I recently went camping for a weekend with my husband and our best friends. The plan was to go to Kern River. The Kern is so amazing! You can basically park off the main road, hike down a bit and camp anywhere you see space, right in front of the river. It's about two and a half hours from LA which makes it a nice getaway without spending too much time in the car, which is great considering we had three giant dogs with us. Sadly, our Kern River camping adventure came to an unanticipated end. The mountain was on fire the week before due to a lightning storm and the road was closed. Fortunately the amazing Kern County fire department was able to save most of the residences and there were no fatalities. Mountains burn, that is part of nature.
We drove all that way and bought tons of groceries and supplies, we were not about to give up on our camping weekend. We drove around Kern county for hours before we decided to stop at a local brewery and ask some of the locals where we could camp. To make a long story short, thirteen hours of driving later, we ended up in Bishop Ca., half way up the state and almost at the Nevada border. It was late. When we got to the first camp site that looked decent, we still had to set up our tents and eat something. We were very tired and frustrated by that point but we made the best out of it. My friend and I decided to mix some margaritas to get our minds off of the drive and the ever increasing amount of giant insects that had begun to swarm.
My plan during this trip was to keep alcohol consumption to a minimum and find creative ways to enjoy camp style fare while still remaining vegetarian, however the buzz from the margaritas and the growl in my stomach overcame my intentions. The boys bought some carne asada and decided to grill it up. Trying not to be difficult I just went ahead and ate it too, just a little. By the next morning, my head ached from the half bottle of tequila my friend and I consumed. My body felt sluggish and bloated and my stomach was not happy. Perhaps the carne asada was not such a good idea. Fortunately I was able to maintain a veggie diet for the remainder of our camping adventure, which was amazing by the way. One of the best things I made was a portobello mushroom burger. Everyone else had sirloin. I basically seasoned it with salt, pepper, thyme and rosemary and sprinkled some Gorgonzola cheese on top. I grilled it and put it on a bun with basil and tomatoes, just like a regular burger. I still drank a little more than I probably should have, it was my best friends birthday after all. I'm gonna give myself a break, one step at a time.
Since I returned home, my plan was to do yoga every day and try a cleanse. For me, doing yoga every day is easier than cleansing. Just the thought of cleansing makes me crave french fries and a cold beer. If you were to google cleanses, you could spend hours browsing all the different types; Master Cleanse, cabbage soup cleanse, colon cleanse, juicing, fruit cleanse, coconut juice cleanse, liver cleanse, etc. etc. My best friend is great at cleanses. She explained to me when I was trying a fruit cleanse that when your stomach starts to growl and you feel tired and cranky, that you have to just look deep and be persistent. She swore that the cleanse would eventually make me feel invigorated and focused. Sounds great, I believe her too, unfortunately I have never gone beyond day two of any cleanse. Maybe I haven't tried the right one, maybe I have no willpower, or maybe cleanses just aren't for me. I definitely agree that certain foods can be toxic for the body, however, unless you have some type of liver failure, the bodies ability to cleanse toxins out on it's own is astounding. To me, cleanses are just too restrictive. Your body needs fuel to function, it's that simple. Food is fuel. If we deny ourselves that fuel, our bodies will stop functioning the way it should. I'm not saying go ahead and have a giant porterhouse steak and a bottle of red wine every night. Here is my opinion on cleanses. The best cleanse is the cleanse that should last your entire life. Living clean. Eat three meals a day. Load your plate with fruits and veggies. If you eat meat, keep it to three times a week and eat mostly fish and organic free range chicken and keep the portions small. Drink lots and lots of water. Drink fresh vegetable juice at least once a day. Omit alcohol on most days. Avoid processed foods. Sweat every day. This is the cleanse I plan to do, and maintain for the rest of my life as best I could.
The thing I missed the most while I was traveling was my yoga practice. When I was in Miami, my intention was to do Ashtanga. The small amount of space and thick carpeting in my room made it difficult; that and I wanted to spend time with my niece and family. I was also unable to do much yoga while camping because of all the other activities (and drinking) we were doing. Lame excuses, I know. Finding my home practice has always been a struggle for me. As soon as I got home I went to a yoga class. I was amazed how strong and flexible I felt after all that time away. Yoga is always there, even after being abandoned for a while. I intend to do yoga every day and begin a home practice, however, if for some reason practicing asanas doesn't work in my day, then I will practice the yoga of just being.
