All-Natural New Year!

1.  Look under your sink and discard all of your commercial household cleaners, e.g., Windex, AJAX, Mr Clean, Comet, Scrubbing Bubbles, Lysol, etc., and replace them with Thieves Household Cleaner from Young Living, Baking soda and White Distilled Vinegar. Research shows that the synthetic chemicals store themselves in our fat cells, which disrupt our metabolic process, keeping us from losing weight. Watch your overall health and weight improve!

2.  Replace pop, diet soda and coffee with spring or purified water.  Purchase a PUR filter if you don’t already have one.  Clinical Nutritionists recommend drinking ½ your body weight in ounces every day.  So, if you weigh 100 lbs., you would drink 50 ounces of water daily.  Add the juice of ½ organic lemon or lime. Lemon stimulates the liver and helps release digestive enzymes; it’s also alkalinizing.

3.  Switch to natural sweeteners - raw agave (low glycemic), honey or pure maple syrup to sweeten your tea today. Artificial sweeteners like Aspartame, Sweet n Low, Splenda are not natural to the human body and have been shown to cause weight gain and other health issues. Watch your overall health and weight improve!

10 Challenge yourself to no TV today. Paint, read, draw, play cards, do a craft instead.

11 Go dancing tonight! Here are the happenings in Rochester, NY: http://www.rochesterdance.com/

12 Purge your pantry: read the labels and discard any food products that list the words “HYDROGENATED or PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED”, these fats cause plaquing of the arteries.

13 Fill a plastic tub with warm water and 2 cups of Epsom salts, add your feet and soak for 15 minutes.

14 Whenever you get the munchies, snack on organic carrots and celery today.

15 Designate a few hand towels (save a tree) to wipe up messes around the kitchen.

16 Try a yoga class today (many studios offer a free first class). Find a class in your area: http://www.yogafinder.com/

17 Check out your local farmers' market this week. Find one in your area at http://www.localharvest.org/farmers-markets/.

18 Before dinner, take the family out for a quick walk around the block.

19 Pack a picnic and take a hike somewhere you’ve never been. Find a trail near you at http://www.trails.com/

20 Grab the one you love and massage their feet for just 10 or 15 minutes. Add a few drops of Peppermint essential oil for sore feet or Lavender essential oil for the restless sleeper.

21 Eliminate major toxins in your personal care products: ditch anything that contains ALUM/ALUMINUM, FRAGRANCE, DEA, TEA, PHTHALATES, PARABENS, TRICLOSAN and COAL TAR. Watch your overall health and weight improve!

22 Designate your bedroom as a quiet haven for sleeping and love (no tv, laptops, electronics).

23 After dinner, turn up the kid’s favorite music and dance!

24 This morning, make a pot of organic oatmeal and add what you like (chopped walnuts/almonds, dates, ground flax, cinnamon, organic blueberries or apples, sliced banana - and a Teaspoon of agave).

25 Move your lymph nodes: Go Bowling!

26 Clean the air in your home: drop all perfumed candles, artificial sprays and plug ins in the toxic waste bin. I guarantee you will see a change in your overall health and weight when you remove these items!

27 Stock up on quality dark chocolate bars (70% cocoa preferred): store them in your desk drawer or refrigerator.

28 Blend a healthy shake with any organic fruit, yogurt and ground flax seed. This usually holds me over till lunch time.

29 Massage 1 – 3 drops of Tangerine essential oil on the bottom of each foot before going to sleep. Bonne nuit!

30 Incorporate colored (spinach, vegetable) or spelt pasta in your meal tonight.

31 Before showering, slough your body with a natural bristle brush. Sloughing will help circulation, reduce cellulite, remove dead skin cells and support lymph system.

AUGUST

1 Invest in a personal trainer to keep you motivated.

2 Movie night: cook an organic variety of popcorn with coconut oil on the stove and serve with
sea salt, much tastier than microwaving.

3 Replace fatty, processed salad dressings with a combination of any of the following: olive oil, agave/honey/maple syrup, fresh lemon juice, basil, Dijon mustard, Bragg’s apple cider vinegar.

4 Serve local, organic wine or beer at your next party.