Play with Yourself

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The doctor tells you to do it.  Touch and feel your breast.  All around the breast.  Other tests encourage you to squeeze your nipple to check hormones.  Squeeze the ends of your toes to open up sinuses or rub your temples to relieve a headache. One of the best ways to learn about your very own body is to feel it.   A few ways to stimulate the body include exploring, brushing, and exfoliating.  Play with yourself to stimulate as well as monitor any changes in and on your body.

Personally, I love when my pampering sessions serendipitously happen.  It may be weekly, monthly, and some weeks more then others.  Recently, a friend graciously gave me homegrown avocados!  I made guacamole, flax crackers with avocado, dressing, salad with avocado and many other creative recipes.  Then I decided to apply it on my body instead of just in my body!

I had been at the beach and needed to moisturize my sunkissed skin.  I love the feeling of salt water and the natural exfoliating properties. Typically afterwards, I apply a little oil on my body including the hair as a deep conditioner.  This time, I grabbed a glass of wine, music and a towel and got messy.  I took some dead sea salts and epsom salts, a little sunflower oil plus lemon and ylang ylang essential oil mixed well in a paper cup with a chop stick.  As my body was dry, I brushed all over from the top of my feet, underneath armpits, up the arms, legs, and 'rear' with a medium bristle (body) brush.  It feels tingling as if your body is vibrating.  When putting food on your body or face, just take the plunge!  I feel like a little kid playing with my food as I smash the (very ripe) avocado in my face and hair.  Then, exfoliate.  I find exfoliating very sexy.  Take the salt/oil combo and rub in a circular motion all around your body following up from the dry brushing.  Chill out for as long as you decide -  5 minutes, 30 minutes, there is no wrong.  Allow the oils to penetrate into the skin and enjoy the aromatherapy.  After about 10-15 min. I added a little of the oil to my avocado hair and some avocado to the oily skin. When I felt the time was right, I took a warm shower to rinse everything off thoroughly and finished with a cold splash.  In the shower, I combed through my conditioned hair (no soap, shampoo, or conditioner).  My body felt perfectly soft with little beads from the oil.  Lightly pat dry.

The avacodo is very nourishing, hydrating and good for mature and sun damaged skin.  Visualize the consistency and texture.  Dry brushing brushes off dead skin which allows the skin to breath also increasing lymphatic circulation.  Other benefits include reducing cellulite, stimulating circulation and more!  http://naturalhealthtechniques.com/healingtechniquesdry_brushing_technique.htm provides a great explanation about dry brushing.  Exfoliating is similar to dry brushing and includes the benefits of the oils, essential oils and aromatherapy.  

I hope you enjoy messing around!
     


Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Urban Gardening

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In Ground Gardening
I have officially begun my fall garden.  I started feeling the itch late August. This is my first season in a townhouse.  The last 5 years, I've had a large garden in my backyard.  We composted, harvested, weeded, nibbled, learned and grew, in more ways than one!  I learned how important proper soil is and the root system much like our very own bodies.  The soil may represent our environment.  The root system may portray our background, upbringing, where we came from or where or how we are rooted today.  I love relating gardening to our body and mind and how we grow, blossom and flourish!  My garden gave me so much happiness and taught exponentially!

Urban Gardening
Moving to a townhouse with no gardening space was a major adjustment. Thankfully, we moved during the summer where I choose not to fight with the Florida heat.  I take the summer off from gardening and then..... start to get the itch.  This time was a different.  I began visualizing where I would put a variety of planters and researching urban gardening.  This inspired me to learn something new!  I wanted to make sure to grow my collards, mustard greens, kale, lettuce, arugula, herbs and whatever else I could squeeze in and around my little area!  Ironically,  it just so happened that I planned on doing most of my planting on the Fall Equinox.  I found planters where you water the roots and underneath as opposed to watering on top.  Makes great sense.  My 'hanging baskets' is a multi-pocketed planter made of an eco-friendly fabric.  http://growvertical.net/.  I'm so pumped up about these!!  This urban garden will be simple but prolific! I already found a frog on my 2nd floor balcony!  I still have a few planters in mind to make so I'm not finished yet. But, that's what I love about gardening.  We continue to 'grow'!

 I look forward to watching this new garden thrive and hope my neighbors and those walking around the area will enjoy it too!  Lately,  I feel drawn to wear yellow, black and white. Maybe it's my way of being a little bumble bee buzzing around my garden!  Happy Growing!



Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Outdoor Adventures

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Summer Vacation!
This summer my husband and I went to Asheville, NC for my first time.  I loved Asheville but spent most of the time outside of the city.  We couldn't have asked for better weather!  I was so excited about seeing new places, being in the mountains and relaxing.  Cell phone reception was hit or miss which worked out for the best! (it was a reminder how we used to live without cell phones and gps's).

Hiking
I love hiking and am so thankful for my hiking boots I bought years ago (probably a decade) and bust out every now and then!  I felt I could conquer any hike with those Timberlands.  What I found interesting was how I could literally feel building muscle while hiking.  It's amazing what a little cross training will do for you!  Breathing the mountain air, being in the dappled sunshine, walking up, down, sideways and whatever you need to do to get from one step to another.  In tight spaces, I was thankful to be able to steer my hips in one direction and torso to another.  You'll see that type of training (hips forward and torso rotated) in Pilates, athletic, and functional training.  Additionally, I was extremely thankful to have strong ankles and calves.  I semi twisted or rolled my ankles multiple times but was very thankful to recovery quickly to the next step without missing a beat.  My husband and I were smart to take time in the evening to stretch in order to be ready for the next day's hike.

Herbs
In the meantime, I was breathing fresh mountain air and oooohhhing and awwwing throughout the hike taking in the beauty.  I was thrilled to see herbs that I've either grown, used, or studied actually growing in it's natural habitat.  I saw Common Joe-Pye Weed, also called feverweed, saw a different variety of yarrow, angelica, red clover, plantain, mint, jewelweed and more!!  I even got 'stung' by stinging nettles. I've heard that yellow dock typically grows nearby to help take the sting away but couldn't pinpoint which plant it was!

I loved putting my passions together such as the outdoors and exercise plus herbs and mother nature!  It also challenged my body and mind through testy terrain while navigating through, what you had hoped were, hiking trails (with minimal signage) and reminding myself I wasn't going to be a bear's lunch.

Other cross training activities
I also zip-lined for the first time.  What an exhilarating experience!  Although, you don't need to be in great condition, it was helpful to use my core while ziping along (instead of neck and shoulders or hurting your back).  www.navitat.com did a great job!  White water rafting down the Nantahala was another core and upper body workout.  Part of the ab workout is from laughing because it's so much fun!


There you have it!  My relaxing vacation!  I wouldn't have it any other way!



Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Food Allergies vs. Intolerance

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Grain Free Diet/Lifestyle
For the last 7 years, I have been grain free from foods such as rice, quinoa and much more. I have learned to get very creative with my food and cravings! When I went to a grain free diet/lifestyle in 2004, I was on an elimination diet for 3-4 months taking out all the allergenic foods such as dairy and gluten. My symptoms from the elimination diet got a little better but it wasn't until I took all grains out (including oats, millet for example) that I felt more of a difference.


Diet along with stressors in life can wreek havoc on your body and mind, inside and out. When in physical pain, we are effected emotionally. Many times physical pain relates to something deeper.  The deeper you go, you may understand where your dis-ease is coming from and give you a better perspective on the ways to overcome it. I specifically said ways plural because in order to heal from the inside, usually it's a combination of things to make it happen.


Playing with Food
Earlier this year, I decided to re-introduce a few new things back into my diet one at a time and allowed at least 72 hours before reintroducing anything else new. This was a slow process but I've learned to be patient.  Excitedly, I didn't have any major reactions! I felt like I had a whole new menu to work with reintroducing rice, millet, corn, quinoa and buckwheat including buckwheat 'grits', millet chips and quinoa salads. Although I didn't eat these new things on a daily basis, it was nice to have the option. I still kept it slow.

Food Allergy vs. Intolerance 
Over the course of 2-3 months, totally unrelated (or so I thought) I started to feel very thick through my mid-section (not thick from having strong abs!! but thick in a different way).  I also was bloated often, felt bigger and my clothes fit different. It was more about how I felt then how I looked. Then, the hip pain. Years ago, I suffered from severe hip pain when my body was in dis-ease. This was the rude awakening.  I realized feeling bloated and suffering from this very alarming hip pain is very much connected to my new menu of foods. Although, I was not consuming them daily, over time, slowly, they (or one or two of those items) were not appropriate for me. This, my friends, is an intolerance. When my husband ingests a tree nut he'll have an anaphylactic shock and within seconds will begin to feel swelling around the face, lips, throat and more over time. Notice I put the word ingest? Although he is very aware to ask, things slip through the cracks. If he chews his food and tastes a tree nut, he'll immediately spit it out and he'll be okay. If it goes any further, we need to find the closest hospital. So, another reason, folks, to chew your food instead of bite and swallow! That is the difference between an intolerance and allergy. Both are evil.


Check Within
Everyone responds different to stress and foreign invaders within your body. Some may get a skin reaction, abdominal pain, headaches, moodiness, fatigue, physical pain and much more. In the future, when reintroducing something new, I'll only do one at a time over the course of 4 weeks, eating it once every couple days at most. Since taking the food back out, I already feel better and less bloated. The hip discomfort is currently not as active and will subside when the inflammation within my body is down.  I hope this is a friendly reminder to 'check within' yourself. If you are eating or thinking unhealthy things for your body on a somewhat regular basis, it (may already have or) will catch up to you. Be strong and do something about it!


Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Summer Seasonal Skin

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Skinsational Summer
The summer is always a time of year when I need to pay a little closer attention to my skin's needs.  Each season calls for its own protocol to care for the skin from a dry, cold winter to seasonal transitions from winter to spring and the heat of the summer.  Make sure your skin is moisturized during the summer sun.  Proper hydration comes from the inside out.  Hydrating your cells internally (for example, drinking an appropriate amount of water) will have a positive effect on your skin.

What's your Skin Type
It's so easy for your skin to dry out during this time of year.  I have an olive complexion,  my skin enjoys oils.  Be aware of drying culprits such as the sun,  ocean, chlorine pools, or skin products you may think are hydrating.  What kind of skin do you have and have you figured out what works for your body?

My System
There are many luxurious ways to care for the skin during the summer.  Personally, I put on a thick oil including shea butter, coconut oil, sesame oil (for example B Me Organic Body and Belly Oil ) to protect from the sun and also enhance my natural color.  I love going into the Gulf of Mexico and inter-coastal water and allow the salt water minerals to exfoliate.  After my time at the beach, in the sun or water, I will reapply the oil, including my hair too, for a deep conditioner.  I also may apply the gel (inside of an aloe leaf) throughout my body.  Allow everything to marinate and moisturize for at least 30 min. or hours.  When I shower, I scrub off the 'salt' minerals and comb through my hair without a shampoo or conditioner.  You decide if you need to apply a little more oil on your body after the shower.  I also use the B Me Healing Creme as another way to cool the skin. I like to keep this in the fridge and apply the creme after I'm out in the sun.  A little goes a long way.

Easy Homemade Spa Treatments
There are many spa treatments you can do for yourself (and save money).  Learn about your skin types and play with your food to create masks, facial toners, hair rinses and more!  Foods including avocado, strawberries, banana, cucumber, ground almonds, yoghurt and herbs such as rosemary, lemongrass, lavender, green tea, calendula and chamomile can be soothing and hydrating.  For example, cucumber is cooling to the skin.  Take thinly slice cucumbers and place in cool mint tea.  Allow to marinate.  Drink the tea and put the cucumbers around your eyes and face.  Another treatment is to take a ripe avacado and mix with yoghurt.  Apply on your face or body.  It will tighten and hydrate sun kissed skin.  Make yourself a strong cup of green tea.  Chill it.  Fill a 4oz bottle and leave room for 1 tbsp of witch hazel.  If you have essential oils such as lavender and/or peppermint, put a couple drops into your spritzer bottle.  Keep cool and enjoy an uplifting facial toner.  And remember, Cleopatra was known for using the gel of the aloe plant!  There's nothing better than a cold piece of real aloe to cool the skin.

Spa Time
There are so many ways to make your own spa products. The B Me Spa Time Workshop on Monday July 25th at 6pm in Clearwater, FL is a hands on workshop to create products that resonate with you!  Email Emily Wenzel for more information on upcoming events and workshops!

Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Ch Ch Ch Changes

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Mind Boggling
As the seasons change, so do the days of our lives. Sounds like a soap opera however, I see my life more like a comedy!  This past month as been a whirl wind of exciting changes.  Change is important to keep our body and mind stimulated. This stimulation and usage of the mind creates more neural pathways and will benefit you in a variety of ways such as increase in energy, alertness, motivation and skills. 

Moving
After living in a house for 10 years, my husband and I downsized to a townhouse and live 2 miles from Clearwater Beach.  Ok, yes, I'll admit I got a little overwhelmed after a few days of packing however, in the scope of it all, I enjoyed the cleansing feeling of give away items, complete trash and keepers.  In the unpacking process, I still enjoyed additional give aways and found new places in the house for the keepers.  But, in the big picture, we have really enjoyed finding new places to ride bicycles, the new environment and surroundings and mostly being 3 blocks from the most amazing place to watch the sunset! 

Stress and De-stress
Although I was looking forward to the move, the week before and the week after (major packing, organizing, unpacking, moving details etc.) I could literally feel my body heavier and more tired.  The stress was literally weighing on me.  Stress can be good but often times is a negative.  It's the way we handle stress which can lead to dis-ease within our body and mind.  I tried to honor the busy-ness of those weeks knowing it would slow down.  After a few weeks, I have gotten more exercise by exploring the area and feeling lighter in the mind and (thankfully) naturally the body.

The Brighter Side
One major change for me is going from a backyard with my flourishing garden to very little space to bring my whole family of potted plants.  Some family and friends were kind enough to inherit some of my special babies!  To me, gardening is very nourishing, healthy, meditative and rewarding.  Moving over the spring/summer was the best time because in Florida, with the warm weather, I don't do as much gardening. This will give me time to learn where I'll play in the dirt next.  I aspire to learn more about container gardening and get more involved in community gardening where I can learn from others and share what I know.  And in the meantime, meet new friends!  It's all how you see it.

Try it out for size
You don't necessarily have to move houses to create change in your life, but I emphasize to you the important of making some major change such as picking up a new hobby, eating a variety of new foods, or learning a new language or instrument and see how it effects your life in a positive way!


Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!

Spring Tea

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Springtime!
Happy Spring!  This is a great time to begin transition from winter warming food and drinks to cooler tastes for the body and mind!
I naturally gravitate towards certain herbs depending upon what is in my garden, less expensive at the store (which typciy means it's in season), and what my body is 'asking' for.  Certain herbs flourish at certain times of year for a purpose - it is their time to shine and share their goodness to us!!


Spring Tea
Take mint (or spearmint or peppermint), lemon bam, and lemongrass for example.  I may make a tea at the end of the day of this blend, enjoy it warm and make enough to drink it cold for the next day or two!  


Mint is considered a cooling herb which assists our body in regulating our body's temperature.  Along with relieving an upset tummy, mint may be used externally for diaper rash, sunburn, bites or stings and more.  Of course, there are so many different variations of mint including peppermint, spearmint, apple mint and more.  When planting mint, it will crawl and grow. If it's in a pot, loosen the soil from time to time and or repot when it appears it's outgrowing the pot.  You may also take some of the plant and repot.  You will see the many fingers of roots.  In Florida, mint loves spring and fall!  Mine is about to bloom now.

mint in boom

Lemon Balm is considered a cooling herb with many therapeutic properties such as an anti-viral for cold sores, uplifting spirits and relaxing nervous energy, digestive aid and more. It is in the mint family and also called Melissa Officinalis.  I have found it likes the sun but not necessarily the full blown Florida sun.  And like mint, it needs a drink of water but not saturated soil.

lemon bam

 Lemongrass is considered a warming herb that assist with digestion, gas, and also repels bugs. Lemongrass is easy to grow in pots or in the ground.  It can tolerate the Florida sun.

lemongrass

The Perfect Cup of Tea
The perfect cup of tea will vary from person to person, herb to herb, infusing time, state of mind, quality of the herbs and more.  When using the herbs, fresh or dried, play with them prior to putting them in the hot water.  Massage the herbs to release the herbal essence.  When using flowers such as chamomile, these beauties are fragile and require less steeping (or infusing) time.  Spices such as anise or cinnamon require longer steeping time. Depending upon your blend, put certain herbs or spices in before others.


Tea Utensils
Infusing utensils may include a cheese cloth, a ball of many sizes and shapes, and a bag.  I highly recommend the natural cheese cloth in the brown color. The white one has been bleached and those chemicals may end up in your tea.  I also have been known to 'bag' the utensils and just toss the herbs in the hot water and straining them out.  


Putting it Together
If you make 4 cups of water, take 3-4 long springs of lemongrass and put it in the hot water with the cover on and off the burner.  Leave the lemongrass infusing for 10-15 minutes. Then add 2 cups, loosely packed, fresh mint or 3-4 tsp dried and the same for lemon balm. (if using fresh mint - pull the leaves off the stem. Sometimes I'll use the leaves and stem when it's closer to the top of the plant, then it's not so woodsy.  You may do the same with the lemon balm).  Keep the lid on and infuse for another 10-15 minutes.  Or steep for 10 and then take the lid off for a few minutes.  Your tea should have a strong flavor.  Please feel free to adjust the servings to whatever feels right with you!  For sweetness such as (raw unfiltered) honey, add it while the tea is warm, not hot or not cold.  If it's too hot, it may burn off the fabulous qualities of the honey.  You may add it do the entire pot or just the single cup you may currently enjoy.  If adding it to one cup, I like to first put about 1/4 cup of tea, then honey, then more tea and mix.  After enjoying a few sips, I may 'top' it off with more tea.  Each sip will have a delightful taste!












Body and Mind Enrichment. A unique way of exercising your body and mind!