Experience Nutrition

Tag: Yoga

Experience Nutrition Sedona Retreats: Glimpse of Hiking, Yoga, and Meditation
Yoga, Hiking, and Meditation in the Beauty of Sedona
In addition to lots of hands-on plant-based intuitive cooking at our Sedona retreats, we enjoy hiking, yoga, meditation, and self-care in the beauty of the Sedona red rocks and vortex energy. – Melanie Albert, Experience Nutrition

During our September 2019 retreat, we explored three different magical areas in Sedona.
- Cathedral Rock. One of my very favorite places in the world.
- Seven Sacred Pools. Quiet magical, feminine energy.
- Medicine Wheel and the Amitabha Stupa at Peace Park. Spiritual energy.
WOW! Yoga at Cathedral Rock. Dreams come true!

During our September 2019, we enjoyed hiking at the Seven Sacred Pools, Ayurvedic yoga and meditation with Back to Earth Sedona Tours at one of my very favorite places in the world, Cathedral Rock. Finally, to close out our retreat, during a beautiful hail storm, Wendi and I enjoyed an incredible ceremony at the Medicine Wheel at Peace Park and the Amitabha Stupa.

Enjoy a few favorite photos by my Brazilian photographer friend, Nathalia Rocha, and a few of my personal out-takes during the beautiful hail storm at the Medicine Wheel.

Seven Sacred Pools

The hike to the Seven Sacred Pools takes us through a beautiful, quiet winding path and the deep Devil’s Sinkhole. During the hike, we enjoy the beauty of nature and the feminine energy of the sacred pools, and simple quiet time with the red rocks.

What a magical spot on our Earth: The Seven Sacred Pools in Sedona, Arizona.

Cathedral Rock, Sedona, Arizona

One of my very favorite places on our Earth. Cathedral Rock is my go-to visit, even when I take a day trip from Phoenix to Sedona.

In awe. Stunning beauty. Majestic.

Calming and energizing. Grounding and uplifting. Simply Beautiful.

Cathedral Rock. Sedona, Arizona. Bold & Beautiful.

Balancing our Bodies. Ayurvedic Yoga, with Patricia Fonseca of Back to Earth Sedona Tours.

One of my very favorite special places on Earth. More than excited to enjoy the water energy at Buddha Beach at Cathedral Rock.

Mediation. Breathwork. Awe….Omm…at Cathedral Rock. With Patricia Fonseca of Back to Earth Sedona Tours.

Medicine Wheel and so much more at the Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park in Sedona, Arizona.

The final morning of our retreat, Wendi and I enjoyed a magical experience at the Medicine Wheel at the Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park. The 14-acre Peace Park is juxtaposed between Chimney Rock and one of Sedona’s most massive mountains, Thunder Mountain.

Thanks to the beautiful experience, guided by Patricia Fonseca and Sharon Day of Back to Earth Sedona Tours. Photos from Melanie’s Cell phone.

Prayer Flags. Upon our first glimpse of the Stupa, we are greeted by prayer flags that hang from trees and are strung from the top of the Stupa, fluttering out in every direction.

Pause and enjoy the first glimpse of the Amitabha Stupa in Sedona, Arizona.

Meditative Walk. The Stupa architecture is filled with hundreds of millions of prayers for peace, sacred relics, and ritual objects. Upon arrival, we experienced a beautiful meditative, grounding walk around the sacred Stupa three times offering our intentions for ourselves and others around the world.

Meditatively walk the Stupa three times, with intention.

Then, we offered our prayers to the beautiful Buddha.

Prayers to the Buddha.

Time for Cleansing. As soon as we arrived at the Medicine Wheel, we experienced magnificent cleansing (literally) with a hail and rainstorm. Wendi and I huddled under a Jupiter tree and Wendi’s wide rim hat in an attempt to stay dry. Enjoy the video…

The Medicine Wheel. After the beautiful hail and rain storm, it was our time to walk the Medicine Wheel with indigenous teachings from each direction (North, East, South, West) and life in four segments of 25 years, while Patricia guided us with the beat of Sharon’s drumming. What fun!

Melanie Albert enjoying the Medicine Wheel ceremony!

East & West. During the ceremony, I intuitively gravitated to the East, symbolizing for me, New Beginnings and Growth. Wendi gravitated to the West energy. Definitely looking forward to learning more wisdom from the Medicine Wheel.

Tara Stupa. So much to experience at the Stupa including the first Stupa build in Arizona, a smaller one, dedicated to Tara, the mother of all Buddhas.

Stupa dedicated to Tara, the mother of all Buddhas.

Spin the Prayer Wheels. As you leave Peace Park spin the prayer wheels that are filled with thousands of mantras, to amplify your experience at the Park.

When you visit Sedona, or come to one of our Plant-Based Cooking Retreats, be sure to spend time at the Amitabha Stupa and Peace Park.

I’ll continue to post additional blogs, photos, experiences, and recipes from our September 2019 Sedona Plant-Based Cooking & Self Care Retreat. Meanwhile, please reach out to me if you’re interested in our November 15-18, 2019 retreat or a custom retreat for your organization or group of friends in 2020. – Melanie Albert

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If you’re ready to reserve your spot for the November 15-18, 2019 Retreat, click here for the $500 initial deposit.
October 22, 2019
A New View of Healthy Eating: How to Get Unplugged by Melanie Albert, former Type A Marketing Professional and 23-year Successful Entrepreneur

by Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, award-winning author, speaker, retreat host, Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC
A week ago I was enjoying the Grand Canyon and Sedona, Arizona. When I returned home to Phoenix after my brief get-away, I had a huge ah-ha. As a former Type A Marketing Professional and now 23-year successful Entrepreneur, I learned first-hand how valuable it is to “Unplug.”

Thanks. Before I share my insights, I want to take a moment to thank my friend, Cassie Hepler, founder of the travel and lifestyle blog, www.ExplorewithCassie.com for inviting me to be her “plus-one” on her media trip with Grand Canyon Adventures www.DoTheCanyon.com

Thanks Grand Canyon Adventures for the enjoyable, memorable day at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Profound Mini-Trip. Little did I know that when Cassie invited me several weeks ago how profound this mini-trip would be for me.

Anyway, I’m usually sharing my behind the scenes with cooking and intuitive cooking creations, but I decided to share with you the behind the scenes with my “Unplugged” adventure.

It All Works Out. Several days prior to the trip to the Grand Canyon, I realized that I had doubled booked myself the night before our scheduled road trip to the canyon. I was booked with coaching clients at the same time we were planning on driving to Flagstaff the night before the Canyon Tour. I was concerned that I would not have reliable internet or phone service for my clients. My friend, Cassie, kept telling me it would work out. I trusted.

And, of course, it worked out. I changed my plans; stayed in Phoenix to do 6 hours of coaching until 10:30pm that night.

I packed my food magazines, documents to work on with my business expansion, journal, planner, and some snacks: home-made raw trail mix, local apples, and grapes. I got up at 3:30am, after sleeping for 4 hours and drove to Flagstaff.

Thanks to Grand Canyon Adventures. Happily, at 7:30am the friendly folks at Grand Canyon Adventures greeted me with a smile.

I had just begun my “unplugged” adventure.

Grand Canon Adventures drove us to the Grand Canyon, with history lessons, geological lessons, and expansive beauty through 5 different eco-systems.

7 Wonder of the World. It has been decades since I visited the Grand Canyon. When I saw my first glimpse of the Grand Canyon, I was in awe. I paused. The beauty. The magnificence. The magic. The power. Here I was with one of the 7 Wonders of the World!

Grand Canyon with a Little Yoga. During our full-day tour with 4 different stops at the canyon, all I wanted was to soak in all the beauty of the canyon. At each stop along the canyon, I paused and practiced some yoga and enjoyed “my” tree pose everywhere. Thanks, Cassie for the beautiful photos.

Pause at the Canyon. I even found a beautiful quiet spot to reflect. Enjoy the Grand Canyon video.

Cassie with the Grand Canyon. And, Cassie enjoyed her hiking and being grounded with our Earth.

More Self-Care. For the last 3 miles of our day at the Canyon, Cassie and I quietly walked the South Rim capturing photos of us enjoying even more self-care with the beauty of the Grand Canyon. One final tree pose.

Thanks, Root Public House. When we arrived back in Flagstaff, we found a great place to eat, Root Public House, with a lovely outdoor patio breeze. I enjoyed a tasty creamy pea vegan risotto, made especially for me. And, I was feeling as though I was on vacation for days.

Sedona Airport Sunset. After dinner, Cassie headed back to Phoenix. I drove south to Sedona, where I just caught the end of the sunset at the Airport Vortex.

My Favorite Place in the World. The next day, I spent the whole day at Oak Creek Crossing, at the base of Cathedral Rock, one of my very favorite places in the world.

A video peek…

I hiked, walked in Oak Creek, sat, listened to water, listened to birds. That was it.

Pause and enjoy Oak Creek.

Unplugged. Being “unplugged” was sinking in. I had no desire to look at the food magazines. No desire to “work” on my business. Only a little bit of journaling. This was huge for me.

I was “Unplugged” from electronics and importantly “Unplugged” from working. I was away from business strategy and responsibilities, writing blogs, cooking, creating recipes, teaching classes, and hosting events.

After a full day of being unplugged, I drove home to Phoenix.

Unplug Ah-Ha. I know this may sound obvious. What I realized was that I (we) need time to really unplug from the phones, computer, work, magazines. Yes, we can do this with yoga or meditation. For me, it was extra special and powerful to unplug in the beauty of my beloved Arizona.

For my few days at the Grand Canyon and Sedona I found that after being totally unplugged, I came back with even more creativity, energy, and passion.

Unplug in Arizona Retreats. I really do believe that it’s incredibly important for our own life and joy to “unplug.” I’ve been planning Cooking and Self-Care Retreats in Sedona for 2019. My time at the Grand Canyon and Sedona made me realize how valuable these retreats will be for our guests to get away and “Unplug.”

With the insights from my personal “Unplugged” experience, I have now added a Grand Canyon Adventure to the retreats, along with the Phoenix Urban Farm Cooking Experience and the intuitive cooking, hiking, yoga, and extreme self-care in Sedona.

If you are interested in attending Unplug in Arizona Cooking & Self-Care Retreats or interested in creating a custom retreat for your organization, please let me know and I’ll keep in touch. Warmly, Melanie

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If your organization is interested in a cooking workshop, team building or corporate wellness event, or retreat, please let us know your interests. Thanks!

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Interested in my book, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Simple Intuitive Cooking with Real Whole Foods,” I’m happy to autograph and gift-wrap and ship to you.

July 9, 2018
A New View of Healthy Eating: Fall 2016 Intuitive Cooking Classes & Book Signings
By Melanie A. Albert, intuitive cooking expert, author, and speaker. Founder & CEO Experience Nutrition Group, LLC
Fall is such a beautiful time in Arizona, with our “cooler” weather (less than 100 degrees!), beautiful fresh air, and Fall farmers’ markets opening for the season.

To keep you up-to-date, I’ll be teaching a few intuitive cooking classes (at The Farm at South Mountain and the Downtown Phoenix Public Market), and will be at Food Day Phoenix and several yoga (Yoga Rocks the Park) and holistic (Southwest Institute of Healing Arts) events, featuring culinary demos and book signings of A New View of Healthy Eating. Look forward to seeing you soon!

Fall 2016 Events (Scroll down for more details and to register)

Intuitive Cooking Experience Classes
- Sunday, October 9, 2016, 11am-1pm, Intuitive Cooking Experience at The Farm at South Mountain
- Saturday, October 15, 2016, 9-11am, A New Look at Shopping & Cooking at the Phoenix Public Market, Fall 2016
Farmers’ Market Fresh Culinary Demos & Book Signings
- Sunday, October 16 & 30, 2106, 9am-noon, Yoga Rocks the Park, Indiana School Park, Phoenix 2016
- Sunday, October 23, 2016, noon-6pm, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, 20^th Annual Holistic Health Gathering: A Celebration of Mind, Body & Spirit
- Saturday, October 29, 2016, 9am-2pm, 5^th Annual Food Day Phoenix 2016
- Sunday, November 6, 2016, Yoga Rocks the Park, A New View of Healthy Eating Book Signing, Spirit of Yoga
Sunday, October 9, 2016, 11am-1pm, Intuitive Cooking Experience at The Farm at South Mountain

Want to learn how to cook with different farmer-fresh organic ingredients? Do you receive your produce from your CSA or the farmers’ market and are puzzled on how to cook with them?

Learn how to cook with any kind of local, seasonal veggies with the skill of intuitive cooking. During the experience you will learn culinary skills such as making simple lentil veggie soup, unique salad with what’s in season, a perfect herbal salad dressing, and a quick hummus to enjoy with farm fresh organic veggies. Once you intuitively create your dishes, you’ll enjoy mindfully eating your beautiful creations with community in the beauty of The Farm.

After your intuitive cooking experience, head to Maya’s Farm Stand to buy your own organic produce to create your own meals.

6106 S. 32^nd Street, Phoenix, AZ

Click Here to Purchas your Ticket Price $45 per person

Saturday, October 15, 2016, 9-11am, A New Look at Shopping & Cooking at the Phoenix Public Market, Fall 2016

Enjoy hands-on interactive cooking demonstrations with farmers’ market fresh produce. Learn what to look for while shopping at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market. Learn simple culinary skills, the intuitive cooking method, and enjoy dining on the food you prepared with friends and community.

721 N. Central Ave, Phoenix (Central and McKinley)

$10 fee to cover the cost of materials for each class. CLICK TO REGISTER

Sunday, October 16 & 30, 2106, 9am-noon, Yoga Rocks the Park, Indiana School Park, Phoenix

A New View of Healthy Eating book signing and farmers’ market cooking demo with culinary tips.
- 300 E Indian School Road, Donation-based event.
- 9:00am Registration and Vendor Village Opens
- 9:20am: AcroBody Demo
- 10:00am Yoga Practice
Sunday, October 23, 2016, noon-6pm, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, 20^th Annual Holistic Health Gathering: A Celebration of Mind, Body & Spirit

1100 East Apache Blvd, Tempe, AZ, Free event!

Culinary Demos with farmer’s market fresh produce. Book signing with my new book, “A New View of Healthy Eating.”

Saturday, October 29, 2016, 9am-2pm, 5^th Annual Food Day Phoenix 2016

Eastlake Park and Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church, 15^th Street and Jefferson Street

Free event!

Honored to be participating in the 5^th Annual Food Day Phoenix celebrating healthy, natural and sustainable food. Enjoy food, fun and live music in a family-oriented atmosphere. I’ll be showcasing local, organic food with simple culinary techniques. Plus, book signing.

Sunday, November 6, 2016, Yoga Rocks the Park, A New View of Healthy Eating Book Signing

Spirit of Yoga, Tempe City Center, 1420 E. Southern Ave, Tempe, AZ

Donation-based event.
- 9:00am Registration and Vendor Village Opens
- 9:20am: AcroBody Demo
- 10:00am Yoga Practice
If you’d like to pre-order A New View of Healthy Eating prior to attending the events, you can purchase right here.

Please join our e-mail list to stay up-to-date with culinary tips, recipes, cooking classes and events.

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September 29, 2016
Experience Nutrition: Yoga Quote: Mindful Breathing

By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition Group, LLC, Phoenix, AZ. Nutrition and food expert, author and speaker. Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, Holistic Nutrition and Whole Food Cooking Instructor at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.
A few days ago at my massage I received the message “breathe” on the wall in the massage room, which inspired me to share a beautiful quote that reminds us to take time to be still and to breath quietly.

Breathing offers us the perfect time to refresh ourselves and to gain insights for our life. – Melanie Albert

For me, right now, I am at the very early stages of dreaming and creating my new book, “A New View of Healthy Eating: Intuitive Cooking, with Culinary & a Taste of Yoga.” So, I am very consciously taking the time to breathe, to be still, to listen and create. I invite you to breathe, too.

“We spend most of our time caught up in the memories of the past or looking ahead to the future, full of worries and plans. The breath has none of that “other-timeness.” When we truly observe the breath, we are automatically placed in the present. We are pulled out to the morass of mental images and into a bare experience of the here-and-now. In this sense, breath is a slice of reality. A mindful observation of such a miniature model of life itself leads to insights that are broadly applicable to the rest of our experience.” – Henepola Gunaratana

November 17, 2015
Experience Nutrition: Yoga Quote: Stop Nibbling

Those that only take a nibble here and nibble there will never attain anything…Those who really want to be yogis must give up, once for all, this nibbling at things. Take up one idea. Make that one idea your life – think of it, dream of it, live on that idea. – Swami Vivekananda
Pause & Stop Nibbling, Melanie Albert

November 12, 2015
A New View of Healthy Eating: Intuitive Cooking with Culinary & a Taste of Yoga
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition Group, LLC, Phoenix, AZ. Nutrition and food expert, author and speaker. Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, Holistic Nutrition and Whole Food Cooking Instructor at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.
I am excited to share that I’m working on my new book, pulling together my new thoughts, approaches to cooking and eating over the last few years. I started teaching simple cooking with small groups in 2007 and in 2008 I began teaching former NFLplayers and their families, kids , seniors, and holistic practitioners (such as yoga teachers, life coaches). Since my early work, my work has evolved.

I noticed that my way of teaching simple healthy cooking that works, is fun, and creative, blends several different methods or concepts:
- Shopping. Cooking and eating intuitively.
- Using simple professional culinary methods to prepare and cook food.
- Using beautiful farmers market-fresh local, organic food, as much as possible and eating with the season.
- Bringing mindfullness and intuitiveness to enjoying eating.
I have now worked with 1,000s of people, guiding them to cook; Completed a Professional Plant-based Culinary Course with Rouxbe in early 2015; completed a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training Certification with Southwest Institute of Healing Arts in 2015 and am now a 200 hour registered yoga teacher; and I have had the honor to teach Whole Food Cooking and Conscious Eating courses at the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts since March 2014 and have reached hundreds of students and their families.

As a result of my new experiences , I have come to writing this new book with a new view, with such new knowledge, skills and awareness, that I want to share it with the world to guide and encourage others to really enjoy shopping, cooking and eating food with family and friends; and to add-in some self care, such as yoga each and every day. Combining the enjoyment of food and life.

I am very excited and will share with you my ideas, writing, photos along the way in my writing process and look forward to your feedback and suggestions.

Please visit us on Facebook and share your new ways of cooking and enjoying food.

EXPERIENCE NUTRITION: Bamboo Steamer Organic Rainbow Carrots
November 9, 2015
Experience Nutrition: Yoga Reflection: Full Cup, Empty Cup

Experience Nutrition: Yoga Reflection: Full Cup, Empty Cup
By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition Group, LLC. Nutrition and food expert, author and speaker. Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, Holistic Nutrition and Whole Food Cooking Instructor at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.

Yoga Reflection: Full Cup, Empty Cup

As part of my Yoga Teacher Training journey, this morning I gave myself a simple, reflective private yoga practice with my new Tibetan Bowl, Sun Salutations, a few standing poses (Mountain, Warrior II and Triangle), and the following message from “365 Yoga” by Julie Rappaport.

I invite you to sit quietly, center, perhaps, listening quietly to your own breath and then read this beautiful story.

A popular Zen story tells of a disciple who embarks on a long journey in search of a master teacher. When the teacher finally appears, the student becomes excited and begins asking many questions hoping to gain wisdom. Eager to have her questions answered, the student persists but the teacher refuses to answer directly. Instead she requests that the student pour a cup of tea. The teacher tells the student to keep pouring until instructed to stop. The student pours. The master says nothing. The cup begins to overflow, and still the master remains silent. Upset, the student exclaims:

“Master, look at this tea cup! It is full and overflowing!”

The master replies: “Yes. Just as your mind is already full. None of this teaching will be of benefit until you empty your cup.”

The disciple learned the first lesson of spiritual teaching: to be empty of preconceptions and receptive to new knowledge.

Namaste.

August 2, 2015
Experience Nutrition: A New Yoga Journey, Beginning with the Tree in Sedona

By Melanie Albert, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition Group, LLC. Nutrition and food expert, author and speaker. Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, Holistic Nutrition and Whole Food Cooking Instructor at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.
It’s important for all of us to reflect on where we’ve been and to celebrate our personal and business accomplishments. It’s also important to strategically plan and take action for our future.

Most importantly, it’s vital for us to take time to live in the moment, to stand tall like a tree and to enjoy life.

For the last 12 years, my yoga practice, beginning in Santa Fe and Florida, and continuing for a decade in Phoenix, has given me the place and space to be still in my mind and to live in the moment.

I’m excited to share that I am now taking my yoga to a different place with a new yoga journey this summer. Beginning on June 8, 2015, I’ll become the student in the Yoga Teacher Training, YTT, 200 hour program for 4 full months at the Spirit of Yoga studio of the Southwest Institute of Healing Arts.

As I begin my Yoga Teacher Training journey, I resonate with the tall tree, with deep roots, reaching high, and swaying with flexibility.

This was evident a few weeks ago when I participated in a retreat in Sedona, where I guided an intuitive cooking experience with farmers’ market fresh whole foods, and the retreat guests created a beautiful, amazing, tasty meal. After we mindfully enjoyed our meal, we all traveled to the beautiful and powerful Cathedral Rock for a photo shoot and to enjoy nature. Immediately I went into Tree Pose within the trees at alongside Oak Creek at Cathedral Rock.

“This is my time to be, to get rooted down, to lift up into the sky, and to enjoy and embrace the moment.” – Melanie Albert

Melanie Albert: Tree Pose in Sedona, Arizona PHOTO CREDIT: Melissa Corter Photography

June 7, 2015
9 Ways 90 Days: Yin & Yang of Exercise
by Melanie Albert, Nutrition Expert, Author, Speaker, Founder and CEO Experience Nutrition

Excerpt from book, “Enjoy Food & Life. Step-by-step action plan for healthy eating and living.”

Why Exercise is Vital

Exercise has been an important part of my life. But it is important to note that my exercise routine has changed overtime depending upon my age, where I lived and what was going on with my life. In college I was a runner and played tennis. During corporate days I taught aerobics, did strength training and played a lot of golf. Since I’ve been an entrepreneur, I’ve practiced yoga and a few years ago added the gym back to my life for weight training and cardio. Walking on the beach or golf course has always been part of my life.

Yin and Yang of Exercise

Yin & Yang

I’ve noticed that when my life is very yang with lots of intense meetings and speaking engagements and when I’m around crowds of people, I prefer a more yin calm exercise, like yoga or a quiet walk on the beach. On the other hand, when I’m quietly writing or thinking about strategy, I prefer a more yang workout such as cardio and weight training.

Why Exercise and Movement is Vital to Life
- Combats health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and benefits bone health and brain health
- Controls weight
- Improves muscle strength
- Increases flexibility
- Increases energy
- Enhances mood
- Reduces stress
- Promotes better sleep
- Improves quality of life
- It’s fun
Visit us on Facebook and share how you incorporate Yin and Yang Exercise into your life.
January 4, 2014