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This Holiday, Don't Cheat Yourself Out of Treats

No more columns about healthy replacements for shortbread, egg nog, or those amazing chocolate seashells. We need to get back to making treats just that: treats. Something to look forward to, and something to be respected.
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OK, I have had enough. No more columns about healthy replacements for shortbread, egg nog, or those amazing chocolate seashells. It's the holidays, and my Aunt Beth makes the world's best cinnamon buns this time of year, and I'm going to eat two, and maybe three.

The problem isn't how to get through this season -- it's two weeks long. There are 50 other weeks that we all seem to forget matter more than this. Really, the Holiday season represents 4 per cent of your life at best.

We need to get back to making treats just that: treats. Something to look forward to, and something to be respected. In my week to week life I eat very healthy, and I get out and get active. I'm very cognizant of the calories in foods, and respectful that high calorie foods are meant to be enjoyed infrequently, but THEY ARE MEANT TO BE ENJOYED! AND DONE SO GUILT-FREE.

During the week, and most weekends, I limit junk food. I eat a well-planned diet that I have sat down with many experts over the years to perfect. The foods I eat regularly taste great, and they are the best fuel so I can go through the day full of energy.

My diet is not about what I can't have, it's about what I can put in my body to fuel properly for the day. It is a lifestyle, and it keeps me healthy.

When you focus on what you can't have, and you start limiting your options you create an unhealthy situation, and when your will power stops, so does your "health kick." You simply need to enjoy your life, and start to put respect back into treats.

I try to keep my weight around 225-230lbs. While there, I like to be able to run three miles in 25-30 minutes. I also like to be able to do 60 push ups in 60 seconds, and be able to push out 12 chin ups without needing a break. Below is a slide show of a photo shoot I did with Mondetta Performance Gear and Manual Souza. I took a couple weeks to be very focused on my diet, but nothing crazy.

When those numbers on my scale change, I quickly revue the situation. More often than not, I have started to over-indulge in treats, and I've started to become more sedentary. I immediately stop those negative things. I set back on the path to making sure lattes, chocolate bars, pizza, alcohol and wings, and anything else are set back to once to twice a week. The other thing I do, is get up off my butt and start having fun with fitness.

Your job this holiday season isn't to find new ways to "ruin" great treats by making them healthy. Your job is to figure out how you are going to live a healthy lifestyle in the New Year. How are you going to ensure you make high calorie foods treats, and not eat them daily. How are you going to get pop, booze, or sugar out of your daily routine? Most of all, how are you going to find fun in your workouts again? I'm going to be video blogging my life in the New Year a little more. Check out these kickboxing videos, it's what I do for fun. When I can't get to Dave, I use my nexersys. It makes my workouts fun.

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