January New Year Confessions

Welcome!

Happy New Year.

What a wonderful beginning to a wonderful year ahead. I am so excited about 2009 & so far it hasn't disappointed me.

I have been away on holidays for a couple of weeks at a beautiful place on the Mid North Coast of NSW Australia called Taree. A place that is very dear to my heart as it has the endless beaches, rainforests & countryside. For me it is just paradise & somewhere I go & I fully unwind.

Firstly, I must confess that I seemed to have enjoyed my 'familys food christmas treats' too much. And wow I have been suffering because of it.
I am sure you have done it once or twice before yourself or if you haven't then I wish I had your will power around food!

So the first week of 2009 I felt bloated & not how I had intended to feel at all. So I decided to have a good look at what was going on for me. It was all quite simple really I just got carried away with all the temptations of the festive season. Mmm I must also confess the 'ol afternoon siesta seemed to have slipped in there as well. It all sorta felt good at the time because it was so hot.. :)

Anyway I don't know about you but time & time again I seem to fall back into old eating patterns when I am with my family. It seems ridiculous really but it just is. Each time I have to brace myself & remind myself that it is okay & just don't eat as much. But I find it so hard sometimes especially when they are my old favourites to eat as well. And no-one cooks better than their own mother! Besides I'm not game enough to say no to her either!

Aside from all of that when I arrived home from spending time away I made the choice to change my diet to how I normally eat. Within a few days I am starting to feel fantastic again. With all the temptations of the Christmas goodies I gave myself some slack this year & enjoyed the moment with the delicious food. This time I just didn't eat as much of it. Although I did make sure that I added salads to my meals to keep in the Raw tangent.

I am back to eating well again & simply starting each day with at least one juice or smoothie. You know it is amazing what a difference these can do for you & your well being in such a short space of time. Oh did I mention my Wholesome Juice & Smoothie ebook will be available for you at the end of the month? I am so excited about it as well & I have had so much fun writing it. It is the first in a series that I have started writing. So watch out for the link here when it is ready.

So easing back into things I started my days with either a juice or smoothie & then moved onto having my usual salads for lunch & dinner & fruit for breakfast.

Lunch I have been making a salad with finely sliced cabbage, julienne of carrot, celery, parsley, baby spinach or rocket & loads of mung beans & sprouts. I toss it all together with a little bit of chardonnay vinegar & a lemon oil. And that is it.
This is so delicious, simple & scrumptious to eat. And the great thing about this salad is you can use it as a base for all sorts of combinations.

Here is an early morning cleansing juice for you to try.

Beetroot, Apple & Celery Juice
Makes approx 2 cups
4 medium sized beetroots, keep the tips on just wash it well
2 medium granny smith apples
4 celery stalks
Place all the ingredients into the Juicer & drink straight away.
It is such a good start for your liver this one & I love it.

If you want to replace some vitamins this smoothie is good as an anti-oxidant boost.

Blueberry, Blackberry, Strawberry & Lime Juice
Makes apprx 2 cups
250g blackberries
2 cups blueberries
250g strawberries
1 lime, keep the skin on if you want to
1 handful baby spinach (optional) you won't taste it & it is a good source of vitamins & minerals
Put the ingredients into the Blender & puree until smooth.
Drink straight away.

See how you feel trying each of these juices. Try one on one day & the other the next day. They are delicious & an example of what is in my up coming ebook.

Have a wonderful week & look forward to next week with you.

With love, warmth & radiance

Julie-Ann