Month: November 2011

Strawberry Orange Grape Spinach Smoothie

Good day for another raw green smoothie! This one has got to be one of the easiest and most comforting. I believe this is the first time that I’ve mixed oranges and strawberries. What a wonderful combination. The orange is so neutral, I rarely think of it as being a flavor all in its own. But in this case, when you add the strawberries, the orange flavor is really accentuated. Like wow!

Who would have thought that if you mix a few strawberries in with a couple oranges the oranges would taste stronger?

Even though I’m making the smoothie in order to get the greens, you don’t always want to get the flavor of the greens. In this smoothie, you’d think that the grapes and spinach are just along for the ride!

Winter is upon all of us in the northern hemisphere so oranges and frozen strawberries should be plentiful. You might want to give this one a try!

Recipe:

  • 2 oranges (remove the seeds)
  • 10 frozen strawberries
  • 1 to 1 ½ cups seedless grapes
  • 1 cup coconut milk (I like the one with added vanilla)
  • ¼ cup (or so) “Good Belly” probiotic
  • 2 medjool dates (remove the seeds)
  • ½ lb raw baby spinach

Pile everything but the greens into the blender.

I usually place the wettest, easiest to grind stuff at the bottom. Place the lid on tight and liquefy (this should only take a few seconds).

Now stuff in your spinach! You should be able to easily get the half pound in and around that juice. Now place the lid on again and blend until smooth. I usually let it spin for about a minute. The frozen strawberries will keep it from overheating so if you want to spin it longer, that’s probably ok too.

In the end, you get orange flavored green magic!

Each morning I make about 64 ounces. This recipe makes just that. If you want less, cut the fruit in half and don’t use more than 1 cup liquid.

Oranges are a bit cooling so make sure you’re going to stay active during the day. Don’t want to hear about anyone getting cold after drinking an Orange Strawberry Grape Spinach Smoothie!

Enjoy!

Dedicated to the practice

Today, well, it’s all about floating. It’s a non-resistive type day full of sunshine, strength and (can I through in another ‘s’?) sensitivity. If the day works out the way I envision it, these three ‘s’s will carry thought into next week and beyond.

The sunshine is the only item here that I feel might be out of my control. But if I’m going to float, strength and sensitivity will be at the forefront!

Since this is a practice type of day, I’d like to share with you what I’m talking about from a yoga type viewpoint.

This video should really sum it up. It’s not very long two and a half minutes and it’s only one sun salutation B. This isn’t a standard Sun-B, but rather a classic Ashtanga Sun B using strength and sensitivity in order to get the float correct.

You notice that part 55 seconds in where they transition from forward fold to hand stand? Well, I can’t do that. I want to – so I’m working on it.

Now, if you fast forward to the 1.50 point, you’ll see that they close the Sun-B with a jump into a handstand that gracefully transitions into a forward fold. Wouldn’t that be fun? One day I’m hoping that I can post a two and a half minute video of me performing a copy of this video.

Might this be possible? I think so, but I’m not there today. Even though I’ve had the goal to be able to stand on my hands for more than a year, I’ve only really gotten to the point where I can balance for a few seconds. My approach into the posture also requires a backstop (the wall). I’m getting there, but the confidence is still lacking – or maybe I’m short on sensitivity. J

Another part of this floating that I get the feeling is pretty critical is a simple float from sitting to plank pose. One of my current instructors emphasizes this movement in class, but the reaction is always met with a nervous laughter like – “right, you expect me to be able to do that? Ha ha ha ha…”

Well, the movement that I’m talking about is demonstrated very well by this man in a minute and a half video.

I try to over look the fact that he’s got ripples of muscle around his chest and upper arms (hidden under all the artwork) and, more importantly, body piercings in just the wrong place (ouch!). But he does make the move look really easy. It’s encouraging even though he mentions that it takes “lots of practice”…

I’ve got time. I can practice. I also like the way he holds the move at the top (58 seconds in). It’s a lift, rotate, hold and extend. Coming back, it’s a leap, hold curl and sit. Easy?  Ah ha ha ha ha ha…

When that guy mentions ‘lots of practice’, I see the following video as that process. This next guy breaks down the process into three steps where you get to learn the sensitivities of the balance.

The key thing I get from this video comes about 25 seconds in where the narrator mentions the ‘hold, stop, change direction’ in the movement. When I see this movement (and I’ve tried it), it appears to some coordination between the hands and hips through the shoulders. Notice that at 32 seconds in the angle between his hands and arms is just past 90 degrees but his arms and body are not in plane. When I’ve accidentally done this, I’ve noticed that you get control over your forward movement through your shoulders rather than through your wrists. If you depend on your wrist, you won’t get anywhere here (At least that’s my experience).

But I still can’t do this very well. It’s more of a confidence thing – fear that I need to overcome. Maybe I need to practice rolling over so that I gain control of that fear. I’ll look for a video that might instruct me on that. Better yet, maybe I’ll be able to find an instructor that will help me get over this hurtle.

One thing that I heard while viewing a different YogaSlacker’s video was that he does 20 pushups in his regular practice. That’s one thing that NO instructor (that I’ve been too) ever emphasizes. They push for downward facing dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) and upward facing dog (Urdhva Mukha Svanasana) in sequence with Sun Salutations. But there, they only do a few. In a typical class, I might go through 10 or so  up-dogs. For some reason, I don’t think that’s enough.

The Floating transitions are definitely my favorite moments between moves. That almost fits with the philosophy that it’s all about the journey rather than the destination.

On that note, it’s about strength – in order to perform the work and Sensativity – in order to feel the balance. Together, it makes for a graceful float that brings out the joy of the expression of yoga!

Oh, one last thing. Acroyoga sure looks fun. Here’s a 10 minute video that shows what appears to be a practice session. In a way, I feel for her because it doesn’t look like the guy is all that sensitive with this feet placement. He clearly has experience doing this, you’d think he’d get his feet in the correct place. J