Develop a Repertoire, Not a Rut -- By Nan Allison

Nan Allison, MS, RD, LDN
Allison Nutrition Consulting, Inc.
566 Rosedale Ave., Nashville, TN 37211
615-297-7888   www.NanAllison.com

I jot down notes, everywhere (pieces of paper, noteboks, computer, emails,voice mail, columns of magazines) about what I think is important to share with clients and newsletter subscribers about nutrition, satisfaction and why we eat ---- I liken it to people who collect recipes and diets and try  a lot of ideas about what and how to eat.
Many are good ideas; some not so good.  Many never get  used, much less looked at, after I write them down. But there are a few that become speeches and themes that I repeat over and over again in several different ways...because they work, and feel like I've "got it,"   and these are "me."  They are my repertoire.
Like wise, I encourage clients to develop their own repertoire of meals, breakfast, lunch , dinner and snacks, that work for them.  But what if your repertoire is feeling more like a rut and isn't feeling good to you?  How do you get out of it?
Often even avid  recipe and diet collectors wind up eating the same thing in the same way over and over again, unless they have a specific event, purpose for, or plan in mind about when and how they are going to implement it.      

Here are some ways to develop your own best repertoire:

1. Find a purpose for your repertoire --what is the focus?

2. Keep it simple.  Don't make the menu complicated.  Pick one meal or snack that you want to focus on and fnd one thing that you would like to try.  Click here  (http://www.nanallison.com/images/Menu_Ideas._1_.pdf)   for some quick-to-assemble meal ideas.  You'll want to adapt the portions to fit your needs.

3. Make a date(s) to try it out.

4. Ask yourself if this is something that is do-able on an ongoing basis.  If you think so, but are not sure, ask yourself what would keep you from doing it.

5. Allow yourself to evaluate it.

6. Eventually you will come up with 1-2 breakfasts  and about 2 lunches and 3 different dinners that are your "go-to" meals.

7. Don't forget to include some restaurant or take-out meals in your repertoire.

8. If these suggestions don't get you closer to finding some fresh meals ot look forward to, you may want to look at how your current repertoire is serving you.

9. If you are still unsure about how to make something meet your needs contact us at nan.allison1@gmail.com

Nan is an outstanding nutrition expert and author with has an extensive background. I'm very pleased to announce her as a regular contributer to takeitback.me 



Below is her book:

Thomas' Bean and Green Soup

One day I was experimenting in the kitchen and I played around with some refried beans and goats milk. The result: A rather awesome, creamy, and rich soup! This soup is very easy to make and is surprisingly healthy.

Thomas' Bean and Green Soup

Ingredients: 

• One can refried beans
• One and a half cups almond or goats milk (more or less depending on the thickness you like)
• Three heaping handfuls of greens such as spinach, collard greens, kale, or anything else dark and leafy.
• Small handful of mushrooms
• One tea spoon of each of the following: Black pepper, chill powder, sage, paprika, fresh minced garlic, basil, and sea salt. (you can add or remove spices based on your taste preferences.)
• One table spoon of olive oil
• Two table spoons of feta or goats cheese. 

Directions:

• In a medium sauce pan incorporate the beans, spices, oil, and milk. 
• Place greens on top of the bean mixture.
• Apply medium heat and leave covered for about 7 - 10 minutes.
• Once bean mixture is soft mix all ingredients including greens together.
• Lower heat to low  and leave covered for about 15 - 20 min or until the greens are tender to your liking - mix occasionally to prevent sticking at bottom of pan. At this point you can add more milk if you want a thinner soup.
• Plate and add cheese for garnish. 

This dish is great as a meal alone, or as a side to a meal.

My review of Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap: It's not food but it's close.

Most of this site is dedicated to wellness as it pertains to what is good for the inside of your body. While thinking about all the things I put into my body I'm started really think about what I put ON my body. If all the things we put ON our 

body's really don't matter then why do we use nicotine and motion sickness medication patches absorbed through the skin? As my good friend Lori would say "I'm just sayin'!". 

While in Kroger I went down the isle where "those crazy health nuts" shop I found some great organic soup and stumbled upon Dr. Bronner's soap. I remembered the name because Dr. Josh Axe talked about it on his radio show. This stuff looks amazing! Dr. Josh pointed out that you can use Dr. Bronner's soap to clean your body and then use it as a mouth wash - very cool! 

Tonight I took a shower with the stuff. It's a trip to use because you just get wet, turn off the water and use a few squirts of the soap into a puff or cloth, then finally lather and rinse off. I was shocked at how well it worked - very rich lather and smelled great! 

I'm sold. Give the stuff a try and leave a comment.

www.drbronner.com

The Most Horrible Truth

It's Thursday at 9am and I decided that today would be a great day to eat whatever I want - a vacation day A fun day right?!

First off I need to explain that I had strictly looked at each thing I put into my body to truly optimize my health - every morsel had a wonderful purpose. Food was my medication and I used it to create healing and reduce toxicity in my body. My new way of eating was not a dreaded task, but rather a delight as I saw my health transformed and my body become renewed!

Some encouraging stats:

• Blood pressure went from 140's over 90's to 110's over 70's (wow)
• lose of 10 pounds
• Due to the very high nutrient diet I had gone through a powerful detox and was able to completely drop one of my anti-depressant medications within the first week of the treatment
• Energy increase to amazing levels - needless to say my body was very happy with me.

Until Thursday.

Enter my cheat day. I filled my body with pizza, chicken wings, a veggie burrito, and ended with my all time favorite: Taco Bell. I understand that this day of eating sounds crazy, but I was able to eat like this in the past with no issue. It is no wonder that my body was so toxic before! 

From the first meal of the day my body felt HORRIBLE! My digestive tract want into total disorder, my emotions where off, and my energy dropped greatly. Another disparaging discovery was that what was once a great source of joy - fattening foods has now become a source of great pain. My body has been spoiled for incredible high quality foods and when I didn't comply with it's new demands I suffered in every way possible. 

Surely I could train my body to eat crap again, but why would I? I have felt such a wonderful and God given transformation with proof of my body's reception of the new diet. The most horrible truth is that food is no longer a source of guilty pleasure. My whole being understands that FOOD MATTERS, and that Garbage in really means Garbage out!

Be fooled no more: Let food be your medication, and your medication be your food! 

Bless your body.

Date Night - 360 Bistro: Food with thought

Friends: No matter what you are feeding yourself do it with the utmost care and thought - you will never go wrong.


Tonight Jeanette and I had a date night. Our good friend Donice gave us a dinner for two to a place I had never heard of: 360 Bistro. I was not planning on writing about our date, but then I tasted the food!

One of the past times in the Hays household is watching Food Network, so we are always looking for awesome food. To start off the Menu is a showcase of seasonal and local finds (at the bottom of the post is a link to the website where you can find the menu). When we sat down and looked at the menu we knew we had found a winner.

The menu not have been what the greater health community would call "healthy". Low in fat no, but high in flavor and whole food yes! As we look to become WELL we may tend to think of needing to only eat foods without 'this' and with more of 'that', and in most cases this is very true. Yet after eating this meal, both Jeanette and I wanted to share another layer of what makes a meal well and healthy - THOUGHT. Thought was put into each of the plates below. Not just ensuring the food will taste good, but what is responsible to put on the plate. Our chef though to cook as local as possible, thought to make portions small but rich, thought to make sure that preparations highlight every ingredient used.

In retrospect the most important thing I took away from the meal regarding wellness is this: I would much rather have a well prepared, fresh, and seasonal meal that may not me good for me over a thoughtless healthy meal any day.

 Needless to say - regarding 360 Bistro we where impressed. Check out the photos and our menu... and be sure to book a date!
www.360bistro.com

P.S. Jamie - you where outstanding!

The food: Again, not the picture of health, but good for all the right reasons
Drinks
Thomas: Acai Tini - refreshing and not to sweet
Jeanette: Blackberry Mohto - Perfect balance of sweet and mint

Starters
Thomas: Steamed Prince Edward Island Mussels in Fennel Broth, Pernod, Tarragon
Jeanette: Zucchini Soup - Homemade all the way!


Salad
Johnny Howell Farm Tomatoes with Fried Bonnie Blue Goat Cheese, Micro Basil - You know when a Chef cares when they use local food. The tomatoes found in the salad are found in a farm in Tennessee and the cheese is also local. When you cut the fried cheese ball it yielded a creamy dream of goat cheese. I spread this over the tomato and left my body for a moment.

Entries:
Thomas: Bonnie Blue Goat Cheese Raviolis with Pine Nuts, Grape Tomatoes, English Peas, Lemon - This was a suprizing combonation. The cheese was so rich, yet wonderful.
Jeanette: Eden Farms' Bone-In Berkshire Pork Loin with Brie Mac n' Cheese, Apple Slaw, Tomato Molasses - Again, local food matters! The pork was cooked to perfection. 2.5 words: Mac n' Cheese; enough said.

Finish:
Thomas: Artisan Cheese “Trio” Accompanied with seasonal fruit compote - The three cheeses where paired perfectly with the fruit.
Jeanette: Dark Chocolate Cheesecake with Strawberries & Chocolate Sauce - The crust was awesome.

Part One Video Interview with Donice Kaufman of Bridges in Nashville

This video was a first try at a video interview - the content is awesome, but sorry about the poor audio quality. A transcription of this interview will be updated shortly.

Dinner and a Documentary Night: The Beautiful Truth

On Saturday my wife and I hosted a Dinner and a Documentary Night. Not only did we get to share our home and table with our friends,but in addition we all where able to screen a great Documentary. I love to cook so Saturday night was a blast for me. My amazing wife lets me cook all my odd foods and experiment in the Kitchen. Sometimes the experimentation works, and other times ... lets just say: it does not work as well. Likely, for my guests and myself the experimentation worked out really well.

My contribution to the menu was simple but tasty (recipes coming soon):

• Starter: Homemade Roasted Garlic and Red Pepper Hummus with Veggies and Pita
• Main Dish: Homemade Tomato and Basil Soup
• Dessert: Homemade Chocolate and Mint Ice cream made with Coconut Milk

My guests brougth some really yummy things too. Our friends Drew and Lori brought an awesome Asian Kinwa Salad, and our friend Tracye brought a really good Organic Red Wine.

After the amazing meal we started the movie.

The documentary again is called The Beautiful Truth. Firstly, movie is not what you think - it's not in any way a farce of An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore. When the movie starts we are introduced to a true story of 15 year old boy named Garrett, who is completing a home school assignment. His assignment is to validate whether the claims and findings of Dr Max Gerson are true or false. Dr Max Gerson was a medical doctor during the 1930's and on, who pioneered the curing of illness and especially Cancer thought his therapy method now called The Gerson Therapy. Dr Gerson's therapy is highly controversial which made this movie all the more intriguing! How could a 15 year old boy prove or disprove something so controversial amongst and within the medical community? Answer: Well.

The father of Garrett is a major part of this movie - he is his own sons Narrator and cinematographer. It is downright heartwarming to hear Garrett's very own father narrate as we see his son travel around the country gathering interviews and information from countless doctors, cancer victims, experts, government officials and even the Gerson family themselves. One of the most appealing things about this documentary his that we almost feel like we an fly on the wall as we really see him find his answers and make conclusions for ourselves - the answers are not forced down to us as some documentaries feel. The ending is outstanding and I'm not giving it away. I however, must admit that for the last 30 minutes I was in and out of tears.

Check out the movie and leave a comment!

Recipes from the dinner will be posted soon. Stay tuned.


Links:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Gerson
http://www.gerson.org/
http://www.amazon.com/Beautiful-Truth-Garrett-Kroschel/dp/B001J66JQ8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1278978192&sr=8-1



The Gerson Miracle

My Review of The Breville Juice Fountain Plus, Model JE95XL

I love coming home with a package waiting for me!

Last week I ordered my shiny new juicer from amazon.com... refurbished - mostly because I hate buying stuff retail. 

My complete review The Breville Juice Fountain Plus: 

Setup: 
Setting up the Breville was much easier then I thought it would be. All I had to do was remove the wrapping and rinse the parts out - awesome! I found that everything fit into place with ease. Another major plus was the really easy to use manual that came with the juicer.

 

Getting ready for use: 
I figured that I should make my first attempt at juicing rather simple. My fruit veggie combo consisted of watermelon, spinach, carrots, and one granny smith apple on advice of my friend Lori (Thanks Lori). I washed the veggies and fruits and was ready to start!

Revving the Engine! Time to Juice: 

 Upon turning on the switch I was shocked at how quite the motor sounded. I cut my apple in half and placed in in the shoot, and then pushed it down machine as directed in the manual. To my utter delight I heard the fruit become pulverised and then I saw the most wonderful site of the night - juice started gushing out of the machine and appeared in my jug! Oh how wonderful! Next came the watermelon, and all the other veggies. You would be surprised how much juice you get from just a few items, because I sure was! 

          

Taste Test: 

It may not look amazing - come on it's freaking puke green! After I smelled the sweet juice I felt better. Glass to mouth I began sipping the nectar of my labor and it tasted amazing! Soon after I finished the first glass I could feel this odd but nice feeling in my digestive system. All I could picture was the amazing nutrients that our REALLY good God had created in these fruits and veggies now being loaded into my blood and body. Wow.

 

Summing it all up:

For my first juicer I was very much pleased. It was easy to setup, easy to use, and easy to clean. The juice tasted amazing. One of the best things I learned is that when you choose to make your own juice you know every single thing that goes into your cup - no HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup), added sugar, preservatives, additives - just healthy and whole goodness. 

My verdict: 5 out of 5

Review Coming soon...

This week we will do a screening of a documentary called The Beautiful Truth.
Stay tuned!

Sleep is like your mechanic!

Sleep is a huge part of our lives. When we sleep we dream, renew ourselves, get refreshed, and REPAIR!

The body was created with such wisdom and precision that it knows the most efficient times to repair itself is when the body is at rest - not moving, not thinking - just being. It is because the body uses our sleep time to make major repairs that the amount of sleep is VERY important. 

Think of your body like a car and sleep like a mechanic. Consider this transaction you may have with your mechanic:

You:

"I need an oil change, a tire rotation, a coolant flush, and oh can you please replace the water pump? By the way I need this all done in 1 hour because I have a busy day ahead. I really don't feel it should take any longer"

Your Mechanic: 

"So let me get this straight... you're asking me to do all this but yet only giving me an hour? I might be able to do the flush and the oil change, but the rest will have to wait till you feel like you have more time."

Here is the crazy thing: Our body has a list of things it needs to repair while we sleep and we often tell our body that we just don't feel like we have enough time to allow it to make the repairs. Seems a little odd huh? 

I could probably find a bunch of studies or links for you to support this analagy, but I will not. One thing I am realizing is that when it comes to health that common sense is supreme!

G'night!