All I have to say is you must watch this video.  And if this story can inspire someone you know, please share it with them!

(you might want to have a few tissues on hand)

Article source

Arthur Boorman was a disabled veteran of the Gulf War for 15 years, and was told by his doctors that he would never be able to walk on his own, ever again.

He stumbled upon an article about Diamond Dallas Page doing Yoga and decided to give it a try — he couldn’t do traditional, higher impact exercise, so he tried DDP YOGA and sent an email to Dallas telling him his story.

Dallas was so moved by his story, he began emailing and speaking on the phone with Arthur throughout his journey – he encouraged Arthur to keep going and to believe that anything was possible. Even though doctors told him walking would never happen, Arthur was persistent. He fell many times, but kept going.

Arthur was getting stronger rapidly, and he was losing weight at an incredible rate! Because of DDP’s specialized workout, he gained tremendous balance and flexibility — which gave him hope that maybe someday, he’d be able to walk again.

His story is proof, that we cannot place limits on what we are capable of doing, because we often do not know our own potential. Niether Arthur, nor Dallas knew what he would go on to accomplish, but this video speaks for itself. In less than a year, Arthur completely transformed his life. If only he had known what he was capable of, 15 years earlier.

Do not waste any time thinking you are stuck – you can take control over your life, and change it faster than you might think. Hopefully this story can inspire you to follow your dreams – whatever they may be.

Anything is Possible!

• For more information about DDP YOGA, visit http://www.ddpyoga.com
• To contact Arthur or Dallas Page about this incredible story, please visit http://www.ddpbang.com.
• Arthur’s story is featured in the upcoming documentary, http://www.inspiredthemovie.com
• An extended cut of this story can be viewed here! http://bit.ly/IPfpwI

Hey, got a question for you.

Are you a coupon user? Nowadays? Probably so.

You might want to read this if you live in the South East US.

How do you get your coupons? Newspaper? Coupon booklet in the mail, etc? Or do you subscribe to a “daily” deals notification service like Groupon, Livingsocial, etc? If you use those, by this time you must know how limited they are. The only thing I get from Groupon anymore is “Laser Hair Removal” deals, maybe a car detail discount, or some other once-in-a-decade product or service I would never use on a regular basis. I’ve already unsubscribed from them.

As many of you know, Katya and I recently moved to Florida. And other than the standard “new move-in” coupon envelope waiting for us in our mailbox, we didn’t have a go-to coupon resource for local savings, so we’ve been winging it, that is until now… By accident we found a service that offered exactly what we were looking for, integrated directly into our smart phones: the 411 on TONS of local deals.

Their system is really clever though. Totally different than what we were using before. Far more convenient. Instead of some random once-a-day coupon, sent to my email, that I have to print out; for $20 (per year) they gave me access to their giant database of companies running specials in our local area.  It’s much easier to take my pick from tons of retail categories.  (trust me, they have a huge database – this press release was made 5 months ago).  It gets better with the way they do it.  Check out this video:

Katya and I are always driving around here and there, forever running errands. I’ve always used google maps on my Android to find out where the stores we need are. Aside from general ratings, google doesn’t display more incentives than general company information.  With SimplePons, my finger swipes across Google Maps and the SimplePons app hooks up little icons where the local deals are near my GPS position, for just about any category I’m looking for. It’s completely worth the 20 bones.

After adding up what we’ve saved so far, it easily pays for itself in a matter of weeks if not days.

On the other hand, if you are a business owner, mobile marketing is the way of the future.  And it’s incredible how many entrepreneurs haven’t caught onto this or are simply too busy.  If you or someone you know is a business owner, and you or they are looking for a very profitable return on advertising investment, my advice is to look into advertising through this service.  Even if you have a non-profit organization, SimplePons has great ways to expose you to your local community and help with fundraising.  This video explains it.

Which leads me to the other update.  Since we moved to this area, I’ve been keeping my eyes open for a graphic design position with a solid-and-growing company I can stand behind.  Well, it just so happened SimplePons is looking for a graphic designer, and I’m hoping they choose me! (of course I hope this post ups my chances!)

*Smile*

Seriously though, aside from that, their service is top notch!  Do me and yourself a favor and check em out! Like their Facebook page for notifications in your area!

Far superior to the status quo of coupon services out there.

All the best!
Matt

Someone recently asked me what I think about protein powder supplements.  Take a look…

Understand, the majority of supplement companies (especially markets with HOT-BUYERS like bodybuilding and sport performance) are not in business 100% for your long term health.  They know you want results faster, bigger, better and you want them all YESTERDAY.  This creates a hotbed for businessmen pushing the line with “features and bonuses” while finding ways to cut costs with their newest products.  How else will you get anyone to buy your stuff?  

If you took a look at Muscle and Fitness magazine back in the 90′s, you wouldn’t see nearly the same extent of advertising and hyperbole you see now days.  What should that tell you?  There’s tons of money in it, and many underhanded ways to stretch profit that you can’t even imagine (eg: adding unhealthy synthetic substances that are cheaper than their natural predecessors).  I know because I helped create, manufacture and market a cognitive supplement a number of years ago and learned a ton about how much companies can get away with. Hey, as long as you add “these statements have not been evaluated by the FDA”, you can get away with quite a bit.

Actually even if everything was approved by the FDA, their restriction standards are a joke anyway.  It’s all about money, not health.  Learn more.

And don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying making money is bad thing at all, making money is great; for them, for us, for the economy.  The problem is sneakiness: compromising quality ingredients for the sake of higher profits.  Trading the health of the consumer so products last longer on the shelves…  Catch my drift here?

This carefully hidden (well-intended) agenda has snuck past all of our health-detection for years. We stay dazzeled at the BIG BOLD promises of “bigger, faster, better” results!  So, if you are still caught by that nonsense… you need to wake up, for your own sake.

Okay, rant over. Here’s a list of the common junk (and some toxic) ingredients found in these disgusting protein powders I refuse to buy or drink:

Natural and Artificial Flavors

Acesulfame Potassium

Sucralose

Potassium Chloride

Canola Oil

Click to Read Label

My advice is to look into and purchase natural whey protein alternatives (that aren’t as pushed or marketed as much as the artificial ones, again, because the profit margin isn’t as wide)  Here’s the powder Katya and I use in our smoothies currently: 365 Whey Protein Powder (Micro Filtered/Ion Exchanged/Hydrolyzed). This TYPE of whey is supposedly the best on the market. Other micro filtered whey products are almost double the price, or more. Like Blue Bonnet for instance.

Here’s a link to the natural version of 100% Natural by Optimum Nutrition

Here’s a link to the natural version of Muscle Milk.

Okay, that’s about it for now. Leave a comment or join us at our Facebook page if you have any questions. Btw, when you are done with this article, read this: Many bodybuilding supplements and protein powders are loaded with chemical sweeteners
 
Wishing you the truest Vitality!
Matt and Katya

I just finished the audio book “Crush It” by Gary Vaynerchuk.  It was so good, I decided to write him a letter about it.  (First time for everything)  Here it is.

———–

May 5, 2012

Just listened to Crush It. You told me to send a message and let you know what I thought. So here it is.

I’ve been listening to internet marketing guru’s, business guru’s and reading best selling motivational books for years now. Not sure why I never read your stuff before. I’ve seen a few of your videos, all good content, but maybe I watched the wrong episodes for where I was at in my life.  I don’t know.

My personal passion/business problem is:  perfection = paralysis. It’s been holding me back “in a deceivingly positive way” for a LONG time. And it’s been completely counter intuitive to go against it!  My blog and video creation has stagnated for over a year because of it. I’ve learned a million theories about it, half-heartedly tried another million techniques that supposedly would dissolve it… but nothing ever clicked.

Then… a friend shares your Crush It audiobook with me.
Started listening to it at the gym for a few days.
Holy wow.

Well, I just finished it 30 minutes ago.

Gary… it’s not just your ideas that got me. Hell your book is already years old. It’s just YOU!  Raw, fearless YOU, with all the nameless events in your life that formed you. You embody integrity.  What you say SINKS in. And you don’t just talk about things with enthusiasm, your intention BEAMS across reality, all the way from yours to mine — like a ton of bricks. I couldn’t believe the feelings surging in me after your piece about just getting out there and engaging, never letting go of your DNA (your true personality) and never chase the money, even if the bills are stacking up (just work HARDER). And though I’ve heard these ideas before from other guru’s… no one exudes it like you do. No one.

You have a new fan, sir.

So I thank you. REALLY. I’ve never written any other author after finishing their stuff. I’ve always been timid being a nobody or “they’re too busy anyway” or I don’t have anything to bring to the table yet or many other paralyzing anxieties that have held me back from just letting my passion and gratefulness reach out.  Honestly, I’ve held back from simply sharing a friendly vibe with the world because sometimes it feels like I would just be a bother.  Don’t know where it came from, but it’s there.  Self-centric paralysis.

After listening to you, I don’t care if this message isn’t edited perfectly, or if it never reaches you.  Because I don’t have any expectations in return.  Just passion.  I now trust and feel that’s it’s simply the right thing to do. As long as my appreciation comes from my core, it might be ‘loud’ enough to hopefully reach you, and put a smile on your face.  Or to let you know that YOU made a significant impact on a [yet another] inspired lover of life completely “stuck” in perfectionism out there… enough for him to write a simple message to you.  And if it doesn’t reach you, no big deal, like you said, its priceless just being true to your heart.

And I’m not going to stop with this message to you. I’m going to keep going with this. It feels right. You feel right.

THANK YOU.

Matt Struve

———-

My message to my readers?  I urge you to read or listen to his book if you are a “Johnny come lately” like me.  It’s been around for a while now, but it’s timeless.  Gary is a total baddass.  Click on the pic for the link (I am not an affiliate).   That is all.

—————

December 31, 2009

Hey all!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  I’m sitting in my friend’s trailer in New Orleans, preparing for a retreat we’re hosting here in January.  So happy I’m not in snowy Portland right now! HAHA  Anyway I just felt I should write an update.  First, to give a little window into what’s been going on with my life, and second, because I want to share something very important with all of you.  So going to mix those two things up and get started.

What I really want to share about… is about something every single one of us spends lots of time learning about.  Something we’ve all invested lots of money and time into.  Something we all try to become better at… for years and years now.  And getting clear, legitimate, inspirational information about it… seems hard to come by for most of us…  So what am I talking about?

Our health.

Everything that influences our physical, emotional and mental well-being.

In 2009 my life underwent massive changes, for the better, and I don’t want to take them for granted.  Now we have arrived at the eve of 2010.  I’m going to start it off by closing 2009 with this letter.  All I can say is, I’m excited.  So please pardon the storm of adjectives I’m about to use.   I wish I was a better writer!

Tonight at the stroke of midnight, we’re all going to come face to face with our new year’s resolutions.  The majority of which deal with bettering ourselves and our situations which affect the quality of relationships we have with others.  It’s all connected.  For now I just want to focus on the first — bettering ourselves.

As you may know, I’ve been a hobbyist on the “health kick” for a while.  Mainly with weight lifting for about, what, 10 years now?  I earned a PFT certification and worked as a personal trainer at 24 Hour Fitness in Newport Beach, CA.  I didn’t work there that long, but the education I got was the first step toward a more conscious healthy lifestyle.  Still, I was into it mainly for physique, so my nutritional knowledge orbited around muscle growth and rapid fat loss only.  Never bothered learning more about the rest of the universe of biology within the body, nor concerned myself about how it was all connected.  Short sighted?  Yes.

Since moving to Oregon in 2002, my friends and I started a company centered around meditation and personal growth.  My life took on a stable routine, and each year my focus and consistency toward fitness increased.  I started to research more effective ways of maintaining low body fat, while building muscle, instead of the up and down of bulking and rapid dieting.  I learned of better quality food choices, less saturated fats, all the stuff I’m sure you all pretty much know about.  I went through different fads, from Atkins to South Beach to eating everything I could get my hands on, to fasting.  Again, either to bulk up and gain muscle, or rapidly taper down and burn fat.  I’ve experimented (aka: unnecessary spending) with far too many supplements, powders and vitamins as well.  Still, I couldn’t stand the appetite mood swings that came with switching eating habits.

I became more muscular, but in hindsight now, I wouldn’t say I was healthier.  It only looked that way on the surface, if you didn’t look closely.  I still got sick (every season) and always felt imbalanced with my energy levels (here’s what I looked like on the regular then).  The eyes tell everything.  That’s what you get for drinking 4-6 cups of coffee a day, and eating without regard.  My immune system was highly vulnerable to viruses. I got the flu every year like clockwork.  I practiced meditation, and I believed it helped balance me mentally but still… so much was missing from the bigger picture of true health and vitality.

Enter 2009.  My entire life turned… 360 degrees.

I met a certain someone, now very dear to me.  Her name is Yekaterina (Katya for short).  She moved to the US nine years ago from Vladivostok, Russia.  We met by mere chance in early February.  Wow, looking back, it feels like this year has been 20 years in 1.  So much has happened.

As we got to know each other more, I was really surprised that although she graduated from law school she was a very enthusiastic practitioner (a veritable encyclopedia) of health, nutrition and biology!  As we hung out and talked more, she said she had moved to Portland to return to school at a naturopathic college in Portland.  NCNM — National College of Natural Medicine.

Okay, long story made very short; Katya told me about a nutritional philosophy called “Macrobiotics.” — a strict approach and health lifestyle based on selective eating and living; (it’s dietary aspects are stricter than veganism).  Might sound scary to meat eaters.  Haha, just keep reading.  After several times meeting up with her, I couldn’t help looking at her skin.  I was seriously caught by how even her tone was, how smooth it looked… and I don’t mean like a child’s, I mean healthy thriving skin.  And her eyes were bright.  I had previously read that the skin is the biggest organ in the body.  If you study it the right way, it reveals the quality of your internal health.  You can tell a lot about a person’s health, in the blotchiness, or lack thereof, on their skin.  It doesn’t lie.  I mentioned my observations to her, and that’s when I learned about her interest in her dietary approach.

She said she went to school at the The Natural Epicurean Academy of Culinary Arts in Austin, TX.   I didn’t know what that meant.  All I could imagine was, “cool, she’s a chef!  Bet she makes a mean lasagna!”  haha jk.  She said her instructors also had most amazing skin consistency, and like me, she knew they were on to something amazing.  It’s true, people need proof or reason before changing their lifestyle.  I know I did.  Not to mention people get very defensive around changing eating preferences.  Well, Katya was my proof.

What followed was, to me, a gift from heaven.   Through these last 10 months, she opened me up to a world of streamlined, struggle-free, clear information, that transformed my entire perspective of health and nutrition… “permanently”.  I’m serious, I had never come across knowledge like this out there.  Nor did I personally know anyone that did either, until then.  You should see her personal library.

By the way, I actually got a chance to visit to the school she went to.  I held a meditation lecture there 2 weeks ago.  It’s true, healthy vibrant glowing skin was wrapped around more people walking around then I had ever seen in one place.  Anyway, additional proof wasn’t needed.  I read more about macrobiotics and learned it’s not only an incredible *illness prevention* diet, but a tried and true method to reverse well known existing diseases (as long as you have the right diagnosis).  And the list of successful cases is a long one.

The book she gave me was called “The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics“.  This is the book that started it all and I’ll never stop thanking her for sharing it.  It was hilarious reading, made tons of sense, it didn’t force anything, but it revolutionized the way I now look at behaviors in nature, our ritual of eating (the what, how and why’s) and basically how to understand nutrition, cravings, “addictions” and dietary balance.  That was around March or so.  I weighed about 205ish pounds, of muscle, maybe 13% body fat, definitely no definition.

Now, I’m not saying I’ve been following Macro-philosophy’s strict allowances, I gave it a try for a few days, but my life wasn’t set up for a change to that degree.  BUT!  I did gleam a new take on an old wisdom “You are what you eat.”  The way the author Jessica presented it was affective.

What is macrobiotics?  Well, what does biotic mean?  From wiki: “Biotic means relating to, produced by, or caused by living organisms.”  Now consider what micro means. From wiki: “This prefix refers to an object as being smaller than scale of focus, in contrast with macro.”  Now Macro, from wiki: “Macro also refers to a “larger view”, namely a view only available from a large perspective. A macroscopic position could be considered the “big picture”

Macro.  Biotics.

That’s why it’s more of a way of life, rather than a list of low calorie recipes.

Katya didn’t stop with that that one.  Before I finished it, she gave me another book called “The China Study“.  If you clicked the link, you can see the author has accolades up to here…(I’ve attached this E-book to this email)  I was impressed, finished the first one, and dove in to the 2nd.  This was March/April.

So I finished China Study.  The book covers such a necessary array of information based around better living through dietary change.  From terminal illnesses (and reversing them) to comparing leading causes of death in the world with cultural dietary differences, to industry control of nutritional information in America, how we cut corners, and tons more.  I was blown away with what I learned, mainly about the differences between animal and plant based food…  ***flash forward 6 months*** …so much so, that now I can count on less then both hands how many times I’ve had meat (minus eggs and fish) since then.  The book shocked me.  I had beef here in New Orleans for the first time in 6 months a few days ago.  Still haven’t eaten chicken.  Turkey, pig, and lamb were the only culprits.                                

You guys all should know what a insane carnivore I am…oops, WAS.  You know it would take something monumental for me to change that, right?.  C’mon, one of dad’s juicy barbequed steaks?  It doesn’t get tastier than that!  So I’m telling you, what I learned was intense enough for me to make that shift.  For 7 months, my diet has been *mostly* all plant and whole grain based, with minimal fish and eggs.   It was a challenge in the very beginning, but Katya gave support me when my discipline waned, don’t even know if she knew it.  She showed me really tasty alternatives.  And yes, she cooks amazingly.
                              
Anyway, I’m jumping ahead too far.  Next book she recommended was Jon Barron’s “Lessons of the Miracle Doctors“, another amazing look into preventing and reversing catastrophic illness and diseases, and tons of information on cleansing the body, resetting it to operate as nature intended.  I still haven’t finished this one, but it’s 2nd on the table at the moment. (I attached the E-book to this email as well) He teaches about changing the biopathic environment of the body to expel invaders.  She swears by it.

(By the way, as of this month she is currently training with a method of medical diagnosis using electrical frequency instruments in Mexico (ok, I’m still learning about it), but it follows Dr. Hulda Clark’s approach.  Which I can’t wait to learn more about!)

And there were a few other books and audio series’ that yielded a few pointers and suggestions (David Wolfe was one), but the latest has been the most inspiring.

A friend sent me information about this book “Eat to Live” and linked me to a video on google (I’ve attached this E-book to this email), I couldn’t help but get excited watching it!  Was the straw the broke the … you know.  I had to share with you guys.  This doctor’s name is Joel Fuhrman.  He is brilliant.  After watching his video, I knew this guy had his finger on the pulse of the general populace’s health and information deficiencies.  And he knows how to actually communicate effectively in lay terms.  A doctor with a marketing background, how awesome!

His approach to better health is driven primarily through proper information disclosure.  If delivered proficiently enough, let the listener weigh their own opinions, and make the next choice.  Think about it, if we’ve been misled as to what the body needs, and how the body needs it, then a proper education is the first step toward transformation.  Food choosing done consciously has never been clearer to me…nor more eloquently taught.

You must watch this video:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-930295310466113431&ei=VOI2S7TJI6ieqAKX1Pw8&q=fuhrman#

Coming back around full circle to “you are what you eat”.  Quite literally so.  Your body assimilates and uses what you put into it as the build blocks to replenish the cells that are constantly birthing and dying in your body.  If you put tar and nicotine into your body, after a while, you’ll see signs that your body is using those ingredients as building blocks.  At first it will try to expel what it can, but if the poison is delivered relentlessly, the body will is forced to accommodate it.  This is why smokers not only face lung cancer, but discolored skin flushing in the long run, dry skin, increased wrinkles, and other signs of slow decay.  Same thing with say, cholesterol, or unhealthy fats, and other foods with nutrient deficient calories.

So the Hip Chick’s Guide was fun and vastly expanded my perspective; The China Study was overwhelmingly educational, though a bit far encompassing, it was highly interesting.  But as far as effective, logical, convincing communication goes… this guy really brings it home.  An excellent union between scientific fact, easily digestible information, tons of ideas & suggestions and plenty of serious consequences to weigh out.  It’s top-gun quality knowledge!

And I didn’t think of it as vegetarian propaganda.  I realized my deficiency was in good information.  What I’m suggesting to you guys is not some fad calorie counting diet.  It’s not about reducing how much you eat.  Or disciplining yourself.  It’s not about going to the gym more.   You won’t be disheartened with unrealistic suggestions afterward.  It’s about learning about nutrient dense foods and adding them into your daily eating, at first.  Wait a minute…

ADDING food?
NOT taking away?

Just by adding nutrient rich foods, instead of processed health starved foods, void of anything worthwhile to rebuild cells and replenish new growth in your body, you can ignite a automated transformative process.  Make sense?  You taste buds will begin to change on their own, and your preferences will follow suit… automatically.  When the inner ecology of your body is altered… so will illnesses not be suited survive.  If you take a desert dweller animal, and place it up in Alaska to survive a winter… what’s going to happen?  Exactly, it’s not going to survive the environmental shift.  Same thing with the micro-life in your body.  Brilliant.

All in all, I believe the biggest problem we all face is of course being inundated by mainstream foods with colorful packaging and false health claims (zero transfat! – but tons of partially hydrogenated oils)  (hey, industry has the power), and our habitual, and very ignorant preferences born of “consensus-belief” in our society.  In other words, lack of education, or rather industry controlled information.

Okay, let’s say you have someone that shares new exciting education with you.  And its recommended that you start making small changes to your dietary agenda.  Will the new reasons “alone” be sufficient to make you literally change your habits?  Maybe.  Probably not.  That’s why I wrote that we usually need proof first.

Ok, I’m rambling now.  But the changes I’ve had, and discoveries made are making me truly exciting about it all heading into 2010.  2009 was one of the most transformative years of my life!

Back to the point.

Look, in the last 7 months, the changes I’ve seen in myself went beyond any expectation I could’ve had.  I’ve started “desiring less” processed foods.  Read that again.  I didn’t discipline myself to eat healthier, my body began desiring it more and more.  In other words, preferring kale leaves, or other green vegetables, over a big juicy cheeseburger has never been more effortless.  When I consider the latter, the first thing I feel is anticipation of greasiness and lethargy a few hours later.

In my opinion, to have the ability to contrast the feeling between pleasure in the moment, and body reaction 10 minutes later, is “invaluable” and life saving in the short and long run.  Now I choose foods that make me feel energetic, light, strong and wonderful after eating them; instead of indulging my taste buds with temporary satisfaction.  God, in the past, I can’t remember how many times I’ve gorged at an Indian buffet, letting my taste buds dictate when I stopped eating, and then stuffing 2 more plates down after already feeling full from the first one!

It’s interesting, eating healthier has made my sweet tooth surface.  So I still have cookies every so often or some other decadence now and then, and she turned me onto low glycemic sweetners, and other natural alternatives to evade the horrors of processed sugar.

Ahh!  Two last must-read books are: “Sugar Blues” and “Suicide by Sugar”

You might think you have to eliminate all sugar from your diet after reading them, but I disagree.  To me, learning the horrors of sugar helps you develop contentiousness.  Now I can have my cake, and eat it every so often.  When I started moderating indulgence, I started losing weight fast.  And it sped up after I cut out the meat and added more vegetables!!!

Want proof?  2 months later (in May) I lost 30 pounds on the scale, and I didn’t just have a 6 pack, I had an 8 pack!  And I haven’t lost it since… (the picture to the left shows my progression during this time and links to to the ab program I was using)

I’ve still joined all my friends for thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, had thirds even, and haven’t lost it.  That’s why I said permanent earlier!  My cardiovascularity has increased 200%, I can run 6 miles without resting or lung strain.  I did experience strength loss, but ever since the muscle supplements I took have cleansed out, it’s back to increasing again, naturally.  I can seriously go on and on.

And that’s just a few changes I’ve experienced in muscularity, althetic performance and physique.

Immune-wise?  I haven’t gotten really sick yet this year.  Just one small cold after travelling.  And I’ve flown a lot, I’ve bunked with sick people for days, even Thomas right now, is totally sick, and I haven’t caught it.  The legions of my immune cells are taking care of business, no sweat!  Emotionally?  I can’t wipe the optimism from my mind… for months now!  Others have told me my inspiration is contagious, my love for simply “living” is on fire.  I’ve never been a morning person, now I can’t wait to wake up.  Without straining, I’ve been focusing with a whole new level of understanding, patience and vigor on my career and financial path.  All of this exploded in 2009.  Simply coincidence?  Or is it my excitement from meeting an intense beautifully conscious woman?  I’ve considered that too.  Everything is connected.  But honestly I believe the long lasting changes are from implementing what she turned me onto!  Changes in biology.  The whole picture.

Wow, I have to get running to downtown tonight.  This became much longer than I thought.  So please, do yourselves a mega-favor!  Read these books.  Let this information build the resolve and fuel behind keeping your new year’s resolutions.

Let 2010 become the year where your inspirations get super charged, your focus becomes laser-like, your emotions become morally driven, instead of chemically dictated, your mind and brain fed with nutrient rich blood, and your ability to manage family affairs and business being done without a inch of overwhelm.

And most importantly??  How replenishing your body’s health can deepen your relationship with the divine, increase your devotion and quality of love, how you radiate back to your community and the world.  To feel your inspirational vibrance not being clouded into the background by bodily distractions, sicknesses, physical catharsis or emotional upheaval… instead, let 2010 be the year you beam again!  Totally nourished by healthy psychology, personal behavior, and physiological excellence.

Your body is your temple.

C’mon, that’s what were talking about here! Ask yourself.  How does your temple feel when you take a stroll through it today?  Do you keep it clean and polished?  Or do you need to get out the vacuum and suck up the cobwebs and dustbunnys??  Here’s an awesome quote:

“One step
is all it takes
to turn it all around…”

My advice?  Take baby steps…

What are the steps I’m aiming for in 2010?  To name a few, going back to school (eager to take classes in public speaking, writing, business, chemistry and biology).  Developing a complete health and diet coursework is on the agenda.  Want to go to Europe/Russia (crossing my fingers that hiking the Incas trail in South America will happen).  Selling my house to become more mobile is on the list.  And a number other things I’ll email about later (skydiving, marathon).  Going to start video blogging more often too.

You know, sometimes I feel like I’m reading what someone else wrote because I feel so different now. So there you have it!  And hey, if anything that I’ve said, or any of these books or the video has inspired you the way it has me, please forward this to all your friends and loved one’s.  I guarantee it will change yours and their lives for the better.

Thank you for reading.
I wish you the best in your efforts. 
Believe me.
This knowledge will turn your life around.

So email if you have any questions ok??  (or comment below)

I know I’m busy and out of touch a lot of the time.  But I love you all, so much.
I wish each and every one of you a brilliant 2010!

And Katya…  Thank you, from the very bottom…

Happy New Years!

Always,
Matt

Brush your teeth with cake soap!  That’s it!

I imagined it.  Gross!  Well, turned out that brushing his teeth 3 or 4 times a week with soap is how he baffles all his dentists with perfectly white clean teeth.  It cleans teeth better than most toothpaste.  He said that one dentist told him he didn’t even need a cleaning but still gave him one anyway.  He told us he learned about it from someone he knew who figured it out while in prison.  (Necessity is the mother of all invention?)  It made perfect sense, but it’s something I doubt I would’ve never thought of it myself.

Anyway, I went home and decided to try it out.  Now, back then I didn’t consider what was IN the soap.  I just went for the kind he recommended.  Plain white soap.  He said it’s the stronger detergents that remove stains so well.  I decided to find an unscented brand so it wouldn’t taste as bad and began brushing 4 to 5 times a week.

Sure enough, about a week in, I started noticing a difference.  Yes, that fast.  Three weeks in, it was very noticeable.  By the end of the second month, I was getting feedback from others who noticed.  My teeth kept getting brighter and brighter.  Guess which kind of soap I found works the best…

…the little bars of soap at Motel 6.  LOL!  I’m telling you, their unscented white bars are strong!

Okay, okay, I know what some of you might be thinking.  Isn’t industrially mass-produced soap the worst stuff you could put in your mouth, especially since it could get right into your blood stream?  Yes, it is.  I agree.  So I’ll flash forward a bit and tell you what I do now that works even better.

About 6 months after brushing this way, I met Katya.  As we talked more about health, I realized I was very ignorant about many (if not all) of the ingredients found in many everyday items.  She (and her mother) warned me about lists of toxins, additives, and all the other horrible stuff you can’t pronounce.

So I set off to find a natural soap replacement.  I searched high and low online and decided to try Dr. Bonners Unscented Castile Soap.  Soon after, I found a very informative book by Dr. Gerard Judd who taught that any glycerines are very bad to put on your teeth.  Basically all toothpaste and most soap on the market have glycerin.  It coats your enamel and prevents your teeth from remineralising themselves (see Wiki).  Supposedly, glycerin is very hard to wash off the teeth once it’s on.

Well, I soon learned most hotel soaps are non-glycerin, so I went back to using Motel 6 soaps!  ARGH!!  The whole time I couldn’t shake imagining all the nasty ingredients I was still putting in my body.  I kept looking for a “natural” non-glycerin soap, which proved very difficult.  There are some out there, and they clean okay, but they aren’t strong enough to whiten teeth.

Flash forward again.  During January 2011 I had braces put on for a year and three months.  Finally got them off last month.  : )  During that time, my teeth became yellow and stained again.  Now that they are off, I’ve been challenged with the whitening/cleaning task again.  But I didn’t want to use soap this time, and I didn’t want to spend any extra money on this excellent product my sister swears by: “Tooth Brightener”.  I haven’t tried that yet, but every review I’ve read is excellent.  If you give it a try, please let me know how you like it.

Photo after 3 weeks using the formula. About 1 or 2 shades whiter on top.

Let’s skip to the bottom line.  My new found solution dawned on me while watching Katya cleaning one day.  She uses sodium bicarbonate.  Not 409, not Windex, not Simple Green or Tilex.  Just water, baking soda and sea salt.  Then it clicked.  If it can clean soap scum and make tiles super white, maybe it can do the same for the tiles in my mouth!  I looked the idea up online and found many people were getting great results!  Also, the product my sister uses has sodium bicarbonate in it as well.  After much searching I came across Ray G. Behm’s information that validated the use of baking soda and salt.

Okay, here’s my Whiten Your Teeth For Free formula:

Mix 3 parts baking soda (pharmaceutical grade if you have it, if not Arm&Hammer will work as well) with 1 part pink himalayan salt in a container.  (I’m assuming you have these items in the kitchen)

Both soda and salt have excellent anti bacterial/germ properties.  Plus, I have receding gums – especially noticed it after the braces were removed — and I’m noticing my gums tighten up around my teeth again.  So cool.

Now mix it all up and seal the container.  When you are ready, dip your toothbrush bristles into some hydrogen peroxide (if you have “food grade” peroxide, all the better), then pour/sprinkle the soda & salt mixture onto the bristles.  Then brush your teeth using very small motions.  Use soft bristle brushes, never medium or firm.  I learned that all gums are very sensitive.  It doesn’t taste the greatest, but it works fantastic and your teeth should be white in no time!!

I haven’t tried it yet with my Sonicare but when I do I’ll post an update.  Katya and I will also be posting a how-to video to the bottom of this article soon.

Try it out for yourself.  It’s beyond simple and super effective!

Good luck, and let us know what you think.

Matt & Katya