How To Not Gain 3-5 Pounds During Thanksgiving

Here's some ideas.
They might not all apply to you, but these tips have really helped me in the past few years at Thanksgiving time. Feeling so full that your stomach is gonna explode doesn't feel that great and its kinda easy to do at this dinner with so many foods that all seem to go together...

1. Don't eat cheese if this is an hor dourve. 
2. If there are more than 5 items of food to put onto your dinner plate, take SUPER small amounts of each -- like SAMPLE sizes. 
3. Eat slowly. It takes10-20 minutes for the stomach to tell the brain that it is full. 
4. Limit the gravy to about 1 tablespoon.
5. If the host is serving bread, don't eat it unless its some of the best bread EVER. 
6. Don't eat anything on the table that is super high in fat and calories unless you LOVE it. This is where you choose your foods that are worth the fat and calories.
7. Pile up your plate with vegetables only if they aren't caked in oil and butter. You can see the glisten if they are ;)
8. Try limiting your alcohol intake to 2 glasses of wine. 
9. At dessert time, take a SLIVER of a piece of pie and a tablespoon of ice cream instead of a plateful or opt out!
10. Don't eat any candies or chocolate in addition to dessert. 
11. Try not to take home leftovers. Especially the pies ;)
12. Try to exercise at least on Thursday and Friday (Saturday and Sunday too if possible) You will feel so good about yourself!!
13. Don't use the holiday as an excuse to say F it to your whole healthy lifestyle. Get back into the routine of eating healthy and exercising the next day and on Monday. 

This is a great time to enjoy family, food, time off from work and relaxation. It doesn't have to mean ultimate indulgence. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

What Is Your Body Asking You For?

Therapeutics

For a number of years, on and off, I've been working on somatic therapy. I've always connected to my spiritual self through my body. (I guess this is why I ultimately chose fitness as a profession).

Somatic therapy teaches you that your physical self is a body of communication. Through your nervous system, your body gives you information about yourself. Psychologically speaking, I find this absolutely fascinating. Especially fascinating since for many years I stuffed my (now super healthy) body with drugs and alcohol.  Yes, my 20's were full of summer nights on rooftops in Manhattan and on the playa in the desert at Burning Man. And the winters were way less healthy ;) It was at this time, however, that I started going to therapy and ended up completely changing my life as a result of it. I can attest that by starting to listen to what my body was telling me (CRAZY hangovers are your body screaming about a lack of hydration and B vitamins) I began to realize my full potential.

To make a long story short I kind of went through a personal hell in order to find my own light. Besides the psychological work, I did a lot of yoga. I had always been a powerhouse athlete so choosing to do yoga was a pretty far reach. I just didn't think that yoga actually did anything besides breathing, chanting Om and stretching.

Growing up I did gymnastics. In high school I ran cross country, played soccer, danced, was a cheerleader and swam on the swim team. I was 9th fastest in the county of Los Angeles (which is pretty large) in the 50m freestyle in 1996. One night in NY I partied all night and then went to a kickboxing class at 9am. I thought my body was invincible. Well it wasn't. I'm just glad I had the wisdom to seek health before illness or injury came around. I happen to be blessed with a naturally strong body, but any body can only take so much.

Due to my own personal history and the fact that I tend to go all out at whatever I do, when I work with my clients, I try to teach balance and a sense of communication between themselves and their bodies. I believe that cross training is the healthiest form of fitness and this is also why I will never run a marathon. I think that if we were meant to run for hours and hours we would be horses. But that's just me.

I do also believe that if someone finds an activity they love, wonderful. I like to encourage a wide range of activities because this creates muscle confusion so that the body must always be on its toes, thus increasing calorie burn.

Knowing When to Say When

For many years I always thought that I needed to push my body when I exercised. Mostly this was because I thought that the more I pushed my body, the more weight I would lose. Once I realized that nutrition was the only real way that I could lose weight, I started to look at exercise differently. Yes, now I do work out hard, but I don't overdo it. Here's my current workout schedule: (which looks a lot different than it did one year ago when I was pregnant and 2 years ago when I was working out a major body part at the gym every day).

Mondays -- Baby Bootcamp (running, sprints, resistance bands, hills, calisthenics - 1 hr)
Tuesdays -- Day off, elliptical or run around Lake Merritt with baby - 30 min
Wednesdays -- Mixing of the Arts Class at our studio (Brooklyn Academy Roots) that is strength and conditioning and muay thai - 30-40 mins
Thursdays -- Workout at the YMCA (heavy weights) - 1 hr
Fridays -- Class or full body workout with heavy weights at studio (45 min)
Saturdays -- Yoga at yogatothepeople in Berkeley or swimming at YMCA 1hr-30 mins

I often miss class and end up working out about 4-5x a week. Yoga or swimming is my easy day. The point of this story is to change up whatever you've been doing unless you do a range of activities. You'll see a change in your body and you'll learn new ways to use your body.

It turns out that my body loves variety. I've been able to get my dream body because of the balance of nutrition and different activities. I was on a diet for 2 months, lost the baby weight and am now maintaining where I want to be, physically.

I train myself and my clients in stabilization, balance, strength, cardio and stretching. This weekend I went to yoga for the first time in a long time and learned so much about my body. Yoga is the type of exercise that MAKES you focus on you. At no other time in the day (except for maybe when you go to sleep at night) do most people focus on themselves. Often times, most of us are too busy to bother. Yoga makes you SLOW down, calm down and check in.

Getting to know your own body is priceless. It will tell you what is really going on with you. Sometimes when I can't make a decision, I pause and listen to what I really need and my body tells me. Our bodies are a manifestation of our minds. Never will I disrespect my body the way I did in my 20's. That was a lesson learned :) However, these days I do sometimes forget to check in. Fitness helps me get back in touch. Knowing when to physically push your body and when to stretch, relax, sleep or do some yoga is something only you can figure out.

Try to listen :)

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Why Eating More Protein Will Help You Lose Weight

When you don't eat protein in a meal, you'll probably end up eating more carbs than you would have because your stomach wants to feel satisfied. Refined carbs are empty calories so your body will want nutrients soon after eating them.

When people think about eating healthy they usually go for a salad. It's light, refreshing and you feel good after eating it. However, you might be hungry an hour later if the salad lacked protein or complex carbs. While a salad is a great option, it can get boring fast. Maybe you'll find a spot that serves a few good salads and then you get sick of them. I can never find enough places that are easy to get to that have great salads.

Sure, we all think of fruits and vegetables as eating healthy and this is true. But because the body REQUIRES amino acids (the building blocks of protein), you will generally not be satiated at a meal that lacks protein.

Every cell, tissue and organ has protein in it so if your body is lacking protein throughout the day, you will lack energy. Neurotransmitters are the brain chemicals that communicate information throughout our brain and body and the main source of energy that neurotransmitters use is protein.

Tip #1: Use your salad plate as your dinner plate.

If you're hungry and you only eat vegetables, you'll probably still be hungry. This is often why its easier for men to lose weight than it is for women. Because, unfortunately for women, men don't feel bad about eating a hamburger. And neither should you -- if its grass-fed.

So if you love eating salads, throw some protein in and you will end up feeling not overly full, but satisfied. Typically people don't feel satisfied unless they have a refined carbohydrate with their meal because, point blank, women just do not eat enough protein.  This has been my experience of talking to dozens of women about their food choices.

Tip #2: Don't eat any carbohydrates (breads, pastas) for dinner. Opt for the protein and the vegetables only at this meal. 

So what you want to do is this:
When you think about what you want to eat at each meal, think about what the protein is for that meal.

Every meal that I have has protein in it, otherwise I consider it a snack. But sometimes my snack (like today at Baby Bootcamp) is a protein shake. I was wondering why it tasted like weed until I remembered that I put hemp protein in it along with the whey protein ;)

Here's a protein powder brand I recommend Whey Cool by Designs For Health. It uses stevia instead of aspartame (kind of a funny taste, but worth it) and its 120 calories. I drink it with almond milk and usually add in a green powder like Vital Scoop (which I sell).

Here's a breakdown of my protein intake for yesterday to give an example:

• 6am -- whole wheat toast with almond butter (protein) and 1/2 banana + coffee
• 10am -- protein shake 
• 11am -- 2 eggs (protein), a little cheese, avocado (protein), rice, black beans (protein), tomato. All of this overflowed into a small tortilla. Handful of berries.
• 3pm -- greek yogurt (protein), nectarine, handful of nuts (protein)
• 6pm -- 3-4 turkey meatballs (protein) 1 cup black beans (protein) and rice
• 8pm -- berries, dark chocolate, mint tea

Here's a couple more healthy food options:

• quinoa salad (protein) with avocado (protein), tomato, cucumber, arugula, kidney beans (protein), 1 tbsp olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper
• salmon (protein) sauteed with white wine, lemon, 1 tsp butter, capers over steamed kale
• low-fat cottage cheese (protein) with fruit (great for slimming down)
• grass-fed lamb meatballs (protein) sauteed with onions, paprika, garlic salt, onion powder, cumin, chopped tomato and raisins over steamed chard (I had this the other night--soo good!)

Tip #3: Still hungry? Try drinking water. Sometimes thirst is masked by hunger.

So think about protein at every meal and you will have more energy and an easier time losing weight!

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Carbs: Good or Bad?

Curb the carbs and choose the good ones!

The human body needs three macronutrients for survival: carbohydrates, protein and fats. Carbohydrates get a bad rap these days because of highly processed foods.

In human history we were never able to get a super easy burst of energy at every meal. People baked their own breads and goods from scratch. Nowadays, a luna bar is fast and easy to grab while on the run.

Eating refined foods such as white breads, cereal, pastas, cookies, chips, crackers, rice, muffins, scones, bagels and croissants all turn into glucose in the body quickly. Refined foods are called this because the grain from which they come is stripped of its nutrients (including B vitamins and minerals) leaving only the sweet, plain taste of whiteness ;) Ever notice a slight bitterness when you eat a whole grain or whole wheat food? It's kind of nutty and bitter. Those are the nutrients in the grain.

Refined carbohydrates can be better understood as simple carbohydrates because they break down quickly in our bodies, giving a quick burst of energy that also quickly goes away. Complex carbohydrates, such as whole wheat bread or brown rice or quinoa takes longer to break down in the digestive system so it releases energy more slowly. Fiber also typically accompanies complex carbohydrates so that you get fuller faster and everything gets pushed along within the digestive system.

In nature (and before big profit entered into the food industry) carbohydrates are found in vegetables, fruit and grains. Since sugar and carbohydrates both break down into glucose in the body, it is ideal not to have too much of them together at one time. An example of eating too many carbohydrates in one meal could be pasta with sauce, garlic bread and frozen yogurt for dessert. These are three simple carbohydrate foods that together, add up to fat because the body can only deal with so many carbohydrates at a time. Our glycogen stores in our muscles and organs fill up when we have have eaten enough carbohydrates. When we eat too many carbohydrates to the point of our glycogen stores becoming full, the body has no current need for them and sends them on to be stored as fat for later use (in times of starvation etc.) A better version of the meal mentioned above that I eat on a weekly basis is:

1 cup whole wheat or white pasta
1/2 cup grass-fed ground beef or ground turkey
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup sliced onion
1/2 cup sliced zucchini or squash

The vegetables, protein and fat balance out the meal, making it a healthier option that provides more nutrients.

So try to only eat one carbohydrate per meal and no more than 3-5 servings (1/2 -1 cup) per day. Try to get your carbohydrates from complex sources and eat the brown parts! The nutrients are what the body is craving and it won't stop craving them until it gets it. This is why you can eat a bowl of white pasta and be hungry an hour later. There were no nutrients in that serving.

Knowledge Based Eating!

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People Would Rather Work Out Harder Than Change How They Eat

I did this for years. I thought that the harder my workouts were, the more weight I would lose. I had a personal trainer in NYC who told me to try not drinking alcohol for awhile. I laughed at him. I wasn't about to not drink! It was my everyday. It was the way I coped with stress. It was the way I relaxed. It took the edge off. Well having the munchies all the time didn't help either ;)

On a regular basis, I look around at the gym and see the same people doing their same workouts early in the morning year after year without a single change to their bodies. Some of these people probably do this as part of their routine and don't mind that they don't see physical change. But I don't get it. If I'm waking up early and working hard at something, I want to see some results.

As I learn things by experience, I realized that I wasn't actually burning more calories when I did a harder level on the stair master. When I started to get serious about burning calories by pushing myself to the point of being out of breath every time I did cardio I realized that this wasn't working the way I thought it did.  I wore a heart rate monitor and saw that if I stayed within my target heart rate of 65-85% then I would burn more calories than if I went above it. This is when it clicked for me. I then started to log my food on a daily basis and that is how I really saw a lowering of fat loss.

*Interval training is a great way to burn calories. Short bursts of intensity (being out of breath) shocks the system. Try 1 minute sprints of 7, 8 or 9.0 on the treadmill followed by 2 minute walks at 3.7 or 4.0 for 3-5 sprints in all. Or do a similar workout on an elliptical or bike. This will boost your metabolism.

So here's my advice. If you find that you fall into this category of working out harder when you want to see physical change and you don't see it, start to write down what you eat on a daily basis for 2 weeks. Just for 2 weeks. You can email it to yourself, create a notes page on your phone or write it down with a pen. Logging your food will probably be THE most eye-opening thing that you can do to reach your goals. I've been logging my food now for 3 weeks and I've lost 4 pounds. The real work is the accountability. It's hard, but it's smart.

Abs are made in the kitchen.