Alicia Silverstone's Blog, page 134

success story: kayla gets back on the wagon

Kind Lifer Kayla shares how she restored her health by coming back to a kind diet:

"I read The Kind Diet about two years ago and almost immediately fell in love. It took a couple months of flirting but soon enough I was a full-fledged vegan enjoying all the benefits promised in your book.

"Like many of us do I met a lovely boy and fell in love. My boyfriend is not vegthough he is very supportive of my veg ways so after meeting him I began to 'cheat' more and more with meat and dairy products. Soon 'cheating' became just plain 'eating'."

"This past summer very close to when I stopped eating veg I began to experience panic attacks and anxiety. I do not believe the end of my kind eating habits and beginning of my anxiety are unrelated so I've been working hard to re-establish a vegan diet in my life. It's been a bit tougher than when I first began but I absolutely believe in the positive effects of food on my mood and emotional wellbeing. Along with some therapy yoga and a supportive boyfriend returning to kind eating has been key in my recovery from panic disorder. I can honestly say that I have felt better and better each day in the past few weeks and I look forward to more of the peace of mind I know a kind diet has in store for me. Thank you Alicia and to the kind community!"

Thank you Kayla! I'm so happy to hear that you're back on track and feeling better. The amazing thing about a kind diet is that it's always there to heal you - if you fall off just get back on. It's your healing path.


If any of you kind lifers have a success story to share private message me or upload your story to your profile and "like" it. I may feature you on the homepage of The Kind Life!

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Success Story: Spunky Loses 114 Pounds and Quits Smoking
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Success Story: Erica Loses 110 Pounds

kind movies: get vegucated

Get Vegucated is a new documentary about three New Yorkers who give up their longtime love of meat and cheese to go vegan for six weeks. The film follows them as they reluctantly embark on the challenge learn about factory farming start to question their previous diets and overcome their families' skepticism.
 
If you'd like to see the film you can host a screening or find out where you can get the DVD or attend a screening near you. Please do that – I have done this before and it's so great. Have all the people you love over and people you think would be interested or need to know this stuff. Have a great meal or just some delicious snacks whatever you can do to make it yum. Just share.
 
I want to see this film. What is the best or most effective film you have seen?

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home video: breakfast with baby bear

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I just had a delicious breakfast of miso soup collards and radish steamed and drizzled with flax oil cast iron mochi with nori wrapped outside and some grated daikon. Yum! I fed Bear the mochi and a tiny bit of veggies from the soup…from my mouth to his. It's his favorite...and mine. He literally crawls across the room to attack my mouth if I'm eating. This video was taken about a month or 2 ago when he was a bit wobbly. Now he is grabbing my mouth to get the food!

Here's a little video:

What's your favorite breakfast food?

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mama & baby workouts

Mommy and me workouts are a great way to stay fit and spend time with your baby. There are tons of ideas online for how to workout with your baby…everything from Pilates workouts to hiking while carrying your little one in a sling. Many yoga studios also offer mommy and me classes – check out what's available in your area and take a look at my friend Desi Bartlett's guest blog about mommy and me yoga. It's a great way to get a workout spend time with the little one and meet other new moms going through a lot of the same things you're going through.
 
Here are a few more mama & baby workout ideas from YouTube. This video made me smile all the way through. What a beautiful woman and her baby…so sweet.


 
What are your favorite mama & baby workout ideas? Do you know of any great classes? Share links in the comments below.

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sanctuary spotlight: SASHA farm

If you're in the Detroit area of Michigan check out SASHA Farm a sanctuary for rescued 'food animals' and other critters.
 
SASHA Farm is the Midwest's largest farm animal sanctuary and they don't just provide the animals with basic care medical treatment and housing…they also give the animals lots of love and social interaction with others of their own species as well as a sense of security. The founders Dorothy Davies and Monte Jackson started rescuing animals about 20-years ago with a few dogs…the shelter is currently home to over 200 critters each with its own story to tell.
 
Meet some of the animals of SASHA Farm…
 

 
This video is lovely – it's long and you can jump around a bit but it's really worth enjoying. I love the goats and the cute-looking baby goat the pigs the cows all of them.
 
What's your favorite animal sanctuary?

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party in my pantry

Packaged snacks are often thought of as naughty foods but some are healthier options than the regular stuff out there and super duper tasty. These are some of the goodies I reach for when I'm feeling snacky but not too sinful: I use these as treats not everyday fare cause I'm a superhero most of the time. And when I'm not this is what I enjoy playing with.

The Sconeage Bakery Fresh Roasted Granola and Granola Bars


I love the blueberry and chocolate flavored granola bars. These are the ingredients in the blueberrybars: oats wheat germ blueberries cranberries coconut brown rice syrup canola oil sunflower seeds sesame seeds vanilla salt. For the chocolatebars ingredients are the same except with chocolate instead of the fruit.Amazing! There is a place in Brentwood I go every few months and they havethese…yum city!

Vega Shake & Go Smoothie


These smoothies are 100 calories per serving vegan and they have veggies and probiotics. To make them you just add two heaping tablespoons to a cup of water and shake it up. Easy and healthy! My favorite flavors are choc-a-lot and vanilla almondilla. I use these every once in a while. If I'm working out a  ton and running like a mad woman and not finding time to take care of self and prepare breakfast these are a good standby. You can get them in my Open Sky store!

Food For Life Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin Cereal


If you love raisin bran this is a healthier version served best with your favorite non-dairymilk. Ingredients are organic sprouted whole wheat organic raisins organic malted barley organic sprouted whole barley organic sprouted millet organic sprouted whole lentils organic sprouted whole soybeans organic sprouted whole spelt filtered water sea salt and organic cinnamon. Seriously delicious. I can't keep this in the house cause I will eat the whole box. Yum!

Barbara's Shredded Spoonfuls


A nice cereal for those of you who love Chex – this version is sweetened with molasses and contains wheat corn and oats. Serve with your favorite non-dairy milk or grab a handful to snack on dry.

Savi Seed by Sequel Naturals


These snacks look and taste like nuts but they are actually seeds. Eaten by the ancient Incans they are high in Omega-3 fiber and antioxidants plus they're a complete protein. The natural flavor contains only sacha inchi seeds and organic sea salt. Super healthy!

Eden Dried Montmorency Cherries


These tart treats are free of sugar or sulfites. Ingredients are cherries organic apple juice concentrate and organic safflower oil. They're a great addition to your favorite trail mix or you can just eat them on their own.

Eden Organic Tamari Almonds


My husband loves these dry-roasted organic almonds from Eden. They're flavored with organic tamari wheat-free soy sauce and they come in a resealable package whichmakes them easy to take on the go.

Kettle Brand Sea Salt Chips


Ok so you shouldn't sit around eating chips all day but if you're going to snack on them these are pretty darn healthy. They only have three ingredients: potatoes vegetable oil and sea salt. Not superhero but pretty good! If you are a chip eaterthis is a better choice. But I like to keep myself away from these kinds ofthings. And when I indulge I appreciate the deliciousness. And then I'm happy to go back to my superhero ways.

Gold Mine Brown Rice Chips


These chips are made with organic brown rice organic black sesame seeds organictamari and organic saki. Yum!

Have a Corn Chips


When I was a little girl I loved these salt and vinegar crisps from England – they're only in England and they're probably the greatest chips I've ever had but they're so gross and bad for you when you look at the ingredients. Have a Corn Chips are nothing like those but they're the best corn chips I think I've ever had. They're so good with guac or just by themselves. Not superhero! But really good in moderation. My husband introduced me to them - he loves them too. You can get them at Whole Foods M Café for you Angelenos or online. I ask my husband to hide them when he buys them cause he buys them a lot. And once you start I challenge you tostop. Hands down the best corn chip alive!

Food For Lovers Vegan Queso


Queso is well-known to all you Texans and finally there's a vegan version! Food For Lovers Vegan Queso is a spicy "cheesy" dip that's great with chips or on top of your fave vegan nachos. You can get it at Whole Foods and other specialty stores or you can order online. Really good!

Those are just a few of my current packaged favorites! What snacks do you love?

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roll with alignyo for your free daily dose of yoga recommendations and inspiration

Ahimsa one of the core tenets of yoga is the encouragement of kindness and nonviolence toward yourself others and the planet including animals. It's a powerful concept that's easy to embrace which may partly explain why yoga continues to be the fastest growing "sport" in the United States one in which 14.5 million Americans participated in 2010.
 
People like how yoga makes them feel both mentally and physically. If only we practiced more or at all knew where to take a yoga class and understood what yoga teachers were talking about maybe this now fully mainstream activity would finally start to feel a little less intimidating.
 
Enter alignyo a free daily email and website with one simple goal: make yoga more accessible and fun for everyone.
 
Whether you're a not-so-bendy newbie hoping to make yoga a regular part of your routine or a downward-dogging devotee looking to elevate your practice alignyo offers firsthand reviews on local yoga classes inspirational insights from sought-after teachers yoga-product reviews at home-practice recommendations and occasional yoga-focused vegan nutritional advice. They're all aimed at helping you begin or deepen your yoga practice and hopefully result in some meaningful benefits beyond the mat as well.
 
Celebrate yoga daily with alignyo's trusted in-the-know recommendations insider information and divine inspiration…all rolled out to your inbox.

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success story: spunky loses 114 pounds and quits smoking

Kind Lifer Spunky shares her story of total transformation and a new life for her young family.

"I am a healer. I have studied massage therapy and it would seem that wellness and living healthy just go hand in hand with healing; however I have not always been healthy. I was obese in 2009 I weighed 254 lbs which was the heaviest I have ever been. I was a smoker and I could not even walk up stairs without getting winded! It took me a long time to decide to start living a well and kind-to-the-planet life! My boyfriend and I have taken on a better lifestyle for our daughter Izzy. She is my world and I want to be there for her always. I now weigh 140 and my boyfriend is at 162. I lost 114 pounds and he lost 86 pounds! We feel great and eat less and have more energy! Remember Food is Fuel. Our bodies need nutrients and vitamins to survive. If I am not getting that from my food I will not put it in my body. I am so glad we made all the changes we have. It takes a lot of will power but anyone can do it. I also quit smoking with no help at all! Our daughter is our world and I want her to look at food the same way and she does! She is kind as well to the planet and our furry friends!"

Spunky thank you so much for sharing your story and congrats to you and your boyfriend!

If any of you kind lifers have a success story to share private message me or upload your story to your profile and "like" it. I may feature you on the homepage of  The Kind Life!

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love chatting with you all

I want to thank you all again for being a part of my live chat about pregnancy. I really love doing these live chats and talking with you. I learn so much from you and it's just fun to answer questions and hear what you have to say. Let's do it again soon!
 
What do you want our next live chat to be about?

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kind classics: moroccan couscous with saffron

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I found this recipe in a magazine and changed it up to make a healthier version.  It's SO good. When I make this I have it for breakfast lunch dinner and for leftovers.  Definitely make a big batch of it. It's great for big family meals and stays good in the fridge for a few days. And ladies it's a great dish to have right before your period.

I made it for my dad and he loved it! A while ago I surprised him and my mom by cooking them a huge meal. I made the Couscous Sweet Potato-Lentil Stew Baby Bok Choy Drizzled with Ume Vinaigrette and a Peach Crumble for dessert. It was a massive feast! They were super impressed.

Moroccan Couscous With Saffron

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 cups peeled butternut squash cut into 1/4" to 1/2" cubes
2 cups yellow onion large dice
1 1/2 cups carrots cut into 1/4" to 1/2" cubes
1 1/2 cups zucchini cut into 3/4" cubes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons Earth Balance butter
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
1 1/2 cups whole wheat couscous
2 scallions white and green parts chopped

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place the squash onion carrots and zucchini on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
Roast for 25 to 30 minutes turning once with a spatula about midway through.
While the vegetables roast bring the vegetable broth to a boil in a saucepan.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter remaining 1/2 teaspoon pepper cumin saffron and salt to taste.
Cover the pan and steep for 15 minutes.
Scrape the roasted vegetables and their juices into a large bowl and add the couscous.
Bring the vegetable broth back to a boil and pour over the couscous mixture all at once.
Cover tightly with a plate and allow to stand for 15 minutes.
Add the scallions toss the couscous and vegetables with a fork and serve.

What's your favorite dish to cook for company?

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