For some, it's hard to imagine tossing together some mixed greens and fresh, crisp fruit with your choice of lean protein at any meal this time of year. It seems as if our bodies have heeded the seasonal warning to consume higher calorie foods that will help our systems survive the long, lean winter months. Perhaps much like the grizzly bear, we humans go through a diluted hyperphagia.
If we were still as physically active as the generations before us, we could definitely find merit in this philosophy. We are definitely not, though I am sad to say. So, what to do? Well, I have some suggestions for you to make decisions on calorie consumption slightly more clear.
1. Steam, bake or saute your veggies. You must continue to bring in the nutrients from foods such as vegetables, so don't avoid them just because you think they have to come in salad form. Warm, lightly cooked vegetables are extremely healthy and combined with a tablespoon or two of olive or coconut oil on low heat can help to account for some essentially fatty acids in the diet as well.
2. Don't overdo the potato dishes. We often turn to potatoes in the winter for our vegetable of choice. And often, we consume these at dinner when we are beginning to shut down for the day. This is not advantageous for those of us wanting to maintain or drop some body fat. Potatoes are high in energy which means they are high in carbohydrates. Consuming too much energy or carbohydrates can and will add layers and tighten the waist band.
3. Continue to consume water. We tend to think in patterns which narrow our ability to come up with options. Water does not have to be consumed cold or on ice. In fact, water is most suitable to our system for utilization when it is at least room temperature. Consuming hot water like you would hot tea, will help to bring comfort and security to the psyche which may subside the urge to consume. Once the body feels warm fluid coming in, it relaxes a bit knowing it can get warm if it needs to and the survival mode switch is not inherently triggered.
4. Watch the baked goods. It's fine to indulge here and there as long as here and there happen once or twice a week instead of once or twice a day. I suggest to all my clients to use the free website www.fitday.com to track their daily food intake. Unless you see your caloric intake in black and white, you can only speculate on the numbers. And I have to say, most greatly underestimate the quantity and caloric capacity of foods.
Comments and questions are welcome. I have much more advice to come so keep it here and stay tuned in for more holiday and general eating tips and suggestions to help you thrive in this season of overindulgence.
Yours in health and wellness,
Rochelle Gravance
habitsforming@yahoo.com
PS- The Holiday Meltdown Boot Camp starts next week and is officially closed to only those that responded before the cutoff day. If you did not get in, I will be hosting future boot camps you will not want to miss. Send me an e-mail with your contact information so you can be the first to find out when the next boot camp starts. You can be sure the next one will start sometime in December.
Comfort Foods and Holiday Eating
November 24, 2008, 3:06 pmFestive Holiday Eating
November 21, 2008, 12:27 am
I thought this recent article I wrote for a local paper would be helpful to all you out there looking to minimize the feeding frenzy of the season. Enjoy....
Treating yourself from October's tricks to the New Year's bash can surely cause your scale to moan, not to mention your ego and stitches on the waist line of your favorite jeans that now lay folded neatly in your closet. Since the average individual can accumulate 1-10 pounds of fat in that three month stint, it's not unusual to find yourself pulling out the big, comfy clothes to accommodate the extra space you now take up. I find that it's not just the parties of overindulgence and extra rich foods that should amass the majority of the blame. Maybe we should look at stress and often the eating that accompanies the emotion. This holiday season may prove even more of a challenge and potential for dietary disaster than years past. The state of the economy and election race will surely be the home-made gravy to top off the "season of stress" for those who may remain unconscious until their shocking discovery which is likely to be made on or around January 2, 2009. As I see it, one has two potential options: take action now and make a plan or deal with it later. Since you've probably used the "deal with it later" tactic for the past several years and are now 20 pounds in the black since then, I suggest the first of the two options. And no, you cannot starve yourself for two weeks and buy a gym membership to undo the damage. You've already tried that option too without success, remember? So, what to do next?
Here's your plan: 1.Do not skip meals to make up for the overindulgence of rich foods. This will only cause you to binge on the rich foods. 2. Eat before you go to parties so you won't be as likely to eat as much once there. 3. Watch your liquid calories. Alcohol and sweet drinks will pack on the holiday pounds and cause your liver to stop burning fat while it tries to process the alcohol. 4. Use food as a catalyst to create conversation and relations, not the other way around. Prepare less, eat less and relate more. 5. Once at the gatherings, grab a plate, fill it with some lean protein, lots of veggies and fruits, maybe some nuts and a goody or two and leave the area. Do not remain near the food to converse with someone or you will continue to eat unconsciously. 6. Move your body, that's why you have it. Push ups, squats, pull ups and walking hills briskly will do the trick. You can modify those to fit your abilities. There you go people...put some effort into it. Get conscious about your habits, The holiday feeding frenzy is a great time to do that. No better time to stop being a consumer and start being a participant.
Yours in health.
Rochelle Gravance
Habitsforming.com
Treating yourself from October's tricks to the New Year's bash can surely cause your scale to moan, not to mention your ego and stitches on the waist line of your favorite jeans that now lay folded neatly in your closet. Since the average individual can accumulate 1-10 pounds of fat in that three month stint, it's not unusual to find yourself pulling out the big, comfy clothes to accommodate the extra space you now take up. I find that it's not just the parties of overindulgence and extra rich foods that should amass the majority of the blame. Maybe we should look at stress and often the eating that accompanies the emotion. This holiday season may prove even more of a challenge and potential for dietary disaster than years past. The state of the economy and election race will surely be the home-made gravy to top off the "season of stress" for those who may remain unconscious until their shocking discovery which is likely to be made on or around January 2, 2009. As I see it, one has two potential options: take action now and make a plan or deal with it later. Since you've probably used the "deal with it later" tactic for the past several years and are now 20 pounds in the black since then, I suggest the first of the two options. And no, you cannot starve yourself for two weeks and buy a gym membership to undo the damage. You've already tried that option too without success, remember? So, what to do next?
Here's your plan: 1.Do not skip meals to make up for the overindulgence of rich foods. This will only cause you to binge on the rich foods. 2. Eat before you go to parties so you won't be as likely to eat as much once there. 3. Watch your liquid calories. Alcohol and sweet drinks will pack on the holiday pounds and cause your liver to stop burning fat while it tries to process the alcohol. 4. Use food as a catalyst to create conversation and relations, not the other way around. Prepare less, eat less and relate more. 5. Once at the gatherings, grab a plate, fill it with some lean protein, lots of veggies and fruits, maybe some nuts and a goody or two and leave the area. Do not remain near the food to converse with someone or you will continue to eat unconsciously. 6. Move your body, that's why you have it. Push ups, squats, pull ups and walking hills briskly will do the trick. You can modify those to fit your abilities. There you go people...put some effort into it. Get conscious about your habits, The holiday feeding frenzy is a great time to do that. No better time to stop being a consumer and start being a participant.
Yours in health.
Rochelle Gravance
Habitsforming.com
Election Day Decision Making and Results
November 4, 2008, 5:55 pm
Today's the day. It's time for a decision. Action is required and will be taken. Voters will head to the polls, take action and see the results of their actions in a relatively short amount of time. The intelligent voter/participant will have by now researched their options so that they may choose the best plan of action available to them.
To gain global perspective, one can simply look toward our government's policies regarding the election process to aid in personal decision making. If we strip the election process down to the bare bones, what we find are options, research and action. This is how progress is achieved. Now, when it comes to politics and government, progress is obviously a relative term. What you can count on is change.
Change is something all of us can find a bit unnerving at times. It requires our psyches to switch off the auto pilot button and step away from habituated patterns. That takes effort. When effort is required we must also allow for time to be allocated to come to awareness. Allowing for more time can be a make or break commitment for most since time is scarce these days. If time is allotted and awareness is achieved then we are faced with reality and responsibility. Wow! No wonder we would rather remain unconscious. You see, remaining unconscious allows our habituated patterns control over where we are and where we want to be. These same patterns trick us into thinking that we have no control over our lives and this is when we begin to reach for the short end of the stick (see the blog post Going Long).
Granted, it's much easier to complain and blame everyone and everything else for our short comings in life. Though, I am here to suggest the alternative. The reasons for this choice are vast, though I will choose to contemplate what I believe to be the greatest. That is frustration. If we passively choose to do nothing then we are frustrated with where we are. If we choose to come to consciousness about our actions then we may become frustrated with the effort required not to mention being uncomfortable with the change required to make progress.
Being fit and healthy falls into the same parameters. We can either choose to do nothing, negate responsibility and "hope" for the best (see the blog post Hope versus Faith), or we can find options, research those options and immediately take action.
Habitsforming realizes options are important and offers several routes that will get you to your health and fitness destination. From highly concentrated, very personal training programs to high energy group fitness programs, we have options for everyone interested in taking action and making progress. Oh, by the way, did I mention that every program is guaranteed? Habitsforming methods are so successful that we guarantee improvement or your money back. That's it, that's all, nothing less. No gimmicks or pills to take. Just proven techniques that are guaranteed to work or your money back.
Nothing to lose and much to gain. Get started today by contacting Habitsforming.com.
yours guaranteed,
Rochelle Gravance
PS- Don't forget to contact Habitsforming today to enroll in the next 100% money back guaranteed fitness boot camp. Several starting this winter. Don't delay, we will be closing the doors on two of them November 15. Just like election day, there is a deadline. Get moving and make the call now. 206 571 2277.
To gain global perspective, one can simply look toward our government's policies regarding the election process to aid in personal decision making. If we strip the election process down to the bare bones, what we find are options, research and action. This is how progress is achieved. Now, when it comes to politics and government, progress is obviously a relative term. What you can count on is change.
Change is something all of us can find a bit unnerving at times. It requires our psyches to switch off the auto pilot button and step away from habituated patterns. That takes effort. When effort is required we must also allow for time to be allocated to come to awareness. Allowing for more time can be a make or break commitment for most since time is scarce these days. If time is allotted and awareness is achieved then we are faced with reality and responsibility. Wow! No wonder we would rather remain unconscious. You see, remaining unconscious allows our habituated patterns control over where we are and where we want to be. These same patterns trick us into thinking that we have no control over our lives and this is when we begin to reach for the short end of the stick (see the blog post Going Long).
Granted, it's much easier to complain and blame everyone and everything else for our short comings in life. Though, I am here to suggest the alternative. The reasons for this choice are vast, though I will choose to contemplate what I believe to be the greatest. That is frustration. If we passively choose to do nothing then we are frustrated with where we are. If we choose to come to consciousness about our actions then we may become frustrated with the effort required not to mention being uncomfortable with the change required to make progress.
Being fit and healthy falls into the same parameters. We can either choose to do nothing, negate responsibility and "hope" for the best (see the blog post Hope versus Faith), or we can find options, research those options and immediately take action.
Habitsforming realizes options are important and offers several routes that will get you to your health and fitness destination. From highly concentrated, very personal training programs to high energy group fitness programs, we have options for everyone interested in taking action and making progress. Oh, by the way, did I mention that every program is guaranteed? Habitsforming methods are so successful that we guarantee improvement or your money back. That's it, that's all, nothing less. No gimmicks or pills to take. Just proven techniques that are guaranteed to work or your money back.
Nothing to lose and much to gain. Get started today by contacting Habitsforming.com.
yours guaranteed,
Rochelle Gravance
PS- Don't forget to contact Habitsforming today to enroll in the next 100% money back guaranteed fitness boot camp. Several starting this winter. Don't delay, we will be closing the doors on two of them November 15. Just like election day, there is a deadline. Get moving and make the call now. 206 571 2277.
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