One of my New Year’s Resolutions (like half the country) is to shed a few pounds. But another New Year’s Resolution is to stick to a budget! A third New Year’s resolution is to keep things simple. That’s means I’m not going to pay for a gym membership that I will barely use, I will take exercise seriously, but I’m not spending half the day doing it. What I have been doing lately is a combo of

Don’t let the holidays make you crazy, broke or gain 30 pounds. That’s just putting more pressure on those New Year’s Resolutions you never keep. Here’s 12 ways to stay sane this holiday season with out breaking the bank, (or your cousin’s arm).

1. Shop online – There’s absolutely no reason to stand online for hours on end and fight the holiday crowds anymore. Not when just about everything we own can be ordered online. So save yourself the headache and cybershop this season. You easily find coupons for kinds of items at sites like Retail Me Not, Coupon Cabin, Current Codes, DealCatcher
2. Regift – Got a gift from someone already that doesn’t suit you but would be perfect for a co-worker? Regift! The only time this is not a good idea, when the original giver is present when you make the exchange.
3. Gift Cards – Have and uncle that needs everything but wants nothing? Yep. Time for a gift car. Some of the most generic to choose from are at Amazon. Check out Savvy Amazon Gift Cardsfor simple, last-minute gift giving.

Fellow blogger Elizabeth Mitchell, is a Healthy Lifestyle Consultant, Fitness Trainer and author of the blog.thefitnesshustle.com and the website The Fitness Hustle. She was kind enough to be a guest blogger on Savvy Brown this week. Both Elizabeth’s blog and website have some great tips about clean eating,  getting and  staying fit the healthy way.

“Five Reasons to Exercise”
by Elizabeth Mitchell

I remember it like it was yesterday. I was constantly telling my dad to “stay away from those ribs and chopped pork”. And asking, “How long has it been since you’ve been on that bike?”

If you have natural hair, or you are striving towards natural living you should definitely check out Kinky Hair Chick. Lily Ashe has tips on hair, eco-freindly fashion, green product reviews and her very own podcast! Lily interviewed me for her podcast last week. I talked about some of the natural recipes and hair ideas I’ve shared here on Savvy Brown as well as what propelled me to make healthy changes in y life. Check it out by clicking the link below!

I was SO excited last Thursday when I was invited to the “We Only Blog With the Best” Event at the Georgia NY Boutique in the Nolita section of Manhattan along with fellow fab greenie blogger Yoli Ouiya.

Georgia NY is a great little boutique and spa that specializes in mostly natural/green products for hair and skin. It’s the brainchild of  Jodie Patterson (the store is named after her daughter Georgia), and Kiara Ellozy. They sell many products that you’ve already heard me talk about like Aubrey Organics, Carol’s Daughter, Jane Carter, and Oyin Handmade just to name a few. They also sell KO (KnockOut) Nail Polish which is cruelty-free and comes in those cool “matte” looks. Georgia also has

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know yet another fabulous blogger, MissLycia and her fabulous healthy blog alldaynatural.com Her motto is “Body.Mind.Spirit…Redefined”. Her blog is all about being healthy and nurturing to ourselves and has some great tips, tricks and recipes to help you get there. She was nice enough to answer a few questions and give us some advice for us in this timely guest post…

1. What inspired you to start All Day Natural?

In the last few years, I developed a reputation among friends and family as the resident advisor for all things natural—from hair to diet to an overall wholistic lifestyle. They would often ask me for advice and tips on improving their health. I felt overjoyed when I was able to witness the positive changes in my loved ones’ lives, but mentally and physically. It inspired me to share my natural nuggets of advice with the virtual world.

2. . What inspired your natural lifestyle?

Ironically, I would say that the catalyst was my hair. When I started to grow my hair naturally, I began to reflect on not only what I put on my hair, but also on my skin and in my body. I started doing research on whole foods and alternative health, as well as attending classes and workshops. As I gradually progressed towards a healthier lifestyle, adopting a vegetarian diet and using all natural products, I began to notice dramatic changes in my hair, body, even in my mental state of being. To this day, my interest in natural living has continued to evolve. I am fortunate to learn a lot from my readers and other naturalistas in the blogosphere.

3. What are some budget-friendly ways for us to make healthy diet changes?

A lot of people think that you have to spend a fortune to eat healthy, but it is easier than you think! The first thing I would suggest is to learn to cook, or alternatively, find a friend that knows his or her way around the kitchen. J It is much less expensive to prepare your own meals than to spend twenty dollars a day (or more) eating out. You can find an array of healthy recipes on the web—including Savvy Brown’s tasty creations! I share recipes on my blog and make sure they are appetizing, yet easy to make. I would also recommend shopping at farmer’s markets to find, economical, local foods, and even growing your own food in a backyard or terrace garden. Finally, for those who think that healthy food is not worth the cost…think about how much you’ll save in medical bills in the long term!

This is the first of a series of posts about cotton, how it’s cultivated, how it’s harmful to the environment and to us, and some options on what we can do about it in our everyday lives.

How cotton is harvested..

50 years ago cotton-growing involved sustainable techniques, was not harmful to the environment and the surrounding wildlife, and did not deplete resources or create a health hazard.  There’s a big difference between the way cotton used to be cultivated, and the way it is harvested now. Cotton is now considered one of the dirtiest crops to produce. It uses large amounts of insecticides and synthetic pesticides. Some of which were developed as toxic nerve agents during WWII! An example of this is the insecticide Parathion which is 60 times more toxic than DDT. (Check the links below for more info on those two chemicals).

Crop Duster

Conventionally-grown cotton occupies only 3% of the world’s farmland, but uses 25% of the world’s chemical pesticides. These pesticides are routinely sprayed from the air from “crop-dusters”. These highly toxic chemicals can then drift into surrounding neighborhoods, poison farm workers, contaminate air, ground and surface water and cause major eco-system imbalances. The crazy part is, insects always grow resistant to insecticides, so the formulations have to get stronger every year.

During processing, cotton is doused in large amounts of chlorine bleach to make it white. (Oh yeah, cotton is NOT naturally bright white it’s more light beige in color). One of the reasons white cotton starts to get “dull” looking is because the bleach is coming out. (Then we turn right around and add MORE bleach to it!) Even colored cotton fabrics use heavy metal dyes and formaldehyde resins (that’s the “special” ingredient in most “easy care” cotton fabric). It’s no wonder we have such high rates of excema, allergies and respiratory problems!

In my post “My Health Turning Point” I linked to a video regarding the dangers of Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS). I also went into more detail about SLS in “Why I Don’t Shampoo My Hair: Pt.1″.

So I was really surprised when I was brushing my teeth one day and I flipped over my Tom’s of Maine peppermint toothpaste and read that Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is one of the ingredients!

I spit it out and ran to my laptop.

Apparently, SLS is used in toothpaste for the same reasons it’s in soap, shampoo, and car de-greasers.

Suds.

We are used to the sudsing action of toothpaste to get our teeth clean, and the ability of those suds to carry food and debris out of our mouth when we brush. SLS is used in toothpaste to emulsify (mix) oil and water based ingredients together.

If putting SLS on your skin is bad, putting it in your mouth is even worse. Apparently, the leading cause of canker sores is SLS in toothpaste. The same way SLS removes grease from car engines and oils from your hair and scalp, it also causes the membranes of the mouth to dry out by removing the oils from the inside of the cheeks, lips and corners of your mouth. (Causing cracked, chapped lips as well).  As a xenoestrogen SLS can also be absorbed into the skin inside your mouth and mimic estrogen in your body as well.

This Meatless Monday contribution comes from subscriber Amanda. It’s a yummy soup that I think I will make tonight! (This should last most of the week!)

Green Lentil Soup Recipe

Ingredients
2 c Green lentils ( I buy in bulk from Whole Foods)
1 large bag spinach – try not to buy baby spinach, larger tougher leaves hold up better in the soup
8 oz sliced mushrooms – optional. I love mushrooms so I put them in EVERYTHING!!
32oz Vegetable Stock – I like Kitchen Basics, also available at WF
2C water
1 large finely chopped onion
4-5 stalks finely chopped celery
1 chopped carrot
2 bay leaves
1 lemon and/or 2-4Twhite wine or champagne vinegar
salt and pepper
olive oil

Directions

Vida Starr, a fellow blogger from Life Star Beauty contacted me recently about a Health/Hair challenge that she’s having on her blog starting May 1st! Here’s the scoop…

Many of you know the relationship between a healthy lifestyle and healthy hair. We know the importance of drinking more water, eating healthy veggies and proteins, and definitely getting more exercise. Well www.lifestarbeauty.com has a hair challenge that incorporates them all! This hair challenge will take place in stages because for many of us it is difficult to abruptly start a new routine. Stages help to make sure we slowly incorporate each of these things into our routines!

May 1^st (Stage 1): Drink at least 5 bottles of water (that’s 10 glasses of water at 8 oz) a day. It is recommended you drink 2 bottles before lunch. Also, eat one serving of green veggies per meal. If you don’t want any veggies at breakfast you can swap it for one serving of fruit. Remember to snack on fruits/veggies between meals.

June 1^st (Stage 2): Eat salmon AT LEAST once a week. Salmon is a food that is loaded with omega 3’s, protein, and Vitamin B-12 which contributes to scalp health. A healthy scalp leads to healthy hair. If you don’t like/don’t prefer/can’t afford salmon you can replace it with other fish/foods high in protein. Two tablespoons of ground flaxseed included in your daily diet will also contribute to scalp health.