With just a hop skip and a jump 2023 will be here. Let’s be ready with some helpful holiday tips:

HOLIDAY TIPS :

1. WATER WATER WATER: Whether you are on the beach, the slopes or home you should be drinking water throughout the day. Dehydration can cause hunger, headaches, constipation and fatigue. Plan your water intake throughout the day. For example a great practice is to drink an 8oz bottle of water as soon as you wake up because your body is dehydrated from sleep and the activities from the night before – whatever that may have been. So wake up and drink. Every time you plan a meal or snack drink 8 oz of water before you eat. You will not only consume less food because water is filling — but you will feel and look so much better throughout the day. **Did you know that alcohol and caffeine are diuretics. If you are drinking alcohol or any caffeinated drinks – make sure you have a glass of water in between each one. 

2. EXERCISE: Whether you are in the gym or out of the gym stay active on vacation. Home or away vacation is the perfect time to stay active. On the mountain go skiing, sledding, or shoe walking. On the beach take a long walk or jog on the sand. Go swimming. Do an outdoor yoga class or take outdoor boot camp. Enjoy your surroundings and plan activities according to the weather you are in. If you are staying home with the family play tag or hide and seek. Go bowling or ice skating. Take long walks in the park and maybe even go hiking.  It will be enjoyable and keep the mind and body in a great place. 

3. PLAN & PREPARE: Always always plan your meals and snacks. Regardless on vacation or home you need to plan your meals and snacks because believe it or not while it’s uncomfortable to over do it at home it’s even worse to over do it on vacation. Whether you are Home or on Vacation you want to choose one of the following to keep you on track for Holidays & New Years:

•  Stay on program and follow your 6 clean days and 1 cheat day. If you do this you will of course lose weight and feel great. Plan your food and snacks in advance each day. If you are drinking count it as your snacks. 

•  Split the Holidays. We have multiple holidays and New Years Eve and New Years Day. If you split them and stay on program all day and only off at night – Dinner and Drinks or Dinner and Dessert. You do it for all Holidays with on program days in between. You will absolutely maintain but for many will still have a great chance of losing if you have amazing days in between. 

• Home or Away – Maintain your Vacation– If you feel you need the break from the everyday mindset vacation is a good time to take advantage of it. Whether you are home or away you will choose one meal and one dessert or drinks each day. The remainder of the day keep on program. So for example you might do Muffin Breakfast, and light chicken salad for Lunch – and then cheat dinner and dessert or drinks. Then the next day you might want to do a Cheat Breakfast – and then on program remainder of the day.  You can choose how you want to do it but each day it’s one cheat meal with dessert or drinks (your drinks count as your desserts). If you do this you do not have a full cheat day before or after the holidays’s or break — because you are cheating a little each day. At the end of the holiday week go right back on program for a week and then get on the scale because it will take a full clean week before you see the maintenance of that week. So if you choose this option don’t weigh at the end of the week after having a cheat meal and dessert every day and expect to be the same weight you were at the beginning of the week. Im telling you now that won’t happen. But after the holiday week if you give yourself a solid on program week you will go right back to the pre-holiday weight.

While I wish food and drinks didn’t play such a big part in how we feel – the reality is it does. And I’m a big believer that it’s always better to face things then ignore them. Since what we eat and drink affects our mindset and personality, I think its super important to think through how you want to feel and what is going to make you happy. Do not cheat everyday if you know by mid week you will be miserable because that will just make everyone you are with miserable. As hard as it may feel to stay on program – think about how hard it is to feel bloated and uncomfortable in your body. Im not saying that you should stay 100% on program this holiday break but what I am saying is think it through and decide what you are going to feel your best doing. Honestly I know you all so well that I think there is a different option for each one of you. But what I am telling you is that while going off program makes you feel free of stress and structure – if you over do it you will begin to feel uncomfortable and out of control and I don’t want you to have that feeling on this holiday week. Think about it and plan how often you can cheat and still feel okay. Because when you start out in a bathing suit or snow pants and end up mid week in a cover up or feeling like frosty you have to be okay with it. 

Final thoughts –Remind yourself two things: It doesnt matter how amazing you were up to this point. You will feel the effects of daily over doing it immediately. So make the choices because this vacation isn’t only about you it’s about your family and what mood they have to deal with when you lose control. I know it’s the harsh reality but Im telling you now so you don’t look back and feel like you should have made different choices. You have all been on holiday break before and you know what it does to you mentally and physically when you are consistently off program. Some are okay and can just deal with the affects of it and go right back on program when they return — others will let it ruin the holiday/vacation mid way through. Don’t do it. This year you are going to THINK BEFORE YOU ACT and make sure your choices are what is good for you and all those you love. And always remember if you lose control and you realized you over did it and start to feel uncomfortable there is a simple solution – the very best thing to do is regardless of where you are you just go back 100% on program. After one solid on program day you will feel back in control and feel so much better. I am always here for you if you need guidance – simple reach out. Remember this isn’t about being perfect it’s about being happy. 

HAPPINESS LOOKS AMAZING ON EVERYONE!

Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

INNOVATION WEIGHT LOSS

& HEALTHY MARKET

8031/8037 JERICHO TPKE

WOODBURY, NY 11797

516 802-5055

innovationweightloss.com

innovationjeff1@gmail.com

LET’S TALK MINDSET: No matter the situation you find yourself in this year, you need to take time and ensure you have a healthy mindset. If you don’t know by now, everything in life has an upside and a downside—it’s your duty to look at the situation the right way and make the most out of what’s present. Remember, your perception of things frames how you will experience them. Follow these tips to ensure you have a healthy mindset so you can enjoy your holidays as much as possible!

Reflect on What You are Grateful For:  You know I’m always talking about gratitude, and it’s for good reason. Gratitude is what creates a healthy mindset. Practicing gratitude is a great way to get and keep your mind right day to night. Gratitude allows you to center yourself and realize that while your life isn’t perfect, you have a lot to be happy about. Practicing gratitude is straightforward. You simply need to take time to reflect on what you have in your life- not what you don’t have.

STRESS: All of us feel stress at some time or another, but the holidays can push us even further. Between shopping, cooking, planning, visiting family, traveling, weather and holiday breaks — many of us are thrown right off our game. Disruption to our daily routines can distract us, so we have to find ways to stay grounded and in control. Make sure you are stocked with all the healthy foods you need, and look to the future to make sure you are prepared for holiday parties, dinners, vacations, events or other plans. Whether you are spending the day shopping, going out with family, hosting or attending a party or any other festive plans – be prepared.

SPEND TIME WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE: I can’t stress enough how important this one is. Just like the importance of being grateful for what you have – the holidays are all about spending time with the people you love and are grateful for. If you have family or friends you are close to – you should go out of your way to spend more time with them.  Keep in mind – the right people uplift you, appreciate and value you, they are there when you need them, honest with you and want the best for you, and want to see you happy and succeed in life. Being with people we love and care for is good for our mental health as they make us feel loved, and appreciated.

HOWEVER – and this is a BIG HOWEVER:  Just as the right people provide us with positivity — spending time with toxic friends or family drains us. Unfortunately, the holidays can be draining and unhealthy when we are spending time with the wrong people. And I understand sometimes we don’t have as much control over this during the holidays. But we do have control over how much time we spend with them and how much we let them affect us. So this holiday season, be mindful of who you surround yourself with to keep your mental health balanced. Always remember you are the gatekeeper for who you choose to invite into your life.

SNACKS: Having healthy snacks on hand is essential. When we are driving around from store to store shopping, spending hours walking around the mall, or spending time with our family and friends – a healthy snack will save you. We’ve all been there – we are shopping at the mall, completely exhausted and starving, low energy and just spent. Once you get to that point of starving you will grab without thinking. Don’t let that happen. Always have water and a prepared on- program snack on hand in case you need it. 

Focus on Creating Positive Memories: It’s important to remember that the holiday experiences you create now will be your future holiday memories for you and your loved ones. I know the stress can be overwhelming but if you take the time to step back – give yourself a 5 minute self meditation and just remember that this year is what will be remembered next year. Don’t focus on being 100% perfect – instead focus on  on giving yourself and your loved ones the opportunity to create positive fun experiences this season that you will look back and love and laugh about in the future. Try to laugh a little more at the things that might upset you. Sometimes when we laugh at ourself instead of getting frustrated it can create a completely different experience for everyone involved. I will never forget when I was about 7 years old. My mother and father cooked large pans of baked ziti for all of our relatives. As my dad was walking down the stairs with all the food he tripped and the pans of food went flying all over the floor and all over my relatives. And everyone just froze looking at my big Italian father who just spent the entire day in the hot kitchen. But of course my mother just burst out laughing hysterical and before we knew it everyone in the entire room was laughing including my father. I can tell you first hand that situation could have went a completely different way. But the fact that my mother laughed hysterically made all the difference in the room. To this day – there is not a holiday that someone doesn’t mention that memory in fondness. . It’s a memory we are all love to talk about. So during this holiday season remember everything we do creates memories. It’s up to you how you want them remembered by those you love.

Maintain Your Self-Care Routine: Between the time off from work, traveling to see family, and all the extra activities, it’s easy to fall out of our regular routines around the holidays. While it’s a great time to indulge in some of those tasty holiday treats, it’s important to maintain those healthy habits that you worked so hard to establish during the rest of the year. Make sure to prioritize your self-care habits like exercise, mediation, and hydration. You’ll have a much easier time fighting off those holiday blues if you’re feeling healthy and energized. You don’t need to go to the gym or complete an hour-long class each day. Something as simple as going for a 30 min walk outside or even doing a self workout at home counts. During the holidays my family self care tradition is to walk the neighborhood after dinners to take in all the beautiful decorations and reenergize for the remainder of the evening. Physical activity is important and good for us. Even 20-30 minutes of exercise can be enough to boost your mental activity, reduce stress, and improve your overall mood—something we can all use this time of year. So be sure to keep your body moving. 

TRADITIONS OLD AND NEW: Enjoy your holiday traditions and try Starting Some New Ones – Traditions tell our family story. They enrich the holiday season by allowing loved ones to recognize the culture and history that has shaped their identities. They add meaning to our experiences and enhance a sense of belonging with others. In an uncertain world, we find security in something remaining the same over time that can also be passed down through the generations. When we move from one phase of life to the next, the traditions we cherish and our values can remain a constant. The smells, tastes, and sounds we look forward to each year are predictable, familiar, and comforting. But it’s also okay to create new traditions or be flexible in your own traditions.  The truth is I am big on traditions. I love ours and our family lives by them – and now that my children are older it makes me so happy to get to see them introducing our traditions to their significant others. And it’s even just as exciting and fun to incorporate new traditions.  For example. every year we do cookies, and gingerbread houses and this year my son’s girlfriend introduced us to Sip and Paint. It’s where you sip wine and paint a holiday picture on a canvas. With my children older it makes sense to include something that we could never do when they were younger. So now they have the nostalgia of doing our yearly tradition of baked cookies and gingerbread houses from when they were young and the twist of an adult tradition that we end the evening with Sip & Paint. Now our tradition has a new twist that we all love and enjoy. Adding new traditions and/or being flexible in your yearly traditions is just going to make it fun for everyone and more importantly it’s going to tell the story of your family past and present. 

The best things in life are spending time

with the people we love and the memories we make.

It’s not only about the food on your plate –

More importantly it’s about the love and laughter that surrounds your table. 

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick

INNOVATION WEIGHT LOSS & HEALTHY MARKET

8031/8037 JERICHO TPKE

WOODBURY, NY 11797

516 802-5055

Innovationjeff1@gmail.com

innovationweightloss.com

innovationhealthymarket.com

I absolutely love Thanksgiving. Many of you that know me already knew I would start off like that. It’s my favorite Holiday. For me it is the start of the Holiday season. It’s not about shopping and gift giving — it’s about family and for being grateful for what you have and who you have in your life. And while it’s also a time to give thanks it’s also a time to pray and/or hope for those we lost and those less fortunate who are struggling. 

It’s also important for us to be grateful for the food on our table. How lucky are we all to be able to sit around a table filled with family, friends, love, laughter and a beautiful turkey with all the trimmings. 

So let’s plan for our TURKEY AND TRIMMINGS! It doesn’t matter if you do or do not like Thanksgiving food. As you may have heard me mention Thanksgiving is more than one day. It’s a 5 day social weekend where the average person gains 10-12lbs from start to finish. It starts Wednesday night and ends Sunday night. And if you don’t have a plan you are going to wake up a very unhappy person Monday Morning. So let’s talk about our Plans and Tips….

PLAN PREPARE AND FOLLOW THROUGH:

TIP: Whether you are cheating Thanksgiving or not – One of the best tips I can give you for Thanksgiving Day is to stay on program and go off dinner, dessert, drinks. Don’t starve yourself all day because if you do that you won’t be able to control yourself when you finally sit down. Instead follow your on program meals of Breakfast and Lunch or Breakfast and Snack and then go into your Thanksgiving dinner hungry but not starving.

5 HOUR FAST:  Unless you are on the 5 hour fast. If you are on the 5 hour fast you are already used to only eating in that time period and your body already knows how to control it. So if you are on the 5 hour fast stick to your 5 hours and make them to your Thanksgiving schedule. 

NAVIGATE THE TABLE:  Regardless whether you are doing the Signature Innovation or the 5 hour fast – When it comes to the food I would have your turkey and then take 1 large tablespoon or 1 small portion of everything else you like that is on the table. Sometimes you will find tasting them is enough. You can always go back for more of what you really liked. But if you fill your plate with everything you will most likely eat it all even if you end up not being crazy about something to begin with. Mentally we tend to finish what is on the plate whether you love it or not. So do not give yourself that option. Instead take a small portion or TBSP of everything you do like – try it and if you really want more go back for it or you might be very satisfied with what you had and be done and feel good. Same goes for the desserts. 

WHAT IS YOUR PLAN

PLAN 1: 

WEIGHT LOSS:  If you want to continue on your weight loss journey and continue to lose weight over the Thanksgiving weekend then you will either use Thanksgiving as your cheat day and do the rest of the week and weekend on program. OR you will be 100% on Thanksgiving and have turkey and veggies and have your cheat day on your regular weekend day that you choose. This is very doable. You can eat out and still be on program. You can have a drink and still be on program. So if you want to stay on program and continue to lose weight you can do this. Always remember you are 100% in control of your results. 

PLAN 2: 

MAINTAIN: NO Exercise: If you are okay with maintaining you can do 2 cheat meals and desserts. You simply pick two days— For example: Thanksgiving dinner and Saturday night and you only cheat dinner and dessert or dinner and drinks on those two nights. The rest of the day and the rest of the weekend is 100% on program. If you do this you will maintain this weekend and that is fantastic if you are okay with maintaining.

PLAN 3:

WEIGHT LOSS:  If you do everything I just listed for PLAN 2 above; but you add in at least 60 min of cardio each day then you have a really good chance of still losing this weekend. So basically it’s 2 Cheat meals with desserts or drinks and incorporate 60 min of cardio each day and you will see weight loss at your next weigh in.

After the weekend the most important thing is to get right back on program.  Because if you stick to your plan any new weight will be gone in a day or two and you can start losing again. The worst thing you can do is get into the mindset that Thanksgiving is once a year and you will be missing out if you don’t over indulge each day all weekend. I see it with clients all the time they want to lose weight but they don’t want to put the planning and work in to make it happen. You have choices. If you stick to one of the plans above and use the Healthy Tip – I promise you will come out of this weekend – feeling great and very grateful. 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 

FROM ALL OF US TO ALL OF YOU

~LOVE TO LIVE HEALTHY WITH JOSEPHINE FITZPATRICK 

INNOVATION WEIGHT LOSS

AND HEALTHY MARKET

8031/8037 JERICHO TPKE

WOODBURY, NY 11797

516 802-5055

WWW.INNOVATIONWEIGHTLOSS.COM

I have to say I am super impressed with how so many of you got right back on program after vacations. So many of you even texted me on vacation telling me you couldn’t wait to be back on program when you returned. For those of you who have experienced it you know that it is such a great feeling to have when you are away enjoying knowing that when you come back it’s only a couple of days until you feel back in control and back to yourself. Thinking about it more in depth it is even more amazing how quickly we feel the difference when we go from on program to off and then off program to on program.

IS IT A STRUGGLE TO BE ON PROGRAM OR OFF PROGRAM?  We always feel like it’s a struggle to be on program and do the right thing – but the funny thing is as soon as we have the freedom to go off program we can’t wait to get back on program again. Which brings me to the question is it more of a struggle to be off program or on program. I would have to say from the text messages it’s actually more of a struggle to be off program.

Here is why: Mentally while we are on program it feels so difficult and we just can’t wait to have a cheat day but you see the cheat day is part of the program so when you are on 6 days and cheating 1 day that is still very much on program. But when you have a long holiday weekend or a vacation and now you are off program every day – even if it’s just a cheat meal or extra drinks – you are off program and you immediately feel it in your body and clothes.  When you don’t have any 100% on program days and you feel it in your body it changes you mentally. You know it’s a struggle to feel that way and you don’t want to stay that way – and that is why you can’t wait to be on program again.  For those of you who have lived the program for a long time know exactly what I am talking about.

WEIGHT LOSS IS 90% MENTAL: When we break it down – what we learn on program is very simple: We can go enjoy our holiday and vacations knowing that when we return and get right back on program in only a couple of days we will feel so much better. It’s truly the beauty of the program. What many of you may not have realized is that the cheat day has set you up for this. Having your cheat day once week and learning how to get right back on program the day after cheating has taught you so much. You have learned how to go on vacation and get right back on program after the vacation is over. When you master this you have learned the balance of weight loss. Living healthy, losing weight and enjoying and indulging.

THE BEST LIFE IS ALL ABOUT BALANCE:  We work hard we play hard. In every part of life we need balance so that we don’t just do one thing too much because that will only set you up for failure. There is nothing more important than having a healthy balance in your life – you work hard to be healthy and feel good, but you also enjoy and indulge. It’s so important to incorporate the cheat day because no one can or should want to be 100% – 24/7.  When you learn how to incorporate the cheat day it teaches you the balance you need to lose weight. Just remember the cheat day only works when the other 6 days are 100%. If you are not having 100% days then you should not be having a cheat day.

LIVE THE PROGRAM: When you learn not to just do the program and you learn to live the program you will see it gets easier and easier to get back on program right after a cheat day, holiday and/or vacation. A big part of the program is not so much the vacation or holiday cheating – but what you do after it. It’s super easy to cheat but it’s twice as hard to get back on program after a long holiday weekend or vacation. But the more you live your 6 days on and 1 day off makes getting back on program so much easier because your body learns quickly how much better it feels when you are doing the right thing and feeling your best. Consistency is key here. The longer you teach your body to live the 6 days on and the 1 day off program – the easier it becomes and the faster you learn to live in this healthy balance.

YES, THE STRUGGLE IS REAL: While we want to enjoy summer we don’t want to throw away everything you worked so hard for. Remember when you are returning from vacation the first few days will always be the hardest because you are going from eating too much to eating less than your body needs – so you will experience real hunger pains. Just remember they are temporary. By thursday you will start to feel so much better and you will know only another couple of days until cheat day again. So if you are returning from vacation and feeling a little struggle with the hunger – remember how important it is that you get right back on program. Push yourself through the first couple of days and I promise you by the end of the week you will feel amazing. You will be thrilled that it’s behind you and that you are back on, feeling good and eating on program.

FINAL THOUGHTS: it’s hard but its also very doable. You make choices and you deal with the outcome. If you want the summer to continue to be fun and you want to feel good every week so you can enjoy it – then you need to learn to get right back on program after a holiday or long weekend. Continue to do your best everyday and be proud of it. Don’t wait until you find a perfect week where nothing is going on to go back on program – finding a perfect week in the summer where nothing is going on is impossible. Instead jump right in and think of your weight loss as weight loss days not weight loss weeks. Every day that you can make a weight loss day – do it. The more weight loss days you get in one week – the better the result at the end of the week.  When you treat your body good your body repays you will results.

GET THROUGH THE STRUGGLES YOU WILL SEE THE RESULTS

~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick