Gene’s Blog

Just when I thought I would die from the lack of caffeine in my system, I got new strength from somewhere and stood my ground. I did not back down from my commitment and am feeling great after six weeks without regular coffee with full strength caffeine. I don’t get those jitters from coming down off the drug- induced high and I am sleeping much better.

Now when I wake up, my first desire is for a tall drink of pure water followed by some fruit juice or a ‘green smoothie.’

I remember that my teachers at the Vision Education Teacher’s Training Institute– CJ Wilson, Elizabeth Abraham and Martha Rigney– all emphasized how important it was for me to recommend ‘zero caffeine’ to my clients. And I just couldn’t do it while still being a dedicated coffee drinker. Caffeine was my favorite drug for many years!

My teachers never knew that my first taste of coffee came at my father’s knee when I was only 5 years old. My Dad used to pour some hot coffee with cream and sugar into a saucer and let me taste it every morning while he had his two or three cups to get his days started. So you see, I have been drinking coffee for 65 years solid. And during the last ten or so years, drinking about 36 oz. per day, everyday. That’s three tall cups with cream and sugar. That much straight coffee contains anywhere from 255 to over 300 mgs of caffeine (plus the calories from cream and sugar, or worse yet: artificial sweetener, which is a form of poison, plus the acidity that coffee added to my ph imbalance).

I have now cut back to one 12 oz. cup of decaffeinated which contains from 5 to 7 mgs per day. This has made a huge difference in how I feel. Believe me, it was not easy at first as I kept having these humongous headaches in the afternoon when I didn’t drink coffee. Garry Renschler, Nutrition Counselor at the YMCA, told me to switch to decaf and expect some side effects for approximately four to six weeks. Now two months later, the side effects are gone and sometimes I even forget to have any decaf at all. Wow, what a difference not drinking coffee makes in my clarity and how I feel!

I am not recommending regular consumption of decaf coffee, either, unless you are using it to withdraw from full strength coffee, as I have.

Decaf coffee is not healthy due to the high acid nature of the substance! It is a well known fact that high acid content in our bodies encourages many dis-eases to grow and thrive. An acidic body is a sickness magnet, while being more alkaline leads to health. Eating more alkaline foods helps shift your body’s pH and oxygenate your system.

And I did the math and I am now getting anywhere from 250 to 297 less mgs of caffeine. And that’s a whopping difference!

My next step has been to add a quart of green smoothies to my diet every day. This has helped me gain about 10 lb. of pure lightness. You could say I lost 10 lb. but that would be negative thinking, and I would likely find those ‘lost’ pounds and add them to some other unseemly part of my body.

I am not trying to lose weight. I am aiming at a healthier lifestyle that gives me more energy to think and see clearly and fulfill my true spiritual purpose.

Now with over two months of being off the coffee, I can– in all honesty– recommend to my new clear vision clients that they abstain from all caffeine drinks including tea and colas.

Green Smoothies

This week, Victoria Botenko sent me her list of ‘Ten Benefits of Green Smoothies,’ along with five very easy recipes. You can begin immediately to make them in your regular kitchen blender. Then when you are ready The Universe will supply you with a Vita-Mix Blender which really helps make the veggies digestible.

I truly appreciate the positive influence Victoria and her family has had on my health and well-being. Please read Victoria’s article below before deciding for or against trying green smoothies.

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TEN BENEFITS OF GREEN SMOOTHIES

By Victoria Boutenko

www.rawfamily.com

1. Green smoothies are very nutritious. The ratio in them is optimal for human consumption; about 60% ripe organic fruit mixed with about 40% organic greens.
2. Green smoothies are easy to digest. When blended well, most of the cells in the greens and fruits are ruptured, making the valuable nutrients easy for the body to assimilate. Green smoothies literally start to get absorbed in your mouth.
3. Green smoothies, as opposed to juices, are a complete food because they still have fiber. Consuming fiber is important for our elimination system.
4. Green smoothies belong to the most palatable dishes for all humans of all ages. With a ratio of fruits to veggies as 60:40 the fruit taste dominates the flavor, yet at the same time the greens balance out the sweetness of the fruit, adding a nice zest to it. People who eat a standard American diet enjoy the taste of green smoothies. They are usually quite surprised that something so green could taste so nice.
5. A molecule of chlorophyll closely resembles a molecule of human blood.
   
   According to teachings of Dr. Ann Wigmore, consuming chlorophyll is like receiving a healthy blood transfusion. Many people do not consume enough greens, even those who stay on a raw food diet. By drinking two or three cups of green smoothies daily you will consume enough greens for the day to nourish your body, and all of the beneficial nutrients will be well assimilated.
6. Green smoothies are easy to make, and quick to clean up after. In contrast, juicing greens is time consuming, messy, and expensive. Many people abandon drinking green juices on a regular basis for those reasons. To prepare a pitcher of green smoothie takes less than 5 minutes, including cleaning.
7. Green smoothies have proven to be loved by children of all ages, including babies of six or more months old. Of course you have to be carefuI and slowly increase the amount of smoothies to avoid food allergies.
8. When consuming your greens in the form of green smoothies, you are greatly reducing the consumption of oils and salt in your diet.
9. Regular consumption of green smoothies forms a good habit of eating greens. After a few weeks of drinking green smoothies, most people start to crave and enjoy eating more greens. Eating enough greens is often a problem with many people, especially children.
10. While fresh is always best, green smoothies will keep in cool temperatures for up to three days, which can be handy at work and while traveling.

Start playing with green smoothies, and discover the many joys and benefits of this wonderful, delicious, and nutritious addition to your menu. You may find many more amazing facts about green smoothies in Victoria Boutenko’s book, Green for Life, available at www.rawfamily.com.
Below are five green smoothie recipes. They are merely basic ideas for your green creations. Feel free to substitute these ingredients with your own choice of greens and fruits. Enjoy!

Apple-Kale-Lemon

4 apples
Juice of 2 lemons
5 leaves of kale
2 cups water

Peach-Spinach

6 peaches
2 handfuls of spinach leaves
2 cups water

Mango-Weeds

2 mangos
1 handful of edible weeds, such as: lambsquarters, stinging nettles, purslane, etc.
2 cups water

Strawberry-Banana-Romaine

l cup strawberries
2 bananas
2 bunch romaine
2 cups water

Pear-Kale-Mint

4 ripe pears
5 leaves of kale
2 bunch of mint
2 cups water

Health Quote by Rita

“I work so hard to stay in shape. Whenever I read anything, it says, “Consult your doctor before doing any exercise.” It always says that. Does anybody do that? I kind of think my doctor has people coming in with serious problems. I don’t think I should be calling him and saying, “Hi, this is Rita, I’m thinking of bending at the waist.” –Rita Rudner

Thanks for visiting my blog. Please send along a comment and know that you are loved and cared for by all the Clear Vision Naturally Family.

Tags: caffeine, green smoothies, raw food, vision

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 21st, 2008 at 11:18 pm and is filed under Nutrition, Nutrition and Eyesight. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.