Hurricane Harvey + What to Eat in a Natural Disaster

Hurricane Harvey is hitting our friends in the south hard, and as Lauren and I know from going to school in New Orleans, hurricanes do not just mean "hurrication" (hurricane vacation- what they were called pre-Katrina). In fact I heard that almost a quarter million people are already without power and there is serious price gauging with bottled water - with people charging up to $99 for a case!

So yesterday I chatted about natural disasters + food safety with Fox and Friends (Lauren had plenty of "blechs" but I'm just getting the info out). Whether you're in Hurricane Harvey's path or in case you get stuck inside during a future hurricane or blizzard, here's what you need to know:

• Refrigerated food is technically fine during a power outage for up to 4 hours, could be more. The KEY is to keep the fridge door closed. No going in and out for water (or wine!).

• When in doubt, throw it out - and also, don't taste it to test it. If something smells or looks off, toss it. A little food waste is better than a lot of food poisoning. 

• Stock up. Here's our Storm Shopping List (best to have some of these items in house before storm forecasts when supplies can be limited)

• lots of bottled water or seltzer
• gluten free bread
• oatmeal cups such as vigilant eats, if need be can just add hot water
• natural almond or peanut butter
• jarred (or if need be canned) tuna
• jerky
• avocados
• bananas
• apples
• pistachios (you'll have time on your hands) 
• Kale chips
• Rx bars 
• Shelf stable almond milk
• Pickles
• (dark chocolate and limes for tequila optional)

• Oh, and one last great tip c/o Lauren: don't eat all the food+snacks+drinks just to prevent them from going bad. No need for Hurricane Weight Gain. 

Stay safe our southern friends!! 

Breggie is the new Breakfast

CB Collagen Smoothie

It’s officially our second Whipping Week! If you’ve missed our incessant posting, Whipping Week is one of our programs/resets that we offer three times a year. Pre and post summer, we call it The Squeeze but after the holidays, we all need to be whipped into shape. Participants receive a packet with Whipping rules, a sample Whipping meal plan and recipes. Every day, for seven days, there is a Whipping tip of the day and personalized food journal feedback. Week 1 was a breeze, with Whippers reporting they felt “rejuvenated, in control, on track, mentally and physically clear, lighter” and much more. The average participant lost 4-6 lbs, pretty damn good! Most importantly, they all felt they had made changes to their habits that they will stick with.

We can’t give away all our Whipping secrets (but we’d love to have you in our next program: The Pre-Summer Squeeze in May), so we’ll give you a taste and let you in on one of our favorite Whipping tip. This is what we sent participants:

Breggie Is the New Breakfast

You know we love veggies at lunch and dinner, this week we would love you to veg at breakfast too. Enter: BREGGIE. Yup, add veggies or fermented veggies to eggs, greens to smoothies or mint leaves or basil to yogurt. Have a salad for breakfast and you will be an all-star Whipper. Fiber in vegetables helps you excrete fat and keeps you full. Plus, we need vegetable action for that healthy glow. So, how veg can you go?  

Regardless of your personal, wellness goals, you too can benefit from BREGGIE-ing it up. One of my fave fast breggies is a smoothie, of course.

CB’s Collagen Breggie Smoothie

*This isn’t a Whipping recipe

·      1 scoop of Vital Proteins beauty greens collagen

·      handful of spinach

·      ½ banana

·      almond milk

·      ½ avocado

·      a splash of almond extract

·      ice

Blend and sip! (you could absolutely add frozen blueberries or strawberries in here too. Just might not come out as breggie-beautiful).

The collagen in Vital Proteins is SO good for your skin, hair and nails.  It’s also great for your GI system and helps increase strength gains from exercise programs. This beauty greens blend also raw organic greens, hyaluronic acid and probiotics. OK that might not sound so yummy but I promise it is.

What’s your best way to breggie? Can you commit to it for the rest of January?

How to cut down on carbs

At an event last week, Sam Kass (former chef for the White House/Obamas) was a speaker. He explained that there’s a missing piece with most health advice. I’m paraphrasing but he said that we can’t simply say “ginger is healthy” but need to include the HOW. I went back to the office with this truth nugget and we brainstormed a bit. We’re going to add a  “how to” series to the blog. I’d love to declare it’ll be a weekly feature but we’re not so great at that kind of structure. Today, Carolyn kicks things off with a great way to cut your carbs.

Like any normal human, I love carbs. Like any good nutritionist, I love fiber too but not enough to ever eat another GG crispbread*. If you can’t consider cardboard, enter your new, best cracker buddy ORGRAN.

Orgran fiber crispbreads are our fave crackers on the market because they are gluten free, low cal, and have some fiber. They are the perfect vehicle for pretty much any topping. We usually give two a day to clients as a “non-carb”.

The ingredients are simple: brown rice flour, wholegrain sorghum, psyllium, rice bran and salt so they definitely need a topping. Here are a few of my fave ways to use them:

1.     Sunflower seed butter and a sprinkle of cacao powder

2.     Good Culture (probiotic) cottage cheese and apple slices

3.     Wild smoked salmon with farmers cheese or ricotta

4.     Avocado with a pesto drizzle.

Scrambled eggs, chicken salad and tuna would work too, your Orgran options are pretty much endless.

We want to share our Orgran obsession, tell us your favorite topping below for a chance to win a free box by 12/17. And if you have any orgran art/photos post them tagging us @carolynbrownnutrition @foodtrainers

*cracker that’s made the rounds in many weight loss plans but needs be retired.

Our best Squeeze program yet and fave new ingredient

 Oh structure we missed you so. We are midway though our Foodtrainers’ September Squeeze fall reset weeks.  Week 1, led by Lauren, concluded Sunday and week 2, my week, is off and running (shout out to our Squeeze achievers doing both weeks).

We design a new program, with new recipes each time (why do less work when you can do more?) but we never really know how it will go until we have a group of all ages, living in all different places, going through it. Many of Lauren’s week 1 squeezers told us it was our best squeeze yet…nice!  We asked our week 1 Squeeze grads to tell us how they felt:

I feel back on track/more confident/able to say no/in control/clear-headed, rested and resolved to continue.

This Squeeze is NO booze, grains, sugar, cheese or scale (yup a full week no weigh ins).  While it sounds like a lot of no’s we have a lot of yes’s too. We select special ingredients and what we call “secret weapons” to spice things up. My favorite this go around is ashwaganda. Ashwagandha is tough to say and tough to drink. Sunpotion politely says it tastes a little “earthy”, we say it tastes like dirt, unless you have it in our OMG Ashwagandha recipe. Why should you “ash”? It’s an Ayurvedic herb, used for over 3000 years, that lowers cortisol, helps body handle stress, balances thyroid hormones and improves body composition and sleep.

Try Ashwaganda and our other new favorites in our Squeeze Bundle 

Squeeze Nightcap: OMG Ashwagandha

We love us some golden milk and this ashwagandha nightcap is a spin on the classic. Don’t stress out about our recipe, if you don’t have all of these it’ll be ok.

And if you are stressing out…all the more reason to try this.

Ingredients:

·      1/4 tsp. Sun Potion Ashwagandha

·      1/2 tsp. Wakaya turmeric

·      1/2 tsp. Wakaya ginger

·      1 cup water

·      Pinch sea salt 

·      Pinch black pepper (pepper increases the effectiveness of turmeric)

·      1 cup almond or coconut milk

·      Optional drops NuStevia (optional)

·      *Add more sea salt or stevia as needed 

Instructions:

1.    Put ashwagandha, turmeric, ginger, pepper and water into a small saucepan, add water and simmer 8-10 minutes or until this mixture reduces and thickens.

2.    Add almond milk and stir, continue until mixture is warm (a few minutes).

3.    Add salt and stevia (if using) and stir again.

4.    Pour into a mug and sip. OMG, you’ve been ashwagandha’d.

If you want a reset, let us know and we’ll put you on the list for January “Whipping Week” info.

So what do you do when you need to reboot? Have you heard of ashwaganda? Any nighttime rituals you’d like to share?

How To Pick An Active Vacation or Retreat (from someone who knows)

Lauren and I are no strangers to airplane rides or adventures. I’m sure our shared history traveling on Semester at Sea and desire to live FULL lives are two of the reasons we work together so well. This past year, I made it a priority to say 'yes' to as many escapes, adventures and retreats as my calendar (and bank account) will allow. Rather than having a Year of Yes (great book by the way), I think of it as only saying YES to things that make my body feel really good. Food, movement, and good people are my priorities.

(yogascapes Moab with Kerri Kelly + Jason Bowman) 

I should share that as an anti-type A person (more type Z), retreats are my favorite way to travel. After showing up in Thailand itinerary-less a few years ago, I’ve realized that planning, or outsourcing the planning, is in fact wonderful and necessary. Interestingly, Lauren is a self-confessed type A-person and likes outsourcing the organizing too. This way, she can obsess about something (or somewhere) else.

Here’s how to choose a retreat:

Pick your priority: is it to meet cool people, have some bootcamp and a little booze too? SurfYogaBeer is run by some of NYC fitness scene’s best, and they host worldwide fitness and fun retreats. I’ve met some of my best friends on these trips. But, if your priority is more to do “self work” and get a little hippy dippy with it, Kripalu R&R or YogaScapes retreats may be more for you.

(post bootcamp/hill sprints with SurfYogaBeer Amalfi)

Know your magic number: Everyone has their # of days that makes a vacation go from “best trip ever” to “I want to go home”. Mine is 5. Know your #.

(from an organic cafe we hunted down in positano, italy) 

Don't assume when it comes to the food: surprisingly even “health” retreats don’t always have the healthiest food. So do your research and ask questions – remember, you’re paying! You can request gluten free and extra veggies etc. Also, always pack your own safety snacks and search for local juice and smoothie bars. *But if you’re going to Italy, try the freaking pasta...

(my first time surfing w/ SYB Costa Rica) 

Try new activities: You absolutely do NOT have to be an avid yogi to go on a yoga retreat or have any surf knowledge to go on a surf retreat. Many people I’ve met on my past few trips are complete beginners. Don’t let your lack of experience keep you from trying something that sounds cool. For example, a retreat with a campfire cacao ceremony, anyone? 

(hiking the Path of the Gods, Positano)

Friends and family optional: when in doubt…. Pack up and GO! Go alone, go with friends, go with a love, go with your kids, just go. Recently I did this with a close friend on a trip to Moab, Utah with YogaScapes, not knowing anything about the destination or people (Type-Z strikes again), and it was one of the best trips of my life – and one of the least expensive ones, too.

(moab under canvas)

Cost contributors: Camping is a great way to save money (or glamping, Under Canvas is a cool alternative in national parks). There's something fun about going a little rugged, especially if someone else handles the tent set up.  Also, sharing rooms is not usually as creepy as it sounds and can make things much more affordable... but if we're being honest, Lauren pulled out of a meditation retreat at Garrison Institute because she had to have a roommate. Pick what's most important to you and pay for it.

(view from Capri)

Healthy vacations aren’t just for the 20 or 30-something or single! Lauren has done biking/hiking/camping trips trips with her husband and kids to Yellowstone, Zion and the Grand Canyon with Backroads. Many companies offer family trip options.

For me, my next “work” trip is a blueberry adventure with Lauren in Maine. And then I'm thinking a silent retreat – yup, no Insta AND no speaking… sounds terrifying, so I have to do it.

Where are you headed next? What have been your great retreat or travel experiences?