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Healthy Holiday Tips for the Mind
It’s hard to believe this Motivation Monday brings us less than two weeks away from Christmas and Hanukkah. As crunch time dwindles away, the items on our to-do list only seem to grow every day. Along with the daily work grind and family responsibilities, many of us wish there were more hours in the day to get all the other holiday “stuff” done: deciding who’s been naughty and nice; decorating; extra cooking; party planning; attending holiday parties and concerts; card writing; and spending extra time with extended family. Add online shopping and searching for recipes to the everyday stimuli of emails, texts, and status updates…and it’s no wonder our hustled-and-bustled minds are in overdrive.
So while I implore you to fit that quick-hit workout into your daily routine, it’s equally important to steal another few precious moments to re-boot. Here a few tips to make it happen:
- Focus on one thing at a time: If you set aside an hour to write holiday cards or wrap gifts, make sure that’s all you do during those 60 minutes. No texts. No emails. No multiple posts on Instagram. Worried about withdrawal? Use social media to alert your network you’ll be offline and in elf mode for a bit.
- Step away from the computer: I understand the need to check email once before bedtime to make sure you didn’t miss any late-day developments on the work front. However, try to shut down at least 30 minutes before bedtime to get your brain in mellow mode. The same goes for social media. The Facebook world will continue to spin if you don’t wish it good night.
- Turn off the TV: Try to establish one night where you set the DVR and turn a show’s normal viewing time into down time with family or friends. Play cards or a board game and forget about the holiday craziness for awhile. It may turn into a night of getting the Christmas chaos under control, but it’ll be time to tackle the holiday to-do list with fewer distractions.
- Make me-time a must: If you’ve committed to finding 10 minutes (or more) in your schedule to exercise, add a measly five more minutes to stretch. Then add up to five more minutes to your post-workout shower. At this time of year, I always have a lavender-scented body wash or moisturizer in my arsenal to help me decompress in that nighttime shower. (I like Aveeno.) Also, don’t underestimate the power of caffeine-free teas or scented candles. I recently discovered Twinings Nightly Calm® tea and love it.
So as this joyous yet hectic season marches on, if you find yourself wanting to throw your hands up and scream “Bah Humbug,” rest assured you’re not alone. While I applaud any effort to make time to exercise even when you’re jingling all the way, I also want to stress the importance of standing still for a few moments, too. Never underestimate the power of your mind on the journey to have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!
Give the Gift of Health & Fitness
Since this Motivation Monday marks 20 days until Christmas and 19 until the start of Hanukkah, I thought it was the perfect time to offer some cool gift ideas for the fitness fanatics in your life. (Whether they’ve been naughty or nice is up to you to decide.)
Since yours truly is trying to keep the hustle and bustle at manageable levels, I hope you won’t mind a list that’s short and sweet:
- Bluetooth wireless ear warmers. These wrap around your head without interfering with a ponytail or hat so you can stay in touch and listen to your favorite tunes while breaking a sweat in the chilly outdoors.
- Waterproof audio “stuff.” For the swimmers and even the beach lovers in your life, here’s a great way to provide some waterproof motivation for all their underwater activities.
- A not-so-typical water bottle. Aside from being BPA-free and easy-to-grip, this 24-ounce water bottle from Thermos also has a rotating meter to help you track your hydration throughout the day.
- Protein-packed, gluten-free baking goods from Flapjacked.com There’s a wide variety of recipes for pancakes, cookies and muffins packed with 20 grams of protein and 200 calories per serving.
- For the fitness chicks in your life: I love my Femme Fitale fitness gloves. They help me avoid developing callouses from all those Physique57 barre classes or weight lifting. So many cute colors and patterns to choose from!
Great stocking stuffers:
- BFit Labs Electrolyte Sprays. I never leave home without a bottle. Each electrolyte-packed spray of Berry Blast or Very Vanilla contains 0 calories, 0 carbs and 0 food dyes.
- Moisture-wicking socks: I am a huge fan of Balega running socks. They’ve help keep my feet blister-free through my first three Avon39 Walks – that’s 108.9 miles and counting!
- Dry shampoo for quick touch-ups after a workout.
- Combination lock that lets you use words instead of numbers.
- Hot packs for hands and feet.
Remember, giving gifts that promote a healthy lifestyle is a great way to show the most important people in your life that you support their journey to have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!
Give the Gift of Fitness
With Hanukkah and Christmas creeping closer by the minute, this Motivation Monday is all about keeping things as simple as possible!
That means I’m offering reminders from holidays past to help you get through this season without completely falling off the health and fitness wagon.
Click on the following links for refreshers on:
1) Navigating your way through a healthy holiday party circuit
2) An ideal workout option for your time-crunched schedule
Finally, I offer three simple gift ideas for the fitness buffs on your list:
- Sparkly Soul headbands and SportsFood, Inc. electrolyte strips make for perfect stocking stuffers!
- Yoga mats, reusable water bottles and iTunes gifts cards are perfect for athletes of every fitness level
- Professional blenders are an option for serious smoothie lover
I’d love to hear about the items on your wish list! In the meantime, I send tidings of joy and and wishes for a season filled with plenty of chances to have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!
Make Time for Your Health
We made it to another Motivation Monday, but this one comes in the midst of full-blown hustle and bustle time. I’ve already reminded you about the importance of keeping exercise and healthy food prep on your holiday to-do lists. Today, I’m here to remind you about another crucial factor in staying healthy: be sure to keep up with those preventive checkups.
I recently saw my dermatologist for my annual mole check. As a fair-skinned, light-eyed Italian gal with lots of moles from head to toe, this has been an annual and sometimes bi-annual ritual since around the time I turned 30. More often than not, a suspicious mole is scraped and sent to a lab for a biopsy. I’ve always received the all clear, but sometimes only after a second scraping of the area in question after some abnormal cells were detected. That’s what happened after this last checkup. So while my doctor assured me there’s no reason to panic, he does want to excise a bit more of the area for further testing and just keep an eye on it extra closely at my future checkups. I will see him again at the end of this week. Then I can move on and enjoy my Christmas without this extra “thing” on my mind.
Listen, I know how ridiculously busy life can be. However, if there’s a choice between getting a manicure and getting a mammogram during your only free hour of the week, choose the test. My friends who are moms sometimes tell me how they’re long overdue to get to the gynecologist for a checkup, but they haven’t been able to fit it in with all the “stuff” going on with the kids. I tell these amazing women they need to find the time to take care of themselves so they can continue to be there for their kids.
I realize there are only eight days until Hanukkah and 17 days until Christmas. So between working, shopping, baking, gift wrapping, card writing and party-going, this may not be the ideal time for a trip to the doctor’s office. However, if you know you’re due for a checkup or follow-up with one of your health care providers, why not put a 10-minutes aside to make a simple phone call and schedule an appointment for January. (Many doctors offices today even give the option of scheduling your appointments online.) Consider it one of the easiest ways to kick off the New Year with a renewed gusto to have fun, be fit and feel fabulous!
lauralovesfitness 