Friday, September 25, 2009

Quote for the day: “Have faith in your dreams and someday your rainbow will come smiling through. No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep believing, the dream that you wish will come true.”

Hi there friends!

Yesterday morning when I was out for a morning run along the beach I was inspired by the most beautiful rainbow in the sky. How pure and magnificent is the beauty of nature? It touches my soul, enriches me and makes me appreciate the simple gifts of life.

When you are a child, everything seems magical. Remember believing in a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? When we get older, we often lose the ability to dream and follow our goals and desires. Could that be due to fear? The fear of failure…rejection or perhaps even success? All those safety barriers we put up and hide behind for self protection. The irony is those barriers often become walls of pain, suffering and loneliness.

This morning when I ran towards the rainbow I felt like an excited child with the world at her fingertips… running towards my pot of gold!

I want you all to feel the same.

Treasure yourself, love the person you are and find the truth to your existence…

Now, on the topic of rainbows and all things health & wellness I thought I would give you a rainbow-inspired list of superfoods to include in your diet.

If you are not eating all of these foods on a regular basis then perhaps making some changes would be a beneficial idea!

	R Red Kidney Beans: A great source of cholesterol lowering (soluable) fibre, high protein, low fat, low GI and packed with essential nutrients including: molybdenum (a trace mineral that contains an enzyme which is responsible for detoxifying sulfites), folate, thiamin B1, phosphorus, iron, copper, magnesium, potassium and vitamin K.
	A Almonds: Great source of Vitamin E and healthy mono-unsaturated fat. Rich in protein and vital minerals including zinc, magnesium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, iron as well as vitamin B2-riboflavin.
	I Iron-rich foods: Iron is a very important nutrient for optimum health. It comes in 2 forms ‘heme’ iron and ‘non-heme’ iron. Heme iron occurs in some animal foods whereas the simpler non-heme form occurs in plant/vegetarian foods. The heme foods have generally more iron overall and better absorbed than non-heme however, if there are many special tricks to to boost your iron absorption if you are relying on plant derived options. The most important one is to combine non-heme foods with wholegrains such as wholemeal bread, brown rice/pasta etc and include foods high in vitamin C (tomato-based sauces, orange juice) with your meal. Great sources of dietary iron are: (Heme) lean meat, liver, fish, chicken, oysters, salmon. (Non-heme) eggs, lentils, red kidney beans, breakfast cereal, spinach, wholemeal bread, tofu, dried apricots, sultanas/raisins, almonds.
	N Natural Youghurt: Natural set youghurt contains a microbe called Lactobacillus which will help restore equilibrium in the gut. The lactic acids in youghurt act on digestion in several ways. They increase the uptake of nutrients-particularly calcium; regulate bowel function; and have bactericidal properties. Youghurt is also an excellent source of calcium and protein.
	B Brown Rice: High quality wholegrain complex carbohydrate which assists in lowering cholesterol. High fibre, good source of B vitamins and essential nutrients such as: manganese, selenium, magnesium and tryptophan.
	O Oats: Food for the soul. Highly nutritious wholegrain complex carbohydrate, high fibre, low GI and packed with energy and essential nutrients including plenty of the B complex vitamins, iron, vitamin E, calcium, potassium and magnesium. Oats also contain cholesterol lowering antioxidants (avenanthramides) and unique fiber, beta-glucan.
	W Walnuts: Heart and brain food as they are high in potassium. Like all nuts, protein-rich and provide other essential minerals such as zinc and iron along with Omega 3 fatty acids

How many of these foods do you eat? If better health and nutrition is a priority for you start including these foods in your diet today!

Group Sunday Walking

I am excited to announce that next Sunday 4th October will be the first group walking session at the 1000 stairs, Upper Ferntree Gully National Park. You are all welcome to join me for an hour of fun, fitness and nature. We will meet in the carpark at 1.15pm for a 1.30pm start. I will have my mobile so if you get lost just give me a call.

If you are interested and would like to know more please give me a call on 0407362598 this week or email me at cherie.horne@bigpond.com and I will fill you in with more details.

Hope to see you all there next Sunday…get your walking shoes ready and make a commitment to better health and fitness with me!

And finally I cannot forget the AFL Grand Final tomorrow. Melbourne is buzzing with finals fever. My tip: Geelong by 27 points! Go Cats!

Take care friends, enjoy this weekend! 🙂

Love

Cherie x