How do you feel right now? Give me three words...

 Today we kicked off our 3-week Summer Squeeze.  This is not a super-strict, quick fix regime (that would be our Whipping Week). This was designed to get habits in line and establish an eating system before summer officially starts.  In order to get an idea of where participants are at we asked, “give us three words for how you feel right now”.  Responses included stressed/large/blah/flabby and tired, can you relate? And then we wondered, “how do you want to feel?”. Our Squeezers said “healthy” “under control” “back to myself” “confident” “calmer” and “energetic”. 

I attended a memorial for a great man yesterday. It wasn’t your traditional funeral. We were in Central Park. A group gathered mid day, a few friends and family members spoke. They remembered a kind man, a “gentle soul”.  He never raised his voice and always thought of others. One friend said, “he always found the perfect presents” and “always showed up with too much food.” We were invited to take a stone with some of his virtues on them.

So where am I going with this? How does this relate to food and weight? It’s that we spend so much time on getting ready for the swimsuit and white jeans, as Lena Dunham says “the ass”.  And I’ll go on record again and say the ass, belly, thighs, arms matter, they do. But we make progress or can make long-term progress with our weight and food when we are connected to the feelings. Last week my wise therapist said to me “you have a good handle on the physical now let’s focus on your mental diet”. It’s also healthy to focus on what we’re “showing” others. The man I spoke about above was so, so handsome (and that was discussed) but there were no stones in the basket that said “hot”.

So, give me three words to describe how you feel right now. How do you want to feel? What would you want your “rock” to say?

Hemp-y Breakfast With Anna Kaiser

I had the pleasure of shooting a video you fitness guru Anna Kaiser. The requested topic was hemp and since hemp hearts are lauded in The Little Book of Thin, I was thrilled. An aside, I hadn't meant Anna prior. And you never know what a project will be like in this scenario. Anna was as welcoming and fun as she is successful. So here is the link, we make a delicious Blueberry, lime and coconut breakfast bowl and laugh a lot. The bowl feature's my favorite Siggi's coconut low fat yogurt, Manitoba hemp hearts and lots of zest. Stay tuned for our next installment.
Have you tried Anna's workout? Eat hemp foods? Did you think hemp was pot? 

Maybe the "drunchies" are to blame.

So we’ve covered what to drink before; you know us Tulanian girls aren’t afraid of a good time and love our Tanteo tequila and Titos (ok and Veev, too) more than the average person. What you drink and how often are crucial variables when it comes to your health and weight, but it’s also what happens to your food after drinking and the next day that can make or break your jean “zippage”.

We’ve all been there (some of us longer ago than others), after a late night and a little too much to drink suddenly those fries don’t sound like such a disaster. Or, maybe you were just out to a boozy dinner and you decide to have a little counter buffet when you get home. 

And guess what? It’s not just willpower, research shows that alcohol stimulates appetite and makes you crave higher fat, salt-filled foods. Not only does hitting the bottle make you more hungry initially, you will only continue to eat more at the meals following (hello hungover brunch or missed workout, nice to see you again).

So a few too many drinks in, and you touch the things (at least it’s not people anymore) you would never touch. What’s a cocktail-appreciating person to do?

At Foodtrainers we suggest a  less than 100-calorie optional “dessert”  after dinner I like to say if you’re drinking, you are drinking your dessert and Kate Hudson agrees. But if late night munchies are going to happen, we need a plan in place.

Choose a late night/lush food prior to imbibing. You want to keep it as light as possible, but if everyone around you is ordering pizza and grilled cheese sandwiches you need to have an option too. My recommendations for clients are usually popcorn, Brussels Bytes, dark chocolate or Matt’sMunchies (how appropriate). Have your snack set aside before going out and a giant cup of water to “soak up” the alcohol. If it’s been a long night, charcoal is worth a try.  And then get to bed.

You know the Grandma saying, nothing good ever happens after 2am, well there’s no place that’s truer than in the kitchen.

As for the next day… no, grease does not help a hangover but you know what does? DRAM Apothecary's hair of the dog drops and Gaia's organic milk thistle. I have been known to order it from Amazon Prime for friends during parties, cuz I’m that much fun.

Egg yolks also have a compound called cysteine that help break down alcohol toxins, so order a veggie omelet (no, bacon egg and cheeses do not count). Also suggested is to either sweat it out or sleep it off.

In an ideal world, you’re not having more than 1-2 drinks in a night… and the older I get the more I realize even that can make you hungover. But party and then post party “nosh” responsibly.

(Today's post by the younger Tulanian/Carolyn)

Do you get the drunk-munchies or drunchies? What do you find helps? 

It aint about the ass

As I was scrolling through Instagram (far less annoying to me than Facebook lately) last night, Tracy Anderson referenced Lena Dunham. I went to look and found this:
Promised myself I would not let exercise be the first thing to go by the wayside when I got busy with Girls Season 5 and here is why: it has helped with my anxiety in ways I never dreamed possible. To those struggling with anxiety, OCD, depression: I know it's mad annoying when people tell you to exercise, and it took me about 16 medicated years to listen. I'm glad I did. It ain't about the ass; it's about the brain. Thank you @tracyandersonmethod for showing me the light (and @bandierfit is where I bought my Florida mom inspired workout look.) #notsponsored  #stillmedicated    
Exercise has been a regular part of my life since I was a teenager. I would be lying if I said it has always been a stress release. It was probably much more “about the ass” (not really ass for me as I come from pretty ass-less/ square ass lineage) but either physique driven or just fun driven for years. Sure, there’s the sense of accomplishment after a tough workout but my sense of movement for mood came much later.
So it’s difficult for me to admit I can probably count my real workouts since the New Year on my fingers, my fingers OF ONE HAND.  I’ve been under a lot of stress. And we all have stress whether it’s work, financial, relationship-related, health-related, child-related or parent-related. And when life is really dishing it out it can be a stress combo platter.
 I’m typically the brush myself off and trudge on type of person. I'm also pretty programmed to eat well and exercise. But I get that sometimes every to do item is daunting and difficult. I also know when you do get yourself to a class or for a run or even a walk outside it’s worth it. And don’t get me wrong; I get the exercise for aesthetics thing. However, I think if we all pay attention to our mood and our stressors and acknowledge them it does as much for our asses, thighs and stomachs as any workout. I’m putting it out there that I will run today. Thanks Lena.What do you think of Lena’s comments? What do you do for mood? What’s your biggest source of stress?
And BTW I am OK (no emails or concern). I am in the business of reducing your stress but thought I'd put it out there that I get it.