- Thievery Corporation: Marching The Hate Machines
- Stateless: Bloodstream
- Cat Power: Maybe Not
- Portishead: Mourning Air
- Anya Marina: Whatever You Like
- Sia: Breathe Me (Mylo Remix)
- TV on the Radio: Tonight
- Bjork: Virus
- Mofro: Circles
- Animal Collective: Loch Raven
- The Album Leaf: Window
- Thomas Newman: Any Other Name
Friday, April 27, 2012
new playlist
Thursday, April 26, 2012
a natural way to control pain and inflammation
After 12 days on the couch, I returned to teaching this week. I am so blissfully happy to be back on my mat and with my students.
I'm currently in that weird in-between phase- I am walking on my own and have almost regained full extension of my knee, but I'm also just 2 weeks out of surgery and dealing with my fair share of pain and inflammation. It's imperative that I take care of myself now, listen to my body and not overdo it, especially since my surgeon and physical therapist told me I didn't have any physical limitations and I could return to normal activity as my body permitted. I want to get back to my normal life so bad, but I know that allowing my body to heal properly and fully is so much more important.
After returning to teaching and other normal tasks (like walking to the grocery store) this week, I have really been in pain. I've been trying to control the pain and inflammation as naturally as possible because I hate taking pain medication. Last night, after teaching two classes and walking to and from the grocery store with a big bag of food, I was in need of some serious relief and ice wasn't cutting it. I decided to take one of the pain pills prescribed to me. It helped with the pain and made me very tired, but I was still unable to sleep. I remember thinking really strange thoughts, one in particular was about coriander seeds (???). Once I finally fell asleep, I woke myself up after nearly scratching my skin off. Itching is a side effect... how nice. Then I got really nauseous and I had to take a pill for that too. Beyond all that, I was unable to sleep well, so when I finally fell asleep I didn't wake up until 1pm. I woke up feeling completely high, wondering how I was going to make a business call. After talking to my mom for a bit and eating some fruit, I felt a little more normal and made the call. It turned out fine, but after being awake for only an hour and half I fell back asleep again until I had to wake up to go teach. I'm still exhausted, and will go to bed as soon as I finish this drink I made.
Obviously, I am not interested in taking any more pills that will make me itchy, nauseous and restless, so after some advice from my dear Hemalayaa, I came up with this concoction- a natural way to control pain and inflammation. Almond milk, cayenne pepper, turmeric and cinnamon. It's spicy and quite delicious, I hope it helps! It's bound to be better than the icky icky pain pill ;)
To everyone who has wished me well and sent me love during this time, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am so happy to finally be (almost) on the other side of this!
Love,
Tami
I'm currently in that weird in-between phase- I am walking on my own and have almost regained full extension of my knee, but I'm also just 2 weeks out of surgery and dealing with my fair share of pain and inflammation. It's imperative that I take care of myself now, listen to my body and not overdo it, especially since my surgeon and physical therapist told me I didn't have any physical limitations and I could return to normal activity as my body permitted. I want to get back to my normal life so bad, but I know that allowing my body to heal properly and fully is so much more important.
After returning to teaching and other normal tasks (like walking to the grocery store) this week, I have really been in pain. I've been trying to control the pain and inflammation as naturally as possible because I hate taking pain medication. Last night, after teaching two classes and walking to and from the grocery store with a big bag of food, I was in need of some serious relief and ice wasn't cutting it. I decided to take one of the pain pills prescribed to me. It helped with the pain and made me very tired, but I was still unable to sleep. I remember thinking really strange thoughts, one in particular was about coriander seeds (???). Once I finally fell asleep, I woke myself up after nearly scratching my skin off. Itching is a side effect... how nice. Then I got really nauseous and I had to take a pill for that too. Beyond all that, I was unable to sleep well, so when I finally fell asleep I didn't wake up until 1pm. I woke up feeling completely high, wondering how I was going to make a business call. After talking to my mom for a bit and eating some fruit, I felt a little more normal and made the call. It turned out fine, but after being awake for only an hour and half I fell back asleep again until I had to wake up to go teach. I'm still exhausted, and will go to bed as soon as I finish this drink I made.
Obviously, I am not interested in taking any more pills that will make me itchy, nauseous and restless, so after some advice from my dear Hemalayaa, I came up with this concoction- a natural way to control pain and inflammation. Almond milk, cayenne pepper, turmeric and cinnamon. It's spicy and quite delicious, I hope it helps! It's bound to be better than the icky icky pain pill ;)
To everyone who has wished me well and sent me love during this time, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am so happy to finally be (almost) on the other side of this!
Love,
Tami
Monday, April 23, 2012
feeling better
I had my first post-operative appointment today and I am happy to report that my knee is healing nicely. It's still lacking 8 degrees of extension, so I'll really be working on straightening it completely in the next few days, but I can't wait to get back to my normal teaching schedule tomorrow!
I'm still very limited in what I can physically do, I only started walking on my own yesterday, but it feels so good to be moving forward. The surgery was only 10 days ago, but it feels like it's been forever since I've been able to practice yoga. I practiced and taught regularly throughout the past 7 months, but it was not without pain.
This experience has been interesting, to say the least. Ever since the initial injury 7 months ago, I've been reminding myself that this whole happened for a reason. I didn't know the reason at the time, and to be honest, it was only something I told myself in hopes that I would eventually begin to believe it. Now that what I hope to be the hardest part is behind me, I feel like I'm starting to catch a glimpse of the bigger picture. The past 10 days have been especially introspective for me, and what I've already known has become set in stone. I love to teach and practice yoga. I love to run. I love to hike. I love to snowboard, and I love to dance around my apartment like a lunatic, sometimes for hours at a time. My ability to do all of these things is directly related to my happiness.
I hope that you'll join me in class this week! Here's my schedule:
Tami
I'm still very limited in what I can physically do, I only started walking on my own yesterday, but it feels so good to be moving forward. The surgery was only 10 days ago, but it feels like it's been forever since I've been able to practice yoga. I practiced and taught regularly throughout the past 7 months, but it was not without pain.
This experience has been interesting, to say the least. Ever since the initial injury 7 months ago, I've been reminding myself that this whole happened for a reason. I didn't know the reason at the time, and to be honest, it was only something I told myself in hopes that I would eventually begin to believe it. Now that what I hope to be the hardest part is behind me, I feel like I'm starting to catch a glimpse of the bigger picture. The past 10 days have been especially introspective for me, and what I've already known has become set in stone. I love to teach and practice yoga. I love to run. I love to hike. I love to snowboard, and I love to dance around my apartment like a lunatic, sometimes for hours at a time. My ability to do all of these things is directly related to my happiness.
I hope that you'll join me in class this week! Here's my schedule:
- Tuesday- Adidas 5:30
- Wednesday- Clackamas 24 11am, McLoughlin 24 7pm
- Thursday- Adidas 5:30, Pearl 24 7:30pm
Tami
Sunday, April 15, 2012
surgery update
This surgery deceived me. I was told that it was a super simple procedure, and compared to others that is probably true, but nobody warned me that although simple, it would still be tough. Post-surgery, in the hospital and on the way home, I felt pretty queasy. To be honest, I don't even remember what I did that night, but I know it involved plenty of pain medication. I was feeling pretty good and even woke up at 4am to write a blog. I spent the first half of the next day alone until my sweet friend Julia came over to hang with me. Let me just take this moment to say that there is something really nice about having a friend you're close enough with to be able come right out and tell them what you need. Initially, Julia said she was tired on Friday after work and wasn't sure. She works for OHSU and has a very busy, fast-paced job. After asking a couple other people to come sit with me that night, I told Julia that I was sorry she'd be tired but that I really did need her, and she came right over. Oh, how I love her!
Julia ordered pizza for us and we laid in my bed together watching trashy TV. She helped me get through my first set of physical therapy exercises and made sure I was as comfortable as possible. At some point in the evening, my pain level shot through the roof so intensely that we had to call the doctor on call. Being that I was already drugged up and couldn't remember anything, Julia wrote down everything he said. He told me to double my dosage on the pain medication, which sounded like a good idea at the time so I did it. Because my husband got home late and we were both really tired, Julia stayed the night. She is great!
Hours after taking a double dose of prescription pain medication, I woke up vomiting so hard I thought my eyes would pop out of my head. Seriously, it was that bad. This continued for several hours, which in the moment felt more like several days. Julia left in the morning and my husband sat with me until he had to leave for work at 1. The sickness never stopped. Without me even realizing what was happening, Julia arranged for one of our friend's moms to come stay with me. I got a call from Amy minutes after Julia left saying, "Are you okay? My mom is coming over!" Thank God for all these amazing people in my life. Lauri arrived right before Keith had to leave for work and I looked like death. I had no color in my face and my eyes looked empty. As awful as I felt, Lauri made me feel calm and taken care of. She made me peppermint tea to help with the nausea, and straightened up my bed every time I had to get out of it so it was always clean and fresh. She also swept my floors and opened my windows to let some fresh energy in. My primary care doctor called, seemingly out the of blue, because he said he had seen that I'd just had surgery and he wanted to see how I was feeling. After 24 hours of feeling like I'd been hit by a truck, I didn't hold back. He called in an anti-nausea drug for me and Lauri went to pick it up. Shortly after taking it, I was starting to feel a bit better. I was able to finally finish my tea and also eat some carrots. The vomit throwing hell ride had finally ended. I only took two of the pills, but I'd say the $17 I paid for that medicine was some of the best money I've ever spent.
After things had calmed down, Holly, a yoga student of mine, brought me some delicious food. Lauri pointed out that the food came from someone who really knew me. It was this glorious dish of quinoa, rainbow chard, black beans and corn, in addition to a bowl of yummy greens with baked yams, onions, sweet bell peppers, avocado, and pine nuts. Also, a package of plain greek yogurt (which I use as a sour cream substitute) and some dressing for the salad. It tasted like heaven it was so nice to not have to think about food. She also brought tulips, which look beautiful on my coffee table and make me smile every time I hobble in there.
Today I woke up with what I would easily classify as the worst headache I have ever had in my life, but midway through the day, it seemed to ease up. My brain still feels foggy and I'm still feeling a bit of pain, but I feel like I am finally starting to feel like a normal human again. I still can't walk without crutches, but I am super thankful to not be feeling nauseous or dealing with a massive headache.
The point of this blog is not to whine about how crappy this has been (although it did feel pretty good to let some of that out), but more to emphasize the importance of having good people in your life. I have wondered several times through this process what I would have done without certain people. Even friends and family from far away comforted me with super sweet and loving texts and phone calls. This experience has also been a great reminder for me to slow down, take a step back and realize all the wonderful things my body does for me on a daily basis. I have been so hard on myself, asking myself questions like "Why am I not walking yet?!" and "Why does it still hurt?!". Even though it was a relatively simple surgery, it is still a surgery. Surgeries are not simple and painless. I actually thought I would be walking the day after the surgery, when in reality, I hadn't even experienced the worst part by then. I can now officially say, I think, that I am glad to be over the hump. I look forward to returning to my yoga practice and teaching, but I am also taking sufficient time off to rest. I will return to my normal teaching schedule on Tuesday, April 24th.
Love,
Tami
Julia ordered pizza for us and we laid in my bed together watching trashy TV. She helped me get through my first set of physical therapy exercises and made sure I was as comfortable as possible. At some point in the evening, my pain level shot through the roof so intensely that we had to call the doctor on call. Being that I was already drugged up and couldn't remember anything, Julia wrote down everything he said. He told me to double my dosage on the pain medication, which sounded like a good idea at the time so I did it. Because my husband got home late and we were both really tired, Julia stayed the night. She is great!
Hours after taking a double dose of prescription pain medication, I woke up vomiting so hard I thought my eyes would pop out of my head. Seriously, it was that bad. This continued for several hours, which in the moment felt more like several days. Julia left in the morning and my husband sat with me until he had to leave for work at 1. The sickness never stopped. Without me even realizing what was happening, Julia arranged for one of our friend's moms to come stay with me. I got a call from Amy minutes after Julia left saying, "Are you okay? My mom is coming over!" Thank God for all these amazing people in my life. Lauri arrived right before Keith had to leave for work and I looked like death. I had no color in my face and my eyes looked empty. As awful as I felt, Lauri made me feel calm and taken care of. She made me peppermint tea to help with the nausea, and straightened up my bed every time I had to get out of it so it was always clean and fresh. She also swept my floors and opened my windows to let some fresh energy in. My primary care doctor called, seemingly out the of blue, because he said he had seen that I'd just had surgery and he wanted to see how I was feeling. After 24 hours of feeling like I'd been hit by a truck, I didn't hold back. He called in an anti-nausea drug for me and Lauri went to pick it up. Shortly after taking it, I was starting to feel a bit better. I was able to finally finish my tea and also eat some carrots. The vomit throwing hell ride had finally ended. I only took two of the pills, but I'd say the $17 I paid for that medicine was some of the best money I've ever spent.
After things had calmed down, Holly, a yoga student of mine, brought me some delicious food. Lauri pointed out that the food came from someone who really knew me. It was this glorious dish of quinoa, rainbow chard, black beans and corn, in addition to a bowl of yummy greens with baked yams, onions, sweet bell peppers, avocado, and pine nuts. Also, a package of plain greek yogurt (which I use as a sour cream substitute) and some dressing for the salad. It tasted like heaven it was so nice to not have to think about food. She also brought tulips, which look beautiful on my coffee table and make me smile every time I hobble in there.
Today I woke up with what I would easily classify as the worst headache I have ever had in my life, but midway through the day, it seemed to ease up. My brain still feels foggy and I'm still feeling a bit of pain, but I feel like I am finally starting to feel like a normal human again. I still can't walk without crutches, but I am super thankful to not be feeling nauseous or dealing with a massive headache.
The point of this blog is not to whine about how crappy this has been (although it did feel pretty good to let some of that out), but more to emphasize the importance of having good people in your life. I have wondered several times through this process what I would have done without certain people. Even friends and family from far away comforted me with super sweet and loving texts and phone calls. This experience has also been a great reminder for me to slow down, take a step back and realize all the wonderful things my body does for me on a daily basis. I have been so hard on myself, asking myself questions like "Why am I not walking yet?!" and "Why does it still hurt?!". Even though it was a relatively simple surgery, it is still a surgery. Surgeries are not simple and painless. I actually thought I would be walking the day after the surgery, when in reality, I hadn't even experienced the worst part by then. I can now officially say, I think, that I am glad to be over the hump. I look forward to returning to my yoga practice and teaching, but I am also taking sufficient time off to rest. I will return to my normal teaching schedule on Tuesday, April 24th.
 |
| Here I am in the hospital pre-surgery, naively thinking I would be all better in 24 hours. |
Tami
Friday, April 13, 2012
knee surgery
It's been a good while since I've written much of anything in this blog directly pertaining to yoga. I've posted here and there about food and smoothies, maybe the occasional playlist, but nothing really about yoga. I'm here to announce right now that I'm revamping this blog. I've been writing here for a year and a half, but have recently come to the conclusion that I'm limiting myself by thinking I can only write about yoga. From here on out, this is a lifestyle blog. A blog about my lifestyle.
I had knee surgery yesterday, about 12 hours ago to be exact. I am thankful to GOD for the fact that I was able to get this taken care of. I injured myself almost 7 months ago to the day, and without health insurance, I had a lot of figuring out to do and a lot of hoops to jump through. Words can not even express how elated I am to be sitting in my living room at 4am, crutches by my side, bandage from toes to thigh and an ice pack on my knee. For 7 long months, I felt like this injury had stolen a very important part of my life from me and I was scared I'd never get it back. This injury instilled in me a sense of fear and over-cautiousness that was never there before. I really noticed this over weekend when I took a visiting 17-year old family friend to Mt. Hood. To get there, we took the historic highway and stopped at every waterfall along the way. She was running around like crazy, jumping on snow banks, all that fun stuff I would typically be doing, but couldn't. I was afraid to even walk in the snow without baby stepping and holding onto her arm or hand because if my knee tweaked the tiniest wrong way, it would be excruciating. It made me so mad to be that way. I have also really missed snowboarding, running and taking advanced yoga classes in public for fear of having to modify so much I might as well not be there. I was an emotional mess, which is why I never have written about it.
Wednesday was my worst day. I felt anxious all day, and teetered on the edge of wanting to scream and/or cry. I never did scream but I certainly did cry. I was nervous, largely because I didn't know what time the surgery would be until less than 24 hours in advance, but also because of the anticipation. However, when I woke up yesterday morning, I felt pretty calm. I got some work done on my computer and had a prayer with my friend and Enliven Festival teammate, Jason. It really helped me feel at peace. When I got to the hospital at noon to check it, I was super tired and thirsty, as I was instructed not to eat or drink anything after midnight. Do you know how hard that is for a girl who wakes up and has a big glass of lemon water, big glass of plain water, mug of hot tea and a green smoothie every morning?! I was feeling a little grumpy, to say the least. When I checked in at noon, I thought the surgery would immediately follow, but it ended up not being until a little after 2. Lucky for me, one of my best friends works at the hospital and came to sit with me on her lunch break while I waited to go back. The team of people I had with me was great, and honored my wishes of not wanting to be pumped full of narcotics. They were used sparingly of course during surgery and after I woke up with a pain level of 8 on a scale from 1 to 10. When the nurse went to inform my husband that I was out of surgery and resting in recovery, she also told him I kept asking for him and saying I didn't want to be there anymore. Oh, the things we say and do when we come out from under anesthesia! The poor guy next to me asked if he could vomit into a sock, then he asked it they had put vodka in his water.
Once I got to the second stage of recovery, my husband and friend were able to come sit with me. Keith came back first because I was feeling a little vulnerable. Then, after 5 total hours in the hospital, I was allowed to go home. I crawled into bed and immediately fell asleep. I've been sleeping on and off for the past 12 hours, which is why I am up at 4am to write! I've been feeling inspired.
My spirits are high. Now I see that there really is light at the end of the tunnel, and while it seems like an eternity to me that I had a nasty injury, it was only temporary. It feels so good to be supported by my family, friends and yoga students. Even though I didn't talk about my knee injury much, those who did know have been very kind and helpful in keeping my spirit lifted. I already feel like I've got my life back! Don't worry, I am definitely going to take plenty of time to heal before I jump back into my normal activities, but just knowing I will be all better soon is a huge comfort.
I'll be writing more about my recovery, and other things related to health and wellness, in this blog from now on. It feels so good to write again and share these thoughts and feelings with you.
Love,
Tami
I had knee surgery yesterday, about 12 hours ago to be exact. I am thankful to GOD for the fact that I was able to get this taken care of. I injured myself almost 7 months ago to the day, and without health insurance, I had a lot of figuring out to do and a lot of hoops to jump through. Words can not even express how elated I am to be sitting in my living room at 4am, crutches by my side, bandage from toes to thigh and an ice pack on my knee. For 7 long months, I felt like this injury had stolen a very important part of my life from me and I was scared I'd never get it back. This injury instilled in me a sense of fear and over-cautiousness that was never there before. I really noticed this over weekend when I took a visiting 17-year old family friend to Mt. Hood. To get there, we took the historic highway and stopped at every waterfall along the way. She was running around like crazy, jumping on snow banks, all that fun stuff I would typically be doing, but couldn't. I was afraid to even walk in the snow without baby stepping and holding onto her arm or hand because if my knee tweaked the tiniest wrong way, it would be excruciating. It made me so mad to be that way. I have also really missed snowboarding, running and taking advanced yoga classes in public for fear of having to modify so much I might as well not be there. I was an emotional mess, which is why I never have written about it.
Wednesday was my worst day. I felt anxious all day, and teetered on the edge of wanting to scream and/or cry. I never did scream but I certainly did cry. I was nervous, largely because I didn't know what time the surgery would be until less than 24 hours in advance, but also because of the anticipation. However, when I woke up yesterday morning, I felt pretty calm. I got some work done on my computer and had a prayer with my friend and Enliven Festival teammate, Jason. It really helped me feel at peace. When I got to the hospital at noon to check it, I was super tired and thirsty, as I was instructed not to eat or drink anything after midnight. Do you know how hard that is for a girl who wakes up and has a big glass of lemon water, big glass of plain water, mug of hot tea and a green smoothie every morning?! I was feeling a little grumpy, to say the least. When I checked in at noon, I thought the surgery would immediately follow, but it ended up not being until a little after 2. Lucky for me, one of my best friends works at the hospital and came to sit with me on her lunch break while I waited to go back. The team of people I had with me was great, and honored my wishes of not wanting to be pumped full of narcotics. They were used sparingly of course during surgery and after I woke up with a pain level of 8 on a scale from 1 to 10. When the nurse went to inform my husband that I was out of surgery and resting in recovery, she also told him I kept asking for him and saying I didn't want to be there anymore. Oh, the things we say and do when we come out from under anesthesia! The poor guy next to me asked if he could vomit into a sock, then he asked it they had put vodka in his water.
Once I got to the second stage of recovery, my husband and friend were able to come sit with me. Keith came back first because I was feeling a little vulnerable. Then, after 5 total hours in the hospital, I was allowed to go home. I crawled into bed and immediately fell asleep. I've been sleeping on and off for the past 12 hours, which is why I am up at 4am to write! I've been feeling inspired.
My spirits are high. Now I see that there really is light at the end of the tunnel, and while it seems like an eternity to me that I had a nasty injury, it was only temporary. It feels so good to be supported by my family, friends and yoga students. Even though I didn't talk about my knee injury much, those who did know have been very kind and helpful in keeping my spirit lifted. I already feel like I've got my life back! Don't worry, I am definitely going to take plenty of time to heal before I jump back into my normal activities, but just knowing I will be all better soon is a huge comfort.
I'll be writing more about my recovery, and other things related to health and wellness, in this blog from now on. It feels so good to write again and share these thoughts and feelings with you.
Love,
Tami
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Sunday smoothies
- 1 stalk celery
- 4 large stalks of kale
- 2 bulk carrots
- 2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
- 1/2 banana
- about 12 oz water (I would have used Almond milk, but I'm out. Also, use more or less water to create desired thick or thinness, mine's super thin)
Here's another smoothie idea, which I haven't tried yet, but sounds amazing. The recipe is from my friend, Dana Walters.
- 2 big handfuls spinach
- half handful parsley
- half handful mint
- 1/3 banana
- heaping tablespoon almond butter
- heaping tablespoon coconut milk
- 1/4 cup almond milk
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon chia seeds
Saturday, March 3, 2012
gluten free taquito
Last night, I decided I wanted to make some more green chile sauce. I made it for the first time last weekend and it was a huge hit. I loved it, my friends loved it and my husband loved it. I made a double batch and it was more than enough to feed five people and have leftovers for a couple days. I wanted to make sure I had enough for a few days again, so I made another double batch. I really should have taken into consideration that I was feeding five people the first time because I now have so much I am literally going to have to put it on everything I eat until it's gone! But, I don't think that will be a problem. The above photo is what the sauce looks like before it gets all blended up. My husband said, "So it's basically a salad?" Well, I guess it could be seen that way. All of the ingredients are raw, so it's super easy to make, and also pretty inexpensive. I buy as much as I can from the bulk section, and I find that helpful in saving money.
Here are the ingredients, pulled straight from Kathryn Budig's article on MindBodyGreen:
Green Chili Sauce (raw)
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 to 2 anaheim chilies - start with one and add more as necessary to reach level of heat
1/4 cup + 2 T olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 + 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 tsp. red chili flakes
1/2 tsp. pepper
*seeded jalapeno may be substituted for Anaheim chilies
Instructions:
Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.
Chill and enjoy!
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 to 2 anaheim chilies - start with one and add more as necessary to reach level of heat
1/4 cup + 2 T olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 cup lime juice
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 + 1/4 tsp salt
1 cup water
1 tsp. red chili flakes
1/2 tsp. pepper
*seeded jalapeno may be substituted for Anaheim chilies
Instructions:
Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth.
Chill and enjoy!
After the sauce was made, I needed something to put it on. I know this isn't the healthiest option, so excuse me, but it's what I felt like (plus it was really easy). Let me first explain to you my history with refried beans.
I've been eating refried beans for about 8 years now. I never really had them as a kid, so I don't know where this obsession came from. I can remember sitting in the couch in my first apartment eating them straight out of the can, and eventually I graduated to heating them in the microwave. Years and years later, I took another leap and started heating them on the stove (once I realized how bad microwaves are). Refried beans were a staple in my diet for a very long time, a complete must-have in my cabinet at all times. In fact, when I had my friends over for dinner last weekend, one of them said, "Remember when you used to eat refried beans everyday?" Of course I remember, it wasn't that long ago. But I really have changed my eating habits immensely since I learned that I actually can cook, and not only that, but I also very much enjoy it.
Another thing I should explain is that I am a creature of habit when it comes to the food I eat. I will eat a variation of the same thing every day for years. Some of the things I literally ate every single day for at least a couple years in the past include wheat thins, fettucine alfredo lean cuisines, refried beans and iceberg lettuce with Kraft sharp cheddar cheese crumbles (had to be that brand and kind specifically) and croutons with light ranch dressing. Now I realize that those things are not good for me, but can you see how someone with no real knowledge of actual healthy food could be duped? Well, as I very well know now, not all salads are healthy, and lean cuisines and other frozen meals are packed with chemicals. I still eat variations of the same thing every day, but those variations now include grains such as brown rice or quinoa with leafy greens and some sort of vegetable. All fresh and organic.
I'm currently in this place of trying to get myself healthy. I wouldn't call myself unhealthy, I'm really just trying to get everything in my body working its best. In the past month, I have given up coffee. Holy wow, that's something I never thought I would do, but somehow I don't miss it. When I was working with Hema in LA, we drank tea with almond milk every day and I enjoyed it so much that I brought the tradition home with me. There was one day in LA that I had an Americano (black, as I drink them), but I actually felt better when I drank only tea. I still do caffeine, Earl Grey is my favorite, but I only have one cup (sometimes two) and only in the morning. After noon I switch to decaf or caffeine free. My husband also nixed coffee in favor of tea, so that makes it a really easy change to stick with. Also, after battling digestive issues, I have decided to slash my gluten intake back to nearly none at all. That's one that my cheese pizza and french bread loving husband won't give up, so we still have it in the house. I do, however, feel a lot better when I eat gluten-free, dairy-free food. Which brings me back to last night's dinner- a gluten free, dairy free taquito with green chile sauce.
I used a brown rice wrap from Trader Joe's. I laid it flat and used the back of a spoon to spread a thin layer of my beloved refried beans all over its surface. Make sure it's a thin layer, unless you want a really fat taquito. From there, I put a very small amount of olive oil in a pan and let it heat up. The I laid my glorious little bean pie in the pan, beans up. I gave it just a few minutes to get warm, then I slid it off onto a plate and rolled it up. It was like a magnificent little bean swirl. I dipped it in green chile sauce and loved every bite.
I realize that this blog has been more about food and less about yoga recently, but that's just where I'm at right now. Healthy food and yoga go together so nicely. Everything I post about is so simple, but I post it because I realize there must be other people out there who want to be healthy, but just aren't quite sure where to start. This is why I fell in love so hard with green smoothies, because they're healthy and delicious but I didn't have to cook anything! Just wash everything, toss it in a blender, press a button and voila! The food I make is so simple and tasty and I hope I've inspired you to try it!
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