Mindful Eats

Sitting Will Kill You

Lizard sitting so much a pigeon sits on it 

Be not afraid of going slowly; be afraid only of standing still. ~Chinese Proverb

Some recent news on sitting reported in the New York Times will make some of you very happy, and some of you not-so-happy. You know that your body is meant to move and you exercise regularly since it's important for your health. Awesome. Well, it turns out your body is REALLY meant to move. Extended periods of sitting cause muscular change that can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and other bad stuff. Your body shuts down at a metabolic level, and exercise doesn't undo it.

How do we know this? Scientists recently parsed some data from a study on men's exercise habits in 1982 (done by researchers affiliated with the Cooper Institute in Dallas), and they found that men who spent more than 23 hours a week watching TV or sitting in their cars had a 64% greater chance if dying from heart disease than men who sat 11 hours a week or less. Even active exercisers didn't get a pass.

Recent animal studies show that mice or rats who aren't allowed to move around normally quickly develop unhealthy cellular change.

Adults spend 9+ hours per day in sedentary activities: work, commuting, playing video games, reading, Internetting, watching videos.

You've got to move your body or lose it! Fidgeters are delighted by this news. For those that like to couch potato it or sit in front of a computer for hours, you have to strategize a little. The good thing is that you can counteract sitting by adding as much movement into your day as you can.

What to do - Move Your Body

1. Exercise. Even though sitting is bad, it's still important to exercise.
2. Identify the times that you spend time sitting. It might be at work, commuting, or watching TV.
3. Try to get up once or twice an hour when sitting to pace around. Set an alarm. You can also get a desk that allows you to stand instead of sit.
4. Combine TV watching with household chores. "Home activities" like cleaning, straightening, and changing lightbulbs require more energy than sitting.
5. Make your commute active. Walk or bike to work and to do chores. Stand on the train. Park as far away from the entrance as possible.

Want to learn more?

• The Men Who Stare At Screens, NYT 
• Sitting Disease
• Mindul Exercise
• Standing Desk

What I ate: blueberries, cherries, strawberries, tomatos, 24 oz. coconut water, 16 oz. vegetable juice, milk, acai juice, Raw Milk Cheddar NYCheese, mahon cheese, whole wheat fusilli+heirloom tomatoes+garlic scape+basil+parmesan, Mindful Mix (macadamias, almonds, walnuts, goji berries, cranberries), 4 slice dried mangos,  Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip ice cream, 40 oz. water

Exercise: Ran 8 miles

What You Can Do About Antibiotic Use in Animals

Industrial pig farm. Photo via honestmeat.com

There's a better way to do it. Find it! ~Thomas Edison

One of the problems with industrial farming is the use of antibiotics. 70% of antibiotics in the U.S. go to the animals. Unlike human use, industrial farmers feed it to their animals daily to prevent sickness and accelerate growth. That's like feeding your kids antibiotics every day (for the rest of their lives) as soon as they start nursery school so you can 1) fit more kids in a class and 2) prevent them all from catching each others' colds. Yup, that's crazy. BUT, you can do something about it! This overactive drugging impacts you because:

• It creates superbugs that are resistant to antibiotics (like MRSA). Bacteria become exposed to antibiotics, and then the ones that survive are no longer resistant. It's kind of like a vaccine for bugs.
• You end up drinking antibiotics. The drugs end up as runoff in land and water. There are more and more drugs showing up in our water supply. If I want any, I'd rather take it myself, thanks.
• You can end up eating antibiotics. If the meat or milk you ingest was fed antibiotics, it can end up in you. Yuck.
• Farm workers are getting sick from handling animals. They end up with infections that are drug-resistant (like MRSA). That's sad. 

It's taken a while, but the government is beginning to agree it's crazy. The Department of Agriculture, FDA and Center for Disease Control are all urging farmers to stop feeding antibiotics to their animals. There are hearings on Capitol Hill this week, and a draft bill in Congress banning the use of antibiotics in healthy animals. The farm industry is fighting back hard since the drugs allow them to cram more animals in a small area, and the animals also grow faster with the drugs. It will take years before any laws are actually enacted, but you can impact them and you can avoid antibiotics in your food now.

What to do - Avoid Animal Antibiotics

1. Buy responsibly produced meat, dairy and eggs. Look for labels that say grass-fed, pasture-fed, free-range or organic. You can buy directly from growers at farmer's markets, where you can ask if they use antibiotics, or just ask the butcher how the animals are grown.
2. Don't eat industrially-produced meat at restaurants. Ask your waiter what farms the animals are from - are they from responsible farms or raised industrially?
3. Contact your Congressmen and tell them to support the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act (PAMTA). Here's an easy way to act on PAMTA.

Want to learn more?

• What is industrial farming? (Mindful Eats)
• CBS News on guidelines for antibiotic usage in animals
• CBS News on impact of antibiotics in animals
• Pew Campaign on saving antibiotics
• WebMD on MRSA

What I ate: blueberries, cherries, strawberries, tomato, Teas Tea white tea, chocolate milk, 1 latte, Seeds of Change rice pilaf, raw milk cheddar NYCheese, sauteed salmon + rainbow chard, brown rice, seaweed, Mindful Mix (macadamias, almonds, walnuts, goji berries, cranberries), 1 slice dried mangos,  Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Half-Baked ice cream, 40 oz. water

Exercise: ran 4 miles, 60 min vinyassa yoga

Benefits of Massage Therapy

Listen to all, plucking a feather from every passing goose, but follow no one absolutely. ~Chinese Proverb

Have you ever had a really great massage that leaves you feeling fabulous for days? That's because it fixed something that was tweaked - muscles, fascia or energy. My first massage was from Madonna's massage therapist. Susan was a friend of a friend, and though I felt good, I didn't feel amazing. Maybe because I was new to massage and it made me a little nervous. Still, I kept hearing that massage is amazing for your health so I kept trying. Since then, I've gotten massages around the world from Hungary to Cambodia. I've had some great ones (the best ever was by my surf instructor Kim) and lots of mediocre ones. But in the last two years, I've found an amazing massage therapist who is priced right so I try to go every other week.

Massage is an ancient form of therapy that has been around for thousands of years. Today it is recommended by doctors, and can be reimbursed by insurance. It can help relieve pain, increase immunity, reduce stress, improve your energy flow and leave you feeling more energetic and relaxed. The benefits of a few treatments can last up to a year, according to Partap Khalsa, PhD at the National Institutes of Health.

There are many different types of massage, but they spring from two "schools" or modalities - western and eastern. Western massage (e.g. Swedish, deep tissue, sports) is more focused on the body, and Eastern techniques tend to be more physically vigorous and focused on improving energy flow (e.g. shiatsu, acupressure, tui na). I started out getting fancy spa massages in Western modalities. They were very relaxing, and always left me feeling heavy and ready for a big nap. The effects never seemed to last - the next day it was back to usual.

Then a couple years ago, a friend recommended shiatsu at Fishion in NYC Chinatown. It was different in all ways. It was extremely painful - nothing relaxing about it. I could barely take it. But 2/3 of the way through, I realized that my body felt light. When I got up, I felt light and energetic, and this amazing feeling lasted for days. The massage actually felt therapeutic - almost medicinal. The actual facilities were bare bones - the private "rooms" weren't really rooms, rolls of paper towels subbed as cushions, and there was no aromatherapy. You could hear the person next door. It didn't faze me since I was all about the massage, and the lack of decor contributes to the very reasonable price ($40/hour). I tried out different massage therapists and found three that are absolutely amazing that I recommend to everyone: Jessica (my regular therapist), Janet and Fang. If you're in NYC, Fishion is at 107 Mott Street. Make sure to tip your therapist well for the magic she/he provides.

What to do - Get a Massage

1. Find a great massage therapist. Massage is only as good as the person giving it. Ask for recommendations, or go online and read reviews for different places. Try different massage therapists until you find one that works wonders for you.
2. Get a series of massages. To get better value, you can sometimes prepay for a series of sessions. Ask. If you're looking for more affordable massages, you can try a local massage school.
3. Once you find a massage therapist, note how you feel before and after the massage. Be mindful of the effects.
4. First timer? Relax. Let the massage therapist know. You can undress to your undershorts or be fully naked as you will be under a sheet. If you are doing acupressure or shiatsu, you can wear a t-shirt and shorts if you would like.
5. Try self-massage. You can always give yourself spot relief (see the link below).

Want to learn more?

• Massage: It's Real Medicine, CNN 
• Benefits of Massage, Newsweek
• How to do self-massage

What I ate: large vegetable juice, 1 pint blueberries, 1 coffee, hardboiled egg, whole wheat pasta + tomatoes + basic + olive oil + garlic, salmon, Mindful Mix (macadamias, almonds, walnuts, goji berries, cranberries), dried mangos, 6 vegetable dumplings, Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip cookie dough ice cream (bad but it's super hot out!), 40 oz. water

Exercise: jogged 4 miles

How to Grill Grass-Fed Steak

Grass-fed angus at Grazin Angus 

Happy 4th darlings! Summer is about firing up the grill. Especially on Independence Day, one of the biggest BBQs of all. There's a happy food confab these days of more people seeking non-industrialized meat and more available grass-fed beef. If you are one of those lucky people grilling up grass-fed steaks, check out Ulla's awesome tips on how to get the most out of your investment. She grew up on a farm in upstate New York, and is an all-around sustainable food hero.

ULLA'S TIPS ON HOW TO GRILL THE PERFECT GRASS-FED STEAK

From Ulla's blog: Goldilocks finds Manhattan 

• Treat it gently; you will want to cook it at a lower heat, for a shorter time, to a rarer doneness.
• If the steaks are frozen you will need to defrost them. I like to put them in a bowl in the fridge one day before I grill them. You can also defrost them by placing them in a plastic bag in a large bowl of cold water for about an hour. I do not recommend defrosting steaks in the microwave.
• Season with salt and pepper and drizzle some olive oil over the steak.
• You will want to bring the steak up to room temperature. So let them rest for about ½ hour before you put them on the grill.
• Remember, grass-fed steak is best when it is medium-rare to rare. You will have to be more vigilant on the grill for this reason.
• Preheat the grill. Do not use forks to flip your meat. Juices are precious, use tongs instead. Flip the steak at least once.
• The best way to measure doneness is by pressing gently down on the steak to see how firm it feels. This takes some finesse but is easily learned. You want the steak to be beautifully browned, and it will become firmer as it cooks.
• Let the meat rest for 5-10 minutes under foil after you have cooked it. Please note that the meat will continue to cook; do not slice the meat until you have let it rest.
• With these simple rules you will be grilling your local beef to perfection this summer!

What I ate: 1 large latte, quinoa + 1 scrambled egg + tempeh + lettuce + sesame oil + Dr. Bronner's liquid aminos, 1 pint blueberries, 2 handfuls cherries, 1 mango, dried sliced mangos, 1 Amy's Bread cheese biscuit, 1 scoop straciatella gelato, tzatsiki, taramosolata, melitzanosolata, fava dip, pita bread, shrimp + scallop pasta, chocolate mousse

Exercise: ran 5 miles, 1 hour yoga