Start 2010 with clarity and simplicity

Hi guys,

Happy 2010 to you! WOW. I can't believe it's the new year. I am feeling contemplative, grateful and very much looking forward to the year of opportunity and experiences ahead. Each year flies by so fast and yet I feel I am gaining such strength, wisdom and peace with each year that passes. Got to love this playground called life, right? I certainly do.

I've been offline the last week as I've been away with friends and family and away from technology as much as possible. If you haven't given yourself time to do this, I urge you to do it at least for a day or heck, even a couple of hours, as soon as possible! It is so refreshing to switch off the drone, buzz and bleeps and actually focus on the beauty outside of all that's man made, and to give your full attention to the people you are fortunate enough to have relationships with.

I've also taken the opportunity to take a close look at how I spend my time and my money as one of my goals for 2010 is to simplify my life even further, become even more energy efficient (I like to focus on energy management rather than time management), and to get really clear and practiced at spending only on the necessities and what truly enhances my life, rather than spending for any other reason. Although I am not much of a shopper and prefer to spend my money on high quality food, travel, books, life experiences and social activities, I know that there is sill much more I can do to get tighter on my spending habits. My purpose for this is threefold:

1. To get extremely clear on what my basic costs are to maintain the health and quality of life I desire
2. To help determine exactly how much it costs to pay for high quality health products and organic produce every week. Although I have a general amount I know I spend each week, and a budget, I can definitely trim this down and can lessen impulse purchases. This will be a useful activity for my own benefit and for my clients. I also find that many clients who overspend do so because they buy and eat emotionally and this drives their costs (and guilt and ill health) up. Getting clear on how little is necessary for an abundant, colourful, fresh and nutritive diet will help my clients to see where they may be allowing their emotions to lead them to overspending also. 
3. To allow additional savings to be made to put towards other personal goals for the next few years.

From now until the end of January I will be thinking through every purchase I make and committing to no impulse purchases of food or other items. While my impulse purchases currently may consist of the occasional raw ingredient for a recipe or a book, I will be even omitting these purchases in January. While most of the purchases I make are healthful, they are not always necessary and I want to get back to basics. I will not be compromising high quality, fresh, organic produce or the staples I tend to use almost daily, such as stevia, herbal teas and Himalayan Crystal salt, however I will be preventing myself from buying a $10 jar of organic olives on impulse for example. While I think it is very useful to shop with your eyes and nose, it is also very important to shop with your head and not your emotions as this is where overeating, impulse purchases and overspending can really take hold. 

If you have been feeling like your spending and eating has been a bit out of control over the holidays, or even if you just want to reign things in a little and get back to simple fresh food and simple living, then I encourage you to join me in making the commitment to only buy the basics you need to sustain yourself and keep yourself full of health and vitality for the month of January. I will personally be keeping a log of my spending (as well as pre-planning any expenses). This will help to keep me thinking before acting and there's nothing like seeing figures in front of you to keep you motivated. Fancy joining me?

While you're at it, how about giving yourself a break from any other uninspiring behaviour or influence for the month of January and really getting your new year off to a flying start? If you are still tuning in to the news every day or subjecting yourself to an unhealthy relationship, how about cutting it out or shifting it so that you are making the choice to not allow it to bring you down anymore? It's completely up to you how far you take this, but it is quite incredible how as you shift one thing in your life and focus more intently on simplifying, how much more tends to follow. Don't be surprised if you find yourself clearing up clutter in your home or your relationships as you become more conscious and deliberate in your choices and focus only on what is health generating for you.

So guys, what commitments are you making?

Sending you all my love and wishes for the most vibrant, radiant, healthy and shining year ahead - better than you can even imagine!

Love,
Casey

Happy Christmas to you!

Hi guys,

This is the quickest post in blog history as I've not had more than a second spare, but I wanted to be steal a moment to get a quick Happy Christmas wish in to you all. Thank you for reading the blog this past year and always providing me with the inspiration to continue to write and share. I hope you have a wonderful time with loved ones this holiday season.

I'm away for a few days but I'll be back mid next week with some more posts.

Much love until then,
Casey

Raw, Healthy & Homemade Christmas (or anytime) Gift Idea

Hi everyone,

How's your week started? My day today has been a bit here and there. Not as productive as I had hoped with work but at least I have got some more Christmas shopping sorted! Yep, it's been a leaving it until the last minute kind of gift shopping for me this year. Mind you, I've had the gifts mapped out in my head, but I just have not had much time during retail hours to get the shopping done! Perth certainly isn't NYC or London when it comes to trading hours, that's for sure!

Anyway...I have been wanting to spend hours in the kitchen making delicious, healthy, raw food gifts for all my friends and family for gifts this year, but with my workload right now, extra time is just not there for me to play with, literally. But there are still a few people who I know would particularly appreciate some handmade healthy goodies who I want to give a little "I appreciate you" gift to this year. So, as I love making healthy foods so much and giving them to those who will really enjoy them, I knew I had to make time for just a little bit of creativity in the kitchen. However, I didn't want to create dense nut this's and dense nut that's as is so often the choice for raw treats. Don't get me wrong, these taste fabulous, but if you're anything like me, they can really weigh you down. Plus, I wanted to try creating something different, that is refreshing and light, and with festive flavours, while also being quick to make!

As I thought about the people I wanted to make some raw food gifts for, an idea began to form that is extremely simple and versatile (so it would be attractive to all my gift receivers), and also rich with flavour and "oomph", given that only one of the people to receive my wares has any interest in raw foods. So what was born? Cinnamon And Ginger Spiced Apricot Date Jam, that's what! It is fabulous and so easy to make! I love the flavours and just know it will be a hit with the four people I will be giving it to this coming Friday. If you have five to ten spare minutes this week (an ask I know!), and you want to make a special gift for friends, you definitely should give this a go! Now I'm just hoping those friends and family members receiving this jam as a gift from me don't have time to check out my blog before Christmas!

Oh, and I'm just going to say upfront...excuse the photo quality. These pics were taken on my iPhone as I am currently not allowed to use our camera due to my boyfriend claiming it will spoil my Christmas gift. Hmmmm. Knowing the antics my boyfriend can get up to, it could be anything from a sweet picture of us to half naked shots of himself he is going to photo shop onto a Christmas card featuring himself as a skinny Irish Santa!

Cinnamon And Ginger Spiced Apricot Date Jam
I made enough for 4.5 medium sized jars with this recipe. You can quarter the amounts to make enough for one gift or for yourself, or make a lot more for gifts for all your friends and family.

1kg organic dried turkish apricots, soaked for a minimum of 2 hours (ideally overnight)
10 fresh organic medjool dates, soaked for a minimum of 2 hours (ideally overnight)
1/4 cup of reserved soak water
1 teaspoon of ginger powder
1.5 teaspoons of cinnamon

Step 1: Soak the dried apricots and fresh dates for a minimum of two hours in filtered water, or ideally overnight if you have time. I only had 2 hours up my sleeve but that was enough to plump up and soften the apricots and dates.

I had two of these full of apricots and dates.


Step 2: Drain the apricots and dates and reserve a 1/4 cup of the soak water for the recipe. Put the rest of the the water aside for another recipe, for drinking or for anything else you like. Put the drained apricots and dates, the ginger powder, cinnamon, and the reserved soak water into a food processor fitted with the "S" blade. Process until the mixture is sticking together and becomes creamy but still chunky. You could add more of the soak water to make it more runny, but I loved keeping some chunks of apricot and date in the jam rather than processing it to very smooth and completely blended. Plus I know some of the jam-recipients-to-be love their jam spread thick and rich, so a slightly chunky texture was perfect.

Step 3: Once you have your desired consistency, spoon the jam into glass or decorative jars and use the back of a spoon that has been sitting in boiling water to smooth out the top of the jam in the jars. Seal tightly and refrigerate. Here is my four jars of jam after sealing with the jar lids.

 I also plan to create some labels for the jams saying "Raw*Organic*Sugar Free" and the name of the recipe. One of my recipients is extremely sensitive to unnatural sugars so I thought it would be a nice touch to add the "sugar-free". You could decorate them even further with ribbon, pretty wrapping or anything else you like. I will be when I wrap all my other presents later this week. Yep, leaving the wrapping REALLY to the last minute!

I had about half a jar of leftover jam after filling my jars so I decided to combine it with some pulp from making carrot juice earlier today. I was inspired by memories of a macaroon Marlena recently mentioned on her blog. They turned out delicious and were a great evening treat tonight.

I hope this has given you an idea for a delicious and thoughtful present for friends and/or family. It tastes fantatsic, is versatile for people of all diets, and is straight from the heart, while also supporting the businesses we want to support...pure organic foods! Nothing like a Christmas present that doesn't add more damage to the environment!

I'll be back this week with a happy holiday wish and a challenge for January 2010 for anyone who wants to get back to basics - this will be a good one for all of us, folks.

Love,
Casey

Staying healthy and vital through the holidays! (Part 2 of Your Best Holiday Season Yet)

Hi all,

Well it's just over one week until Christmas. Got holiday parties and family gatherings galore going on? Not sure how you are going to get through the season feeling healthy, energetic and full of natural joy and zest for life? Hopefully this post will give you some food for thought so that you have your best (and healthiest) holiday season yet. 

I recently posted some ways you can better emotionally and mentally cope with the holiday season, and even (gasp!) enjoy it. If you haven't read those tips yet, you can do so here. I definitely recommend having a good peruse through them as while the next tips are going to make your life a lot easier and keep your health and diet in a place you are comfortable with, it is the way you choose to set yourself up mentally and emotionally that will really dictate how happy, calm and relaxing your holiday season will be. 

So, let's get on with the show. Put these steps in place and I promise you will be giving yourself the best opportunity to glide through your holiday season looking and feeling happy, calm and with plenty of energy. 

Set Your Game Plan

We all know just how important it is to have a game plan for how to manage the holiday season so that you are at peace with your food choices. Let's not also forget a plan for your movement routine or any other lifestyle practice you typically include each week to feel your best. For me that means not only am I managing my dietary intake with plenty of hydrating mostly green vegetable juice and a very high raw diet of mostly fresh fruits and vegetables, but also including movement 5-6 days per week (this does not have to be hardcore exercise - if you haven't read my recent blog post on this, I suggest you check it out here), meditation and/or yoga a few times each week, regular colon cleansing and getting enough sleep. Your list may be very different but either way, first up, I suggest you make a list of your "non negotiables" for you to feel well and happy. Just to be extra clear, I don't mean make a list of your goals, only what you know you need to include to feel good. While there is always some exceptions, for most people this is not the time of year to be putting added pressure on yourself to do more than normal, reach new goals or to feed any perfectionist qualities - you know who you are! This is instead the time to objectively stand back and look at what routines and food choices make you feel fantastic and only add to your daily life experience, not drain you or take more of your time and energy than you have. You don't even have to keep things at the level you are used to. So for me, for example, typically I include movement 5-6 days per week, but over the holidays I would still be happy if I only got to move four times per week, especially with all the running around I'll be doing anyway. I am also happy to consume a little more cooked clean foods than normal, if I feel the urge. In fact, it is often rare that I follow through with these things, but if I needed to I know they are options for me and I would still feel great about my choices. 

Once you have created your "absolute minimum" list, consider what you need to do now to make sure these things happen. Are you going away for the holidays and need to take frozen juices and a yoga mat? Or do you need to do some online research to find local juice bars and cafes with salad and a safe park you can walk in? Do you need to call ahead to friends, family or restaurants to let them know the way you eat and tell them that you will manage your own meals? Are you staying at home but need to schedule in the times to do your absolute minimum activity in advance because you know how busy you will be? Do you need to make a grocery shopping list and buy in advance hard to get items so you have yummy and healthy food choices ready for you at a moment's notice? Do you need to book in or seek out a colon hydro-therapist to keep or consider how else you can keep your bowels moving over the season of higher and heavier food intake? Do you need to buy or download a yoga or workout DVD to do at home because classes are sporadic and money is tight? Do you need to add a guided meditation to your MP3 so you can listen to it while on plane, bus or train rides and find your moment of peace? There are so many ways you can make sure your non negotiables are still a big part of your life over the next few weeks. The key is to actually make your list and then do the preparation!    

Always take your own food or ensure you can get what you need in advance

This one is pretty self explanatory but vital to how good you will feel. We all know just how much poor food choices can severely drain our energy and mood. This is definitely not what we want to happen in a time that is often already fraught with challenging personal relationships and social settings. However, if it's your absolute minimum to just enjoy your Christmas day, for instance, and eat whatever food it is you want, then that's fine. As long as that is what you have set out in your game plan. For most people, that is the only way they would actually enjoy the eating experience. If it's not pre-planned it is much more likely you will just feel guilty, sick and self-disgust and who wants to feel like that? (By the way, even if you do end up doing this, it's still up to you if you feel this way. You can make the choice to accept what's in the past and move on NOW, or dwell on it for hours, days, or longer and just make yourself feel more awful - something to bare in mind). 

I always prefer to take my own food as I like extremely fresh food and with the flavours I like. So I'm fussy, is that a big deal? Who wants to eat food they don't enjoy? Plus, err...you do know you're reading an article from a mostly raw, mostly vegan, mostly organic eater, don't you? I'm sure that would be considered fussy in itself :). If you don't want to take your own food, I do still recommend you at least take one dish you can share with others that you will enjoy too. At least then, if there really isn't anything else, you have one delicious option. Alternatively you can call ahead to the host/ess or restaurant to ensure there will be food choices for you. Whatever you decide to do, make sure there IS food for you. I can imagine you might be sporting a rather glum face if you get to a holiday party and as everyone enjoys their feast of roasted meats, fried vegetables and sugar and flour heavy desserts, as you sip your non-filtered warm tap water - unless, of course, this is your absolute minimum. 

Just get straight back into the game
So you overdid it or you ate foods you don't feel good about. So you didn't move or exercise at all for a couple of weeks. So you totally ditched your mediation proactice and barely remember what a yoga mat looks like. Hell, you can't even remember the last time your bowels moved! (Ok, ideally you really don't want to be experiencing this last one but you get the picture). So what now?? Do you promise yourself you'll not eat at all for the next two days until your body drops the extra kilo you put on? Do you tell yourself you'll work out for two hours every day for the next two weeks to "make up for it"? How about this - just get straight back in the game! I.e. your normal routine. So get back into your exercise four times per week, get back into your health food choices that feel good for you and not resrcitive, start your meditation practice again and book in for your next colonic. The best strategy, and by far the most realistic, comfortable and really, the quickest, way to start feeling your normal energy and vitality again is to just re-commence your normal routine, rather than feeding disordered thinking with a binge/purge or binge/restrict mentality. It makes for much healthier mind, soul and body and a hell of a lot more happiness! It won't be long before your feeling as good as new again I assure you! In fact, it will be a lot quicker than if you set yourself up for guilt and self punishment for another few days or weeks. 

Allow for some compromise
This has been partly covered in the other points but it's worth including again. While it is important to keep up you absolute minimum level of practices that make you feel happy and well, you also need to be a little less rigid with yourself than you normally might be. A big factor in your happiness over the holidays, and in life even, is flexibility. Unfortunately, things aren't always going to go your way or be as perfect as you like them. Accept this and allow yourself to change with the situations you are in. If you keep an open mind and prepare yourself to adapt as necessary (both physically and mentally), you will have a much more enjoyable holiday experience.  

Want to use this article in your publication or on your website? You can, provided you include the following information with the article.
(c) Copyright Casey Lorraine Thomas 2009
Casey Thomas, Raw Lifestyle Coach and Detox Counsellor, publishes "Bloom Time" - a free monthly eZine for health and energy-seekers and raw food lovers around the globe. If you're ready to look and feel amazing and awaken your Va-Va-VOOM, get your FREE report, tips and guidance now at http://www.CaseyLorraine.com

Refreshing Garden Ginger Sauce

Hi all,

Hope your week has started well. I've been very busy working late most nights but it's been productive and progressive and I'm enjoying it.

Tonight I felt like something very light and simple but full of "zing". After a quick look in my fridge I managed to throw together a sauce that was all of these things. Welcome to Garden Ginger Sauce. If you are a ginger fan, this recipe is worth a try. You can add more or less ginger to suit your tastes but I definitely suggest erring on the side of caution initially, as the flavour can quickly become overpowering. I used this sauce as a salsa-like dip for some veggie crudites, but it would also be great poured over a salad of greens, as a sauce for spiralised zucchini or kelp noodles or even just eaten straight as a raw soup. Definitely a great choice for a light lunch time or evening meal.

Garden Ginger Soup

4 roma tomatoes (or other very ripe tomatoes of your choice)
1 zucchini
1 red capsicum (bell pepper)
1 clove of garlic
Thin slice of ginger (start with less, add more to get the kick you prefer)
Juice of half a lemon
1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
5 drops of stevia (you could also use a teaspoon of agave or honey)

Chop all the ingredients and put into a blender. You can put the tomatoes and lemon juice at the bottom of the blender to help the blending process. Blend until well combined. That's it! I garnished mine with some chopped basil straight out of the garden. Some fresh corn off the cob and a chopped tomato would also have been lovely.

Enjoy!

Love,
Casey

Work it, baby! How I came to love exercise and how you can too

Hi all,

Today I wanted to talk a little bit about exercise. Are you groaning? There is no need to, trust me. This post is going to be a light hearted, hopefully helpful and informative post about the types of movement you may want to include in your days, and how you could look forward to it! It's a long one but hopefully you will find it worthwhile. Grab a juice, tea or smoothie and settle in for the read.

We all know exercise is great for us but unfortunately most people have been led down the "I must workout like a crazy person to keep slim" garden path. You know what that mentality has led to? A whole lot of disordered thinking and exercise patterns, never mind the disordered eating that tends to go along with it! I'm not sure exactly where it all went wrong in our history, but I'm pretty sure the ol' "calories in, calories out" equation might have had something to do with it. We have been led to believe that in order to maintain a slim figure we need to exercise and exercise some more, and then fuel ourselves with processed foods in liquid, powder or bar form that are excessively high in damaging sources of protein. Is it just me, and I'm not one to spend the time, energy or effort being cynical, but does it seem like these beliefs could possibly have been shaped by profiteering industries with agendas outside of our best interests in mind? Something you can consider if you wish to anyway. You can also just think of the range of different body image, eating, and emotional disorders that include exercise as a way of trying to undo what may have been perceived as "wrong" or not in line with the physical shape a person desires.

Exercise can be the purge or restrict element of a binge/purge or binge/restrict cycle. It can even be a way of letting out emotion around stresses in life and emotional traumas. This can be a good thing, up until a certain level. When it becomes severe overexercising as a crutch to cope with pain within, it becomes just as unhealthy as any other imbalanced use of food, cigarettes, drugs, caffeine, etc - although of course to varying degrees. At the same time, exercise is extremely beneficial to us. It is in fact essential to having a body that is truly healthy and well rounded (the balanced kind, not the apple shaped kind!), but its purpose and value seems to have been lost amongst the diet messages and muscle bound images barraging us today. I'm here to (hopefully) shed some light on how wonderful and pleasurable exercise can be and to help you see it in a way which feels a lot less scary, less intense and less like a chore. I know because in my time I have had periods of loving exercise and thinking of it as a wonderful thing, and other periods of having an unhealthy relationship with it where I saw it as a necessary evil, compelled to continue with types of exercise I didn't really enjoy as a way of trying to desperately keep my weight down and to give myself an outlet to deal with emotional pain. Exercise can be incredibly beneficial as a release and outlet, but I was not using it in a healthy way.

It took changing not only my view of my body and my health to be very positive and supportive, but also shifting how I look at exercise for me to start loving it day in and day out, without seeing it as a chore, a "have-to-do" on my to-do list, and as a way of trying to keep my body at an average weight. Even though I enjoyed exercise a lot, even though I even LOVED it at times, even though I looked forward to how it made me feel and it did get me some physical results, I still had this overarching feeling that I was doing it because I had to. Hey, hang on, who was holding the gun to my head? Me!! For more years than not, it felt like a chore because it was just another thing I was doing to try to keep an average sized body. Sign of a bigger issue, non?

So the shift for me came, for exercise at least, when I changed how I looked at it. You know when even saying the word exercise means your voice changes to a strangled, depressed, flat tone? Sound familiar? I used to have that! On and off mind you, usually influenced by the weather, my stress levels, emotional state, schedule, location, body image, weight and shape, and time of my life. That's a lot of factors so it's no surprise that so many times I thought that exercise was just a dull and not very rewarding pain in the backside.

I am so glad that is far behind me, although it taught me many lessons about myself. Now I aim to include movement into my life, not exercise, and what a change that has brought with it! My whole outlook at "having" to exercise has changed. Now I choose to move because it makes my body feel supple, energised, loose, warm and used (in the good way, haha), relieves stress, calms, centres and balances me and makes me feel HAPPY! This is especially useful to keep in mind over the holidays as things are busier, crazier and emotions are at an all time high. While keeping your exercise/movement routine (along with your daily juicing, fresh fruits and vegetables routine) is a brilliant way of keeping your body, mind and soul as happy and centred as possible over a fun but stressful time, don't feel you need to do six hours at the gym every week or hard cardio routines. If that's what makes you feel wonderful and motivation and time are not an issue, then go for it, but if not, try changing your focus to movement rather than dreading burdensome exercise routines and see how it changes things for you. Just 15 to 30 minutes of movement you enjoy is WAY better than nothing at all, and will help provide the benefits you need over the holidays, and for life. See, doesn't moving and shimmying and shaking and stretching and extending and strengthening, sound so much more appealing than the associations many of us have with "have to do it" exercise? With the change of the word and it's have-to meaning for me, plus seeing it as just moving because my body, mind and soul loves it, it lost its intimidating, zealous, desperate quality and the no pain, no gain association I had with the word. Plus, it changed to doing movement I truly love, rather than feeling I needed to exercise or work out with activity I didn't really enjoy in an environment I didn't really like just because I (yes, let's hear it again) "had to". The great thing is, I now move more than ever because it feels wonderful and I look forward to it.

While your movement doesn't have to be taxing or strenuous, you ideally do want to break a sweat, as much for the cleansing purposes as for the knowledge that your body has been moving and generating internal heat. Movement and flow is health, people! Stagnation is sickness and (gulp!) death! I know a lot about this personally too, as over the years (make that decades) of severe eczema I had many times where for months on end I couldn't exercise. I couldn't break a sweat because it darn well hurt! In fact, it was excruciating. The sweat sitting on my broken itchy skin was pure agony and felt like acid burning through my skin, let alone the fact that during the periods when my skin was that bad, I didn't have the energy or health to do something like exercise, barely any movement at all even. Combine that with the unsightly look of my skin and the fact that I didn't want to bare any of it to strangers while exercising anyway, even if I could have without pain or had the energy to! During those times I just rested, with the occasional walk outside in sunshine to help lift my spirits, while covered in long clothing to try to hide the appearance of my skin as I was so embarrassed. Now I feel like knocking my old self over the head with a bat and saying "get on with it lady, there's more to life and after a quick stare or ten, people get over it!" Hah, not that easy and I totally understand if health challenges are holding you back from exercise. That makes my coming suggestions even more relevant to you....it's about MOVING, not necessarily exercising (in the one hour at the public gym on the "deathtrap" kind of way).

Knowing that movement is the focus, not exercise, also allows more people of all shapes, sizes, health, confidence and ability to know that they can do the best by their body without having to do an athlete-worthy workout in a gym or stay coordinated at the front of a fast paced aerobics class. Again, I'm not pushing these things aside as not being fantastic ways to exercise. I'm just saying they aren't the be all and end all, and are not necessary for you to experience health, energy and vitality. I think I've made my point clear, so now, let's get on with what movement you might like to do.

As we are all well aware, there are so many different ways of moving our bodies, it's just a matter of finding what works for you with your personal schedule/routine, commitments, location, work, lifestyle, health, time, money and so on. I am going to give mention to my personal favourites to not only share what I find works wonderfully for me, but also as they are all great examples of movement that really support a cleansing lifestyle.

Walking
It's free, it's easy, you can do it almost anytime, and certainly from anywhere. What could be a better way to get your movement in? I love walking. I loved living in London and travelling the world for all the walking alone. You really see and experience a place by walking its streets and you walk for hours on end. I also love walking along the ocean in my home city Perth. I am so blessed to live less than five minutes from the ocean and many times each week, I will walk down to the water, take my thongs off and walk along the water's edge. I sometimes alternate jogging and walking, sometimes I stroll, other times I walk fast, feet deep in the softer sand. All get my body moving and my heart pumping (except maybe the stroll!), plus I am surrounded by some of the most beautiful beaches you'll ever see. Not to mention the fact that I am breathing the freshest of air, feeling the sunshine on my body and I'm surrounded by all those alkalising negative ions. Talk about a movement and stress relief double whammy! Some days I may go out for 20 minutes or half an hour. Usually it's an hour, but it can be whatever works for you and your schedule. Don't let big city living put you off either. A city park can be just as magical.

I will often meet a friend for a walk too. It's a great way to catch up without distraction (other than the gorgeous scenery), get your body moving and feel refreshed. I also don't really like wearing foot wear, unless it's thongs (yes, I know, what an Aussie) or some comfortable but cute "girly" shoes, so walking on sand where I don't need to worry about the right running shoes suits me perfectly! Oh, and did I mention how grounding it is to put your feet directly into the earth's soil and sand? Instant relaxation. Try it for yourself.

Yoga

I've always dabbled in yoga, although I would never claim to be good at it. At first I wanted to be a yogi because, well, have you seen most long-term yogis bodies? Then it was a chance to do sweaty exercise. Hello, Bikram yoga. Then it was stress relief for my 12 hour days in marketing management and the corporate world. Then it was gentle yoga meditation and very little movement while my skin was excruciating and I was trying to heal naturally. Now, it's love. Sound over the top? Trust me, I'm serious! I love, love, love yoga! My favourite yoga is ashtanga vinyasa because I love how meditative it is while building that internal heat that purifies and cleanses you. I also love that you are moving so frequently and how quickly my body responds by building strength and patience. It also is a great yoga for me to practice at home if I'm pushed to get to the studio as once you have learned the sequence, you can practice anywhere (and I do, often outside on the back patio). Yoga is not an easy option, as some may think. It takes discipline, commitment and a true joy for the practice. At least regular practice seems to require that. However, that doesn't mean you can't just derive benefit from some weekly stretches or an irregular yoga class. It also doesn't mean you need to spend hours on the yoga mat every week. If you do not have the time or desire to commit to lengthy classes each week, you can always do a five to ten minute series of poses or stretches at home a few times per week, or even one class per week. You could even use the short 20 minute yoga practices at Yoga Download. The variety of yoga types also means you can explore this wonderful world until you find what feels great to you. I think for me, the type of yoga I have enjoyed over the years and the practice I've kept has changed and evolved with my interests, beliefs and personal life experiences. Other than the fact that I get to use every part of my body until it is gloriously warm, strong and agile (and yes, I sweat too), I love yoga because it not only allows this personal evolution and growth, but promotes it. I don't know about you, but I'm starting to see a theme here for my preferred ways to move...they have multiple benefits!

Jumping

Oh, mini trampoline, how I love you! What a fabulous invention. The inventor must have thought to him/herself, let's combine buoyancy, exercise, support cleansing through the lymphatic system, make it extra easy on the body and joints, affordable, transportable, make it ideal for the home, convenient, AND fun. Aha, I have it! The rebounder! It was born, it took off, now every cleanser and many others have one in their home. Talk about super easy movement. I use my rebounder/mini-tramp at least three times per week, often more. It's rarely for more than 20 minutes as it's usually my solution on days when I have little to no extra time but of course want to get my body moving. I typically put my trampoline on my back patio and jump to music. Honestly, I feel like I'm high on life and feel so young and carefree. Something about the buoyancy is just beautiful. Did I mention rebounding is ideal to get the lymphatic system pumping all those toxins out, so they can be released via your elimination organs?


Running
I used to be big into running. I was training for a marathon at one point but had an ankle injury so didn't go through with it. Even still, running was a few times weekly activity for me for many years with some breaks of a few months (or six) in between. Some days I loved it, others I thought "what the hell am I doing?". Now, I love light jogging, but it's only when the mood takes me and typically on the beach, again with my feet directly on the sand and splashing through a few inches of water. Running is an awesome activity, however for the sake of your body's health, it's best to keep your running to shorter sessions so you don't acidify your body and then have to compensate with an even healthier diet and lifestyle. A lot of people make the mistake in thinking that a competitive runner or athlete is healthy because they exercise so much. In actuality, if someone is over-exercising and really pushing their body past its limits (and not listening to its signals for rest and recovery), they need to be compensating by being even more healthy and dousing themselves with even more alkalinity than the person who exercises within their body's capacity. This is of course different for everyone, so bare in mind that if you intend to become an athlete or spend hours training and training, you want to be even more consicous of your health, not thinking that you can now get away with an extra cheeseburger because you are burning it off. Important side note: the residue form the toxicity of these foods is not "burnt off" but stays stuck in your intestines contributing to poor health in later years!!

Pilates
I am currently working with a pilates instructor once each week. I love it for the lengthening and strengthening of my muscles, core and otherwise, and it feels so fantastic to focus on the internal muscles just as much as the external. I have a LONG way to go but I definitely recommend this sort of movement to anyone seeking a graceful and strong body that will carry you elegantly and with confidence. And yep, you're still moving!

Dance

I'd like to preface this by saying I am not a skilled dancer, and yes, I love Dirty Dancing. Have you seen Patrick Swayze in this film? Uh, hello! OK moving on...let me change that to I'm not even a good dancer. So when I say I like to dance for movement, I mean shake, rattle, and yes, even roll on occasion. Anyone else find those words fitting to their (lack of) dance style? Dancing is such an amazing release for me and I know for many others. Nobody puts me in the corner. I've done a range of classes starting with ballet and jazz as a child, and then bellydancing, salsa and pole dancing as an adult. Great fun and a great, very freeing form of movement. However, for me, nothing beats a shimmy and a shake on the dancefloor with friends or strangers. I'm not attached to who...whichever happens. I spent six months travelling Europe on my own in 2003 and boy did I perfect the "I'm dancing alone and OK with that routine". It was so much fun and to this day I still adore a good dancing session. You will often find me dancing around the house, jumping leaps across my front drive or in front of my partner while he watches a film, or doing spins while juicing. For me, dance is just fun. It's also movement, it shakes up my chi like crazy and I feel like a big ball of buzzing energy. Dancing can be done in spare moments in your home (MJ do it for anyone else?), outside (heck, why not?!), or at clubs, parties or wherever else you can find your groove. There's nothing like a good sweaty dance session. Oh, and I won't hold it against you if you don't say hi next time you see me convulsing in strange movements alone on a dance floor.


Bike riding
Fresh air, outdoors, speed, height, movement. Nuff said!


Swimming

Nothing like a dip in the ocean (or a lake or pool) to perk you up and get your body moving. I love pretty much anything that involves clear, blue ocean/sea water and swimming is no exception. I don't swim for exercise, but to feel my body move and surge through stunning waters and fight through fun waves. I swim for refreshment, for fun and and to completely melt my stress away. When I swim I feel more connected to nature and the earth than ever before. It's pure pleasure! Now that the warmer weather is here, I am swimming a couple of times per week, usually after a beach walk or run. The combination of hot sweaty skin and hot sun with the crystal clear, cool water is heavenly.

Did you notice a theme among my favourite forms of movement? While I mentioned movement in all of them, the focus was on so many other aspects of the pleasures and benefits each activity provides. That's because I view them as extremely pleasurable activities, not as exercise! I'm a Libran and a true pleasure-seeker. These activities give me a ton of it and so the fact that I get exercise or movement from them is truly just a huge big bonus, as I would do them even if they only brought me pleasure and no physical benefit. You know what the other theme is? Most of these activities that I love so much either are done in nature, or connect me with my authentic self and deepen my life experience. How's that for reason to get your move on?

Now it's your turn. What makes you giddy with glee and provides time and pleasure for yourself, while allowing your body to move, and be strong and glow? When you pick your exercise, pick it for these reasons and you will love and treasure the opportunities you have to move your body.

Love,
Casey

New "Detox Classes" page on my website

Hi everyone,

I'm so glad you liked my last post on how to deal with some of the sticky emotional situations at Christmas and stay happy, positive and feeling calm!

Today I just have a quick bit of news that I now have a "Detox Classes" page which has been added to my website. You can see it here. There is one more Detox 101 class for 2009, which is next Monday the 7th of December. I still have some places available if you're interested in learning how to get a lot more vitality and radiance in your life! Contact me by email to reserve your spot. There will be a Detox 102 class coming in the new year with more "advanced" information for those who have attended my Detox 101 class and are keen to take things to a new level of health and vitality. Exciting!

In the meantime, here's a testimonial from Emma, who attended my Detox 101 class in September this year.

"Thank you Casey for bringing a class like Detox 101, to my door step of little Perth, WA! Your class was such an informative and fascinating evening full of important information, presented so comprehensively.

My mum and I came to the class, in Sept 09, with a fair amount of prior raw food nutrition knowledge. However my partner, who also attended, was a complete beginner. Well, we all left feeling thoroughly inspired and educated. The very next day my partner could not wait to go out and buy us each a juicer; the very model he'd seen on your kitchen counter top! 

He since can't praise the benefits of juicing enough and has even given up his morning coffee in favour of an energising green juice! Mum and I also loved the class and were reminded of the awesome power of raw food and juicing and definintely learnt some new information as well. But most importantly for me, I came away newly fired up and excited to continue and 'up' my raw food intake in general! So thank you.

Thank you for your approachable, empathetic, thorough approach to a topic that can easily be a bit confusing, especially, funnily enough, as it grows in popularity; there seems to be so many conflicting opionions of, "the perfect diet". Your insight and perspective was refreshing, non fundamentalist, do-able and fun! Cannot wait until Detox 102 class!

Goes without saying, I would highly recommend Detox 101 to anyone interested, genuinely interested, in true health.

Very best,
Emma Beck
Dance Instructor
W.A. Australia"

Thanks Emma, for your feedback!

Stay tuned guys, there will be plenty more fun classes in 2010 - which is not far away at all! WOW!!

Love,
Casey