Question: Do you track your period? 🤔 I am embarrassed to share this but ... I didn’t start tracking my period until just a few years ago. And truth be told, I wish I had started tracking my period ages ago! I’ve learned so much about my body simply by tracking Aunt Flo. In fact, it wasn’t until I started tracking my menstrual cycle that I started noticing irregularities in my period and began to suspect that I might actually have a hormonal imbalance. What I’ve come to learn throughout my health and hormone healing journey is that our menstrual cycle can tell us so much about our health. And who better to explore this topic with us than Valerie Ageyman, RD, LD @flourishheights 🌸💚 Valerie is a Women's Health Dietitian and Founder of Flourish Heights an online platform dedicated to empowering women in their health and wellness journey through education. And educate she does in this episode. #studentforlife I loved chatting with Valerie and can’t wait for you to learn from her. In this conversation she shares why so many of us struggle with poor body image and why we should be celebrating our bodies, how stress can impact your period, why you might get food cravings the week before your period, why you should track your menstrual cycle, the importance of self-care #selfcareisntselfish and listening to your body and so much more! Ok, friend are you ready? Press play. #thewiseconsumer #feelgooddogood ✨ link in bio to listen!✨ 
Recipe || It’s pretty cold here in Northern Virginia today so this ‘Mixed Bean Chili With Plantains’ is a perfect dinner to cozy up with! Takes less than 20 min to make, super nutritious, and tastes great. What you'll need: 1 15oz can of black beans 1 15oz can of red kidney beans 1 8oz can of tomato sauce 1 carrot (sliced) 1 ripe tomato (chopped) 3 cloves of garlic (chopped) 1-2 TBSP of Olive Oil 1-3 tsp chili powder, paprika, cumin, salt, pepper (add more or less according to your preference) chili flakes (optional) 1-2 scallions (chopped) (topping) 1/2 avocado (topping) 1 cup of Brown Rice (side) + 1 Plantain 2 TBSP olive oil Salt, Pepper, chili powder (optional) Directions: - Add olive oil to medium pot, once heated add garlic. Let garlic percolate in oil for about 30 seconds. - Next add carrots and spices. Cook on low heat till carrots start to tenderize. - Once tender, add beans, tomato sauce, and chopped tomato to mixture. - Simmer everything together on low for 15-20min. - While simmering, cook rice following packaging instructions and set aside. Plantain: - Peel and slice plantain into medium slices. Tip: I find it’s easier to peel plantain by making a shallow slit down the length of the peel first. - In a cast iron skillet heat up 1-2 TBPS of olive oil. FYI, I personally prefer using less oil when it comes to “frying” my plantains. - Once oil is heated add plantain slices and salt/pepper to taste. - Fry till slices are cooked thoroughly. Cooking time will vary depending on thickness of slices but generally it takes about 2-3 min per side. To serve: In a bowl add the cooked rice and top with mixed bean chili, plantain slices, avocado slices, and scallion. I like to pair this recipe with eggs 🍳 and hot sauce. And that’s it! Enjoy! 💚#thewiseconsumer 
What if I told you that spending less than 35 min a day in nature could help boost your immunity? Or, what if I told you that the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku, also known as Forest Bathing, could help reduce stress and improve your overall health? Have I peaked your interest?! If so, then you’re going to want to tune-in to today’s podcast episode with Suzanne Bartlett Hackenmiller MD @docsuzy , an OB-Gyn, Integrative Medicine physician, certified forest therapy guide, and a medical advisor for @alltrails 🌲🥾 In this #podcast conversation, Suzanne shares how the practice of forest bathing helped her cope with grief after the loss of her husband, what forest bathing is, how forest bathing can improve our immunity and overall health, how to ‘forest bathe,’ and why children should spend more time in nature. If you’re struggling with stress, feeling overwhelmed, and/or looking for a budget-friendly way to add a bit of self-care to your daily routine, then press play because this episode is packed with practical tips and tricks to help you implement the practice of forest bathing into your own life. 🏔 Click link in bio to listen! 🌲 #thewiseconsumer #natureheals #forestbathing #shinrinyoku 
What is wildcrafted skincare? What are the benefits of wildcrafted skincare? And, what is this new magical “natural” anti-aging alternative to retinol everyone’s been talking about?! 🌸 If these are questions you want answers to then you’ll absolutely want to tune in to this podcast episode with Kendra Kolb Butler, the founder of Alpyn Beauty. @alpynbeauty @kendrakbutler Kendra is a wild plant beauty enthusiast, former Manhattanite and 20-year beauty industry veteran who spent the majority of her career leading sales, marketing and public relations initiatives at leading luxury beauty companies from Givenchy and Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare to Clarins and Coty. But, in 2015, everything shifted in Kendra’s life when she swapped out her high-heels 👠 for hiking shoes 🥾and moved out west 🏔 with her family in search of open spaces, fresh mountain air, and serenity. As you’ll hear in our conversation, this was a scary decision for Kendra, but one that opened so many new doors for her. In fact, it was this move that led Kendra to launching her own wildcrafted skincare line, Alpyn Beauty -- a sustainably sourced natural skin care line formulated with, wildcrafted and hand-cultivated alpine botanicals grown in the mountains surrounding Jackson Hole, WY. 🌸💚 In this conversation Kendra shares all about the journey that led her to launching Alpyn Beauty, how climate affects your skin, the environmental and skincare benefits of using sustainably sourced wildcrafted botanicals, what wildcrafted skincare is, the importance of ingredient transparency when it comes to skincare products, how she defines "clean beauty” in an industry where there is no FDA legal definition for such terms, and so much more! Hit play to tune-in now! #alpynbeauty PS: Use code WISECONSUMER for 20% off at alpynbeauty.com (code expires Feb 28th!)