Schkinny Maninny - feeling, looking and being FAB!

 Guest Post from Naturopath, Karen Meier: I recently watched Joe Cross’ documentary film: Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead and I loved it.  I have always been a huge proponent of juice cleansing/detox programs and have personally tried all of the major players in the juice cleansing business here in Sydney.   Now mind you, until now, I have not been too vocal about my passion for juicing.  Perhaps as a slightly more conservative naturopathic nutritionist I fear the judgment that comes from those who think the concept lacks credibility because no matter which way you look at it 'cleansing' and..

We have had some requests in our newsletters for demonstrations of exercises that I do!  So you might have seen the Shadowboxer post, that is a great new resistance training device to use. Anyways, here is another simple one I did last night: http://youtu.be/8cVoiTkIj-4  

 This morning it was raining in Sydney - well, that was a nice way of saying "it was freakin pouring" when I was out doing deliveries.  So it got me thinking about the other occupational hazards of doing deliveries for all of our Schkinny cleansers! 1. Spiderwebs!  You know when you walk full frontal into a spiderweb, and it is dark and you have NO idea if the web still contained a spider?  Well, imagine that everyday...  It isn't entirely pleasant!  But you do develop a kind of a slow motion, defensive, stagger as if you are facing armegeddon in..

 I am big one for beauty products!  I seem to have an endless supply of creams, oils, hair products....  But I hardly ever use them.  I get caught up in the moment and the magic of the marketing!  Anyways, there are three things that I couldn't do without in the my beauty routine and they seemed worthy of a blog post.  Maybe they aren't, but oh well, you can always click away :) I am a surfer and have been for a while now, growing up in Byron Bay, I was in the water from an early age, and still..

I was recently reading an article online at www.huffingtonpost.com.  It was an article by a freelance writer, and it was about a juice cleanse they attempted.  Now, I know it isn't for everyone, and I understand that some find it more challenging than others (depending on their diet).  But the thing that shocked me the most was the fact that the writer was whinging ferociously about it, and at the same time lusting after their grocery shopping - which inlcuded "Chips Ahoy! Reese's Puffs! Chocolate chips!"  The write lists the secret ingredient in a juice cleanse as being - "nausea". ..

  Damn, did summer really disappear? Eek, daylight saving is gone, the afternoons are getting darker and the ugg boots are out of storage.  Getting out to exercise becomes that little bit harder and comfort foods all of a sudden become a fraction more appealing.  Yep, it is Autumn, and it is very autumnal at the moment.  So I have been spending this week (post easter – and mine wasn’t particularly chocolatey this year, I apparently moved onto more mature “treats” and ended up celebrating the sunshine with way too much alcohol).  But if its chocolate, booze, or even hot..

I got a call the other day from a customer complaining.  I really hate it when our customers are disappointed, but I really love that people take the time to tell us what made them unhappy.  After all, you would tell your husband/wife why they made you mad or upset wouldn’t you?  We can only improve when we know what we are doing wrong.  But anyways, the customer thought all of our soups were “shithouse”, which is constructive feedback.  I am not being scarcastic, I really like to hear exactly what people think. So it got me thinking about what..

 I read alot of different articles, blogs, comments, etc, on juice detoxing, fasting, feating, cleansing and diets every day.  I read them from all over the world - you would be suprised at the amount of times people write something about these things. The thing that suprises me the most is people asking the question, "but is it scientifically proven? and if it isn't then it is just a marketing ploy to dupe unsuspecting consumers" which makes me think, what the.....   Admitedly, there is not a great deal of academic peer reviewed research out there on the use of juice..

Here is a guest post from the folks over at www.myshadowboxer.com  Confused by fats? We find the difference between good fats and bad fats and their effects on your cholesterol and nutrition. Human bodies need fat. It helps keep our skin soft and supple, delivers vitamins to the right parts of the body, provides fatty acids for joints and ligaments, helps build a healthy heart and provides fuel for energy. But not all fats are created equal! Too much fat, or the wrong kind of fat is bad news and can lead to weight gain, heart disease and will promote..

 I only recently learnt about a new piece of exercise equipment that I think is super!  It was developed by a Sydney couple, and apparently is a super seller in Japan, but not terribly well known in Oz.  I know use it twice a week, and it has replaced my weight training. It is called the Shadowboxer.  Now, it sounds all rough and tumble, but I am no boxer (my boyfriend would firmly attest to that!).  It is essentially resistance bands for your hands and feet, attached to a belt around your core.  Super simple, but super effective.  I must..

  ‘Leaky gut’ (also known as increased intestinal permeability) is a term used primarily by alternative medicine practitioners to describe a condition of altered or damaged intestinal lining.  Proponents of the condition argue ‘leaky gut’ arises as a  result of damage to the intestinal lining that is thought to be caused by chronic inflammation, poor diet, damage from taking large amounts of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), cytotoxic drugs and radiation, antibiotics, excessive alcohol consumption, or compromised immunity.  Allow me to illustrate: the lining of the gut is made up of mucous membrane that maintain the barrier between the inside of the..

  It is beginning to feel like we skipped Spring and went straight into Summer….  It is a nice reminder to think about meal ideas for lunch and dinner to keep you feeling energized and “schkinny”. We have come up with a great shopping list of foods that should be on your weekly shopping list that make eating healthy and maintaining that “clean” feeling super easy!  You can add to this list with your own extras - like fresh meats, fish, tofu and other vegies.  But these should be essentials to your list every week. Fresh herbs – we love..

 It seems as though there is a fairly simple little equation when it comes to combining fibre in your diet.... It sounds complicated - but it really isnt at all! We all know there are two types of fibre, soluble and insoluble. And it is the water soluble type of fiber that helps to reduce calories. Soluble fibre is found in foods such as oats, beans, fruits and veggies. It dissolves in water, where it becomes highly absorbant, forms a gel and swells. And here is where the math comes in - some studies have shown that for every gram..

  We often get asked by those wanted to kick start a healthier lifestyle how to maintain the clean feeling from a cleanse.  So we have decided to dedicate a few newsletters to some very basic principles on how WE live our lives that keep us clean, healthy and "schkinny"!! It may sound very challenging to change your lifestyle, but the reality is - it is quite simple.  There are about 12 principles that we try to live by, and they are super easy to keep in mind.  Here are the first three: Number ONE: 1. Get up early!  Listen,..

  My new years resolution was a very simple one – a little bit hippy, but hey, I did grow up in the hills around Byron Bay!  I vowed to myself to be more present in everything I do.  I was a bad one for having my head on the next task I needed to do,  being two places at once (my head in one and my body in another) and dreading that it is “only Tuesday, but it feels like Thursday”.  I did that a lot last year, and surprise, surprise, I found that time rushed by so quickly..

Here is a little quiz to see just how much you think goes into your juices each day??? If I were to juice a whole continental cucumber (the long ones), how much juice do you think it would produce? a) Approximately 500ml b) Approximately 300ml c) Approximately 100ml If I were to juice up 1 whole bunch of celery, how much juice do you think it would produce? a) About 1 litre b) About 1.5 litres c) About 500mls How many apples would I need to juice to make up 250mls (1 cup of apple juice)? a) 1 apple b)..

  There was a fascinating article in the Australian Magazine a few weeks ago that grabbed my attention.  It raised a few interesting points about losing weights, genetics and your bodies equilibrium.   The idea of the article was to explore why obese people that lose large parts of their body weight over a relatively short time (could be 12 months), tend to gain weight back on, even though they may be eating/exercising the equivalent of another person.   Essentially take a lady that is 40 years and 150kg.  She loses 70kg over a year and becomes  80kg.  She changes her lifestyle..

 When I did my first juice detox, back in the day, I ended up getting quite nauseous and vomitting!   At the time, I thought to myself, I am normally very healthy person, I ate mostly gluten free diet, with low dairy, lots of fruits and vegetables, with minimal processed carbs.  I exercised about 4 times/week and quite easily maintained my 50kg frame.  I worked in a corporate environment from 7:30am-5:30pm, Monday to Friday.  I was not on any significant medication, only the pill, and had never had any real serious health complaints! So you can imagine my suprise when I..

 Well, I am officially obsessed with Biggest Loser!!  I don't miss it.  It always make me feel so motivated to just go for a run!  To get all hot sweaty and exhausted.  I figure if these morbidly obese people can exercise every day for 4-5 hours day (I know they don't have jobs to do during the day) but I can surely find 30 mins every day to get my heart rate up and get sweaty.  I especially loved last season when they did the half marathon - AMAZING effort really - especially when there are lots of non-morbidly obese..