Felice Shapiro
I hate feeling tired during the day – I have no patience for it but the older I get the more I give into naps and consider it a luxurious time out. I know that eating the right stuff is a great way to maintain energy but I’m a creature of habit and haven’t been willing to alter my routine.
But this summer something changed.
Somehow I managed to contract some creepy virus that has zapped me of my precious energy and I’ve had to succumb to lots of rest and very little exercise. The Doctor has told me it will pass but it will take time. Lots of time.
So, for the past 6 weeks I’ve been resting. My husband would disagree as he doesn’t think I ever rest enough — but for me – limiting bike rides– golf rounds and tennis games and going to bed early with no wine and always plenty of quiet reading time — well this is my version of rest (or preparation for the old age home).
A friend recommended I speak to her buddy who is a nutritionist to see if I could supplement my “rest” with some good healthy food.
And so, on an 85 degree Friday afternoon, Stacy Stowers came to my house and turned me onto to a magic potion that she created and trademarked called The Happy Shake.
She was delightful and upbeat and her good energy was contagious. We talked about healthy options and diet and how food can heal. As she spoke, she began to pull all kinds of stuff out of her Mary Poppins satchel that appeared to be magical ingredients. On my kitchen counter she presented me with powders, oils, chocolate, berries and fresh spinach from the garden (she calls that her “GOLD”)
Stacy told me that raw food heals. I was all ears but already knew I was never giving up my poached egg and toast for breakfast nor my cheese or chocolate. No matter – Stacy believed that her Happy Shake could heal me even if I didn’t change other parts of my diet.
Stacy came to raw food out of desperation. She had 17 years of chronic Valley Fever which left her dealing with chronic pain and fatigue. The Doctors had no cure so she decided to cure herself. Her research brought her to a raw vegan diet and it was her curative.
Within 10 days Stacy was out of bed and pain free.
“Most people are tired, stressed and are taking too many medications. As a society we are getting sicker and sicker – we need to get back to real food.”
Stacy began to show me how to make a Happy Shake and why the ingredients were so healing.
“There is actually a real ingredient in the shake that explains why you feel happy when you drink it – it’s the bliss chemical in raw chocolate,” Stacy explained.
“One of the key ingredients in the Happy Shake is Maca which is a Peruvian root – it grows high in the Andes Mountains. Because it has to grow in extreme heat or extreme cold –it is adaptive. Its adaptive qualities actually help us with stress, stamina, endurance – and the libido.”
I could barely wait to rev up my Vita Mix with this magic potion and see what it could do for me.
Here’s what we made …
The recipe:
½ cup water
3 to 4 cups of spinach
1 Tb of coconut oil or 1 raw organic egg
1 Tb of Maca powder
2 Tb of Cacao powder
1 cup of frozen (wild) blueberries
¾ cups of frozen cherries
¼ cup frozen banana, sliced in small pieces before freezing
Optional (honey if you want it sweeter and 3 ice cubes for hot days)
Toppings; Raw cacao nibs, goji berries, shredded coconut…
If you want to watch Stacy make the shake here’s the You Tube video:
The shake looked like an enticing frozen ice cream shake. I loved it and felt an immediate buzz (I think it was from the cacao).
I asked Stacy, “What should we eliminate to start feeling better right away?”
“Well, people don’t want to hear this but in fact it’s: Coffee, alcohol and processed foods.”
I just hate hearing what I know to be true and don’t want to change. I tell myself, in time I will figure out how to get off those 3 toxic things but for now, I’m adding in the Happy Shake to my morning routine.
Stacy concurs with this. She says her way of helping families begin to eat healthier, is not by taking foods away or cleaning out their cabinets, but it’s by adding in something healthy.
If you want to know more about Stacy and her services you can check out her facebook page and get lots of raw food recipe ideas.
Stacy is also a personal chef and actually moves in with families for an entire week to get them on track with healthy eating.
You can get her book “Eat Raw Not Cooked” on Amazon.