Tag / building new habits

by tessbrennan

6 Tips to Survive Florida Festival Season – Eating Healthy at Taste of Bonita

It’s officially Festival Season in SW Florida.  Our Rotary club had our annual Taste of Bonita last weekend.  A full weekend of food, fun and music for all to enjoy.  I was there for nearly the entire event as I was “working” the event for our club.

The “problem” with an event of this type is that there is food to eat ALL weekend. The entire weekend is built around “eating” BUT, you can still make healthy choices and not sabotage all the good you’ve done all week.

When you are on your feet all weekend, that counts as exercise. 🙂  Here’s how I kept a healthy focus while surrounded by all the amazing attractions.

Saturday was the BBQ & Chili cook-off. I opted for a couple of chili options.  I asked the vendors how may veggies were in their chilis and how they were made.  I ate one beef chili, loaded with onions, peppers and tomatoes.  It was tasty, but my winner, and the people’s choice was Ted’s Montana Grill’s Bison Chili~!   WOW!  Great flavor, lots of veggies, AND… the meat was ground, grass fed bison – high in good omegas. (Beef that is good for your heart.)

Saturday night, I wasn’t as healthy, had to have a cheeseburger in paradise for the Caribbean Chiller’s concert. But the water and protein smoothee helped offset that.  I also threw away half the bun. (every small step counts)

Sunday, The BIG day. 25 local restaurants offering their wares.  I ate a Prime Rib slider from Fitzgerald’s Irish Pub/The Stage as my splurge, then opted for a fresh veggie salad (seen above) from the local farmer’s market stand and a fruit smoothee (sans agave) from Edible Arrangements. Veggies and fiber helped to fill me up.  I spent a lot of the day drinking lots of water to stay hydrated.

Here are your tips!

  • Eat a high protein breakfast before you head out. When you don’t sabotage yourself with an empty belly beforehand, its easier to make smart choices later.
  • Look at your options. Is there an option that would be just as tasty, or more, than the other options and provide more nutrition for your caloric intake?
  • Drink a LOT of water. This helps keep you filled up so you aren’t thinking you are hungry, AND keeps you hydrated on days that could be very warm in SW FL.
  • Check the menu before you head out.  Many events, like the Taste of Bonita, offer a menu of what is being served by most of the venues.  Scout out the menu for the healthy options.  I did this before hand, so I knew I wanted a whole fruit smoothee and the delicious and colorful salad and where to find them.
  • Dance! Many of these events have live entertainment, boogie down and burn a couple of extra calories.
  • Finally, don’t beat yourself up if you splurge.  Dance a bit more, enjoy yourself, and remember that next time you can choose to make a healthier choice. Have FUN!

Taste of Bonita1 edit

by tessbrennan

Building a Health Community-Supporting Each Other

There’s no need to attempt to do it alone!

Things are more fun when we share the experience with others.

We tend to continue doing things we enjoy and find support in challenges through others who are like minded.

For this reason, we have begun building communities of people working toward a common goal of improving their personal health, and committed to sharing that experience and supporting each other throughout the transition. And ITS WORKING!

Feel_Good_Fast_-_Teamwork_support

I currently have local teams building, who meet once a week. For quality control we have a limited number of spaces for this new community of support, teamwork, and coaching.

I also have a private community of people from all over the United States who work together, some are friends and some are new acquaintances, all are committed to building each other and themselves up through community and commitment.

The 5 pairs of shoes above represent five women in 3 different states who are currently on this journey. Contact me if you would like additional information or want to be connected with other like minded individuals.

Looking for improved health? Looking for increased energy? Looking for others who are finding it?  Check us out!

by tessbrennan

Improving Your Health–One Small Step at a Time.

I have many friends and clients who have decided it is time to improve their health, they are ready to make the commitment and work toward gaining more life in their years!

Many times, when people begin making a change for the better, they feel they need to change EVERYTHING all at once.  This sets anyone up for failure.  It is much better to move one solid step at a time.  While out taking a “Mindful Walk” this afternoon, I had some thoughts about this.

I know, that through my own actions, (and some I remember of my father in years passed) that I have been know to jump right into “changing” everything for the better, all at once.  Jumping into a vigorous exercise routine or running straight from my long stint of couch sitting (by long stint I mean months or years).  Finding that a day or two later I am so sore I can hardly move.

How about when we try changing everything in our diet all at once, only to find it “too difficult” to continue on the path we attempted to lay out in front of us.

Friends, learn from my mistakes!  Take this journey, ONE. SOLID. STEP. AT A TIME!  This is a journey for a lifetime! We are here to begin making healthier choices and working smarter toward our life so that we can see a MAINTAINED improvement over the long run, not just for a week or two. 

Take it easy, lets talk and work on a plan that works for and WITH you rather than against you.  Its what I do.

For more information contact me.  Make it a great day!

by tessbrennan

That Which does not Kill Us…. (or does it?)

Its been a rough couple of weeks for me.  The cancer card seems to be falling all around me.  We buried a friends wife a week ago. A sorority sister was diagnosed this week. A niece is fund raising for her friend who has been diagnosed. My heart aches for my friends, family members, and even strangers who are dealing with heart ache and pain from these killer diseases.

I’ve been reading everything I can get my hands on for years.  Ever since I knocked off the extra weight, and the need for my six pharmaceutical meds, I’ve been researching how to make a difference. How to help myself and others avoid these killers.

Leading_killers_in_America_-_Healthy_Grease_Monkey

Today, I began reading Jamie McManus, M.D.’s “Your Personal Guide to Wellness. What your Doctor Doesn’t Have Time to Tell You.”  Off of the pages screamed another statistic… 

The personal risk for developing major diseases and severe health problems is 20% genetics and 80% lifestyle.”  ~Dr. Jamie McManus

This comment is one that spurs me on to keep heading down this path. I truly believe that each one of us can add life to our years and years to our life through daily decisions.

Looking forward to what more this book with scream out to me as well as the other titles that arrived in the mail today!  I see an information rich few weeks ahead for myself! (Never stop learning)

If you would like more information on how your personal lifestyle choices and personal habits can have GREAT benefits for your life, contact me.

by tessbrennan

When your Healthy Choices are Sabotaged…

Many of us have heard the old adage, 21 days to change a habit, but what about those days that work to thwart our efforts?

Many of my clients have found that there are particular days that are more challenging than others. They have also discovered that if they are aware of what days these could be, they are better able to work through them and not allow these stumbling blocks to to trip them up.

Would you like to know what days of the new habit/choice to expect these flashing yellow lights. When to expect the challenges?  I will share with you.

Be on the lookout for challenges on days:

Sabatour_days

What do I mean my challenges? Perhaps your blender breaks so you “can’t” make your smoothie.  You lose your “water glass” at work so you don’t have it in front of you all day.  It’s cold or it rains to make you second guess getting out there to take the walk you had scheduled.

These are the days that define your new habit, new lifestyle, new choices.  These are the days that give you reason to go back to your old habits and stray from the new ones. 

Be AWARE of what day it is.  Know that things might jump out at you to distract you, and remember YOU CAN DO IT! You DO have a CHOICE – which choice will YOU make?

For more information or for a personal consultation with the Healthy Grease Monkey, contact me. You can also find more helpful information on our Facebook pages: Feel Good Fast and The Healthy Grease Monkey.