giving thanks

In 2007, two years before I entered the public health and nutrition world, I began what would become a tradition of working in a soup kitchen every Thanksgiving Day outside of New York City. While my experience has become more fulfilling each year for so many reasons, I am also thankful for the extra resources that I am able to bring each year besides simply my time as my studies grow. For example, this year I taught the kitchen directors’ husband the difference between Fructose sugar (in fruit) and Sucrose sugar (table sugar). I also advised him to lay lower on all the grape juice he confessed to consuming, and to try eating some fresh grapes more often instead. I explained how he is missing out on all the fiber grape skins have to offer. Plus, his grape juice is likely loaded with added sugars. It is in this community kitchen and food pantry that I help bread butter, cut pie slices, and my favorite responsibility: serve to hundreds of people. But I should admit my love for serving most likely has to do with how I love to talk, and how I have this strange thing with watching people eat…

I love watching people eat. It may be because in my brain I am picturing the biochemistry occur in your digestive track. I value the delicate system that is our body, and know just how unbelievably amazing we work; more specifically how amazing food is, and how it absorbs into our cells to help us perform all the right functions. It is a sensitive system, and relies so much on how we treat it. This makes me a jumping bean in a soup kitchen where I not only get to see people eat, but I know it is temporarily relieving a food insecurity that one in six American homes are currently facing.

While I take pride in being able to serve, I only had that responsibility in the morning. Somehow, I got drafted to the kitchen for the actual meal, where guess what? I was behind the Turkey. There I was in my apron, plastic gloves, and Oakland Athletics baseball cap using tongs to grab turkey and begin making the plates which would be served. Turkey parts drenched in gravy or not, I was a happy camper. (After everyone has eaten we make second plates and wrap them with foil for guests to take home).



There is one man I look forward to seeing every year. We will call him Mr. B*. He always greets me with “I knew you’d be here today!” I look at Mr B* who has corn bread on his plate. I am walking around with my trail mix and plastic spoon. I am competing with the pies, coffee cakes, and corn breads that were also being passed around with coffee in the hour leading up to lunch time. “Would you like some trail mix?” I ask him. He pauses and smiles at me as if he is thinking about it. I don’t give him a real chance to answer. “You know what? You’re going to have some. There are walnuts in here, which are good for your brain, (as I place walnuts on his plate) and almonds which can help you stay full. This trail mix is packed with goodness and we want you healthy”. He laughs and says “oh yea? OK”, and he eats it. His friend looks at me and says “You must be a vegan”. (This is typical, I say “healthy” and it is assumed I am one of those wacky vegan, organic, no meat, tofu loving, tree hugging people). Which, I suppose, I am not too far away from ;)
“Well, close, I am actually a vegetarian, I can’t give up cheese!” and I laugh at myself. He asks me about iron and protein among other common questions on this subject. Then he told me I looked like I needed a burger. He was joking, (right?) but really, they were great. We fed 238 people this day.

From a nutritional standpoint, as expected with most donated food it is more common to see the processed items (boxes of white pasta, instant mashed potatoes, “little Debbie” cakes, Entenmanns products, canned peas and carrots etc) get served. Donated food comes with a lot of “red tape”. Most kitchens want non perishable items which make people think of canned and boxed, which often come along with oober amounts of preservatives and ingredients that shy away from natural, and certainly aren't "whole". Also, the source is important to guarantee that no one will get sick, so it is not common to see homemade foods in these kitchens. There are so many factors that affect what kind of food is served, and why. If I have learned anything over the last 4 years in community nutrition, it has been to not become the ignorant nutrition student who asks “why can’t we make a vegan casserole for everyone today?” As an aside: if I go out to our guests and offer anything vegan, I would probably have mashed potatoes flung at me. (Community Nutrition Part One: Know your audience).

Despite budget restrictions, food safety concerns, and the “appeal” of junk foods to most American people, I still believe strongly in pushing for nutrition education and making even small changes to food programs for the better. And if I may step away from my own personal viewpoint for a moment, I would like to point out in an unbiased manner that the working poor and low income populations who are obese and diabetic (or at risk for being so) are the same population groups who are most likely not insured. When they are sick, they rely on federal programs to get better. It is economically wise to protect this population group, regardless of where you stand politically, where you feel our congress should be slashing funds, or how you feel about fruits and vegetables. It is
economically wise to protect all population groups for that matter, since healthy adults are productive and contribute more to society in the long run as opposed to those who are sick, and/or out of work. Healthy children do better in school, and grow up to be healthy, smart, and successful adults. And since our nation has federally funded emergency food systems across the country, congress absolutely has the power to choose the path that is “good” here. Above and beyond economic decisions, it is also morally correct. Humans are good, and we have good nature within us to, when we are aware of the better outcome, do what we can to make that the reality.




If you would like to donate food to your local food pantry or community kitchen, here are a couple of suggestions:
1.Find out if they have freezer space, and if they do then donate frozen vegetables instead of canned. Frozen vegetables are picked when they are ripe, and flash frozen on the spot. There isn’t any sodium like there is in canned foods, and they can be in a freezer for many months. Also, vitamin content remains intact so your eaters will be getting nutritious vegetables.

2.Most kitchens do not accept, but if yours takes homemade food; consider making something fresh to bring.

We live in a world where there is an abundance of food at the same time as massive shortages. We live in a country where the wealthiest live a short number of miles away from the poorest. There are discrepancies everywhere as the gaps widen, and the numbers show that these gaps are affecting our mental and physical health. Above all of this, in our shakey economic state; it is important to remember that it does not matter which side of the table you are on whether you are serving or eating that day. We are all the same, and everyone deserves food that makes them healthy and feel good.

my love for organics (and pancakes)

On any given Sunday walking the streets of New York City you are bound to find yourself among the dominating sub population group known as “the brunchers”. Whether it’s at 2pm with sunglasses on drinking a bloody mary to cure last nights hangover, or at 11am wearing ballet flats and pearls; it is a tradition for all walks of life. Fortunately for me, one of my friends celebrated her birthday last week and birthday brunches are a popular reason for the pancake indulging I took part in. I love to brunch. And while I am not one of those people yet who has the “same place every week with the same friends” ritual, I go when I can and quite frankly I do well at it. I went for the whole grain blueberry pancakes. Fresh blueberries were in the batter so there was no blueberry compote (that looks- like-blueberry-jelly syrup that pretends to make your pancakes blueberry but is really just sugar and most likely artificial). I had them with strawberry butter, a mimosa, and a cup of coffee. I am caffeine free but the coffee was organic, and if you have never tasted organic coffee I insist you run out and grab a cup. There is a noticeable difference in taste. For a special celebration and in the name of organics, I enjoyed a cup (and that mimosa).

Organic food has to fight hard for its approval with the average consumer since it is so often affiliated with being overpriced. Others think organic means it is a “health food” so that it probably tastes different, or cardboard like. Not many people simply know the truth about organics. When you buy organic food it means that no pesticides, herbicides or other chemical fertilizers were used on the soil or in any part of the production process. The company adheres to strict national guidelines that the USDA has set in regards to the production, processing and handling of the food, and they are inspected routinely to make sure they are consistent in these practices. Also, organic food cannot be genetically modified. There is no doubt that organic food is better for our planet, better for our bodies, and better for our food system, but you’re right: they are more expensive. Even though the organic business is growing every year, there are still substantially less organic farmers in America then there are conventional. The less supply but growing demand is one cause for the price mark up, but it is the extra labor and not as popular farming methods that take more time and care that round out the reasons. A ton of paperwork goes into becoming certified organic as well, and it is expensive for farmers to obtain the certification. This means two things: 1. There are a lot of farmers out there practicing organic who cannot afford the certification therefore potentially losing business from consumers who only trust the label. And 2. There are many “big agriculture” companies who can always afford certification for some of their products, but it does not mean the company as a whole practices organic throughout. An example of this would be the Kashi company.

What once was small and occupying little shelf space in food stores, Kashi has grown to one of the leading brands I see in my wholefoods market. They have 24 different types of cold cereal alone, in addition to the crackers, cereal bars, oatmeals, cookies, pizzas, frozen dinners, and frozen waffles they make. They market themselves as a health food company focused on whole, natural ingredients that are better for you and the earth. Kashi has been around for a long time, and eventually was bought by Kellogg. All the big companies are buying up the small organic ones because they are noticing the trend early: organic is in, and if we want to survive then we need stock in this. You wouldn’t know it by looking at a box of their cereal, but Kellogg owns Kashi now. Kashi cinnamon harvest cereal has the USDA Certified Organic label which means that they by law are producing this cereal under the organic guidelines that have been set. However, Kellogg is not a company dedicated entirely to organic farming practices. Other kashi cereals you will notice now such as berry blossoms, and honey puffs cereal do not have the label. They are not being processed under the same standards that the cinnamon harvest cereal is. If you have known of Kashi all this time it would be easy for you to not be aware of who their new boss is, and perhaps not think twice about picking up any box of cereal from them. After all, they are a healthy company. If you are not looking for that organic label it may be easy to assume any product of theirs is OK, but that is just not the case. If you want organic, you need to look for that label.

If you have the purchasing power to buy organic all the time, then there is really no good reason not to. However, if you are finding yourself wanting desperately to switch to organic purchases, but on a dollar menu budget; there are ways to prioritize. There are the foods I would suggest to always go organic with, and then there are the foods that we can spare. The “always” foods? Milk and dairy products. I would never consume milk or yogurt that is not organic. My reasons including unsanitary factory farms, my disagreeing of the conventional corn feed our cows are given, and of course Recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST ): the artificial growth hormone given to cows to increase milk production. I want my foods as close to nature as possible, and cows make BST on their own. The rBST is the synthesized man made version of the hormone that is given to up production. I find this unnatural, potentially unsafe, and in my opinion just kind of gross. If I ate meat, I would only eat organic, grass fed meat for similar and additional reasons. Dairy and meat to me is just too darn important to continue eating these groups conventionally. If affording organic meat all the time is too expensive, my advice is to simply eat less of it.

After dairy and meat I turn to fruits and vegetables with thin skins, or outsides that we consume. Examples include grapes, apples, tomatoes, celery, carrots and lettuce. We want these foods especially pesticides free because we eat them as they are and easily consume what lies on the surface of them. Foods with thick skins that we do not eat: avocado, eggplant, mango, watermelon, oranges and bananas would be on my list of foods we can spare. The skin of a banana is thick, and we throw it away before eating. Pesticides on a banana are not making it into our body as easily as pesticides on our lettuce. Finally, one last place you can go conventional is your seafood. Start thinking like a savvy consumer: how does anyone know if your fish is organic? Fish and seafood come from the ocean where there is no real way to track what they have encountered: pesticides, chemicals, floating garbage, whatever. So while buying fish, don’t waste your money on the package promising anything “extra”. There are no set guidelines for organic seafood because the government understands there is no possible way to guarantee it. However, I do suggest wild over farmed fish any day of the week.

If you want a diet that is chemical free, care about the sustainability of our soil, or both: then you should be eating organic. The concept is growing as more people begin to understand what it means, and this may mean eventually one day organic food can be the “norm” and not cost as much to supply. Every purchase matters, so make the switch where you can.

the touch screen world

(photo from takepart.com)
On Wednesday I rode the subway for an hour and a half to a preschool which is run out of a church in Queens. I am currently working for a small research project which has me traveling across the 5 boroughs a few days a week. Not only am I part of a physical activity and nutrition project for children, (which to say the least is “right up my alley”), but I get to spend about 8 hours a day in the presence of three year olds, and that my friends can be quite entertaining. I have been practically everywhere in the 5 boroughs, expanding on my familiarity with the city I love so much. From West Harlem to Central Brooklyn to Far Rockaway, I am there with my enthusiasm for whole grains and 30 minutes of recess each day.

“Toto we’re not in Kansas anymore” would be a perfect one line description of my job these days. What I see, and what I hear sometimes amazes me, sometimes concerns me, but most of the time makes me laugh. There was the center that was taught primarily in Spanish; at 8 am that day I was greeted with 14 “hola”s as each kid walked into the classroom. In another school I was asked to play a game with a little boy on the playground who told me we were guarding our castle (the jungle gym) against Vashti. When I asked who this person was, the response I got was “she’s a bad guy! She makes you work on shabbos!” (This was a school run by orthodox Jewish women). Then there was the Russian school, where one beautiful little girl with a blonde braid all the way down her back approached me and spoke in her teeny voice in Russian, words I could not understand. “I’m sorry, in English please?” I asked. She looked at me as if she needed a minute, and then spoke slowly: “what’s your name?” These children danced to instrumental music with scarves before nap time, and the music sounded exactly like the music that used to play in my ballet classes. I sat there in awe, wishing I could be back in a pair of pink tights with my hair in a bun. It was also at this school that I was told by the director “our kids are fed well, but of course most of them are taken care of by their grandparents who are old school in their beliefs and give them pancakes every morning for breakfast! (she starts chuckling in her thick Russian accent) “you know! Oh eat eat! You are too skinny! Have cakes! That’s what the grandparents want”. And nothing beats a day in the life for me than when a child says “is lunch soon? I am going to eat all of my vegetables first! Watch!”

This Wednesday though I had the pleasure of enjoying lunch with the other teachers in the school. When I ran to get my purse for money for the lunch order, my cell phone fell out of my sweater and smashed on the floor. Oh blackberry, we had a good run. I sat at the lunch table trying to revive my phone, but the white screen and buzzing noises of text messages coming through that I would never be able to read was making it clear that I needed to say goodbye. “You should go fix the phone now while you can! I’m sure there is an At&t store around here” said one of the teachers. “Oh there’s no way” I said, “I can’t leave and possibly miss part of the school day”. “Oh, we won’t tell anyone you left” one giggled, and continued: “you must be thinking my goodness these Christian Women and look at what they are telling me!” Everyone starts laughing. “Yes, we’re good Christian women! Now when you go to At&t don’t tell them you dropped it. Just say you took it off the charger and the screen went white on you” another teacher says. I was laughing pretty hard at this, and I joined in with a few of my own jokes, mostly about how I don't go to church, but would be way too scared to lie to at&t. Even though we laughed and made peaceful conversation about religion, what the women all really wanted from me it turns out was nutrition advice. Word got out before the a.m. snack time for the kids that I was in the food field and by lunch they had reported to the cafeteria with all of their questions. I don’t mind this stuff at all. In fact, as long as I have the answer to the question I enjoy it very much. One of the teachers has been diagnosed with pre diabetic blood sugar levels and she is concerned about becoming diabetic if she doesn’t better control her diet starting immediately. She had heard about the glycemic index, but was unsure of what it was, and was looking for the easiest way to know what was OK from it to eat, and what was not. Below is how I summed it up for her.

I think the glycemic index is great for anyone. It gives food and beverages a score (1-100) that is determined based on the blood glucose effect that food has on you. Foods high on the glycemic index such as white bread and baked potatoes (skinless) absorb quickly into our cells, requiring a fast and abundant amount of insulin. Foods low on the index like sweet potatoes and apples, digest and absorb more slowly. Gradual absorption means gradual breakdown and release of glucose into the bloodstream, and a more balanced insulin/uptake process into the cells. This is important for those with diabetes who need to manage their blood sugar levels, and are taught to “carb count” by spreading their carbohydrates evenly throughout the day to maintain energy without having any spiked levels of blood glucose. You do not need to be diabetic in order to eat based on the index. Some people believe the index can be used as a weight loss tool. As I always say about any diet tool, I use the index as more of a reference and not for any complicated “diet”. There are a lot of books out there that turn eating into a chemistry project, but I don’t believe it is always that complicated. Unless you have a medical condition you can use the index as a reference too. Turns out most of the time the healthier foods are on the lower end of the index, and higher in fiber, which most Americans are not getting enough of. Foods that are high in fiber (soluble fiber specifically) digest and absorb into our cells at a slower pace, which is why they will have lower scores on the index. Remember though, fiber itself never absorbs into our cells. We do not digest it, which is why fiber is not considered a nutrient. I told the teacher to stick to whole grains, oatmeal, apples and sweet potatoes, but to avoid white breads, white rice, sugary breakfast cereals and gatorades. Also, physical activity never hurt anyone in managing their diabetes.

PS: I ended up with an iphone after my visit to at&t that evening. I have entered the touch screen world, and I am awful at it. I have so much to learn still :)

Mangia!

There is something about Sunday night that means something to me. This time of year especially, my relationship with Sunday night is a catch-22. There are the “Sunday blues” as my mother referred to them when I was growing up since all of a sudden I would get a stomach ache after the sun went down (every week). Her theory was that it was because the weekend was over and I was getting anxious about school the next day. I think I still get a small case of Sunday night blues sometimes. No one likes the weekend to end, but maybe it was because Sunday was so much fun at the same time that added insult to injury. In my house, I grew up with Sundays as a part of my family culture. My dad would spend the day in the living room screaming at the NFL games on TV. The house would be filled with the noise of the crowds cheering on TV, the musical football theme songs the channels would play, and my dad literally lying on the floor and screaming “no no no!” if the Jets blew it. My mom would be in the kitchen making baked ziti, and my dad would wander into the kitchen every now and then to check on the sauce. I spent the day doing homework, playing in the fall leaves, (or snow), and wandering into the kitchen every now and then to dip a piece of italian bread into the pot of sauce. I frequently did this with my friend Kristen, who spent many Sundays with me at my house. We would even do our homework together just so we could keep our play dates. Dinner time was always baked ziti with lots of sauce, bread, and salad. As I got older I was able to add red wine to my dinner menu. Friends were always allowed to eat with us, and most of the time they did. It was the only night of the week that we ate in the dining room, and dinner sometimes lasted 3 hours. The sun goes down early this time of year, and cold dark nights only made staying in the house and getting full that much more fun.

Something about Sunday has stuck with me, despite the fact that I don’t have my own family yet to make sauce for. I know maybe 4 things about football, yet many weeks I have the games on in my apartment mainly for the comfortable background noise. I still get a little anxious about Monday morning being the awful day that follows fall/winter Sundays, but I still love to eat a lot and then crawl under covers for hours of rest. I don’t make a baked ziti for myself, but here is what I made last night: a healthy girls Sunday night dinner where pasta doesn’t have to be excluded and I get three servings of vegetables (yes, three!)

I begin with my three vegetables: garlic, spinach, and tomato. I cook my whole wheat elbow pasta, and put to the side in the colander. In a separate pan, I heat extra virgin olive oil.








Once heated I add the spinach, tomato and garlic and sauté on medium heat until the spinach and tomato are wilted and before the garlic starts to darken.













(all finished being heated)














I pour the pasta back into the pot and then add the contents from the pan, and marry the ingredients on very low heat to allow the flavors to carry into the pasta (about 3 minutes). Pour into dish, sprinkle black pepper on top and enjoy.












This meal is so easy, took less than 20 minutes to make, and is super healthy! In my new revised Sunday night dinner I had 2 servings of whole grains, three servings of vegetables, and 2 servings of healthy fat (from the olive oil). There are no added sugars, no artificial ingredients, and no preservatives in this meal. This is my wonderful way of keeping tradition, while adjusting for my dietary desires. :)



Here's to cold dark nights that are neither cold, nor dark.

a saturday night that made my heart smile

I stopped babysitting at the end of summer 2009. I was beginning the never ending journey that would be graduate school, and starting a new job as a tutor in Ft Greene Brooklyn. For a while I had returned to “corporate life” (although my corporate experiencesworking for high end fitness companies certainly weren’t typical). But when one mom texted me randomly that her now 7 year old daughter had been asking about me, I surrendered to my belief that “I’m too old to be babysitting” and told her to keep me in mind. All the kids I once watched are growing up; I suppose I am growing up too. Weird. The little girls father has a PhD in Public Health, and I find her parents to be more like mentors and friends who offer me only the best advice, rather than a couple I “sit for”. They are a great family, and I was so happy to hear from them.

So, one recent Saturday night I found myself on Park Avenue with some crazy Saturday night plans. There was the 7 year old little girl who is well spoken, dramatic, and bright; her Wheaton terrier dog named ginger, and myself. And I had so much fun with this amazing and special young lady.
For starters she could be my little sister, or my daughter in another universe. She is tall, with skinny limbs, and has blonde hair (like I had as a kid). She wears glasses and says “Oh my god you HAVE to see this!” in a dramatic fashion, also reminding me of myself when I was her age, (and well, still). She hugs me as soon as I walk into the apartment and leads me into her room where she has games already picked out for us. I told her that because it is Saturday night we can do much more then on a school night, and that it was going to be a fabulous girls night. She loved this idea. Mom and Dad took off (she says to me: “mom and dad are having a DATE, and she uses her fingers to put quotations around the word “date”) and after making bead necklaces for an hour, we were ready for dinner. Time to order the Chinese food.
When dinner arrived, I told her to have a seat while I made her plate. She likes chicken and broccoli. I had a plate of vegetables, tofu, and cashews. We had white rice and brown rice in cartons. I scooped brown rice onto her plate. “Can I have some white rice too?” she asks. “Yes you can, but I am going to give you half and half and you need to eat both ok? Because the brown rice is where all the nutrients are so you can stay healthy”. “Ok!” she says. Just like that. And as she scooped the brown rice up with her fork she even sang “Yum Yum, I am eating my VITAMINS”. That-a-girl. I am so proud. Over dinner we chat.

Me: “Have you been to a slumber party yet?”

“No, what do you do at a slumber party?”

“Oh it’s great! You’ll start going to them soon, maybe next year. One of your friends will have a birthday party, and all the girls bring their sleeping bags, and pajamas. You eat pizza, do each others hair, dance, and stay up all night! You’re super cranky the next day from not sleeping, but it is worth it because it is so much fun. It is a great part of growing up”

“Oh. I wouldn’t want to do that unless my mom and dad came”

“Nah. In a year or two you will be ready I promise. It is just like how you and I are spending our night tonight, except with all your school friends.”
(pause as she absorbs this concept of staying up all night…)

“Jessica…you’re nice. Can you read me a story tonight before bed? My other babysitter reads to me all the time, but I can’t always understand her because she has a Spanish accent” (I need to note, she wasn’t saying this in a mocking way. This is a classic example of kids telling it like it is).

I replied, “You got it sista. Whatever you want”
(pause for more eating as she asks me to cut her chicken into smaller bites).

“Jessica, when I’m 21 will you have a baby?”

“Well sweetheart. When you are 21 I will be 40. So, I hope so, I hope I have a baby by then, but I can’t say for sure whether I will or not”. “Why?” I asked. “You want to be my babysitter? I will need one for my “date” nights, (I do the same quotation gesture she used on me earlier when saying the word “date”) and you will be old enough”. She jumps up from her chair and says “Yes yes yes!” nodding her head with each “yes”. Eh, well. There’s one problem solved, 14 years in advance.

After dinner it was time to walk the dog.
During our walk she throws both her arms around my waist and admits that she is scared. “I am scared when I walk outside at night. I am scared of the dark” (puts her head down embarrassed) …”I still have a nightlight”.

I look down at her and say “that’s ok. You’re 7, you’re allowed to have a nightlight, it doesn’t make you any less of a woman”. We circle the block once, going down an avenue, over a block, and back up again. During this time she tells me story after story about her friends until she stops and says…
“wait. what was I saying? I forgot. I talk too much. Sometimes I talk so much that my throat hurts”. I burst out laughing and say “oh man, you really are just like me! It’s exhausting always having something to say isn’t it?” And she laughs too and agrees. I love talking to her. She isn't a baby anymore. She absorbs what I say, and when I teach her something new (like how to sign her name in sign language, or how to say "nice to meet you" in spanish) she says "ohhhh I get it nowww", and it feels amazing. I want nothing but the best for this one.

We returned to the apt with about an hour to spare before her bed time. This was just enough time to bake some brownies, allow her to do my makeup, and then wash up for bed. While baking, she runs over to the cd player and asks to play a cd. It is Colbie Calleit and the song “brighter than the sun” comes bursting on. As we eat dessert and I allow her to put blue eye shadow all over my lids, we still find time to dance to the music in the living room. It was a real party. I was rocking blue eye shadow and a side ponytail by the time she was done with me. With dessert and makeovers behind us, she brushes her teeth, finds her pajamas, and picks out the Wizard of Oz for me to read to her before bed. I lay on the right side of the bed, she on the left, and ginger at the foot of the bed. I did the “good witch” voice, and the “bad witch” voice, and the “I’ll get you my pretty” voice. It was 9pm, and the little girl and not so little dog were fast asleep.



(Looking at ginger this way because she was nudging her nose all over my, ahem, chest...)

My Communal Lunch

Earlier today I found myself in one of those situations where you look around and actually enjoy the present moment. You know, really soak it in. I had spent the morning in the library studying, and decided to get lunch before heading to the gym. I don’t like eating alone. I don’t like watching others eat alone either, it just makes me really sad. I justified my eating alone with the fact that I had tons of papers I could read to further study for my midterm this Wednesday. If I have reading, then sitting alone doesn’t feel so lonely. I went to Le Pain on 84th and Madison. They are across the street from my gym, support sustainable farming, and their food is awesome. I had my small painful moment where I confirmed with the man seating me “yes, just me, just one”, and he placed me at the large community table. For those who haven’t been to a Le Pain Quotidien, they are French in style and food and while there are many small tables for individual parties, there is also the giant communal table where people from different groups all sit together. Since it was a packed Saturday, I definitely wasn’t going to get my own table, but I was OK with that. They squeezed my one chair into a place at the big table. Even though I was there alone, I was surrounded by at least 15 other people. We shared the jams and jellies for our bread, and menus that were in the center of the large wooden table.
To my right was an older couple, seemingly grumpy. When the woman sat next to me, she tapped my shoulder and said “could you move over at least a little?” (I hadn’t even seen her yet, of course I would move! Gese!) Across the table and staring back at me, a French woman with a thick accent and her (I would guess) 11 year old daughter, who clearly spoke all the English in the family. To my left, a sweet older couple, the woman in a gorgeous Burberry wrap, the husband in a baseball cap. And across from the sweet couple, (next to the French woman) were the sweet couples friends, two men, who were partners. I sat there with my orange juice, whole wheat bread, and apricot jam; reading my notes on how the industrial revolution changed public health and brought about two cholera epidemics in NYC. Every few seconds I would look up at the people to my left and observe how much fun they were having with one another. Finally, the sweet woman next to me says “what are you studying?” I replied “history of public health principles….for my midterm…(smile).” “Oh that’s wonderful, where do you go?” “NYU”. Then she smiles at me and says “you are a very sweet, and pretty girl, I wish my son was here!” The couple across from us starts laughing and I laughed too. We went about our meals for a few seconds, but they were talking about museums in the city, and I really wanted people to talk to. I looked up and made eye contact with one of the men across the table, and he included me in the conversation. Jackpot. I am making friends at this lunch and I am not eating alone. “What do you think about the Guggenheim?” he asks me. “Well, actually I’ve never been! I just walk past it all the time! I always return to the museum of natural history and the Met”. “Oh, we just came from the Met!” both men said at the same time, and now we are all smiling and talking about how awesome the Met is. The French woman keeps shooting us over some looks; I think she was taken back at how I jumped into these peoples lunch. It wasn’t until one of the men kept pronouncing tabouli wrong that she jumped in and with her perfect French accent and said “ It’s tabouli!”
“Oh! You’re French! Here, how do you say this?” (I was cracking up, they were asking her how to pronounce the name of the restaurant, which, after 8 years of eating here I can’t pronounce either). Now the French woman was in on our lunch, and explaining to us not only the name of the restaurant but how it means “breaking bread” sorta. A way of saying daily bread, or to break bread together, which makes sense considering the restaurant has the communal table. “Eh, eh, how do you say?” and her daughter looks up from her plate and says in a perfect Manhattan accent: “pastry”. “Eh yes! Pastry!”
She continues now to talk about how this restaurant reminds her of home, except in France they spend more time having wine and cheese at the communal table then they do tabouli and lentil salads. “They don’t have wine here” she says, and then out of nowhere, grumpy woman to my right chimes in with the menu in her hand “Oh no, they do! They do have wine here!” I look at her and smile, and agree that wine and cheese is my absolute favorite. “Oh yea, definitely!” The two men say, again, at the same time. Now we are all eating together. “So are you from New York?” The sweet mom asks me. We small talked for a bit, I explained where I was from and what I was doing, and she told me how she has two sons, one is earning his masters degree right now in Scotland, in English Literature. The couple, who her husband and she were lunching with this day, were friends of theirs. All four of them are vegans. I explained that I would be a vegan, if I didn’t love cheese so much. The French woman told me to start buying Brie cheese from France only, because it is substantially better. Noted.
I ate a steel cut oatmeal with banana, maple syrup, and pecans. They all ordered giant salads and platters of lentils, hummus, mini sandwiches and soups. Everything looked and tasted great. I put my notes to the side, and spent the meal chatting with everyone about wine, cheese, museums, and the quality of the food here at the restaurant. I didn’t eat alone. When I got my bill, I stood up and told everyone it was lovely to meet them, and 8 voices replied back “oh it was nice to meet you! Have a nice day!” The sweet mother who was to my left said “Oh I hope I run into you again here”, (still disappointed she couldn’t be a matchmaker this day). It was a great lunch, and I had a moment where I was thinking how happy I am that I like to talk to people. Lunch could have been lonely, but it wasn’t because I took advantage of the communal table. Way to go Le Pain. Breaking bread with people and enjoying company around good food and wine really is what it’s all about.

I should warn you, I will be blunt here

If you haven’t already seen the movie Food Inc, I beg of you to Netflix immediately. This film, although rather young, is considered a classic and should be watched by anyone who well, eats. The film discusses slaughterhouses, environmental issues caused by our food systems, food contamination/safety, the mistreatment of immigrant workers, expensive healthy food, and the absolutely mind boggling story that is the history of Monsanto. It is so much more than a few hours of cow killing footage to scare you into never eating meat again. It is smart, well written, and encourages consumers to be knowledgeable on what they are eating, and to be aware of just how powerful their purchases are. I push this movie onto anyone who will listen, because I believe in its message so strongly.

As an already current vegetarian, I don’t need to see cows being slaughtered to convince me of my dietary choice. However, my reason for being a vegetarian is not because I think humans are not meant to consume meat. It is, as the film will show you the American system of producing beef, poultry and fish that keeps my plate looking the way it is: meatless. Author Michael Pollan is a commentator in the film and brings to our attention how we walk through the aisles of the grocery store seeing pictures of farmers, pastures, and 1930’s barns on our food packaging. But this advertisement is just that, an advertisement. Because our meat and dairy is not coming from a farm anymore, it is coming from a factory. In fact, it is coming from about 13 factories. Yep. In our whole nation, we only have 13 slaughterhouses now providing us our meat. Billions of pounds coming out of 13 doors, picture it. There is no man with a straw hat calling cows in from a day in the grass. Four companies control over 80% of the market. And with science and technology, factory farms are now mass producing our food even if it means cutting back in other areas such as safety and quality. Here is a scary part of the movie summed up for you: when E. Coli broke out in our meat, and people started dying, rather than improve our quality assurance (E.Coli spreads between cows mostly through feces, which since the cows are kept so close to one another in unsanitary conditions, is an easy situation to arise), food science gave us meat “fillers” with ammonia in them. Meat fillers would be combined with our ground beef, the ammonia would kill any e.coli, and now we don’t have to worry about the bacteria anymore. We can keep the cows standing in their own fecal matter, and voila, we even have a new product to bring in revenue.

I am a firm believer in”you are what you eat”. If you eat a depressed cow, you are eating depressed beef, and therefore will not feel as wonderful as someone who is eating a happy bird, or better yet a plate of organic leafy greens that the sun fed. My first thought while watching the film is “why so greedy? Why can’t we just have more small individual farms, more grass grazing animals, and less of a psycho production goal?” It is a reminder that business and food are two separate teams, and nowhere in the rule book under profits does it say “just make sure to not make too much; it is unhealthy, glutinous, not sustainable and morally wrong”.

You will also learn about some of these factories recruiting workers in Mexico, and bringing them into our country, illegally. Here in the states, immigrant workers take these jobs at below minimum wage, in unsafe and unsanitary conditions. To avoid a police raid, bad press, and the chance of outsiders seeing the inside; factory bosses submit small lists to the police on a routine basis, and workers are arrested in their homes and deported back to their country. Workers are easily replaced since they are on assembly lines and not given more than one simple responsibility to do over and over again. In exchange for these arrests, the police look the other way and never raid a factory, where we can imagine they are well aware of the illegal working situation that is present. The food companies know well who they are hiring; they put a huge effort into recruiting these workers themselves. While watching this portion of the film, one cannot help but think it seems as if our American dream is built on the sacrifice of others.

Author Marion Nestle (professor at NYU, author of Food Politics, Safe Food, and What to Eat) writes about just how political our food system is, and Food Inc touches on this as well. We learn of Montsanto (the seed company which owns 90% of our nations soy beans) VIP’s moving on in their career to occupy positions in the FDA (Food and Drug Administration responsible for many policies, and plays a large role in food safety), and becoming Supreme Court judges. The exchange in positions may be considered a conflict of interest to you, and it should be. I wonder how this hasn’t been figured out sooner. We rely on our FDA and USDA to protect us, but we have no idea who the faces of these organizations are. If the people who are hired to protect us have roots with the companies who have capitalized our food system, how honest are our policies? We may live in a seemingly democratic country, but we do not have a democratic food system.

The main message is that there is a huge effort in keeping consumer information low, and profits high in the food business. As Eric Schlosser (author of Fast Food Nation) says “they know that if you knew, you might not want to buy it”. It is all about the sale. Quite honestly, our food system is frightening, and everyone needs to know about it. We have a small number of people controlling a gigantic industry, and we aren’t talking about companies who produce toy sail boats for kids; we are talking about our food. This is what we eat; this affects our life span, our health, and therefore our medical bills and healthcare needs. So it is financial. This system affects our soil, our one planet earth with our always growing human population. So it is environmental. And the system we have now is not sustainable. This should be priority, and yet the power is shifted so strikingly to one side. Ultimately, it will fail. It may not be in my lifetime, but we know it will fail.

What I love about the film is that it does not leave us with the tragic conclusion I just drew upon, America as a developing country low on nature made food and water. Instead, just like a new business draws a business plan with proof of success in other markets, our cast reminds us to look at tobacco and how a once ruling product was eventually dethroned. We cannot sit at the dinner table with our children knowing that they are eating food products rather than simply food, or worse, meat fillers. We vote with each purchase in the food store, and we haven’t lost the war yet. Be knowledgeable about where your food comes from, and your business will eventually make change happen.

Below is the trailer for food inc, so you can get a feel for it and be motivated enough (if my writing didn’t do it for you today) to go out and rent it. Also, I highly recommend all the books mentioned in this blog, as the authors mentioned are all insanely intelligent people in the food world, and certainly the kind of people I aspire to be like one day. They are my heroes.

daily inspiration

This little piggie has had a difficult time writing this week, and I apologize for October being empty until now. I am working on it, and will have a new article for you to read very soon, quite possibly before the long weekend is over (I do have Monday AND Tuesday off and am oober excited about it).

In the meantime, I want to share a few things. I try (and very often succeed) to find inspiration in every day. Sometimes a certain song does it, so I play it over and over again on my Ipod. Other times it can be a meal, or going to a certain part of the city. Watching shows on countries I plan to travel to inspires me. Looking at images of rainforests, or exotic animals remind me how absolutely amazing our earth is. Very often a dance class is what does it for me. Today, this 14 year old girl inspired me. Not only did her voice give me goosebumps, it was her delivery of the lyrics that made me feel something. Talent is a beautiful thing. I want to share it with you! Secondly, I am happy to report that I am officially caffeine free in the body and actually feeling "normal". I did it. Weeks of headaches and sleepiness, but I did it! I've proven that if you want something bad enough, you can do it.
Jessica: 1 Coffee: 0 Enjoy the holiday weekend everyone, enjoy the video and in honor of Steve Jobs, the quotes.



"because the people who think they are crazy enough to change the world, are the ones who do"

"the only way to do great work, is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on"

"have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you want to become"

~~steve jobs.

flaxseed fever

I’ve got the fever. The flaxseed fever that is. Some of you may know what flaxseed is, and I am sure many have heard of it, but do not know what it is exactly. Allow me to take one more product off your “what the heck am I supposed to do with this” list. Flaxseed comes from flax, which simply put, is a plant; a plant with stems, flowers, and seeds. You can purchase flaxseed whole ground (Bobs Red Mill is my brand of choice for their organic promise). Flaxseed is also gluten free, although it is best to always purchase a brand that certifies this to avoid possible cross contamination. Bobs Red Mill uses an acronym on the side of their bag to highlight the benefits of flaxseed. They are as follows: F (fiber), L (lignans), A (alpha linolenic acid), X (“excellent choice”). I will take you through this.

Flaxseed contains 4 grams of fiber in 2 tablespoons. I love diets rich in fiber because it promotes good cholesterol, lowers blood pressure, aids in satiety, and keeps you regular. Staying regular is important to note, since diets high in fiber have also been linked to a decrease in chances of colon cancer. This makes sense. Regularity keeps your colon clean and leads to less food rotting in your intestinal tract. This creates quite a mental image I am sure, but I am trying to make a point.

Lignans are antioxidants. Antioxidants are our body’s soldiers in the fight against disease. They fight free radicals by putting themselves on the front line, and oxidizing themselves before the oxidation can occur on your cell. Oxidation occurs naturally on our cells and plays a role in our aging, but diets high in antioxidants delay this process. Also, free radicals cause cancer, so picture antioxidants keeping the disaster at bay. Fruits and vegetables are high in antioxidants, which is just another important reason to consume as much of them as possible. But not everyone eats as many fruits and vegetables as they should, so now you have another food to turn to. Also, according to BobsRedMill.com, while many plant foods have naturally occurring lignans, flaxseed has 75 times more than any other plant food. The amount of lignans found in 2 tablespoons of flaxseed, is equivalent to eating 30 cups of broccoli. (Don’t be so hard on broccoli though, we need him too).

Alpha Linolenic Acid is the plant form of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 is another nutrient that pops up all the time in literature, infomercials, and your google searches for how to eat better. To break it down, it is a fatty acid named after its chemical structure (omega-3 just means that the first double bond occurs on the third carbon, counting from the methyl end of the fatty acid chain). You do not need to know that to understand that omega-3 is good for you, but now if someone in a room says "why the heck is it called omega-3 anyway?"--you can answer them and look like a nutrition guru. This is the kind of fat we want in our bodies. They are essential fatty acids, meaning our body does not make them on their own, therefore the only way to receive omega 3 is through our diet. The oil in flaxseed is about 50% ALA. ALA is also found in canola oil, and walnuts. Other forms of omega-3 are found in fish and fish oils. One serving of flaxseed contains 2,400mg of omega-3.

Since the benefits are crystal clear, now you can start sprinkling this nutrient packed food into your meals. I most commonly toss it in my homemade yogurt parfaits in the morning. I spoon stoneyfield vanilla yogurt into a bowl with Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal, raspberries, blueberries, and 2 tablesoons of flaxseed. This is a powerful breakfast. You can also toss it in with your cold cereal, blend it in with smoothies, sprinkle onto salads, or incorporate it into any breadcrumb mixture. Although I haven’t done this yet, the next time I make banana pancakes, I will definitely be sprinkling flaxseed into the batter. So yes, flaxseed is an excellent choice.

Flaxseeds produce a vegetable oil, referred to as flaxseed or linseed oil, and you will see this product in your market as well. Flaxseed goes rancid, and without temperature control this can happen pretty quickly, so it is best to just Ziploc it and throw it in the fridge. I hope to have passed the fever onto you by now. When learning of a food so powerful in such a small amount, it is impossible to not encourage consumption. ;)

what to eat (and what not to drink) to sleep better

Nine days ago I started shrinking the size of my coffee cups. After downsizing to a small cup, and going “half and half” on the caffeine/decaf, I finally made it to day one of “tea only” this past Friday. This puts me at four days coffee free today. Yes, tea does have caffeine in it, but green tea has less than coffee (black tea has more caffeine than coffee). I am drinking orange blossom green tea in the morning and chamomile at night. In August I started a new goal of having one cup of tea a day, so giving up coffee has given me a boost in achieving this by opening the slots to be filled with a new beverage.

I have noticed many changes this week in myself physically, and mentally. I suppose I can start by discussing how over the last two years I had been dealing with physical stressors on my body, one example being chest pains. After two visits to the doctor and an echocardiogram last fall it was decided the chest pains were from stress, but these pains came and went for almost two years, sometimes lasting for hours. Yes, they did appear more frequently during times of stress, but sometimes they would appear without any trigger reason to explain it.
I had also experienced waves of sleeping really well, and waves of not sleeping at all. I exercise frequently; take warm showers before bed and more recently have turned off all electronic devices one hour before bed time to decrease stimulation. This summer however, I am sure I was passing out from exhaustion, but not truly sleeping. I would pass out easily before 11pm, wake up around 1 or 2 am and struggle falling back asleep for hours. As if chest pains and insomnia weren’t enough, I experienced feeling tense. This feeling was something I didn’t even realize I had so badly until it went away. With each passing day that I walked further away from multiple cups of coffee, I began feeling lighter. It is difficult to explain, but what I think started happening was the tension, jitter feeling, and anxiety that caffeine has been known to cause was starting to leave my system. Even though I have felt small moments of stress this week, I don’t physically feel the same level of tightness in my chest and arms that I had come to accept as “stress”.

I believe the combination of actual stress and caffeine created tension, and anxiety had created for me a supernova of physical symptoms. Caffeine can stay in the blood system for up to 8 hours. This means afternoon coffee before class at 4 pm (which I did all the time), could keep me wired well until midnight. When I wake up in the morning the first thing I put in my body? A cup of coffee. I had realized during this week that I was probably spending over 20 hours a day with caffeine in my system on some level. Over a period of months and years, this can lead to not only the addiction I had, but absolutely can explain chest pains, jitter, tension, anxiety, and trouble sleeping. Holy ****, how can I stick up for a coffee addiction now? Look at that powerhouse list of awful symptoms I just wrote out. Since slowly decreasing my intake, I have been falling asleep much easier. But it is not just the falling asleep that matters, since I have been able to fall asleep in the past. It is the fact that I have not woken up in the middle of the night that resonates the most with me.

I jokingly tell others that the only way to explain the release of tension in my chest and arms, combined with the drowsy feeling I am still experiencing, is to say I feel sedated. Last night I compared myself to a Koala bear, which is known to lie in the trees gnawing on eucalyptus, which has a chemical component in the leaves that make the bears drowsy. Despite my comparison to a bear that appears stoned all day long, I still feel a massive improvement in my body and mind in only 9 short days of beginning this dietary change. I am sleeping through the night, feel calmer, and even notice myself clenching less. Actually, I haven’t clenched any muscles or my jaw at all this week. My goodness, all this time I was either accepting these things as stress, or not even noticing they were happening until they went away.

If you are having trouble sleeping, but are not addicted to caffeine as a possible reason for it, I have dietary suggestions for you as well. Tryptophan is an amino acid found in eggs, cheese, and turkey which causes a feeling of sleepiness. Foods with tryptophan combined with a carbohydrate make for the best evening meals or snacks to assist the body in winding down for bed. Turns out, “breakfast for dinner” can be acceptable here. Try scrambled eggs for dinner with one slice of whole wheat toast, or snacks such as a low fat cheese stick with cherry tomatoes and whole wheat crackers, or a few slices of turkey (for the meat eaters) on a rice cake. Walnuts also aid in sleep (and you only need 4 to reap this benefit, which is good considering walnuts are a high calorie food). You can also try sprinkling four walnuts into a low fat yogurt cup as a bedtime snack. Before I would ever recommend a sleep aid or medication to anyone, I would suggest all of the above. You may find a few eggs before bed does the trick, or you may (like me) realize giving up a food or beverage made a difference in how you feel. Nutrition is the front line in how our bodies function, and we should be adjusting here before giving up hope that we will never sleep or feel well.

(I think I will be switching to decaf from now on when I miss the taste of coffee, but I am not thinking too far ahead. For now, I am enjoying the feeling of it leaving my system, and the chance to start fresh).

the road to herbal teas

So the ayurveda detox has been postponed one week. This being for two reasons: After glancing at my calendar I realized this upcoming week is, ahem, my week. And I would like one reason to feel fatigued and irritable at any given time, not two. More importantly, since I decided to do this so last minute I didn’t have enough time to wean off of coffee. I have learned in the past that going cold turkey on caffeine is probably one of the most torturing things I could do to myself. I want to enjoy the detox, not set myself up for failure; so I think if I have an extra week to slowly decrease my intake I could be more successful. This leads us to this morning. Sunday morning and I am up bright and early at wholefoods. I love the coffee there so I get on line at the bakery section. I look up at the chalkboard menu: (inner monologue) “lets see…what sizes do they have…20oz…16oz….12oz. I usually get 16 so today I guess I should get the 12”.

Wholefoods Man: “Next! Yes miss what can I get for you?”
Me: (All smiles) “Hi! Can you just hold up the 12oz cup I want to see how big it is”
Man: (holds up cup, smiles)
Me: (raises one eyebrow). Now I’m pissed. And so it begins. I can’t believe what a little monster I turn into when I try to cut back on this stuff. “Ok, thanks. Yea I’ll just have that size coffee with room for milk please”. (Why cruel world!? Why!?)

I understand that for someone who blogs on health I may be coming off as a complete lunatic right now. It is not healthy to have a caffeine addiction. Mine started innocently enough when my first job in the city required me to show up at 5:15am every day. I remember saying to a co worker, “how am I going to do that?” My manager overheard me and replied “with a lot of coffee.” I should send her the bill one day I suppose. But truth be told, not only am I addicted to coffee; I actually enjoy the taste. I really like it. Ideally, I would drink it every other day and not “require” it to feel OK. Now when I skip, I get headaches and feel fuzzy. It is difficult for me to concentrate and then I become really…really…cranky. I’ve tried a few times to quit or cut back. The first time was in 2007 when I was working in a pre sale office right before opening a new gym. I remember my boss looking at me and saying (in a way that made me laugh) “what did I tell you!? No new habits, no new boyfriends, no quitting anything! Everything stays the same until this gym is open!” There I was in the middle of the work day barely able to make phone calls and my boss is pacing around: “someone get her a coffee! I can’t do this!” As if the stress of my healthy living attempt was going to just kill him. He bought my coffees for a few days until I snapped and went back. Coffee: 1, Jessica: 0.
So I had my 12oz this morning and enjoyed it with agave and soy milk as I browsed up and down the aisles food shopping. I picked up bell peppers for dinner, strawberries, wheat crackers, and veggie burgers. I spent the mid day baking chocolate beer cupcakes with a baileys butter cream frosting for my roommates birthday which is tomorrow. I sprinkled green sugar sprinkles on top of each frosted cupcake. He is Irish, he likes to drink, and he roots for Michigan State (green and white colors): these cupcakes are all him. And he deserves them for living with me, being so nice, and always snaking our shower drain.


(Patricks Birthday Cupcakes: Chocolate Beer Cupcakes with Baileys Buttercream Frosting for the big 2-6).

Throughout the day I thought everything was great, but now I am feeling that fuzzy feeling again. Although I managed pretty well today, I am sure that I need to have the 12oz again tomorrow. I plan on going from 12 to 8oz, to 4oz, and then the last 2 days to go to green tea before the detox starts and I am entirely off caffeine. This is definitely going to be a challenge for me, but I have to try.
Moral of this story? It wouldn’t be smart to dive into any diet change without properly assessing where you stand now. Sometimes we just need to take smaller steps to get to where we want to be, but no matter the size of the step, just keep walking in the right direction and you will eventually get there.


(with my little gem, she's having a great Saturday, talking vegetarianism with auntie jess).

Til next time my friends,


“the brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all”

“no one can make you feel inferior, without your consent”

The Ayurveda Fall Detox

Last October I wrote some blogs on my experimental blue print juice cleanse. I never finished the project, partially because it didn’t turn out the way I expected, and partially because I believe I was traumatized from it and blocked out most of my memory from the three day nightmare. I was embarrassed to admit to my professors that I had voluntarily signed up for a three day cleanse that involved only drinking juices. As a graduate nutrition student, I should know better. I read the testimonials of others who had done it, and I searched the website for proof that this could detoxify me. I believed what I read and justified that if others were swearing they still had energy to work out while on the cleanse, than I would be fine. I understand there are people out there who have had positive experiences with not eating for a few days and “purifying” their systems through juice. Not only am I not one of those people; I comprehend how we digest our food and the importance of our digestive system and keeping it working. I do not recommend any sort of diet, or cleanse that tells you to stop eating. On my three day experiment I suffered headaches, nausea, weakness, irritability, and eventually threw up my first foods consumed when I broke the cleanse. Our gastro intestinal system is composed of muscles. Like any other muscle in the body they need to be used. When people go on lengthy (and I mean greater than my measly three days) cleanses, they weaken their G.I. system. Like a pair of legs that has been in a bed for weeks, it does not function the same. We need food to function, and what my body was experiencing was an extremely low caloric intake leading to low blood sugar levels, in combination with a halt on my caffeine intake (something my body was not prepared for, as my 72 hour migraine reminded me. That one is my fault. Coffee addict. Guilty).

Anyway. That was October 2010. Now we are approaching October 2011 and here I am again. Since I fall somewhere in between a holistic woman and a firm believer in everything western nutrition teaches us; I have been previously conflicted between “cleanse” and “just eat your 5 food groups”. As a curious one always searching for ways to improve my inner Chi, I am experimenting again. This time, I hope to be more successful. I am going to try an Ayurveda cleanse. Below is the background of Ayurveda, taken from Yoga Journal and written by Scott Blossom.

“Ayurveda, which translates as "knowledge of life," dates back 5,000 years to the ancient Sanskrit texts, the Vedas. It's a system of healing that examines physical constitution, emotional nature, and spiritual outlook in the context of the universe. According to the philosophy, universal life force manifests as three different energies, or doshas, known as vata, pitta, and kapha. We're all made up of a unique combination of these three forces. Though everyone has some of each, most people tend to have an abundance of one or two of the doshas. This unique combination is determined at the moment of conception, and is your own personal blueprint, or prakriti (nature). As you move through life, the proportion of each of the three doshas constantly fluctuates according to your environment, your diet, the seasons, the climate, your age, and many other factors. As they move into and out of balance, the doshas can affect your health, energy level, and general mood”

The reason why I was drawn to this fall detox was because it spoke of lifestyle goals that matched my own. The detox is combined with daily yoga classes, meditation twice a day, and recipes. I get to eat Kitchari which I will make for myself each day along with herbal teas, coriander chutney, and apples and avocados if I wish to snack more. Kitchari is the staple food and is meant to decrease internal toxicity, but I also feel that taking time to cleanse is so much more than just the food I will eat. Since I believe that health is mental, physical, and social: I also believe a cleanse should be mental, physical, and social. Food is powerful and I have no doubt that a combination of ingredients can purify our systems, but when do we detoxify our lives outside of food? When was the last time you sat down and thought about anything toxic you were keeping in your life, and then went through a painful week of ridding it? We don’t tend to do that, do we? It's not just food, it's feeling happy on the inside, and living in a way that inspires your own health all the way down to who you socialize with. I may not tell anyone to juice for a week, but the partially holistic woman in me does believe if I breathe better, digest better, and become more aware of choices I make other than the food I eat, that I can continue being the happy girl I am. I do believe that. So for me, while I cannot yet prove anything and do not know for sure if this cleanse will be successful; I am absolutely willing to try a week of particular ingredients, daily yoga, and a hell of a lot of time in silence. I also have been reading on certain poses to lie in for extended periods of time that is said to aid in digestion. I am intrigued. Who knows, if this works I may pull a Liz Gilbert and Eat Pray Love my way through being 26 years old.



(Kitchari dish with herbal tea and coriander chutney)


There are two great times to cleanse if you are interested and those two are the spring season and the fall. Spring tends to be more popular since we always come off winter feeling quite heavy and desperate to de puff before the beaches open. Fall though is a great time to prepare for the changes that will happen to our body in the winter, while also strengthening our immune system; since winter is a time many of us get sick. For this reason I am interested in the fall detox. I want to be ready in case another harsh winter hits nyc, and the stress of my final exams attempts a hit at my immune system. (Also, I may eat a lot more fruit in the summer time, but I also drink a lot more margaritas). Since the change in season always seems to begin new chapters, I am truly open to seeing how much I can let in right now. So I think based on what I just wrote, I am about to embark on a week of no red wine, cheese, or chocolate (my personal struggles).
And if it doesn’t work, well then I have only lost one week.

Love from my little heart

the dog days are over

This summer I believe the Universe challenged me. That is what I will say anyway, when I look back on it. It seemed just when I thought I was pushed down, I was kicked while I lay there on the floor. It made for a different version of myself. A woman who didn't always know what to do or say, (and I always have something to say) or if I was making the right decisions (and I almost always believe I am right). I kept waiting for summer to end. As if the leaves changing color would bring about a change in my luck. But before I give this time period of my life the final kiss goodbye,(which I am doing this week) I decided to pull a complete 180 on my grudge with it. This is what I am choosing to take away from it instead:

For my last weekend of the season, I have a beautiful wedding that I am so excited for. I get to witness two people get married who I have known since they started dating (and I shot gunned my invite to the wedding). I have a royal blue sari to wear, a hennah tattoo to look forward to, and tons of vegetarian Indian food to eat up. What a great kick off to labor day weekend, and how fortunate that they booked this upcoming weekend and not the one that just passed. Irene really could have been a wet blanket on such a joyous occasion.

(me and my best gals braving the hurricane in an irish bar, with live irish music. A nyc hurricane/evacuating my apartment and fleeing to brooklyn with amazing friends. The reason why summer 2011 was unique)



Being that I was out of work this summer, I had a lot of time to spend alone, sit in the park, attempt to get a tan, or...hop on the train to head home. While long island is full of great beaches, I had a way better reason to head out east. And with no work to be at, I was able to spend a lot more time out there these last two months with my friend and her new family. I even got to go on a 10 day vacation with them in Pennsylvania.

(Brianna Michelle born June 18th. The one reason why Summer 2011 was an absolute miracle).






My birthday is in July. And while this birthday really freaked me out admittedly so, I sure did enjoy showering others with birthday love. A bunch of my friends celebrated birthdays as well, and I spent hours baking in my kitchen for all the special occasions. Sometimes, it was no ones birthday, and I baked anyway. During times of madness, one could say butter and sugar are therapeutic. I swear there were times when I was certain my friends would find me in my kitchen, surrounded by cupcake liners with flour on my nose. "She's finally lost it" they'd say.

The doormen in my building have received so many cakes/cookies/cupcakes from me, that I think they are beginning to doubt whether I actually am a nutrition student.

(Baking for myself, but more importantly others. The reason why summer 2011 was delicious).



I was six years old when I moved to my hometown. One of my first play dates there was with a girl in my first grade class, and her cousin Rich. Rich and I would grow up to be great friends. I would sit in his living room while him and my other best friend Mark would rehearse their band for school shows. We went trick or treating together. Went off to prom weekend together. And when we were 19 Rich told us he was going to become a priest. This past June, I watched my friend who made me laugh, inspired me, and always got me through forensics class, become an ordained priest. During the church services I sat next to Mark. I couldn't help but think how different all of our lives had become; how much we've grown up. But I love them exactly the same today as I did when I was 15. They are just the best. And my goodness do those two make me laugh. I am so lucky to still have them in my life, even if we don't get to see each other every day anymore.



(Watching Rich take on the priesthood. The reason Summer 2011 gave me goosebumps).







I guess when I look back on this time, I will say this summer was Organic. Like a piece of organic fruit: It was unadulterated, flawed, but full of goodness in one way or another. I am still excited for fall though. Even though the summer had some things to be proud of, I am ready to return to having more control over my life. I have new classes to look forward to, apple crisps to bake, football facts to learn, and weekends to hopefully go apple picking or frolick in a pumpkin patch. I love this upcoming time of year, and I am actively choosing to not harp on the summer of challenges and sadness; no no, I cannot taint the fall season like that.




“For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - "real life". But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, or a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life. This perspective has helped me to see there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way".- Fr. Alfred D'Souza

"when everything is out, you gotta take it in"

After two weeks without yoga due to time frolicking in the woods taking part in pudding eating contests, last night I returned to my safe haven on St Marks. I felt like the Tin Man who needed to be oiled; it had been too long since I stretched into downward dog. Yoga has played an integral role in my health over the last year and even more so in the last few months. Allow me to share my class with you tonight, and explain just how much this practice is doing for me these days. I am still very much a beginner, but I love how much I have to look forward to in working towards my new found goals.

There are so many reasons why I began going to class, and after I started practicing I came up with a whole other list of reasons to stay with it. Physically it is helping me maintain flexibility which I started rapidly losing once I stopped dancing. It is also helping to make sure my hips (which are a mess from years of dance) are able to be rehabilitated. It helps relieve the tension I carry in my neck, my posture, my alignment, and most importantly keeps my tush lifted and my arms toned. Yoga does my body good. Mentally, it trains me to leave my problems and worries on the “outside of my mat” for the 60 minutes during class, therefore giving my brain a break as well. This is hard to do and takes an insane amount of effort from me to keep thoughts out of my head and focus only on poses and breathing. The benefits though are incredible. After not thinking of my troubles for an hour, I feel as if I lost weight when class is over. I actually feel lighter. My head feels happy. And the more I practice, the closer I feel myself becoming able to actually meditate. Meditating is something I always assumed would never be possible for me. When I lie down and close my eyes I see my grocery list, my pile of laundry, and assignments that are due at school. Then I start going down the list of obligations:
“need to buy that congratulations card for the “so and so”s for their new baby girl. Must write check out for Time Warner Cable before end of day. Need a new metro card. How much money do I want to put on the metro card? Is an unlimited worth it for me? I haven’t left the upper east side all summer. Maybe that’s the problem. I am going to buy an unlimited metro card tonight and then spend the rest of my summer exploring the east and west village via public transportation.” I mean really. Stop talking Jessica. But I am getting much much better these days at shutting that girl up during yoga, and it’s making me really, really happy.

Tonights class was perfect. The moment class started as I sat there on my mat, my hips feeling tighter than ever, the most intense thunderstorm began outside. There I was in a room with 60 people, a wonderful instructor, beautiful music playing, and a thunderstorm to orchestrate the whole thing. The room was dark and three perfect windows allowed us to watch the grey skies and rain hit on its side from the wind. Our instructor says “allow your outside thoughts to disappear for now, focus on the rain, focus on the thunder, and focus on waking up your body”. I pictured myself on a megaphone waking my body up, and I could almost hear the creaking noises as my ankles rotated and my wrists began to hold my body in a push up position.

Early in the hour is one of my favorite parts of class. The “chair” pose. In this pose you keep your toes and knees facing forward, feet hip distance apart, and you squat to a low level where it appears you are sitting in a tiny, invisible chair. Stretching your arms up over your head, widening your fingers, and tilting your head towards the sky; this position becomes heated very quickly. The class is often heard making noises, breathing deeply, or laughing as we all are shaking and ready to fall to the floor. During this part I think to myself “you love this pose. This pose has allowed you to pee in public bathrooms easily without ever having to touch the seat. This pose is what helps you reach those goals for your lifted, toned, grab-able tush. If you quit early on this pose, you are quitting on your tush”.
And then I laugh. By the time I entertain myself with that thought, the instructor tells us we can drop to the floor.

The class gradually becomes more difficult. We are asked in our push up position to lower ourselves 2/3 of the way and hold it. Here comes more moans, and I can hear my sweat hitting my mat. It makes a "tap" sound. Instructor says (in a very inspirational tone of voice) “if you are unable to do this part, then go into childs pose that is OK. This is your class and you have the right to feel motivated the entire time, but remember you must practice on motivating yourself because I won’t always be here”.
You see, yoga does not just physically and mentally train me; it gives me a moment like that where a giant light bulb over my head is turned on by wise words of a 20 something instructor at a donation based yoga studio in the East Village. I believe her. So as the next bead of sweat drips into my left eye, I go back down into my half push up and hold it there. Until I fall. And I am OK with falling. It means I tried until the end.

The most challenging part of class for me is the “pigeon” pose, which is meant to open your hips. My hips are in so much pain, and they certainly cannot do what they were asked to do 10 years ago for competition dancing. We are expected to sit in this pose for some time, and bring our focus back to relaxing and breathing. My awesomely wise instructor continues to motivate:
“During class you may have had moments where your mind slipped again into thoughts of what you are doing after class, or what you need to do tomorrow morning, or what may be bothering you these days. Take this time to bring it back, even if you have to say to yourself “I am inhaling, 1..2..3..4..I am exhaling, 1..2..3..4, I am inhaling 1..2..3..4..”

So that is what I did. I started saying to myself over and over again that I was inhaling and exhaling. It helped. It temporarily chased away my side thoughts that had been creeping into my time on my mat. I spend every other minute of every other day with an over active brain. If I don’t put it to rest during yoga, then it doesn’t get put to rest that week. This is a very important goal of mine, to be able to put my over active brain on hold. I make it through pigeon, and we close with some ab work before going into our final position of rest. The storm lasted the entire class. In fact, I even walked to the subway after in the rain. I went home, baked a batch of “lemonade cupcakes”, showered, and went to bed. I feel like I did something good for myself tonight, and I am happy I marched myself downtown for it.

I leave for you the song that was playing in class as the thunderstorm rolled by, and I sat in my pigeon pose working on my hips. It is a beautiful version of “I want to hold your hand”, and I had a picture perfect moment with it in class.
In good health,
Namaste <3

It really is the most important meal of the day!

Studies show that those who eat breakfast every day are more successful with weight loss and weight management than those that don’t. But even with the "proof in the pudding", there are people out there who believe skipping the breaking of the fast is one way to cutting down calories and therefore cutting down on weight. Let it be told here on this blog, that our bodies are much more efficient in doing their job when they are receiving the nutrients they need to function, consistently.
Skipping meals is so ten years ago.
One reason why eating breakfast may be linked to weight control is that the hunger and dissatisfaction from not eating in the morning can lead to a feeling of deprivation, and therefore poor nutrition choices throughout the rest of the day including at lunch and dinner. Those who eat breakfast have not only reported feeling satisfied throughout the day, they are more likely to have healthy balanced meals and to maintain an exercise program. Remember that this does not mean pastries for breakfast. Donuts, bagels, and other breakfasts high in fat and sugar are full of "empty calories" which will give you caloric intake, but no nutrients to better your health or keep you feeling full. They are in fact, a waste of numbers. The true benefits of breakfast come from meals high in protein and whole grains.

Benefits to eating breakfast every day include:
Weight loss/Weight control
Kick starting your metabolism
Improved concentration for the days work
More likely to have a complete diet balanced in all macro and micro nutrients
Lower cholesterol levels

I encourage you to start your day with a variety of crafty meals, packed with nutrients of course so you get more bang for your buck. To help get you started, here is one recipe already done for you. This meal is high in fiber, vitamins, and "good" carbohydrates. Oh, and with the small amount of dark chocolate, you can shout in the name of antioxidants and not feel guilty so soon after the alarm goes off. There is fiber in the oats (which keep you feeling full and keep your colon clean), vitamins in the fruit (to protect your immune system) and enough Carbohydrates to protect your brain and give your body the energy it needs to sit at your desk for the day ahead. Give it a go. And don't forget: Consistent breakfasts packed with nutrients will help you function better at work, keep you in a good mood, and keep your metabolism moving at a pace you prefer.

Banana Split Oatmeal
Cook a 1/2 cup of dry old-fashioned one-minute oats with water (to desired consistency) and top with 1/4 cup strawberries, 1/4 cup sliced banana, 1 Tbsp semisweet dark chocolate chips, and 2 Tbsp almonds. Total Calories = 359


(don't like strawberries or banana? try blueberries and kiwi, apples and cinnamon, or any other fruit combination your heart yearns for).

Now go off into the world. Your stomach is thanking you for not forgetting about it so early in the day.

“I am a vegetarian, I’m sorry”

Why is it whenever I leave the city I find myself saying those words? I forget what a freak I am considered outside my borough. After being away for the last 10 days I am home again, in my comfy bed, and snacking on a cup of mixed berries. My experience in the woods has once again left me happy, yet laughing quite a bit over how many people I made uncomfortable during meal times. These experiences inspired me to write. It was family vacation time. Not my biological family, but a family that is very much a part of my so important world. I am the complete opposite of all of them, making me the perfect “adopted child”. With 8 adults, tons of friends, and a 7 week old baby; we spent our time competing in games, dancing, boating, listening to acoustic music on the lake, and well….eating.
Here at home I am the only vegetarian of all my friends, and yet it doesn’t seem to be an issue when we eat out. Everyone knows I don’t eat meat, no questions are really asked anymore, and I don’t smell bacon and run out of a room gagging…I am pretty easy to be around as a carnivore. So it always cracks me up when I get a somewhat new audience, or when a waiter gets that nervous look on his face. This always tends to happen when I am no longer in the city of vegan, raw, macrobiotic, or vegetarian fusion restaurants. Here in PA, our waiter comes over to give us our dinner choices.
“we have a champagne chicken served over wild rice, a pork tenderloin, or the tilapia. We also have all of our daily options, beef angus burgers, childrens chicken tenders, French fries, and some vegetables will come out to the table family style”.

Me: “I’m sorry, I’m a vegetarian”
Waiter: “we have pasta?”

Why do I apologize? Honestly, I don't really know. I become nervous sometimes (especially when eating at someones house) because I know once I share this fact about myself, some will become stressed. I don't want to stress someone out over my dinner plate. Really, it is not a big deal to me. Which is why sometimes if I can get by, I don't share the information at all. Should I apologize? Again, I don't really know. I shouldn't have to apologize for a lifestyle choice of mine that doesn't hurt anyone, but I apologize because I want the person to know that I am OK with the fact that meat is all around. I'm just trying to make the scene a comfortable one. People, this may sound dramatic but I kid you not. The meat eaters and vegetable eaters often have awkward moments together.

So this brings me to my next observation. After I utter the horrid words to the new audience, my top three responses are as follows:
1.Oh really? What do you eat!?
2.Wow, How do you get your protein?
3.From the waiter/waitress….”we have pasta?”

And these are my answers, my dear meat eating friends:
1.I eat the food that comes from the remaining 4 food groups. Meat only takes up one of those little slots in the pyramid you know.
2.Americans are overdosing on protein. I get mine from peanut butter, eggs, beans, lentils, cheese and quinoa. And yes, it is possible to overdose on protein. I am more concerned about my B12 as a vegetarian, which is the only (only) vitamin that is solely available through red meat. Currently I take a B12 supplement each morning. Also currently, I am not deficient in any vitamins or minerals, I have been checked by the doc.
3.Pasta is great…but I don’t need to rely on it in order to be full. I eat tons of different meals with a variety of ingredients every day. Becoming a vegetarian does not mean the bagel & pasta diet. Also Mr. Waiter…stop looking so scared. I do not sit in my room sucking on lettuce. I am a normal (eh, maybe I shouldn’t push it) girl.

I encountered a similar experience while I was traveling in Ireland. Land of the beef stew, I was given multiple perplexed looks when I asked for a cheese and tomato sandwich every day instead. At home I feel so welcomed and accepted when I sit at a restaurant and order the sweet potato casserole dish (my favorite at Candle Café, it is served with steamed greens, black beans, and a vegan country gravy). But I think I forget that us veggie loving “tree huggers” as we are called, are often the minority group once we leave our nest. People are nervous around us, and they believe on some level….that we are always starving. How do I convince those around me that I am actually full off of a vegetarian meal? Years of practice!

But really, whenever I travel, whether it is to Ireland or a few states over; I am prepared to spend days eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cheese and tomato, and lots of pasta! When I return home, I go right back to my freakish ways of sautéed kale, quinoa salad, and bowls of berries. What can I say? Love me for who I am. A happy and outgoing vegetarian. I do not eat meat. I like to dance. And new to my list: I can successfully feed, burp, and sing to a 7 week old baby. Yes, I sang. She is too young to tell me I am not that great.
Manhattan I missed you, lets wrap this summer up.
Love from back home
Jess