Are You Living to Your Full Potential?

- by Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo

Do you have dreams, visions, or unfulfilled ambitions? Do you sometimes think about the things you’d like to do then stop without even trying because you’re afraid you won’t have the energy or strength to complete?

What’s holding you back?

Are you:

• Tired?
• Burned out?
• Unfocused?
• Uncomfortable?
• Dealing with aches, pains, and health challenges that leave you with little energy to pursue anything outside of your day to day obligations?
• Or perhaps you’re embarrassed about the extra weight you’re carrying around and are afraid to put yourself in the spotlight.

What if it didn’t have to be that way?  What if you could overcome your fears, refuel your energy tank, and get rid of all the excuses that hold you back?

Bustin’ Excuses with Berkson

My friend Lindsey Berkson is my icon for someone who does not allow circumstances to get in the way of achieving her goals.  She was a “victim” since birth, yet refuses to see herself that way.  Her mom took DES while pregnant with her.  DES is a potent drug that prevents miscarriages and causes cancer and other very serious illnesses in the offspring.

As a result, Lindsey wound up with breast cancer and has had several organs removed as a result of the exposure.  She only has 1 kidney, half a thyroid gland, and only one ovary.

The prediction for premature death and debilitating illness for DES survivors is very high.

Lindsey decided at an early age that she was going to beat the odds.  As a result, she became an avid researcher in the health and nutrition field.  She learned early on that maintaining excellent nutrition and lifestyle habits were not only a good idea…they were crucial to the quality of life.

You’ll never believe what she is in the process of doing.  To me, it’s mind-blowing.  When she called me on Saturday and told me about it, I was shocked.  Most women in their twenties wouldn’t have the guts or the strength and stamina to do what she’s doing.   SHE’S WELL INTO MENOPAUSE and is missing some organs.  What an inspiration.

What is that dream in your heart?

What’s getting in the way?

Pick something you’d like to accomplish.   Write it down, then think of all the steps that need to be taken to get you there.  You can do it, if you believe you can and take really good care of yourself…

…like Lindsey.

Healthy Meals in a Hurry: A 3-Step Guide for Busy People

- by Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo

“What can I eat that supports my health, tastes great, and is quick and easy to get on the table?”

I get asked this question all the time.  People wonder how I manage to eat so healthfully when I am so busy.  This is an actual comment, taken from a recent consultation form:

“One of my challenges is making food for myself – I would love to have someone else do it. I don’t want to be taking time at lunchtime to do that – so I tend to nibble and then get hungry in the afternoon – then work too late, so I’m really hungry at dinner time – and need to eat right away.”

I have hundreds more just like it!

My friend and colleague, Chef Karen Osborne, is one of the busiest people I know, besides me of course.  As a home schooling Mom, choir member, volunteer at church, personal chef, instructor and Fresh ‘n Fun co-op manager she’s constantly juggling this activity and that. Yet she always manages to eat high green, delicious, nutrient-dense meals.

How does she do it?

She’ll be sharing her secrets in our One Dish Meals raw food class, but I thought I would give you a few hints and tips today to help you put healthy meals on the table in less than the time it takes to order pizza.

Step 1: Stock Your Brain with Purpose

Consistently choosing healthy foods to consume, despite time pressures requires a mindset shift.  It starts by focusing on what’s most important to you–making the connection between what you value most and healthy meal choices. Then, you must simply act from that place of knowing what you value most.

It sounds simple, and it is.  Implementation takes dedication and truly connecting to your core values.  One thing Karen and I have in common is a framework of reference that we get what we most want in life when we feel strong and energetic.  We feel strong and energetic when we eat lots of green foods and avoid the energy zappers like gluten, dairy, sugar and processed foods.

If we’re rushed or out and the food choices don’t support our ultimate goal, we hold true to our values and don’t eat the foods that will tire or weaken us.

Step 2: Stock Your Kitchen with Essentials

The next step is more practical.  Make sure to keep your house stocked with lots of whole foods.  With a little forethought and careful shopping, you can have foods around that you can prepare in a hurry.

Here’s a list of recommended food items to always have around:

• Tomatoes
• Avocados
• Sprouts
• Lemons
• A variety of dried herbs and spices
• Seeds, like sunflower, pumpkin, chia or hemp
• Raw nuts
• Greens
• Sea vegetables
• Powdered sea veggies, like kelp.
• A variety of vegetables like cucumber, celery, carrots, and peppers

Step 3: Stock Your Meals with Creativity

I was in a hurry to get something to eat for dinner tonight, so here’s an example of throwing a healthy meal together in only 5 steps:

1. I went down to the kitchen and found an avocado, a tomato and a jar of sauerkraut.
2. I sliced the tomato in rounds and placed them on a plate.
3. I sliced the avocado and placed the slices on top of the tomato (sometimes instead of avocado, I spoon nut or seed cheese on top).
4. I put a dollop of sauerkraut on each tomato slice.
5. I sprinkled the works with Italian seasoning and kelp powder

I had a delicious meal in less than 5 minutes!

In our One Dish Meals class we’ll be sharing how to whip up a one dish meal using whatever you have around.  Again, the key to quick and easy meals is having an open mind, having the ingredients on hand, and tuning in to your creativity.  Think outside the box.  Learn from people who have been there, done that.

Use your imagination.

Join us for Delicious One Dish Raw Food Meals! It’s guaranteed to be a winner!

Juicing for Energy: How a Juice Cleanse Feeds Every Cell in Your Body

- by Dr. Ritamarie Loscalzo

If you’ve ever done a juice cleanse where you consume primarily or exclusively fresh pressed juice for a specified length of time, you may have already experienced the state of “juice euphoria”  that comes from having a clean digestive tract and a clear mind.

There is something very freeing about not eating for several days to several weeks and allowing your body to rid itself of toxins.

Each cup of vegetable juice is jam packed with all the nutrients you need to give your mitochondria the raw materials to make energy for you.  When you juice rather than eat, the nutrients make a bee-line right into your blood stream, allowing every cell in your body to feel alive and energized.

Most people think that if they do a juice cleanse – meaning consuming nothing but juice for several days or longer – that they’ll feel weak and tired.  Quite the contrary in most cases.  Think nutrients for starving cells.  When you eat in the usual fashion – meaning low nutrient food consumed on the run and under stressful circumstances – there’s very little nutrition, and your digestive system does not digest it well.

If you typically feel less energetic after eating, or crave food even when your stomach is telling you to stop, you just may benefit from a juice cleanse.  Your approach can be as simple as replacing a meal or two with fresh squeezed vegetable juice.  Of course, if you’d like to really benefit, try a juice cleanse for 3-5 or even 10 days.

Three days is easy to do on your own; ten days is another story.  There are a lot of emotions and habits that rear their less than pretty heads when you do an extended cleanse, and it’s best to do it with support, like the 10-Day Juice Cleanse program the Raw Divas are doing in August.  I am one of their team of juice and cleansing experts and I must say, I am impressed with what they put together.

Tune in to my recent blog talk radio show called “Juicing as an Antidote to Fatigue”  for all the “juicy”  details.

Fatigue and Burnout: Strategies for Adrenal Exhaustion and Just Plain Tiredness

Are you suffering from adrenal burnout and fatigue? Low thyroid function? Chronic fatigue or Fibromyalgia?

Do you have as much energy as you’d like to have?

What would you do if you had more energy? Think about what it would be like  to pop out of bed in the morning, bright, cheery and ready for the day.

As you go through your day, you feel energized by your food, your conversations, your work and your activities. When asked by a friend or family member to participate in a fun evening activity , you always say yes,
without fear of losing steam at the end of the day, and being too tired to to do much more than flop on the couch.

You participate in activities you love, eat healthy meals, exercise and are fully present for your relationships. You never hear yourself utter the words, “I’m too tired.”  Instead you say, “I feel so energized.”

Sound like a romantic fiction novel? This life is possible for you.

Fatigue, exhaustion, tiredness, weariness, low energy…whatever you choose to call it, it’s a real problem and it happens to real people like you. There are many causes. Some are obvious, others not so obvious. When I asked  at one of my workshops for a show of hands of people who felt that were fatigued, or had low energy, all but 1 or 2 people raised their hands.

Then I proceeded to give one of my favorite definitions of fatigue. The definition goes something like this:

The decreased capacity or complete inability of an organism, an organ, or a part to function normally because of excessive stimulation or prolonged exertion.

I talked about how you may feel like you have plenty of energy (caffeine and other stimulants can give you that illusion), yes parts of you are operating sub par. Maybe your neurotransmitters are sluggish and you have difficulties with focus, or your digestion and you’re constipated, or your hormones, and you have menstrual irregularities.

It takes all of your parts working in harmony to achieve vibrant energy.

At the end of the presentation, one of the women who’d not considered herself fatigued, thanked me and said that she didn’t associate the sluggishness in her digestive tract with fatigue. She just figured it was “normal” for her. My talk inspired her to look at ways she could energize her digestion and thus improve her overall experience of vibrant health and high energy.

There are many causes of fatigue. Here are five:

1. Underfed and toxic mitochondria
2. Hormone imbalances – especially thyroid, adrenal, insulin and leptin
3. Digestive Inefficiencies
4. Autoimmune Processes
5. Serious diseases, like cancer, heart disease and diabetes

I’ll be exploring the topic of fatigue and its underlying causes and strategies for identifying and removing them on my Creating a Vibrant Life Blog Talk Radio Show on Wednesday, March 24 at 12:30 PM central time.

We’ll demystify adrenal fatigue, and distinguish it from thyroid fatigue. We’ll share strategies, stories and inspiration, to help move you from exhausted to energized.

Submit your questions for me pertaining to fatigue and regaining energy in the comment box below so we can address your concerns on the show.

The shows are all recorded and you can access the recording and download to iTunes by going back to the show link afterward. There are archives of past shows there as well.

http://www.drritamarie.com/go/RadioShow

And watch for my article called Running on Empty in the spring edition of Purely Delicious Magazine, due out in April.

http://www.drritamarie.com/go/PurelyDelicious

I look forward to connecting with you soon.

Love, Health and Joy to You,

Dr. Ritamarie

P.S.  Comment below:  What are you committing to for your health?  Today is day 22 of the 30 Day Sleep and Fun Challenge.  I am happy to report that I have gotten more than 6 hours of sleep for 3 days straight.  Over the weekend, I actually managed to get 9 hours!  And my exercise is consistent again – almost everyday!

How about you?  Commit below and make it happen.

Sunshine and Fun are Vital to Your Health

It’s a beautiful sunny day here in Austin, today.  Before I go outside and enjoy it, I thought I’d take a moment to connect. 

I encourage you to please use your weekend to regenerate your energy from the week. 

Get outdoors and replenish your vitamin D stores.  I am discovering lots of vitamin D deficiencies in working with people lately.  And be sure to refrain from washing with soap on the exposed areas for 48 hours after you get your vitamin D sunshine dose, or you may decrease your absorption of what your skin creates fromt he sunshine.  It can take up to 48 hours for the Vitamin D to be fully absorbed.  That explains why iI’ve been seeing deficiencies even in sun worshipers who dont use sunscreen.  

 Also important for your health is having fun.  What will you do that’s fun today?  Comment below.  Please respect the importance of fun and recreation.  They are up there with fresh raw and living foods and exercise.

If you live in or near Austin, join me and my friends for a raw foods potluck tonight.  Go to www.drritamarie.com/potluck  for more information and sign up to be part of the action at www.drritamarie.com/meetup.

Have a wonderful day.

Wishing you Love, Health and Joy,

Dr. Ritamarie