juicing is the method by which the juice (funnily enough) is extracted from fruit / vegetables. The pulp and fiber are discarded (you can use these in veggie burgers, as pizza topping etc)
• pure juice means that there are no solids for the digestive system to break down, making the nutrients immediately accessible to the body – a shot of health in a glass
• juicing is the most efficient way to fast-track a boost of nutrients into your body in one go
• juicing allows you to ingest a lot more fruit and vegetables than you otherwise would in one day, let alone one sitting (imagine chewing – properly – on the amount of fruit and vege that you pop in your juicer – e.g. 2 green apples, 3 stalks broccoli, 1/2 fennel, cauliflower greens, 1 inch ginger, 1 stick celery . If you have a job, a family to look after, or even just a life and things to do, it’s impossible)
• Here’s my quick guide to juicing + 10 juice recipes to get you started

Blending

• blending basically breaks up the whole fruit/vegetable including the fiber and pulp
• Fiber acts like an internal janitor – sweeping your bowels of debris so that waste leaves your body rather than hanging around, fermenting and causing all sorts of trouble
• blending basically pre-chews the ingredients for you by breaking up the cellulose membrane that you would otherwise have to spend hours chewing (properly, like a horse or a cow, properly grinding it with your molars) so that you have better access to the nutrients and these are more readily absorbed by the body
• blending up a smoothie is something that you can do on the road by packing one of these nifty little travel blenders in your suitcase. Brilliant.
• Here’s how to make a basic smoothie

Gimme more info:

You need a juicer (on the left) to juice and a blender (on the right – all in one with food processor) to make smoothies. These marvelous pieces of equipment cannot be interchanged (ie. you cannot make a smoothie in a blender and vice versa). You can see from our blender that you don’t need to start off with super duper equipment. Ideally you want a blender that is made of glass to avoid as much contact with plastic as possible. However, whatever you have is fine.

If you’re after extra fiber or a super healthy energy filled snack, breakfast or occasional meal replacement, smoothies are the way to go.
If you’re after a shot of energy and nutrients or some deeper cellular cleansing, juices are the beverage of choice.

Note: juice is basically just water and sugar so if you have blood sugar issues you probably want to stick to smoothies. The fiber in smoothies slows the absorption of sugar into the bloodstream, helping to stabilise blood sugar levels. You could also dilute your juices with pure water.

Both are a wonderfully healthy additions to a healthy lifestyle.

Most of us don’t chew our food properly which greatly reduces absorption of nutrients. Both juices and smoothies are easy ways to get a boost of nutrients in your bod pod on a daily basis in a way that is easy for your body to utilise.

You still need to chew both juices and smoothies. It might look a little daft but there’s a good reason: digestion begins in the mouth. Swirling and chewing these beverages gets your digestive juices going both in your mouth where they begin to break the nutrients down and by sending a message to the rest of the digestive tract to get ready by secreting enzymes that will break the nutrients down further. Skip the chewing step and you’re placing extra work and strain on the rest of the digestive tract.

Yes, it’s fine to drink both on one day. Every day.

If you’re still none the wiser as to which to begin with, perhaps consider cost. Buy either a juicer or a blender and get friendly with it. Leave it out so you actually use it. Then see, perhaps you’ll then be motivated to buy the other cousin and give that a go.

**If you’re interested in taking part in a mini 3 day cleanse of your own, or with a group of friends, from the comfort of your own home, wherever you are in the world, contact me to schedule in your 3-Day Fully Guided Virtual Cleanse!

Has this post inspired you to begin juicing / blending?
If you’re a seasoned juice / smoothie drinker, did you learn anything new?
Do you still have questions about juicing / blending that I can answer for you?

Please add your comments or questions below (I get asked about this topic so often – your questions and experience will be helpful to others. Without a doubt).

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When it comes to healthy eating, resistance often strikes in the form of “it’s too expensive, I can’t afford it…”.  I hear it all the time from clients and friends. Rest assured, there is a solution, but it does not come in the form of a pre-packaged brightly coloured box.

“So many people spend their health gaining wealth, and then have to spend their wealth to regain their health” – A.J.Reb Materi

Like everything, healthy eating is a matter of choice. We get results where we focus our attention. If we neglect our health now we will most certainly pay for it later. Spend your pennies and your time wisely – your health and your wallet will thank you for it.

Top 10 tips to help you eat healthy food on a budget:

• write a shopping list and keep to it. Here‘s my comprehensive list to keeping your (vegetarian) kitchen stocked
• buy dry goods such as grains and beans in bulk
• buy seasonal and local. Rather than paying for your apples’ air-fare from some exotic land, buy locally grown produce and you’ll save not only on cost but also on quality. The less distance your food travels, the more nutrients it conserves. Support your local farmers. Their produce is cheaper and more nutritious.
• shop on the outside rim of the supermarket – keep away from the pre-packaged goods in the middle isles. You’ll see that by spending less on pretty packaging you have a lot more to spend on fresh, whole food
• make your own food. I know, this is a very daunting one. Start slowly. Bulk buy oats and other grains and make your own muesli. Make your own soup with chopped veggies and a few herbs. Simple is good
• do 1 big weekly shop so you know you have enough to last you through the week. Top up with an extra veggie purchase on the way home if you need to towards the end of the week
• eat at home. Be honest with yourself: we all know restaurants and take-aways may be nice, but if that’s where all your pennies are going, you can’t complain that healthy food is too expensive. All in moderation
• plan your meals to save time and money. Planning ahead means less waste and, believe it or not, spending 10 -20 minutes a week planning ahead will save you oodles of time trying to decide what to cook. Here’s a post I wrote on the art of menu planning
• cook once, eat twice, or thrice. Cook an extra load of grains, vegetables, beans etc and combine them with different herbs, spices, sauces, chopped raw veggies the next day and even the day after. For example, you could cook quinoa porridge for breakfast and have some again the following evening with stir-fried vegetables. How about freezing some soup to have on hand instead of calling for take-away on the nights when you’re pressed for time or just can’t be bothered?
• buy organic. I know – the price tag. However, when you eat food that is full of nutrients your body will receive  what it needs and you will actually feel full sooner. When eating refined, processed foods you eat until you are physically full as your brain does not receive the ‘full’ signal. You are then hungry again soon after as your body has still not received what it needs (you can test this by seeing how you feel after eating an organic apple and a commercially grown apple, or even baguette versus sprouted whole grain bread). You do not have to buy 100% organic overnight, have a look at EWG’s Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 list to see which fruit and vegetables are most important to buy organic

For further reading about this check out my Project:Food Budget series where I disclosed our weekly shopping expenses over a few months eating 100% organic.

What foods does your family buy organic, or not? How do you feel about the ‘price of healthy eating’ – is it something that prevents you from buying healthy food or have you adapted your shopping and meal preparation habits to fit it in?

You might have heard the expression, “a bad workman blames his tools“, but seriously, who doesn’t feel a million dollars when they go out in their favourite outfit rather than the ‘stand-by’ one because you forgot to wash the other one after your last night out, or how somehow you seem to do X better because you’re using your favourite tool/instrument. Mindset is everything. Set yourself up for success by preparing beforehand and surrounding yourself with tools/equipment that you want to use, that will give you pleasure when you use them and encourage you to prepare delicious, healthy meals. I, for one, much prefer to prepare plates of delight when I like the things I use and am surrounded with.

Here are 4 steps to encourage you to prepare healthy meals:

• arrange your kitchen in a logical, practical matter. Put all the healthy ingredients in easy to reach/see places and hide the undesirables at the back of your cupboards (or throw them out). With healthy foods within eyesight you will be more inclined to use them
• upgrade your kitchen tools and appliances: on a basic level, make sure that any equipment such as blenders, juicers, chopping knives you have actually work. The next step is to leave them out so that you see them every day and actually use them. Investing in a juice machine and a blender made a massive difference for me – it’s the easiest way to add in a boost of nutrition every day
• buy pretty plates that you enjoy using. What’s all this about saving your best dishes for special occasions? Every day is a special occasion. You and your family deserve the best – the best food and the best plates
• get your recipe books out, or just 1 will do and choose 1 new recipe per week that you actually make. Nothing like a bit of inspiration and new tastes to get you excited about cooking nourishing meals. Here are some of my favourites

Did you find these tips helpful? If so, please share them with your friends, be the inspiration!

Jars of nuts, seeds, healthy snacks - trail mix, dried fruit

Staples: grains (rice, quinoa, millet, buckwheat), wheat-free spaghetti, beans, lentils, superfoods (seaweed, maca, chia seeds), sprouting seeds

What tricks help you get the healthy cooking buzz once you’ve lost it, or keep you going once you’re on a roll?

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