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Keeping the Food Demons at Bay While You’re Traveling

Here we are at the end of January. You’ve made some changes to your diet in the first month of the year, and now…you’re about to hit the road for a week. Here are five tips to help you stay on track with your good nutrition habits while you’re traveling – whether you’re hopping on a plane, train, automobile, or bicycle!

Bring your own food. Grab some of your favorite snacks and pop them in a travel bag. Some of my choices this week were: apples, oranges, homemade hummus, carrot sticks, and a protein shake. When your eyes are focusing in on someone else’s cookies and pretzels, just open up your snack bag and make a healthy choice. An added bonus of bringing your own food with you when you travel: you know what’s in the food you’re eating. You’re having a nutrient-dense snack or meal instead of food that will ensure that you’ll be hungry before you know it.
Eat before you get hangry. Plan the timing of your snacks and meals on travel day. Yes, it sounds like work. Trust me, though, you’ll be glad at 10:30 to have that apple or orange before your stomach starts grumbling to remind you it’s time to refuel. You’ll avoid crankiness AND you won’t be tempted by that bag of potato chips the person sitting next to you just opened.
Do some research before you travel. Go online and look at restaurants in the area where you’ll be staying BEFORE your trip. Find out what your restaurant options are before traveling. Take a look at menus so that you know what kind of choices you’ll have: vegetarian, vegan, gluten free? If you don’t find any meals that suit your diet, give the restaurant a call and find out if they can accommodate your needs.
Stay hydrated, and bring a water bottle with you. Drink water. Here’s an easy way to add some H₂0 to your day: have a glass of water first thing in the morning. Then have a glass of water a half hour before each meal. For an extra treat, add some lemon juice, strawberries, or cucumber slices to your glass.
Get plenty of sleep. Willpower walks out the door when we’re tired. Everything in sight suddenly looks enticing, and it can be difficult to make healthy food choices. Go to bed before you’re exhausted, keep your electronics away from your bed, close the blinds or shades so the room is dark before heading off to dreamland. If you’re setting an alarm clock, put it on the other side of the room so that you have to get out of bed to turn it off.

There you have it – five tips to help keep you on track with making healthy food choices while you’re traveling. These are also great tips to make a part of your daily life at home as well. Healthy living starts now.

Keeping the Food Demons at Bay While You’re Traveling was last modified: January 31st, 2018 by Deb Nelson

From Hope to Action: What Will You Do?

Sunday afternoon, my husband and a friend of ours planned to go to the movies. Luckily for us, there was only one seat left. We were forced to move on to Plan B – and, oh my goodness, Plan B turned into quite an adventure.

We had read that there was an exhibit of Arthur Fink’s photos from his visit to Auschwitz and Birkenau at the Maine Jewish Museum. We hopped into the car and were on our way.

Words cannot convey the power of Arthur’s photos. He selected 21 photos for this exhibit titled Auschwitz: Images of Resilience and Light. The photos reflect Arthur’s (successful) attempt to share images “that suggest hope, possibility, and positive vision.” The photos in the exhibit include:

A barbed wire fence

Tracks leading to Birkenau

Barracks at Birkenau

Children’s shoes

A picture drawn by an adult that included text that when roughly translated means “I love you, children.”

The photo accompanying this post is titled Tree of Life which Arthur believes is “a symbol of vibrant new growth that can arise even in this shadow of the Holocaust . . . a fitting end to an exhibition in a synagogue whose name, ‘Etz Chaim’, means ‘Tree of Life.’

Each of these sobering images meets Arthur’s belief of suggesting hope, possibility, and positive vision. These images – individually and collectively – tell the story of the unimaginable and dare us to do better, be better, and honor those whose lives were turned upside down – both the survivors and those who lost their lives in the Holocaust.

From the moment we set foot in the museum, conversations were brewing. There was a buzz throughout the museum. Jack Montgomery’s work was also a featured exhibit titled Soul Survivors: Legacy of the Holocaust. Jack’s exhibit included portraits of Holocaust survivors who settled in Maine along with excerpts of their oral testimonies. These powerful stories were a perfect complement to Arthur’s images.

As we viewed photos and read the stories of Holocaust survivors, VOICES Boston performed a variety of songs that served to lighten the mood and foster conversation – serving another of Arthur’s goals: “these images and whatever conversations they stimulate, will help viewers explore together how we can create a constructive personal relation with the Holocaust.”

Conversation is powerful; and Arthur encourages people to ask questions, even difficult questions – okay, perhaps especially difficult questions. Conversation connects us; conversation gives us the opportunity to confirm the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of our understanding of a situation. Conversation lets us find common ground and explore our differences.

Arthur and Jack’s exhibits explore a heavy subject and show us that after unspeakable sorrow and tragedy, hope remains. Hope lives in each of us; we just need to decide what action we will take so that hope remains meaningful. The museum’s decision to bring the talented VOICES Boston program to the museum was a wise one. The youthful voices of the members of the chorus radiated warmth and hope throughout the building.

Lessons from taking our Plan B route to the Maine Jewish Museum:

Look at the past.

Let the past guide or influence your future.

Do not let the past dictate your future.

Ask questions.

Ask simple questions.

Ask difficult questions.

Have an uncomfortable discussion.

Keep your discussions civil.

Where there is hope, there is a possibility for a brighter tomorrow.

There is always hope.

Living well takes many forms. Taking the time to explore a museum, listen to music, walk through your town, or explore a new area encourages looking at the world through a new lens.

Thank you, Arthur, for sharing these images and for reminding us of the power of hope.

From Hope to Action: What Will You Do? was last modified: January 17th, 2018 by Deb Nelson

Start at the Very Beginning – and Keep it Simple

Heading into the New Year provides a fab opportunity for each of us to review our lifestyles and identify changes we’d like to make as well as practices we’d like to continue in our day-to-day living.

A bit of unsolicited advice here: Resist. Resist. Resist that tendency to turn your life upside down on January 1. When I think about making changes – whether for myself or a client – I think about where we’re at RIGHT NOW. How can we make changes that will support our goals without overwhelm? And then, I think about Julie Andrews and The Sound of Music. No joke, I really do! Where do we start when making lifestyle changes? At the very beginning, of course, just as the song directs:

Let’s start at the very beginning

A very good place to start

When you read you begin with A-B-C

When you sing you begin with do-re-mi

Making lifestyle changes is equally simple: assess where you are, set goals, execute. BOOM! In this world where immediate gratification is the expectation, of course, our tendency is to go from 0 – 60 in three seconds. Or, to go from visiting the gym once every six months to working out for an hour every day. You get the point.

How about if for 2018 we keep our efforts uncomplicated:

Drink more water
Eat more vegetables
Move more

Put some parameters around what more means to you. Work with the healthcare professionals in your life to make sure the goals you set are appropriate for your current situation. Don’t go it alone: Find an accountability partner who will support you as you make lifestyle changes.

If you’ve ever been a member of a gym, you know the first two weeks of January find most fitness centers filled with people working out to meet their high expectations for the year. February will most likely have a very different look and feel at these fitness centers. Why? Adrenalin is gone; lifestyle changes can be difficult to stick to if you go it alone, particularly if you’re not seeing immediate results.

The solution is to find a cheerleader in an accountability partner who will:

keep you moving forward even when you don’t want to.

remind you of the story of the tortoise and the hare. Slow and steady can be more effective than putting the pedal to the metal and burning out.

help you celebrate each and every small victory on the way to achieving big results.

Don’t have someone to fill the accountability partner role? Connect with me to see if we’re a good fit to work together.

Cheers to 2018 and to your health!

Start at the Very Beginning – and Keep it Simple was last modified: January 1st, 2018 by Deb Nelson

Second Chances: Give One. Get One.

When you walk into a room, are people looking at you and thinking about the best thing you’ve ever done or the worst? While most of us might hope it’s the former, anyone who’s served a prison sentence is likely fearing they are known for the worst thing they’ve ever done and nothing else.

How do you change that dynamic? How can you reinvent yourself while feeling as though you’ve got a stamp on your forehead that makes people turn away before you have an opportunity to prove you’re more than your prison sentence? How do you put your life together after serving your time?

Cat Hoke wondered about these, and many more, questions. She took her questions directly to the people who live in our prison system, and has begun to change the lives of people who are released from our prison system after serving their time.

Cat founded Defy Ventures, an organization that “transforms the lives of business leaders and people with criminal histories through their collaboration along the entrepreneurial journey.” Why would this organization be called Defy Ventures? Because, as the website points out, defy means: “to challenge to do something impossible.”

In providing a second change to people convicted of crimes, Defy and its program participants face some tough statistics:

More than 66% of the 650,000 people released from State or Federal prisons each year will be re-arrested within three years.
70% of children whose parents are incarcerated will find themselves incarcerated as well.
The recidivism rate for the 100,000 juveniles released from correctional facilities, State or Federal prisons each year is 55 to 75%.

The results of Defy’s program to date are impressive:

Recidivism rate for those completing the Defy’s program is less than 5%.
165 startups founded, creating 350 jobs.
83% income increase and 95% employment rate within 7 months of enrolling in Defy program.

It’s not been an easy path for Cat, who received a second chance herself. You can watch Cat explain her personal history with second chances, and watch graduates of the Defy program talk about their success after receiving a second from Defy Ventures in this video. Seth Godin’s publishing company, Domino, will be releasing Cat’s book, A Second Chance, in February. After watching the video in the above link, scroll down the page and sign up to stay in the know about the progress of this book.

Do a good turn today, and put an extra spring in your step: give someone in your life a second chance. I’ve yet to meet someone who has never said or done something they’ve regretted. We all need people to look past the worst thing we’ve done. Thanks, Cat, for giving people the tools to spiral upward.

Second Chances: Give One. Get One. was last modified: November 29th, 2017 by Deb Nelson

September: A Welcome Beginning or End?

As we enter September, are you mourning the end of summer or
welcoming the opportunity for new beginnings?

September signals the return to school and the end of summer for many. Does that bring up feelings of melancholy or euphoria for you?

Gretchen Rubin refers to September as “the other January” where we have the opportunity to restart the year with a clean slate. This notion resonates with me, with September serving as a reminder to check in with my goals for the year: Am I on track to meet my business and health goals? If not, what do I need to do to set myself up for success? If I am on track to meet my goals, how will I keep myself moving in the right direction?

Go back to my why.
Confirm that I’ve got measurable goals.
Review goals to ensure that they’re attainable goals.
Re-assess and adjust goals.
Recommit to goals and go all in.
Make lifestyle changes that support my goals.
Find an accountability partner.

While we equate returning to school with the end of summer, the first day of fall isn’t until September 22. September is a great time to reflect on the aspects of my life I’m grateful for, and those things that I need to shake up a bit. I’ll go to the beach early in the morning or late in the afternoon with a notebook (and a blanket) to spend time writing a gratitude list. This helps me appreciate how fortunate I am and reminds me that we live in a world of abundance. It also spurs me on to lend a hand to those in need.

Welcome September and Your Wild New Beginnings!

September: A Welcome Beginning or End? was last modified: September 1st, 2017 by Deb Nelson

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