How to Enjoy Your Favorite Dishes During the Holidays
The first of many Jewish holidays this season begins tonight and with it comes several things to look forward to: family gatherings, celebration and traditional foods. Whether this is apples and honey, challah bread or Grandma’s special kugel, here are some tips to enjoying this holiday feast.
Start with tasting. Put one tablespoon of any dish you want to try or know you love on your plate. We all know what a tablespoon sized scoop looks like, so be honest with yourself. It may not look like enough but it’s the right place to start. Be more generous with the healthier options you find. Eat the healthier foods first and then go for the heavy dishes and special treats. Saving the best for last can help you eat more of the right foods and you may even skip the less healthy foods you always tell yourself you have to eat. Think of it as a taste testing – if something wasn’t as good as you always remember, at least you only had a tablespoon. And if there was something you really enjoyed and you won’t see again for another year, help yourself to an extra tablespoon. For many of you this may be a two-night holiday so you have to commit to staying in control on not one but two nights. You are the one who controls what foods – and how much – go on your plate.
If you find that you don’t want to finish something, remember that it’s okay to leave food on your plate. Take your time and listen to your stomach. Though you may think your stomach is always telling you “More, more!” you might realize that just a taste of certain dishes is all you need. You have to do what’s right for you. People may notice your small portions and insist you take more, and they may see your half eaten plate and say you should finish, but you can’t give in to the pressure to please other people, even if they’re the ones who cooked it. It is important to stay in control especially in social situations when food becomes personal. Stay strong and stay in control!
But like we said in the beginning, the food is just one part of this holiday for you to enjoy. Focus on the time you spend with your family and the significance of this holiday: hope for a sweet future and being thankful for the year that is coming to an end. Whether you are celebrating tonight or not, let this be an opportunity to appreciate how far you have come and recommit to your goals.
~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 10018
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle
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Healthy Snacks For The Whole Family
In the midst of everyone’s busy schedules packed with work, school, after school activities, social events and errands, planning a healthy snack time can fall through the cracks. This can be true for not only you but for your kids as well. Unhealthy snacking can quickly erase a day of clean eating and exercise, not to mention fill your kids with sugar.
When you know it’s going to be a hectic day, throw some almonds or carrots sticks in a baggie for your passengers to munch on in the back seat and stick some in the cup holder for yourself. Snack boxes of raisins or apple slices with to-go peanut butter packets are great for school or work. Easy grab and go bars like Special K Protein bars or Fiber One provide a little bit of sweetness as well as protein and fiber. For sports, dance or any active extracurriculars, try orange slices or peanut butter and banana sandwiches on whole wheat bread to give them a boost, and always hydrate with water.
On days when there’s a little more time to prepare something at home, something as simple as celery with peanut butter and raisins or veggies with hummus can satisfy everyone. Sliced fruit or a bowl of grapes is a great snack to share, maybe with a string cheese on the side. If they’re looking for something salty, try whole wheat pretzels or light popcorn snacks like Skinny Pop.
When they inevitably ask for candy or cookies, try something else sweet but smart like sugar free chocolate pudding. Trail mix is also a great alternative, as long as you make sure they aren’t just picking and choosing the sweet stuff! A cup of Cheerios can taste like candy with flavors like chocolate, apple cinnamon and dulce de leche, but they also pack whole grains, vitamins and minerals.
Snacking healthy will not only help you with your immediate fitness and weight loss goals, but it will also provide the foundation for a healthy lifestyle for you and your family.
~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle
Are Your Kids Making YOU Fat?
Back into the swing of things and we already feel the Snack Closet calling our name. We buy snacks for lunch, snacks for after school and snacks for sports. Stealing one or two handfuls for yourself and then another for “just in case”. Before you know it, you ate half the bag of Goldfish. If only they didn’t eat those darn Goldfish! If only they ate vegetables and fruits. Not the candy, cakes and cookies…not to mention the ice cream!
Do these thoughts sound familiar? Are you constantly blaming your children for making you eat? As parents, we know how very difficult it is to not buy that cake they love. You know, the one they beg for all the time, and when you buy it they only have one little tiny slice. The cake that you could inhale by just smelling it. How are you expected to get through each day with all these delicious sweets and treats in the house? You have to take one piece or maybe two. A handful for me and one for you. What choice do you have? Do you have a choice?
Let’s think about this more clearly….Who bought the snacks? Are they really all the snacks your children like or are they some that you like as well? Or did you buy them because you like them and hope the kids will take a piece to make you feel a little better about buying and eating it?
When we really think about it thoroughly, it’s not the kids who are making us fat, it’s more likely that we are making our kids fat. We buy foods that we know are loaded with calories and sugar, but it’s okay because they are kids, right? When we’re really honest with ourselves, we realize this is not the case and it’s time to make the right choice.
Start by keeping the unhealthy snacks out of your home. If an indulgent treat is just a couple steps away, it’s more likely for you to give into it. Not to mention that giving in to your kids’ cravings is creating bad eating habits they may carry with them their whole life.
Next, lead by example. Show them that eating healthy is something to be proud of, not a way to punish yourself for bad behavior. When you start making healthy choices it will affect the people around you, especially your kids.
Check back later this week for healthy snacks you and your whole family can enjoy!
~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle
BACK TO SCHOOL – BACK TO YOU!
Vacations are coming to an end and the children are back at school…now it’s time to get back to you. Why wait until New Year’s to make a resolution to lose weight and be healthy? September is a perfect month to start a “New You”.
With long work hours and after school sports here are a some IMPORTANT TIPS to make sure your September schedule is a healthy one that works for you:
1) PLAN YOUR WORKOUT IN THE MORNING: When you plan to do your workout first thing in the morning you have an 80% chance of actually doing it. On the flip side, if you don’t do your workout first thing in the morning, you have an 80% chance of NOT doing it!
When we start with a morning workout, we are much more likely to have a better nutritional day. Why? Because mentally you have put yourself on track for the day. You will not want to ruin your hard work and effort with an unhealthy snack or meal.
If you are a stay-at-home parent, get the kids off to school and head to the gym. Don’t put it off until after you clean the house or get the laundry done. Before you know it, the kids will be getting off the bus as quickly as they got on. Head right to the gym. Follow up by running your errands and then head home and do your housework.
If you are a working parent, make the effort to get up an extra hour early and get your workout in. It will change the dynamic of your day from okay to awesome! While I understand how difficult it can be to add an extra hour to your day, I can assure you it’s worth it, both mentally and physically. Your body will get used to it and in return, that extra hour will actually make you feel more healthy and energetic throughout the day.
2) REMEMBER: WORKOUTS ARE IN ADDITION TO HEALTHY FOODS, NOT IN REPLACE OF: What exactly does that mean? You are doing your workout so you can be healthy. If you want to lose weight in addition to clean eating it will help you lose even more weight; HOWEVER, you are NOT working out so you can eat whatever you want all day…AND you are NOT working out so you can eat more food throughout the day (even if it is healthy food – it’s still more). Workouts are to keep your body, mind, muscles and bones healthy and toned. In addition to a healthy eating plan, it will help you lose even more weight.
3) KEEP MOVING: When you are with your kids at after school sports, make sure you are not sitting, chatting and watching them. Even if you already worked out in the morning, grab some of the moms and dads and walk around the track or field. Unless it’s a game, you don’t need to watch your child practice. They have coaches to tell them how to play. They only need mom and dad to tell them what a great job they are doing and how amazing they are.
4) PLAN YOUR MEALS IN ADVANCE: Don’t ever start the day by winging it. If you don’t know what you are going to eat each day, it will most likely turn out bad. Either the night before or the morning of, make sure you know exactly what you are going to eat. Plan it out: You should know what you are eating for your meals and snacks each day. If you don’t know, you can quickly turn a healthy day into an unhealthy day all because of lack of planning. More importantly, when you don’t plan it out, it sometimes means mentally you know you will go off that day. That’s why you don’t want to think about it. So make sure you know exactly what you are going to eat from the time you wake up until you go to bed. When you are proactive it will make all the difference in your day.
When you incorporate some time for yourself into your schedule you can really make a difference in how you look and feel. No one said it’s easy to be healthy and fit, but everyone will tell you it’s worth it.
~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss and Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, N& 10018
FitnessHealthy TipsLifestyle
MAKE MONDAY A WEIGHT LOSS DAY AND GET RID OF THE WEEKEND BLOAT!
Mondays can be tough days. They tend to make us feel bloated and tired after a long weekend of socializing. Even if it’s just socializing with the immediate family, statistics show that we eat 80% more on the weekend than during the week.
For many, Mondays are also the start of work and school week. It’s a day of transitioning from happy and carefree to miserable and restricted.
If you are tired of starting your week feeling unhealthy and bloated, here are two simple tips to make your MONDAY a better day.
1) Start Sunday Night! If you make an effort to get some form of exercise competed on Sunday night before you turn in, you will feel so much better Monday morning. Even if it’s just walking the dog for a couple of blocks – try to end your weekend with a healthily exercise. By doing this, you will feel like you are already ahead on Monday morning.
2) Start Monday LESS AND LIGHT with a Low Calorie & Low Fat Menu. Think egg whites, grilled chicken, vegetables, yogurts, and nuts. By starting your week less and light you will not only get rid of most, if not all, of your weekend bloat, you may actually lose weight that day.
If you make the effort to do a Sunday night exercise and make your Monday a less calories and low fat day, these two simple tips will not only make all the difference in how you feel, it will also make all the difference in how you start your week.
~Love to Live Healthy with Josephine Fitzpatrick
Innovation Weight Loss & Fitness
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
8031 Jericho Tpke Woodbury, NY 11797
469 7th Ave Manhattan, NY 10018
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