a little snickety snack

To snack or not to snack that is the question.

Ayurveda believes in giving the body rest between meals to properly digest and empty the stomach.

The french, for the most part, agree.

Ayurveda does allow for tea time, though, especially for lankier compositions- warm milk or tea is eaten with buttery biscuits. mmmm.

J (beanpole) lives on snacks as he is a busy law school student and in his case snacks need to be high in calories- cheese and nuts are his sustenance. Calories through liquid- juices and smoothies are also winners as they take less energy to digest and more is left for brain function.

My motto as a working yoga instructor was "a chocolate chip cookie a day keeps the..." as I was very active.

Also, I am dying to try THIS RECIPE 'Sea Salt Fudge Brownies' (click) Someone please do so and tell me about it. The blog design alone is worth taking a peek. Inspiring.

There is room for snacks (not fourth and fifth meals) in every life. In France we call it Gouter: "Taste." We don't mindlessly graze all day, but we set aside time every day at 4 pm for a bite.

Lately, I'm loving Tea Time. I speak about Ayurveda often- the qualities of people, places, jobs, things, seasons, time of the day etc. It is important to analyze not just your life in general but your current mood/state, its qualities and how to balance it.

After a wonderful weekend with my friends in NYC- HI GIRLS!- I must commend them for thriving in the high-energy, fast-paced, raw, non-stop, real world. I could barely cope for a mere 72hours.

In a world like NYC where the lights blare, the sounds scream, and the people, cars, and time whiz by it is imperative to counter these qualities and INSULATE oneself for protection. My girlfriend Mg described to me that she learned to consume olive oil with alcohol to coat her stomach- this is a classic example of insulation and protection. My girl A loves to slather herself in coconut oil, which is a powerful way to cool the body and keep it calm in a high stress world (and/or in the summer) while still giving it nourishment and moisture. The workplace and city is rough, drastic, extreme, and brash--- smooth, steady, slow, and soft activities, foods, relationships, media etc. balance this environment. (Barlene's, below, also makes the best greenfood powder.)

Tea is another wonderful way to balance the body by assessing what you need and treating yourself with mild herbal remedies. A pick me up is in order? Go green! Hooked on coffee? Try Yerba Mate. Can't sleep? Kava Kava, baby.(click it) I have actually never tried Kava Kava, but a little research has me intrigued. A tea for all times? Peppermint!

BALANCE is the key. If you are hyper, no black. Anxious? Put that green down and back away. If your in rut try a new tea.

Some teas are better with a little milk/honey/agave/lemon. Some of us never add any type of sugar because we like to keep it a calorie-free beverage. This is a MISTAKE... suck it up, it's a few measly calories. Forget calories.* With a little honey many teas will taste so much better, our enjoyment will be drastically higher and thus our energy and quality of life will soar.

Summer is coming and I still like the hot stuff in the boiling heat, but if your not crazy like me then hello iced-tea!

Tea time is a great snack time because you'll only want a little munchie with all that liquid.

*I know I once posted the calorie counts of exercises- it's ok to be curious, but these numbers will get you nowhere.