Let's Talk Vitamins

Hi Loves!!

Today I wanted to chat a little about vitamins and minerals and why our bodies need them!

Now, as I have said before I am not a huge on supplements and really, just pills in general.

I strongly believe in getting ALL nutrients through plant-based WHOLE foods if at all possible BUT I will say that I take a few vitamins/minerals that my body might not get a full dose off!

I will start with what I take on a daily basis just to give you all an idea.

You do not HAVE to take these.
Everyone finds what works best for them and
their health and these are just what work for me!

1. Multivitamin
2. Iron
3. Magnesium

Alright, so a multivitamin - I take HSN (Hair, Skin, Nails) because it gives you your daily dose of vitamins/minerals and as a vegan I lack in the vitamin B12 department.

I live by these vitamins for the simple fact that I have noticed a drastic difference in the condition of my hair, skin, nails and overall health.

2. Iron - Alright, this is not something that everyone has to take.
I have to take iron because I have anemia.
It is an iron deficiency and it's just something I have always had.

It isn't the best but it isn't the worse.

3. Magnesium - I have actually talked about this mineral a little bit in one of my previous posts.
I'll put the link here if you want to read on it!

Okay. Now that you know what vitamins/minerals I swear by, I am going to be talking about the 11 essential vitamins and minerals our bodies need.

11 Essential Vitamins and Minerals

Vitamin A - (which is also found in carrots.)
keeps our eyes healthy and is good for general growth and development.

Vitamin C - (who else loves oranges!?)
it's an antioxidant that is also good for our skins elasticity and strengthening our blood vessels.

Vitamin D - (SUNSHINE, eggs, mushrooms, oh my!)
we all know that vitamin d is goof for our bones!

B Vitamins - (bananas, beans, potatoes)
helps our immune function, the way we produce energy and again, IRON absorption.

Vitamin K - (EAT YO GREENS!)

is a fat-soluble vitamin that is most well known
for the important role it plays in blood clotting

Vitamin E - (almonds, tomatoes, nuts)
protects our bodies from free radicals and helps with our blood circulation.

Folic Acid - (citrus fruits, dark greens, beets)

helps prevent birth defects and protects cell renewal.

Calcium - (grains, dark leafy greens, tofu)

Obviously, you can also get calcium from dairy too BUT, we're all different.

Iron - (soybeans, dark leafy greens, lentils)

good for muscle building and maintaining healthy blood.

Zinc - (wait for it.... DARK CHOCOLATE, and cashews, seafood)

Amazing for growth, fertility and immunity.

Chromium - (whole grains, herbs, veggies)

chromium is good for our glucose function.
It gives our bodies energy when needed.

There you have it!
It's actually pretty simple to get our daily dose
of these vitamins and minerals by watching what we're feeding our bodies!
We only get one body in this lifetime...

You wouldn't buy yourself a brand new Ferrari
and then never clean it, never get maintenance on it,

and fill it up with unleaded gas, would you?

Exactly.

Light + Love,

Courtney ♥

Kombucha 101

kom·bu·cha

  kômˈbo͞oCHə/

noun

               a beverage produced by fermenting sweet tea with a culture of yeast and bacteria.

Being a Holistic Wellness Coach, I try to find all natural products for pretty much everything I use for my family and myself on a daily basis. I picked up some Kombucha from Whole Foods last night because I have read and heard SO may amazing things about this stuff. Now, this isn't something I just saw a picture of and told myself I was going to go out and by it, NO. I have done MY own researching on this product for a while now, thus is why I have been dying to get my hands on it! The benefits are incredible. Like, curing cancer?! What!? Why isn't everyone looking into this more?

Since I am BIG on list making and tip creating I thought I would share 3 of the many benefits I found really make a difference is our over-all well being.

3 Benefits of Kombucha

1.        Detoxification - produces healthy livers and aides cancer prevention. One of kombucha’s greatest health benefits is its ability to detox the body. It is rich in enzymes and bacterial acids our bodies produce and/or use to detox your system. Therefore, reducing our pancreatic load and easing the burden on the liver. Kombucha is very high in Glucaric acid, and in recent studies it has been shown that glucaric acid helps prevent cancer. Crazy isn't it?!

2.         Helps aid in digestion - Kombucha is naturally fermented with a living colony of bacteria and yeast, which actually makes it a probiotic beverage. This has a TON of benefits such as improved digestion, mental clarity, mood stability, e.t.c.

    It's also known for reducing or eliminating the symptoms of depression, fibromyalgia, and anxiety.

3.        Reducing joint pain - Kombucha contains glucosamines, which is a strong preventive and treatment all forms of arthritis. Hyaluronic acid enables connective tissue to bind moisture thousands of times its weight and maintains tissue structure, moisture, lubrication and flexibility and lessens free radical damage, while associated collagen retards and reduces wrinkles.

Want to purchase Kombucha?

My bottle is from Whole Foods. (cost: $4.99)

If you have a Whole Foods,
Trader Joes, or any natural/organic health food stores in your area,
it is HIGHLY recommended that you purchase from there.

I hope you babes have a fantastic Tuesday!

Light + Love,

Courtney ♥

Bury That Worry

Happy Fri-yay and Day 3 of "Glow In 2015'

 If you are new here and haven't read days 1 & 2, you can go back and get caught up! Today I want to talk about worrying what others think about you. This is common for the human species but as common as it may be, it is still completely unhealthy. Worry can cause serious health problems and not only that, it takes our focus away from the people and the things that make us happy.

I'm going to lay out some ways we can focus less on what others may be saying or thinking about us and focus more on how we can tune those negative things out and say 'BYE FELICIA' before the new year.

For me, an important part of new year's resolutions is to let go of the past. Let go of everyone and everything that no longer serves you or has a purpose in your life. This includes those people who may have not been the nicest to you. These people can be family, friends, ex friends, colleagues, even people you don't even personally know. The key here is to stop focusing all of your energy on worrying about what is being said and focus that energy on bettering yourself. See, what most people do not realize is this. When you let someone get you upset, mad, or unhappy, you are giving this person (or thing) complete power over you. We have to understand that in order to have complete mind/body/soul balance we have to be completely aware of our feelings. If you are in a situation that is unsettling then you need to take a step back and ask yourself how you feel. If you are feeling bad then take a few deep breaths, ask yourself if whatever it is - is worth it and if it's not you HAVE to brush it off and move on.

I want everyone to remember this. If you have to read this over and over again until it really 'clicks' and your mind goes 'Ok, I'm taking the reigns and I'm not letting anyone or anything have control over my feelings!'

"Fear of social judgment also makes people think small. Accomplishing anything big is going to annoy some people, who will try to deter you. To really have an impact, you can’t let them get in your way. EVER!"

When you stop trying to impress others, you can express yourself in a more open and genuine way. You will be able to fully connect with people more openly and on a personal level. The less time and energy you spend on caring what sally said to sue and what sue said to peter, that's more energy you are saving on making your life more about what makes you happy!

Just a few tips to consider:

A. Bring awareness to how your decisions are currently affected by what others will think of you.

B. Do not be swayed into social pressure! EVER! I'm sure we all know that feeling of doing something we really don't want to and guess what? We regret it later. Not a good way to feel. Try keeping yourself unaffected by criticism and stop taking things so personal. We can become biased toward sensitivity to rejection and insults. When we let criticism and embarrassment affect our behavior, we are giving our power to others!

C. Don’t look to others for guidance on how to behave. You must always be yourself. No matter what! Don’t wait for permission from others.

D. Last but not least: DO NOT BE NEEDY for attention! You don’t have a reason to try to impress people. Remember we are doing this to better ourselves and our lives, not for others entertainment! That's the quickest way to criticism city!

Basically, it's as simple as this. Always be authentic with who you are. Courage up and allow people to see the real you. Be willing to be judged and sometimes even encourage it. It’s good for developing thick skin. Especially for those whose work may be social media based! As you become and express your true self, others will think great things about you, and the few that don’t, well that doesn't really matter. Rather than not caring at all what others think of you, you can start just by caring less. It gets easier with time. So, be open to what they think and feel, and consider their opinions, BUT take it with a grain of salt and decide for yourself how to act. Only care what the important people in your life think, but also, only those whose opinions you value. Strangers should not and DO NOT get a vote in how you live your life. Don't be that person.

Light + Love,

Courtney ♥