New Year, New Era, New Blog

January 18, 2017

We leave for the Grand Canyon tomorrow. There's been a lot of turmoil and change in the last year, and I am ready to refine my vision for who I am, what my purpose is, and where I draw my energy and inspiration to continue to incorporate flow into my life.

This blog is not meant to unpack all my old stories, but there may be some that come up. For now, I am in the middle of a major change in my personal identity so it's all a bit muddled.

But I am ready rediscover the grace and power of creating an amazing life for myself and my community.

Easy Spring Asaparagus Frittata

Easy Spring Herbed Asparagus Frittata
I love using fresh herbs in my egg dishes. Eggs have a relatively mild flavor and frittatas are a great backdrop for fresh herbs. Asparagus is prolific in the spring, as little shoots pop up daily. Ask any asparagus grower, when the asparagus is growing you need to get out there every day to catch those shoots before they blossom into a little asparagus tree!

Tips for working with Herbs:
-          Add dried leaf herbs at the beginning of cooking (especially soups and sauces) by measuring, pouring out into the palm of your hand and ‘grinding’ between your palm and the heel of the opposite hand and let the dust fall into the soup/sauce. Dried herbs are best in long simmering dishes that lend themselves to deeper, more complex flavors.
-          Add fresh leaf herbs at the end of cooking or after cooking to prevent them from burning and to let their more subtle flavors shine.
-          For dried herbs that tend to ‘jump’ when you chop them (rosemary and garlic come to mind): place a few drops of olive oil on your herb pile before you start chopping. Not only will the oil keep the small chunks from flying off the cutting board, but the oil helps further bring out the flavor. It also helps keep garlic from sticking like glue to your knife and/or cutting board.

Preheat oven to 350.
You will need an oven-safe skillet for this recipe

6-8 eggs
½ c. Your choice of milk
2 c. Asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2” pcs.
½ small onion or 2 small shallots
2-3 Tbsp. Olive oil
2 cloves fresh minced garlic
1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
salt
black pepper
Parmesan Cheese (optional)

While the oven is preheating, heat your skillet over medium-low. Prep vegetables. Beat eggs and milk with a little salt and pepper until frothy. I like using my immersion blender or even a regular blender to get lots of froth.
When the skillet is heated, add 1T. Oil to the pan and heat it to shimmering.
Add onion and sauté on low slowly. Add. A few shakes of salt and pepper. Add oil 1t. At a time to keep everything coated.
Once the onions are translucent and the edges are starting to brown, turn up the heat just a little and add the asparagus along with any oil needed to coat everything.
Sauté until asparagus starts to get bright green. Add minced garlic and mix thoroughly to coat the asparagus with garlic - be careful not to let the garlic burn! Turn off the burner and make sure all the veggies are evenly spread over the bottom of the pan.
Give the eggs one more whir to get frothy. Add chopped parsley, chives, rosemary and thyme and very gently mix in (a pulse on the blender will do). Pour egg mixture gently over the asparagus. Add Parmesan if desired.
Bake for about 10-12 minutes, just until top is sealed and just cooked. If needed, you can cook for 15 minutes, or cook 12 minutes and then put under the broiler for 2 minutes to seal/finish the top.
Let cool for a minute and then cut into wedges. You may serve with a sprinkle of fresh chopped herbs and/or Parmesan.

Movement as Spiritual Practice - Building a Meaningful Movement Practice

There's a difference between training and working out, between showing up for class and experiencing class.

As a fitness instructor it is sometimes challenging for me to find ways to share my love and belief in committing to a movement practice. For me, it steps into my Spiritual nature, which can be taboo in our culture (or is it human nature?).

Mo Gawdat, in his book, "Solve For Happy", beautifully takes us through a logical explanation of how the thoughts in our head are not us, and that our body is not our essence. We are so much more. Which I totally get/love/believe. These are ideas I have working for a long time.

For me, the connection that happens when I commit to my practice echos the preparation and presence I give to divine moments. It is my daily 'prayer'.

There is a specific practice of mindfulness that can be met anywhere, in any way. It's the idea of giving your entire concentration to an experience. All the senses are turned on and bringing floods of information to your brain, that is wholely focused on taking that information and applying it to the other parts of your brain and body in support of their 'true purpose'. And to embody (or 'Be') the elements of peace/Heart/love and joy/Vitality and Unity/connection. My ego/humanity still feels the drive to embody (or 'Be') the elements of productivity, growth, Wisdom, (Vision).

The body is made to move, in all directions and in every way.We spend the majority of our time in two positions: Sitting, and lying down. Although lying down is an important and restorative position, especially when we are actually resting, Sitting usually indicates that our bodies are shutting down for the most part and the brain is taking over.

My practice has waned as I have been experiencing some pretty profound changes in my life. In the process, I have struggled to maintain my physical practice, because my brain is so bossy and wants to be in charge all the time. Mo talks about this concept in his chapter "Shut the Duck Up" where he reminds us that because your thoughts are not You, we can learn to interact with them and quiet them through 'Happy' practices, or those that bring us back to our 'Be'ing.

I declare a recommitment to my practice of a minimum of an hour a day moving my body specifically and purposefully. This is how I build a training program:

What do I love to do (using my body)? Everything from gardening, tennis, cooking, kayaking, hiking, mechanics

What do I regularly use my body for? Housecleaning, yard work, moving boxes, walking

These questions build a framework for seeing where you are using your body as a tool - or not. (more here)

Next we look at where there are gaps, inconsistencies or dis-eases that prevent us from a full physical expression of our Be-ing.

Where do I feel restriction in my body?
Where do I feel restriction in my life?

Where would I like more freedom - in my body and my life?

The final piece (for the movement practice): Unlock stuck areas, build energy (heat) and then release it.

I love using tools in my practice. I have an arsenal of favourites, but if I had to pick only the essentials, I would take my clubbells, a resistance band and a TRX/Pull-Up bar (I need both!).

The last piece is the glue that holds all these great ideas together:
It's all just energy - keep it flowing: Be a Generator!
My movement has a purpose: to connect me with my Higher Self. The more I generate energy using this amazing gift of my body, I am generating energy to release into my life, and the world at large.

It requires a focus and presence of mind we often relegate to business dealings, thinking that productivity is quantifyable. But without the energy to fuel that mind...

Practice. Daily. How you want to move, how you want to think, how you want to relate to your Body by Being.