Simple Steps For Better Health That Cost Nothing

by Sue Rostvold on December 17, 2009

Allan and I went to hear Warren Kramer, world renown macrobiotic counselor and teacher speak last Friday night. The lecture, “Optimum Health Without Cooking A Thing”, was part of a three day weekend workshop in association with The Natural Epicurean cooking school in Austin, Texas.

Sitting down for meals

What really struck me after the lecture was this:

Warren spent several years traveling around the world, cooking macrobiotic meals for the sick, some even with stage four cancer. He successfully healed terminally ill patients simply by implementing food and lifestyle changes. He has counseled and taught health and cooking workshops in every state in the United States. He studied extensively, for over ten years, with Michio Kushi who was instrumental in introducing modern macrobiotics to the United States in the fifties. Warren has given hundreds of lectures to thousands of people. His private consultation list gets longer every day. His credentials go on and on.

drive and eatAnd yet, one of the first things Warren emphasizes in his workshops, lectures and consultations is something we already know, but few of us do: sit down to regular meals. This means not in front of the computer, not looking over bills, not watching T.V., not at 2 a.m., and certainly not in a car. The good news is, the steps to begin your journey toward a long and healthy life could not be simpler or more affordable.

Standing up for meals

Sit Down When You Eat.

Eat Meals At Regular Times.

Of course there is more to it than this, but this is the initial concept. Warren himself says that these concepts are so simple and so basic that most people automatically say, “Oh yeah, I know that!” but they don’t do it. It seems very few understand the powerful impact that these two steps, when practiced day in and day out, can have toward attaining and maintaining optimum health.

If you didn’t see my Hot Pockets post, I included a couple funny videos. One is for their commercial which promotes eating standing up, a.k.a. their Eat Freely campaign. Warren talks about being free too, but he speaks of being free to do whatever we want in this life and having good health. One of his goals is to dispel as many misconceptions about macrobiotics as possible in his lifetime.

Misconception #1: Macrobiotics means eating brown rice, miso soup and steamed kale.

warren kramer - macrobiotics of new englandWarren Kramer describes macrobiotics as

“An orderly approach to diet and lifestyle.”

It’s not all about the food, it’s about guiding your life and making smart choices.

Misconception #2: Eating organic means you will be healthy.

organic food shoppingMakes sense to me. Can you say organic chips and hot sauce? He says that every where he goes he hears the same refrain. People assure him that they eat organic this or that, so know they are healthy. Warren disagrees. He says when and how you eat is more important, in many ways, that what you eat. There is much more to balance and health than merely eating foods without toxins in them. Food is powerful, and what I am finally realizing is that having structure and order in our lives is even more important than the food we consume.

Watch excerpts from Warren Kramer’s lecture for more ideas on how to begin your own personal pathway to health.

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The Garden Is Rockin’! And We Have Beets!

by Allan Little on November 18, 2009

After 60 Days…

We filmed these videos just sixty days after I planted our prosperity garden from seed. It makes me happy how much food we have to enjoy and to share. Even though it’s November, I decided to keep planting more seeds where ever there is an available spot in the garden. There is no reason to waste any patch of this beautiful soil. We use the Double Thunder mix from Geo Growers and can’t say enough good things about it.

Enjoy the videos. We just like to share what we’re doing to inspire others to ditch their grass and start an organic vegetable garden too!

Beets are beautiful and delicious!

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Sharing Our Harvest – Fall 2009

by Sue Rostvold November 17, 2009
Colette and Wayo get some fresh greens!

This year I decided to take pictures of our friends and family when they stop by for some organic goodies.  The results speak for themselves!
Looks like greens make people happy!
We love sharing our harvest and showing off our urban garden to anyone who is interested. We have visitors day and night, rain or shine!
Watch the [...]

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When A Kabocha Is Good, There Is Nothing Better!

by Allan Little November 3, 2009
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When Sue and I first started going to Casa De Luz 15 years ago,  we were happy to discover kabocha squash. Of all the delicious squashes that are grown in the world, the sweet kabocha is my favorite.
Kabocha is known as Japanese pumpkin, although it’s skin is very hard so not suitable for carving. When [...]

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Alicia Silverstone Is Looking Good And Living Kind

by Sue Rostvold October 19, 2009
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“I am Alicia Silverstone and I am a vegetarian. There’s nothing in the world that has changed me as much as this.”

Alicia Silverston is looking good, and not in a plastic, made-up, Hollywood way either. Honestly, I haven’t paid much attention to what  Ms. Silverstone has been up to, but it’s clearly much more than [...]

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Is Your Organic Garden Toxic?

by Allan Little October 17, 2009
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Recently I’ve talked with several friends who were using treated wood to border their organic gardens. NOOOOOOOO!!!!
Bordering an organic garden with pesticide impregnated wood is a risk I’m not willing to take. Pressure-Treated Wood can leach pesticides into the soil and potentially into your food. Most people don’t think about how wood is made to [...]

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Hot Pockets Are Not A Food Group

by Sue Rostvold October 5, 2009
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I saw the new Hot Pockets commercial recently and then noticed they have their own section in the frozen food aisle of my local grocery store. Yikes! I didn’t know they were that popular.

NewsFlash: Hot Pockets are not a food group! In fact, in my opinion,  they aren’t even real food.

When you make your food [...]

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Start A Prosperity Garden

by Allan Little October 4, 2009
Allan Plants A Garden From Seed

Just because you live in the city, doesn’t mean you can’t have your own bountiful garden! Over labor day weekend I planted my third, and my biggest, winter garden yet. Our front yard used to be completely covered with water-hungry St. Augustine grass, but now I would say that eighty percent  of it is organic [...]

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Swim With Pigs, Don’t Eat Them

by Sue Rostvold September 26, 2009
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Animals are so cool! It doesn’t matter if it’s a chicken, dog, cow, kitty, or a pig, they all have feelings and personalities. I found these awesome photos on Flickr of these pigs that live on the beach in the Bahamas. It looks like so much fun to swim and play with them. They don’t [...]

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Overfed and Undernourished

by Allan Little September 25, 2009
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About every week or ten days I realize there is no brown rice ready to anchor a meal, so I end up making pasta with sauce to fill fhe void. Even though I saute fresh garlic, onions, and other vegetables, the bulk of meal is made from refined and processed food products, namely the pasta [...]

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