​HAPPY HOLIDAYS! What a happy time.   This usually means family, friends, fun, and the biggest F of them all FOOD!  During the holidays we join our friends and family for gatherings and parties, as we talk, laugh, drink and EAT. And with eating, we may sometimes get ahead of ourselves and overeat during an event or one sitting of a meal, and now with covid, we may be overeating because there is just MORE food in the house for less people to eat.  Whatever the reason, it happens, we all do it. 
So how do we cope with the guilt of overindulging? Many of us have felt guilty overeating. Here are 5 tips to help you get on track after indulging:


1. Eat Whole Foods. Avoid diets and cleanses. You want to make sure that if you “fall off” you can quickly get yourself back on track with healthy habits.  It’s not about going on a crash diet to feel miserable while you deprive yourself of things.  It’s about eating in a way that is sustainable for your lifestyle in the long run that will have you feeling good by boosting your metabolism and giving you a good balance with the foods you need and the foods you love. 
Whole foods.  Not the grocery store.  Think plant-based(fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds and nuts), minimal to no processed foods, lean meats, poultry, and fish. 

2. Drink Lots Of Water.  Our body is made up of about 60% water.  So we need it. Water helps the body function properly.  It helps to lubricate the joints, transport nutrients to muscles, and remove waste from the body.  It also helps our body regulate temperature, and is vital for cell development and muscle growth (which helps with weight loss).
How much water should you drink in a day? Women should aim to drink 2.7 Liters and men should aim to drink 3.7 Liters.

3. Balance Your Portions.  Balance is important. You want to have carbs, fats, AND, protein with your meals.  After a big feast, you don’t want to cut out any of these nutrients just because you ate a lot. Let’s focus on the healthy, nourishing, whole foods of these three macronutrients. 
Carbohydrates: These are vital for energy.  Carbs are the main source of fuel that your the body uses to break down and create energy.  Carbohydrates are not the enemy, they are important in our diet. Healthy carbs are fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.   Rather than cutting out this necessary nutrient, focus on the real whole foods and minimize or eliminate the processed carbohydrates.  The problem with processed food, is that they do not provide your body with necessary nutrients or help your body function optimally - Processed foods lead to higher caloric intake without sufficient nourishment. 
Fats: These are also vital for optimal health.  This nutrient is also used for energy, and has more functions that we may not realize. For example, fat helps in cell growth and Development, it is important in brain function, it helps to keep our body warm, it helps to absorb and transport some nutrients throughout the body, and it also helps in hormone production.  Our body needs fat. Some examples of healthy fats are: Avocado, nuts and seeds, olives and olive oils, salmon, eggs, dark chocolate.
Protein: Another nutrient that is important to optimize health. They are our body’s building blocks.  As our cells break down, they need protein to repair and grow.  Protein intake is based on an individual's weight as well as the type and level of activity they do.  But as a minimum protein intake, you can focus on .8 x body weight (in kg). So somebody who is 135lb would take in about 48grams of protein a day.

4. Consistency In Workouts.  Keep up with this habit - it’s a good one.  Your consistency is going to help you get to your goals and help you keep and maintain your goals. Cardio and resistance training will keep you fit and strong.  Cardio is important for your body because it helps you stress the strength and endurance of your cardiovascular system (your heart, lungs, arteries, and veins.)  It helps you utilize oxygen more efficiently throughout your body.  And oxygen is needed for burning fat. 
Resistance training is how we strengthen our body, build our muscles, and improve our bone density.  There are different forms of resistance training - you can use free weights, machines, bodyweight - you can do traditional weightlifting, powerlifting, bodybuilding, etc. After a training session your muscles have been worked and broken down.  This is the time they need to repair, rebuild, and grow.  This happens when your body is at rest, and your muscles need energy to build. Resistance training allows you to utilize oxygen more efficiently while at rest  which increases your metabolism, and ultimately increases the rate of fat burning.
Be consistent with both cardio and resistance training to help keep you on track. The minimum requirement for a healthy and active lifestyle is 2 days of resistance training (6-10 exercises) and 3 days of cardio at moderate intensity. 
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5. Consistency With Movement. Movement doesn’t only mean exercising.  It literally means to move your body.  Making sure you are getting any kind of physical activity.  Walking, dancing,  gardening, yoga, biking, and hiking, are all examples of physical activity. Anything that gets your body up and going above a resting level.  
There is probably more sitting now in our lifestyles than there was pre-covid.  Just because we are home more often, don’t let that be a reason to keep you from moving.  If you find that you are sitting for long periods of time, do whatever you can to get up and move throughout your day.
For example, you can set a timer to remind you to get up and walk around every 20-30minutes.  Take a walk around your neighborhood.  Walk up and down the stairs. If you are driving anywhere, park at a walking distance away from your location to help you get some steps in, you can even just sit and stand in and out of your chair for repetitions.  

Thanksgiving. One of the biggest Food consuming holidays in America. (Next to Super Bowl Sunday)

This is one of my absolute favorite holidays. Being with my closest friends and family, catching up and enjoying each others company over a delicious meal of turkey & stuffing with gravy, and other family traditions.

Because it is a social holiday where we gather around the table and eat until the conversations come to a halt, and guests begin to leave one by one- we tend to over eat, consuming more foods than necessary on 1,2,3... Servings. Trying to load our plates with the comfort food that lay before our eyes, in fear that leftovers will be scarce this year because, the year before, our favorite dish was devoured in seconds by everyone sitting at the dinner table. 

Make some healthier choices this year. 
Thanksgiving is the start of the holiday season. Only one of many celebrations with a large feast. Begin with thanksgiving, to get yourself on the right holiday path when it comes to food and exercise during all the festivities.

What a great holiday, to  celebrate the birth of our country, our freedom! Happy Birthday America!

On this day we usually celebrate by visiting friends and family, seeing fireworks at night, and EATING!

I have prepared some healthy Fourth of July food and snacks, that are great to share with everyone!

• Red White and Blue Fruit Salad.

With Strawberries and Raspberries for the red; Banannas for the white; and Blueberries for the blue; Topping it off with a bit a cinnamon and mixing it together.  This is a great dish that will help nourish your body.

• Infused Red Whit and Blue Water.

It is important to stay hydrated! Infusing the water will give it a little flavor.
The water is infused with blueberries and raspberries.  Don’t forget to check out my post about staying hydrated.

• Skewered baked and broiled Chicken and Vegetables

Marinated with a mustard base, and put onto skewers, make it delicious, fun, and healthy to eat.  With chicken, Red-Green-Yellow-Orange Bell Peppers, Onions, Pineapple, and Mushrooms.

• Baked Sweet Potato Fries

These are healthy and easy to make.  The sweet potatoes are cut up into small slices, VERY LIGHTLY covered with olive oil to keep from sticking to the pan, and to help keep the moisture in the veggies. And they are seasoned with cinnamon, garlic powder, paprika. MMMMMMM!

The Superbowl is the second-largest food consumption day for Americans. (Thanksgiving is #1.) This being said it is important to stay focused and on top of your healthy and active lifestyle.  Superbowl parties and events that occur usually have the common football foods; Wings, chips and dips, beer, soda, pizza, popcorn, etc. 

To Keep from consuming too much:

• Eat before you arrive at the event. By doing this you will have already eaten, and won’t have the urge to stuff your face with the taunting snacks.
• Have small portions.   Take a plate, and collect a small portion of the foods you want, and refrain from grabbing another plate.  Try to keep from eating more.
• Avoid the Alcohol. Try to avoid the alcoholic beverages all together, but if you do have some - stick to one glass.  You don’t want to consume too many unnecessary calories.  
• Eat healthy foods.  If you are attending an event, bring a dish that is in your daily diet and that you desire to share with everyone at the event. If you are hosting an event, place healthy options for people (vegetables with a dip, a salad etc.) You can find some healthy party ideas on Pinterest. 

Here is your SuperBowl Work out.  Find a place that you have room to move around and run. (A Football Field, a Track, a Basketball Court, etc. - you can even do the running on a treadmill, as long as you have room to move around for the other exercises.)

If this seems too intense for you, you can lower the amount of times the exercises are performed, and or lower the distance of some exercises.   If you have any questions about the workout, please feel free to contact me.

Always keep active, and enjoy the game!