adventures in healthy eating : making your own yogurt

about a year ago i got the wild idea of making my own yogurt. i've loved yogurt since i was a kid, and recently i decided i didn't want all the preservatives and aspartame chemicals and what not in my yogurt.

after researching on the web, i bought the Salton YM9 1 Quart Yogurt maker. It's electric, you plug it in. You prep a mixture of milk and powdered milk to a high temperature and let it cool. You need a candy thermometer to make sure you hit the temperature marks. I use organic milk. Then, add 1/2cup of yogurt, with live and active cultures, to the milk mix as a starter. I've been using organic non-fat greek yogurt, which rocks. You put the yogurt/milk mix into the yogurt maker and let it "cook" for 6 - 9 hours, depending on how tart you like your yogurt. Then you refrigerate.

I haven't run the numbers, but i think it might be a money saver. I only buy a little of the best organic yogurt and use it to make a quart, and then use a 1/2 cup of that to make one more batch the next week. I am buying organic milk anyway for granolas, cooking, chai tea, etc.

Homemade yogurt may not have consistent texture throughout (compared to store bought), but i've never had a batch turn out terrible or inedible. It's always been tasty.

My version of the fruit-on-the-bottom yogurts, winter recipe:

• 2 handfuls organic frozen berry medley (from Trader Joe's) in a pyrex container, microwave till warm.
• add dollups of the homemade yogurt on top.
• if you need more sweetness, add honey* or a little sprinkle of brown sugar. or maple syrup.
  
• toss some slivered almonds on top
• sometimes i add a handful of my homemade granola (recipe to come soon)

* i'm currently using a bottle of Sourwood honey from Seven Sisters, in Coker Creek Tennessee. DC picks some up from a farm stand every year on his dirt bike trip to Tellico.

ready for a change?

just read a book this weekend: Changing Your Course: The 5-step Guide to Getting the Life You Want, by Bob and Melinda Blanchard. Recently I know many people, unemployed or underemployed, or just disillusioned with their chosen career path, and are exploring new options for a more fulfilling life. The Blanchards have successfully launched several small companies, always aligned with their passions and reflecting their priorities in life. This book is a quick read and contains practical motivation for pursuing your passion.

I'd like to share their 10 powerful promises to make to yourself every day:

1. i will do something i care about today, even if it's just for a short period of time.

2. i will be enthusiastic and full of energy.

3. i will find something i can do today to bring me closer to my goal.

4. i will follow my dream, no matter what. i will not let anyone discourage me.

5. i will accept what i cannot change.

6. i will make someone smile unexpectedly today.

7. i will make myself smile today.

8. i will give everything i do my best effort.

9. i will trust my instincts and follow my heart.

10. i will live what i love.

the book is available at booksellers anywhere, also check out the dynamic duo's website at livewhatyoulove.com

from my valentine

i have the most awesome valentine. this year, i got a car!
if you see a red vehicle with this bumper sticker, it's me.

Despite the tough economy,yoga classes are booming

CNN recently reported that despite the recession in America, people aren't dropping their yoga classes. In fact, even more people are turning yoga to relieve higher-than-ever stress levels, whether its career or money-related issues they're dealing with.

Yoga's positive effects on stress-reduction have been measured. Additionally, yogic breathing enhances a sense of calm, even outside the yoga studio. Stretching, balancing and strength building in a yoga class can elevate the heart rate, releasing those feel-good endorphins. The beauty of yoga is its dynamic effects : mentally and physically.

Read the CNN article "Recession relief: people are stretching for it"

releasing tension

Do you ever notice yourself holding the telephone or a steering wheel with a death grip, or scrunching your face, squinting your eyes when staring at a computer screen? Carrying a big handbag, briefcase, or computer bag on the same shoulder? Our unconscious habits can lead to chronic tension, muscle fatigue, and soreness in the wrists, arms, shoulders, neck, and face, which can increase stress and make you feel depleted.

As you practice yoga, you begin to notice where you hold tension. It might be in your tongue, the muscles of your face and neck, or commonly, shoulders.If you simply tune in, you may be able to release some tension in those spots, leading to a more harmonious practice. In class, I often remind my students to melt the shoulderblades down the back, to relax shoulders away from the ears when arms are extended, and to soften and breathe rather than muscle through the more difficult poses. Then, as you move off the mat, remind yourself to soften and breathe into those areas in "real life."

hot hot hot yoga

i've always liked to explore different styles of yoga. when I was first getting hooked on yoga, my main teachers were a fantastic Iyengar teacher and also a great Vinyasa Flow teacher. I loved the alignment focus and detailed attention to poses that I got from my Iyengar teacher, and i totally appreciated the humor and the creativity of my Vinyasa Flow teacher.

My own teaching is a mishmosh of Vinyasa Flow, with a little Power Yoga woven in, with a bit of Iyengar posture focusing and prop use. I always strive for a full body and mind experience, with a balance of workout and relaxation.

My personal yoga practice, in the past few years, has leaned toward Ashtanga and now, hot yoga. I did a few months at a Bikram studio in town, but although I love the sweaty detox feeling of Bikram, the fixed sequence gets a little dull, and for me, I feel the sequence is too skewed toward compression. If I'm feeling warm and loose, I'd rather do more opening poses. In January I visited a Hot Yoga Studio when I was visiting relatives in Ft. Lauderdale. I did a "warm yoga" class that was a lovely blend of Vinyasa flow, lots of Sun Salutations, with a couple of "Bikram's poses" woven within. That's more appealing to me. These days, the heat is key.

yoga for everyone!

was reading kimberly wilson' s yoga/lifestyle blog (i am a big fan of her book, hip tranquil chick, and fab yoga podcast), and she recently highlighted this quote, which rings so true.

yoga is about making friends with life and with yourself. there is no lifestyle, no occupation, no situation that cannot be greatly enhanced by yoga. yoga is not something that should be set apart from one's life. rather it should become the taproot from which the other aspects of your life are nourished and regenerated.
- godfrey devereaux

In several of the yoga classes I've been teaching lately, I have students new to yoga and their newfound excitement and passion for learning more: about yoga, about their body, about life, really lights up the yoga room with positive energy. To see a spirit awakening, to see transformation glowing from within, is so incredible.

I remember when I first had the idea that I should become a yoga teacher, when I was just a new yoga student, taking a weekly yoga class at the Y back in the mid-nineties. One afternoon was sitting on a rock on the edge of a river in New Hampshire, sitting in easy pose, just doing some simple twists, and then sat tall, grounding down in my seat and lifting up in the spine, the crown of my head warmed by the sun. I felt a surge of energy travel up my spine, and right then the thought flashed into my head "i should be a yoga teacher and share this feeling with others." Well, it took me about ten years to start to walk that path, but here i am today.

Not just a yoga teacher, I'm a student as well, taking as many classes as I teach. In my personal practice, I leaned toward power flow / Ashtanga - style. I had taken a Bikram class last spring and the heat (105+ degrees farenheit) just knocked me out, and I thought hot yoga wasn't for me. A few weeks ago I went to a free Sunday class at the Lululemon showroom and the guest teacher was from a Bikram studio. She led us through the Bikram sequence, although the room wasn't heated. It's a whole different story without the heat. Afterwards I talked to her about my inability to deal with the heat, she said, give it two or three tries, and see. Usually it takes just a few sessions to acclimate. Given a free class pass, I went to the Bikram studio. I walked into the heated room with trepidation, thinking I might feel the crushing sensation in my chest I felt the first time, feeling as if I couldn't even breathe. But no. It didn't feel terrible at all. I could breathe deeply, and I felt great. I felt like I had plenty of power to last the entire practice, and to sweat profusely felt amazingly detoxifying. Now I'm hooked! I have doubts that the static Bikram 26-pose sequence will be able to hold my attention in the long run, but my inner thermometer has been reset, and now I love the intensity of the heat, and feel like I'm craving hot yoga every day, and it feels like a lasting addiction.

life, and yoga: full of surprises.