It’s another glorious long weekend here in Canada, the last one of the summer. So why not mark the occasion with celebration!? (Some of us have double reason to party: congratulations to my friends Krista and Brandon who just got engaged last night!)

For those of you who like to party but want to groove to a health-conscious beat, try some of Live Lighter’s healthier-for-you cocktail recipes. Ah, but to properly prepare for a party, you need snacks to satisfy those munchies. So check out the healthier-for-you party mix my good friend, Kathy sent me to share:

Kathy’s Healthy Party Mix

Prep: 10 min.   Cook: 4 hrs
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This post is ahead of schedule to make the deadline for ProBlogger’s Killer Title Contest !

When you’re wavering on the precipice of change , decision is power. But unfortunately, it’s sometimes just not enough. You have to be absolutely convinced that these changes will make your life better, or for some people, that the immediate or future pain is not worth continuing your old ways.

If you prefer to focus on the positive benefits when conquering bad habits and addictions , I believe that the cure to indecision is your vision. Your vision is your life in the future. Whatever you can imagine, whatever you want – don’t let your current reality dictate your future!

But a vision of your future is often too daunting and can lead to procrastination. It’s easy to throw up roadblocks for yourself when you’re confused as to where to start and how to get there. The experts suggest chunking it up into manageable pieces. By setting smaller, more immediately attainable goals, you’ve given yourself a break and some breathing room. And the ability to work towards your vision one step at a time.

The Mother Lode Goal

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If you’ve been keeping up with Live Lighter, you’ll know that I’ve been falling back into my old habits and addictions . I’m curious as to why I fell off the wagon, and explored one possibility in The Cure to Indecision . In that post, I speculated that it was because I lost my vision.

I’ve since reviewed that vision and it’s given me the strength to make a decision. I am convinced that health is the key to happiness , so on September 1^st , I will once again walk my talk. I will reaffirm my decision to lead a healthy lifestyle – starting with a smoke-free existence (my ultimate nemesis)!

But old habits are comforting and change is frightening. I need a solid plan of attack in order to prepare for the lifestyle changes. This plan requires good research to be well-informed so that I can customize my health plan for my individual life. And though this isn’t the first time I’ve created a health plan , my life is different now. I need new and updated information, different tricks and alternative methods to get back on the wagon. By the way, this is the next post topic!

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Most of the Live Lighter smoothie recipes have either soy beverage or rice milk. Since hearing about the potential health risks of soy , I’ve decided to be extra aware of variation in my diet.

Here’s a smoothie recipe sans milk derivatives, making it a fresh, juicy and tart a party for the taste buds. It doesn’t hurt that it’s light on the calories and full of immune-boosting Vitamin C!

A Berry Refreshing Smoothie

Ingredients

Europe’s (Best 4-Feild Berry Mix, 1.5 cup
Yogurt, plain, skim milk, .5 cup (8 fl oz)
Ceres Mango Juice, .5 cup
Flax Seed Meal (ground flax), 2 tbsp
Raw Honey, 1 tbsp, to taste (optional )

Preparation

Blend and enjoy.

Nutritional Info

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Tony Robbins is an inspirational man. He’s achieved greatness despite (or because of?) life’s challenges. He continues to work hard teaching others what he knows so that they may also be the best people they can be… even when he could easily retire to a life of pure leisure.

He says he’s the `why guy’. He has spent his entire life finding out the reasons why humans behave the way we do. Once we dissect behaviour and become aware of the driving forces behind our actions, we have the power to change them.

So as I get ready to cure my indecision and climb back on the wagon (stay tuned for this post!), I thought I’d strengthen my mind a bit. You know, pump up for the upcoming changes. I want to know why we fall into bad habits, tend to indulge too much and rely on our addictions to cope with life.

Get yourself a nice, tall glass of bubbly soda water on ice with some frozen berries (or whatever), and sit back to 20 minutes of Mr. Robbins as he explains what’s happening subconsciously:

There’s only a week left of summer, so while I’m trying to cure my indecision for the Fall… it’s time to party! Here’s the third healthy cocktail recipe for you to try out this weekend:

The Healthier Mojito

Ingredients

1½ oz. dark rum
1 drop stevia or tsp raw honey (adjust to taste)
5 oz club soda
½ fresh lime
3 mint leaves
3 ice cubes

Directions

1. Squeeze lime into the bottom of a high ball glass.
2. Add stevia and mint leaves to juice.
3. Gently mash mint with a pestle or other tool that won’t rip the leaves. You want to simply release the oils.
4. Add rum and stir.
5. Add ice, top cocktail up with the soda water.
6. Garnish with piece of lime.

Feel free to come back and let us know how you enjoyed this healthier cocktail, or if you have any suggestions for improvement!

According to a recent study and article in today’s Metro, “Hefty, but healthy,” you can have a beach bod but be primed for a heart-attack while over half of overweight people are fairly healthy!

These results don’t really come as a surprise, though, do they?

Although extra weight burdens the heart, it is thin people that often have heart problems. Many of these “normal weight range” people have the luxury of being born with metabolisms of race horses. This is part of the problem as their outer appearances allow them to believe that they are safe to lead an unhealthy lifestyle without consequence.

What’s so great about this story is that it challenges both stereotypes and the standard method of calculating a healthy weight range.

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Smoothies are one of the best ways to get a huge amount of nutrients into you in one sitting, especially where it counts the most: at breakfast. Another good reason to love smoothies is the variety you can inject into the recipes. But our bodies are intelligent machines. Although we need routine to maintain a healthy lifestyle, we get bored.

So here’s a healthy breakfast idea that’s very close to the caliber of smoothies in terms of nutrition, yummy factor and ease of preparation. But it is very different in both texture and taste. Let us know what you think!

And if anyone else has a super healthy breakfast recipe to share – the comment section is the place to do it!

Kick-Ass Cottage Cheese Fruit Bowl

Ingredients

Cottage cheese, 2%, 1 cup
Honey, 1 tbsp
Apricot, 1 medium-sized
Cherries, pitted, 1 handful
Mango, sliced, ½ cup
Granola, ¼ cup

Preparation

1. In a blender, blend the cottage cheese and honey.
2. Pour in bowl.
3. Sprinkle granola on cottage cheese mixture.
4. Pit fruit and slice into bite sizes.
5. Use fruit as top layer of fruit bowl.

Nutritional Info

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Do you struggle with indecision? I did for a long time and at one point, indecisiveness nearly ruled my life. It’s an uncomfortable place to be, being unsure of yourself. From little decisions like what to wear and eat, to how you spend your time, even up to the biggies , like ending a bad relationship or quitting a job. But for the most part over the last year and a half, except on low energy days, I’ve been living my life full of confidence.

Why? Well, we’ll get to that in a bit since that’s the focus of this post. But first, I need to confess that doubt has wriggled itself into my mind. The last ten days have been… challenging. I’ve been slipping back into my old habits and addictions : drinking, overeating, using credit, I’ve even smoked several cigarettes! I’m especially upset about this one, considering it would have been a year next month, the longest out of the four times I’ve kicked the cancer sticks…

I’ve justified my behaviour; you know, with `it’s summer and it’s time to relax a bit, loosen up and have some fun’. And I still believe that it’s ok to occasionally indulge in substances that are known to have some health benefits for some people , like coffee, natural sugar, alcohol (especially the anti-oxidant rich dark beers and red wines), and even marijuana.

When past-times start to rule you

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If you’re a vegetarian, chances are you are using soy as a large source of protein in your diet. But is it healthy for you? Apparently, there is a hot soy debate in the health and nutrition industry. Some health professionals, like Dr. Mercola , believe soy is NOT a health food and that soy in any form, even tofu, may actually be harmful!

Here is a 5 minute video of Dr. Mercola making a case against soy as a health food:

Basically, the argument is that soy has chemical compounds that inhibits or impairs human protein digestion, thyroid function and the absorption of important minerals including iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium. Some of the negative side-effects of soy have been linked to breast cancer, abnormal brain functioning in men and developmental abnormalities in infants, to name a few.

Soy critics point out humans cannot safely consume all-natural soy without comprising their system. They contend that most of today’s commercial soy is genetically modified or processed so that we may enjoy its health benefits. But don’t these alterations by man carry their own negative health impacts?

Professionals like Dr. Mercola think the only safe way humans can reap the health benefits of soy is through the natural fermentation process.

So what are your thoughts on soy? Do you think the positives outweigh the negatives?