Food for Thought: Super Skin-Clearing Eats

14 Comments / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

{Who new artichokes could actually promote skin health? image source}

On Saint Patrick’s Day morning, instead of waking up to green eggs & ham, I woke up to a full-fledged breakout. Ever since I made the decision to go off of oral contraceptives for my health and my body, I’ve been feeling wonderful – I’ve lost weight, gained energy, and simply feel “lighter” and more healthy in general. However, when making my personal, well-thought-out decision, I was also aware of one possible side effect; that is my skin flaring up due to a change in hormones. Unfortunately, I think the inevitable is happening.

“Really, I’m dealing with acne in my mid-20s! Why?! WHY?!!” I moaned and groaned to my boyfriend, my sister, and quite frankly anyone who would listen. Having struggled with severe acne as a teenager, I thought those days were far behind me, but when I looked in the mirror the other day, those difficult years came flashing back at me.

Fortunately, I know much more about my health now (what works for me, what doesn’t work for me) and am also learning more and more everyday about natural solutions and home remedies. This has promoted me … Read More!

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Wellness Week: A Super Healthy Giveaway Up for Grabs!

30 Comments / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

Speaking of cleansing (read my 3-day cleanse description here), I’ve totally been on a healthy, raw-food-loving, treat-my-body-well kick lately, and want to spread that cheer with you all (with a super sweet giveaway that is). Yup, I’ve got some exciting news for all my lovely blog readers this afternoon! ZICO Coconut Water and SpaFinder have teamed together in honor of Wellness Week (which begins March 19th), and are giving away a “Wellness Package” to one lucky Healthy Chick’s reader.

The Fabulous Package includes:

-ZICO yoga mat & bag

-Case of Chocolate Coconut Water (12-14 oz)

-$25 SpaFinder gift certificate

-Some other wellness inspired goodies (TBD)

I’m so happy to be able to (hopefully) make one of your days. So, let’s get rolling! To enter the giveaway, you can do one (or all) of these tasks below. Each task you complete, I’ll enter you in for the drawings that many times. For instance, if you tweet-tweet and like ZICO/ Healthy Chicks on Facebook, that’ll count as two entrees hence increasing your chance of winning.

Here are your tasks:

1. Comment on this post letting me know what wellness means to you OR why you want to win, along with … Read More!

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My 3 Day Healthy, Revitalizing, Detox Cleanse

426 Comments / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

So…my sister, The Boy, and I decided to go on a 3-Day Cleanse. We may continue on longer, but thought 3 would be a good number to start with. We’re kind of making our own rules, with little bits and pieces taken from lectures I’ve listened to, videos we’ve watched, and some good ol’ fashioned research. Much of the inspiration came from the New York Times Bestseller book Clean, written by Dr. Alejandro Junger, M.D. We loved the fact that Dr. Junger provides “clean” meals that aren’t bland (blah!), all liquid (no fun!) and actually have flavor while giving your body the nutrients it needs. None of that boring cabbage soup diet / Cayenne Pepper with Lemonade crap. This cleanse is for real.

While his book outlines a 21 day cleanse with specific combinations of “clean meals”, nutrients, herbs and spices, we decided to stick to a 3 Day variation of our own. I do hope to do the 21-day cleanse in the near future, however. Maybe when the weather gets a little nicer? Baby steps, people, baby steps.

So what’s on our plate, you ask?: (mostly) liquid meals for breakfast and dinner to give the digestive system … Read More!

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A Healthy Chick’s Vacation Guide in 4 Simple Steps

14 Comments / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

[mi familia]

Hola chicas! Pardon my Español, but I just returned from my 8-day excursion to Punta Cana and have been speaking in Spanish the past week. I’ve also been soaking up the sun, “un-plugging” (for the most part), exercising, wining and dining, sipping on fresh fruit juice, and for the most part, simply pausing to relax (something that I nearly forgot how to do).

While I’d be lying if I told you I wasn’t just a little sad being back to reality, I can’t complain about Boston’s 69-degree weather. And though I’m not enjoying my itchy sun rash on my chest, I am itching to get back to business on the health coaching front (hint: I’m in the midst of planning my first wellness workshop for April) Oh right, and then there’s That Boy I haven’t seen in over a week too…

So while my vacation to paradise is now officially over, here are some little lessons I picked up while in the Domincan that’ll hopefully stay with me as I return to my busy, go-go-go, anxious-at-times city girl self.

1. A little movement goes a long way: I am proud to say that first thing every … Read More!

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Leaving on a Jet Plane…

1 Comment / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

Good morning ladies! As you’re reading this post, I am most likely laying on the beach, sipping a margarita on the rocks while catching up on my magazine reading. Yup, I am on vacation for the week to Punta Cana with my family, and won’t return to Boston until Sunday the 11th.

While many people may cringe at the thought of vacationing with the family, I’ve never been so excited to get away. You see, my family is quite the hoot and I’m always my happiest, most comfortable self when I’m with them (well, maybe not all the time but you get what I mean). My dad is better friends with my guy friends than I am, my mom is the little one we all poke fun at, and my sister is the reasonable, smart adventurous one. All in all, we make quite the clan.

I look forward to a week filled with good laughs, good wine, and good tanning. But most of all, I’m excited about unwinding and “unplugging” for the week. Yes, that means leaving my Mac and cellphone behind and just being. While I very well could spend the week catching up on work, sending and replying … Read More!

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The Morning Refresher: Carrot, Apple, Ginger Juice

3 Comments / Food & Recipes, Health & Wellness /

{as you can see, I couldn’t resist drinking some before the picture}

In the Mix:

  • 4 small to medium carrots, organic if possible
  • 1 small apple, organic (I used Granny Smith because that’s what I had on hand, but any juicy apple works)
  • handful of mixed greens (I used a blend of arugula, spinach, and romaine)
  • one inch cut of fresh ginger
  • juice of 1/2 small lemon

Use your juicer to blend the carrots, apple, greens and ginger. Add lemon juice at the end for an extra zing!

My Top Four Benefits of This Juice: Anti-aging from the beta-carotene in carrots (which works as a powerful antioxidant), skin-clearing (from vitamin A and liver detoxification properties of carrots), Cholesterol Control (the pectin in apples can lower LDL, your “bad cholesterol”), de-bloating (from the ginger and lemon, especially in the a.m)… Read More!

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Workout Woes: 3 Feel Good Moves When You Just Aren’t Feeling It

4 Comments / Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

We all know exercise is beneficial not only for our body (who doesn’t love a little extra glute-toning), but for our mental health as well. Many women track hours at the gym, have a strict running routine, or even take several group fitness classes (such as core fusion) in one day. But what’s a girl to do when she’s simply not feeling it? Do we really need to be so strict on ourselves?

Let’s face it, we are only human. While many of us strive to be superwoman at times, even the fitness fanatics among us have their “off” days. And guess what? That’s totally OK and get this…normal.

I know what it’s like to feel guilt for skipping a workout. Heck, I even skipped my 6:15 a.m. Core Fusion Cardio class this morning because the gloomy weather was a huge turnoff, and well, my need for a good night’s sleep was much more important to me. I had a busy week, I was tired and I needed some good old-fashioned beauty rest. Old me would have beat myself up over this for days, but new me simply let’s it go. Now I don’t skip my workouts every … Read More!

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Quick Healthy Lunch Snapshot: Put Leftovers to Use

6 Comments / Food & Recipes, Lifestyle /

Whenever you find yourself in need for a quick lunch, whether you are running late to work or rushing to get the kids ready to head out the door, it’s always a good idea to access what you already have. Before you go out and spend $15 on an over-priced salad or sub, consider putting your leftovers to use first. It may not always come out pretty, but I can guarantee you’ll save money, feel good about what you’re putting into your body, and perhaps invent a new favorite recipe. Hey, you never know!

Here’s what I concocted this afternoon when crunched for time:

{sorry, this pic was taken from my Droid. Told you, I was pressed for time}

about 1/2 c. leftover brown rice spaghetti + few tablespoons of all-natural garlic marinara sauce + steamed broccoli & spinach from last night’s meal + a few baby bella mushrooms + 1/4 c. chickpeas + touch of freshly grated parmesan cheese + dash of garlic powder & black pepper

And there you have it. A lunch made in minutes. What’s your favorite way to put leftovers to use? Have you ever created a new favorite recipe based on a leftover combo? … Read More!

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A Three Course Italian Feast: How to Cook Your Way to a Man’s Heart

5 Comments / Food & Recipes, Health & Wellness, Lifestyle /

If food really is the way to a man’s heart, I knew I had better be making my man the meal of all meal’s this past weekend. The Boy recently had a loss in his family, and rather than buying him an Edible Arrangement or a prewritten Hallmark card, I decided to get my little butt in the kitchen. I know just how much fresh garlic & seasonings, red wine and a home-cooked meal made with TLC  can really mean (far more than any cliche gift in my book), and well that’s what I wanted to do.

So I thought, and I thought and I thought and I thought.

What would be extra special? What would really show how much I care?

And alas, the idea was born. It started out with a CD my sister had given me a while back filled with authentic Italian dinner music. Italian theme it was!

And then came the menu that I designed, printed out and placed aside the table settings with the card I had written him. Ristorante Di Amore or shall I say, “Restaurant of Love.” Here’s a mini preview below:

Primi (First Course): Field green salad with assorted vegetables; … Read More!

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Quotable Sunday: It’s the Simplest of Things That Count in Life

4 Comments / Lifestyle /

Today I enjoyed one of those Sundays that encompass what all Sunday’s should be like, yet are not most of the time. Instead of  spending the day rushing around in the hustle bustle that is Boston, googling/blog-stalking/blogging/researching on my Mac, or psychotically trying to cross off every single thing on my to-do list while cleaning the apartment AND cooking all while glued to my Android nonetheless, I decided to just be.

I spent the morning sleeping in until (oh my!) 10:30, eating “breakfast” at 11:30 and a absolutely delicious blackberry banana smoothie (kudus to The Boy for being smoothie master) at two for an afternoon pick-me-up. I had absolutely no agenda, and it felt incredibly refreshing.

The rest of the day was spent enjoying time with The Boy’s family watching old episodes of Three Stooges on VHS tapes, laughing our faces off, and sharing stories. I decided to shut down my computer, put my phone in the other room and just be present (something I’m desperately working on improving).

We even caught a 4 p.m showing of Contraband (with Mark Wahlberg) fully equipped with a large popcorn and all. These are the kinds of things weekends should be made of, … Read More!

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