A spontaneous lifestyle change (preach?)

As most of you know, I'm no nutritionist -- I have no degree in anything nutritious, or even scientific, for that matter. All I have is a brain, a heart, and the ability of understanding what my body wants and needs. At age twelve, I cut out meat from my life -- best decision ever. In the past few years, I have gradually had a few bites here and there -- genuinely a few -- and after each time I've felt terrible. It tastes bad, it feels bad, it goes down bad, and (my favorite) it goes out bad. The whole process feels terrible, regardless of meat product -- be it red meat or "lean meats" like chicken or turkey. My decision is ultimate -- no more meat, not even the three or four bites I've had each year since I was about fourteen. By this, I mean no more fish either. Nothing.

I'm not stopping there, though. I'm gradually beginning to cut out dairy from my life as well. The less I eat it, the more of a reaction I get when I DO eat it. I've already cut out milk, replacing it with coconut/almond/whatever alternative I prefer. I'm going to reduce cheese intake, creams, pastries that use creams and butter, etc. The last dairy I'm going to cut out -- my favorite -- is yogurt.

No more eggs. No more refined sugars, no bad oils.

Just a whole foods diet consisting of fruits, veggies, and grains.

By no means am I assuming a better position by doing this. I'm doing this because it's about time I did. I'm doing this because I hate having to think about how terrible I feel after eating whatever I ate the night before. I'm doing this because my body doesn't deserve to feel sluggish, unhappy, and consisting of only partial energy.

I'm doing this because I care for my body, and everything around me is pointing towards this diet. I know many will be thinking I'll be cutting out very beneficial foods from my life -- but I promise, I can handle it. I know I'll be cutting out all of my favorite things in the world (read as: cake, cream, sugar, fantastic delicacies of the dessert genre), but I can handle it. I'd rather have a year where I had a bite out of one of my favorite things (above), than meat.

If I need vitamins, I'll take them. I will exercise every single day, give or take a day or two depending on how I feel, every week. I will find time to do this, even if it is HIIT on the treadmill for ten minutes.

I'm still an advocate of enjoying life as much as you can. Eating foods that make you feel happy and warm and pleasant every now and then, like pies, ice creams, burgers, etc. My own body just doesn't want to deal with it any more, and I respect that. It's a long road towards a whole foods diet, but I'm pretty confident I can do it. I want to thank everyone around me for any support you have offered in the past. Your kind words motivate me to live a healthier life for myself and promote a healthier life for the people around me. I'll never force anyone to copy my diet, but if I've inspired you or given you even a single word of motivation to change something, I'm thrilled. Remember, we're in this together. While people will inspire you and help you on the way, we're becoming healthier as a whole -- and that's what's important. No diet or health plan or regimen can take that feeling away. We all want a healthier, happier population, and the first step in doing that is taking charge of your own body. Never dismiss what doctors, health specialists, or healers have to say. Take it all in and make a conscious decision to better yourself, regardless of what route you choose. You've got this!

My hair.

Note: This is long, so like my skin post, I have sectioned it out. If you don't care for a certain area and want to skip it, then go for it. I bolded the sections to make life easier.

History
When I was a little girl, I had fairly loose, easy to manage hair. It was wavy, frizz-free, and all I had to do was shower, get out and have my mom dry my hair (I was stubborn and preferred her method over mine).

As I grew older, in about 7th grade, I began noticing some changes happening. My hair had developed an unnormal amount of body and frizz, yet it was still retaining that wavy texture -- so I basically looked like I was carrying a weight on top of my head. It just refused to sit down like it used to when I was younger. Dealing with it was out of the question, because I was twelve and was illiterate in terms of beauty or style. I just wanted to get out of the shower and be done with everything. So in eighth grade, at age thirteen, I got my hair relaxed. Finally. I could get out of the shower, have it air dry, and have perfect, pin straight hair every time. I was ridiculously excited about it!

... Until my hair started to grow out. Imagine thick, frizzy, wavy roots with pin straight hair. It just wasn't pretty. At this point I was sick of having straight hair and just wanted to see what my old hair looked like. So  I started to grow it out. At age fifteen, I went through an emo-going-on-scene-kid phase and religiously started ironing my hair every day. I got blunt bangs and began wearing ribbons and bows in my hair. This look transitioned into eleventh grade and the beginning of twelfth. I ended up dying my bangs and lower portion of my hair a weird, orange blonde.

When I started to venture out into a more natural look after high school, I dried my hair without the intention of straightening it afterward. That was when I found out that I suddenly had curly hair.

(Excuse my dramatic pose here.)

Well, curly hair that I didn't manage so well. I used to just let it do its own thing, so it was fairly big. Of course, I didn't have the proper hair cut for curly hair, as I would usually take photos of straight hair to the stylist and say 'GIVE ME THAT PLEASE'. And so began the journey to discovering my natural hair.

After years of growth, trial and error, and the usage of hot tools (which I still do, shame on me), I've finally grown my hair out to a manageable length. I've also found a routine that works perfectly for me, when I'm feeling curly.

My Cut
I've gone through so many haircuts in the past, and they all catered to straight hair. I do like to blow dry my hair every now and then for a sleek look, but the goal was to find a cut that worked for both situations. And also, bangs. I'm a huge bang fan. I switch off from straight to side bangs quite often. I usually have straight bangs during the winter time, because it looks cuter with my snug outfits and just provides warmth. I let it grow out into a side bang during the summer so I can twist it up and out of my face when I'm feeling too hot.

The length of my hair is just cut into long layers. I've realized while short layers look great on straight hair, I just can't get the look I like with curly hair. My shortest layers are about an inch or two under my ear, while curly. When straight, they are much longer. Going any shorter would cause the triangle hair look, which I'm not a big fan of!

I generally get my hair trimmed every few months. I'm letting it grow out long, at least waist length while curly, before I decide on any major chopping for the future. But for now, I'm craving fairy tail hair! I generally trim my bangs at home when they get too long, but if I need a major cut in that area, I'll get it done professionally.

Color
My hair is its natural color. Pretty simple. After the blonde situation, I didn't get it dyed until about a few weeks ago. I really wanted red hair (and still do!) because I feel like it looks gorgeous with curls -- so instead of making the full transition, I ended up getting extremely natural red lowlights on the bottom section of my hair. It's so natural that you can only see it under the sun, but it looks gorgeous. It's like she tinted my hair from a brown to red! Because I love my natural hair color, I'm trying to keep it at my roots and as visible as possible until I start to majorly get grey hairs.

Products
I use different methods depending on what look I want to achieve. When I just want to go natural/curly, I use Kinky-Curly products. I'm obsessed, obsessed, with this line. They're all organic and genuinely work wonders on making my curls look vibrant and fresh!

I use the Come Clean shampoo, and just shampoo once. I feel like shampooing twice just dries out my hair. After that, I use the Knot Today conditioner. I put some in my hands and work it through the lower half of my hair, making sure it doesn't touch my scalp, because I'm prone to oiliness. Once I'm done, I grab a wide toothed comb and comb through. I let the conditioner sit on my hair as I do whatever else I have to do in the shower (usually shave or scrub my face), then I rinse it out while combing it slowly under water. It makes your hair feel ridiculously soft, and smells amazing!

If I'm going to use hot tools on my hair, I use Giovanni Cosmetics Smooth As Silk Shampoo. I use the Kinky Curly conditioner again, because I just love the smell and it conditions my hair well.

This is a random trick I learned: using an old t-shirt as a towel. It soaks up more water after you shower and promotes less frizz. It's pretty light weight too, and you won't feel like a bobble head walking around.

After I gently press the water out of my hair, I apply a minuscule amount of coconut oil to the ends of my hair. This helps to keep my hair fairly split-end free (unless I've gone hot tool crazy).

After this, I'll do either one of two things. If I'm going for natural/curly, I use Spiral Spritz by Kinky Curly. I spray about three pumps into my hand, rub my hands together and work it into my hair by pushing and squeezing my hair from underneath. The formula acts like a gel, but absolutely, positively does not leave your hair crunchy. It keeps it looking smooth and frizz free, but soft and easy to run your fingers through. I promise this works so well. I even use it on dry and it still keeps it nice and soft.

If I'm going to use hot tools on my hair, I use Aveda's Smooth Infusion Style-Prep Smoother. I squeeze a few pumps into my hand, about two or three, and run it through my hair.

Drying
Again, drying my hair depends on the effect I want. If I'm going natural/curly, I'll use a diffuser on the blow dryer and set it on the low setting with warm air (not the hottest, not the coolest -- right in the middle). I gently cradle my curls with the diffuser and let my hair gently dry. This gives it the natural curl it needs. I'll alternate between cool air and warm air to reduce frizz yet again. When I wear my hair curly, I twist or braid my bangs to the side, because I feel like my curly hair just doesn't look good when my bangs are down/straight. It just looks like I'm surrounded by too much hair. Most importantly, I do not brush my curls. Unless I want to be a disco diva.

If I'm going to use hot tools, I'll use the blow drying nozzle (the flat and narrow one), and just use the high speed setting and alternate between hot and warm air. At this point, I just want to get my hair as dry as possible so I can use my flat iron or curling iron -- symmetry isn't important here, just dry hair. Once it's done, I twist my hair up into a ballet bun on the middle back of my head and sit around. This will shape the hair and make it just a bit smoother, so when the time comes to iron or curl, it reduces the need to iron my roots as much. After I'm done curling or straightening, I rub some CHI Silk Infusion in my hands and run it through my hair. It's not organic, but it smells nice and makes my hair look smooth and shiny!

Finally ...
Love your hair. Please, don't complain about it so much -- make it work for you. The more you get frustrated, the more you'll miss out on some great results. Investing so much time in being frustrated with your hair, or looks for that matter, will never ever help you appreciate and love what you have. So please, practice some self love. You won't achieve the same exact results as someone else, but that just means your look is meant to be your look. You will definitely make it work for you, I promise!

My skin.

Note: This is long, so I have sectioned it out. If you don't care for a certain area and want to skip it, then go for it. I bolded the sections to make life easier.
(I promise. It's not like I'll know if you've skipped or not. I really, really don't mind.)

* If you just want to read one section, I recommend the 'Diet' section as it is the most important.

History
Skincare -- like every other girl starting from age twelve thanks to Seventeen magazine -- is important for me. I remember when I got my first pimple at age thirteen and was so shocked. I went to my mom, pointed at it and said 'What IS that!?'. I literally had no idea what a zit was, because that was the least of my worries (ie. I cared more about beating Kingdom Hearts than I did about smelling like flowers. Seriously, as long as I showered and was clean, I didn't care.)

After thirteen, I gradually began to break out -- not much, just a pimple here and there around the times when my hormones would influx. Again, wasn't a big deal -- until I hit age nineteen. Mind you, this was after high school. Between nineteen and twenty, my chin was a party for pimples. Again, it wasn't as much as many others to garner massive embarrassment, but it was still more than I had ever had before.

Que massive amounts of money wasted on over the counter products and daily rituals that just didn't give the results they promised. Around this time, I began an interest in natural medicine and healing. I began going to a healer who truly helped me with my skin through natural methods -- diet and topical. This was when I realized that there was a chance my frustration toward my skin was causing more trouble than any product I was applying.

Everyone's face is a different, and everyone has their off phase with their skin. I came to the realization that although I was annoyed with what was happening, within a few years that age would do its job ... but it wouldn't hurt to help speed up the process, right?

Face Routine
* No one paid me to use or mention any of these products. I mean seriously, who would find this blog? I bought these and tried them myself. Pinky promise.

     DAY TIME
I try to keep it simple, because I hate spending hours on my face in the morning, especially when I'm going to school or have a small amount of time to get ready.

I start off by cleansing. Depending on the time, I will either wash my face with MyChelle Dermaceuticals White Cranberry Cleanser or use a natural witch hazel like Humphreys. The cleanser is a rather small bottle for a round figure of $10, but I've had this thing for months now. You only need a tiny amount. Just apply it on your wet face and massage it in for about a minute. Rinse, pat dry. With the witch hazel, you can just squirt some on a cotton pad and wipe your face with it. It's quick and works great, especially if you're tired and don't feel like spending too much time on it!

After I'm done cleansing, I'll use a natural based moisturizer with SPF in it. Even during winter, I'll make sure I use a moisturizer with SPF in it. If I'm going to use makeup, I like to use Boots Botanics Complexion Refining Day Moisture Lotion SPF 12. I just put a pea sized amount on my finger tip, rub it between (clean) hands and pat/push it into my skin, rather than rubbing it on. Makes me feel so nice and fresh, and it has a really light scent that doesn't bother me. If I'm going to spend a lot of time out in the sun, I skip makeup completely and just apply a natural, physical sunscreen like Badger SPF 34 Lightly Scented Sunscreen. This is the best sunscreen I've ever used. Keep in mind that it is a physical sunscreen and will leave a white film on your face. It doesn't absorb like creams and lotions do, but creates an actual barrier on the face. If you have darker skin, this may be more obvious. But if you're pale like me, you can kind of get away with it. Use a teeny amount and rub it evenly in your hands before applying it on the skin. At least this way you'll know if you've missed a spot!

     NIGHT TIME / SHOWER
If you use anything from what I've told you, use this. My healer gave me this scrub recipe, and I'll be using it til the day I die. Mix Real Salt and organic honey (can be raw!) Just make sure the honey is not the fake stuff -- it has to be real, and if it's local, even better! Add an equal amount until you get a good consistency of a scrub. Because this is such a natural scrub and isn't harsh at all, I use it every other day. I tend to have oily skin, so this helps soothe it without drying out my skin. The salt helps pull out any excess water/dirt my face may have chillin' in its pores, and the honey redistributes a balanced moisture throughout my skin. Feel free to use this on the body too!

After I get out of the shower, I like to use the same patting/pushing technique with a nightly moisturizer. I use Avalon Organics Lavender Ultimate Night Cream. It smells so nice and is really, really light -- not greasy or heavy like other night creams.

This may sound silly at age twenty one, but I also use an eye cream. I just pat a little Boots Botanics Organic Face Moisturizing Eye Cream with my ring finger under my eye area and on the sides. Now just tie your hair back and get some sleep!

Diet
STOP EATING CRAP. I know that's blunt as all hell, but seriously -- if you want good, clean skin then you must definitely eat good, clean food. It has helped me so much. Lessen your poor oil intake and replace it with good oils (olive, coconut, safflower). Stop eating fried food daily like pastries or chicken or corn dogs or whatever else that tastes amazing. I'm not saying remove everything you enjoy from your life -- or else I'd be a terrible role model. I eat fries, I eat cheesecake -- I love sweets! Just try your best not to eat it every day. Explore whole foods like fruits, veggies, and grains. You can make a mean fruit smoothie that tastes just as amazing as that stuff at Jamba Juice. You can make an amazing veg platter with a yogurt and garlic dipping sauce that is much better for you than Ranch.

SPEND TIME WITH YOUR FOOD. Realize what you're eating. Let your body tell you what it needs. If you suddenly get a craving for garlic, then sneak it into your food -- your immune system may be going down. If you have a hunger for something with citrus, there is a chance your body needs more Vitamin C. Get it in, supplement it for what it truly needs and not what you want.

SPEAKING OF SUPPLEMENTS. Treat yourself to some vitamins when you feel that you're lacking something. I don't go outside as much as I should, so I take Vitamin D daily. I also take B-Complex as it is fantastic for giving you energy and letting you go throughout the day.

WATER. I'm not going to explain myself. Drink enough water. It'll change your life.

EXERCISE. Sweat out all the toxins that have been hanging out in your body this whole time. It's difficult and you'll be sluggish at first, but that's your body getting used to a fitter, healthier, happier you. It will treat you well in the long run. Promise.

Junk food and what completely changed my life.

I'm not going to lie, as much as I love coming up with recipes for healthy, whole foods -- I can't deny me some cheesecake. Because, let's face it -- it's delicious! Dessert is a big part of my life. I could eat it every single night and regret nothing. But, unfortunately I don't, because it's never good to get too carried away with anything.

But here is the thing -- people do get carried away, and we can't just attack those who eat junk food. There are those who transform their diets into only including foods that have zero fats or sugar content -- going so far as removing fruit from their diet because of the natural sugars they have. Unfortunately, I can never be one extreme or another, because there are just too many delicious things to try out there! Why a lot of diets don't work is because of their necessity of committing to something unrealistic to attain something unattainable through just a diet.

I love food and I only eat what I want to eat and what I like to eat. If this means I won't consume meat and go vegan for a day, so be it! But if this means I'm craving a human baby sized Chipotle burrito that I'm begging to wash down with Coldstone's mint ice cream with cookie dough -- then it's going to happen. In the end, what cleanses my soul and body will be my happiness and well being. We've all heard the phrase 'too much of one thing is never a good thing', but luckily for us we're living during a time where there are an unlimited number of recipes to play around with! I mean -- vegan cheesecake? It's amazing.

What made a bigger change to my life wasn't what I was eating. The qualities I want to gain inside and outside aren't going to happen through a special detox, a cream, a pill, an oil, or a serum. Old age will happen, and I'm ready for it with open arms -- but there is one tool that I have that will help me get the most out of life, regardless of my age, shape, or mindset as the years go by.

Exercise. Exercise has turned into my fix-all for everything. I blame my laziness on the fact that I didn't start earlier! Whether it's a four minute session of high intense interval training (HIIT) or a thirty minute brisk walk on the treadmill, I refuse to go a day without getting my body moving in some way or another. This is the main ticket to a healthy, amazing life. No magical organic farm-raised free trade substance can even begin to equal to this free, fantastic adrenaline rush. Not even organic extra virgin coconut oil which I swear by. You don't need any special tools or a gym membership to get out and get active.

I'm no nutritionist and I'm no trainer -- call me ignorant or naive, but when my body needs something, I give it to her. If that's meditation, so be it. If that's tons of H20, so be it. If it's a slightly larger than average slice of cheesecake, then so be it. I am healthy because I am happy -- inside and out. This is the state I want to be in consistently for the rest of my life.

6/11 -- I'm back with a simple breakfast!

I've been gone for a long time, but no fear -- I'm back again! I took a week long trip to Sedona, AZ with my mom. It was absolutely incredible, especially if you have any interests in the New Age movement. Even if you don't, it's worth seeing the Grand Canyon!

Today's (vegan friendly) breakfast is extremely simple and requires very little prep. It's a slice of flax bread (or toast of your choice) with almond butter, with a side of freeze dried raspberries. These things are so amazing and cool! They're literally crunchy raspberries that have a tangy sour kick to them. I'm interested in trying more freeze dried fruits.

The smoothie is nothing complicated -- I promise! All it is is four medium to large strawberries (washed and hulled, of course), a banana, coconut milk, tangerine juice, honey and cinnamon. Insanely easy, right? I promise it's delicious too! I like my smoothies to have a bit of a tang, that's why I added the tangerine juice -- but if you prefer a sweeter, creamier smoothie, you can definitely just use coconut milk (or any milk of your choice). Yum!

My relationship with my diet.

When I was twelve years old, my parents officially cut out meat from their lives. With the exception of fish, they haven't consumed any meat (on purpose) for about eleven years. At that young age, my mother told me their reasoning, but she assured me that if I ever wanted any meat, she would make it for me. Rather than accept the invitation, I decided to not eat meat either. That day, at age twelve, I made one of the greatest decisions of my life.

Now, at age twenty-one, I still do not consume meat on a daily basis -- but because I'm a foodie, I will sample meats if we go to unique restaurants. If I do eat meat, and more than I usually do, I end up feeling terrible afterwards and the next day -- this is because my body is just not used to consuming meat, and I personally don't like it at all. (Edit: I do consume seafood about once a week. We enjoy our sushi and salmon once in a while!)

Let's get this straight -- I'm not a vegetarian, a vegan, a pescetarian, a bacontarian, a carnivore -- you get the point. Labels allow limitations, and limitations allow for a stressed and mentally frustrated me. Simply put: I eat what I eat. It makes me feel good.

That being said, I only buy (and encourage my mom to buy) whole foods -- and I don't mean the chain company. I mean fruits, vegetables, grains and the like. Foods that make you feel good. Foods that force you to prepare them.

Let's get a little intimate here -- I'm addicted to preparing food. If it takes an hour, it takes an hour. The act of getting up from my seat and actually pulling out ingredients, spending time with each one, slicing them -- it's as if it's some sort of surgical procedure. When I know I'm spending so much time on such a healthy dish, it just amps up the amount of appreciation and excitement when the time comes to eat. It is my own little experience at that moment in time, and no one knows how it feels but me.

This brings me to an important point: happiness. Health is vital, but genuine happiness is truly what you want here. You should never be forced out of eating foods you love. I've come to this stage in my life through my own experiences -- research has had a hand in it, and people have had a hand in it -- but ultimately, it was my happiness and my connection with my diet that changed everything.

Alter what you consume to your wants and needs. The obvious fact about eating too much "sweets" is there, but eating too much of anything is bad for you. It's okay to eat cheesecake once in a while. I promise you won't die. And it's okay to have a bag of chips, regardless of how fried/baked/seasoned who-the-hell-cares they've been through. You want them, have them. In the end it is your happiness and your experience with your diet that is crucial.

If you're ever scrutinized for the food you consume, realize that there may be a chance the person doing the scrutiny is a fair bit too serious about their diet. I will never, ever look down upon people who eat meat, or eat cheesecake every single day -- if they smile at me and they're beaming, I want to see that.

Food brings joy, not torture. Don't force yourself to consume items you have no connection to. But know that if you are ever interested in a certain dietary path, there are people who will help you. The only guide is yourself, but there is no shame in having some aid and input on the way. If you have any problems with consumption -- too much, too little, not enough veg, too much veg -- and you feel that it's a task in your daily life to enjoy it, then talk to somebody about it.

The earth is beautiful and has given us such a bountiful amount of delicious foods to enjoy and seriously spend time with. Don't hold back, explore.

It is with this happiness and connection to my diet that allows me to openly share recipes of foods that I consume currently in my life; I extend this appreciation and love toward you and wish you some happy "diet" soul searching!

5/25 Lunch + 5/26 Snack

I'm always surprised when people are confused as to what vegans or vegetarians eat -- there are actually a lot of interesting options. Today I present to you with two vegan dishes that are definitely delicious and filling.

First is the lunch I had yesterday (5/25). It is a basic (vegan friendly) ful/foul (or fava bean) salad with avocado on the side. The ful is mixed with one chopped tomato, a tiny piece of garlic (probably about half a clove), lemon, olive oil and salt. Just mix it up and serve with the avocado! You can have this on its own or with some bread on the side for dinner. It is extremely filling and will probably keep you full for a very long time.

Today's snack was me going crazy over the 100% (vegan friendly) banana "ice cream" recipe again (mentioned here [I'm just going parentheses crazy today, leave me alone man.]) I've decided to punch it up every now and then by adding something to the banana to see what kind of flavors I can get. Today I added some chopped up mint, since mint ice cream is my favorite. Of course it didn't have the same distinguishable creamy mint flavor, but it still had a fresh zing that was pretty addicting! I'm an herbophile though, so any herb will do the trick for me (no, not that kind). I had it with some sliced strawberries and a piece of 90% dark chocolate. This chocolate is not what you want it to taste like (ie. Hershey's milky creamy sweet 2000 yummyness). It is straight cocoa flavored. I intentionally bought this, because I wanted the antioxidant goodness. The chocolate is not vegan, so if you're concerned about it, opt for a vegan brand. Garnish with a spring of mint and enjoy!