A new friend and a new recipe

I recently had the pleasure of meeting a kindred spirit named Kelly. Kelly is an active fitness and outdoor lover as well as a voracious healthy food eater so it's not hard to see why we hit it off. Yesterday she took me to a wonderful restaurant right in Westwood Village called "Native Foods". It's a Vegan restaurant, probably the best I've been to. We had an amazing portobella sandwich and a "bowl" of Moroccan flavored vegetables. It was just so delicious. Eating these healthy foods makes me feel good, full of energy and vitality.

After my Upper Body work out this morning I went home and made hummus. Since I don't care for things packed in cans, I buy bulk organic garbanzo beans at the health food store and I soak them overnight. Then I drain and rinse them real good. Then I add enough water to cover by 2" and I simmer for nearly an hour till they are tender but not mushy. Rinse well and drain. I store these air tight in the refrigerator for up to a week. I throw them in salads. I also spread some out on a cookie sheet and roast them (OMG, ask me for this recipe if you're interested). Today I decided to make hummus but I realized I only had about 1/3 cup of cooked garbanzo beans left, so I got the bright idea to make the hummus as usual but to also add 1/3 cup raw sunflower seeds while processing. OMG......it was fabulous. I sliced up some organic carrots, Persian cucumbers and celery and had myself a little hummus platter for lunch. I LOVE TO COOK, AND I LOVE TO EAT. YAY!

For my next culinary trick I'm going to create bean cakes using the garbanzo beans. Perhaps I will top them with a homemade pesto sauce. Should be interesting! Did I mention I love to cook. he...he...he...

Strong Women (and Men) Stay Young

Most of you know how passionate I am about staying fit. In my twenties I did it because I was a bundle of energy and loved to play tennis and jog.  In my thirties I did it because I wanted to stay fit and thin.  In my forties I did it because I wanted to prove to myself that I still had what it takes.  Now, in my fifties, I do it for all those reasons AND to stay strong and young feeling.  Guess what?  It's working!

This is a fact:  "When older adults participate in strength training programs, their self-confidence and self-esteem improve, which has a strong impact on their overall quality of life."

I have been practicing strength training focusing on the Upper Body and I notice that not only has my tone improved, my attitude has improved.  I'm usually  pretty positive, and now I am finding it a lot easier to stay consistently positive.  With all the "negative news" (even when we log on to our default web browser we see awful headlines) it's important to stay positive.  All sorts of things can be happening around us with our loved ones, our jobs (or lack thereof), our finances....but the one thing we must do is hold to a positive attitude.  I say this because if we do something that empowers our strength, we will definitely feel more positive about our lives and whatever it is that we are going through.

So, once again, I will say:  take care of your body, mind and spirit......eat right and get exercise REGULARLY