Keri Glassman, Nutritious Life

Nutritious Life Tips

December, 2009

Don’t let the holiday season take a toll on your health. Do incorporate the most nutritious foods into your diet, set time aside for yourself, and keep up your workout routine! Enjoy this month’s Nutritious Life tips!

Diet-Entertaining is fun, even when you’re trying to keep your dinner parties light and healthy. Keep your get-togethers fun, delicious and nutritious by remembering to be a savvy server! Do your friends and family a favor by using these fun serving tips:

For appetizers, pass out soup in individual shot glasses. Try Imagine’s organic minestrone, split pea or tomato basil soups.
At dinner, use smaller plates to encourage smaller meals. Make sure that they are no larger than 9 inches!While the standard dinner plate should be 9 inches, many are instead, 11 inches, making it easier to overeat.
For dessert, serve bite sized desserts instead of large plated desserts. They are more fun to eat too! Mix Sunspire’s chocolate covered blueberries with fresh berries for a perfectly delicious treat!

Stress-Take a tip from Popeye, and serve spinach as your side dish! Spinach is packed with two nutrients that will help you stay calm: magnesium and folic acid. In my new book, The O2 Diet, I recommend loads of spinach. The magnesium found in it helps to prevent stress and headaches, while the folic acid may help maintain normal levels of serotonin in the brain (serotonin is the hormone that makes you feel happy and relaxed). Don't be afraid of canned or frozen spinach if that is more convenient, oftentimes canned and frozen veggies contain more nutrients than fresh!

Sleep-The hustle and bustle and heightened financial stress that accompany the holiday season can put a damper on a good night's sleep. The Associated Press says that 22% of Americans are going into the holiday season with high stress levels due to debt. Don’t let increased stress levels hinder your health! Essential to staying healthy is getting plenty of sleep. Keep good sleep hygiene by pushing yourself to go to bed at the same time every night and remove the clutter from your bedroom!

Fluid-Drank too much at the holiday party and looking for an instant refresher? Add a splash of your favorite antioxidant rich juice to seltzer water. In The O2 Diet, I call these drinks “O2 power shots.” Just add 1 or 2 ounces of acai, pomegranate, or cranberry juice to 4 ounces of carbonated water… For another antioxidant boost, mix a packet of True Lemon or True Lime right into your bottle of water, and voila!

Personal Time-Make sure you include some time for yourself this holiday season. Vital Juice’s Happy Healthidays provides a three-week series of mini guides to help get you a great body, hair, skin, and more! I provide a weekly meal plan, while other experts will provide tips on daily workouts, beauty, and hair. Visit Vital Juice to learn more and enter in the e-gift giveaway!

Exercise-Have you been working on a perfect swimsuit body for your holiday vacation? With all the effort you’ve put towards reaching this goal, you should continue your workout routine during (and after) your vacation! And while your workout may not be the focal point of your vacation, make time to stay on track while you’re traveling. A 30 minute brisk walk, 20 minute swim, morning of skiing, or a hotel room workout will help motivate you to stay on track with healthy eating while you travel.

Pamper-Holiday shopping can take a toll on your feet. Give your feet a break, and treat yourself to a relaxing massage. It’s the perfect solution to keep you on your toes during the holiday season! Indulge in a foot massage at the nail salon, or do it yourself at home. For an at home foot-spa experience, use these 3 simple steps for perfectly pampered feet:

Soak your feet in epsom salts to reduce swelling
Use a pumice stone to remove any calluses or dry skin
Soften skin by massaging feet with a moisturizing lotion mixed with 1 tsp. of coconut oil