Hi beautiful Philosophie clients!

I will now be hosting all of viagra *high raw, mostly vegan and very organic cleanses* with my business partner, the beautiful and talented Danielle Larson.

Our new name for our partnership is “Zuddha”. Zuddha means “cleansed, pure and simple” in sanscrit.

Dani and Sophie

Please visit our new page (www.zuddhagirls.com) and follow us on twitter–> zuddhagirls

also, please “like” our fan page on Facebook to stay in touch! –> Zuddha

We have also partnered with Yogaworks Tarzana (for those of you that live locally) and we now offer two free weeks of Yoga at their gorgeous studio along with the clenase! (no extra charge, just part of the program now to offer you better results!)

Thank you for your continued support! Keep living the healthy life you do and stay in touch! I’ll continue to write for this site as our Zuddha world grows and keep you in the loop Don’t worry, our yummy recipes will continue to show up! Bigger and BETTER!

Much love,

Sophie

–>SPOTS ARE FILLING, RESERVE YOUR SPOT WITH A DEPOSIT BY EMAILING US!

Love Thy Self

~ The February Cleanse ~

This Valentine’s Day, show some love to the person you owe it to most: yourself. Make the choice to nurture your body. When we are centered, happy and healthy, goals become realities and nothing can bring us down. Take time for yourself, and the rest will follow.

Try one of our organic, vegan cleanses made with lots of love! All delivered to your very own door!

What’s it all about?

Three days of pure foods that will satisfy, fill and nourish, while aiding in weight-loss and energy gain. Not a big time commitment for 5 lbs, is it? We provide the meals, the meals do the cleaning. It’s really that simple. All of the foods we use pack vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, antioxidants and super-awesome detoxifying powers. Clean your insides, remove toxins, and put in some good, juicy nutrients into that beautiful body of yours! It’s time to get that skin replenished and glowing again! Meals include vegan entrees, soups, raw dishes, savory salads, liquid energizers, liver flushes, smoothies, juices and healthy desserts! Many of these foods will make you feel happier, lighter, calmer, cleaner and more clear. And for further cleansing and lifestyle maintenance, we send you home with a packet complete with recipes, tips and meal plans to continue your adventure into a love affair with your beautiful self!

3 Days for $350 Cleanse begins Monday Feb 7th!!!!

Who we are.

Hello, Loves! We are Chefs Sophie Jaffe of Philosophie and Danielle Larson of Mama Earth’s Kitchen!  Sophie is a certified raw food chef and has three years of experience designing cleanses for private clientele, including celebrities. Danielle is a classicly trained natural foods chef with a plant-based personal chef and catering business and has cooked for Hollywood icons. Together we combine our knowledge of holistic nutrition, our love of food and our passion for creating new delicious dishes that fuel the body. We do not attempt to treat, diagnose or cure any disease. That said, we believe in the power of foods and the effect they have on the body. Don’t know what we’re talking about? Try us.

Ready to give it a whirl? Call or email today to reserve your spot!

310. 291. 5266 ~OR~ sophie@thephilosophie.com

CHECK US OUT ON THE HUFFINGTON POST (TOP THINGS TO DO TO DETOX FOR THE NEW YEAR) AND VITAL JUICE’S TOP 5 FAVORITE THINGS FROM 2010!!!!!

Twinkies for weight loss?

Here’s a new one. As if the dude that ate nothing but fast food for 30 days wasn’t enough, now a knowledgeable nutrition professor eats noting but Twinkies to prove a point. Yes, we get it. If you eat less calories than your body uses each day, you will lose weight.

Mark Haub, a professor of human nutrition at Kansas State University, ate one of these processed, sugary snacks every three hours, instead of meals. To add variety in his steady stream of Hostess and Little Debbie snacks, Haub munched on Doritos chips, sugary cereals and Oreos, too.

His premise: That in weight loss, pure calorie counting is what matters most — not the nutritional value of the food.

The premise held up: On his “convenience store diet,” he shed 27 pounds in 10 weeks.

For a class project, Haub limited himself to less than 1,800 calories a day. A man of Haub’s pre-dieting size usually consumes about 2,600 calories daily. So he followed a basic principle of weight loss: He consumed significantly fewer calories than he burned.

His body mass index went from 28.8, considered overweight, to 24.9, which is normal. He now weighs 174 pounds.

That’s what the news was covering anyway. They forgot to mention that he also ate vegetables and salads every day in addition to a smoothie he made himself and a multi-vitamin pill. I in no way am saying a person doesn’t lose weight by eating less calories. In fact, that’s one of the main reasons this country is obese: we eat too much. The problem with this twinky man though is that the issue that arose is that surrounding NUTRITION, not weight loss.

His experiment proved true: he lost weight. When your body mass goes down, health issues diminish. When your body mass increases, new health issues such as cancer and stroke arise.

“There seems to be a disconnect between eating healthy and being healthy,” Haub said. “It may not be the same. I was eating healthier, but I wasn’t healthy. I was eating too much.”

My take on this experiment?

Our country’s obesity rate will hit 42% this year. Stop making excuses. I think it’s important for people to get the main point, that if you are overweight and poor, you still have a chance at getting to a healthy weight. You don’t need a Whole Foods near you or a huge food budget to be a healthy weight. You can literally shop at a convenience store for energy, just keep the portions small and be smart about it. Everything in moderation. Eat healthy MOST of the time. Treat yourself in moderation-now and then. Be active. Eat less calories than you consume when you want to lose weight and don’t exceed what you burn when you want to maintain. Nutrition is vital: make sure you get enough REAL foods, not packaged, processed poison. You are what you eat.

more info: http://pagingdrgupta.blogs.cnn.com/2010/11/04/study-u-s-obesity-rate-will-hit-42-percent/

I wrote this post is to share with you a basic overview of what I did to lose ALL my baby weight in just 3 months!

Keep in mind that every body is different and unique. Listen to your body, the signs it sends you. The take home message for diet is to eat for nutrients, not to worry so much about calories. If you eat nutrient dense foods, you will be full and satiated for longer.

I’m not saying calories don’t matter. They do. Calories in have to be less than calories out to lose weight. My point is that if you chose more nutrient-dense foods, your body will be more satiated and you won’t have as many cravings or be as hungry.

Diet: what did I eat?

lots of veggies!

Here’s what I do as far as eating goes. The proof is in the raw-pudding! Remember that when you’re breastfeeding, you need to get at least 500 extra calories per day to support your milk production and the health of your baby. Don’t worry, you burn it during breast feeding! (about 500 calories/day) The rule of thumb when you’re eating is to think about NUTRIENTS not just energy/calories. Ask yourself what NUTRIENTS are in your meal, not just putting empty calories into your body. For example, when reaching for a snack, don’t eat 5 rice crackers because they are low in calories, eat an apple and a handful of almonds because then you’re getting vitamins, fiber, protein and good fats. (and you’ll stay fuller longer!)

Some bullet points of what I’ve been doing in any given day:

*Every day I get some raw juice or smoothie. 4-5 days a week I get a green vegetable juice, and every single day I make a Super-Mommy-Power smoothie. I also have 1-2 coconut waters per day-I feel so dehydrated from breastfeeding that coconut water is really the only thing that quenches that thirst.

Here’s a recipe I make variations of just about every day:

Super-Mommy-Power Smoothie

• 1 Cup Almond, Rice or Hemp Milk/Coconut Water
• 2 teaspoons maca (excellent for energy and to balance crazy mommy hormones!)
• 1 tablespoon cacao powder (chocolate in it’s most raw form, super high in antioxidants!)
• 1 tablespoon coconut butter or almond butter (both have GOOD fats and are good for skin, nails, etc)
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil (speeds up metabolism) or flax oil (omega-3)
• 1 scoop raw protein powder (keeps me full for longer, no soy or whey)
• 1 banana (tip: after bananas get ripe, put them in Tupperware or a Ziploc in the freezer for easy smoothie access!)
• 2 teaspoons spirulina (blue-green algae, great for iron and protein)
• 1 tablespoon agave or 2 drops of chocolate stevia
• 1 handful of ice

top with goji berries and granola! (this smoothie also satisfies my cravings for sugar and  chocolate… only this is all the right stuff!)

*once or twice a week I get animal protein. Free range, Hormone-Free, Organic steak or fish. I’m not much of a chicken/turkey person but I learned to really like steak during my pregnancy. I’ve always loved fish. I add greens and veggies to every meal. Make sure you get double the veggies vs quantity of protein. We eat sushi A LOT, but make sure if you’re going this route that you don’t just get rolls-lots of white rice/empty calories. Try and get some sushi or sashimi so you get more protein and less rice. Use the green lid soy sauce (lower in sodium) and don’t use a lot of that either! you only need a little bit, especially if the fish is fresh! I also always get a seaweed salad which is excellent for digestion, iron and calcium.

sprout salad with veggie buger

*I eat a huge spinach or mixed green salad for lunch almost every day-lots of sprouted seeds, nuts and beans to get as much protein as possible. I add a veggie burger to the salad also and use lots of flax oil and/or olive oil for the good fats. (tip: good fats get rid of bad fats, we NEED good fats for our brain and body functioning!)

*I always have snacks with me in the diaper bag or in my purse, I usually snack on 1 protein bar every day and some type of trail mix I make. My favorite blend is a trail mix with: cashews, goji berries, dark chocolate covered cacao nibs, soaked almonds, sprouted pumpkin seeds, sprouted sunflowers seeds.

I found during these months that I would get FAMISHED If i didn’t eat every 2-3 hours. If I waited more than 3 I thought I would die. DON’T get to this point! You are exerting so much energy taking care of the baby, nursing, etc… never mind if you get an exercise in TOO! Besides, when you let your blood sugar drop this low it does crazy things to your metabolism and your body goes into starvation-fat-protection mode, aka something you don’t want.

Exercise/Body/Fitness

The first 2 weeks I was very gentle with my body and focused on bonding with my baby.I was eating very healthy and nourishing foods and was wiped out from the surgery.

The 3rd and 4th week I got to WORK! I worked with a friend of mine who’s also a personal trainer twice a week to start building strength, but mostly to build my confidence. I was scared at first to do anything ab related (since I had a c-section) but he quickly and safely helped conquer this fear as well.

Each session I felt stronger and stronger. We mostly used resistance bands or exercises using my own body weight (like plank, pushups, yoga) so you don’t need a gym to lose weight! Here’s a great workout you can do at home in place of the training session I did.

Some people don’t think exercise makes a difference. What I know is that I feel better when I exercise than when I don’t, and I’m more mindful of the food I’m putting into my body when I do. Also, when you look at the calories in vs calories out rule, it means you have more wiggle room in the calories in.  Works for me!

Here’s what my work-out/exercise schedule basically looked like:

Monday-walk outside with baby/hubby/doggy for 30 minutes, baby squats and baby abs (see pics below) for 10 minutes

Tuesday-30-45 min with my trainer, Trent (resistance bands, kettlebells, light weights, light cardio, ab work)

Wednesday- Yoga class 60-90 minutes

Thursday- 30-45 min with my trainer, Trent (resistance bands, kettlebells, light weights, light cardio, ab work)

Friday- off day, maybe some baby exercises while holding him and/or some stretching/yoga while watching tv

Saturday-walk outside with baby/hubby/doggy for 30 minutes, baby squats and baby abs for 10 minutes -or- Yoga class

Sunday-walk outside with baby/hubby/doggy for 30 minutes, baby squats and baby abs for 10 minutes

baby sit ups!

On the days I’d walk outside with Kai in the stroller I usually took the dog too. Sometimes my hubby would join. But those were days I set out with an intention to be out for 30 minutes for exercise, so I’d walk a little faster than a normal walk. On other days I still would walk the dog but I didn’t count it as exercise.

I also didn’t count walking around in general, carrying the car seat everywhere, carrying 3 bags around plus baby, cleaning, standing, etc. I considered all of this stuff bonus, plus it speeds up your metabolism to be active.

It’s been so much fun using Kai in my exercises, especially because he LOVES IT! (see pics and video to come!)

I’ve now lost ALL MY BABY WEIGHT, and it took 3 months! This

3 months post-pregnancy

is definitely something I wanted to share with you, since many moms are nervous it will take them a whole year to lose their weight. Some people say “give it a year, they were in your body for 9 months it should take that long to lose it.” I don’t agree. I definitely worked hard, but in my opinion, if you worked half as hard as I did you should lose your baby weight in 6 months, tops. I think a huge factor in my ability to jump back into a workout routine was that I exercised up until the last possible second in pregnancy, so my “off time” was only about 4-5 weeks total, not 9 months. If you ARE pregnant, check out my article about pregnancy and exercise. Thanks for reading and GOOD LUCK! let me know how it goes, share your stories with me!

Hi Philosophie Lovers!

For the Holiday Season, I challenge you to stay HEALTHY and FIT versus pack on a new layer of warmth!

How you may ask?

With consistent help, advice, pointers and recipes of course! It’s so much easier to achieve your goals with a support system in place. We will also have a private Philosophie Holiday Health Challenge facebook group where we can all talk about challenges we face, exchange recipes and tips and converse about living the Philosophie lifestyle!

I will send out daily email tips, feedback, questions and advice along with NEVER BEFORE SEEN recipes, workouts and techniques exclusive to this program to aid in your weight loss vs weight gain!

If you sign up NOW (within the next 48 hours) your Challenge price will be $48. (after 48 hours it will be $75)

To commit to this Holiday Health Challenge and stay TRUE to your best self, email: Sophie@thephilosophie.com with the subject line: I COMMIT TO MY HEALTH!

Why wait til after New Years to drop that extra weight? Let’s all start 2011 feeling fresh, rejuvenated and LIGHTER than when the holidays began!

TO HEALTH AND BALANCE!

Sophie

*the only requirement is that you have a blender, access to fresh veggies and fruit and daily internet connection!

I COMMIT!

in the next 48 hrs! $48.00 after 48 hrs $75.00 Option 3 $48.00

As upset as I was to hear I had to have a c-section after 17 hours of sitting in the hospital in labor, 3 weeks later I’ve luckily recovered quickly and easily.

A few clients and friends have asked what my “secret” is to my speedy recovery and weight loss. All I can do is share advice on what I did/do and hopefully it helps others in their journey.

Healthy Eating=Healthy Mind and Healthy Body

green juice!

Throughout my pregnancy and especially post-pregnancy, I really stressed getting organic, healthy, REAL food into my body. I stay away from anything processed, steer clear of sugar and anything unnatural. If I am craving something sweet I reach for fruit, dark chocolate or vegan ice cream. As soon as I had the baby (the DAY after) I had my mom bring me fresh green vegetable juice to obtain the energy from the chlorophyll and the rejuvenating properties of the nutrients in the veggies. I ate omega-3 rich salmon and brown rice for the protein and fiber.  By getting back into this routine of eating healthy, beautiful, nutrient-dense foods, it allowed me to quickly gain energy and strength.

I made sure to get in a lot of warming foods postpartum, like ginger, coconut water and cooked foods like quinoa and sauteed veggies.  In Chinese medicine it is thought that pregnancy is a time you are very warm internally and need to balance it with cooling foods (like raw fruits and veggies), and postpartum is a time your body is very cold and needs to be warmed. Staying hydrated is VERY important for recovery, especially when breastfeeding. Drinking room temperature water rather than cold water can help keep the balance of warm vs cold in your body as well.

Yoga and Exercise for a Speedy Recovery

walking 9 months pregnant

During my pregnancy I worked out 4-5 times per week. In the beginning I did all the same workouts: running, jogging, swimming, stair stepper, cross training, cross-fit, power yoga, jump roping, weight lifting and spinning (check out my post on exercise and pregnancy for more details). After my belly got larger, I didn’t feel comfortable doing high-intensity workouts or anything that required jumping. I continued doing yoga and light cardio (swimming, walking and stairs) as often as I could. 3 days before having Kai, I was at a power yoga class. There were weeks I didn’t feel like doing anything, but I made sure to walk uphill and do a modified yoga practice. After wards without fail, I felt better. This was key. In the immediate, I had more energy. In the long term, I’m convinced it’s what is ensuring my speedy recovery.

In the days following my surgery I would walk around the hospital hallways doing laps. I would hold onto my husband or a family member while hobbling up and down the halls. It made a huge difference and with each lap I felt stronger than the last. When I got home I’d deliberately make several trips up and down the stairs, slowly and carefully, to get a glass of water or whatever I needed. This helped train my body and let it know it was time to get moving. Of course, I listened to my body and what it needed. I didn’t push anything. But I was ready to start recovering very quickly: both mentally and physically.

Mind over matter

In the first few days, you almost have to force yourself to create healthy habits. Begin walking as soon as you possibly can. Find the healthiest things on your hospital menu to order, and if there isn’t anything, have someone bring you food. Make sure you get adequate water immediately, more than you think you need. Try and ween yourself off the pain killers as soon as you can. This is doing nothing for your recovery because you can’t even feel what’s happening in your body. Take Motrin instead: it’s an anti-inflammatory that helps reduce the swelling from your surgery and also reduce pain in your body. Keep your body “warm” with warming foods from Traditional Chinese Medicine. Here’s a complete list. Finally, be sure to exercise throughout your entire pregnancy, no matter how much you don’t want to. It will help with weight loss on the other side. I highly recommend yoga, in case I haven’t mentioned that before. (ha!) 

See Part Two of this Journey-3 months post-pregnancy!

Now that you’re ready to eat raw living foods,  you’re probably wondering what equipment and food staples you’ll need. You will need some basic kitchen equipment and food staples to get you started.

Kitchen Equipment

Appliances

1. Blender. If you have a good blender that is working fine, there is no need to rush out purchase a heavy duty blender. A heavy duty blender is great, but start where you are and work your way up. I am partial to the Vita Mix, but there are many heavy duty blenders on the market you can choose from.

2. Coffee grinder (optional). A coffee grinder is good for grinding flax seeds and other seeds and nuts. I have a Magic Bullet and it has an attachment for grinding seeds and nuts. You can also use a heavy duty blender for grinding, but most of the time you will need small amounts, so you may consider purchasing a coffee grinder.

3. Food processor. A food processor is good to have, but I don’t believe you need to have one, when you’re starting out. Why? Because a lot of things you can do with a food processor you can do with a good heavy duty blender.

4. Juicer. A juicer is good to have, but again, I don’t believe this is necessary when you are starting out. Don’t feel you need to purchase a top of the line juicer. Start small and work your way up.

5. Dehydrator. A dehydrator is good to have (not necessary), if you want to make dried fruit (my favorite!) crackers, breads and seasoned nuts and have other little treats on hand (especially during your transition). However, over time you will find that you will use your dehydrator less and less.

Other Tools

1. Mixing bowls

2. Rubber Spatulas

3. Knives

4. Cutting board (wood or bamboo)

5. Kitchen scissors

6. Colander

7. Garlic press

8. Mason jars

9. Measuring cups and spoons

10. Sprout bag or cheese cloth (for straining nut milks)

11. Fine mesh strainer

12. Vegetable peeler

Kitchen Staples

1. Fruit (dried and frozen)

2. Dried herbs and spices

3. Oils and Vinegars

4. Raw nuts and seeds

5. Sweeteners and Seasonings (sea salt, pepper, cayenne pepper)

6. Superfoods- carob or cocoa powder, maca,  sea vegetables, sun-dried tomatoes, etc)

7. Raw grains-buckwheat groats, oat groats, etc

8. Raw nut/seed butters

**Purchase fresh, preferably organic produce on a weekly basis.

R

Check out local farmers markets in your area!

The first step in taking on any new type of diet or nutritional plan, or attempting to lose weight, is absolutely to cleanse/detox.

My personal training and private yoga clients constantly talk to me about their physical goals, usually losing weight being at the top of their list.

Where to start

My advice is always the same. Start with a cleanse. You need to press the “restart button” before you begin something brand new. Your body, specifically your digestive system, is much like a computer and you’re trying to download a new program. If you haven’t restarted your computer in months, maybe even years, your computer will be running slow and sluggish.

When we regularly ingest processed foods, meat and dairy products, our digestive and lymphatic systems become overloaded, or congested, leaving excess toxins to remain rampant in the blood and in the digestive system where they cause chronic illnesses and diseased colons.

Great internal healing occurs when we cleanse through organic, primarily liquid based, raw foods. Uncooked foods maintain the enzymes within the food, as oppose to cooked foods which destroy the natural enzymes. After we eat cooked foods, it takes a lot of energy from the body to produce these enzymes in order to aid in the digestive process. In addition, because the raw food is also mostly liquid (smoothies, juices, teas, gazpacho’s) it doesn’t demand much from the body in order to break it down.

By allowing our systems to work less, we free up that energy to concentrate on healing. Raw vegetables, fruits and their juices, fresh air, and sunlight alkaline the body. They carry a negative charge, magnetically attaching the the acidic wastes and literally puling them into the eliminating channels for release. In addition, alkaline-forming foods are so beneficial because they help magnetize waste matter out of the bodies cells.

Are there any difficulties?

Raw foods help our digestive systems to heal, which allows our lymphatic systems to discharge these congestive toxins. This process can be uncomfortable.

Some possible side effects of detoxification include a temporary loss of energy, headaches, nausea or diarrhea. This is merely evidence that your body is throwing out those accumulated toxins.Some people will experience childhood illnesses or past experiences. If you experience low energy or bowel irregularities over a long period of time, you may have an overgrowth of yeast, or Candida, in your intestines.

How should I cleanse?

There are many different ways to detox. There’s the lemonade diet. There’s potions and colon cleansers. Fasting. Laxatives.

I personally believe the most gentle and nutritious way to detox is through raw food and juice cleanses. I either provide these cleanses (actually creating and making the cleanse for you) or, if you don’t live in Los Angeles and/or it’s too expensive for you at the moment, I can consult and guide you through your process via email/phone. See the testimonials page if you want to see what other clients have said – They all agree that with a healthy body come endless benefits.

If eating raw foods isn’t right for your body, I can guide and support you through other nutritious cleanse methods, such as body ecology diet, gluten-free, dairy-free, macrobiotic or vegan.

Why Cleanse?

There are so many reasons to detox or cleanse. Some people believe in completely fasting: eating and drinking nothing for a certain amount of time.

We believe it’s imperative, to aid in the cleansing process, to consume raw foods to receive an ABUNDANCE of nutrients… saturating your body in health instead of depriving it.

Cleansing and fasting regimes are multi-faceted experiences that have been practiced by an innumerable amount of people ranging from Christian saints to Buddha. These cleanses purify the mind, uplift the heart and heal the body.

In our every day life, we experience many different exposures to toxins. From environmental toxins (pollution) to emotional stresses to the food we eat, our bodies experience this stress daily. There are and always have been stressors in life and today there is no doubt an increase in a multitude of new toxins and stressors that have never existed before.

To restore your health and wellbeing, it is essential to detoxify the accumulation of toxins that absolutely affect each and every cell of your body.

We offer a unique experience by using raw, organic food, superfoods, herbs and supplements to provide a personalized program for you. After having an initial consultation we create a customized juice and/or food cleanse ranging from 3 to 30 days, depending on your needs and goals. You can combine any cleanse with our yoga classes or personal one on one training to get the most out of your detox process.

We look forward to sharing this experience with you!