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Pre-Holiday Tune-Up Coaching Session

October 15, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

Something about the time between Halloween and New Years – it’s both the most challenging nutritional time of the year, and the time of year when, well, dietitians might just go on vacation. We know you’ll be looking for us come New Year’s!

That’s why I am offering a quick tune-up coaching special for October and November. During these months, you can have a session with me either by phone or zoom. It’s 22% off the usual cost for a 60-minute session with me.

Here’s a step-by-step of your Coaching Tune-up

Before the session, you’ll fill out some quick intake information to help us both think about how the holidays unfold for you and how you’d like them to unfold from a health perspective. You’ll book your appointment and off we go.

During our coaching session, we’ll review your intention, co-create a high-impact doable strategy, brainstorm how to overcome barriers, and talk about how to think about this in a way that will help you build on your practice, strengths and success in the new year.

You can also continue the conversation with follow-up sessions – but the idea is one session, buff you up. Boom.

Sound good? Sign up now.

What is Shamanic Plant Medicine?

October 6, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

It makes my heart sing that shamanic plant medicine, and shamanic plant communication are on the rise.The interest to connect more deeply with nature and the earth, and to look to history to explore what we can learn from our indigenous ancestors is a very good thing. I’ve found these practices fun, interesting and meaningful – they’ve provided me a prism through which I view the events of my life.

This post will do some basic defining of terms and touch into why and how you can benefit from shamanic practice.

What is shamanism, and what is a shaman? Shamanism is a approach to life, a point of view that has to do with healing. Shamanism is a set of healing practices of ancient indigenous people. A shaman, then, is a practitioner of these practices. The shaman of a indigenous community is a medicine man or woman.

There are hallmarks and common beliefs of shamanic practices around the world, and the commonality is due to the universality of the laws of nature. I’ll focus on the laws of nature in other posts, but just know that there are universal principles of energy and nature (google it to get started!). Here are 2 common beliefs of many shamanic practices and systems share:

Everything is sacred. Plants, clothing, you, me, our pets, cars and apartments. They all have the potential to contain sacred content. It is all about the point of view that we have about our own lives. IMHO (in my humble opinion) this principal is an invitation to change our point of view of our lives.
Disease and disfunction have energetic origins and can be addressed through re-alignment with energy and nature. If we can connect with nature, and understand how it operates and how we operate within it, we can begin to heal from disease, disfunction and misalignment. This is not to say you will live forever or that it will be easeful, but you can move toward healing.

A related definition:

What and who are indigenous people? Indigenous people are those whose lives are guided primarily by the laws and rhythms of nature. So, the seasons, sunrise and sunset, astrological calendars and the like that draw from nature and the earth determine how life unfolds.

And the big question:

How can these practices help modern people? I love my modern life and science-centric healthcare – I’d be gonzo without it! I love my home and my car and my blog and my MacBook. Love.

Working with flower essences, taking shamanic journeys and connecting energetically with plants and nature remind me of who I am, where I came from, and inform me of how I can be in better alignment with nature. Nature is an undeniably powerful force.

Shamanic plant medicine, when done without the hierarchy “I am a Shaman” stuff, but is used simply as the collection of practices it is, with the aim of bringing everyday magic into our lives, invites to a live more deeply from our hearts and our energy bodies. We can surf the static and craziness of life a little more easily.

From an evidence-informed perspective, these practices are adjuncts to change – they support us to follow a more healthful life and to live more mindfully and more gently on the earth. They work along with sciences like positive psychology.

We’ll be practicing shamanic journey, and shamanic plant medicine in Costa Rica in February.

Egg ‘Poached’ over Wild Mushrooms & Sweet Potato Recipe

September 25, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

A chef from Kripalu taught me the eggs over veggies trick. It’s quick, easy and satisfying. You can substitute any vegetable for the mushrooms and sweet potatoes in this easy breakfast recipe- try spinach, onions, tomatoes or your favorite blend of vegetables.

Let’s talk about wild mushrooms!

This year, our local farmer’s market has had a bumper crop of really beautiful mushrooms for a really reasonable price. Look at these beauties – oyster mushrooms.

Do you know that mushrooms have characteristics of both plants and animals? They are strange and wonderful little beings, and nutritionally rich in vitamins and minerals (not, however, protein as is often suggested). You can substitute any mushroom for those I use in this recipe.

This dish, while simple, is wonderfully balanced from a protein-carbohydrate-fat perspective, as there are healthful versions of each. Egg protein will keep you satisfied, as will the bit of anti-inflammatory monounsaturated olive oil. Sweet potatoes are a complex fiber-filled carbohydrate and they and the mushrooms are nutrient-dense, filled with vitamins and nutrients.

Here’s a quick weekday breakfast.

Ingredients

1 tsp olive oil

2/3 cup wild mushrooms, chopped

1/3 cup sweet potato, cooked (leftover from the weekend!) and cubed

1 1/2 tsp dried thyme (or the fresh or dried herb of your choice)

Directions

Warm olive oil in a small pan and sauté mushrooms and sweet potatoes for 3 or 4 minutes over medium-high heat.

Crack an egg into the pan, sprinkle with herbs, cover and turn down heat to low-medium. Let the egg “poach” in the steam of the vegetables for 3 or 4 minutes.

Slide onto a plate and enjoy.

Check out my collection of easy healthy tasty recipes.

Women Finding Fulfillment, Passion, and Purpose After 50

August 17, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

Hey friends,

I’m thrilled to be involved in an online summer for women in the wisdom years. For me, moving into the second half of life is a serious blend of satisfaction, and well, a little confusion – what’s next?

Here’s the information on it.

The Shift Network’s Thriving in Your Third Act: Women Finding Fire & Fulfillment After 50

You’ve lived a rich life, filled with knowledge, experiences, and accomplishments… and you may now be asking yourself, “What’s next?”

Maybe you find yourself thinking, “I’ve loved my career, my family, but I want to spend the rest of my life doing _____________ (fill in the blank)…”

If so, don’t miss this opportunity to join bold leaders who are on fire with possibility and purpose — including Jean Shinoda Bolen, Dr. Judith Orloff, Dr. Joan Borysenko, me, Anodea Judith, Yeye Luisah Teish, Grandmother Flordemayo, Cynthia James, Katie Hendricks, Rev. Deborah Johnson, Camille Maurine, Sarah Marshank, and others. Women who will guide you with their hard-earned wisdom and support your personal journey of transformation.

During this unparalleled 5-day gathering, you’ll discover:

How to be a “juicy crone” & discover the Goddesses and Archetypes that are active in the postmenopausal phase of your live
Practices for worry-proofing yourself & avoiding the midlife “happiness dip” by retraining your brain
The role of stress as the most critical (yet unrecognized) nutrition issue of our time
Explore how to harvest the charge in your energy body and bring more life force into your tissues
Exciting possibilities for reinventing your life, your focus, & your passions
Key practices to help you renew your life and reinvent yourself — free of cultural myths — and bask in the great joy of presence, connection, & new forms of play
How to create a supportive, thriving community of your choice
How to maintain optimal health during your wisdom years
How to express yourself spiritually as you become an Elder
Practices for igniting the power of your empathy and intuition to revitalize every area of your life
Step into the fullest expression of yourself as you journey to a new adventure in your 50s and beyond
Embody your inner boldness, expand your capacities in standing for Love

Join us for Thriving in Your Third Act, August 20-24.

RSVP at no charge here.

If you download the summit to listen to later, I will receive a modest referral fee. Last year I listened to it for months! So much wisdom!

Yours truly,
Annie

How to Receive the Gifts of Plants (and Life)

June 24, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

Receive.

Receive what comes to you.

My plant spirit teacher taught me that plants that will heal me will come to me. All I need to do is receive. Receiving – coming into relationship and taking that in, however – takes a little preparation.

Those of you who read my newsletter know that my family had quite a struggle through the winter with a life-threatening illness – happily we’re on the mend and the dark rider passed us by (sheesh!). Through that time I cut way back on work – we lived on air and the love of family and friends. We are resting and integrating that experience. This morning it dawned on me that my garden this year has serious messages for me and mine.

Is this obvious enough?

This mullein plant (the tall fellow in the back) sprung up smack dab where my usual sunflowers gather. Hi mullein. Guess what mullein does, on the energetic level? It is protector of home and supporter of abundance, among other things.

Other plants that have nearly overwhelmed us with no input from me are calendula – a beautiful healing fire plant (it’s the yellow-orange flower up front), borage (that blue fellow) a 5th chakra healer of communication for me, and dill. So much dill (again a protector of home an supporter of abundance). Oh, and a bumper crop of wild strawberries are right outside my office – food for my indigenous genetics. I could go on and on, but will stop there.

Get the message, Annie?

These plants are three feet from my front door. All I have to do is receive their support.

How to Receive the Support of Plants

So, how do you receive the support of the plants that make their way to you?

In order to participate in any ecological system (and plants belong to an ecological system along with you) meaning that there are complex dynamic inter-relationships, you first need to get out of a consumer mindset. We humans and certainly Americans get into consuming – eating as fuel or in a mechanistic way, for example. Instead, think of a plant as another being. A person, if that’s helpful. Or think of them as akin to a power-animal or guide. You might thing of eating as receiving – rather than consuming.

Then, get quiet and open your heart. One easy way to do this is to sit quietly, and lengthen and deepen you breath (without forcing it – let your breath deepen as in response to an invitation). You might imagine yourself seated in the velvety dark cave of your own heart. take a few moments to quiet and center yourself in this way.

Next, make contact with the plants. Be among them, breathe them in. Admire them. If they are edible, slowly and mindfully, as a meditation, taste them. Breath and relax, and notice how it feels to commune with the plants in this way.

The practice of receiving is simply the practice of being open and feeling how it feels to be in relationship. The practice of receiving is a practice of appreciation – of acknowledging, as my teacher would say, your place in the magnificent web of life and nature. All is well.

As you receive the gifts these friends, these guides have for you, expressing gratitude is an excellent next step if it feels right for you. Take a moment to appreciate what’s happened, a few notes in a journal may be helpful, and off you go on a blessed day.

You can receive the gifts of any part of your life – be it your yoga or meditation practice, the love of a friend, the good work you do, anything you enjoy or find interesting or challenging in your life – can you receive it? Can you slow down enough to take it in?

Benefits of the Practice

Learning to have a bit more of this in your life can help you to understand your place in the ecology – in the interactive web of life – in which you live, and that you have created. It may help you see aspects of life, or things in your life that no longer serve you or that actually injure or inhibit you. You can let go of those things. Learning to be a little more receptive can inform your next step.

Be well, and here are a couple other posts that may interest you:

How Mindful Presence Transforms

Mindful Eating: The Art & Science of Eating Better

Subtle Body Nourishment: Benefits of Learning the Art & Science of Energy

June 4, 2018 by Annie Kay Leave a Comment

Getting the balance of eating and yoga practice down is a challenge for anyone. We overdo it, we under-do it, we practice when we’re full. We under-eat and don’t have the energy to perform. Sigh. Our energy, as well as our hunger peaks and valleys – getting it right is a dynamic dance.

Understanding and experiencing your own subtle body (in yoga, that includes your thoughts, intuition and energy bodies) takes practice. When you practice skillful navigation of your subtle body, particularly balanced with the knowledge of your nutritional needs, it can help prevent you from falling off a nutritional cliff of over- or under- doing it. This is especially handy once you begin the esoteric energy practices and learn that you have greater control over hunger and satiety that you’d realized. Then, having the wisdom of science to anchor you in adequacy is even more important to maintaining physical health.

That’s subtle body nourishment.

Why Bother? Benefits of Energy Practice

When you learn eating meditation techniques you are learning how to turn inward and participate in your body’s guidance systems – you have the option of taking more control – be it breath or eating or even thinking. That’s what all the hoopla is about. If we don’t understand that we are taking the steering wheel of hunger and satiety, it’s easy to under-eat once prana (life force, or energy as in your breath) starts expanding and getting excited. Then, it’s easy to overeat through your inevitable energy contraction.

Many a yogini seems to get into eating trouble when learning these more esoteric practices. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Life is an energy experience. Meditative practices are energy practices, and require that you spend time within your inner landscape – the more time you spend there exploring and curious, the better you will know and be able to navigate that landscape.

By learning how to operate your own subtle body, you can ultimately better navigate the chaos without getting overwhelmed by static. You can operate in a more intentional way.

This sort of practice brings consciousness to your personal energy ecology; the conditions under which you shine, for example.

Energy practice, meditation, mindfulness can help you learn how to improve your digestion – how to basically give your bodies what it needs (time and calm, primarily) to digest properly.

What is the Subtle Body?

In yoga philosophy, the subtle body is the aspect of you that is unseen by the human eye. It includes your thoughts and emotions, the wisdom aspect of you – your intuition, and your energy body.

The subtle body profoundly determines how you feel, react and respond to the world around us. When you learn how to guide your own thoughts, for example, you can literally change your perception of your own life. When you learn to ground your energy body, you can handle the spiral of chaos that the world at times seems to be, rooting in the real rather than swirling away in yet another frenzied tweet.

Food & Yoga Practice

The truth of the matter is that everyone is different – physically but also nutritionally. How well you can perform right after you eat, and the ideal makeup of a meal to fuel your practice is individual. There are, however, guidelines – rules of the road. Ayurveda practitioners say that certain foods create certain energies. Western science has their own version of the same idea – in a very different language. The language of macro and micro nutrition, and meal timing.

Ultimately, the way to figure out what works for you is to do the experiment. Notice how it works for you.

I’ve been thinking about subtle body nourishment and how food and practice interact in preparation for a gathering of souls at Kripalu July 8-11, Sunday through Wednesday morning. If these topics get interest you, consider joining me to practice, explore and learn about what the yogis and Western nutrition has to say about it.

Be well, practice on.