Nell Stephenson's Blog, page 73

Paleoista Holiday Announcement of the Day: My Nutrition and Fitness Studio is Opening Soon!

Ok, so maybe it’s not a holiday-specific announcement or tip, but I can hardly contain my excitement!

I’m about to open the studio I’ve been dreaming about for quite a while and the timing is just perfect with the holiday season in full swing.

We have just over two weeks left in 2013 and you may find yourself thinking you may as well just wait until the New Year to join that new fitness studio or begin a new nutritional regime.

Why not make it a top priority now?

The sooner you get moving and eating a healthy, balanced Paleo diet, the better you’ll feel.  What better way to wake up on January 1st than a few pounds lighter, a bit more svelte and with a clear head after a great night’s sleep?

And, if you happen to be in the Los Angeles area, you can take advantage of working directly with me on both your nutrition and fitness in synergy to make a beeline straight to the optimal health you’ve strived to achieve.

Watch this space for updates coming soon!

Holiday Tip of The Day: Take Time with Friends

It’s so easy to get caught up with obligations at this time of year; attending that office party we don’t really want to go to or hosing a dinner for some not so enjoyable family members that we feel we are expected to.

And it’s not just the things that feel like chores; even the fun stuff can add up to an end result of too much stress.

I thought about this a lot this morning when I took some time out to head out on my bike with some friends.  No certain wattage to hit, no speed goals, just a fun, conversational ride chatting about whatever came up.

It was a beautiful, crisp December morning in the Santa Monica Mountains and on such a day, it’s not too hard to stop and smell the roses, check in and really appreciate the small things that are so easily overlooked during all the hustle and bustle.

Take time for you, take time with dear friends or loved ones and feed your mind and soul just as healthfully as you nourish your belly with all your lovely Paleo foods.

Enjoy!

Holiday Tip of the Day: Keep Baking…But Consider it an Art Project, Not A Snack!

One of the most fun things to do as a family with little ones is to bake for the holidays.   Baked goods make great gifts, and spending time creating something with the kids is a timeless experience that all will hold close to their hearts in years to come.

Wondering what you’re going to replace that pastime with, now that you and the family are Paleo?

Who said anything about needing to stop this activity?

Keep baking…but rather than eating the final creation, let it be as an art project.   From a gingerbread house that the little ones can peek at every morning, to the sugar cookies you turned into ornaments to hang on the tree, there are many options of fun things to bake in the kitchen that make lovely decorations around the home, leaving room in the kids’ little bellies for some fresh fruit and veggies!

 

Holiday Tip of the Day: Be The Healthy Person in the Office

Have you noticed everyone at work flocking into the break room to enjoy the Christmas Cookies that one colleague brought in to the office and making a beeline to another’s desk to relish their seemingly endless supply of holiday bon-bons?

Having these sugary treats everywhere you look may feel tempting enough to you, but add to the fact that far too many people don’t eat properly at work and set themselves up for blood sugar crashes and you’ve got a real recipe for disaster.

Why not be the one person to bring in something healthy?  Start now, during the holidays, and see if it doesn’t turn into a trend by the time January rolls around!

Something as simple as a brining in a bowl of fresh, crisp apples to place on your desk, some cut up veggies, stored in single serve zip-bags in the office fridge or, if you’re feeling like you’d like to take the time to prepare something, some homemade grass-fed jerky, are sure to be appreciated by many of your co-workers who’d genuinely like to have something healthier to choose from than sugar cookies and a piece of a gingerbread house.

You can make it festive simply by the manner in which you  present it; garnish a platter of fresh citrus with a sprinkling of cloves or arrange some rosemary sprigs around that tray of apples; both of which have a nice little bonus of creating a lovely, holiday scent in your office!

Holiday Tip: Pass (on) The Cheese, Please

Thinking that Manchengo-stuffed date or Baked Brie en Croûte is looking oh-so-appetizing?

Not so much.

For many, even a little dairy is enough to elicit negative side effects including bloating, gassiness, nasal congestion or skin breakouts.

Not only that, but did you know that casein, a protein found in milk, can act like gluten in the body?    

Even if you’re not sold on Paleo, hopefully you’ve at least cut out gluten, one of the most offensive substances we can possibly ingest, in my opinion. 

Same  goes for casein.  Unless, that is, we’re talking about a four-legged creature of the bovine persuasion…

Don’t forget, cheese is not part of the True Paleo diet.  Not raw cheese, not grass-fed cheese, not any cheese.   And no, it’s not dependent on how one feels it affects them.  As if to say that a vegan who feels fine when eating fish makes fish a part of the vegan diet?

No dairy. Period.

Why not go for the crudités platter, the fresh figs stuffed with walnuts or a handful of grapes off the fresh fruit tray along with some of that sliced turkey and melon hors d’ oeuvre the waiter just offered you?

Skipping the cheese will allow you to avoid those unfavorable side effects and create a place in your Paleo plate for some far better and healthier protein plus fat options in your meal.

Holiday Tip: The Perfect Gift: Presence!

It may be a bit cliche; the word play of presence/presents being a gift. It’s a phrase we all know but perhaps at this time of the year, it’s quite appropriate to reflect on it.

The more we can give the gift of being present not only to our loved ones, but to ourselves, the more we can dial into our body’s health and nutrition needs.

How many times have you ended up with a less than desirable lunch because you ran out of the house in a mad dash that morning and skipped breakfast?   Or opted for leftover mac and cheese from what the kids didn’t eat for dinner after forgetting to grocery shop for food to prepare a healthy meal?

Would either situation have happened if you’d been more present?

Not too likely.

Tune in, listen to and feel what your body is telling you and take a moment to let it register.   Do you feel a sense of needing to slow down mentally and take a break?   Or maybe it’s a feeling of needing to move more, physically?

In either case, the more we can be in sync with our own body, the more likely we are to reach a healthier place and subsequently, make the best food choices to nourish both mind and body.

Doing so allows us to enjoy the holiday season even more because we’re right here at any given moment and not thinking about all the things we’re going to have to get done in a given time frame.

Inhale, exhale, keep calm and…be Paleo (couldn’t resist…)

Holiday Tip of the Day: Don’t Shop Hungry

We already know that going to the grocery store hungry is a bad idea.  Doing so creates a situation where flagging blood sugar levels make that bag of chips or that candy bar seem like a great idea at the time.

Well, same goes for holiday shopping.

I may be in the anomaly as I actually love Christmas shopping, but for many, braving the crowds, the fluorescent lights in many shoppes and the background noise of a child having a tantrum (perhaps also due to not having eaten properly?), can prove to be all it takes to drive them to the limit and head straight for the food court and a double cheese pizza, or a triple scoop of egg nog ice cream.

Don’t nip it in the bud, nip it before it even starts!

Approach it just like you would an important meeting:  eat a proper, Paleo meal, rich in protein, healthy fat, local veggies and a large glass or two of water.    Balanced blood sugar levels always lead to greater mental clarity and, as a result, a far more productive and, dare I say, even enjoyable, shopping experience!

Holiday Tip of The Day: Easy, Paleo Hors D’oeuvres in a Hurry

Help!  I got roped into hosting a holiday gathering at the last minute on a weeknight!  I barely have time to get everything I’d normally do let alone cook and host a party!  Any ideas for some quick, passed hors D’oeuvres style Paleo nibbles I can throw together in no time flat?

No problem!
One of the nicest features of Paleo is its simplicity!

Following are a handful of ideas that are sure to please the whole crowd, even those who have the wrong idea about what Paleo is and may be skeptical!

Melon wrapped in thinly sliced, leftover roast turkey.  Why not make use of some leftovers while you’re at it?
You’ll never go wrong with crudités and some homemade dips, like guacamole, or a Paleo Muhammara, made sans bread, simply by combining red pepper, walnuts & garlic in the food processor with a touch of olive oil.
Dice any leftover meat, combine with olive oil, onion and your favorite spices and serve in lettuce wraps.
Dates wrapped in pastured, uncured bacon.  While I’m not a fan of the idea of eating copious amounts of poorly sourced bacon, this decadent little treat, if made with ethically sourced pastured pork, is a treat worthy of this holiday season.  One is enough for dessert!

 A few minutes of creative thinking can prove to save you hours in the grocery store and kitchen!

Plan Ahead to Prevent Potential “Stress Eating” During the Holidays

While it would be lovely to think that everyone has a wonderful time with family each year during the holidays, it seems to be the case more often than not that there’s at least one family member that has an issue with another, or who isn’t talking to their mother or who finds it necessary to comment negatively on your latest significant other or lack of getting a promotion this year at work.

Bottom line- for many who eat for reasons other than being hungry, being faced with stressful situations such as those listed above could potentially be a disaster waiting to happen.   That tray of peppermint brownies or rich Brie on a baguette suddenly looks a lot more appealing when you’re fuming about what Aunt Martha just uttered under her breath to you!

Unfortunately, inhaling a tray of sweets isn’t going to solve the family argument and it’s going to leave you feeling angry at yourself in addition to Aunt Martha!

Of course, if you have the option to spend the occasion with friends or family members whose company you actually enjoy, that’s the easiest way to go.

However, for many, that sense of obligation may result in attending a gathering you’re less than thrilled about, to put it mildly.

If you prepare yourself on the eating front, you’ll be able to handle even the worse behavior of that one person who drives you nuts better than if you were either crashing due to low blood sugar, or feeling frustrated with yourself after eating too much sugar.

Follow your balanced Paleo approach to eating as usual, for the whole day leading up to the event, make sure to get in your workout that day to blow off some steam in advance and perhaps most importantly, don’t forget to breathe.

Something as simple as focusing inward on breathing properly, for even a single minute,  can be extremely calming and result in you handling the situation in a manner fare more mature, and healthfully than acting without thinking and pushing down your anger or frustration with cake.

Take it easy, breathe and keep emotionally healthy as you whether what might be a rather trying situation.

Choose Your Splurges, Then Make a Plan

If you find your December calendar is booked every week with parties, events and gatherings of some description, it can seem rather daunting to imagine keeping Paleo with all the food and drink typically found during the seasonal festivities.

You needn’t think of it as a measure of extreme will power and discipline if you approach it in a manner which will allow you to select certain occasions during which you’ll have that special glass of wine or dark chocolate.

List the events you’re going to and consider which are most likely to have food or drink that would fit within the Paleo guidelines for the occasional something special and make those the ones you plan for.

For example, the holiday party at your favorite upscale restaurant might be the perfect place to enjoy their signature flourless ‘torte’ (sometimes made with the simplest of ingredients such as eggs, chocolate and a bit of honey, rendering it paleo-Ok) or choose from their well known wine cellar, compared to gobbling up brownies from a mix at the kids’ school’s holiday open house.

On those special days when you’re going to have that treat, simply balance out the rest of the day accordingly by upping the veggies, protein and good fat and reducing the amount of natural sugar you may have eaten from fruit.  Get in your workout that day as well to create a net overall caloric balance and then when the time comes to raise that glass of Cab, enjoy it as you’d planned and ditch the guilt that may have come up if you’d simply began drinking on a whim.  This makes it far easier to keep on that healthy Paleo track straight away.

Once you realize that likely more than half the events you’re going to aren’t even going to be offering things you really want to eat or drink, it makes those that are more special and the end result is a feeling of partaking of the one or two offerings of the season you’ve thoughtfully planned on and not one ounce of deprivation.