‘Tis the Season…to treat yourself well! By Sid Garza-Hillman

Another holiday season is upon us, and for many of us who pay comparatively close attention to the food we put in our bodies, this can mean increased temptation, frustration, and even regret (hence the huge amount of New Years’ healthy eating resolutions!). Most holidays in general are food-centered, and Fall/Winter holidays are no exception. Big meals with family and friends can be the highlights of this time of year.

Problems can sometimes arise when you are faced with multiple possibilities to OVEReat and/or eat foods you’d rather not. As a result, larger concepts than food come into play during this time of year, like restriction, discipline, and wellness, which I’d like to weigh in on.

Restriction. People often mistake decisions to eat healthier and/or more ethically/environmentally as restrictive. I devoted an entire podcast episode to this entitled “Making the Trade.” In it I argue that you are not in fact giving up anything when you decide to pay closer attention to what you put in your body, but are trading certain foods for feeling better. I give you cheese, you give me more energy and less allergies. When sitting with friends and family at a table that contains foods you don’t want to eat (not CAN’T eat, but won’t eat—there’s a very real difference), keep this in mind. The choices you are making affect your life long after the meal. Eating without regret or guilt means feeling better about your life—less stress, healthier body and mind, get it?

Discipline. In my practice I advocate for making small steps to greater health and happiness. The reason why most diets and quick-fix plans fail is because they move us too quickly ahead in behavior change. They are ‘all or nothing’ approaches that simply set us up for failure. The ‘beating ourselves into submission’ (e.g. by sticking to a diet and missing out on a holiday meal, and then running ourselves into the ground in spin class the next day to somehow ‘undo’ the damage) reality of these ‘plans’ generally leads to burnout, unhappiness, and often to binge or emotional eating later down the line. Easing your way into behaviors by incorporating small manageable steps allows you to be in control of the speed with which you improve your life, and puts you in a place of self-care and self-support. This means making it OK to enjoy meals that aren’t necessarily the physically healthiest, but give us great joy.

Wellness. I believe that we are all designed to be healthy and happy, and that in that state we are in balance with the world and ourselves. However, in the modern world we are bombarded with a huge amount of activities (e.g. big holiday meals) and foods that create great imbalance in us. The very foods that are the least healthy, least ethical, and least environmentally friendly are the most accessible, cheapest, and ubiquitous on holiday meal tables. Also, the least healthy foods for our bodies (I call them light-box foods) get us the most high, and it can be super hard to avoid these when they’re right in front of us. This fact can create conflict because, frankly, the temptation can be so great.

So….

As you head into the holidays, remember this… your level of health and happiness is determined by what you do MOST OF THE TIME (I refer to this as your MOTT), meaning that a meal here or there isn’t going to make much of a long-term difference one way or another. Be crystal clear with yourself about why you are making the choices you make, and about the person you want to be. Most people I’ve coached don’t want to be restrictive, militant people—they want to be the kind of people that have a feast with friends and family now and then because that makes them feel good and happy too. If eating a certain food sacrifices an ethical decision you’ve made, then certainly it’ll make you feel better to NOT eat that food, but, again, that’s neither restriction nor discipline, but a choice that makes you feel good.

Holidays at their core are about celebration, and I think it can be super fun to indulge a bit here and there without guilt, regret, or shame. Lastly, remember that food is just ONE part of holidays. Time with family and friends creates incredible memories that will stay with you for the rest of your life. Taking the pressure off yourself food-wise (i.e. not being stressed about food, and not devoting a ton of mental energy to it) means more energy devoted to time spent with the people you love.  

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Sid Garza-Hillman, the Small Step Advocate™, is the author of “Approaching the Natural: A Health Manifesto,” and host of the popular Approaching the Natural Podcast with listeners in over 80 countries. He graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in Philosophy, and for over a decade after college, worked as a musician and actor with a growing interest in nutrition. Sid is now a Certified Nutritionist and Health Coach. He works with private clients all over the country, helping them take control of their lives through his private practice. He is also the Nutritionist and Programs Director at the Wellness Center at the Stanford Inn, North America’s only vegan eco-resort (stanfordinn.com).

Sid’s Website: www.sidgarzahillman.com

Approaching the Natural Podcast: www.sidgarzahilman.com/podcasts/

Sid on Twitter/Instagram: @sidgarzahillman

Sid on Facebook: www.facebook.com/sidgarzahillman

YouTube Channel: Sid Garza-Hillman

As always the information presented in this blog is for educational purposes only. It should not be considered as specific medical, nutritional, lifestyle, or other health-related advice.

Beth's Amazing Story

Once again, I'm very happy to share the success of another one of my friends. This story shows the dramatic impact of cleaning one's diet can make. It also shows the benefits that can be gained without without having to go completely one way or another. I'd like to thank Beth and Nick for the opportunity to help them, but also for their willingness to share their successes. I'd also like to publicly congratulate them on their recent engagement! 

The 2013 holiday season came and went, but those extra pounds I inevitably put on during it chose to stay behind. Beyond frustrated and angry at myself for allowing this to happen yet again, I decided “Ok, this weekend is my last hoorah, then I’m going on a strict diet.” That particular weekend, my boyfriend Nick and I planned a day trip to NYC to visit an old college friend, Anthony. Anthony is a dedicated vegan, and when Nick and I told him we were going on diets, his response back to us was, “Don’t diet, change your diet.” Those wise words opened the door to one of the most informative conversations of my life.

Though Anthony has tried to help us change our diets in the past, this time Nick and I actually listened and wanted to learn how we could not just diet to lose those pesky holiday pounds, but also be healthier overall. It’s amazing the things you can learn by being open minded and willing to listen. That day, Anthony even cooked us an awesome vegan lunch, courtesy BYOL’s Green Mac N “Cheese” recipe. Always skeptical that vegan food would never fill me up and leave me still hungry, boy was I pleasantly surprised. It not only tasted awesome, but I was stuffed by the end of my meal.

Along with wanting to lose weight and be healthier, I also work in breast cancer research, and seeing the devastation that this disease affects on women every day also became incentive for me to change my eating habits. It is traumatizing to see how common the disease is and how more common it is becoming in increasingly younger women. When you start to see patients come through the door who are younger than you, and I'm only 26, you begin to realize something is just not right. Everyday at work I ask myself, like many people I’m sure, what is the cause of this disease? Well, after our talk with Anthony, I’m more convinced that diet plays a significant role. There are many things in life we have absolutely no control over, but diet is something that we do. If changing my diet can help lower my risk for not just cancer, but other common diseases, such as heart disease, I know I am doing something right for my body.

So I had my motivation, but now I needed to start somewhere. I always thought I was healthy enough, as ate lots of fruits and vegetables to begin with, exercised and drank lots of water, but it wasn't until I started to cut things out of my diet, that I realized how unhealthy I actually was. And how terribly I was actually feeling. Nick and I both decided to do this together and we started cutting out soda, milk, fast food, a lot of meat and candy. Did we and do we have days where we cheat? Yes, I am the first person to admit we are not perfect, and this change is still a work in progress for both of us. But the progress we have both made so far is pretty amazing.

Since changing my diet, I have lost a solid 15 pounds and kept it off. Being that I am 5’7”, losing 15 pounds is not that noticeable when you look at me, but I am able to feel the difference. I have also struggled with running in the past and I now find running easier. I have more energy, throughout the day and during my workouts, and I just feel better. I don’t stress out about needing to make sure I burn enough calories when I work out because I know the majority of what I put in my body now is good for me. All the things that Anthony told us would start happening were happening.  

I also noticed that things I used to enjoy eating, I could no longer eat without getting a stomachache or headache. For example, one of my favorite candies used to be Swedish Fish. One afternoon a co-worker and I decided to splurge and get a mini bag of them from the vending machine downstairs. To my surprise, they tasted nothing like they used to and I found I couldn't finish them. Yep, I had a full-blown stomachache halfway through my bag. I felt like I was eating plastic and the sad part of this experience was, I bought them to “treat” myself. I was actually in awe at the whole experience and this only furthered my motivate not give up and to work harder to live a healthier lifestyle.

While I still have a significant amount of work to do, I am proud at how far I have come so far from where I was six months ago. I am also very thankful to have a friend like Anthony who cares enough about us to help us get on the right path and teach us all we need to know about being healthier, while never being judgmental or dogmatic. I look back now and I can’t imagine living my life with the same everyday eating habits I once had. I hope that in another six months, I can look back at this very moment and see that I have made even more progress.

As always the information presented in this blog is for educational purposes only. It should not be considered as specific medical, nutritional, lifestyle, or other health-related advice.

Cristina's Story

Last year I shared a post from my good friend, Kat and how changing her diet has literally changed her world. I’m happy to report that both her and her husband have continued to thrive on a plant based, whole-food, vegan diet. Today I have another shining example of someone very close to me who has transitioned to a plant based diet and has taken charge of her life, her family's health, and accomplished goals she never dreamed of! I’m happy to share my cousin's, Cristina’s story.

I always thought of myself as a pretty active person. Growing up my parents had enrolled me in ice skating, ballet, and jazz. I spent most of my life in Europe where I also started skiing at the age of 4. Even though I lived in Europe I grew up eating and loving standard American food - processed foods and lots of meat and dairy. Years went by and I met my husband, who was once a ski instructor in his hometown before joining the Army. The two of us bonded on some of the highest peaks of Europe. In addition to skiing, I ran, but never more than a 5K.

I eventually married my ski instructor/soldier, moved to Germany, and had a beautiful baby boy.  We promised each other that we would continue being an active family. I hiked a couple smaller mountains (with baby in tow), ran a race in Prague pushing a BOB stroller but even still, for the first time in my life, I was struggling with my weight. While I’ve always been thin, my post-baby weight was the same as my pregnancy weight, and I could not figure out what I was doing wrong. 

We moved to Fort Benning, GA in 2012. Like your typical Army spouse, I had to start my life from scratch. In an attempt to meet some new friends, I joined the Columbus Stroller Strong Moms and that’s when I noticed how out of shape I really was. I was so intimidated by these women who were running past me with their double strollers, not even breaking a sweat. I often felt discouraged because these ladies seemed to be in such better shape than I was. I could see every single muscle in their bodies. That said I became good friends with many of them and in addition to encouraging me to keep working out and pushing myself, these Mommas taught me to never give up.

In November 2012 I completed my first half marathon, in exactly 2 hours. I could not believe I completed this, but instead of being happy and proud, I saw pictures of myself and could not believe how “big” I looked. I wondered, “how was it that I was working out almost every day and not losing any weight? Why were my knees and overall body always in pain?” I was always active as a younger child and adult; I simply couldn’t understand why I felt as if I was continuously struggling. Initially I thought that I was simply comparing myself to some unrealistic and unattainable goal.

Big Dog Heat Wave Five Miler 2012

My husband deployed yet again, to fill the time I found myself spending an increasing amount of time exercising. I could not get over the fact that I still looked bigger than ever despite the amount of exercise I was doing. I decided to seek medical advice and was referred to a dietician. My blood results showed that I had genetically high cholesterol – 210! My thought was, “I am too young for pills!” I always thought I was eating a healthy diet, but after several long talks and email exchanges with my cousin I quickly realized that I was buying into a lot of hype and marketing. Knowing that my cousin and my aunt were both thriving on a plant-based diet, I began to research and then transition to a cleaner, plant-based diet, with the support of my doctor and dietician. Within the first month I noticed inches come off my midsection, which was the area I struggled with most. My physical performance dramatically increased, and my body felt stronger. Within 6 months I had lost a total of 13lbs. I had muscles where they had never been before. More important than losing a couple of pounds, I felt better - stronger, awake, and energized. Despite having “genetically high cholesterol” my cholesterol dropped to 158!

My race times throughout the year have dramatically improved and in November 2013 I ran my first full marathon in 4:04. I felt a little sore the next day, but nothing more than typical long run soreness. I felt amazing pre, during, and post marathon. I finished the marathon hungry for more.

Some dude getting “chicked” by my cousin.

Changing my diet and my eating habits has been the best thing in my life. I now realize how unhealthy the “healthy” version of the Standard American Diet is. I realized how unhealthy the food itself can be and how it plays a dramatic role in our entire life. I became vegan for dietary reasons, not for ethical ones. Despite this, I DO feel a sense of responsibility when I see how animals are treated and how they are mass produced for human consumption. It definitely puts things in a different perspective. In addition, becoming vegan has proved to be more than just a personal lifestyle change, I feel like I am contributing to our Earth – making it a better place. 

I tell everyone who will listen about my lifestyle change and how well it worked for me. I did not become vegan because of Hollywood trends, nor because I “never really liked meat anyway.” Trust me, I loved steaks and the occasional Big Mac.  I became vegan because I want to LIVE! I want to be an active and healthy person for the rest of my life. I owe it to my husband and my child who are also embarking on their own healthier plant-based journeys. As a family we are more vibrant than ever -  and we were able to do this in the Deep South proving that were there is a will, there is a way!

Always listen to your body, seek professional advice, and experiment!  You will be amazed how being a vegan goes above and beyond eating just kale and various salads. You create meals that the average person had never even heard of and you will LOVE it! Your body will thank you and so will the planet.    

As always the information presented in this blog is for educational purposes only. It should not be considered as specific medical, nutritional, lifestyle, or other health-related advice.