The final product is a vegan, gluten free pudding – It has a bit of a chocolate taste with the consistency of pumpkin pie. You’ll get the sweet taste without the high glycemic index. The flax meal will fill you up and the high protein will keep your brain functioning optimally for hours.

You will need an electric blender. I recommend a Vitamix if you have one.
Warning: contains soy – you can substitute anything for the soy if you are avoiding soy.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups of vanilla soy milk
2 very heaping Tbsp of flax seed meal
1 heaping Tbsp of hemp protein powder
1 heaping Tbsp of Greens First Berry (powdered drink mix)
¼ Tsp of pumpkin pie spice
a small dash of cayenne pepper (optional)
2 very heaping Tbsp of Lifetime Life Basics Plant Protein Vanilla Flavor
2 very heaping Tbsp of Genisoy Vanilla Protein Powder

If You Wish to Avoid Soy: You can substitute water, juice or almond milk for the soy milk and double up on the plant protein instead of using soy protein.

Place all ingredients in your blender and blend on high speed for 30 seconds
(time will vary depending on blender)

Check the consistency – - Should be thick like pudding. If it’s too watery,
add more flax meal.

Bon Apetit!

And if  you’re serious about making changes . . . . .
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When I turned 30 in 1983, my digestive system started to go wacko! Not wanting to be graphic, let me just say there was a lot of bloating and constant pressure in my colon and on my bladder. But let me focus on the colon for a moment. In case you are not sure, that’s the large intestine running down the left side of your lower belly.

Anyway there was a near constant sensation of having to have a bowel movement.  After using the toilet, usually within an hour I would have to go again. And I will not go into details but my elimination was very abnormal. It was quite scary.

This situation went on for months. I had no idea what was causing it. My first line of defense was to see an MD. I still remember her name – Dr. Wanger – and this was almost 30 years ago!

You might say the situation was acute. My life felt completely out of control due to these crazy digestive symptoms which were occurring 24/7 with no breaks. I was totally at the mercy of Dr. Wanger. I remember my surprise and a bit of fear when I first saw her in her office. She was significantly overweight which made me uncomfortable. I was mildly overweight at the time and I wondered if there was a  correlation between my over eating and these digestive symptoms.

Anyway she gave me every possible test and finally concluded that I had IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and she prescribed some drugs. I remember being completely shocked that this MD had not asked me what I was eating on a daily basis.

I’ve always been skeptical of drugs. I was into yoga and  holistic health and so her treatment plan seemed somehow wrong to me. But like I said, I felt like I was at her mercy, so I took the drugs for about 2 days and said ” NO! I can’t do this!”  The drug, Belladonna, which I later found out was in the barbiturate family, gave me a severely dry mouth. The dry mouth made me very uncomfortable and I instinctively knew to stop taking this drug.

This was the mid 80′s and there was no Internet. But I just Googled the term “Belladonna” and found out it contains phenobarbital. Apparently they are still prescribing it to patients complaining of digestive symptoms.

Since I had refused to take the drug, I was now on my own to seek a solution to my problem. The symptoms showed no signs of letting up. I did some research and learned about colonic hydrotherapy. I also sought out a holistic physician.

There was a very new holistic medical center that had recently opened in Cambridge, MA (This later became the Marino Center) and I became a patient of Dr. Michael Janson. Unlike Dr. Wanger, Dr. Janson was very personable and caring. He got to know me as a person and asked me many questions about my lifestyle. He eventually put me on a yeast free diet, which turned out not to be the answer either but at least it was a step in the right direction. Trying to follow this very strict diet, I was forced to eat less food and this had a beneficial effect but still did not solve my problem.

I eventually gave up the yeast free diet because it was too limiting and I had a lot of difficulty sticking to it. Next I sought the help of Brenda Albee, colonic therapist. The colonics were the first thing I found that would alleviate my symptoms but the relief was unfortunately only temporary.

Over the years, I began to pay more attention to my diet and gradually transitioned to a healthier vegetarian diet, but I continued to eat cheese and eggs. I also began to deal with the compulsive overeating which was clearly contributing to my IBS. I was an emotional eater and I believe this was the main contributing factor to the IBS.

In 2003 I discovered Laura Douglas an Ayurvedic Counselor and Yoga Teacher who took me on as a client in her Ayurveda practice. It was her counseling that really got me motivated to take the necessary steps to overcome the debilitating symptoms of the IBS.

Ayurveda is the sister science to yoga. It is an ancient Indian naturopathic healing system which shares many of the same philosophical beliefs with yoga. According to Ayurveda, our lifestyle and daily habits are the greatest contributors to our state of health or disease. Therefore by adopting healthy daily habits we can overcome most chronic illnesses.

There is one thing that Laura shared with me, which has become the mainstay of my healing journey. She told me that my agni was weak (agni = digestive fire) and that the time of day and size of meals is a critical component of health.

According to Ayurveda the digestive fire is strongest between the hours of 10 AM and 2 PM and this is when we should eat our largest meal of the day. Dinner should be a very small meal. And for optimal digestion, one should eat nothing after 6 PM.

Obviously, refraining from eating after 6 PM is not practical for most people. I can’t say that I am sticking to this routine to the letter of the law. But I do know that if I eat late at night, I always suffer the consequences. There is much intelligence behind the Ayurvedic system.

And so for the past 9 years, I have attempted to integrate the Ayurvedic teachings into my lifetstyle as much as possible.

I will now outline some of the steps I have taken that have helped to minimize the IBS symptoms.

• Mainly vegan diet – I eat fish usually once per month.
• I do not eat bread and stick to a mainly gluten free diet
• No dairy
• I do not over eat
• I do not eat heavy foods after 8 PM
• I eat my largest meal as early in the day as possible
• I avoid fried foods as much as possible
• I add a lot of flax meal to my diet
• I avoid most raw vegetables and fruits
• I eat a lot of vegan protein smoothies
• Pureed fruit is generally better than whole fruit
• Strawberries are great in smoothies
• Whole apples can be problematic but in smoothies they are OK
• Never mix whole fruit with other foods
• I make gluten free pancakes with buckwheat flour
• I avoid stress as much as possible
• I practice yoga breathing daily
• I practice yoga daily
• I run 3 times per week for 20 minutes
• I watch my weight and stay physically fit
• I eat slowly and practice conscious eating
• No junk food or highly processed foods

And if  you’re serious about making changes . . . . .
Please check out my free gift to you now

Please check out my free gift to you now

So how is it that some people can decide to lose 20 pounds over the course of 4 months and they just go out and do it? And you on the other hand, in spite of  your best intentions, can’t seem to get your act together?

Well, fear not! I have good news for you. You are not alone! As a former yoga studio owner, there was an interesting phenomenon that I just could not help but notice.  Often times I would run a membership special, like maybe a 1/2 price sale and many people would purchase this low priced membership package, and then they would never end up showing up at the studio to utilize the membership. In other words, in a flurry of initial excitement, people are eager to pay with a credit card for something they never end up using!

Similarly, every year at New Years the studio would be flooded with new memberships during the first week of January. By Feb. 15 most of those new members started dropping out in droves. By the end of February, many had quit altogether, simply allowing their memberships to expire.

What this tells me is that many people have trouble staying motivated, with anything that involves maintaining consistent effort over time, to overcome an obstacle. Does this sound like you? If so, read on!

Part of the problem here is that we live in a throwaway society (think about the popularity of disposable cameras) where instant gratification is the norm. People have become accustomed to getting results with little or no effort and perhaps there is a culture of laziness happening right now.

But let’s put that aside for a moment. Blaming the culture or the society is not going to solve our problem.

So what is “motivation”? Where does it come from? How do we get it and how do we keep it?
That last one – how do we get it and how do we keep it is the million dollar question.

Motivation can be defined as a feeling that gives you the impetus or propels you to move forward towards the achievement of a goal. Or that which propels you to take action. Motivation is like a catalyst. Without this feeling of motivation, we often find ourselves in a state of inertia.

We can break motivation down into 2 distinct categories: External and Internal.

External is like money or a reward. It could be less tangible such as notoriety, or gaining the respect of your peers, family or friends.

Internal motivation could be a sense of satisfaction, self acceptance and a marked improvement in self esteem. Many people look to God or religion and spirituality for motivation.

What is the difference between motivation and inspiration? My understanding is that inspiration is the initial spark that gets us motivated to take action.

Here are some ideas that may help you gain and maintain the necessary motivation that you are seeking:

• Let go of black and white thinking. Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a workout, skip yoga or cheat on your diet. Acknowledge the mistake, forgive yourself and then get right back on the horse!
• Find a mentor. Having a mentor or idol (someone you look up to) is probably the single best thing you can do for inspiration. Always keep this person in the forefront of your mind. In those moments when you find your motivation waning and you feel you are about to jump ship – - ask yourself how this person would deal with these same thoughts you are having? What is it that separates the “winners” from the “quitters?”  Often the main difference is mindset.  Embody the same winning mindset that you see modeled by your mentor.
• Dedicate your practice or your discipline to your mentor. If you jump ship, let it feel like you are letting that person down. This mentality of wanting to shine in someone’s eyes will go a long way towards keeping you on track. If this mentor has encouraged you in the past, know that you will be letting them down if you quit.
• Remind yourself why you are practicing your discipline – create a mantra and repeat the mantra silently in your head every chance you get. This will program your mind for success.
• Write the mantra on an index card and hang it on your bathroom mirror, on your refrigerator and on your computer monitor.
• Find inspirational photos of your mentor. You can also use any objects or symbols that will remind you of your mission and keep you inspired. In yoga there are many statues and symbolic artwork that serve this purpose.  Keep such objects close at hand at all times
• Do some creative problem solving and create some personal tools that will keep you inspired and motivated on your path. Spend some time on this. Ask yourself what it is that gets your juices flowing? Only you know the answer to this question!
• If you are trying to create a new habit – cut yourself some slack. Remember the goal is progress not perfection

And if  you’re serious about making changes . . . . .
Please check out my free gift to you now

What they don’t realize is that over eating is a habit like brushing your teeth.  Plain and simple.  The dieting industry will tell you that calorie deprivation is the answer. But that’s like putting a band aid on someone with a broken leg.  The problem with this method is that most people cannot live on a low calorie diet for the long run.  These super low calorie diets appeal to our need for “instant gratification.”  When we see the immediate weight loss, we feel like we are on to something.  But the truth is, this initial surge of excitement is short lived,  since the weight will eventually come creeping back.

When we treat over eating  as a “bad habit” or an addiction, then we can easily turn it around by using common sense, rational methods.  The problem with this strategy is that often times people prefer to behave irrationally.  And the result of irrational behavior is generally a negative consequence.

For more on the behavioral approach to over eating and one very simple action step that you can take right now –  http://www.50plusyoga.com/30-days-to-break-a-habit-sign-up-here/

The yoga practice supports the behavioral approach.  It’s about taking responsibility for your actions and aligning your actions with your core beliefs.  To learn more about the yoga approach to over eating please watch the video.

And if  you’re serious about making changes . . . . .
Please check out my free gift to you now

Includes 30 Affirmations for Daily Living!