Author: Annie Barber, Ridge Personal Trainer and Precision Nutrition Coach
As the holidays are approaching and we scramble to finish last minute decorations, party planning, and stay sane, in the back of our minds we all hope to not gain those dreaded holiday pounds…
I recently received my Precision Nutrition Level 1 Coaching certification and am excited to share with you a few pieces of advice to tackle these upcoming months. The program I went through helps with life long nutrition and instilling positive habits. This program isn’t about calorie counting, following a strict food plan, or cutting out our favorite foods. Life is too short. Instead, it focuses on small habits from drinking enough water, getting 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, trying to eat every 2-4 hours and to plan and prepare in advance.
For those of us trying to be proactive with our health going into the holidays and New Year here is a little advice:
• First, write down your goal. If I am going to maintain my weight, there are steps I have to take to achieve this goal over the holidays. To make it happen, put it down on paper.
• Secondly, you must establish behavior goals that will eventually lead to a successful “outcome” goal. Behavior goals may be; I will eat breakfast every day, I will drink 8 cups of water per day, I will exercise 30 minutes each day, etc.
• After you’ve written down your main goal and your behaviors, establish a timeline with steps leading to success. “I want to maintain my weight until January 1.” I will accomplish this by only eating one slice of bread on my sandwich, limit myself to 1 cookie/day, measure out my portions and add an extra 30 minute walk into my day.
• Lastly, with your goal in mind, I want you to focus on ONE HABIT every 1-2 weeks. There is research stating if you start with one habit, there is a 50-80% success rate you will follow through with it. Once you start introducing another habit, it drops to below 20%. For the next couple months, and so on, I challenge you to focus on one small habit every 1-2 weeks that will help with your nutrition, fitness, health and life goals.
Here are a couple suggestions:
• Drink at least 2 L of water per day (~64oz); add more if exercising
• Eat 8-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day; ratio of 5 veggies: 1 fruit
• Limit yourself to 1 sweet per day
• Put yourself on a schedule of eating and exercising throughout the holidays: FOLLOW through with it.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
If you are interested in Nutrition Coaching please contact Annie at annie.barber24@gmail.com