Healthy Holiday Tips

During the month of December we will feature various tips to help you stay as healthy as you can through the holiday season. Check back daily to read all the newest tips to better plan your holiday season.

Healthy Holiday Tip #1 – Just like many people plan and set a budget for gift giving and holiday festivities, take time and plan for how you will handle holiday foods and treats. See the following link for ideas – planning now will help you balance all the temptations during the holiday season.

Healthy Holiday Tip #2 – When you get a spare moment (I know, I know … not an easy thing to come by these days) but take 10 minutes this weekend with an empty December calendar in hand and map out your workouts for the month. Hang it somewhere visible – bathroom mirror, desk, etc.. With as busy as the holiday season gets, workouts are often the first to go – make a plan and stick to it. Having your plan and goals visible might just help you stick to it.

Healthy Holiday Tip #3 - Don’t just feed your body but also feed your soul during this busy time of the year by taking care of yourself inside & out. Take time to enjoy and savor the simple beauty – a walk during a snowfall, a good book and cup of tea, a coffee date with a good friend, a weekday mass or service if applicable, and perform random acts of kindness just because. Gift giving often involves buying for others but this year focus on a few gifts for your soul – your health will appreciate it!

Healthy Holiday Tip #4 –  Stressed is Desserts spelled backward. That explains so much doesn’t it? Have you noticed that as this month gets increasingly busier, you tend to want and perhaps reach for simple carbs and sweets? This is the hallmark of emotional eating -using your emotions as a driver for eating, as opposed to hunger cues. Sure it temporarily fills a need but then you are left with feeling guilty, feeling even more stressed because reaching for the desserts all month long will leave you feeling down about the creeping pounds and tighter clothes. So … make a plan to handle stress (see tip #3 below), exercise – the physiologic response to exercise will help your stress immensely (see tip #2 below) and plan for all the sweets that will surround you this season (see tip #1 below). You CAN beat the stress or at least not let it beat you.

Healthy Holiday Tip #5 – Jumpstart your metabolism by eating breakfast everyday! This is especially important during the holidays when you might be more inclined to skip. My favorite breakfast lately is a 10 minute (prep to finish) Greek Egg White omelet (6 egg whites, oregano, chopped tomatoes, sprinkling of crumbled feta and any other veggies on hand). What is your favorite HEALTHY everyday breakfast?

Healthy Holiday Tip #6 – Make a Date With Your Produce. After grocery shopping, set some time to simply prep your produce (even if it is the last thing you want to do). 5-10 minutes of prepping your produce will help you make sure you use it. Wash your fruit for quick grab and go snacks, cut your fruit for fruit salad, wash and cut your veggies for easy snacks and meal prep. Easy fruit and veggie grabs will help you feel good about what you put into your body this holiday season.

Healthy Holiday Tip #7 - Do not give the scale power! Our worth is so not determined by a number. Why do we allow it to influence our lives as much as we do? The power we give the scale tells us if we’re good or bad, worthy or unworthy. Insane isn’t it? Think of the last time you did not like what you saw on the scale … what feelings and conversation took place in your mind? The first thing I do when working with clients is to have them promise me they will put the scale away. We focus on healthy changes and successes – mindset changes (those conversations in our heads), lab values, healthy eating changes and body measurements. Sure the scale comes back out eventually but by taking the emphasis off of it, we actually can keep moving forward and not backward. Above all, do not let it determine our worth!

Healthy Holiday Tip #8- Out of sight, out of mind. Many people have candy/treat bowls around for the holidays. Replace the candy dish with a fruit bowl to help minimize temptation and increase fruit consumption!

Healthy Holiday Tip #9 - Go Green! Change up your salad greens and enjoy all of flavors and textures that are available. Try arugula, collard greens, dandelion greens, swiss chard, watercress, kale, mustard greens, and of course spinach! If you mix the varieties – you offset some of the bitter taste of some of the stronger greens while maximizing nutrition value. A little shy of greens – start off slow by mixing some power greens with romaine lettuce. Greens help prevent cancer, boost energy levels, add great fiber, and they contain folic acid, micronutrients, chlorophyll, and phyto-chemicals. This might be the only time this Michigan Wolverine fan says, “Go Green!!”

Healthy Holiday Tip #10 - Jump it off! Have a festive filled weekend or week ahead? Grab a jump rope! Jumping rope works your legs, core, arms, shoulders and is an excellent cardiovascular exercise! Jump ropes are easy, portable, inexpensive and burn between 150-200 calories in 15 minutes.

Healthy Holiday Tip #11 - Even the most disciplined of us can overeat or skip a workout. The key is to get right back on track and realize we are seeking balance not perfection. Over indulgence happens – let’s recognize that and minimize the self scrutiny … staying positive is half the battle!

Healthy Holiday Tip #12 - Focus not on deprivation but on “Added Value Nutrition” by making your current food choices healthier. By doing this you will naturally increase fruit and vegetable consumption, fiber and be making healthier choices all around – this often crowds out the need and craving for less healthy foods.

Healthy Holiday Tip #13 – Prevent Label Overload. If you cannot pronounce an ingredient easily or it is a long list of ingredients … don’t buy it. Keep it simple = keep it healthy.

Healthy Holiday Tip #14 – Survey party buffets before filling your plate. Choose your favorite foods and skip your least favorite. Include vegetables and fruits to keep your plate balanced.

Healthy Holiday Tip #15 – The way you eat is like a bank account. Invest in healthy foods and keep it balanced. Are you investing today?

Healthy Holiday Tip # 16 – The weekend is almost here … do you have your game plan ready to conquer the weekend and stay healthy amidst all the temptations and busy schedules?

Healthy Holiday Tip #17 - Just like Nike – Just Do It! Get that workout in before the day flies by and before all the festivities ahead of you. You’ll feel so much better and that slight post workout burn you will feel in your arms, legs or core will remind you to choose healthy! I was not at all motivated to workout today but called a friend, invited her to a killer bootcamp at the gym and am now back home am ready to tackle the day!! Just Do It!!

Healthy Holiday Tip #18 – Give the gift of health this holiday season! I have to buy stocking stuffers for a certain somebody and just picked up a bag of Adora Dark Chocolate Calcium supplements (one of my favorite little treats) to add to her bag. Help others be healthy with healthy gifts!