Health & Wellness

As the holidays approach us and we enter into cold and flu season, it’s more important than ever to keep our immune system in tip-top shape!

What’s the immune system, anyway? Essentially, it’s a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend the body against attacks by “foreign” invaders. Think of it as your own personal body guard, keeping you safe and healthy!

When our immune system is strong, we feel healthy, energized and clear-headed, and when our immune system is compromised, you may notice feeling fatigued, catching frequent colds or not quite feeling yourself.

Below I share some of my favorite ways to naturally boost your immune health. The best part? Many of these techniques can be done on a budget in the comfort of your own home.

11 Ways to Rock Immune Health:

1. Prioritize sleep, and limit distractions and electronics before bed. Need help falling asleep? Try taking a shot of tart cherry juice, which helps stimulate melatonin production.
2. Get yo’ Vitamin C from citrus, frozen berries or even green veggies like broccoli and in-season Brussels sprouts.
3. Go Green. Leafy greens like kale, spinach, collards and chard are naturally good for boosting immune health!

Happy November! This new month’s energy is beautiful, reminding me to slow down, get cozy, and soak up those festive vibes. It’s time for family, sleeping in, hot coffee and comfort food. It’s also a great time to kick back and really get grounded in your body.

If you find yourself all over the place, you may want to focus on ways you can ground yourself to embrace the energy of the fall season.

What better place to start than by focusing on your root chakra, which supports our entire foundation and roots us to our earth and everything around us?

The root chakra (our first “energy” center in the body) is signified by the color red and is the most common chakra to have blockages or weakness. When this chakra is blocked, one may feel emotionally needy, low self-esteem, and fearful. When balanced, you feel super energized, grounded and healthy.

So, how do we balance our root chakra, anyway?

A great place to start is by paying attention to the foods you’re eating! As the weather becomes cooler, our bodies crave warming foods that are known to help ground and calm the body. Think: seasonal root veggies, soups … Read More!

Even though it feels like summer, fall is officially here and I am so ready for a season of root veggies, change, connecting with our deeper selves, letting go and GROUNDING. (Oh how I love the grounding.) Our seasonal self-care challenge starts up again October 16th and you are so in for a treat. Think: sweet potato hash, turmeric smoothies, roasted pumpkin soup and allll the grounding exercises and meditations your little heart desires!

Just as the leaves change colors, it’s important for us to reflect on the things in our life that are working for us and those we’d like to let go of or “shed.”

Join myself & fellow Certified Health Coach / Yoga Guru Kelley Abatzis for a 14-day Fall Self Care Challenge focused on putting yourself 100% first for the magical season ahead.

THE PROGRAM BEGINS MONDAY, October 16TH + INCLUDES:

1. Daily morning dose of positivity + clear action steps sent straight to your email (even better than your morning pumpkin spice latte!) with feel-good action-steps to implement right away throughout the two weeks.

2. Access to our private ‘Soul Sisters’ Facebook group to hold one another accountable – We’re a firm believer that the … Read More!

Hey, friends! It’s been a while since I updated you on the latest and greatest with my thyroid journey, so I figured I’d check in to share what’s going on right now. (You can read Part 1 and Part 2 here to learn more about my journey with Hashimoto’s Disease and what’s been working well for me.)

Anyway, a lot has changed since I last checked in and I’ve hit some tricky setbacks along the way. For one, when I found out I was pregnant in July — which unfortunately ended in an early miscarriage — my thyroid hormones kind of went a little crazy. While they had been stable for months and actually improved drastically (my TSH dropped to a 2.66 in June!), my TSH shot back up to a 4 the week I found out I was pregnant. I’m not 100% sure it’s related, but in my gut I’m thinking it was.

Given my situation and the fact that your TSH should ideally be below a 2.5 during the first trimester, my Functional Medicine Doctor through Parsley Health prescribed me on a low dose Nature Desicated Thyroid hormone. I’ve also been working to maintain my stress levels and … Read More!

All the magazines and trainers are talking about losing 10 pounds for the summer and getting that “Bikini Body,” and quite frankly I find it super annoying. Meanwhile, I’m over here like, “How can I FUEL my mind, body and soul this summer?”

Don’t get me wrong, I get it and didn’t always have such a carefree attitude about summer. I used to live a life of deprivation, where I counted calories, avoided bathing suits like the plague and restricted myself from having “too much fun” by skipping margarita night and going out with friends.

Blah. Is there even such a thing as too much fun?

There comes a time when dinner parties with friends, adventures to the beach and seeing how many minutes you can hoola hoop without it falling to the ground becomes so much more gratifying than obsessing over cellulite, the calories in your Caesar salad and how many minutes you can squeeze in on the elliptical.

This past weekend, I went camping, hoola-hooped my butt off (and was actually really good, and seriously now want one for my 30th birthday), ate salmon straight off the grill and sipped on a vodka seltzer in a pink … Read More!

Happpppyyy Summer! Can you tell I’m excited? Summer is hands down my favorite season — for many reasons. Not only is my birthday coming up (I turn the big 3-0 in a couple weeks!), but it’s also the season of fireflies, cookouts, campfires, outdoor concerts and beach days. I love going outside without a jacket, longer days filled with sunshine, picnics and farmers markets.

Bright, colorful produce is finally in season like watermelon, zucchini, peaches, cucumber, blueberries and tomatoes, and life is simply buzzing with good energy.

In the midst of all the marketing telling us we need to drop 10 pounds to get that “Bikini Body” (which is a load of crap), summer is the perfect time to prioritize self-care by taking care of YOURSELF — mind, body and soul.

Join myself & fellow Certified Health Coach / Yoga Guru Kelley Abatzis for a 14-day Summer Self Care Challenge focused on putting yourself 100% first. Our signature self-care challenge is back by popular demand, with themes of body love, self-expression, and creating more time for play and fun in your life.

THE PROGRAM BEGINS MONDAY, JULY 17TH + INCLUDES:

1. Daily morning dose of positivity + clear action steps … Read More!

[Photo credit: Shivani Cotter]

A few months ago, I wrote about my journey with Hashimoto’s Disease and what I’ve been doing to jumpstart the healing process over here on the blog. I realize it’s now been about four months since then and a lot has happened in between so I wanted to share a follow up with you as to where I am now!

You can read all about what I personally did in my previous post, but just a quick recap of where we left things off in February 2017:

• I had just started the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet in January, and had been one month on the protocol, and a little over two months 100% gluten free
• I was truly taking charge of my own health, since the doctor refused to listen to me or order any extensive lab testing
• I was feeling more energized, less puffy, and had lost about 9 pounds within a little over one month
• My TSH had dropped from a 4.5 to a 3.3 within one month on AIP!
• I was just about to start AIP food re-introductions, with Phoenix Helix’s e-book as a guideline
• I was not on any