Holistically speaking, Brenda Larnin wants you to imagine your body as having three sinks—one each servicing nutritional, physical and emotional well-being. If one clogs up, all the systems of the body are affected. Larnin’s key to holistic health: Keep your sinks unclogged.

It’s quite a unique, al fresco lunchtime discussion—and one that is available to guests at The Grand Del Mar, the luxurious and regal resort nestled into North County’s 41,000-acre Los Penasquitos Canyon Reserve.

The Grand's Brenda Larnin.

_{Photo by Ron Donoho}

Larnin is The Grand’s spa manager, and is also a holistic lifestyle coach. She’s addressing a group of meeting planners being hosted by the San Diego North Convention & Visitors Bureau. For about a half an hour, Larnin talks about keeping a body in balance. While her audience nibbles on turkey wraps and a desert of mixed fruit, Larnin focuses on nutrition, and zeroes in on the food and beverage choices that lead to holistic bliss.

“You’ve got to drink water,” says Larnin. “Even if you’re one percent dehydrated, that can put you off.” (And clog a sink.) The body’s physical reaction to not having enough water is to take it from other sources, like the nervous system, which can lead to physical and emotional stress.

For years, nutritionists have said everyone should drink eight glasses of water a day. That doesn’t make the same sense for a 200-pound man and a 120-pound woman, says Larnin. She says the new rule of thumb is to take your weight and divide it by two, and drink that many ounces of water a day.

And to start each day, Larnin says breakfast is the time to eat more than any other meal. “Think about it this way,” she says: “Would you go on an eight-hour car ride without putting gas in the tank?”

Larnin warns her audience against processed foods like margarine. “I read a piece that said margarine is one molecule away from plastic,” she says. “Whenever you can, eat organic foods.”

But at present the world hasn’t made it easy to each healthy. For one thing, organic and health-conscious foods are usually more expensive.

“I go to several different stores to get the best prices for different organic foods,” says Larnin. “I make the rounds to Henry’s and Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s…But if you have to go into the aisles in Albertson’s, look up. They usually put the sugary stuff at eye level, or low for the kids.”

If price is an issue, Larnin advises to buy organic foods that are ordinarily most contaminated by pesticides: apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, imported grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, red raspberries spinach and strawberries. She says you’re somewhat safer buying non-organic: asparagus, avocadoes, bananas, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, kiwis, mangoes, onions, papaya, pineapples and peas.

Larnin’s holistic advice is part of a new program available at The Spa at The Grand. “The Natural Renewal” includes a signature treatment with stones or mud, a guided hike in the canyon reserve with a knowledgeable naturalist, a fitness class and a customized consultation with Larnin.

The holistic lifestyle coach is also slated to speak to hotel guests December 1-2. Check with the hotel (858-314-2000) for more details about keeping your sinks unclogged.