How Can I enjoy the Holiday Season With Minimal Regrets Come January?

Take a breath, my friend, it IS possible. I know how you may be feeling, you have worked hard all year and you just want to enjoy this special time with family and friends. Maybe you have been making little health changes and moving back and forth with them all year, but for now, you just don't want to worry about it but you are worried about January!

Or maybe you have put in a lot of work and finally, have the results you are looking for. Maybe you are worried that all your hard-earned efforts will be blown to smithereens and you will have to start back over in January.

No matter what your concern is or your goal I promise you, you CAN make it through these next 30 odd days unscathed.

Just yesterday I felt overwhelmed by all the JUNK options around me! Since when did the holiday season turn into 24/7 Processed Food and Sugar Season.

The temptations are real and they are everywhere! And no, you can't have your processed food cake and eat it too. But you already know that. So what CAN or SHOULD you have and still have fun and feel included in the festivities?

Rather than borage you with endless facts about why making healthy choices matter (you already know you should make healthy choices right?) let's come up with a low-stress plan of action that is doable over the holidays. A simple mindset that keeps you included with the traditions that only come once a year but doesn't completely wreck you come January. Bloated, broke and 7 lbs heavier...

Let's simply focus on stress reduction.

There are 3 kinds of stress: environmental, physical and emotional. Is it just me or do the holidays have a way of attacking all three? My goal is to help you not overdo it in all 3 stress categories by making small but powerful choices.

In my upcoming Master's Class on Dec 4th at 6 pm pst we will be going over this plan in greater detail, but for now, let's cover the basics! You can reserve your spot online and get the extra tools.

1. Plan Ahead, know your schedule and what you are committing to each week. Scheduling things like shopping, prepping and parties make it seem less overwhelming in general. It also helps you set yourself up for success.

2. Get your sleep. Make sure you aren't shorting yourself with late-night present wrapping and after-work parties. The effects of sleep deprivation affect all aspects of your health, including the ability to detox out those holiday treats and extra stress hormones!

3. Move your body intentionally. Even though it's cold and wet out, we still need to move our bodies. Plan on scheduling at least 30 min per day of deliberate movement. Break it up into small sessions if you must. Another valuable tool for de-stressing your body and mind!

4. Choose whole foods over-processed. A freshly baked cinnamon apple is a healthier choice than a store-bought, mass-produced apple pie that contains toxic oils, refined grains, processed sugars, and other chemicals, and additives. Go for quality treats! Consider limiting yourself to just one Holiday treat per day.

Would I rather have my friend's homemade persimmon cookies she only makes at Thanksgiving or that Starbucks peppermint latte that everyone is guzzling while out shopping that I can have any time? Me? I choose the precious homemade goodness every time!

5. Do a healthy switch-a-roo! Baking with almond or cassava flour is almost identical to baking with all-purpose white flour that we grew up. Put the Gold Medal bag down and do a little experimenting. The same goes for canola oil and avocado oil or coconut oil. Simply switching out your flours and fats can make a HUGE difference in not only how you feel, but how you look! Don't forget to consider healthy sweeteners too.

I will be going over a bigger list of switch-a-roo options during my webinar.

6. Pre- Eat. This goes hand in hand with knowing your upcoming schedule. When I know I am going somewhere that will have either food I CAN'T eat or shouldn't eat, I eat before I go! Sometimes it is a snack, sometimes it's my meal. That way I am not starving or feeling left out if I decide to pass on something. When I don't eat all day because I know I am going somewhere special later and want to "save it" I will always overeat! Not only that, I will choose those quick grabs like carbs that leave me even hungrier! Even healthy carbs can mess up your blood sugar and gut health if you have them in excess. So, keep a little food in your tank. Especially healthy fats. I will discuss more on what those fats do and why we need them in the webinar, but for now, eat those healthy fats!

Sometimes bringing a dish or two helps as well. At the very least you know you can eat what you brought. It's also a nice opportunity to share a new line of thinking with your people! I make a whole cranberry sauce that doesn't contain the usual cup of white sugar and it tastes amazing! People want to know how I do it. Even though it doesn't seem like it, the average person actually does want to eat better, they just don't know how to do it or they think they will miss the familiar unhealthy foods too much to even try. Show them a new way.

7. Hydrate. This goes along with sleeping. Even under the best of circumstances, the holidays are stressful. More on our schedules, usually less sleep, more travel, more financial strain, more unhealthy food options, and choices, more alcohol, and more stress hormones in general. We need water to carry out the waste. It's that simple. However, once temperatures drop, water consumption goes down for most people. Did you know that sugar and that includes alcohol, is dehydrating? Fatigue, headache, insomnia, and constipation are just a few side effects we experience when we are dehydrated. So get your water! Your holiday constipation you get every year could be avoided by simply getting in all your water! At minimum, 6-8 glasses of water.

8. Last but certainly not least is meditation. I know, I know...I struggle with it too. But I can tell you that research shows that regular meditation practice can reduce inflammation in the body. Holiday stress causes a legitimate spike in our stress hormones. One of these hormones is Cortisol. There is massive research on the ill effects of elevated cortisol on our bodies. Here is a great article by Chris Kresser about the effectiveness of Meditation and our health and how to get started meditating

No, I don't expect you to join a 60 min meditation daily practice group! All I am suggesting is that you CHOOSE a time, every day to be quiet with your thoughts and feels. There are many ways to do this:

Here are just a couple of Apps and videos, I use Gaia every day for yoga and some mediation.

There is also Ziva Meditation

Gaia is a monthly subscription for a small amount that offers yoga and meditation practices from top-notch instructors from around the world. If all you have is 6 min, then you can still find a meditation or even yoga class! It's awesome! You choose your level, style and length of time.

Ziva has courses, apps, online live mediations, and ebooks.

Unplugged versions: Breathing exercises like alternate nostril breathing, quiet walks or even chores like washing dishes or folding clothes can be meditative.

Basically anything that can take you out of a moment or make you super present IN the moment can be considered meditative. I find that I have to schedule mine or I never do it. Even though I am a journaler, I don't consider that to be meditative. My mind is too active. Where my mind is active my emotions are as well.

There is a difference between Mindfulness and Meditation. To put it very simply, one is about being present, coming back to yourself and removing distractions. The other is about surrender and reaching a place of healing and rest, and repair. Both are necessary for wellness. Especially if you have a chronic illness or health battle you are waging.

In the beginning, don't get lost in the woods. I always suggest mindfulness as a place to start. The art of being present is harder than you think! Simply focusing on the breath is powerful if done on a daily basis.

I certainly hope my blog has given you something to think about and some actionable and doable steps.

We have a saying in my Restart® program: Its the Restart® Rule, "whatever I eat, I choose it consciously, I enjoy it thoroughly and then I let it go."

Shame, guilt, and regret only add to your stress which adds to you not feeling or looking the way you want.

Don't forget to Subscribe to my blog if you aren't already. Be the first to put it into action!

To reserve your spot in my next Master's Class webinar on Stress Management during the holidays click here.

Until then, Happy Thanksgiving!

~Brandi Loyd, FNTP

www.thepathforhealth.com

A little de-stress time before the snow covers it tonight!