Stay Active During the Holidays

With the increased demands on us, it’s easy to give up exercise during the holidays. Who has time for trips to the gym or exercise classes when there is shopping, decorating, mailing, baking, and so forth to accomplish? People intent on enjoying their holidays do! Actually, maintaining your exercise program is essential to getting the greatest pleasure from your holidays.

Given the hectic pace, be creative in your approach. Rather than eliminate exercise, look for ways to modify your regular routine. Cutting the time in half is better than skipping it altogether. Take a walk during your child’s piano lesson. Try NEAT, non-exercise activity thermogenesis, to expend calories by building activity into your day. Stand rather than sit, and pace rather than stand. Return telephone calls on your cell phone while walking, ironing, or folding laundry. Park at a distance from the store, and make several trips to the car. Strive to take the stairs everywhere, and be less efficient at home to take the stairs more often.

Keep in mind that activity is an effective way to alleviate stress. Consider trying yoga, a wonderful relaxation technique. Besides the great physical benefits it affords, yoga harmonizes the body with the mind, enabling people to perform activities efficiently while enhancing overall satisfaction. Need something simpler? Take a brisk walk and spend quiet time alone or invite a loved one and talk out your stress. How about dancing? Music is a terrific mood enhancer, and the aerobic movement will energize you and release excess emotion after a stressful day.

Finally, when planning your holiday activities, include those that get you and others moving. Set up a caroling event or tree-trimming party. When dividing the tasks among family members, choose to decorate or go shopping. Volunteer for a local charity wrapping gifts, delivering gift baskets, or serving food. Make your family outings and events active. Walk off your holiday dinner and enjoy the lights, go skating, or clear the living room for dancing.

Whatever you choose to do, make it fun and have your best holiday yet this year!

Minimize Holiday Stress

Despite the celebrations and good intentions, the holidays are stressful for many people. Time demands, limited funds, unrealistic expectations, and family issues – all of these and more can turn what should be a joyous season into a hectic and even traumatic time. This year, make a conscious choice to create the holiday experience you want to have.

Start by being selective with the events you attend. Just because you’re invited to six parties, doesn’t mean you have to attend them all. Consider rotating your attendance; attend his employer’s party this year and yours next year. How would it feel if you went separately – you attend your work party while your spouse attends hers? Or simply just decline – whatever works best for you.

(scottchan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net)

Once you’ve decided on your priorities for the year, “pen” those on the calendar first, and plan everything else around them. Shopping, baking, and decorating can all be worked in; plan ahead so you can enjoy attending your son’s holiday concert.

Holiday time can mean cutting back on sleep as we strive to fit everything in. Avoid this temptation and maintain your sleep routine as much as possible. This will enable you to minimize stress, maximize your productivity, and maintain good judgment. Burning the candle at both ends only makes us unproductive as we waste time making errors and being indecisive.

Look for ways to save yourself time and effort. Order preprinted holiday cards and have your gifts wrapped by the store or at the charity booth at the mall to save time and do a good deed. Buy your holiday pies from the local bakery, or do your shopping online. As you work to accomplish what you need to, consider what tasks you can delegate. Don’t pass up any offers of help, and if others don’t offer to help, ask them to! If you can, hire some outside help for house cleaning or other chores you don’t need to do yourself. Remember that the holidays are for having fun, so be sure to allow time for relaxation.

Create a New Mindset for the Holidays

Can you envision a holiday season that is enjoyable and relatively stress-free and doesn’t leave you tired and carrying more weight than you started with? It is possible! Set an intention for the kind of holiday you’d like to have this year. As you move through December, examine your old traditions, habits, and beliefs, and see where you’d benefit from adopting new ones.

Begin by considering when the holiday season starts for you. Did it start at Halloween? Will it continue past January 1? What triggers the start for you – Thanksgiving, the day you put up your Christmas tree or other holiday decorations, or something else? If possible, begin your celebrating later in season; for example, bake holiday treats closer to the actual holiday. When do you consider the holiday to be over – when the special food is gone? If so, make less food and end the holiday earlier than you have in the past.

A successful strategy for many people is to avoid thinking of the holidays as one long season; rather, manage the season by going from event to event. In between events, stick to your routines as much as possible, and conduct yourself the way you would any other of time year. Eat regular, balanced meals; be active; sleep 7—8 hours a night; and take care of your health.

Another effective strategy is to set goals for yourself around how you want to handle managing your weight, incorporating exercise, managing your time, and minimizing stress. Take the time to consciously think about these areas, and set an intention in each area. Finally, during the holidays, avoid all or nothing thinking. Remember that ten minutes of exercise is better than no exercise and one hors d’oeuvres is better than five (and better than none if skipping them leaves you feeling deprived.) Aim for balance and moderation to maximize your enjoyment of the season.

The Second “No-Brainer” for Optimum Health

Last time we looked at the first of two universally held recommendations to reduce your risk of almost every known disease: not smoking. Have you guessed what the second is? It’s exercise. For years I’ve read a variety of wellness publications and repeatedly exercise appears the top of the list of things we can do to prevent illness.

When you think about it, it’s not too surprising. Aerobic exercise improves the ability of the lungs, heart, and blood vessels to deliver adequate amounts of oxygen to the cells to meet the demands of physical activity. So we’re back to talking about oxygen, the life force I wrote about last time. Quitting smoking and exercising both enhance the body’s ability to use oxygen.

Aerobic or cardio exercise also strengthens the heart muscle, which means the heart is able to pump more blood per beat, so it has to beat less often to supply oxygen to the body. This results in the heart working less hard, potentially enabling it to last longer. I like to compare the heart to a machine, such as a photocopier. The fewer copies run on a machine, the longer the machine lasts. So in a very real sense, aerobic exercise is strength training for your most critical muscle – the heart.

While volumes have been written about the benefits of exercise, one worth highlighting for its ability to lower our risk of disease is that it helps us maintain a healthy weight. Overweight and obesity are correlated to virtually every major disease and they make the heart work harder, exactly the opposite of our goal!

I love to be active and regularly incorporate aerobic activity, strength training, and stretching in my daily routine. Let me know if you need some help creating an exercise habit you’ll love so you can achieve your optimum health.

Two “No-Brainers” for Optimum Health

My clients commonly lament that health related advice is often contradictory or changes frequently. While I understand their frustration, I’m happy to report that there are two universally held recommendations that I have never seen contradicted or negated. Following these two pieces of advice will lower your risk of contracting virtually every major disease and most lesser known ailments, as well.

The first is to not smoke. Happily in Arizona some 84% of adults and 77% of teenagers already follow this advice. This still leaves about a million Arizona residents who smoke, however. Because oxygen fuels every cell of our body, smoking affects every single organ. Oxygen is our life force and smoking reduces the body’s ability to absorb oxygen, so it’s not surprising that smoking compromises our body function so tremendously.

According to stress management expert Kebba Buckley Button, smoking also causes long term brain damage and results in personality changes. Many non-smokers are unable to tolerate the second-hand smoke, limiting smokers’ social opportunities. While many smokers cite relaxation as a primary reason they smoke, Kebba points out that the economic, health, and social costs of smoking far outweigh any perceived benefit. She explains that her “breath work” techniques utilize the same slow exhaling that smokers practice, without any of the cost and risk associated with smoking.

This week I learned that in the summer of 2012 all ten Maricopa Community College campuses and the District office will be smoke- and tobbaco-free. Perhaps your workplace has already implemented such a program. If not, don’t wait. Think of the four million Arizona adults who are non-smoking with whom you’ll be able to socialize. Join me next time for “no-brainer” number two.

Toasting Your Good Health

The holiday season is upon us, and for many, alcohol will be part of the celebration. While I do some moderate drinking, I should point out that, from a health perspective, there are pros and cons to consuming alcohol. Experts advise that moderate alcohol consumption can have health benefits, but too much imbibing can quickly reverse any positive effects. Moderate drinking is considered to be one drink a day for women and two for men of all ages.

Generally health officials do not advise people who presently don’t drink to start. But if you currently enjoy alcohol, keep in mind that moderate alcohol consumption may provide some health benefits such as reducing the risk of developing heart disease or dying of a heart attack and reducing your risk of strokes, gallstones, and possibly diabetes. However, excessive alcohol consumption has been correlated to serious health problems including: cancer of the pancreas, mouth, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, liver, and breast; pancreatitis, especially in people with high levels of triglycerides in their blood; sudden death in people with cardiovascular disease or heart muscle damage leading to heart failure; stroke and brain atrophy (shrinkage); and cirrhosis of the liver (mayoclinic.com).

If you watch your weight, do consider the calories. Drinks toting the highest calorie counts are: margaritas in a pint glass – 550, mudslides (4.5 oz.) – 417, Long Island ice teas (7 oz. +) – 380, white Russians (6 oz.) – 320, and the popular piña coladas (6 oz.) – 293. Your best bets include: rum (1 oz.) and Diet Cokes – 65, vodka (1 oz.) and sodas – 65, white wine spritzers (4 oz. wine) – 80, bloody Marys (5 oz. +) – 90, and light beer (12 oz.) – 103.

Finally, keep in mind that our alcohol tolerance declines with both age and increased stress levels. Many states have adopted zero tolerance policies toward those driving while impaired, so monitor yourself carefully this holiday while celebrating. Let’s keep it a truly happy and safe season!

Let's Do Lunch!

Next to breakfast, lunch is the most frequently skipped meal. Some people work through lunch, others never think about it (I can’t imagine it, but many people have told me this, so it must be true!), and a few misguided folks think skipping meals will help them lose weight. It’s important to eat regularly to maintain a healthy metabolism, give the body the fuel it needs, and avoid overeating later on.

If you work outside your home, bringing lunch to work is a great way to make healthy choices, always have what you enjoy, and stick to a budget. So just what can you bring that is healthy, easy, and enjoyable? There are no rules, so don’t be afraid to be creative – or repetitious, if that appeals to you. Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Check your refrigerator and freezer for left-overs. Add some frozen veggies to left-over Chinese food and microwave it at the office. Soups, chili, and stew are easy to reheat and satisfying.

• Modify the classic sandwich by starting with whole wheat wraps, flat breads, or 100 calorie thin buns or bagel thins. Look for nitrite- free deli meats or make tuna, salmon, egg, or chicken salad with low- or fat-free mayo. Add celery, halved grapes, mustard, relish, onion, and any other seasoning that appeals to you and top the sandwich with your favorite vegetables. Spread on hummus or mashed avocado as an alternative to mayo or mustard.

• Assemble a variety of foods that cover the basic food groups to change it up a bit. Proteins include yogurt, hard and cottage cheese, nuts, hard boiled eggs, Edamame (soy beans), peanut butter, and legumes. Carbohydrate choices could be whole wheat crackers, breads, or rolls; low fat muffins; baked potato; or popcorn. Hand-held fruits and cut up vegetables add volume and nutrition. I like to cut carrots and celery into bite-sized pieces and add red grapes for a good-tasting, healthy alternative to chips.

• Make a salad to accompany any of the above or as the main event. Save time by buying already washed salad greens and other bagged vegetables and add grapes, dried fruit, shredded or feta cheese, corn or beans, nuts, or anything else that appeals to you. I frequently include Boca or Morningstar Farm soy burgers or Trader Joe’s meatless meatballs as a protein source on my salads. Look for low fat dressings or flavored vinegars as a topping.

• If you crave something sweet to complete your meal, look for the single-serving snacks, such as low fat pudding cups, 100-calorie packs, or boxed raisins. Be sure to read the labels so you know just what you’re eating.

Take the time for a healthy lunch and you’ll give yourself a productive, enjoyable afternoon.