March Newsletter 2024

In February, we talked about the importance of core strength and created a Core Challenge. The month started off strong with questions on downloading the Calendar and how to modify based on ability level. We love to answer questions and hear success stories from you all!

Morgan completed the challenge....YAY! Her mom did it right alongside her, making minor adjustments at the beginning (planking on her knees) and working her way up to the full plank by the end of the month! Great Job!

Stephanie started the challenge using the daily tasks as after-burners on her set workouts. She was blessed to get to go on a ski trip this month to Colorado. Unfortunately, she fell on her first day there! She sprained her MCL in the process and was not able to complete the challenge. She kept a positive attitude and is now focused on strengthening her calf and quad muscles to ensure a speedy recovery. We thought this was a good reminder that, here at Paradigm360 Wellness, we strive for progression, not perfection.

Monthly Challenge: Meditation March

During the month of March, we're focusing on removing toxins and incorporating safer practices and products to help keep our toxic load as low as possible. One of the ways we want to do this is removing toxic emotions, like fear, anger, guilt, and resentment. While it is normal to experience these feelings from time to time, it's when we let them fester, keeping us in a constant state of stress and negativity. And chronic/consistent stress can have a negative impact on your overall health.

  This month, we're challenging you (and us!) to incorporate just 5 minutes a day of meditation or deep breathing. Think of this as a "time-out" for yourself, to gather your emotions & thoughts, process them, and then set them free. Some tips we recommend to help you on this challenge is:

• Set a time each day to stay consistent--first thing in the morning, before bed to help wind down, etc.

• Focus on being present during your 5 minutes--if your mind wanders, don't fret! Acknowledge it, and bring your mind back to your breath

• Have some soothing music playing--YouTube has hundreds of free music to choose from! Keywords to search for are "soothing", "spa music", and "yoga music"

• If you've already completed your 5 minutes for the day, but feel like you need another time-out, go for it! Don't restrict yourself; some days you may need a few mindful breaks.

Monthly Movement: Dead Hang

The Importance of a Dead Hang:

       In January, we talked about natural movements and how important it is to keep that child-like play for strength of the body and flexibility of fascia with crawling being the primary focus.  Again think back to how we played as children… climbing trees, racing on the monkey bars, or even playing “foot wars” while  hanging on the jungle gym.  We didn’t think of these things as workouts or a skill we had to learn; the ability to hold our bodies up came naturally.

       A dead hang is an exercise where you simply hold onto a pull-up bar (or tree branch), extend both arms, and allow your body to just…hang.  You do not have to worry about pulling yourself up for an actual chin up or lifting your legs for a core strength V-up.  Though the setup is simple, this movement has so many health benefits.  For starters, your grip strength will improve, thus enhancing your performance on many other exercises. A study that was published in the health journal, The Lancet, suggests that grip strength correlates with cardiovascular health.  There have even been studies on grip strength and higher cognitive function!  

       Dead hangs also increase your shoulder strength and range of motion as well as provide a good stretch for your latissimus dorsi muscles.  It decompresses the spine, relieving back pain and tension, as well as helping to prevent back injury.   This can also help improve posture.    

  Now think about that type of play and how your body would feel on a set of monkey bars as you sit and read this journal entry.  When was the last time you let your hands hold you bodyweight from a dead hang?  We would love for all of our readers to be able to dead hang for 90 seconds, however, it is important to build on your abilities.  If you haven’t had an opportunity to dead hang in years, start small with a 10-30 second hang.  Remember, small steps lead to BIG CHANGES.

 *It is recommended that you consult with your physician or physical therapist before starting any exercise program.

Health Events in Our Area:

March 2-- National Play Outside day

• March 3--Run the Alamo

• March 4, 11, 18---Free Yoga on the Creek

• March 16- Family Fun Fest at the Botanical Gardens

• April 5-8- Confluence Event/Solar Eclipse

• Click here to see San Antonio Fitness in the Park schedule

• Weekend Pearl Farmer's Markets

Recipe of the Month

Featured Ingredient: Cabbage

   What’s so great about cabbage? Cabbage is a great ingredient to have on hand.  You can throw it into a stir fry or add it to your favorite soup for a little extra sustenance.  It has so many health benefits that make it the perfect little add-on to your meal.  

For starters, cabbage is known to be full of fiber.  We believe that fiber is essential for optimal gut health.    Fiber helps to clean out the colon, improving gut health and helping to prevent colon cancers.  The L-glutamine found in cabbage improves the mucosal lining in the small intestines.  On top of all of that, fiber keeps you feeling full longer and that can lead to increased healthy weight loss.  

      It is rich in Vitamin C.  Vitamin C improves immune function and can help fight off that seasonal cold.  Note that cabbage needs to be heated in order to maximize the vitamin C absorption.  It also has Vitamin B which reduces chances of Alzheimer's by improving blood flow to the brain.  

      Cabbage has also shown to have a positive influence on cardiovascular health.  It has Omega 3’s in the form of ALA, helping to decrease heart disease and arthritis.  It also has a good amount of potassium which helps balance the sodium in the body, reducing stress on the kidneys and improving heart health.

Our two featured recipes this month include cabbage and all it’s glory!  Sauerkraut is a wonderful, naturally fermented food that produces a probiotic to add to your DAILY routine consumption.  Just a spoonful a day can actually provide you with an efficient amount of the good bacterias to have a healthy, thriving gut flora.   As a bonus this month, we included a Cured Corned Beef recipe showing how meats were prepared in the past.  This recipe is from the author of Nourishing Traditions, Sally Fallon, and has an ancestral approach at preparing the meat for the dish.  There is a recipe to help you get ready for a St. Patrick’s Day Feast, Corned Beef and Cabbage!

Homemade Sauerkraut

We used the recipe from The Pioneer Woman HERE . This recipe was super easy to follow, cheap, and allowed us to utilize kitchenware we had on hand (we didn't have to buy any fancy fermenting supplies initially; however, Morgan did end up purchasing a relatively inexpensive fermenting crock after making this sauerkraut since she was impressed by the ease and flavor of fermented veggies). The recipe website also had lots of pictures of the process, which was helpful for Morgan as this was her first time fermenting anything. After making her first batch per the recipe, she made a second batch with garlic and dill, which produced a surprisingly delicious flavor!

BONUS RECIPE--CURED Corned Beef from Nourishing Traditions

Traditional RAW Meat Dish

Ingredients: 

•  1 2-pound beef brisket, frozen 14 days and thawed

• ½ cup whey

• 1 cup filtered water

• 2 tablespoons sea salt

• 1 tablespoon mustard seeds 4-5 bay leaves, crumbled

• 1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed

• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions: 

1. Mix seasonings and rub into both sides of brisket.

2. Place in clean bowl.

3. Mix whey with water and pour over brisket.

4. Cover and marinate at room temperature for about 2 days, turning frequently. This is the curing process

5. Transfer to refrigerator.

The corned beef will keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator

Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage (with homemade seasoning pack)

Ingredients:

• 3-4 lbs Corned Beef brisket

• 2 Rosset Potato cut in chunks

• 4 Carrots cut in chunks

• 4 Celery Sticks cut in chunks

• 1 Cabbage head cut in wedge

• 1.5 cups beef bone broth

(Seasoning Pack)

• 2 Bay Leaves

• 12 Whole Peppercorns

• ½ Tablespoon Yellow Mustard Seeds

• ½ Tablespoon Coriander Seeds

• 1 Tablespoon Mineral Salt

• ½ Teaspoon Fennel Seeds

• ½ Teaspoon Dill Seed

• ½ Teaspoon Ground Ginger

• ½ Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper

Directions:

 Grind Spices together. Rinse Brisket under cool water, pat dry with paper towel, and place it in the crockpot with the fatty side facing up. Sprinkle the seasoning on top of the brisket. Add in the carrots, potato, and celery. Pour the beef bone broth over the meat. Make sure you pour enough to cover the meat in the crockpot. Cook on low for 7 hours. When timer goes off, add your wedged cabbage and continue to cook for another 1 to 2 hours until vegetables are tender and meat is cooked thoroughly. Slice meat and serve with the cooked veggies.

Special Event: Cats, Nutrition, & Exercise

When: Saturday, March 2, 1:30-3:00 pm 

Where: Hillside Acres Clubhouse  

8110 Clegg Drive, San Antonio 78242 

What: Have you heard of the Price-Pottenger Foundation? This is the foundation that actually published the book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, by Weston A. Price. You may be familiar with Price’s research and the conclusion that the modern western diet leads to nutritional deficiencies causing an array of health problems. But…who is the Pottenger in “Price-Pottenger” and what did he do? 

Dr. Francis M. Pottenger Jr. was a physician specializing in respiratory diseases who wasn’t afraid to ask questions and seek answers. Jeff Pottenger is the grandchild of this great researcher who practices physical therapy in San Antonio. Stephanie Pottenger is a great grandchild who is a certified functional nutrition counselor helping educate and empower people to take control of their health. Jeff and Stephanie will introduce you to Dr. Francis Pottenger Jr.’s most famous work, Pottenger’s Cats. They will discuss how Pottenger’s research on the cats parallels that of Weston A. Price and how it can be applied to human health today. 

Guests will learn about and get to try the “Pottenger Liver Cocktail” featured in Sally Fallon Morell’s book, Nourishing Traditions.  

Featured Lab/Product: Dr. Cabral 7-Day Functional Medicine Detox

The liver is such an important organ and does so much for us, yet we don't really think about what it's doing for us on a daily basis. We'd award the liver with the "Unsung Hero" award because, while other organs get all the attention and praise (i.e. our heart and brain, understandably!), our livers are chugging along behind the scenes working very hard to filter and clean our bodies of the daily load of toxins.

Think about it: there are over 100,000 man-made toxins and chemicals in our food and environment. From the air we breathe, the water we drink and shower in, to the food we eat, and all the bath and beauty products we use. And while our liver is constantly working its hardest to keep our bodies free from all of these by filtering our blood every 6 minutes, it simply can't keep up.

One way we can support our livers and therefore support our bodies is by doing a quarterly (at least annually!) functional medicine (FM) detox. FM detoxes don't just help safely remove toxins and clear out the sludge from our over-worked liver. They also provide key nutrients that help support our bodies and both phases of liver detoxification (Phase 1 & 2). That way, when the detox is over, our livers are revitalized and ready to do what it does best: naturally detox our bodies every day. You can also eat on this detox!

Join us as we do a Paradigm360 Wellness Group FM Detox this month, March 24-30th! This is a free group program that includes: a mini pre-detox course to give you more in-depth information on what a liver detox is, tips and tricks to make it as seamless as possible, private Facebook group for extra support and community, recipe ideas, daily videos from us as we go through this WITH you, and access to us for questions/advice through our Facebook group. All you need to pay for is the 7-day detox.

*We will be doing 3 group detoxes a year, but you can detox ANYTIME! If you're interested in joining us or doing a detox individually, message us! Solo detoxes still receive all that's included in the group: mini detox course, daily accountability emails, private Facebook group access, tips, and recipes.

Message Us!