Speaking of frozen things, how ’bout those blended iced coffees that can now be found in a variety of permutations in every convenience store and coffee shop around North America? Walk down any street on a hot day and you’ll see someone slurping on one. Now, I’ll be honest, if I didn’t react badly to nearly every major ingredient in these concoctions (sugar, coffee, dairy), I would be tempted to slurp along with the masses. However, for my body, coffee and sugar is like mixing crystal meth and gasoline. It will make me crazy and then destroy my insides. In short, I’ve not made that mistake again. Although not everyone reacts so violently to such a cocktail, I will promise you this: There is absolutely nothing health-building inside a conventional iced coffee. And if it’s not health building, then it’s health damaging. I tried to find the ingredients in what I believe is Canada’s most popular iced coffee beverage, but it seems to be locked away from public access (red flag!). I did, however, find the nutritional information, and it’s isn’t pretty: in ONE beverage, you will consume between 33 and 73 grams of sugar, more if you add a flavoured syrup. They should call it Iced Diabetes.

Now, one of my biggest passions in life is showing people that they don’t necessarily have to give up what they love, they just have to MAKE IT BETTER! If I catch myself lusting over some treat that I know isn’t good for me, it inspires me to create my own version using ingredients that I feel good about putting in my body. There is a healthy alternative to nearly every one of your food fancies.

Here is my creamy, icy, rich and delicious version of an iced coffee. It’s full of superfoods rich in minerals, antioxidants, fibre, protein, and healthy fats. This beverage is  actually liver cleansing (thanks, dandelion!), nourishes the adrenals (holla at yer girl, maca!), keeps those bowels moving (cheers, chia!), boosts the immune system (thumbs up, chaga!), and supports cardiovascular health (props, cacao!). This is one of my favourite summer breakfasts.

Iced Superfood Latte

8 ice cubes

1/2 cup water or non-dairy milk

1 scoop of good tasting protein powder (I use unflavoured or vanilla whey protein isolate)

3 Tbsp hemp seeds

1 heaping Tbsp raw cacao powder

2 tsp dandelion-based coffee substitute (I like Dandy Blend)

1 tsp chia seeds

1 tsp chaga mushroom powder or 30 drops of chaga tincture (optional)

1/2-1 tsp maca powder

20 drops of stevia or raw honey/maple syrup to taste

Directions

-Add all ingredients to a high-powered blender and blend until smooth. Comsume immediately, preferably outside listening to the birds chirp and june bugs hum

Stay cool!

Take care,

Alex

Here’s a list of three books that influenced me greatly, and dare I say, changed my life.

1. The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz

Along with being a bookworm, I was (am) a sensitive human being. I have gone through periods in my life feeling like I was wearing nothing but tissue paper as my metaphorical skin, being deeply affected by the actions of those around me, and overly concerned if my actions might offend another. I was always well-liked in school, had amazing friends, a warm family, and generally had great people in my life, so my thin skin was relatively protected by a good environment. However, around the time I entered high school, things started to get a bit more dramatic (I blame it on the hormones). The people in my life were still wonderful, but as I started my ascent into maturity I began asking myself questions like, “How do I know if I’m a good person? Do I like who I’m turning into? How do I not let it ruin my day if that complete stranger was mean to me?” This very concise book answered a lot of those questions and became a Bible of sorts for me. Ruiz’s four rules heavily influenced my moral compass. I believe that it helped me to be kind but assertive, ethical and respectful of others, and perhaps most importantly, more able to identify when somebody’s snarky attitude is not about me, and to let it go. I have my bad days, but for the most part, I can say I’m proud of how I conduct myself as a person and feel this book really helped shape who I am. Read this if you feel lost in your social world, or like you’d like to turn over a new leaf and become a better version of yourself.

2. Healthy at 100, John Robbins

This book was part of the assigned reading during my nutrition training at CSNN. Even though I have one of the springiest grandmothers that ever sprung, still bouncing around in her eighties, I too associated aging with aches and creaks, social isolation, and a decline in cognitive function. But no! Robbins takes us on a tour of four different populations in Ecuador, Russia, Pakistan, and Japan whose people are known for living their golden years in style (and by style I mean vibrant health). This book had the effect of clearing the dark fog that clouded my future vision of “When I’m Old”. It made me realize that age is more about the cumulative load of how you treat yourself than it is about years on the planet. Robbins talks about the factors that make these societies stand out, and the most salient factors to healthy aging may surprise you!  Change is inevitable, but aging doesn’t have to equate decline. This book was really, really inspiring to me. Read this if you repeatedly catch yourself telling people, “I tell ya, gettin’ old is no fun!”

3. Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers, Robert M. Sapolsky

One of the most important things I’ve learned in my formal training as a nutritionist is that nearly every disease (and I mean 99.99999% of them) can be traced back to two factors: Bad diet and stress. The first one is obvious to me, and as a health practitioner who works with food as her main tool, it’s the one I felt more comfortable with. I always respected the importance of stress as a major causative trigger in illness, but almost in an intangible fluff sort of way. You can imagine the witch doctor wearing the jingly bangles waving her hands vaguely saying, “Yes! Stress was the cause of your ills!” Prior to reading this book, the link between stress and disease seemed to me often perilously blurry, lacking the explanations of why A causes B causes C causes D. This book punches vague assumptions about stress and disease right in the face. Sapolsky is an impeccable, almost neurotically thorough researcher and does an amazing job of breaking down how stress causes illness. He is the type of man whose brain I will love to jump into (not to mention his giant beard). I rub this research in the faces of my clients who don’t believe me when I tell them their blood pressure is high because they need to spend more time with their friends playing euchre or that their memory will improve if they get back to their watercolours. Additionally, Sapolsky has spent decades of his life observing apes and monkeys in Africa and brings many humourous and poignant anecdotes from his experiences there that will leave you thinking, “We are nothing but a bunch of pale, tall monkeys”. Read this if you keep dismissing the power of how we perceive our reality (because stress is all about perception) and our health.

Take care,

Alex

Start with a few cups of salad greens and then go nuts with the possibilities. Add sugar snap peas, nuts and seeds, fresh berries, grated beets, roasted sweet potato or cauliflower, seaweeds like arame or nori, caramelized onions, sliced apples, thinly sliced red pepper or green onion, fresh herbs, sauerkraut or kimchi, sprouts, beans/lentils, shaved fennel, marinated artichokes, asparagus, good olives, radish cut in matchsticks, whole grains, grilled eggplant, avocado, or sweet cherry tomatoes. The options are truly endless

And then comes the dressing, the best food accessory of all. Most days I am an oil and vinegar type of girl, for the sake of convenience. However, I do enjoy a jazzy dressing. Here are three.

Parsley Picante Dressing*

1 cup parsley, chopped, loosely packed (cilantro works well too)

4 small green onions

1 green chili, seeds and stem removed

1 clove garlic

5 Tbsp olive oil

3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1/2 tsp sea salt

Asian Carrot Dressing*

1 large carrot, diced

1 inch knob of ginger

3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

1 tsp toasted sesame seed oil

4 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp tamari

1/4 tsp sea salt

Creamy Red Pepper Dressing*

1 red pepper, seeds and stem removed, coarsely chopped

3 Tbsp tahini

3 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic

1/2 tsp salt

*Directions for all three dressings are the same: Throw all ingredients into a blender and blend! (For the Asian Carrot dressing, you may need to steam the carrots first if your blender is not very strong)

Happy accessorizing
Take care,

Alex

The past couple months in Toronto have been hot and sunny. I’ve been spending as much time as possible outside, soaking up some sun and vitamin D. How delish.

Our apartment has one small air conditioning unit which is, frankly, no match for 35 degree weather. It groans and sweats onto the sidewalk outside, but it’s still kicking, and I’m grateful. Balmy weather induced oven-phobia swells, and I’ve been doing less baking and less cooking in general, favouring quick meals, smoothies, and fresh salads. Today I’m sharing a salad that I’ve been a little bit addicted to.

Before massaging…

I first tried making a kale salad a couple years ago and was completely turned off by its fibrous texture. I felt like a cow trying to get through

…After massaging!

that salad, molars churning and grinding with each forkful. Not long after, I discovered that the secret to making a kale salad is the love you put into it. I’m speaking literally! When eaten raw, kale is at its best after it’s had a little massage. Massaging these tougher greens breaks up the fibres and makes the leaves softer and easier to chew. Massaged kale is a great base for any salad, and is FULL of nutrients like beta carotene, vitamin K, and a whole spectrum of minerals. Try it!

Massaged Kale Salad with Creamy Curry Dressing

About 5 big leaves of kale, washed, stems removed*

1/4 cup red onion, thinly sliced

2 handfuls raw cashews

-Make sure the kale leaves are ripped into reasonable-sized pieces. Place the leaves in a bowl (yes! they will shrink!) and knead firmly with clean hands. Grab big bunches of the leaves and squeeze them in your fists. Continue doing this for about a minute or so until the leaves are soft. They will look like they have been steamed.

-Add the onion slices, cashews, and dressing (below) and toss until well combined. Add some slices of roasted sweet potato and some protein (chickpeas or grilled shrimp would be nice) and you’ve got a legit meal. Serves 2.

* Don’t throw out the kale stalks! Chop them up and add them to soups or stir-frys, or throw them raw into a smoothie!

Dressing

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 Tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2 tsp honey

1 tsp curry powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

cayenne pepper to taste (optional)

-Add all ingredients to a small bowl/mug and whisk with a fork until combined. Pour over salad and toss.

Enjoy the sun, readers!

Take care,

Alex

Last weekend, Javier and I participated in that aforementioned extreme bike ride (the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer), and while things didn’t exactly work out as I had planned, I’m so glad I was there.

As mentioned in the previous blog, Javier and I have been training for the past couple of months. We did lots of long bike rides, and put in extra time at the gym. We invested in gel seats and padded-butt shorts and tune-ups. We prepared for everything we could prepare for…and then I got sick. The night before the ride, I lay awake, blowing my nose furiously, hoping to be well by the morning. I lay awake most of that night and in the morning felt pretty terrible.

I considered staying home the whole weekend. Rather than risking defeat in the middle of a challenge, I considered forfeiting the whole thing. Isn’t it funny how we do that? This “all-or-nothing” attitude sets us back so much. I see it all the time in my office: If one chip is eaten, the whole diet is ruined and a guilty binge follows. If one workout is missed, we fall into a depressed lethargy and swear being fit is too hard. I’m guilty of being a perfectionist too. If I couldn’t ride the whole 200 km, I almost didn’t want to try at all. And then I realized what crappy options those were: Quit before starting or hurt myself in order to finish. Not so appealing. So I lowered the bar for myself, and eased up on the pressure. I told myself that I wanted to be there, at least to support Javier. If I only rode 10 km, that was fine.

So very early Saturday morning, Javier and I found ourselves in a crowd of thousands; a sea of spandex and angular calves. It was crisp and sunny, and I knew I made the right decision to participate, even if I didn’t meet my original goal. Isn’t it always better to participate than to stay home?

To make a long story short, I rode over 100 km on my bike last weekend. It’s about half of what I had intended to do, but a heck of a lot more than I would have done had I stayed home. It rained for hours on day one, and it was 32 degrees on day two, and I was sick and underslept, but I was there, in the middle of all that energy, all those fancy bikes and sweat and yellow flags to mark survivors. I saw people throw up, pass out, wipe out, cry, bleed, and push push push until the finish line. It was a difficult decision for me not to push myself too. My pride was telling me to keep going no matter the consequences, and yet my body was telling me to stop, to let it go.

I am amazed at those who finished. People participate in this ride for all kinds of reasons and for many, finishing the race is very symbolic and worth the physical sacrifice, and I can understand that. Congratulations to everyone that crossed the finish line…what a ride.

And congratulations to this guy, who also crossed the finish line, who biked over 210 km in two days and didn’t complain until the very end when he finally got off his bike, only to say, “Ok. I’m tired.” My hero.

To those of you struggling to meet a goal, ease up. Perfect isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be. Challenge yourself, and hold yourself to positive standards, but don’t get stuck on perfection. Just participate, and keep trying, and rest when you need it. And then get back up again.

I can’t wait to get back on my bike

Thank you so, so much to our wonderful friends and family for the donations, the good luck wishes, and the motivational text messages to keep us riding this past weekend. It meant so much!

Take care,

Alex