Turkey Tummy Tips

Here are some turkey tummy tips for you to consider. All around the U.S., people are kicking off the holiday season by celebrating Thanksgiving. This means facing some of your biggest food and beverage temptations and stressful travel situations followed by post-celebration bloating weight gain, fatigue, and other symptoms of over-indulgence like inflammation and pain. Sometimes, you end up just feeling sick and miserable.

And even if you’re not in the U.S. celebrating with us, the holiday season is still happening in your part of the world, too. Social gatherings, travel, temptations, and celebrations are abundant, and they can leave you feeling less like yourself going into the new year.

But I’ve got you covered!

Whether you’re celebrating Thanksgiving or another holiday this season, I have four survival tips to help you…

• Avoid overeating and bloating while improving digestion!
• Maintain your weight and possibly even lose some weight! (Wouldn’t that be nice?)
• Have a ton of energy and protect yourself from catching a cold!

The best part about these tips is that they can be done anywhere and don’t require much time, effort, or money!

Before I dive into the tips, though, I want to emphasize that your success in health this holiday season will require your presence.

The key to ideal health and weight is honoring your body’s needs.

And to know what it needs, you need to be present and tuned in to your body. You might be wondering, “What does that mean, or how do I do that?”

It’s fairly simple. All you have to do is slow down a bit and tune into what your body is asking you for. Some of these tips are designed to help you do exactly that.

Ok, let’s get into these 5 Turkey Day Survival Tips so you can start putting them into action…

#1 – Front-load your water intake.

Feeling hungry and needing to snack throughout the day can be a sign of dehydration. Eating carb-rich foods, drinking alcohol, and traveling during the holidays can majorly mess with your hydration levels. Aim to front-load your day with massive amounts of water and a pinch of sea salt for electrolytes to stay hydrated. Front-loading is essential, as drinking a lot of fluids while consuming your meal may interfere with digestion. Staying hydrated will help you cut cravings and avoid overeating and fluctuations on the scale.

#2 – Get into rest and digest mode.

For your body to properly digest food, it needs to be in the “rest and digest mode”, and not in the typical fight or flight (aka stressed) state that you might tend to be in during the holidays from rushing around trying to get things done or dealing with less than ideal family situations.  But don’t fret; you can instantly put your body into rest and digest mode to banish or prevent bloating using deep breathing techniques and thoroughly chewing your food.  Do the 4-7-8 breath (inhale 4 seconds, hold 7 seconds and exhale 8 seconds)  5-10 times before each meal, and chew each bite 20 times to allow your body to digest food properly. This will also help you recognize when you are full, so you don’t overeat.

#3 – Drink more tea.

High-quality organic green, herbal, and even black teas are packed with various nutrients to reduce inflammation, balance hormones, and keep your gut healthy.  Peppermint and ginger teas are perfect post-meal to promote digestion, reduce bloating, and ease stomach upset.  Green tea varietals are a great coffee alternative, and cinnamon-containing teas make for a great sweet treat. Both help to curb cravings by balancing your blood sugar!  Pique Tea is a favorite tea brand because of its quality and that it’s easy to mix in cold or hot water powders (great for traveling!).

#4 – Walk, don’t run.

During the holidays, you probably think you need to exercise more to “work off” what you eat and drink. But when your body is already depleted from eating inflammatory foods, traveling, and staying up late, intense exercise will deplete you even more—making your workout more harmful than good, resulting in weight gain, fatigue, and feeling run down. Moving your body during these times is still important, so opt for more restorative exercises such as walking, yoga, and pilates.

#5 Enjoy Gratitude.

Aside from being present to implement these other four survival tips, don’t forget to be present with your family and friends and embrace gratitude to truly enjoy the holidays. It’s also a time for Peace. You can read my Thanksgiving  P E A C E F U L blogs by clicking on each letter to get some perspectives on being thankful.

Joy, laughter, and happiness promote better hormone balance and digestion, which are necessary for more energy and weight loss.

Happy holidays to you and your loved ones!

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