Saturday, December 31, 2016

You Were Made to Stand Out



This morning I pulled out my journal from the five months I interned at the Clohesy River Health Farm in Kuranda, Australia, under the tutelage of Dr. John Fielder.  It was a time of no distractions, everything needed, and nothing not needed.  Sometimes when I walk in the morning when all is quiet, I can feel the spirit of that place.  This year, in 2017, I want to make room for that feeling to be present more and more.

It is easy to make compromises while trying to fit in in with the environment...the culture.  At least it is for me. Just a little bit here...and a little bit there...so as not to be different.  The first thing you know, I have lost the very thing that makes me unique and interesting.  No one admires us for fitting in.  I saw a billboard one time that said, "You weren't made to fit it; you were made to stand out".

It is the time of year when we choose again whether it is more important to fit in or stand out.  Right now, today, I have no interest in fitting in.  It's a new year....so let's go....and do the things that make us stand out!

***

Morning: Lemongrass tea; banana

Lunch:  Green Smoothie (coconut water; shredded coconut, dates, chia seeds, papaya, pineapple, kiwi, strawberries, frozen topical fruit, bananas); Almonds

Dinner: Green Salad (romaine, green onion, cucumber, tomato); Bottom of the Bowl Dressing (avocado, 1/2 lemon juiced, Braggs Organic Sprinkles); Bubbies Kosher Dill Pickle; Bubbies Sauerkraut; Raw Peanuts; Lara Bar; Synergy Organic Kombucha.

***

New Years Resolutions have a place.  They are a good way to regroup and focus on what matters most to us, so even if we end up making the same resolutions we have made before, that is okay.  The way I see it, if the resolution keeps coming up, then it is something important to me.  The fact that I have not done it perfectly in the past does not negate the fact that it is important to me.

Raw foods is one of those things with me.  No matter the compromises I have made along the way, the desire to be raw can never be completely stifled.  It is like the Energizer bunny that takes a licking and keeps on ticking.

I want to eat raw foods to have a clear mind and body....fit for service.  That is what I want.  That is my first resolution.  My second resolution is to  find a way to feel more connected.  I believe I am in the right place at the right time and have not missed out on anything.  The important thing is that people know that they are loved.
***

How we relate to the laws of life determines how we experience life.  We build our health by understanding and applying these laws.  When we free ourselves from all unfounded theories that contradict the laws of life, we become in tune with reality and experience a fuller life and better health.

***

Did you know that permanent teeth develop from the 17th week of pregnancy.  We know that certain foods enable the teeth to grow properly.  It is a reproach when these needs are not met.  If we, as a society, would commit to eliminating diseased teeth, we would also eliminate the sicknesses that spring from diseased teeth.


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Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Love Your Enemies

Love Your Enemies


You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.  He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.  If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?  Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.


This reading comes from the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Matthew in the New Testament and is part of the Sermon on the Mount.  Jesus said this after he gave the commandment to, " Love thy neighbor as thyself".   There were some, though, that thought this did not apply to your enemies.  Jesus rejected that view.


This is an important teaching because it sets us completely apart from the world system.  In that same sermon, Jesus said...Resist not evil; but if anyone slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.


Jesus’ teaching to love your enemies sets up the idea that good and bad are not so easily defined.  He said, “Judge not that you be not judged”. That carries the same idea.  He also taught us to stop trying to separate the wheat from the tares and just let the two grow up together, and let God take care of it. It is not clear to us from our flawed perspectives exactly which side God is on.


Believe it or not, this applies to the way we approach healing and health.  Not only will this philosophy make us strong in our personal relationships and our politics, but also in our health. This is not a way of weakness, but rather it is a way of self reflection and accepting responsibility and for allowing healing to run its course.  It is a way to stop making the situation worse.


There is nothing in the world system that harmonizes with these teachings.  We are all about military might and keeping ourselves safe and combatting germs and viruses.  We are in a constant state of war….from microbes to nations to religions to aliens from outer space.


I have greater insight into these teachings now that I have studied Natural Hygiene and the Biogenic Lifestyle, because I have seen how our symptoms are healing symptoms.


Disease almost always presents itself when we have erred and become out of harmony with the Laws of God and Nature.  The enemy is there to clean up our mess and to make us change our ways.  It is painful, but if we will let it run its course, we will be better and healthier when the crisis is over...provided we have adjusted our lifestyles to be in harmony with the Laws of Life.


When you bring force to bear against the invader - the disease - you make it stronger.  For a time, it may appear that you have successfully suppressed the symptom, but it is still lurking hidden inside your body to appear later in a  more virulent form.


When we stop attacking the bad, and put all our efforts on improving the good, the bad will disappear.


The correct response, when confronted by any enemy is to first take a look at what our personal responsibility is in the situation.  Taking personal responsibility is the first step in healing.  Instead of killing your enemy, try loving it.  Be thankful that it is there to show you where you have missed the mark.


Your disease is a force of good to clean up the mess that you have made, and it will work for your good.  Your job is to stop contributing to the mess so the cleansing can succeed.


The law that appears to work against us is actually working for us.  We only need to learn how to think correctly and bring our thoughts and actions into harmony with the Reality that is God.


The Laws of Life are always working in our favor. Learning and growing enables us to live in harmony with the great, loving creative law. We find grace on every step of our journey.


In sickness, the correct response is to stop what you are doing, fast, pray, live simply, and expect to be healed.  Endure the pain, for joy comes in the morning.


Love your enemies.  Resist not evil.


I don’t see the material and the spiritual as being two separate things, but rather as two sides of the same coin.  Love is the binding agent to bring them together.  The trick is to learn how to think outside the mind viruses that run amok in the programming of our subconscious minds.  How many of your most cherished beliefs are actually mind viruses that have no basis in reality?


The quest is to awaken to your intuition….the higher mind...and lead from that mind.   Follow your heart.  Stop reacting from the programming.  You can make plans for your future, but do so by thinking intuitively in the present moment.


In the treatment of our dis-eases, the world systems looks at the body as being fundamentally flawed.  They approach sickness and disease as the enemy.  But there is another way...which is the way of self-responsibility and love.


Sometimes we are told that the body will break down and catch a disease, and nobody really knows exactly why or what to do about it.  They tell us that some diseases are just baffling...their cause is unknown...and we don’t really know what to do about it.    Then they tell us “Just follow the doctor’s orders.  Don’t think about going outside the establishment for cures though.  Those people out there are just quacks.


Sometimes we are told that the body will break down as we get older.  They say that disease is inevitable.  They might acknowledge that lifestyle choices involving nutrition, exercise and stress accelerate the breakdown of the body, but for the most part they have little faith in our ability to actually change our lifestyle habits.  Doctors with this mindset think that “We can fix this”.  They administer drugs, perform surgeries to replace worn out parts or cut them out completely, replace blood, and do whatever they can to give us a few more weeks, months, or years until the final breakdown comes.


Sometimes disease is blamed on  flawed genetics.  Our diseases are seen as destiny stored in our DNA with no hope of cure in most cases.  Actually diseases that are genetically determined and not preventable are very rare.  Dr. Bruce Lipton, who wrote Biology of Belief, says that studies have shown that an improved diet in mice can even prevent their genetic diseases from being passed on.


The China Study by T. Colin Campbell is a comprehensive study on nutrition.  It found that genes are virtually irrelevant when compared to diet.  Genes themselves don’t cause disease, but an unhealthy lifestyle and poor diet can change gene expression in such a way as to develop disease.  What we eat and the toxins to which we expose ourselves affect our genes.  Good nutrition very often overrules heredity.  Many people have recovered from genetic diseases by fasting and following an uncooked diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, and nuts and seeds.  When we supply the body with the correct diet and all the requisites of life, it is possible that even genetic errors, damaged genes and congenital defects may be corrected, either fully or to some extent.  More important than our genetics, is what we have done to keep our genes healthy.  Most of our health status is determined by diet, lifestyle choices and other environmental factors.  Genes are only part of the story.  There is now evidence that many diseases attributed to bad genes are actually caused by a bad diet that feeds the genes, affecting them for the worse.


The germ theory believes that disease-producing microorganisms are either present in the body or introduced into the body, and that they cause disease.  The cure is to get rid of the germs with drugs, usually by injections.  We are living in pandemic-phobic times.  The germ theory is pervasive in our collective American consciousness, and its tenets are powerful.


I think the best model for disease is based on the toxemia theory because it teaches health by healthful living. Everything at its most fundamental level is energy that follows natural laws.  If we cooperate with the natural laws of our being, we will have health.


In 1986, a book called Fit for Life by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond became an all-time best seller in the diet and nutrition category.  It was my introduction to Natural Hygiene, as well as many other people.  It made natural hygiene a household word. I bought the book as a diet book, back in the 1980’s and toyed around with the food combining.  Many of the tenets of the book just made common sense, but I did not become serious about breaking free of the herd at that point.


But in about 2005 or 2006, when I was feeling so desperately ill, and felt little hope for recovery, I prayed one night to be shown what to do.  In the morning I had the strong impression….Get out your Fit for Life books.  It was at that point that I did begin to practice and learn as much about Natural Hygiene as I could.  Fit for Life is Health 101.  It’s not the whole story, but it is a starting point.  Health via raw food is an alternative movement that is gaining momentum.


Here is the sequence of events:  we get sick because we become toxic, and we become toxic because our bodies run low on Nerve Energy.  Disease is an energy crisis in a toxic body.


Health by healthy living is a system that is grounded in human physiology and the health sciences.  It gets the best results for sick people that are seeking to recover their health.  For many sick people, it is the only route that will get them any good results at all.  The health care systems that work are based on principles that align with natural healing knowledge and health care.  To the degree that any alternative you choose harmonizes with these principles, to that degree it will be successful in helping you to get well and stay well.


Disease is the natural, normal result of toxic accumulations within the fluids and tissues of the human body as a result of nerve energy supplies being too low to keep itself clean.


Disease is toxin accumulation in the body that leads to a downward spiral of pathological symptoms.  The only cure of disease is a natural cure...health by healthy living.  It is based on giving the body energy enhancing conditions for health and removing energy draining leaks.  That is the only way the body can get the nerve energy it needs to go through the cleansing and repairing processes.  Sometimes a water fast can be appropriate with supervision, but nowadays, possibly, a raw juice fast will be safer.  


Enervation is an important word in natural healing.  Enervation is exhaustion so deep that the body is in deep trouble.  Enervation is the first step in the disease process. When the body is enervated it is so low in nerve energy that poisons that are created in the body or taken into the body accumulate in the fluids and cells, and finally in the tissues and organs.


Nerve energy is the low grade electricity that is generated by the brain to supply current to the body and to regenerate and repair all the tissues.  Nerve energy enables the body to function well through the use of nutrition from diet, air, water, and sunlight.. and also enables it to eliminate toxins from within and without. When we have a high state of nerve energy and are well-nourished on the ideal diet, the body has the vital force it needs to keep itself well-nourished and well cleansed, free of disease, and full of vitality.  A popular saying is moderation in all things, but that is an error. What we need is a lifestyle of moderation in all things good and avoidance of all things toxic so we can keep the demands upon the body at a reasonable level.  Health comes when nerve energy is high and body toxicity is at a healthful, homeostatic level!


What most people refer to as energy, in not nerve energy.   Most of the time the are referring to things we eat or drink, exercise, calories we eat,  stimulation, excitement, or mental and emotional activity.


Here is the key:
Anything the mind and body consumes from the outside, anything the mind and body generates in the form of creative thoughts or mental constructs or emotional output, anything the mind and body exerts in the form of muscular output is not nerve energy.  These activities are stimulating, and they may make us feel energized….but what is happening with these activities is we are expending nerve energy and not generating nerve energy.


The only way to restore nerve energy is through rest.  The brain, just like your phone or computer, is needs recharging on a daily and nightly basis.  We can only recharge nerve energy by sleep, resting, napping, quiet still time, and fasting when indicated.


When the body is so low on nerve energy that basic elimination at the cellular level is below par,  the poisons created within the body and poisons taken into the body from outside sources accumulate in the fluids and cells, and finally, in the tissues and organs and systems.  The elimination of toxic wastes is impeded.This accumulation ultimately leads to pathological symptoms.  The body has to operate under the severe handicap of toxic overload. The cure is based on providing the conditions for health and removing the energy-draining leaks so that the body can get its energy supplies up and initiate self-cleansing.


Poisons saturate the blood stream and the body fluids first...and then the cells, tissues, and organs. In the more advanced conditions of toxemia, all the body fluids and the cells and tissues are affected. The entire body is involved.  The weaker organs and body parts breakdown first.  It might be the blood vessels or one of the organs of elimination that takes the brunt of the poisons.


The downward spiral into disease will continue unless we bring about an intervention to reverse our course.


There are a lot of health teachers out there telling us that we got sick because we got toxic, but nearly all of them tell us to take something...or undergo some treatment or therapy to improve our condition.  Some will even say to change our diet...eat an all fruit or almost all fruit diet...or take long fasts.  But the truth is, we get the best results when we learn to live the simple, natural lifestyle that builds health.  This method is based on self-responsibility, education, and self-care. This approach will save you money and is totally non-toxic.


It is good news to realize that we are sick because we are toxic.  The body is not flawed, as we were told.  That should make us happy and excited!  The question we need to ask is, “What do I do to get back my energy and end my crisis?”  There is hope.  People get better within days or weeks of doing right and eating live foods!  There is a way to end the energy crisis in our toxic bodies and recover our health and joy.


There are two types of diseases...acute and chronic.   Symptoms are called acute in their early stages, and the body can make a complete recovery to health if corrective action is taken. Examples of acute illness are the common cold, a mild case of flu, diarrhea, headache, indigestion, fatigue, and the "itis" diseases in their early stages.


After disease has progressed until irreversible tissue damage has taken place it is called chronic and degenerative.  Examples of chronic disease include advanced cancers, emphysema, gangrene, ulcerative colitis, and rheumatoid arthritis.  In the cases of chronic disease, we can begin to follow the simple, natural lifestyle until an acute symptom develops, at which time we will begin a supervised fast or possibly a juice fast. The body can arrest the degeneration and often make a partial or near-full recovery when corrective action is taken immediately and strictly.


People just want to get well.  They want to get results.  And the very best results and fastest results come with healthful living habits.  The most important things to do to recover health is to focus on building the good, rather than fighting the bad.
  1. Get enough rest and sleep for building up Nerve Energy reserves
  2. Eat a raw food diet for energy conservation and for wholesome nutrition so that cells and tissues will be replaced with superior materials.
  3. Practice the daily fast,  which means no snacking and no eating after the evening meal until lunch the next day.  Omitting the breakfast meal conserves energy.


The only cure is the one that the body initiates and conducts and maintains.  Our job is to provide the conditions for health and remove the causes of disease.  The things we do to conserve and enhance nerve energy are our only medicine.


There are no treatments or therapies or pills or potions to take that will get you well:  there is only the self healing body receiving your natural, healthful loving care to get you well.


Only the body does the healing, so even diet, or fasting, or exercise should not be thought of as treatments or therapies.  They only provide the conditions for health.  Think outside the medical box and think of your own body as healer.  Make this paradigm shift and step through the looking glass if you want to get well and stay well without having to depend on drugs and doctors.


It is very popular now for people to do liver cleanses or some type of detoxification to rid their bodies of toxins.  They use toxins to reduce toxins.   This is enervating, toxic detoxification.  This is like beating a tired horse.  Their systems are already tired, and then they ingest substances that force their bodies into elimination.   The only detoxification that makes sense, is the natural, physiological processes of the body alone doing the cleansing, eliminating, and excretion of toxins by discontinuing toxic substances and practicing an energy enhancing lifestyle.


Detoxification never refers to taking some medicine or over the counter drug to help you cleanse.  


Our prescription is take these four nutritive energy enhancers:
Pure air, pure water, sunlight, and non-toxic raw foods.


There is only one disease...toxemia...and one cure...revitalization, cleansing, and repair.  Health is our hobby...an adventure...and fun.  Once you try it, you will be so glad you did.


These are the basic requisites of life....the things that enhance nerve energy.  When we practice them consistently, the body builds health.


  1. Cleanliness - inside and out
  2. Pure air
  3. Pure water
  4. Adequate rest and sleep
  5. The ideal diet of non-toxic, properly combined, raw fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouts, organic whenever possible
  6. Right temperature
  7. Adequate sunlight
  8. Regular exercise
  9. Emotional balance which includes freedom from addiction, high self-esteem, a purposeful life, and meaningful goals
  10. Nurturing relationships


The opposite of the energy enhancers of disease forces the body to adapt by building disease.  Any symptom that develops is the body's attempt to stay alive in less than ideal conditions. The primary cause of disease is lack of nerve energy or enervation, the secondary causes are legion, and they are seen in our energy draining lifestyle choices.  The cause is ultimately lifestyle related. We can learn to minimize the sources of toxemia by practicing an energy conserving lifestyle and by eliminating energy robbing habits.


The bad disappears when we focus on building up the good, which is what the good book meant when it said to resist not evil and to love our enemies.


We have met the enemy and he is us. - Pogo






Thursday, February 11, 2016

Acupuncture and Facial Spasms

Hello Friends,

What I have learned:
I was reading in the Quintessence of Natural Living by Kiki Sidhwa about his participation some years back at the Third World Congress of Alternative Medicine in Sri Lanka.  Dr. Sidhwa was the only representative of Natural Hygiene at the conference.

Of all the therapeutic schools in attendance, none of the other practitioners were teaching patients that they can create health and prevent disease by changing their lifestyles.

Dr. Sidwha, though, said that the acupuncturists have an advantage because they do not use drugs and dangerous chemicals with side-effects.  He testified to witnessing undeniable results that were sometimes miraculous compared to orthodox medicine.

In cases of paralysis due to poliomyelitis, he saw cases where after 8-15 years of paralysis the patient was able to walk after continuous acupuncture treatment.  It seems that in long-standing Bell's palsy, hemiphegia (paralysis on one side of the body), poliomyelitis, etc. the anterior horn cells (or their equivalents) are not all dead or irreversibly damaged as is presumed, but are usually in a state of suspended animation or hibernation.  Acupuncture stimulates these dormant cells, and they become active again!

I have a long-standing condition of about three years of hemi-facial spasms similar to Bell's Palsy.  At times it has been nearly debilitating.  Acupuncture, I know is not straight Nature Cure, but after reading Keki Sidhwa's observations about the results he saw demonstrated, I decided to give it a go. I made an appointment with an excellent acupuncture doctor in Little Rock, Dr. Martin Eisele, to begin treatments on Friday.  The facial twitch interferes with my flute playing, so hopefully this will help.



The Practice:
My brother, Max, came to see me yesterday.  I am sorry I failed to get a picture of us together!  Max is making some changes in his life to adopt a healthier lifestyle!  Maybe we can share his success stories as he goes along.

I walked three miles!  Total for the day on the Fit Bit was a little over 4 miles.

I started off the day with a big glass of lemon water.  1 peeled lemon blended in 24 ounces of spring water.
Lunch: papaya, coconut, almond butter, grapefruit, avocado, goody ball, banana

Dinner:  I had dinner at a potluck meal.  I took some Nori wraps, steamed potatoes, rice crackers, and goody balls.  I sampled some of the vegan dishes there...some bok choy, raw jicama, and a tomato soup.

We sang a little song last night, a Weston Priory hymn.  The refrain says...All I ask of you is forever to remember me as loving you.

I am using my vegetable peeler to make thin slices of butternut squash.

Tanny Raw Recipe for Guacomole Dip.
1 bunch of celery hearts
1/4 jalapeno pepper
1 peeled lime, pith and all
1 cup butternut squash
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 bunch of cilantro
Blend all together in the Vitamix or food processor.


Nori Wrap Rolls
On a Nori sheet layer some of the guacomole dip, three leaves of baby Artisan lettuce, a few butternut squash noodles, and 1/2 of a green onion cut lengthwise.  Damp one end, roll tightly and seal.  Cut into thirds with a sharp knife.

Notes:
Learning and growing and opening up to new experiences and different people is a good thing.  It opens your range of vision so that you can see from a wider perspective.  Everything about your experience is determined by your perspective.

Negative energy is less powerful than positive energy.  Instead of fighting against the negative, it is better to focus on building up the positive.  In practical terms, I am focusing on eating 80% raw, intermittent fasting, walking three miles a day, and blogging.  I am not perfect, but I am getting better.  More important than being perfect is being consistent.

To health and happiness.

Monday, February 8, 2016

Two Schools of Thought


There are two schools of thought on health and healing and disease.  One school of thought believes that disease is caused by something external...whether it be a devil, a witch doctor, bacteria, or viruses.  Since it is caused by something outside, an external remedy is needed.  Over the ages those remedies have included magic, poisonous drugs, herbs, and surgeries.

The other school of thought believes that disease is the effect we suffer from breaking the laws of Nature. This group believes that healing will result when we stop breaking these laws.  This is called vis medicatrix naturae - the healing power of nature.  This is the basis of Nature Cure, Natural Hygiene, and Biogenic Living.

Nature Cure is not alternative medicine.  It is an alternative to medicine.  Alternative medicine is still the practice of medicine, as even homeopathic remedies, herbs, vitamins, minerals, essential oils, and even foods can be used in a medicinal way.  The side effects of these natural medicines will be less harmful than pharmaceuticals, but, nevertheless, they are used to treat symptoms.  They make no attempt to remove the cause.  Just because it is called natural, even though it claims to help the body heal itself, it is yet treating an effect....not a cause.


Lunch:  It was Sunday so I took a fruit platter, goodie balls,  coconut, rice crackers, and raw milk cheese to the potluck at our church.  
 
I made crackers from carrot pulp and chia seeds.


Carrot Pulp Chia Seed Crackers
2 cups water
Carrot pulp from making juice using 2-1/2 small bags of carrots
1/2 cup chia seeds

Blend in Vitamix until smooth.
Spoon heaping tablespoons on Teflex sheets and flatten to about 1/4" thick.
Dehydrate overnight or until crispy.  Set temp on about 110 degrees

Making zucchini noodles to go in the salad.
Dinner was a salad made with lettuce, radish, onion, cucumber, and zucchini noodles.
I made a dressing to go on the salad. Recipe follows.   Also, I had raw milk cheese, rice crackers, and an orange.

Chili Sauce Dressing
6 Tbsp of date bits
1 roma tomato
1/4 cup raw cashews
1/2 lemon, peeled
1 Tbsp wakame seaweed
2/3 cup water
1/2 Tbsp chili powder

Blend in Vitamix until smooth.

I did not get my walking in because for some reason when we come in from church, I just want to crash.  It's crazy, but I have no energy to do anything the rest of the day.  I am working on building up my energy reserves.

Don't overthink things.  Sink deeply into your practice ...simply enjoying every moment.  Try to have fun with everything.  LIGHTEN UP.  LIGHT UP.   Letting your light shine may be as simple as having fun.  Enjoy!

To health and happiness.

Friday, February 5, 2016

The Great Starvation Experiment / Tomato Hemp Sauce Recipe


The fruit basket looks pretty when it is full of fresh fruit.

Have you ever wondered why it is so hard to lose weight no matter what you do or how hard you try?  Do you blame yourself, and say, " If I could just be more disciplined and exercise more will power I would be able to succeed on my diet." Maybe it is not all your fault!

I read a book a while back called The Great Starvation Experiment - Ancel Keys and the Men Who Starved for Science by Todd Tucker.  This book is a good read for anyone struggling with weight issues.

During WWII, beginning in 1944, thirty-six volunteers, conscientious objectors, were hand-picked to participate in a year-long study conducted by Ancel Keys on the effects of starvation.  All were men, about 5'10", about 145 lbs, and in excellent health.  This experiment took place in the basement of the football stadium at the University of Minnesota.  The men were told this study would help with the relief efforts in Europe following the war, and most were eager to do something meaningful in the war effort that did not conflict with their pacifism.

I was amazed to learn at what level of caloric intake the body goes into starvation mode.  A graph on page 85 of the book charts the caloric intake of the men compared to their weight.  The normal caloric intake for the men was between 3000-3500 calories.  They were fed at this level for three months to determine what number of calories were needed to maintain weight.  The second stage of the experiment lasted for six month.  During this time the caloric intake was cut in half while activity levels remained the same.  During this stage the men were fed about 1500 calories per day. The third stage of the experiment, the re-feeding,  lasted three months.  During this time the men were divided into three groups.   One group received an additional 400 calories, one received 800 calories, and one received 1200 calories.

The most important thing I have learned from this experiment is that 1500 calories a day is not a sustainable diet.  These men looked like POW's by the end of six months on that amount of calories. Not only were they skin and bones, but all sorts of mental and emotional issues manifested.

Have you noticed that most diet plans recommend 1500-1800 calories a day?  That diet is not sustainable, and when you try to live on a starvation diet by choice, your will power will only take you so far.  The body's need for glucose and calories will win out every time.  That's when people binge!  Has that not been our experience?

Don't ever think for a minute that the people selling you diet plans are not aware of this study!  They know you can go on their restrictive diets and lose weight until you fail and go on an eating binge.  You never blame the diet, though.  You blame yourself for being weak, undisciplined, and lacking in will power.  So then you go back again to try another restrictive diet with a metabolism that will make it even harder to lose weight.

The truth is, women need to be eating about 2500 calories a day and men need about 3000 calories a day minimum.  After years of restrictive eating, you will probably gain weight during the re-feeding stage, but the weight will normalize over time.

Instead of calorie restriction, the way to health is whole, ripe, raw or mostly raw fruits and vegetables!

We bought $100.13 worth of whole, ripe, raw fruits and vegetables yesterday at the grocery store.
Close up pictures follow for a better view.  







Lunch:  1/2 papaya; 1/2 avocado/ 1/2 grapefruit; grated coconut; apple, almond butter.  The orange was saved for another day.
Dinner:  Leftover chopped salad; 1/2 avocado, zucchini pasta with a tomato hemp dressing; rice crackers

Recipe for Tomato Hemp Sauce to go over spiralized zucchini noodles:

Tomato Hemp Sauce
1 tomato
1 roma tomato
1/4 cup hemp seeds
Juice of 1 lemon
2 little colored bell peppers
A few red pepper flakes

Serve over zoodles.


To health and happiness.





Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Humility is a Good Trait



Don't try to make anyone like you.  Don't do that anymore.  Instead, be yourself and see who likes you.  There will be plenty of people that will connect with you.

Humility is a good trait, because humility means you are not trying to be noticed or liked, but you are going about your business without fear, confidently, letting your light shine without trying to impress anyone.

Light does not make a lot of noise.  Open up your heart and let the light shine in.  "There is a crack in everything.  It's how the light gets in." - Leonard Cohen  You don't need to fix yourself first.  No, accept that you (and the others) don't need fixing.  Love what is.  You just need to get out of your head and into your heart.

Speaking of light...Sunglasses disrupt the endocrine system.  Sunlight on the eyes triggers the pineal gland to open.  So let the sun shine in and open up your pineal gland.
***
The aim of Natural Hygiene is to cleanse the body and the mind.  It is amazing how what you eat affects what you think. I am not sure a person can escape being trapped in ego while eating mostly dead, denatured foods.  Maybe it is possible, but it will be easier and more likely if you can give up the addictive and harmful foods.  I am preaching to myself here.

A simple, natural lifestyle goes hand in hand with humility.  We can't afford to be arrogant and hope to succeed. We hope to have a better attitude towards the earth and everything that lives from her.  "Honor your heavenly father and your earthly mother. "   Instead of destroying and tearing down, we want to live in harmony and preserve her.  It does not honor God to degrade our earthly home.  We are here to learn and grow, not to make a mess.

No one can make us happy but ourselves.  We have to live with yourselves 24-7. Wherever we go, there we are.  If we are depending on someone else to make us happy, then we are going to be disappointed.  It does not matter so much about our circumstances.  Society tells us we will be happy when we have special treatment or friends or money, and so on.  But true happiness is found within yourself.  So don't expect someone else to make you happy.  The truth is, we are here to give happiness, not to try to manipulate someone else into giving us happiness.  We have the ability to let our light shine.  The more we give, the more we will have.  We will be prosperous when we can choose to be happy with what we have.
***

I am making plans to make goodie balls again.  I have been lazy and have been just mixing some almonds, seeds, and date bits in a bowl, but I think having the goodie balls readily available will help me with my diet plan.  I probably won't have time to make them until Friday, but I have all the ingredients lined up and ready to go.
Goodie Ball ingredients.


I bought a raw food dessert at the health food store a couple of weeks ago.  It was calls Rawmio Organic Raw Chocolate Truffle Cake.  It costs $40.00 and even the raw food group can only eat a little bit.  I think the goodie balls will be a healthier, better tasting,  and more economical.


 Travis and I went to Bryant to help our daughter and grand-daughter move some furniture into their booth at an antique mall.  Our pay was lunch at a place called Fresh Cafe.  I do the best I can when in social situations, but usually it is not good enough.   I ate a banana and some almonds and a little bit of green smoothie during the morning.  At the restaurant I ordered a raw milk pimento cheese sandwich on sourdough bread, a fruit cup, and fruit infused water.

Dinner at home was sauerkraut, chopped salad with lime and flaxseed dressing, rice crackers, plain baked sweet potato, and green peas.

I walked 3.42 miles.

Our hot tub has been repaired so I got in the hot tub for a few minutes.  The pool guy says that we are using chemicals in it that are not unhealthy. We shocked it with Borax.
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I still have a mild headache.  I am not sure if it is from the caffeine withdrawal or the lunch at a restaurant.

I bought some seeds for my little garden.

To health and happiness.




Friday, January 29, 2016

Listen to Your Heart

I am still very sleepy from caffeine withdrawal.  I slept about twelve hours, waking up at 8:00 this morning!  I usually wake up about 5:00.  Thankfully, no severe headache so far.  Maybe I am out of the woods on that.  It makes sense to sleep more after giving up caffeine, because the body recuperates energy while sleeping.  Since the withdrawal from energy stores is no longer happening, it seems logical to me that the body would sleep to begin to restore them.

***
None of us enjoy perfect relationships or friendships.  That problem is common to all of us.  We don't always support each other.  I can remember times when I have failed to be supportive of someone close to me because I was afraid.  We are afraid of having our boundaries challenged and afraid of not feeling safe and accepted.  We always mightily resist anything that challenges the ego.

What would we be like if we had no fear? We can become better at that when we see ourselves as connected to our brothers and sisters and not separate.  I believe this feeling of separateness is magnified because of our separation from nature.  We no longer feel alive from the forces of nature, so we are afraid to trust the invisible.  We are living from the ego rather than the heart.  When we spend time in nature we have more connection to each other and to our own heart.

The ego keeps us busy trying to live up to an impossible ideal.  Trying to be something...anything...is a futile task.  If you want to be happy, stop trying and just be.  When we try to save our lives, we lose them, but when we are ready to lose our lives, we will find them.

Natural Hygiene is about losing yourself.  I remember Dr. Fielder telling someone one time that in order to heal from severe chronic illness one must be willing to die.  That to me is a beautiful expression of surrendering to the laws of nature.  When you give it all up and submit to natural law, you will find out what is possible.  Health and happiness are not for sale.  When you are alone in the egoic mind you will never find true happiness, but when you can surrender to God you are found to be most precious.

Listen to your gut and  your heart for direction.  I remember several years ago when I had the feeling of a claw gripping its talons into my gut.  I don't feel that much anymore, but my gut  was telling me that I was not following my heart - my authentic self.  I was being held in check by my egoic mind.  I knew what I "should" be doing, and I was trying to live up to that "ideal", but the claw was there to give me warning.

The more we can openly express ourselves as we are - not as we "should" be - the happier and freer and healthier we will be.


***

Yesterday:  
Walked 2 miles.

Lunch:  1/2 papaya, 1/2 grapefruit, 1/2 avocado, apple, almond butter, coconut.

Preparing the fruit for lunch.

Dinner:  Chopped Salad made with bagged romaine salad, cucumber, and tomato; Dressing made with lemon juice, flaxseed oil, and Suddenly Organic seasoning; seaweed tamari rice crackers, sauerkraut, 1/2 avocado, pinto beans, baked fries, Ginko Clarity tea.


To health and happiness.



Thursday, January 28, 2016

Coffee Withdrawal. Love and Light.

First day without coffee.  Enjoying a Yogi tea, Ginko Clarity.
The tea bag message - By honoring your words, you are honored.
I am having some coffee withdrawal symptoms, although not as severe as I was expecting.  The worst symptoms are a mild headache, can't hold my eyes open sleepy, and maybe a little depression.  I am a little teary and feeling sorry for myself.  Caffeine withdrawal should only last a few days, and then onward and upward.
***
Fear comes from the mind.  I want to follow my heart.  When you feel like no one loves you, try to remember that everyone else wants the same thing you want.  They want to feel loved and worthy and valued.  You can help others feel love once you open your own heart to let the love and light shine in.   This means you stop the criticism and brow-beating of yourself first, and then the others.  The answer is always more love.

Natural Hygiene teaches that our best potential  for health and happiness comes from living the simple natural life free of remedies, cures, potions, and pills.  In the same way, our best potential for loving relationships comes when we stop trying and just be authentic.  Live in harmony with Nature and Nature's God.  Let the good energy flow.

Eliminate everything and every situation that does not speak to your heart while at the same time checking to see if fear is persuading you to NOT follow your heart.

Sometimes we have to give up the ideal picture of what we think SHOULD be and accept what is available.  This is the place where we learn and grow and love and experience life.  We make the best of what we have.  Whatever you have, make the best of it.  Things will never be perfect, so don't miss out on what is here for you.  If you look for the good, you will find a way to be happy and joyful.

Accept yourself the way you are.  It's sometimes easier to stop finding fault in others than it is to stop finding fault in yourself.  Look for things that make you happy.  Happiness is an attitude.

We really don't know very much about anything.  We don't understand much about love or time or human emotions.  Our knowledge is limited.  We are our own worst enemies, because usually we let the mind, with its limited knowledge, be in control of our decisions. Society builds up your egoic mind so you can be easily influenced.  We are hoping to change that and be guided by the heart and be compassionate and feel our connection to others.  That is what it means to be holy....whole....healthy.

Fresh coconut and avocado for lunch

I was out of almost everything so this is what I had for lunch:
Green Smoothie, 1/2 grapefruit, apple, almond butter, coconut

Green Smoothie Recipe for Two
2 bananas
Water from the coconut I cracked
2 kiwi
2 cups frozen blueberries
2 Tbsp chia seeds
2 cups frozen tropical fruit
A little more water

For dinner I went to a potluck with some healthy minded friends.  I made a salad and cooked a pot of pinto beans.  The salad was a bagged romaine salad with tomato and cucumber.
Dinner:  Salad, Lemon Juice and Flaxseed oil dressing, sauerkraut, rice crackers, pinto beans, a little vegetarian soup, a little trail mix, and a few pistachios.
At the potluck, we watched a movie:  Mr. Peabody and Sherman.  It was fun.

To health and happiness.

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Popcorn is Not a Food. Coffee is a Stimulant.

Popcorn is not a food.  Coffee is a stimulant.  Giving up coffee and popcorn will cut you loose from two addicting foods.  They are not needed to live a happy, healthy, abundant life.  The promises they hold out are false, and they are not needed.  The goal is "everything you need, and nothing you don't".

Popcorn is not a food.  Addiction to non-food items, such as clay, ice, and POPCORN, could indicate the need for more minerals from leafy greens.  When the craving for a non-food item hits, ask yourself how you can give the body more minerals.

Coffee is a stimulant - pulling from the reserves of energy.  There is no energy in the coffee.  The energy surge is coming from the body's stored energy, leaving you poorer in the end.  Stopping the energy leaks will allow the body to begin to build up vitality.Stimulants take a heavy toll.  

Do you use stimulants to drown out that inner voice that is saying, "You are not good enough"?  That is the ego talking.  The ego is not the truth teller, though.  The ego always speaks first - and loudest.  Realize it for what it is.  The truth will speak in a stiller, smaller voice.

The choice is Head vs Heart.  Giving up addictive foods...such as coffee and popcorn...will make it easier to hear the still, small voice.

Stimulants and addictive substances have a negative impact on the pineal gland...the seat of the soul...the sixth sense.  Descartes said it is the location of the mind.  The pineal gland produces melatonin in the dark, while we sleep.  Melatonin regulates our body rhythms.  As we age the pineal gland calcifies and melatonin production decreases, which triggers the aging process.

Dopamine connects to spiritual experiences and the pineal gland.  It can become narcotic because it puts your mind ahead of your body.  When dopamine is increased, you can have insomnia.  You overwork the adrenals, and mess with your pineal gland and intuition.  It puts you out of balance.
You are resistant to giving up coffee because it is connected to the feel good hormone dopamine which influences the pineal gland.

As I get back on track with my biogenic lifestyle, I will be required - led by the heart - to let go of caffeine.  It is not needed.

Walked 3.10 miles yesterday.

Yesterdays Food:
I had coffee and popcorn both.  That is why the morning pages spoke to me about eliminating those two foods.

Lunch:  1/2 papaya, kiwi, coconut, apple, almond butter, 1/2 avocado, 1/2 grapefruit, 2 small slices of raw milk cheese, trail mix.

Lunch - I didn't eat the banana.

Dinner:  chopped salad with dressing, seaweed tamari crackers, sauerkraut, 1/2 avocado, cooked cabbage.

Dinner salad with crackers. Reading material is a lesson from my Natural Hygiene course.
Salad:  bagged salad, tomato, onion, pickle, cucumber, carrot, celery, Topped with chopped avocado.



Lucy looks pretty with her new haircut.

To health and happiness.