SAD. It’s Bad.

31 Oct SAD. It’s Bad.

Darkness descends…

at 4 p.m.

First comes cool rain, cloudy skies, then crisper air. From there it quickly becomes snowy, blowy, freezing and the days are long and dark. Ironically, as I type this, it is snowing for the first time this season and it will frost this evening as well.

Oh, and that time change thing? Yuck! I am not a fan. The older I get, the harder it hits me. Seriously, I feel jet lagged for the first week after setting the clocks back.

That day is the day I call “The Endless Day” or “The Day That Never Ends” or “What Do You MEAN It’s ONLY 7:20 p.m.?!”

Who in their right mind thinks that by cutting the top 2 inches from a blanket and attaching it to the bottom, makes the blanket longer?

It makes me SAD. As in Seasonal Affective Disorder. Hmmm…

Do you get this SAD thing as well?

Over the years I’ve found some tricks that have helped me through.

First and foremost: EXERCISE. Movement creates energy and mood stabilizing hormones. Generate your “happy” ones called endorphins. Lift, Move, Stretch, Hydrate!

Then comes Nutrition. Did you know there are foods you can eat that will help raise serotonin levels and put some needed vitamins and minerals in your body to help boost mood?

LET THERE BE LIGHT! LOTS AND LOTS OF LIGHTS during the day and early evening until an hour before going to read to let your body and mind relax before sleep! You need serotonin pumping during the day, but you also need to shut it down properly to rest well.

At night to get a great nights sleep there are some things you can do below, but also: get your FACE out of your phone. Pick up a book, an actual BOOK, and read it for a half hour before bed. No books on your phone and turn your t.v. off as well.

These are KNOWN SLEEP INHIBITORS! (read that again)

 

Alright, those are the top four I can think of. So let’s talk about food.

“Natural State” foods. These are listed below such as veggies, beans, unsaturated oils, berries, healthy fats: avocado and nuts. Basically, real food ROTS. It’s in it’s natural state.

Stay away from processed foods (packaged!) and sugary things. Regardless of what it says on a bag of chips — these are PROCESSED and have chemicals in them. Don’t be fooled. Your body puts on FAT for protection the more chemicals you feed it. After that, massive inflammation throughout the body and then horrible illnesses and disease creep in. Step away from processed!

When you stop giving your body these things, it tends to not want them any longer, and get healthier!

Try exchanging it for real foods that bring health and vitality.

Probiotics: Apple Cider Vinegar, Kefir, Plain Yogurt, Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Kombacha. I personally LOVE my ACV, and kefir. I mix in about a 1/4 cup of Bragg’s Organic ACV with a cup of water and drink it down. Keep your guts clean and feeling wonderful. Helps boost metabolism and burns belly fat, among many other delights!

Gut health is extremely important to lose weight, and have a healthy, positive mindset.

I also take these two darlings:

Liquid Vitamin D Drops and Magnesium Citrate capsules! VERY necessary for health and wellness. 2 drops of D in the morning and 1 Magnesium capsule in the evening.

For bone chilling days, slippers and a fire are nice, but these also keep me healthy and warm.

A capsule of Vitamin C a day (or more) is something I start every September to help boost my already rockin’ immune system to fend off coughers at the gym or elsewhere who like to spread their sickness around. Ugh! Thanks a LOT.

The teas are mainly when feeling chilled, but have extraordinary herbs in them that help when feeling run down, or starting to feel sick.

Some foods that help boost serotonin levels:

Lean Proteins: Organic, hormone and anti-biotic free Chicken. Same goes for real Turkey, (not lunchmeat). Awesome tryptophan and amino acids! Just what a body needs.

Bananas, Berries, Citrus fruits: Orange, Grapefruit, Lemon.

Folic Acid: Dark Leafy Greens, Lentils, Black eye peas, Oranges, Sunflower Seeds, Oatmeal (unprocessed).

B12: Organic brown Eggs (there are those needed Amino Acids again!), Cottage Cheese, Plain Yogurt

Omega 3: Flaxseed (put in your cup of yogurt or on salad), Walnuts, Pastachios, Almonds or Cashews. Cold water, fatty fish: Organic Salmon, Tuna steak, Trout, oysters, shrimp and crab.

I am personally not a fish eater, but love me some nuts for a snack at times. Oh, and I’ll fight ya for that crab leg!

(Your body needs FOODS with these vitamins, nutrients and minerals… stop taking supplements to supplement. They are mostly unnecessary. Eat Real Foods. Your body will LOVE you a LOT more for it. Food creates energy. Think of that energy as your body’s metabolism. You need to feed it right to generate the energy to crank up your metabolism. Simple.)

These things are EASY to incorporate into your life and meals. I LOVE spaghetti squash, and zucchini noodles for a pasta alternative.

Staying away from late night eating is KEY to getting a good nights sleep and NOT putting on the winter ten! Don’t want to get clunky, chunky and tired? Don’t eat past 6 p.m.! (yes, you actually can – and that’s how we are made to work perfectly).

By consuming a big meal (and eating a snack even later) before bed, much of the metabolic energy that’s usually spent on maintenance, detoxification, repair, and growth is rerouted into digestion. So you’ll likely wake up feeling congested and heavy because you didn’t detoxify fully during the night.

The human body is optimally designed to digest during the daylight hours – not during late evening and sleep.

It seems way too many are confused about the old “fasting” thing. Do you know you have an automatic fasting time line and ketosis producer? It’s called sleep. Eating properly puts your body into the correct timeline for fasting the way our body was intended to. No need to overthink it folks!

Your body is not supposed to be trying to digest your meal as your head hits the pillow. You will send it into a FIT. It will put your whole system out of whack and you’ll end up wondering why you slept like crap and you’re putting on weight.

Some Fun Things To Do:

Get to the GYM. This gym, that gym, I don’t care where. But if you don’t know what the heck you are doing then get here: Finally Fit or Game Changer Weight Loss Packages!

If you are NOT seeing these types of progression…. then something is missing! Regroup.

You will not only put the above in gear, but SO many more great things! Learn, implement and get your amazing eye popping results! People end up leaner, healthier, more confident and strong with tools and skills that they take with them forever.

What happens all too often is at the onset of colder weather, fitness habits and goals seem to get set aside for other more comfortable habits. For instance, comfort food and television. Stats show that people gain an average of 8 to 10 pounds during the holiday and winter months. Eeek. No thank you.

So in the interest of enticing you off the couch and away from the t.v., listed below are some fun ideas to keep you motivated and energized. Here’s to helping you keep that extra weight from creeping on. You’re welcome!

Rock-wall Climbing.
Your whole body will be challenged. Your forearms will never be the same. Hang tough. I hear this place is the bomb and I want to go play! It’s in Indianapolis over near the pyramids: CLIMB HIGHER! You CAN do it!

Ice-Skating and/or Roller Skating.
Hit the rink. Great leg and butt workout. Get out with some friends, bring the kids, have some fun.

Dancing.
Go see a local band and sweat it off on the dance floor. Burns lots of calories and it’s fun to people watch. Try some country dancing at Saddle Up! But there is no better place than 8 Seconds Saloon!

Cross Country or Down Hill Skiing.
Gets the blood pumping and body moving. You’ll be reminded of muscles you forgot about!

Hiking.
The trails you hike or run on in the warmer weather have a majestic beauty in the winter. Get out there and enjoy nature. Two of my favorite places to walk/hike are Here and Here.

Sledding.
Definitely brings out the kid in you. Dig in with those quads and glutes when climbing back up that hill. Try one of those teas to warm up!

Dance Lessons.
Try anything from belly dancing to the Tango! Not for everyone but tons of fun if you just let yourself GO! Go HERE in Fishers for ballroom.

Go Bowling.  So much fun. Eat a good healthy meal before you go!

Hire A Personal Trainer.
You can’t do what you don’t know. If you’ve been spinning your wheels, stop. Just like a new job, you have to learn the skills to get it done right – once and for all!

Join a local gym.
After you learn and implement the tools and skills with your personal trainer, lose the weight, gain strength and flexibility back — then it’s maintenance time! You’ll have the confidence to rule that gym and make it your own.

Play Music You Love! My fave would be… 70’s music! Or older even. Joyful, fun stuff!

Watch a comedy, a comedian, or something else that makes you laugh!

There are lots of things you can let soak into your mind when you turn on the boob tube, but I like to laugh and prefer something lighter (although I like other things as well, but you get my drift.)

There’s lots of great stuff to do around town. So many more things than listed here. Okay here’s one more… instead of sitting on your phone and/or watching your kids play lazer tag, get in there, strap on a pack and blast away! Don’t let your butt take the shape of your couch this winter.

Life’s moving. Get moving with it.

Hugs and Blue Skies,
Cindy