Health

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Wellness

Food

Lancaster

<h1>why soak &amp; sprout?</h1>
<h2>the benefits</h2>
Soaking and sprouting nuts, seeds, and grains can help to remove enzyme inhibitors such as phytates, which in turn - can greatly increase their nutrient bioavailability. AKA your ability to use the nutrients you eat.
In the plant world – phytates prevent premature germination and store the phosphorus that plants need to grow. The phosphorus packaged in phytates bonds to calcium, iron, magnesium and zinc, making them hard for the body to absorb. Enzyme inhibitors such as phytic acid, keep these foods in their dormant state, so their nutrients cannot be fully accessed until they are soaked and/or sprouted.
Our goal is to break down or reduce the phytates. Soaking, sprouting, fermenting, juicing, and blending can help us do that. 
When something is sprouted, or germinated - enzymes are released to break down anti-nutrients so that the stored starches and protein become available for the plant to grow - this process also prepares the nutrients in the legume to be more nutritious and easily absorbed for us as well. It will also increase the vitamin C and vitamin B content,while at the same time help reduce many of the enzyme inhibitors that can make phytate-containing foods irritating to the gut lining, and very hard to digest.
It’s interesting that many times if you have a sensitivity to something, you won’t notice it as strong when it is soaked and sprouted!
You can do the soaking and sprouting process yourself, or you can look for products at the grocery store that have completed this process for you! Just look for a notice on the label that says the grain, bean, etc. has been sprouted.

<h1>what is soaking?</h1>
Soaking helps to remove enzyme inhibitors so that the thing you are soaking can sprout (or, germinate), while also improving the digestion of these foods and the nutrients they contain.Soaking helps to break down the complex sugars, fats, and proteins into simpler constituents that are more easily assimilated by the body.
Lastly - you want to soak nuts and seeds to remove dust, residue from processing and shipping, and tannins, which will just make them taste better! 


 <h2>How To?</h2>

Use purified water to cover the nut, seed or legume you are soaking. I usually just use a glass mason jar or measuring cup. Ideally, soaking should be at room temperature and in general, denser nuts require longer soaking time.You want to soak a food until it is just soft enough, but never too long, or you risk the food becoming rancid or allowing mold to grow. Adding a bit of an acidic medium to the soaking water, such as lemon juice or vinegar, can also further aid in the removal of phytates.

<h1>what is sprouting?</h1>

It’s the germination of seeds and grains, which ultimately helps to improve their digestibility. The vitamin content and bioavailability of minerals will increase with sprouting. 

<h2>How to?</h2>
1. Rinse the seeds or grains well and pour into a jar
2. Then fill the jar at least 3⁄4 full of water
3. Soak overnight (but check timing for each specific item you soak!) at room temperature.
4. Pour out the water and seeds and rinse with fresh water and strain.
5. Return the seeds to the jar.
6. Cover the jar with cheesecloth and secure it with a rubber band.
7. Briefly turn the jar upside down to drain the remaining water.
8. Sprouts will begin to appear within 24 hours or so.
9. Make sure the sprouts stay moist. This is important so that they actually sprout! You can do this by rinsing and draining them 1-2 times each day until they have reached the desired growth you want. 
10. Rinse your sprouts before eating!

<h1>examples &amp; sprouting and soaking times </h1>

Almonds – soak 8-12 hours
Cashews – soak 2-6 hours
Walnuts – soak 4-7 hours
Sunflower Seeds – soak 6-8 hours

Adzuki Beans
1 cup will yield cups sprouts
Soak 8-12 hours
Sprout 3-5 days

Chia Seeds
1 cup will yield 1 1/2-2 cups gelled seeds
Soak 4 hours 
Sprout 1-4 days

Garbanzo Beans
1 cup will yield 2 cups sprouts
Soak 12-48 hours 
Sprout 2-4 days

Flax Seeds
1 cup seeds will yield 2 cups
Soak 6 hours
Sprout 1-5 days

Lentils
1 cup will yield 2 cups sprouts
Soak 8 hours
Sprout 2-3 days

Quinoa
1 cup seeds will yield 4 cups sprouts
Soak 3-4 hours
Sprout 2-3 days

<h1>Recipes</h1>


 <h2>Romaine Caesar Salad with Cashew Dressing, Crouton, Mushroom Anchovies and Almond Parmesan</h2>

Caesar dressing
¼ cup soaked cashews seeds
¼ cup water
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 tbsp tamari
½ tbsp miso
½ tbsp apple cider vinegar
Black pepper to taste
½ clove garlic
½ cup olive oil
Blend all ingredients, except olive oil, until smooth. Stream in olive oil while blending at low speed. Adjust salt to taste.
Serve on top of fresh romaine lettuce with the crouton, anchovies and parmesan below! Feel free to get creative with your salad and add roasted vegetables, tofu or protein of choice.

crouton
1 cup sunflower seeds or cashews, soaked
¼ cup water
½ tsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
½ tsp salt
Process all ingredients, in a food processor until smooth. Pour contents of processor into a bowl.
Spread mixture onto a silpat/parchment paper on a sheet pan and bake 10-20 minutes until crisp

Mushroom “anchovies”
½ tbsp tamari
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
½ tsp olive oil
½ cup sliced mushrooms
Mix tamari, vinegar, oil, and salt in a bowl, and add sliced mushrooms to coat. Add them to a baking sheet and bake on 350 until chewy, about 15 minutes.

“parmesan”
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup nutritional yeast
1⁄4 tsp salt
Mix together and use to sprinkle on top of salad.

Let’s talk about why something would be soaked or sprouted - the benefits to you - and how to do it yourself! — @jessbaumgardner's mag on Magma

Fitness

Lifestyle

Mental Health

Canyon Ranch Woodside

<h1>Always a Good Time To Start New</h1>
Escaping to a luxury retreat or finding wellness at home, follow these 5 tips to live in joy and greater fulfillment.

It’s that time of year we starting thinking of the changes we’d like to make. Maybe it’s time to look at new beginnings, not as resolutions, but as small life changes we can implement today, tomorrow, any day of the year. It’s time to pick ourselves up and find our flow again; time to reconnect with ourselves and indulge in some seriously needed self-care. 
Recently I visited the newest of the Canyon Ranch properties located just outside of San Francisco in the beautiful redwoods of Woodside, California. Priding itself as the leader of luxury, destination retreats for 40 years, Canyon Ranch’s Woodside location marks a bit of a departure from those in Lennox, Las Vegas and the original in Tucson. Think of Woodside as a customizable retreat rather than a hotel, easily accessible in the Bay Area for two days, a week-long stay or longer. While the other locations have set programs, directions and offerings, Canyon Ranch Woodside is more choose your own adventure. Select those activities to help your mind, body and soul unwind, relax and energize while experimenting with some self-care techniques perhaps we haven’t thought of.

It’s all but certain every one of us stretches ourselves too thin, takes on too much and never seems to accomplish as much as we or society demands. We expect more and more of ourselves, but all too often we fail to realize by checking out, our time checked back in can become more efficient, productive and yes, more joyful. The desire to re-energize is universal. Give yourself the opportunity to detach. Treat yourself to some time away from the grind and enjoy your version of luxury. Maybe it’s an afternoon of solitude spent by the beach, a simple walk in a nearby park or perhaps it’s a retreat like one at Canyon Ranch. By removing ourselves from our daily responsibilities and intentionally throwing ourselves into new surroundings that call for reflection and meditation, we set ourselves up for renewal.
In an environment that speaks peace, we’re able to do activities we might normally do, such as hiking, but with a deeper appreciation and a new-found appreciation. During my time at the ranch not only do I explore the grounds by hiking, I run a long trail through the protected forests adjacent to the property. The sensation of the rain against my skin, the earthy, mossy aroma of the giant redwoods and crackle of branches above seemingly conspire to aid my sense of flow as my feet glide over the rolling hills of this forest with a wild exuberance. I am one with nature. A routine activity practiced in a new setting opens the senses, those physical and those of spirit, to experiencing it with greater enjoyment. We can disconnect in order to reconnect with why we fell in love with all those things we enjoy in the first place.

I’m sure you already have a couple physical activities you use to further your health and wellness. A gym routine. Pilates. Swimming. Maybe, like me, you enjoy a rigorous yoga practice that stretches the muscles, challenges endurance and makes us sweat as much as any treadmill sprint. Every once in awhile it’s worth tossing up all we know about our chosen activities to look at them anew. Change things up! Not only does the body get stronger when we keep it on it’s metaphorical toes, but we can find an appreciation, an enjoyment, for another way while keeping our minds agile.

It’s this flexibility that is often said to keep us youthful. In fact, Deanna, program director at Canyon Ranch Woodside aims to create an environment where adults reconnect with their inner child and learn to play again. As she guides me through the on-site, outdoor fitness course we climb over a six-foot tall wall, pull ourselves up long fishing ropes, swing from monkey bars and run a loop with ten pound bags thrown over our shoulders. We fall in the mud, get our elbows dirty and most importantly, laugh in the moment. Moving indoors I join a yoga session during which the instructor purposely designs the class against what I normally expect from my practice. While still opening the hips, elongating the chest and finding space in the upper back, we focus more on a slow, gentle mediation. Being flexible and open to change with a humble desire to continual learning, physically we grow while our emotional center finds understanding, confidence and a greater sense of ease.

Ever wonder how to blow glass? What’s it like to feel wet clay between your fingers as you shape pottery? Maybe you’ve always wanted to speak German? All too often our minds initiate a desire that we just as quickly find a reason not to follow through on. For years I thought “one day I’ll run a 50 mile race,” but did nothing to work towards the goal. I wasn’t even a runner at the time! Once I began the training, I joined a class during which I quickly realized running is a personal passion of mine. That inner voice encouraging us to take on that new endeavor, it’s the one worth following. The voice of doubt, of “I’m not enough,” of excuses- that voice literally gets us nowhere. Listening to our inner most desires, experimenting with them and finding healthy ways to implement them into our lives makes us more well-rounded individuals capable of whatever we set our minds to. 
One evening at Canyon Ranch Woodside I pop into a small class gathered for The Power Of Journaling during which the five of us participants look at the spiritual benefits of keeping a journal. As someone who has a daily gratitude practice, this seminar helps me to look at journal keeping in a new light. Setting aside a few minutes of every day exclusively as my own, in order to write down thoughts, feelings and perspective can be an incredibly useful tool in developing them further or in letting them go. While we don’t need to be with others to write, there is something about coming together in a group to collectively focus on an activity. After given prompts to write about, we discuss, find areas of common ground and encourage each other forward. This is the power of a class, even with an activity so individual as journal writing. Listen to that voice. Find a class to help develop it. Focus. Allow yourself to be pushed and held accountable.

Yes, we all know and understand the value of having and executing a well thought out plan. But when was the last time you changed it up in the heat of the moment? Being confident in our plans, in our own bodies, gives us the ability to approach life with an open mind. We can always return back to the plans we made or what it is we know; in the meantime, say yes more. Say yes to new adventures. Say yes to spending the afternoon with that friend you’ve put off because life has gotten in the way. Allow yourself to live in the moment and discover joy in unexpected places. 

There’s great value in saying yes to last minute ideas both with long-term plans and in daily activities. Hiking is an activity I gravitate to when given a choice. But while enjoying an incredible lunch at Canyon Ranch Woodside I’m introduced to the retreat’s Tai Chi instructor. We strike up a light conversation. My curiosity peaks. He is to begin a class in minutes, just as I have a guided hike planned. Giving myself the freedom to be spontaneous, I step into Tai Chi. I choose the activity simply because it’s something I’ve never done.

During the class I learn new techniques to attach movements to calm, deep breathes. I realize I’m a forty year old an endurance runner who repetitively works the same muscles during my training, but here I am moving my body through choreography it’s never done before. Sure, at times I falter in understanding the movements, but I take a moment, regroup and begin again. When it connects, there’s a gentle flow of mind, body and spirit moving as one. A willingness to be spontaneous while humbly step into something new and feeling our way through it can lead to great, unexpected rewards.

What is important in your life? How do you want to feel everyday? Are there values you hold at this stage in life that you didn’t in another? When we answer fundamental questions, we give ourselves a path, a direction. In taking time to reflect on where we’ve been, where we are, and most importantly, where we’d like to go, we begin developing a life of purpose. Instead of viewing life as something that happens to us, it’s much more fulfilling to take active ownership and create the life of our dreams. 
Before departing my three day retreat, I select a one-on-one course at Canyon Ranch Woodside. Cultivating a Life of Purpose. Spending an hour with a certified life coach, we immediately dive deep into a wide-ranging discussion during which she encourages a holistic life review of what’s important and how am I living out the four dimensions of wellness: the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. It’s a comprehensive reflection on how the dimensions intersect, how I spend my resources and how my thoughts, beliefs and emotions align with my desires. Underneath it all, it’s an exercise in love and acceptance of who I am and who I want to be. This is self-care of the highest order. In allowing ourselves to dream and use our imaginations to form the lives we want, the Universe immediately begins to align.

This year make quality self-care a top priority. I can hear you now… “But isn’t that so selfish.” Yes. It is. But it’s also the greatest gift we can give those around us. In taking time for ourselves while nurturing positive lives of health and wellness, we become gentler, more compassionate, more focused, souls capable of enjoying all life has to offer from its challenges to those days when it all just flows!

Try out these 5 tips to live a life with greater fulfillment and explore a retreat deep in the California Redwoods, Canyon Ranch Woodside. These tips are for anyone looking to improve their health, wellness, body and mind...  — @ryyoung's mag on Magma

<h1>Love me from Afar</h1>
During these times it’s especially important to continue our mission of spreading love around the globe (from afar). That is why we launched our Love Me From Afar Campaign. For every mask sold, a medical mask will be donated to frontline workers keeping us safe!

<h1>Help spread the love </h1>
Each mask comes with a card to write a thank you note to our hero’s. Post a photo on Instagram and #eyeoflove #lovemefromafar ❤️

Love me from Afar  — @Eyeoflove's mag on Magma

@rachelwolchin's mag on Magma

spaceMVMNT Peer Support Group — @spaceMVMNT's mag on Magma

San Diego

<ul>
 <li>
 <blockquote>
 <h1>Just Breathe </h1>
 </blockquote>
 </li>
</ul>

We have all been stressed and challenged to the braking point during this pandemic . By something as simple as just remembering to breathe can be extremely helpful to calm the nerves during these trying times.
Learn the 4-7-8 Pranic breathing technique, also known as “relaxing breath.” This breathing pattern aims to reduce anxiety or help people get to sleep. It’s a great tool to calm and center yourself during stressful times of the day .
1. Get yourself in a comfortable position. Take a slow deep breath in from your belly for the count of 4 seconds
2. Hold the breath counting slowly for 7 seconds 
3. Exhale through your mouth counting slowly for the count 8 seconds
 4. Repeat this process six times and you will see how quickly everything seems to relax in your body. You can repeat this as many times a day as needed. It’s also a great way to start off your meditation or to relax you before sleep.
Try it and let me know how it works for you!
Love &amp; Light
Ronda Chowaiki 🙏

Ronda’s Reiki — @Rondasreiki's mag on Magma

Paris

@MayaB's mag on Magma

<h1>The Peloton App</h1>
<h2>Free trial for 90 days</h2>
The Peloton app is not just for cycling! I have been so pleasantly surprised by this app/website. Obviously peloton offers classes and schedules for their own equipment, like boot camp classes for their treadmill and cycling classes for their bike. However, majority of the classes have no dependence on their equipment. 
The app offers strength training, outdoor running programs, yoga classes and more. They also extended their free trial to 90 days!

<h1>Melissa Wood Health</h1>
<h2>7 Day Free Trial</h2>

I have always been a sucker for yoga and Pilates classes. Melissa Wood is a health and wellness influencer who creates her own kick ass workouts that also happen to be super chill. She specializes in hybrid workouts that consists of yoga, Pilates, and meditation. They are super gentle on your body while also extremely difficult, since all of them center around your core. I definitely feel sore after these!
I have linked both her instagram and her website. She posts on her Instagram but the website would be best to use for working out. You can create an account and try it out for 7 days for free!

<h1>The Workout LA</h1>
<h2>Instagram and YouTube Classes for Free</h2>

These two girls are so cute and offer free home workouts. They give adjustments as well if you don’t have certain equipment like weights lying around. They do mat Pilates type classes that specialize in toning. They also offer cardio toning classes and dance cardio. Each week they feature a new schedule for their instagram live classes, which helps keep you accountable. 
Don’t be fooled by their demeanor, these classes are tough!

<h1>At Home HIIT Classes</h1>
<h2>Instagram Live for free</h2>
Ally is a fitness/wellness influencer and model. She has teamed up with world class trainer Kevin Mejia to offer free instagram live classes during quarantine. Each week it changes and is usually offered on Thursday’s and Sundays. These workouts are not for the faint of heart. They are heavy on cardio and usually include equipment like weights and bands but they are so worth it! Definitely recommend if you feel like changing it up and releasing some pent up energy.

<h1>Ted Mcdonald </h1>
<h2>Free through Instagram lives </h2>
Ted is the small business owner of 5 Point Yoga in Malibu. I worked for Ted and this studio for a couple years and think it’s so important to help those small business owners that are hurting during this time. Ted is offering free yoga classes on his Instagram every morning at 9am. Ted owns a yoga studio, teaches there, and also does videos for Beach Body Fitness. His flows are difficult yet humbling and relaxing. 5 Point Yoga is also offering online schedules on a donation basis if you feel so inclined!

At home workouts are how I’ve managed to stay fit, healthy and sane during this time. Otherwise my body would have to learn to function off of chocolate chip cookies and tequila alone, so thank god for these!
Tag me <a href="https://www.instagram.com/brookewex/?hl=en">Www.instagram.com/brookewex/?hl=en</a> if you try any!

Free at home workouts! — @Brooke's mag on Magma

<h1>TONIGHT 5:30 PM PST ZOOM</h1>
SPSG is going virtual! Looking forward to having a cyber space to chat with friends.
The benefit and purpose of the spaceMVMNT Peer Support Group is the comfort and comradery resulting from knowing that everyone here has some experience feeling some type of way. This is a non-judgmental, non-traditional atmosphere for people to be able to express their feelings and share their experiences with others who can relate. SPSG is a peer support group; we are not clinicians, doctors or professionals. We are people with lived experience. SPSG absolutely does not discriminate against race, color, sexual orientation, sex or gender, disability; including physical and mental conditions. We are all humans existing in a world where our stories and voices need to be heard. We all have something to say; spaceMVMNT is here for you to say it.
All we ask at SPSG is that what is said in group, stays in group. We protect our friends, our anonymity and our dignity. This is a non-negotiable for us.

LET’S VIRTUALLY CHAT — @spaceMVMNT's mag on Magma

Beverlywood

<h1>I’ve been thinking about all of the positives this past week:</h1>
1. I’ve been able to appreciate nature and going on walks. Normally I would just go to an indoor workout class. 
2. Because I wanted to use up all my fresh produce first, I’ve barely eaten anything processed. Normally I would go for the processed first because it’s easier.
3. We’ve been Marie Kondoing our entire place (something I would never be able to get the hubs to do with me and something I was always too busy to do)
4. I work from home so it wasn’t so different for me but I’ve gotten to spend quality time with <a href="magma://users/OKasHv0gfSQySAgMo7EMqPscKQp1">@lee </a> who’s working from home as well.
5. I’ve been repurposing meals and using all my produce. Normally I hate eating leftovers and let it go to waste. Now I made plain cous cous for example and for the next few days I played with adding different dressings and different veggies to it.
<h1></h1>
<h2>What are some positives you’ve seen this week?</h2>

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