by Carol deLaski | Dec 10, 2015 | Fitness, Holidays, Sandie Lynch
The holidays are officially here with Thanksgiving behind us and Christmas music on the radio. I love this time of year and the opportunity to connect with friends and loved ones! There are more parties and celebrations with tons of good and delicious food.
The only problem is that with all this great food, there is the temptation to over eat and indulge. If you are like me, over indulgence may leave you feeling sluggish and not feeling your best. There may also be the concern with all the delicious food, the fear of putting on a few extra pounds contributing to feeling less than your best. The good news is that recent research shows that most people only gain a pound over the holidays. In years past, that number was more like a 5 to 8 pounds gained once January was here, so, we are either getting better about controlling our indulgence or what we eat at the holidays is not that different then what we eat normally.
Either way, for me the main focus is to move through the holidays feeling my best and experiencing more bliss with love, peace, joy and little stress. If this is important to you as well, here are a few strategies that I have used when attending holiday parties to avoid over indulgence that will leave you feeling less than your best
- Don’t obsess about it. When our mind is trying not to do something, it causes us to do the very thing we don’t want. For example, if I say, don’t think about the color red. Well, there we are trying to think about every color but red, but it is still obsessed with the color red. Same with food, when we try to “avoid” something, we obsess about it until we give in and usually over eat the very thing we are avoiding. So have a little and move on to eating something healthy. This is called intuitive eating.
- Eat a small meal before a party. There are usually a ton of choices at a party and most likely we want to try it all, so even taking very small bites can really add up the calories. When we go to a party hungry, we often take larger portion sizes than we need and end up over eating. Especially, if raised being conditioned to “clean” our plates. But when we are nutritionally satisfied, we are in greater control of portion sizes and better with cues to stop. Another strategy is to leave a little food on your plate, so your host does not feel the need to offer you more.
- Balance rich foods with something healthy. There are usually plenty of decadent desserts available at holiday parties. Try to take a smaller portion than normal by connecting with someone to share. Then before you give in to your mind screaming for more, balance it out with some fresh fruits and vegetables. Fresh fruits and vegetables are packed with water, fiber, and nutrients which will not only add beneficial nutrients but will help wash away the taste that causes your mouth to be hungry for more. The fresh fruits and vegetables will also help fill you up and keep your intake with fewer calories.
- Drink water instead of your calories. Many holiday beverages are packed with calories, sugar and fat! Some popular favorites; Eggnog = 390 calories for 1 cup, Hot cocoa = 320 calories for 12 oz, a better option is a glass of wine = 125 – 150 calories. If you want to have a beverage and keep the calories to a minimum, “double fist” it. One hand has a glass of wine and the other holds your water; for every sip of wine you take, then take a drink of water. This also keeps your hands busy from grabbing extra food you may not need. Another idea is to mix the wine with sparkling or carbonated water for a spritzer. Water is always a great idea. It keeps you hydrated and keeps your digestive system moving which can become slow when eating rich foods.
- Keep moving for more muscle! Often during the holidays, our normal exercise regimen goes out the window. As the schedule gets hectic, the last thing you want to give up is movement. Not only does this help keep the stress hormones lower, but it keeps your muscles engaged to burn the extra calories. Even if you do over eat and gain weight, when challenging the muscles you may gain more muscle instead of fat. If so, this will aid in losing the weight faster when the eating patterns go back to normal. When we have more muscle or lean body mass, the body is more efficient in using our calories for energy instead of storing them somewhere we don’t want.
- Get plenty of rest: Rest is essential to keep our stress low, our hunger in check, and our mood more positive, exactly what we all need during the hectic pace during the holidays. Therefore, set your day up for success by planning what time you need to be in bed to wake up refreshed, renewed, and ready to make your holiday everything you want!
May you be blessed with love, joy, and peace this Holiday Season! Be Well, and Be Whole!
Would love to hear your tips for breezing through the holidays with ease!
Written by Sandie Lynch MS, RDN, LDN, Registered Dietitian, Personal Trainer, and Wholistic Wellbeing Coach. Owner and CEO of ATP Consultants, LLC. Sharing 5 Key Principles to Attain Top Performance in living your best life at any age!
Check out ATP Fitness to “Maximize” your 2016. Learn, practice, and embrace the strategies that will build Wholistic Wellbeing for life! Contact Sandie via email at [email protected]
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by Carol deLaski | Dec 18, 2014 | Holidays, Sandie Lynch
Not just survive!
The Holiday Season is upon us. Will you thrive or survive? For many the holiday season may be a source of cheer, joy, love, and connection, others may feel a lot of stress, and then there are some who may barely “survive” the whole process.
What contributes to all the stress?
There could be feelings the loss or being disconnected from loved ones and/or having sadness over broken relationships. Having unrealistic expectations set by others or even on you. A busier schedule is typical with decorating the house, gift buying and wrapping, extra social events, and preparing special meals and treats, leading us to eat richer foods more often. Therefore, the busier schedule, high expectations and rich food is a recipe for high stress and maybe even a wellbeing disaster.
What is the mindset that leads to increased stress and possibly a “wellbeing” meltdown?
Look over the following list of self-talk. Do you find yourself saying any of the following?
- If I don’t do it, it won’t get done.
- I have to do _______, it’s what everyone expects.
- I need to do _______I don’t want to disappoint or upset anyone I have to do it this way, its tradition!
- I’ll get rest when its done!
- I’ll start an exercise plan and eat better starting in January.
- I don’t have time to do what I want or need, everyone else comes first
If you answered yes to any of the statements above, consider embracing a mindset to thrive in “Wholistic Wellbeing” and not just survive this holiday.
- I am a divine being created to enjoy this Holiday.
- Only my creator and I know what is best for me.
- An “Attitude of Gratitude” is a great gift to share.
- The best things in life are free!
- You are enough, anything more is just stuff.
Now equipped with a Mindset to Thrive…
- Determine what is most important and let the rest go!
- Be Realistic of what is possible to accomplish in normal daytime hours.
- Communicate openly your new plan with those it may affect, invite and enlist others to take on what you are “letting go.”
- Embrace healthy habits throughout the Holidays
- Do fun exercise 2-3 times a week for 30 minutes to lighten your mood and increase your energy. The result will be a sharper mind, more tone, strength and increased confidence for those social events.
- Eat healthy, choosing 5 fruits and vegetables a day, lean meats, low fat dairy, and whole grains and legumes daily. You will optimize your metabolism, immune and digestive system, keeping you light on your feet, full of energy, and help keep the weight off ensuring you feel great in those holiday clothes
- Limit rich foods and extras to 1 day a week and then “get it out of the house” so you’re not tempted to “munch” the rest of the week.
The Holidays are a time for love and connection, why not start with you!
Do more than survive…Thrive!
Written by Sandie Lynch MS, RDN, LDN, Registered Dietitian, Personal Trainer, and Wholistic Wellbeing Coach. Owner and CEO of ATP Consultants, LLC. Sharing 5 Key Principles to Attain Top Performance in living your best life at any age!
Check out ATP Fitness in January to “Kick-Start” your 2015. Learn, practice, and embrace the strategies that will build Wholistic Wellbeing for life!
Contact Sandie at [email protected] to find out more!
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by Carol deLaski | Dec 4, 2013 | Carol deLaski, Change, Family, Holidays, Personal Development
What do you anticipate at this time of year? Amid the hustle and bustle of preparing for the holidays, what are the experiences that will make you pause and savor the moments? It’s easy to become so preoccupied with our to-do lists that we overlook or brush past those precious times of connection, laughter, and joy. Don’t miss it!
Perhaps you are like me and find yourself anticipating the look on someone’s face when you give them a gift that you’ve thoughtfully selected for them. For me, it will be giving the ‘Elf on the Shelf’ to my six-year-old granddaughter.
Shopping isn’t one of my favorite things to do, but when it comes to shopping for the children in my life, I must admit that I have trouble restraining myself. It happened recently when I was in a store and saw this whimsical elf on display. It caught my eye and brought a smile to my face, and I knew in an instant that it would have the same effect on my granddaughter. As I write this, I can picture her eager face as she enjoys the challenge of this game, which is to find the hidden elf in her home each day leading up to Christmas.
Looking forward to spending time together fills my heart with anticipation even more than gift giving does. This year, in addition to the Elf on the Shelf, I plan to make a gingerbread house with my granddaughter. I can picture her enthusiastic bright eyes as we put the puzzle pieces of the house together, sticky fingers being licked, gumdrops being carefully placed, and the feeling of her slender arms wrapped around my neck in a hug hold, as we survey the masterpiece we have created together. It doesn’t really matter how the gingerbread house looks. The joy is in those moments of fun, creativity, and connection as a new memory is being made. Who knows…perhaps it will even become a tradition.
The way in which holiday traditions form is an interesting phenomenon. There is comfort found in the routines which link one holiday to another; year in and year out. As a child, I remember wanting to hang a certain mistletoe ornament in the same place every year when we decorated our home. There was something very satisfying about recreating the atmosphere in which our family celebrated together.
As an adult, however, I was caught off guard when my children declared traditions had been started simply because we did something two years in a row. I realized that I needed to be mindful of what activities I repeated, since I never knew which ones they would take to heart and want to repeat annually! My sons had a strong desire to create our family’s unique traditions, many of which continue now that they are young adults. They can easily tell you the kind of tree we get, the cookies we bake, the way we open gifts, and what we eat on Christmas morning. It’s not so much what we do but that we do it together that matters. Our hearts are warmed when we both anticipate and perform our family’s rituals.
There is a flip side, however, to the happiness that traditions can invoke. During difficult years of upheaval and change, traditions may need to be altered. In my lifetime, separation and divorce dictated that we couldn’t continue certain ways of doing things. This occurred when my sons were young teenagers, and I remember how important it was to ask them what traditions they wanted to keep as our family went through this change. It was interesting to learn which ones no longer mattered to them. Having a say in the changes helped my children tremendously in adapting to new situations. My older son, Patrick, could care less about outdoor decorations, but my younger son, Ben, really enjoyed them. So a new tradition was formed that Ben and I became the two family members that decorated the outside of our home each year. Patrick loved a freshly cut tree, but instead of going to the farm and cutting it down ourselves, we adjusted to buying one from the Boy Scouts. Adaptations to our traditions were made, and we even formed new ones as our family evolved as a trio.
Knowing how and when to change traditions is as important as being aware of how and when they form. A dear friend of mine lost her mother to cancer this year. This will be her first Christmas without her mom, who was also her best friend. I admire how she has thoughtfully decided where she wants to be on this holiday, and with whom she wants to spend it. She knows that she will miss her mom no matter where she is, but she feels that being somewhere that her mom loved, and with the people her mom loved, will help her to connect with the spirit of the woman she longs for. Adapting her family traditions this year is what she needs to do to manage her sense of loss and grief.
Changing traditions can cause distress within families, particularly when everyone may not agree about those changes. Ultimately, we must each decide for ourselves what we need to create the comfort and connection that our hearts desire. No one knows better than you what will satisfy you to your core. Even if others don’t agree with your choices, I encourage you to persevere and choose the experiences and moments that will fill and overflow your heart with love.
Because a heart full of love is ultimately what this season of the year is all about. Love came down at Christmas and continues to come to us in many forms. My wish for you is that you will feel the light of love in your life as you capture the special moments this season has to offer.
Today’s author: Carol deLaski is a life leadership coach, author, and speaker. You may contact her at [email protected].
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by Carol deLaski | Dec 11, 2011 | Carol deLaski, Family, Health, Holidays, Self-Care
Do you find that the month of December brings not only joy but also additional stress as you add more activities to an already full plate? It’s easy to get caught in the dreaded “shoulds” of this time of year in an effort to create memorable holiday experiences.
Throughout the year we women often overload our lives with work, family, community activities, household needs, and more. We juggle actual responsibilities and schedules (our own and other’s) to the point that there’s no time left for self care. And to most women, this feels like what they’re supposed to be doing, even when it’s clear there’s just too much going on at once.
We know that if we don’t take care of ourselves by limiting and prioritizing the balls we have in the air, sooner or later we’re going to drop them. What would it be like to experience this December with a plan for self care? Here are a few tips on how to avoid overload during the holidays and create a calm and enjoyable holiday for yourself and your loved ones.
- Decide what’s most important and make sure you do it
When we accept that we “can’t do it all” and begin to choose just the activities that are most important to us we free ourselves to enjoy them more. Trying to do too much fills our heads with endless thoughts about details for upcoming activities, robbing us of the pleasure the current moment offers. Make sure you take time to enjoy the things that bring you peace and joy at this time of year and say no to the things that drain you.
- Create and use a “pause practice”
Racing from one activity to the next we can miss the magic moments that are abundant at this time of year. Consider creating a habit of pausing throughout the day to receive the moment. Reading something inspirational in the morning to ground yourself before the day’s busyness sets in or pausing before you eat to give silent thanks may feel right to you. Even just taking three intentional breaths before you dive into the next thing on your to-do list will center you in the moment. Meditative moments and intentional breathing slow you down and help you receive the gift this moment offers.
- Schedule self care
Calendars are our friend and help keep us organized as we go about the work and activities of full lives. They can also be our enemy if we allow them the upper hand. You are in charge of how you schedule your days. Be sure to carefully consider each commitment you make and make a conscious decision whenever possible to allow buffer time between appointments. Buffer time provides you with much needed breathing room to move calmly from one activity to the next and helps us arrive calm, cool, and collected. As you fill your December calendar be sure to add activities that nurture you. Perhaps a visit to the salon or spa to pamper yourself, or time for a fun evening out with a friend to laugh and simply be together is in order. Schedule the things that fill your heart, comfort you, and leave you feeling deeply happy. If you plan for it, it will happen. Likewise, be open to taking advantage of spontaneous opportunities for fun as they appear.
We are all familiar with the stress that this busy time of year creates in our minds and bodies. Our heart and spirit are also affected as we are reminded of someone or something that’s missing. We realize that the “picture perfect” holidays presented in the movies or on TV are not reality. Be tender-hearted and compassionate with yourself as you come upon the edges of loss and grief this holiday season. Whether it’s the loss of a special person, finances, or a dream recognize the loss and allow time to feel the feelings in order to let them pass. Admit that things aren’t the way you had hoped they would be and treat yourself with the loving kindness that you would offer a dear friend or child who is hurting.
December is a time of preparation. When we prioritize and prepare we claim peace and calm for ourselves. Prepare to celebrate this season in whatever way is meaningful to you and your loved ones. And remember to prepare to take care of yourself so that you can fully enjoy the blessings of this special season.
Today’s author: Carol Hayes, [email protected] or 301-371-7460. Through her company, Clear Choices Coaching, Carol shares her expertise and skill fostering growth in people of all ages. She is especially energized when her coaching helps people experience “breakthrough” moments where they push through their personal edge and grow more fully into the people they want to be. Carol’s certification as a Life and Energy Leadership coach comes from The Institute for Professional Excellence in Coaching (IPEC), which is accredited by the International Coaching Federation. She is also a dynamic speaker and workshop leader who facilitates energizing connections with groups of all sizes.
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by Carol deLaski | Nov 25, 2011 | Family, Health, Holidays, Laura Hall
I am writing this the week of Thanksgiving and as I sit here in the midst of preparing for the 20+ people that will be dining with us here on Thursday, I am gently reminding myself to stay focused on the intentions behind the festivities and not get bogged down with the details. As a “recovering perfectionist”, I have a tendency to stress over needing everything to be just right, and in this stressing I oftentimes lose sight of what’s really important. What a great question that can be…What’s really important?
For me, when I really think about it, the answer is simple… it’s spending time with those I love and having the opportunity to express what I am truly grateful for. It’s not important that my house is perfectly clean, or that I’ve decorated like Martha Stewart, or that my menu is ideal. I’m willing to let go of perfectionism and in doing that I’ve found the secret to my “perfect” Thanksgiving. Perfect for me comes from seeing the smiles on the faces of my children, my nieces and my nephew as they spend time playing together. Perfect is having 3 generations gathered around the dinner table. Perfect is having my 13 year old daughter tell me that Thanksgiving is her favorite holiday. Perfect is when we all gather in a circle before our meal to count our blessings. Perfect is knowing that we are creating memories to last a lifetime. That’s what’s really important to me.
Now, it’s your turn…What are the ingredients to your “perfect” Thanksgiving? Are there things you are stressing about that really aren’t that important? How can you let them go? I look forward to reading your answers and Happy “Perfect” Thanksgiving!
Today’s author: Laura Hall is an iPEC certified life coach who believes every woman deserves a coach. She offers both one on one as well as group coaching services. She can be reached at [email protected] or check out her website at www.hallcoaching.com
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