Avoiding holiday sabotage
By Teralee Trommeshauser
I took it upon myself to start a detox last week. Just a short one, three days. I know what you’re all thinking: A detox around Christmas? You’re nuts! But truthfully, I eat fairly healthy most of the time, and I’m not one to indulge on holiday treats regardless. I had high hopes. This would be easy! But as the first day was about half way done I remembered the gluten free pecan shortbread in the kitchen.
Well, it wasn’t going to eat itself, and who knows – it may have gone bad by the time the detox was done (right?!), and I hate wasting food. The detox is now postponed until after Christmas, as you can imagine.
During the holiday season it’s a little more realistic for us to lower our expectations in regards to our exercise diligence and self control, with being constantly surrounded by friends, family, rich food, and lists of things to do, buy, bake, and clean. It’s no wonder that people throw their health to the window and wait for the New Year to make new goals and resolutions, hoping to combat the effects of all the holiday indulgences (the number of gym memberships skyrocket in January). But you don’t need to wait until the New Year to start planning for your health. In fact, you might be setting yourself up for failure if you plan unrealistic goals and set high expectations for yourself immediately after indulging for a couple weeks. Putting together a small, short term, goal-oriented plan for over the Christmas holidays will help you build the foundation for achieving those larger, more long-term fitness and health New Year’s Resolutions. Just remember to set a few realistic goals, be prepared, have a plan, and have fun. Don’t worry about it too much, and just keep in mind that every little bit counts. In my last email newsletter I listed 5 tips to help you avoid sabotaging your health, goals, and waistline, this holiday season. Here’s a quick refresher, and if you missed the entire newsletter, you can find it here. 1. Create some goals for the holidays. Take a moment and ask yourself what you want out of this holiday season. Where have you fallen short in the past, and how can you help prevent it this time? Do you end up eating way too much of Granny’s maple fudge, or do you seem to blow off your workout until after the New Year? Write out your problem areas for this time of year, and brainstorm ideas on how to prevent it. Are there healthy alternatives you could make? Can you create a weekly schedule for yourself? 2. Stock up! Keep your fridge and pantry fully stocked with healthy and delicious choices to ensure you don’t succumb to cravings for traditional, unhealthy, snacks and sweets. Washed, cut veggies and healthy desserts are a must! 3. Simplify what you eat at home, and fill up on nutritious-rich foods like big salads, and green smoothies. This will help counter the effects of eating heavy, rich foods when you are out. 4. Drink more herbal tea! Not only will this help you keep you warm on those chilly winter days, drinking tea helps ward off cravings. Oolong and green teas have also been linked to weight loss. 5. Don’t stress about it! Stressing about the holidays could make you pile on the extra pounds. The likely reason? Cortisol, your stress hormone (which is linked to increased cravings and hunger) goes up faster and stays elevated longer while you’re fretting! Exercise is a great way to combat stress! So as an early Christmas present, I’m going to give you a delicious, healthy, holiday dessert recipe, and a quick workout you can do at home, without the use of any equipment to help jump-start your healthy holiday plan. Guilt-Free Apple Crisp This simple and delicious recipe is a take on traditional apple crisp. You wont believe what an amazing guilt-free substitute this one makes for the original sugar, flour, and butter, filled one! Sit back and indulge on this treat either warmed out of the dehydrator, or hot out of the oven – which ever you prefer! And if you haven’t learned about all the health benefits of using coconut oil, I highly recommend you do an internet search! Filling:6 apples peeled, cored, and sliced (I use one of those handy peeler/corer devises)1 tsp cinnamon2-4 Tbsp honey (depending on your taste)2 Tbsp coconut oilPinch of saltHandful of raisins or dried cranberries Crumble:1 cup of pecans½ – ¾ cup of datesDash of cinnamon2 Tbsp coconut oil1 tsp vanilla Filling: Put two of the sliced/cored apples, cinnamon, honey, coconut oil, and salt into a food processor and process until smooth. Toss in a large bowl with remaining apple slices and raisins or cranberries. Pour into a glass baking dish. Crumble: Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until combined, yet crumbly with texture. Sprinkle the crumble over the apple mixture and place in the dehydrator at 110° for 2 hours. Alternatively, if you would prefer your apple crisp closer to its original (nice and hot rather than just warmed) you could place it in the oven, at a lower temperature (around 300°), until desired hotness. You would be sacrificing some enzymes but in the wintertime hot food can be just that much more satisfying! 15-Minute Body Blast This isn’t meant to replace a regular workout regime, but sure does the trick when we’re lacking time! Fit this into your busy holiday schedule or add it onto your existing exercise routine! I’ve provided both a beginner and a more advanced version, so no one has any excuses here! (Remember to consult your preferred medical practitioner before beginning a new exercise program, especially if you’re new to exercise or have any complications that could cause a problem) Do each exercise for 40-60 seconds, with no rest in between. After you complete one round, rest for one minute, then repeat 1 or 2 more times, for a total of 2 or 3 rounds. Remember to stretch afterwards! Beginner: Squats Feet should be shoulder wide apart, shoulders back, knees never going toes.Stationary Lunges Weight is equalized between both feet. Lunge with one leg for half the set time (20-30 seconds) then switch legs to complete a set. Tricep dips Use a sturdy chair or bench. The closer your feet are to your body, the easier the exercise. Keeping shoulders back and down, dip until arms form a 90° angle. Running Man Slow Place yourself in push-up position, arms extended. Bring in knees, one at a time, without rounding your back or sagging your hips. Go faster to make this harder, and alternatively this exercise can be done with your hands on a raised surface to make it easier. Keep your abs contracted. Plank Get into plank position on your forearms. Elbows should be under shoulders, eyes looking down. For a more beginner option, this can be done on the knees, rather than toes. Oblique Crunches Lying on your back, knees bent with feet flat on the ground, hands at hand. Leading with your shoulder, not your elbow, bring an opposite knee and elbow up, lowering all the way, then the repeat with other side. Do this exercise slow and controlled, always returning to the starting position before switching sides. Never arch your back. Advanced: Squat with Calf Raise As you come up into standing position, go up onto your toes. Alternating Lunges Step forward into a lunge with your right leg, then pushing off with your right foot back into standing position, lunge again with your left leg, and alternate. Tricep Dips with Elevated Feet The same as the beginner dip only have your legs straight out in front of you, with your heels resting on something elevated, such as a low stool. Remember to keep your bum close to your chair as you dip. Mountain Climber Place yourself in push-up position, arms extended, with one knee forward. In one motion, alternate your right and left leg positions, switching back and forth, without arching your back or letting your hips sag. Plank with Lean Get into plank position on forearms. While keeping proper form, lean your body forward, bringing your head over your hands, hold for a few second, then lean backwards, hold, and alternate. Oblique Crunches with Leg Extension Same position as beginner version, only instead of having both legs bent, and feet on the ground, on leg is extended straight out. As you bring one knee in, the other leg extends, keeping 2 inches off the ground. Remember to lead with your shoulder, not your elbow and never arch your back. For more clarifications on any exercises look them up on Youtube, or feel free to message me any questions! Have a happy, healthy, holiday! Teralee Trommeshauser lives in Castlegar, BC, and is a health and fitness enthusiast, currently working on her Holistic Nutrition and Fitness Education certifications. This column originally appeared in her blog, Real Life, Real Health.
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