An ordinary Cabarete Day
A lot can happen in a single day when you’re living in Cabarete. With so much to be offered in a 20min radius, all you need is a “get up and go” mentality and everything folds out in front of you. As I write this I’m sitting on the Trapeze lawn at the eXtreme Hotel watching the morning swings of the Circus Art fiends. “Back! Forward! Forward! Back! Up!” is being cued in the background under Tracy the kickboxing Coach’s even louder instructions from inside the gym next door. “Jab! Cross! Slip!” -and it’s only 10:15am. ::sigh:: being at the eXtreme Hotel is always exciting. But anyway I was telling you about my ordinary day: So I woke up and wasn’t sure what was up with surf but put my suit on anyway and went down to the surf beach Encuentro. The trip there, whether on bike or moto is always beautiful in the morning because of the long windy roads littered with grazing horses, chickens, and sun beams thru lots of trees leaving cool shadows on the road. When you’re on bicycle it’s even nicer because most of the way down to Encuentro is downhill, although after a surf session the trip back up isn’t something I particularly look forward to. The waves were clean and maybe waist high with occasional head high swells so basically PERFECT but I was more in the mood to drink some coffee and talk shit with the other lazy surfers on the beach. They have all morning to get in and ride some waves but I was wanting to be at Yoga in 20 minutes so I said bye to the usual suspects, hopped on the Gringo Sanky (my friend’s moto) and rode 5 minutes to eXtreme on Kite Beach. Practicing at The Yoga Loft is always my favorite morning activity, and Yoga with Molly on a Friday is always a challenge. Her TGIF means Thank God I’m FUERTE so I was sweating within 10 mins. I love how Friday Yoga is always the day I do something I didn’t know I could do. An entire practice looking at the ocean in a studio with no walls makes me feel so close to nature as I move through the asanas. Morning Yoga makes me feel accomplished for treating my body to healing, my mind to peace, and my spirit to health. Awwww que cute. Walking down from the Yoga Loft I came upon 9 or 10 Aerialists practicing in our half pipe. Sweet Retreats, a group of Circus Artists on an intensive training vacation, was having their morning Silks class which meant toned persons binding themselves up their silks and cascading down in different ways. It’s kind of like watching the Olympics; there’s a mixture of being amazed by what a human body can do and also feeling completely dissatisfied with your own body. Oh well, there’s Abiu from Taino Farm in the kitchen I can get in on some of that. After watching the circus freaks for a bit I managed to bring the rest of the eXtreme team to slack off a bit and go for a swim in Kite Beach.. We convinced ourselves we were still being productive since I brought my underwater camera and was going to include a section in my blog about our frolicking in the ocean. Then of course we got back to work… Later in the day I was itching to have some kind of ocean activity so since there was no wind I went to Encuentro for an afternoon session. That’s the best thing about Cab, whether you want wind or waves, there’s usually always one or both. The waves were smaller than in the morning but I still had a great time catching them and very easily getting back out to the set. Bryan, one of our Farm woofers who is learning to surf, loved that he could get a lot of ride time with no real wipe outs. The trick to having lots of fun on smaller waves is not being picky, ride them all! Around dusk, a bunch of Cabarete ladies were getting together for sangria and to cut up old t-shirts into new ones and it was a great turn out! We ate more chips and salsa than was necessary, but At least I got 3 new tops! The highlight of the night for me was at sunset when my friend was coming in with the paddleboard and I ran out and had myself a sunset ride. The sunset on the water reflects shades of pink and orange onto the water to the west, and the clouds to the east, nothing is more beautiful or important when it’s just you in the water basking in the sunset. The waves outside of extreme are such a fun ride, especially with the Paddle board. When you’re on SUP you don’t really need waves because just being on top of the water by yourself with the clouds and horizon and green clear ocean underneath you is pretty satisfying, but if you see a swell go out and ride a few, totally thrilling and there’s a nice relaxing paddle back to the shore to catch your breath. The best part of this particular Friday was that this was just an ordinary Cabarete Day. The night closed with dinner at Casa Mami’s, and a nice early night to be well rested for Saturday’s surf, Yoga, and Flea market. Cabarete can fill your day with all kinds of life experiences and introspective moments but being a small town it’s filed with lots of socializing too. Adventurous days, lazy days, it’s all good in Cab.
Building a Rainwater Catchment System
So I’m walking into extreme today and my feet are getting a little wet, most of the time a little water in between the toes isn’t bad. But this was fresh cabarete rain water. This is precious rain water must be saved. That’s when the recycling of the rain water plan began. Robbie sent Stuart and I to la factoria to get right to it. We only needed a few things to make this project a success. We used a recycled 6″ x 20′ pipe that was cut in half horizontally. This creates a perfect U- shape rain gutter which is simply attached to the building structure. We also grabbed one 6″ end cap along with one 6″-90 and a single 6″ to 4″ reducer so the water can be ran vertically into our catch basin. The water from this catch basin will be filtered and used for the irrigation of the various self staining plant systems here on extremes property.
Paleo Almond Coconut Pie
I wanted to make a paleo ice cream pie, so in true Paleo fashion, Monica and I spent an afternoon playing around with the idea of making a wheat and dairy free frozen-raw pie…froraw, a rafro, a zenraw? How would this amazing creation of goodness be created you ask? Well the masterpiece would be created in two parts. First, we would make the crust and freeze it. Next we would put in the filling and freeze it a second time. The glorious thing about making frozen pies is that you can pretty much say goodbye to unnecessary added fats, flours and fillers. Let’s start with what I mean by unnecessary fats. Butters and oil in any form generally contribute to the desserts flavour and moisture content. They make the brownies goowie and the whipped cream fluffy. Fats are generally used to cream with sugar to aerate the batter. If you check most of your recipes you’ll notice that they normally call for you to cream sugar with butter until fluffy. This, in addition to the chemical reaction you get from baking soda or whipping eggs will help rise your cakes or cookies. To return to our frozen pie, nothing needed to rise or bake, so very little fat was needed. Contrary to popular belief, you can make a delicious pie without flour. This is true even if you do decide to make a hot, baked pie. Because of the oil content in the nuts and seeds, after pressing the ground mixture into the pan and freezing it, we noticed that it was unnecessary to add any additional coconut flour for structure. *If I had decided to bake it in the oven, I would have mixed in an egg or two to get the solid effect we achieved from freezing. Finally no fillers!! The beauty of making your own food is knowing exactly what goes in it. I don’t know about you, but when I got shopping I read the ingredients on the side of the box to see what I’m potentially putting into my system. When I make a choice between two identical products, I always pick the one with the least amount of ingredients. Another trick: if you can’t pronounce it, don’t fucking eat it! Try that next time you buy canned coconut milk. I try to apply this philosophy when I bake or cook. If I can make something amazing with the least amount of ingredients, the happier I am. Baking with whole foods is the best thing for you and the planet. I’m not saying that baking soda or peppermint flavouring is bad for you, but it can be the gateway drug to other fillers. Like sinister-table-salt, back-fat-butter or mucus-making-milk. It is completely possible to make amazing goodies without any of those products. Ok, now for la piece de resistance: Frozen Coconut Pie in an Almond-Sunflower Crust. As life changing as this recipe will be for most of you, I mostly hope that you can use this recipe as a blueprint for some of your own dessert brainstorming creations. The crust can be made with other nuts and seeds like walnuts or macadamias. If you don’t have any coconut meat handy, puree some peaches, berries or bananas. For those of you who aren’t paleo followers, make a filling with thick Greek yogurt or ice cream. As a challenge, try to keep you ingredient to a minimum. Frozen Coconut Pie in an Almond-Sunflower Crust Ingredients Crust 1 cup of almonds ¼ cup of sunflower seeds 1 ½ Tbsp coconut oil Toast almonds and seeds on medium heat for 15 to 20 mins. You want the almond skin to flake off. *You want to cook the almonds first to dry out any moisture. If you were to puree the almonds without cooking them, you’d make almond butter. Not a total loss, but not the objective. Stay focused young Jeti. Let cool for 30mins then puree in food processor until you reach the texture of cornmeal. Add in coconut oil, mix well then press into pie pan (create an even, flat surface so that there are no open holes/ pores for the filling to seep into). Place in freezer for an hour. *if you prefer a thicker crust, feel free to boost up the ingredients. Filling 1 ½ cup of pureed coconut meat from a fresh coconut 1 cup of almond milk 1/3 cup of coconut cream 1 cup of cut up papaya Puree coconut meat in the food processor. Then add almond milk and coconut cream. Pour into crust filling and papaya cubes. Place in freezer for at least two hours. By the time your forehead sweat makes you squint like a pirate, your pie should be ready. Cut yourself a nice big piece and appreciate how your body temperature starts drop. Yours truly, Genevieve
Bed Time Yoga Postures
Yoga postures you can do while in bed? Absolutely. The other night, I found myself twisting and turning in bed all night trying to go to sleep. No exercise that day had me holding onto some pent up energy and had my mind was buzzing. Why not relax the muscles tension and calm my mind with a simple in bed yoga series. Here are some good twists and turns for bedtime relaxation. Reclining Bound Angle Pose with pillow or blanket Your deepest breath starts now. Reaching the top of my head away from my shoulders, and breathing deep through my nose, I felt an almost instant release of stress. I initially tried it without the pillow but I knew something was missing so I grabbed my pillow, put it between my shoulder blades to elevate my head for comfort and opened my shoulders and chest. -Pillow is optional but a great tool to open the shoulders. Make sure it is lengthwise down your spine with the top below your head allowing your head to drop back. -Don’t look for a stretch here. Squeeze your but and pull your knees apart once settled but then release the tension and breathe. Let gravity do the rest. -Hands palms up by your sides -Count your breaths in and out starting with 1 on your first inhale and 2 on an exhale. Go to 10 and start over at 1. Do this 2 times. 20 total. -Remember this is for you. If you want your hands folded across your chest. Do it. Want an extra pillow under your head. Grab one. Sometimes I prefer to splay my knees and do a forward bend over my feet (butterfly pose) before I lay back. Make this little bedtime practice your own. Spinal Twist I LOVE twists… I figure if I do them before bed then maybe I won’t wake up in a tornado mess in the middle of the night. If done right this should have your eyes rolling to the back of your head with this sublime back release. Bed set up is important so you don’t twist off your bed. If you twist right, start on the left side of the bed, and vice versa. -Like all postures, make sure you reach tall through the body to lengthen the spine. -Before you twist, take a HUGE inhale through the nose and hold as you send your leg across the body and release your breath fully when your knee touches the bed on the other side or when you have reached your full twist. -You might add a bend to your bottom leg as you come across with the top leg. This is fine but straighten it out as you continue into your breath focus. 5 huge inhales on each side. -Feel free to close your eyes but make sure you keep your gaze at your opposite arm across the bed away from your twisting leg. Half pigeon pose This posture is my personal favorite and a constant request in all of my classes. One of the most powerful hip openers you can find. Good for all but great for those that find themselves seated for extended periods of time. -From your hands and knees lift your right knee and send it to your right wrist while twisting your foot towards your left wrist. The closer you have your foot to the opposite wrist, the more intensity of your stretch. I suggest starting light and making an adjustment after a few series of breath. -With your leg under your chest. Slowly extend the opposite leg that is supporting your hips, behind and straight. You can roll to the forward leg’s side for more comfort but from there you focus on pressing both hips to the floor or mattress. -Once your hips are square and down. Slowly bend forward bringing your chest over your forward leg supporting with your hands. If mobility allows, you can bring your elbows and/or head down above the forward knee/shin. -Stay here for 10 exhales for each leg. -When switching or coming out, make sure you use your hands to gently push yourself up and roll to the side of the forward leg. Always be conscious of the forward knee. Upside down cobra Last but not least. A nice little inversion to really relax and clear your mind. A great stretch for the neck and abs. -Finding the right spacing here can be tricky but allow your head to fall back and hang uninterrupted. -Slide your shoulders off the bed to open the chest a little more and increase your inversion effect. -The final touch is inhaling your arms slowly above your hanging head and close your eyes. -Count your breaths in and out starting with 1 on your first inhale and 2 on an exhale. Go to 10 and start over at 1. Do this 2 times. 20 total. Sweet dreams and Namaste.
Kombucha – fermenting a balanced GI track – by Zach
I have always been one to keep up with the latest fitness and health trends so naturally I found Kombucha. It wasn’t Madonna, David Beckham, or Halle Berry ( all spotted regularly with signature glass bottles) that convinced me to start brewing my own. It was the fermented, probiotic goodness that sold me (and the $4 a bottle price tag in stores). Plenty of opinions are out there, bad and good, but I often find the preliminary research too narrow and jilted. Fermentation and probiotic digestion-enhancing properties are well documented for helping to optimize health and digestion by aiding intestinal bacteria in performing their tasks more efficiently. Natural gut bacteria is important. Thats why we have nearly four pounds of it. While not all is good, our “intestinal flora” sometimes needs some weeding. Cultured and fermented foods are your tools to regulate the balance. Kombucha is a fermented sparkling tea beverage that packs a massive antioxidant punch and looks and tastes like a cross between Champagne and vinegar. Comprised of acetic acid, malic acid, butyric acid, oxalic acid, lactic acid, and a teensy bit of alcohol, kombucha has been a standard refresher, alleged hangover cure, and all-around home remedy in Asia and Eastern Europe for millennia. Here are a few of my other gut friendly favorites. Kimchi- A traditional fermented Korean dish made of vegetables. Sauerkraut- Fermented cabbage that is regularly used in Europe to treat ulcers and digestive problems. Look for “raw”, which is not heated or pasteurized. Local Raw Honey- The nectar from honey is what makes it antiallergenic and local pollen will help with local allergies. Thats why you go local. Raw (straight from the hive) means it maintains all its alkaline forming enzymes and benefits. The latter is not only a superfood but but a prebiotic as well. The difference between a prebiotic and a probiotic is that a prebiotic is the fuel for good bacteria, whereas probiotics are the actual good bacteria. Prebiotics are non-digestible nutrients that your good bacteria can use for energy. They stimulate the growth of good bacteria and generally pass through the digestive system intact while performing their magic in the colon. Now that we know how to optimize our nutrient absorption through a healthy stomach make sure you don’t start dumping trash into your digestion garden. Minimize sugar and proccessed foods that inflame the GI tract and stick with enzyme rich cleansing foods like papaya, broccoli, and fish. The most important thing is balance. If you don’t want an apple, you aren’t hungry. Don’t stress your body unless it needs it. Digestion, exercise, and emotion are all forms of stress. With positive mind all these stresses are healthy and met with the antioxidants that we create with happiness and absorb in real foods. Now go eat, drink, and be merry.