Yoga For Digestion

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 Yoga For Digestion

brought to you by YogLA founder, Nick Ryder

 

Lying Twist

Whilst one of the best seasons of the year,  Christmas can be a bit of a nightmare when it comes to remaining Hip & Healthy. Embarrassing jumpers from obscure relatives negate any form of winter style, and the obligatory mountain of food followed by a chocolate and a TV induced coma can leave you feeling less than healthy.

However, we’ve got the perfect yoga pose that will help aid your digestion, alleviate stomach pain/ bloating and help to reset any kinks/ tension in the spine from hunching up on the sofa with the family watching Her Majesty.

Start off lying on your back with your arms extending on the floor at 90 degrees to the torso. Draw your right leg into the chest and place your left hand on the outside of the knee. Take a deep breath in and as you exhale, gently move your right knee to the floor on the left hand side. Gaze out to your right hand and aim to keep your shoulders relaxed and on the floor.  An alternative if you really ate a lot and can’t face lifting your knee up is to bend the knees, leaving the feet on the floor and rock the knees from side to side – this one’s called ‘windscreen wipers’ and is one of my favourites!

Just a few points…

Let gravity do the work – don’t force it!

The depth of the twist relates to how far up you bring your knee – you can bend it slightly and roll it out to the side if you want.

Use your inhale/ exhale to relax the muscles deeper into the stretch.

Don’t be alarmed if you hear a few pops – that’s just your spine realigning (or maybe you ate too many Brussels’ sprouts)!

Nature’s Little Superheroes – Phytonutrients

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We reveal the benefits of nature’s little superheroes Phytonutrients

Phytonutrients are wonderful things that live within plants to help them fight off disease. So when you eat a plant packed full of them you too benefit from their resilient ways as they continue the battle within you helping you to destroy free radicals and disease as well. Phytonutrients are, however, heat sensitive and therefore best eaten raw if you want to reap their benefits. So where can you find these special little things at Christmas? As luck would have it… Everywhere!
Carrots, sweet potatoes, squash: these all contain the phytonutrient Beta-Carotene, which your body converts into Vitamin A.
Tomatoes: packed full of Lycopene, tomatoes are a great way to ward of cancers.
Red Wine: one of the best sources of resveratrol is found in red wine, which we think is excellent news. We did a whole article on it’s benefits if you want to get a bit more clued up. If you’re not that bothered then this is the general thought: don’t raid the off-licence just yet – you should still drink responsibly but perhaps swap that glass of white wine for red and you’ll reap a host of benefits. Resveratrol is great for skin, warding of cancer and has even been linked to living longer!
Apples: a great source of Quercetin, apples help prevent heart disease.

Our Top Ten Hip and Healthy Stocking Fillers

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Kathleen Flemming reveals her top ten stocking fillers for the Hip and Healthy girl

1. Peppersmith Mints – It is always useful to have some after dinner mints in your handbag and Peppersmith boxes are perfect hand bag size. These mints contain natural ingredients and they have been accredited by the British Dental Health Foundation as being healthy for your teeth (www.peppersmith.co.uk for stockists).

2. Divine Dark Chocolate – The name “Divine” says it all. This dark chocolate is not only delicious but by eating it, you are also helping the cocoa farmers in Ghana. Divine is a truely fair trade chocolate company and it is the only fair trade chocolate which is part owned by the farmers. There are dark chocolate coins for Christmas but there is also a range of dark chocolate slabs (70% – 85% dark chocolate) including dark chocolate with raspberries and dark chocolate with fruit and nuts (www.divinechocolate.com for online shopping or buy it in Waitrose, Oxfam and many specialist food stores).

3. Satsumas – Satsumas are a classic Christmas stocking gift and perfect for a healthy stocking. Satsumas are packed with Vitamin C, low in calories and taste yummy, They are the perfect antidote to Christmas excesses. You can buy bags of satsumas cheaply from most supermarkets.

4. Mixed Nuts – Brazil nuts and cashews are my favourite but you can mix and match your nuts at stores such as Cranberry (www.cranberryuk.com). Nuts are packed with protein and good fats which help protect against heart problems. Choose raw nuts over salted and honey roasted ones.

5. Liz Earle Daily Eye Repair – This cream is amazing for tired post-party eyes. It contains naturally active ingredients including Vitamin E and soothing echinacea and it helps to reduce dark shadows under your eyes (GBP 14.25 at any John Lewis or Liz Earle store – www.lizearle.co.uk).

6. Origins Organic “Drink Up” Face Mask – After lots of late nights, eating and drinking skin becomes dehydrated. This face mask is made from organic ingredients and rehydrates tired faces (GBP 20, available in most John Lewis and Debenhams stores as well as online at www.origins.co.uk).

7. Lulu Lemon Ultimate No Show Run Socks – Socks are a classic stocking filler. For a runner’s stocking, Lulu Lemon running socks are perfect and they come in a stunning purple colour (GBP 12, www.lululemon.co.uk).

8. Yoga Matters Eye Pillow – Soothe tired eyes and enhance yoga relaxation with an eye pillow. These Yoga Matters pillows are filled with linseed and have removable covers (GBP 6, www.yogamatters.co.uk).

9. 1000 Places to See Before You Die, Patricia Schultz – Wondering where to go in the new year but need inspiration? This book is packed with ideas from Africa to the Americas as well as places in the UK for weekends away (GBP 14.99, available in all good book stores and www.amazon.co.uk).

10. Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, Susan Jeffers – This book will inspire you to overcome your fears and follow your dreams in the new year. It is short, easy to read and contains many useful tips on doing what makes you truely happy (GBP 12.99, available at Waterstones book shops or online at www.amazon.co.uk).

 

 

 

Our Top Three Christmas Energy Foods

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It’s that time of year – Christmas is just around the corner – so close you can almost smell the roast turkey, and we have a million and one things to do before we actually get there. You have a personal ‘to do’ list that could rival Santa’s, and let’s not even get started with deadlines that need to be met at work. But we urge you not to throw your health compass out the window just yet as we feel that it may be the solution to get you through, unscathed, to the big day! See below for our favourite festive foods that fuel:

Chestnuts
“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire” is the opening to one of the most commonly sung Christmas songs, and has fuelled our association with these nuts and the winter season. But there is much more to these babies than a festive song and dance. Full of the fat soluble vitamin B, that aids production of red blood cells and helps the break down of carbs, fats and protein for energy and enhances brain function. Protein packed, leaving you fuller for longer it is a great addition to your breakfast or afternoon snack. Full of Omega-3 fats (the good fats as shown on day 11) to rev your metabolism and maintain a healthy digestive system as well as glowing winter skin.

Dates
One of our favourite Christmas foods, dates, are a great way to add a sweetness to a dish without adding sugar. They have a host of nutritional benefits too. Dates are probably best known for their positive digestion effects, and are especially effected with helping relive the symptoms of constipation. This is due to the amount of fibre they contain. Fibre helps the digestive system work more efficiently and keep things moving. Increasing your fibre intake has been linked to a reduction in colon cancer and heart disease. Dates are also a healthy source of B vitamins, which is where the energy part comes in as B vitamins help turn your food into energy (which we explained a little better above).

Cinnamon
I know, we kind of bang on a bit about this wonder spice. But if cinnamon was a spice girl it would be Sporty Spice – full of energy, prancing around the stage doing high kicks and judo moves, all whilst maintaing a consistent stability, her moods don’t change, she has only had one hairstyle and I’m pretty sure one type of tracksuit. This is cinnamon. It’s scent is said to give you energy and make you alert, but its overriding health benefit is stabilising blood sugar levels. We love it and we are pretty sure Sporty Spice loves it too.

Fuel Yourself First Thing: It’s all about the breakfast

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Fuel first thing with a good breakfast

 

During the Christmas season we tend to eat more and because of this many of us decide that it would be a great idea therefore not to eat much in the morning so that when we eat later in the day we won’t feel as bad. Is this a good idea? No. It’s a terrible idea. You are setting yourself up for a fall. When you don’t eat in the morning you don’t even give your metabolism a chance – it will slow right down as you become more hungry throughout the day as it is worried about where it’s next meal will come from.

Start the day with a hot water to flush out all the toxins that your body has been busy working to get rid of over-night. Then have a good healthy and fuelling breakfast. A recent study done by the clever people at University of Alabama at Birmingham showed that mice who consumed a high-fat morning meal burned more fat throughout the day than those who ate a carb-rich dish. There are such things as healthy fats like nuts and avocado. So top your porridge with some delicious nuts or slice up an avocado with your egg. Not only will you feel fuller for longer, your blood sugar levels will be more stable, your metabolism will be happier (helping you to burn more throughout the day) but you will be less likely to snack on sugary Christmas foods that will no doubt be an arm’s length away.

If you really don’t want to sit down to a big meal first thing try our fig, lime, poppyseed and cashew smoothie. Just click here for the recipe.

 

 

 

Hip & Healthy Guide to Paris

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We bring you a Healthy Guide to Paris by top Nutritionist, Madeleine Shaw (www.madeleineshaw.com)

Until recently I was living in the wonderful city of Paris. When I first got the job, I was daunted to be living in the land of bread, cheese, and cream. However, I was amazed to discover the incredible emergence of real healthy living in this beautiful city once famed for it’s rich food and fine wine.

Cafes/Restaurants

Au Grain de Folie
A vegetarian and vegan hub. This cheery place has a menu that’s pretty much macrobiotic, with lots of different types of veggies cooked and presented in many mouthwatering ways. One of their meals does contain fish (it’s delicious), and they also have amazing juices to compliment your meal. 24, rue de Vieuville, 75018. Tel. 01 42 58 15 57. Open Tuesday – Sunday, 1:00pm -2:30, and 7:30-10:30.

Phyto Bar
This innovative spot hosts delicious organic meat, wild fish, organic veggies, as well as beautiful organic wine and champagne! 47, Boulevard Saint-Germain, 75005. Tel: 01 44 07 36 99. Open daily from 12pm – 12am.

La Chandelle Verte
This place has the elegance and scrumptiousness of a typical French Bistro, but is bursting with nourishing, organic goodness. 40 rue d’Enghien, 75010. Tél. 01 47 70 25 44. Open Monday to Friday, for lunch only, from noon until 2pm.

Bob’s Kitchen
This place had the coolest energy! Drop in here for freshly pulped bespoke juices. They have great, comforting vegetarian food too. 74 rue de Gravilliers; 75003. Open Mon-Fri 08-3pm. Sat-Sun 10-4pm.

Ralph’s
American-style restaurant where you can get a great organic piece of steak. All their meat is organic and hormone-free. There’s outdoor seating, and wonderful opulent interiors. Heavenly setting for a hearty meal. 173 Boulevard Saint-Germain, Tel. 75006. +33 1 44 77 76 00

Supermarkets

Naturalia, La Vie Bio, Bio Génération, BioCoop are scattered all over Paris. They contain the usual things you hope to find at health food stores: fresh produce, healthy snacks, chemical-free toiletries and yummy smoothies.

The mecca for organic shopping can be found just outside of Paris at Les Nouveaux Robinsons; this houses everything organic you could dream up and much, much more. I think it’s what every supermarket should be like! Address: Place de la Republique, 93100 Montreuil-sous-Bois. Open Mon – Sat. 10am-8pm. 

Markets

Raspail Market Boulevard Raspail, Entre la rue du Cherche-Midi et la rue de Rennes, 75006 Paris. Open Sundays: 9am – 2pm.
This is the most amazing market I have ever experienced; it’s loaded with magnificent fruits, vegetables, organic meat, dairy and nuts from local gardens, and all over the world. Nearly forty vendors are on site, with some of the finest biological products.

Marché Biologique Batignolles Boulevard des Batignolles, 75017 Paris. Open Saturdays: 9am – 2pm.
Another organic paradise. This place has more food than the eyes or stomach can handle. Highlights are amazing stalls serving hot healthy crepes, as well as delicious organic goat’s yogurt.

Fitness

Rasa Yoga 21 Rue Saint-Jacques  75005, Tel. 01 43 54 14 59.
The most incredible sanctuary that offers yoga and pilates classes, running around the clock. Some of the classes are taught in English, however do give a French class a go, as it’s quite an adventure. They also have a wonderful store full of beautiful mats, books, and clothing. Its tranquil energy will leave you ohmming!

Cross Fit Gym 51 Rue Etienne Marcel 75001 Tel. +33 6 20 62 77 40.
This the coolest place to work up a sweat. There are classes running all day. This gym is not for the faint-hearted, however there is always a modified version. Check out my post on Cross Fit  for full details.

Walking
The Parisians are a healthy nation as they walk everywhere. It’s the most amazing city to wander around. On every corner, there’s a treat for the eyes, from beautiful churches, to meandering cobbled streets or lovers kissing… Get strolling!

Eight Ways to Burn 200 Calories

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Eight Ways to Burn 200 Calories

Burning calories isn’t limited to the treadmill or gym, you can actually get slim doing what you love the most, taking up a new hobby or even just doing daily chores. Here are a few ideas:

Go on Strike…
90 Minutes of bowling will soon burn up 200 calories. Get your friends to join you and enjoy some (sugar/alcohol-free) drinks and get striking.

Don a bike with basket…
Need to go to the shops? Ride there. 23 minutes of pedalling will soon have you warm and free of 200 calories!

Pose
Vinyasa yoga (the type of yoga that has you move fluidly from one pose to another) is believed to burn 7 calories per minute. You’ll soon clock up 200 calories – in the first 29 minutes in fact.

Workin’ at the Car Wash
Heard of the phrase “work up a sweat”? Well, that is exactly what you’ll do at the car wash. Spend 31 minutes hosing down the car and 31 minutes drying and waxing the car to burn up those calories. Simples.

Plunge in
Scuba diving is not only exciting and fun, it’s also a burner. In just 27 minutes of scuba diving you will burn 200 calories. Plus you get to do it in some of the most beautiful oceans! Need we say more?

Dance
Dance for around half an hour. This is a great one as you can do it almost anywhere – in a club, at home, with friends, on your own. Just 29 minutes and you’ll have burnt around 200 calories.

Re-arrange the house
Always wanted to re-decorate but don’t have the cash? Try moving bits of your furniture around to change the look and feel of the room. Plus you’ll expend about 200 calories for every half an hour you work!

Run
It is the easiest way to burn calories. Just run for 25 minutes on a treadmill – you can burn more outdoors – and you’ll soon reach your 200 target.

It’s Never Too Late to get Hip and Healthy

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It’s Never Too Late to get Hip and Healthy

 

I know, I know… It’s winter, it’s cold, freezing in fact, it’s dark, it’s nearly Christmas. Whilst all these may be true it is never to late to jump on board the Hip and Healthy train. We believe in living a life that’s 80/20. That is 80% angelic and 20% not so angelic. You can adopt this attitude any time in your life. There is no right or wrong time. And although 80/20 is a great balance to aim for – it is by no means the rule. With that in mind we want to remind you that you can still have lots of lovely indulgent Christmassy things like hot chocolates, mince pies and candy canes – actually maybe not candy canes they don’t even taste that great and they have NO nutritional value – let’s say Christmas pudding instead. You can still have all these lovely things and to make them taste even more wonderful why not start the day off with a run, have a healthy breakfast, snack on a delicious raw juice and have a delicious and nutritious lunch. Just because it is Christmas does not give you excuse to throw your health compass out the window – in fact, if anything, it is the perfect time to embrace the challenge of staying healthy, remaining cool, calm and collected and keeping fit. You know you will feel better for it. Let us know how you get on on our Facebook page.

Here are some Christmas challenges that we turn into triumphs… we try and lead the way in all things hip and healthy so hopefully this will give you a few ideas…

The Challenge: A Night Out

Temptation everywhere – we hear you! Try sticking to clear spirits such as Vodka as they contain less calories and won’t give you such a headache in the morning so you won’t feel as inclined to skip your morning workout. Mix them with tonic water and fresh lemon. If you must have a sweeter mixer choose cranberry juice that has at least some nutritional value.

The Challenge: Exercising in the Cold

Running in the cold is actually even better for you in many ways than running in warm weather. Because your body temperature will be lower you will actually burn more calories as your body tries to warm you up. The key to running outdoors in winter is layers. Wear a base layer, a mid-layer (this will act to trap the air) and a shell – something that is waterproof and windproof.

The Challenge: Christmas Treats 

As we said above, Christmas treats are definitely allowed – it would be a miserable season without them! Like summer but without the sun. All you have to do here is allow yourself them but in moderation. I know – harder than it sounds. If you are anything like me you can scoff an entire packet of salty sugary nuts in the same amount of time that Usain Bolt runs 100 metres. So, set yourself some boundaries. Never by the super-seized version of whatever your buying. Only allow yourself your treat at a certain time of day or limit yourself to the amount you are allowed. Then right it down and remind yourself of it! You just need a bit of willpower.

BEE Beautiful: Is honey the solution to achieving glowing skin?

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It’s winter, the party season is upon us and our skin is looking more grey than a dreary afternoon in London. It’s the season of giving, so if you need to bypass your facial this month to buy gifts for your nearest and dearest, here’s a quick, cheap and natural solution to your dull skin woes. Man’s oldest sweetener has been revered for its medicinal and nutritional qualities for centuries, used by the Ancient Greeks, Romans and Egyptians, to cure almost anything from burns to allergies. It is often applauded for it’s nutritional content but you don’t have to eat it to benefit from its superfood status, honey can work wonders from the outside in.

Honey is packed full of Vitamin B, iron, copper, potassium, calcium, is full of anti-ageing properties and anti-oxidants. It contains mild alpha hydroxy acid and gluconic acid to brighten the complexion and plump out weary skin, perfect as a pick-me-up for the late nights of the party season. As a humectant, honey is one of nature’s greatest moisturisers drawing and retaining moisture into the skin. With a pH level of 4.5 it’s ideal to use on sensitive skin and can soften skin, especially when mixed with milk, Cleopatra was certainly onto something with her milk and honey baths.

You may have heard a lot on the grape vine at the moment about different types of honey, especially manuka. So what is so special about this honey produced in New Zealand by bees that pollinate the native Manuka bush?  Methylglyoxal is a compound found in most types of honey but usually only in small quantities. Manuka honey has a high quantity of it from the conversion of another compound dihydroxyacetone – found in the nectar of manuka flowers. The higher the concentration of methylglyoxal, the stronger the antibacterial effect, making it the ideal solution for banishing blemishes. Manuka honey will pack a 100% natural and organic punch against any post- or pre-Christmas party breakouts, will give your skin a glowing appearance and can even soothe skin conditions such as eczema and rosacea.

Raw, unprocessed honey, manuka or otherwise, can be applied directly to the skin, but if you don’t fancy getting into a sticky situation there are some wonderful products on the market blended with other natural ingredients your skin will love you for:

Dr Organic Manuka Honey Rescue Cream, £8.69
Dr Organic have an entire range of Manuka honey packed products, including a magnificently rich and hypoallergenic rescue cream perfect for use on dry chapped skin and a softening hair conditioner containing organic Manuka Honey, Aloe Vera, Shea butter, Hydrolyzed milk protein, Panthenol, Sunflower oil and Vitamin E.

Neal’s Yard Remedies Bee Lovely Body Lotion, £21.00
Delightfully scented and bee-utifully softening, this luxurious natural body lotion is infused with moisturising organic honey and fragrant, uplifting organic essential oils of orange and mandarin, to subtly scent while softening the skin.

Wild Ferns Manuka Honey Gentle Facial Cleanser £1o.75
Providing a deep cleansing treatment this light emulsion effectively removes impurities and make up from within the pores without eradicating the skin of its natural oils.

words by Lily Gregory

Elf for Health: Day 6 of the H&H Advent Calendar

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Elf for Health: Day 6 of the H&H Advent Calendar

25 days of a Hip and Healthy Christmas: Tips to make this the best holiday season yet

 

On the 6th day of Christmas… we reveal the benefit’s of cinnamon

We all know that one of Christmas’s favourite spices, cinnamon, has a host of health benefits – but what exactly are they. Read on to find out.

  • It stabilises blood sugar levels.
  • It reduces bad cholesterol.
  • It can help heal arthritis.
  • The scent of cinnamon has been known to help relive headaches.
  • It contains anti-inflammatory properties.
  • It is an excellent source of maganese, iron and calcium.

Chocolate and Coconut Bliss Balls

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Chocolate and Coconut Bliss Balls

Rebecca Kane, author of the cookbook “New Raw and Living Foods Recipe Book Launched: Shine Inside and Out” is a bit of a star in the healthy eating department. This recipe of hers is perfect when you are in need of some delicious chocolate gooeyness! We love it as a delicious alternative to sugar-laden Christmas treats that leave you feeling low and empty! For more check out her website: www.shineonraw.com

Ingredients
1 ½ cups of walnuts
8 pitted medjool dates
1/3 cup of cacao or carob powder
½ tsp of vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

2 tsp of water
Desiccated coconut to roll the balls in

Equipment
Food processor

Directions
Place the walnuts and salt in the food processor and process until finely ground. Add the dates and process until the mixture becomes sticky. Add the cacao or carob and vanilla and process. Add the water if needed. Mould into round balls and roll in the coconut. Store in the fridge until required.

Top Tip
If you don’t have any dates, you can replace with 1 cup of raisins

DETOXING THE RAW WAY: DEMI MOORE, GWYNETH PALTROW AND MADONNA ARE ALL FANS, FIND OUT WHY

Elf for Health: Day 5 of the H&H Advent Calendar

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Elf for Health: Day 5 of the H&H Advent Calendar

25 days of a Hip and Healthy Christmas: Tips to make this the best holiday season yet

On the fifth day of Christmas… we reveal five ways with Coconut Oil
From soothing skin to encouraging weight-loss, coconut oil has been getting a lot of positive press recently. And for good reason. Here are four ways in which you can use this wonder nut to it’s best:

Make like Miranda Kerr and put it in your green tea
A study reported in the Journal of Nutrition that coconut oil can actually boost metabolism, which in turn can help you burn more fat. The research revealed that those who consumed two tablespoons of coconut oil per day burned more kilojoules than those who didn’t. Buy adding it to your green tea – your body get’s hit double whammy as green tea is also well-known for its metabolism boosting ways as well.

Apply it as a moisturiser
Coconut oil is packed full of skin loving Vitamin E making it an ideal moisturiser. Vitamin E works to reduce pigmentation, scars and heal the skin and the smell of coconut oil is an added bonus (does it remind anyone else of holidays?). You don’t even have to spend a lot of money – in fact – Waitrose sells pure coconut oil in the baby aisle and it costs no more than £2.89 and lasts forever! Apply after a shower all over the body.

Cook with it
Despite what many say about coconut oil being high in saturated fat, it is actually one of the safest forms of oil to cook with as it is a medium-chain saturated fatty acid. This gives it a higher smoking temperature than polyunsaturated or monounsaturated oils (olive oil) which oxidise at high temperatures which in turn creates free-radicals (horrible things!). As for the saturated fat content – it is the healthiest form of saturated fat compared to trans fat. The two are metabolised in an entirely different way – coconut oil is converted into energy rather than stored as fat.

Bake with it
Use it instead of butter in cakes, pastries, and other baked goods. It’s a great healthy alternative and perfect for those of us who are dairy-free or lactose-intolerant. Although it may take a bit of experimenting to get the quantities right, the general rule is to use about 25% less than water the recipe says use in butter. We would love to hear how your recipes turn out so do get in touch via out facebook page or twitter feed!

Start your day with it
Add it to your porridge to give your metabolism a boost first thing. It also gives the porridge a wonderful nutty flavour. It has also been known to help curb sugar craving. This is because the quality of good fats is so high that it will help you to feel less hungary.