– by Stacey Terry
hehe… I admit. It’s Friday, and I was kinda wondering just what happy green thoughts to send you fine spinach-lovin’ folks into the weekend with. But a little diva birdie suggested that what I should do is let you know what our new short and sweet newsletter, Something to Chew On, is all about!
Once a week we send out a green little love note to keep you both up to date and vibrant. As I learned at a recent conference, when you’re trying to make lifestyle changes, it’s really important to build an environment that will support you. That means finding new people, experiences, and information! It kinda makes obvious sense (at least to me) that if you don’t change what you’ve been doing or who you’re with or what you know, you’re not likely to change. But there’s actually way more to it than I thought.
I can definitely attest from personal experience that the more I immerse myself and connect with new people who want and seek out the best from life, the more I want that too. And while my emotional eating patterns are far from conquered, I’ve made huge strides from the benefit of living in the Green Smoothie Queen’s queendom, which is such a positive, fun, and healthy place to be!
My inbox flowers everyday with questions and testimonials about greens. There’s nooooo doubt in my mind about how beneficial leafy greens and green smoothies are. But I get that reinforcement every day. Obviously, most people have a lot going on in their lives, so unless they’re super charged for a green smoothie challenge, there may not always be time or energy for daily reinforcement. Helloooo “being human!” But getting that little green fix and boost once a week in the old inbox can do wonders.
Maybe you’ve been thinking… “Yeah, it’s been a while since I made a green smoothie. I really should again…” or “I’ve been meaning to try one…” or “I’m bored with what I’m doing… I need more of a challenge!” Something to Chew On is intended to bring you little snippets of inspiration, to let you know when a new challenge is on the horizon, or to share new green smoothie recipes or ideas… just enough information to connect those wires in your brain that remind you to add more greens to your lifestyle. It’s the gentle nudge and sometimes the jumping cheer to move you from “should” to “did”.
And I’m actually pretty serious about the brain rewiring bit. I happen to be reading Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind by Joe Dispenze at the moment. It really hammers over and over and over again the idea that if you want to change, you have to give your brain new stimuli, repeatedly – maybe even ridiculously so, in order to break an old pattern or way of thinking.
I’ll just share one snippet from the chapter I’m on with you:
Why Change is Difficult
Every person, place, thing, time, or event that is consistent in our life will define us more lastingly as a personality by its repetitive exposure. We associate every one of these elements, and the effect is that they become part of our neural processes and reaffirm who we are. For every known element in our life, we have an existing neural representation in the form of people, things, times, places, and events, and each neural representation connects every person, place, thing, time and event to a specific feeling. We can begin to see why change is so difficult. Changing a person, place, thing, time, or event in our life means that we are breaking the neurochemical circuit that we have kept intact by continuous stimulation. (p. 322-323).
I kinda get it now. My struggle to give up dairy (mostly cheese) has been such a mountain because each and every time I consumed it (which was almost daily when I was young!), my brain recorded the pleasure, the people, the surroundings, and the smells, etc. that went with that moment. And I’ve enjoyed cheese at soooo many positive moments in my life with people I love… Why… says my brain… would I want to give up that?
I’m thus very grateful my brain is enchanted with green smoothies… and I intend to keep it that way with daily exposure to more healthy living information, ideas, experiences, and connections to people who will help me create more new wires!
So, I guess what I’m getting at is, yes… we are literally offering to help you rewire your brain by sending you a positive little note each week that will help light up the “add more greens” neurons! And if you read it while you’re sipping a juice or smoothie, you’ll have even more stimuli to make your brain get the message! Woo hoo!
You can sign up to Something to Chew On by adding your name and e-mail address in the box on the top right hand corner here on the blog (there’s also a sign-up spot on the homepage). And since we received such positive responses from the last edition we sent out this week, I thought I’d share it so you can see an example of what you’ll receive.
Looking forward to being your brain’s weekly green hi five!
Greetings! Hello! and Hugs my Leafy Heroes!
When I awoke this morning, I was in a glorious mood. Some dark clouds had threatened my horizon yesterday, but before I allowed some empathetic sheep to whisk me off in the dead of night, I made a point of writing down three things that filled my heart with gratitude.
You gotta admit Sunshine, three is a pretty easy number. You can always find three alternatives, or three solutions, or three positive thoughts to get you unstuck.
And, feeling back to my usual chipper, glorious, and frisky self, the first thing I did this morning was make myself a green smoothie with just three ingredients:
Chard! Chard! Chard!
- 2 ripe bananas
- 4 – 5 strawberries
- 3 big leaves of Swiss chard
And to keep the good things coming in threes, here are two more ways to use Swiss Chard in green smoothies!
Chard in a Glass
by Echo
- 4 – 5 Swiss chard leaves
- 3 celery ribs
- 1 mango
- 1 lime, juice of
- 1 cup water as needed
Blend and enjoy. Yield: about 4 cups
Red Chard Passion Kiss
by Patricia Autry
- 1 cup raw almond milk
- 1-2 cups red chard leaves
- 1 banana
- 5 large strawberries
- 4 dates, pitted
Blend until smooth!
xxx
ooo
The Green Smoothie Queen
p.s. If you’ve been stuck, start small again! Do a free 3-Day Green Smoothie Challenge by signing up for our mini-course!
And then blend, gulp, and grin!!
******
If you’d like to learn more about Dr. Joe, you can visit his website: http://www.drjoedispenza.com/ Definitely check out the micro-photography video that shows what physically/chemically happens when we learn! Soooo fascinating!