Day One On Banana Island - Thriving

I had people asking me today how I'm surviving on Banana Island and my response is that I'm not only surviving, I am THRIVING.  I was so incredibly happy all day, smiling, laughing and giddy from all of the serotonin.  I was also satisfied and full and able to get between meals without snacking on bananas in between. ***with the exception of banana ice cream after I got home from the screening of the documentary Miss Representation. http://www.missrepresentation.org/the-film/ 

Here's a quick look at my first day:

~Woke up and drank one litre of water.

~Exercised for 30 minutes on the rebounder (mini trampoline) to Justin Bieber and did some yoga/stretching.

~My thought for the day was "Do not think any about yourself that you don't wish to become true."

~Made 2 smoothies - one with 8 spotted, ripe bananas blended with one cup of filtered water for breakfast . And a 6 banana smoothie with water to take for lunch at work along with three medium bananas. 

***Just Bananas and water!***

~I drank another litre of water in between smoothies. I was really thirsty from all the sugar!

~Supper: 7 Bananas ate monkey style. I was going to make ice cream but didnt have time before the movie. That's the beauty of bananas, so easy to eat, no prep, no utensils needed. I even snuck one into the theatre along with another bottle of filtered water.

~I came home from the movie and made a small dish of banana ice cream (video coming soon!) - it's one of my biggest challenges to get from supper to bed without eating - which is a big sign that I need to be going to bed earlier! 

~I am going to end the night with a meditation. Today is day four of the 21-Day Meditation Challenge with Deepak Chopra. I usually start the day with it but didn't have time to fit both a meditation and a workout in. I knew that I was more likely to meditate than exercise later in the day!

The tally is 28 Bananas, approximately 2800 calories, 30 minutes of exercise plus working on my feet 6 hours, 2 and a half litres of water, 6 hours of sleep last night (not enough!) and 100 smiles and laughs today. All in all, I'd say it was a huge success, I couldn't be happier right now. 

My morning 8 Banana and water smoothie.

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Also check out:

http://www.30bananasaday.com/

http://www.foodnsport.com/

Banana Island

I am returning to the beautiful Banana Island tomorrow! The land of pure bliss and abundant energy. Where is Banana Island? In my kitchen! 

What is a Banana Island /or a mono fruit island?

Banana Island describes someone that eats only bananas for a set period of time, I did two weeks in September and plan on doing one week this time around, but I know of people that have done it for a whole month! Banana/or Mono Fruit Island can also be done on other fruit besides bananas like peaches, mango, grapes, watermelons, persimmons, etc. My sister did a mono fruit island in the fall, picking one different type of fruit each day: 

Day1- Bananas, Day 2- Peaches, Day 3- Grapes. 

The idea is to pick one fruit for the duration of your challenge.  I choose bananas  because they are fast, cheap and easy! Haha. It's pretty easy to find bananas at he grocery store, and you can order them in by the case, it doesn't take much to prepare them and they are probably the least expensive of all fruits. I also like bananas because I feel they are the most versatile, offering me a variety of banana meals to get through my week. (Watch for my upcoming post on how to make 5 different banana meals, using only bananas!)

     How Does it Work?

You choose your fruit and go stock up! You are going to need plenty of whatever fruit you are eating in your house I have purchased two cases of organic bananas already, I got one last week and they are nice and ripe, and I get the other case on Friday! How much fruit you need will depend on how long you choose to stay on the island. I suggest a minimum of one week. I did two weeks my first time and it was great! (I bought 4 cases for two weeks)

Once you have an abundance of ripe fruit you can begin. Eat as many bananas as you like for breakfast dinner and supper. Only Bananas. This can be anywhere from 22-30 bananas in general. If you choose another fruit, make sure it's a sweet fruit like the ones mentioned above and try to get in around 2000-3000 calories a day, depending on your activity level. You can use chronometer online or a download a calorie counter app to your phone! 

I cannot stress enough the importance of eating RIPE fruit only!!!!!!! Your bananas must have lots of brown spots and peel very easily. If you hear the zip when peeling, they aren't ripe enough yet. No yellow, and definitely no green bananas. 

Drink plenty of water while on the island. I drink at least two and a half litres a day, and three if I get a lot of exercise. Try to exercise everyday, for at least 30 minutes- an hour, but make sure you also take time to rest and relax as your body detoxes and heals. Also, go to bed early. Sleep is so important when detoxing. 

Why am I doing Banana Island? What are the Benefits? 

I am going to Banana Island as a cleanse to detox my body from the cooked food I have been eating over the past two and a half months. I feel best eating my fruity raw diet and would like to get back to that way of living. Cravings get in the way and Banana Island will be like hitting the reset button, making it easier to control my cravings once I am done. We are literally what we eat. The food we consume becomes us - our cells, hair, skin, organs, tissue, etc. Banana Island allow our bodies to go into a detoxification. If the harmful foods you crave aren't in your body, you wont crave it. Especially SALT! 

Let's talk about weight loss. Some people loose weight on banana island. I am sure to loose a couple pounds just from eliminating salt alone. Last time, I stayed the same weight, but my body looked leaner, tighter and fitter. I made sure that I exercised every day and the amazing thing that happened was a very speedy recovery time. I could run for 6K a day plus yoga and not be stiff and sore the next day. Bananas give you an incredible amount of energy! You will be be able to get through your day no problem. 

Banana Island gives your digestive system a break. Fresh RIPE fruit is the easiest food for your body to digest, spending little time in the stomach. Therefore it takes up little energy, allowing our bodies the time and energy they need to spend healing and detoxing. Also, when you only eat one type of fruit, it enhances this experience even more. One ingredient is digested more efficiently than several.  

I am looking forward to the blissfulness of Banana Island. I was so happy the last time I went. It was like I was on cloud nine the entire time. Bananas are great for helping with depression and are wonderful mood boosters. I just couldn't stop smiling. I also felt mental and emotional clarity which is another benefit. 

The main reason I am interested in doing this is to gain more awareness. Your body is amazing and knows way more than you think it does. If you can learn to listen to it, you can achieve perfect health. Banana Island enhances your intuitive ability to listen to your body's needs. As I slowly add food back in at the end I will pay close attention to the things that disagree with me. Also, fruits and veggies will taste better. I couldn't believe all the flavor that was in an apple when I re-introduced them into my diet after BI.  

By only eating one food/ingredient you will be more aware of when you are satiated. The bananas will loose their taste and it will be easy to learn how to tell when you are truly full. 

Try to eat as clean as you can before you travel to Banana Island. No alcohol or animal products for several days prior. And eat as much fresh raw fruits and veggies as you can. It is ideal (but not essential) to be eating a lowfat raw vegan diet beforehand, but if you cannot, at least try to cut out meat and dairy products. 

**Side note: Organic vs Non-Organic Bananas. I strongly suggest spending the money to buy the organic bananas, especially if Del Montes are your only option for conventional bananas. There's something about them that doesn't digest well with myself and others I have talked to from the island. I did my first six days on organic last time, and when I switched to conventional Del Montes, I noticed an immediate difference in my digestion for the worst. Plus, you don't want to counter your bodies detoxing abilities by feeding yourself more chemicals and pesticides. I was shocked because I assumed that the banana peel was thick enough to block the fruit's absorption of these harmful sprays. 

I am so EXCITED to start tomorrow and share my experience with you. Follow my progress here on my Blog and at Naturally Ashley on Facebook!

Peace, love and lots of bananas! 

xoxo

** I got most of my information from Freelee at:

 30 Bananas a Day

as well as Food N Sport, Dr Doug Graham:

Food N Sport

and from all the wonderful friends I met at the 2012

  Woodstock Fruit Festival 

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Shiny, Healthy Hair - No Shampoo??

I came across a great YouTube video today by Forty Below Fruity, a Canadian fruit lover like myself! It's all about ditching the products we use on our hair, like shampoo, conditioner and so forth. In the video, she tell us that she hasn't washed her hair in two years! My first thought was 'I cant imagine how greasy my hair would get!' She says that you're hair gets used to it if you can stick out the greasy phase. I used to wash my hair every other day when I was younger, and now wash it once or twice a week, so I guess I could try taking the next step and challenge myself to one month without washing. I will definitely try the lemon, apple cider vinegar and baking soda idea and I've been wanting to use the coconut oil too! I've used every gluten free, natural shampoo I can find and all of them irritate my scalp anyways so I may need to ditch the products all together. It's worth a shot, and I wouldn't mind saving a little money too! Thanks 40 Below Fruity!!

Here's the link to her YouTube video "How to Get Beautiful Shiny Hair":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fq-MndOFQSE

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Five Ways to Eat Fruit for Breakfast

When I was told that it's healthy to eat fruit for breakfast, I thought, "How you you survive until lunch on just fruit?" I tried and it didn't work - I was snacking by ten o'clock. Here's where I went wrong: It had been drilled into my head to only eat one or two servings of fruit a day, so I would eat one banana and one apple for breakfast. No wonder I didn't make it to lunch time. You've got to eat way more than that. 

Normally I try to stick to eating one type of fruit or one family of fruit for a meal, like just berries, or just melons, just oranges. But some days I like to put a little effort into it and make something fun and delicious. Here are five ways that I do fruit for breakfast: 

1. A Great Big Smoothie!

I will blend 6-8 bananas or a bag a frozen mango or whatever sweet fruit I have by themselves or with some greens. I always stick to one type of greens per smoothie- like just baby spinach, or just kale. I find the taste results are better this way. When adding greens, start with a small amount and slowly increase. Sometimes I get creative and try to mimic tropical drinks like pina coladas but I find that sticking to simple 1-2-or 3 ingredient smoothies taste best. Keep it Simple! I also make at least one litre of smoothie for breakfast to get me through until lunch. Some of my favorite recipes are:

• 6-8 Bananas (optional add ins: Spinach or Kale, Dates, Mango, or Blueberries)
• 10 Oranges and Spinach
• 3 Apples, 3 Medjool Dates (pitted) and Spinach (Sprinkle of cinnamon optional)
• Bag of frozen Mango, Spinach (Dates or Blueberries are good add ins!) 
• Coconut water, 1/2 Pineapple, 2 frozen Bananas and 3 pitted Medjool Dates

 2. Cut a Watermelon in Half and Eat it!

Or grabl 6-8 bananas and eat them, or any large serving of RIPE sweet fruit. No prep, no mess and super easy in the morning. I can't wait until watermelons are back in season! I've been making meals out of bananas and mangos lately: the only thing required is peeling the fruit.

3. Banana Cereal

Sliced Bananas and Banana Milk. Slice 5-6 Bananas into a deep breakfast bowl. To make Banana Milk: Blend 2 bananas and 1 cup of filtered water in blender and pour over sliced bananas for your cereal. Can use one frozen banana for cold milk. I also sometimes add blueberries and dried mulberries for a a little crunch! (Pictured below I blended the dried mulberries for a granola topping. I also usually add way more milk!)

4. Fresh squeezed OJ!

One - two litres of fresh squeezed Orange Juice is a great way to start the day! Sometimes I just eat a bag of oranges, but there's a couple ways to get fresh OJ: Cut them in half and use an electric citrus juicer (not too expensive), or use a glass handheld citrus juicer - very inexpensive! I've even resorted to just squeezing them myself. You can also use a blender and blend the oranges well, pouring the contents into a nut-milk bag and straining the contents. 

 5. BAD Fruit Oatmeal.

Bananas, Apples and Dates! When Blended remind me of my old morning oatmeal. I throw two sliced apples in the Vitamix or food processor with two ripe brown spotted bananas and pulse blend a few times to chop the apples. Then I add three chopped and pitted medjool dates and pulse a couple more times to mix them in. The dates taste like brown sugar in this recipe. You can add a touch of cinnamon as well if you like, or blend up some banana milk and pour it on. I enjoy it plain- it's one of my fav ways to do fruit for breakfast. A sure winner with the kids if you have time to make it. (In the picture below, I tried making it with persimmons, which tasted great too!) 

I enjoy fruit for breakfast because it gives me a bunch of energy without weighing down my digestive system, and if you eat enough, it will get you through until lunch. Give it a try today. 

Naturally Ashley 

Pineapple Salsa and Cauliflower Fried Rice

This was a super tasty meal. I cut up half of a head of cauliflower and tossed it on a bed of romaine lettuce. Then I added a whole bunch of pineapple salsa to the top. It was extremely satisfying.  I really enjoyed the sweetness of the pineapple with the savouriness of the cilantro, green onion and tomato. And the cauliflower added the crunch I was looking for.

I absolutely love cauliflower. I used it as my "chips" when I make my sweet potato hummus dip or guacamole. I also use it as my rice in sushi rolls, or just eat it like rice with a squeeze of lemon and blueberries! The next recipe I want to try is cauliflower popcorn in the dehydrator! I will keep you posted on how that turns out, but until then here's a recipe I saw the other day for cauliflower fried rice that looked simply amazing: ( I tweaked it a little to dis-include animal products)

CAULIFLOWER FRIED RICE

INGREDIENTS:

1 head organic cauliflower- cut into florets and steamed
2 stalks celery
1/2 small red onion minced
3 garlic cloves minced
2 Tbsp fresh basil finely diced
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 tsp sea salt (optional)


DIRECTIONS:

1. Place steamed cauliflower in a food processor and pulse a few times to break up the florets into a rice-like texture. You can also do this with a potato masher or fork in a large mixing bowl.
2. Heat coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the onions, garlic and celery. Saute for 3-5 min. 
3. Add the cauliflower, basil and sea salt and saute another 7-10 minutes until the veggies are tender. Serve and enjoy! 

Give it a try and let me know if you like it!

Naturally Ashley

Happiness is a Choice. A Beautiful Choice.

Life is beautiful. I am grateful for this day and everyday. I see beauty everywhere and I smile. A lot. I often get asked how I can be so gosh-darn happy all the time. My response is that Happiness is a choice. I choose it everyday.

How do I do this? I was very lucky to be raised the way I was, I think my dad may be the happiest guy in the world. But I attribute my awareness of happiness as a choice to the Singing Substitute Teacher. I remember him 'subbing' our class when I was 14/15 years old. He usually brought his guitar, which the cool kids thought was dorky and used this time to goof off or skip out. But I listened very diligently, being a rule-following dork myself, and am very happy that I did because he taught me a lesson, not in science or in math - a lesson about happiness.

He came in one day and taught us that anger and happiness are not thought and feelings that can be caused by others. That someone cannot make you angry. That anger is a choice that YOU choose in reaction to a situation or another person's actions/behaviours.  And so with that happiness is also a choice, and if you choose to be happy, to see the positive in even a bad situation, you can have a beautiful life.

This lesson has stuck with me ever since and when I get angry I often think of this day when the Singing Substitute Teacher came in and taught me an amazing life lesson in how to be happy 101. It's not that I don't get angry at all anymore, I just am more aware that I am the one choosing these thoughts and feelings, and when you are aware, it makes it easier to choose happy.  Who doesn't want to choose and be happy? I can't help but think 'why wasn't this in the curriculum???'

Love Truffles

I went to my friend Stephanie's house today to see two of my favorite little girls and give them some Valentines hugs and kisses (not the chocolate, real hugs and kisses!) While I was there, Averee was telling me about the Valentines treats she was making for all of her friends tomorrow- she's such a sweetheart! 

When I got home, I decided to make some healthy V-day treats for myself!  I have been craving chocolate truffles ever since I came back from Sedona.  They had a raw/vegan friendly restaurant called the Chocola Tree that had these amazing raw chocolates. My favorite was Lulu's Love Truffles - raw vegan perfection! 

                                         

                                                    -Lulu's Love Truffles

                                   The Chocola Tree - Sedona, Arizona

I tried to find a recipe online for raw chocolate truffles, based on ingredients similar to Lulu's Love Truffles.  I found one that was similar on Raw Food Recipes website -rawfoodrecipes.com, and adapted it to my taste.  I used almonds because that was what I had on hand, but next time will make them with hazelnuts! You can also add mint extract, coconut flakes or other ingredients to make them fun. I just wanted sweet and simple chocolate today though.  I ate half of the batch and saved three balls to enjoy tomorrow on Valentines Day. They reminded me of little brownie fudge balls. So good!

Here is my recipe, try them out and let me know how much you love them:

Happy Valentines Day!