Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Change Your Mind, Change Your Body: Use These Two Simple Mindfulness Tips to Promote Healthy Eating


Do the holidays make it harder for you to eat healthy? What about during the rest of the year -- are their particular times or situations where you know you have a harder time sticking with good nutrition?

Practicing mindfulness around your food choices just might be the "fix" you've been looking for. We have two simple, easy tips to help you get started.

For the past several years, behavioral researchers have been looking at the benefits of mindfulness – and most recently, they've looked at mindfulness techniques as a tool to promote weight loss and healthy eating. The short answer? Mindfulness seems to work.

To take just two examples, this  CBS News piece does a good job at looking at an October 2016 study published in the journal Obesity. During the study, two groups of obese adults were assigned to either a mindfulness-based form of therapy or to standard weight-loss treatment. The mindfulness-therapy group lost an average of thirteen percent of their body weight – the “standard” group lost the usual five-eight percent.

And this article from Harvard Health Publications talks about the benefits to be had from simply eating mindfully.

Given the evidence behind it, we're optimistic that mindfulness techniques, combined with exercise and a sound nutritional plan, can help you achieve your goals – whether you're looking to lose weight (or gain weight, for that matter!), get more nutrition into your diet, or simply avoid gaining any extra weight this holiday season.

At the same time, this is the busiest time of the year! So we're not going to overwhelm you with a lot of things to remember and do on top of everything else you have going on.

Instead here are two, simple tips you can start using today to incorporate mindfulness to help you reach your weight and healthy-eating goals:

1. Slow Down and enjoy your food. We mentioned this as part of our post at the start of the holiday season, but slowing down and taking time with our food goes well beyond lingering over Thanksgiving dinner!

As often as possible, take your time when you're eating. Experience the flavors and textures of your food. Perhaps take a moment to think about the work that went into bringing this meal to your table, or to experience the setting where you're eating.

Eating slowly accomplishes a few things. For one, it takes our stomachs about twenty minutes to get around to telling our brains that we're full and should stop eating. In addition, taking the time to fully appreciate the food in front of us now helps fill us up emotionally as well, which may decrease the urge to snack later. Finally, our digestive tracts consider it a personal favor when we chew our food slowly and thoroughly.

2. Think ahead. This season is filled with food, food, and more food – so try to plan ahead whenever you can to eat as healthfully as possible. For example: if tomorrow is the big Christmas lunch at work, substitute a lighter, protein-centered breakfast and perhaps a salad with protein at dinner tonight for your usual morning and evening meals. Is your family's traditional holiday dinner heavy on the carbs and fats? Offer to bring a vegetable dish – and, during dinner, eat your veggies first.

Finally, relax. You don't have to try to remember these two mindfulness eating tips at every meal, and you don't have to be perfect at them! Instead, tuck them away in the back of your mind and try one or both tips just once a day.

Also, keep in mind that we're offering free Yoga to Better Living Fitness Center members throughout December – and Yoga is an excellent introduction to mindfulness!







Photos courtesy: Tarcio Saraiva and Barb Hoyer via Flickr.

Monday, December 12, 2016

Give the Gift of Better Fitness: Healthy Holiday Gifts for Every Budget

Looking for the perfect Christmas present for the fitness lover (or would-be fitness lover) on your list? We've got you covered! 


Whether you're shopping for fitness enthusiast or for someone who's new to exercise, Better Living Fitness' personal trainers have some great recommendations for you:

Better living for your back: foam rollers. Better Living Fitness Founder Mark Thiesmeyer says that foam rollers make great Christmas presents because they're such a versatile fitness tool: you can use them to relieve stress, relax tight muscles, and work on your posture at the same time.

Another great thing about giving a foam roller is that you can find one to fit just about any budget. Just check this page on Amazon to see rollers that start at just $8.

Pulling, pushing, and lifting: Therabands or dumbbell sets. Trainer Jesse Richards says, “you can do a ton of exercises with Therabands, and a small set of dumbbells are both inexpensive and a great way to get someone started with strength training.”

We found Therabands for under $11 here, and a full set of starter dumbbells for just $24.99 here.

Rockin' and Rollin' with your workout: Wireless headphones. Trainer  Allison Maupin's husband has been complaining that the wires to his headphones are getting in the way when he's working out. Don't tell Allison's husband, but  she's gotten him a solution: wireless headphones are under the Maupin's Christmas tree this year! Allison chose Beats by Dr. Dre, but there are lots of options available. Here's an Amazon link with several options, all under $200.

Keeping Track: Garmin GPS Watch vs. Fitbit Blaze. Monitoring everything from how many steps we take to how long we sleep has been a fitness trend for awhile now, and there are a lot of options to choose from depending on the goals of the person you're shopping for.

Here at Better Living, two of our trainers in particular – Mallory Ghrist and Joey Smith – have different opinions about which workout monitor works best. Joey likes the Garmin GPS Watch, while Mallory Ghrist says she's “pretty obsessed” with her Fitbit Blaze.   


“My Fitbit Blaze tracks my steps, calories burned, miles traveled, and helps you stay active by reminding you to take at least 250 steps an hour,” Mallory says.

Joey, on the other hand, likes the GPS feature on the Garmin, and says that the Garmin tracks everything from your mileage and stride to how many steps you take per minute.

You can learn more about the Fitbit Blaze here – when we checked, Amazon had them for just a hair under $200, and there's more information about the options Garmin has available (from just under $40 to over $200, depending on the feature you choose) here.

Giving the Gift of Better Living Fitness:
Love working out with your Better Living Fitness trainer or at your favorite Better Living Fitness Center class? Share the love with our discounted gift cards, now through December! You can spend as little as $50.00 to give a full month of Full Body Fit classes, or just $99 to give someone special a full month of unlimited classes at Better Living Fitness Center.

Just click here to see all your options.