Ep 59: 12 Healthy Habits to Get You Through the Holiday Season

The holiday season can make healthy habits feel overwhelming. In this episode, we share 12 realistic, low-pressure habits designed to help you get through the holidays without striving for perfection. From prioritizing protein and fiber, staying hydrated, protecting sleep, and moving your body—even for 10 minutes—to navigating social events and holiday treats with less stress, these habits focus on consistency, flexibility, and sustainability. 

 Designed for busy days, social events, and real people. 

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The content in this podcast is for general reference and educational purposes only. It is not meant to be complete or exhaustive, or to be applicable to any
specific individual’s medical condition. No information provided in this podcast constitutes medical advice and is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. This podcast does not create a physician- patient relationship and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Please do not rely on this podcast for emergency medical treatment. Remember that everyone is different so make sure you consult your own healthcare professional before seeking any new treatment and before you alter, suspend, or initiate a new change in your routine.

Transcript

Ep 59: 12 Healthy Habits to Get You Through the Holiday Season

[00:00:00] Before we start today's episode, I would like to quickly read you our podcast disclaimer. The content in this podcast is for general reference and educational purposes only. It is not meant to be complete or exhaustive or to be applicable to any specific individual's medical condition. No information provided in this podcast constitutes medical advice and is not an attempt to practice medicine or to provide specific medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

This podcast does not create a physician patient relationship, and it's not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please do not rely on this podcast for emergency medical treatment. Remember that everyone is different, so make sure you consult your own healthcare professional before seeking any new treatment, and before you alter, suspend, or initiate a new change in your routine.

Welcome to the starting gate. We're your host, Dr. Kitty Dotson and Dr. Sarah Schuetz. Two internal medicine doctors who spent years practicing traditional primary care. Over time, we realized something was missing from modern healthcare, a [00:01:00] real understanding of how everyday lifestyle choices impact overall health.

We'll help you cut through the noise of the countless health influencers and their conflicting opinions because no matter who you follow, the basics of lifestyle medicine are at the heart of it all.

Welcome to the starting gate. We're your host, Dr. Kitty Dotson and Dr.

Sarah Schuetz. So today we are gonna talk about the holidays. Woo Hoos, Merry Christmas. The holidays are full, your schedule is probably packed to the brim, and you get anxious when you open that calendar app on your phone. And so it can really make it hard to. Even think about your health during this time.

It is such the perfect storm because all the obstacles happen at once. Your sleep may be off, you may have some family stress going on. Your kids are at home and start getting a little cabin fever after you're home a little bit, as well as your normal exercise routine may be off. What you eat is different.

Literally, everything in the month [00:02:00] of December sometimes feels. So different than the rest of the year. And so it can feel overwhelming trying to do anything for your health. Yeah, 

and so really just thinking about a few little things that you can do and not striving to meet, extreme health goals or to try to be perfect with anything, but really just trying to have a few things that you keep consistent.

And then really thinking about your environment during this time because. You don't wanna just be having to rely on willpower all the time to be resisting the treats and everything, and you really just wanna set yourself up for success, but then not dwell on things if you don't do something well.

So to help us, we've come up with 12 healthy habits that both of us feel like are great. Easy habits to keep consistent over the next few weeks to help you feel well, as well as if you do have big goals for January one to help [00:03:00] you not feel like you're starting from scratch. By the time January one comes around and we will just set you up for success and really.

We don't think about this, but some of these basic healthy habits are truly what can make us feel our best to actually enjoy Christmas. 'cause sometimes we're so run down by the time Christmas Day comes. They were just exhausted and have a hard time enjoying the day that we've tried to reach the whole month.

Yeah. And if you didn't listen to our holiday episode last year, go back and take a listen to that. That one was really focused more on thinking about how to structure your holiday, setting up boundaries that you need to, It was Dr. Degler who gave us a lot of advice about figuring out what's most important for you during the holidays and then simplifying it so that you can enjoy the parts that you wanna enjoy.

So if you haven't listened to that or you need a refresher on that one, go back and listen to it 'cause it's got [00:04:00] some good ideas. Today we're really gonna be focusing more on. Health habits. All right. 

You wanna get started? Sure. So habit number one is one that I always like to think about specifically when you're doing big Christmas meals or holiday parties.

And that is really trying to think about how do I navigate. Big buffets or tons of food in front of you. What do I eat? How can I eat well enough to enjoy it, but also not feel miserable when I'm done eating? And that would be really thinking about prioritizing protein and fiber on my plate.

So if I'm looking at a big selection of food, I always like to think, okay. Where can I get protein from this table as well as are there any sources of fiber? And I like to fill up my plate mostly with those options. And then some of my other favorites holiday treats or whatnot can be on there, but they're not taking up as much space and that really just helps you [00:05:00] feel full and not have as much of a food hangover after the fact when you tend to eat a ton of just.

Straight carbs. A lot of times it makes you feel poorly 'cause you have this super high rise in your blood sugar and then it crashes and then you have no energy to actually enjoy the rest of the party. 

And if you've ever worn a continuous glucose monitor, this is something that. You can really see.

I was surprised at what a difference it made. Oh yes. When you saved those carbohydrates for the end of the meal, and it really does make a difference in how you feel afterwards. So if you can eat that protein and fiber first, it's gonna keep your blood sugar from going up as high and then also keep it from crashing where you feel like you just wanna lay on the couch and take a nap.

. Yeah, and something else to think about is if you are going somewhere where you're not gonna be just sitting down for a meal, but you're gonna be standing around for hours [00:06:00] around hor d'oeuvres and other high carb things, you want to make sure you're not showing up.

Absolutely starving. Because if you are, it's gonna be easiest to grab those things. If you have to have a little something before you go, if you need to have some carrots, if you need to have some fiber, 'cause you're afraid you're not gonna get anything when you get there, just go ahead and have that, and then you can still enjoy what you want.

You've at least gotten some good stuff in there. 

I think that is absolutely great advice because many people will try to think, I'm just not gonna eat all day. Save all my calories. Save those calories. Yeah. And my goodness, the difference in the amount that you'll end up eating can be substantial.

So do not do that. It's, it doesn't usually work out in your favor.

You can always bring your own appetizer if you're afraid that there's not gonna be anything that you want to eat on and you don't wanna stand out, that you're the only one not making a plate. Go ahead and think about what you could bring that would fit with your goals, [00:07:00] whether that's some shrimp cocktail, whether that's a vegetable plate with hummus.

What do you like to bring, Sarah? 

I love bringing fruit trays a lot of times or veggie trays. And then sometimes I also just like bringing a good. Vegetable side like it, this past weekend I just made some brussel sprouts to take just so I knew that there was something green and had fiber in it.

Or even for the holidays. I love making a really colorful salad. As well. 'cause everyone thinks oh, you brought a salad. But when it comes down to it, it tends to be completely gone every single time. So I think some people are very grateful to just have something other than cheese to put on their plates.

That's 

usually 

what I bring. To our family gatherings. And the great thing if you do that too, is if there are leftovers, you can take 'em home and then you have your salad for the next day and you can put on, whatever leftover proteins there are and you've already set yourself up for success the next day.

Yeah I think it really depends on the type of party, because I will [00:08:00] say I love having. A veggie tray if it is more of a grazing, snacking type scenario. Because as much, again, we wanna rely on willpower to not continue to snack on things if it's sitting out in front of us. It's always really nice to be having, a variety of veggies to keep picking up if you have a hard time stopping yourself from doing that.

'Cause otherwise you may just be picking up lots of cookies or crackers and cheese. 

Yeah. 

Yeah. 

My neighbor almost always brings the best shrimp cocktail. Oh, that's a great idea too. Yeah. She goes and gets shrimp, she puts it out on ice and then mixes up her own cocktail sauce, and it is delicious.

Yeah. No 

that's a way to get some protein in too. Yes. Another tip would be a lot of times we'll see desserts just sitting out already with the rest of the food. When you have dinner you usually wait until after dinner to have your desserts.

But in the holidays it seems like it all ends up out at the exact same time. And a healthy habit here is really trying to have yourself wait till after you've had some of that [00:09:00] protein and fiber to have dessert. After your meal because that's gonna help with your blood sugar. If we have an empty stomach and we have a high sugar load from something sweet, it's gonna cause a spike and then you're gonna crash, and then you're gonna be even more hungry and continuing to chase that throughout the whole party, and you're not necessarily gonna feel as well.

So I always like to encourage people as hold off on the sweets. Literally just get some food in your stomach before you reach for your favorite dessert. 

You are also going to eat less of it if you do just eat it right after the meal because you are already. Pretty full from what you've eaten.

So if you think I'm full. Let me wait an hour or two while my food settles and then go eat dessert, you're gonna have a much larger sugar spike from that, as opposed to if you just ate it right after you'd had that 

protein and fiber. And another tip with dessert, find a. Friend significant other, doesn't matter who Then [00:10:00] maybe we'll split desserts with you.

'cause I know this is hard for me. It's ooh, I see three different things that I want, but you don't wanna take the whole. Option. So it's always fun , if it's not an easy thing to just cut off and split yourself or you don't, there's lots of, believe me, there's lots of pressure that comes around the holidays with eating desserts.

Everyone's oh, did you not like it? You only ate half of it, right? Nobody likes that. To have all that pressure is finding someone to split and having small samples of things instead of full servings of different items, you'll end up feeling better and actually enjoying it more than if you try to have a full slice of your favorite pie plus your favorite cookie, it all adds up. 

It does. And this brings up , another one of our tips, which is just bring some leftover containers with you. If you feel like you know your host really wants you to try everything they made, and you know they made certain things for you, but you're too full, or you feel like you don't wanna try all of them in one setting, just bring.

Your Tupperware with you, bring it empty and [00:11:00] then you can just fill it up and take it home and let them know, I can't wait to try this one tomorrow and I'll try this one the next day. But you don't have to eat all of 'em at once. Yeah, 

I, that is great because. I know that I end up enjoying it more if I don't have it all at once.

Yeah, and I know you told me last year that you freeze a lot of your Christmas cookies. I have never done them. I learned from my 

mother-in-law and I know she listens to our show, so shout out to Ruthanne. She, they make tons of Christmas cookies and that's what she does. She makes a bunch and then she keeps them in the freezer and just pulls.

Small amounts out at a time. It's a genius way to not feel overwhelmed, especially with cookies, they just hold up very well. I know every dessert's not gonna do that, but consider that with some of your Christmas candies and cookies in. You don't have it all out at once because I know that's something as well as once you make something, you set it out and then you're staring at it.

You really want to be able to not have that pressure and rely on your willpower. [00:12:00] And that's another one of our tips. 

Yes. Get it out of your sight. That is a big one for me. If it is sitting out, then I want it, but if I don't see it, I'm not thinking 

about it at all. Exactly. And it, that is a lot of times, christmas time. There are just these like candy dishes that we think have to staple full that just sit on our counters, and you just find yourself always going back and then feel frustrated by it. So just don't do it. Put it away, out of sight, out of mind, and then you're not having to have that constant mental battle every single day.

The other area, and I wish that we could just. Come up with a solution for office spaces because I know I, oh my gosh, yes. I talk about this with many patients all the time and it's a constant struggle is they feel like this month everyone is bringing sweet treats, whether it's clients or it. Everyone wants to bring their favorite dish, but the month of December just becomes a giant smorgasbord at work, and you can't even go [00:13:00] into a break room without being surrounded by it.

So if this is something you're struggling with, maybe talking about this with other people at work and be like, Hey, can we just change how we do this year? Maybe we just have one day where we have all this stuff, but not having this. Constant daily battle that every time we have to go into the workroom, we're surrounded by cookies and candies and trying to, deal once again, building up that willpower to not touch everything.

Yeah. And it's okay to just not go to the break room. I was still like that for a while in an office where I worked because there was just so much stuff and it was hard for me to go in there and talk with people and not. Try it. So I just told people, Hey, come to my office to talk to me because I'm not gonna 

be in there.

Yes. Or another strategy is like, I'm just gonna be sure that I bring my own food so I don't have to like. Interact with all of it as well. But, and again, this is another thing, you can go back to that leftover [00:14:00] container option and just say, Hey, I'm really trying not to eat sweets in the middle of the day.

'cause then I crave 'em the rest of the day. That's something that many people experience. Once you start into it, then you're, you want it all day and bring a leftover container and be like, I love these cookies you make every year and bring to the office, but I'm going to take them home and just have them after dinner.

Greatly appreciate it. And then you put 'em away out of sight once again. And that can also help reduce it, but also show someone that you appreciate what they made for you 

and just be honest with yourself, really stop and think about what your weaknesses are and save those. Sugar highs for things that really are important.

If someone makes a pie you love, if you know you really wanna make sure you try the cookies that your kids make and leave the, the jar of m and ms that's sitting out, because that's not really giving you memories and things like that. So really try to just think about. What do [00:15:00] you want to have during the holiday season?

And then the other stuff, just try to get it outta your sight. I just quit putting my weakness during the fall is candy, corn, just love candy, corn and those little pumpkins. Oh yes. That taste like candy corn. Anyways, so I used to have a pumpkin jar that I would fill with that during the season, and now I just.

Don't fill it. And it is actually really hilarious 'cause I feel like every day my kids just think, maybe she filled it today. And I just watch 

them come up just disappointed day after day. Open that pumpkin and there's don't like them 

anymore. I wait till Halloween night to put 'em in. But but just think about what is important to you. Prioritize that. 'cause you do need to eat sweets and enjoy what you like, but the things like little candies here and there that, that you don't really love. Try to figure out a way to get those outta your sight and then you're not tempted.

 we're talking a lot about to feel our best is managing our blood sugar because that is something that. No matter what, if you have [00:16:00] pre-diabetes or type two diabetes, it doesn't matter who it is. We all feel poorly when we have these huge blood sugar rushes. And one way to help combat that, say you tried your best to limit how much you ate, but you ended up eating more than you wanted to anyways, and then you're feel like you're stuck, right?

And you're like, I'm just gonna feel bad. We have a habit for you to try out. And that would be go for a walk, go move and. Depending on the situation or whether, even if it is, just stand up instead of just keep on sitting when you feel really full, that movement helps with your blood sugar and is gonna help bring it down so you don't stay at this high for a really long period of time that makes you feel like garbage and just a simple 10 minute walk.

I know Kitty and I have experimented. This ourselves with continuous glucose monitors, and it immediately starts bringing your blood sugar down and can help you feel well. 

Yeah, 

and 

you're right. It just makes you feel [00:17:00] less sluggish. It will help your pants not feel as tight and just get around and move, and if it's too cold to go outside or you don't feel like you can leave where you are without.

Causing attention to yourself, then just move around. You can help. Clear the table, help do dishes. There's always something that needs to be cleaned up or put away. So just offer to do that and move around and you will see a difference. You may offer to, take all the kids outside and let them run around for a while and or even start 

a dance party with the kids.

Yes. Yeah. No, that's. That's a great one. Or if you're just at home and it's not a party situation. Something as simple as doing some squats can have a big difference as well. If you don't, if you're just like, I don't wanna go out in the cold. Doing a couple sets of squats that, again, is gonna help your largest muscle groups bring in some of that blood sugar and overall help you feel better.

Yeah.

 Another thing that's easy to get carried away with during this [00:18:00] time is alcohol. There can be a lot of social pressure to feel like you need to keep up with how everyone around you is drinking, and you can feel awkward if everyone's holding a drink in their hand and you're not. And so thinking about.

What your personal limits are on how much alcohol you wanna be drinking during this season is good to do ahead of time instead of waiting until you're in the moment. Yeah. 

And planning ahead could make a big difference. One great strategy. Always having a, a lot of times there's these wonderful punches that people have at Christmas holiday parties is keeping the alcohol out of the punch.

That way you are in control of whether or not you want to have any in it, as well as provide an option that is alcohol free for those who do not want to partake in it. And it still helps you feel like you're being festive and a part of everything without necessarily having to drink a bunch of liquor.

Yeah. 

And there's all sorts of [00:19:00] great mocktails that you can make that look similar. And no one really has to know whether you have sparkling water with a splash of cranberry or vodka with a splash of cranberry. You can keep that to yourself, but you don't have to keep up with everyone around you if you're in an environment where people are drinking more than you want to.

And even 

today, there's great non-alcoholic options. I know. Non-alcoholic beers or something that I will have at times just to, if I am really trying to keep a boundary, it's like I don't really wanna have more than one drink this evening. So I'll just bring some non-alcoholic options with me. And it, if you plan ahead again, just think about it a little bit ahead of time, it can really help you stay within your goal.

Yeah. And if you do have kids, they love having a fun drink too. So you can make it your duty to make the drink for the kids and then you can have some of that as well. 

 And trying to limit alcohol also makes many of these other healthy habits [00:20:00] easier. A lot of times when we drink a lot of alcohol, we suddenly start snacking more.

Our appetite's different. Everything seems to go. By the wayside when we've had too much alcohol. So really thinking about if that is something that you struggle with, is again, , having a boundary in place so everything doesn't feel like it gets outta whack just because you ended up having three, four drinks at a party.

And if it's still hard for you to say no or feel like you need an excuse, we are offering you a great Christmas gift this year. You can blame us. Woo. We are happy to be your scapegoat for any healthy habit this year that you need help sticking with. So if you need to say, oh, hey, I've gotta see my doctor next week, and they're checking my liver numbers, just go ahead and say it.

If you feel like you need an excuse to not be drinking, just go ahead and say something like that. We're happy to take the blame. 

Yes. If your Aunt Susie is trying to push you to eat [00:21:00] five more slices of cheese, you can literally say, I am having my cholesterol checked next week. Please. I have to limit this.

Or. Again, just like we do in our practice, let them know, Hey, my doctor prescribed that I go for a walk after dinner. I need to do this. And that's a way to really combat some of that social pressure that a lot of people put on you. And many times, once you say my doctor said I had to do this, people just, they stopped talking.

Yeah. 

They probably will not fight you on it. So if you feel like you need an excuse to not have that extra pie. , Just say, I'm having labs next week. 

And if you need more ideas, just, reach out to your doctor and ask them what you should be doing this holiday season for your specific health.

Need to be filling your best because they will be happy to be your excuse, not just us. Any doctor. Would love to be able to do that for you.

 An another thing to think about especially when you're trying to cut back on alcohol, is thinking [00:22:00] about how much you're hydrating, because many times we're not drinking a whole lot of water when we're doing a lot of socializing and we're traveling a bunch, and this can really help you feel so much better.

I feel like it is one of the simplest. Ways to feel better, but sometimes can be one of the most challenging. And that's just getting enough water in. So whether it requires you to get a festive water bottle for the season to have motivation to carry it around, it's really taking time to hydrate and making sure you're getting all your water in.

Yeah. And 

if you 

have a cup or a water bottle that you normally drink out of, maybe just think about taking it with you so that you actually think about drinking 

water and make it a goal in between any other drinks that you may have that you have to have a glass of water.

. Alternating between the two can help you stay on track to keep all of your water in and just make that a mental goal. Oh, I , I had this one drink, I'm gonna be sure that I have a full glass of water before I even touch something else. [00:23:00] It's just gonna help with your digestion.

You're gonna feel better, you're gonna sleep better. And it'll help you keep that alcohol lower as well. Yeah. 

Especially if you're drinking alcohol. And I'll tell you, we had a great episode last year with Beth Kronenberg. And she talked about hot lemon water, and I hadn't done it all summer, and I just started having that again, and it is so good.

If you feel like you just need a good, warm beverage, warm water with about a third of a lemon squeezed into it is delicious. And I like to challenge it even more and do it 

before your coffee because it really just gets you a great start for the day so you're not having that caffeine dump on an empty stomach.

And it's amazing. So if you haven't tried it, I know it sounds crazy, but you should at least give it a shot.

 Things like not having your own water bottle around can get you off track for drinking water, but also just having a different schedule and doing things out of your normal [00:24:00] routine can really throw you off working in any exercise. 

Yeah, and I really think, especially during the holiday season, getting up and doing it first can make such a difference in your day.

I have already noticed it this month when I am laying in bed, like I don't wanna do anything. , I don't love winter, I don't love cold months. And I'm like, the sky is gray. And literally my attitude is completely different on days that I get up and exercise first versus. Just starting my day without the exercise because I feel like I'm all gloom and doom all day long if I don't just get up and get moving.

Yeah, 

and I think the hard thing too is because you are trying to work in seeing family and friends, or you might realize, oh no, I forgot to get a gift for so and so and you've gotta run, do that last minute. Your days can really get away from you. And I would really encourage you, even if you normally exercise later in the day, just to try to get something done in the morning [00:25:00] because that way you know you've gotten it done.

You're going to feel the benefits of that all day. And then if something comes up where you don't get to do the exercise you have planned, then you've still gotten something in. It could just be 10 minutes 

of something. That's exactly, I was getting ready to say that. I was like, this is a time where you have got to let go of the fact that.

Because many people are like, if I can't work out at least 30 minutes, it's not worth my time. Let that go. Yes. If it is 10 minutes, if it's 15 minutes, if it's 20 minutes, it doesn't matter. All those still count. They're gonna help you stay consistent and it's better than not doing anything, and if that is something also that helps you feel good for the rest of the day, then that was such a valuable use of 15 to 20 minutes.

 Another thing is also considering when. Times get a little stressful around the holidays with family is one way to break free. Take a good breather is just going for a walk looking at the Christmas lights. So consider that as well. If you didn't get your work in [00:26:00] that morning, grab someone and say, Hey, do you need some fresh air?

And let's just go for a stroll and look at Christmas lights. Movement is a also a great way to decompress. If it morning time, just, if you're hearing this and you're still like, oh, there's no way I am gonna do that, Sarah and Kitty, you're crazy. Then try to just make it very simple and you can still make it festive by taking a walk around the neighborhood and looking at those lights.

So we want you to try to move in the morning if you can, but the other thing that we really want you to try to keep as consistent as possible is your sleep. It's really easy to be staying up late or sleeping in if you're off of work for a few days, but the more consistent you can be with that, the better rested you will feel and that really will affect.

Everything for your holiday, how stressed you get, how you eat, it's gonna make a big difference if you can get your regular sleep in. Yeah. Don't let the elf steal your sleep. 

Make if it's already late [00:27:00] at night, just decide that he is gonna do something very simple that evening and get to bed.

Do not let that little guy take away your sleep. 'cause you need it more than your children need one more magical moment with the elf that evening. My poor kids just have it moving around all the time. That's exactly at creating this. We're ours. Just moves. But I know that. And that's not the only thing.

We just tend to find a million different things that we're doing in the evenings and trying to overdo it sometimes. And then again, if we're not getting enough sleep and you're worried about being sick for the holidays, if that's a main concern of yours, the last thing you should be doing is cutting away from your sleep, because that is going to just set you up for.

A likely Christmas illness. Every time I know that my sleep gets off, that is when I get hit. So if you need a reason, a motivator to go to bed on time, that is one of the ones I would use. Not just from [00:28:00] being able to emotionally deal with all the stress of the holidays, better if you're getting enough sleep, but also trying to avoid being sick.

Yeah. And if you're traveling 

And you're sleeping somewhere away from your home. That can be hard too. So think about what you need. Do you need to bring a sound machine with you? Do you need to bring a fan with you? If you're changing time zones, do you need something like melatonin to help you?

So try to think about it in advance so that you don't get. Caught there and you can't sleep. But you've set yourself up to try to sleep the best you can when you're out of town. Yeah, we always travel with pillows, 

white noise. We do too, and fans. And it is important, it is worth the extra space because we do tend to sleep better if that is the case.

And Sarah, I'm actually surprised you didn't bring up trying to keep that wind down routine going, oh 

hey, that is so true. I'm probably the worst at doing my wind down routine in the month of December. Full disclosure. But it is something that if I feel like I am struggling to get to sleep and I have had two bad nights, then [00:29:00] it'll motivate me again and be like, okay, I really need to be able to wind down.

I do not need to buy any more gifts. I need to just. Be done and stop using all my time in the evening for shopping and focus on getting back to sleep. I am guilty of even losing my wind down routine during December and have to remind myself, oh wait, that's why I'm not falling asleep because I'm doing all this work up until my bedtime and I need to get back to my normal schedule of how I fall asleep.

another thing that helps with that is making sure that you are putting your phone away both at night so that you can stay consistent with your sleep and. And I think that's a good example of not scrolling, thinking of who have I forgotten a present for? But I did. I did it last night. This is very fresh on my mind.

And I literally got in bed and I told Chris, I was like, we gotta stop doing shopping right before bed because then I can't fall asleep because I have literally been looking at my phone the entire time up until. I'm falling asleep. And that makes you think about other things you need to do, correct.

Your [00:30:00] mind's just very active, and then you're gonna be worrying about your to-do list, et cetera. What I do plan to do tonight is ahead of time is thinking about, Hey, what else do I need to have, get done, write it down, and then let it go so I can actually wind down and get to sleep. 

And just really try to be a little bit more mindful of putting your phone away when you're with family and friends during the holidays.

You don't have to check every message that pops up. You don't have to show every picture on your phone that you've taken. Try to actually think about making a memory as opposed to taking a picture of things. , 

Last year, kitty and I both made these boxes where we put our phones in a box in a way and out of sight to help with that.

'cause sometimes if you really do feel very attached to your phone, many of us do. So there's no judgment there again, it's the same thing as treats. If it is in sight, you are more likely to grab it and respond to every notification and do every single text [00:31:00] message and continuously to have all these pickups.

But if you literally put it out of sight. And focus on being present, you're gonna have better success. So really consider that. It could even be a whole family idea of having a box. Everyone puts their phones away so we have some good quality time together that is not interrupted by a ton of phone notifications.

Yeah. 

We even got a, it's a digital camera, but it's. It looks like one of those old disposable ones from my college days. Oh, I've seen those. Yeah. Because I think that's hard too. You wanting to take pictures of things and so then you have your phone out and then you can't help but see all these other things that come up and you get distracted and so something like that where you can take.

Pictures, or you could just put your phone on airplane mode and then you can still use the camera. Think about the different settings you can put on. If you are someone that gets distracted and put those settings on, maybe if you don't normally put social media limits on your phone, go [00:32:00] ahead and do that.

You could put it on do not disturb. Just think about what do you need to do so that. You're less distracted and you can be in the moment and actually remember the holiday. 

And with that , many of the phones have different options that you can put one of those on, but still allow specific people to get through.

'cause I know that's always a concern. Oh I need to make sure you know that this person can reach me, my parents could reach me, or my grandmother could reach me in case of an emergency. And you can set up your phone and use a do not disturb, but allow them to reach you. So then you're not worrying that you're missing something really important.

But all the other stuff that is not necessarily an emergency doesn't come through can really help and. Something I'm gonna do this holiday season is also take off my watch. I wear an Apple watch and it can be distracting as well, especially if you get any sort of notifications. So it's really trying to go low tech to be in the moment with your family and friends.

, I know this [00:33:00] was a lot of things and I'm just gonna say them all again, just too. Remind you and then think about a few that you want to really focus on. But remember that this is just about having some consistency during this holiday season. It is not about doing all of these things perfectly and if you find it that you have a day where you do terrible at all of these things, that's okay, but don't.

Get in your head and say, okay, I'll wait till January one before I get back on track. Just get back on track. The moment you notice that you're off 

because you're really going to feel better, and that is something I always like to encourage people is when you are doing nothing for your own health for weeks or the whole month of December, you come out of it feeling.

Bad, and that is just not fun. So really thinking about what can you do to focus on something that [00:34:00] may keep you consistent. So you can start off 2026 strong. Yeah. 

So in thinking about nutrition, think about do you need to bring something to the party? And if you do, then you bring your own appetizer or bring your own side dish so that you do have something.

With protein and fiber because we want you to get protein and fiber in before you let yourself eat all of the carbs, which you should still enjoy all of those that you want to, but make sure you're getting that protein and fiber in first, and then when you finish your meal. That's when you should have your dessert.

Don't wait a long time later. And then after that dessert, get up and move, whether that's taking a lap around the block or just helping clear the table and pick up. And then also make sure you're getting all your water in , and let that help you from drinking too much as well. 

putting in some of those fun mocktails [00:35:00] or other things to drink so you still feel festive and a part of the party.

It doesn't always have to be alcohol. Just remember that, and that helps with many of these other goals as well. 

And then try to make sure you're getting some. Exercise in, we would recommend just doing it first thing in the morning, even if it's only 10 minutes. That way you know it's not gonna get put off and not get done that day.

And make sure you protect your sleep. 

Yes, as a reminder. Schedules help a ton. So do your best. Even if you have to set an alarm, a bedtime alarm that reminds you, Hey, it's time to start winding down and get ready for bed. You will be very appreciative of that. Sleep the next day. 

And then there's a few things to put away.

One is your phone and the other is all the treats that sit out on. On the countertop. So just put those things away outta sight, outta mind. And then don't forget our holiday gift to [00:36:00] you. 

 We are your best 

excuse, so blame us for everything. Sorry, I've gotta exercise before I come over to the party because my doctor's having me try a new thing for my knee pain.

There's a million excuses you can come up to say that your doctor told you to do in order to stick to these goals. So use any and all of them.

 And as we are mentioning, many of these healthy habits, just thinking ahead of common roadblocks that you may have. We're all different. We all experience different holidays and. Thinking of a plan ahead of time, because if you leave it for you to think on your feet, we tend to not do the healthiest option at times.

So if there is a specific roadblock that you know always happens, go on and make a plan and have it in place and verbalize that to your loved ones. And. That will help you stay consistent as well. 

And if you come up with a plan and you don't stick to it, also don't let that totally derail. You learn [00:37:00] from it and you have, this holiday will come around again.

So learn from that so that maybe next time you can think about how you'll do it differently. And that's how we learn. So don't get frustrated if you, you know, think to yourself, I'm gonna do this at this party, and that goes awry. Just think about. Why that happened, and then make a different plan next 

year.

And if you want a reminder of all these different healthy habits that we just talked about, we created an ebook. That's easy. We'll have it in our show notes. You can click on it. It'll remind you of all these healthy habits and why we suggest them and use it as a tool. Again, you don't have to do all of them, but just pick a couple that can help you stay consistent so you can feel your best this holiday.

We hope you have a great holiday.