Snacks & Supplements I've Been Loving Lately

This blog post is sparked by my recent burnout experience and the rise from it's ashes with the support of some supplements that almost everyone can benefit from hence this share. As someone who believes I'm in perfect health at all times, I can become a little blind while feeling invincible when in fact, I'm run down or could use a little support in the form of additions to my nutritional intake. Perhaps you are similar. 

At this same time as realizing, "hey, wouldn't it be nice if my immune system was stronger", my friend Lia pointed out to me that I could actually heal the eczema in my ears instead of just living with it. I won't go down a rabbit hole sharing the entirety of this, but long story short, my ears aren't in a constant state of eczema, I did embark on solutions 12 years ago (none of which worked) and I just shifted focus to matters that mattered more. We love a solution though! Keep reading for the eczema fix. 

A quick note on supplements: there are a number of vitamins, minerals, etc, that most of us can stand to take on the daily, and then there are things unique to us that we will need at different times. I've gone through phases of what I take and don't take for various reasons. I share all of this in UNSHAKEABLE: Whole Body Healing & Goal Achieving course, and I believe I also share this in my mini course, Eat For Brain and Moody Stability. I stopped taking almost everything back in July, and just started bringing things back in one by one in January. When you get to a place of being able to trust and know your body, it's nice to be able to take breaks from things, and slowly incorporate back in. I first and foremost do my best to get nutrition from food, and, there are some things that we need a little help with.

Supplements

The first hero supplement I want to share is Mary Ruth's Megadose Liposomal Vitamin C. I've tried a lot of vitamin C in my day, none of which I felt like worked. With this product, I noticed an immediate change in immunity boost. I have known about this company for a couple of years, but hadn't really paid much attention and didn't know much about the backstory or the founders. I'm aligned with both founders, have a deep respect for what they do, and am happy to confidently recommend this brand and most particularly, this product - their Liposomal Vitamin C. It's not a requirement that I'm aligned with the founders of a brand, but it's nice to know the story and intention behind things that matter - and what I put into and on my body matters! 

Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV). Need I say more. Years back when I was in my biohacking phase of life, in say 2017 and 2018, I was taking ACV daily, like many of you. ACV is great because it has antimicrobial properties and can fight off bad bacteria, and it also has anti inflammatory properties. I always have it in my fridge but haven't been using it for anything more than adding a dash of it into soup (my classic carrot ginger soup). I also watched my grandmother take ACV on the daily along with a shot of silver water, and the rest of her morning natural and homeopathic remedies, and never thought anything of it aside from "it's a positive ritual". Since my friend Lia mentioned ACV would be an ideal add-in to potentially support rebalancing the pH of my gut, I've re-added it in. I will dilute a shot of it in the morning and do the same during the evening. ACV may actually irritate some people, so please don't take this as an, "it's good for everybody" recommendation. I'll say it's likely good for many but not for all, just like anything. I've felt like gold since starting back up with ACV and taking the Mary Ruth's Liposomal Vitamin C but, this wasn't it...

Black Seed Oil. I heard about Black Seed Oil first from Katherine Garbarino who shared how incredible it was orally and topically for eczema, and I instantly ordered it. The benefits of black seed oil include:

I was taking it consistently for a week and my eczema nearly evaporated. I stopped taking it, and my eczema came back. I am going to start taking it again. When I take things, I start/stop sometimes to see if whatever it was is actually working. I don't necessarily recommend doing this - especially if something is working, stick with it! I wanted to see what was doing the job for my eczema, if it was the ACV or the Black Seed Oil - and hence quit the Black Seed Oil. The combo of both is great. 

Protein and Creatine by Promix. With the new information about myself and body that I've discovered since resurfacing from burnout (read more here and here), I decided to take my life back into my hands and get serious about building more muscle. Cue creatine and an additional protein source. I go in and out of using anything powdered as a supplement, and right now, I'm back in.  

How did I chose this brand, you ask? Well, I Google'd "best creatine for women" and this is what came up. Thank you SEO team at Promix. Of course the brand had to pass the test of ethically made and high quality ingredients, but beyond that I bought this based on supporting a "friend of a friend". Jesse (Itzler) knows Devon (Promix cofounder) and I trust Jesse, so by association I trust Devon on this level and why not support, right? There was another protein I was toying with buying, but they didn't disclose all of their ingredients and to me, this is the most annoying thing. Like, you're a write off to me if you can't just be transparent with ingredients.

Back to what I bought from Promix. I received the two items I bought last night and turned them into a delicious concoction today. I'll report back in 90 days how I'm liking the product, but for now, it's sitting well with me. I chose a flavorless creatine and flavorless isolate whey protein because I wanted simple and as few ingredients as possible. This gives me the range to add these to whatever I want or to create whatever I want with them. Today I did creatine and protein in 1/2 cup of soy milk (just boy beans and water), added 1/2 a banana, 1 tsp cacao and some coconut shreds. V delish. While some may hate-on soy products, I was listening to Tracy Anderson interview with Dr. Michael Greger (about longevity) and he said he's pro soy for women. This is their interview on YouTube, if you're interested. 

Snacks

Potatoes, olive oil, salt (or sub the olive oil for butter). Add mayo. If you're a sweet potato person, sweet potato, olive oil and chipotle mayo. My body responds way better to yukon gold potatoes than it does sweet potato, so I will always reach for potato-potatoes first. 

My sunshine bowl. More like a meal than a snack. Harmless Harvest coconut yogurt, mix ground flaxseed in, top with a whole banana, chopped pineapple and either walnuts or pecans. Could add in hemp hearts and/or MCT oil. At the time I'm finishing writing this, I've eaten this to death and have moved on to a different breakfast love, but this one is delish and hence I had to share. 

Watermelon Juice. Not so much a snack, but a delicious beverage to rotate in. For more of my go-to juices for skin, gut, heart, workout recovery, immunity, digestion - and dessert, read this blog post.  

 Dried Prunes (no sugar or sulfate added). Name a better dried fruit that isn't pure sugar (mango). 

Grapes. Just jump here for my opinion and thoughts on these magical beings (grapes). 

Frozen Dark Cherries. If in North America, Costco does a good dark frozen cherry and so does Monoprix, if in St Barth or France. 

I have FOREVER been a kettle chips girl (salt & vinegar, salt & pepper and jalapeno, specifically). Lately, these delicious (but super dehydrated) beings have dropped in ranks on my list of go-to snacks simply because when I have chips, I will wake up the next day with bags under my eyes. I've been testing this theory for 3 months and it's the chips. Am I never going to eat another chip? Gosh no, I love them! I just won't be snacking on them on the daily like I have almost my whole life. If I was going to reach for a brand of chips these days it would be Boulder. 

What doesn't give me dehydration bags under my eyes when I snack on them is chips and salsa. Miracle? Indeed. These are the chips I reach for. I do not eat other variations of these chips by this brand as cassava flour does not sit well with me. These chips are corn based, and my body happily tolerates them. A secondary option for tortilla chips are these. I also love their Jalapeno Lime flavor, which isn't "clean" by any means, but they're tasty if you want to live a little once in a while. This is my favorite salsa. 

Honorable mention to a favorite lazy snack/meal: shredded chicken doused in bbq sauce eaten with a side of cottage cheese. If you ever had a McRib from McDonald's (many decades ago) or a BBQ rib sub from Subway, this combo in food delicacy emulates that flavor. Call me disgusting but I love my BBQ sauce. This is a bbq sauce that I approve - because I'm not into corn syrup or a massive amount of sugar or chemicals in any of my condiments or food.  

Another honorable mention goes to these delicious Country Archer beef sticks that you can get at Target, Costco, and at almost any grocery store. I love and prefer this brand over the other beef sticks in its same category. 

Snacks I love but can't keep in the house because they're processed, delicious and I eat too many of them when they're around: 365 Cheddar Crackers (from Whole Foods) and Simple Mills Honey Cinnamon Sweet Thins (taste just like Teddy Grahams). Yes, these are both processed, and the cheddar crackers aren't entirely clean, but I'm talking snacks that are a "better choice" here. If I was going on a long haul flight and wanted a "better" choice than airport snacks, I would bring both of these if I knew I was going to want something like this. 

And, for the star of the show and centerpiece of my food life: CREAM CHEESE. Cream cheese based snacks have my heart right now. Satiating? Mega. Can make sweet or savoury? Yes. How can one go wrong? You just CAN'T. If you want me to share my cream cheese based recipes, just let me know! Reach out: [email protected].