Avoiding Mall Temptations

It is that wonderful time of year; Christmas music, big red bows, gift shopping and good eats! A big long shopping day requires two healthy MetaboMeals and a nutritious lunch. To ensure a healthy and merry shopping day, take these tips along with your Christmas cheer to the mall with you.

Pack, pack, pack! Pack all of the food that you will need for the time you are out. Bring a small cooler; fill it with ice packs and keep it in your car while you are shopping. For your MetaboMeals, pack light hummus with carrot sticks, apples, oranges, Edamame, black bean and corn salsa with pita chips or a grilled vegetable salad. Think simple, nutritious and delicious!

Next, part of the fun in your shopping day is enjoying lunch with your shopping friends. Prepare your lunch at home and eat with your pals in the Food Court. You won't feel tempted at the Food Court if you have packed a flavorful satisfying lunch. Try a Grilled Chicken Caesar Wrap, Steak Fajita Wrap, Tuna Swiss Melt or a turkey sandwich with basil pesto on whole wheat bread. If you are feeling very creative and need a punch of flavor, prepare a Mediterranean wrap made with tzatiki sauce, grilled chicken, grilled vegetables, spinach and a whole wheat tortilla.

By planning and preparing your meals ahead of time, you will easily pass the pretzel stand at the mall and feel fully energized and satisfied throughout your entire jolly shopping day.

Friday Fitness: Making it StickK during the holidays

One of the lectures that I teach here at Hilton Head Health is called Health Tech 101. It provides an overview of technological gadgets, websites and applications for smartphones that can assist you in achieving your health and wellness goals.  There are an amazing amount of resources out there and many of them offer a unique way of motivating you into action. One of my favorite websites is StickK.com. They use principals from the growing field of behavioral economics to encourage people to set goals and stick with them.

One of the main principles utilized is: people will work harder to avoid a negative outcome then they would to achieve a positive one. They use this principle as well as a “commitment contracts” to influence behavior.

You begin by stating your goal. It can be anything from getting to the gym 3 days a week for an hour, to quitting smoking. When stating your goals, make sure that they are SMART goals- Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-specific. From there, you recruit a friend to be the referee. They will monitor your behavior and progress as well as provide some added accountability.

Using your SMART goals, you will sign a “commitment contract” stating what you are going to do. You will then set stakes (this is the fun part!). This involves putting a certain amount of money on the line. You get to choose how much and where the money will go. If you do not achieve your set goals, then StickK will send the money to the appointed recipient. You have the ability to choose to send the money to a friend, family member or your favorite charity. If you really want to use the behavioral economics principal, then you can choose to have the money go to an “anti-charity” or a cause that you do not like—this can provide the extra hit of motivation to achieving the goals that you have set.  Recruit people to be in your “cheering section”. Share your goals and ask people to keep you accountable. They can send you inspiring or motivational messages to keep you going.

StickK.com offers a fun new perspective on goal setting and finding the motivation to achieve your dreams. If you find that the holidays can be a challenging time of year, take advantage of resources such as stickK.com to keep you excited about your goals.

New Vitamin D Guidelines

On November 30, 2010, the long awaited updated guidelines for vitamin d were released by the Food and Nutrition Board. While the average daily recommended amounts increased, they did not increase as much as was anticipated or as much as many vitamin d experts thought they should.
The levels went from:
200 IU to 400 IU for infants to 12 months
200 IU to 600 IU for ages 1 - 50
400 IU to 600 IU for ages 50 - 70
600 IU to 800 IU for ages 70 and older
Many experts anticipated the new amounts to be in the 1000 - 2000 IU range. Evidence had been accumulating that levels in that range my not only improve bone health, the issue that is mostly associated with vitamin d, but may also have many other health benefits including reducing the risk of heart disease, some forms of cancer, diabetes and auto immune disorders.
The Board was conservative in their recommendations indicating that while the evidence for other health benefits was mounting, it was not strong enough to be considered in making the new recommendations. So while the levels are adequate for good bone health, they may not be enough to provide the other benefits. There have, however, been several studies recently that add weight to the evidence that higher levels of vitamin d may in fact lower the risk of health disease and other causes of death.
The most recent study, published in the American Journal of Cardiology, found that in those with low blood levels of vitamin d, boosting them with supplements halved the risk of dying from any cause compared to those who remained deficient. Previous studies have found that between 25 and 70 percent of adults have insufficient levels of d—that's a lot of people that may benefit from vitamin supplementation. How do you know if you are one of them? The first thing to do, if you haven't already, is ask your doctor for a 25 - hydroxyvitamin d test. For those with level below 30 nanograms per milliliters, supplementation may be indicated.Very high levels of vitamin d may be prescribed for a short period to boost them.
Since vitamin is not widely available in food, it is difficult if not impossible to meet our vitamin needs by diet alone. And while vitamin d is manufactured in the skin when exposed to sunlight, many especially in the north do not get enough exposure to produce adequate levels. Dr.James l Vacek, professor of cardiology at the University of Kansas Hospital and Medical Center, and one of the researcher involved in the study cited above, recommends that adults take between 1000 to 2000 IU a day to maintain healthy levels.
Most of the studies published in the last few years involving supplements have failed to show any benefit and some suggest more harm than good. It appears that vitamin d may be the exception.

Get H3 Inspired - Barbara Basel

[caption id="attachment_6860" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Barbara in Hilton Head, 2009"][/caption]

Flying back to New Jersey from Kansas, I was reading a magazine and came across an article on the best places to kick start your weight loss program.  Up to that point, I had tried every weight loss program but continued to be on the weight loss rollercoaster; I was unfit, overweight and very unhappy.  In other words, I needed help and Hilton Head Health seemed like it was just the ticket. 

In making the decision to visit H3, I had to overcome my fear of exercising with other people.  Exercise classes were not my cup of tea, but group exercise was far less scary than living with diabetes for the rest of my life. 

To my relief, the staff and clients were non-judgmental and I quickly realized that we all shared the same goals, strength and weaknesses making yoga classes not as terrifying as I feared.  I had two wonderful roommates and by the end of our two week stay, the new guests thought we were sisters. 

I was amazed that after two weeks, my cholesterol and blood sugar readings were in the healthy ranges – I am convinced it was all thanks to the “eye opener oatmeal.” 

Upon returning home, Bob’s messages about being committed to making a change, “if nothing changes, nothing changes,” and making “unwise, better or best” choices have helped me to me navigate the challenges of over-working and emotional eating. 

My biggest challenge was to keep up with strength training at home but I found a class at my gym that helped me to stay motivated. In addition, I hired a trainer in Princeton too so I can continue working on the Pilates Reformer.  I never would have thought that I, being afraid of group fitness before attending H3, would now not only feel comfortable in group fitness classes but would enjoy them so much that they have now become an intricate part of my new healthy way of life.

Best of all, I love returning to my new home at H3 and am looking forward to my fifth year in the near future. 

Barbara Basel – Painsboro, NJ

3 Ways To Burn Off That Thanksgiving Feast

I’ll admit it, I went a little overboard on Thanksgiving Dinner.  With the turkey, gravy, stuffing and sides I might have gobbled down the equivalent of two quarter pounders.  But, fear not!  It’s time to eradicate those pesky fat molecules heading straight to the hips and thighs!  Grab a family member, pick one of the three activities below and get to work!

1.  Boot camp Your Way to Calorie Demolition 


2. Hit a CrossFit WOD


3. 4 minute Tabata crunches

 

Transform Thanksgiving Leftovers

Thanksgiving is always that perfect holiday filled with all your favorite comfort foods, family and never ending leftovers! :-)

Transforming those leftovers into some healthier and lighter meals is easier than it seems. Here are a few tips:

Extra turkey breast can be turned into turkey Caesar wraps in a whole wheat tortilla, H3’s Caesar dressing, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, and a side of fruit.

Turkey and mashed potatoes can be turned into a turkey and wild rice chowder using the potatoes as your “cream” and your thickening agent.  Use low sodium chicken stock and lots of carrots, onions and celery to bulk up your fiber.

How about that gravy….perhaps you thin out the gravy with water or maybe even more low sodium vegetable or chicken stock and use it for a future sauce like chicken marsala or add lemon to it and make it a picatta. 

Cranberry relish can be turned into a spread for your sandwiches on rye bread or even in a vegetable turkey wrap with light mayonnaise and sprouts.

How about that stuffing… perhaps you add that to butterflied pork tenderloin and use that as your stuffing, then sear the pork tenderloin and roast!  Tada!  New dinner item!

Vegetable casseroles can be used in a pureed soup….but you may be thinking well I didn’t make the casserole very healthy.  That’s okay, simply dilute the casserole with lean stock and add more vegetables to increase your fiber content. Using lean stock helps spread out your calories but should still have great flavor!

No matter the leftover, just get creative I am sure there is a way to reuse without it feeling boring!

Hope you all had a great thanksgiving and you’re not still feeling full! :-)

Gratitude from H3

grat·i·tude

Noun: The quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.

With food to prepare, family in town, football games and preparing for Black Friday, it’s easy to blow right past Thanksgiving and its true meaning.  This is one of my favorite holidays because there is so much love and care surrounding it.  I always strive to force some time into this busy season to reflect on all my blessings.

Yesterday, as the management team of H3 gathered for our weekly meeting, I asked each one of them to share what they are most thankful for because that also allows me to learn and appreciate what they value most.  I would like to take a moment to share my own gratitude list, as well as those of my fellow team… and of course encourage you to do the same!  Here goes:

Gratitude from H3:

Robert Moore, President - I am thankful for my health, my family and for the privilege of living in a beautiful place. When I left my home of thirty years to come to H3, I joined a loving, caring and talented family—I am very grateful that I have the opportunity to know the wonderful staff and Guests of Hilton Head Health.

Adam Martin, Fitness Director - I am thankful for our guests’ commitment and trust.  They constantly give it their all and take to heart the principles we are preaching.  I am also thankful for our team of coworkers and their compassion, diligence and desire.  We have the best collection of talented health professionals in the world!

Tim Lucas, Controller – I am thankful for my children, the health of my immediate and extended family, and very fortunate to be part of a special organization on a beautiful island.

Jen Welper, H3 Executive Chef – I am thankful for strong connections with family and friends, a job that I’m truly passionate for, and the talented, inspiring people I work with on a daily basis at H3 and in the newCulinaryArts Center.

Kelly Hillyer, Marketing Manager – I am thankful for my health, friendships, my family (I am so truly blessed that my mom & sister are also my best friends), and the H3 Guests who continue to inspire me.

Ben Brown, VP of Facilities – I am thankful for my beautiful wife, my family, a strong team at H3, the opportunity to travel and for the successful completion of theCulinaryArts Center.

Allison Adams, Front Office Manager – I am grateful for my spiritual health, family and friends, and the opportunity to be a part of all that H3 stands for. 

Jessica Lynn, Director of Program Development – I am grateful for the wonderful experience of motherhood; the dedication of the staff surrounding me to deliver the most compassionate service to our Guests; and the opportunity to witness the motivation for change, hard work and dedication our Guests have to pursue their Best Selves.

Your turn!  Take a moment to share your gratitude with us – you may have just the words someone needs to hear on this Thanksgiving Day!

[caption id="attachment_6851" align="alignleft" width="420" caption="Happy Thanksgiving from Hilton Head Health!"][/caption]