“Excess in Moderation” is my goal for this month. Just like sausage and chestnut stuffing in copious amounts on Thanksgiving there are many foods and a few beverages that I will over consume because they are traditional at this time of year. No guilt, not even a bit.

The recipes this month can be indulgent or pretty darn healthy depending on which version you choose to make.

The article contains gifts for you, reminders of who you really are.
For those of us who could use a few extra hours in the day so we can get some sleep, be sure to read the Q and A. While I won’t feel guilty for staying up later than is good for me I certainly will not do it with abandon after reading the latest on lack of sleep.

There is so much happening around here that I’d love to get you involved in so please read to the end of the newsletter for the Happenings section.

Another year is close to ending. How was 2007 for you? Did you accomplish what you wanted? Have any plans for the new one coming? I’d love to hear what’s on your  “you revolution” list for 2008? Need support? There are lots of ways to have it, send me an email or stop by the website.

Wishing you hearts full of joy and gratitude and guilt-free goodie enjoyment,
Til next time,
Gregory Anne

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Who among us has not welled up while watching the weight loss sheroes and heroes tell their stories on Oprah or the Biggest Loser? Okay, you in the back row there with the “Oh please” smirk on your face, go out and have a cigarette.

How about those “I left that son-of-a-bitch with nothing but a twenty-dollar bill and the clothes on my back because I was done with the abuse” stories?

We love to hear success stories.

How many of us secretly also wish we were the success story?

Here’s a holiday gift for you. You are.
And if you can’t think of anything but what you haven’t done that you have been saying you want to do, here’s another gift.

It’s time and you have permission.

When we get emotional watching someone else’s harrowing or demanding struggle to a dream realized it is our soul that has been touched. It’s the knowing part of you saying “I can do that, I want to be that, I know it’s possible.” And then we turn off the tube or the radio or put down the magazine and what happens?

Often nothing. Nothing happens until something does. And what that something is happens to be different for everyone. If desire alone were all it took to make big changes in our lives there wouldn’t be any WOW factor left because we’d all be chugging along climbing our mountains daily, everyone a bionic babe.

So what is that thing that happens? Vision + Desire meets Something you see or hear which feels so important that what isn’t falls away.

Last week Oprah featured one after the other of those amazing people who lost hundreds of pounds telling their “why.” Of the many I saw not one person had the same reason for taking on the challenge of releasing what no longer served them, in this case, extra weight. One woman lost five hundred and thirty pounds! Even Bob Greene was holding back tears. Her "why" for changing? Something reminded her of her self worth.

Another woman whose husband loved her through thick--three hundred something pounds--and thin told what moved her into action.
They wanted to adopt a baby. The agency said they would have to list her as “an oversized” applicant. This lessens your chances and that broke her heart. Having a family became her focus. Food no longer was.

What about the fear of failing? As smart women fully engaged in our lives not sitting on the couch with a super–sized bag of Cheesy Chex Mix (I’ve only ever seen those in coupon magazines...) we’ve heard the acronym False Evidence Appearing Real, might have seen the frequently quoted book titled, “Feel The Fear And Do It Anyway.” But knowing it’s there and intellectually knowing we can overcome it does not make it so.

A maddening scream comes from the middle row, “Then for heavens sake HOW do WE change enough to do what we say we want to do but just don’t?!”

Gift number three, dismantle the fear by asking, “What One Thing?” Do not worry yourself into a stupor about all the things that you don’t know yet that might go wrong.
What one thing?
If you are a planner then make a plan, a simple plan, not an architectural rendering complete with elevations of how your feet will look in sneakers.
One thing, buy sneakers. Okay two things, use them.

Here’s a suggested plan.
1. Tell yourself many times per day, “I can and will do this because,” then list your whys.
2. Also tell yourself, “It feels scary, I may fail but that’s okay.
I have no real idea how to do this and that’s okay. Nothing matters more to me than to begin.”
And finally, watch how you talk about the challenge and yourself.

I’ve starting work with a client who is quitting smoking after almost 30 years. She smokes her way through her day and told me “It’s going to be like losing a best friend.”

My first bit of coaching came when she was telling me about how it feels. “I know this is going to be I really hard…” “Stop please” I said firmly. “In order to support yourself in this you have to hear how you are talking about it. Instead of saying ‘this is going to be really hard’, can you change the words to ‘I know this is going to be very different for me’? If even one speck of your skeptical side can be convinced that we create our lives with our words then you are on your way to creating something other than what you have.

The weight loss winners almost to a one admitted that they once called themselves a “waste of a life, worthless, disgusting, a failure,” and many more nasty names. Once they started towards their goals they could no longer use those words or ways of thinking. Their mantras were all variations of “one burger at a time” and “I matter because I’m alive,” and “ you can do this.” They did not have huge Mind Maps of what the years ahead would look like.
What they all had in common was that they tapped into their inner wisdom and courage. They quieted the despotic voice that had for years held them prisoner and allowed another voice to respond to something they felt on an emotional level. “I am that person who succeeds, I am the one at the top of the mountain, I am the one on the TV show telling my story.” I am I am I am.

Gift number four is part of a quote. The author is not Nelson Mandela but Marian Williamson. Read it, make it yours, and re-gift it in the form of your next success thereby showing others what’s possible for them.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.”

Couches. Chex Mix. Excuses. Stories.
One thing. Mantras. Successes. Stories.

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Want to use this article in your newsletter or on your web site?  You are welcome to do so, as long as you give full attribution below.  I would also appreciate it if you would let me know when you publish it.  You may contact me via email or phone call.

Gregory Anne Cox is a certified life coach who has been dishing up all-you-can-eat servings of women's health and nutrition information for years. Her Lifestyle Tune-Up course is a 28 day wonder seminar for women looking for the missing mid-life manual. You can find out more at Live Better Coach, send her an email, or call her at (631) 728-2456.  This article is copyrighted and you may feel free to use it as long as you include this paragraph when publishing it.

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Ready to begin living better? Contact me today to learn how we can work together

Phone: 631-728-2456
gregory@livebettercoach.com

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Variations on The Mashed Potato

Lots of people must have mashed potatoes or their holiday dinners seem incomplete. Holidays or not smashed spuds are comforting and just plain delicious. They are also versatile but can be frighteningly high in calories. Not here of course but don’t think that means less flavor or richness. Think of this month’s recipe as a template and channel your inner Martha for a personalized side dish, replacing some of the potato with another vegetable.
 
The trick to really great whipped potatoes no matter how you like them is to start with a starchy potato—like an Idaho or a Yukon Gold—and to whip not beat them using the whisk attachment on a kitchen mixer.

Take a look at this month’s new feature, my quick tip video, to see what I’m talking about. 

Mashed Potatoes with Cauliflower and Leeks
Serves 6 – 8
Classic Vichyssoise ingredients and a very mild but interesting flavor.

Ingredients
1.5 lbs of peeled potatoes, cut into 2” chunks
¾ lb of raw cauliflower, sectioned into 2” pieces
1 or 2 leeks depending on your tastes, white part only, cleaned of sand and sliced ¼” thick
1 cup or milk, whole or otherwise (May need more or less depending on how you like your mashed)
2 – 4 Tblsp. Olive Oil or Butter depending on your richness quotient
Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

1. Place the potatoes and cauliflower into a pot and cover with water. Add one Tblsp. Salt.
2. Turn heat on to medium high and simmer til fork tender.
3. Meanwhile you can sauté the leeks in either a little olive oil or butter til soft, a bit of brown if you like a caramelized taste.
4. When the veggies are done, drain them well and put them back into the pot over a low flame. The idea is to dry them out as much as possible to help give that fluffy not soggy texture which is the sign of a great mashed potato.
5. Place the now dry veggies into the bowl of your preferred kitchen mixer with the whisk attached.
6. Turn the machine on low and add the butter or oil at once, then the s & p. Let that incorporate and slowly pour in the milk. (You can substitute chicken or veggies stock here.)
7. Once things are well mixed but not quite fluffed through add the leeks.
8. Turn the mixer on a bit higher, let it run for about 20 seconds, check for and adjust seasoning if needs be. If it’s perfect and most of the lumps are gone, put it into your serving bowl and enjoy.

Variation 1—Mashed Potatoes with Parsnips and Apples
In this recipe I use half potatoes to half parsnips so 1# of each + one medium apple. You can leave the apple out if you don’t want the sweet touch. This is a wonderful compliment to a roast chicken or pork. Peel parsnips and apple and place all of them into the pot with spuds, cover and follow the rest of the directions. You can even add the leeks to this for a really dressed up dish.

Variation 2—Mashed Potatoes with Butternut Squash and Roasted Garlic
Although this recipe takes a bit longer it is really richly satisfying and loaded with good nutrition. If you don’t have any roasted garlic around and don’t feel like waiting an hour or more to do a hand in the oven simply put 6 cloves in some olive oil in a small pan over a low flame. Simmer the cloves in the oil til they turn golden brown. You’ll have a similar flavor experience to roasted cloves.

Once again I use a 1 to 1 ratio for the two roots. Peel, boil, drain etc. I add the garlic into the whipping process. Want a secret ingredient that will set this dish apart? Substitute one of the tablespoons of the butter for walnut or hazelnut oil. Oh my, it’s just so yummy. And in my mind the olive oil option does not cut it for this version so just live it up. No guilt remember?

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You Staying Young, The Owner’s Manual for Extending Your Warranty
Michael F. Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.

Well the good docs have done it again. If you are new to the You series of books please read the reviews in my archives, Dec.2006 and and June 2006, for a quick introduction. Or, better yet, hie thee to a book store or Amazon.com and order any of their titles that tug on your gut.

The You series of books spells out, in very easy to understand language and illustrations, what all goes on in our bodies. The latest one tells us how to reverse the aging process that we have come to think of as inevitable.

If it’s hard for you to believe that chronological aging is a part of the game but wearing plus sized sweat pants and sporting a walker is not then you must read and master the ideas in this book. “Your goal should be: die young at any age. That means you live a high quality of life (with everything from working joints to working genitals) until the day you die” say the authors.

To get us there the book is part lecture, part quiz, lots of diagrams on the board, and what class wouldn’t be complete without homework? Homework takes the shape of a 14-day plan to get us started on the path to reversing the process of mental and physical decline.

Who can benefit from this book? According to the introduction, Aging is more like a savvy bank robber who’s spent months casing the joint rather than a first rate mugger who comes out of nowhere. There are huge delays between the cause of the problem and the effects you actually see in your life. And that means you have to start building defenses in your thirties, forties, and fifties against attaches that may not occur until your sixties, seventies, and eighties.

What this book is not. It is not just the usual change your eating habits, add weight training, and learn to reduce stress. Yes those things are as critical as ever but this book goes deeper, all the way to the cells. Aging it seems begins on the cellular level. 

Get this from page 12, “aging isn’t about breaking down as much as it is about repair.” Aging is essentially a process in which your cells lose their resilience; they lose their ability to repair damage because the things you might never have heard of (until now), like mitochondria and telomeres, aren’t working the way they should. But it’s within your power to boost that resilience and keep your vehicle going an extra couple hundred thousand miles.”

“Aging Is Reversible—All You Need Is A Nudge” This is number five on the list of You Staying Young’s five principals of longevity. Oz and Roisen believe that we don’t need a complete overhaul just a tweak here and there. In my world it would be called a Tune-Up.

And that Tune Up must start with the head. Books like the You series are perfect for giving you the facts + the formula for living long and well. You may or may not need the science behind the program or even care why your telomeres aren’t as long s they should be. I wager you care about living independently, in health, with a sound and happy mind. If so, buy and read this book.

Here’s a factoid to consider. Currently, there are approximately forty thousand centenarians in the US—although this is difficult to estimate precisely since there was no national birth registration system in the US until 1940. Approximately 85% of them are women. (page 13)

In December of 2006 the book I reviewed was also Oz and Roisen’s, it was You On A Diet. I’d like to finish this review with a quote from that book which can be applied to not only any of their programs but any habit or lifestyle change we are thinking of taking on.

“First of all with this plan you don’t need a whole lot of time. If you don’t have the time to do this, then you have to be willing to admit that the problem is not the fact that you’re out of time, but the fact that your life is so out of control that you can’t budget enough time for your health and well-being.”

If you give yourself one present for the coming year let it be the gift of new ideas, new ways of thinking and doing your life. Who knows, the one thing that has the power to change your life might just be hidden in a book.

What’s on your wish list for the holidays?

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Q&A
Be sure to send your questions to Greg so she can answer them here in future issues of The You Revolution.

Q: I’m at a stage where sleep is no longer the guaranteed-to-happen-delicious-eight-hours-of-rest-and-restoration thing it once was and more like an affair with an unpredictable lover, showing up when he feels like it and leaving me wanting more. What is up and how can I get more on a regular basis?

A: Listen closely, given the choice between regular sleep and an occasional bit of lovin’ choose both but make sleep your priority.

Lack of sleep plays a significant role in aging poorly. If you sleep less than 6 hours per night you are at greater risk of infection, heart disease, mental decline, and weight gain—which brings its own set of complications. This month’s book, You Staying Young, has a full chapter on why we sleep and don’t due in part due to our hormonal responses both naturally occurring and induced by our lifestyle choices. We will each have very different ideas about what is enough sleep but many of us aren’t getting ourselves to bed in time to reach our target. Once there we are disturbed by sig other’s snoring, our own snoring, too hot, too cold, the bills, the dog and on and on.

Prepping your body for sleep can help you fall asleep faster and stay asleep. This includes the following short but by no means comprehensive list:

1. No TV or computer use within 60 minutes of your bedtime

2. No caffeine, alcohol, or sugary foods within 90 minutes of bedtime

3. Establish a pre-sleep routine such as getting into pjs, doing the face and teeth thing, maybe stretching or meditating for 5 minutes

4. If you like to read that’s’ okay just don’t read things that will stimulate you to worry, replay scary scenes, or anything work related.

5. When you turn out the lights make sure it’s dark. This may seem silly but street lights, nightlights, emergency lights, even the light on your clock radio could contribute to waking up during the night or trouble falling asleep.

6. If your partner snores you have choices, ear plugs, a white noise machine, a separate bedroom. No joke you may have to resort to that if you are chronically sleep deprived and that’s the only thing disturbing you.

Sex before sleep, regular or otherwise—and I’m referring to frequency not type--is not only acceptable it is encouraged. Try everything and keep doing what works—and I’m referring to sleep inducing habits here of course.

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Is 2008 your year to finally make that change you’ve been wanting to make? The Mind and Body Tune Up teleseries begins again in January.  Check out the information page for details.

As always I welcome inquiries about one on one or group coaching.

If you haven’t already created your vision for the new year I encourage you to spend a bit of time on it. I’m not suggesting resolutions—you may know me as the anti-resolution/pro-revolution girl—what I am suggesting is that you paint a picture of you and your day-to-day for the new year. I’m just putting the finishing touches on a template with exercises to walk you through this. I’ll send out a short email with a link to it when it’s done. It’s my belief that vision+commitment+emotion or connection with what you are envisioning = the life of your dreams.

Many thanks to all of you for reading, sending me positive feedback, and passing this labor of love on to friends. It means so much to me to know that people not only read this but are moved to respond to one thing or another.
I wish you all a BIG—in all the right places only—2008, joy in abundance, love and good health.
 
Til January,
Greg

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Thank you for reading. I know your time is valuable and that there is a mountain of information out there demanding your attention. My highest hope is that I've provided something of value for you. If you know someone who might benefit from any of the content please forward this.

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