How to avoid Santa Syndrome

How to avoid Santa Syndrome

Santa Syndrome: the propensity to wake up with "a little round belly, that shook when [you] laughed, like a bowl full of jelly"in the days after Christmas

Many of us woke up today "expecting" a food baby and likely regretting the second and third helpings of Christmas dinner and but more likely Christmas dessert. This is particularly hard when you are hosting as you end up with what could be a doomed week of gluttonous eating if you simply refuse to "waste" any scrap of food. If the guidance from Skinny Bitch,  reminding you that excessive food is a "waste on your body AND in the trash"is just simply not enough for you this time of year here are 3 things I do with my leftovers you might find helpful.

1. Donate!

I try to get anything that's not useful to me out of my house as soon as possible. Turkey, Potatoes, and Veggies are keepers (I can re-purpose them in other recipes throughout the week saving me time) but desserts and heavy dishes are on the naughty list. They will be packed up and sent to work.

2. Out of Sight Out of Mind

I admit I like to have a little something sweet after dinner. If I keep my dark chocolate or other not-exactly-healthy items at eye level in the cupboard, fridge, or freezer I am going to be reaching for it all day. I put my chocolate on the HIGH shelf in my cabinet so I have to really work to get it (step stool and all- if that's the case it is likely a chocolate emergency but otherwise I usually forget all about it).

 

3. Toss It! 

Although food does have an expiration date you can certainly bump it up a few days. Much like with my Halloween candy. I set a time limit for my holiday leftovers. If its been 2 days and I haven't touched it its getting tossed because I need to resume my clean eating as soon as possible and the excuse "Live a little its Christmas" doesn't quite work in January.

Take a few minutes today to survey the "damage" then choose a few goals for the day. #1 on my list it to MOVE and #2 is to put my leftovers into these three categories and act accordingly. We don't have to throw in the towel until January 1st. Remember that making healthy choices in December is HARD but starting in January with more weight to lose is harder. 

Danger on the High Seas

A wise man once told me that there are 3 kinds of people who go on cruises: Newlyweds, Almost Dead, and Over Fed. Boy did we see our share of each last week on our Thankscation. We were on board the Carnival Ecstasy not 10 minutes before we witness our fellow cruisers hitting the buffet hard. I guess they wanted to make sure they got their money's worth and since there were thousands of people on board maybe they were worried we'd run out of food. I know the official cause for the Costa Concordia's demise was running aground after deviating from their planned course but I think we can make a case for a few too many passengers standing on the starboard side after the midnight buffet. 

The average person gains 5-10lbs both on a 5 day cruise and during the holiday season! Many of the strategies I used to stay on track during vacation will help me throughout the holidays and the never ending food celebrations that threaten to roll us into 2013. Here are my top 5 tips for enjoying a Healthy Holiday Season. Please keep in mind that healthy and fun are not mutually exclusive terms. 

1. Change your Vocab! 

"Cheat" feels so negative and it should because if you are not careful you will cheat yourself out of the healthy goals you have been working towards. Instead plan your INDULGENCE for the week: Plan it, enjoy it,  and move on. Don't let your SPLURGE become a BINGE. You will feel sorry later and it could lead to more unhealthy decisions. 

2. Control your Food ADD

Nothing can throw you into food sensory overload quite like the alluring colors and displays of a dessert buffet. Somehow during the holidays familiar and usually safe places: the break room at work, a secretary's desk, even the copy room  can transform into a display of sugary treats poised to derail your willpower and resolve. There is something about the novelty of food you wouldn't buy or make yourself that makes you panic that you will be missing out on something. Don't fall into this trap! I find its best to focus on my planned indulgence and how much better I will feel after I walk away VICTORIOUSLY from the sabotage my coworkers have set up. 

3. Get Up and Move

On vacation and in real life I try to move as early as possible. If I start my day with exercises no matter  nothing can threaten my schedule. I know if I wait until later I can find reasons to skip it or talk myself out of it. In The Compound Effect Darren Hardy suggests bookending your days since you can't control what happens in the middle. If I plan on exercising in the morning and I prep/plan my meals for the following day in the evening I can guarantee that I am doing two things to keep me on track each day no matter where the schedule takes me. 

4. Don't Drink your Calories

Pina Coladas or Hot Toddies they both pack on hundreds of extra calories you might not be accounting for. Instead, consider these drinks a dessert or skip them all together. Same things goes for the Vino. If you are actually thirsty be sure to drink water to quench your thirst and when you chose these beverages enjoy them don't wash down your cheesecake with a tiramisu martini.

5. Add these Exercises to your workouts! 

 These two moves have 100% effectiveness in conquering the holiday bulge! You can stick to your goals find a friend who is also committed and partner up this holiday season. Its not going to be easy but its not impossible either!

3 Ways to Combat a Case of the Mondays

Does you recognize this scenario:

Last week you over did it on several occasions, fell off the wagon with your exercise and proclaimed  today (Monday) would be a great day for a do-over and start to your diet and fitness plan back up. At the time Monday seemed worlds away. Since Monday was sure to be the first day of the rest of your life you might as well give yourself a send off saying goodbye to the "bad" foods you will never eat again. Flash forward to this morning you find your packed lunch full of leftovers from the weekend binge and you wouldn't want to waste it; there are starving children in Africa after all.

You feel defeated but have a few options:

• Toss the food and pick up a healthy lunch alternative to stay true to your goals 
• Eat the lunch anyway and start tomorrow but Tuesday is trivia night, Wednesday is your off day from working out and before you know it you are back on the weekend binge cycle... there's always next Monday. 
• Find a way to make the best choice within your options. 

Here are three tips you can apply TODAY even if your bag lunch leaves something to be desired in the healthy department. 

• Cut your food into small pieces- Do you remember the Seinfeld episode where George took a cue from Mr. Pitt and attempted to class up the Yankees organization with the way he ate his Snickers bar? This classic episode can help you keep your food intake in check: cutting your food into small pieces give the appearance of abundance on your plate. Slowly eating each piece gives your body the time it needs to alert your brain that you are full helping you to avoid another over indulgence.

• Veggies First-  If you managed to get something that passes for healthy in your lunch be sure to eat the vegetables first treating heavier parts of the meal as the side dish. Veggies didn't make the cut? Grabbing a side salad is an inexpensive way to supplement your lunch. Just remember that not all salads are created equal. Go for clear dressing on the side and dip your fork into the dressing before each bite rather than pouring the dressing over your salad. 

• Portion BEFORE you heat & eat-  Just as you should avoid serving family style at home the same idea works in the office too. Lets face it, if you spent the past few days making less than stellar food choices chances are your Tupperware is another opportunity to over serve yourself. Avoid letting the portion distortion carry over into the week by putting the remaining leftovers back in the fridge. Finish your meal, drink some water, and wait about ten minutes before reevaluating the remaining leftovers. Better yet, take a quick lap around the office or even just to the restroom to give yourself some time to really consider if you are really hungry or just considering it because of your proximity to the food. 

Remember life is a series of choices that take you toward or away from your goals. This Monday morning aim for making the best choice within any give set of options. You can do this just choose to be successful by making choices that are in line with your goals. 

"I don't want to bulk up"

     As a fitness professional I am blessed to be in the company of many strong women who have become my Fat Free Friends. These are women who share my passion for health and wellness and have been a great resource to me for strategies, encouragement,  and ideas. I am so lucky to have a core group of women (and men) who trust me with the task of keeping them healthy and increasing their fitness levels. 

     That being said I am surprised and ultimately saddened when I hear this common arguement from women as I stress the importance of strength training:"I don't want to bulk up". 

     This statement is usually reinforced when they refuse to pick up anything more than the same 3-6lb weights they have been using in their "toning" classes for years wondering why they have the same problem areas (not so fondly refered to as "bat wings", "saddlebags", or "thunder thighs"). Even after I gently remind them that they have to "Make a change to see a change" they look at me defiantly in the mirror ferociously curling their "cute little weights" in order to prevent this:

 The above photo is clearly not a naturally occurring phenomenon. Why are otherwise intelligent women so uninformed when it comes to strength training? They look at me skeptically when I suggest adding a total body strength training session or class into their regimen as they are determined to burn fat via the cardio fan favorites: running, Turbo Kick, Spinning, Zumba, and endless hours on the cardio deck. Muscle burns fat. If you don't believe me check out this motivational photo as proof: 

In all seriousness, here are a few things you need to know before choosing your weights for your next workout: 

• You want to GAIN- Lean Muscle Mass that is.  Contrary the common belief muscle does not weigh more than fat: 5 pounds of muscle and 5 pounds of fat weigh the same 5 pounds. Muscle is however, much more compact. Yes its true the lean bodies you lust after in fitness magazines are chock full of lean muscle mass. 

(5lbs of each)

• Trust the principle of overload. Amy, my trainer back home was not shy to remind me that my legs are strong they lift 100+lbs all day long. Therefore, if my Portuguese rear end and thighs were truly my enemy I would want to conquer them by lifting heavy to change their make up. 

• Men are from Mars... We recognize the difference between Men and Women in virtually every other area of life so why would we assume that Men and Women would respond the SAME exact way to strength training? The amount of testosterone men have causes their muscle fibers to grow in that "bulky" way women find undesirable. Women have 20-30% less testosterone so we can gain the strength without the bulk effect. 

• Age is just a number! Your age and metabolism are NOT DIRECTLY related- lean muscle mass is the missing link. So many women tell me that their metabolism slowed as they aged when in truth the amount of lean muscle mass they have has decreased causing their metabolism to slow. Unfortunately you can't do anything about your age but you can INCREASE your lean muscle mass therefore increasing your metabolism.  

Go on Girls, lift Heavy this week! Please post below if you have upped your usual resistance load!

Hallow-LEAN

Happy Halloween! 

Yikes! Tonight is the Night! Whether you have kiddos who seem to be sabotaging your resolve to be healthy or you are like me and are worried about general proximity to candy we can all benefit from a few strategies on what to do when this happens: 

So here goes, a short and manageable list you can consult tonight and over the next few weeks to RESIST the candy overload. 

Halloween Night

• Be a procrastinator. This is one place where procrastinating can really work in your favor. As I write this I have yet to pick up candy for tonight's trick or treaters. This is definitely limiting the "exposure" to candy. 
• Pass out candy you don't like. This may sound sneaky but I am pretty particular about my candy. Frankly, I would rather have a piece of cake than a handful of candy with the exception of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Peanut M&Ms, and Twizzlers. Everything else I can take it or leave it. I know better from my Dairy Queen days than to keep Reese's within arms reach. 
• Keep it out of your sight line. This is how I stock my fridge and cupboard so why not include the candy. If I want to avoid eating something but for some reason need to have in in my house I keep it out of sight, and out of mouth!
• Consolidate the splurge. Take a cue from "Frankie Heck" from The Middle  and have candy tonight rather than tonight, tomorrow, and the next few weeks. Enjoy it and be done with it. I would not go as far as she did with the "as much as you can eat in the next 24 hours".  
• Skip the candy altogether! No, I am not talking about passing our tooth brushes but glow sticks, bubbles, or Halloween stickers is a nice change of pace.  
• Choose small bags and buckets for your children. Similar to plate size and portion control why not find small bags rather than pillow cases to use while trick or treating. 
• Eat Dinner! You wouldn't go grocery shopping or to a party starving would you? Then why would you go trick or treating without a base in your belly? Be sure to have something so you aren't filling up on candy which is not a food group... we'll call it a food like substance. 

Halloween Hangover

• Set an expiration date. Today set a time limit for how long the candy can stay in your house. There is no need for that to hang around through Thanksgiving; set the limit and stick to it!
• Go nuts. When you are choosing what to nosh on choose the least bad for you option: Candy with nuts, dark chocolate, and those with excessive wrappers to slow you down like Hershey's kisses.
• Pair candy with a healthy option. Before your expiration date be sure to pair your candy with something more substantial to keep your blood sugar nice and stable and avoid over eating. Remember it's a dessert. 
• Trade it! Encourage your little ones contact the Halloween Fairy.  

• When all else fails bring it to work and encourage others to head the warning from other "substances": "Enjoy Responsibly". 

Happy Halloween!

How to Handle Food Pushers

Have you taken a good look at your calendar lately? Brace yourself because with Halloween NEXT week Thanksgiving and the never ending onslaught of holiday related events are just around the corner. Don't let this time of year derail your goals and send you into a 6 week slump as you meet the new year. There are many strategies to handle the holiday season but I would love to kick off with one of the most challenging: The Food Pusher. 

Its true these Pushers give the likes of Johnny Dakota and other 1990s dealers a run for their money. If you are old enough to remember after school specials and Public Service Announcements to fight the war on drugs you may think you can identify Pushers by their leather jackets or hip blazer-tee shirt combos. Just stay away form abandoned play grounds and you will be safe... Right?   

The truth is the real dealers- The Food Pushers, can shape shift to resemble your friends and family. Those who your less motivated self ordered late night pizza with OR polished off an entire pie without a second thought. Your motivation or desire to better your health is a real threat to the Pushers. To them, this new "health kick" challenges your relationship making the Pushers evaluate their lives and health and maybe they're not quite ready to take that inventory. People will find their own motivation when they are ready but I know how frustrating it is when their "well meaning" interactions with you seem to try to chip away at your drive toward success. Be patient because many people don't understand the the Food Rules or the real purpose for food: nourishment and fuel not companionship, happiness, and certainly not a reward. 

How can you spot a PUSHER? 

Exhibit A: The head tilt

You know what I am talking about. The "Oh you're on a diet" pity gaze your friends and family give you after they mention dinner plans or put out a dessert spread. As you repress the feeling to scream "ITS A  F%#@ING LIFESTYLE!!!" take a DEEP breath and summon a diplomatic response. Here are some strategies to try on in the next few weeks so you are ready to roll this holiday season. Keep in mind that in many families "love" is shown through food but don't let guilt compel you to abandon your goals; just be aware of how you respond. Lifestyle changes require an ENORMOUS amount of dedication, as such there is often an equally ENORMOUS amount of emotion attached. Keep you emotions in check to keep your relationships from suffering. 

1. Just Say No

Thank you, Nancy Reagan for this powerful slogan! Sometimes we think we need to have elaborate reasons why we are not partaking in certain activities when a simple "No, Thank You" would suffice. Pushers are looking to give you an excuse this strategy works because there is not a lot of information for them to argue with.  Sometimes people think they know more than you do as if you didn't realize that one cupcake, in fact won't kill you until they mentioned it. 

2. Allergies/Sensitive Stomach

These days its pretty common to have special dietary needs. Why not jump on the gluten-peanut-lactose-egg-soy-meat free bandwagon. Most people have some sort of sensitivity so don't be afraid to make it work for you. Can't find an ingredient to be your scapegoat? Don't forget about the spices! No one will ask for your medical history. Its often easy enough to say that you have eliminated ______ from your diet lately and your stomach is thanking you for it. 

3. "But its your favorite!"

You know your friends and family well enough to be able to predict what they are going to serve at get together. Of course offer to bring something of the healthy variety and try to fill up on that while only having a few bites of more decadent treats; but if you are like the Pringles add, "Once you pop you just can't stop" and are vowing to abstain try the "OVERDOSE approach". When Pushers pass the brownie tray by you and notices you do not reach for the gooey goodness respond by saying something to the effect of "they look delicious but after my latest brownie binge I think I have hit my limit". 

4. "Oh, you're one of those diet or fitness obsessed people?" 

Some Pushers love to judge. Before you spout off this little ditty come up with an answer that glosses over this passive aggressive statement. 

If you are like me you HATE to let something like this go; deep down we both know that playing into it is only going to cause YOU aggravation. So if you laugh off the "obsessed" comment because A) you  more likely to annoy them and B) have the opportunity to say you have been concerned about your health and leave it at that. Most people will not ask follow up questions and its the truth we should all be watching what we are eating for health reasons. 

5. Take it To Go

Leftovers are almost always a no go for me. If I choose a day to be  my cheat day I will enjoy it BUT leave it at the door. My exception to this rule is when a Pusher will not quit. Respond by saying that you are stuffed but would love to take some home with you- then you can toss it when you are in the safety of your own home or better yet on the way home to avoid temptation. This works great because often when the moment passes even Pushers forget about your objection and you can go on your merry way.

When all else fails: 

Knock the cupcake out of the Pushers hand and unless you are George Costanza no one will expect you to eat something off the floor or out of the trash. So summon the strategies you learned to deal with peer pressure and the ones listed above and you too can survive workplace parades of treats (its always someone's birthday), happy hour, and even holiday get togethers.

Running Affirmations

I do not consider myself a runner. In fact I have often referred to myself as a fake runner meaning that I sign up for events but do not have any actual belief that I will in fact complete them successfully. I know all you readers of The Secret are probably thinking "Thoughts are Things". I do believe that which is why I continue my training mile after mile, morning after morning but will be genuinely surprised once I cross the finish line of the Women's Half in November.

I do identify myself as a amateur sociologist and even have a degree somewhere confirming that. I love people watching and "study" behavior and have noticed a phenomenon among the culture of runners I have encountered over the past few months of training that I believe warrants further discussion. I have primarily experienced life as a New Englander, more specifically a Masshole, where my daily interactions we largely guided by the "Stranger Danger" belief.

This no doubt was largely effected by my propensity to watch Law and Order SVU and CSI among other crime dramas. Also, in the Northeast we are resigned to the fact that our own daily business is infinitely more important than anyone else around us and can't afford to lose time by slowing down to say hello since we would then be in danger of losing focus on the task at hand. You might say I am a recovering New Englander since my pace certainly has changed to match my new surroundings here in St. Pete.

As I mentioned I am not a runner. I spent a large chunk of time during my one season of track in high school trying to figure out how I could socialize with the boys team without getting in trouble. So those of you who know me from high school will second my assertion that I am not a "real" runner. Because of my recent integration into this culture I am just now experiencing this aforementioned cultural phenomenon:

The Passing Greeting

In a hobby that can be so individual and even seclusive this show of solidarity among pavement pounders has truly taken me by surprise and made all the difference in my solo runs.  On mornings when I am ready to give up and walk the remaining mileage back to my car or home these waives, "good mornings", and knowing looks push me through to complete my run. These seemingly small gestures may as well be high fives or a dedicated cheering section that empowers and reminds me that I  can complete the distance. 

For every person that passes me there are many that are at my level, and even some who  for now I am stronger than. With every stride we are all gaining more than the pounds of sweat we are losing. No matter what our ability level we all meet with one goal: completion. Distances and pace vary but on the running trail we are all a team pushing each other to be stronger. 

I don't know if I will ever truly enjoy running. Currently, my favorite part of the run is when its over. But I do love the interactions I have with the runners who cross my path and I am truly grateful for their inspiration and energy on early morning runs.