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The best chocolate is not only good for your body, mind and spirit. It can even help protect you from degenerative conditions—from cancer and heart disease to Alzheimer’s. Yes, really! But it has to be the right kind of chocolate, and in the right quantity. Next time you’re feeling anxious you can reach for a piece of dark chocolate and feel good about it. The emerging chocolate story is a fascinating one, and it is only just beginning to break. PSYCHOSEXUAL FOOD The mythology of chocolate began with the ancient gods of the New World. It was the Olmec Indians in Central America who are credited with the discovery of the cocoa tree. Later, the Aztecs and Toltecs who called this substance “food of the gods” told the story of how Quetzalcoatl, the supreme god of the air, brought the seeds of the tree to earth as a gift to his chosen people. Montezuma the great Aztec king is believed to have downed 50 pitchers of an elixir made from chocolate each day. The drink was called xocolatl, an aphrodisiac and fountain of strength sexuality and vigor. Cortez, who brought it back to Europe in the sixteenth century, soon created a chocolate storm among the courtiers. Madame Pompadour gave her seal of approval to chocolate as an aphrodisiac, while Casanova claimed chocolate was the perfect tool for seduction. Some recent research partly explains why. Scientists in California have isolated a substance in chocolate which links into our brain receptor sites and, like cannabis, brings sensations of pleasure and relaxation. But chocolate, I suspect, has many secrets. This is just one of them, which feeds our passion for this dark and seductive food and, at the same time, enhances our passion for love. BENEFITS ARE MANY The researchers found that eating about one ounce and a half of dark chocolate a day for two weeks reduces levels of stress hormones, but it has to be very dark chocolate—between 75 and 85% cocoa solids. There is a huge difference between the minimally processed dark chocolate and the milk chocolate found in most candy bars. Raw, unsweetened cocoa powder which is high in antioxidant flavonols and contains no sugar is very different from the common cocoa drinks that are loaded with sugar. They offer no antioxidant support whatsoever. Meanwhile, minimally processed dark chocolate has already been linked to a number of health benefits. Dark chocolate has been found to reduce urinary excretion of the stress hormone cortisol and catecholamines in stressed individuals who took part in the study. What is interesting is that in those who did not have highly-stressed lives it made no difference. Some of the health benefits from chocolate are due to the antioxidants present in cocoa itself, such as flavonols. These are a sub-class of flavonoids, and are natural plant chemicals (phytochemicals) found in fruits and vegetables. There are several thousand compounds belonging to the antioxidant-rich polyphenol family, also called phytochemicals, which are very good for us. DON’T EAT MILK CHOCOLATE The total antioxidant content of chocolate products is directly associated with the amount of raw cocoa that the chocolate contains. A published in the ‘Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry’ showed that in terms of healthy antioxidant content, cocoa powder rated first, followed by unsweetened baking chocolate, dark chocolate and semi-chocolate chips. Milk chocolate has very few of these antioxidants. This is primarily because it’s heavily processed. In fact, the typical commercial chocolate has less than half of the flavonoids remaining after processing. As well as that, milk chocolate contains milk, which tends to cancel out cocoa’s antioxidant effects. This was discovered in a study published in the journal ‘Nature’. The reason this happens is that proteins in the milk bind with the antioxidants, making them less easily absorbed by your body. Another thing about processed chocolate is that often it is high in lead. Many researchers believe that milk in processed chocolate is also often contaminated by other heavy metals, but no one is quite sure why this happens. In another study published several years ago, researchers discovered that one cup of hot cocoa, made with pure cocoa powder, had about double the amount of antioxidants than those found in a glass of red wine, more than double the amount than in green tea, and four to five times more than in black tea. Perhaps even more surprisingly, dark unprocessed chocolate has been exonerated in a number of studies as exerting positive effects on your health. One example, believe it or not, is that it improves glucose metabolism. It also improves blood pressure levels and your cardiovascular system. FOOD OF THE GODS Now, this doesn’t mean that you should be swallowing chocolate every minute or two. The ideal amount of good dark chocolate—preferably organic—that you should eat is very little. A study published a couple of years back discovered that between 6 and 7 grams of dark chocolate per day, which is a little less than half a bar a week, is probably the ideal amount for protecting us against inflammation and cardiovascular disease. Any more than this appears to cancel out the benefits. This is not surprising because chocolate, like coffee, has throughout history been considered one of the sacred foods and the sacred foods need to be honored. Such foods have powerful energies. We thrive when we take them only in small quantities. This is the only way we can take advantage of all they have to offer us on every level. LESLIE’S CHOCOLATE BROWNIES If you're going to eat chocolate, eat only the best—not only because it's the most delicious, but also because it is the real thing. On the market these days, you find all sorts of imitation chocolate products which have had vegetable fat added to them. Avoid them. Even natural chocolate is often processed with an alkali which makes it high in sodium and interferes with the absorption of the magnesium, copper, potassium, phosphorus, iron and calcium which are the natural birthright of pure cocoa. These days most cocoa comes from Africa, although it was originally from Central America and the West Indies. When buying chocolate, always buy plain chocolate or bitter, dark chocolate, and always go organic. There is no question whatsoever that organic chocolate is the most delicious in the world. This recipe is flour-free, which makes it much richer. It is much more like a mousse than a conventional brownie, in the sense that it is absolutely riddled with chocolate flavor. So if you happen to be a chocoholic, you will absolutely adore it. Serve it with whipped cream, provided you do not have a problem with dairy products. (These days, because most milk is so polluted, many people do have issues with them.) Sprinkle the brownies with toasted flaked almonds. I think you'll love them, whipped cream or no whipped cream. WHAT YOU NEED 400g of dark organic chocolate—85% cocoa content or above is best 200g of unsalted butter 8 eggs, separated 1 rounded teaspoon of granulated Stevia by Stevita (or to taste) 3 tablespoons of finely powdered almonds 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract 200g of toasted almond flakes 5g of shaved black chocolate—at least 85% cocoa with no milk and no sugar added to it HERE’S HOW Heat your oven to 180ºC (350ºF, gas mark 4). Use butter to grease the sides and bottom of an 8” square or round pan—the kind the bottom comes out of. Line the pan with parchment or waxed paper and grease the paper with butter as well. Now wrap the outside of the pan with aluminum foil. Melt the chocolate and the butter in the top of a Bain Marie until smooth and melted. Keep stirring this mixture as it melts. Remove it from the heat and cool to body temperature, continuing to stir frequently. Using a food processor or electric mixer, beat the egg yolks and stevia in a big bowl for about 3 minutes until it goes pale and thick. Now very gently fold the lukewarm chocolate mixture into the egg yolk one. Making sure your blades are washed and dried thoroughly, beat the egg whites in a different large bowl to soft-peak stage. Continue beating until peaks start to go firm. Fold the white into the chocolate mixture little by little—ever so gently. Pour the mixture into the pan and bake until the top puffs up and cracks, and until a toothpick stuck into the middle comes out with some moist crumbs attached. This usually takes about 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan on a rack. Don’t be distressed if the brownie mix ‘falls’: this is what is supposed to happen, and what gives it its rich flavor. When it is cool, take a sharp knife and cut around the sides of the pan to loosen the brownies. Place a large plate or piece of cardboard over the top and invert the brownie mix on to it. Peel off the paper. Now cut into squares or slices. Serve with a sprinkle of slivered toasted almonds and shaved black chocolate on top, or add some fresh strawberries or raspberries. The great charm of these brownies is their rich, deep, sexy chocolate flavor. SUSANNAH KENTON’S FREEZER FUDGE Check out my daughter Susannah’s delightful website. There’s much else wonderful you can discover there: www.theheartpod.com Sugar, refined flour and junk fats have a lot to answer for in degrading health and contributing to obesity. Cutting back on all three is a great way to boost your energy, slim down and reclaim wellbeing. But, at the same time, no one likes to feel deprived. That's why I've created Freezer Fudge. Although relatively caloric (thanks to healthy fats like coconut oil—which actually boosts metabolism), it makes a great guilt-free, sugar-free, grain-free snack. It will help you feel full, satisfied and energized, not crashed and cravey. Because it includes protein and fat, just one or two pieces are all you need for a quick pick-me-up.* Best of all, it's absolutely scrumptious. I challenge you to feel any sense of deprivation eating it. Enjoy this tasty treat and feel energized and virtuous! Tastes even better than your favorite chocolate! WHAT YOU NEED 100g unsalted organic butter 100g coconut oil 75g almond butter 100g Vital Whey protein powder chocolate flavor 50g 100% pure cocoa powder (unsweetened) 1 tbsp pure vanilla essence 1 tsp English Toffee stevia drops (you can use plain liquid stevia or granulated Stevia by Stevita instead, to taste.) HERE’S HOW Combine the ingredients in a food processor, using the blade attachment, until smooth. If you don't have a food processor, melt the butter and coconut oil first, then stir all the ingredients together in a bowl. Smooth the mixture into a rectangular container and freeze for about a half hour. Press the fudge block out of its container, place on a chopping board, and cut into squares. ONLY THE BEGINNING Let me know if you would like more information about chocolate and some more recipes. In one newsletter I can only scratch the surface. It is a subject that fascinates me and there is so much wonderful news about this glorious food of the gods. If it interests you, I am happy to share a lot more with you next week. Ingredients that are great to use Organic Dark Chocolate Vivani, 100% Organic Dark Chocolate with 85% Cocoa Order Organic Dark Chocolate from iherb Premium Baking Chocolate Ghirardelli, Premium Baking Bar, 100% Cacao, Unsweetened Chocolate, 4 oz (113 g) Order Premium Baking Bar from iherb Organic Cocoa Powder Rapunzel, Organic Cocoa Powder, 7.1 oz (201 g) Order Organic Cocoa Powder from iherb Chocolate Micro Filtered Whey Well Wisdom, Vital Whey, Natural Cocoa, 21 oz (600 g) Order Chocolate Micro Filtered Whey from iherb Spoonable Stevia Stevita, Stevia Spoonable, 16 oz (454 g) Order Spoonable Stevia from iherb Liquid Stevia Wisdom Natural, Sweet Drops, Liquid Stevia Sweetener, English Toffee, 2 fl oz (60 ml) Order Liquid Stevia from iherb

The word charisma literally means "talent, grace, a favor specially vouchsafed by God". The charisma approach to good looks focuses not so much on specifics as on the over-all impression you create - an expression of your personal and idiosyncratic feeling for who you are and what looks best on you. The charisma approach to good looks is bold, assertive and often witty. And, contrary to popular opinion, it is not the exclusive province of the special elect - women with perfect size 10 bodies and not a wrinkle on their faces. Far from it. Charisma is ageless. It exists in every culture. It is the icing on the cake - the external expression of your unique authenticity which gives you panache, boldness and humor, and transforms physical limitations like wide hips or giraffe necks into assets. It can make a wonderful statement out of a nose that by conventional standards is too big. Charisma makes you stand out in a crowd. Developing charisma of your own can not only be a lot of fun and have a dazzling effect on your outside world, it can even empower you to live more and more from your core. Charisma is something of far greater value than a docile conformity to conventional notions about fashion and beauty. affirming what's authentic What gives you charisma? The Chanel suit you wear? The car you drive? The way you have been taught to use your body or speak your words? Not really. For, stylish or charming as these things may be, they are more often than not chosen without any consideration of whether or not they have a connection with the individuality of the woman who wears them. It is rather like hanging Christmas baubles on a willow tree. As such, they offer little more than the appearance of charisma. And like pastiche, appearances never deceive a discerning eye. Developing your own charisma is first a question of acknowledging that how you look matters. Second, you need to make time to care for yourself and to explore who you are. Finally you have to rediscover the art of play. Your unique nature can be expressed in a myriad of ways, from the most simple and playful to the most profound: In the colors you like best, in the way you choose to wear your hair, the kind of make-up you wear, as well as how you think and talk, and in the deep values you embody; even in the dreams you dream and in the things you do and make - whether they be creations of art, intellectual or physical feats, or your simple day-to-day ways of being. That is why at its essence, charisma is both disarmingly simple and immeasurably complex - neither more nor less than living day by day from a full and honest outpouring of your individuality - that spirit which is unique to you.

Too often, lost in my research and writing, I forget to bring you up to date with important developments that are taking place on NEW CURA ROMANA. My apologies... Let me make up for this now. The changes and improvements that we continue to make are happening fast on all levels: An even more effective Consolidation. An even more potent Essential Spray. A new Cura Romana book. Huge volumes of intriguing reports, as well as a brand new video about the program by me, plus information about where we are going from here. Whew! By the way, participants on the program have spontaneously chosen their own affectionate name for it. More and more people have affectionately come to call their weight, health and life transformations “CURA” which I just love. I only wish I’d thought of it myself. After all, the word CURA means “to give attention to, to care for, to cure, to heal”—all of the things Aaron and I value most. So CURA it is from now on. MY OWN CURA STORY Hundreds who joined the CURA family in the last year keep badgering me to tell them about my own personal struggles with weight. “Did you once suffer from shame about your body?” they ask. “Did you have food cravings?” “Did you ever feel powerless to change all this?” My brand new video, which has now taken over the home page at curaromana.com, will give you all the answers to these questions. It will also tell you all about why CURA bears no resemblance to every other weight loss diet, about the way which it clears food cravings and addictions, as well as how it so often rejuvenates the body in medically measurable ways. Do check it out. BOOK CONFUSION NOW OVER We have had lots of trouble with people misunderstanding that the New Cura Romana book (Bright Orange) is most certainly NOT at all the same as my first CR book (Shocking Pink) but in some new format.  This false notion grew out of a mistake that my wonderful publishers made (I guess everyone is allowed to make one now and then). Somebody in their publicity department mistakenly sent out the wrong press release—namely the same release that they’d sent out for the old book, when it came out way back in 2011. What a mess! Even Amazon became confused, since the same wrong words were put onto their site as a description for the new book. As a result, Amazon has refused to allow people who buy the new book to write reviews of it if they had previously purchased bought the old book, since even Amazon thought the two books were the same. Such a drama! THE TRUTH BE TOLD Leslie Kenton’s New Cura Romana Weightloss Plan is a major advance on the first Cura Romana book.  It guides you through our powerful new Consolidation process, making it easier than ever for weight lost during Essential Spray+Food Plan to stay lost! The new book also conveys my hands-on experience with thousands of men and women all over the world who have done CURA over the past four years, and merges this with vital, up-to-the-minute information any reader needs to make the best of a Cura Romana experience using any book. It guides you step-by-step through Cura Romana’s second-generation protocol, so you learn secrets about banishing addictions, clearing food cravings and staying healthy and lean for life. So, if you decide to shed weight by yourself, make sure you read the new ORANGE book and not the old PINK one which is now way out of date. This is important! ONLINE WORKS BEST That being said, no published book, regardless of how up to date it is, can compare with our CURA JOURNEY PROGRAM or our INNER CIRCLE GOLD CURA online. Why is this the case? Because Aaron and I are continually updating and upgrading the guidance and materials that we bring to participants. This means that CURA ONLINE is literally up to the minute. In the fast moving world in which we now live, no book can ever offer this. You see, the mechanics of book publishing grind slowly. It often takes a year after receiving the manuscript from an author to bring a new book to the public. UP-TO-THE MINUTE Aaron and I do our utmost to bring our CURA participants the most powerful up-to-the-moment guidance, techniques, research and information—stuff that not only helps weight loss, followed by weight stabilization, take place rapidly and smoothly. For us, participants on both programs become part of the CURA family. Some of our people want to shed as little as 10 pounds of fat and then keep it off forever. Others want to lose as much as 40 to 50 kilos, or even more. Their goals are not only to end weight struggles forever, but to experience optimal, drug-free health. Still others—both men and women—look to discover a way of life that increases natural vitality, improves athletic performance, helps clear cellulite and PMS in women, and fosters emotional balance, bringing a sense of freedom and pleasure in just being alive. Not only are these things possible, they are already being experienced by thousands of men and women throughout the world who learn the secrets we love to share. We are constantly updating our online audios, videos, teaching instruments and recipes to make all this possible. My very own audios and videos, made especially for the program, guide you day-by-day from start to finish. Are you serious about leaving behind past failures, food-cravings and self-criticism, and replacing them with your naturally lean and healthy body? Are you ready to create a new life for yourself? Then check out which program is right for you, and join the CURA family online. We send you all the Essential Spray you need for whichever program you choose. They’re included in the cost. Oh yes, and before I forget to tell you: CURA’S JOURNEY PROGRAM is about the best value for money we think you’ll find anywhere. PLEASE BEWARE In case you are going to use my New Cura Romana Weightloss Plan book, there are a couple of important things you should know. First, Leslie Kenton’s Essential Spray, designed for use on any Cura Romana program, is not only unique in its formulation and its effectiveness. It is also the only product for effective weight loss “Fulfilled By Amazon” worldwide. It has been ever since January 2011, when my original book was published. You’ll find several knock-offs aggressively advertised on Amazon, but every one of these products are NOT Amazon-sold. They are sold by companies wanting to get in on the act. It would be fine if they came anywhere near the effectiveness of Essential Spray. Sadly, they don’t. I discovered all of this because many people who were trying to do Cura Romana using my books wrote to me for help. They said they had not been experiencing enhanced health, improved hormone balance and emotional wellbeing, all of which are hallmarks of our Essential Spray, which took John Morgan and I many months to formulate and test before it was released for sale. When these frustrated people told me of their disappointments and that they had bought one of these products thinking it would work fine, I asked them to stop taking it and use Essential Spray instead. They took my advice and never looked back. So please beware of copycat products my friends. You deserve to get the very best from your Cura Romana experience. This is why Aaron and I work so hard to make it possible for you. By the way, do take a look at our brand new packaging for ESSENTIAL SPRAY. We think it’s turned out kind of cool. Let us know what you think. WORDS FROM THE EXPERTS YOU are our experts! Those of you who have done the programs and become part of the CURA family speak to us of your experiences, and we listen. Without your feedback reports after completing your CURA program—either the CR Journey or the Inner Circle—we would never be able to move forward with continuing to make your experience easier, more powerful, more successful and more satisfying all round. Aaron and I are grateful to all of you who have meticulously filled out our “Help From You” questionnaires. We love knowing what worked for you, and what we might be able to improve on. And we feel so good when we hear some of the wonderful praise that you send us, which you kindly ask that we share with others. So here goes—here is some of the recent praise which we’ve been told to share: Louise who’s just lost 12 kilos writes: “Believe me, you will not regret Cura! It is an amazing journey that makes you look deep into yourself, heals and embraces the real you. I am still benefitting in so many ways. People tell me I look fabulous—today I was told I look “hot” by one of my customers. Not bad for a 50 year old!” Natalie, who lost 26.6 pounds on a recent Inner Circle 45 program, had this to say about Leslie’s personal voicemails: “I loved them. She makes me laugh. I love how feisty she is and admire her passion and energy! She is amazingly knowledgeable—a real food and medicine guru!” Merrilyn, who recently shed 16.3 kilos, asked us to share these comments with you: “I have been on diets, spending huge amounts of money for 40 years, getting bigger with each attempt and feeling more miserable with each failure. This program has flipped the switch for me. It has not only allowed me to lose weight without losing tone and condition, it has redefined my shape—I now have clavicles! If that was the only outcome, it would have been worth it. But there is so much more that it has done for me. I am in complete control of my eating now and I no longer have an “off a diet on a diet” mentality. I love eating the Consolidation way. I really enjoy fresh, whole, organic foods so much more than what I used to eat with the added bonus that it’s also so much better for the environment. The hardest thing to convince anyone of who has not experienced CURA is the amazing feeling of well being, true peace and happiness it brings. They think this is just a case of feeling better about yourself. But I know that it’s much more profound than that—something you just have to experience for yourself to understand. And all the health benefits—throw out the antacids, the osteo treatments and feel young again. Dance all night. Play all day. Life is wonderful!” All your generous praise makes us proud and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for urging us to share them with others. Love and blessings to each and every one of you...

Who would have thought that taking the right kind of walk can not only clear stress, and energize mind and body but even bring you face to face with satori? Satori brings a sense of living in the fullness of your being, moment by moment. So often, we think we need to make decisions about what we are going to do in the next hour, the next day, the next year. We worry about how to discipline our bodies, get the work done and pay the bills, as well as a thousand other things.You can find yourself walking in new ways, with different rhythms. Aches and pains diminish. You sense a new relationships developing—to yourself, your surroundings and the world as a whole. I am passionate about taking two quite different kinds of walks which I’m keen to share with you because they have brought me much pleasure as well as so many other benefits. They are, each in their own way a lot of fun to. FREE FLOW Once a day, regardless of the weather outside, and whenever it suits you, go out walking for the sheer pleasure of doing it. It can be fun to walk in sunshine, but just as wonderful to walk in rain—unhurried and unburdened by the need to ‘look good’. Look around, smell the air, notice the way your body has begun to move. The next step is likely to sound weird, but try it: When you see a tree, say silently to yourself, ‘Tree.’ When you see a flower—‘Flower.’ This simple naming practice helps you become aware of where you are in space and time. And it does this in a wonderful, spontaneous, improvizing way. As you walk, life takes on an unexpected, exciting feel. Meanwhile, futile internal monologues begin to fade away. One of my favorite books was written by a musician named Stephen Nachmanovitch. It is called Free Play: Improvisation in Life and Art. It’s a superb book. If you are interested in creativity on any level—and I don’t mean just being an artist, but any and all kinds of creativity—I highly recommend it. In a chapter called ‘Inspiration and Time Flow’, Nachmanovitch describes this first way of walking I want to pass on to you. (Of course, you are probably unlikely to be walking down a street in a foreign city as he describes, but much of what he writes about this way of walking is relevant no matter where you are.) It reminds us all that it is not impossible to live our lives moment to moment, fully present with real awareness and joy. Here is what Nachmanovitch writes: A walk, following your intuitive promptings down the streets of a foreign city, holds rewards far beyond a planned tour of the tried and tested. Such a walk is totally different from random drifting. Leaving your eyes and ears wide open, you allow your likes and dislikes, your conscious and unconscious desires and irritations, your irrational hunches to guide you whenever there is a choice of turning right or left. You cut a path through a city that’s yours alone. This brings you face to face with surprises that are destined for you alone. You might discover conversations and friendships, meetings with remarkable people. When you travel in this way, when you walk in this way, you are free. There are no ‘have tos’ and ‘shoulds’. You are structured at first only by the date of the plane departure. As the pattern of people and places unfolds, the trip, like an improvised piece of music, reveals its own inner structure and rhythm. Thus do you set the stage for fateful encounters. I’ve got to add here that some of the most important ‘fateful encounters’ he speaks of are likely to be brand new encounters with yourself, in ways you may never have dreamed of. INSTANT ENERGY IS YOURS This is the second of my favorite walks. It’s a way not only of relieving stress, but of energizing yourself, learning to be present in the moment and, like Nachmanovitch’s walk, releasing your mind from the habitual chatter that prevents our feeling fully alive. I learned this technique from a Belleruth Naparstek’s “Meditations to Relieve Stress” audio. Here’s how it goes: Choose a place where you will be able to walk without meeting a lot of people, so you allow yourself to connect with your surroundings the way a child might. You don’t have to smile or relate to anyone. Instead, you will be drawing in energy from your surroundings. What will amaze you is just how much vitality you can absorb from your environment when you are not wasting your own energy with meaningless social contact. So, just for 10 to 15 minutes, let yourself retreat inwards and see what amazing things happen. GETTING EARTHED Begin your walk by shaking out your body a little. Feel the earth beneath your feet. Take a deep breath and let it out with no effort. Now look around you, at the sky, the earth, the trees, grass, rocks or flowers—whatever you find around you. Take another slow, even breath deep down into your abdomen. Now, aware of your breath going steadily in and out, start walking at a comfortable pace, opening all your senses to your environment as if it were part of you. Let yourself enjoy the light, the mist, the colors, the rocks and sand; whatever is there. Let yourself become aware of the way things move in light and shade, so you are in effect feeding on the richness of your surroundings. Let your body move easily and gently, so it feels as though it is dancing with your surroundings. Allow yourself to experience everything you see and feel, smell and touch, as though you are doing it for the first time, with the curious mind of a child. Feel the air on your skin, smell the fragrance around you in all its layers and textures as you walk. Continue to be aware of the ground beneath your feet, and how your breath going in and out feels. Notice how well the earth supports you. Enjoy the feel of your body in motion. See how heightened your senses become to the colors and the fragrances. Notice how clear your vision has become. This simple focus, this increased awareness of the sound of your own feet on the ground, the feel of your breath, the movement of your legs and torso will become more acute, more intense, more nourishing and more satisfying. LIKE MAGIC Colors become more and more intense, richer, clearer. You can find your senses opening as you become ever more aware of everything around you. You may even sense that you are immersed in a wonderful new ocean of reality. That the trees and the rocks, the air you breathe, and the sky have become part of you and you of them. Indulge yourself. Smell the air, feel the ground, immerse yourself in the sea of life and generosity in which you find yourself. Now, simply draw the energy of the earth into you. Let it fill you up. Breathe in the beauty of the sky. Take in every sight and sound, deep into your heart, as you become aware that you are attuned to everything around you. This energy is available to you whenever you want it. All it depends on is your own willingness to connect with the sea of life of which you are a part. Whenever you do, the whole world feeds you, belongs to you, nourishes you at every level. Continue to walk as long as you like, easily and blissfully, aware of your feet on the ground, your breath moving in and out, and the part you play in this wonderful sea of reality which belongs to you, and you to it. BACK TO SOURCE Both of these walking techniques are wonderful. Don’t just read about them—print up these descriptions and carry them with you. Then have a go. See what happens to you. Even better, take a look at where I learned about them. Stephen Nachmanovitch’s book is the best book on creativity I have ever read. I have read it at least 12 times. (As a present for Aaron who loves listening to audio books, I even made a recording of most of the chapters and gave it to him.) When it comes to Belleruth Naparstek’s work, her recordings are unparalleled in the world for their transformative power. You can purchase the one below on CD. Better still, just download it and put it on an MP3 player so you can begin using it today. You can find them below: Free Play - Stephen Nachmanovitch’s Improvisation In Life And Art - Stephen Nachmanovitch’s book is the best book on creativity I have ever read. I have read it at least 12 times. To find out more click on the links below. Order Free Play - Stephen Nachmanovitch’s from Amazon MEDITATIONS TO RELIEVE STRESS imagery for mastering anxiety; guided imagery to pump up feelings of love, safety and protection; a soothing, walking meditation for the fidgeters among us who can’t sit still; and affirmations for use anytime. (72 min.) Order Meditations To Relieve Stress at iTunes Order Meditations To Relieve Stress at Amazon

The most dangerous damage your body ever has to handle is inflammation. When your body becomes inflamed this can trigger serious degenerative illnesses, from early aging and heart disease to diabetes, arthritis, food intolerance, and mental disorders. Inflammation is your body’s natural response to infection, injury, and tissue damage. It comes in two forms: Acute inflammation and chronic/ systemic inflammation, which spreads throughout your body. Acute inflammation is temporary, the purpose of which is to restore good tissue function as soon as possible. Your body creates inflammation as its defense against disturbing homeostasis in an attempt to prevent harm to surrounding tissues. Chronic inflammation, however, can be dangerous. It can turn into a festering fire that creates pain, illness, and disability. This is because your body reacts to chronic inflammation by triggering cellular and molecular distortions to pro-inflammatory immune cells that circulate throughout your body. This can bring damage to healthy areas like the linings of your blood vessels, as in arteriosclerosis, or your joint tissues in arthritis, or gut mucosa and diabetes. It may even act as a precursor to cancer. When it comes to the treatment of long-term illness—such as heart disease—savvy medical doctors now warn that we’ve been misled. It is inflammation in the arteries that is the real cause of arteriosclerosis and heart problems. Cholesterol can never line artery walls and cause heart attacks and strokes unless systemic inflammation is widespread in your body. So prescribing drugs to lower cholesterol and telling people to restrict saturated fats do not protect from heart disease as we’ve been told. In fact, statins, which the majority of cardiologists continue to prescribe for cholesterol, can seriously damage your health. Dwight Lundell, former Chief of Staff and Surgery at Banner Heart Hospital in Arizona, is one of many outspoken physicians in regard to this mistake. As he says, “We physicians with all our training, knowledge and authority, often acquire a rather large ego that tends to make it difficult to admit we are wrong.” He continues, “I freely admit to being wrong. As a heart surgeon with 25 years’ experience, having performed over 5,000 open-heart surgeries, today is my day to right the wrong with medical and scientific fact.” So, what are the causes of chronic inflammation in your body? The most common causes include: Exposure to chemical inhalants and pollutants, and electromagnetic exposure to cell phones, smart meters, and towers. Another is taking long-term courses of powerful drugs, from antibiotics to hormones, anti-depressants, analgesics, and sedatives, as well as drugs like statins and other pharmaceuticals, the remains of which can literally poison your body long term. Want to protect yourself from inflammation? Become aware of your possible exposure to these things and make changes to help protect you from possible causes. In many ways the simplest place of all to begin is by changing the way you eat, since the typical 21st century diet is right at the core of widespread chronic inflammation. Learn which foods are inflammatory in nature and which foods can help protect you from it. Then it’s time to throw out every one of the inflammatory foods that line your cupboard and your refrigerator, and forever change how you may have been eating. Foods that cause inflammation, which you want to avoid at any cost, are all kinds of sugars, regardless of how much they may be promoted as “good for you;” all artificial sweeteners, which are chemically dangerous to your body; and all GMO foods, which can literally be deadly. A large percentage of the population nowadays reacts badly to cow’s milk products—from the milk itself to cow’s yogurt and cheese. Buy goat, sheep or buffalo milk, yogurt, and cheese instead. Another category of foods that can be seriously inflammatory to the body are high-carbohydrate foods—breads, pasta, cakes, and biscuits made from common grains and cereals as well as all the common convenience foods that line our supermarket shelves. These are chock-full of colorants, flavor enhancers, and other chemicals that poison your body. And it goes without saying that you want to avoid all junk foods completely. Certain foods, herbs, spices, and supplements can help reduce inflammation and protect your body from it in the future. Organic dark green vegetables are high on the list: spinach, kale, dandelion greens, collard greens, broccoli, bok choy, beet greens, and asparagus are high on the list of protective vegetables. So are organic berries of all kinds, organic chicken, grass-fed lamb, beef, venison, wild salmon, and green-lipped muscles from New Zealand. Clearing inflammation from your body in whatever form it occurs is likely to be the very best action you can take to help you live a long and healthy life, during which you look and feel your very best at every age.

In our world where grains of every kind—gluten-free or not—turn to sugar when you eat them, quinoa is a fabulous superfood you should make part of your diet. With its high fiber content and good quality protein, plus a wide variety of powerful health-giving compounds—from polyphenols, saponins and phytosterols to free radical scavengers—it’s not only yummy, but a great meat-free food to grace your table. It has very little carb content compared to all those stodgy grains and is far lower on the dangerous glycemic index. SUPER NUTRIENTS Although it’s spelled “kwin-OH-a” you pronounce quinoa’s name as “KEEN-wa”. It has been a staple of South American diets for an amazing 4000 years. But not until 50 years ago did curious scientists start to investigate the nature of this food and discover that it comes as close as any other in the plant kingdom to supplying a vast array of the essential nutrients we humans need to thrive. This seed is high in magnesium to calm the body and reduce blood pressure. It brings you an abundance of good quality fiber when you eat it. Quinoa also contains a lot of anti-inflammatory compounds. It is safe to eat even if you have delicate digestion, inflammatory bowel trouble, celiac disease or gluten intolerance. And it’s brimming with important minerals and vitamins from magnesium, zinc and phosphorous to vitamin E, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and folate. This makes quinoa an excellent choice for people savvy enough to go for foods that are low on the glycemic index, low-carb dieters, vegans, and all of us who need to increase our fiber intake. THE NEW FUNCTIONAL FOOD Studies continue to report that eating quinoa brings us all sorts of health-promoting effects. It can help reduce high blood pressure, alleviate cardiovascular troubles, promote cellular energy production and act as a pre-biotic. Thanks to its high level of bio-active compounds, many also believe this unique natural food has the potential to help lower the risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart conditions. At the University of Milan, researchers discovered it also satisfies your appetite far better than, say, wheat or rice. It promotes a sense of fullness, helping to alleviate your desire for more food and helping to halt weight gain. The seeds of quinoa can also help reduce most of the negative effects that come from fructose on your lipid profile and glucose level. To discover what this wonderful non-grain can do for you, you need to know how to prepare and use it in your life. After all, the proof of any pudding is in the eating. And there is an art to preparing it. HERE’S HOW Make sure the quinoa you buy is fresh and organic. Most of the stuff in supermarkets is neither, so shop in good, reliable organic food stores. Read labels carefully to check for both before you buy. Stale quinoa is dusty and can taste “dead” since it has lost so much of its goodness through food processing or just sitting on shelves for too long. Rinse it well Do not be tempted to skip this direction. You must wash away the thin coating on these tiny seeds, otherwise they will taste bitter. You will need a very fine-meshed strainer so that the little seeds don’t slip through it in the process. Hold it under streaming water for two minutes while swirling around its contents. Time to Cook To 1 cup of your rinsed seeds add two cups of water, a pinch or two of sea salt or Himalayan salt, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat as much as possible and let it simmer until it becomes tender. This usually takes about 15 minutes. You’ll be able to tell when it is cooked because the tiny grains will have become translucent and the germ of each seed will show up as a little spiral on its surface. You do not want to overcook it as this will make it mushy. Drain it Remove from heat and drain it using the same fine-mesh strainer. Then put the drained quinoa back in the pot, cover it and let it sit without any heat for another 15 minutes. This helps dry it a bit so it does not become clumpy. Time to serve Aerate it with a fork. It should look light and feel fluffy, and you should begin to see the way the germ is separating from the seed itself. Its texture is very much like that of rice or couscous. Serve immediately You can eat it as a porridge with a handsome glob of butter on top, add it to a casserole, a curry, or the way you might serve rice on a plate with other vegetables. MORE FABULOUS FAUX GRAINS Quinoa is but one of the amazing “false” grains which have none of the negative effects of grains and cereals. You can make all sorts of wonderful things using them, from muffins and pancakes to loaves and pilaf. Learn more about all of these by clicking here, and enjoy! Do let me know how you get on, and if you discover any of your own wonderful recipes using this gem of a faux grain, so we can share them with other people in the future.

Want to control your weight? The key to this may be simpler than you think: get more sleep. A brand new study of 1800 sets of twins reveals that the twins who slept nine plus hours a night had a drastically increased ability to combat genetically-predisposed weight gain compared to the twins who slept less than seven hours. What this means is that when you do get enough sleep, your genes become less critical in determining how much weight your body lays down. But you need no longer be at the mercy of your DNA. If at the same time you make good lifestyle choices like eating a healthy diet and getting some regular, enjoyable exercise, this can set the stage for living a long, slim, healthy life. If you’ve long struggled with weight control, this is great news. A few extra hours of sleep a night could throw the ball of weight control right back in your own court. The word leptin means “thin” in Greek. Leptin is an important hormone that helps regulate your metabolism. It tells your brain when you have had enough to eat—an experience known as satiety. A number of early studies have shown that when you are sleep deprived, the body’s levels of this hormone drop and you develop what is known as leptin resistance—a condition that interferes with fat burning. Meanwhile, levels of another important hormone ghrelin (leptin’s hunger-signaling counterpart) rise. This results in you experiencing increased appetite and food cravings—especially for carbohydrates like grains, cereals, sugars, and junk food—all the stuff that makes us fat and destroys our health. John Keats, in his Sonnet to Sleep, called sleep the “soft embalmer,” praising its “careful fingers” and “lulling charities.” How right he was. The benefits that sleep bestows on us extend far beyond weight control. Sleep heals our body and our mind, enabling us to integrate new information with ease. But when we are sleep deprived, our bodies can come under powerful biological stress. They begin to respond in negative ways in an attempt to protect us: Muscles get tense. Heart rate and blood pressure go up. Digestion is disturbed and the stress hormone corticosterone floods your system. Then your body lays down yet more fat deposits while refusing to let go of the ones already there. But here’s the rub about sleep deprivation. In case you think you can “catch up” after prolonged periods of too little sleep, you can’t. For sleep to become an ally in your fat-fighting armory, you need to get plenty night after night. The new twins research shows that some of us need nine or more hours sleep a night to receive weight control benefits. But there are no hard-and-fast rules. So instead of trying to adhere to a strict eight or nine-hour-a-night regime, listen to your own unique body. When you do, it will tell you how much sleep you should be getting. Life factors such as age, stress or illness, occupation, sex, diet, and pregnancy mean that some people will need more sleep and others less. Check this out: Are you often tired upon waking? Do you get sleepy throughout the day? Experiment. See how you feel after different amounts of sleep and find what works for you. Your entire being—not least of all your slimmer waistline—will thank you for it.

The shelves of health food stores are chock-a-block with vitamin and mineral supplements. If you want to get the very best of them for the sake of your own health and that of your family you’ll need to choose them carefully. Despite their big price tags and the sexy designs that appear on their labels, the vast majority of multi vitamin and mineral products consist of synthetically manufactured chemical lookalikes of no value to your health. You’ve got to go for feed-state multivitamins and minerals if you want health supporting benefits. More about this in a moment. WHO NEEDS VITAMINS ANYWAY? We all do, despite the fact that a myriad of medical professionals completely untrained in good nutrition continue to tell their patients that taking supplements does nothing but produce expensive urine. This is nonsense. As far back as 20 years ago impeccable research was being published in reputable scientific journals making it obvious that human beings benefit from taking the right kind of multivitamin supplement. For instance, one excellent study which appeared in The Journal of the American Medical Association showed that women who take over-the-counter multivitamin supplements in the first months of pregnancy dramatically reduce the risk of giving birth to a neurologically damaged child. Neural tube defects are amongst the most horrible and most common birth defects. They cause everything from death to paralysis in the child and they affect between 1 and 2 babies in every 1000 births. The study was carried out under the direction of Aubrey Milunsky, director of Boston University's prestigious Center for Human Genetics. It involved 23,000 women, half of whom took multivitamin pills containing folic acid (a B-group vitamin in particularly high demand during pregnancy). The results were astonishing. The incidence of neural tube defects in babies born to the women who took the multivitamin pills was only a quarter of what it was amongst those women who took no supplements. SHAKING THE FEDS So remarkable were these results that they shook United States Federal officials who have for generations claimed that taking nutritional supplements is not only unnecessary but can be damaging to an ordinary 'healthy' person's wellbeing. Nonetheless, the FDA and CODEX still insist that “nutrition is not relevant to health” and that if any vitamins and minerals are to be allowed on the market they will only be permitted in ultra-low doses. Clinically effective nutrients and doses are month-by-month being treated as “toxins” and removed from public access. How do we get around this? By taking good quality Food State Supplements instead of the run-of-the-mill chemically produced varieties. WHY YOU NEED FOOD STATE Most vitamins sold in stores and online are synthetic man-made vitamins that have been produced in the laboratory in an attempt to match the molecular structure of naturally occurring vitamins normally found in our foods. As a result they tend to contain high doses of the chemically-made nutrients in an attempt to make enough of each nutrient biologically available to the body. It is just these high dosages that the FDA and CODEX are targeting by making them illegal to be sold over-the-counter. But there is a wonderful way around this which I strongly urge you to explore—to shun chemically made vitamins (which over 90% on the market are) and go for their Food State cousins. Our bodies have been accustomed to absorbing with ease the vitamins and minerals that we get from our foods. Man-made synthetics, even though they try to match the molecular structures of vitamins and minerals, are not the same. Our bodies do not handle them as well, so you may be taking a high potency man-made synthetic that has come recommended, but you may not actually be absorbing the vitamins and minerals it contains. This is one of the reasons why I am so passionate about whole-food, natural multi-vitamins and minerals. GROWN NUTRIENTS Good manufacturers of whole-food vitamins and minerals grow the majority of the foods and botanicals that go into their formulas themselves. Then, using state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation, they test, validate and document the potencies of all the raw materials that make up the formula. This is achieved by using high performance liquid chromatography to test vitamin potency and inductively coupled plasma optimal emission spectrometers to test mineral potency. They are also very careful in how they handle the food extracts that are often added to these supplements. For instance, they use a very specific system of drying which transfers heat gently and efficiently, removing moisture from delicate foods and botanicals while preventing oxidation of the raw materials. This protects the integrity of the food and the botanicals as well as protecting against the degradation of their nutrient content, maintaining the color and the flavor. TREMENDOUS BENEFITS Because natural Food State vitamins are indeed natural and food-state, you will find that the recommended daily serving of vitamins per person is usually somewhere between six and eight tablets a day in order to be able to obtain the full benefit. In addition to the usual vitamins, i.e. vitamin A, C, D3, E, K1, folate, and so forth, there should be a good broad spectrum of minerals: calcium, iodine, magnesium, selenium, chromium, molybdenum, manganese, etc. These wonderful food-state vitamins also often contain extracts taken from other plants that are beneficial to the body, things like extract of barley grass and green papaya, extract of carrot for instance, as well as astragalus. They may also contain many of the Ayurvedic herbs or the herbs that are used in Chinese medicine—reishi and shitake mushrooms, foti and kudzu root. This is the kind of vitamin that I think you will benefit most from. BUYER BEWARE There are many vitamins on the market that claim to be whole-food vitamins but that are not of top quality. Always make sure, whatever vitamin/mineral complex you choose, that it is free of corn, soy, yeast, wheat and dairy products, and it has been formulated without the use of preservatives, artificial flavors or coloring. Here are some food-state vitamin and mineral supplements at the top of my own list. Tried and tested, they are worth every penny you pay for them. I have used all of these products personally and can’t recommend them highly enough. If you try some of them, I’d love you to let me know how you have found them yourself. MegaFood, Women's, Whole Food Multivitamin MegaFood cares about doing things the right way - they refuse to take shortcuts, and never compromise on quality or the things that matter. Since 1973, they have been going out of their way to source fresh and local foods from trusted farmers. They then make all their wholesome supplements using a one-of-a-kind process to deliver the most authentic nutrition - much more than vitamins alone. Order MegaFood Womens Whole Food Multi from iherb MegaFood, Baby & Me, California Blend, Whole Food Multivitamin Ideal for pregnant and lactating women Order Baby And Me Multi from iherb MegaFood, Men Over 40, Whole Food Multivitamin & Mineral, Iron Free Formula MegaFood cares about doing things the right way - we refuse to take shortcuts, and we never compromise on quality or the things that matter. Since 1973, we have been going out of our way to source fresh and local foods from trusted farmers. We then make our wholesome supplements using our one-of-a-kind process to deliver the most authentic nutrition - much more than vitamins alone. Order Men Over 40 Multi from iherb MegaFood, Skin, Nails & Hair, Whole Food Multivitamin MegaFood cares about doing things the right way - we refuse to take shortcuts, and we never compromise on quality or the things that matter. Since 1973, we have been going out of our way to source fresh and local foods from trusted farmers. We then make our wholesome supplements using our one-of-a-kind process to deliver the most authentic nutrition - much more than vitamins alone. Order Skin, Nails & Hair Multi from iherb

Want to control your weight? The key to this may be simpler than you think: Get more sleep. A brand new study of 1800 sets of twins reveals that those twins who slept nine plus hours a night had a drastically increased ability to combat genetically-predisposed weight gain, compared to the twins who slept less than seven hours. What this means is that, when you do get enough sleep, your genes become less critical in determining how much weight your body lays down. You will no longer at the mercy of your DNA. If at the same time you make good lifestyle choices like eating a healthy diet, and getting some regular, enjoyable exercise, can set the stage for living a long, slim, healthy life. If you are someone who has long struggled with weight control, this is great news. A few extra hours of sleep a night could throw the ball of weight control right back in your own court. MEET YOUR ALLY The word leptin means ‘thin’ in Greek. Leptin is an important hormone which helps regulate your metabolism. It tells your brain when you have had enough to eat—the experience known as satiety. Earlier studies have shown that, when you are sleep deprived, your body’s levels of this hormone drop, and you develop what is known as leptin resistance—a condition which interferes with fat burning. Meanwhile, levels of another important hormone ghrelin (leptin’s hunger-signaling counterpart) rise. This results in your experiencing increased appetite and food cravings—especially for carbohydrates like grains, cereals, sugars and junk food—all the stuff which makes us fat and undermines our health. NIGHT AFTER NIGHT John Keats in his ‘Sonnet to Sleep’ called sleep the “soft embalmer”, praising its “careful fingers” and “lulling charities”. How right he was. The benefits sleep bestows on us extend far beyond weight control. Sleep helps heal our bodies and our minds—enabling us to integrate new information with ease. When we are sleep deprived, however, our bodies come under biological stress. They begin to respond in negative ways in an attempt to protect us: Muscles get tense. Heart rate and blood pressure go up. Digestion becomes disturbed and your stress hormone, corticosterone, floods the system. Then your body lays down yet more fat deposits while refusing to let go of the ones already there. But here’s the rub about sleep deprivation. In case you think you can “catch up” after prolonged periods of too little sleep, you can’t. For sleep to become an ally in your fat-fighting armory, you need to get plenty night after night. WHAT’S BEST The new twins research shows that some of us need nine or more hours sleep a night to receive weight control benefits. But there are no hard and fast rules. So instead of trying to adhere to a strict eight or nine-hour-a-night regime, listen to your own unique body. When you do, it will tell you how much sleep you should be getting. Life factors such as age, stress or illness, occupation, sex, diet and pregnancy mean that some people will need more sleep, and others less. Check this out: Are you often tired upon waking? Do you get sleepy throughout the day? Experiment. See how you feel after different amounts of sleep, and find what works for you. Your entire being—not least of all, your slimmer waistline—will thank you for it. To here more click here