10 NICE WAYS TO SAY 'NO' TO FOOD PUSHERS

Politely Turn Down Food at Parties and Gatherings

"Here, have some more!"   "It's only the holidays once a year!"  "A little won't matter!"  "I love you!" ...  What do you hear during the holiday season, that temps you to eat what you shouldn't and don't even really want to?  Food temptations are everywhere. From stuffing and pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving to eggnog and sugar cookies in December, the seasonal temptations are endless. It can be tough enough to navigate the turkey buffet without having your host force an extra helping of potatoes on your plate or resisting Grandma's pleas that you take a second piece of her famous apple pie.
 
Food pushers range from well-intentioned loved ones to total diet saboteurs. Regardless of their motivation, it's important to stick to your guns. You can always be honest and say that you're simply trying to eat healthier, but when that response gets ignored (or doesn't come easily), the following responses to their food-forcing ways will keep you in control of what goes on your plate and in your mouth!
 
IMPORTANT:  These tips work year-round at birthday parties, family get-togethers and Sunday brunches!
 
1. The Push: "It's my specialty, you have to try it!"

Your Response: "I will in a bit!"

Why It Works: Stalling is a great tactic with food pushers. Odds are the offender won't follow you around making sure you actually try the dish. If they catch up with you by the end of the party to ask what you thought, tell them that it slipped your mind but you'll be sure to try it next time.
 
2. The Push: "This [insert name of high-calorie dish] is my favorite. You'll love it!"

Your Response: "I had some already—so delicious!"

Why It Works: A white lie in this situation isn't going to hurt anybody. You'll get out of eating food you don't want or need, and the food pusher will have gotten a compliment on what probably is a delicious dish.
 
3. The Push: "It's just once a year!"

Your Response: "But I'll probably live to celebrate more holidays if I stick with my diet plan!"

Why It Works: People can sometimes see healthy eating as vain—a means to the end result of losing weight and looking better. It's harder for a food pusher to argue with you if you bring attention to the fact that you eat right and exercise for better health and a longer life. Looking good just happens to be a side effect!
 
4. The Push: "Looks like someone is obsessed with dieting…"

Your Response: "I wouldn't say obsessed, but I am conscious of what I eat."

Why It Works: Words like "food snob" or "obsessed" are pretty harsh when they're thrown around by food pushers. But don't let passive-aggressive comments like this bring you down—or make you veer away from your good eating intentions. Acknowledging your willpower and healthy food choices might influence others to be more conscious of what they eat. Sometimes you just have to combat food pushers with a little straightforward kindness.
 
5. The Push: "If you don't try my dish, I'm just going to have to force you to eat it!"

Your Response: "Sorry, but I don't like (or can't eat) [insert ingredient here]."

Why It Works: It's hard to argue with someone's personal food preferences. If someone doesn't like an ingredient whether its sweet potatoes, pumpkin, or butter, odds are that he or she hasn't liked it for a very long time. If you'd like to get creative with this one, go into detail about how you got sick on the ingredient as a kid or how your mom says you always threw it across the room as a baby. Who can argue with that?
 
6. The Push: "You need some meat on your bones."

Your Response: "Trust me, I'm in no danger of wasting away!"

Why It Works: This food push is definitely on the passive-aggressive side. Using humor to fight back will defuse any tension while making it clear where you stand.
 
7. The Push: "One bite isn't going to kill you."

Your Response: "I know, but once you pop you can't stop! And I'm sure it's so delicious I wouldn't be able to stop!"

Why It Works: This is another situation where humor will serve to distract the food pusher from his or her mission. It's a way to say "thanks, but no thanks" while making it clear that you're not interested in overindulging.
 
8. The Push: "But it's your favorite!"

Your Response: "I think I've overdosed on it; I just can't eat it anymore!"

Why It Works: If you have a favorite holiday dish that everyone knows you love, it can be especially tough to escape this push. If a loved one made the dish specifically for you, the guilt can be enough to push you over the edge. But people understand that food preferences change, and most have been in that situation of enjoying a dish so much that they can't touch it for awhile.
 
9. The Push: [Someone puts an extra helping on your plate without you asking.]

Your Response: Push it around with your fork like you did as a kid to make it look like you tried it.

Why It Works: While putting food on someone else's plate can be viewed as passive-aggressive, it was probably done with love. (Let's hope!) Making it look like you ate a bite or two can be an easy way out of the situation, but you can also just leave it alone and claim that you've already had your fill. (After all, you didn't add that extra helping!)
 
10. The Push: "Have another drink!"

Your Response: "I have to drive."

Why It Works: No one will argue with the fact that you want to drive home sober. If they do, you should have no qualms walking away from the conversation, period. If they offer a place for you to stay, you can always get out of the situation by blaming an early morning commitment or the fact that you need to get home to let the dog out. Kids will also get you out of everything.
 
11. The Push: "We have so many leftovers. Take some!"

Your Response: "That's OK! Just think, you'll have your meals for tomorrow taken care of."

Why It Works: Not every party guest wants to deal with the hassle of taking food with them, and this makes it clear that you'd rather the food stay. If the host is insistent, you can feign worry that they'll go bad in the car because you're not going straight home, or it'll go bad in your fridge because you've already been given so many leftovers at other parties recently. Or be polite and take them. You'll have more control of your food intake away from the party anyway. So whether you don't eat the leftovers at all or whether you split a piece of pie with your spouse, you're in control in this situation.
 
These tactics can work wonders in social situations, but honesty is the best policy. A simple "No, thank you" is hard for a food pusher to beat, especially if it's repeated emphatically. Remember, too, that it's okay to have treats in moderation, so don't deprive yourself of your favorite holiday foods. Just make sure that you're the one in control of your splurges—not a friend, family member or co-worker who doesn't know your fitness and health goals!
 
Do you have a favorite way to say, "No, thank you," to food pushers? Send me an email with your strategies.  I would love to hear from you!

BLESSED HOLIDAYS!

YOU'RE INVITED!

Gosh ~ It's been awhile since I've put anything on the Empowered Health and Fitness Blog!   Maybe you are glad for a break from my health and wellness email encouragements?  SMILE!   I've been just "a little" busy becoming a new Grandma, and becoming engaged to Paul Larned.

I've missed this Empowered Health and Fitness connection with all of you!  To jump start a new beginning, I am inviting you to join Empowered Health and Fitness in honoring our Wounded Warriors (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/) and all our Veterans this Veterans Day, Friday November 11, 2011.

• 4PM Walk or Run to Flagpole (1/2 mile)
• 5PM Red/White/Blue healthy potluck dinner
• 7PM Dedication Ceremony of new Ypsilanti American Legion Post 282

Any who would like, may come to Sherry's at 4PM to join me in a walk or run from my house down to the Lakeshore Flagpole (just 1/2 mile) and back.  Feel free to bring a friend and just let me know if you want to join me in this.

Otherwise, wear your patriotism or military service sector support, bring a salad or fruit and come for a potluck dinner gathering at 5PM.  Following dinner we will head over to the dedication of the new American Legion Post 282 for their opening ceremony which starts at 7:00PM.   

I need to RSVP how many people are coming to their opening ceremony, so please let me know your RSVP as soon as possible.

Whether you can make this Veteran Day gathering or not, please take a moment to check out the Wounded Warrior Project (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/) and consider giving your financial support and prayers to those who have so sacrificed for our country and our freedoms.

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

FEED IT! ~ THE MYSTERY OF MOTIVATION

What motivates you?  

As a Personal Fitness Trainer I think a lot about what motivates my clients.

What makes us pick up our feet and do what we gotta do? 

What I find is that motivation works the same way, backwards and forwards. It's like this...

BACKWARDS:

I eat one Hershey's Kiss. I am motivated to eat more.
My job is mostly sedentary. I am motivated to be less active.
My co-workers (mostly healthy weights) like to snack (on unhealthy foods). I am motivated to do the same.
I find comfort in certain foods. I am motivated to drug myself with them.
None of this takes much effort. I am motivated to do even less.

FORWARDS:

I read a success-story blog on Spark. My endorphins kick in. I am motivated to want success.
I skip an unhealthy snack. It isn't as hard as I thought it would be. I am motivated to do it again.
No pasta or pizza till I can't breathe, and I sleep better. I am motivated to eat more healthfully and lightly.
Moving, even a little bit, raises my energy. I am motivated to move more.

What we feed grows.

If we feed the negative in our lives, it gets bigger. It becomes an unending cycle of drudgery and pain. And it continually gets worse.   It can be so easy to become an EXPERT at feeding the negative. I think we all know how to do that.

If we feed the positive in our lives, it gets bigger. The cycle is now made up of health, strength, and energy. Feeding the positive, well, that's a learning experience for me. It takes planning and effort and action. It takes conscious overcoming and taking an honest inventory of what makes you negative and what keeps you negative.   It's usually NOT food.   What is it for you?
 
Recently I've been feeding both. Talk about confusion. No wonder my mind and body can't quite get it together.  I've fed my negative cycle with poor food choices and poor sleep. I've fed my positive cycle with lots of water and some great physical exertion.  My goal is to replace the negative with positive the absolute majority of the time.  Looks like my work is cut out for me.

How do you feed the positive in your life? What makes you pick up your feet and do what you gotta do?  Give me a call, email or text and let me know.  I'm loving compiling the positive motivators list that so helps me and all others.

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

9 Blessings of Upward Sports Ministry Basketball Camp

This week Empowered Health and Fitness had the privilege of participating in Upward Sports Ministry Basketball Camp coaching a team of nine 2nd/3rd grade girls, the Almighty ~ "Lady Ducks"!   

CONGRATULATIONS: Colette, Chloe, Ashlyn, Sydney, Nia, Genna, Ella, Bethany and Charity! Great job completing a week of Basketball Camp with the Upward Sports Outreach Ministry of Cross and Resurrection Lutheran Church.   You are all STARS in Christ and more than earned your daily stars of recognition for: learning, effort, defense, offense, Christ-likeness, and Sportsmanship.

Camp Theme Verse:

"Show proper respect to everyone".

(1 Peter 2:17 NIV)

Upward Sports provides a fun kids sports experience based on healthy competition.  Last year, more than 550,000 K5 through sixth-grade kids had a great basketball, soccer, flag football or cheer-leading experience through one of 2,400 leagues or camps.  Upward Sports seeks to help children grow not only as an athlete but emotionally, mentally, socially, physically and spiritually.  The program allows players to made a significant contribution to their team.

Since they are the world's largest Christian sports league for children, there is probably a kids league or camp near you. Find one today!

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

EXERCISE CAN HELP YOU SLEEP

Workouts Improve Your  Sleep Patterns

I know, I know … You stayed up late last night to finish a project, woke up groggy , skipped breakfast, then almost fell asleep in the middle of the morning.   It’s now mid-afternoon and, as you’re having yet another cup of coffee to stifle yet another yawn, you realize you’re seemingly sleep walking through your days.

You’re not the only one.    Although most experts agree that the average adult needs eight hours, most of us have burned our candle at both ends. But how do you get off this "sleep deficit" merry-go-round?  It's easy to say, "get more sleep" but what if you're simply spending frustrating hours tossing and turning, and having trouble finding deep slumber?

First, it’s important to be aware that sleep is not a passive activity.  Healthy sleep is every bit as valuable to your overall well-being as exercise and good nutrition.  Research shows that a lack of deep sleep (as opposed to irregular or fragmented sleep) undermines the body's ability to fight off disease. Perpetual sleepiness can reduce the quality and quantity of your work by a third, according to the NSF.  In fact, if you’re sleep-deprived you’re likely to have higher concentrations of sugar in your blood, which could contribute to development of a pre-diabetic condition.

Moderate exercise lasting 20 to 30 minutes three or four times a week generally results in better sleep and more energy.  You may have to find your own exercise rhythm-– some people can exercise any time, while others do better if they work out in the morning or afternoon, not near bedtime. But, vigorous exercise during the day and mild exercise before bedtime will not only help you fall asleep and stay asleep more easily, but will increase the amount of time you spend in deepest sleep phase (Stage 4 sleep).

In fact, in a study on sleep patterns of adults aged 55 to 75 who were sedentary and troubled by insomnia, exercise was shown to play a key role.  Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine asked these adults to exercise 20 to 30 minutes every other day in the afternoon by walking, engaging in low-impact aerobics, and riding a stationary bicycle.  The result? Time required to fall asleep was reduced by half, and total sleep time increased by almost one hour.

What’s more, exercise offers many other mental benefits:

• Reduces stress by helping to dissipate the lactic acid that accumulates in your blood
• Sharpens your brain by increasing the amount of oxygen available
• Eases built-up muscular tension
• Strengthens and stimulates your heart and lungs
• Stimulates your nervous system
• Increases your production of endorphins— those little substances which create a sense of well-being and increase your body's resistance to pain
• Stimulates release of epinephrine, a hormone that creates a sense of happiness and excitement
• Increases deep sleep, as the brain compensates for physical stress

Shakespeare didn’t know about sleep studies when he wrote about "sleep that knits up the raveled sleeve of care," but it seems he did know one thing—there’s nothing better than a good night’s sleep!

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

2011 UPWARD BOUND BASKETBALL CAMP

Sherry Perkins, Empowered Health and Fitness, will be among several coaches participating in the 2011 Upward Bound Basketball Camp Ministry reaching out to youth in the Washtenaw County area the week of August 15th to 20th.  Please keep these kids and volunteers in your prayers for all God's best to flow in to their lives.  More to come, but here is a video introduction:

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

 

SHARING AN OPPORTUNITY FROM HAL WOLFE, DXA2 RACE DIRECTOR

Hello fellow runners – as some of you may know, I have been working for the past 11 years as a volunteer with the Michigan Blind Athletic Association (MBAA) as their track & field director and track coach at a developmental sports camp help every May in Kalamazoo. I have also organized a number of trips taking promising young track and field athletes to Colorado to a camp sponsored by the United States Association of Blind Athletes (USABA). Since resigning as the race director of the Dexter - Ann Arbor Run last fall, volunteer work with the MBAA has been keeping me pretty busy.

As I have been ramping up this volunteer work, I am planning to form my own non-profit called “Running Blind”. My immediate goal is to raise some money to help send a very talented visually impaired athlete named Ahmed to the USABA camp in Colorado in late July. Ahmed is from Africa and now lives in Grand Rapids. He is visually impaired but not totally blind and he can see well enough that he does not need a guide runner. (In fact he’s not allowed one.) He’s on his H.S. track team and can run a 52 second 400, 23 second 200, and can high jump 6’ 2”. In short, he’s a great athlete and I really want the USABA staff to meet him as I think he has Paralympic potential.

I am asking for support from up to 20 people who are able to donate $30 each to help cover for Ahmed’s expenses for this trip. If you choose to donate I will send you a note about the trip with details, and a note afterwards with a message from Ahmed so that you can share in this opportunity for him to travel, complete, meet other visually impaired athletes, and have a great time.

I am also looking for volunteer guide running partners for a middle school student in Ann Arbor who hopes to run cross country this fall. She is blind and needs some partners to get out and run with her this summer and fall. No experience is necessary – I can train people quickly in the basics of guide running. This is a great opportunity to directly interact with a young runner who truly needs help. (Women are preferred for this role – and I will definitely need more than one person.)

Please consider supporting these worthy causes. Both of these young people are in need of assistance. Feel free to contact me with any questions you might have about Running Blind or either of these two assistance projects. Thanks.

Hal Wolfe (runlikehal@yahoo.com)
2045 McKinley, Ypsilanti, Mi 48197
DxA2 Race Director Emeritus
MBAA Track & Field Director
Running Blind (future) Founder

UNDERSTANDING BMI AND YOUR HEALTH

BMI stands for Body Mass Index.  It is important to know what your BMI does and does not indicate about your weight, health and lifestyle choices.  

Your BMI is calculated from your height and weight. It is a fairly reliable indicator of body fat for most adults, with athletes and the elderly being two exceptions.  While helpful, it is only one of many factors that should be used to benchmark your health and fitness.

People with very low or very high BMIs tend to have the greatest health risks.  Even so, BMI is only one factor in your overall health.  For example, if your BMI falls into the normal weight category, you will still have a higher risk of health problems if you:

• Smoke cigarettes
• Do not participate in regular physical activity
• Eat lots of nutrient-poor foods with added fat and sugar.

If your BMI is in the overweight category, you will have a lower overall health risk if you:

• Get regular physical activity
• Have blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels that are within normal limits.

This means BMI is just one aspect of your health to discuss with your personal fitness trainer.   Take a few seconds now to click this link to identify YOUR BMI:  

http://www.empoweredhealthfitness.com/resources.htm

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582

TOUR DE FRANCE JERSEY'S EXPLAINED

 
Are you a cycling enthusiast?   Even if you're not, how can you not be captivated by the athletic efforts displayed in the re noun "le Tour de France"?!   From Saturday July 2^nd to Sunday July 24^th 2011, the 98^th Tour de France will be made up of 21 stages and will cover a total distance of 3,430.5 kilometres.

These stages have the following profiles:

• 10 flat stages,
• 6 mountain stages and 4 summit finishes,
• 3 medium mountain stages,
• 1 individual time-trial stage (42.5 km).
• 1 team time-trial stage (23 km).

TOUR DE FRANCE CHAMPION JERSEY'S EXPLAINED
 

YELLOW JERSEY

Awarded to the leader in the general classification, i.e. the man in front overall. It was created in 1919 as an homage to the yellow paper of l'Auto magazine, founder of the Tour de France in 1903. Eddy 'the Cannibal' Merckx wore it for a record 111 days.

GREEN JERSEY

The next most prestigious jersey is given to the leader in the points classification which rewards sprinters. During each stage, points are attributed during the intermediary sprints and at the finish. The jersey was introduced in 1953. Germany's Erik Zabel won it a record six consecutive times between 1996 and 2001.

POLKA-DOT JERSEY

Awarded to the rider who earns most of the points at each summit of a hill or pass. The winner is known as the King of the Mountains. Although the award was introduced in 1933, the distinctive jersey was not introduced until 1975. Scotland's Robert Millar was King of the Mountains in 1984.

WHITE JERSEY

The newest of the jerseys was introduced in 1975. Given to the best young rider (i.e. under 25) in the general classification, it was abandoned in 1989 but reintroduced in 1999.

= = =

Get inspired.  Follow the Tour de France LIVE: 

http://www.letour.fr/us/homepage_courseTDF.html

Blessed for your highest good!

><>  Sherry Perkins
Personal Fitness Training and Certified Raindrop Therapy Practitioner
Empowered Fitness and Holistic Health
Website: www.EmpoweredHealthFitness.com
Website: www.raindroptherapy.net
PH: 734-646-5582