The 12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 1

I love holiday preparations as much as the next person...maybe even more. I get so excited for all of the decorations, traditions, family festivities, parties, and yes...of course...the food. Oh, the holiday goodies...and the amazing magical ability they have to show up in every possible location all month long. 

I want you to continue to have a happy and healthy holiday season this year, so I've decided to give you 12 days of Holiday Health Tips.

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 TIP #1: Make your plan NOW. 

Decide now what your goals are for the month, what your boundaries are going to be, and make them measurable. For example...
- "I am going to only eat out on Friday and Saturday nights, and I'm going to make healthy meals during the week."
- "I'm going to pick one dessert at this holiday party instead of trying one of all ten."
- "I am going to workout four times every week."
- "I will record my food every day, even at pot luck parties."

You get the gist. You want your plan to be something you can look at and say, "Check...yes, I did that." Starting your plan now, and following through with it will help you to make it to January without feeling like you have spun out of control.

What is a goal you have for yourself for the month of December? How are you going to make healthy choices this month? 

The 12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 2

One of the first things that usually goes out the window when the holidays come (and when times get crazy in general) is exercise. It is far to easy to find time to do everything else that we need to do, and save our exercise for, "later," or, "tomorrow."

Fact: The holidays are busy.
Fact: Exercise may not be as exciting as going Christmas shopping.
Fact: Cold weather is not extremely conducive to attending the gym and running outside.
Fact: Getting in a session at the gym doesn't get your holiday treats made and your gifts wrapped.
Fact: The stress of the holidays gets crazy and sometimes overwhelming.
Fact: It is hard to enjoy the holidays when you feel like a giant stress case. 
Fact: Exercise helps with stress.

Tip #2: Don't skip your workouts.

There are so many benefits of exercise. You will feel better, you will sleep better, you will make healthier choices, and you will avoid the holiday weight that finds itself on our hips. It is SO easy to set it aside, but make this December the year that you don't let it go by the wayside. Combat cold weather by working out indoors at a gym, going to a fitness class, doing a video at home, or dressing properly for cold weather. Make this year one that you stay on top of your health and fitness regimens. You will be so glad you did.

How do you combat workouts in the cold? How do you make your workouts fit in with the craziness of the holidays?

Click HERE to see all 12 days of Holiday Health Tips!

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 10

We are exactly two weeks away from Christmas Day! It is at this point that i turn into a ten year old and bust out the paper chain, start begging people to watch cheesy holiday movies with me, and go full court press with the Holiday tunes.

Speaking of... My favorites this year are Michael Buble's Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, and Justin Beiber's Mistletoe, with Ellen of course. 

With the days until Christmas diminishing, all of the Christmas shopping has begun to get CRAZY. I love Christmas shopping! Well, I love any shopping, but it is always fun to try and find great things for the people you love with the excitement of getting to see them open it! If you are still looking for great things to give your friends and family, consider giving them the gift of health. Think about it, good health is something that we want most for ourselves and for all of the people that we love, so why not make your gifts healthy ones this year!

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 Tip#10: Give the gift of health!

Here are some great options of healthy gifts that you can give to inspire the people you love!!

- new workout clothing
(shoes, running socks, tanks, etc.)

How cute are these Nike Tempo Shorts? Yes please. 

- running /workout accessories
(Garmin, HR monitor, exerspy, headbands, a water belt, a new gym bag, lifting gloves, a jogging stroller)

Remember my Bondi Band?These headbands are awesome to workout out in, and would make a great gift. I absolutely love mine!

- a pass to your local gym, a punch card for fitness classes, or sessions with a personal trainer
- MUSIC!!
(an iPod, headphones, a gift card for music)
- a set of free weights for home
- a TRX trainer
- a medicine ball
- a jump rope
- a massage 
- a gift certificate to a health foods store
- healthy cooking items (Here is a list of my kitchen favorites if you are looking for good gifts for healthy cooking gadgets!)
- health books/magazines/dvds
- gift cards to healthy restaurants 

Some great gifts for neighbors/teachers/friends may be...
- fruit baskets
- nuts
- whole grain breads with fresh jam
- books
- gift cards

Hopefully these ideas helped a bit! What are the healthy gifts that you are giving or asking for this holiday season?

Click HERE to read all of the healthy holiday tips for this Christmas Season!

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 7

One of the hardest things about the holiday season is the ginormous abundance of holiday sweets. I swear they turn up in every possible place. At home on the doorstep, at work, in sample form at the grocery store....EVERYWHERE. So...in order to avoid eating every possible treat in sight, make your holiday treats healthier this year!

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 Tip #7: Make your holiday treats HEALTHY ones. 

There are always a lot of parties, and most of them are oozing at the seems with treats. It can be difficult to go to all the shin digs you are invited to and keep up the will power. If you can do it...awesome. HOWEVER, there are some ways that you can stop yourself from overindulging and not feel like you are completely deprived. My solution...bring your own holiday treat, and make it a healthy one! If you bring a healthy contribution to a party you will have something there that you know you can eat and I can assure you...other people will appreciate it. These can make great neighbor/teacher/co-worker/friend gifts as well!

One of my FAVORITE treats (any time of year) are my low-fat zucchini cookies.

Cinnamon Almonds

Homemade Cinnamon Applesacue

or even some Dancing Blondies.

Some other great options to bring to a party are...fresh fruit, veggies and dip, or even a great healthy salad!

What is your favorite healthy treat options? Do you feel like you are completely surrounded by junk? If so, how do you avoid overindulging?

Click HERE to read the rest of Decembers Holiday Health Tips

12 Days of Healthy Holiday Tips - Day 11

I have heard so many people talking about the great things they are doing to help serve others this holiday season, and I love it. It makes me so happy. There are so many people who are struggling, and taking the time out of our busy schedules to do something for someone else can be life changing. I have mentioned before that I think a big part of our health is the love we feel. Well, I think an even bigger part of our health is the love we share.

 

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Tip #11: Give Service

It has been said by so many people that if you are feeling low, sad, depressed, or unhappy...the best thing that you can do is go serve someone else. I think Christmastime is the perfect time to do it. Make it a family effort. Make it a tradition. My parents are a great example of service to me, and in the past my family has done things like participate in sub for santa, volunteered at the food coalition, and secretly given lonely individuals the twelve days of Christmas to lift their spirits. It is amazing how great you feel when you turn your focus away from yourself and try to do something for somebody in need. It can even be as easy as spending time with a friend or saying hello to a stranger. Take time this holiday season to serve. It will help your health.

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.  ~Winston Churchill

It's easy to make a buck.  It's a lot tougher to make a difference.  ~Tom Brokaw

  

Go the extra mile.  It's never crowded.  ~Author Unknown

  Do you have any service traditions? Do you feel better when you are giving service to the people around you?
Click HERE to read the rest of this month's Holiday Health Tips

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 4

After getting up in the "4's" to catch my flight back to UT this morning I'm feeling a bit sleepy. This leads me right into tip number 4 for a healthy holiday season. I see people who run themselves ragged trying to get things done for Christmas, and then when it all comes around they don't even enjoy it because they are so exhausted. This is NOT what the holidays are about, and this is NOT the way to lose weight/feel healthy/get things done/achieve fitness goals. I can promise you that. When you are tired because of lack of sleep people tend to cut out exercise because they are exhausted. They make poor food choices because the body craves carbohydrates/sugar due to the need for a quick boost in energy. Tired busy people grab food. USUALLY grabbing food means fast food, and that can be S-C-A-R-Y.

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 Tip #4: Get Some Sleep

So, my advice to you? Make sleep a priority. Lack of sleep often is a great segway into getting sick, and nobody wants to have their holiday festivities ruined with germs! Get through the holidays feeling healthy and enjoying them like you are supposed to! If you need to cut back on the chaos to do so, then do it. Sometimes less is more. I have done a ton of posts in the past on why sleep is so dang important...a few faves being...Cheer Up Sleepy Jean...zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...and It's a Love Hate Thing.


Do You find yourself running on only a few hours of sleep to get everything done? Do you make sleep a priority? Do you recognize when you're overdoing it and suffering in the sleep department, or do you just soldier through? I know sometimes my sleep takes the brunt of my busy schedule, and when that is the case I pay for it! I am WORTHLESS without some good sleep in me.

Click HERE to read all of the holiday health tips.

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 9

Food. Food. Food. I know I've already brought up the fact that food seems to be within six inches of your reach at all moments during the month of December. I'm sure you can relate to the feeling of ending your evening feeling like a stuffed Thanksgiving turkey. For the record, I HATE that feeling, and yet it still happens from time to time. Sometimes feeling stuffed like that at night can lead to waking up the next morning feeling full and gross. There is one thing that always makes me feel better when this happens.

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 Tip #9: Drink LOTS of water.

One thing I always tell my clients is to aim to drink 100 oz of water a day. I know it seems like a lot, but it is totally possible, and it will help. It will help to flush your system, keep you full so you don't eat a ton of junk, and is a great natural detox. A great signification that you are getting enough water is the color of your urine. Sounds gross...BUT...it should look light yellow, not dark. Drinking a lot of water can also help clear your skin and it will just make you feel better. Take the 100 oz challenge! See if you can get your water in everyday!


Are you a water drinker? Do you have to make a conscious effort to get your water in or do you drink a lot of water anyways?

Click HERE to read the rest of the Holiday Health Tips

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 5

I have learned over the years that I have so much more fun working out when I have a workout partner. I loved being at home these past couple weeks in Arizona where I was able to go running with Nichole and work out with my sister and my mom doing the filthy fifty. I knew they were planning on me to be there for the workout, and I was counting on them as well. When Benita used to live close by we worked out together all the time, and I loved it! I definitely miss that! Not only is it a heck of a lot more entertaining to be able to talk and laugh/complain your way through your workout, but it gives you some accountability as well. This principle definitely holds true during the busy holiday season.

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 Tip #5: Find a Workout Partner 

Make your chances of getting your workouts done a little higher by finding someone else to workout with you. I know that this season is SO busy, and finding time in your own schedule to work out is hard enough. The chances of you being able to combine two schedules may be tricky, but if you want to stick to your routine, having someone there to keep you at it is a definite plus. I know that many of my clients are perfectly capable of working out alone; however, it is the fact they know I am there waiting for them three times a week that keeps them consistent. Find a buddy! You may be a huge help in motivating THEM to get in shape too! Worth it!

Do you have someone you work out with on a regular basis, or do you prefer to workout alone? Do you find that it helps to have a buddy?

To read all of the Holiday Health Tips Click HERE.

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 6

Efficiency is a HUGE thing for me at the gym. You will not see me hanging out at the gym shooting the breeze whomever will chat with me and taking fifteen minute rests between sets. I think I'd go crazy if I did so actually. I like to get to the gym, workout, and get home. I love working out, and sometimes a good long workout is like medicine for my soul. However, I'm all about doing whatever I can to maximize my workout time and get the most bang for my caloric bucks (and my time of course.) During the holiday season, finding time to workout can be tough,  but it is doable. When you do find that time you don't want to waste it lallygagging around the gym. You want to make sure you are getting in, and getting it done as efficiently as possible.

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 Tip #6: Make Your Workouts Count.

Trying to get a quick workout in doesn't have to mean you don't work up a good sweat and burn a ton of calories. You can definitely do both! My longtime readers know I am a HUGE fan of circuit training and HIIT. It is the best thing you can do for fat loss, it's a great calorie burner, and it is a great way to keep your workouts interesting. I have posted a ton of circuit training workouts and a lot of info on interval training as well. If you are looking for a good way to get in a good sweat and burn a ton of calories while doing so try some of these workouts out!

I did a great full body circuit yesterday that went a little something like this...

10 minute warm up on the treadmill
15 assisted pullups
24 alternating rows with a deep lunge (12 on each side/20 lb DB)
15 squats with a curl (20 lb DB's)
2 minute sprint 
(repeat 3 times)


20 single leg squat to walking lunges with 2 push ups at the bottom (I may have to show these sometimes soon. They are KILLER.) Twenty feels like 300.
15 Overhead tricep presses
2 minute sprint
(repeat 3 times)

20 minute set of intervals in the elliptical
Finish with wiping off your sweat. Cause you'll need to... 

Side note...Tonight my sister Linds arrived for a little weekend visit. I have missed her SO much since she moved with her fam to Austin, and I was thrilled to see her! She has been my little pseudo mother most of the time I've been in Provo because my parents moved to Arizona. We headed straight to Yogurtland after her arrival, and I can tell you one thing. Me + My fam + frozen yogurt = happiness. 

Please excuse the crappy blackberry photo...sometimes you have to take what you can get!

Are you a fan of circuit training? If you haven't tried it you most definitely should! I do a lot of HIIT with my clients and it gets results!

Click HERE to catch up on all of this months Healthy Holiday Tips

The 12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 3

If there is ONE thing I am extremely faithful on, no questions asked, it is breakfast. I absolutely LOVE breakfast. I seem to wake up every morning hungry and excited to get my breakfast in. It has been proven that those who lose weight and keep their weight at a healthy place are breakfast eaters. It helps to get your metabolism going, helps you to make smarter meal choices throughout the day, and the list goes on and on. Click HERE for a previous post on why breakfast is for champions.

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  Tip #3: Eat a good breakfast. 

As the days before the holidays seem to get more and more crazy, be sure you start your day off right. Eating a good breakfast can help you to have the energy you need to get through your busy days, get your workouts in, and feel better all around. People make better decisions when the day starts with a good breakfast. Don't find yourself mid-day not having eaten a thing and ravenous...it tends to lead to poor habits, poor food choices, and binge eating.

Some good breakfast choices?

All Bran Muffins
Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes
Healthy Cereal Options

Whole Wheat Pancakes
Greek Yogurt Protein Shake
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins
Crock Pot Steel Cut Oats

Click HERE to see all of the holiday health tips for the season.

What are your favorite healthy breakfast choices? Are you a breakfast eater or do you tend to skip out on your morning meal? I usually go for oatmeal in the morning. It warms me up and keeps me full!

12 Days of Holiday Health Tips - Day 8

This one is a no-brainer, and it may be my favorite tip of them all. Today was an awesome day that I was able to spend with the people I love the most...my family in this beautiful place. 

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 Tip # 8: Spend a lot of time with the people you love.

Unhappy leads to unhealthy, and I know I am the happiest when I am able to spend time with my family and friends. I have so many great people in my life that mean so much to me.

 I think most of you would agree that a large part of health comes from happiness and love, both of which are emotions that come when you are surrounded by those who love the most.

So BE SURE to make time in your busy holiday schedules to enjoy those individuals who you have in your life. It really is what matters most in life.  Don't you agree?

Do you have fun holiday plans with family and friends for the month? I sure hope so! I can't wait for the majority of my family to head to Arizona for a fun Christmas celebration.

Too Funny...and FAR too true.

Every now and again I come across something that makes me laugh really hard. Today I have found one of those gems. Don't worry...there will be another healthy tip for my 12 days of Healthy Holiday Tips a little later today, BUT sometimes I think laughter bring happiness, and both are part of health. Right?

A friend of mine posted this on his FB wall (ironic once you see what it is) and I loved everything about it, probably because
a) it's true
b) I see it FAR too often
c) people can be borderline ridiculous...

Anyways...this post on Hilarious and Handsome Sports Guys is too funny. It's all about people's Facebook Status updates. I always have to joke a weeee bit about habitual gym status updaters. You know who I'm talking about. Read this excerpt. You'll laugh, I promise.

"Every day, possibly multiple times a day, we check our facebook pages to see what is going on with our friends. Unfortunately, some of our friends abuse their privilege of typing on the internet and force us to read useless and obnoxious status updates. Is it so much to ask for status updates that make us laugh, cry, inspired, excited, or even informed? Well, for these friends, it is far too much to ask.

 Stop with the pictures. Stop with the updates. This has gotten out of hand.

The Gym Rat

Obnoxious Update: 

“Just got my swole on.”

“About to hit the gym . . . AGAIN!”

“Cranked out 20 pullups tonight. I’m gonna be sore tomorrow.”

Why It’s Obnoxious: 

No one cares about your workout! Believe it or not, most of the people forced to scroll through your daily workout accomplishments probably went to the gym too. And somehow through the holy power of St. Mary, they were able to jog on a treadmill without telling everyone. I’m sure this status is a desperate cry for attention. We all want the occasional, “wow, looking good buddy,” “are you losing weght?” or “omg, I had no idea Brad Pitt was coming to this party.” However, these compliments should be earned, not begged for by turning us into your workout diary. (And on a related note – no one wants to see pictures of you flexing in the mirror. Yes, you are the same person that gives workout updates)

What’s Acceptable: 

People want to hear about actual accomplishments. For example, you bench a small car at the gym. Facebook wants to know about this and see pictures. Maybe you ran in a big race you have been training for or you’re posting hilarious/inspirational, embarrassing pictures of yourself on a daily basis, then update as much as you want. Please, keep us updated on anything funny that happens while you are working out. If someone gets trapped under 400 pounds, we need to know. Some guy pees his pants a little because he curled so much weight, we need to know. A girl falls off the treadmill while talking on the phone and reading a magazine, we need to know.

Possible Fixes: 

“Just saw Arnold Schwarzenegger in my gym.”

“Definitely saw two guys doing synchronized flexes in the mirror – I really need a new gym.”

“Ran the Boston Marathon this morning. Passed a few Kenyans. What have you done this morning?”"

A little bit funny right? Don't get me wrong. I'm GLAD these peeps are going to the gym. I really am. I just don't think we all need to hear about every rep that they're doing, and mile they are running. Am I right?
Read the whole article HERE. It's pretty hilarious.


Do you know some habitual gym status updaters? I'm sure you do...