Happy Anniversary!
Wow! It has been a year since I’ve started this blog. I can’t begin to thank everyone enough for reading, subscribing to my newsletter, opening, and clicking. You are my inspiration for writing every month! Although the primary goal of these messages is for you to get an idea of what it’s like to work with me as your health coach and for us to begin working together, I have truly grown a deep passion for sharing ideas, motivations and tips through the newsletter. As always, if you’d like start the conversation about health coaching, our first consultation is free. And, please reach out anytime with questions or topics of interest you may have!
For our anniversary issue, I wanted to keep things light (instead of my usual novella lol) and simply share with you some pretty cool things that have been on my radar in the last month, including a technique which I like to incorporate into my life and conversations with clients. Let’s get into it!
Some things I've been loving lately...
Making tacos for dinner and lunch: It's super easy and super yum. You can throw beans and veggies into a skillet to cook while boiling rice. Chop up some fresh cilantro to put on top along with hot sauce of your choice. I've found the key to this is to find really delicious tortillas and hot sauce that you love. Here are my favs that I splash out on from my local health food store: La Tortilla Factory (gluten free options available!) and Gringo Bandito hot sauce. *Don’t forget, you can always make burrito bowls, too! They make great leftovers!
Appreciation for the rainy season in Hawai'i: It was pretty devastating to see farms and communities underwater from the heavy rains the islands experienced in the last month, aside from experiencing lots of gray and wet days. However, now that things are starting to dry up, flowers blooming and landscapes flourishing is such a metaphor for what we are experiencing as a planet.
Credo Beauty: My new go-to for finding clean beauty products (thank you, Shauna). They operate on a point system, too. Can’t wait to see what perks they offer as I continue to buy products. Buying safe and effective beauty products is something that is super important to me. Like buying organic food, being aware of chemicals in products you put on your skin affects your health, too.
Very excited about the Antidepressant Food Scale: As nutritional psychologyis on the rise in research and public awareness, and holds a very special place in my heart, it is going to be very exciting to see what researchers and doctors start to uncover in this area. In this particular article, many studies were combined to find the foods which contain the highest levels of nutrients known to prevent and promote recovery from depressive disorders. To sum it up, the highest scoring foods were oysters, mussels and various other seafoods, organ meats, leafy greens, lettuces, peppers and cruciferous veggies. One of the doctors who is involved in this article, Drew Ramsey, just released this book, which I am excited to get my hands on soon!
Yet another reason to shy away from processed foods, an article which sums up a study done on preservatives found in popular packaged foods. The big takeaway from this article is that, "Processed foods can be made without these potentially harmful ingredients, so shoppers should read labels carefully." And, TBHQ is the preservative this article states to be on the lookout for. Please reach out anytime to talk about reading labels or to chat about switching things up to eat more whole foods and phase out buying processed foods. This is just one topic that I love talking about with my clients during our sessions.
MATE The Label Organic Bike Shorts: Always on the hunt for an awesome clothing product, this was my first piece from MATE. So comfy, very good quality. Nice for riding bikes, walking, yoga, cleaning, wearing out and about, working from home... Shout out to Chris for this excellent bday present.
Speaking of birthday celebrations... As I just moved into the 33rd year of my life, I have so much adoration for my family and friends for the boost of inspiration they gave me on my birthday. I have come to have a huge sense of gratitude for the internet at our fingertips in order to be connected to you all remotely!
Thoughts on incorporating new rituals into your routine…
The above image (it’s a GIF - s l o w d o w n your scroll to read it!) is the approach I love taking with clients when it suits their bio-individual needs in order to meet their goals, short term and long term.
Start small. Little by little.
Set yourself up to achieve.
Schedule it in. Tack a new ritual onto something that is consistent in your life.
Stay inspired. What is your why?
Indulge. Having fun is crucial!
For example, I recently started journaling every morning for anywhere from 5-20 minutes. A few months ago, this seemed absolutely impossible for me. Here’s what the steps I took:
Start small with achievable actions: One to three pages once a week. This was totally doable for me. And, once I realized that, I was stoked and started doing it more.
Schedule it in to an already existing ritual: Oil pulling is part of my morning routine. So, I started journaling while I was oil pulling. This also gives me a time limit since oil pulling for more than 15-20 minutes is kinda gross. (By the way, to insert oil pulling to my morning routine, I took a similar route as I’m explaining, and now it’s a norm for me.)
To stay inspired to keep on with journaling in the morning I remind myself of the differences I feel on the days when I don’t journal. Even if I’m just writing about how tired I am and how loud the birds are, it feels good to me.
Indulging to me means taking breaks. Most weekends I don’t journal, and I am totally cool with that.
I realize this can be seen as quite laborious which is what I am here for! Health coaching is all about figuring out what healthy habits will be beneficial to your life and how to insert them. Not only am I here to coach you through things, but I am also here to hold you accountable to the steps to take to reach your goals. Disclaimer: It’s extremely important for me to understand the unique quality of everyone’s life. As this is meant to be an example of me health coaching myself, I love finding bio-individual aspects of each client’s life to explore.
Thank you so much for reading, and I look forward to connecting with you regarding scheduling our free consultation. And, as always, reach out anytime to say hey or with a topic of your interest that you’d like to learn more about.
P.S. For my music lovers… I’ve put all playlists in one spot. Check it out and bookmark to check back as I’ll add them as they’re made.
