New website

Eco Nutrition has a new website that is up and running. Future articles will be posted there. Please visit: www.ecologicalnutrition.com.

In health,

Ryah

More Greens!

The CSA season is underway, and here in Colorado, we have a lot of greens! Were you able to use all the greens last week? If you are not used to eating so many greens, it can be a challenge to get through them all before the next ones arrive. Here are some ideas for adding greens to your day beyond the salad.

Add spinach to scrambled eggs.
Add greens to oatmeal or other cooked grains for a savory breakfast. Top with sausage or an egg.
Add spinach or chard to a smoothie.
Finely chop arugula or kale and add to pasta or rice dishes.
Substitute arugula or cilantro for basil in your favorite pesto recipe.
Experiment with different dressings and sauces.

Do you have other ideas? Share them here.

Spring Pesto

4 cups (packed) arugula, cilantro, spinach or other greens (or a combination)
¼ cup walnuts, roasted
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
1 clove garlic or a few stalks of green garlic or spring onions
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Splash of lemon juice
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in a food processor. Enjoy on pasta or whole grains, as a sandwich spread, pizza sauce or add more oil and use as a salad dressing.

Original recipe by Ryah Nabielski, 2010

We Always Return

My year with the Institute for the Psychology of Eating (IPE) has come to a close. I am filled with gratitude and wonder and I am left with a beautiful container from which to grow my practice. I now posses a new language to better communicate topics around nutrition and nourishment.

I am in awe of Marc David, his wisdom, authenticity, vulnerability and the unconditional love he brings to his work and the field of eating psychology. I am blessed to be one of eighteen who came together this year to blossom into our gifts and become the first certified Dynamic Eating Psychology Counselors. I cherish the intimate connections I have made.

Part of me hates the long, drawn-out sappy goodbyes. I much prefer to pull it off like a band-aid. And part of me loves the sappy goodbyes, like my secret affair with cheesy, romance movies. Although, I don’t feel like this is a goodbye; I feel it as a beginning, quite possibly the most significant beginning this far in my 29 years. I have been a student since I was 3 years old, and the years I took off from formal education, I spent studying the soil and how plants grow and how food can be the magic that brings a community together. That led me to an amazing graduate program in nutrition that filled me up with nutrition science, clinical experience and an exploration of the environmental, political and cultural components that shape what we eat. I was still hungry and my search for the missing piece of the nutrition puzzle led me into the nourishing arms of IPE. I’m sure I will be a student, in some form, forever. I have a long list of nutrition and garden-related courses I want to take and certifications I want to put behind my name.

But for now, I chose to be still. I chose to transition from student to teacher and offer my medicine to my community.

I will always be a nutrition science geek, wanting to understand the latest research, the physiological mechanisms and making connections between how nutrients cycle in the environment and how they cycle in our bodies. I will maintain my focus on clinical nutrition, real food, and the simple, practical ways to live in congruence with nature, by gardening, cooking and fermenting. But now I have a bigger context from which to do my work and I have new skills to execute this vision.

In addition to working with clients around the “what to eat’” piece of nutrition, I am confident in working with the missing piece of “how to eat” and exploring who we are as eaters. What we bring to the table is as important as what is on the table. We, in the nutrition world, can talk in circles about vitamin D, omega-3s, antioxidant pathways, amino acid precursors and any star nutrient of the moment. But sometimes this conversation doesn’t mean much without the conversations about Pleasure, Relaxation, Time, Desire, Relationship, Power, Truth and Love. We are soulful creatures and true healing flourishes in both realms: bodymind and soul.

This has also been a year of personal journey. I’ve learned to relax with myself more and love myself more. I’ve begun to practice loving what is, which is no small feat, but can bring big results. I’ve become clear about what is important in my personal life, like being close to family, and my professional life, like practicing from my truth and not selling-out when the financial landscape gets rocky. In fact, it seems my personal and professional selves are meshing more and more.

My own relationship to food is changing because of the work I’ve been doing with IPE. I feel so much more connected to my body and what it needs from moment-to-moment. I have am deeply aware of the subtle energies that different foods create in my body. I feel more in tune with body wisdom and I am empowered by the choice that listening to this wisdom provides. I’ve started grocery shopping with my gut, instead of my brain or a list and my cooking has become much more intuitive and creative. And beyond the deepening relationship I have with my gut, I’m learning to digest with my heart as well.

This year has had ups and downs, darkness and light, powerful insights and been kissed with the Divine.

So, to my new Boulder family, I will certainly miss our once a month retreats, but If I’ve learned anything, and I’ve learned so much, it is that: evolution is now, love heals, and we always return.

Spring Greens!

I’m moving my nutrition practice to the 63^rd Street Farm for the summer! What a lovely place to sit and talk about food and our relationship to it, while making a direct connection to where the food comes from. I’m so excited to become a part of this amazing permaculture community.

I will be contributing to their CSA newsletter over the course of the next several months with recipes, tidbits about nutrition and the latest in the local-food-meets-natural-medicine realm. I thought I’d share my articles here as well. I think the recipes and information will be relevant whether you are a CSA member of any farm, an avid shopper at the farmers market or just getting interested in local food.

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I love when the spring greens finally pop through the soil and suddenly there is food again! Spring can be the sparsest time of year for farmers as storage crops dwindle and the new crops haven’t begun to fruit.

Spring greens have a lovely sweet flavor. The cool weather of spring, or the cold weather of winter if the greens have been “over-wintered,” causes the plants to produce more sugars to help them survive the cold. The plant sugars are the equivalent of anti-freeze for the plant. Hence, sweet greens for us! In the hot weather of summer, greens tend to be more spicy or bitter as they produce compounds to help the plant produce seeds.

I invite you to notice the changes of flavors over the CSA season. The flavors represent compounds that help plants adapt to the environment and in turn, they pass these nutrients on to you. Eating seasonally has many benefits and this is just one: local food helps your body adapt to the environment in which you live.

Ginger Dressing

This dressing was inspired by Serina’s deconstruction of the ginger salad dressing at Breitenbush Hot Springs in Oregon.

1/4 cup unrefined sesame or extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons tamari
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1-2 tablespoons chives or spring onions, finely chopped
1-2 tablespoons cilantro, stems removed and finely chopped

Put all ingredients in a jar, put the lid on tight and shake to mix. Use as a salad dressing or a sauce for braised greens. Also makes an excellent marinade for meat or vegetables. Store extra in the refrigerator.

I made this dressing the other night and added a couple teaspoons of miso. I used it as a marinade for some pork chops from Rocky Plains. Yum!

Spring Cleansing

Happy spring! We have past the equinox and the days are getting longer. The change in season invites us to let go of the old and welcome the new into our lives. In the nutritional realm, we often hear about spring cleansing and detoxification protocols. In fact, there is a whole industry of pills, powders, shakes and diets with the promise of cleaning the toxins out of your body and loosing weight. When ever someone comes to me for a cleanse, the first question I ask is what does cleansing mean? I find there is a lot of confusion.

Detoxification is the natural process the body undergoes to rid itself of toxins. Our body produces toxic substances every day as a result of normal metabolic and cell processes. And then the body naturally clears these substances via the skin, kidneys, colon, liver and lungs. These are the five systems of natural detoxification and they are working for you right now.

The toxic load that our body faces is higher than at any time in history because we are also exposed to toxins from our environment and food like never before. The standard American diet, high in sugar, caffeine, alcohol, low quality animal proteins and pesticide-treated food, puts additional pressure on the organs of detoxification. Further, toxins can enter the body by breathing polluted air, drinking polluted water, using chemical-based cleaning products and modern convenience tasks such as heating food in plastic containers.

Many of these environmental chemicals are fat-soluble molecules. It is the liver’s job to turn the fat-soluble molecules into water-soluble molecules that can be filtered by the kidneys and excreted in the urine. This is accomplished in two phases.

Here is a list of nutrients and compounds that we know the liver requires for both Phase I and Phase II detoxification: Riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, glutathione, amino acids, flavanoids, phospholipids, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, copper, zinc, manganese and coenzyme Q10. These nutrients are found in whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat.

As you can see, good nutrition is important for detoxification. This is why fasting may not achieve desired cleansing results. In fact, popular programs such as the Master Cleanse (where you drink lemon water with maple syrup and cayenne pepper) only induce Phase I detoxification. Phase I, without Phase II, can actually create more of a toxic burden for your system by producing intermediate substances that the body can’t get rid of. Further, depriving the body of nutrition actually slows metabolism, making it difficult to both clear toxins and lose weight.

My approach to detoxification is to use whole-food nutrition to support the five organs of detoxification in the body, while simultaneously reducing the chemical burden that we are exposed to. I also like to take a wider, more holistic view and look at other areas of life that could benefit from detoxification. Are there toxic friendships or relationships that it is time to let go of? Is there emotional energy that needs to be processed? Are new ways to nourish yourself and reduce stress in your life?

Spring-cleaning is a common ritual and I see yard sales popping up every weekend. As we clear the clutter from our homes, why not take this perfect time to clear the clutter from our diets as well, if only as a short-term experiment. You might be surprised about what you discover.

I am now taking new clients in the Boulder area if you are interested in a personalized spring cleanse, identifying food allergies, improving your relationship with food or any other nutritional topic.

Resolutions

It is the time of year for resolutions. The darkness of the winter months provide a wonderful time for reflection. I have certainly been thinking about letting certain things go, celebrating the ritual transition time of the New Year and setting intentions for the future.

I want to talk about the resolution to loose weight, which many of us make year after year. Often this resolution doesn’t work or is short lived. Why is that? Well, resolutions surrounding weight loss are generally about deprivation. This deprivation, lack of pleasure around eating and over-exercise create stress in the body. It is difficult to create a healthy and sustained weight loss in a stressed state. No wonder many of us relapse into old eating habits when we follow such restricted ways of living. In fact, over 95% of people who loose weight will gain it back.

I think many people regain weight because they are not addressing the whole picture. There is so much more to weight loss than eating less and exercising more. The idea that the calories we eat minus calories we burn equals our weight is based on outdated science. We know now that our metabolism is affected by not only what we eat, but also when we eat, how we eat, how we move, stress in our lives, how we nourish ourselves, our relationships, thoughts, emotions and more. We are so much more complex than just what we eat and how much we exercise. We are so much more interesting. Our body, mind and spirit are all involved.

My teacher, Marc David, says, “Loosing weight is about gaining life.” With that in mind, instead of resolving to loose weight, let’s resolve to love ourselves more, move in joyful ways and fulfill passions that have been sitting on the back burner. Focusing on these goals may just create the shape shift that we desire.

Eco Nutrition has a home!

I am writing today from my new office space at Chautauqua Health in Boulder, Colorado. I’m so excited to have a beautiful healing space in which to work with clients and grow my practice. This big leap in my professional world has me thinking about my bigger vision, how my own journey with food has brought me to this exciting place and the gifts I am now ready to offer.

Our food is a daily reminder of our intimate connection with the earth. Externally, what we eat can work to create a sustainable, healthy and peaceful planet. We can choose food that is produced by sustainable methods that build soil fertility, preserve farmland and support our local communities. Internally, what we eat literally makes the cells of our body! That still blows my mind, even after all of my study of biochemistry. Or maybe because of all my study, I am so aware that how nutrients cycle through the environment and in plants are the same way they cycle within us. In fact, it was my love of ecology and sustainable agriculture that led me to the field of natural medicine and nutrition. It is so connected.

Nutrition is such a multi-faceted topic—it’s political, environmental, social, cultural, agricultural. It’s not just about eating more vegetables, but asking questions like where did this vegetable come from? Who grew it and under what conditions? Was the soil cared for in the process? How far did my meal travel to reach my plate?

Nutrition is also about getting back in touch with our inherent body wisdom. Does this food taste good? Does it give me pleasure? Am I eating in a state of relaxation and joy? Does this food feel good in my body and give me energy?

My nutrition approach is to focus on natural, whole foods that support our bodies in the environment in which we are living. Eventually, I would like to have my own small farm that houses my nutrition practice/wellness center, where I can literally connect people to the earth and where their food comes from. I want to empower people to trust their inner wisdom when it comes to food and their own bodies. And I think we will find that what is good for our bodies, is also good for the earth.

In celebration of my new practice space, for the months of December and January, I am offering a FREE personalized grocery store tour for every new client who comes to my office for an initial 90-minute consultation.

Chautauqua Health is located at 2600 30^th Street, Suite 200, Boulder, CO 80301

To schedule an appointment, please call me at 206-898-8493 or email ryah@ecologicalnutrition.com