Jennifer Thompson » Motivation

Top 5 Detox Tips to Improve Your Next Cleanse

Jennifer — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:27:17 +0000

Taking the time to do a detox is a commitment to health. The money spent is an investment in your future. Energies used to travel are well worth the effort.

Finally, you have the opportunity to recharge, rebuild, cleanse and heal.

With a ‘reboot,’ moving forward, you can continue with positive change in all areas of your life. With all things considered, don’t you want to get the most out of your detox?

A few simple tips can help you maximize your results.

Eliminate Salt for 1-week before

Don’t forget to do your work at home. It doesn’t matter how mant fasts you’ve done; everyone needs to prepare correctly for a detox just the same.

For at least 7 days before the start of your program, eliminate all salt from the diet. Keep in mind that most salt is hidden in foods and not actually added. Look out for restaurant food, airplane food, sauces, salad dressings, curries, pickled foods and packaged snacks.

Having no salt in the diet allows the body to start loosening built-up plaque and toxins in the colon. A no-salt diet for 14 days as a pre-cleanse is ideal, but at a minimum, try to commit to 7 days. By doing so, you will maximize your results during the detox.

Bring Herbal Teas

Most detox programs offer various fresh juices in addition to herbs and detox drinks. They also allow for herbal teas using fresh or dried herbs, but often charge more for tea or may not mention that organic herbal teas are permitted. Herbal teas support the organs during the cleansing process, and even better, they provide a nice flavor to enjoy while fasting!

Be sure to buy organic and bring a variety of flavors to choose from. Peppermint or ginger tea are great for nausea. Turmeric tea is very cleansing for the liver and tastes delicious! Parsley or uva ursi tea help to support the kidneys. Juniper berry tea is excellent for the heart and circulation. Coriander tea supports heavy metal detoxification. All can be bought as dried tea bags at any local health food store.

Avoid Gossip, Drama & Violence

Many people successfully achieve the physical act of detox, but leave behind the emotional and spiritual sides. I can’t even count how many nights over the years that I’ve seen a tv room packed with fasters, all eyes fixed on a horror flick or violent drama. How can the body let go and heal when the mind is being distracted with such images?

Be careful, especially when doing a detox, to avoid negative talk, images, news and events. The body is so sensitive while cleansing. The more you surround yourself with positive energy, motivational stories, happy people and inspiring thoughts, the more your body, mind and spirit will benefit.

Negative energies can attach to toxins in the body. The more you let go of those thoughts, the deeper you can go in your cleansing. It’s true! For more information on the science of this, I recommend Bruce Lipton’s Biology of Belief of Louise Hay’s You Can Heal Your Life.

Get Adequate Rest

Most detox programs offer a full day of activities to choose from, including meditation, yoga, group walks, tai chi, chi gung, pilates, water therapy, massage, colonics, nutrition talks and more. It’s easy to get quickly overwhelmed with all the choices, and you may actually find yourself feeling stressed, trying to run from one program to the next.

Be sure to listen to your body and make time for yourself, even if that means skipping a few activities. The more you rest during your detox, the more the body can internalize its energy and go deeper into healing. As Daniel Reid says in the book Tao of Detox, ‘Save you breath.’

Try to spend at least one hour a day on your own, reading a book or listening to music, without talking to or engaging with others. Getting back in touch with yourself is one of the great benefits of doing a cleanse.

Powerful Affirmations

You can easily optimize your cleanse with your choice of thoughts and words. Be sure to spend a few minutes each day focusing on what you want to achieve as a result of doing the detox. Visualize yourself at home in a continued state of excellent health, high energy and balanced spirit.

Affirmations really help in training the mind to think positive thoughts. On the first day of your retreat, write 10 affirmations of things, people or feelings that you would like to have in your life. You can write them in the form, “I am…” or “I have…” Every day, spend 5-10 minutes alone, repeating your affirmations to yourself. You are creating an energy of success that the physical body will have to follow!

Some examples include: “I am healthy, balanced and strong.” “I attract positive, loving people and relationships into my life.” “I make the best choices for my health and my body every day in every way.” “I love myself and others love and support me too.”

‘Fasting helps reverse the ageing process
for a healthier and longer life.’
-James Balch, M.D., Co-Author
Prescriptions for Nutritional Healing

Popular Posts:

True Story of Faith & Healing with John of God in Brazil

Jennifer — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 12:16:24 +0000

An inspiring read!

If you’re looking for an uplifting, inspiring story about spiritual healing, Divine connection and the power of believing, then I’ve got the book for you. Newly released by Cash Peters, ‘A Little Book About Believing: The Transformative Healing Power of Faith, Love and Surrender,’ is a personal account of the author’s visit to the Casa de Dom Inacio in Brazil, where the extraordinary faith healer John of God freely offers his healing services to thousands of visitors every year. Even Oprah did a show on this guy!

The book is quite funny because initially, Cash is a non-believing, cake-eating, over-worked, unhappy-with-his-job kind-of regular guy who happens to be open for adventure and new experiences. So he goes into this Brazilian village full of people from all over the world with an open mind, and when he leaves…well, you will see for yourself when you read the book!

This book resonated with me on many levels, especially thanks to references from Bruce Lipton, Carolyn Myss, Esther Hicks and T. Colin Campbell. It brought a lot of ideas together which reinforce the power of positive thinking and the importance of detox and a plant-based diet for long-term health and healing.

Some great quotes include:

‘How was I to know, as a mere layman, that, for many surgeons, whipping out gallbladders is their bread and butter?? Half a million gallbladders are removed every year, oftentimes unnecessarily, when really all that may have been required was a change of diet perhaps, or a thinning of the bile, or a simple flush of the system. No mention, however, was ever made to me about viable alternatives.’

‘Trust yourself. Trust life. Embrace uncertainty. Dive fearlessly in, holding nothing back. Expect a positive outcome always, and marvel at how things turn out. Remember: the unknown is where all the fun happens.’

‘All the success, wealth, power, influence, status, stockholdings, wives and homes in the world aren’t worth a red cent if you’re too sick to enjoy them.’

‘It’s not what happen to you that’s important; it’s what you do with it. Just because something seems bad, or because people tell you it’s bad – or incurable or unstoppable – doesn’t mean it is. We can, if we choose, be the architects of our own destiny.’

‘There was no cancer in ancient Egyptian times – did you know that? Scientists have run tests on mummies. Cancer is a modern plague. A sign of our times. It’s something we’re doing to ourselves. It’s environmental, it’s a lifestyle thing, it’s what we’re putting into our mouths.’

‘Life is not a competition. If you really must compete, compete with yourself. Work at being better, kinder, more loving, more grateful, more mindful, more forgiving and more generous.’

‘Your body is like an exquisite temple. It will stand firm and strong for the longest time if you look after it. Neglect it, though, and the roof caves in.’

‘Healthcare companies are in the profit business, not the people-helping business, the way their name suggests.’

‘For years I thought, ‘If only I could change him, make him understand…,’ when really it was I who needed to change and understand.’

‘Even when drug companies and medical practice do come under scrutiny, it’s always done in a deftly political way in the name of ‘balance,’ when really they’re just dodging the issues. To that end, an ‘expert’ doctor will usually be hauled in, paid to attack anything remotely alternative or groundbreaking.’

‘Fear tears down the spirit. Anger chews away at the body. You could eat all the organic fruits and vegetables in the world, and do everything else right, but if you’re anxious, angry, resentful, fearful or bitter the whole time, you are still paving a road to disease.’

‘Refuse to give (your disease) a label. Starve it of attention. Instead, refocus. Align yourself with divine consciousness, which knows only of perfect health. Let your reaction to your condition be only high-vibration thoughts.’

The book is available on amazon.com.

Popular Posts:

Stop Premature Aging: Take this Anti-Aging Quiz and Mirror Test Now!

Jennifer — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 14:54:14 +0000

Go to your mirror nude now & take this Mirror Test:

The Real Anti-Aging Test

Are you happy with what you see?
Do you look old and tired?
Does you body sag?
Do you have poor skin and muscle tone?
How’s your hair?
How’s your posture?
Are your eyes dull and lifeless?
Do you have a sallow complexion?
Are you trim and fit?

After making a careful examination of your body, how would you describe it? Youthful? Aging?

No one can answer these questions more honestly than you. You are the one that can take charge of your life!

Let’s go farther than mere looks.

How did you really feel today?
Are you bursting with energy and vitality or do you have bothersome aches and pains?
What about your joints?
Are you stiff and sore?
Does your lower back plague you with pain?
How did you sleep last night?
Did you get up fresh and feeling alive?
Did you go to bed tired, yet unable to sleep?
Did you face the new day feeling energy-less, as if you had all the energy drained away?
How is your appetite?
Do you relish every mouthful of food you eat?
Do you have gas pains after meals?
What about your elimination? Is it perfect or are your bowels clogged?
Above all things, were you happy today? Yesterday?
Or are you depressed and blue?

Do you feel that you are ageing rapidly? Is life passing you by?
Can you honestly say, “I am getting younger as I live longer”?
Or will you have to admit that the longer you live, the older you feel?
Take this quiz monthly.

-from Paul C. Bragg

Healthy Glow Keeps You Looking Young

I love this anti-ageing test. It’s a great way to check in with yourself and be 100% honest with where you’re at. People often say to me that they are healthy and they eat really well, but once we talk further, their list of ailments starts to unfold. I often wonder, do they even know what healthy feels like?

Aches, pains, poor digestion, troubled sleep and unhappiness do not make for a healthy, youthful ageless glow.

You might experience temporary results with fillers, implants or botox, but these are short-term fixes to a long-term problem: toxicity and imbalance inside the body. An anti-ageing doctor should only be focusing on the foods you eat, your lifestyle and detox plan, not on outside creams or ‘magic cures.’

The compliments that I receive the most are always relating to my beautiful skin and bright, clear engaging eyes. 10 years ago on a SAD diet, no one noticed those traits in me, because my skin was dull and my eyes were puffy! What gave me a new-found youth was regular detox and a chemical-free, natural, whole food, plant-based raw food diet. Over time, my diet has improved even more, reducing olive oil and other oils to a minimum, continuing to refine as I learn more on my journey.

Are you older or younger than you feel?

Let Your Food be Thy Medicine

The secret to looking young and feeling young lies in the quality and types of food you eat. It’s that simple. Schedule your detox to give yourself a good ‘reboot.’ Make a plan for improving the diet and lifestyle after. The skin will improve, energy levels will increase and excess weight will be lost, once and for all! Be gentle and patient with yourself. Focus on love, joy, acceptance and on the all good in your life. Watch, and people will notice the positive change in you!
Popular Posts:

Gain Control of Overeating

Jennifer — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 19:52:45 +0000

It’s easy to get into the habit of overeating, especially in a busy world full of instant accessibility to food. Everyone has a different weak point when it comes to overeating. Over time, overeating can lead to weight gain and also trigger feelings of guilt and remorse, certainly not healthy energies for healing!

Take Control!

I recently read a book about this very topic called ‘The End of Overeating’ by David Kessler. A lot of the book outlines how the food industry creates foods which are addictive by nature, then puts them into packaging with alluring and tempting labels and markets them with intentional advertising geared at selling ‘happiness’ and ‘fun’ through the consumption of their food. It’s definitely all about making profit, and innocent consumer is the victim for sure.

The interesting part of the book is when the author speaks about how to stop the habit of overeating. Below is a summary of his key points to remember.

Stop Emotional Eating

Stop Emotional Eating!

It can be easy to turn to food when emotional tensions are running high. Our conditioned response to stress is to eat. Next time you are faced with this situation, ask yourself, ‘Will eating truly help me deal with this feeling?’ Be prepared with a plan for something else to do besides eat. Call a friend, goo for a walk or practice some stress reduction exercises.

Have a list of alternative responses ready, so that when strong emotions kick in and steer you towards food, you can quickly choose to do something different.

Deal with Temptation

If your guard is down at the first sign if an urge, it can be tempting to respond. That lapse opens the door to an internal dialogue in which you begin to justify giving in to the temptation.

Deal With Temptation

A bad day at work, a child’s misbehaving, even a disappointing step on the scale can become your justification.

Soon you’re inventing excuses for pursuing reward. ‘I’m entitled to this….It will cheer me up….I’ve been good this week….I can eat just a little.’ Eventually, your determination to say no buckles.

Accept the reality that you will be challenged with these moments. It’s not about being strong enough to beat the temptation of eating stimulating food, but about being smart enough to deal with it.

“Eat Food. Mostly Plants. Not too much.” -Michael Pollan

Visualize the Right Choices

Visualize success!

Visualize yourself deciding not to reach for bread when it is passed around the table. Imagine choosing all healthy foods when you shop. See yourself creating wonderful salads and delicious satisfying meals that are serving your body and your health.

Elite athletes spend hours anticipating every move of their performance in advance. When the moment comes, they are completely focused on the routine that had been practiced over and over again in their mind.

Mental rehearsal helps solidify your commitment to controlled eating by helping you focus your intentions and maintain control over your thoughts.

-From the Book ‘The End of Overeating’ by David Kessler

As you practice these steps, over time you will start to see for yourself that you can indeed break the habit of overeating and make room for a new healthy, balanced way of living.Popular Posts:

Recipe for a Fresh Homemade Tomato Mexican Salsa

Jennifer — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 15:58:56 +0000

Mexican Salsa Bliss!

This is a recipe that everyone loves! If you are in the middle of a fresh summer tomato bliss, this is the perfect recipe to use a lot of deliciously ripe tomatoes. You can either make this salsa mild or spicy, depending on your taste. If you make it for a party, you can easily make half of the recipe spicy and the other half with no jalapenos – that way everyone can have a taste.

I love to make this Mexican salsa for my family when I am home in the US, and even though they are not into the raw food diet, they still love this dish. You can serve it with fresh chopped cucumbers, raw crackers, or even roll into mini-tortillas with fresh lettuce leaves, salsa and julienne-cut carrot, celery and zucchini. There are many ways to serve and enjoy!

Raw Food Recipe: Fresh Tomato, Onion and Cilantro Mexican Salsa

8-10 large ripe fresh tomatoes, finely chopped
1 – 1/2 large white onions, diced
10 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, diced
3/4 – 1 cup fresh cilantro (coriander) leaves, chopped
5-6 fresh limes, squeezed
4 Tbsp. raw apple cider vinegar
Dash Cayenne Pepper to taste
Dash Cumin Powder to taste
Sea Salt to taste ( about 1/2 tsp.)

Chop and dice all ingredients and mix everything well in a large bowl. Season with more cayenne pepper or salt as needed. It’s best to sit overnight and let the ingredients marinate; but as a minimum try to let sit for at least 2 hours before serving. Optional ingredients below can also be added.

Optional:
1 fresh jalapeno, diced or
5-6 pickled jalapeno slices, diced
2 Tbsp. raw honey

Raw Food Yummy Salsa!

Tomatoes are naturally high in lycopene, a type of anti-oxidant that helps to break down free radical damage in the cells. Garlic and onion and natural sulfur (cleansing) foods and have anti-parastitic, anti-viral and ant-fungal effects. Raw apple cider vinegar is excellent for digestion. Cayenne Pepper helps to strengthen the heart and circulation and is naturally cleansing for the liver. Eating delicious raw food recipes with family and friends is a great way to enjoy healthy food together and also share some of your raw food lifestyle!

Cilantro is known to be a natural chelator and is very good for removing heavy metal toxicity from the body. Fresh limes are great for alkalizing the pH, aiding in digestion and reducing any build-up from acid wastes. Preparing food fresh and in it’s raw form gives you all of the best nutrients and of course will taste far better than anything in a jar or can! All-in-all this fresh salsa is extremely healthy and cleansing for the body, and is also a great choice for anyone currently on a detox diet.

Popular Posts:

Raw Food Snack: Recipe for Sesame Balls

Jennifer — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 14:46:12 +0000

Sesame seeds are a great natural vegan source of calcium!

Sesame Balls

Raw Sesame Ball Yum!

In a mini food processor, first blend/grind:

½ cup organic raw white sesame seeds

Then add 3-4 Tablespoons Raw honey (or agave nectar) and blend again. Add more if mixture is too dry.

Mixture should be moist enough to roll into small balls (about the size of a walnut).

Place a handful of whole sesame seeds on a plate and roll each ball (walnut size ball) on seeds to coat the ball with sesame for a nice, appetizing look. Can decorate with goji berries, raisins or dried mulberries.

Serve and enjoy! This recipe is so fast and easy, you will be amazed. I have shared this with family, friends and at raw food potlucks and it is always a favorite.

Affirmation: ‘I accept myself for where I am on my journey knowing that just being on the path is a good thing!’Popular Posts:

How often should you detox & What type of detox should you do?

Jennifer — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 13:48:47 +0000

In this video, Jennifer answers the most commonly asked questions about detox – what type of detox should I do and how often? Understand how a spring cleaning or reboot is necessary to keep your internal temple pure. Realize that there is only Magic Pill – to live in alignment with the natural laws of Mother Earth. And heed to the dangers of becoming a ‘detox junkie.’

This video is an excerpt from a one-hour talk that Jennifer presents on this topic and was filmed in Seoul, Korea as part of Jennifer’s 3-week series of detox, raw food, cleansing and natural healing seminars. Other topics in later videos include Introduction to Superfoods, How to Read Food Labels and Understanding the Basics on Food Additives.

Unfortunately, we live in a toxic world. Because these environmental and dietary toxins can accumulate inside the body, it’s important to incorporate a colon cleanse into your annual or biannual health routine. The colon is one of the body’s major detoxification organs. When it becomes clogged with waste and toxins, its effectiveness is compromised. You can help restore your colon to optimal function with an all-natural herbal fiber cleanse. Popular Posts:

The Happiness Factor: Eat well but don’t forget to have fun & enjoy life too!

Jennifer — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:14:17 +0000

Being healthy is fun. Having energy to enjoy life is what it’s all about. Yes, being healthy is the best part of being alive!

Joy is also Bliss!

So what exactly does being healthy mean? I spend a lot of time working with people to get their physical body back into alignment – strengthening organs, detoxing, rebuilding mineral and vitamin reserve and teaching clean and natural living.

But, there is another very important element in the overall health equation, and that is The Happiness Factor.

Everything in life is always about balance. Yes, we need to respect our body as the physical temple to our soul and give it only the best foods from Mother Earth. And we also need to give it the best thoughts too!

What I would like to say to everyone is this: Have some fun on your healing journey!

How you have fun is up to you, but I can tell you that being sober and healthy is actually more enjoyable than the alternative. It’s a wonderful feeling to be confident in your natural self, to engage deeply with others on a soul-spirit level, to laugh from the center of your core, and to wake up feeling clear, fresh and alive, ready to start another day!

Having fun is essential for good health!

‘Fun’ does not always have to be centered around drugs or alcohol. You can have amazing fun playing in nature, going hiking, camping, or skiing, swimming, reading a great book, watching a funny movie or just having a laugh with friends. Think about trying something new for yourself this year – find a way to have fun that is healthy for your body, mind and spirit!

Can you imagine how wonderful it would feel to be happy in your heart and also in your stomach, when you are giving yourself the best thoughts, feelings and foods?

Your mental health is just as important as your physical health. Especially if you are over-worked, too stressed, suffering from depression or anxiety or just generally not feeling joyous in your life anymore, it’s time to look at making some lifestyle change. Fun, love and laughter are all healing energies for the body!

Plan a day for yourself this month, a day just for you, a healthy day on every level of consciousness, where you also do something you have never done before, something challenging, new and fun!! You may get interested in a new hobby for life and make new friends along the way too!Popular Posts:

Green Smoothie Recipes and Inspiration

Jennifer — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 13:06:04 +0000

New healthy habit: Drink one Green Smoothie every day. No more excuses. Time to experience the Green Smoothie Power!

General recommendations for Green Smoothies:

Green Smoothie Bliss!

Blend 60% fruit to 40% greens.
Use 2 varieties of fruit and up to 2 types of greens.
Blend different fruits and greens every day.

HAPPY MORNING SMOOTHIE:

1 bunch fresh parsley
3 bananas
½ fresh pineapple
½ lime squeezed
½ cup water

FIBER BLEND SMOOTHIE:

5-6 leaves large kale
½ bunch parsley
1 Tbsp. cold-pressed hemp oil
1 Tbsp. ground hemp protein
2 Tbsp. ground flax seed
1 red apple
2 cups red grapes
½ lemon squeezed
½ cup water

QUICK CLEANSE SMOOTHIE:

1 bunch celery leaves
½ bunch parsley
2 cups fresh papaya
2 cups fresh pineapple
½ cup water

GREEN BLISS SMOOTHIE:

2 Large handfuls of kale
2 lemons, squeezed
1 avocado
¼ cup water

Enjoy these wonderful creations made from the healing foods of Mother Earth and blended especially with love!

Popular Posts:

Setting Goals & Intentions: Creating Positive Manifestations

Jennifer — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 14:29:33 +0000

Sit in a quiet and safe space and take a moment to feel the gratitude of abundance for everything which you already have in life, then allow yourself to fully feel all the love you are currently receiving and giving in life.

With those vibrations gently running through your body, you are in the perfect position to begin the process of manifesting what you really want.

Visualize everything you desire as if you already have it, thanking your Divine Source for all the wondrous abundance and love you are receiving.

Every day take a moment to visualize yourself in that place. Watch in awe how you will begin to attract the people you need to meet and be offered the opportunities you desire in order to make everything you wish for a reality!

Think about getting a Manifestation Crystal to amplify your requests for life and positive change and help bring about very quick manifestations. It should be a special crystal which has a high energy charge, which is particularly effective in releasing energy blockages. Popular Posts: