[BetterBalance] Healthy Happy Holidays...

[Guest guest]

Ok, I am sure more can be said, but here is a more comprehensive,

systemic article on how to deal with the holidays... Enjoy,

Misty L. Trepke

http://www..com

 

 

Healthy Happy Holidays (part II)

 

1. SIMPLIFY

All you have to do is say no. You are the one in control of your

schedule and you don't have to feel guilt if you turn down an

invitation or decline your services. If you are debating on whether

or not to commit, just listen to yourself and your body language. If

you let out an exhausted breath, tense your shoulders, roll your

eyes, bite your lip or grit your teeth before the word " yes " or " ok "

escapes your lips then you know you should say " no " . Try it a few

times. You'll find there is great power in saying no. You'll have

confidence in yourself, be more effective in the tasks you do

undertake and when you do say " yes " you'll feel good about it

because you'll know you sincerely want to participate. You can't

say, " yes " to every good thing. You have to be selective.

(Questions?)

 

2. TIME OUT

If you think you don't have time to take a break, that is the very

moment you need to take one. If you take even a few minutes to

nurture yourself and let yourself be aware of your needs, you will

be much more effective the rest of the day. When we go around

hurried and stressed we forget to eat, go to the bathroom and

breathe. We rarely breathe correctly, all too often taking short and

shallow breaths. We deprive our body and brain of oxygen and we

begin to malfunction. Take time to breathe. (Take stress test) How

did you do?

 

 

RELAXATION EXERCISE

1. Sit comfortably in your chair with your feet flat on the floor,

legs uncrossed and hands resting comfortably on your legs.

 

2. Close your eyes and breathe deeply, in through your nose. Fill

your lugs to capacity and then breathe in even more. Hold for a

second or two then slowly release. When all your air is gone, push

from your diaphragm and squeeze the rest of the air out. Repeat this

deep breathing 3-5 times.

 

3. Now let your breathing become full, but gentle and rhythmic.

 

4. Picture yourself sitting in the warm sand at the edge of the

ocean, just before sunrise. If you enjoy the water you can scoot

closer and let the water gently wash over your feet. If not, stay

where you are and just listen to the rhythmic waves. As outside

thoughts or noises enter your mind, picture them as blossoms

floating toward you on the wind. In your mind, reach out gently and

take them, acknowledge them, then drop them into the water and let

them float gently away from you.

 

5. Feel your feet as they become heavy. Wiggle the tension out of

your toes and feel the muscles in your toes, your arches and your

ankles relax. Your feet feel comfortably warm and that warm,

tingling sensation works it way up your calves, passes through your

knees and warms your thighs. Your legs are heavy and totally relaxed.

 

6. As thoughts come in to your consciousness, acknowledge the

blossoms and float them gently away.

 

7. Now this warm and tingly feeling moves into your hips. Feel your

hips relax and let all the tension release from your lower back as

the relaxing feeling moves up your spine and through your abdomen

and chest. Take a deep cleansing breath as you feel your body relax

and sink into your chair.

 

8. Your hands feel heavy and you can feel the warmth move through

your wrists and up your arms. You feel your shoulders relax. Let

them droop. Feel the tension melt out of your neck and the warm

tingling feeling comes up the back of your head and around to your

face. You feel your forehead relax, your temples, your jaw and your

lips.

 

9. You are completely relaxed in a safe, comforting place. You can

come to this place any time and release and regenerate. Breathe

deeply and comfortably—in …and out. Picture in your mind a ball of

soft yellow light just above your navel. It gives you a feeling of

stability and strength. You feel the warmth of its energy grow and

spread outward to your limbs. You feel energized and confident. Your

mind is clear and accepting.

 

10. You look out across the ocean toward the horizon as the sun

begins to rise. You feel its warmth on your face and the energy

within you resonates. You are ready to greet the day. One more deep

breathe in… and blow it out. Open your eyes.

 

(Questions?)

 

3. EAT REAL FOOD

We cannot expect these machines we call our bodies to run

efficiently or effectively if we do not provide the proper fuel for

them. Each nutrient performs a specific function within our bodies

and there has to be a balance of nutrients for our bodies to be able

to assimilate and use the nutrients we are taking in. That is why it

is important to eat a rotated diet. Rotate your grains, your meats,

fruits and vegetables. Variety is the spice of life and the best way

to avoid food allergies and intolerances.

 

Play " WHAT'S IN YOUR FOOD "

Compare prepared foods – Deceptive advertising – Read the labels –

Identify the ingredients – Watch the sugar and sodium content.

(Tuna, soy sauce, bullion,)

 

Your food is one area where you do NOT want to simplify. Simple

sugars and simple carbs will steal your energy, rob you of your

health and cause you to gain weight. I will go into more detail

about this in our class in January on How to be Healthy and Lose

Weight. To put it " simply " , refined sugars and refined carbs do not

get broken down before they enter our blood stream and our bodies

see them as invasive substances. They create antibodies against them

and weaken our immune system.

 

Simple Substitutes

Instead of refined sugar, use sucanat, brown rice syrup or stevia.

(Pass samples) These are sweeteners that are in their whole form.

They have not been refined so they have larger molecules. Our body

has to break them down before they enter our blood stream. This

gives you a nice even release of energy instead of spiking your

blood sugar and then dropping you like a rock. The herb, stevia,

balances blood sugar and has other health promoting effects on the

body. Finding suitable substitutes for refined sugar may even be

life saving. Statistics show that one in three of our children will

become diabetic. We need to change our sugared-down culture to

protect our children's future health and ours.

 

Instead of refined, white flour use whole wheat or even better use a

low-carb and gluten-free grain like spelt, kamut, quinoa or

amaranth. (Pass samples) They are more nutritious and do not cause

the allergies and congestion that wheat does. For those trying to

manage their weight, this could be the most effective substitute to

implement. For diabetics the results can even decrease or eliminate

the need for medications.

 

If you start reading labels you'll discover that high amounts of

sodium are in almost all prepared foods. With heart disease being

the number one killer in the nation we need to find a better

alternative to salt. (Pass sea salt) Using sea salt instead of

iodized salt is a good and inexpensive way to go. Sea salt is full

of the kind of salt the body needs and has many good nutrients, too.

Decreasing your intake of processed foods will dramatically reduce

your iodized salt intake.

 

One of the biggest misguided attempts at promoting health was the

idea that saturated fats were bad and that canola oil was heart-

healthy. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I'm going to give

you a little preview of our January class on weight management since

we'll be discussing good fat verses bad fat extensively in that one.

(Read highlights from " Coconut Oil instead of Canola Oil " )

 

So you see, fat is not the enemy. Just choose your fats wisely. Does

this give you license to ingest all the " good fat " you can. No. Use

moderation in all things. There are many recipes that are just as

good with the fats and oils reduced or all together left out.

Karen Davis, nutrition and weight loss coach in Georgia recommends

filling up on good food before you go to parties where you know

there will be lots of goodies. She says, " Willpower only lasts so

long. You've got to have a plan. "

 

Making a few simple substitutes and staying away from processed and

refined foods will not only keep you from getting caught in the

weight gain trap, but you'll go through the holidays, healthier,

happier and better equipped mentally and physically to meet the

demands of your holiday schedule. (Questions?)

 

4. GET ENOUGH SLEEP

I cannot emphasize this enough. Your body needs that 8 hours to

regenerate to keep from attempting to function while sleep deprived.

An imbalance in your body can make it difficult to fall asleep and

can also give you a restless night. Good nutrition, nurturing

yourself and managing your schedule will all help towards a good

night sleep. The easiest, yet most difficult step towards a good

night's sleep, is to simply make the decision to get to bed. You

have to realize that you will always go to bed with something

undone. You will never reach that point where you've completed every

task you have so you need to establish a cut off time. Once you

firmly decide that you will start going to bed by a certain time and

actually be in bed by a certain time, you will be able to lay down

without the guilt and get a good night's sleep, knowing that you

will be more able to greet the day with enthusiasm and energy.

 

There are several natural and enjoyable ways to assist you until

your body is back in a balanced sleep routine. Relaxation or

meditation before bed may help. Deep breathing for a few minutes

will oxygenate your muscles, helping you to relax and calm yourself.

Herbal teas with passionflower, skullcap, catnip or chamomile will

help to relax nerves and induce sleep without the next morning

hangover feeling. Tinctures of the same herbs are also very

beneficial. Exercising early in the day will help to jumpstart your

metabolism, burn energy all day and give you a more restful sleep at

night. Massage or reflexology will also help with relieving tension,

breaking up congestion in the body and promoting a restful sleep.

Community classes are available here for couples massage and

reflexology, allowing you to learn and implement some of these

skills yourself.

 

5. ESTABLISH GOALS

(Handout on goals)

1. What does the holiday season mean to me? (spiritual, emotional,

physical)

 

2. What are the 3 most important goals for myself this holiday

season?

 

3. What am I willing to let go in order to have more time?

 

4. What 5 steps do I need to take to make my actions consistent with

my goals?

 

5. How will I implement my 5 steps daily into my routine? (as soon

as I dress, after breakfast, right before bed, etc.)

 

6. How will I remember to implement the 5 steps? (alarm, signs, etc.)