Striving4Zen

• Avocados
• Chard, collard greens, kale, mustard greens, spinach
• Bell peppers
• Brussels sprouts
• Mushrooms (crimini and shiitake)
• Baked potatoes
• Sweet potatoes
• Cantaloupe, papaya, raspberries, strawberries
• Low-fat yogurt
• Eggs
• Seeds (flax, pumpkin, sesame, and sunflower)
• Dried beans (garbanzo, kidney, navy, pinto)
• Lentils, peas
• Almonds, cashews, peanuts
• Barley, oats, quinoa, brown rice
• Salmon, halibut, cod, scallops, shrimp, tuna
• Lean beef, lamb, venison
• Chicken, turkey

*Foods that have a lot of nutrients relative to the number of calories.

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Labels: almonds, avocado, cruciferous vegetables, eating healthy, eggs, fruits and veggies, healthy diet, Kale, lentils, potatoes, quinoa

Although available year round, California’s Hass avocados are at their peak in the summer months! Touted most frequently for their high quantity of good fat (or oleic, mononunsaturated and therefore heart-healthy fat), avocados are also an excellent source of potassium, folate and vitamins C and B6, and are considered a good source of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin and magnesium.

In addition, avocados also contain a compound that helps with the absorption of healthy carotenoids from vegetables, making them a welcome addition to a seasonal chopped salad (or when combined with store-bought salsa for a quickie guacamole). To pick the perfect avocado, look for those that have a uniform and unblemished skin that gives gently when pressed.

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Labels: avocado, eating healthy, healthy food, vegetable

Cleanse
Harsh cleansers can dry out your skin, thus leading to—oh, snap—more wrinkles. That’s why green gurus recommend using creamy plain yogurt as a face wash to soothe the most sensitive complexions.
Skipped the sunscreen?
It’s especially good after a day of indulgent Apollo worship. Add fine-ground oatmeal to gently exfoliate, or, for a fruitier formula, mix in a kiwi for its natural acids and high concentration of vitamin C. A few drops of honey and almond oil can also help lift pollutants, revealing glowing skin beneath that daily build-up.

Tone
It’s widely known that cucumbers reduce puffiness – thus the old cucumbers-on-the-eyes trick. A few tablespoons of blended and strained cucumber can serve as a mild, daily toner to cool skin and prevent irritation. Add a few drops of witch hazel from the first aid aisle in the drugstore, and this toner will act as an herbal astringent for combination-to-oily skin. Apply with a cotton ball and leave on for up to 10 minutes.

Exfoliate
You wouldn’t wake up without your morning cup of coffee, and now you might not wash your face without the grounds. Caffeine is found in various store-bought skin care products used to tighten and reduce puffiness. That’s because it’s a natural diuretic, which means it temporarily combats water retention in the skin. Mixed with a simple base of yogurt or olive oil, coffee grounds can refresh the face while loosening dead cells. They’re a stimulating alternative to rough exfoliants that leave your face feeling like it was rubbed with asphalt.

Moisturize
It’s avocado season, which means awesome guacamole and—eternal youth? Rich in vitamins and natural oils, the pulp of a ripe avocado can be smoothed alone on the face to produce radiant, hydrated skin. Add a teaspoon of lemon juice, and the result isn’t just delicious, it’s useful: Citric acid is a powerful antioxidant that promotes collagen production (a key to firm, youthful skin) and skin cell renewal. If that’s too messy – or you live with a dude who doesn’t heart the green goblin – some DIY divas recommend smoothing the inside of an avocado peel over your skin. Many essential oils are found in the rind, and it’s an undeniably tidier method of moisturizing.

Face Mask
Skin still dry? Reach for the nearest ripe banana, which hydrates for the price of a pack of gum. Mash and use alone, or combine with honey and plain yogurt - the miracle base of many at-home facials. If it’s oily, angry skin you wish to combat, brew a pot of green tea, and then cool it to room temperature. Combine with rice flour until the mixture is paste-like and spreadable, then apply to skin for soothing, anti-inflammatory effects (green tea is also a powerful soldier in the fight against evil, age-inducing free radicals). Leave on either mask for 10 to 15 minutes, then wash.

Condition
The Body Shop used to make a fabulous banana conditioner that they discontinued, much to our dismay. But you don’t have to wait for a banana conditioner revival to repair dry or damaged hair. Puree a banana with a tablespoon of olive oil and about ¼ cup of mayonnaise in a blender and apply the mask to your hair. Wait 15 minutes then rinse for soft, shiny, just-like-new hair.

Lesson learned?
Results need not come with unpronounceable ingredients and a sky-high price tag. With a shopping list and a good blender, every beauty junkie can look and feel like an earth goddess.

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Labels: avocado, beauty, cleanse, DIY, hair-care, moisturizer, skin care

Blend up this simple recipe for a deep hair conditioning treatment that will leave your hair soft and silky. The fats in the avocado and heavy cream are rich in emollients that quickly penetrate the hair, while the honey keeps your scalp’s moisture level at an optimum balance -- not too dry or too oily -- and acts as a natural antibacterial agent.

1 avocado, peeled and cut into chunks

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tablespoon honey

Mix ingredients in a blender. Comb mixture through freshly washed hair. Wrap head in plastic (a grocery bag will do), and cover with a towel. Let sit for 15 minutes, and rinse well.

* Excerpted from Chick Living: Frugal and Fabulous, by Kris Koederitz Melcher.

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Labels: avocado, Chick Living, conditioner, DIY, hair-care, honey

I’ve posted several times on the debate over natural vs synthetic ingredients and I still recommend that you look for safe, efficacious ingredients and not worry so much about where they come from.
But I certainly don’t mean to imply that NO natural ingredients work. In fact, I just read a report in the International Journal of Cosmetic Science (29, 219-238) that says avocado sugars are highly beneficial for skin.
A research team from Laboratoires Expanscience (that’s French, not a typo) have found that certain sugars found in avocados, like D-manno-heptulose, can improve the structure of the epidermis by boosting collagen. They can also provide a protective antimicrobial barrier.
This doesn’t mean you should smear fresh avocado on your skin. The sugars need to be deposited from the right kind of vehicle and they need to be left on the skin to work. While there are plenty of products with avocado oil on the market (Avo-med even has a line of pet care products with avocado,) we’re not aware of any products that use this sugar technology. If any of you Beauty Brainiacs out there find any, let me know and I’ll review them.
So there you have it – a fruit sugar that’s scientifically proven to help your skin. If you’re looking for natural ingredients, it doesn’t get much better than that.

Labels: avocado, Holistic Health, living holistically, skincare