Hi Friends!!!

The next meeting of the NYC/Long Island Bariatric Pal Support Group will be held on November 1st from 2PM till 4 PM at The Atrium at 805 Third Avenue.

The building is on Third Ave between 49th and 50th Streets.

The Atrium is at the back of the space on the lower level.

Looking forward to seeing all of you next weekend!!!

If your stressing over Halloween...Here is a little reminder and some low calorie fun alternatives!!

5 Ways To Scare Off Halloween Candy

It’s getting cold outside, the leaves are falling, October is drawing to a close — sounds like a good time to chow down on a heap o’ Halloween candy! Not!

While Halloween can be a fun time of the year, it can wreak havoc if you’re trying to lose weight. Just a few wrong choices or one too many of the good, old “But they’re so tiny. One more won’t hurt!”excuse will be enough to send you screaming off the bathroom scale on November 1st.

Here are 5 tips to help get you through Halloween with your waistline intact. (I did have “don’t eat any candy at all” as a first tip, but figured I’d be run out of town by an angry mob with pitchforks!)

Read The Label

If you’re going to indulge, at least know what you’re getting yourself into. Read the label on the bag of candy to find the serving size and the amount of calories. The amount of calories alone may be enough for you to stop overindulging. If not, you could trying cutting back on that amount of calories with your other meals. Granted, you’ll end up replacing good nutritious food with pure sugar — definitely not something you want to do on a regular basis! But if you’re otherwise healthy, it shouldn’t hurt just this one time – within reason, of course…

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

If you’re giving out candy, buy it as close to October 31st as possible and store it in a hard to reach place (or have somebody hide it). Having all that candy in the house is just too tempting. And you definitely need to follow this rule if you’ve ever had to go out and buy more candy because you ate most of your giving-away candy before Halloween.

When it comes to the workplace, avoid people who put out candy or look away when you pass by that overflowing bowl of candy the well-intentioned receptionist has put out. And if YOU are that well-intentioned receptionist, take pity on people and move the bowl out of sight.

Keep the Wrappers in front of you!

Because it’s so easy to mindlessly pop Halloween candy into your mouth with no end in sight, keep every single wrapper so you know how much you’ve had. Your mind may say you’ve only had three mini-bags of M&Ms, but a big pile of wrappers won’t lie.

Eat Only Your Favorites

To me, there’s no point in taking on the extra calories of something you don’t like or only like a little bit. If you’re going to have Halloween candy, then you may as well enjoy yourself by eating only your favorites. Save calories by turning your nose up to anything else.

Eat Protein

This tip is a bit tricky. Eating protein will help counter-effect the rapid rise in blood sugar from all that candy. But you have to keep in mind all the extra calories you’re eating. Try to eat a piece of candy with a meal or a healthy snack. (I can hear a chorus of “Yeah, riii-iiight” just about now, as mini-chocolate bars are gobbled down across the country with nary a healthy food in sight… Well, don’t say I didn’t try to make you eat healthy!)

If you decide to go all out with the Halloween candy, watch out for cravings after overindulging. You may come crashing down hard after the sugar rush and experience intense cravings. Whatever you do, don’t reach for more candy! Instead curb cravings with these 5 little words:

Distraction

Get your mind off of the doughnut and onto to other subjects. Leave the room if you have to. You can’t distract yourself if the doughnut is staring you in the face. Out of sight means you won’t be thinking about it. Take a short break. Start reading a book or working on a difficult project. The odds are you’ll completely forget about the doughnut, candy bar, or whatever food siren is calling to you, and the craving will disappear. Distraction is a great tool for your weight loss program.

Delay

Delay the gratification. Give yourself permission to have some candy in 20 minutes. 20 minutes is long enough that the craving for the candy will pass but not so long, an hour say, that waiting seems pretty much impossible. If 20 minutes passes go ahead and eat a few bites of the candy, then wait another 20 minutes before you finish it.

Drink

Substitute a long cold glass of water. The water gives your mouth something to do besides eat — plus the water will fill you up. Even though it’s only temporary, the feeling of fullness is satisfying. If you’re craving sweetness, add a splash of fruit juice to the water. Vary your beverage choice if you like, just be aware of sugary drinks like sodas and juice. Don’t add extra calories!

Disgust

Another way to curb your craving is to picture the candy for what it really is: fat. Ugly wobbly, slimy, disgusting fat. Fat that plans on sticking to you for awhile… a long while. Go to the grocers and ask them for a pound of fat trimmings from beef. That’s what the candy will turn into once you give in to the craving. A pound of fat takes up more space than you might realize. Freeze that pound of fat. Whenever a craving hits get it out of the freezer so it reminds you of what you’re really eating.

Dance

Dance instead of eating the candy. If you’re too embarrassed to dance that’s okay. The point is to exercise for a bit instead of eating. Take a walk, climb the stairs, or break out in a set of jumping jacks. The results are two fold, you’ve added a bit of calorie burning to your day and you’ve avoided the candy!

Get out there and do the Monster Mash!!! Can't wait to hear your scary tales next Saturday!!!

Happy Halloween!

Today is New Year’s Eve, and it’s the end of another calendar year and the start of a new one. I have been thinking a lot about all the events that transpired over the last year, thinking to myself and wondering if there is something magical in the changing of the year.

At midnight tonight the numbers of the year will change from 2014 to 2015. Thinking about this had me thinking about all the changing numbers in our lives….and wondering if we can find magic there as well….

We can find so many reasons to Celebrate and often those “celebrations” can be the very things that sabotage us. All the food the drink the sweets oh my!!! I find that it’s easy to lose the magic amidst the buffet tables of chocolate covered everything, roasted, toasted, glazed and sugared where even the sweet potatoes are candied.

You vow to just enjoy a bite OK maybe two and raise a glass to toast the season, and then you find yourself amidst the crowd being offered this and that and handed beverage after beverage and you really aren’t eating so much as grazing among the sugar plum fairies that dance in your head.

Before you know it someone has passed Uncle Joe and/or Aunt May just one too many beverages and you are now caught in the center of the next family drama. Your friend spilled wine on your new couch and your niece is making out with the neighbor in the basement. {{Scandal!}}

The magic of the “New Year” has lost its shine. The high of the Winter Season’s festivities has crash landed into a New Year. That slate wiped clean….or rather the sparkle and glitter have flaked away leaving behind a pounding head, a bloated belly and the weak resolutions to “eat better” and get thee to the gym!

So my friends I ask you how do you spend your New Year’s Eve? Do you set it up and time it out perfectly with the ball dropping in Times Square or some other place on the planet? Do you plan an elaborate party or plan to attend one? Do you snuggle up with your loves and quietly celebrate??

No matter how you choose to celebrate, think of all the times the numbers in your life change, not just from year to year but each number on the scale, each birthday, and anniversary, each day, hour, minute and second that provides us yet another opportunity to celebrate life!!

Forget the family drama and the scandals navigate the buffet tables and beverage bars with mindful thoughts of celebration knowing that today is not the last time you will celebrate. Your head and belly will thank you in the morning and if you’re lucky you might just find that the sparkle, glitter and magic remain in your life and your resolutions are more of a commitment to yourself. To be happy and healthy and to celebrate life all through the year!!

Hello I just joined and wonder when the next meeting will be? I live in nyc

Who is up for a Spring Renewal??? I know I am!!!!

The weather on the East Coast this Winter has been pretty brutal, and even though Elsa is my all-time favorite Disney Princess….I’m ready for some Sunflowers, and Daffodils!

The next NYC/LI chapter is meeting is going to be on April 11^th from 2PM till 4 PM

We will be meeting at The Atrium at 805 Third Avenue.

The building is on Third Ave between 49th and 50th Streets.

The Atrium is at the back of the space on the lower level past the shops.

We are looking forward to seeing many of our forum friends there for a fun filled afternoon. We hope to share a bit of information, education, and ultimately support with our friends!!!

So mark your calendars today forum friends and make plans to spend a beautiful Spring afternoon in NYC.

If any Jersey friends want to attend, please feel free to cross the Hudson and join us.

10 Tips for Spring Cleansing and Renewal

1. Feel the power of Nature all around you and within you. Know that this awesome force is available to you, and allow it to influence the course of your life and health. Identify the areas of your life that need some work and plan specific improvements that incorporate the changing seasons. Allow yourself to visualize your Perfect Life, and nourish that vision through your cleansing and renewal process.
2. Spring is the time for renewing your life - letting go of what you don't need (physical, mental, and emotional habits that undermine your health) and bringing in what you need anew (accepting positive health habits that will satisfy your soul). Take a break from the TV to be more creative, or read by candlelight without the electrical vibrations at night, or just sit quiet to meditate and listen.
3. Get more outside exercise and spend more time in Nature. Take hikes, plant a garden, or work in a community garden. Create a balanced fitness program or modify the one you are already following that will support your healthy, body/mind happiness. Working up a sweat helps you dump toxins; this will improve your health and lead to fewer doctor's visits. Also add some reflective practices such as stretching, yoga, or chi gong; these help support renewal by giving your body time to gently de-stress and deepen the changes you are making in your life.
4. Consider a special and specific detoxification program. This could include substance avoidance (off sugar and caffeine, for example),
5. Renew all aspects of your Life. Go through your piles of papers, your clothes, and the corners of rooms in areas that haven't seen light for years. Don't be afraid to let go and let things flow. Give things away, have a garage sale, and recycle or re-circulate what you can. "Being simple, simply being."
6. Begin to gently, yet seriously, re-evaluate the key areas of your life - work (career), relationships, and health. Again, look at what undermines your potential in these worlds and allow clear guidance, suggestions, and actions to arise in your being. Try to be more aware of the subtle areas of life and the effects of foods. How does the food you eat make you feel. Increased vitality and improved health will change how you view your life and how much energy you have to create positive change for yourself.
7. It is your healthy body that lets your Spirit fly more freely. Nutritional supplements (as the raw materials--Vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fatty acids) nourish and support your body and mind. The cleansing process de-stresses your body and lets your energy rise and awaken your psyche. Freshly squeezed juices and herbal teas are vitalizing, high-vibration nourishment. Sprouts from seeds and grains are live, vital food. Aromatherapy and smelling the beautiful sweetness of the spring flowers will soother your soul as well.
8. Be Earth-aware and Earth-friendly. Be conscious of where things come from and where they go - and the real cost of products you use - such as plastics and chemical products. Re-use and Re-cycle. Support more earth-conscious businesses and products. How do you vote with your dollar?
9. Cleansing habits to incorporate include deep and relaxed breathing, yoga-type stretching, dry skin brushing, and wonderful walks in Nature. When was the last time you de-stressed, downloaded and digested your life experiences to catch up to the present?
10. Do something that uplifts your Spirit, such as caring for a loved one or an elderly neighbor. Trust your heart and feed it joyful experiences. Put your Spirit on the line for what you believe. Doing for another is key to completing the circle of life, called Love. Building community is a positive change for Earth as well as for our Spirit.