A New Year with the Same Problems?

It’s the New Year of 5781. We have just finished 3 weeks with a lot of eating and sedentary lifestyle.  This time period was very challenging to navigate when it came to managing our health.  But as we begin the year, we see it isn’t just holiday time that requires good preparation and planning if we want to stay healthy.  Indeed there will be challenges throughout the year, and more than we might anticipate.

It took a while for my client Moe to understand that yearly events and personal events cannot be an excuse for poor health.  As his health began to take a turn for the worse, Moe’s doctor encouraged him to lose weight and to try to form good health habits.  When Moe arrived at my office, we went over his blood tests and discussed his weight.  He had a BMI of 33. At age 52, his poor health was bringing on prediabetes, borderline high blood pressure, and worst of all for him, his knees and lower back were bothering him.  Moe clearly wanted to make whatever changes would help him feel better and lose weight.

We put together a food plan for Moe and gradually we build a moderate intensity exercise program.  Moe began walking 10 minutes twice a day. As time moved on, he was able to walk 30 minutes without too much discomfort and began some resistance training and flexibility training, too.  Moe was definitely being compliant both with his eating and exercise plans more that 80% of the time. He was getting good results.  The little aches and pains were mostly gone.  His weight loss was proceeding on a consistent basis.  People who knew Moe were starting to see the difference, too.

Yes, Moe was putting in time and effort and getting results.  His program was working well until we got to the month of Tishrei.

Planning

Like we do with all of our clients, we spent a lot of time with Moe on how to handle two days of Rosh HaShanah followed by Shabbos.  We also coached him on preparing for the fast days of Tzom Gedalia and Yom Kippur.  We got Moe to make the best of the situation with Succos.  And perhaps most important, we set different but practical and reasonable goals for this period of time.

We decided that between Rosh HaShanah and Simchas Torah even a small weight gain of 2-3 pounds was okay, as long as on Isru Chag, Moe got right back on the program and resumed losing weight. Moe was ready! Yet in the end, this whole 3 week period ended up being much more difficult than he had imagined.

Old habits

We are all creatures of habit and somehow, Moe lost his mindfulness and reverted back to old habits.  He overate and found excuses not to do exercise.  Particularly over Succos, his sleeping habits were less than desirable and that ended up with eating late at night.

When the week after Succos finally hit, Moe came to the office, got on the scale and was pretty distraught.  He turned to me and asked, “How could I have let this happen?”  I assured him that his behaviors, although damaging, were typical.  We talked about the importance of ample planning and focus necessary during certain times of the year, as well as the value of getting back on track and leaving the past–in the past.

Celebrations and extra food

Thank G-dwe have a lot of joyous occasions in our lives.  Some of these are built in— the holidays in Tishrei, ChanukaPurim.  I don’t think I have to explain the difficulties of Pesach or cheesecake on Shavous! Now add to the list other joyous occasions –  weddings, Bar Mitzvahs, a bris, or a siyum.  Food, food, and more food.  This presents challenges to us all year long.  Sometimes, we get a few weeks in a row without an occasion to celebrate, but not often.  It’s a beautiful thing, but it is also a potential danger when trying to watch our health.

Our Simchas, whether holidays or family occasions, have to be handled just as we deal with every Shabbos.  You see, Moe was able to handle his program and be compliant as long as nothing disrupted his routine.  But nothing in life is without exceptions. And learning how to adjust to these exceptions is really the key to success. 

Here are a few tips for enjoying all the Simchas we have  without damaging our health:

Nothing is more important than planning. You know when Yom Tov, Shabbos, or a family occasion is coming.  Write down what you are going to eat ahead of time and navigate the situation the best you can.  It will never be perfect, but it doesn’t have to be.  Allow occasional treats—but the type, amount and timing also needs to be planned.

Don’t skip meals – especially Erev Yom Tov Make sure you eat a healthy breakfast and a light meal on those days. Remember: you will not eat your evening meals until late, and if you are very hungry, you may overeat at the Yom Tov meal and/or nibble on too much Challah.

Plan a healthy Yom Tov meal with YOU in mind. Just like on Shabbos, make sure there are healthy alternatives of your favorite dishes. There are a lot of healthy choices–use fruits or sorbets that are low sugar instead of cakes and cookies at every meal.

When cooking, make sure to eat sitting down to avoid over-tasting. Put a piece of gum or a mint leaf in your mouth. The extra second it takes for you to remove the gum will give you time to think twice about tasting again and again!

Avoid the “All or Nothing” approach to eating. If you overate at a meal or ate too much of an unhealthy food, move on and start making healthy, balanced choices again. Every small step helps.

Trans-fats are a big no-no.

Make sure to have healthy snack foods handy. Overeating or eating too much of an unhealthy food often occurs because you are too hungry to make wise decisions, or there are no healthy alternatives. Keep cut up veggies, nuts, and fruits available for snacking.

Portions matter—even on healthy foods. You are sitting at the table for a long time.  Be careful!

It took us a while to get Moe to understand how to navigate the Jewish year.  Eventually, he learned that he can still enjoy each Simcha without damaging his health, as long as he plans carefully and remembers the positive and negative ramifications of his actions.  Ultimately, he was happy with just getting through certain times of the year without losing weight but also without gaining much either.  When we can accomplish that, we “add hours to our day, days to your year and years to our life”.

2020-10-12T12:53:21+00:00

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