I don’t know about you, but I get giddy every time a road trip draws near.  Driving with the windows rolled down, our favorite tunes on the radio, and the feeling of freedom as we explore whatever our hearts desire . . . what isn’t there to love about all that?

This week, I had multiple clients reach out and ask what they should do for their upcoming road trips; they wanted to make sure they avoided dining on gas station hotdogs and soda and keep things healthy along the way.  And, since this is our “road trip” season of the year, I thought y’all might benefit from some healthy ideas too.  The more prepared we are, the better we feel today and always.

Tips to make your next road trip a healthy one:

• Prep ahead:  plan out your meals and snacks for the time you’re on the road.  Grocery shop and prep all food ahead so you can pack the cooler and food tote with nourishing noshes!

• Simple meal ideas to nourish you well:
  • Salad in a jar:  Build a variety of mason jar salads to store in the cooler.  The salads will last a few days and provide a full meal!  The build is quick and easy:  1)  put the dressing in the bottom of the jar  2)  layer multiple vegetables/fruit  3) then add nuts/seeds  4) pack 1.5 – 2 cups of leafy greens tightly into the top of the jar and close with the lid.  Keep jars upright and DO NOT let the dressing touch the greens before you consume the salad, or you’ll be in for one slimy meal.  Pack paper plates/utensils.  When you’re ready to eat, pour the contents of the jar onto your plate and it’ll create a beautiful salad.  Pack meat, egg, beans, or cheese in separate containers and top your salad with them. 
  • Picnic style dinner:  select a variety of organic, nitrite/nitrate-free deli meats, grapes, cherries, a variety of vegetables, organic cheese, crackers and hummus for a picnic-style lunch or dinner.  Enjoy!
  • For breakfast, you can purchase travel-size nut-butter packets to squeeze on a piece of fruit, enjoy a GoMacro, or RX Bar on the road, or bring along oatmeal/grain cereal bowls (prepackaged) and get hot water from the hotel or gas station to mix.  You can bring chopped nuts and fresh fruit to add to your breakfast bowl as well.  

• Snacks:  snacks are great to have on a long road trip; just make sure you are mindful about how much you’re consuming (it’s easy to nibble all day long if you’re not careful).  
  • Homemade trail mix:  my favorite includes a variety of nuts/seeds, raw coconut flakes, dried cherries and dark chocolate baking chips.  
  • Chopped veggies & hummus.
  • Organic tortilla chips and premade guacamole.
  • Fruit.
  • Homemade oat/nut/chocolate/dried fruit cookies.

Consider how you can make some of your favorite meals ahead of time.  If you desire a hot meal while on the road, you can make a pot of soup or chili ahead of time and put it in a large thermos for the road.  

Stay well hydrated!  We carry reusable water bottles and for a treat, we’ll flavor our water with TrueLemon packets or Nuun tablets.  Depending on available space, we’ll bring extra water along, or fill up at every stop.  

Most importantly, a healthy road trip begins with a healthy mindset.  Honor your body whether at home, or on vacation.  There’s no need to go off the rails, or “eat whatever I want to eat” just because I’m on vacation.  Enjoy a treat here and there if you’d like, and stick to what you know serves you best.  Your body will love you for it and you’ll feel amazing all vacation long.  

It’s always an honor and joy to serve and support you in health and happiness.  I’d love to hear from you; feel free to connect with me: connect@angelagaffney.com.

Believe it can be!

xo,

Summer fun sometimes calls for a little nutrition reset.  This light, refreshing salad is one of my favorites and offers the body a fresh start.  It’s full of color and powerful phytonutrients to boost health, increase energy and detoxify.  Enjoy, and feel free to get creative; swap ingredients if you’ve got something else in the fridge, add a filet of wild-caught salmon, or top with grilled organic chicken.

It’s always an honor and joy to serve and support you in health and happiness.  I’d love to hear from you; feel free to connect with me: connect@angelagaffney.com.

Believe it can be!

xo,

Before catching a flight back home the other day, I decided to connect with nature on an hour-long walk.  The air was crisp as ever, and the sunshine lit up the blue sky.  I’m always inspired by nature, but today everything seemed raw, and stripped down.  Pine needles covered the ground and the trees were losing many of their red, orange and yellow leaves.  Little squirrels played chase around the trunks of the Ponderosa pines while others collected acorns from the ground; I thought of all the work they’d need to do to prepare for winter to arrive.

There’s something genuinely beautiful about the trees baring themselves; losing their leaves and needles, they show off their many knots, scars, and weathered beauty.  This comes without reservation; no choice to be had.  It’s a season in their life cycle that allows them to shed what is no longer necessary and as a result, allows new life in.

What if you were to bare all and take this season of fall harvest, family connection and holiday celebration to shed what is no longer necessary?  We function differently than the tree; we have a choice, and we also experience fear and vulnerability.  So the question begs to be asked, how will it serve you to stay in your place of fear and vulnerability versus shedding what is no longer necessary in your life?

It is when we step through our fear and open ourselves to vulnerability that we’re able to be fulfilled.  Just as the tree, it is the time for you to shed what is no longer necessary in order to let new life in.

In the coming week I’d like you to keep a notepad and paper near you throughout the day, (or type notes into your smartphone instead).  Be very aware of your daily routine, your relationships, and habits.  How are these things in your life serving you in a positive way?  What things could you release into the crisp fall air so new life can be welcomed in?

Keep a running list of things as they come to you.  Maybe it’s time to purge the pantry, donate the clothes that no longer serve you, or have a heart to heart conversation with a loved one.  While the need for release is a common thread for all, the list you create will be unique for each of you.   Once you create your list, you’ll need to prioritize your tasks in order to purge, release, and bare it all.

There’s so much we can learn about ourselves when we decide to follow nature’s guidance.  In times of chaos we can tap into the stillness of the tree.  When you feel the need to control everything, you can observe how water flows right over the boulders and rocks that sit in its way.  We all need different things at different times in our lives.  What is it that you need to connect most with right now?

It’s a pleasure to serve you!  Feel free to email me with comments or questions: connect@angelagaffney.com.

Cheers to your health and happiness,

RECIPE:

Cream of Pumpkin Soup

INGREDIENTS:

DIRECTIONS:

Recipe adapted by Angela Gaffney compliments of www.allrecipes.com

Brassicas are one of my favorite groups of vegetables, and they’re perfect for a hearty comfort-food meal this Fall!  These brilliant foods rank as the healthiest vegetables around. Brassicas are also known as cruciferous vegetables and they belong to the Brassicaceae family, more commonly known as the cabbage family.  While they’re chock-full of excellent vitamins and minerals, it’s their sulfur-rich phytonutrients that pack the biggest disease-fighting punch! 

While it may seem like a great idea to get these foods into our everyday diet, many people struggle with what exactly to do with them.  The brassicas are full of robust flavor that can be paired nicely with other foods. Here’s a quick breakdown of the various flavor categories of brassicas:

Mild flavor:  Includes brassicas like Bok Choy, Cauliflower, Napa Cabbage and Rutabaga

Stronger flavor:  Broccoli & Broccolini, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Collard greens and Kale

Peppery flavor:  Arugula, Radishes, Turnips and Watercress

Pungent flavor:  Horseradish, Wasabi and Mustard greens and seeds

BALANCING FLAVOR:

1. To balance and soften the flavor of brassicas you may add beans, potatoes, rice or pasta to the vegetable.
2. To smooth aggressive flavors you can add a form of dairy to your brassicas:  goat cheese, butter, yogurt, sour cream and cheese.
3. To add a hint of sweetness you may add a small amount of honey, caramelized onions, fresh fruit, coconut or balsamic vinegar. 

Basic brassica pairings always include olive oil, garlic and sea salt.  You can use these three ingredients and make nearly any brassica taste delicious!  One of my favorite ways to enjoy kale,broccoli, brussels sprouts and broccolini is to toss the vegetables in these simple ingredients and roast in the oven.  It creates a sweet, caramelized flavor and the hearty plant will keep you satiated for a long while!  

Brassicas are essential to our diet because they provide anticarcinogenic (anticancer) and anti-inflammatory benefits.  They also promote liver detoxification which is necessary for optimal health and well-being. These vegetables care for our body at the cellular level, which is the foundation of health in the body.

Special consideration:  Some brassicas contain a high amount of vitamin K which can be challenging for any person on blood thinning prescription drugs such as Warfarin.  If this applies to you, be sure to speak with your physician about your dosage and how you may incorporate brassicas into your daily diet. The health benefits of the brassicas are amazing and with proper care you should be able to enjoy these foods while maintaining a consistent level of Vitamin K for your body’s needs.  

A lot of excitement had built up to the day I received the lab results from food allergy testing.  I was desperate to heal my sick body and I knew that if I honored my new dietary guidelines, I’d soon find myself feeling better.  The long document arrived via email and as I opened it, my stomach started knotting up. Not one, or two or three allergies, but they found nearly 100 foods that were contributing to my ailing body.  The overwhelm of dealing with sickness for two long years was now compounded by the fact that most of what I was eating on a daily basis was working against my health. How would I eat? What would I eat?  What would others now think of the way I eat??? My mind flooded with a lot of thoughts. I pretty much felt like my days as I knew them were over.  

Many others feel this way too; for the past 9 years we’ve helped clients shift this feeling of overwhelm into feeling capable, strong and ready.  We focus on all the foods they can have and they soon experience weight loss, decreased headaches and joint pain, increased energy and more.  Food is amazing fuel for the body, except when it isn’t. This was definitely the case for me and I had to structure my daily food intake differently.  

Anytime we make a shift, such as this, there will always be people questioning, and providing counsel even when not invited to do so.  After receiving the news of my food allergies, I learned to cook in a whole new way, we overhauled the pantry, fridge and freezer and started on a new path of healthy eating.  The problem was that not everyone understood or agreed with all the shifts we were making. And that was okay, all be it difficult to receive sometimes, it was okay. They needed to process things just as much as we did.  One thing that may be helpful to you if you find yourself in this space of change, is to remember that you are on your journey, and everyone else is on theirs. I still have people push food and drink on me because they feel like it’s a ding against them that I haven’t taken part.  The shifts we make are not about anyone else, but rather about the health and happiness of our own selves. Keep this focus, offer others grace, come up with a funny one-liner to use in the moment, and stick to what serves you well. One of my favorite one-liners when someone wants me to drink wine is “Hey, I love wine, it just doesn’t love me.”  Use this anytime you’d like, and update to suit your own situation.  

Those who know me well would tell you I’m always up for fun and adventure.  But as the sign above says, I might have been born to be wild, but only until 9 p.m.  Healing the body and turning ill symptoms back into strong health all take time and conscious effort.   I will continue to honor my dietary needs, I’ll party until I know my body needs good rest (I’m typically asleep by 10), and I’ll honor the healthy boundaries I’ve set for myself because it means I’ll be able to live well.  I’ll feel good and continue to be active and adventurous until the day I take my last breath.  

Be confident in what serves you well.  Create a welcoming environment for all.  And know that it’s okay if not everyone agrees or understands.  My guess is that over time, they’ll see the fruits of your labor and start to make healthy shifts too.  

Here’s to partying ‘til 9!

xo, 

Clients will often joke that they’d “love to see what’s in my fridge.”  Even friends like to snoop a bit when they’re over.  I get it, and sometimes I have some explaining to do, especially when the friends find my designated chocolate drawer just above the two drawers of tea.  It’s all dark chocolate, and it’s necessary in my world.  A little piece or two per day does the soul and body good!

When it comes to my fridge, you’ll find a lot of staples in there.  It’s a full fridge in this photo, we just made a big trip to the grocery store. I thought I’d give you a few tips and tricks that serve our family well, and outline some of the staples we use every day.  But before doing so, I should probably give you a bit of the bigger picture here.  I have a 12-year old boy who keeps sprouting up like a weed; food goes into his stomach as fast as I bring it in!  My daughter is 16 and while she doesn’t consume as much on her own, we often have a house full of neighborhood kids and friends who are raiding the fridge and cabinets too.  I love this about our home and always want there to be plenty to go around.  So, here’s how we make it all happen.

In this photo, I haven’t yet prepped my vegetables.  Typically, though, I’ll have one or two vegetable crispers in the drawer that house all the chopped veggies.  We rotate the vegetables we eat every week and always have leafy greens on hand. Here are a few things we do on a consistent basis to make sure we eat all the produce before it has a chance to go bad.

• Leafy greens are incorporated into just about every meal: 

• They add great crunch to every sandwich
• They’re a perfect base for a hearty salad
• Every smoothie includes a cup or two
• We sauté them with onions and mushrooms and top chicken breast, burgers and more
• We make kale chips that last only a day or so because they’re just that good!

• Peppers, Cucumbers, Carrots, Celery, Zucchini, Squash, Parsnips, Cauliflower:

• Rotate your veggies every week so you’re getting a variety of flavors and phytonutrients
• Eat them raw with dip
• Add them to salads
• Roast them and scramble with eggs, top a hearty rice bowl dinner, use as a side or snack.
• Grill them: just coat in healthy oil, salt and pepper and place on a heated grill pan.  They turn into yummy caramelized vegetables!  We love this with sausages (organic & nitrite/nitrate free) and kabobs
• Mushrooms and onions: these are two great cancer fighters!  Use them often.

• The Meat Drawer:

•  Yes, we eat meat.  However, this is one area where we never compromise. EVERYTHING is organic and nitrite/nitrate free.  Read labels and advocate for yourself.
• We make hot turkey sandwiches “philly steak” style.  On the griddle we cook onions and peppers in a bit of oil and then add chopped turkey and top with some manchego cheese, so it melts a bit before making the sandwich.
•  Sandwiches are an easy go-to for the kids.  They top them with avocado, lettuce, tomato, and sometimes cucumber.
• While we do eat meat, there are plenty of days when we eat all plant-based foods, vegetarian-style.  You know your body best, be sure to select high-quality protein sources and balance your intake with loads of vegetables, greens and fruit.

• The Shelves:

• Dairy section: While we don’t eat cow dairy (except for my husband, he enjoys his half n half in his coffee) we do have some dairy-alternatives that are mainstays:
• Almond Milk: We use this solely as a carrier for baking, a bowl of cereal here and there, or to add to a smoothie when desired. We’re not getting much nutrition from this option, but it provides a carrier when we need it.
• Yogurt: We enjoy goat milk and sheep’s milk yogurt.  Sometimes I’ll grab an organic Greek yogurt for my husband.  We use yogurt as a breakfast option for parfaits, add it to smoothies, put a spoonful into eggs to make for a fluffy scramble and for baking needs.
• Pancake Mix: This is a quick GF pancake mix the kids can make on their own.  We usually spruce it up with a bit of vanilla, cinnamon and fresh fruit. You’ll see the jar of flax meal in the fridge too.  We use it in baking, smoothies, and as a topper for salads.
• We’re a pickle and olive family (if you couldn’t tell!) Be sure to select options that do not contain high fructose corn syrup. They’re nice as a side, and the olives provide the body healthy fat.
• Nut butter and jam:  They’re a staple.  Sometimes used for a quick pb&j sandwich, or to top toast, or we add the nut butters to smoothies.  Right now, we have sun butter and peanut butter, but I rotate these as well to include almond butter, and blended options too.  I love making my own cashew butter – super yummy!!
• You’ll often find the blue ceramic bowl housing raw meat and fish that will be used for an upcoming dinner.  I just like to do that so there’s never risk of raw juices leaking onto my shelves.
• Salsa and avocados are a mainstay.  The kids eat it with organic blue corn chips for a snack and they both enjoy making fresh guacamole . . . almost daily!  Hence the big bowl of avocados! In our house, they’ll be gone within a few days as we also add them to smoothies, use the avocado to top sandwiches and salads, and eggs, I think you get the drift.  Avocados are a tricky little fruit because they go from being not ripe to ripe! Here’s a little trick: once you have them ripened, just pop them into the veggie drawer and keep them refrigerated until use. That’ll stop the ripening process and keep them perfect for a bit.  You can also store half-used avocados in the fridge.  Just keep the pit in the middle and you’ll be good to go.
• Eggs are something we use often here.  For breakfast scrambles, burritos and sandwiches and of course as a key ingredient in baking.  When we run out and need an egg replacement for baking needs, I’ll mix flax with water and it works great!
• Fruit is always on hand.  It’s an easy go-to snack option and we often add it to breakfast and lunch as a side. That big basket of apples will be wiped out in just 3-4 days, and the berries in the fridge go even quicker. Help your kids learn how to wash and chop fruit so they can enjoy it anytime.

I think I’ve sufficiently overshared on my fridge; and to think that I haven’t even touched on the pantry and freezer!  There’s plenty to write about those as well.  I hope this little peek into my world inspires you and offers some fresh ideas.  Keep advocating for yourself, try something new every week and continue to create a supportive environment that serves you well in this life.

That’s all for now, I think it’s time for a little square of dark chocolate and some green tea.

Whether you find yourself in an airport across the country or up the street for a quick lunch out, don’t be afraid to make the menu work for you and whatever your health needs may be. Ask a restaurant to prepare something fresh or put together something that’s not on the menu with ingredients you that you know they already have. You are your own best advocate, and it is possible to make choices that serve you, wherever you may be. Enjoy the video below for some tips on dining out!

Learn to Manage The Menu in the video below!

There are two words I often hear in my coaching. They are used when a client is describing how well he or she managed to incorporate the food strategies I’ve shared with them. It usually goes something like this: “Angela, I was so good for 5 days straight and then I just completely fell off track; we went to a party and I was so bad all weekend long!” Their expression often looks strained, ashamed, and embarrassed. But why? Why all the fuss about being good or bad? It’s not a healthy way to live and only puts strain on your relationship with your body and food.

It’s time to shift our mindset from guilt, restriction and shame to freedom and power. We each have the power to choose; and we also have the freedom to do so without guilt. Here’s how you can make the shift happen.

Click here to read the complete article on YOGA+life Magazine!

While it may seem like a great idea to get these foods into our everyday diet, many people struggle with what exactly to do with them.  The brassicas are full of robust flavor that can be paired nicely with other foods.  Here’s a quick breakdown of the various flavor categories of brassicas:

Mild flavor:  Includes brassicas like Bok choy, Cauliflower, Napa cabbage and Rutabaga

Pungent flavor:  Horseradish, Wasabi and Mustard greens and seeds

BALANCING FLAVOR:

1. To balance and soften the flavor of brassicas you may add beans, potatoes, rice or pasta to the vegetable.
2. To smooth aggressive flavors you can add a form of dairy to your brassicas:  goat cheese, butter, yogurt, sour cream and cheese.
3. To add a hint of sweetness you may add a small amount of honey, caramelized onions, fresh fruit, coconut or balsamic vinegar.

Basic brassica pairings always include olive oil, garlic and sea salt.  You can use these three ingredients and make nearly any brassica taste delicious!

Brassicas are essential to our diet because they provide anticarcinogenic (anticancer) and anti-inflammatory benefits.  They also promote liver detoxification which is necessary for optimal health and well-being.  These vegetables care for our body at the cellular level, which is the foundation of health in the body.

Special consideration:  Some brassicas contain a high amount of vitamin K which can be challenging for any person on blood thinning prescription drugs such as Warfarin.  If this applies to you, be sure to speak with your physician about your dosage and how you may incorporate brassicas into your daily diet.  The health benefits of the brassicas are amazing and with proper care you should be able to enjoy these foods while maintaining a consistent level of Vitamin K for your body’s needs.