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Monthly Archives: January 2015
Eight Causes of Cravings
The body is amazing. It knows when to go to sleep, wake up, go to the bathroom, maintain 98.6 degrees and tighten the eyes when the light gets bright. It knows the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth. Your heart never misses a beat. Your lungs are always breathing. The body is a super-computer and it never makes mistakes.
Look at the foods, deficits and behaviors in your life that are the underlying causes of your cravings. Many people view cravings as weakness, but really they are important messages meant to assist you in maintaining balance. When you experience a craving, deconstruct it. Ask yourself, what does my body want and why?
The eight primary causes of cravings are:
1. Lack of primary food. Being dissatisfied with a relationship or having an inappropriate exercise routine (too much, too little or the wrong type), being bored, stressed, uninspired by a job, or lacking a spiritual practice may all cause emotional eating. Eating can be used as a substitute for entertainment or to fill the void of insufficient primary food. If you would like more support in this area, contact me for a free consultation!
2. Water. Lack of water can send the message that you are thirsty and on the verge of dehydration. Dehydration can manifest as a mild hunger, so the first thing to do when you get a craving is drink a full glass of water. Excess water can also cause cravings, so be sure that your water intake is well balanced.
3. Expansive/Contractive imbalance. Certain foods have more expansive qualities while other foods have more contractive qualities. Eating foods that are either extremely expansive or extremely contractive causes cravings in order to maintain balance. For example, eating a diet too rich in sugar (expansive) may cause a craving for meat (contractive). Eating too many raw foods (expansive) may cause cravings for extremely cooked (dehydrated) foods or vise versa.
4. Inside coming out. Often times, cravings come from foods that we have recently eaten, foods eaten by our ancestors, or foods from our childhood. A clever way to satisfy these cravings is to eat a healthier version of one’s ancestral or childhood foods. (in moderation, of course!)
5. Seasons. Often the body craves foods that balance the elements of the season. In the spring, people crave detoxifying foods like leafy greens or citrus foods. In the summer, people crave cooling foods like fruit, raw foods and ice cream, and in the fall people crave grounding foods like squash, onions and nuts. During winter, many crave hot and heat-producing foods like meat, oil and fat. Cravings can also be associated with the holidays, for foods like turkey, eggnog or sweets.
6. Lack of nutrients. If the body has inadequate nutrients, it will produce odd cravings. For example, inadequate mineral levels produce salt cravings, and overall inadequate nutrition produces cravings for non-nutritional forms of energy, like caffeine.
7. Hormones. When women experience menstruation, pregnancy or menopause, fluctuating testosterone and estrogen levels may cause unique cravings.
8. De-evolution. When things are going extremely well, sometimes a self-sabotage syndrome happens. We crave foods that throw us off, thus creating more cravings to balance ourselves. This often happens from low blood-sugar and may result in strong mood swings.
If you struggle in any of these areas or would like more support in deconstructing your cravings, contact me for a free consultation!
~Coach Shannon
Glorious Greens
Green vegetables are the foods most missing in modern diets. Learning to cook and to eat greens is essential to creating health. When you nourish yourself with greens, you will naturally crowd out the foods that make you sick. Greens help to build your internal rainforest and to strengthen the blood and respiratory system. They are especially good for city people who rarely see fields of green in open countryside. Green is associated with spring, the time of renewal, refreshment and vital energy. In Asian medicine, green is related to the liver, emotional stability and creativity.
Nutritionally, greens are very high in calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, zinc and vitamins A, C, E and K. They are crammed with fiber, folic acid, chlorophyll and many other micronutrients and phytochemicals. Whenever possible, choose organic. But eating non-organic greens is much better than not eating any greens at all!
Some of the benefits of eating dark leafy greens are:
-Blood purification
-Cancer prevention
-Improved circulation -Strengthened immune system -Promotion of healthy intestinal flora
-Promotion of subtle, light and flexible energy
-Lifted spirit and elimination of depression -Improved liver, gall bladder and kidney function -Cleared congestion, especially in lungs by reducing mucus
There are so many greens to choose from. Find greens that you love and eat them often. When you get bored with your favorites, be adventurous and try greens that you’ve never heard of before. Broccoli is very popular among adults and children. Each stem is like a tree trunk, giving you strong, grounding energy. Rotate between bok choy, napa cabbage, kale, collards, watercress, mustard greens, broccoli rabe, dandelion and other leafy greens. Green cabbage is great cooked or raw, or in the form of sauerkraut. Arugula, endive, chicory, lettuce, mesclun and wild greens are generally eaten raw, but can be consumed in any creative way you enjoy. Spinach, Swiss chard and beet greens are best eaten in moderation because they are high in oxalic acid, which depletes calcium from bones and teeth, and may lead to osteoporosis. Cook these vegetables with something rich like seeds, nuts, beans, butter, animal products or oil. This will help balance the effect of the oxalic acid.
Cooking Greens
Try a variety of methods like steaming, boiling, sautéing in oil, water sautéing, waterless cooking or lightly pickling, as in a pressed salad. Boiling makes greens plump and relaxed. Boil for under a minute so that the nutrients in the greens do not get lost in the water. You can also drink the cooking water as a health-giving broth or tea if you’re using organic greens. Steaming makes greens more fibrous and tight, which is great for people who are trying to lose weight. Raw salad is also a wonderful preparation for greens. It’s refreshing, cooling and supplies live enzymes.
When some people hear “leafy green vegetables,” they often think of iceberg lettuce, but the ordinary, pale lettuce in restaurant salads doesn’t have the power-packed goodness of other greens. Get into the habit of adding these dark, leafy green vegetables to your daily diet. Try it out for a month and see how you feel.
A great additional resource for recipes and ideas is Greens Glorious Greens by Johnna Albi and Catherine Walthers.
~Coach Shannon
Positive Thinking
So last week we talked about the power of our words. Today we will talk about how we think will also affect our health. When I was starting my journey back to health, I was inspired to write this quote “Practice the POWER of POSITIVE thinking until you have perfected being POSITIVELY POSITIVE!” 
I wrote it on a notecard and posted it where I would see it every day. It was a good reminder for me. I have worked very hard to overcome negativity and the power it has to suck the very life out of not only me, but those around me. No one wants to be around a “Debbie Downer” or a “Poor Pitiful Pete” or “Negative Nellie”.
What words are you saying about yourself? “I am stupid” , “I can’t do anything right” , “I am not worth anything” , “Nobody likes me”… REALLY? I beg to differ! When Adam told God he was naked, God asked, “Who told you that???” I ask the same question when someone tells me they are stupid, worthless, ugly, too fat, too fluffy, too skinny, too whatever…“Who told you that???” Because the enemy tells you a lie, does that make it truth? NO!
I will quote my mentor again “What you speak, you give power to” –Bryn Kelly. When you tell yourself you are too fat, too skinny, too stupid, too worthless, too ugly… your brain prepares your body to feel fat, skinny, stupid, worthless, ugly. Science has proven this. HOW? Our bodies are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14) Our bodies are 75% water. A Japanese scientist named Masaru Emoto proved this by getting petri dishes of water and speaking words of blessing over one half and words of curses over the other half. When frozen, the dishes that were blessed, formed beautiful crystals and the dishes that were cursed had ugly, jagged crystals. Then he tried another experiment. One half he wrote words on the frozen water like angel, God, love, peace. The other half he wrote words like devil, anger, ugly, evil. The good words again formed beautiful crystals and the bad words were ugly and jagged. You can read his book “The Hidden Messages in Water”.
SO, “what you don’t know, won’t hurt you” is the biggest LIE the enemy tries to get us to believe. I quote an author I highly respect, “Sticks and stones may break bones, but only words can curse a soul or be a blessing”. –Ann Voskamp.
Speak Kindly
It is not so much what you say
As the manner as which you say it.
It is not so much the language you use
As the tone in which you convey it.
For the words but come from the mind
And grow by steady and art.
But the tones come from the inner self
And reveal the state of the heart.
~Anonymous
“Be slow to anger, quick to forgive and you will have friends as long as you live.” -Author Unknown
The Bible is full of verses about the tongue, our words and speech. Do a word search sometime and be blessed, encouraged and humbled. I would love to hear what you studied and found! Email me at mannafoldblessings@gmail.com or comment below! 🙂
~Coach Shannon
Wellness Classes
H.E.A.L.T.H.Y.
Psalm 42:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of His countenance.
Psalm 42:11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him, who is the HEALTH of my countenance, and my GOD.
Psalm 43:5 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise Him, who is the HEALTH of my countenance, and my GOD.
Hope means “confident expectation”. Webster’s definition of Health means “physical and mental well-being; freedom from disease, etc; the condition of body or mind; a wish for one’s health and happiness”.
3 John 1:2 Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in HEALTH, even as thy soul prospereth.
Jeremiah 30:17 For I will restore HEALTH unto thee, and I will heal thee of they wounds, saith the LORD; because they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after.
Proverbs 3:8 It shall be HEALTH to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
Psalm 67:1-3 God be merciful unto us, and bless us; and cause his face to shine upon us; Selah. That thy way may be known upon earth, thy saving HEALTH among all nations.
Isaiah 58:8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine HEALTH shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.
What does HEALTH mean for you? When you think of someone who is HEALTHY, what comes to your mind?
Have you ever thought about this… “What you speak will affect your HEALTH“. Is this a true saying? Matthew 12:34 O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Luke 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.
Did you know the attitude of…
ANGER will affect your cardiovascular system?
GUILT the nervous system?
LUST the endocrine system?
BITTERNESS the digestive system?
GREED the immune system?
FEAR the respiratory system?
ENVY the musculoskeletal system?
Job 6:24 Teach me, and I will hold my tongue: and cause me to understand wherein I have erred.
Did you know “What you speak, you give power to“?? This is crucial to how we look, dress, feel about ourselves and others. What you say to your child WILL affect them! It may even affect their health, as well as yours. There is a saying that goes like this- “Say what it is, not what it is not”. How’s the food? “Not bad”. The weather? “Not bad”. How are you doing? “Not bad”. (If it is not bad, then what is it?? It has to be something if it is not bad!) You see, we tend to say what it is not, instead of what it is. We focus on the negative instead of the positive. And the child grows up hearing, “Don’t do this… Don’t do that…” Tell them what you really want them to do! “Hold the dish tight” instead of…Don’t break it! “Please close the door” instead of Don’t leave the door open! “This food is good” instead of The food is not bad.
Put on your JESUS glasses as you look at others… are they hurting from what you said to them? Would Jesus have said that or treated them that way? I realize we tend to blame Adam and say “we are human”, but is that an excuse to avoid facing our misconduct or misbehavior?
So now my motto is “Change your words, Change your Life!”
H.E.A.L.T.H.Y. stands for
Healing
Every
Attitude
Lengthens
Thy
Health by
Years
Yes, I can testify to it! My health has been restored because I changed my words into positive ones, instead of the negative.
This message is what is most on my heart to share with my students, clients and with the world. Stay tuned for more next week! 🙂
~Coach Shannon
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