Sweet Love and Ginger

Yoga for Detox

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There are a lot of different beliefs and opinions about yoga and its effects on the body. I personally love yoga, and strongly believe in its benefits, as long as it’s not taken too far (it’s not about competition people!). I also believe that yoga can have a beneficial impact on a detox.
To explain this I’ll give a quick rundown of how a detox works in the body. There are three main systems in the body that take part, those being: the circulatory, digestive, and lymphatic. The circulatory system pumps the much needed blood throughout the body. The digestive system processes food, and eliminates the wastes Lastly the lymphatic system collects intracellular fluid from throughout the body and transports it to the lymph nodes. Here the fluid is sifted through and anything harmful (such as bacteria or other contaminants) are removed before the fluid is returned to the bloodstream.
Any type of vigorous exercise will stimulate all of these systems to an extent, which in turn will help the body to detox naturally, however many of the typical exercises, such as running, bike riding or weight lifting won’t necessarily reach all the deep tissues of the body that need to be cleansed as well. A well rounded practice will push, pull and twist the body until all of those obscure crevices have been reached.
The pulmonary is another system that is crucial to the body that should be regularly cleansed. And how you ask? It’s rather simple, breath; deep, long, slow and steady breaths, as you would in yoga. Yoga teaches control of the breath and it forces the practitioner to reach deep down into each teeny tiny orifice of the lungs filling it with oxygen and expelling carbon dioxide and other unnecessary gasses. It forces your diaphragm to move fluidly in and out massaging the internal organs and the muscles that surround them.
Lastly yoga helps to cleanse the soul. I cannot tell you how many days I have come to the matt miserable and frustrated and left feeling happy and rejuvenated. Yoga teaches us to focus on the present, the practice at hand and leave the world behind, calming the chaos of the mind. I have learned how to control the unending tide of daily stress that continues to haunt my conscience, and I’m only taking basic yoga!
For the week of this cleanse I am going to try to start each of my days with a set of sun salutations and a little vinyasa flow. I hope this is a habit that I can keep.

Filed Under: Fitness

Dinner for One

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I have a lot of friends who are either on their own or work opposite schedules than their significant others, and I often hear that they don’t feel like they can make a real meal for themselves at dinnertime because it’s just them. I say HOGWASH!
Chuck ends up traveling a lot for work so a couple times a month I am on my own for dinner, and I feel no need to skimp on my meals then. In fact I use it as an excuse to whip up my favorite things that he may not like so much; it’s totally my guilty pleasure nights. Here is what I made last night:
What I love about this recipe is that its comprised of things that I typically just have around the house all the time anyway, so its super easy to through together. By swapping ingredients it’s super easy to make more or less healthy. I admit sometimes I use cream, butter and lots of cheese. Other times I use skim milk, and whole wheat pasta. I have also made it with spaghetti, ravioli, chicken, fish or no meat at all. Also if you don’t want to dirty another pan you can simply cook the shrimp in the oil before adding the garlic, the only thing you will be missing is the extra spices.

I took the pic before i added the tomatoes, whoops!
This particular recipe is my favorite combination. I love the warm creamy sauce, in contrast to the underlying spiciness of the shrimp, and the cool crispness of the cherry tomatoes.
Now for DESERT!
I’m not typically a huge desert person, HOWEVER I think every girl has a little something she craves. For me it’s usually cheese or chocolate. Last nightt I was definitely craving the chocolate, the kind of craving that requires a little more than a Cup of cocoa.
Hot Cocoa Mug Cake:
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 egg white
1 packet hot cocoa mix (roughly 2 tablespoons)
1.5 Table spoons Milk
splash of vanilla extract
1.5 tablespoons oil
Start with the dry ingrediants and mix everything well with a fork in the mug, while slowly adding the wet ingrediants. Once mixed well pop it in the microwave for about 60 seconds.

 

Stolen from somekitchenstories.com because dark blue mugs dont work for good pictures.

 

If you want to go the healthier route you can use chocolate protein powder instead. Also be sure not to skip on the milk or oil. You will end up with a texture like an overcooked egg, and it is so unappealing. I believe the picture also has a few peanut butter chips mixed in as well, which is not a bad idea if you ask me!
More single night recipes to come!

Candy Skull Bleached Tank

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Well I’m currently experimenting with bleaching and dying jeans, and during my experiment I happened to get bleach on one of my tanks, it’s just a simple grey boyfriend tank, so it was no big deal , but I figured this would be a good time to experiment with some of the other bleach projects that I have been thinking about trying.
My Supplies:
Bleach pen
Tank
Cardboard
I used and old mac n cheese box on the inside of the shirt so that it wouldn’t bleed through to the back. After printing out a model candy skull i then cut it out to use it as an outline, the rest I did free hand. Using the pen I was able to draw simple flowers, hearts and dots. The best advice I can give to those trying this is to beware the bubbles! They make the line you are making wider, and make it hard to control the flow of bleach from the pen. Once I had my design finished I let it sit for roughly 20 minutes before washing off the bleach gel in the sink, then putting it in the washing machine. Following a bout in the dryer it was finished. Pretty much the cheapest afternoon project around! Below is how it looked completely finished. I am pleased with how it came out, and already got several compliments on it.

Filed Under: Crafts

Single Brunch

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Food for the body is not enough. There must be food for the soul.  ~Dorothy Day
This morning I was feeling like I needed a boost. I didn’t sleep a wink and my morning run went horribly. Not to mention Ii had a very stressful week. I didn’t want to weigh myself down with heavy pancakes or sausages so I thought I’d go a little French; velvety scrambled eggs, and a fresh salad with maple vinaigrette. I don’t think I have made a wiser decision.
This breakfast was perfect! It as light and healthy and really helped to rejuvenate my mood. The leafy greens were bright and fresh, and when the vinaigrette ventured over to my eggs it added a little burst of flavor. The eggs alone were fabulous. They were light and fluffy, thanks to the cream cheese, but also full of flavor. Now  I’m going to sit back and enjoy my English Breakfast tea.

Have a wonderful day!
Velvety Scrambled Eggs:
3 eggs
Nonstick spray
Table spoon of Skim Milk
.5 teaspoon Marjoram
.5 teaspoon Thyme
Salt & Pepper to taste
.5 Tablespoon Non Fat Cream Cheese
In a bowl whisk together eggs, milk, marjoram, thyme, and cream cheese. The cheese may not mix well here so be sure to break it up during the next step. Pour mixture into a warm  pan coated in spray.  Use a spatula to gently stir the eggs continuously on low heat. Once they begin to firm, and look opaque remove from heat and add Salt and pepper.
Maple Vinaigrette
1 teaspoon Apple cider Vinegar
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1/5 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch salt
whisk together all ingredients until well blended.

Goals

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I am now officially signed up for the Warrior Dash on August 12th. I’m up for the task, though I am nowhere near in shape for it. I have always been one to work out, especially with lifting weights, I just love feeling strong, however my cardio has always been somewhat lacking, for the last few years I have mostly only done HIIT (BB.com Link), which is not necessarily good for distance training, as when doing this kind of cardio you only do it for about 15-20 minutes. I ran the Corporate Challenge last year, and it kicked my butt. I know that Warrior Dash is not your typical 5k, but I’m going  train like it is, I mean besides where am I going to find a pit of fire, and mud up to my chest to practice in? I actually signed up for it because for the past year I have been having a really hard time getting the motivation to keep my workout routine steady. I blame graduating college, having a real job is hard to adjust to! My roommate from college Carrie signed up to do it with me, it really helps to have someone who is holding you accountable, she’s in a lot better running shape than I so in order to keep up I am going to have to work hard.  To add to all of this 6 weeks later on October 6th there is a 10k trail run in Danby, where she lives that we may sign up for. I don’t think I have ever run a 10k, and I know I haven’t done it in a race, so this will be an even bigger challenge for me, but again one that I am willing to take on. My goal is to be able to run 10 miles by the end of summer, preferably under 1hr 45 mins. I know it’s a lofty goal but I think it’s possible, and maybe next year I will run a half marathon! I always thought there’s no point in having goals unless they are there to better your life or challenge you so I might as well reach high.
Another goal of mine is to hike Saddle Back and Basin. I tried these mountains last October, however post Irene there was a huge washout, and a lot of steep rocks. Being so out of shape didn’t help, and then it started to snow at the top. I didn’t make it all the way up, which has never happened to me before, I was hugely disappointed in myself, but the fact that my toe nails are still black and blue shows that I probably made the right decision at the time. This season however I plan to make it to the top of both, if it kills me.
To help me reach this goal I have set a goal to hike at least 50 miles total before attempting it. I think having a little more experience, and being in better shape will help. I have been told that my running goals alone will help but I personally feel that’s a pile of poo. Hiking is a totally different animal, my quads can attest to that. Eventually I would like to complete all the 46 high peaks, as well as the true top 50. For those of you unfamiliar with the Adirondack High Peaks, the original high peaks were thought to be the only peaks above 4000 feet however later surveying revealed that 4 were actually below this level and 1 was left out. Also there are a lot of close by mountains that have really wonderful views, and hikes that get missed simply because they aren’t one of the high peaks. Someday I would like to do them all; I really feel like experiencing these mountains is truly part of being an upstater. In my plan of attack however I have included mountains outside of the Adirondacks, such as Greylock Mountain in Massachusetts. It’s surprisingly close, and the highest peak in the state, so good practice ground, plus it’s got some really pretty views. I did a day trip there last weekend with Alicia and we did a 7 mile round trip to a waterfall, and Stony Ledge . It was a nice way to start the weekend. The sky cleared up just as we made it to the point, and it started to warm up just as we were coming off the mountain. Unfortunately the boots I have been wearing since high school completely fell apart. Thank goodness Alicia decided to carry electrical tape for who knows what reason.
That hike included with a trip up to Big Slide Mountain a few weeks ago puts my total for the year already to 16.5 miles. Also I am now running roughly 3 miles 3 days a week.  Considering that its only May I think I really have a good chance at completing all of these goals, if of course I get some new shoes (I realize that I’ve been wearing the same running shoes since high school as well uh oh!), and stick with it. Wish me luck!