My health coach sent the following tips to me & I added some of my own tidbits {in brackets}. Hope it helps you today on this very sugar-laden holiday!
If Halloween candy is a temptation for you, here’s some tips:
-DO NOT buy any Halloween candy! Or, buy candy that you do not like. It is better to give out small packets of pretzels or play-do or fruit roll ups. {I purposely buy candy that doesn’t tempt me: tootsie rolls, hard candies, suckers, and smarties. I went to a party once where a woman gave out mini water bottles-great idea!}
-Keep in your mind that there will always be candy, but you are choosing to improve your health right now, and candy will not help you reach your goal!
-Freeze crystal light for a fruity, candy-like dessert.
-Sugar free jell-o is a great candy-like snack {make it with one package strawberry, one package lime, and use water for the boiling portion and diet squirt or sprite for the cold water portion-delicious!}
-Do not stay at home on Halloween handing out your treats. Instead, grab a bottle of water and take a nighttime walk around the neighborhood greeting your neighbors as you go! {if you live out in the boondocks like me, drive your kids around to elderly people’s homes & have them “model” their costumes. Takes up time, keeps you away from snacking at home, and totally makes the people you visit feel awesome.}
-Take healthy snacks to work {or parties} to keep from being tempted by candy in the office. {I like to take crystal light packets for my water to have on hand, extra veggies, & my Medifast brownie with a dollop of fat free cool whip.}
-{for clients} Cut up a Medifast bar and put it in a baggie. Freeze it for a sweet treat later!
-A great idea to help keep the piles of candy from going into your children?s body? Have them pick out {their favorite} 5-10 pieces of candy out of their bag and buy the rest of the bag from them for $5-10 and then take them to the toy store to get a prize! Remember to throw the bags of candy away or give to a shelter! {if it won’t tempt you, you could also hide it and bring a piece out at a time for special rewards, treats, or desserts.}
-{for clients} Stay in touch with your Health Coach {me!}, I will help you stay strong!
-Plan & eat a festive healthy dinner that you can look forward to as a reward for staying away from the sugary stuff. Stick something in the crockpot to look forward to, or grill a steak or chicken with sauteed veggies. Try the cauliflower pizza-it feels like a treat to me every time!
You can do it! You can make healthy choices despite being surrounded by yucky ones! Our Halloween plans are pretty laid back. My oldest boy, G, had preschool this afternoon & we hurriedly whipped up these darlings {thanks to Pinterest!}, which I am in love with. I wanted to do another idea which was not food focused, but ran out of time. I’ll share that one in a Christmas version in December. Later today we have a “Trunk or Treat” at our church where everyone parks in a circle with their trunks open handing out treats while the kids parade around to each car & show off their costumes. I’m taking dum dums-not a big exciting thing-but something that has no appeal to me whatsoever and they are inexpensive and easy to give.
What are your plans? What helps you make good choices on hard holidays?
Confession: I just want to be perfect, dang it!
Yeah, it’s so not happening. At least not in this lifetime. So I tend to go the complete opposite direction from what I want when I realize that my journey toward perfectionism is not going the way I’d hoped/dreamed/planned/forseen.
Yesterday a friend {and my health coach} sent me this quote that another fellow health coach, Cheryl Tooke, had written:
Isn’t this great? I felt like I could relate to every word she said. I so badly want it to work perfectly, come easily, and happen quickly & painlessly. But life isn’t like that. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.
I am trying to not be so hard on myself. I’m trying to remember that I am tackling 28 years worth of bad habits and taking on a journey that is hard. Not many people are willing to face these issues and no one-including me-can blame them because it’s not easy. I know though, that I can do hard things. I can finish what I started and I don’t have to be perfect right now or anytime soon. As long as I’m striving. And, as long as I can stop thinking about it and start doing it. Every day.
{image via pinterest. Did this post make any sense? I kinda felt like I was rambling…}
The boys were watching Diego today and I sat down and caught a bit of the episode titled, “Diego Reunites Hippo & Oxpecker.” While watching, I actually had the following thought cross my mind:
"Sometimes I wish I were a hippo. A real one. Because no one ever looks at a hippo and says, 'Dang, that hippo is too fat!' If anything, they are cuter because they are fatter."
Really? Seriously? Sometimes I wonder about myself.
{image via Pinterest}
1. I’ve been totally MIA from the blog lately. I apologize for that. I’m still working on losing weight and utilizing the program. I went through about two straight weeks of being on and off program because I was pretty discouraged about some life stuff {#2}. All in all since the last weigh in, I’m down 4 pounds. It’s been slower because of my on/off mentality, but I’m back on track and not willing to give up. We have lots going on this month that could derail me if I let it, so I’m planning and preparing right now. I’m also being realistic and am okay with a 2 pound a week loss. I’m also trying to remember this:
2. The reason I’ve been up & down? My best friend of 15+ years is moving. Far away from me. To another state called Minnesota. That I’ve never been to. That I kinda hate right now. (:
Turns out I don’t deal with change as well as I thought I did. I was definitely dealing with my issues by turning to food. It was a constant fight with myself between what I wanted long term {my fundamental goal of being healthy & finally reaching my ideal weight} and what I wanted right now {to drown my sorrows in a huge handful box of nilla wafers & a pan of brownies}. I’m not saying I’m completely out of the water and definitely don’t want to let my guard down, but I seem to have come to grips {grudgingly} with the fact that I can’t change the fact that Amber’s moving and am back on track. This journey for me is so often 90% about my mind and my thought process. I feel like I’m more aware this time than I’ve ever been, and am trying to tap into those moments and think about why I’m doing what I’m doing-and better yet, to stop doing them before I get out of control.
PS: I’ll be making trips to visit Minnesota soon, so if you have friends and/or family there who need a health coach, send them my way! (:
3. Made cauliflower pizza last week and fell in love. Here is a link to the recipe I used. This website is full of awesome recipes for peeps on TSFL. Too lazy to click the link and check it out? Here is the recipe for you. (:
4. If you’re pressed for time and can’t get to the gym, but have a park next door or a backyard, check out this workout & get ‘er done!
5. I’m advertising this month over at Eighteen25, one of my all time favorite blogs, so check it out and leave those cute sisters some love. They share great ideas, recipes, other talented fellow bloggers, and great free printables. There is even a special deal for first time Take Shape for Life clients if they mention the Eighteen25 blog. (:
