detox – Move Well with Amy Rizzotto

August 24, 2015

Chilled Spinach Detox Soup for your Meatless Monday

Whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan, conflicted omnivore or ardent carnivore, it doesn’t hurt to give yourself at least one day each week where you focus on a plant-based diet. I love the Meatless Monday movement for this very reason. It’s approachable, non-preachy and good common sense. I’m completely inconsistent with my posts to this end and am way overdue in offering a new recipe for you all.

As some of you know, I am a big believer in whole foods, home cooking-focused detoxes. I’ve guided over 100 different folks from all over the country through my seasonal detoxes over the course of the last two years and really enjoy coming up with meals that are simple, tasty and clean. My latest 4-day detox includes the following recipe. If you want to buy the self-guided version it’s now available through my online store.

I love picking up ingredients for this and all detox recipes from my local farmers market. Food is always better – both in taste and nutrient density – when locally grown with less transport and shelf time.

Chilled Spinach Detox Soup

{makes 4 side portions or 2 mains}

Ingredients:

1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs organic unsalted butter
2 small sweet onions (the size of baseballs)
2 cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp muchi curry powder
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
Juice of 1/2 lemon
5 oz baby spinach
2 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Top with a couple tablespoons of low-fat, plain Greek yogurt

Directions:

Sauté onions in butter and oil over medium heat until soft, adding a generous pinch of salt as you stir.
Add curry powder and garlic. Sauté another minute until fragrant.
Add stock and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add spinach and thyme and simmer another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
Blend until smooth.
Served hot or chilled and garnish with yogurt and ground black pepper. Stir well and enjoy!

June 25, 2015

Detox your Cleaning Cabinet: Top 5 Homemade Cleaners for a Healthier Home

Okay, so we’re a little past the point of spring cleaning but with last weekend’s summer solstice behind us perhaps we can call this an article dedicated to better-for-you-and-the-environment summer cleaning.

As a nutrition coach, I help guide dozens of people each year through my seasonal, whole foods detoxes. Cleaning up one’s diet is all well and good, but to truly detox we all ought to dive a little deeper into our daily habits and our cleaning closets/cabinets.

How many people out there use a countertop spray or bathroom cleaner loaded with ingredients you can’t pronounce?

I’m not here to shame you because I too have used these strange, chemical concoctions. I’m simply here to point out that, hey, if smart people like Mark Bittman recommend that we not eat anything with ingredients we can’t pronounce, why doesn’t that rule apply to the products we use daily on surfaces we eat off of and bathe in? Skin is a very porous organ, my friends! All of these products can easily seep into your system with repeated exposure whether you accidentally ingest trace amounts or simply absorb them from repeated contact.

Avoiding damaging chemical cleaning products is easier than you might think. In fact, you likely have most if not all the ingredients you need to clean and shine your pad right in your very own kitchen, pantry, and medicine cabinet.

Now that I really have your attention, here are my…

Top 5 Homemade Cleaners for a Healthier Home

All Purpose Cleaner

1/2 cup white vinegar
2 cups water
Juice of 2 lemons

Notes:

Fill a spray bottle with all ingredients. Shake well before dispensing.
Mist dirty surfaces evenly, then use a soft cloth or rag to wipe surfaces clean.
Don’t use on stone surfaces—i.e. granite or marble.

Wood Polish

1/2 cup olive or almond oil
Juice and peel of 1 lemon

Notes:

Combine ingredients at least one day in advance for optimal efficacy.
Apply to a soft dishtowel first, then gentle rub in circular motions across the intended surface.

Bathroom Disinfectant

1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup vodka or rubbing alcohol
20 drops of tea tree oil
10 drops of lemon oil

Notes:

Fill a spray bottle with all ingredients. Shake well before dispensing.
Mist dirty surfaces evenly, then use a soft cloth or rag to wipe surfaces clean.

Glass Cleaner

2 cups water
2 Tbs white vinegar
2 Tbs rubbing alcohol

Notes:

Fill a spray bottle with all ingredients. Shake well before dispensing.
Mist dirty surfaces evenly, then use a soft cloth or rag to wipe surfaces clean.

Grout Scrub

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup baking soda
Juice of 2 lemons
1/4 cup white vinegar

Notes:

Apply with a toothbrush and let sit for 5 minutes. Scrub vigorously to remove dirt and grime.
Wipe clean with a wet cloth and rinse with warm water.

Not only are all of these fumeless, non-toxic, and organic – they’re cheap and easy to make! Who doesn’t like cheap and easy?!

May 25, 2015

Spring Clean your Diet with this Asparagus Detox Soup

Spring is a time for renewal. Let’s face it, we’d all like to be able to hit the reset button on our lifestyle in one fell swoop but positive change takes hard work. As a nutrition coach, I work with clients one on one to determine how we can make their desired healthy living goals attainable. One way to jumpstart a positive dietary shift is to undergo a detox. It just might be the closest thing to a reset button there is.

While developing my seasonal detoxes, I let the foods that are at the peak of freshness and availability speak to me and inform my culinary creations. Since it’s spring, asparagus is certainly abundant and there are countless ways to use it in healthy, cleansing recipes.

Below is one of my absolute favorite recipes. This soup (which can be served warm or chilled) is refreshing and light. It’s perfect as temperatures start to rise here in the District!

Broccoli Asparagus Miso Spring Detox Soup

[makes 2 meal sized portions or 4 appetizer size]

Ingredients:
− 1 bunch of asparagus
− 1 broccoli crown
− 4 -6 cups of chicken broth
− 1 Tbs white miso paste
− 1 Tbs sherry vinegar
− Juice of half a lemon
− 1 Tbs ghee (or organic unsalted butter)
− 1/2 tsp chili powder
− Sea salt and pepper to taste
− Optional: stir in 1/4 cup nutritional yeast for a more “cheesy” flavor

Directions:
1. Trim woody ends off asparagus and cut broccoli into florets (use the stalks!).
2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch trimmed asparagus and broccoli florets for 1-2 minutes. Drain and immediately submerge in an ice bath.
3. Cut off the tips of the asparagus and reserve for future use (I like to scramble mine into a couple eggs).
4. In a blender, blend the blanched asparagus stocks and broccoli with broth, miso, vinegar, lemon, ghee/butter, chili, salt and pepper to taste. Add more stock as needed to achieve the desired consistency.
5. Heat over a medium-low flame (or setting) for 10-15 minutes when you’re ready to eat.

Serve warm or chilled. If you like a more creamy or cheesy flavor to your soups (I loved broccoli and cheese soup growing up) add 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast to the entire pot and stir well before dishing it out into bowls. You can also add a drizzle of nice olive oil and a hit of freshly ground black pepper for a little flavor enhancement. Bon apetit!

November 27, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving! Recipes & things from me to you

In the spirit of gratitude, I wanted to thank all of my readers with a Top 10 List of my favorite MOARfit recipes:

You may have also noticed that my website has changed a bit. Now that I’ve decided to take the plunge into full-time wellness work, I thought it was time MOARfit got a face-lift. You’ll still find all the recipes you love, but now you’ve also got all my articles, videos, teaching schedule, and information on current and down-the-road offerings at your fingertips.

Other than my recipes (I kid), what are you most grateful for this holiday season?

I’m grateful that I get to spend today with my big sis and her cute-as-heck boys, and that we all have love in our hearts and health in our bodies. Oh, and lest I forget to mention, THE FOOD. I worked extra hard in my yoga classes (abs for days) so that I can go for seconds on my favorite fixing (stuffing).

The other thing I’m really thankful for, today and every day? You! I really can’t thank you enough for taking time to read my ramblings, try my recipes, and show your support.

As a special thanks to all of you who are helping me live the life I have imagined, you can take 30% off all full-price items in my online store–including my New Year, New You 10-Day Detox which is now on sale–from now through December 15th with promo code THANKYA30.

And finally, a universal blessing:

May you be blessed with good friends.
May you learn to be a good friend to yourself.
May you be able to journey to that place in your soul where
there is great love, warmth, feeling, and forgiveness.
May this change you.
May it transfigure that which is negative, distant, or cold in you.
May you be brought in to the real passion, kinship, and affinity of belonging.
May you treasure your friends.
May you be good to them and may you be there for them;
may they bring you all the blessing, challenges, truth,
and light that you need for your journey.
May you never be isolated.
May you always be in the gentle nest of belonging with your soul-love.

~John O’Donohue, “A Friendship Blessing”

August 19, 2014

DIY All-Natural Beauty: Age-Defying Coffee Sugar Scrub

Do you eat right? Exercise? Take moments to pause, breathe and reduce stress? If so, you’re doing just about everything right to lead a healthy lifestyle. A well-balanced diet full of fruits and veggies and low on junk food combined with movement and meditation are all key components to overall wellness.

One area that most of us neglect, however, are the products we put on our skin. Like our stomach, intestines and liver, our skin is an organ and it too can benefit from a little detox every now and again. The best part about detoxing your beauty regimen is you’ll save a lot of money—makeup and spa products are expensive!

Today, you’ll learn how easy it is to make an all-natural, age-defying spa treatment at home using ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen or pantry.

This DIY remedy’s active ingredient is coffee. Coffee is not only loaded with free radical-fighting antioxidants—those are the pests that lead to drooping skin and age-related disease—but the caffeine in it acts as an anti-inflammatory and may even lessen the appearance of cellulite. Three cheers for that!

It’s so simple to make your own age-dying coffee scrub at home, and here’s how to do it:

MOARfit DIY: Age-Defying Coffee Sugar Scrub

What You’ll Need:

A mason jar-or any other air-tight container
1/2 cup coffee grounds
1/4 cup granulated raw cane sugar
2 Tbs raw honey
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1/4 cup coconut oil, softened—you can also use sweet almond oil

How to Make It:

Combine all ingredients in your mason jar, stir well and close the lid until you’re ready to use it.

To Use:

Scoop out a small amount and rub it onto your skin, massaging the area thoroughly to increase circulation. Let it sit for a few minutes then hop in the shower to rinse off. You can do this daily on the body, and once or twice a week on the face.

Have another favorite DIY beauty remedy? I’d love to learn about it. Start a conversation on Twitter @MOARfit or find me on Facebook.

{originally published on The DC Ladies blog, August 12, 2014}

July 28, 2014

Seasonal 10 Day Detox

Summer’s now in full swing and so is my seasonal 10-Day Detox with 10 brave and awesome Wellness Warriors! My guided system reset isn’t a starve yourself detox that makes food the enemy, it’s a program to help people redefine their relationship with food. Over the course of 10 days participants learn to listen to their body, strip away the junk and walk away revitalized and more in control of their cravings. It’s a healthy dose of empowerment!

Interested in a future detox? Whether you live nearby in D.C. or across the ocean, shoot me an email at [email protected] for more information.

July 13, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 12 – Reclining Shoelace

Step-by-Step:

Lay flat on your back, legs long with head resting heavy on the mat.
Draw your knees in toward your chest, bent, and cross your right leg over left. Reach for your ankles or feet with each hand (right hand grabs left foot, left hand grabs right foot). Gently pull the feet toward your hips as you lower the legs – still stacked in this pretzel-like set up – to the mat.
Holding the left foot with your right hand just outside the right hip, rotate your pelvis toward the left side, coming to rest on the left hip. Your left hand is still gripping the right foot as you twist. Keep your shoulders glued to the mat and turn your head to the right.
Stay here, or deepen the pose by extending the right leg. Kicking your right foot into the left hand and working to straighten out that right knee will bring an intense IT band stretch into this contralateral twist.
Hold for 10 deep breaths, then slowly come back to center and hug your knees into your chest. Plant your feet on the mat, hips width apart. Windshield wiper the knees from side to side.
Repeat steps 1 through 5, this time crossing left leg over right, twisting to the right as you look to the left.

How It Will Heal You:

Hip Pain – The best way to prevent and treat hip pain is to increase your ROM (range of motion) in all directions. If you play a sport like soccer, which involves a lot of explosive movement and running, you are particularly susceptible to hip pain. As you work into this hip-helping posture, chances are high that you’ll notice that one hip will be tighter than the other. To bring balance to the body, be sure to hold postures for 10 extra deep breaths on the side that’s talking to you. Use your breath to calm your nervous system and let the body open.

Hamstring Pulls – The vast majority of the time, hamstring pulls are a direct result of inflexible hamstrings. This big muscle group requires patience and daily attention to open up and can be really frustrating in their resistance to change. You are not going to go from barely touching your toes to Jordyn Wieber overnight. Commit to working on this posture every day and slowly but surely you’ll get the results you want and your body needs.

Knee Injuries – We all know someone that has torn their meniscus, had a knee replacement, or had some sort of debilitating knee injury. Our knees take a serious beating from all of the physical stuff we do day in and day out—not to mention the high heels some of us ladies rock to look lovely but brutalize our bodies from the tippy toes on up. The best way to prevent pain and avoid trouble is to keep the hips, IT band and hamstrings strong and flexible. Hips, IT band and hamstring mobility keeps the work in your bigger muscle groups (hamstrings and quadriceps) rather than the body’s default of looking to the place of least resistance–which is almost always the knee joint–for speed, power and agility. If you give the body freedom to move using your large muscle groups and stabilizers it will learn not to rely upon vulnerable and complex joints.

Lower Back Pain – How many of you have experienced lower back pain? I’d venture to say that anyone who sits in a chair all day has suffered through their fair share. This is also a big one for athletes. Why is that? Most often, lower back pain in athletes stems from tight hamstrings. For my fellow anatomy nerds out there, the hamstrings originate on the sitz bone–aka those little nobs deep in the flesh of your booty that us yogis balance on when doing boat core work (my favorite!). , If your hamstrings are tight they will pull down on the pelvis from the insertion point (the sitz bone) tilting it out of proper alignment and forcing your body to compensate using your lower back to remain upright. Another common reason for low back pain is underdeveloped abdominal muscles. I’m not talking just the six-pack abs (rectus abdominis) but also the deeper corset abs (transverse abdominis) that are critical for balance and stability. The simply solution to preventing and treating lower back pain is to stretch out your hammies and workout your core every day.

Foot and Ankle Issues – I can’t tell you have many times I wrenched my ankle playing soccer and field hockey as a kid, or more recently while hiking and running. Ankle sprains, Achilles tendonitis and plantar fasciitis are three very common foot and ankle injuries. These injuries are no fun because let’s face it, when our foundation is out of whack everything else is thrown off and dysfunctional. The answer to avoiding these frustrating beasts of burden is to strengthen the ankle, increase the flexibility of the ankle and toes and work on your balance. Not only does this require concerted effort to increase the openness in these areas but it also means more core work. Core is your key to stability, meaning you’ll be less likely to get thrown off balance and tweak something if your abdominal and back muscles are strong.

July 11, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 10 – Seated Spinal Twist

Step-by-Step:

Start in a seated position, legs long, tall spine.
Bend your left leg, bringing left knee to mat, left heel to outside of right hip.
Bend your right leg up and over the left leg, right ankle hooks outside left knee (sole of right foot presses into the floor).
Bring your right hand behind your back. Press right palm into mat and sit up tall as you inhale. Exhale and twist to the right, hooking left elbow outside right knee.
Use your breath to twist deeper. Sit tall and straighten out the back on the inhales and use the leverage of your left elbow on your right knee to twist deeper into the middle back on the exhales. Relax the abdominal muscles to go even deeper into the twist. (Imagine you’re a washcloth and you’re working to wring out all the water).
Take 10 deep breaths then switch sides Follow steps 1 through 5, twisting to the left.

How It Will Heal You:

July 6, 2013

MOAR’s Daily Dozen: DAY 5 – Low Lunge with a Twist

Step-by-Step:

1. Come into downward facing dog.

2. Come into a low lunge, bring your right foot forward just inside your right hand. Knee stacked over ankle. Keep a microbend in the left leg to protect the knee but firm up your quads and hammies, pressing strongly back through the heel.

3. Keep your hands or fingertips to the mat and lift the torso off the thighs, creating a long, flat back. If you are rounding through the spine, bring a block under each hand.

4. Plant the left hand as you lift your right up to the sky, twisting to the right. Gaze up at your right hand.

5. Take 10 deep breaths, lengthening out the crown of the head on the inhale and twisting deeper on the exhale

6. Slowly unwind, coming back to center, right had to mat. Press the floor away, coming back into down dog.

7. Repeat steps 2-6 on the other side.

8. Come back to downward facing dog and pedal your feet from side to side.

This contralateral twist is so good for your middle back digestive. It will also help eliminate rigidity in the upper back, chest and shoulders–aka more ROM (range of motion)!

How it will heal you:

Shoulder Pain – Football, lacrosse, and baseball players know shoulder pain. As a yogi, I can also vouch for the frequency of shoulder injuries in yoga–a misaligned jump-back to chaturunga is one of the fastest ways to wreck your rotator cuffs. Shoulders, like hips, are a ball-in-socket joint and thus are designed to have a broad ROM (range of motion). Athletes and office bees alike experience a lot of shoulder pain because not enough attention gets paid to maintaining the flexibility of this critical joint. Increase the openness of your wrists, chest and upper back to prevent and treat discomfort. Additionally, focusing on contralateral movement (i.e. twists) will help to eliminate rigidity from the upper body.

Wrist Problems – Football, lacrosse, baseball, tennis and basketball players are incredibly susceptible to wrist injuries. Amongst others, yogis should be added to that list–just ask two of my fellow yoga teachers who went through training with me and are still modifying their Down Dog months later. In order to avoid wrist issues, it’s critical that you build strong forearms, biceps, triceps, shoulders and upper back. Like all other joints, it’s also important to maintain ROM (range of motion) and flexibility in the joint itself as well as the elbows and shoulders so that the body can maintain proper form and alignment when generating power and movement from the upper body and arms.

June 19, 2013

White Asparagus & Shiitake Mushroom Salad w/ Balsamic Reduction

In need of an idea for a quick summer salad that tastes delicious? I was too. Salad’s can get boring, especially for those of us that eat them on the regular. It’s important to change up the ingredients to keep your interest (and this healthy habit) alive and well.

On my first trip ever to the AdMo Harris Teeter, I was inspired at the sight of white asparagus. The pale sister of glowing green asparagus, white asparagus is rare to find fresh in the US. Luckily, I caught the tail-end of prime asparagus season and seized the opportunity to snag this porcelain beauty.

This spring treat boasts a pretty impressive nutritional profile. Not only does Asparagus provide a natural liver detox, it is fortified with folate and vitamins E, A, and C to help protect you against heart disease. Folate, or B9, has also been linked to cellular regeneration (aka healing power). Vitamin E is shown to help fight Type II diabetes, and vitamins A and C will steel you against certain types of cancer and cataracts. Asparagus also contains potassium (as does its green cousin the avocado), which helps lower blood pressure and may reduce LDL cholesterol (that’s the bad kind).

Having selected my star ingredient, I decided to pick up some yummy shiitake mushrooms and arugula to round out the salad. For dressing, I decided to go sweet and simple with a balsamic reduction. The mild white asparagus paired nicely with the earthiness of the mushrooms, bitter bite of arugula, and sweet finish of balsamic.

Give this easy recipe a whirl for yourself, and if you aren’t lactose-intolerant or vegan, a hit of pecorino romano shavings would be delicioso!

Warm White Asparagus & Shiitake Mushroom Salad:

(Serves 4)

What You’ll Need:

3 tbs olive oil
1 bunch white asparagus (substitute green if unavailable)
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, sliced thin
5 oz arugula (or 1 bag/box)
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup good balsamic vinegar (for the reduction)

How to Make the Salad:

Thoroughly wash your mushrooms, asparagus and arugula (unless pre-washed).
In a large saucepan, heat 1 tbs olive oil over medium heat. Add your asparagus, spreading it into a single layer, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8-10 min or until al dente (you can get a fork in but the spear doesn’t slip right off). Remove from heat and slice into 2 inch pieces.
Simultaneously with step 2, heat another large saucepan with 2 tbs olive oil over medium heat. Add your mushrooms and a pinch of salt and pepper. Sauté until mushrooms begin to brown, or about 5 min. Remove from heat but leave the pan on your stove. Add your arugula to the same pan and give it a quick warm up for 1-2 min.
Plate immediately, starting with the warm arugula as your base and equally dividing the asparagus and shiitake between four plates.
Drizzle with the balsamic reduction (recipe below) and enjoy!

How to Make the Balsamic Reduction:

Pour your balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil.
Turn down the heat so that the boil reduces to a simmer.
Stir occasionally and allow to simmer until the vinegar has reduced by at least half – though I liked to let it go longer for a thicker consistency.
Allow to cool then drizzle over your plated salads to finish.