How to Feel Your Best & Enjoy the Holidays Without Restriction featuring Elizabeth Elliott

Today, I explore how to move into the holiday season with intention, nourishment and ease.  A gentle guide to staying healthy without stress, guilt or restriction. I share simple sustainable tips for staying healthy through the holidays -- mindset, food, movement, and nervous system support made easy. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 1:21

Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Unapologetic Living Podcast. I am so glad you're here today because we are going to dive into a topic that comes up for me every year around this time, which is how to enjoy the holidays while staying healthy. Physically, nutritionally, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, right? It can bring on a lot. The holidays can be a lot. And oftentimes it begins around Halloween for the people in the United States. We have little trick-or-treaters who fill their bags and pillowcases full of candy that we as adults are passing out. And so not only do the kids' bellies get full, but that handy hand that Halloween candy that doesn't get distributed oftentimes ends up in our bellies. And so it can be the beginning of just two to three months of overindulging and inundating our system with a lot of ultra-processed, I mean, let's face it, just junk. There's nothing good about candy. Um, and so I want to talk about as uh as we move into the holidays, how we can kind of navigate this time so we still feel good, maybe not our best, but we still can feel good about the decisions that we make over the next several weeks. So for me, uh the holiday is going to begin on November 23rd. And I say that because it is my daughter's 20th birthday, and we will be celebrating with some sort of sweet treat. Usually my family picks chocolate chip cookies and ice cream over um moist uh cakes. That's the only word I got for it. We are more of a chocolate chip cookie, ice cream family than uh a cake family. However, we do like cake on occasion, but our first pick will always be chocolate chip cookies. So I don't know what her pick is for this year, but that's kind of when our holiday season will begin. And then four or five days later, we're uh we will be having Thanksgiving. And then, of course, you're going to have a month-long worth of holiday festivities and parties and gatherings where you might also be uh having a little bit more, uh maybe more foods or more options than you typically would or even bring into your own home. So I want us to try to like bring our awareness to just the present moment. And just if you can, close your eyes here and just envision what, in an ideal world, what the next several weeks would look like. Uh feeling your best, making the best choices for yourself. And we're not gonna go into the fact that we might not make those choices. We're just let's right now we're gonna vision envision the best case scenario. So just take a moment and think about what that might look like for you. You know, choosing the foods that you would typically choose. Maybe you are eating uh gluten-free, being able to abstain from the gluten, maybe it's a dairy-free thing, maybe you're avoiding refined sugars, maybe you're doing none of those things. But just think about what the next uh four to six, eight weeks you would ideally like that to look like. And then for a moment, I want you to think about what it could look like to stay healthy without feeling like you're depriving yourself. Because this time celebrations, holidays, parties, gatherings, birthdays are meant to be enjoyed. And and it's tough sometimes because we are dealing with family members, stressful situations, uh, um, holiday buying and shopping, uh, lots to do, and maybe work and then running a family. Maybe there's activities if you're a parent that you're still trying to navigate and juggle. So all of these things are coming together at once. Then there's going to be kids on holiday break. Maybe there's a lot of travel. And so we need to sort of focus on and visualize right now what we want the next six to eight, 12 weeks to look like. And then you can open your eyes as you're ready, or you can just listen to this podcast on a walk and this conversation, but these are just some things that I want to share with you, right? Uh, to help you uh get ready for the next six or eight weeks. So the first thing I always want to emphasize is mindset. People often think staying healthy during the holidays is all about restriction or willpower. Uh, and that is not always the case. It's also exhausting. Being restrictive and uh depriving can also create a lot of stress and unnecessary stress. So we don't want to add stress to our plate. It's already a stressful time and there's so much going on. We want to try to unpack some of that so that it is a little bit stressful. And if we're gonna go in with this very restrictive mindset that could potentially become more um stressful. So I want you to instead think about your health as a practice and not a punishment. Your goal is to feel good, not perfect. This might mean choosing to enjoy that slice of pie without any guilt. I'm going to choose this piece of pie. I'm going to choose to have this cake. I'm going to choose to eat this cookie, knowing that tomorrow I might wake up with swollen eyes. I might feel a little bit more tired. I might not be able to get the five pull-ups I could do on the days when I eat really clean and I'm dialed in. Because that's what happens to me. I can, I can, I feel it in my pull-ups. Sipping your favorite holiday drink slowly rather than mindlessly. And that that's a big one. And I'm going to even say that with the foods that you choose. Chew your foods slowly. Enjoy every savor every taste, every sensation in your mouth, the sensations in your body as you enjoy and indulge in whatever it is you're choosing to enjoy. And listen to your body, noticing when you're feeling full or when you're feeling energized, right? It could be that you have a night and then you have a couple of days where you really dial it in, and then maybe you indulge again. But listen to your body. Your body is always speaking to you. As I said, like I can get up on this pull-up bar that hangs between my kitchen and my dining room, and I can promise you that if I've overindulged, I am not getting that pull-up. Or definitely not getting two or three. For me, I found that approaching the holidays with awareness and intention makes it easier to support the choices. My intention is to feel good, not necessarily perfect, while still enjoying the celebrations. So think about it. Might be that you take a few moments before each gathering or even yeah, every morning, I'm just going to be aware and set my intention for the day. You know, I'm going to eat only to 80% full, right? Because I know on Thanksgiving, it's one of those days I feel like I have to unbutton my pants. It's been a while because I don't eat the stuffing and I don't eat the bread. If I'm focusing on the protein and the vegetables on my plate, I don't have the same issues with feeling so incredibly overstuffed and my stomach is going to explode than when I'm adding those extra treats, like for me, the bread, the stuffing, even too many mashed potatoes. So going in and setting an intention prior to, look, I am only going to eat to 80% full so that I can still feel good at the end of the day. So as I was talking about food, I want to move into the food. Next up, food. This is often the hardest for people. But staying healthy doesn't mean avoiding all the treats, right? That's as we've been talking about. It's about balance and smart planning, right? Finding moderation, finding balance, uh, knowing that after we get through the holidays, you can regroup and start again. So as I mentioned in my book, The 29 Days of Self-Love Bleep, and in my course, Online and 29, some of the things that you can do to begin to find that balance and plan smartly is to stay consistent with potentially what you've been doing all along, shopping the perimeter. So I'm a big advocate of shopping the perimeter, buying, focusing on the fresh fruits, the vegetables, the proteins, and uh all those wholesome staples, keeping those meals nutrient-rich. Even if you're going somewhere and have to take something, shop the perimeter. Uh, try to avoid reaching for that convenience grab for the party, the convenience grab of cookies or crackers or highly processed foods. You know, again, shopping the perimeter. You could also eat before you go. If you are, I don't want to say strict, but if you have dietary guidelines that you follow, sometimes it's important to eat before you go because you never know what your hostess is going to be serving. I know if you come to my house, you will always find some vegetables and maybe some sort of a healthier dip or a guacamole with either corn chips or a plate of carrots, cucumber rounds, and uh fresh uh pepper slices so that you can dip. You you can be either grain-free or uh heavy vegetable and fruit uh at any gathering that I'm going to host. But that is not going to be the case everywhere you go. So it's, you know, maybe have a little snack before you go, maybe load up on some protein right before you go, so that when you're looking at this uh buffet of food in front of you, you don't gravitate towards the carby and snacky foods. You're looking more towards the fruits and vegetables, or even hopefully there's some proteins, but that you filled up on some protein before you've gone, so it's going to be less desirable. Savor, don't shovel. When you enjoy food slowly, your body signals when it's full and you're less likely to overdo it. This is so important. This is going to be important every single time that you ate. I ideally, in an ideal world, we're chewing slowly, 20 to 30 chews per bite of food to the point that our food becomes liquid, so that when it makes it to our stomach, it's more bioavailable to the body. So, and the digestive enzymes and the and the stomach acid have been secreted. If we're eating too fast, it can't do the work. Um, I mean, we have got to slow down. We have got to slow the fuck down. And this is so important, especially when it comes to our food. If we're eating in a rush or we're chewing a food again, our body cannot drop down into rest and digest. And that's really important for nourishing the cells, the muscles, the tissues. Um, so just think about that. Whether it's at a party or whether you're sitting down to dinner with your family, be sure to chew your food slowly. Not to mention, as you chew your food, the digestive enzymes in your mouth, it actually becomes sweeter, maybe um discouraging the uh reach for the cookies and the cakes and the snacks later on or the candy. Um and I'm gonna, I would be lying to you if I told you I've mastered this. I haven't mastered this. This is probably one of the lessons I still have to learn. But when I regroup and remind myself, like it, it's it's a um marathon, it's not a sprint that, and every year I get better at it, at um enjoying the holidays without uh feeling blowing myself out, like maybe going too hard in the pain in a workout. Like if I just take the time and set my intentions to feel good uh and to not overeat, to eat to 80% full, to choose proteins over um the carby foods, like your pastas and your like potatoes, your crackers, your breads, your stuffing. Um, I I just feel better. So again, um this is something I've learned to do over time. Uh, I also in the last three years have become completely sober. So for me, alcohol is a non-issue. However, this will be another area where it's important to um think about how you want to spend potentially the next day, right? How many cocktails can you have and still feel good? It might be none. Uh, however, it might be that one or two glasses of wine is good. So I like to ask the question like, if I make this decision, if I have one more, if I have the piece of cake, am I going to feel good about it tomorrow? And that's another thing, another question you can frame for yourself because it might help you make that decision to either skip or indulge, and knowing that there will be a little bit of um of a consequence in the decision you make, and also being able to accept that consequence. I'm sure you can hear my little dog today. He is extra rambunctious. I'm not sure. There's probably neighbors out. Movement and stress management are also going to be key. To me, this is going to be imperative for staying healthy through the holidays. Uh, I we can become busy. And again, um, moving here, there, and everywhere, shopping, planning, partying, still running kids to school, working, it's a lot to uh manage and stay on track with our exercise. Sometimes our movement is what falls to the side. So I think trying to uh create a plan for that movement. If that means you have to get it over with earlier in the day, then plan to get it done earlier in the day so that you're not scrambling around at the end of your evening trying to fit it in. Even just a 15, 20 minute walk after a meal is gonna help aid in your digestion. It's gonna reduce your stress, it's gonna help balance your blood sugar, it's gonna give you a natural energy boost. If it's cold outside, you could try indoor knee ups, um, some air squats, you could dance in your living room, find some music or find some holiday tunes. Of course, you know, I like to stretch and do some yoga, but I also like to lift weights and do Pilates. So even if it's just a few minutes, maybe it's going up and down your um stairs several times. Just find a way to move. And then when it comes to stress management, I personally like to lay in my bed before I'm completely awake and just take a few minutes to breathe, noticing the bed underneath my body, noticing any irks and quirks in my physical body, any tightness in my muscles and my tissues, my joints, my hips. Um I think starting in the morning is a great way to uh just kind of take a few minutes, like maybe the alarm's gone off, maybe it hasn't, maybe you don't need that. When you're in that in-between state, and just focus on your breath and the sounds that you hear, trying to bring your awareness to the present moment before you get up and go about your day. Uh I think deep breathing is always available. It's something that's talked about in a line uh in 29 and also in my book. Journaling, meditation uh can also help keep your nervous system calm. If you have time, I love to sit in the infrared sauna if you have available, uh, you know, if that's available to you. Um, and then uh at the end of the night, you know, Joe and I have a practice where we say three things that we're grateful for for that day. One of those, uh, and this is also a great thing to bring to the dinner table if you have children. Uh, when we were when my kids were little, we would all say three things we were grateful for for that particular day. And it's a great way to just sort of connect with other people. You can even do it alone. Like you, this is not something you have to do with people, or you could find a friend that you talk to on a regular basis to mention three gratitudes, but uh, and but with Joe and I, we include something about the other specifically. I'm grateful you took the garbage out today. So it's something specific on how my partner has shown up for me, and vice versa, and then just two other uh random gratitudes. It could be about work, it could be about uh something that took place that day. I mean, anything imaginable. You can um have that list grow to three, five, ten, whatever you want. But there is science behind gratitude, improving one's overall well-being. So I think it's a great way, even if you put that in your journal, three things you're grateful for. Try to keep those core routines. Um drinking, hydrating yourself, movement, nourishing meals, you're shoppering the perimeter, you're taking deep belly breaths, you're making sure you get some type of movement in every day. And uh I again, I want you to remember that you know, health is a journey, it's not a punishment. Be mindful with your choices, move your bodies in ways that feel good to you, manage your stress intentionally, and most importantly, enjoy the magic of the season without guilt. I also want to add in here, please give your permit yourself permission to say no. Give yourself permission to say no. You don't have to do all of the things or attend every event that you were invited to. There's a lot of stuff and emotional baggage that can arise around the holiday season when it comes to family. You don't have to go to all the events, you can choose and set boundaries about the topics of conversations you are willing to participate in with people. You can um say no. You get to say no to the things that you feel like will not serve your highest good. So I hope you enjoy these tips. I hope they give you a little bit of guidance as you head into the holidays. I know for me, I really try to focus on the protein and the fruits and the vegetables. And you know, for a while there we did carnivore meat and just fruit. And fruits include so much more, so many more foods than you think. Your peppers, cucumbers are a fruit, pumpkin, all your squashes are fruits, squash and uh the yellow squash and zucchini. We eat a lot of that. We've recently in the last year, we've added arugula, tomatoes are a fruit, avocado is a fruit. So there's a lot of fruits that we consume. Uh, we do spend less time eating the grains. Those are going to be things that I know do not make me feel good. So I'm gonna avoid the avoid them. Um, I would be lying if I told you uh I will not have a chocolate chip cookie because I will probably most definitely have a chocolate chip cookie, knowing good and well that gluten does not serve me, right? But I love it. And when my son and his new wife come in for the holidays, I'm going to enjoy them being home uh here in Kentucky from New Mexico for the four or five days that they are here. But I'm gonna find that balance. So if you enjoyed today's episode, don't forget to subscribe and share it with a friend who could use some gentle guidance this season. And remember, baby steps are still progress. You've got this. And that's one of the things I talk about in my book. 29 days. They are 29 actually little baby steps that lead you to self-love, bringing yourself back into an alignment with your authentic self. So if you haven't had a chance to check it out, be sure to check out my book on Amazon. You can also find it through my website on all my social media links. You can get well, it's going to take you to Amazon ultimately. So please be sure to check it out. Again, it's$13.99, but it gives you some very specific. I mean, these are all like four or five, maybe not even five-minute activities that you slowly integrate into your life so it becomes a lifestyle. I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week. Uh, and stay tuned for the next episode. Again, thank you, thank you, thank you for following along and enjoying the show. I so appreciate it and I'm so grateful for my audience.