The Final Days till the End of the Cleanse

How are you all doing?

I've got lots to report, from my personal perspective.

Let me begin with those beginning whopper headaches from the first days of giving up caffeine! Although it was tough to begin with, I am happy to report that I wake up refreshed and ready to go!
I have made the choice to leave caffeine out of my daily routine, post cleanse.

Giving up the animal products was not a big deal for me. It was tough to be on the road traveling while others were enjoying their hamburgers and such, but the salads were more than sustaining. I will remain animal free for a while as well.

I'll commit to staying gluten free for at least another month, as I have noticed such a wonderful flexibility and overall good feeling in my joints. I may even bake a loaf of gluten free bread to see what this is like!

Sugary items don't even sound good at the moment. I've started baking fruits, like apples and pears, adding ginger granules, and it has proven to be the "go to"snack when I am feeling like a treat.

The alcohol.... well a cold beer sounds very good about now!

Thanks for cleansing Evolving Yogi's!

Meditation Break

Do It Now Why not take a meditation break right now, wherever you're sitting? You don't need to do anything special to set the stage for your 5-minute vacation—just sit comfortably and move your focus inward. This contemplation meditation is an opportunity to focus your "thinking mind" on the mystery of being. Here's how to try it: Sit back in your chair so that your back is completely supported. Face your hands on your knees with your palms facing, up to open your awareness, or facing down, to calm the mind. As you inhale, silently say "so" to yourself and as you exhale, say "hum." These words mean "I am that"—in other words, they are an affirmation of your existence. Once you've established the "so hum" rhythm, begin to contemplate the source of your breath: Where is your breath coming from? Through visualization, contemplate the 5 billion human beings and countless creatures on Earth being fed by the same tidal rhythm of the breath.

Your Inner Monologue

Change Your Inner Monologue If you observe your mind, there is always noise. It begins the moment you open your eyes in the morning and carries on every single second until you close your eyes at night. Perhaps this chatter prevents you from drifting off to sleep. And when you do finally doze off, it may make that rest fitful. When you examine your mental chatter, you will quickly discern that this unending noise has patterns. One of the most powerful and prevalent is your Voice of Judgment. Over time, negative judgments start to accumulate. Eventually they form a huge barrier that sits squarely in front of you on the path to your ideal life. During the day, try carrying around a journal—or a file, notebook, or sheet of paper. Categorize the types of mind chatter that assault or beguile. Do this for at least two weeks. Are there wild flights of fancy? Elaborate escapist dreams? If so, try to be specific about exactly what types of accomplishments you fantasize about. The very act of observing it changes your mental chatter. Shoplifting drops dramatically when department stores install surveillance cameras and post signs that they have done so. Similarly, your mental chatter is less able to take you down destructive paths when you become consciously aware of it.

Tips on Deciphering Food Labels

Tips for Deciphering Food Labels, Part 1 The best way to approach a packaged food is with healthy skepticism, knowing that what you find on the package is intended to sell that product.  At best it can be confusing; at worst, misleading. The claims often give consumers a false sense of eating healthy, which then leads to the consumption of more packaged food. Here are some of the big areas of concern:    Made with Whole Grains. According to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, numerous manufacturers are trying to exploit consumers' desire to eat more whole grains by making claims that their products are rich in them when they are not. If unbleached wheat flour is the main ingredient, and whole wheat flour is third (or further) down on the list, the product actually contains very little whole grains. Ingredient Lists. There is a lot of room for deception and misdirection in the average ingredient list. Ingredients are listed from the most to the least. For example, if a cake lists flour as the first ingredient, a consumer would be led to believe that flour is the biggest ingredient. Often the biggest ingredient, however, is sugar, and this is disguised by sugar's many names (corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, cane sugar, dextrose, fructose, maltose, etc.). Serving Size. A reasonable person would conclude that a bottle of soda or juice, or a small bag of chips, is one serving. Most serving size calculators were developed, however, when Star Wars was first on the big screen! Because soda bottles are much larger now, this leads to situations where soda or juice bottles contain 2 1/2 servings, and serving sizes for chips are '11 chips'! Always try to remember to check the serving size! Omega 3s. The FDA allows certain foods that are rich in Omega 3s to advertise that they can reduce the risk of heart disease, but only if they also are low in saturated fats or other risk factors. Manufacturers are getting around this rule by simply highlighting that their products contain 'Omega 3s' regardless of the amount of saturated fat. Eggs are a good example of this, because you can find cartons labeled 'Omega 3s' all the time, and yet eggs are specifically prohibited from carrying the FDA's  'qualified health claim' because of the amount of cholesterol they contain. Made with Real Fruit. Despite claiming that they are 'made with real fruit,' about the only thing even remotely resembling fruit contained in many products (especially those marketed to kids) is, e.g., pear concentrate (which is essentially sugar). The best suggestion for this area is - if you want real fruit, buy real fruit, and if you want candy, buy candy. Tips on Deciphering Food Labels, Part 2 If you missed the first part of this article, you can read it here and then read on for 5 more items to be aware of when you are reading a package label: 0 Trans Fat. Trans fats are best avoided because they adhere to our cell membranes and make it difficult for our cells to make energy, receive good nutrients or communicate with other cells. There are two label issues to be aware of here: First, a nutrition facts label can state '0 Trans Fat' even if a product actually contains it, as long as the trans fat is less than 0.5g per serving. Read the actual ingredient list to see if it contains any 'partially hydrogenated oils,' and if it does, the product contains trans fats.  Second, be aware that the USDA does not even require identifying trans fats on its labels. Free Range Eggs. Be aware that the government does not regulate the use of the terms 'free range' or 'cage free' when it comes to eggs, so there is no guarantee unless you know the farm(er) that 'free range' actually occurred. The USDA does have rules for those terms as they relate to poultry: chickens must be given exactly 5 minutes 'access' to the outdoors everyday. Fiber. 'Fiber' advertised in many foods is actually a combination of purified powders called inulin, polydextrose and maltodextrin. These isolated unnatural fibers are unlikely to lower blood cholesterol or blood sugar as other fiber can, and two of the three will not even help with regularity. These powders act more like low calorie filling agents in the body and not like traditional fiber. Health Claims. 'Now helps support your child's immunity' (e.g., on a box of chocolate cereal), or 'can help maintain a healthy heart' are permissible claims that can be made without FDA approval. Product labels cannot claim, however, that a food 'may help reduce the risk of heart disease' without prior FDA approval. Since consumers respond more favorably to positively stated claims anyway, be aware that companies are making these claims with no oversight. 'All Natural.' This was the second-most-common claim on new food products in 2008, and I am confident (looking at store shelves) that that trend has continued. Products claiming to be natural, particularly those aimed at parents of young children, have a competitive edge in the marketplace. Be sure to check labels of products claiming to be 'all natural' or '100% natural.' They often contain added chemical preservatives, ascorbic acid, added citric acid, added color or even high fructose corn syrup, which are violations of FDA policy. The USDA permits poultry and other meat products to be labeled 'All Natural' even if they contain added chicken or beef broth which raises their sodium levels to unnatural levels. I hope you found these tips helpful!

Society's Push for Alcohol

In time, due to the relentless push to drink alcohol, people can become convinced that social occasions simply must include alcohol, and the cues to drink can become overwhelming when parties are about to take place.

Providing alcohol at parties might be a traditional task, but alcohol also has some specific attributes that can make the drinks seem helpful in a party situation. For example, some researchers suggest that alcohol can numb the mind to such a degree that a user finds forgetting about common concerns and momentary crises relatively easy.

A researcher writing in the journal American Psychologistrefers to this phenomenon as “alcohol myopia,” suggesting that people who drink alcohol experience a temporary sensation of relief from anxiety and depression, and they may also feel more important and valuable. In a party situation, this can make some people seem more social and more pleasant to spend time with. People who have underlying depression issues or social phobias may developaddictions to alcohol as they attempt to self-medicate their conditions.

Alcohol can also reduce inhibitions, making people feel a bit more relaxed and able to share their innermost thoughts with people they meet at parties. People who have been drinking might feel more comfortable striking up conversations and maintaining the attention and interest of people they don’t know very well. People who have extreme social phobias or other social dysfunctions may find that alcohol is one of the only substances they know of that can help them to attend a party without feeling awkward and shy. This crutch usage can quickly become addictive.

Chemical Underpinnings

While it’s true that alcohol can be addictive due to the changes it can bring about in behavior, and the reinforcement people receive from others who observe this behavior, alcohol can also cause changes on a chemical level within the body, and these chemical changes can also be addictive.

Research

Research suggests that alcohol increases the production of endorphins, the brain’s natural painkillers. These same chemicals are also associated with pleasure and reward, and they tend to accumulate within the portions of the brain that have long been linked with addictive behaviors. An interesting study published in Science Translational Medicine found that people who drink heavily have higher spikes in endorphins when compared to people who do not drink heavily, meaning that alcohol seems to be reinforcing at extremely high levels.

The concept of reinforcement is important in addiction medicine, as using extremely large levels of a drug often causes severe damage that can lead to even more compulsive use. Alcohol does have some attributes that can stop people from using large amounts of the substance, including:

• Nausea
• Lack of muscle control
• Sedation
• Slow breathing and heart rate

Some people who drink heavily experience so many of these symptoms that they’re physically unable to keep drinking. They’re apt to be sleeping somewhere, instead of asking for another round. But those people who can drink heavily and who are able to do so while fighting off the intoxication cues the body might be pulling together are apt to feel an extreme chemical reward cue, and this could allow them to keep on drinking even when they simply should stop.

Recovering from Damage

It can be disheartening to read about addiction studies on alcoholism, especially as they seem to indicate that the substance is so very dangerous and hard to overcome without help. However, the more that researchers understand how alcohol works on the human body, they more they’re able to help people who are impacted by alcoholism.

Knowing that alcohol hijacks the brain’s reward center, for example, could allow experts to develop new medications that could ease the physical pain people feel when they attempt to stop using powerful drugs like this.

When it comes to alcohol, knowledge really is power.

Our Inner Merit

Hearts don't wear smart shoes. Lungs aren't draped in expensive jewelry. You can't tell a smart mind from a designer jacket, even if it does have padded shoulders. Our most fundamental functions are humble and invisible. We may preen and pose, play for position and push for power but there's no true test of any individual's inner merit.

Mind your Body

As we move forward in a healthful way, we continue to pay close attention to body, mind AND spirit.
Is there something you've been longing to be, or to do? Pay attention to the call from within. Your valuable life depends on it!

We had a beautiful time yesterday, practicing the more refined Yin Yoga. As we learn to be less busy, to sit in asana, and to observe our breath, while our thoughts come and go.

Did you notice and spaces between your thoughts?

What does Success Look Like to You?

Homeward Bound

Good day to Evolvers!

I'm very much looking forward to coming back to our beautiful state of Minnesota.
My time here in Phoenix has been a whirlwind of learning, teaching, and fun with new friends.
I look forward to Monday, at which time I can relax and reflect upon this last week's activities and new concepts that I have taken in.

Cycles of Creating Change