Blog Archives

Finding New Friends When Over 50

7/29/2019

Finding new friends when over 50 years of age can be a challenge, and also may make one feel like he or she is a loner at heart sometimes.

As we get older, we lose more of our loved ones to death and choices of living places after the career ends. Sometimes people cannot afford to move and those friends are busy working a full schedule while others are missing their friends.

I’m 53 years old and have had many losses of friends and family due to circumstances like these. Luckily for me, I love to exercise and teach exercise. So new friends are built in to my exercise spaces, whether indoors or outdoors, at the yoga studio, health club, or hiking trails. The passionate hobbies and lifestyle activities one chooses are kind of “built-in” reservoirs of friendship opportunities.

If reading is a passion of yours, go to the library. There are so many free workshops, reading groups, and entertainment opportunities that are held at the library. It’s not just the books that bring us in. It is the community. It feels like a safe place to make friends. I encourage my life coaching clients to seek out the library for many activities including making friends.

The grocery store is also a great place of opportunity to meet new friends. I often start conversations in the produce section! You can exchange ideas of food preparation and perhaps spark up a friendship as well. Some grocery stores hold cooking workshops as well. This is a great way to meet people who have something in common with you. Everybody eats...

I hope this helps you, dear readers.
Sincerely,
KJ Landis

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An Attitude of Gratitude Yields Results

7/22/2019

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One of my tribe asked me how an attitude of gratitude relates to choices resulting in healthy eating.

The community I work with in wellness workshops are mostly seniors, from age 62-88! I teach folks how to make fermented foods, the secret names for sugar in ingredient lists, and how to enjoy healthy fats without guilt. I teach which foods are nutrient dense and how to shift into a healthy choice from a less healthy one.

We begin each class with the Negative Thought Pot. This is a ceramic planter where we scroll up tiny pieces of paper with written fears or self deprecating thoughts. We set the scrolls of paper on fire in the pot. Then we can say to ourselves the next time that thought comes into our head, “I destroyed you. You no longer have power over me. “

This physical act of ridding the negative thoughts actually allows a place of positive thoughts to bloom. No matter what the workshop subject of the month is, people are more open to listening to the new ideas in healthy lifestyles and eating after participating in the Negative Thought Pot activity.

Before I implemented the Negative Thought Pot into my workshops, folks were more critical and challenging to changing their eating styles. With a silent or out loud feeling of thank yous to the world and its creatures, we can feel peaceful and blessed before we even begin the day. Try a morning with "thank you" as the first sentence you think. See what opens up for you in your life.

Nowadays folks come up to me and tell me afterwards how grateful they are for it and use their own style of the Negative Thought Pot at home. It is a subtle way of learning how to have a feeling in harmony and flow with oneself through the day. It does bring a sense of gratitude. And that has helped my community in the long run eat better through small changes and challenging their own self doubts.

I hope this helps you, dear readers.
Sincerely,
KJ Landis

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Stop Cheating!

7/15/2019

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As a fitness and nutrition educator I focus on the 80/20 rule. Eat clean and green 80 percent of the time, and enjoy treats without the guilt 20 percent of the time. When we do not label treats as cheats we change the language. This allows us to thoroughly enjoy the summer season without the negative self deprecating thoughts accompanying the treats. Try this the next time you decide consciously to have a piece
of pecan pie or chocolate truffle. Truly enjoy the backyard BBQ parties.

Know that you also have choices in how the treats are made. Bringing healthy alternative to a party are a great option for enjoying the season without guilt.If you are on a specific protocol for eating, you can make the recipe. An example for a Paleo style template, make a grain free and sugar free pie or truffle. For a pasta with cheese dish when on an auto immune protocol, create a spaghetti squash variety without tomato sauce and use a cheese alternative like nutritional yeast flakes. If sensitive to gluten and at a pizza party, offer to make a cauliflower crust pizza.

I always encourage my clients to continue their water consumption and workout program no matter where they are in the vacation season. And know that with mindfulness and good sleep, they can recover within a few weeks. A good attitude is key in recovery after a good treat. You can work towards healthy living for as long as you live! Look at the bigger picture. You are not a cheater. You are enjoying food that is a treat now and then. Stop thinking of food as good or bad. It is just food.

I hope this helps.
Sincerely,
KJ Landis
-Author and Creator of Happy Healthy You! Available now wherever books are sold.
Visit me at www.superiorselfwithkjlandis.com

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I am Breaking Up with Coffee

7/8/2019

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Most of you know that coffee and I have been really close friends for as long as I can remember, even as a child. I have lots of happy memories of my Russian and Moldovian grandparents making us 20 grandchildren big cereal bowls filled with coffee, milk, and sugar when we had sleepovers. I love the flavor, the aroma, the varietals, the process of growing and making coffee, and even the world history in commerce throughout the ages intrigues me. My first or second retail job as a teenager was at a coffee roaster and cheese store in Pittsburgh, PA. Later on in my twenties I worked at another coffee importer and roaster in Los Angeles. I used to say to my children when they were in elementary school, "I love you more than coffee," as a phrase of endearment.

Flash forward to the summer of 2018. I participated in a 12 day silent meditation retreat. They only had instant coffee in the cafeteria. It was a silent retreat so I couldn't complain, to anyone, even myself! Gross. So I switched to a chai style decaf tea and black tea mixed together. I added milk and sometimes a little honey. After 12 days of this I didn't miss my cup of morning coffee. After the retreat until now I would have coffee from time to time with whipped cream before work with extra shots of espresso added in for deep flavor. It wasn't a deep passionate love like before the retreat. My attachment softened a bit.

Two weeks ago I taught and took 2 exercise classes for three days straight in a hot yoga studio before going to my serving shift at the restaurant where I work in the evenings. I was wiped out, and went for my cup of java. After two sips, I was turned off! My stomach felt weird, and a little ache began at the back of my neck. Could it be? I tested the waters further and sipped some coffee at work. The same reaction from my body occurred. I rejected coffee physiologically! Okay, so I guess I am done with coffee for now. Our lifelong affair has come to an end...or a break...I don't know. As life on earth for me lengthens and evolves, my cells change every seven days, my thoughts and ideas are continually being challenged, changed, upgraded, or dissolved. So, why not break up with coffee if it doesn't make me feel good anymore?

What have you given up(food or beverage) in a natural and easy manner over the years, and why? Please share!

Blessings,
KJ Landis
Nutrition Educator and Author

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Vegan Protein Options

7/1/2019

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Some folks are afraid to try vegetarian or vegan lifestyles because they feel they won't consume enough protein. Sadly, Americans consume more than twice the necessary protein on a daily basis, making the body work really hard at digestion. Why not give the digestion system a rest now and then? So here are some high protein foods for the vegan that I enjoy when not eating flesh.

I love pressed firm tofu. It captures the flavor of any spice or herb mixed in and carries a whopping 24 grams of protein per cup.

Brussels sprouts are high in protein as well. I like mine cut in half and seared until charred on one side in a frying pan. They carry 6 grams per cup if sliced or shaved and cooked. That way more veggies fit into the cup!

Lentil sprouts have about 7 grams per cup, and add a nutty flavor without the bitterness of mung bean sprouts. Plus, lentil sprouts have loads of fiber and are fun to sprout at home. They are alive and have all the delicious and nutritious elements of live enzymes found in live foods.

My favorite cheesy alternative to cheese comes from nutritional yeast flakes. These aren't the same as brewer's yeast flakes for making beer. Nutritional yeast flakes taste like Parmesan cheese and go with almost every savory food! I sprinkle on top of popcorn, baked potatoes, and broccoli. One tablespoon has 3 grams of protein, but I am liberal with my sprinkling so I get a good amount of protein from this delicious plant-based protein!

I hope this helps you on your health and wellness journey.
Sincerely,
KJ Landis

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Finding New Friends When Over 50

An Attitude of Gratitude Yields Results

Stop Cheating!

I am Breaking Up with Coffee

Vegan Protein Options

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