The Astonishing Truth About the World's Greatest Food

Have you ever heard of raw chocolate?

"All chocolate comes from cacao beans-the seeds of the cacao fruit, which grows on a jungle tree. Cacao beans taste like dark chocolate, because they are dark chocolate. The key to chocolate's super qualities seems to be eating it in its raw, natural state as a cacao bean. When cacao beans are excessively heated, melted, processed, chemicalised and added to dairy products, they lose key nutrient qualities of texture, psychoactive properties, brain nutrition and more. Other properties of the cacao bean are still present yet diminished by cooking, such as dark chocolate flavours, antioxidants, aphrodisiac qualities, mood elevation and others." -Naked Chocolate, David Wolfe

I have spent the past few years studying the benefits of raw food nutrition. I began this journey when I attended a Tony Robbins seminar called Life Mastery in December of 2003. This week long seminar was all about gaining physical mastery of our bodies through the highest quality nutrition and healthy living in order to be able to awaken to optimal living on every other level of our Being...

"When our health improves, every other area of our life improves simultaneously." - David Wolfe

As we cleansed throughout the week, eating nothing, only drinking vegetable juice or fruit smoothies, and drinking daily doses of wheat grass and Udo's oil, we learned from some of the greatest wellness experts in the world, including Deepak Chopra and David Wolfe, among many others. David Wolfe is considered to be one of the world's leading experts on raw food nutrition and living. He has been a raw foodist, that's right, eating no cooked food whatsoever, for over a decade. I have heard him speak in person a few times over the past couple of years in Dallas, when his speaking schedule has brought him into town.

The more I learn about the benefits or raw food nutrition, which just makes so much sense as it's obviously the state in which food is most alive (filled with the most Life Force or Prana) and most nutritious and healthy, the more I feel inspired to live this way. Last year in September, I decided I would challenge myself to eat raw food for a whole month. I called it the True Yoga Challenge and myself, as well as, ten students from my studio, embarked upon the challenge together. We did allow ourselves to eat light cooked meals on the weekend, if we wanted to, but throughout the week, we only ate raw food. It was one of the most challenging experiences I have ever been through, but so worth it. It transformed my whole life and completely cleansed my body, mind and spirit. During this time, I began to experiment with superfoods. Superfoods are foods with incredibly nutritious and high medicinal values. Examples of superfoods are: raw chocolate (cacao), goji berries, spirulina, blue-green algae, bee pollen, maca, etc. If you search for these online, I'm sure you can find a listing of them or visit David Wolfe's website to learn more. You can also purchase superfoods at Whole Foods.

The two superfoods I experimented with during this time were raw chocolate (cacao) and goji berries. I most definitely noticed feeling a euphoric state.

"A neurotransmitter called andamide was isolated in chocolate by neuroscientist Daniele Piomelli in 1996. Anandamide is an endogenous cannabinoid naturally found in the human brain. Anandamide is a type of lipid (oil) known as "the bliss chemical" because it is released while we are feeling great. In fact, anandamide is derived from the Sanskrit word "ananda" meaning bliss."

But the benefits of raw chocolate go way beyond just feeling blissful when we consume it. In nature, the primary source of magnesium is cacao. Did you know that magnesium is the most deficient major mineral in the diet of civilisation and yet is one of the most important of all minerals.

"Over 80% of the United States' population is deficient in magnesium. Other sources of magnesium include seaweeds such as kep and dulse, unprocessed wheat seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews, chlorophyll-rich green vegetables, cleansing fruits such as cassia (senna) and/or sea salts." - Naked Chocolate

I'm learning more about Magnesium and what I'm learning is how important it is for a healthy body, mind and spirit.

"Magnesium supports the heart, increases brainpower, causes strong peristalsis (bowel movements), relaxes menstrual cramping, relaxes muscles, increases flexibility, helps build strong bones and increases alkalinity. Magnesium, as a primary alkalinne mineral, opens up over 300 different detoxification and elimiation pathways." - Naked Chocolate

So you might be wondering what all of this has to do with Yoga. Well, besides being healthy for you, cacao can help to open up the heart and promotes flexibility.

"Dr. Bernard Jensen's research on the heart indicates that this organ requires two minerals more than any other, magnesium and potassium. Magnesium is the primary mineral missing when heart problems occur. Magnesium increases the overall vigour of the heart muscle. This mineral also decreases blood coagulation thus lowering blood pressure and helping the heart pump more effectively. An abundance of magnesium is effective in decreasing angina pain and in lowering some types of high blood pressure." - Naked Chocolate

Chocolate to the Mayans and Aztecs was referred to as yollotl eztil (heart blood). Chocolate, as we know it, is known for its sensual love vibration. Chocolates are always given as love offerings. Interestingly, the magnesium levels and antioxidants in cacao support the heart directly. We have often heard that "chocolate opens the heart" - which is actually true." - Naked Chocolate

And, as far as flexibility goes...

"The cacao bean is a phenomenon, for nowhere else has nature concentrated such a wealth of valuable nourishment in so small a space."-Alexander Von Humboldt, German scientist

"Rudolf Steiner wrote that chocolate 'tends to loosen the life body from the physical.' We have found that cacao expands flexibility creating a feeling of festive relaxation. The magnesium and MAO inhibitors increase physical flexibility and the methylxanthine stimulants add several hours of additional power and strength." - Naked Chocolate

Afer the month of eating only raw food last September, I went back to a moderate diet of cooked food. Recently, however, I have begun to delve back into the benefits of raw food nutrition. My focus is not on eating only raw foods, but rather, how can I eat to feel the best I can feel and be. As a result, I've delved back into raw chocolate. When I was at Whole Foods a couple of weeks ago, they had a sample of a raw Cacao Snack, called:

Quick Cacao Hemp Snack

1/2 cup hemp seeds (raw, shelled, available at Whole Foods)
3 tablespoons cacao nibs (available at Whole Foods)
3 tablespoons raw honey, to taste (or agave nectar) (Also available at Whole Foods)
2 teaspoons raw almond butter

Stir all ingredients in a bowl and serve. For a cold "energy fudge" make a double or triple batch, spread the mixture into a fudge or brownie tray, cover with saran wrap, and store in your refrigerator or freezer. It will solidfy into the healthiest fudge ever! Cut into squares and eat anytime.

So, I bought all the ingredients and I've bee eating this stuff and it's amazing. When I eat it, I feel uplifted, energized, full of life, and it tastes good. I strongly believe in the benefits of raw food nutrition and in the life enhanced benefits of superfoods. I hope this information will inspire you to begin learning about how raw food can literally change your life, uplift your heart, and have you feeling the very best you can be. If you have any questions about how to get started with incorporating raw food nutrition into your life, I'd love to hear from you. Please send me an e-mail at Leanne@trueyogainc.com.

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(Picture of the 908 Yoga Poses Poster: Click to Enlarge)

Phhewww. What a week it was. From the Friday before until this last Friday at 7 pm, I was carless in Dallas for a whole week. It is definitely a gift to have a car and being without one really had me be aware of this. Needless to say, almost all of my energy last week was focused on finding a car, which I'm happy to say, I found one and it's excellent. It's a cute little two door Honda Civic and it's really enjoyable to drive. I never knew I could experience any degree of joy in driving an automobile, but this one really works for me and it's such a relief to have it.

I'm also living in downtown Dallas now, in a beautiful condo near the Katy Trail. There are a lot of trees and I feel so peaceful there. In my new space, I'm creating a Yoga Studio/Meditation Room/Massage Room. Hanging on the wall of this incredible Spiritual Sanctuary is the 908 Yoga Poses Poster of Dharma Mittra. It is so inspiring to practice Yoga with this as my Drishti when I look back inbetween my legs in Downward Facing Dog. The opportunity for growth is infinite and ever-expanding and I am so inspired to be and awaken to all I can become...my true potential, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I received one of the most amazing massages I've ever had in my new home yesterday and it was one of the best feelings I've experienced to have this healing space literally in my own place...

I am so blessed. Yesterday when I sat in meditation, listening to the vibration of Om resonate in the open spaciousness of clarity, within me and all around me, I recited, "Thank you" again and again to the incredible, compassionate and benevolent Creator and Giver of every breath I breathe, and the abundant river of blessings which flow through this incredible Force of Life.

So you will be hearing more from me now as I begin to settle back into the flow of my routine again, after the many transitions I've experienced over the past few months. I love being able to share with those of you who visit the True Yoga Life blog regularly, and I really miss blogging when I'm away from it for a while.

This is a quote I read while drinking some Yogi Tea over the weekend. It stuck with me and has been reciting through my awareness since first reading it. So, I'll leave you with this for today:

"Work Light, Travel Light, Live Light, Be the Light."

The light in me honors the light in you...Namaste!Read more

"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true."-Steve Jobs, CEO Apple, Commencement Speech at Stanford in 2005

As I mentioned in my previous post, my grandmother passed away two weeks ago today. I am happy to say I am beginning to feel a sense of renewal from this profound transition I have just experienced. I had no idea what the experience of loss was like. The only other time I experienced the loss of a loved one was when my grandfather passed away when I was 12. So, the grieving process is something I had never really experienced before now.

One of my co-workers said it best when I saw her on Monday at one of the studios where I teach. "You didn't give yourself time to grieve, did you?" I replied, "I didn't really think I would need 'time' to grieve." I thought I would be able to return to my "normal" routine with some degree of ease, and that I had pretty much felt all the emotions I needed to feel in order to be able to "move on."

What I found out this week, was that was not the case. I've realized there is most definitely a grieving process, and the only way to go through it, is to honor it.

Not to mention the death of my grandmother was what I had no idea it would be...a major transition in my life. So, not only have I experienced this change, but along with it, every other aspect of my life is also in a state of change and transformation, personally and professionallly.

I've been living in Frisco, TX for the last 10 months having relocated there, temporarily, from downtown Dallas. Now, it has become illuminatigly clear to me I will be re-relocating downtown again to pursue work interests there. I am really feeling joyous about this opportunity, as this is where my heart prefers to be.

This is just it, I am learning at an even deeper level of awareness, that the most immportant thing I can do, is to follow my heart.

"When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something." - Steve Jobs, Apple CEO

This past Sunday night I had an experience which I've never had quite like it before. I absolutely could not sleep throughout the entire night. It wasn't even that I tossed and turned, or would sleep lightly for a time being and then wake up for a while. I could not sleep at all. So many things running through my mind, most of all, was that I was doing certain things, i.e. living in Frisco, teaching Yoga at certain times or certain places, where my heart was not fully in it. It was a profound moment/night of clarity, though I must say, it wasn't necessarily comfortable to experience it that way. In that evening, I realized, many things, and knew there was a Force inside of me, that was bigger than me, that was changing me. This Force is what I call Love. And, when it moves inside us, it is the greatest Force there is. I've also found a special person and have been embarking on a new and wonderful relationship. The experience of this has been profoundly transformational. It is illuminating the depth of my heart and how important it is for me to be where my heart fully is, personally, professionally, in the face of fear, even in our greatest moments of uncertainty.

"Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle." - Steve Jobs, Apple CEO

That Sunday night when I laid awake all night long, I experienced so many emotions, but most predominantly feeling fear. I knew something was happening as the previous few days I had been feeling depressed, down and dispassionate. "What's going on with me?" I thought. As I laid in bed that night, I knew I could no longer continue to do certain things I had been doing. I could feel this Force inside of me, literally stopping me, saying "No, no more." Although I was scheduled to teach a class that morning, I did something I had only done one other time in my life in light of a deeply emotional struggle I had the night before where I also did not sleep, about two years ago. I told the studio I would not be able to teach that morning. My ego wrestled with me in the early hours of the morning as I lay awake in bed. "You've got to go to class, that's irresponsible, you're being weak." As I asked my Spirit, it's answer became clear, not as a thought, but as a feeling. My heart felt heavy, down, (not to mention I was physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted) and it's answer was that I would be doing a service to both my students and myself to not be there, by honoring my Self and practicing what I teach. What I teach is to follow our heart, which is our Truth. The only way we can know Truth is to feel it and the way we feel anything is in our Heart Center or Heart Chakra. It is our connection to our Truth.

I teach my students to let themselves go into Child's Pose whenever they need to go there. That it's their resting pose and it's always there for us, anytime. I teach them that it's as important to know when to back off as it is to know when to keep going. It is a courageous act to be in Child's Pose. To really be there. Not just with this idea of...ok, I'll go here for a few breaths, take a short rest, and then get up again and keep doing stuff. But to surrender into this pose, indefinitely. To trut that you can let go, fully and completely. To let go fully and completely doesn't just mean to take a rest physically, but mentally, emotionally and spiritually, to be in a place of surrender. Adyashanti talks about this. Faith, the real practice of Faith, is to do nothing. To Be Still. In the face of uncertainty, in the "darkness" of the unknown. To Be. That's it. Just Be. So, this is what I'm practicing right now in my life as I begin this new journey.

I am taking some time off, honoring myself, taking Child's Pose, practicing what I teach, living my Truth, and finding a great sense of joy, upliftment, peace and a profound sense of the Force of Life supporting me in this process, every breath of the way. I will still be teaching some classes in Frisco, even once I am relocated fully downtown. However, to allow myself to nurture myself and be balanced in the process, I have let go of a couple of classes I teach during the weekday mornings in Frisco, as well as, a Sunday morning class I teach at a studio in Frisco, as well. Faith, not knowing how it's going to unfold, being in Child's Pose, letting go, sometimes even at times, financially, if it looks like this, to follow our heart. My belief is the Universe will support us when we are supporting ourselves. For the first time in five years or more, I will have a full weekend off. Finding and opening up to Balance in Balasana, Child's Pose. Interesting this is the prefix of the pose's name.

I wouldn't be being honest if I said that I don't get scared at times. Not knowing where it's all going to lead me, but trusting that anytime I follow my heart, my Truth, it is in the direction of my Highest Good, and only in this, can I truly be a service to others. Follow your heart, in the unknown, in the times of certainty, when you're down, when you're up, anytime and all the time, it will set you free.

"There is a time for departure even when there's no certain place to go." - Tennessee Williams

"To live is to change and to be perfect is to change often." - John Henry Cardinal Newman

"It is in changing that things find purpose." - Heraclitus

"Why do we shrink from change? What can come into being save by change?" - Marcus Aurelious

"Change means the unknown." - Eleanor Roosevelt

"The old order changeth yielding place to new, and God fulfills himself in many ways." - Alfred, Lord Tennyson

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Just Keep Swimming, Just Keep Swimming, Swimming, Swimming." Dory, Finding Nemo

Just a short post to finish up the week. I am back from Ohio and readjusting slowly to life after my grandmother's passing. I'm surprised to say, it hasn't been easy. It's not that I thought it was going to be an easy transition, I just didn't anticipate I would be experiencing the passing feelings of heaviness and depression which have been flowing through me from time-to-time. At the same time, there is a deep sense of relief and upliftment feeling she is in a peaceful place.

I will be sending out the True Yoga: Awaken to Your True Potential monthly newsletter in the next week or so. So, if you aren't currently on the e-mail list to receive the newsletter, I encourage you to visit the Newsletters section of the site and submit your e-mail address so you can receive it each month. It is sure to leave you feelig inspired. I'll be back to posting next week, so until then, I will leave you with this quote.

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, worry about the future, or anticipate troubles but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly." - Buddha

Have a blessed weekend.

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