Summer is winding down, bike rides are plentiful, and I can't stop eating figs from a tree in my neighborhood. 

Not to project too much equanimity, I read the news after all. Still, I love picnics on warm nights, tomatoes that taste like tomatoes, and sunsets at 8p.

Now is a good time to be still. Not to take account, but to feel.

"Listen for the sound of your heart.
Be thankful that you are here, swallowed with all hope,
where you can rest and wait. Be nostalgic."

Making simple dishes from quality ingredients is my rest and wait, what's yours?

"Rebecca, thank you, I truly feel like you've helped me become more of who I want to be because of your program.

After years of feeling bad about my body (and feeling bad about feeling bad about my body), I found Rebecca's program. I was drawn to the idea that I could be self-compassionate and body positive, and still want to live at a healthier weight. The program was all that I hoped for and more. I lost 14-pounds over the 10-week program (and know that number will continue to grow). More importantly, I gained so much knowledge and insight that has allowed me to approach myself, my spouse, my kids and others with more empathy and care.

What a gift!

The next cohort begins mid-September.

The Pieces 🍎

1. Stretching keeps your body feeling in good order. I enjoy stretches before bed as a way to achieve deeper sleep. 

Strati notes that stretching can boost our mental health in specific ways — and one involves letting things go. “Our bodies are like journals, holding onto every emotion, every stressor, every ‘I’ll deal with it later,’” she said. “Stretching helps us gently release what’s been stored: grief in the chest, overwhelm in the shoulders, fear in the hips.”

Why Stretching Is Underrated — Plus 4 Exercises a Master Flexologist Recommends Doing Daily

2. Lord, I wish I could shout this headline from the rooftops. Oh, wait, I do.

You can't outrun a bad diet. Food — not lack of exercise — fuels obesity, study finds

"It's 100% the diet," agrees Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, director of the Food is Medicine Institute at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. "And I think then the question is, what is it about the diet?"

Mozaffarian was not involved in the study, but he says it adds to other recent research that suggests food is the biggest driver in obesity. He points out there's been a major shift in our food supply in recent decades — which is now dominated by ultra-processed food.

3. I dig the NY Times interactives. This one is about soup. 

I love the simplicity and richness of soup. It's an emotional experience much like the first sip of coffee after a rough night. Food can be an emotional experience, but when it comes to soup, it's all about nourishment. 

Finding Beauty in a Bowl of Soup 🎁

Every culture tells its story through song and food. What we taste in a warm bowl of soup is the distillation of a people’s history, aspirations, joys, struggles and forms of survival, how they sustained themselves with whatever available ingredients.

Yours in joyful eating and living,

Rebecca ✌️