Arin Lindauer

Yesterday our view looked like we were in a snow globe!  It was gorgeous!

…until you had to drive in it.  I will have to admit, I am always in a rush, even if I have plenty of time I am pretty sure (Tony can attest) that I drive like a bat out of you know where!

My grandpa always told me I had a lead foot and that I did not use my rear view mirror enough!

But it was very humbling as I was coming to the intersection at 16th and Pennsylvania St, I had a car pull out in front of me and with the snow I could not slow down.  Thankfully, this is not my first rodeo driving in the snow so I slightly turned my wheel and thankfully avoided making contact.

There were two pedestrians standing at the cross walk with mouths wide open. Yikes!

I will admit, it rattled me for a second and I wanted to get mad.  Here I am all ten and two, driving slow, something I had zero control over (snowy conditions) creates a situation I did not want to be in (almost rear-ending the person who cut me off).

It reminded me how this time of year affects us.

We have the best intentions around our health and wellness.  I sincerely believe we do not wake up and openly say, “I am going to sabotage myself today!”  rr “Today I will over indulge and I can’t wait for my pants not to fit.”

OK I might be going a bit over board, but you see where I am going.

I know that person who pulled out in front of me did not intentionally say, “I am going to put my life and their life in danger” when they pulled out.

But we find our self in these situations of danger around the holidays. Some of the danger could be, yes, different driving conditions. But the danger I am referring to is situations you normally would not be in.

• Holiday Parties (yes the average person attends 2-3 parties this season)
• Multiple Christmas Celebrations
• More dinners out than normal
• Candy, Candy Canes, Candy Corn and Syrup –Buddy the Elf

Fact: the average person consumes 7,000 calories on Christmas Day!

So how do you keep you focused through all these situations?

I was talking with a few clients this week about how to navigate all of these situations and increased temptations – what I told them and what I’ll tell you is that it all comes back to mindset around each situation and planning for these situations.

First, mindset starts with going into your event, dinner, etc. with the desire to win.  Define what winning looks like to you.

I am a not an all or nothing kind of person, because most people cannot adhere to this approach and it gets ugly.

I believe in and am a big fan of balance and having a plan.

What do you personally need to do to keep you on track for your goals?

If you need help with this please reach out to us.  We would be happy to help you.

For some people they need to stay away from alcohol because they know it’s a slippery slope of overindulgence. Others will opt for smaller portions.

I know last week I shared the tip of not going to an event hungry. Again, take in a quick meal replacement shake even though you know you will eat there, that way you are not starving and are less likely to overeat.

Secondly, plan as much as you can. Know going in how you personally want to eat.  Bring the side dish you know you can consume and one others will honestly enjoy.  Healthy or healthier does not have to be bland, boring and tasteless.

So during this fun and amazing time of year put yourself in a mindset to win.  I know that sounds all bright and sunny, but there is some validity to it.

If you go in negative, the outcome will be negative, so reverse the negativity and also think through how you will win.

Define what winning looks like for you personally.

This is your life and you get to choose what the outcome is.

We hope you have an amazing Holiday Season and if you have any questions or need some additional help, please email support@tfwellness.com.

Hope you are enjoying this holiday season!

I looked at the calendar this week and realized our holiday parties will be starting this week. This left me looking at the whole month and I quickly went into, “how are we going to fit this all in?”

I know several of you are juggling your business, your career, kids, family and so much more, so I wanted to give some quick tips to try to minimize the stress around this time of the year.

Step 1: Do Not Over Commit  

The classic response is to say ‘yes’ to everything that comes your way.  I know I am guilty of this.  Also, to be honest, everything sounds fun this time of the year too!  But you will save yourself so much agony if you pick and choose what is best for you at this time.

We tend to feel obligated to do things and yes, sometimes you do need to be present, but there are also times when it is OK to say no. It feels weird at first but you will thank yourself in the end, by not being over committed.

You decide what is important given where you are and what you want to accomplish.  Then don’t feel guilty about the decision.

Step 2: Start a Gratitude Journal  

The next tip is expressing gratitude. I know we tend to think more about this during the Thanksgiving holiday, but gratitude is something we can incorporate all year long.  Take 1-3 minute(s) at the end of the day to either tell someone what you are grateful for or write it down in a gratitude journal.

There are lots of studies on how those few minutes spent in gratitude can add up to being so much more positive in your outlook on life.

We tend to drift to the negative and it takes practice to be positive.

Step 3: Plan  

The next one may just be my personality, but it does help to take a bird’s eye view of what’s going on around you and plan what’s next. Now I know not everything in life is planned, but if you set intention around what you want to achieve it helps ease the burden of the how.

I was introduced back to the old school hand written planner; this is not just any planner.  This planner has room to write goals, review the last month, prioritize personal and business to do lists and more.

I highly recommend the Passion Planner.  I know a few other people who use it and they have enjoyed working through it.

Just knowing what is coming next and being able to plan accordingly helps keep your mind at ease.  Avoiding surprises helps keep stress lower.

Step 4: Review  

Lastly, I am a huge advocate for reviewing.  I am talking locking yourself in a room and reviewing everything you did last year.  Go through your calendar.  How many hours did you work?  Do you want to do the same next year or what would you do differently?

How much time did you take off?  Was that enough?

How many appointments did you have?  Did you gain a positive return on the time spent in those appointments?

How many times a week did you workout, was it enough to reach your goals?

You can review anything you desire.  Most of all, did you spend your time the way you needed to achieve what you want out of life?

Tony and I take our year-end review seriously and it helps us set up what will happen in the coming year.  Some years it has been brutal, especially when you are not where you want to be.  Other years we have gotten through our review very rhythmically.

We took time this year to go to a place we are inspired by.  I am either happiest around mountains or a beach, especially since Indiana has neither of those.

We flew out to Colorado and really worked through what happened both personally and professionally in 2016 and set our intention for 2017. During this time of review, we both get much needed hope and clarity to keep pushing forward.

Also, when reviewing a year, go back through all the awesome things that happened that you may have forgotten or that got overshadowed by the present.

Review…this helps you look at everything you have gotten through or achieved and then helps you set the path for what’s next.

I hope these four steps are helpful!  Now start implementing!

By now you have seen some Christmas trees going up; the Circle in Indianapolis looks amazing all lit up!  Thanksgiving is now a memory.  This time of year is such a joyous celebration.

BUT…

It can wreak havoc on your health and wellness goals.

So what is the typical struggle

• Holiday cookies
• Parties
• Drinks loaded in calories
• Family stress
• Financial stress
• And we could go on

We put a lot of pressure on this time of the year.  Also, we are exposed to so many more calories than we typically consume.  I mean I never met a sugar cookie I did not like!

How do we survive this holiday season without it literally weighing us down?

This depends on your goals or what you personally desire for your health.

For some people maintenance is a huge goal.  The average person gains 7-10lbs over the holidays…yikes!

By making your goal to maintain, you set an intention to not overdo it but you do allow yourself to still enjoy the occasional holiday treat.

Personally, I recommend this approach.

You can absolutely still lose weight during this time of the year, but it will require some more planning on your part.  Also, you will need to understand how to still be in a calorie deficit to create that weight loss.

This does not mean skipping breakfast before the big meal so you can save up calories.  One of my biggest pieces of advice to clients is eat normally around those holiday meals and consider taking in a protein shake before the event or meal.  This way you are not “starving” which will lead to over eating.  If you are already content going into the meal you’re less likely to go over board.

It’s like going to the grocery store hungry…then pleading your case.  “I do not know how those chocolate chip cookies got in there….”

Also another way to avoid the unwanted weight gain is to keep workouts part of your routine.  Something is better than nothing.

Make appointments with yourself.

We get a lot of people telling us over the holidays they will have a hard time making it to the gym.  Sure you might be traveling, but we also see lots of people having more down time around the holidays.

At our gym we encourage clients to bring family with them to the gym over the holidays, keeps everyone in check!

Here are a few other helpful tips:

• Take it easy on Alcohol
• Keep a food journal (you might be surprised once you see it all)
• Monitor your hunger (try to eat something with protein every 3 hours)
• Weigh yourself once per week
• PORTION SIZES
• Check in with your future self

The last one is important.  If you wake up the next day feeling guilty, process those emotions.  They are real and the best thing to do is acknowledge them, do not dwell on the feelings, then help yourself plan so that you do not get in that situation again.

Visualizing who you want to be in the future is important and in the moment of “should I work out or should I skip, should I eat this now or skip it”…remember what you want for you.

You get this one body and typically we do not get a do over.  So keep it in perspective.  Enjoy the holidays but try not to go overboard.

Hopefully you can apply some of these into your holiday season.

My challenge to you is don’t be the average American that gains 7-10lbs this holiday season!

If you need some help with this challenge don’t hesitate to reach out.  We have a great program that will help hold you accountable.

Happy Holidays!

picture credit of Instagram @notonthelease