Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead

About 3 weeks ago I watched Fat, Sick, & Nearly Dead and ordered a juicer just a few days later.  It's been two weeks now and I have slowly been juicing more and more, and loving it! 

 

 

 

 

Today I start my 7 Day - Reboot with Joe - Juice Fast.   Only fresh vegetable/fruit juice (80:20) and no solid foods, sugars, coffee, wheat, or dairy.  I had my last espresso (I'm down already from 4 doubles to just one) and ate all the "normal" food and junk food that I have so that I won't get tempted or break down.  I'm excited!!!

 

Juicing is a little bit of work but if you buy and wash your produce at the same time and juice first thing in the morning for the day, and leave your juicer out for any impromptu cravings, then it's not that bad.  I don't have a dishwasher here in Phuket, seems in Thailand everyone believes in the old fashioned way...   but if I did.. boy would it be easier.

 

 

It's good to keep your body and mind healthy, and detoxing your body once in a while can help with that.  Ever since I started juicing I feel better and am calm and focused.  Yoga, weight training, and my sunset walks around Lake Nai Harn or swimming at Nai Harn Beach help too.

 

As a trader you need to keep focused and sharp.  Even if you "feel" healthy and don't have to take an prescription medication, I highly recommend you look into "detoxification" and watch this movie:

Watch Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead for FREE - click here

Kombucha

What are you drinking when you're day trading the forex market?    Years ago I discovered Kombucha.  (Booch for Short).  No not the country Kombucha (Cambodia), but the drink.  It is organic, super healthy, detoxifies your body, and gives you energy.  And it's sweet and bubbly but does not have many calories.

Kombucha has been around for thousands of years, mainly in Asia and Russia.   In Japan there is a kelp tea.  The Japanese word for kelp is Kombu.  That is quite similar.  Others say the drink was made popular by Dr. Kombu from Japan and Cha means tea.

If you are in Europe or North America then you are lucky and can purchase Kombucha in organic stores.

I started making Kombucha for fun and to save money.  At $5 per bottle, 3 times per day = $15 per day or $450 per month.  Making it costs you only a cup of sugar and 8 tea bags per 4L batch.  The biggest expense is the Scoby (Symbiotic Colony of Bactery and Yeast).  It's a starter culture that will multiply and produce baby Scoby's with every batch you make. 

Kombucha Scoby

How do you make Kombucha?  In a nutshell, all you need is Water, Sugar, Black & Green Tea Bags (or loose leaf), mason jars, and a Kombucha Scoby. 

First you boil the water, add the sugar, boil some more, add tea, simmer.  Let it cool down and then transfer to a mason jar and add the Scoby.  Cover and wait 5 days.  The Scoby will ferment the tea.

You can do a second fermentation by moving the Liquid (without the Scoby*) to a bottle and adding berries or sugar & ginger, or other fruits.  The key is having enough sugar for it to ferment.  It will become nice and bubbly in 3 to 5 days.  After that you can keep the Kombucha in the fridge.  *Store the Scoby in a glass jar with lid or add it to a new batch.  It should have enough liquid to cover it.

Here are the illustrated instructions, and a good place to buy your first Scoby and Starter Liquid if you are in North America.   Always get a Scoby from a local source or from within your country or continent.   I had a hard time finding one in Thailand and it was expensive but now I have many Scoby babies. 

First Fermentation

Second Fermentation

Do's and Don'ts:

• Do keep all your equipment clean
• Do use quality glass mason jars
• Do use glass bottles to store
• Do use white sugar (best for fermentation)
• Do filter the tea before adding it to the jar if you're using loose leaf tea
• Do cover tightly and double up in warmer countries (otherwise you get mold)
• Do use very clean freshly laundered cotton cloths, only use them for Kombucha
• Do add some vinegar if you are in a warmer country (otherwise you may get mold)
• Do ferment in a dark area that has good air circulation and no dust, garbage, cooking smells, or smoke
• Do check on your Kombucha every day and check for mold (anything fuzzy, colorful)
• Do throw out any moldy Kombucha and Scoby
• Do use a stainless steel pot to boil the water (stainless steel kills bacteria)
• Do NOT let any stainless steel utensils or containers get in contact with the scoby or Kombucha (stainless steel kills good bacteria too)

Where to Get a Kombucha Scoby?

If you are in Thailand then google "Kombucha Phuket Craigslist" and you will find my ad. 

I sell 1 Scoby for 300 Baht and 2 for 500 Baht.  I can also ship within Thailand for an additional 200 baht.

Forex and Your Health

We tend to focus on work, the market, making money and are too busy to focus on our health.   It's pretty easy to develop bad habits.  Smoking, drinking, junk food, GMO food, and other guilty pleasures.

When you are a day trader you have a wonderful opportunity to focus on your health.  In turn you will be rewarded with a clear mind, energy, and ability to better handle stressful situations.  Plus who really enjoys trading from the hospital bed or feeling like crap, right?

Health is so important.  We put premium fuel in our cars yet we put junk food in our bodies.    If you put bad fuel in your car you'll notice it pretty much within driving a few kilometers.  Perhaps in a week at most.  However if you put bad food in your body or neglect your healthy it can take weeks, months, or years to catch up.  If you are "lucky" enough it won't catch up till you are old and your bones are brittle because your body had to get it's nutrients from your bones.

I'm no health expert but I have read up on the subject quite a bit and met many people with all sorts of illnesses like MS who have turned their life around, without medication or drugs, and gone on to become healthy or healthier.  That is what triggered my interest in health.  Plus I have had some personal experiences that made me a believer in keeping healthy.

Keeping healthy to me means I can trade with a clear mind, feel great, and have no medical issues.

My Health Tips:

• Drink 3 glasses of water first thing in the morning before brushing teeth
• Drink Lemon Water (freshly squeezed)
• Don't drink pop.  Coke, Pepsi etc. 
• Stay away from artificial sweeteners
• Drink carbonated water (with lemon) if you crave something more than water
• Drink Kombucha - read more about Kombucha here
• Stay away from wheat (gluten), white sugar, white rice, processed foods, cereals, microwaves
• Read the ingredients, if they are not all natural and contain too many chemicals and long words, they are likely bad.
• Know your good sugars (fruits, vegetables) and bad sugars (corn, fructose, glucose, etc)
• Know your good fats (greek yogurt, olive oil, coconut oil) and bad fats (vegetable oil, hydrogenated)
• Butter not Margarine
• NON GMO - Genetically Modified Foods are just evil.  Read more here
• Most Milk and Dairy Products are bad for you.  Look for Non GMO, non pasteurized, no antibiotics, free range, etc.  Again read more on non gmo above.
• Eat lots of vegetables and fruits.  Fresh from the market.
• Limit your meat intake.
• Follow the 80/20 rule.  80% vegetables/fruits/brown rice  20% meat (except fish can be 100%)
• Make your own chocolate, breakfast, etc, it's easier than you think!  see my health tip collection below
• Sunday declare "free day", allow yourself to eat anything you want.  Even junk food.
• Exercise at least 3 times a week.  Try Yoga.  Badminton/Squash. Swimming. Walking.
• Easy on the alcohol.  See "free day".
• Find natural alternatives to any medicine.  The word disease comes from dis-ease.  Meaning something is uncomfortable. Your body's way of saying you need to do a self diagnosis.  For example, if you have a headache your body doesn't say I need an aspirin. It's a sign that you need rest or water. 
• Surround yourself with positive people that make you happy.  Do not associate with any negative, unhealthy people.  Cut out drama, negativity, and stress from your life.
• Sex every day  (S)leep lots, (E)at Healthy, e(X)ercise
• For more Health Tips see this collection of pictures