Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite times of the year. Good food, family, football, and lots of fun, I have come to relish this holiday throughout my life. I, however, like many of you have too often been guilty of overindulging in the bounties of the season. Here are suggestions that I use personally to make the holidays healthier and more enjoyable. This allows me to have more energy, never get sick, and spend a higher level of quality time with friends, family, & loved ones.
1. Eat Your Salad First: Load up on your vegetables first, this way you get lots of nutrients, antioxidants, and alkaline minerals into your system first. When you fill up on nutrient dense foods, you have less of an appetite for everything else.
2. Food Combine Properly: Our digestive enzymes metabolize foods differently. Because of this, try to eat Thanksgiving meals in portions. Give yourself 2-4 hours between portions. Healthy combinations include:
a. Non-starchy vegetables, fats, and proteins (meat, oils, & veggies)
b. Non-starchy vegetables and starchy vegetables
c. Non-starchy vegetables and grains
d. Most fruits should be eaten alone or with small amounts of fat.
3. Use Digestive Enzymes: Before any big meal, it is always a good idea to add digestive enzymes to help your body metabolize the food correctly. This is especially true when food combinations are less than optimal. The enzymes help ease the digestive burden, reduce toxic byproducts and acidic wastes from accumulating and improve energy & immune function for hours after the meal.
4. Use Apple Cider Vinegar: Contains a natural array of beneficial acids and enzymes that help enhance digestion and nutrient extraction. The acids are incredible at enhancing meat and protein digestion and radically improve symptoms of reflux. Grains and legumes are also aided by the digestive acids found in this natural elixir. Apple cider vinegar is also loaded with powerful alkaline buffering minerals and improves insulin sensitivity and blood sugar control. Use it as part of your salad dressing, marinates, etc.
5. Go Gluten-Free: The common protein found in wheat, barley, rye, oats, spelt, & kamut is highly allergenic, challenging to digest, and harmful for up to 81% of the population by some reports. Many autoimmune conditions are initiated and/or promoted through gluten containing foods. For amazing gluten free holiday recipes go to www.cindalouskitchenblues.blogspot.com
6. Burst Train: Be sure to make time Thanksgiving morning to get a great workout in. I recommend you either continue with your MaxFit workout (for those of you who are doing our program) or a burst style of workout where you do high-intensity intervals. You will feel so much better later and be in peak fat-burning mode when you indulge in the feast of the day. Be sure to MaxFit or Burst train again Friday morning as well to energize yourself and help blow through all the weight you gained from that glorious meal(s).
7. Use Probiotics: Give your gut a helping hand by stabilizing the little warriors who work so hard on your behalf. Optimal probiotic supplementation helps ward off bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic infections. It also enhances digestion, nutrient absorption, and toxic elimination. I recommend and personally take between 50-100 billion organisms daily. Most supplements, yogurts, etc barely have 5 billion organisms, so they just don’t give you the bulk that you need to thrive. On my website under my suggestions page, you can find a link to a pure, affordable source that will supply you with 66 billion organisms daily.
8. Use Healthy Fats: Cook in extra virgin coconut oil, the only oil that cannot be denatured under heat. Use extra virgin olive oil for salad dressings, marinates, etc. Avocados, brazil nuts, almonds, walnuts, flax seed make for great fats in different recipes as well.
All Meat Should Be Organic, Grass Fed: One of the most critical essentials is to invest in grass-fed meat sources. The Omega 6:3 balance of grain-fed meat is between 20:1-40:1 (ideal is 2:1). This quickly creates an environment within your body that promotes rampant amounts of inflammation. Grass-fed meat has the ideal fatty acid ratio, the animals are happy and healthy throughout their life, and there is no hormones, antibiotics, and other junk pushed into their system. Out of my heart and spirit that wants so desperately to see a purified world, I urge you to make this 1 choice for the holidays more than anything else. Thank You for helping to change the world with your wallet and your educated and informed shopping decisions.
9. Be Grateful: The greatest thing you can do in your life is to be consistently grateful for every situation, event, and circumstance that comes about. Live with the realization that God created you, loves you unconditionally, and continually blesses everything in your life so that you can grow and be more like Him. My life changed when I stopped putting labels on things (good/bad) and began seeing everything as an opportunity to grow and have new experiences. That perspective alone gives me incredible peace and fulfillment that my life has extraordinary meaning. The same is yours…so be grateful and express it in your words and interactions with others!
10. Lend A Helping Hand: There is nothing like service to others to give your life meaning and fulfillment. This is one of nature’s greatest anti-depressants, serving those around you. While everyone gets caught up in the hoopla and commercialism of the season, the greatest gift you can give yourself is the non-tangible. The ability to serve another, to uplift someone in need, to help someone reach a goal, to make the world a better place.
My spirit constantly yearns to selflessly serve others and uplift their lives with my time, talents, skills, and persona. This gives me incredible joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment. As I am writing this, I am tearing up about the opportunities I have had in my short life so far to impact the lives of others. I pray that writing this alone helps someone find greater meaning and fulfillment in their lives.
“You never know how far reaching something you think, say, or do today will affect the lives of millions tomorrow.” Dr. BJ Palmer
Learn, taste, and enjoy incredible recipes and ideas that will make your holiday season extra special, keep you healthy and energized while you enjoy time with your loved ones. If you would like to have the healthiest, most enjoyable holiday season ever…you do not want to miss this workshop!
INSPIRING A HEALTHY HOLIDAY
Monday, November 23rd 7pm
Exodus Health Center
2750 Jiles Rd Kennesaw 770-420-0492
