In anticipation of the next Cre8 a New You class, strategically scheduled to start on October 6^th and end right before Thanksgiving, we’re doing a series of posts to introduce you to the program. If you’re ready to make some changes to your eating and exercise habits, or you need to get a head start on preparing for the indulgent and stressful holiday season, and you live in the Clayton/Watertown, NY area, why not consider signing up for the Cre8 a New You program? If you’re not in Northern NY, don’t fret. You can still learn more about Cre8 a New You and Nicole’s other personalized nutrition and health counseling services by contacting her. Nicole’s personalized, non-diet approach may be just what you need to get on track for a healthy, fit, and fantastic life.

Building New Behaviors

Attitude plays a large role in developing new habits and changing old behavior patterns. It’s important to keep nutrition in perspective. When it comes to developing healthier habits, people tend to have an all-or-nothing attitude. But it is inevitable that you will face obstacles and challenges when making behavior changes. Remember to focus on the big picture of your health and lifestyle choices. An occasional treat or “bad” day will not completely destroy your health and well-being. Remember that perfection is not the goal and it is normal for eating and exercise behaviors to vary over time.

During challenging times when healthy habits begin to wane, such as during the holidays, special occasions or vacations, the goal is to be flexible. Take everything in stride, avoid the all-or-nothing attitude and keep things in perspective. Working on one goal or maintaining one healthy habit is better than doing nothing at all. It’s especially important to reward yourself during challenging times, focusing on the positive choices and behaviors and rewarding them. Each goal met, each obstacle overcome, each new habit formed is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate progress. Focus on the positive changes that you are making and celebrate each success, big and small.

In addition to challenging situations, many people struggle with emotional eating behaviors. Emotional eating can be one of the tougher obstacles to overcome. It’s important to recognize emotional eating and develop an individual strategy for dealing with it. Stress reduction techniques, such as deep breathing, exercise, yoga and meditation can be beneficial for weight loss as well as general well-being. Practice new strategies and techniques for recognizing and addressing emotional eating.

Begin by making small changes in your behavior and you’ll see that they can have a large positive impact on weight loss and health. This week pay close attention to when and why you are eating and develop at least one strategy for addressing emotional eating.

Are you ready to Cre8 a New You? Sign up now for the next class or contact Nicole about her other personalized nutrition and health counseling services.

"Eat well. Live well. Be well."

In anticipation of the next Cre8 a New You class, strategically scheduled to start on October 6^th and end right before Thanksgiving, we’re doing a series of posts to introduce you to the program. If you’re ready to make some changes to your eating and exercise habits, or you need to get a head start on preparing for the indulgent and stressful holiday season, and you live in the Clayton/Watertown, NY area, why not consider signing up for the Cre8 a New You program? If you’re not in Northern NY, don’t fret. You can still learn more about Cre8 a New You and Nicole’s other personalized nutrition and health counseling services by contacting her. Nicole’s personalized, non-diet approach may be just what you need to get on track for a healthy, fit, and fantastic life.

Plan Ahead for Healthier Meals

For many people, busy schedules lead to a lot of restaurant take-out and fast food meals. Large restaurant portions and hidden calories, fat and sodium can sabotage any progress toward a healthier lifestyle. Whether it’s a lunch out with friends, or take-out after a long day at work, restaurant meals can be a challenge to a healthy eating plan. But if you’re armed with a few positive strategies, the occasional meal out won’t derail you. Some examples of these strategies include making special requests and asking for substitutions if a meal includes high-calorie side dishes or rich sauces; recognizing healthier menu options and appropriate; and choosing restaurants wisely.

Another strategy for dealing with a busy schedule and the challenges it may present to a healthy diet is to plan your meals ahead of time. Time spent during the weekend planning meals, shopping and even cooking can save time (and calories) throughout the week. Not only does meal planning help avoid last-minute pizza orders or the McDonald’s drive-through, but it also allows the opportunity to actively include more vegetables, whole grains and fruits in a healthy eating plan. The Cre8 a New You program will give you some great ideas for developing easy mix-and-match meals and stocking your pantry with healthy meal ingredients and snacks.

This week, try planning your meals for the coming week and set at least one goal for modifying your restaurant eating behavior, such as decreasing the number of times you eat or order out.

Are you ready to Cre8 a New You? Sign up now for the next class or contact Nicole about her other personalized nutrition and health counseling services.

"Eat well. Live well. Be well."

In anticipation of the next Cre8 a New You class, strategically scheduled to start on October 6^th and end right before Thanksgiving, we’re doing a series of posts to introduce you to the program. If you’re ready to make some changes to your eating and exercise habits, or you need to get a head start on preparing for the indulgent and stressful holiday season, and you live in the Clayton/Watertown, NY area, why not consider signing up for the Cre8 a New You program? If you’re not in Northern NY, don’t fret. You can still learn more about Cre8 a New You and Nicole’s other personalized nutrition and health counseling services by contacting her. Nicole’s personalized, non-diet approach may be just what you need to get on track for a healthy, fit, and fantastic life.

Get Your Body Moving

Regular physical activity is an important part of an effective weight loss and weight maintenance plan and plays a major part in any healthy lifestyle. Exercise can improve your health and even your mood. Incorporating physical activity into daily routines can have a number of significant benefits. Increased activity can assist with weight loss and weight maintenance efforts. In addition, physical activity can prevent or improve health conditions such as heart disease and stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and more. Research has also shown that regular exercise can reduce depression and anxiety and help manage stress.

Studies show that even the most inactive people can gain significant health benefits by participating in a total of 30 minutes or more of physical activity per day. Unfortunately, many people do not meet this goal. And often, those who try to incorporate more activity into their lifestyles lose their motivation, or worse, overwork themselves and get injured. Always check with your doctor before drastically increasing your physical activity, gradually increase your workout time and intensity giving your body the opportunity to adjust, avoid overexerting yourself and stretch after every workout. This will help you avoid any complications or injuries and keep you moving toward your exercise goals.

Other than injuries, one of the biggest challenges to sticking to an exercise program is loss of motivation. There are plenty of ways to stay motivated, though. Join a class or group exercise program. Find a workout buddy that will keep you accountable. Choose physical activities that you enjoy. Set realistic goals and gradually increase the challenge, rewarding yourself as you meet them. When you sense your motivation melting away, commit to sticking to it. Increase your rewards, remind yourself of your goals, do whatever it takes to keep yourself moving. You’ll be happy you did.

This week keep track of how much physical activity you participate in and set one goal to improve upon your current activity level.

Are you ready to Cre8 a New You? Sign up now for the next class or contact Nicole about her other personalized nutrition and health counseling services.

"Eat well. Live well. Be well."

In anticipation of the next Cre8 a New You class, strategically scheduled to start on October 6^th and end right before Thanksgiving, we’re doing a series of posts to introduce you to the program. If you’re ready to make some changes to your eating and exercise habits, or you need to get a head start on preparing for the indulgent and stressful holiday season, and you live in the Clayton/Watertown, NY area, why not consider signing up for the Cre8 a New You program? If you’re not in Northern NY, don’t fret. You can still learn more about Cre8 a New You and Nicole’s other personalized nutrition and health counseling services by contacting her. Nicole’s personalized, non-diet approach may be just what you need to get on track for a healthy, fit, and fantastic life.

The Food Guide Pyramid

In 2005, the USDA updated the well-known Food Guide Pyramid based on the newest U.S. Dietary Guidelines. Instead of the previous building blocks that used to make up the pyramid, it is now formed by colored vertical bands representing the components of a healthy lifestyle. The width of each band indicates the proportion of foods we should consume from each group—the groups represented by thicker bands should account for a greater portion of your total daily calories than those represented by thinner bands. In addition, the left side of the pyramid illustrates a stick figure climbing a flight of stairs to represent the recommendation to increase daily physical activity.

The Food Guide Pyramid can help you build a healthy diet filled with grains, lean meats and beans, fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy and healthy oils. This doesn’t mean that you’ll have to give up all your favorite treats, though. All foods have a place in a healthy lifestyle, as long as they do not make up the basis of a diet. Completely eliminating foods from a diet, especially foods that you enjoy, can backfire. If you do not allow yourself an occasional treat or include foods you love in your meal plans, eventually your resolve will fade and you may find that you gorge yourself on those things that you’ve given up. Allow yourself the occasional treat, whether a piece of chocolate after dinner, or that weekend ice cream cone, and you’ll be happier and healthier in the long run.

This week, keep track of what you’re eating and what food groups each meal contains. Are you getting your recommended daily servings of all the food groups? Are there foods you need to incorporate more of into your daily diet? Set a goal to begin adding more of these foods into your meals and start climbing that pyramid to health.

"Eat well. Live well. Be well."