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July 2009 - Posts
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Garbanzo beans are believed to be one of the oldest beans, dating back as far as 5400 BC. Garbanzo beans (also known as chickpeas) have a delicious nutlike taste and buttery texture. They can be enjoyed year-round and are available either dried or canned. They are a very versatile legume and are used in many Middle Eastern and Indian dishes such as hummus, falafels and curries. While many people think of garbanzos as beige in color, there are varieties that feature black, green, red and brown beans.
Garbanzos are very nutritious and full of cholesterol-lowering fiber, as are most other beans. Garbanzo beans have 5 grams of fiber per ½ cup serving. In addition to lowering cholesterol, their high fiber content prevents blood sugar levels from rising too rapidly after a meal, making these beans an especially good choice for individuals with diabetes, insulin resistance or hypoglycemia.
Beans can be good meat replacements since the combination of beans and a whole grain – such as whole wheat pasta or brown rice – provides protein comparable to that of meat or dairy foods without the high calories or saturated fat. Garbanzo beans offer 6 grams of protein per ½ cup serving. Below are some easy ways to incorporate more of these beans into your diet.
· Purée garbanzo beans, olive oil, fresh garlic, tahini and lemon juice to make a quick and easy hummus spread.
· Sprinkle garbanzo beans with your favorite spices and herbs and eat as a snack.
· Add garbanzo beans to your green salads.
· Make a middle Eastern-inspired pasta dish by adding garbanzo beans to penne mixed with olive oil, feta cheese and fresh oregano.
· Simmer cooked garbanzo beans in a sauce of tomato paste, curry spices, and chopped walnuts and serve this dahl-type dish with brown rice.
· Add garbanzo beans to your vegetable soup to enhance its taste, texture and nutritional content.
Next time you are at the store, pick up the canned or dried version of this bean and add some to your dinner meal.
Rebecca
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Sorbets and smoothies are easy to make at home and a great way to sneak in your vitamins and minerals from fruits and vegetables. In this particular recipe from Spent (see below), the banana and berries provide lots of fiber (up to 7 grams) and the berries are high in antioxidants. It is an excellent idea to save calories by using agave nectar as sweetener, rather than juice, since it is so sweet you only need one teaspoon.
Fruit smoothies are similar to sorbets since they both are mainly fruit, ice, and sugar. Often a fruit smoothie is a better choice since it tends to have more whole fruit and fiber and there is typically less sugar in smoothies than in sorbet. Unlike this homemade version, typical sorbets have 36 grams sugar and 160 calories per 1/2 cup.
It is also important to be careful if you are ordering a smoothie at a café since they add lots of fruit juice. Café smoothies can have as much as 73 grams of sugar and can range from 350-400 calories for 16 oz (2 cups). Even though fruit is healthy, be careful with how much you consume at one time and watch the added sugars in the choice you make. Try making your own smoothies or sorbet at home to keep it healthy.
Banana Berry Sorbet (from Spent)
1 banana, peeled, cut into chunks and frozen
1 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon agave syrup
(Combine all ingredients in food processor and process until well blended and smooth.)
Rebecca
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Join the free Live Chat today at 3:00 p.m. ET. Dr. Tony Linares will be discussing our most recent book club selection -- Spent: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again. Whether you've been reading the book or the blogs, you're sure to find this chat interesting and energizing.
To join the Live Chat, log in at 3:00 p.m. and submit your questions or comments.
Thanks!
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Congratulations on finishing the program! You should be feeling much better after following the program for the last 6 weeks. For you folks it is about slowly introducing the foods you have eliminated back into your diet, one food at a time and seeing how you feel. I give guidelines in the book, but it may be worth keeping a food diary as this way it will be easier to see which foods don’t agree with you.
For most people, even if you are sensitive to gluten or dairy, you will still be able to have small amounts. It is when you go over your limit that it becomes a problem. And each person’s threshold is different. This is for you to explore over the next few weeks. Becoming more conscious of how you feel after eating various foods is a great awareness to have.
At the same time, it is about trying to maintain your exercise, relaxation and tennis ball and foam roller releases as needed, and finding a way to maintain your health without becoming too lax or obsessive either. Use the daily beats as tips you can frequently go back to, incorporating whichever ones work for you at the time.
For those of you who are not better at all or those of you who are still not feeling significantly better, the troubleshooting chapter should help determine why and give you tools to help solve the problem. The Spent program was developed to improve function of the various organ systems that are usually involved when you are Spent, but sometimes, specific areas need more targeted therapy and more of a boost. Everyone is different.
But in my many years of doing this, the most common issues that I see and that need to be addressed are…thyroid dysfunction, adrenal dysfunction, gastro-intestinal dysfunction and nutritional deficiencies. In other words, you may need more help with your thyroid function, adrenal function, gastro-intestinal function or more nutrients. The following links at www.spentmd.com may be helpful in determining what is wrong:
§ Adrenal Quiz, http://www.spentmd.com//index.php?nav=89
§ Thyroid Quiz, http://www.spentmd.com//index.php?nav=90
§ Digestive Quiz, http://www.spentmd.com//index.php?nav=92
I would also suggest you go to your doctor and ask him to do regular blood tests to rule anemia, sleep apnea, side effects from drugs or any other disease process that may be causing you to feel exhausted. In addition to the standard blood tests done normally, I recommend requesting additional blood tests not usually done by your physician, see pg 241. I have found these tests extremely helpful troubleshooting what may be wrong.
Please keep in contact with me if you have any further questions at www.franklipman.com
All the best on your health journey
Frank
Dr. Frank Lipman, author of SPENT: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again (Fireside/Simon & Schuster, January 2009), is the founder and director of the Eleven Eleven Wellness Center in New York City, where his personal blend of Western and alternative medicine has helped thousands of people recover their energy and zest for life. For more information, visit www.franklipman.com.
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The last two chapters in Spent focus on the acclimation process that is required after completing the six-week program on restorative healing and finding your natural rhythm.
Dr. Lipman shares his professional experience with us and notes that 80% of his patients feel better after six weeks and the other 20% still need to focus on troubleshooting to improve their natural rhythm.
Dr. Lipman reminds us again that our genetic make-up is still consistent with the hunter-gather civilizations that we evolved from thousands of years ago. I recall reading about the Pima Indians of Northern Mexico that lived as hunters and gatherers several hundred years ago until they settled into the Arizona deserts and reservations. Scientists were alarmed to see that 50% of the Pima Indians developed obesity and diabetes in the U.S. but their counter-parts who still lived remotely in Mexico were lean and free of chronic diseases. The scientists developed the “thrifty gene” theory to explain how easy access to processed foods with high caloric content combined with decreased exercise would create this metabolic imbalance. The genetic make-up of the Pima Indians served them well in times of famine when they lived as hunters and gatherers, but in the modern world with easy access to food, the “thrifty gene” worked against them.
He also introduces the concept “food sensitivities” and cautions us to introduce some of our favorite foods or beverages slowly. Specifically he recommends that we keep a food diary to record our response to all the foods we re-introduce to our bodies and note any specific symptoms. Certain foods may be more taxing for your digestive and hormonal system and could impact the rhythm you have achieved in the six-week program. Increased fatigue, sluggishness, aches and pains, constipation or weight gain can all be symptoms of food sensitivity. Be careful and observant to your body’s needs as you begin to re-introduce the foods you cut out of your diet the past six weeks.
Are you one of the lucky 80% who has re-set their circadian rhythm and is ready to maintain a more balanced lifestyle? Tune in to the Ignite Live Chat online next week (Tuesday, July 21 at 3:00 p.m.) to share your thoughts and insights with us. You can pre-register now for the Live Chat.
I look forward to a lively and Spent-free discussion next week,
Dr. Tony Linares
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In the book Spent, the author includes a recipe for a Breakfast Panini that is quick and healthy for people on the go in the morning (see below for a list of ingredients.)
Most of us don’t have a lot of time for breakfast or choose to not take the time in the morning. Either way, you should be sure to eat breakfast to start the day off the right way. Each meal should consist of lean protein, healthy (unsaturated) fat, and carbohydrate from a whole food source such as fruit or whole grains. The Breakfast Panini recipe has all the right ingredients to give you a jump start and reaching the daily goal of healthy fats and vegetables for the day.
The ingredients cover all the basics of a healthy diet. The choice for whole grain bread is essential when making a sandwich. The bread should have at least 3+ grams of fiber per serving and whole grains ensure it is packed with nutrients such as the B vitamins and iron. The healthy fats come from adding avocado to the sandwich and using olive oil to cook the panini. A little fat goes a long way for flavor and helps the breakfast meal be more sustaining.
Adding the arugula and tomato boosts the fiber and nutrients of this breakfast even more. The slice of buffalo mozzarella cheese adds more protein, which is in addition to the protein that’s in the Ezekiel bread.
Breakfast Panini ingredients (from Spent, page 269)
- 1 slice of Ezekiel bread
- 1 slice each of arugula, avocado and tomato
- A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 slice of buffalo mozzarella cheese
Rebecca
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At this point in the program, it’s important to look at ways to sustain this good feeling you have so you don’t slip and go back to being your old, tired self.
Over the last 5 weeks we have slowly been decreasing our total load of toxins by decreasing substances that we put into our bodies that may “burden” us and hinder our feeling vital. This week we will be removing another “burden,” some of the toxins we put on our bodies. Did you know that many of the shampoos, conditioners, deodorant and fragrances you use on your body are loaded with chemicals? Individually, each of these might not cause a problem, but their cumulative effect can overload our normal functioning and slowly cause harm.
One of this week’s assignments is to detox your medicine cabinet, and toss the products that contain the chemicals I list. I know it sounds radical, but it is another way to decrease your toxic load.
One of my favorite websites, the Environmental Working Group www.ewg.org has a great cosmetic data base, which is definitely worth looking at to see how the cosmetics you are using fare. http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/splash.php?URI=%2Findex.php
This week you will also learn about the concept of entrainment—how our bodies’ internal rhythms slow down or speed up to match a stronger external rhythm. For instance, you slow down when you are at the beach and speed up in New York City. Learning to use music, nature or even your breath to slow down is something worth doing. I personally use reggae music to slow down. It has a beat of about 60 beats/min which is the rate of a slow heart beat. Try it…it works for me and many of my patients.
And there are 2 wonderful restorative yoga poses that I personally use all the time which will truly revive you and keep you restored.
Finally, part of healing from Spent is having a positive outlook on life. Do something useful and meaningful to you; participate in something you are passionate about. In South Africa, there is a term called “ubuntu,” which means humaneness, kindness, understanding, compassion, tolerance, sharing and respect, all in one. You’ll find that as you care for others and give back, you’ll get even more in return.
Remember to go back to my Web site, www.franklipman.com, where I’m constantly putting up new information and resources to help you and inspire you. You’ve come so far!
One love
Frank
Dr. Frank Lipman, author of SPENT: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again (Fireside/Simon & Schuster, January 2009), is the founder and director of the Eleven Eleven Wellness Center in New York City, where his personal blend of Western and alternative medicine has helped thousands of people recover their energy and zest for life. For more information, visit www.franklipman.com.
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Week 6 has an interesting stream of topics ranging from removal of toxic chemicals from our bodies to a collection of positive reflections from some of the world’s greatest scientists, philosophers, religious leaders and thinkers. The chapter opens with a great quote from Einstein telling us to “widen our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.” Later in Daily Beat 38 we hear a conversation between the Dalai Lama and Bertrand Russell where the Dalai states “the purpose of our life needs to be positive.” Not only was Bertrand Russell a philosopher but he was also a positivistic scientist. The most appropriate book end to the opening by Albert Einstein is a reference to Archbishop Desmond Tutu in the final chapter. Frank Lipman shares with us the Archbishop’s description of the South African word, Ubuntu: “what it means to be truly human, to know that you are bound up with others in the bundle of life, for a person is only a person through other people.”
What resonates very clearly in the final week is that our rhythms are not only aligned with nature but are also inter-dependent upon people close to us and inter-connected with all of humanity. An example of the inter-dependence was the concept of entrainment to our surroundings and the rhythms around us at an unconscious level. If we have a busy hectic pace at work, our adrenaline is pumping and our heart rate and breathing increase. When you go home and relax to calming music and/or meditation, the parasympathetic nervous system tells your heart and breathing to slow down. Our ability to shut off the adrenaline rush and slow down our heart rate is called recovery. For example, when you exercise at the gym or go running, the number of heart beats your pulse drops one minute after exercise is the recovery phase and reflects your level of fitness. A slower heart rate in recovery is consistent with better health.
In Daily Beat 38, Dr. Lipman also notes that the laws of physics support the fact that less energy is used when two objects are entrained or aligned with the surrounding energy. I think the concept of entrainment also applies to Archbishop Tutu’s description of Ubuntu and we are interconnected with other lives over time or “bound up with others in the bundle of life.” The following is an example of how people are connected over time.
When Einstein did his early physics research and published his findings in 1905, he selected a topic related to the movement of water molecules. He was curious about the research published a century earlier by a botanist who coined the word “Brownian Movement” to describe how spores move randomly in water. Einstein knew that the movement was not random but depended on the number of water molecules that bombarded each spore. To prove his theory, he calculated the mathematical formula to predict the movement of each water molecule. His colleagues thought he was wasting his time. In 2005, a hundred years after his publication, researchers at U.C. Santa Barbara used Einstein’s formula in the nano-technolgy lab to make smaller and faster computer chips by directing electrons to move like water molecules.
Enjoy the last chapter and sustain yourself by “widening your circle of compassion”. I look forward to the upcoming Live Chat.
Regards,
Dr. Tony Linares
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This week in the Spent program, the author suggests a Cherry Peach Avocado Smoothie. If you liked the Banana Berry Smoothie suggested in Week 1, you may like this one too, especially with the addition of agave nectar and avocado.
Smoothies are a great way to incorporate a variety of nutrition into one drink. It is important to watch how much fruit or juice you use since this can add a lot of calories. In this smoothie, sweetness was added carefully using agave nectar. Agave nectar is very sweet so very little is used to keep the calories down to only 180 calories per smoothie per the ingredients in the recipe (see page 271 for a list of ingredients). The avocado and fruit choices give this smoothie a high amount of fiber – 6 grams.
There is some fat in this smoothie from the avocado, but keep in mind these are healthy, unsaturated fats and they help the body absorb other fat soluble vitamins like vitamin E and K. The avocado is a great source of vitamin E as well as potassium. Next time you make a smoothie consider using part of an avocado.
Rebecca
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We’re in the home stretch of the 6-week Spent program and hopefully we’ve been able to incorporate a lot of the changes suggested by Dr. Lipman into our lifestyle. I know that the restorative exercises have been particularly useful to me, to relax at the end of the day or take a breath during work.
While Week 6 is called Sustain, most of the Daily Beats contain new information. For example, Daily Beat 36 recommends removing chemicals from our medicine cabinet. If you take a look at the list of ingredients to avoid, it’s quite daunting. However, Dr. Lipman does a nice job of telling us what to avoid and where to look for alternatives.
Daily Beats 38 and 39 remind us to relax more, including slowing down and meditating. Some of the suggestions are very easy to incorporate into one’s day including listening to music in your car for a few minutes before going inside your house/work and sitting outside and concentrating on your breathing. The Meditation with Nature advice provided on pages 216 and 217 is a nice way to ease into meditation, with the bonus of getting some time outside, some sun and a walk.
In Daily Beat 40, we learn about the differences between food allergy, sensitivity and intolerances. Symptoms of sensitivity can run the gamut from unexplained fatigue to unexplained joint/muscle pain to irritability. The purpose of providing these symptoms is to show us that, if we’ve made major changes to our diet to eat in the Spent restorative way, as we begin to incorporate those foods we’ve eliminated back into our diets, we can and should watch for food sensitivities.
Finally, the 6-week program ends with Dr. Lipman’s explanation of Ubuntu and the role it should play in out lives. The concept of Ubuntu is explained in Spent as “humaneness, kindness, understanding, compassion, tolerance, caring, sharing, sensitivity, and respect.” Dr. Lipman has found through his experience that people who begin to live life this way and find meaning in their daily activities are happier, feel more fulfilled and are generally less Spent.
This Thursday, Dr. Tony will discuss Week 6 in much more depth. The second installment of the author’s blog will be posted this Friday – if you missed the first one, I encourage you to read it here.
Also, stay tuned for an upcoming announcement about a Live Chat on Spent!
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Now that you are 4 weeks into the program, I assume you are feeling better. By this time, most of my patients are not craving sugar and gluten as much and feeling more energized. If you started an Adaptogen formula, that too should have given you more oomph.
Your sleep should be better too. Introducing an “electronic sundown,” into your evening routine—that is, turning off your computer, the TV and all other electronic equipment at 10pm—hopefully is in place. Darkening the room, too, helps facilitate sleep, so scan your bedroom for any glowing lights. For example, the alarm clock, the charging indicator on your cell phone or the DVD clock and timer are all sources of blinking lights. Turn these off or cover them. Each little bit of light can stop your melatonin levels from rising, which you need to induce the deep restorative sleep your body requires. If you can’t darken your room, wear an eye mask. This period of darkness is essential to reset your natural rhythm.
This week we are going to take some of the concepts and tips you have learnt so far and adjust them. You will learn my favorite Restorative Yoga pose, Supta Baddha Konasana. I believe Restorative Yoga is the perfect solution to the over-stressed state we all are in. As you are supported in the poses, one gets the profound effects of yoga without having to exert any energy. These poses in general, and this one in particular, are particularly good to chill you out at night before bed.
And last week you learned another tennis ball release, this time of the hips, a common area where many of us are tight. Releasing tight muscles and tension will free up blocked energy and not only decrease pain, but energize you too. I combine with an easy stretch you can do while sitting at your desk. I call the two together “Fight Chair Body” because so many of us sit too long and develop tight muscles in our hips because of this. These two exercises done together are a great antidote to this common problem.
In addition, last week I talked about eating seasonally. Now that it is summer, it is much easier to eat locally and with the seasons. The best organic food is what's grown closest to you.
Here are 2 great Web sites to explore to help you eat in this way.
Local Harvest (www.localharvest.com) offers a definitive and reliable nationwide directory of farmers markets, family farms and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area, where you can buy produce, grass-fed meats and many other goodies.
Food Routes (www.foodroutes.org) is a national nonprofit dedicated to “reintroducing Americans to their food—the seeds it grows from, the farmers who produce it, and the routes that carry it from the fields to our tables.”
And finally my blogging Web site (www.franklipman.com), where there is information on why eating locally is important, including a review of the new movie “Food, Inc,” which I highly recommend.
So keep up the good work! I know it is hard and sometimes feels overwhelming, but the results are worth it. Feeling more energized and vital again is something that is worth putting in this effort for.
One love
Frank
Dr. Frank Lipman, author of SPENT: End Exhaustion and Feel Great Again (Fireside/Simon & Schuster, January 2009), is the founder and director of the Eleven Eleven Wellness Center in New York City, where his personal blend of Western and alternative medicine has helped thousands of people recover their energy and zest for life. For more information, visit www.franklipman.com.
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In Week 5: Balance, we are asked to add another dietary supplement, omega-3 fish oil, because it helps to reduce inflammation and prevent chronic health conditions including heart disease. Omega-3 fish oil supports the most fundamental building blocks or our body, cell membrane function and integrity. A common theme woven into this chapter is to maintain balance by reducing our exposure to negative elements in the environment or aspects of our lifestyles that increase inflammation.
In Daily Beat 31 - Think Again - we see that wearing a smile and creating a positive perception in a given situation is very important in controlling our sense of wellbeing. Dr. Lipman refers to the psychology of reframing our thoughts into a positive mode. Studies show that people who are negative and non-forgiving (I call it an inflammatory personality) have a higher risk of dying prematurely. Scientists have actually discovered the neurochemistry and centers of our brain responsible for promoting trust and forgiveness. The hormone oxytocin works in our brain to spur feelings of trust and plays an important role in bonding with others. The hormone allows us to trust others even after they have betrayed us by suppressing a region of the brain that controls fear. Interestingly, oxytocin is the same hormone that regulates the birthing process and must play a critical role in maternal-infant bonding.
Daily Beat 33 - Balance Your Hormones - talks about the important role that hormones play in facilitating normal body functions and maintaining our natural rhythms. Dr. Lipman tells us that years of hormonal imbalance creates a condition called “metabolic syndrome”. Twenty years ago we called it Syndrome-X. It includes a cluster of abnormal conditions including obesity, insulin resistance, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. It is estimated that 40% of the adult population may have the signs of metabolic syndrome. The central obesity seen in this condition also creates excess body inflammation. Ultimately, any form of inflammation decreases our longevity.
All of the factors that create greater balance, fish oil, hormone regulation, positive attitude, and good relationships, also help to control the inflammation levels in our body. Seek balance in your life and enjoy Spent - Week 5.
This week we are also fortunate to have a blog by Dr. Lipman, which will be posted on Friday, July 3. We’ll learn from his experience and clinical practice using the Six Weeks of Healing course.
Dr. Tony Linares
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Summer is the time for salmon and the season kicks off early summer and runs through late fall. Salmon is low in calories and saturated fat, yet high in protein. Salmon is known for its omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3 fatty acids are essential fatty acids, which are necessary, but cannot be made by the body.
In addition to being an excellent source of omega-3s, salmon is an excellent source of selenium, a very good source of protein, niacin and vitamin B12, and a good source of phosphorus, magnesium and vitamin B6.
Salmon is a lean meat choice with only 4 grams of fat and 22 grams of protein in a 4 oz raw steak. If you compare salmon to other meats, like chicken, you will find it is close in calories. The leanest part of the chicken is the skinless chicken breast, which has 1.4 grams of fat and 26 grams of protein in a 4 oz raw portion. On the other hand, red meat can have as much as 23 grams of fat and 20 grams of protein. Keep in mind that a majority of the fat grams in red meat are from saturated fat (bad fats). Therefore, there really is no comparison between salmon and red meat.
When it comes to concerns about mercury, whenever possible, choose wild rather than farm raised salmon. Research published by the Environmental Working Group (July 30, 2003) indicates that farmed salmon poses a cancer risk because it may be carrying high levels of carcinogenic chemicals called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). When farmed salmon from grocery stores was tested, the farmed salmon, which contains up to twice the fat of wild salmon, was found to contain 16 times the PCBs found in wild salmon.
Rebecca
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