Yesterday was the last day of school before the Winter break, and the last day of school can be a wild time for middle schoolers. Rather than embracing the party atmosphere my 8th graders hoped for, I gave the unit test. The predictable moans and groans ensued, but order prevailed. Most did well on the test, since the material was still fresh in their minds. Accountability led to success.
I arrived home plum tuckered out from dealing with sugar-crazed, holiday-hungry students. I went to the fridge to find something healthy to eat. Finding nothing, I grabbed the package of Edie’s Frozen Yogurt out of the freezer and thoroughly enjoyed a forbidden treat that I had not tasted in about a year!
Later that evening, my husband said, “Are you going to put that in your Daily Diet column?” I replied that I hadn’t written a Daily Diet column in a while because I had gotten bored with it and figured my readers had, too. But then, I got to thinking this morning that the built-in accountability that goes with writing the Daily Diet column is good for me. I am more attentive to maintaining a well-rounded, non-acidic diet–and to drinking more water–when I have buddies to keep me going.
So, dear Readers, thanks for allowing me to look to as my accountability partners.
Accountability = Success!
Kathy
Tags: Foundations
2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes (available at DeLand Natural Market)
2 tblsp Earth Balance buttery spread, softened
2 bananas, sliced
Juice of 1 orange
2 cups of strawberries, sliced
15-1/2 oz can of crushed, unsweetened pineapple
1 tbsp cornstarch
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Toss 1-3/4 cups coconut and buttery spread together with a fork. (Save 1/4 cup to sprinkle on top.) Use a fork to mash into an 8″ or 9″ pie pan for form a crust. Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let it cool.
In a small pan, pour the pineapple and cornstarch. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened. Remove from heat and let it cool.
Slice the bananas into a bowl and coat them with orange juice so that they won’t turn color. Slice the strawberries into another bowl.
Once everything is cool, assemble the layers of the pie as follows:
Bottom layer: Drain the bananas from the orange juice. Place the bananas on the bottom of the pie crust.
Next layer: Place the sliced strawberries over the bananas.
Next layer: Pour the pineapple mixture over the strawberries.
On top: Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of coconut.
Serves 8 small slices or 6 larger ones.
Tags: Recipes
For 4 servings, prepare 4 cups of cooked brown rice by combining the following in a sauce pan:
1 cup of uncooked brown rice
2-1/4 cups of water
2 tsp Earth Balance buttery spread
Bring to a boil, then reduce to heat to medium-low and cook for 30 minutes, or until water has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork.
In a small skillet, scramble 2 eggs in a tsp of olive oil.
Break the cooked egg into very small pieces.
Next, you will need:
2 tblsp. olive oil
1 tbsp Earth Balance buttery spread
4 cups of cooked rice
1-2 tbsp teriyaki sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 cups of frozen peas & carrots, available at DeLand Natural Market
Salt & pepper
In a skillet, pour olive oil and buttery spread. Add the cooked rice to the pan and drizzle the teriyaki sauce and soy sauce over it. Cook at medium to medium-high heat until heated through–approximately 10 minutes. Stir in the scrambled eggs and the peas & carrots–mixing thoroughly–and continue to cook for 5 minutes or so, or until the peas & carrots are hot. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.
Serving suggestion: Serve with white tea and a salad of wild greens, mandarin oranges, and sliced strawberries for a complete dinner. Delicious!
You might ask, Don’t you every get tired of this routine?
Yes, I do get tired of the routine. Every so often I throw a regular pity party for myself! In fact, tonight’s the night.
So, what do I do to beat the blues? First, I complain. Yup, I list every woe I can think of. (So much for thinking positive!) But for me, it works.
You see, after getting out all the woe, there’s nowhere else to go…but UP!
Try this out for size: I complained about an argument I had at work with a colleague, about one of my classes that gave me a particularly hard time today, about the taste of the new liquid mineral supplements I have to take, about the sheer number of pills and conconctions I have to take, and more. I even cried aloud, “What terrible sin have I committed that I have to put up with this miserable routine?” To which my husband replied, “You abused your body for 30 years with overwork and stress.” That made me feel better–NOT! The fact that he was right made it even worse.
After that, though, there was no place to go, but up. I could be thankful for the fact that I have a caring, competent team of doctors who are helping me to get well. I could be grateful for the progress that’s been made. I could enjoy the stimulating exercise that has become a mainstay of my schedule. I could even look forward to the fact that perhaps my daughters will not wind up fighting osteoporosis in their postmenopausal years because they learned early how to prevent it.
Finally, I remembered that I have my on-line, bone-building pals to write. Let’s encourage each other to keep on keepin’-on the path to stronger bones and good health!
Where’s the best place to walk for bone-building exercise? The beach!
Why? Not only do you get the benefit of the sun and the salty air, but you also reap the benefit of all those negative ions.
Negative ions are most plentiful in air that’s near crashing water, such as waterfalls and ocean waves. Compare: An indoor room of a house might have 100 negative ions per cubic centimeter of air, while an ocean breeze can carry 100,000 negative ions per cc! That makes a big difference to your blood cells, which need those negative ions to keep their negative charge, so that they don’t “stick” to one another. Healthy, free-moving blood cells carry oxygen and nutrients more efficiently throughout the body, making it easier to build bone density.
So, take a walk on the beach, feel the sand beneath your feet, and relish the fact that you are nourishing your body and building bone density simply by breathing in the ocean air!
Tags: Foundation
As promised, here is Dr. Bourne’s contact information:
Dr. Ashley Bourne
Bourne Family Chiropractic & Wellness Center
2425 S. Volusia Ave., Suite B2
Orange City, Florida
386-789-0500 / Fax 386-789-8182
Dr. Bourne uses gentle techniques and specially designed equipment to make effective adjustments of the spine. I had worried that chiropractic adjustments might cause damage to my bones because of the osteoporosis, but there is absolutely no danger of injury. In fact, chiropractic adjustments aid the body in recovering health and comfort in movement.
Tags: Foundations
