By the time Monday came around (my birthday was on a Thursday), I was feeling just a bit bloated and sluggish.

So I returned my clean whole food plant-based eating.  In a couple of days I felt much better.

And I realized I should probably do a little cleanse before the holidays.

That got me thinking about you. And getting you to join me.

Many people throw their healthy eating habits out the window over the holidays.

The average American gains 7 or more lbs. Between Thanksgiving and New Years!

All that effort all year, wasted! Back to square #1.

You can change that for yourself this year by joining my 30-Day Wellness Challenge for the month of October.

Up the ‘ante’ on that healthy eating habit. Or, at least, take the first step.

Maybe you want to: 

• get a handle on that salt or sugar craving    
• address the mood swings    
• reduce your blood pressure or HbA1C    
• find simple answers to hot flashes  
• get some resolve with an ever-expanding midline 

The 30-Day Wellness Challenge will help you go into the holiday season with a fresh lease on your health. You’ll have a new level of awareness & confidence. It’ll be far easier to keep a healthy attitude through the holidays.

You’ll be much more likely to bring that yummy but healthy artichoke dip to the party instead of the cheese and mayo one!

And I’ll provide you with the recipe! It’s not on my website. ; )

30 Days of healthy eating. Simple clean whole food, cleansing smoothies, and tasty salad recipes in my e-book.

Learn the basic what and why of cleansing. 4 short lessons (audios) covering food, exercise, gut health, and your environment over the first week.

Get your questions answered. Meet other health conscious women. Live group Zoom meetings in the Facebook private group weekly. 

Challenges! Weekly workout challenges (competitive and noncompetitive divisions)!

Stay motivated. My texting service  will deliver diet, exercise & inspirational messages to you 3 times per week. 

And more.

The program runs October 4-November 3.

Registration starts on September 15, 2021. Guarantee your spot by contacting me now. 

The post Birthday Celebrations followed by Wellness Challenge appeared first on Dr Leslie K. Empowered Wellness.

The three topical applications one can use are: Detox baths, body wraps and massage. Any of these methods are applicable for any of the oils I’ll discuss.

Using oils topically is a great adjunct to your weight loss program as it’s something simple & relaxing that can also help pull toxins out of your tissues, help get rid of cellulite, increase metabolism and more. To use oils in a detox bath, start out by adding Epsom salts to the bath water (start with about 1/4-1/2 cup but you can work up to using up to about 2 cups), add your oils to 1-2 tbsp. of fractionated coconut oil and add that to the bath water. Optionally, you can also add apple cider vinegar (1/3-1 cup). Soak for 20-30 minutes. (Always use caution in how long you stay in if your physical condition warrants it.)

Here's a recipe that has earned the name of "skinny dip": 
1-2 cups Epsom salts
7 drops each: Frankincense, grapefruit, peppermint, true lavender, Ameo Trim & Tone
4 drops each orange, tangerine
3 drops Ameo Cell Therapy
Mix oils in 1-2 tbsp. fractionated coconut oil and add to bath.
Follow with internal detox:
Zija Premium Detox tea, add 1 drop peppermint, 3 drops lemon

These oils will help to pull toxins out, decrease cellulite and more. As you can see by the accompanying picture, the results can be quite dramatic. These oils can be purchased at a substantial savings by purchasing the Ameo “Slim &Tranquil” combo pack available here.

Please contact me with questions or comments.

The post Essential Oils for Weight Loss & Detoxification appeared first on Dr Leslie K. Empowered Wellness.

We all know that healthy eating and exercise are long term keys to maintaining weight. Still, as we get older, we find it more & more difficult. Most of us have heard of things like the grapefruit diet and many others; some healthy, others; not so much. Well, it turns out that grapefruit is just one of many essential oils known to have a positive effect on metabolism and therefore, weight loss. Today, I’m going to talk about several of these oils, how they work and how you can incorporate them into a healthy weight loss program. In my next blog, I’ll talk more about detoxification and the use of oils that you can use in a bath or diffuser. While most therapeutic or clinical grade oils should not be consumed orally without proper supervision, these are all food-based substances and are reasonably safe.

Grapefruit Oil:

Grapefruit has long been known for its ability to curb cravings, boost metabolism and reduce abdominal fat. It turns out that it contains a compound (nootkatone) which increases production of AMPK, an enzyme important in homeostasis & energy production. (It also turns out that evidence shows both viruses and cancer cells down-regulate AMPK!) Research shows grapefruit oil increases endurances, decreases weight and body fat and more. Diffuse this oil or add a couple drops to drinking water.

Lemon Oil:

Known for enhancing mood and numerous other functions, lemon oil, when combined with grapefruit oil, has been shown to increase lipolysis (the breakdown of fat). Physiologically, it increases norepinephrine which helps with mood, cognitive function & increases muscle metabolism. Use this similarly to and along with grapefruit oil.

Peppermint Oil:

Peppermint has been shown to increase the flow of bile through the digestive track and decrease tension on abdominal muscles. It has also been shown to decrease appetite and in a study significant decreased caloric intake in a population that inhaled it every 2 hours. Use in a diffuser.

Cinnamon Oil:

Cinnamon has been shown to increase the body’s ability to utilize Insulin, thus helping decrease the tendency to store fat. It also has some anti-inflammatory qualities. Use caution with Cinnamon oil as it can burn mucous membranes. It’s safest to dilute it with olive oil or coconut oil as a carrier or to use it in food.

Sweet Fennel Oil:

Fennel has been shown to enhance Melatonin production and thus help with overall metabolism and with the body’s wake/sleep cycles. It was also used on fasting days in ancient cultures. Modern day animal studies showed that test animals ate less food when given fennel.

Order any of the oils above or get more info on oils by contacting me or clicking here.

Learn more about essential oils including how to make specific sprays, roll-on oils, body butters and more at my “Make & Take” Program at the SLOMakerSpace on August 1st form 7-9PM, SLO MakerSpace is located at 81 Higuera St; Suite 160, in SLO. PLease RSVP by contacting me. ($20 fee covers admission & includes one product; retail value $8-15)

The post Essential oils to aid weight and fat loss appeared first on Dr Leslie K. Empowered Wellness.

Before you do that, you might look at some actual mechanisms that occur in the body and think about your ‘diet’ in a new way. Here’s why: The human body is an amazing machine! When we take in toxins that are body can’t readily process, the body stores those toxins in fat so it can deal with them later. So when we release fat by converting into energy during weight loss, we release the toxins into our blood stream! Here’s the thing: that low carb diet and many other similar diets don’t have the bulk necessary for you to be able to pass those toxins out of your system quickly (read: you must poop more to do this!) The result can be that sluggish feeling you get, but also, understand that your body is now effectively CONCENTRATING those toxins! The accompanying picture demonstrates it well. Because your body NEEDS the fat (and the water it accumulates WITH the fat) to keep those toxins out of your blood stream, as soon as go ‘off’ the diet, the protective mechanisms kick in and you gain the weight back, even if you’re not being ‘bad!’

So what IS the answer? The answer lies in DETOXING and Cleansing rather than ‘dieting.’ When you detox, you stick to whole food, predominantly plant-based eating; staying as close to possible to unprocessed, natural & organic foods. These are foods that have little toxins in them. Eliminate processed foods (wheat & corn based), dairy and most (or all) animal products. You then add things that help you detoxify your system such as lemons, beets, parsley and lots of fiber (the kind you find in real food, not Metamucil!) Add LOTS of water (1/2 oz. to 1 oz. per pound of body weight daily). And add a high quality detoxifying tea; ideally one like Zija’s Premium Tea, that contains herbs to detoxify the liver, the colon and the kidneys.  Now you have a way to eliminate the toxins by passing them readily OUT of the body. The result is a healthier you and far less tendency to gain the weight back. This is the diet that I used last year to drop 15 lbs and keep it off for a year after having yo-yo-ed at least 5 times in the past 7-8 years!

For those who want to take action now, for a limited time (till April 4th only!) you can get sample package of Zija products including the Premium Tea and other top shelf nutrition products at a great savings. Email me immediately, I have a limited number of vouchers that will allow you $100 value for just $40.

Also add yourself to the 2017 Natural Health Weight Loss Transformation group and or the Health Revolution Worldwide group on Facebook for support in your healthy weight loss goals!

The post Dieting VS Cleansing & Detox or Why the Yo-Yo Effect Happens appeared first on Dr Leslie K. Empowered Wellness.

Over a period of several months last year, I lost 15 lbs and got down to a weight I was very excited about. Here’s the interesting part, I lost about the first 5-7 lbs. without really even trying! How did that happen?

If there were a single, readily available food source that contained 46 Anti-oxidants, 36 Anti-inflammatory compounds, all 20 amino acids, more calcium than milk, more iron than spinach, more vitamin C than oranges, fat- and water-soluble vitamins, Omega 3-6-9’s AND MORE, do you think there’s a chance that getting all that nutrition daily might help diminish cravings? Well, there is and, at least for me, it did.

Zija International’s Moringa olifera-based mixes are what is making this difference for me and thousands of others world-wide. In just 10 short years in the industry, Zija has had an incredible impact on what it is now calling the Natural Health Revolution. The Revolution is about getting people to eat better, sleep better, move more, diminish stress and turn away form the drugs, chemicals and fast foods that wreaking havoc on our lives and on our health. And it all starts with, believe it or not, something as simple as a powered drink mix.

For me, now that I’ve done that, I see the real possibility of dropping a few more pounds and getting down to what a weighed in college (which was actually less than what I weighed in high school.) Over the next several weeks, I’m going to write more about the additional products I used and the changes I made in hopes of inspiring YOU! “Whatever you desire. . .begin it now.”

Learn more about Zija:  Core Moringa Nutrition & Weight-Loss products or Ripstix Fitness products or call me with your questions. Call me about FREE sample/starter packages (limited offer).

The post Not (Just) Another Super-food! appeared first on Dr Leslie K. Empowered Wellness.