Thanksgiving Shopping List Must-Haves

The holiday season is in full-swing—it’s time for family, friends, and food! If you are hosting your Thanksgiving dinner this year, I am here to help you with the grocery list!

Beside the fact that an entire Thanksgiving feast of grocery bags is a lot to carry, let alone a truck to hold, you might forget one key ingredient of your Thanksgiving meal (after reading this, hopefully you will not forget an item).

I know this is my profession and I am used to writing menus but, I will say there is a reason why I love to plan everything in advance… it makes life much easier! If you are hosting a party;

1. Put your chef hat on and plan your dinner menu in advance.


2. Gather all of the recipes you plan on using.


3. Write your grocery list.

[caption id="attachment_9026" align="alignright" width="199" caption="pictured: Spinach and Mushroom Souffle"][/caption]

Stock up on a few staple items that can e used in several dishes but are commonly overlooked:

• Brown Sugar (used in several fall dishes and desserts such as our Roasted Sweet Potato Parfait)


• Eggs (used in souffles like our Spinach and Mushroom Souffle or try this Pumpkin Cheesecake for dessert)


• Cranberries (used in festive drinks or our Cranberry Pomegranate Relish)


• Fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme, sage (used to season turkey and other fall dishes including these Roasted Red Potatoes)


• Assorted nut varieties (used as a topping or incorporated into a dish like our Apple and Sausage Stuffing)


• Turkey bacon (used to flavor vegetables like our Roasted Brussel Sprouts)

Speaking of shopping and several grocery bags: Instead of gathering all of your bags into your hands and struggling to the door, avoiding making multiple trips. Burn a few extra calories and take multiple trips, plus we don’t want you breaking any eggs or wine bottles on your way in the house.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Friday Fitness: Turkey Day Trot Nutrition

For those entering a Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot, there are a few things to keep in mind in order to make the most out of your event.  Whether walking or running, it is important to fuel and hydrate yourself before, during and after the race.  Too often those in races or running events end up needing medical attention or feel lousy during and/or after the race.   Dehydration? Overhydration (low sodium in the blood)? Hypoglycemia? The root cause of some of these mishaps could have potentially been prevented if a personal nutrition game-plan was initiated.   Here are some tips:

Hydration: 

1. The day before the race, drink enough water throughout the day until your urine is pale in color.  If yellow, drink more water and/or consume more fluid-based foods such as vegetable based soups or fruit smoothies.


2. On race day, drink 8-20 ounces of water prior to the event.  Sports drinks (6-8% carbohydrate) are only needed for those who are going 60 minutes or longer at moderate-high intensity. 


3. During the event, use the course as most offer water stations every couple of miles—take advantage by drinking 4-8 ounces per stop (1 gulp is equivalent to about 1 ounce). 


4. After the race, drink enough fluids to replace what you lost during exercise.  For those “salty sweaters”, try drinking an electrolyte based drink, tomato juice or add electrolyte powder to your water. 

Everyone has different needs on event day, but here are some general guidelines include the following when it comes to food intake before and after the race:

1. “Graze” the day before the trot on easily digestible high-carbohydrate foods with added protein.  Examples include:  ½ cup plain greek yogurt with ½ ounce of salted almonds or a small banana with 1 T. almond butter.  Avoid the fiber packed bars (e.g., Fiber One).


2. Eat familiar foods—especially your breakfast prior to the trot.  Breakfast is essential.   Have something light, easy to digest, and added protein to help fuel you for the race as well as preventing post-exercise muscle soreness.  Example) A whole wheat english muffin with a hard-boiled egg washed down with 12 ounces of water.   


3. If you are not having a meal within 30-60 minutes of the race, make sure to have a snack within that same time period to assist with muscle recovery.  A 3:1 ratio of carbohydrate to protein is ideal after a race.  One cup of low fat chocolate milk actually has the perfect ratio… 24-26 gm carbohydrates to 8 grams of protein (the picture is actually me in the cow suit.  Flattering, I know.  “Buttercup” was providing chocolate milk to those finishing at a race in Indiana—be on the lookout for the milk stations.)

Enjoy and savor your Thanksgiving meal either later that afternoon or evening :-)

 

Is Your Attention on Your Intention?

As the sun begins to set on 2012 and rise on 2013, what new intentions do you aspire to cultivate? As the universe begins its journey in shifting our focus, energy, and aspirations- what intentions will you set? What goals will manifest those intentions and what will you create?

Intentions: Intentions are states of being and or authentic desires. Maybe your intention is to become more peaceful, grateful, joyous, loving, successful, healthy or wealthy. Ultimately, intentions can be easily defined as our high ideals-ideals of which are usually at the root of our motivation for any specific goal.  

Setting an intention, at least according to Buddhist teachings, is quite different then goal setting. Intentions are focused on how you are being in the present moment. Your attention is on the ever present “now”.  In retrospect, most of us don’t focus on goals like a new relationship and or more money simply for the sake of those things themselves. We desire and aspire these goals because of what we believe we will experience by having them in our lives. Thus, if we begin our goal with an intention, we can get right to the source of what we truly want. Intentions are the core and the magic of all our goals, desires and aspirations.

Goals: Goals are effective, powerful, specific and measurable. We want to be able to track our progress and know for sure if we are reaching our goals. Goals should not be filled with stress, pressure, shame or guilt. Goals must be specific, measurable, action based, realistic and timely. This makes them SMART and more readily available for direct manifestation! Remember, simply take your intentions and focus them on tangible outcomes in the world-these outcomes are your goals.

Create: Create action-oriented practices that support manifesting your goals and intentions. Challenge yourself to create action plans that inspire YOU, that help connect YOU to your goals and ultimately fulfill your brightest intentions are essential daily, weekly and monthly in efforts for success and fulfillment.  The creation process is fuel for the flames- it ignites your inner light!

Therefore, I challenge you today to simply start by setting an intention. Make it clear to yourself. Redefine what it means to be serious about the present moment (NOW), your goals, your actions, your dreams- essentially YOUR future!

Is “Busy” the new “Normal”?

Lately I have noticed that I am coaching a significant number of individuals whose daily schedules and calendars are a huge challenge.  These folks are on the go from the wee hours of the morning until well into the night with a myriad of activities related to their jobs, home, family, school, volunteer commitments and other pursuits.  Listening to what they cram into 24 hours is enough to make me want to lie down and pull the covers over my head!

What’s wrong with being busy?  Absolutely nothing. 

Most of us get some pleasure from having a busy, productive life filled with new challenges and activities.  Even society places a certain cache on being super busy.  We admire those people with the gargantuan workloads, those individuals who hold down full-time jobs, train for marathons, travel extensively, and take French cooking lessons – while also finding time to write the great American novel and volunteer as a docent at the museum!     

It has also become quite chic to blame technology on being busy.  Having to constantly check your work email, personal email, Facebook™ and Twitter™ accounts while catching the latest cute cat video on YouTube™ -  well heck, being connected takes a lot of time!   

But lately it seems like things have gotten out of hand; so out of hand that “busy” is becoming our new “normal”.  And this new normal can take a toll on us, physically, emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually.  For example, when I get really busy, I am quick to cut corners on exercise, sleep and eating the right foods – all of the things I need to maintain a healthy lifestyle and my sanity!

Blaming society and technology for our perpetual busyness doesn’t address the root cause of the issue - ourselves.  Often we find ourselves super busy because of the desire to feel needed and our need for security. Sometimes we take on too much because of our need for perfection or validation – “I’m the only one who can do the grocery shopping properly”.  We also succumb to hyper busyness when we take it upon ourselves to make sure everyone in our life is taken care of and happy.  This type of busyness is often associated with guilt.

 

So, what’s a busy person to do? 

First, recognize that you have choices.  If your day is too full, it is because you’ve allowed it to be filled to the brim.  

Second, consider what you value most and organize your schedule around those priorities.  If you value a strong, healthy body more updating your Facebook™ page with photos of your weekend, you might want to log-off the computer and spend those 30 minutes walking or going to the gym.  Look for ways to honor multiple values in your schedule – for example, cooking a nutritious dinner with your spouse or children allows you to spend time with your family and honor your value to eat clean, healthy food.

Third, practice saying “No” to those activities that don’t truly honor your core values.  If you have decided that you value a solid 8 hours of sleep each night, then it will be easier to say no when you are asked to serve on the night shift for the “Save the Turtles” campaign.  Remember - saying no is often a matter of passing by the good for the sake of the best.  

Perhaps most importantly, recognize that keeping busyness in check isn’t something that you do once and forget about.  Maintaining balance in our schedules requires focus and constant commitment, just like anything worthwhile in life.

Top Fitness Trends for 2013

The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has released its seventh year of results (listed below) detailing the anticipated fitness trends for 2013.  ACSM compiles information from thousands of fitness professionals worldwide and ranks them in to the Top 20 overall.  Similar to previous ACSM fitness trends surveys the respondents were asked to make the important distinction between a “fad” and a “trend.”  We here at H3 have been years ahead of the curve in each of the categories, offering fitness sessions that are constantly cutting edge.  

This year’s list includes three new additions:  Body Weight Training, Outcome Measurements and Circuit Training.  It’s better late than never for Body Weight and Circuit Training.  These two types of exercise are some of our favorites.  What are your favorite trends that are expected to expand in 2013?

1. Unprecedented Job Growth in Educated, Certified and Experienced Fitness Professionals


2. Strength Training


3. Body Weight Training


4. Exercise for Overweight and Obese Children


5. The Importance of Exercise in Caloric Restriction Programs


6. Fitness Programs for Older Adults


7. Personal Training


8. Functional Fitness Programs


9. Core Training


10. Group Personal Training


11. Worksite Health Promotion


12. Zumba and Other Dance Workouts


13. Outdoor Activities


14. Yoga


15. Worker Incentive Programs


16. Boot Camp


17. Outcome Measurements to Evaluate Fitness Progress


18. Circuit Training


19. Reaching New Markets


20. Wellness Coaching

Healthy Recipes: Spiced Popcorn

INGREDIENTS:

12 cups Popcorn, air popped

¼ teaspoon Salt

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

½ teaspoon Nutmeg

½ teaspoon Cloves

¼ teaspoon Crushed red pepper flakes

½ cup cherries, dried

½ cup Pumpkin seeds

PREPARATION:

• In a small bowl, combine salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and crushed red pepper flakes.


• Toss popcorn, cherries, pumpkin seeds and seasonings until evenly combined.

 Serves: 12

Serving size: 1 cup

Calories: 90

Carbohydrates: 11 grams

Sodium: 40 milligrams

Fiber: 2 grams

Protein:  3 grams

Managing Expectations Over the Holidays

It's that time of year again... Only about 6 weeks from Christmas and Thanksgiving is already upon us, life is about to move at jet speed.  With the ever so popular, fast-paced American lifestyle so many of us have adopted, the holiday season only exasperates our tendency to take on more than our days can hold.  And what gets pushed to the side?  The very habits we work so hard to develop throughout the rest of the year. 

It's difficult to adjust our expectations when it come to weight loss, especially when it never seems to come off as fast as we like.  But with holiday parties, holiday food gifts, tighter schedules and less time for exercise, managing our expectations with all these added variables becomes critical to our success.  Remember that weight maintenance can also be considered a success, especially if your track record is to gain 5+ pounds over this time of year.  Here are a few strategies to help manage your expectations this holiday season...

• Pledge to maintain 17 out of 21 weekly meals that follow your nutritional plan.


• Commit to a minimum of 15 minutes of activity at your regularly scheduled exercise time. You will be more likely to pick things back up after the holidays if you fit to at least a little exercise in your schedule.


• Set an allowance (as opposed to a limit) for wine and/or holiday treats at your holiday parties.


• Define a go-to stress reliever that lives outside the refrigerator. Close your eyes and take 10 deep breaths, complete 5 chair squats, smile and recite your holiday season mantra in your head...whatever will keep you out of the munchies!


• Remind yourself that each day is a new day. Prevent one "bad meal" from turning into a "bad week".

Gift us your holiday success tips today!