Monthly Archives: December 2015

I think many of us view the New Year as a brand new start—a time to put into practice the things we have been intending to do, not having time to do, and feeling guilty about not doing. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves to wake up on January 1^st and begin our lives anew…like getting to the gym five times a week for an hour when we haven’t even seen the place in five years. Or dropping fifteen pounds in the month of January after having been on a food-eating frenzy over the holidays, right up to and including December 31st!

It all sounds stressful to me. Not that working out, eating healthier, and dropping some extra pounds isn’t a really good idea—but I like to ease into things a little more gently – like learning to ride a bike with training wheels rather than just jumping on the bike and pedaling until you crash into the bushes up ahead. That’s actually how I learned to ride a bike (and how I’ve learned a few other things in my life). J I survived some repeated head-on crashes and I eventually learned, but I suffered a lot of cuts and bruises I could have avoided!

Sometimes you need a little help—a little support.

If you’ve gotten off track with your health and weight loss goals and you want some help to get you where you want to go, I’ll make it as painless as possible--I promise. If you aren’t ready to give up a certain food or your wine with dinner…don’t worry. We’ll work around it. If you stick with me I’ll get you back on track and moving in the right direction…painlessly. Best of all I’ll help you change your relationship with food along the way so you don’t gain those extra pounds back after you lose them.

I love a good sale, don’t you? So, I’ll even sweeten the deal. Call me to schedule your appointment by the end of January and I’ll take 50% off your first appointment.

In our intensive 90-minute appointment we’ll dig deep and discuss your goals, challenges, health history, lifestyle habits, and health concerns. We’ll create a personalized weight loss and wellness plan and even if you decide not to come back for another appointment you’ll walk out the door with steps you can put into place immediately that will put you on a path to reaching your goals.

C’mon, let’s do this thing!

One of my closest friends (who will forever remain anonymous!) told me he ate two pumpkin pies on Thanksgiving. Really? Now, I don’t want to be the one to ruin anyone’s fun, but isn’t that maybe a little excessive? I’ll admit I’ve over-eaten food that tasted so good I didn’t want to stop either. And if you happen to be eating quickly, you don’t give your brain time to register the whole experience, so you want more because you don’t feel satisfied.

And sometimes when we take that second or third (or even the first) piece of pie or cookie or whatever we’re eating, we feel guilty about it so we gulp it down. So no one sees? Or so it doesn’t count? How silly is that?!  🙂

Just imagine this for a minute…

You cut a healthy-sized piece of pie, place it on a pretty plate, and sit down in a comfortable chair (no, you can’t do this standing in front of the refrigerator in the kitchen). Before you take a bite, take a couple of deep, slow breaths so you’re feeling relaxed and calm. It’s just you and the pie—no TV, e-mail, or Facebook. Before you take a bite, fully take in the aroma. Can you smell the spices? As you take your first bite and chew, notice the texture. Is it creamy or chewy? Is it tart or sweet? You probably can’t take in all of this information if you’re only chewing three times and swallowing, right? Take time to chew it thoroughly and savor every bite. Take your time. There’s no hurry—no guilt.

Now I know when you’re at a holiday dinner or party you’ll be busy socializing, but you can still take a couple of breaths, slow down, and enjoy every bite. You’ll be amazed how much more satisfying your food will be.

Try it out and let me know!

You know there's something you need to do but you just can't seem to make yourself dive in!  You probably feel a little guilty about it because you know what you should be doing, and you don't feel very good about yourself when you think about it.  So it seems best (and the least painful) to tuck it away in the back of your mind and not think about it.  But of course you think about it.  Dang it!

If what you're procrastinating and trying not to think about happens to be losing weight, changing your eating habits, and/or exercising, it can seem like such a long road to get on track--in fact almost insurmountable!

Besides, the holidays are here and this is no time to start anyway, right?  There are too many gatherings, celebrations, and traditions...and all of that yummy food and drink!  So, you probably better eat all you can now because right after Christmas--well maybe right after the New Year--you're in.  Cut off.  Life as you know it is over.  Payback time.  No more sugar, alcohol, bread...nothing that is even remotely appetizing or satisfying.

Because you won't be able to have anything good when you start your diet you might as well get crazy now, huh?  Maybe a little "reckless abandon" is in order.  Of course sometimes at the end of that free-for-all is an additional ten pounds--ten pounds more than the fifteen you originally wanted to lose.  Oops.

I think of this kind of reasoning as "all or none."  It's extreme thinking in both directions.  What if you walk somewhere in the middle?  You know holiday festivities are near, so what if you do a little damage control?  I'm not talking about over-exercising or starving yourself the day of the party.  But what if you took a step or two towards taking care of yourself?  Maybe begin by eating a high protein breakfast and having coffee with cream and a little stevia instead of a daily mocha?

You can actually get through the holidays without gaining a pound.  What?!

Stick with me--I'll show you how.  🙂  Until next time...