Most of  people think that having cravings is a bad thing and that we have to do our best to get rid of them.

It’s not true!

Our cravings tell us that some brain chemicals are missing in our bodies. Having cravings is a unique way of our bodies communicate with us and a wonderful tool for finding which foods work best for us.

In general, we might have cravings if we:

• don’t drink enough water (dehydration is considered to be a mild hunger);
• are bored, stressed out, dissatisfied with our relationship, (emotional eating);
• eat too much sugar, salt, processed food;
• don’t eat enough seasonal foods;
• have hormonal changes;
• don’t eat some foods for a long period of time.

Tips to Beat Sugar and Chocolate Cravings

Whenever we have cravings, our body tries to tell us something, which means it’s time to learn how to listen to our body in order to understand its needs and imbalances.

• Feel like eating sweet foods?

It always means that your blood sugar is low and your body is asking for energy.

Try to eat more sweet potatoes, yams, winter squash, beets, carrots.

Whole foods such as grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds will be very helpful because they contain complex carbohydrates – chains of three or more single sugar molecules linked together- and are digested slowly and steadily.

Studies show this helps control blood sugar, diabetes, and insulin levels. Because whole foods are rich in fiber, they can help with weight loss and detox of your body.

• Feel like eating chocolate?

Did you know that chocolate (dark, healthy for us) is very rich in Magnesium? People who crave chocolate may have a  low Magnesium level. They can also eat more whole foods, such as beans ((mung, aduki, black), whole grains (buckwheat, millet, barley), nuts and seeds (almonds, cashews, sesame seeds). A good source of Magnesium is spirulina, dried seaweeds, chlorella.

Learning how to listen to our bodies can be a rewarding process.

Let us be crave smart to feel and look fabulous, shall we?

Breathe, smile and be happy.

©Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health Coach and Nutrition Counselor

We all know that illness can be caused when toxicity in our body increases.  To reduce toxicity you can always try weight loss detox with whole foods and detox recipes.  But did you know that toxicity can be increased by stress.  So why not try to reduce your stress first?

To reduce stress you can learn to relax, improve sleep quantity, or try some breathing exercises.   If you reduce your stress you may be able to reduce female hormone imbalance and ease pre-menopausal and post menopausal symptoms.

There is more to life than increasing its speed.  ~ Mohandas K. Gandhi

One of the best stress reducers is to try to do nothing for five minutes.  Can you do it? It will be even better if you lie down and put your legs up on the wall – in Legs-up-the Wall Pose. This detoxing pose will help you to relax, drain lymph from the legs and increase blood flow.

If you are not sure how to start, some directions from yogajournal.com might help:

Start with your support about 5 to 6 inches away from the wall.

Sit sideways on right end of the support, with your right side against the wall (left-handers can substitute “left” for “right” in these instructions).

Exhale and, with one smooth movement, swing your legs up onto the wall and your shoulders and head lightly down onto the floor.

The first few times you do this, you may ignominiously slide off the support and plop down with your buttocks on the floor. Don’t get discouraged. Try lowering the support and/or moving it slightly further off the wall until you gain some facility with this movement, then move back closer to the wall.

Try to relax on the floor doing nothing every day, and if you think you don’t have time, lie down while you watch TV, talk on the phone or plan a weekend  getaway.  Breathe, smile and be happy…..

Let us slow down and learn how to do nothing from time to time to feel and look fabulous, shall we?

Breathe, smile and be happy.

Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health Coach and Counselor

NaturalCounselorBlog.com

If you get up in the morning feeling stressed out, out of balance and fatigued, you might need a break to breathe, meditate, or do one of these four Qigong exercises to get more energy and feel centered.

Try to do these exercises presented by one of the “Shift Doctors” Marion Ross, P.H.D. Do them in the morning, or any time when you need to get rid of your old or negative energy, detox your body, get your hormones in balance, improve your vision, and get energized by the Universe.

Do you feel energized, refreshed and centered?

Click to listen to our discussion with the shift doctors Tracy Latz and Dr. Marion Ross on How to Feel Happy and Lovable on holistic health talk for women radio show “Feel and Look Fabulous with Irina”.

Breathe, smile and be happy.

© Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health and Nutrition Coach and Counselor

Happy and Healthy New Year to You and Your Family!

Are you ready to start this New Year with healthy winter breakfast? We, women after forty, must have breakfast in order to have enough energy and to keep our hormones in balance.

Do you like to have cooked or raw oatmeal with fruits and nuts for breakfast? We need oatmeal to feel and look fabulous at any age.

Oatmeal is rich in fiber, which can help with constipation,  high blood pressure, and natural weight loss and detox. It is also rich in Manganese, a trace mineral we need to keep our bones strong, our blood sugar under control and thyroid (responsible for our hormonal balance) healthy.

New Year Oatmeal Pancakes Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 cup oats
• 1 cup whole grain flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1.5 cups kefir
• 2 eggs (preferably organic and from free-range birds)
• olive oil for the pan
• 2 tbsp raw honey or blackstrap molasses
• Maple syrup
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• fresh fruits (apples, bananas, blueberries, persimmon, raisins, prunes, etc).
• sour cream

Directions:

Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl and add kefir and raw honey or blackstrap molasses. Stir thoroughly. Cook as regular pancakes. Serve with the fresh fruits and sour cream on top.

Bon Appetit!

Learn more about eBook “Detox-101,Super Simple Detox-The Ultimate Detox Guide for Beginners”

Breathe, smile and be happy.

Irina Wardas, HHC

Women’s Holistic Health and Nutrition Coach and Counselor