Healthy Tips for the Holidays!

Lights on Main Street, Salt Lake City

Starting this week, the holidays will be in full swing. This means a frantic time for millions of Americans with shopping, travel, holiday parties, and family get-togethers. It is also a time in which most Americans gain weight that is called holiday weight creep.

The average American gains between 5 to 10 pounds during the holiday season and very seldom loses it during the rest of the year. Why do we gain so much weight during the holidays? How can people enjoy the holiday treats and parties and not gain the extra weight?

Dr. Keith Kantor, a leading nutritionist and author of the book, The Green Box League of Nutritious Justice, prepared the following list of tips that can help us avoid the dreaded weight creep of the holidays yet still enjoy the parties and treats.

1. Cut down on saturated fat in creamy dressings by mixing in yogurt instead.
2. For a wonderful flavor enhancer, sprinkle roasted vegetables with vinegar or citrus juice. Add it at the last minute so the flavor is at its strongest.
3. Substitute chopped vegetables for some of the bread in your stuffing recipe, this will reduce the amount of carbohydrates in the stuffing therefore reducing the glycemic load.
4. Don’t starve yourself the day of the party so you can fill up on food that evening. If you eat healthy normal meals throughout the day, you’re much less likely to overeat at the party.
5. Remember: The point of holiday gatherings is to celebrate, not to eat. Mingle with friends and loved ones instead of hovering around the buffet table, grab a plate and walk away.
6. Don’t load up at the buffet table. Keep portion sizes small by putting your snacks on a small plate instead of a large one and limiting your trips to the buffet.
7. Prioritize your food choices, if you love sweet potato casserole take a serving of that but skip the stuffing if it is something that you don’t have to have.
8. Present food in various locations all over your home to encourage activities and mingling not just eating.
9. If you are going to drink alcohol alternate the beverages with water, this will keep you hydrated and may curb the increase in appetite from excessive alcohol.  
10. Make sure you include protein and vegetables as your appetizers and throughout the main meal.  The protein from meat and fiber from the vegetables will keep you feeling full and avoid bingeing on excessive sugars and carbohydrates.
11. When choosing cocktails, aim for non-calorie mixers like sparkling water with the juice or limes or lemons, rather than heavily sweetened juices or syrup based mixers.  
12. Remain active throughout the holidays, maintaining lean muscle mass from strength training and cardiovascular activity will help keep your metabolic rate (calories burned at rest) high to offset the extra calories from the holiday treats.

Dr. Keith Kantor

About Dr. Keith Kantor

Dr. Kantor has been an advocate of natural food and healthy living for 27 years.  In 1994 he was appointed CEO of Service Foods, Inc., the largest all natural food company of its kind in the United States.

He has a Master Degree in Nutrition Science and a Master in Business Administration; Ph.D. graduate of Corllins University, Nutritional Science; Doctorate of Science graduate of Corllins University, Naturopathic Medicine.  He also holds undergraduate degrees in Biology and Chemistry.

Dr. Kantor has been married for 37 years to Karen DeFiore Kantor. Karen is a registered nurse and is Director of Nursing for Services Foods, Green Box Foods, Blue Ribbon Foods and Southern Foods At Home. They have two children, Kimberly is the Director of Personal Training for Lifetime Fitness. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee. Ryan received his undergraduate degree from Clemson University and his Master degree from the University of Georgia. He is currently employed with Bellomy Research in Winston-Salem, North Carolina as a research manager.

For more information go to http://www.drkeithkantor.com/

Follow these steps to lose weight

I have lost 45 pounds since February 24 using Unicity's Balance and following some simple guidelines. Here they are:

1. Follow a 4-4-12 schedule. I drink a protein drink for breakfast and then 4 hours later have

   

   UNICITY Balance

   Balance and eat lunch. I wait another four hours and drink Balance before eating dinner. Then I fast 12 hours before eating breakfast again.  Research suggests we should eat within an 8-hour window; and never at night.
2. Don't snack between meals. Balance regulates your glucose and insulin so that you have no spikes and go into fat burning mode an hour after eating.
3. Eat a low glycemic index diet.  See Dr. Ray Strand's writings on the topic. Great recipes can be found in the many low GI cookbooks.  I also recommend eliminating processed sugar and flour from your diet entirely. 
4. Drink lots of water. I drink water instead of snacking.  Unicity has an energy drink called Macha that can be stirred into water.
5. Watch serving sizes. While Balance will give you a full and satisfied feeling, you should learn to measure your serving sizes and not go back for seconds. A plate might be 1/3 protein, 2/3 fruit and vegetables. 
6. Eat good fats and cook with olive oil, grape oil, coconut oil, etc. Eat raw nuts rather than salted nuts and limit the amount of nuts you eat daily.  They are a great source of good fat but add calories quickly. 
7. Plan your meals, including one meal a week where you will indulge your food fantasies.  This would be a good meal to eat out at a favorite restaurant. My wife and I always share restaurant meals and begin with Balance. Never take home leftovers. 
8. Exercise daily for 30 minutes.  Unicityvideos on YouTube has a number of exercise suggestions. 

If you have questions or suggestions, comment below. Eating healthy requires a lifestyle change; it's not a fad diet.

New Book “Diet Enlightenment"

Diet Enlightenment: The Real Secret to Weight Loss

by Rachel L. Pires

--New book will change everything you know about losing weight

We are bombarded on a daily basis by the latest diet trends, workout plans, and wonder drugs that promise to take us down to the ideal weight that we long to be at. But as quickly as we take on these new ideas, we then give them up, either because they are not working or simply aren't realistic to sustain over a long period of time. So here we are again, exasperated, frustrated, asking the question, "how do we lose the weight and keep it off for good?"

Enter: Diet Enlightenment: The Real Secret to Weight Loss by Rachel L. Pires. Like so many others, Pires was once obsessed with losing weight, yo-yo dieting, and constantly fluctuating her weight. It was when she reached the point of "diet enlightenment" that she finally realized the solution to maintaining her desired weight.

"After struggling with weight loss for over ten years, I figured out the key to easy weight loss and realized why the majority of people fail," Pires said. "I also made some insightful observations about 'naturally thin people' and realized that they were all doing something that most dieters lacked. Not only did I lose the weight easily, but keeping it off was almost effortless — even after having a baby recently. I knew I had to share this knowledge with anyone who has ever struggled with weight loss."

What Diet Enlightenment is not is a book that offers the latest diet fad. Instead, it offers a modern approach to keeping track of the calories one intakes, equipping readers with techniques that are easily adaptable. Thus far, those who have adapted Pires' program — including her father, a Neuropsychologist at Weill-Cornell Medical College — have been able to lose and maintain their desired weight with ease.

"My aim is to reveal the secrets that the multibillion-dollar dieting industry doesn't want you to know, and teach you how to lose weight easily and permanently without giving up your favorite foods," adds Pires. "You will learn how to tap into your natural ability to stay thin and free yourself from the bondage of emotional eating."

Rachel L. Pires, a Boston University graduate, is a contributing writer for LIVESTRONG.com Weight Loss Blogs, a weight loss advisor, and a new mom. Additionally, she is a dancer, a 2nd degree black belt, and an advanced certified scuba diver.
Website: http://www.dietenlightenment.com
Diet Enlightenment: The Real Secret to Weight Loss can be purchased from www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com and through all major booksellers

Roast Beef, Arugula and Shaved Parmesan on a Baguette

Crusty bread, peppery arugula and fresh shaved Parmesan cheese makes an everyday cold cut like roast beef taste like a gourmet sandwich. Perfect for lunch on the go, pack along some veggies and fruit on the side and you have yourself a meal.

When I make a sandwich, I like using good crusty bread like a baguette or French bread, which is a perfect fat free bread option. A trick I like to do when I make a sandwich is to scoop out some of the inside of the bread, which allows me to make a larger sandwich, and it leaves room for the meat and lettuce. I personally enjoyed most  of my sandwiches dry but if you prefer adding mayo or dressing, you'll have to adjust the points. I bet horseradish mayo would be lovely on this!

I've been getting lots of emails from working folks who need help preparing quick and easy lunches on the go that don't require heating up the kitchen. I am dedicating the rest of the week to healthy sandwiches. If you have a sandwich you would like to share with everyone feel free to comment and maybe I'll post your recipe!

--Rachel