The Holiday DAZE dilemma….
How do we do this? How do we navigate the holidays when we are being heathy and living a life of wellness with candy, wine, alcohol, breads, treats, cookies, candy-canes at every corner? The Holiday can make us feel overwhelmed. Holiday Daze, happens, don’t sweat it. Many say to me, I want to feel normal for a day, or like a “normal” person, but need to ask, what does “a normal person” mean to you? Is the normal person eating what ever they care to? Do you ever really look at what you consider “normal” to be? Or do you need an excuse to eat everything in site for a few days. I ask then how do you feel after?… and there isn’t one person that says, I feel great! I usually get the response of fatigue, full stomach, bloating, pains, nausea, I ate too much feeling, didn’t sleep, no energy to workout, no energy to get motivated.
So, how do you navigate through the holidays, well we have already been through Thanksgiving, and the candy holiday of Halloween, so you should be a pro at Christmas, Hanukkah, and New years right? Or are you thinking, well I have already been “bad” so I’ll just keep going till the New Year comes, and then make one of those silly New Years resolutions of “I’m going to eat better, or go on a diet” that never ever works. That’s because they don’t work. Ever! They are ridiculous and have no form or goal in mind, just a statement of you should be doing something different than you are now. Which is totally backwards, because there is nothing wrong with what you are doing now, you just may need a few tweaks, as you most likely are already knowing what you are suppose to eat. When working with clients I have found everyone doesn’t know what to eat, but as soon as we start talking about meal planning, every time, every client says, Oh I know what to do, because you do! More veggies and fruits, protein at every meal, good fats, and of course limiting your simple carbs. I do go into detail about what and when, but you know what to do and how to eat already!! I dive deeper with you to find the reasons for gut problems, hormone challenges, burnout, and nutritional deficiencies….but all in all, everyone knows what to eat. But do you eat it?
I was just over a friends house, (outside and yes 6 feet apart, more actually) and we were watching our dogs have a play date. We were talking about the holidays and my friend was going to go to a small gathering soon (outside again, and all got Covid tested, and masks would be worn! they are on top of it!!) ((I love this, they wanted to gather so doing it responsibly)) Anyway she was sharing what she was bringing for food, she is a very healthy eater and conscious of what she puts in her body. She said she would be bringing 3 dishes and 2 of them were very healthy and the third was not, and she said, she wouldn’t be eating that one though, but would make it and bring it. I thought to myself, WHY? Why would you be making something that you knew was not healthy for yourself but would share it with others to eat. I touched on this as lightly as I could without making her feel she was doing something “wrong” and her comment was, well everyone likes that type of food, just because I don’t put it in my body, doesn’t mean I shouldn’t bring something that everyone would enjoy. I again, thought, WHY? It’s how we change the world and not bring the “party” food, the diabetic coma food, the insulin driving foods, the headache inducing foods. There are so many foods that are absolutely delicious and very indulgent that we can eat and actually make us feel good afterwards and not set us up for liver detox overload.
Here is my take on it for the holidays or actually for anytime. Find a recipe that you want to make and alter it with better foods, antioxidants, better fats, make it gluten free, add in boosting foods. For example, making a Chocolate bark is a fun and easy to bring as the guest, and its delicious. Find a recipe and switch it over to dairy free dark chocolate, there are tons at health food stores that are dairy free. Then follow the recipe, add in unsweetened coconut shreds, and goji berries, or some pecans, pine nuts, or pistachios, add in sea salt. you can have so much fun with this…edible peppermint oil for a yummy peppermint coconut bark. You don’t need much to satisfy your sweet tooth with dark chocolate!
Also if you don’t feel like baking or bringing food, and end up somewhere (or even in your on home) and you want to indulge, do it responsibly, think before you eat, literally, ask yourself what you are craving and why. Then ask what food is it that you want, is it sugar, salt, carbs, alcohol? Then ask yourself what part of you is needing it, and you might surprise yourself. You might just be sad, or lonely and it can be handled without diving into something that will only make you feel worse afterwards. Maybe you are excited and have lots of energy, going for movement of some kind is better than piling in a box of cookies or pretzels. In the long run, a little wont hurt, it’s when we over indulge and then keep doing it over and over. Our bodies are not made to handle the sugar we pour into it. Where does it go…right to storage, it literally can’t get rid of it fast enough, unless you are heading out for a long run. Ha! But who wants to run with a load of sugar in their bellies. It’s not a wonder why the belly is the first to get larger, then the inner thighs, then so on…our liver and stomach are right in the middle of our waist and if we can’t process it, it just sits right there. AND it’s the last to go when we are trying to start shedding the weight, so it feels like you just can’t lose weight….
The motto “drink responsibly” I want to steal and say “eat responsibly” And find ways to make those special treats healthy. Good fats like butter and ghee, eggs are always easy and usually in recipes already. Gluten free flours (I love almond flour best with some tapioca in it as well) I love dairy free dark choc chips to add to any cookie or muffin, and unsweetened coconut shreds always add pizazz. Monk fruit is my new favorite sugar substitute and adding molasses if needed a brown sugar. Any of the nut milks are great for dairy needs as well. Have you seen the powder cocoa mushroom blends? they make a fabulous “hot chocolate” when you add warm oat milk and a dash of cinnamon. Great creative this holiday season and I bet you will find some new recipes that you can add to your pantry.
Healthy doesn’t mean you are strict or you “cant eat” things. It’s a way fo living for wellness. It to feel good in your body, to feel happy, alive, relaxed, easeful joints. The term, Im getting old…I laugh and think to myself, or actually its many years of eating “crap” that makes your joints in pain…so you think your old, but you are just eating foods making you feel old. Our organs work very well when they are given nutrition, they will work very poorly when they are given poison. And when you thinks to yourself, its a holiday or Im on vacation, so I will have “another” and “another” piece of cake, I’ll tell you that your liver is never on vacation. It’s on overdrive. So eat your 1 piece of healthy cake and enjoy it, chew it, taste it, enjoy it…then tell you body thank you.
