From BIG BLOB to Slim, Trim, Strong, Fit and Maybe Even Downright Skinny!

Recipe - Strawberry Spinach Salad

Here’s another great recipe from the American Heart Association.

strawberries

Strawberry-Spinach Salad with Champagne Dressing

Serve this vibrantly colored dish with dinner on a very special occasion.

3 tablespoons brut champagne, champagne vinegar, or white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon strawberry spreadable fruit or reduced-sugar preserves
1 teaspoon acceptable vegetable oil
5 cups rinsed and trimmed fresh spinach
2 cups halved fresh strawberries, hulled
1/4 cup sliced unsalted, dry-roasted almonds
In a small jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine champagne, strawberry spreadable fruit, and oil.

Cover and shake until ingredients are well combined. Place in the refrigerator until serving time. Tear spinach into bite-size pieces. Place in a large salad bowl and add strawberries. Shake
dressing, pour over spinach mixture, and toss to coat. Sprinkle with almonds.

Cook’s Tip: If you have the time to toast the sliced almonds, place them on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake in a preheated 350°F oven for 5 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned,
stirring once. This will give them an even nuttier taste and more crunch.

Serves 4; 1 1/4 cups per serving
Nutrition Analysis (per serving)
Calories 113
Protein 4 g
Carbohydrates 11 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 58 mg
Total Fat 6.0 g
Saturated 1.0 g
Polyunsaturated 2.0 g
Monounsaturated 3.0 g

This recipe is reprinted with permission from the American Heart Association Quick & Easy Cookbook,
Copyright © 2001 by the American Heart Association. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division
of Random House, Inc. Available from booksellers everywhere.

Good Cook Book Club

I am passionate about cook books! I get them from the book store, from the library and as gifts from friends. I LOVE the cooking network.

So … I decided to try this bargain Cook Book Club. Here’s the deal … you get 4 cookbooks free by agreeing to purchase 2 more books in the next year. IF you order your first cookbook right away (which I did) you only pay $9.95 for it. Then you have a whole year to get your other book.

So … for $10.00 + shipping I got myself FIVE cookbooks. I order a couple of Rachael Ray’s books plus the Food Network Favorites book, Cooking for the Hip and Barefoot contessa at Home.

You have to live in the USA to take advantage of this offer … I live in Vancouver and have mailing address in Blaine … less than an hour away! I wish there were more of these clubs for Canadians! IF you are in the US get your bargains at the Good Cook Book Club.

Melanie

Rachael Ray\’s 30-Minute Get Real Meals: Eat Healthy Without Going to Extremes

Rachael Ray\'s 30-Minute Get Real Meals: Eat Healthy Without Going to Extremes

Barefoot Contessa at Home: Everyday Recipes You\’ll Make Over and Over AgainBarefoot Contessa at Home: Everyday Recipes You\'ll Make Over and Over Again

Smoked Turkey, Ripe Olive and Lentil Salad (Diabetic Version)

I tried this recipe the other day … and had it for both lunch and dinner!!

The surprize ingredient is beets. The beets blend perfectly with oranges and with olives. It is a well balanced meal of protein and carbs. AND it was very good. I LOVE lentils!!

Visit the California Olive Organization and take a look at some of their other great recipes.

The Low-Cholesterol Olive Oil Cookbook: More Than 200 Recipes–The Most Delicious Way to Eat Healthy Food

The Low-Cholesterol Olive Oil Cookbook: More Than 200 Recipes--The Most Delicious Way to Eat Healthy Food

Reassuring Reasons why Hypnosis is your Friend

I got permission from Mark Tyrrell of Hypnosis Downloads to reprint his article exposing some of the myths of Hypnosis. It’s a good read … which you can follow up with some of my “weight loss” specific info on Hypnosis by clicking on the Hypnosis Category.

Reassuring Reasons why Hypnosis is your Friend

Believe the hype or think for yourself

For too long hypnosis has had a bad or ‘difficult’ press. If a person doesn’t understand something they have 3 options open to them.

1) They might be sceptical and therefore save the trouble of looking further and possibly benefiting.
2) They may conclude it is dangerous and to be avoided at all costs.
3) They may spend time discovering the truth behind the hype.

If you don’t know much about a topic it’s easy to be suspicious. Some people assume hypnosis is akin to a carnival side show, others consider it mystic mumbo jumbo or ‘mind control.’ For those who look beyond the hype the truth is far more illuminating.

The most powerful tool you possess

There are potentially huge benefits for those who use hypnosis as part of everyday life. When you understand hypnosis you start to see its potential to improve human performance in the physical, emotional and intellectual realms. For me, rumour, gossip and suspicion weren’t good enough.

I determined to learn all I could about hypnosis - I learned every fact and practised every technique under the sun. I took several training courses - some good, some terrible. I invested thousands of hours of devoted study to hypnosis and discovered just what is possible. I hypnotised friends, neighbours and work colleagues. Hypnosis greatly changed things for me on a personal level

How hypnosis helped me

I used to be shy. Thanks to hypnosis I can now talk to thousands at a time and can approach anybody calmly and confidently.

I used to have poor concentration and procrastinate; thanks to hypnosis I can instantly motivate myself.

I used to find physical work outs and exercise exhausting but because of hypnosis I am now in the best shape of my life.

Incidentally I also stopped myself blushing with hypnosis. Now if ever I have a difficult call or conversation coming up, something I may naturally feel reluctant to do (you know the kind of thing) I spontaneously self hypnotise and rehearse the upcoming situation feeling good, with myself remaining calm. In this way I habitually set my own emotional ‘blue prints’ for up coming situations. Having said that it’s naturally that some people have concerns or half digested ‘hand me down’ ideas regarding hypnosis. A common one is the one about ‘mind control.’ However what does this really mean?

Why you are more in control of yourself in hypnosis

If someone expresses concerns about being ‘controlled’ in hypnosis what they mean is they don’t want to be like a robot, an automaton that is forced to obey the every whim of the hypnotist. We can’t help but influence others but we don’t control them. To understand why you need to understand hypnosis better.

So what is hypnosis like?

Hypnosis isn’t like a coma. It’s not unconsciousness - more a subtle shifting of consciousness. In hypnosis, you can still think logically but you also have access to the ’software’ of your mind so that you can update instinctive emotional and physical responses. In fact the hypnotised subject (not the hypnotist) calls the shots. When I hypnotise someone I need to go at their speed and respond to their needs and expectations. Hypnosis will give you more control in your own life because of what it enables you to do.

How can I be so sure?

Because over the decades I’ve seen all kinds of people, all ages and from all backgrounds turn their lives around thanks to hypnosis. When you use hypnosis for yourself it improves confidence in all kinds of ways. When you use it to change other’s lives it just blows you away. This is what I mean.

When I first hypnotised someone to feel no sensation in a painful arthritic arm it was an incredible feeling. When I first cured life long phobias quickly and comfortably I was astounded. When I stopped hardened alcoholics from drinking and even got a heroin addict off the stuff and back into mainstream life again I started to feel angry that people could just associate hypnosis with entertainment.

With the aid of hypnosis I (and many people I have trained and worked with) have helped severely depressed people feel strong and positive again. The rewards and satisfactions are hard to describe. I’m going to take a stand against ignorance and short sightedness around hypnosis and here’s why.

Why you need to reclaim hypnosis for yourself

Hypnosis is your birthright. It’s nature’s optimum learning tool. In fact to learn and perform anything well you need to experience a natural focussing of attention, a natural kind of hypnosis. To be successful hypnosis needs to be your companion and friend.

Successful people use it naturally all the time because hypnosis is natural. It’s the way we learn new responses. Unlike medications its side effects are purely positive - one expectant mother I worked with to feel relaxed during child birth later reported that she was also more relaxed when flying!

Hypnosis is easy to learn and every body can benefit. Hypnosis is a safe environment to ‘try out’ new behaviours and emotional patterns before you experience them for real. So the young man can ask a woman out for a date many times in calm relaxed hypnosis so that by the time he does it for real it feels real and natural and relaxed. Sports people who use hypnosis learn new quicker and more accurately. So hypnosis gives you more control of yourself and your life, it’s natural and gives you instant benefits and it’s a way of ‘trying on’ and establishing new patterns of emotional response and behaviour, Hypnosis enables you to develop yourself as a human being.

HypnosisDownloads.com offer a free course called ‘Learn Hypnosis in 5 Days‘.

Article by Mark Tyrrell of Hypnosis Downloads.com.