The weather is incredibly balmy today here in Toronto, Canada – it feels like spring! And thank goodness because I don’t know about you but I’m starting to feel the winter heaviness set in deeper. The perfect time to replace a few usual recipes with green detox recipes.

This blended green meal is made from powerful pomegranate seeds, walnuts and kale. The pomegranates make the texture of this gazpacho-like meal very chewy; so much so that you’ll find yourself quickly satiated.

The taste is very green and earthy, and while you sit there munching, think of all it’s living, raw energy course through your blood stream! It ain’t pretty but close your eyes, sup up your body machine and savour this natural `human nitro’ mixture.

Walnagranate Kale Detox Meal

Makes: 5.5 cups (1-2 servings)

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 2 Tbsp pomegranate seeds
• 2 stalks celery
• 1 apple, quartered and seeded
• 1 handful fresh parsley
• 2 handfuls fresh kale
• 1 cup filtered water
• 0.5 -1 cup (to texture) pomegranate and lime Ceres juice

Preparation

1. Blend walnuts.
2. Add remaining ingredients.
3. Blend until desired consistency.
4. Enjoy!

Tip for seeding pomegranates:

Roll the pomegranate on a smooth surface, a counter or cutting board will do, putting pressure on the fruit and squeezing it. You should hear or feel the seeds loosen from the rind. Cut the fruit width-wise (avoiding the top & bottom). Squeeze one of the ends over a bowl, collecting the juice and dislodged seeds. Take a spoon and scoop out the remaining seeds. Pick out the pieces of inedible yellow rind.

Have you ever had someone you love let you down or another who failed to fulfill their end of a deal? Maybe you’ve had complete strangers wrong you by letting a door close in your face or by cutting you off on the highway? Would you believe these are gifts?!

Last week I shared with you that I was starting Debbie Ford’s 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse on Opera.com. Yesterday I finished Day 4: The Gift of Forgiveness.

(It’s an incredible program and only takes 10-15 minutes every day!)

I consider myself a very forgiving person; even thinking on occasion that I let people off the hook too easily.

But after yesterday’s cleansing ritual and meditation, I realized that I was harboring some pretty toxic feelings – and towards people that I absolutely love!

Ms. Ford revealed:

Releasing the invisible ties to those who have left you, betrayed you, disappointed you or hurt you, you open up to higher realms of love, peace and joy. Without forgiving them and cutting the cords of resentment, you continue to be imprisoned by the very people you’ve spent years (or a lifetime) trying to get away from and you are bound to the incidents that caused the resentment in the first place. And because the outer world is a steadfast reflection of your inner world, these resentment and grudges ensure that you re-create situations that spark the same bad feelings you want to escape from. Resentments and grudges are two of the main culprits that perpetuate cycles of self-abuse and victimhood.

What I realized from yesterday’s consciousness cleanse was that when people piss us off, they are actually presenting us a gift – if we choose to accept it.

I can hear you now, “Have you lost your freakin’ mind, Steph? These people are disrespecting us, walking all over us and damn it, we deserve better!”

No, I haven’t lost my mind and yes, we deserve to be treated better. However, people don’t intentionally set out to hurt others (maybe some do but it’s a small percentage); they’re just wrapped up in their own world. They’re dealing with their own issues or simply trying to cope with life the only way they know how.

So what’s this gift we’re talking about?

When someone does or says something that disappoints, angers or hurts us, they are triggering a very old, internal wound within us from childhood. These are our personal issues that we haven’t yet bothered to heal.

Now before you balk at this, saying that you had the perfect childhood, please keep in mind that perfect parenting is impossible! Childhood development is so rapid that no parent has the capacity or resources to fulfill every need a child experiences. Plus, we’re extremely sensitive as children. We get hurt very easily.

Time to get REAL personal

Read the rest of this entry

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Although the sun is setting later these days in Canada (yay!), it’s still very chilly. Soups are a great way to warm up, get your recommended vegetable intake and fill your belly with a low-calorie, high-nutrient meal.

Thanks to the rice and variety of veggies, this soup is uber hearty. It’s also simple enough to throw together when you’re short on time; just make sure to cook your brown rice ahead of time.

And since it’s short on spice but just flavourful enough with a few herbs, it’s guaranteed to please those who have sensitive palettes!

Steph’s Tasty Garden Veggie & Rice Soup

Makes: a whole pot-full.

Get ready to freeze!

Ingredients

• 2.5 cups brown rice, cooked
• 6.5 cups broth, veggie or chicken
• 1.5 cups filtered water
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 zucchini, quartered and chopped
• 1/2 small green cabbage, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 cups cauliflower, chopped
• 1 tsp each dried thyme, marjoram, rosemary
• sea salt and pepper, to taste.

Preparation

1. Place broth in pot (with fitted lid) and bring to a boil.
2. Add veggies and herbs.
3. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 to 30 minutes.
4. Add cooked brown rice.
5. Bring soup to a boil again, then reduce heat and let simmer, covered for another 10 minutes.
6. Season soup with freshly ground pepper and sea salt.
7. Enjoy!

We talk a lot about detoxing and cleansing the body here on Live Lighter, and even went so far as to detox TV in January. We’ve also touched on how subconscious beliefs sabotage our efforts to change – that’s why I’m psyched to take Debbie Ford’s 21 day consciousness cleanse!

Ms. Ford talks about waking up one day without our old fears, doubts, unmet needs, limiting beliefs and perceptions that keep us locked in our repetitive, destructive patterns. I don’t know about you, but that sounds great to me!

Debbie has written The 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse: A Breakthrough Program for Connecting with Your Soul’s Deepest Purpose. But what’s it all about?

She says:

“It’s a practical program that promises to alter the quality and direction of your life and support you in not only obtaining your goals for the new year, but, more importantly, creating a new loving and nurturing relationship with yourself and with the power that sources you. This program will enable you to take back your power from the outer world, turn inward and reconnect with your inner guide and your highest self. Instead of being guided this year by your head and what you think you should do, you will be inspired and directed by your heart’s deepest desires.”

But you don’t have to buy the book to participate in what she describes as “a detox diet for the soul”. Check out Oprah.com to access 21 links (1 per day) for excerpts from the book, exercises and even meditations!

Here’s a 1:28 minute video with Debbie sharing some of the testimonials from her program:

Special thanks to Emmanuel Lopez from Motivatorman.com for notifying me of Debbie’s new break-through consciousness cleanse program.

I’m starting the 21-Day Consciousness Cleanse tomorrow! Will you be joining me on this soul journey? In case you missed it, click here when you’re ready.

The 2010 TV Detox officially ended on Sunday and now that we’ve had time to catch up on some of our shows, it’s time to reflect on what we’ve learned from during our 31 days of detoxing.

Anything come up for you? Take some time right now to think of at least one revelation from your TV detox.

If you’d like to hear what I jotted down on my list, I vlogged it on YouTube:

If you’re using Internet Explorer, you may see a white box rather than the video. I’m looking into how to fix this but for now, please access the video directly from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQToWL1TtCk.

Special thanks goes to Emmanuel Lopez – Motivatorman for contributing his video production (lighting was poor – my apologies!) and original music score for this video! Please visit http://motivatorman.com/ to learn more about Emmanuel’s varied talents as an award-winning illustrator, motivational specialist and social media consultant.

For all of you readers out there:

Read the rest of this entry

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Who wants to live longer? This green detox blender meal is souped-up with powerful, age-defying antioxidants and phytochemicals!

The nutrients found in green cabbage and POMx Tea pack a powerful assault to disease and age-causing free radicals. Studies have shown that both these ingredients have cancer-fighting abilities. (Click here to access POMx studies which say it has more antioxidant potency than red wine, green tea, grape and acai extracts.)

The POMx Teas come in 5 flavours, I chose the delicious pomegranate blackberry for this green detox drink and just enough of it to lend the slightest hint of blackberries to this POMWonderful health concoction!

POM-Powerful Cabbage Detox Drink

Makes: 1-2 servings (4 cups)

Ingredients

• 2 cups green cabbage, chopped
• 2 stalks celery
• 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
• 1 apple, quartered and cored
• 3/4 cup POMx Pomegranate Blackberry Tea
• 1 cup filtered water (or to desired consistency)
• 1 tbsp almond butter

Preparation

1. Blend ingredients.
2. Pour and enjoy!

If you’re as much of a fan of POMx Teas as I am, join them on Facebook! And stay tuned for an upcoming review on their Pomegranate Lychee Green POMx Tea.

Still feeling a little sluggish from the holidays? Want to give your immune system a jolt of vitamin C through a low-calorie meal? Then plan to blend this powerful green detox meal sometime soon!

High in vitamins C, E, A and K, as well as potassium and fiber, this blender meal is packed full of detox-enhancing phytonutrients to keep you healthy now and in the future.

The tiny kiwi seeds give it a unique crunchy texture and between the kiwi and honey, it’s more sweet than green tasting. The finisher is the subtle cashew nut flavour, tying it altogether. Yum.

Kiwi, Kale & Kashew Detox Cocktail

Makes: 2.5 cups (1-2 servings)

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup cashews, raw
• 3 med celery stalks
• 2 handfuls of kale
• 1 ripe kiwi, peeled and destemmed
• 1 tbsp raw honey
• 1 cup filtered water, or to desired consistency

Preparation

• Blend the cashews.
• Add rest of the ingredients to blender and blend.
• Enjoy!

Please bookmark this post and let us know what you thought of the magical health concoction!

Have you ever looked at movie stars and said, “Sure I could be thin and beautiful, too, if it was my job!” Well, there’s a new website that actually pays overweight Americans to achieve their weight-loss goals!

Recently covered on Time.com, HealthyWage.com launched in October when founder, David Roddenberry, discovered research in the Journal of American Medicine suggesting that small monetary incentives triple the effectiveness of weight loss and smoking cessation programs.

The lure of cash seems to be working: 5,000 people have signed up on HealthyWage.com so far. Click here to see a 2:30 minute news clip.

The website has 4 incentive programs in effect this year:

1. BMI Challenge provides $100 from corporate sponsors to obese Americans (nearly one third of the nation) who lose weight.
2. SuperSizer allows you to “bet” on your ability to lose weight.
3. Top Motivator pays you when you’re friends lose weight.
4. Weekly Weigh-in celebrates your success and commitment each week with product giveaways from sponsors and motivational support.

To qualify for the reward in the BMI (Body Mass Index) Challenge, members are required to weigh-in on the website once a week and have their starting and ending weight verified by a physician. If you achieve a healthy weight (typically 30-80 pounds) by December 30, 2010, you will be rewarded $100 for your spanking new slim figure!

It’s free to enter the BMI Challenge. The final deadline for this 12 month challenge is January 20.

Or, while you’re on the BMI challenge, you can choose to “super-size” your weight-loss efforts. Up your ante from $0 to $300 and increase the stakes to $1,000!

HealthyWage also pays America’s Top Motivator $1 for every pound lost by his or her top 100 motivatees in the BMI Challenge. Motivatees are HealthyWage members who designate a “Motivator” within the website.  Example: 100 motivatees x 200 pounds each = $20,000 prize.

The Top Motivator incentive celebrates the important role that friends and family play in encouraging and facilitating weight loss. The winner will be announced at the end of the BMI Challenge.

Finally, each week HealthyWage challenges members to continue their weight loss journey by sharing tips and reporting their weight loss progress in its supportive online community.  On Tuesday at 10:00 pm ET, HealthyWage reports who lost the most weight for the week. Sponsors may provide coupons or free products rewards for weight loss winners.

HealthyWage is an incredible opportunity for those looking to lose weight this year. The website is unique in that it was created based on encouraging results from published academic weight-loss and motivation research, as well as previously tested weight-loss programs using incentives.

Special Offer for Live Lighter Readers!

HealthyWage has graciously offered to give away 5 free SuperSizer programs to allow YOU (at no cost today) the opportunity to get paid $1000 for losing weight in 2010! The first 5 American readers to leave a comment below will receive this special offer!

So, Readers, would you be more motivated to achieve your health goals this year if someone paid you?

Editor’s note: Planning to give your health nut a blender this year? Then you’ll love this guest post from Frank at BlenderBenefits.com.

Since all of the detox drink recipes on Live Lighter depend on maximizing the nutrients one can consume from each plant, it is important to use a blender able to retain as much nutrients as possible during the blending process. Better yet, if you use a blender that actually makes it easier for your body to assimilate the nutritious goodness found in fruits and vegetables, then you’re made in the shade.

Luckily, there are a couple of powerful blending options available to properly blend detox drink recipes and maximize their nutritional value.

You may have seen the very viral video series “Will it Blend?” starring the Blendtec blender. If you’ve seen any of them, you’ll know this blender is one of the most powerful kitchen appliances available (it turned an iPhone into iDust.) [Click here to read Frank's Blendtec post on his Blender blog.]

Although intimidating, it does a tremendous job blending anything you want to add to your concoctions. Harder ingredients like flax seed, nuts and kale, are easily handled by a Blendtec blender and unlike cheaper blenders, blending ice is a breeze.  Recipes like the Ginger Root Boost, will come out smooth and consistent even though you are blending tougher/drier items like ginger root.

The Blendtec blender is renowned in raw foodist circles due to the beneficial health benefits it can provide. High powered blenders like this and the Vita-Mix Blender [read Frank's article here] actually rupture plant cell walls, making it easier for to assimilate the plant’s natural nutrients.

The Blendtec blender is definitely more expensive than other blenders, but the added benefits are worth it. It is the best blender to own if you plan on blending regularly, as it has a very customer friendly 3 year warranty.

For these reasons, the Blendtec Blender is the perfect choice to blend Live Lighter’s detox drink recipes.

Until next time – stay healthy and keep blending!

Visit BlenderBenefits.com to learn how blenders can benefit your life through thoughtful blender reviews and scrumptious blender recipes, and join the community by submitting your own reviews and/or recipes!

Are you tired of making (and breaking) New Year’s resolutions? Here’s an alternative that’s fun, totally personalized, has a low commitment level and runs for ONLY for the month of January!

Who loves TV? Raise your hands.

Like many of our favourite past-times, TV can become habit or an addiction. Sometimes we don’t even realize the power an activity has over our minds and behaviour until we stop doing it.

One way to kick a habit is to detox it from our lives and replace it with something more constructive and even more fun!

So, inspired by Darius Bashar’s TV challenge on DailyChallenge.org and for all those who are looking for a New Year’s resolution alternative, check out what Live Lighter is planning for January, 2010:

*If you’re using Internet Explorer, you may see a white box rather than the video. I’m looking into how to fix this but for now, please access the video directly from YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIITnnyL24M.

Special thanks goes to Emmanuel Lopez – Motivatorman for contributing his video production and musical skills for this, Live Lighter’s 2nd video! Emmanuel greatly improved the quality of this video for you in a very short amount of time. (I have much to learn about video production!)

Please visit http://motivatorman.com/ to learn more about Emmanuel’s varied talents as an award-winning illustrator, motivational specialist and social media consultant.

Will you be participating in the 2010 TV Detox, Readers? Or do you need more information before you’re as psyched as I am?