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Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Monday, April 1st, 2013
If you have been keeping up with me you know that I began “Living Vision Agreements” about 3 months ago now. With all of the traveling I am doing creating a video log (VLOG) feels like a more practical way to keep you updated on my progress, and to possibly even inspire some of you to make agreements of your own.
The below video was my first and very impromptu “Agreements” vlog. It introduces you to my process in taking on these agreements, what they are, what I have accomplished so far and what my most recent agreement was. It’s a little long (30 minutes), so you may enjoy listening to it while doing some mindless task. If you don’t have the 30 minutes but would like to get a bit of the update, I suggest hopping around and watching a bit from the beginning, middle and end. That way you can hear about how it began, what agreements I have completed and what I am currently practicing.
Future vlog’s will be kept under 10 minutes and you can subscribe to my youtube page here to be automatically updated when a new video is posted. There are a number of impromptu recipe videos up, featuring myself and my son at various ages. We will continue recipe videos in the near future with ongoing agreements to welcome intimacy and inspire some hearts to courageously make the effort toward blossoming!
Onto the video ~ Enjoy!
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Sunday, March 17th, 2013
For just under 30 days 95% of my food consumption has come from whole, unrefined foods. This may not seem like such a stretch to some and yet to others it would be the diametrical opposite to what they know and can fathom. For me it was less of a stretch than I imagined.
Taking the steps to eat this way for a prolonged period made clear that it is possible to live this way, even for a busy and budgeted family, but more importantly has proven to me to be the most grounding and satisfying way to eat. I have room to grow in the area of menu planning, because to do it right one needs time to properly prepare the foods. Meaning, I know a couple or more days in advance what I will be preparing so that I can soak, sprout, slow cook or dehydrate whatever it is that I am planning on serving. (Before becoming a Momma, I mostly ate whole raw foods, but since then everything changed and making my way back has been a slow process.)
All in all, I have done okay and now that I am getting into the habit it will be much easier to continue in this vein even without having a public “Agreement” about it. It is great (for me) to take on these agreements even without “proper” preparation (whatever that may mean). I say this because even though I didn’t plan ahead, being that I had made an agreement meant that I wasn’t going to go for the “easy fix” – ever.
In truth I was more prepared than I am giving myself credit for. For instance, I bought nuts, raw buckwheat, seeds etc, soaked, sprouted, dehydrated, put into jars and filled my cupboards. Although I didn’t have specific plans for any of the said items, when I craved something I had ingredients that I felt great about using to fill the craving; Chocolate Energy Bars, Raw Apple Spice Grawnola, I made dressings to have on hand and with those made kale chips, zucchini chips, easy salads, I made fermented veggies. There you have it, I didn’t have menus perse, but I did have what to grab from when I wanted something. Feeding my family is where the menu planning would come in handy. Although I can grab at all those foods and make a super satisfying meal, my husband and son are looking for something a little more substantial.
These agreements are changing me habit by habit. Being rigid about each agreement for the month gives me space to reset unserving habits. Although I am not rigid about not eating after 7pm, I no longer eat after dinner (which for me is HUGE). Now that I have completed my second agreement I already feel that eating mostly whole foods and a high percentage raw will be easy and desired since I committed this time to eating that way. I already know I will not be 100% rigid about all whole all the time, because there will be times I want to go out with my family, or will be at a meal where that is not possible. But eating that way 90% of the time, in my own home feels like a given at this point.
My “Agreements” will continue on as I allow for my “Living Vision” to manifest more and more in alignment with the Integrity of All I Am! I honor these practices and humbly bow my head in the face of the next upcoming agreement. I trust spirit will support me in navigating this brand new territory of eating to 80% full. Stay tuned for the agreement coming on March 19th.
Question for the day:
What is a life practice you have been wanting to take on but have skirted around and around?
Perhaps you will give yourself the gift of 30 days to try that practice on for size. You may find out, once you relax through the discomfort, that you are more powerful than you knew and more content in that new way than you ever imagined!With Love and Support,
Chaya
Photo credit: Images by John ‘K’ / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND
Photo credit: MalayalaM / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA
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Sunday, March 10th, 2013
To read the original “30 unrefined days agreement” click here.
It’s the end of my 3rd week in “30 unrefined days” (save maple syrup, cacao and unrefined oils) and one of my most challenging and telling moments happened just this a.m. Most people have days when they feel a bit down and need some sort of a boost. This morning was like that for me times 10, via an overwhelming feeling of sadness.
I was having a really hard time of intentionally shifting my energy although I did take the time to do some centering exercises. As Hodie was nursing I was breathing in and visualizing the Infinite light of life, and doing my best to settle into that feeling of perfection and unity, yet when I came out of the meditative mode my spirit was still feeling the pressure of sadness. I checked in with myself to see what it was really about and many different scenarios arose, none of which I could instantaneously change (at least physically, I am working on the mental end of it). The “telling” part of it all was that I KNEW that a latte, and a piece of chocolate could turn my frown upside down! Now WHAT in the world is that all about?
Because none of those options were available (at least right away) I had the opportunity to reflect on the fact that I was sad, couldn’t make an immediate change and therefore wanted to eat these mind altering substances – crutches keeping me from dealing with the reality of my moment. Being that today was a “coffee” day (the original agreement allowed for 2 and I amended it to allow 3 cups a week) I decided to walk up to the bakery and get my latte. My husband agreed to watch our son so I could have the walk to reflect. Walking has always been an outlet for connecting to my heart and prayer, and that is exactly what this walk turned into.
The walk still ended at the bakery, and in the end I still had my latte, but my energy had already profoundly shifted (another enlightening moment in that although I couldn’t change immediate circumstances, I could shift my energy and feelings via immediate actions like asking for support and going for a walk!). While ordering the latte I noticed how my mind was experiencing the idea of eating a sourdough roll, and how that would completely (at least for the time being) even further shift my mood. I didn’t buy the roll, but I did notice the feeling and the thought of it. Craving coffee makes sense because of the caffeine and it’s immediate chemical effect, the chocolate also because of the tryptophan, phenylethylamine, and other mind altering, heart opening chemical constituents, but why the bread? Do you know? I’ll have to look further into it, for now my only guess is the simple carbs turning into sugars, and something about the light and chewy texture that hits my “comfort zone” spot. All in all just really interesting to notice, but not act on these addictive tendencies.
I came home and decided to make my own chocolate treat. This was my facebook post after making them:
“One of those “I really want some Chocolate” mornings. So glad that I have the knowledge (and the prepared – soaked, sprouted, dehydrated – ingredients on hand) to throw some delicious treats together at the drop of a dime that completely hit the spot! For this I am grateful. Otherwise I may have been on the verge of a local bakery breakdown…not really, but the thought did cross my mind. 3+ weeks all whole foods  ”
Here’s what I had on hand – Sprouted and dehydrated sesame seeds, soaked and dehydrated walnuts, sprouted and dehydrated buckwheat groats, maple syrup, cacao powder, sea salt and vanilla. In a flash those simple ingredients became awesome little chocolate energy bars, and they did hit the spot. I‘ll post the recipe later this week, but it goes to show that having the good stuff on hand makes a world of difference. Admittedly the thought did cross my mind of throwing the agreement out the window for one sourdough roll to bandaid my burdened heart strings. I didn’t do it, I don’t think I would have even if I didn’t have the good stuff on hand, but having the good stuff made a world of difference.
With one week to go on this agreement I have had many thoughts of the next agreement to come. As I posted in my most recent newsletter I am pretty certain that I will go with 30 days of Hara Hachi Bu, the Japanese method of eating to 80% fullness. Many cultures have similar teachings around not eating until you are completely full. The Rambam a Jewish Philosopher and Physician recommended eating to ⅔ full. In western dietary principles I have heard it is best to leave 20% of your belly free for digestive fluids and space for digestion to occur. Ever since I was obese as a teenager, and no matter where I went with my food intake (even juice feasting for 92 days) I ate well beyond the 80% mark. Even if I were eating the cleanest diet on the planet – if I am over eating I am not serving my body or doing the food and all that went into it’s production, any justice. This will be a huge challenge for me and a huge accomplishment to pull off and get comfy with. More on that as I finish out the final week of my current agreement.
Back to the present; eating a whole food diet feels very natural to me and at the end of the day there is no guilt around what I eat. there is still some guilt around how much, which is where my next agreement falls into place. I love that with these first two agreements (night eating and 30 unrefined days) they are becoming habits and patterns that are sticking. With night eating I am not stopping all food intake by 7 p.m. as that was too rigid with the changing season and sunset, but after dinner I am not eating. I still tend to watch a movie or other program after Hodie goes to bed (a future agreement will come from that habit), but I have not been eating or drinking during that time which is HUGE for me! Eating all whole foods has felt so good that I can foresee it becoming the regular pattern – with some room for a meal out here and there (we don’t do it much, but again I am just not into the rigidity or extremism of saying never).
Thats about all I have to share for this week, an earful and thanks for reading if you made it down to this point.
Question for today:
Do you know or have any thoughts on why BREAD is a trigger for emotional eating and numbing?
Thank you for reading and thank you for sharing.
In Love,
Chaya
Photo credit: AlicePopkorn / Foter.com / CC BY-SA
Photo credit: Mary.Do / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND
Posted in 30 Unrefined Days, LV Agreements, Uncategorized | No Comments »
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