My New(ish) Love... GREEN SMOOTHIES!

So... Haven't updated in months... Did my 21 day juice cleanse, felt great! Then got off track a while, too many indulgences over summer... But what is pool and barbecue season for??? And now I'm back to eating better and more whole foods... And my favorite way??? Green Smoothies! I take about 1/2 a bag of frozen spinach, 1.5 frozen banana, cut in chunks prior to freezing, frozen pineapple, coconut oil, some local honey, and water. Blend it all super well in the NINJA.... And heaven and health in a glass!!!!

No 'Poo!! Green Haircare

So, in going with my "All Things Green" clearing of chemicals and toxins from my life, I began looking into skin and hair care.  Oh my!  What an eye opening experience.  Just go to your shower and take a peek around.  I had been thinking about what goes IN my body for some time... but what about what goes ON my body???  Well, you just try and go pronounce half the stuff in that bottle of shampoo or conditioner in your shower!   Even the "good ones"  and "green ones"!!  I was shocked at the long lists on my "natural" shampoos and conditioners, so I started doing a lot of research.  A LOT.  The results were eye opening!!  Here's the way the shampoo and conditioner you have been using works:

• Shampoo and all the chemicals create that "awesome" lather that strips all the healthy protecting oils and sebum (the natural oily lubricant in your hair follicles that protects your skin from infection) from your scalp and hair, leaving you with dry, frizzy, thirsty hair, and an unprotected scalp.  This then causes the scalp to OVER produce sebum and oils to compensate for being so stripped down.
• Conditioner then piles on more chemicals and many times silicone's or silicone like chemicals, in order to "smooth" the hair and tame it.  This actually just weighs the hair down and makes it dull and lifeless.

Additionally:

• Shampoo is an unnecessary expense!!!  What did our grandparents use before the "invention" of modern day shampoo??  Baking soda and lemon juice or apple cider vinegar!!  Switching to a baking soda and apple cider vinegar is a very simple, frugal and earth friendly alternative to the mass produced chemically laden stuff we have been using.
• Most shampoos contain many kinds of harmful chemicals, including carcinogens, pesticides, reproductive toxins, and hormone disruptors. Look at your baby shampoo's too!!  They can contain just as many harmful chemicals as the regulars!!!
• Shampoo strips your hair of sebum and dumps chemicals on the exposed scalp and hair, therefore multiplying the scalp and hair's exposure to harmful chemicals. 
• Because it strips your hair, it sets in motion a cycle that demands more and more products~conditioners, masks, gels, heat protectors, sprays, mousse, and more shampoo to get all the gunk out... thus starting the cycle again.
• Shampoo is bad for the environment (so are all those plastic bottles we throw away!)

   So in a quest for a more natural, simpler alternative, I came across the "No 'Poo" method....  So here is goes (its VERY complicated):

1) wash with Baking Soda and H2O solution
2) rinse with Apple Cider Vinegar and H2O solution

THAT'S IT!!!  Brilliant right???

Well, there is a slight downside... there is a "transition" period.  This phase can last from a day or two to several weeks, depending on your body, hair and current hair routine. The transition period is basically a readjustment period for your scalp.  Since your scalp is so used to being stripped by shampoo every day, or if it's lucky, two, the scalp is in the routine of producing WAY more oils than it really needs.  Basically I liken it to a war on my scalp.  The North Army is the Shampoo and the South is the Sebum.  Each is battling to have control over the hair follicle.  So, when you remove the Shampoo and the North Army retreats, the South goes a little crazy and the Sebum spills out everywhere....The things my crazy mind comes up with... Who knows... Back to transitioning your hair. :)  When I stopped using shampoo I started using a Castille and Honey wash which was very diluted with H2O.  I also used my black soap liquid I made from African Black Soap (will post more on that another day).  Both were good. At least it seemed at first.  And I honestly don't know if it was the scalp transitioning or just that they were too drying which was adding to the problem, but I had some MESS going on in my hair!  It was WAAAAYY greasy for a couple days... like so greasy I used nothing in it and it wouldn't dry, literally.  I had to wear it in a bun several days to work, but there were good days too!  My transitioning period lasted about 10 days.  But they weren't all "I just stuck my head in a vat of chicken frying lard" type days.  I had some really good days too, with just a touch of grease at the temples, so I just pulled half my hair back in twists. It really wasn't too terrible I felt like, but I am pretty tolerant of crazy hair days... I have some pretty crazy hair, multiple colors and textures...

Before I go on, I guess I should tell you all about my hair...

The Locks:  Past, Present, and Curly???

So here's the deal, my dad has very fine, slightly wavy, not too thin, but thin, blonde blonde with a touch of Irish red hair, my mom on the other hand has Chewbacca hair. I kid you not.  She has coarse, THICK, mounds of curly, crazy, wavy, oodles and oodles of hair.

Before I was born she had a fro. Pure Awesomeness!

And for proof of the Chewbacca hair you ask??

So here the three of us are... I was a blonde baby... And pictures had a red hue in those days...Dad and I really were VERY blonde!

Proof:

And, although I have dyed my hair every color under the sun, I stopped that years ago, and am a natural blonde, with light to medium brown underneath.  The more sun I get the more blonde I get!

(FYI- I'm on the left)

My hair is mid back length and the above picture is how I wore it most of the time.  Dried straight and silky.  When I was in high school (only 20 years ago! YIPES!!) I could leave for school with it just out of shower wet and by lunch it was dry and silky straight... Somewhere over the years it changed.  Hormones, damage, I'm not sure, but it developed a wave over the years.  Sometimes I could wrangle the wave into looking at least halfway presentable, but generally when I wore my hair air dried and natural, I looked like I stuck my finger in a light socket! Plus the brown parts curled MUCH better than the blonde... The blonde just always looked electrified.

The "before"... Although this was not 100% dry... And it was first thing in the morning.  The waves would have fallen some and the blonde would have gotten more and more frizzy and fried looking throughout the day:

And then... it got curly....

Before I jump ahead of myself....Back to no 'poo... we will get to the curly soon enough...

During the transition period I ditched everything but Baking Soda (BS) and Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV).  That helped a lot.  But it could have also just been that my transition was not that bad?  I really only had 2 bad days, out of 10, so 8 ehhh, not great days... So consider yourself warned, it could be not that bad, or a really hard couple weeks, but stick it out, because it is soooooo worth it!!!  After the transition I noticed my hair felt very different, both when wet and dry.  In the shower it has a very clean and clumpy texture.  I will say I miss the slippery texture that conditioner gives it in the shower, but after dry, OMG!  So soft!I'm down to 2 BS/ACV washes a week.  Some days I wet my hair, rinse it well with warm-hot water, just to get any slight oily buildup removed from my scalp, then do an ACV rinse.  Other days I use my handy dandy shower cap and keep my hair dry! :) The Cap:

I feel a little bit like I am living like my grandmother and great aunt did! I am aiming to only use the BS once a week eventually.  My scalp is adjusting really well.  No excess oil or dryness. It has been over a month, probably close to 6 weeks since my last "real" shampoo and condition. And the craziest part is the Curly...

The Curly:

So that is my hair now!  Holy COW!  My kinda beach wavy hair now has curls.  And it keeps getting curlier.  I will say I have lost about 2 inches of length in my hair!  The one "product" I put in my hair is a super simple, all natural, home made flax seed gel (I will cover that in another post).

Excuse the tired eyes... This was late in the day and I was exhausted!!

So now let's discuss the actual process.  I make my BS wash in a 12 ounce squeeze bottle I got at my local grocery store.  I have one for each wash and rinse.  I had been using old bottles from shampoo, but I found I was looking for something to really get the wash and rinse where I wanted.  The pointed tip is PERFECT!  I take about a tablespoon and a half of BS in the bottle with 12 oz H2O:

I then add HOT (not boiling, just hot from my filtered shower head) water and fill it up.  I shake it well and the wash solution should be a light milky white. The general average concentration most people use is about 1 tablespoon to 1 cup or 8 ounces of water.  Next to the ACV.  There are many mixture concentrations from 1 or 2 tablespoons per 8 oz water, up to 1/2 and 1/2.  I use about 1/3 ACV to 2/3 H2O.

Now my wash and rinse are ready and I hop in the shower.  I use the nozzle to really get the wash down at my scalp and rub around really well.  I use the entire 12 ounce bottle, but I have A TON of hair and it is almost waist length when straight. I rinse out the wash really well and then start the ACV mixture.  With the BS wash I start at my scalp and just let the mix run down my hair, with the ACV I do the opposite.  I start at the ends of my hair and finish at the roots with the ACV rinse.  I then pile my hair up or stick it in a bun and go about my other shower stuff.  I rinse out the ACV well, then dry and follow with the flax gel.  My hair is soft as can be.  Even though it looks "fixed" or like the curls are set with gel or lotion which normally would be crunchy, my hair is soft as can be!

I LOVE MY NEW NATURAL HAIR ROUTINE!!! 

Baking Soda & Peroxide Tooth "Paste"

I have been using this method to clean my teeth for YEARS!   I do sometimes use OraMD as well, it is good for traveling for sure.  What led me to change this was doing some research on all the chemicals and the fluoride in most tooth products.  Here are some of the studies I found when looking back into fluoride for this post:
Harvard Study Confirms Fluoride Harms Brain Development
How Fluoride Harms Rather Than Helps Teeth
Fluoride Toxicity and Osteoporosis in Humans
There are MANY more... Just Google "Fluoride Health"

...and we are told to DRINK this stuff???  OH MY!!  So after I learned all of the harms of fluoride, I started looking for alternatives.  I used OraMD for a good long time.  It works REALLY well.  I love the super clean feeling in my mouth, however it is strong, some people may not like the strength of the essential oils. I had also heard about how "in the olden days" hydrogen peroxide and baking soda... and guess what... TOTALLY whitens your teeth too!

I am sure many people are wondering about the taste... With all the fake, synthetic sweeteners and flavors these days we seem to think EVERYTHING should be a taste delight... Well, honestly, I do not like the way straight BS and H2O2 tastes, so I combined the OraMD and the BS/H2O2.  What I would do was put a few tablespoons of BS in a small plastic container with lid (a small pickling jar would be even better without plastic!) and then I put a few drops of OraMD in the BS and shook really good.  This makes it taste MUCH better!  However, I wanted to move away from the OraMD if I could (Just lazy really!! Not wanting to have to order it!) and I started using peppermint and spearmint essential oils.  This is BRILLIANCE!  I LOVE the taste, I can control the potency, leaves a fresh minty feeling in my mouth, and super simple!  I have been using BS/H2O2 for about 4 years, and the EO version for the past 2 years or more.  It has been great.  People always comment on how white my teeth are and I can feel I am doing both my body and the environment good!! I generally pour some H2O2 over my toothbrush, then dip it in my BS mix, and brush away!  I will say you don't want a super thick paste with the BS, as it is gritty and could, if brushed too hard and dry too often, harm the enamel on your teeth, but that is just like anything else... you wouldn't put sand paper to your teeth would you??

So here is what you need:

 Optional:

So that's it!!  So simple!  So healthy!  So inexpensive! 

Going "Green"

So... I've been taking steps toward a more simple, less chemical, cleaner, healthier lifestyle for a while now. I have made changes a little bit at a time, constantly trying new things, some stick, others don't... But here is what I'm currently doing/using to "green" up!!

Brush teeth with baking soda and peroxide
Make my own cleaning supplies (almost all! The only thing I don't make is furniture polish and I add some Murphy's oil soap to my homemade vinegar hardwood floor cleaner)
No more store bought bath products... NONE!!! I'm using the no 'poo method for my hair, baking soda and water to "no 'poo" and ACV and water to rinse and condition, I use African black soap for the rest of my body, even face, and made a body butter from fresh aloe, coco butter, mango butter, Shea butter, coconut oil, grape seed oil and essential oils... Oh and fresh rosemary. I use this all over, even my face! Awesome!
No more store bought deodorant... I'm using one made by a lady on etsy now, but will be making my own when I run out!
I make my own laundry detergent and "softener"
No microwave in my house, I use a gas stove for all cooking/reheating
And just added:
Shower head with a filter for chlorine
SquattyPotty
MCUK

The last three are ordered, but not here yet... Those i just ordered after reading up on them. Thanks for the great info from Ashley's Green Life  on her experiences! I'm so inspired now! And have plans for more "greening"!! I'm going to break down each "greening" in its own post to go over details... Oh, and I don't really wear makeup, and have started the spring garden... More details to follow!! Here's a teaser of the garden to come... All the little seedlings ready for their new homes!!

As well as my filter shower head (update-It's HERE now and I LOVE it!!):

And finally the deodorant:

Juicing break...

So I took a break from juicing... And oh what a break I took! Farmers market eggs and homemade local grain wheat sourdough inspired a trio of Breakfasts... A take on eggs Benedict with a thick slice of sourdough toasted up, 2 perfectly fried eggs, with runny yellows, topped with fresh hollandaise sauce. Sheer perfection!!! Next up was an open faced Breakfast sandwich with sourdough toast, mustard, sharp cheddar and another beautiful fried egg... And finally... Funnel cake type wok fried crepe tasting dough topped with fruit and powdered sugar... Ah-mazing! I made 2 versions... One with just strawberries, and one with strawberries, blueberries & blackberries.

Juicing day 16-21

I'm still juicing! Just have been very busy with work and tired and not taking pictures! I'm surprised how not hungry I am. I still want the taste of bad for me food... But am not hungry! I probably won't post much this week... I'm in trial again... But will do a "recap" on the weekend! Cheers!

Juicing day 15 4/30

Mexican again today! I'm still feeling great. Sleeping well and waking up refreshed. I added horseradish this time! Great addition! About a thumb size piece after it was cut and peeled (just thought it was a good idea... I don't peel the ginger, just scrub real well). I also added 4 stalks of celery and 2 cloves garlic not in the picture. So here we have: a whole lot of grape tomatoes, strawberries, green grapes, a plum, 2 grapefruit, 2 blood oranges, 3 limes, 4 bunches parsley, a few leaves spinach, 3 cucumbers, shallots, a red bell pepper, a peach and a daikon (I think that's right- got at Fm, will check this week and update if wrong).

Look at how DARK green that juice is! That was parsley, daikon, cucumber, celery and spinach!

Juicing day 14, 3/30

Today I took it easy. Stocked up on fruits I didn't find at the FM yet, worked on landscaping in the yard and worked on the garden and compost. I made a huge batch of juice tonight, enough for tonight and tomorrow morning. It's delish! Grapes, strawberries, blackberries, huge bunch of curly parsley, watercress, 2 cucumbers, lots of ginger, 3 limes, 3 lemons, 3 plums, 2 oranges, 2 apples & a peach. It made about 3 liters! Wow! Moms getting a bunch and the boy will get some too.

Juicing day 13 AKA 2/30

So today mom and I went to the farmers market and got some stuff to juice. One of the great things I got was a flat of wheatgrass!!! I hadn't juiced WG before, so I was very excited! Plus mom's jumping on the juicing train! She's agreed to try my crazy juices. I think she will love what she will feel like drinking all the juices! So I had her over and made a juice for her, her very first juice, and SHE LOVED IT! Yay! I added about 4 stalks of celery and a piece of ginger a little bigger than my thumb in addition to the picture below of wheatgrass, 2 grapefruit, lemon, 2 golden apples, one pink, handful of strawberries, 2 small limes.

I will say, after just water and lemons yesterday, then my lemon citrus "tea" last night I'm feeling 100% better today! No nasty sluggish feeling lingering around anymore.

Day 12 AKA Day 1 of last 30 days of juicing

So after the mishap of red bean and rice and hush puppy... Oh? Did I not mention that before.... Strange! But yes... The body needed a reboot after my night off... So I gave it only lemon water all day and a lemon water with orange and a touch of honey last night.... So no juicing.... Just rest.

Day 11 juicing

So this is plus one day from my original goal of 10 days... I will admit I had a little rice and beans tonight... Don't feel good afterwards.... So it's back on the juice only tomorrow.... And this time Ill know how much it hurts if I get tempted.... :( but my juice today was great!! It was creamy and green green green! I had this all day, then the rice n beans tonight.... It was totally an emotional call I know I already regret! Back tomorrow to finish my last 30 days no slip ups!

Day 10

Another long day. I'm tired for the first time since day 3. I will say my skin is sooooo happy. It's gotten very very soft. All in all great juicing day. This was truly delish! Soooo yummy! And look at that color! Purple kale and blackberries make great bases to purple "power" drink!! I also love a pineapple in the juice! Very uplifting and refreshing!!

This is purple kale, celery, parsley, pineapple, grapefruit, orange, grape, ginger, limes, apple, strawberries and blackberries.

Day 8-9 juicing

I have been a little busy the past few days in trial so this will be a short post. Yesterday I was majorly craving something not juice.... But I think it was just the stress of the day and mental exhaustion.... I just kept thinking of a burger and beer.... I guess that's my "comfort food." The past 3 days I have made the juice the night before as I've been having long long days at the office. So day 8 I had the Mexican juice from night 7. Yesterday, day 9, I had a purple power juice that was BEAUTIFUL and delish. It had a ton of ginger and purple kale. In fact I added extra kale and ginger after the main pic was taken. I'll post today's juice later on. I'm still not physically hungry, just an emotional desire to eat. My body though is very satisfied with all the liquid nutrients its getting!!!

P.S.~ the giant grapefruit looking thing is a pummelo!

Day 7~Spicy Mexican Juice!

So I made some Mexican Juice tonight with cilantro, parsley, tomatoes, onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeño, celery, cucumber, blood oranges, strawberries, peach, apple, grapefruit lemons & limes. The juice is not the most visually appealing but it sure was pretty being made! Look at all that green juice! That was just the greens, celery and cucumber!  Taste just like a bloody mary sans vodka!

Juice Fasting!

So today is day 7 of juice fasting... I have been juicing only fresh veggies and fruit. Let me take a step back.  What started this and how did I get here... Well it starts several years ago... I went vegetarian.  I loved it!  My body loved it too… At  first it was hard (I LOVE a rare steak and bacon… but I digress..), after a few months of eating no meat I noticed I felt better, more vibrant, less “sluggish”, all sorts of wonderful things…I was also actively doing Ashtanga Yoga several times a week, I was on my way to true health!  In May of 2011 I was offered an amazing opportunity to become a prosecutor and fulfill a life dream, and be able to truly help people who are going through some of the hardest times in their lives.  I was ecstatic and jumped at the opportunity…  My work life has never been so full…Still on that vegetarian train too.. But then I noticed slowly with time at the office some of the weight I had flushed when I went meatless was coming back… I was none too happy, so in October of 2011 I started CrossFit… Very dynamic workout that I truly enjoyed with some amazing people… After several months of CrossFit, I did a 6 week challenge with the gym and followed the “Paleo Lifestyle”… Now, I know many people love paleo and it works great for them… but meat. Just does something to my body… not good… and so then I fell off the bandwagon completely and my last 6 months of 2012 were filled with fried chicken, bacon, steak… all the things I love and my body detests… Insomnia set in, along with some extra pounds, my skin was lacking its normal radiance… All around just yucky!  Back on the veggie train I went in January of 2013 to clean up my act.  I have been eating a lot of homemade stir fry and fried rice in my wok (LOVE my authentic hand hammered wok from The Wok Shop in San Francisco!  AMAZING!).  I was starting to feel better, but still just not quite right… And then I saw “Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead” … it was incredible… and I couldn’t get it off my mind…  I had done a 21 day detox a few years ago eating only fresh raw veggies and fruit, but this was radical even for me… This lovable Aussie named Joe is on lots of medications, including strong steroids, has a debilitating skin disease, and is very overweight.  He takes off on a 60 day juice fast and travels across America from NYC to the West Coast.  And the changes to his health are so inspiring, not to mention all the weight he lost, his glowing complexion and the dramatic rise in energy he had as a result… I woke up Monday morning, feeling yucky, and decided, today is the day!  I’m fasting! Luckily I had some fresh fruit and made a morning juice… and away I went!

That first night after work I went to the grocery store and stocked up on lots of fresh greens, veggies and fruit…  So here is my first juice...

I started taking more pics after a couple of days... And then got inspired to blog about my juicing experience as I've had so many people ask what the heck I'm doing!  I will say that days 1-3 were the worst as far as the way I felt.  Day 1 I was hungry... I missed food.  I had leftovers in my fridge taunting me.. they got tossed!  Day 2 I was generally just icky feeling.  I had a mild headache and was tired.  Day 3 I was grumpy and tired.. but I kept on.. and magically day 4 I woke up as if from a fog... I woke up at 6:30am, on my own, wide awake!  And anyone that knows me known I love my sleep, so this was eye opening!  I had energy and was really looking forward to my green juice!  I was juicing celery, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, tomatoes, all types of berries, LOTS of ginger, sweet potatoes, onion, garlic, apples, peaches, lemons, limes... literally everything I could find.  My mixtures started off simple... then got exciting!  I will start to break down what I am doing daily (HOPEFULLY!), but here are a few of the ones I have made over the past week!

MMMM!  This was YUMMY!  I made it for breakfast Saturday as I was going on a day road trip and needed lots of fuel. This had lemons, grapes, strawberries, grapes, blackberries, ginger, cabbage, pineapple, flat and curly parsley... TOTALLY OUTRAGEOUS! 

My first attempt with beets.  It was good, but I suggest peeling the beet, keeps them a little sweeter.  This juice had bell pepper, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, lime, apple, lemon, beet, cabbage, curly and flat parsley (BTW-parsley is super super great for you!  TONS of chlorophyll and helps with bad breath and BO!  WOW!!!!)

Simple Green Juice (this was day 1 I think).  This is lots of spinach, pear, apple, lemon, celery, 2 carrots, cucumber and apple.. Oh and that's my juicer and set up I use in the background.  LOVE my Champion juicer!  It does great with greens!  I do suggest juicing the leafy greens first, and running juicier stuff later through the juicer as it cleans out all that good green stuff!

Gazpacho!  Delish!  Totally satisfied a Mexican food itch! This was 3 tomatoes, lots of curly parsley, cilantro, grapefruit, onion, garlic clove, 2 lemons 2 limes, an apple and peach!

Here's a few pics of the process...

 The above and the juice directly below was all from juicing lemons, grapes, strawberries, grapes, blackberries, ginger, cabbage, pineapple, flat and curly parsley.  Outstanding!

BEETS!!! So pretty!

Bell pepper, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, lime, apple, lemon, beet, cabbage, curly and flat parsley juice!

The "sausage" is the pulp.

This is nothing but parsley... so amazingly green!

Blackberries are so delish and they are thicker and thicken up the juice just slightly.

mmmmm... pineapple and lemon!

Look at that bright beet juice!

I keep the pulp from all the non acidic, non ginger, non onion and feed it to my worms- they love it! (I have a worm compost for my spring/summer garden that is in the works)

 

Here are a few pics from my fridge and counters of all the goodies I've been buying up to juice!  I have really found it a lot like cooking.  I feel a little like a juicing chef!  I open my fridge, look around, see what catches my eye and develop my juice around that...  I make sure there are a variety of colors in and flavors, and have yet to make a bad juice.  I will say that some are more palitable than others, but they all are good!

So.. I think that's enough today... I am feeling amazingly energized... And look forward to the juice, for the most part.  I think the weekend has been harder than the work week.  I'm used to lots of cooking and eating on weekends, but all in all I am very happy with my juice fasting... One thing I am sure you are curious about is how long am I going to fast.  When I started I thought "I'll try to 10 days, and maybe longer..." after a few days I thoughts "10 days for sure and my goal is 30!"... now a week in my goal is 40 days.  I can't believe I said that out loud!  I had only told one person my "secret" goal... We shall see... Always an adventure!  Cheers!