Tag Archives: Guide to Gluten Free

Mexican Taco Stew (Gluten Free)

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Mexican Taco Stew

Mexican Taco Stew (Gluten Free)

1 pound ground turkey
1 medium onion
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 TBS taco seasoning (gluten free)
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 medium zucchini or summer squash (I sometimes include both)
2 (15 oz) cans of no-salt black beans (rinsed)
1 (14.5 oz) can of diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup of medium salsa
Top with avocados, sour cream, and corn chips.

This is the easiest and most delicious soup I make. On a cold Seattle night, I throw together this gluten free stew and my husband and I are warm and toasty once again!

In a large pot, saute onions and garlic, then brown turkey meat. Once meat is browned add in taco seasoning. Add remaining ingredients and simmer uncovered for 15-20 minutes so the soup reduces a bit. Serves 6.

*Adapted from a Whole Foods recipe.

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Smoked Mozzarella Gluten Free Pasta Salad Recipe

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Gluten Free Smoked Mozzarella Salad

Smoked Mozzarella Gluten Free Pasta Salad Recipe

1 Package of Gluten Free Pasta Spirals (Scharr or another non-rice brand)
1/2 cup Mayonaise (to taste)
1/3 cup of White Balsamic Vinegar (to taste)
2 large distilled red peppers (chopped)
1/3 cup of chopped fresh parsley
2 Garlic cloves (minced)
1 block of Smoked Mozzarella (cubed)

Method: Boil pasta until soft. Rinse pasta in cold water until pasta has cooled. Mix in all ingredients until the salad is wet. Serves 6.

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Recipe: Gluten-Free Quinoa Flour Belgian Waffles

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These are so delicious! This is another altered Jules Gluten Free recipe. She knows her stuff! Again I cut out the sugar and mixed with Quinoa Flour for a nice low sugar, high fiber/protein treat.

Gluten-Free Quinoa Flour Belgian Waffles

2 eggs separated (use both the saved yolk and whipped egg whites)
2 Tbs. of shortening
2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup of Jules All Purpose Flour
1 cup of Bob’s Red Mill Organic Quinoa Flour
2 tsp. baking powder
A dash of agave nectar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk (you can sub in soy, almond, or rice milk)
Top with fresh cut strawberries and unsweetened whipped cream

Preheat waffle iron to low or med-low.

Mix together egg whites on high, until egg whites are stiff. Set aside.

Combine all of the ingredients above in a large bowl. When everything is smooth, fold in egg whites until the dough is fluffy.

Put two large spoon fulls of batter on the waffle iron and remove when the iron gives you the green light.

If you are a Seattle gluten free foodie, Jules Gluten Free all purpose flour is a great way to bake delicious gluten free goodies. If you try this recipe, comment and let me know how yours turned out! Also re-post your results referencing Seattle’s @guideglutenfree on Twitter.

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Recipe: Gluten-Free Garlic Quinoa Flour Breadsticks

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I altered Jules Gluten Free‘s bread stick recipe to have less sugar and use Quinoa flour in addition to her baking flour. I do this because I cannot eat as much sugar or starches as the recipe calls for. Quinoa flour is a very high protein and fiber-rich flour. It has a slight taste of Quinoa, but is undetectable when mixed with Jules All Purpose Flour.

These little goodies were absolutely delicious and fluffy!

Gluten-Free Garlic Quinoa Flour Breadsticks

Preheat oven to 350 F.

3/4 tsp. apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 Tbs yeast
1 cup of plain yogurt
1 cup of Jules All Purpose Flour
1 cup of Bob’s Red Mill Organic Quinoa Flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
crushed fresh garlic (sprinkled on top)
brush with olive oil

Mix together all ingredients until lumps are gone. Dust pastry mat with cornstarch and also dust your hands. Take a small handful of dough and form it into a breadstick shape. Lay the breadsticks on a cookie sheet that has been greased with olive oil. Sprinkle on toppings and bake for 10-12 minutes, or until top is golden brown and the dough has risen.

If you are a Seattle gluten free foodie, Jules Gluten Free all purpose flour is a great way to bake delicious gluten free goodies. If you try this recipe, comment and let me know how yours turned out! Also re-post your results referencing Seattle’s @guideglutenfree on Twitter.

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Slimy and Sickly (but still yummy) Seattle Gluten-Free Halloween Treats!

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Most of you may know I have a day job…well several day jobs to be exact. One of which is I manage marketing for a company who produces a fun kids drink called Crayola™ Color Coolerz®. Available at WalMart. You can visit their website (my company, maoStudios designed their site as well) at www.crayolacolorcoolerz.com.

I took some time over the last few days to make some spooky Halloween drinks and treats out of their Coolerz and thought I’d share. Here are the results!

Note: I believe Twizzlers have gluten, these were used just for decoration. If anyone knows of a Seattle gluten free alternative, let me know!

21st Century Feminism: Mad for Plastic Surgery and Self-Worth

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I don’t read women’s magazines, but recently I started getting Shape Magazine as a free gift. To my surprise (and disgust), Shape Magazine isn’t really about health at all, it’s literally about shaping or re-shaping your face with Botox, Restylane, face lifts, working out 2 hours a day 6 days a week and eating a VERY limited diet.

Last month Shape featured an article about what kind of “maintenance” a woman should do in her 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, etc. Of course as the years progress and age takes its toll (because aging is negative apparently?), so do progress (and increase in frequency) the amount of surgeries and Botox. I’m a healthy and beautiful 32-year-old woman, that aside Shape says in my 30s I should be getting Botox and facial fillers. Really?

It’s been about 6 or more years since I put down my last women’s magazine because I felt most promoted a very unhealthy body image. My preference then was Women’s Health Magazine and as far as I can remember, they mostly discussed natural ways to give yourself a facial, healthy recipes, and fun or new exercise tips. It would seem “health” magazines have changed and now the woman of the 21st century has a new standard to live up to – we can’t age.

Looking back in history we can see women have struggled throughout time for legal rights, equality, body image, self-worth, and now we are fighting our age? Well maybe some of us are, in my case I’m fighting to LET myself age and reset the standard for what a woman should really look like.

It doesn’t help that our role models are actors and models who have naturally good genes, a personal trainer, and disposable income which is spent on stylists and the best plastic surgeons in the world. These people are our role models, whether we agree or not. They flood our visual landscape on billboards, television, and of course the Internet. We may not believe consciously that these people affect us and that they are background noise we can avoid. We are wrong. Our subconscious mind is very sensitive and absorbs these messages whether we like it or not. I would say women, the more sensitive of the two sexes, are the largest group of victims.

I don’t know what happened to the Gloria Steinems or other women’s advocates of our country, but I think it’s time a younger generation of women stand up and say this is not okay. That this way is neither healthy or even real.

Our commercialized, robo-boobed, ideal woman is NOT a woman. In fact, some would argue that woman ceases to exist at all, yet so many women destroy themselves every day with critique, vigorous workouts, and disciplined diets with the hopes that they too will look this way.

Another fact that needs to be recognized is a large percentage of celebrities are not educated beyond high school. Most are actors or performers who were chasing the spotlight and had no interest in education beyond learning what it took to become famous. The ones who make it were and still are that way, along with an alarmingly large percentage of the US; everyone wants to be famous.

Education, is extremely valuable when it comes to self-image and self-worth. If a person attends an undergraduate university or beyond, they are exposed to the arts, music, science, mathematics, engineering, design, history, languages, and much more. A person in college, has the opportunity to excel in a variety of professions that are highly rewarding. It is true, celebrities who are famous make 30 times what the average American will ever make, but if you consider the amount of work they have to do to remain relevant; plastic surgery, 2-5 hour daily exercise regimes, limited diets, PR strategists, dodging the press’ inquiries of their personal lives, it would seem to me (an educated person) that no amount of money would be worth that, specially if only 2% even make it to that level. It’s also worth mentioning that uneducated people are more likely to believe they need to do these things in order to be valid.

I’ve had money and I have not had money, my personal happiness never depended on how much or how little I had. I’ve also been very thin and I’ve been overweight, I wasn’t extremely happy either way, except when I was overweight I didn’t have to work as hard. For me, my happiness swells when I accept who I am wholly and completely. When I take the time to tell each part of my body that I love it and there is no need to change it. When I value my many abilities and talents, happiness is present. When I say to myself, “you are powerful,” I am truly happy.

Meditation and yoga have been valuable tools in my search for finding that quiet place in my heart that no person or message can touch. In a sense we are all trying to get there, no matter where we are from or what walk of life, all of us are looking to be happy. If we all knew it was the simplest of answers – acceptance and appreciation, maybe the world would be a better place.

Women are truly masterful, capable, and the most complicated creatures on the planet. If we spent half as much time recognizing this instead of obsessing over physical appearance, we would be a highly evolved sex. Women are leaders. We possess spiritual and intuitive powers, that truly enchant everything in our reality.

Pesto, Pear, Chicken Pizza with Quinoa Flour Crust (GF)

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Seattle Gluten-Free Pear and Pesto Pizza

Quinoa Flour Crust (GF) Recipe

1 Cup of Quinoa Flour
1/2 Cup of Nearly Normal Gluten-Free Flour Mix
3 Tbs Milk Powder
1/4 tsp Oregano
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
2 1/2 tsp Yeast
2 eggs
2 Tbs Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar
1/2 cup of warm water

Mix together dry ingredients and then wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Then blend the two together with a wooden spoon.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Grease pizza pan with olive oil. Spoon dough onto pan and sprinkle Quinoa flour on top. Keep sprinkling Quinoa flour until you can press the pizza dough around the pan without it sticking to your fingers and so it’s circular. Use a roller to flatten out the dough evenly. Let pizza dough rise for 20 minutes. Bake pizza crust for 15 minutes, then take the crust out and put on toppings.

Note: I altered Jule’s Gluten-Free Recipe from her Nearly Normal Cooking for Gluten-Free Eating Cookbook. I find her flour to be too starchy and gummy, so I use 2 parts Quinoa flour and 1 parts of hers. If you are a Seattle gluten free foodie, Jules Gluten Free all purpose flour is a great way to bake delicious gluten free goodies.

Cibo Naturals Basil Pesto Sauce

Pesto, Pear, Gorgonzola, Chicken Toppings Recipe

1/2 pint of Cibo Naturals Basil Pesto Sauce
1 cooked Chicken breast, shredded
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
1 Pear
2 Tbs of Gorgonzola Cheese
1/2 cup of shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Put on crust in order above and cook another 10-15 minutes until cheese is bubbly and pear is soft.

This pizza is so good, your husband will devour the whole thing. :)

Gluten Free Travel in France.

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France is another country we were able to explore during our long honeymoon abroad. Specifically, Argeles Sur Mer, Collioure, Cannes, and Monaco (Although, Monaco is its own country). France was more of a challenge when it came to eating gluten free travel, not because there weren’t gluten-free options, but because there were so many delicious looking pastries and breads! It took an act of god to resist these heavenly morsels.

From the top of Argeles Sur Mer, looking down at the beach.

Again each place had its own pros and cons along with individual charms and history. Argeles Sur Mer is a beautiful beach town about 45 minutes from the Spanish border. You won’t see one person without a bathing suit and cover up during the summer months. It’s hot and humid, sitting right on the warm Mediterranean. The type of people vacationing in Argeles are mainly French, British, and German. Argeles is not an upscale city by any means and neither are the folk. In the beach part of town, condo owners rent street spaces below their dwellings to vendors, so markets line the beach for blocks. You can find lots of fast food like kebab and pizza, beachwear, soaps, glacier (ice cream), and other gifts. Beachfront there is a large array of restaurants serving enormous plates of seafood, mussels being the favorite.

Mussels, frites, and huge breaded calamari in Argeles Sur Mer. I did not eat the calamari.

We ended up eating with friends a lot in Argeles, so our dining experience wasn’t as expansive as the other cities we visited. The mussels to the left are a good example of the type of food available in Argeles. They also have super markets by the beach (super marché) which made it easy for us to get gluten free snacks like yogurt, fruit, veggies, and nuts.

Our friends took us to a cove one evening and roasted sausages, lamb, and Camembert cheese over an open fire and smeared it over a roasted potato. It was so magnificent and delectable! I plan on recreating this dish as soon as possible and it’s a gluten free travel option.

Eggs, sausage, fruit, and a rice cake at Les Moettes in Argeles Sur Mer.

My recommendation to eat breakfast at your hotel is the same for France as it was Spain do it. Most hotels will serve you a petit dejeuner (light breakfast) that consists of breads and pastries, but the nicer hotels will serve a wide range of foods, buffet style. Our hotel, Les Moettes, had plenty of gluten-free options including eggs, fruit, cheese, cured meats, sausages, pastries, breads, and a variety of boissons (drinks).

Our next stop in France was the sweet and historic town of Collioure. This town was by far my favorite because of its romantic buildings, cobblestone streets, towers, beach, and above all character.

Collioure, France

Collioure is a little more upscale than Argeles; visitors come to lounge on the rocky beach, site-see, and adore the detailed and varied architecture.

We had the pleasure of staying in Collioure for a few days and while our hotel did not have any gluten-free breakfast options we found several early morning diners that served omelets.

Olivier Bajard pastries and cakes.

Collioure is also home to one of two retail locations of Olivier Bajard, a world-famous French pastry chef. I was only able to sample the chocolate and gelato, but my husband and friends devoured his pastries and macarons. I can assure you it was the best I’ve ever had and the best they’ve ever had. He lives up to his awards and recognition. I ended up taking home several hundred euros of chocolate for my family and myself.

Carrefour Gluten-Free Bread

Collioure had a market called Carrefour, which seems to be a chain throughout France. They manufacture their own gluten-free baguettes, cookies, muffins, and sliced sandwich bread. It’s corn-based and not too bad! I managed to smother Camembert cheese all over these after they’ve been toasted – what a treat.

Salad and Galette in Collioure, France

Collioure also has a nice selection of cute little street cafes with a solid selection of salads, crepes, and galettes (savory crepes made with buckwheat flour and unsweetened). At the time I didn’t know galettes were gluten-free or I would have eaten one, that said it’s probably safe to ask in case they decided to use wheat flour.

Olivier Bajard Macarons

On the topic of asking a server if an item is gluten-free, you should say “Je suis allergique au gluten. Avez-vous cela sans gluten?” Roughly translated to, “I am allergic to gluten. Do you have this without gluten?” You can also say “sans gluten” or “sans pain (bread)” and they will understand.

Another delicious French pastry that is gluten free is the macaron (small, various colored cookie sandwiches). They are certainly not sugar-free, but these little pastries are made with almond flour and powder, along with preserves or cream for the filling. I did not eat any while I was in France because I have to choose my sugar carefully or not eat it at all, but they looked so delicious!

Cannes, France – Side Alley

Mike and I decided to rent a car and make the 5 hour trek to Cannes, home of the Cannes Film Festival, while we were in France.

Cannes is a bigger city than I realized and full of well-off tourists and shoppers. We stayed more in the city so we ended up having to walk about 15 minutes down to the water front where all the shops and restaurants are.

Cantaloupe and Prosciutto in Cannes, France.

I found Cannes to be loud, packed with people, and not entirely pleasant at night. By day it wasn’t so bad and we found the food to be rather delicious, reminiscent of Italian food in some places. I managed to find a lot of gluten free travel options with risotto, cantaloupe, prosciutto, salads, and more.

While we were staying in Cannes, we decided to take a break from the craziness and visit Monaco for a day. Monaco is its own country and has a lot of tourists and influence from Italy. It’s also rich, rich, rich and beautiful because of it. Word on the street is law enforcement is paid very well and have a ubiquitous presence, so there is no crime of any sorts. Which is great because people tend to come here to spend money, visit the Casino, or hide money in off-shore accounts.

Monaco

We found many places with salad options and many with pizza and pasta. It was hard to resist the pizza, but the salads were hearty, full of tuna, olives, anchovies, and veggies – they were delicious.

We were sad we didn’t have enough time to swim because Monaco’s waters were turquoise!

Overall France was a beautiful and inspiring place. Don’t go if you can’t tolerate dairy for a week or two you will not survive without it. I stocked up on yogurt, fruits, veggies, nuts, and gluten-free breads to tide me over between meals or if I happened to miss a meal, which happens when you travel. It is however, possible to travel gluten free.

France is a much more polished country in that they take time to fix rundown historic buildings, clean the streets daily, and generally the people just take pride in keeping their home beautiful.

If you are gluten free and looking to travel internationally, Gluten Free Hotels for Celiacs has a robust list of hotels all around the world who can accommodate you.

Prawn Risotto in Cannes, France.

Beautiful tile in Cannes, France.

My best bud and I in Argeles Sur Mer.

Collioure, France – Side Alley.

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Gluten Free Travel in Spain.

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Over the last two weeks, my husband and I visited Barcelona, Figueres, and Cadeques, Spain. This trip was certainly the most inspiring experience of our lives, getting to know the Catalan people, the cuisine, the many, many exhibits of art, Gaudi architecture/sites, and the overall grittiness of the city of Barcelona. We used Rick Steves’ Spain guidebook to help us get around and highly recommend it, although he has no gluten-free tips.

Casa Battló in Barcelona

All three Spanish cities are very different. Barcelona is a busy and expansive city, sprawling for miles and miles. Scooters zip pass you, while artfully parking on the sidewalks. Stores and restaurants sit in tiny little spaces at street level (closing from 1-4pm). The buildings are old and tall, with short little bronze terraces and window shutters that block out the hot summer heat and sun. The metro is so easy to learn and can get you from A to B in a snap. Barcelona has a very eager and loud tourist center at La Ramblas and an equally enthusiastic nightlife.

Dali Museum in Figueres, Spain

Figueres was just a short stop for us. This sweet little town houses the Dali Museum, cute little trendy shops and tapas bars. It’s a small, walkable city and easy to get to from the parking garage (many of these small cities require you to park in garages). It’s a lovely place to stop for lunch if you are riding the train to Portbou, Spain.

Cadeques, Spain

Cadeques, is probably my most favorite Spanish town. Sitting right on the coast, this magical oasis is full of white, Stucco buildings, a plethora of swimming beaches, boats, beach restaurants, and friendly locals, as well as visitors.

One of my biggest concerns when I travel gluten free anywhere is how I eat and if I can get access to gluten-free travel foods. Obviously going to Europe is a bit troublesome since much of the cuisine is gluten-based, especially in Spain, France, and Italy. So how did I do in Spain? I’d say very well.

Gluten-free muffins at the Barcelona airport.

The biggest favor you can do yourself is pack trail mix, jerky, or other easy snacks for the airplane and when you first get into town. Air France is very good about serving meals that are not full of gluten, but some items are. You actually don’t need to bring gluten-free bread (you can if it’s easier for you), you can find gluten-free packaged baked goods at the Barcelona airport and grocery stores. The packaging will read ‘Sin Gluten.’

In Spain and France they love to use pasta in salads. In particular, tabouli and sometimes quinoa. Tabouli is gluten, so unfortunately it’s not an option if you are gluten-free. Breakfast is usually served buffet style at the nicer hotels, which includes some Spanish options, cured hams, manchego cheese, eggs, cereal, yogurt, and lots of pastries. My recommendation is to take advantage of your hotel’s 14 Euro breakfast because finding a place other than a panadería (bakery) will prove to be difficult, especially on foot.

When we first got into Barcelona, it was late. Fortunately, late is when EVERYONE eats in this city, so there are plenty of restaurants open. Many restaurants have menus in Catalan and Spanish. Closer towards the Gaudi sites and La Ramblas, restaurants have menus in English, Spanish, German, and French.

My first rule of thumb as a gluten-free travel eater is not to eat at restaurants that say pizzeria or panadería (bakery), I probably don’t need to say that everything they serve is gluten. All restaurants have their menu and/or daily specials written or posted in front. If you have the budget, eat at the nicer restaurants, the more gourmet foods are universal in that they don’t load up their dishes with cheap breads. All restaurants and bakeries will serve you a plate of sliced baguette with tomato/olive oil on top, so don’t be offended, just don’t eat it.

Pan-fried sole, potatoes, and lima beans at a little restaurant in Barcelona.

Many of the menus are listed by Aperitivo, appetizer; ensalada, salad, and entrada, entrée. Then by type of meat in the entrada section, pescado (fish), pollo (chicken), carne (beef). We always ordered agua mineral or agua con gas; mineral water or sparkling water because it was 95 degrees and humid in August!

Tapas bars are a little different. Most places have about a hundred different tapas sitting in a glass case, you can choose which ones you’d like if you can’t read the menu. They have a lot of prawns, some deep-fried, some wrapped in fried potatoes, some not wrapped with anything. There are salads with feta, arugula, and tomatoes, cured ham, sun-dried tomatoes, the list goes on and on. Some tapas bars serve just about everything on a slice of baguette, you can take the toppings off the baguette or request with the server by saying “Soy alérgico al gluten,” (I am allergic to gluten), “sin gluten (without gluten)?” If they don’t know what gluten is (and some don’t), just say “sin pan,” without bread. The waiter will understand.

Filipino chicken and pork dishes at a restaurant near La Ramblas in Barcelona.

The good news about being in a big city like Barcelona is you can find all types of foods, from German sausages to Filipino to Indian. I happen to love Asian food, especially Indian, Thai, Vietnamese, and Filipino because almost all dishes are rice-based. Very good for gluten free travel.

Cadeques, home to the great Salvador Dali and his eccentric house, had the best food we had in Spain. Most of the restaurants on the beach have a ton of gluten-free options, available in English and other languages. They had fish, sausage and beans, salads, omelets, and soups that were gluten-free and absolutely delicious.

For snacking in between meals or during 1-4 pm when many places are closed, it’s good to stock up on yogurt, fruits, veggies, nuts, and water from the local market (there is one on every block almost) and store these items in your hotel refrigerator. Yogurt in particular truly saved my life when I was hungry at an inconvenient hour and had no food options.

Overall, our eating and traveling experience through Spain was excellent. The people were friendly, eager to help us speak the language and recommend their favorite dishes. The art is by far some of the best I’ve seen next to France of course and the way of life is slower, appreciating the simple things.

It wasn’t hard to find gluten-free foods, maybe it took walking an extra block or two and reading a few more menus than most, but we managed just fine.

If you are gluten free and looking to travel internationally, Gluten Free Hotels for Celiacs has a robust list of hotels all around the world who can accommodate you.

If you like this gluten free blog, support and follow us!

Mike and I in Cadeques, Spain

Gazpacho Soup in Cadeques, Spain

Fish and salad in Cadeques, Spain

Sausage and beans in Cadeques, Spain

Omelette and Salad in Cadeques, Spain

My Favorite Health Secrets.

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Happiness is in anything you love.

Secret #1: Food. I love it. I dream about it. I think about it constantly. But I need it 3 times a day to survive. What I don’t need is food in excess. We Americans over eat at every meal and in between meals. My secret #1 is to eat less. I eat three times a day plus snacks, but not until I am full. Until I am ALMOST full. It’s so easy. I also really limit any starchy carbs that are in Seattle gluten-free bread, pasta, and baked goods. I don’t need to say that I am gluten-free do I?

Secret #2: Sugar. Sugar is in everything! Most food manufacturers put WAY too much sugar in their products. There is fruit sugar, brown rice syrup, agave, fruit juice, goodness the list goes on and on. It’s all still just sugar. We consume so much sugar in fruit juices, yogurt, bread, meats, coffee, and even in plain fruit. It is my belief that we are not meant to eat so much sugar, which is why there is a high amount of diabetes in the United States. Cutting out or reducing sugar will help you lose weight, feel less congested, have clearer skin, and basically helps your overall well-being. I will take it as far as saying that not overdoing it with sugar could save you from diseases, chronic health conditions, and even cancer.

Secret #3: Yeast. Sugar feeds on yeast, which is something we all have in our bodies, but gets absolutely out of control when you eat too much sugar. Yeast can cause all sorts of problems. For me, I get skin rashes, a puffy face, acne, yeast infections, itchiness, gas, reproductive issues, and a belly. If I do a 3 to 4 week yeast cleanse with The Herbalist’s Renew-U Tea and Beat The Yeast Tinctures, all of the above goes away. No amount of exercise will change it. Eating a low sugar and carb diet in conjunction with the yeast cleanse is also imperative.

Secret #4: Yoga. Practicing yoga daily actually helps you eat differently. It fulfills your soul in so many ways, that your every day choices start to change. It quiets your mind, opens your heart, stretches and lengthens your body, and builds strength. If you are looking for a long, lean look, yoga will help you get there and take you way beyond that even.

Secret #5: Happiness. If you hate your job, where you live, your relationship, or family… make a change. I cannot stress how important it is to NOT HATE YOUR LIFE. So many people get stuck in this self-fulfilling prophecy that they are stuck in a certain relationship or situation. Actually you are not and changing it will make all the difference. Plus your friends will like you better because you won’t be an asshole anymore.

Secret #6: Pampering. Take time to take care of yourself. I personally get an all-natural facial with Lisa Steele at Cassie’s Skin Care monthly. I also get a massage monthly from Maureen Dusandang in Fremont, although lately it’s been weekly for some hip trouble from years of running. I go to therapy bi-weekly, I also go for walks, listen to relaxing music, or go shopping. If you don’t have the money to do these things, give yourself a facial, do your nails, shop at a thrift store, or make yourself something nice. Feeling good about yourself spreads like the sun touching the earth. Your smile brings a smile to others’ faces and that is the most incredible gift you can give.

Secret #7: Education. I don’t care what you think you know, you can always know more. No doctor has ever helped me get over a chronic condition, you know why? Because they think they know everything there is to know about the human body, when in fact they don’t. I have actually helped myself recover from PCOS (almost) by reading, experimenting, and educating myself. Doctors are great for acute illness and injuries, but mostly you need to be your own doctor when it comes to lifestyle change. I’m not just limiting education to health either – read the news, travel and learn about other cultures, watch documentaries, the list goes on. You will never be done learning, period.

Secret #8: Listen. Take a moment to listen to people, your family, and friends. Really HEAR what they have to say. So many people don’t do this. You will learn more about human psychology, develop your intuition, and learn about yourself by simply listening to others talk about their experiences.

Secret #9: Exercise. Notice how exercise is not the first secret. While I think yes, it’s important to stay active, exercise can actually be counter productive if you do it in excess. Exercise should be fun, so do something active that is enjoyable!