Surviving the New Hampshire Winters

Outside only because I had to : )

Living in New Hampshire in the winter has its perks, mountains for skiing, frozen lakes for hockey and trails for snowshoeing. But when you don’t like the cold, winter can be a little rough on your body and soul. If you are not a tundra lover like me don’t despair. You don't need to hibernate under your blanket for a few months (although once in a while with a good book is fine : ). Here are a few tips to survive the dark days ahead.

Exercise - Every day for at least 30 minutes. Not only does it warm you up but it gets the happy endorphins going. You don’t even have to leave your house. Try out some video workouts, use your steps or get creative with your own dance moves.

Drink Warm  -Warm lemon or apple cider vinegar water and herbal teas can warm you up. You may also enjoy a cup or two of good for you bone broth.

Eat Good Food - Now is the time to get creative with soups, stews and comfort food. Just load it up with healthy veggies and proteins. Make the crockpot your best friend and discover some new in season tastes like roasted root vegetables.

Embrace the Stillness - Not ever day has to be crazy busy and scheduled from morning to night. Take advantage of snowed in days to clean the clutter, spend time with your family or just be still. 

Holiday Baking Survival Tips

If you don’t want to walk around this holiday season like Santa, wearing stretch pants and supporting a large belly you need to be mindful of your holiday baking. Here are a few tips to enjoy the season of cookies, pies and more without going overboard.

Keep it Simple
Decide on one thing that you want to bake so you don’t have a lot of choices to tempt you. You can also choose to order out and have someone else do the baking so you are not tempted with taste testing beyond what you should.

Find healthy substitutes
There are so many yummy recipes out there to help lower fat or sugar in recipes. Focus on baked goods that offer healthy ingredients like nuts or coconut vs butter and flour. Try using key words like Paleo or Whole30 for new recipes.

Bake only what you need
If you are baking cookies, only bake what you need from the batch and freeze leftover dough in round balls. That way you can always make more later for just the amount you need.

Get Rid of It
If you have baked goods sitting around longer than 2 days share it with others or just throw it away. Save your splurges for things you really enjoy, not the 3 day old cookie that you just want to get rid of.

Overall it is important to find a balance of enjoying holiday traditions yet honoring your fitness goals. Enjoy what you want most, forget about the rest and focus on other activities of the season not related to food.

Rainbow Curry Recipe

Wow, so many LIKES on my Curry Dish I just had to share the recipe. Although it isn't much to share it is that EASY! I am also including the 21 Day Fix portions to make it even easier.

Makes 2 servings
Veggies - 2 cups (2 GREENS) of what you have on hand. I used purple onions & red, orange and yellow peppers.
Coconut Oil - 1 teaspoon
1/2 can Coconut milk (2 BLUES)
1 1/2 Cup (2 REDS) precooked protein of choice. I like grilled chicken or white fish.
2 teaspoon Curry powder
Optional: Spinach - 2 Handfuls

Heat skillet to medium with coconut oil. Add veggies and cook until tender about 2-5 minutes. Add protein to warm. Add coconut milk and curry powder. Simmer for about 5-10 minutes. If adding spinach add right before serving and cook until wilted.

You can also add more with a serving a couscous or rice (1 YELLOW) or rice cauliflower (1 GREEN).

ENJOY!

Feel Unstuffed during the Holidays

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and we all know what that means; time to get out the stretchy pants. Many people pack on at least a pound (some gain more) during the holidays -- and most have a hard time taking it back off. But with a few tips you can survive Thanksgiving dinner and still enjoy a guilt-free Thanksgiving feast.

Get Active

Since you know you will probably be eating more than normal over a few days take the time to put in some workout time adding 5-10 minutes to your regular workout. Plan to attend a local run/walk event or create your own in the neighborhood. After dinner resist the urge to nap and gather the family for a walk or laps at the local mall.

Choose Wisely

Not all the food served on Thanksgiving will be worth the calories. Chose one or 2 favorites you wouldn’t normally eat and fill up the rest with lean turkey or vegetables. Take a small portion and only go back for seconds after waiting 15-20 minutes to feel you really want it. If you are in charge of the menu plan some healthier choices or bring a great healthy dish to a dinner you are invited to (Roasted root vegetables are easy and delicious).

Focus on Being Thankful

Thanksgiving foods are nice but gathering together as family and friends is where the focus should be. Start new traditions of sharing thoughts of gratitude or work together on a service project to kick start the winter holidays.

Overall it is important to honor the balance of enjoying traditions yet honoring your fitness goals. Having a plan and sticking to it will help you to not end up feeling just as stuffed as the turkey.

Fitness Coach Sarah Ward is a full time mom to two very active boys. She is passionate about helping others find what they need in their lives to achieve the best life they can with clean eating and daily movement. You can follow her on Facebook or Instagram @LifestyleForward or connect with her at sarah@lifestyleforward.com.

Summer CSA Review

So my last pick up for my Summer CSA is over and I didn't sign up for the Fall/Winter version. While I think it is a great concept here is why it doesn't work for our family (but first you must always start with the positive : )

What I liked:

1. Right from the farm veggies are delicious and sometimes the grocery I shop at lacks in the organic section.



2. Pick up was easy. We picked a place that either my husband or I could get to.



3. I got to try some veggies I wouldn't normally try like bok Choy, cabbage and some weird alien broccoli/Cauliflower mashup.



4. It did force me to eat more veggies in the summer and be a little creative with the menu.



5. You are forced to eat seasonal which is good for you.

Things I didn't like

1. SO MANY VEGGIES. Even doing a half share and getting to swap out things we liked better each week we had so many that I felt like I had to eat all the time to use them up. I should have had a better plan of sharing, freezing or giving stuff away each week.



2. Cost of $20 was very reasonable for the amount we got but I have to see if I will save some money just buying what I will eat per week.



3. I missed some veggies that I didn't get enough of or they just don't grow. Mushrooms for omelets and celery to munch on. I never thought I would say that!

If you haven't checked it out here are some recipes I made with what I got.

Tuna "Noodle" Casserole

Spinach & Zucchini

The True Villains of Halloween - Sugar Filled Sweets!

People tend to worry about a lot about the Thanksgiving pounds or the stress of the winter holidays but it often starts with the most evil holidays of all, Halloween. Each year the Halloween seems to get longer and longer and the shelves fill up with bags of sugar filled treats even before the day is near. Here are some tips to help you bet the sugar crush and stay on track for your health goals.

Buy Late

It may be tempting to buy bags of candy or treats ahead of time to save money or to save time later but chances are if you bring it into your house before Halloween you will be more tempted to eat it and then have to go back out anyways. This year commit to not buying your trick or treat candy until the day before or on Halloween.

Go Candy-Free

Be that house and commit your family to be candy free this year. There are a lot of options out there for giveaways that are not candy related that kids still love. Try glow sticks, erasers, pencils, stickers, pretzels or gum this year.

Enjoy your Favorites

Don’t deprive yourself! Pick out one or 2 pieces you do want to eat this year on Halloween, eat and savor them and enjoy the moment with your family. Pass up other treats that may be passed around at work or earlier in the month.

Give Away the Bounty

After Halloween don’t think you have to keep all the candy. Look for opportunities at local hospitals, dentist offices, schools or military mailing services to donate your candy to good causes.

The key to avoiding the evil snacks of Halloween is to plan early and stay committed. Challenge yourself to see how far you can go to avoid the things you don’t need in your daily nutrition plan.