In honor of Valentines’ Day this post is all about natural love potions. Popular herbs and aphrodisiacs to keep your libido strong and keep you both in the mood, increasing desire and everything else that comes after that. The best aphrodisiac is having a sexual partner who truly loves you isn’t it? Having sex can be a big stress reliever, releasing physically and emotionally, bonding and aiding in the release of endorphins. What about when stress is the cause of getting you out of the mood?
Many factors can contribute to a drop in one’s libido. Age, illness,hormonal cycles, nutritional deficiencies or even just the drain of everyday demands of work and relationships can create changes in a reduced sex drive. Besides eating right, getting enough sleep, exercising and reducing stress there are other ways to enhance your sexual desire; and herbs are a great way to start. Here are some popular herbs used for many years to help increase desire and keep you in the mood!
Maca Root: Also called “Peruvian ginseng”, Maca is a folk remedy used to increase stamina, energy, and sexual function. As an adaptogen, Maca can provide more energy if it is needed, but will not overstimulate the body. This Superfood of the Incas is a nutrient-dense ancient medicine that has been prescribed for centuries by holistic Native American healers. Read more >
Camatkarasana Pose “Wild Thing”
Many cultures believe that the key to health, happiness and spiritual connectedness lies in a balance of chakras. There are seven main energy centers comprising the chakra system and it is believed that each chakra has a specific purpose. The Heart Chakra, or fourth chakra, is located in the center of the chest and is the focal point in bringing about the healing of physical illnesses brought about by heartbreak. The Heart Chakra can affect our ability to control the emotions of love, compassion, confidence, inspiration, hope, hate, despair, envy, fear, jealousy, anger and generosity.
I absolutely love this pose with its poetic and playful grace! The Camatkarasana pose, or the “Wild Thing” encourages you to grow your roots deep into the earth while stretching back to offer your heart as a gift to the heavens. If this pose is done correctly, it should be felt it in the thighs, neck, spine, shoulders and hips. By working this pose into your yoga routine you will feel yourself become more open in the chest, hips, legs and arms. Your shoulders and back will strengthen while ensuring a full stretch of the neck.
Benefits:
- Good for treating fatigue and mild depression.
- Opens up chest, lung, and shoulder areas.
- Opens the front of the legs and hip flexors.
- Builds strength in shoulders and upper back.
- It’s also wise to encourage people with Carpal Tunnel Syndrome or Rotator Cuff injuries to try with caution.
Luckily, the heart chakra can be opened with some fairly basic backbend yoga postures like the ones listed below that have other many therapeutic benefits.
- Fish Pose- this pose not only opens your chest but stimulates your lymphatic system.
- Cobra Pose- aids in removing tension from the spine and back, strengthens and firms the abdomen and buttocks.
- Camel Pose-this posture is good for the reproductive system and the digestive system. It stretches the intestines and the stomach and aids in curing constipation; also stretches the neck and regulates the thyroid gland.
“The less you open your heart to others, the more your heart suffers.”~Deepak Chopra
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Love & Light
Claudia
Sunrise @ Sivananda Ashram, Paradise Island
I can’t think of a better way to warm up my body and keep it healthy on these blustery winter days then with yoga. Specifically, the series Surya Namaskar, the Sun Salutation;12 postures performed in a single, graceful flow. The Sun Salutations activate and tone the majority of body muscles; has warming effect, helps improve strength and flexibility and it is especially beneficial to the spinal column.
I was admiring some beautiful photos from my summer trip to India and remembering the local Keralites saluting to the sun and bowing toward it’s presence. I was pleased to see this and knew exactly what they were doing but I began to ask questions and found out that the yogis were very cognisant of the healing capacities of the sun’s early morning rays, particularly its beneficial effects on the exocrine and endocrine glands. Traditionally, it is performed without clothing. Whenever possible then, one should expose as much of the body as possible to the light of the early morning sun. If one is unable to (privately) practice outdoors, in direct presence of the sun’s rays, then one should make every effort to at least maintain the practice at sunrise, still facing toward the east. If done indoors, it is suggested to have a symbol in place of the sun, such as a large orb or circle, or a diagram of the symbol OM, or even a brilliant image of the sun in other artistic form.
There are many therapeutic effects and benefits to this series and each movement is coordinated with the breath. Inhaling as you extend or stretch, and exhaling as you fold or contract. It works as an internal massage of the organs. Stimulates the digestive system. Tones the nervous system due to the row of stretches and bends of the spinal cord. Helps to activate the function of the lungs, to oxidise the blood and warms up the body, therefore, having great effect on the kidneys.
Here is a link to a Classic Sun Salutation demonstration video- beautiful, graceful and performed with such integrity. For your viewing pleasure and fun I also want to share a more Advanced Sun Salutation-The Jedi Way.
Love & Light
Claudia~
Let us love winter, for it is the spring of genius. ~Pietro Aretino
An auspicious day the 1111 & in Numerology, 1 is recognized as the beginning, the creator, or essentially the center. No matter where or with whom you spend the day, you’re not alone in hoping for an auspicious year ahead. I couldn’t wait to say goodbye to 2010, it was an extremely challenging year personally and I can only hope and realize a better 2011. Challenging times can cause a person to wobble and fall and be broken open but how can difficult times help us grow and explore the questions of life-emerging from suffering with real wisdom, love and compassion?
A friend said to me recently, “Yoga saved my life” and I completely understood what she meant by this. Thankfully, yoga has a proven track record for helping and “saving me” to get through the worst situations, keeping me balanced and grounded. After so many years of thinking about this-I made a decision to pursue a teacher training this year. I’m completely excited to deepen my practice and share this beautiful comprehensive way to live and approach life which involves more than yoga postures. I look forward to the new hope, resolutions and second chances that every new year brings with it. Remember to stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach.
Focus Your Intentions for 2011
- Material Abundance:What do you want on the material level? Your own house with a garden?
- Relationships: Write down all your desires for your relationships – your romantic partner, friends, children, parents, co-workers, and any others.
- Spiritual: What would nourish your heart and soul? Do want to go on a meditation retreat? Start a journaling practice?
- Personal Goals: What areas of your life would you like to nurture this year? Do you want a new intellectual challenge such as studying a language or learning new software?
- Community: What do you want to contribute to your neighborhood, country, or the world?Consider how you might use your unique talents to serve others.
- Health: What are your health goals for the new year? Learning how to meditate? Regular, restful sleep? Better eating habits? Perhaps exercise more ? Releasing old emotional wounds? Write down everything you desire for your physical and emotional well-being.
“Goals are a means to an end, not the ultimate purpose of our lives. They are simply a tool to concentrate our focus and move us in a direction. The only reason we really pursue goals is to cause ourselves to expand and grow. Achieving goals by themselves will never make us happy in the long term; it’s who you become, as you overcome the obstacles necessary to achieve your goals, that can give you the deepest and most long-lasting sense of fulfillment.” – Anthony Robbins
Love & Light
Claudia~
Bundle up and protect that delicate skin!! Last year we were giving dry skin the cold shoulder (see entry)but this year the weather has taken a whole new battle. Is your arsenal of products and strategy up for the challenge? You still want to follow the same rules of exfoliation, moisturizing and staying hydrated but following a stricter regimen. If you use active products like Vitamin A and Fruit Acids you can still use them but have common sense to avoid them if you are already feeling irritated from the elements or change the frequency if you are feeling too sensitized. Winter can be harsh which means dry, cold, windy air leaving the skin cracked, peeling, irritated, red and raw. A proper skin care regimen is a must. I share with you some reminders essential for your skin to survive and avoid winter damage!
Winter Skin Survival Tips:
- Turn down the heat and layer up wearing natural breathable fibers. The dry forced heat can really dry out your skin and body.
- No control of the heat? Most of us know this too well living in New York! Get a humidifier- Moisture in the air will limit the amount of water escaping from your skin compared to a dry environment where water will be more readily drawn out of the skin.
- Drink Water OR Coconut Water- Drinking water will help replace daily water loss and therefore help with hydration. Coconut water is super-hydrating and fortifies the body and skin with much needed potassium and electrolytes! Avoid dehydrating foods and beverages such as coffee, tea, cola, other caffeine containing drinks, and alcohol.
- Stay away from skincare containing harsh abrasives, chemical preservatives and synthetic fragrance. Keep mineral oil, petroleum, and coco butter off your skin and lips. If your lips are cracked and dry look for products that contain shea butter, avocado oil, and apricot oil. I love Jane Iredale’s Lip Drink!
- Keeping your face properly hydrated will mean adding a face oil or serum underneath your normal moisture cream to enhance it’s richness or simply change to a richer cream. We want to enhance the NMF (natural moisture factor) in your cells. Fluid between the cells is imperative for healthy skin. It allows both what you are applying to be absorbed and waste to be expelled. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to use a re-hydrating mask at least twice a week. See below for product suggestions.
- Change your shower routine-before the bath or shower dry brush. Dry brushing will not only remove all skin debris but it will also stimulate circulation and help flush toxins through the lymphatic system. Keep the bath or shower short and use lukewarm water. Be sure to exfoliate frequently (2-3 times x week). It will help remove the excess surface cellular debris that the dry brushing pulled up and keep your skin soft and smooth. A sugar scrub is more delicate this time of the year. Look for scrubs with butters and oils, not glycerin or chemical additives. Purchasing a shower filter would be a smart idea too. I finally made the switch for myself and what a difference this is making! Unfiltered water contains high amounts of chemical compounds such as chlorine and fluoride which alkalize water. Alkaline water severely alters the skin’s pH causing more dryness.
- Consume a balanced diet rich in fatty acids, minerals, and green leafy vegetables most of which contain enough water to contribute to hydration. The water from fresh fruits and vegetables is more easily absorbed by our cells than drinking water and so are the nutrients they provide. Supplement if necessary with the EFAs. If your diet is not meeting your needs by taking mercury-free fish supplement. For vegetarians/vegans, you can find several algae-derived Omega- 3/DHA supplements in the market. Example of foods rich in Omega-3: : salmon, cod, tuna, scallops, shrimp, halibut, flax seeds, walnuts, chia seeds, hemp seeds, mustard seeds, tofu, kale, brussel sprouts, collard greens, spinach, romaine lettuce and winter squash.
- Be sure to get enough sleep which encourages regeneration of body cells and tissues. It helps the body metabolize free radicals,which accelerate aging.
- Exercise -it increases blood flow to every single organ of your body including the skin and will always produce an improved complexion and a beautiful healthy glow.
- Don’t skip the sunscreen. You may feel like you haven’t seen the sun in days, but harmful UV rays are still making their way through the clouds. Choose a moisturizer with sunscreen built in or layer up.
- Seek out an expert for a professional facial and advice.
There is hope for your ailing epidermis this winter if you follow my simple survival tips and outsmart father frost. Check out my winter product suggestions that will keep your skin healthy all winter long.
Love & Light
Claudia~
Making sense of skincare and nutrition labels can be very complicated and scary especially when you can hardly pronounce the ingredient names. Figuring it all out is no easy task when life gets in the way and all we want is to look and feel good. So what’s the answer? You can become an educated consumer and make a shift in your lifestyle. I will briefly explain definitions of types of skincare ingredients and rules to follow to bust the label ghosts that trick and fool you everyday and help you make and educated decision on your next trip to the market or cosmetic counter.
Skin Ingredient Rules:
Chiral: Can be derived from natural or synthetic ingredients; causes the least amount of irritation and less chance for adverse reactions. Chirally correct products are never artificial and always recognizable by receptors. This is beyond organic and even more active.
Natural/Organic: Is created by nature however, contrary to popular belief, natural ingredients can cause irritation. In fact, anything can cause irritation. Additionally, the Food and Drug Administration does not regulate the term natural, so keep in mind that any and every company can claim its products are just that. Not all organic skincare or foods are created equal.
Artificial: Fake and foreign; may contain artificial fragrance and colors; may look or smell similar to natural ingredients but is not recognizable by the skin or body.
One of biggest misconception when reading skin care labels is that you can tell how good a product is from the ingredient deck alone. While it is important to know what’s in every product it’s the formulation that counts the most. Slight variances in the processing, concentrations and percentages can make all the difference. The list of ingredients does not tell you how labor intensive the product is to make—whether or not it was cold processed or cooked by an automatic cooker; mixed by hand or in a 500 gallon vat; or made fresh to order or pre-made and stored in drums. This will also decide the cost;bottom line a great product is not easy or cheap to produce. Wouldn’t you rather pay for labor and know your getting a good product and not be tricked by advertising and marketing scams or be spending your dollar for packaging alone? If you have a question about an ingredient or product you need to contact a professional, the manufacturer or search the definition of ingredients on a reputable website such as: ewg.org. Furthermore, I learned this myself not to long ago if a company chooses to abide by INCI regulations, The International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients, they must use the chemical name for their ingredients. This is a system of names for waxes, oils, pigments, chemicals and other ingredients found in cosmetics, based on scientific names and other Latin words so you may not recognize the name of a popular ingredient.
Food Rules:
The USDA’s Dietary Guidelines are due for another overhaul. The current version, called MyPyramid, is what the USDA thinks a healthy diet should look like, and every five years the government reevaluates what being healthy means. Unfortunately lobbyists have traditionally had a hand in what the USDA decides to promote in its healthy dietary formula. Shouldn’t you stop letting someone else or the government for that matter decide what you should be eating and be proactive about your health. Most people don’t think of inflammation as a catalyst for making food choices, but perhaps it should be. In today’s fast paced world, we often substitute health for convenience. By picking processed or ‘fast’ foods over natural, more nourishing choices, we create an acidic internal environment more prone to outward signs of inflammation. Inflammation is how our immune system responds to injury if you keep this in mind and refrain from eating inflammatory foods this is a good first food rule. I’ve taken 4 other rules to follow from Michael Pollan author of The Ominvore’s Dilemma(a must read for everyone)FOOD RULES an Eater’s Manual. Read more >
The mythical Phoenix symbolizes rebirth. It might represent the sun which dies every night and is reborn the next morning. Among classical writers, it may represent those existing in paradise and enjoying eternal youth. Among Christians, it can represent rebirth after death. To me the Phoenix represents a new beginning, that no matter how bad things may get you will get back up on your feet, resilient and renewed -just as are the cancer survivors it represents and the organization, Living Beyond Breast Cancer and the Rise Above with Love ™ campaign, whose mission is to empower all women affected by breast cancer to live as long as possible with the best quality of life. As a volunteer for the Look Good Feel Better ™ organization, I was privileged to helps cancer patients cope with the appearance-related side effects of their disease and to get to know some of these courageous woman and hear their amazing stories and the everyday reality that touches so many lives. Inspired I made a commitment with Fábula to support and partner with companies of integrity who share our philosophy of an all-natural approach to skincare and wellness. We are committed to organic, cruelty-free products, free of artificial preservatives and fragrance, sodium laurel sulfate, coloring and added parabens only using products and ingredients that honor our clients health.
Jane Iredale Mineral Make-Up has partnered with these organizations and through promotions has raised more than $ 75,000 dedicated to Breast Cancer Awareness. There latest promotion is a brand new version of the popular Sugar&Butter Lip Exfoliator/Plumper naming it the Phoenix. This soft, scrumptious pink plumper is paired with an organic brown sugar exfoliator to evoke the joy and daily pleasures of femininity.
- Exfoliator and lip plumper duo restores moisture to dry, chapped lips for a smooth and moist finish.
- Packaged in a dual-ended tube and is easy to apply.
- Made with organic brown sugar and leaves lips feeling soft and light.
- Lip plumper is formulated with peptides to hydrate the lips and stimulate collagen synthesis.
- The combination of cool mint and ginger soothes and revitalizes lips, leaving them with a luscious tint of pink.
- Cruelty Free
- Paraben-Free
Jane Iredale for a full year from September 2010-September 2011 will donate $2 from the sale of each Phoenix to Living Beyond Breast Cancer a not-for-profit in support of all women who have risen above breast cancer and those who love them.
In the depth of winter I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer ~Albert Camus
Claudia~
Anjali Mudra (prayer hands) on the beach Sivananda Ashram, Paradise Island
September is National Yoga Month and anyone at any age in any body can benefit from yoga. Yoga has been researched extensively and is known to have a wide range of health benefits for body, mind, spirit. Derived from the Sanskrit word, “YOGA” means “Union”. It is a combination of physical and mental exercise designed to hone ones concentration, improve health and attain eternity. Today’s lifestyles are built up with stress and conflicts. There is disharmony in the body (physical), mind (mental), and spirit (spiritual) the basic 3 aspects of human body. All illness is the result of such disintegration of these three. Get inspired to live a healthier, happier life and get your OM on and strike a pose to:
- Gain greater flexibility (not just physically!)
- Better skeletal alignment
- Easier transition through menopause
- Deeper peace of mind and many more…
“Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.” ~ Buddha
Love & Light
~Claudia
Your skin is the largest organ of the body. What you eat effects how your skin feels and looks. Here is a quick look at foods and vitamins that can help your skin:
- Vitamin A-Strengthens skin to repair tissues, helps prevent dry skin and acne. Foods rich in Vitamin A: Eggs,whole milk,carrots,mango and spinach.
- Vitamin E-Prevents free radical damage to skin and helps strengthens skin elasticity. Foods rich in Vitamin E: Almonds,broccoli,spinach, hazelnuts, wheat germ,safflower oil and avocado.
- Vitamin C-Help’s heal wounds and damaged skin. Brightens and strengthens skin. Foods rich in Vitamin C: Oranges, guava,green peppers and sweet red peppers,kiwi, strawberries, tomatoes, brussel sprouts & cabbage.
- Vitamin D-Keeps skin tone healthy, helps relieve stress-related skin problems like eczema and acne. Foods rich in Vitamin D: Oatmeal,whole wheat, dairy products,meats, fish, sardines and liver.
- Zinc-Heals skin, helps over-production of sebum and acne. Foods rich in Zinc: Pumpkin seeds,sunflower seeds,spirulina,okra,french beans,brussel sprouts,avocado,blackberries,dates,pomegranate,raspberries and lentils.
Love & Light
~Claudia
On my recent trip to Tucson, AZ I stayed at Miraval Resort & Spa. I was obsessed with this yummy peanut butter that I asked the Executive Chef for this simple recipe. Provides antioxidants, good fats, protein to aide in muscle growth and plenty of fiber and Vitamins E & B6.
Yield: 1 CUP
Servings:16
Serving Size- 1T
Ingredients:
1/3 C Organic Peanut Butter,Smooth
1C Carrots,peeled and boiled until soft
Directions: Blend Peanut Butter and boiled carrot chunks in a food processor.
Calories: 36| Fat: 2.74g| Carbs: 2g| Protein: 1g| Sat. Fat: 1g| Cholesterol: 0| Sodium: 31 mg | Fiber 1g
Enjoy!
~Claudia
Biodynamic Collection from Eminence Organics introduces the Bearberry Eye Repair Cream. Ultra-hydrating eye cream with bio-active ingredients to hydrate and nourish the fragile eye contour area and reduce the visible signs of aging. Key Ingredients: Bearberry Extract: brightens and is rich in antioxidants, Red Clover Extract: reduces appearance of aging, Parsley Seed Extract: improves skin [...]
