Posts by Christine Briel

I’ve been practicing yoga for almost 5 years now and it has truly changed my life. Yoga is not just a class that you experience for an hour or so once a week (or more), it’s truly a lifestyle, a habit. One that grows and becomes exactly what you put into it. For the past few months we’ve been doing some remodeling inside and outside of our house. Traditionally, I’ve been responsible for the painting when we’ve done home projects in the past, and this time is no different. As we move from one room to the next, deciding on color schemes is the easy part. Cary (my husband) and I have very similar tastes. Our house is about 40 years old so we’ve been discovering places in the walls that need “touch-up.” This means the...

About 6 months ago I watched the documentary Forks over Knives and it has totally transformed my eating habits. If you haven’t seen it, there is also a book form now that includes recipes, I highly recommend it. There is some amazing scientific information in the movie that argues a whole-foods, plant-based diet is the way to go for a longer and healthier life. This Kale Green Smoothie is an easy and yummy way to add more vegetables to your diet. I drink it for lunch most days and it gives me a great energy boost. Kale: Nutrition and Health Benefits Kale contains beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin (a carotenoid similar to lutein), calcium and fiber. A sulfur-containing phytonutrient in kale called sulforaphane is believed to have...

I close my eyes and I feel the bright sunshine as it warms my face. I hear what used to be snow as the water runs quickly through the gutter around the house. I hear the rhythm of the wind as it blows through the pines in our backyard and off in the distance I hear the faint sounds of birds busy at work. Ahhhh, spring is coming ~ Christine Briel  

This year I received one of the best holiday gifts ever! My husband, Cary, bought me the Kindle version of The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael Singer. I’m about halfway through the book and find myself reading it very slowly, savoring every lesson learned, as well as highlighting and re-reading sections that really resonate with me. Chapter 2 is titled Your Inner Roommate, there are definitely some powerful lessons in that one. I love the way the author really helps you to recognize the thoughts and incessant chatter that go on inside your head each and every day. He suggests that the key to letting go of these thoughts is by taking a step back, removing yourself from your own melodrama, and watching what’s going on in your...

My mother sent me this in email the other day and I really loved it!! We all need to read this one over and over until it becomes part of who we are! HOW TO STAY YOUNG 1. Try everything twice. On one woman’s tombstone she said she wanted this epitaph: “Tried everything twice. Loved it both times!” 2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down. (Keep this in mind if you are one of those grouches!) 3. Keep learning: Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever…Never let the brain get idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.’ And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s! 4. Enjoy the simple things. 5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath. And if you have a friend who...

The vegetable garden this year has been amazing! I’ve been gardening for over 20 years and am still learning something new. We put a lot of extra care into the garden this year and boy is it paying off. Below is a recipe for a delicious dinner using some of the vegetables from our first harvest during the first week in July. Bok choy and beets were a new addition to the garden this year. They grew really well, are delicious and so versatile! I’ve used them in dinner dishes and also added them to tofu scramblers for breakfast. Bok Choy, Beets, Zucchini & Sausage: 1 cup bok choy chopped + leaves chopped 1 cup beets chopped + leaves chopped 1/2 onion finely diced 1 cup potato chopped 1 cup zucchini chopped 4 Smoked Apple Sage Field Roast Sausages – not...

I’m just as passionate about the tea I drink as I am the coffee (Starbucks)…. well, almost  We have a choice with everything that we put into our body, to make it good for us or bad for us. Although there are some things that live in the grey area, tea is not one of them. I’ve tried many different types of tea and have found two brands that I absolutely love: Tulsi Tea and Yogi. Admittedly they aren’t the cheapest but both are worth every penny. Drinking tea can be an experience, if you let it be. It starts with your choice, so make it a good one. Imagine yourself looking at the box, the image is where the experience begins. Maybe you read a little about the tea, maybe a quote on the box resonates with you. Open it up and the smell hits you immediately....

Hummus is such a delicious, healthy addition to any diet and when you add vegetables to it… even better. I love to grab a bunch of raw veggies and eat them for lunch with some hummus. I’ve also had it on pizza as a substitute for red sauce. Drizzle a little olive oil and balsamic vinegar over it, after spreading it across the entire pizza surface, and it works perfect as a base. Hummus is also a great substitute for mayo as a spread on any sandwich. If you’ve never made your own hummus, you have to try it. It’s so much better than store bought and really easy!! Vegetable Hummus Recipe: 2 cups garbanzo beans 1/3-1/2 cup tahini 1/4 cup lemon juice (or lime) 2 cloves minced garlic 1 Tbs olive oil onion powder, salt & pepper to season 1/4 cup chopped...

The Wegmans salad bar is a frequent place for me to visit when I’m out and about running errands, or after hiking at a local park, and I find myself hungry. I love to eat a mixture of greens, cold grain salads, veggies and dried or fresh fruit. It’s like a veritable taste explosion in my mouth! When making dinner at home the other night a light bulb went off and I asked myself, “Why don’t I ever make that at home?”. Silly that I hadn’t done it yet. So I checked out the shelves in the pantry and was happy to see that I had enough core ingredients to put this dish together. Most of the ingredients in the recipe below can be substituted with the food/grain that you prefer (or that you have handy). Enjoy!! Cold Grain Salad: 1 cup brown basmati (dry) ½...

I read an article this past weekend that really resonated with me about the concept of our meditative practice being full of thoughts. We hear a lot about how meditation is all about emptying the mind, clearing your thoughts and just going inward to sit and be. The fact is that our minds are full of thoughts and during a meditation practice much of the time can be spent on the work of allowing the thoughts to come and go and increasing those times in-between, when you are focusing inward and going deeper. Work with your thoughts, don’t look at them as a problem rather as part of your efforts that help you to work the mental muscle a.k.a. focus. When we cultivate that focus and strengthen our ability to hold attention in one place for a while we...