lots of green (juice)

If you ever go to Dharma Mittra's in Manhattan it wouldn't be surprising to hear him closing his yoga class with "Go have a green juice." While usually I am not a particular fan of a bunch of greens funneled into a small glass of green lip-smacking power, yesterday I had just finished a yoga class and hadn't had a good salad or bunch of leafy vegetables for a few days.

I think one of the keys to great juice is having the right blender or juicer. While a blender is good for fruit smoothies or mixes, to extract the full flavor a good juicer does it best. We have a Breville at home, and it works wonders with everything from apples to carrots, even beets and (yes we've tried it) radishes. So here's a simple green juice that is great when your body craves the nutrients that only lots of leaves and verdancy can give (serves 2 thirsty people):

Handful of Kale (you can sub spinach)

Handful of chard

3-4 stalks Celery (you can also do cucumber)

Small bunch parsley

2 apples

1 lemon

This is potent stuff - I personally can only take a few sips and then my better half downs the rest. But if you like the taste, green juices are the Red Bull of yogis, only without the crash afterwards. :-)

am juicing

I just had to share a wonderful little juice I put together this morning after my yoga practice. I'm nearly always running late, so it can be hard to find something quick that is also nutritious and feed the body in a post-workout fashion.

I usually like bananas in my smoothies, but today there were none. After a brief scan of what was on hand, I put together the following in a small food processor (you could use a blender as well) and got something that was sweet and tasty, a red juice that reminded me of melted sorbet or a red slushee... yum.

serves 1

4-8 fresh strawberries

1/4 cup pomegranate juice

1/4-1/2 cup water

2 teaspoons agave nectar (you could also substitute 2-3 dates, fresh or soaked)

By the way, the strawberries contain Vitamin C and fiber, and pomegranate is full of antioxidants. So you can enjoy increased immunity, healthy digestion, and disease prevention in a simple glass. :-)

vegan nutrition

Yesterday I picked up a book at Jivamukti Yoga Studio entitled Thrive: the Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance. I've been reading it steadily, and although I've been following a mostly vegan diet I admit it's been hard at times to figure out what works and what doesn't. Should I be eating fruit or green juices? Do I eat many small meals or a few big meals? How do I choose among fruits and vegetables?

I received some diet/nutritional clarification and recommendations last fall from Thara, the Ayurvedic doctor at the Chopra Center in NYC. She told me my dosha type (which is basically the energies that characterize your physical, mental, and spiritual makeup) and recommended certain foods, oils and herbs to balance everything out.

I found the book Thrive to be a great complement to her recommendations, and it also offers the nutritional/scientific basis for his food choices. The author, a professional Ironman triathlete, ended up with a vegan diet not for ethical reasons, but simply out of a desire to gain more energy, speed his recovery time, have higher mental and physical function, and keep a high muscle/low fat body.

It's funny that his conclusions, based on over 20 years of research and personal experimentation, yield the same foods that have been touted by doctors for their antioxidant properties, by activists for saving the lives of animals, by environmentalists for creating less stress on the environment, and by yoga practitioners for increased energy and awareness.

By the way, I haven't finished the book yet, but at the end there are several recipes and meal options which compose of his "Thrive" diet. Just glancing at them, they are designed to be quick and easy to make, and use lots of fresh, health, energy-boosting ingredients. (I'll let you know when I try the recipes.)

Peace,

Kaity

yoga in miami

Over the past two days, I had the opportunity to visit Miami Life Center, an Ashtanga studio founded by the yoga-famous Kino MacGregor. Located a short walk from the beach, the studio has daily classes in mostly Ashtanga, but also Jivamukti and Restorative yoga. Probably the keynote class would be the Mysore class (which is the strict series taught by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and practiced individually under observation of the teacher). But since I don't have the series memorized, I took advantage of the Guided Ashtanga and Ashtanga Elements classes, which were taught in the more inclusive fashion by the respective instructors.

Practicing a Jivamukti/Vinyasa flow was incredibly helpful in transitioning to the Ashtanga, but I was still challenged by the numerous jump-throughs (at least 8) and long stretches of abdominal work that is part of every class.

If you're ever in Miami, I highly recommend this studio for a warm, welcoming vibe, adherance to the Ashtanga tradition, friendly staff & students, and also a beautiful space with stone floors and an eclectic boutique.