Puffins: My Favorite Cereal

Everyone has a favorite cereal, right? Unfortunately so many are loaded with sugar and preservatives. You would actually be surprised to learn that many cereals are so unhealthy they compete with the worst candy bars!

So how do you deal with breakfast when you want to do something simple, nutritious, and delicious?

Puffins is one of my current favorites, because it's not only tasty, but also wheat free and uses natural sweeteners.

It's also vegetarian and dairy free, so it's very easy on the belly.

My favorite flavors are the original, the honey rice, and the fruit medley.

What's your favorite cereal?

Yes... Pilates Makes Sex Better!

By Heather Dorak
Originally posted over at Mind Body Green

Pilates has become so popular over the past decade because it simply works better than most fitness regimes at creating functional strength and flexibility. Strength and flexibility go hand in hand with better sex. Stronger abdominal muscles (as well as all of your other muscles) will actuahttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.giflly help to sustain the action of sex. Stronger muscles equals stronger movements for a longer period of time. I promise that your experience will be enhanced when you are able to stabilize yourself in certain sexual positions :)

And what about flexibility? Pilates improves your flexibility and overall range of motion….try some poses you never dreamed possible, you will be pleasantly surprised with the results!

But the real secret is that pilates strengthens your pelvic floor. The pelvic floor is a group of muscles in your pelvis that supports your bladder and uterus. Learning how to consciously control and relax these muscles allows you to increase sensation during sex in many ways...need I say more?

However, for sex, it’s not enough to simply know how to control your pelvic muscles, but the use of this skill in combination with total body strength and flexibility that creates the ability to have the best sex. Pilates is empowering and can offer maximum sexual efficiency.

The prouder you are of your physique, the more you will want to show it off between the sheets. Pilates will help you to feel more confident about your body by focusing on what it can do as well as what it looks like, because pilates is going to help you achieve a rockin’ body. Let’s be honest, feeling hot yourself is as much of a turn on as thinking your partner is hot. Make sure to get your partner to take pilates with you. When two people are in sync while having sex, well, it just doesn’t get better than that.

There are some less obvious benefits of pilates and sex that have to do with oxygen. Pilates requires very deep and sustained breathing and coordinates the breath with each movement. This oxygenates your blood and sends oxygen to your muscles faster, including the sex organs. And this increased blood flow that comes from Pilates exercises is particularly helpful to men, if you know what I mean. Improved breath will enhance stamina as well.

Pilates is a mind body system, so there is also a mental component and sex is many times more mental than physical. Mental imagery helps to create the right form and feeling while doing pilates exercises and requires a great deal of focus and concentration. And we all know what a little mental imagery can do to enhance our overall sexual experience.

So be the master behind your mind and body and you will have control in all aspects of your life...and the ways this can transcend into your sex life are endless. By practicing Pilates you will want sex both morning and night and will be outstanding at it!

Evo Kitchen: Personalizing Your Pizzas Since 2012!

Evo Kitchen is my latest Hollywood obsession. It's a fantastic restaurant that specializes in pizzas and great wine.

But not just any pizzas.

Evo Kitchen can custom make your pizza to suit your dietary needs. Are you a gluten-free eater? They've got you covered. Are you vegan? Check!

I had an amazing meal a few days ago. We had the Pear and Toasted Almond Salad, and the Spinach, Fig and Goat Cheese Salad. We followed this up with the gluten-free Mediterranean pizza and... how could I resist! The warm chocolate chip cookies.

They have so many great alternatives to yummy, comfort foods, like flowerless chocolate cake, and for the vegans out there, Daiya cheese on your pizza (which is pretty much the only soy cheese that melts).

The atmosphere at Evo Kitchen is fantastic. You can sit there and chill out while having a glass of wine and watching the game.

Try it out, and let them know Heather at Pilates Platinum sent you!

Sun-Thur: 11am-10pm
Fri-Sat: 11am-11pm
7950 W. Sunset Blvd. #104

Creamy Asparagus Lemon Soup: A Winter & Summer's Day Favorite!

We are nearing the start of some beautiful summer Los Angeles days and nights...but that doesn't mean we are completely free of cold days. As evidenced by the rain a few weeks back, and the few days of insane wind throughout the Southland, there's still some time to do comfy, yummy winter day things - like cooking and eating yummy warm weather soups.

I found a perfect soup recipe the other day that will satisfy you in cold AND warm SoCal days. Our good friend Alex Thomopoulos - a chef based in Los Angeles - has shared Creamy Asparagus Lemon Soup with us. The soup is creamy yet light, and hearty yet light on your tummy. It's great for your stomach because it's gluten-free and vegan - and most importantly it tastes amazing.

Here is part of the recipe. For more, make sure to check out Alex's creations at Against The Grain.

Ingredients:
2 bunches of asparagus
1 large yellow onion (or 2 small); sliced thin
1 clove of garlic; smashed
6 cups of water or veggie stock
2 TBSP Lemon juice
2 TBSP Olive Oil
Salt to season

**1 jalepeno; seeded and diced fine can be used as a garnish along with a wedge of lemon.**

Method
In a large sauce pan, over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onions and sweat until they are translucent; about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and asparagus and cook for 2 more minutes. Then add your water or stock. It should just cover the veggies, if it doesn’t add a little more liquid. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the asparagus is soft.

Head over to Alex' blog to check out the rest of the recipe!

My Favorite Fitness Apps: GymPact, Runtastic and MyFitnessPal

If you ever find yourself trying to track your calories, there are much easier ways than to try to work things out using your memory - or pen and paper. There are tons of apps out there for your smartphone, your tablet, or your desktop, to help you in your way to losing those pesky last few pounds.

I often use Runtastic, an app to track your workouts. While I mainly use it to track jogging and running, you can also use it to keep track of your other types of workout, like pilates or yoga. I like it so much because it uses GPS to track your route, so you know exactly how many miles you have covered each time, how fast you're going, you can time yourself (use it like a stopwatch) - and you can upload your activity to Facebook, for that extra motivation (tell your friends how well you're doing!).

MyFitnessPal is another keeper. I just started using this to track my food intake - how many calories, protein, fat, and carbs I'm taking in. It has a super easy way to input the things you eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and its food database is super extensive. You can even find obscure foods you might find only at certain supermarkets (like my guilty pleasure, Whole Foods Vegan Mousse!)

Another one of my current favorites is GymPact (one of our friend's amazing startup!). With this app you can track your workouts, but with the added value of extra motivation - if you don't work out, you have to pay up! If you don't reach your workout goals, the app charges you for missed classes or missed workouts - and if you reach your goals, you can make some extra cash! (the money comes from folks who missed their workouts). It's a fantastic and fun way to stay motivated.

Next Stop: Kreation Kafe

There's a hidden gem on Montana Ave. in Santa Monica, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's called Kreation Kafe and it's my new favorite spot to visit, after finding it post-hike one day a few weeks ago, when we were famished and in need of a healthy boost.

The courtyard out back had an amazing living wall, a concept that I am loving right now. The Kafe has an extensive juice menu, and you know how much I love exploring new juice bars. During our first visit, we started off with an amazing green juice and watermelon/mint juice to rehydrate. I loved these juices so much I could see myself doing trying out their juice cleanse for a few days.

The food? It was to die for. We ordered the cold tapas sampler, which came with pitas on the side and a plate of different spreads/sauces: roasted corn and black bean salad, eggplant dip, homemade hummus, tabouleh salad and yogurt dip. Must say they were all fresh, tasty and light. What a great spot.

I will be visiting Kreation Kafe a whole lot more from now on!

Open: 8am to 10pm daily

1023 #B Montana Ave. Santa Monica, CA 90403

310.458.4880

Best Headphones for Jogging: Bowers & Wilkins

How many times have you been jogging down your favorite path only to have your headphones fall right off your ears? You fix them, you're on your way, only to have it happen again. It can get quite annoying and in the way of your jog, right?

So you really need to make sure you find good quality headphones, possibly even especially made for running.

Bowers & Wilkins make really fantastic earbuds, the C5 headphones, which have a super secure and adjustable design made especially to not fall from your ears! They really work and have become my favorite running accessory.

Check them out here and buy them at your nearest electronics shop.

Call The Wine Doctor!

In the past, I wasn't really into wine, but lately I have been falling in love with some tasty and flavorful brands. Now I love picking up a nice bottle of wine when I have friends over or cook a special meal at home.

The problem is what happens after the dinner - what to do with an amazing (and pricey!) wine once it's been opened? Wine loses its great taste and aroma if it's been opened for too long.
What to do? Call the wine doctor!

The wine doctor's IntelliStopper is a preserver that keeps the opened bottle safe and tasty by pumping out the air out of the bottle.

This little gadget is so good, it's saved me from having to throw away amazing bottles of wine...and allowed me to savor them a little more.

It comes in a great price too - just $39.99 for a kit that includes the following:

• 2 Stainless steel Intelli-Stoppers ^tm
• Stainless steel vacuum pump

You can buy at wineries and specialty stores, or at Amazon.