Happy Thanksgiving Hints

The holidays can be a stressful time for everyone. With parties, gifts of food, and holiday dinners, it’s especially hard to lose weight. Remember, the holidays are for enjoying good times with friends and loved ones. During the holidays, the key is avoiding weight gain!

Recognize your triggers. Holiday food IS tempting. Enjoy friendly conversation away from the dessert table. Engaged in good conversation, you will be less likely to excuse yourself and go across the room for dessert. And you don’t need to deny your sweet tooth entirely. Look for a lighter desert, or take just a small portion. A few bites taste just as good as half a pie.

With Thanksgiving just a few days away, we thought we’d offer (again) a few menu tips from our first Holiday Tips post several weeks ago.

1. Portion size: ½ cup of mashed potatoes, about 111 calories—the size of a computer mouse; ½ cup cornbread stuffing about 175 calories; 3.5 oz. serving of roasted turkey breast (white meat without skin), about 115 calories—the size of a deck of cards; 3.5 oz. dark meat with skin, about 221 calories. Now think about the sides: gravy, rolls, butter, green bean casserole, pecan pie with whipped cream—and appetizers. The average Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner adds up to about 3,000 calories—without seconds.
2. Quality vs. quantity: So let’s go back to the dinner described above. Pay attention to portion size, but also to healthy choices. White meat is leaner with less fat and fewer calories. Leave the skin on your plate. Substitute a homemade cranberry relish for canned cranberry sauce with high fructose corn syrup. Go lighter on the gravy. Try non-candied sweet potatoes and leave out the melted marshmallows. And keep in mind that pumpkin pie has just 1/3 the calories of pecan pie (and leave off the mountain of whipped cream—instead try a teaspoon spread across the top—same taste, fewer calories and fat).
3. In addition to the dinner portion of the day, try to organize a big before or after dinner walk. It’s an opportunity to socialize away from the food, rev-up your metabolism and work some physical activity into your day.

Have a wonderful (and healthy) Thanksgiving!

Happy Holiday Tips

Remember how Mom always said, “Stand up straight.” She was right! More right than she might have known. It has to do with more than good posture, and now it’s not just the call to “stand up straight”—but to just “stand up.”

Are you familiar with an enzyme called "lipase?" This enzyme is critical to the body's ability to break down fat. This fat-splitting enzyme is suppressed when we remain seated for a period of time. It virtually "shuts-off." This results in retention of fat, lower HDL (good cholesterol) and an overall reduction in metabolic rate. So, don't just sit there—take a break, stand up to talk on the phone, walk around the office, or take a few laps up and down the stairs. And, for each hour of physical activity you'll gain two hours of life expectancy. (American Heart Association)

Thanks, Mom.

Still More Hints

For many of us it starts with knowing what to eat, what not to eat and how much to eat. But, there’s so much more. There are also the behavioral components, how we respond to stress, and recognizing the individual patterns we all develop. And, there’s physical activity.

While shopping can be considered physical activity—it’s not exactly what we have in mind when we say, “look for ways to get your body in motion and become more physically active.” (But, if you’re at the mall, you can park way down at the end of the parking area and walk briskly to the entrance, rather than driving in circles for five minutes looking for a more convenient spot close to the door.)

So, find ways to keep moving. Take the stairs at the mall rather than the escalator or elevator. (Did you know that taking the stairs for a total of 2 minutes, five days a week gives you the same calorie-burning results as a 20 minute walk? It burns 100 to 140 calories.)

While you’re shopping and taking the stairs and walking from the end of the parking lot, keep in mind that physically active people save on average about $500 per year in health care costs. That could come in handy this time of year.

Do you have tips to share? Please do.

More Holiday Hints

Sometimes it’s just small changes that can add up to a big difference. So—more holiday tips:

1. Add protein—the more protein you eat earlier in the day, the less food you tend to eat during the day. Try a hard-boiled egg, canadian bacon, or part-skim mozzarella cheese stick.
2. Don’t go hungry—Temptation on an empty stomach is a recipe for over-indulgence. Keep healthy snacks on hand and then enjoy a few special treats as you party and celebrate the season. Keywords here are “a few special treats.”
3. Recognize your choices—And, you do have choices. Not all holiday foods are full of extra sugar and fat. Look for vegetable options, lighter dips, seafood or lean meat and cheese wraps. And then remember that other choice—moderation.

Stay tuned . . .

Holiday Headstart

From now until January 1, 2009, when we all make our annual resolution to lose weight, be more physically active and really pay attention to our health and wellness, every few days we’re going to post “Holiday Tips” to make the transition a little easier. Just because it’s the season of parties, celebrations and family get-togethers, doesn’t necessarily mean it must be the season of “too much.” So, try to keep in mind that while the holidays are for enjoying good times with friends and loved ones, they can also be a great time to practice portion control, and pay attention to healthy choices—in other words, look for quality over quantity. And this brings us to our first two tips of the season:

1. Portion size: ½ cup of mashed potatoes, about 111 calories—the size of a computer mouse; ½ cup cornbread stuffing about 175 calories; 3.5 oz. serving of roasted turkey breast (white meat without skin), about 115 calories—the size of a deck of cards; 3.5 oz. dark meat with skin, about 221 calories. Now think about the sides: gravy, rolls, butter, green bean casserole, pecan pie with whipped cream—and appetizers. The average Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner adds up to about 3,000 calories—without seconds.
2. Quality vs. quantity: So let’s go back to the dinner described above. Pay attention to portion size, but also to healthy choices. White meat is leaner with less fat and fewer calories. Leave the skin on your plate. Substitute a homemade cranberry relish for canned cranberry sauce with high fructose corn syrup. Go lighter on the gravy. Try non-candied sweet potatoes and leave out the melted marshmallows. And keep in mind that pumpkin pie has just 1/3 the calories of pecan pie (and leave off the mountain of whipped cream—instead try a teaspoon spread across the top—same taste, fewer calories and fat).
   

Also keep in mind that just because you put it on your plate—you don’t have to join the clean plate club. A lot of tastes add up to a big meal, even if you don’t finish everything.

And for a “bonus tip,” especially during the holiday season, eating just 100 calories more than you need every day equals a 10 pound weight gain in a year.

Now’s the time to start planning. Let us know if you have any favorite tips or healthy recipes—we’ll be happy to post those as well.

We’re LoneStart Wellness—And We Approve This Message

Your VOTE Counts!

For a change, we’re not going to talk about the weighty issues of our collective and individual health and wellness today. But we are still going to stress that each of us must take personal responsibility for our actions and judgment—and how it’s up to each of us to exercise our right to vote by making an informed, thoughtful and conscientious choice. Think of it as standing in a long cafeteria line of many choices—but it’s not all you can eat (and by now, we all know there is no free lunch). You only get one choice—so make it count and make your voice heard.