As we get older, the holidays may lose some of their luster. We realize it takes money and time and effort to provide a nice holiday season for our families.
We give to charities and survive on less sleep and more coffee. We hoof it back to school two nights in the same week to attend our kids’ Christmas programs. We pay extra for babysitters so that we can squeeze in all of our holiday party requirements. We hit up Amazon in order to grab a nice, slimming, black Christmas dress that makes us feel a little bit better about the donuts we are nibbling on in the break room. We break our “I only drink on the weekends” promise when a Tuesday night soiree rolls around.
And we are grumpy. And tired. And staring in disbelief at the red mark around our waist where our jeans have gotten a little tighter.
Ho. Ho. Ho.
The closer Christmas comes, the better January starts looking, with her promises of less and quieter and slower.
This is not to say that we do not love the holidays, of course. The magic of Christmas never fully leaves us. Christ the King is born, and we get to share that wonder with our children and our families. If this were the true crux, the holidays would certainly be exhilarating.
However, now that we are super responsible adults, we realize the pressure and the cost that comes with the holiday season.
Would you believe me if I told you that you could make it through the season without losing your mind? Or your skinny jeans? You can! I promise.
1). The Holidays are really only a Few Days.
Christmas Eve. Christmas Day. New Year’s Eve. New Year’s Day. A random Wednesday in December does not count as “the holidays”. You know you will feel like crap if you eat a Costco cookie or three at your kid’s class Christmas present. Would you do that in July? Probably not. Be responsible with your nutrition and your fuel every day, just like you normally would. And then you will not feel like a marshmallow come January 2.
Really, though. There is always an opportunity for derailing from proper nutrition. You know that you need meat, and vegetables, and fruit, and bacon, and butter. These are properly nourishing foods. Chips and cakes and sugary alcoholic beverages are very hard on your liver, your skin, and your brain chemistry. If you find yourself stressed and irritable and pimply and bloated after a few days of eating crap, rein it back in with some steak and some broccoli and some apples and some butter.
If you are eating a nutrient dense, nourishing, traditional diet, you will be so satiated and balanced that you may not even be tempted by the French macarons at your work party.
Just remember, 4 days out of the month is a reasonable amount of time to deviate from normal nutrition. Plan for it and enjoy it. The rest of the time, eat a diet rich in protein, fat, and produce.
2) Seek out sources of hot water
What is it that is so calming about a bath, a hot shower, or a jacuzzi? For starters, the hot water raises your body temperature, which is inherently relaxing. The warmth also increases circulation in the body. Raising your core body temperature is a smart move for killing viruses or infections. Most of those critters cannot live in a human body that maintains at 98.6 degrees or higher. Most of us are walking around with body temperatures that are 98 degrees or lower due to over-dieting, over-exercising, or under-nourishment. Check yours and see. If it is low, seek to raise it by eating plenty of protein and fat and carbs like sweet potatoes and rice and squash (with butter, please). Give your basal body temperature a boost by immersing yourself in hot water whenever you can. Hot showers, epsom salt baths, and jacuzzis will help give you this bump.
Plus it just feels heavenly. Feel the stress of the day literally melt away as you soak in an epsom salt bath. Baths are practically free. Pencil it into your calendar at the end of each day. A body that feels less stressed is a body that is better able to withstand donut temptation and also better able to fight off colds and flus and irritating extended family members.
3) Defend your immune system with fun drinks
Well, maybe not that fun. But clients do swear by my Lemon Gut Shot. It helps the body in three ways:
1) bolsters the immune system with whole food vitamin C and limonene,
2) brings down inflammation by way of the turmeric and ginger, and
3) cleans out your colon.
It’s easy, too.
1 whole lemon, peeled. Pith still attached.
1 tsp turmeric (fresh or ground)
1 tsp ginger (fresh or ground)
8 oz. water
Blend and store in a mason jar. Drink 1-2 oz per day on an empty stomach.
Do this every day, twice a day (1 oz in morning, and 1 oz at night). This will keep your immune system strong.
Now, let’s say that you have already succumbed to the beginnings of a cold. Support your immune system with this next-level immunity beverage:
Immune Boosting Cider
1/4 cup diced, peeled ginger root
1/4 cup diced, peeled horseradish root
3 organic cayenne peppers, chopped
½ white onion, diced
¼ cup diced, peeled turmeric
6 crushed garlic cloves
Zest and juice from 2 organic lemons
1 cinnamon stick
1 tbsp local honey
1 cup apple cider vinegar
Add everything to a mason jar, close lid, and shake for a minute or so to let everything combine and honey to dissolve. Allow to steep for a 12 hours on the counter. Strain out all of the solids and store in the refrigerator.
Drink 1 tbsp up to 3x/ day. You can do this all winter long if you need to, or if your spouse doesn’t mind a little garlic breath. If you constantly suffer from a weakened immune system, this cider should be your jam.
4) Defend your immune system with fun pills
That shouldn’t be allowed to be a heading but I am going to leave it. For continuity’s sake.
I’m simply talking about Vitamin C. This wonder vitamin has been studied in doses up to 200 grams per day. Ergo, large doses are totally safe and when used in proper amounts, extremely efficacious.
Start with 2000 mg, 4x/ day. Take three doses with meals and the fourth dose at bedtime. It should make your stools soft, but not loose. If you get the runs, back down by one pill at a time. If you notice no effects on your bowels, add 1 gram per day until you poo. This is “bowel tolerance” and it is sooooooo good for you.
You’ll notice that you have more energy, better skin, better digestion, and better wound healing when your Vitamin C levels are optimal.
I had these persistent and disgusting warts on my finger since July. July, people. It was horrible. I tried everything I could to get rid of them. I megadoses Vitamin C after I tried to cajole my friend to use his clinical surgery skills to cut off my wart. He wouldn’t do it. But he said that something was seriously wrong with my immune system. Oooh. Lightbulb. So I dosed up the C, and four days later, my monster wart fell off. No joke. I will be writing about this more soon.
Take your C.
5) Laugh with your community
This life is short. It is hard. Joy is commanded but difficult to feel all of the time. We all take ourselves so damn seriously. Watch a funny movie. Get silly with your kids over a board game. Invite a girlfriend over for a glass of wine and light conversation. Go ice skating and fall. Ask your mom what the funniest thing that every happened to her was. Try a new recipe and be willing to fail. Do a face mask with your daughter and make scary mask faces. Challenge your son to a foot race.
In short, nourish yourself and don’t be afraid to make a mistake. Eat well, take your cheap vitamins, melt away stress daily, and engage in community.
This is how we get through the holidays and survive and maybe even thrive. You got this!
If you are wanting to take things a step further and learn how to actually eat (maybe for the first time in your life!), consider the 28 Day Reset.
Our next 28 Day Reset starts in January. This Reset teaches you how to eat. And to rest. And to exercise intelligently. There are no calorie counting mandates. In fact, I give you high fives when you eat plenty of calories at every meal. We eat three giant meals a day. Like bacon, and steak, and melon, and butter, and sweet potatoes, and salt, and even chocolate. No one goes hungry. And everyone loses weight and gains energy and starts to sleep better and have better periods. This is what happens when you nourish yourself. Most of my girls tell me that they have never eaten this much food before. And they like it.
I can help you. This will be the fourth time I have run this program, and it is the program that gets the most consistent and positive results.
The program is $167 for 28 days of one-on-one daily check-ins with me and the rest of the group. I teach a live masterclass every week. You will get all of your questions answered. You will get personalized supplement recommendations. You will get a free phone call with me to check up on your progress and tweak the program for your individualized needs and success.
I usually discount this class toward the end of the enrollment period, but I don't think I am going to do that this time. However, if you sign up with a friend, you will get $10 off of your enrollment fee and a 10% discount on supplements.
Contact me here if you have any questions before you sign up. Go here to purchase the program and start preparing for our January drop date. You won't regret it. When you have signed up, you will have immediate access to our private Facebook group, where you can start asking me questions right away. A two hour session with me is $250, so this is a pretty good deal.
If you sign up with a friend, you can both use the code "IMWITHHER".
New for the January 2019 Reset:
A focus on using amino acids for craving controls. No more shame from diving into the ice cream at 3 pm.
Workout meetups. We will be moving our bodies, and once a week, you will have the option of doing it together with me.
Masterclass teachings on the biology of cravings, food addiction, and mood disorders. And how to combat these things.
I'm excited to have you!