Getting fit for summer
Uncategorized
30th Mar 2009
No Comments »
I’ve been teaching my first spring cleanse class of this year since Friday, and it is going well. Everyone is working on their goals of changing their diet, environment and routines for the better. As for me, I’ve decided to change up my exercise routine.
I’ve loved doing P90x, and I will definitely go back to it, but I wanted to try something new. I picked up a copy of Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training program, and so far so good.
The program is similar to P90x in that it uses muscle confusion – you switch up your routine every 4 weeks. What makes it different from P90x is that it incorporates interval or sprint training.
High-intensity sprint training is difficult and effective. It dramatically shortens your cardio workout time while giving you even greater benefits than long, slow cardio. The goal is to do bursts of maximum effort exercise followed by recovery exercise. This strengthens your heart and builds your lung capacity. It’s also effective for burning fat.
This morning I sprinted on the track by our apartment. I did a 20-minute workout, with just four 1-minute sprints. But by the time I was done, I was wiped out. The best part? Just three 45-minute workouts per week (weight training and sprinting) gets you in shape for the summer.
Want to try it? Check out Turbulence Training here.
Delicious Life's Indian Curry Dinner
Uncategorized
16th Feb 2009
No Comments »
A few nights ago, I came home from work and stared into the fridge. What can I make for dinner?
The way I usually go about it is by looking at what I have and thinking what flavors would go well with my ingredients. In the fridge I saw some cooked white beans and black eyed peas, 1/2 head raw cauliflower, an assortment of other vegetables that I usually keep on hand – carrots, onions, celery – some yogurt and a bag of brown rice. I thought – hmmm… Indian might be nice. In about an hour, I had this:
Curry Cauliflower and Masala beans
I made this recipe up as I went along, so bear with me if I don’t have all of the ingredients perfectly measured:
Masala Beans
2 cups of cooked beans
1 carrot, sliced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 medium onion, diced
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1-2 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter), coconut oil, or butter
Spices: about 1/2 teaspoon each – Garam masala, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cumin, mustard seeds
Dash cayenne pepper (optional)
1/2 cup yogurt
Heat the oil in a saute pan and stir in spices. When the mustard seeds start to pop, add in the onion, celery and carrot. Saute until slightly soft, and add in beans. Add water (about a cup), cover and simmer to incorporate flavors for 7 minutes. Remove lid and cook until water is reduced and bean mixture becomes more of a stew than a soup. Stir in yogurt and simmer until flavor dances. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with brown basmati rice.
Chinese New Year
food, Uncategorized
2nd Feb 2009
No Comments »
Gung Hai Fat Choi!
Happy Chinese New Year – it’s the year of the Ox. In the Chinese Zodiac, According to Wikipedia:
The Ox is thought to be the sign of prosperity through fortitude and hard work. The Ox is a power sign, like the Rat, Snake, Dragon, Tiger, and Monkey. They’re quite dependable and possess an innate ability to achieve great things. As one might guess, such people are dependable, calm, and modest. Like their animal namesake, the Ox is unswervingly patient, tireless in their work, and capable of enduring any amount of hardship without complaint.
How fitting that this is the year of the Ox – it seems that we’ll need to apply fortitude and hard work to become prosperous in these times. But the bright side of it is that with hard work it is possible to accomplish all that you desire.
People born under the sign of the Ox tend to be:
- Kind, caring souls
- Logical and filled with common sense
- Down to earth – feet firmly planted on the ground
- Preoccupied with security
- Strong-minded and stubborn
- Individualistic and highly intelligent
- And they enjoy helping others
During the New Year in China, people travel from all over the country to reunite with their families, share meals and welcome in good luck of the new year.
In New York, we flock to dim sum houses to enjoy delicious bites, celebrate life and welcome in prosperity.
The Lion danced into our dim sum hall with a couple of loud drummers. To our dismay, everyone stopped eating during the dance – we were still waiting for a table at the time.
Lion dance in the dim sum dining hall
When we finally got to sit down and enjoy our own delicious dim sum, here is a little bit of what we got to eat:
Shrimp and roe shumai
I didn’t eat these – actually, no one did except my father in law. He’s the only one who really enjoys chicken feet:
Chicken feet
This is more my speed – delicious shrimp dumplings:
shrimp dumplings
To give you some perspective of what it was like, here’s a shot of the dining room. We were sitting all the way at one end. It was completely packed with people, too. And even though the dining room is so large, we still had to wait for about an hour to get a table.
dining room
Instantly reduce your financial stress
news, Uncategorized
5th Nov 2008
No Comments »
The financial crisis has been dominating the headlines and thoughts of many of us for weeks now. Each day, many people watch the markets open and close, looking for signs of what’s to come, while ignoring their online or paper statements for fear of learning that their net worth has now decreased by half or more.
EFT Tapping Points
For those of you who are trying to handle strong emotions, you can decrease or eliminate them with Emotional Freedom Technique. EFT takes you through a series of exercises – acknowledging the pain, stating an affirmation, and tapping certain points on your face, upper body, and hand – to reduce pain or painful emotions. Some people report that EFT has completely eliminated certain fears or worries.
I thought about this when I was looking at the Brokers With Hands On Their Faces blog.
Trader watching market with distress
I noticed that all of these brokers seem to instinctually touch certain parts of their faces – the temple, between the nose and the mouth, the forehead. What’s interesting is these are some of the acupressure points that you tap with your fingers when you are using the EFT – they help calm fear, shame, guilt and anger.
I tried to find out more about specific points and their meaning, but I’ve had a hard time confirming the information. I believe that points around the eyes have to do with anger and that around the mouth/below the nose is guilt/shame. If you have any information about EFT, I’d love to hear more about what the actual points mean and if my theory is somewhat on track.
Trader reacting to stock declines
Testing, 1.. 2..
Uncategorized
21st Oct 2008
2 Comments »
Hi there, everybody who’s been stopping by my site. Thanks for checking it out.
I’m having some technical difficulties. My site’s working, but some things are a little wonky.
If you want to leave a comment for a particular article – and I’d love your feedback any time – click the title of that article – the comment form will be revealed at the bottom of the post.
If you’re interested in my upcoming cleanse, see the events page or this post for details.
If anyone out there is a WordPress expert and wants to help me out, I’d love your help. Please contact me at christy [at] liveadeliciouslife [dot] com.
Cleanse Time
Uncategorized
17th Oct 2008
1 Comment »
When the weather starts turning, I like to do a short cleanse diet and offer a cleanse class. For me, and for many of my clients, doing a cleanse can help your body rest and gently transition from one way of eating to another.
If you think about it, you don’t really want to eat the same way throughout the year. It’s kind of like how you change out your wardrobe when it gets warmer or cooler. You don’t want to wear shorts or drink a smoothie in the middle of January. Likewise, it’s doesn’t feel good to wear a heavy sweater and eat a hearty stew in the middle of July.
Is cleansing good for you? It depends on the kind of cleanse you are doing and your motivation for cleansing.
The cleanse that I offer to my clients is based in whole foods – there’s no starvation, juicing, or fasting. Unless, of course you really want to.
Interested? You can learn more about it and ask me any questions you like on my free teleclass:
Thursday, October 30 at 6:00 PM ET
If you know you’d like to sign up for the class, you can do so here:
Fall Cleanse
In this class, we will cover:
- Benefits of cleansing
- The importance of seasonal cleansing
- How to cleanse using whole foods
You will have a week to try cleansing, and you can adjust your cleanse to meet your schedule.
Dates: November 3 – 9
Cost: $70 – Includes teleclass, week of menus, daily e-mail support throughout the cleanse days, and 30 minute one-on-one follow up after the cleanse
Calorie Counts Change Some Eating Habits
Uncategorized
10th Sep 2008
No Comments »
This past April, New York City mandated that chain restaurants must post calorie counts on their menu. Ever since they were posted, I’ve wondered if it has changed the way people eat. I know that, for myself, I’m much less likely to pick up a sweet snack to go with my tea from Starbucks when I can see how many empty calories I would consume if I ate it.
I took an informal poll of my coworkers to see if their eating habits have changed, and here’s what I discovered:
- Most liked seeing the calorie counts of different foods
- They also noted that they were more likely to go for a healthier option once they saw how many calories were in the more indulgent dish
- One person noted that calorie counts give her the same reinforcement of good habits as a food diary – she makes better choices because she would be otherwise embarrassed to admit to herself that she ate too much or ate something unhealthy
- A few people said that they sometimes worried about what other people in line or behind the counter would think of their eating habits if they ordered a pastry instead of a healthier choice
What about you? Have seeing the calorie counts changed the way you eat? If you’re not in New York or another city that posts calories on menus, how do you feel about your food choices when you know the calorie count or have it posted in front of you
Visualizing Your Success
career, diet, exercise, inspiration, relationships, self care, spirituality, Uncategorized
20th Aug 2008
No Comments »
Watching the Olympics last night, I noticed something that I had never noticed before. Many of the women about to compete in the hurdles competition were swinging their arms and seemed to be talking to themselves while they gazed down the track. What they were most likely doing was visualizing their race – running it in their minds before they physically ran it. And by doing so, they were seeing themselves winning by projecting success in their minds before the race.
Visualizing success this way is not new. Sports coaches do this regularly when they are coaching their teams. In one of his many interviews, Michael Phelps mentioned that his coach “taught him to use his imagination” – probably starting when he suggested to Phelps at age 11 that one day he would be on the Olympic swim team.
Many health, career and life coaches also teach their clients to imagine succeeding to make success a reality. Self-improvement gurus often tell clients to “act as if” what they want to happen has already happened. The Secret is built on this premise – that by keeping a thought in your mind, you will attract that wish into your life.
Anyone can use this to succeed at whatever they want. The question is, why doesn’t everyone use visualization to attract everything that makes life delicious? Instead, so many of us project things that we don’t want – worrying about the future, or living in the past.
But it’s easy to turn things around – just start today by visualizing something that you really want and seeing yourself getting it. Imagine your new job in the most ideal work environment, surrounded by people that you like and appreciate. Imagine finding that significant other, and how wonderful and beautiful they are and how they make you feel. Imagine yourself in the best shape of your life and enjoying your strong, healthy body. The clearer your picture is of your goal, the more likely the chances you will achieve it. If you can see it, and stay focused on how you can achieve it, you will find and seize it when the opportunity arrives.
Back from the honeymoon
Uncategorized
14th Jul 2008
No Comments »
I’m finally back in town, back online and ready to write. I had a beautiful wedding and a restful, relaxing honeymoon. I have to admit that it’s been a little difficult to get back into my work and routines, but now I’m here and ready to continue to explore living a delicious life with you. Stay tuned for more new posts, recipes, thoughts, discussions, and classes – coming soon!
Designed by 