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Did you know you can make pudding in less than three minutes? Did you also know that it can be vegan, have no sugar added and that it can be a healthy snack or dessert replacement? Guess what? You CAN! You can also freeze it and eat it as ice cream or leave it as it is and dip apples or strawberries in it. Win-win! Add a little more pea milk and you have yourself a chocolate shake! Yum!  Servings: 1 Prep/Total Time: 3 minutes Ingredients:
Directions:
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 Everyone worries sometimes, it is a normal part of life. You might be anxious over a presentation at work, making an important decision or taking a test. When the anxiety or fear doesn't go away, gets worse over time and/or interferes with daily activities, it might be classified as an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders can be a debilitating condition and are the most common mental illness, affecting roughly 40 million American adults. Numerous therapies are available to help control anxiety and include psychotherapy, support groups and medication. These work best when used in combination with each other, as well as with stress-management techniques, good nutrition, sleep and exercise. Make sure to talk with your doctor to find the best techniques for you.
For those of you who just happen to be worriers (like me), there are some things you can practice on your own to help ease your mind. As I mentioned above, stress-management techniques, good nutrition, sleep and exercise are key! Practice mindfulness/yoga/meditation/journaling, focus on eating a variety of vegetables, fruits, whole-grains, lean protein and calcium rich foods, aim to get 7-9 hours of sleep each night and get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise (or a combo of both) each week. The mind and body are connected so when you take care of yourself, you will feel your best physically and mentally. If you need help with any of this, please contact me! "If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it is not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever." ~Dalai Lama What this means is if there is a solution or way out of the difficulty, the appropriate action is to spend your energy finding a solution rather than worrying about the problem. If there is no solution, then there is no point in worrying because there is nothing you can do about it anyway. The sooner you accept that, the easier it will be. Sometimes this is easier said than done. You might have to practice training your thoughts to get this down. Accept your worry and move on but set aside a time to recognize your anxious thoughts (maybe even write them down in a journal), brainstorm ideas if there is a solution to your worries and then let them float out of your head like a leaf in the wind. Don't let your worries rob you of your energy, time and happiness. If they start to pop up outside of your designated worry time, make it a point to think of something positive instead. Restructure your thinking by being mindful and thinking in a more constructive way. Focus on the present, enjoy your loved ones, situations and things as they are now. Control your thoughts, don't let them control you. Don't worry, be happy! https://www.health.harvard.edu/topics/anxiety https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders/index.shtml  "I don't have time" is the number one excuse given from those not taking charge of their health. We are all given the same 24 hours in a day. What is the secret of those who do find time? It is what you choose to do with your time that counts.
Yes, there are certain things in life that can come up and make it more challenging, can take more time than others and can lead you into thinking that you don't have the "time". BUT, it is all about how you look at the hours in your day that make all the difference. You realize, it isn't about not having enough time. It is about how you prioritize the things you do each day, what motivates you and what you really want. You make time for eating, sleeping, work, school, family time, friend time, happy hours, dinners, watching TV and looking at your phone. If your health is important to you and you really want to make a change, you need to place it at the top of your priority list instead of the bottom. How you choose to spend your time defines your priorities. Usually, when someone says they don't have the time, what they really mean is "it is not a priority". It is not what we say is a priority, it is what we do that is a priority. There IS a way to incorporate wellness into your life, no matter how busy you are. You just need to exercise all the different options that are available. A great place to start is to take a time audit. Really look at your day and write down how many hours you spend working, commuting, sleeping, having family time and running errands. Where do the rest of your hours go? Maybe you need to start saying "no" to more things that zap your energy and "yes" to sleep, exercise and eating healthy instead. Take away that hour long TV show and go on a 30-minute walk and cook a quick, healthy dinner instead. Take away the hours of mindless phone scrolling and go to the grocery store and pack your snacks for the week. Going to your kid's sports practice after work? Pack a PBJ and some veggies for dinner instead of grabbing fast food and then walk around the field for more steps. Time is our most precious resource. It is amazing how much more time you seem to have when you minimize the things that aren't important to make room for the things that are. "If you don't take care of your health today, you will be forced to take care of your illness tomorrow." ~Deepak Chopra Here are a few quick tips to help you make the "time" for your health:
Have you ever wondered what is in a health coach's pantry? Come and take a look! As you might notice, there isn't a ton of food in there. That is mainly because we usually buy just enough food for the week, or sometimes for the month and we make sure to use it up so there aren't a lot of open containers sitting around. I am all about not wasting food, having enough for all of our meals and snacks, but not too much to where it is tempting to keep snacking! Some things we do normally have around are different cooking oils, vinegars, spices and foods like quinoa, rice and tuna. That way, we always have something we can cook up in a hurry! Check back soon for a fridge tour! Most of our food is fresh so there will be a lot more to see! Let me know if you have any questions or requests for any more tours!  
If you or someone you know has ever tried a diet or two....or several, you might be familiar with the typical diet cycle:
Begin Diet > Restrict > Deprive > Crave > Give In > Guilt > Begin Diet Again. This normally looks something like: high motivation to lose weight, cutting out all food you (or your diet plan) labels as "bad", missing out on the foods you enjoy or need, intense cravings for the food you aren't "supposed" to eat, giving up on the diet because it is too hard to maintain, binge-eating the food you gave up, feeling guilty that you ate a lot of "bad" food, and starting the diet all over again. Diets cause a vicious cycle of yo-yo dieting, or weight cycling: the cyclical loss and gain of weight. The diet > overeat cycle is caused by restrictive diets that lead your body to think it needs to conserve energy to protect you from starving and in response, slows your metabolism which ultimately makes it even harder to lose weight. This cycle is the ultimate reason why weight loss programs don't work, explored even further below. 1. Diets are only temporary food plans. Yes, you might lose a few pounds here and there but most people who lose weight by dieting will regain it again (plus more) since diets are not something you can continue forever. They don't teach you anything about healthy eating. Once your diet is over, you will return back to your unhealthy eating patterns that caused you to gain weight in the first place, thus taking you back through the yo-yo dieting. 2. Fad diets cause more harm than good. They might cut entire food groups out which prevents your body from getting the essential vitamins and minerals you need to thrive. Skipping meals and starving yourself will zap your energy, throw off your metabolism and can cause or worsen health issues. 3. Diets damage your relationship with food. They take all the fun out of food, add unreasonable stress to your life, prevent you from learning mindful eating, cause you to feel deprived from your favorite foods, and they destroy your natural hunger cues. 4. Dieting can cause eating disorders. Constantly worrying about your weight, feeling frustrated when your diet doesn't work, obsessing over what you are eating, counting calories and depriving yourself can all lead to eating or exercise disorders. 5. You might fall for "magic potion" schemes. Out of desperation, you might waste your time, health and money on pills, powders, drinks, etc. There is no magic supplement! Healthy eating, exercise and taking care of all aspects of your wellness are the key to effective weight loss. The first step towards permanent, healthy weight loss is to lose the diet mindset and focus on eating balanced meals and snacks and add more activity to your day. Start with small steps and think about the changes you can make that you can live with for the rest of your life. You can actually enjoy the food you eat, have fun with your favorite activities AND lose weight and keep it off for life. If you don't know where to begin, join Boost, a 28-day healthy living jump-start. In this educational program, you will receive behavior change information, a sample meal plan, recipes, restaurant and snack guides, a sample workout routine and more! |
About MeI am a food loving, activity seeking health coach who resides in Franklin, TN with my husband and two sweet dogs (Lola & Penny). AllergiesI believe everyone should eat balanced and not cut food groups if you don't medically need to. All foods can fit in a healthy diet. Unfortunately, I have to avoid gluten and also limit myself with dairy, so my goal is to provide healthy, gluten-free/dairy-free recipes so EVERYONE can enjoy all foods, even if you do have to cut out certain food groups. My recipes are encouraged for everyone to eat, not just for those with sensitivities/allergies! Most of my recipes can be easily converted by using real dairy and whole-wheat in place of my allergy-free substitutes. SearchLooking for something specific? Everything can be found by category under the "Life" and "Recipes" sections on my website or you can search below. Archives
October 2024
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Elena McCown, LLC Health Coach in Georgetown, TX