3 tips for the day after Halloween (and forever)

It’s not the candy on Halloween the gets you, it’s the candy that remains in your house or office that get’s you;)

Let’s face it, Halloween is the first day of the  season “Too Much.” Too much sugar, too much alcohol, too much money spent, too much stress!

Wouldn’t it be nice to stick to your “good”, healthy habits so that you have energy throughout the day, don’t feel bloated, and you are able to stay excited, instead of worn out, ​ for the important events and upcoming holidays?

If that is something that is important to you, don’t give into the common attitude of “Give up and give in until January 1”!

Here are 3 tips so you can stay in control of your eating and snacking so that you can feel great, in body and mind…and it can start tonight (at least tomorrow, the day after Halloween.)

1. Go to sleep by 10 p.m.

Yes, sure it feels good in the moment to stay up late watching movies, reading or playing games on your phone, but there are  consequences to skipping out on sleep such as hormonal imbalances. The stress hormone, cortisol, for one, remains elevated. For another, muscle building growth hormone and testosterone don’t rise like they need to and your hunger hormone, ghrelin stays elevated.

I always tell my clients the magic hours to sleep are (at least) between 10 p.m. and 2 p.m. for these hormones to rise and fall as they are designed.

By getting to sleep 10 p.m. regularly will reduce your cravings and make you feel like a new person in the morning.

2. Make sure to eat protein in your each and every meal.

It feels really bad to have uncontrollable sugar cravings. You feel like you have no control over yourself and think you have no will power, but, if you make it a habit it have protein (and animal protein like eggs, chicken or lean beef are really good) at every meal, your cravings for sugar start to fade away. Aim for a minimum of 90 grams per day of protein…and don’t skip the protein in your breakfast!

Not only will you feel full for longer, you’ll reduce cravings and preserve your healthy muscle tissue!

3. Exercise – especially resistance training.

Resistance training helps build and maintain healthy muscle. One benefit of resistance training is the release of myokines. With every contraction, the muscle releases tiny proteins into the bloodstream that impact other parts of our body, including the brain. While the study of myokines is still relatively new, there is evidence that some of these myokines act on the brain to impact learning, memory and mood.

I bet you’ve experienced the benefit of exercise on your mood! Many women have told me they don’t like to exercise, but they love how they feel when they are done! [side note: I’ve even converted a few exercise “haters” to “lovers”, or at least “like it enough to do it regularly” haha.]

In addition to the usual benefit of resistance training, like fitting into your favorite pair of jeans, helping you to be in a better overall mood will help you make better choices throughout the day that align with your values and goals.