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Paleo Pumpkin Bread

It’s begun.

Fall has officially arrived and is distinctly marked by all of the “PSL” advertising, deliciously fragrant pumpkin candles lining store checkouts, and abundance of Uggs warming cold toesies.

I officially made “the switch” from a standard American diet to a 90% paleo diet in 2014 in an effort to get to the root of my anxiety, IBS and depression (I still eat rice and corn here and there on special occasions, but the bulk of what I eat is veggies and clean animal proteins…and chocolate). Eliminating these foods is one of the main reasons why I feel so much more balanced, all without prescription drugs. Western doctors told me my imbalances were genetic and that my food had no influence, but that medication would help with my chronic symptoms. Well, I proved them wrong, just like so many of you who are taking your health into your own hands. Within weeks of eliminating gluten, dairy, sugar and coffee (in conjunction with hypnotherapy), I felt better than I had in years.

However, I still grieved the foods I had grown accustomed to eating. I remember the first Fall when I realized I couldn’t order a pumpkin scone or pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks. This was a tragic moment in my life – what is Fall without PSL?! I even prepared by wearing my Uggs and Lululemon!

To re-convince myself about why I was eliminating this stuff, I decided to look up what was in the pumpkin syrup used in the infamous PSL. In an effort to make the transition easier, I had started recreating some of my favorite comfort foods (like chocolate chip cookies) and found seeing the ingredients was a helpful place to start. In my blissful ignorance, I was shocked when I read the nutritional labels for the scone and latte. At the time, they were using high fructose corn syrup and caramel coloring in their recipes – both of which are carcinogenic and cause developmental delays. They’ve since omitted caramel color but still use high-fructose corn syrup in most of their popular recipes. You can read more about the dangers of caramel coloring here, because even though Starbucks has taken it out of recipes, it’s still hidden in all kinds of products, from cough drops to condiments, as shown below.

The more you learn about the food industry, the more you realize you have to take your health into your own hands. Companies are getting away with putting toxic chemicals in foods that children eat, all for the sake of aesthetic. So please, read your labels and be a responsible consumer, for the sake of your health and the health of future generations. 

This pumpkin bread recipe is obviously free of anything inflammatory or toxic, and instead is loaded with nutrient-dense ingredients that will not only fuel you, but will also satiate the craving you have for something fall-y! I always double the recipe and freeze some pre-sliced pieces to pop in the toaster at any time. I found an organic maple butter that is to die for and it goes perfectly on a piece of toasted pumpkin bread. And guess what? It has one ingredient: maple syrup. Guess how many ingredients Starbucks pumpkin scones have? 39. Yep. And those ingredients include soybean oil, high fructose corn syrup, wheat, dairy, and a truckload of preservatives, all of which contribute to chronic inflammation and disease. There’s a reason why people feel SO much better when they eliminate these foods. You are what you eat, so choose wisely 🙂 

PALEO PUMPKIN BREAD RECIPE

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Place a rack in the center of your oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat a 8×4-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray, line with parchment paper so that the paper drapes over the sides like handles, then lightly coat with spray again.
  2. In a large bowl, stir together the almond flour, protein powder, arrowroot, collagen, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin spice. In a separate bowl or stand mixer, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin, maple syrup, coconut sugar and vanilla. 
  3. Slowly combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Fold in any desired mix-ins.
  4. Scrape into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake for 42 to 48 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place the pan on a wire rack and let cool 30 minutes. Gently lift out the bread with the parchment overhang and place on the rack to finish cooling completely. Slice and enjoy with ghee, grass-fed butter or my personal favorite, maple butter. 

Notes: double and freeze pre-sliced pieces that you can toast whenever you want. Will keep well in freezer for 3 months. 

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The New Health Revolution

When was the last time you paused to consciously appreciate your body? Think about how much this vessel has done for you. In its infinite wisdom and synchronicity, it has healed your wounds, digested your food, created life, given you the ability to think and move, and does everything in its power to adapt to your environment. 

Our bodies deserve a trophy – or even better, your love and care.

And yet, in our ever-distracting and over-stimulating lives we rarely give our bodies this kind of attention until they start screaming at us. You throw out your back, develop infertility, autoimmunity, cancer, or maybe your digestion starts to struggle. It seems rare that we treat out bodies with care until they beg us for it in the form of ailment, uncomfortable symptom or disease. And then the Western solution is pharmaceuticals, surgery or other invasive treatment. It really requires looking outside of the allopathic model to get to the root of why our bodies are out of balance, and for most of us to do this we usually have to be pretty miserable. 

We used to live off the land. We were in tune with the cycles of nature, and as a result, much more in tune with ourselves.

Today, it’s so easy to ignore and numb discomfort. Take a pill, smoke a joint, have a drink, turn on the TV, eat some sugar – take your pick, we all know the ways in which we ignore the messages our bodies give us. That headache, cold, rash, infection, bloating, gas, constipation, joint pain, puffy eyes, congestion, weight gain, anxiety and depression are all signs of something deeper that needs to be balanced. With the rapid advancement of technology we’ve forgotten how to listen to our bodies and properly nourish them. We eat convenience ‘foods’ lacking entirely of nutrition, overwork ourselves, and coast through life until we get that slap in the face to wake up. 

I am SO grateful for the slaps I got. Yes, slaps- it took me a while to finally wake up. I numbed with Netflix, pot, sugar, social media, and alcohol for years before I fully honored what my body was trying to tell me in the form of chronic anxiety, fatigue and depression, IBS, acne, and insomnia – something was out of alignment. My mind convinced me that the marriage I was in was what I wanted, that the food I ate was okay because everyone else seems to tolerate it! But once I hit the brink of being suicidal, I decided that I would start listening to my heart – the only messenger we should listen to.

Our feelings are our truth. Your mind can tell you something else, but if your body doesn’t agree, it doesn’t matter how many series your binge or how much pot you smoke – your truth will only get louder. 

In an effort to honor my body, I finally took responsibility and changed my diet from junk-filled ‘Franken-foods’ that are void of nutrition, to a 80% plant based, gluten-free and organic one. Within weeks my IBS calmed down, my digestion improved, and I started to feel more energy. What a shocker, right? What you eat DOES affect how you feel! I started detoxing my liver every quarter, using nutraceutical-grade supplements and after each detox felt more and more in tune with myself and my purpose on this planet. I became more self-aware and began paying attention to my emotions, realizing that the marriage I was in was creating anxiety and wasn’t in my highest good, so I left. And it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. 

This shit isn’t easy. It isn’t convenient. It isn’t always fun.

But is living with chronic fatigue, anxiety and depression easy, convenient or fun? Is bloating after every meal and feeling cramping and pain in my gut and joints easy, convenient or fun? Of course not. Giving up crappy food and substances was hard at first, but looking back, I would do it over and over again, because now I feel more alive and energetic than I ever have. I know how to feed my body properly and how to honor the feelings that it gives me to alert me if something I’m thinking or doing isn’t in alignment with my highest good. 

What a gift my imbalances were. I thank them every day for forcing me to wake up. For teaching me how to love and respect my body with healthy food, thoughts and lifestyle. If I hadn’t felt really bad, I wouldn’t have learned the tools that will help me stay balanced and prevent disease for the rest of my life; that will help optimize the health of my future-children and hopefully not add to the ADD, diabetes, seizure and autism statistics that continue to skyrocket every year because of the toxic load parents pass down. Studies have found that over 250 neurotoxins and chemicals that cause cancer and brain-development issues are being passed down to children in utero. Heavy metals are being passed down through breast milk. The research is horrifying and yet we continue to feed our bodies these toxins through our food, household cleaning products, cosmetics and environment- because it’s ‘convenient’. 

The only way to combat the toxic load of the 21stcentury is to detox and be responsible about the food and products you expose to your body. Chronic disease is no longer optional, it’s inevitable unless you make serious changes. This requires hard work and investment. It requires guidance and support to be done properly. There is so much conflicting information out there and unfortunately the medical community who should be guiding us to well-being is owned by the pharmaceutical industry who makes money when you are ill. They have no vested interest in you eating healthy or detoxing because then they lose a reliable customer. Think about it- the US is one of the only countries where it’s even LEGAL for pharmaceuticals to advertise. Why should YOU be the one to ask your doctor about this new drug (that has tons of negative side-effects but will magically make your ulcerative colitis symptoms go away and allow you to continue feeding your body garbage)? If your doctor cared about your health, wouldn’t they be the one to recommend this magical drug that covers up your symptoms? 

It’s come down to a simple but difficult choice: you can either join the revolution of people taking their health and vitality into their own hands, or become a disease statistic because you don’t want to invest in something your insurance doesn’t pay for. This starts with education – start reading free resources online, watch free documentaries, ask more questions of your medical professionals. You don’t have to break the bank to empower and advocate yourself.

I’m 25 and have been eating organic and detoxing quarterly since I was 19, while waiting tables and driving for Uber. So don’t tell me you can’t afford it. It comes down to priorities. I don’t want my future kids and grandkids to struggle with gut and emotional imbalances because I didn’t want to do the work. Because it was “too expensive” and “too inconvenient”. If there’s a will, there’s a way, but first it starts with education. Knowledge is power, so start learnin’!

Netflix docs I highly recommend are Heal, What the Health, The Magic Pill, Forks Over Knives, and Cowspiracy – now you can Netflix and Learn!

In vibrant health,

Kendyl

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Ayurveda: The Science of Life

The 5,000 year old sister-science of yoga, Ayurveda (from Sanskrit words ayur, meaning “life” and veda, meaning “knowledge” or “wisdom”) helps us to harmonize our minds, bodies, and lifestyles with our spiritual purpose. It teaches that we are a microcosm, a universe within ourselves. That we are the children of cosmic forces and the external environment, the macrocosm.

According to the Cancer Research Institute, 38.4% of men and women will be diagnosed with some form of cancer in their lifetimes.

Have you noticed how chronically sick we are today? I don’t know anyone that doesn’t struggle with anxiety, depression, fatigue, ADD, digestive issues, skin imbalances, joint pain, or autoimmunity. I believe this is partly because Western Medicine generalizes and categorizes individuality- looking only at symptoms. Ayurveda holds that normality must be evaluated individually, because every human constitution manifests its own particular spontaneous temperament and functioning.

Shirodara, a deeply healing ayurvedic treatment in Pancha Karma.

In Ayurveda there are 3 main body types, or doshas that determine your individual makeup. Recognizing that human begins are parts of nature, Ayurveda describes three fundamental energies that govern our inner and outer environments: movement, transformation, and structure. Known in Sanskrit as Vata (wind), Pitta (fire), and Kapha (Earth), these primary forces are responsible for the characteristics of our mind and body and are what we use to classify your dosha (body type). Your dosha can be accurately determined by a pulse diagnoses from an Ayurvedic practitioner and is very helpful to know so that you have a roadmap for disease prevention and balancing. Because we all have one dominant dosha, it’s no wonder why different people react to environmental circumstances differently. Some people tolerate high heat very well, others like me with a lot of Pitta (fire) in us become very cranky in high temperatures. Once you know what your dosha is, you can learn how to bring yourself into balance with your diet, lifestyle and mental/spiritual habits, no matter what your environment might be like.

The human body consists of seven basic and vital tissues called dhatus. The Sanskrit word dhatu means “constructing element”. These seven are responsible for the functions of the different organs, systems and vital parts of the body, as well as part of the biological protective mechanism- your immune system. The seven dhatus are the plasma, blood, muscle, fat, bone, marrow/nerves, and reproductive tissues. When one dhatu is defective, it affects the others, as each dhatu receives nourishment from the previous. You can imagine how toxic most of our dhatus are in the 21st century with chemical-filled food and products, medications, electronics, environmental toxins and GMOs.

This is why cleansing is a huge part of Ayurveda. Keep in mind, this modality came about 5,000 years ago, and even then doctors were recommending quarterly detox and reflection.

The most efficient way to detox all of your dhatus, as well as your mind and spirit, is through the healing program called Pancha Karma.

This process involves 5-30 consecutive days of massage treatments, detox herbs, nutrient-dense food, and spiritual/mindfulness practices. There are centers in India dedicated to Pancha Karma where you can go and completely unplug as you detox, as well as some retreat centers in the States.

If the root of all disease lies in one of these dhatus then it is imperative for disease prevention to keep all 7 in balance.

I do a quarterly 21 day cleanse to detox my organs and mind and not only have blood work to show the amazing results from this, but my overall energy and mood are far better than when I was full of inflammation due to poor diet and unhealthy thoughts. This motivates me to be proactive with my health- I do a 5 day Pancha Karma twice a year, along with a quarterly liver detox. Just ask my close friends and family how much more fun I am to be around than a few years ago.

When I coach clients I pull from the wisdom of Ayurveda AND modern medicine (specifically Functional Medicine) to create individualized plans that help you treat the ROOT of your imbalance and not just manage symptoms with medication like Western Medicine does, which only creates more inflammation. Because of this, you will experience long-term healing and vitality.

If you want to bring Ayurveda into your life to prevent disease or balance a current issue, the best place to start is with Pancha Karma. You’ll discover your dosha through pulse diagnoses, receive meal plans, detox supplements and 1:1 guidance for your individual needs, as well as have 5 consecutive days of healing massage to balance each of the 7 dhatus.

Estimated national expenditures for cancer care in the United States in 2017 were $147.3 billion.

You are the microcosm of the macrocosm- what’s the current state of your personal universe? If it isn’t balanced it’s only a matter of time before your symptoms get worse and turn into chronic disease (if they haven’t already). Investing in your health now can save you time, energy and money spent on treating a deeper imbalance in the future.

If you want to save a trip to India and want to experience Pancha Karma here in Washington, I offer in-home 5 day programs, or you can visit my office in Kirkland. I would be honored to support you on your journey to deeper self-awareness and vitality.

Learn more about Pancha Karma