Fawn Germer Talks New Years Resolutions

Best-selling author Fawn Germer, voted Top 25 Leadership Experts worldwide, shared some insight from her latest book, Work-Life Reset with our guests here at Hilton Head Health. She gave such relatable, InSPArational content we asked her to leave us with some healthy tips for the New Year resolution-ists:



Recap of Fawn's tips:

1. Make reasonable (realistic) resolutions/goals.


2. Don't try to take on too many goals.


3. Take baby steps to reach your goals. (Small changes create bigger transformations.)


4. Believe in yourself!

When you're creating your list of New Year's resolutions or goals, use Fawn's tips to help you create an achievable list. In December of next year when you look back, you'll see all that you've accomplished.

What is your biggest goal for 2016?

9 Tips To Help You Sleep Better

Adequate sleep is an important asset to a healthy lifestyle; not to mention, integral to successfully completing daily tasks, work . WebMD found that around 20% of Americans get less than 6 hours of sleep each night. If you're in that 20%, our Hilton Head Health experts shared some strategies to help you get more, restful shut eye.

The best technique to quiet your mind and your body is called progressive relaxation, says Bob Wright, H3 Director of Education.

Stress is usually a culprit when you're in bed but can't get to sleep. Your mind's racing a mile a minute and you're thinking about all the things on your to-do list.

• Start with a few minutes of deep, slow breathing. It helps if you visualize a relaxing scene, or repeat a relaxing word


• Then starting with your toes,  moving to your feet, you slowly, alternate tensing then relaxing each muscle group all the way up your body.

The combination of concentrating on breathing deeply and focusing on your muscles, distracts you from those stressful thoughts, along with the physical relaxation that results from this techniques creates the perfect environment for drifting off to sleep. If you don’t fall asleep with  10 -15 minutes, don’t stress over it.

• Get up, go to another room, sit in a comfortable chair and read for 15 or so minutes, go back to bed and try it again.

Chris Varano, H3 Fitness Specialist suggests these 3 tips to promote quality sleep filled nights:

• Keep your bedroom for sleeping, not for TV watching, roaming the Internet or a work station.


• Turn off phones, tablets, and other electronics at least 30 minutes before bedtime to limit the amount of distractions around you.


• Avoid eating right before bedtime. It's ideal to have three to four hours of digestion before you try to go to sleep.

These tips from John Lippitt, Hilton Head Health’s Fitness Specialist can help you start a healthy sleep regimen:

• Don't work out right before bed.

An intense workout late in the evening may keep you awake longer because of the adrenaline, testosterone, and increase in sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight).

• Exercise at the same time every day.

Getting into a routine of working out at the same time daily will help your body to follow a routine and a healthier sleep cycle as well.

• Try light stretching or yoga before bed. These 3 yoga poses can help you get ready for bed:
  
  
  
  • Child's pose
  
  
  • Forward Fold
  
  
  • Legs up the wall.
  
  
  
  

The focus on breathing will help to calm your body down, clear your head of the "monkey chatter", and prepare you for a restful sleep.

Slow Cooker Banana Oatmeal

by H3 Healthy Kitchen Assistant Chef Carrie Adams

Christmas is about treasuring past memories & making new memories with family and friends. The H3 Healthy Kitchen wants to help you make the most out of your family time with this yummy, easy breakfast recipe: Slow Cooker Banana Oatmeal. You can get in and out of the kitchen quickly and still provide a hearty, healthy breakfast for all your loved ones.



Ingredients:

1 cup Oats

1 each Banana, ripe, mashed

½ cup Almonds, sliced

2 cups Skim Milk

2 cups Water

2 Tablespoons Flax Seed, ground

2 teaspoon Cinnamon

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

¼ teaspoon Nutmeg

½ teaspoon Salt

2 Tablespoon Maple Syrup

Method:

• Place all ingredients into the slow cooker.


• Stir until combined.


• Cook on low for 6-8 hours (or high for 3), depending on the desired consistency.


• When finished fluff with fork and serve.


• Refrigerate any leftovers in an airtight container.

Nutrition:

Servings: 5

Serving Size: 1 cup

Calories: 190 calories

Fat: 6 grams

What's your favorite healthy breakfast recipe for the holidays?

 

Fitness Tip for New Year's Success

My number one tip for you this year is to immerse yourself in a community with similar goals.

I don’t care how motivated you are. I don’t care how driven you are. I don’t even care how profound your goal is. Often times these things provide you with false hope for the future. All of those qualities require a certain level of willpower.

As I’m sure you already know, willpower dies fast.

Think about those New Year's resolutions you have had in the past. How successful were you? If your answer is “very successful”, then congratulations, keep up what you’re doing because it’s working. For the vast majority of us, however, the answer is probably that you didn’t last more than two weeks.

If you’ve been battling behavioral change for what feels like a lifetime, willpower simply isn’t enough. If you’re serious about your goals, a change of environment is what you need. What better environment to be in than with people on a similar journey as you? Below are a few examples of communities you could join:

• Group fitness classes


• Small group personal training


• Crossfit or crossfit-like gyms


• Running groups


• Biking groups


• Swimming groups

Have a Healthy & Happy 2016!

To Diet or not to Diet on Christmas

Hilton Head Health Registered Dietitian, Felicia Hackett

The food is made with love and holiday cheer. Family and friends have finally arrived. Throughout the house, there are homemade sugar cookies and gingerbread men that are perfectly or not so perfectly frosted, tasty dill dip in a bowl made of rye bread, peppermint candy canes, yummy cheese and crackers, and red and green foiled candies. For dinner, the buffet is set with an attractive basted turkey or honey glazed ham, grandma’s stuffing, classic green bean casserole, buttered mashed potatoes, and candied yams. After dinner, the whipped heavy cream topping is placed next to the pecan and pumpkin pie signaling that dessert is ready.

How does that sound for a Christmas day spread?

Pause for a moment and think what Christmas means to you and your family. For me, it is about breaking bread; having a friendly and engaging meal in a comfortable, inviting environment with the people you hold dearly to your heart.

"Food for thought: have we been so engrained in our tradition that breaking bread has now become breaking habits, nutrition habits in this case?"

Intuitively, food that is familiar is food that we like.

Pump the breaks on holiday foods like the ones listed above and begin shifting your mindset to more nourishing foods. Experts agree that wholesome, healthful foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds are linked to positive health outcomes. This Christmas nourish yourself and choose not to diet. If we are in the dieting mentality we hold feelings of guilt and regret for enjoying foods that we have, over the years of dieting, labeled “bad”.

Feelings like these only damper the holiday spirit.

To Diet is the practice of eating food in a regulated and supervised fashion to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight. To Nourish is to provide food necessary for growth, health, and good condition. In contrast to dieting,  if we practice having a nourishing mentality we are expressing feelings of satisfaction and contentment. To keep on track this December, ask yourself a simple question before you eat, Is this food nourishing?

• Create a menu that highlights steamed, baked, or sautéed vegetables with fresh herbs.


• Decrease the amount of added sugars in your day by using half the sugar the recipe calls for in candied yams and like foods. And instead of honey glazed ham, try smoked ham; or just like salad dressing have the glaze on the side.


• Add whole grains to the menu by making a whole wheat bread stuffing, a recipe right from our blog.


• Cut down on dessert options, because having variety of desserts quickly becomes a tasting of the variety of desserts.

This Christmas, give yourself a gift by tossing out the dieting mentality and embracing the concept of “to nourish”.

Trail Mix Fudge Bar

by Hilton Head Health Assistant Chef Carrie Adams

With all the unhealthy snack options floating around during the holidays, the H3 Healthy Kitchen wants to treat you to a healthy, chocolatey treat. The Trail Mix Fudge Bar has the delicious flavors of the season without the extra sugar and excess calories. These are also a great addition to any holiday gift basket!

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoons Coconut Oil

2 Tablespoons Nut Butter

2 Tablespoons Maple Syrup

4 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder

¼ teaspoon Salt

1 Tablespoons Chia Seeds

1 Cup Quinoa, cooked

½ cup Cranberries, dried

¼ cup Pistachios, toasted, chopped

2 Tablespoons Coconut, shredded, unsweetened

Steps:

• Melt together oil, butter, cocoa powder, maple syrup and salt.


• In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients.


• Stir the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients then pour into a lined loaf pan.


• Let it sit in the refrigerator or freezer until solid.


• Cut and enjoy!

Nutrition:

Servings: 12

Serving Size: 1 piece

Calories 130 calories

Fat: 8 grams

What's your favorite healthy holiday snack?

Healthy Gifts Ideas for Everyone on Your list

We asked our expert Health and Fitness staff to give us their best healthy gift ideas for the holidays. No matter who you're shopping for, this is the ultimate gift list to take care of everyone for the holidays!

Gifts to Get Them Moving

We all have a friend or family member that's stuck at a desk all day, with little or no time to go to the gym before or after work. The DeskCycle Desk Exercise Bike Pedal Exerciser is the perfect gift to get them moving. They can feel the burn while they're at they're desk.

For the Personal Trainers or Fitness Coaches out there, give friends and family certificates for training sessions.  Use your skills and gifts to help your loved ones start a healthy fitness practices for the New Year. Who knows your loved ones better than you do? Craft their workout routines for their fitness level.



You can't go wrong with a simple but personalized gift basket decked out with a water bottle, energy bars, healthy snacks ideas, socks, a Fitbit (if you're going all out), etc. Throw in a gift card to get some fitness gear or sporting goods and the special person receiving this will absolutely love it!

Healthy Kitchen Gadgets They'll Actually Use

Get your loved ones eating healthier with the Spirelli Spiral Vegetable Slicer. Such a great tool for sneaking more vegetables into recipes. I love shredding zucchini and tossing it with whole wheat pasta. (under $30)

Herbs are mini vegetables! The Back to The Roots Garden-In-A-Can helps make herbs readily available to eat more often and much more affordable. Fresh herbs add so much flavor to even the most simple dish. (under $30)

The All in One Kitchen Tool Set is a great gift to new cooks or someone looking to simplify their kitchen and save some space. It is about the size of a bottle of wine and includes eight kitchen tools: a funnel, lemon squeezer, spice grater, egg masher, cheese grater, egg separator, measuring cup, and a grip for hard-to-open lids. (under $30)



Gift the Caloric Cuvee Calorie Counting Wine Glass to the person in your life trying to monitor her wine intake.

Gifts for Your Favorite Foodie

An awesome KALE Sweatshirt is a goodie for any vegetable lover, especially the Foodies in your life! Share the love for this great leafy green with this stylish item!

This one might go down as the best Foodie gift, EVER. Gift your Foodie friend or family member with a week long stay at Hilton Head Health to submerge themselves into the Healthy Kitchen Cuisine Living Well Program! They'll enjoy healthy cooking demonstations, gourmet fine dining events, hands on cooking classes and so much more.



Now that you've got some great holiday gift ideas, there's nothing stopping you from knocking out that gift list!

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Whether you're searching for a healthier dessert for the holiday season or trying to find a gluten-free dessert recipe, the H3 Healthy Kitchen's Flourless Chocolate Cake is the perfect dessert. Light, fluffy and decadent; it's sure to become one of your favorites!



via GIPHY

Ingredients:

6 Tablespoons Butter, Unsalted

1 cup Dark Baking Chocolate, chunked

6 each Egg Whites

½ cup Sugar, granulated

1 teaspoon Sugar, powdered

Method:

• Preheat oven to 325° F.


• Butter bottom and sides of each ramekin. Set aside.


• Place 6 T. of butter and chocolate in a large heatproof bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring each time, until completely melted.


• In large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form.


• Gradually add sugar to egg whites and continue beating until glossy stiff peaks form.


• Fold ¼ of egg mixture into chocolate mixture, and then gently fold in remaining egg whites.


• Pour batter in prepared ramekins.


• Bake for 10-12 minutes until cake pulls away from sides of ramekins and is set in the center.


• Cool completely on a wire rack. Serve at room temperature, dusted with powdered sugar.

Nutrition:

Servings: 25

Serving Size: 1 ramekin

Calories 90 calories

Fat: 6 grams

Create this delicious, Flourless Chocolate Cake recipe at home and share your experience with us at getinspired@hhhealth.com!

Active Tips for Everyday

Hilton Head Health Fitness Interns Aaron Wood, Kristen Clark, Kelsey Camien

In order to start a healthier lifestyle, you don't have to go from one extreme to another to create change. For example, going from no exercise at all to 2 hours of exercise everyday and expect that to habit to stick. Smaller progress can lead to long lasting, healthy change. By making healthy adjustments here and there, you can be more active and create a daily routine that's easy to follow.

Don't be an Office Potato

• Walk around every 20 minutes. This is great for mental function. It promotes focus and helps you be active throughout the day.

Healthy Exercise Snacks

• Try calf raises while standing in line or doing dishes.


• Perform some squats while you brush your teeth.

Extra Steps that Count

• Take the stairs instead of using the elevator.


• Park further away from the doors while grocery shopping, at your workplace or any parking lot for that matter.

Daily To-do's

• Add light cleaing as an every day activity to move more. Not to mention, keep your stress levels down due to your less cluttered home.


• Turn healthy eating into a daily ritual by cooking at home and meal planning.

 

Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki

by Healthy Kitchen Assistant Chef Carrie Adams

Here in the Healthy Kitchen, we LOVE our crockpot recipes! It's such an easy way to create delicious meals without standing over a stove for hours at a time. Our Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki is a favorite for Guests that love ordering takeout. You get all the flavor without the excess calories and sodium overload.



Ingredients:

8 (4 ounce) breast Chicken breast, boneless and skinless

2 cloves Garlic, minced

½ cup Onion, minced

1/3 cup Honey

½ cup Low sodium soy sauce

¼ cup Rice wine vinegar

1 Tablespoon Ginger, fresh, minced

1/8 teaspoon Black pepper, ground

½ teaspoon Crushed red pepper flakes

4 cups Broccoli, florets

2 Tablespoons Cornstarch

2 Tablespoons Water, cold

Method:

• Cut chicken breasts into strips and line the bottom of the slow cooker in a single layer, dust cornstarch on top.


• In a bowl, whisk together garlic, onion, honey, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, black pepper and crushed red pepper.


• Pour the mixture over the chicken and combine.


• Cook on high for 2 ½ hours.


• Stir in broccoli florets and cook for another 15 minutes on high, or cook until broccoli is tender and bright green.


• Serve the Chicken Teriyaki as is or over brown rice, enjoy!

Nutrition:

Serves: 8

Serving Size: 4 ounces of chicken + ½ cup broccoli

Calories: 210

Fat: 3 grams