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December 5, 2024

Post-Thanksgiving Mini Reset

Thanksgiving may have left you feeling a little too much like the stuffed turkey centerpiece. If you’re ready to shake off the sluggishness before m

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Christmas, Food, Fun, Health
November 28, 2024

Savor, Stroll, and Stay Thankful

Thanksgiving. A time to enjoy the company of loved ones, share stories, and of course, indulge in delicious food. Here’s a tip to help you savor

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Family, Food, Fun, Health
November 19, 2024

Gobble Up These Thanksgiving Preparation Tips

Thanksgiving is a time for gratitude, gathering, and indulging in an amazing feast. However, hosting can sometimes feel more like a marathon than a ce

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Food
November 14, 2024

Mediterranean Feel-Good Soups for Fall

As we transition from fall into the holidays, staying mindful of our health goals can help us enjoy the season without feeling run down or overwhelmed

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Food, Health
November 7, 2024

Healthy Eating FAQs and Answers

Before I get into this week’s topic, I must first retract a statement that I made last week about Mr. Non-Compliant. I stand corrected, as he did NO

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Food, Health
October 31, 2024

Mr. Non-Compliant’s Birthday Fest

This week Mr. Non-Compliant (aka my dear hubby) celebrated a birthday. He flaunted his morning non-compliance by leaving the EMPTY cinnamon roll box o

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Family, Food, Fun, Health
October 24, 2024

Not a Vegetable Fan? Read This

It’s not just kids that wrinkle their nose at a plate of green stuff. Lots of fully-grown adults feel the same—inclined to hide their Brussels spr

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Food, Health
October 17, 2024

How Safe is Your Cinnamon?

I’m a huge cinnamon fan. I shake it in my coffee, smoothies, muffins, stewed apples, and of course, pumpkin pie. Years ago I mixed it with a little

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Food, Health
October 10, 2024

10 Simple Tips to Ease into Fall

Fall is officially here. I know this not only from the calendar and fewer hours of daylight, but by the temperature of my house when I wake up in the

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Food, Health
October 10, 2024

Cumin, Coriander, Fennel (CCF) Tea

To make a cup of CCF tea (Cumin, Coriander, and Fennel tea) using seeds, follow this simple recipe: Ingredients: 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds 1/2 teaspoon

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Everything Else, Recipes

What’s Your Favorite Treat?

October 27, 2022
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Food, Fun, Health

It’s that ghoulish time of year again (already) when we can pretend to be someone, or something, we’re not. Take a risk, get out of our comfort zone, scare people.

Or keep it simple and enjoy the treats instead.

Last October, Instacart reported that 116 TONS of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups were purchased in this country. Those little delicacies walked away as the #1 Halloween candy.

The next most popular treat purchased during the 2021 Halloween season was plain M&M’s, with 94 tons sold. The peanut variety came in 3rd at 92 tons.

That’s a lot of candy. Bet it outranked vegetable purchases.   

Indiana’s favorite was the Reese’s.

Mr. Non-Compliant loves plain M&M’s. And Reese’s. Guess I’ll be handing out some of each to the little—and not so little—monsters that show up on Halloween.

Now I just need to work on my costume…

A Challenge for This Week

I’m a realist. I know that many of you will have Halloween candy in bowls decorating your coffee and end tables.

I also know that the candy is not just for the little goblins that show up on your doorstep.

Your challenge, should you choose to accept it, is this: roast a big batch of vegetables to help balance out your candy intake. If you can, make enough for a couple meals.

You’ll probably even enjoy them.

Need some vegetable roasting guidance? Here you go. https://inkwellcoaching.com/2022/09/29/roasted-root-vegetables/

The Struggle is Real

Losing weight and keeping it off is hard.

There are numerous weight loss programs that help with meals, psychology, apps—all designed to help you reach your goals.

Then what? For some, the weight stays off and all is well.

For others, the struggle to maintain their desired weight is more of a challenge. Add the upcoming holidays into the mix and—well, party over.

If this scenario is a familiar one for you or someone you know, I can help.

Together, we’ll design a way of life that takes on the battle of weight loss once and for all.

The best part: it’s simple and you get to enjoy a variety of foods that are tasty AND healthy. And yes, we’ll even create a plan to navigate the holiday buffets in a way that makes sense for you. 

In addition to personal coaching, my programs include kitchen makeovers (of the non-construction variety), kitchen coaching (we cook together), grocery shopping trips/tips and more.

If you have a Mr. or Mrs. Non-Compliant in your life, we can tackle this as a team. Weight loss is easier when your Significant Other is on board.

Want to lose (instead of gain) weight during the holidays? Let’s get started. Shoot me an email.

Enjoy your vegetables…and your Halloween treats.

Much love,
Health Coach Carol

 “There is a child in every one of us who is still a trick-or-treater looking for a brightly-lit front porch.” —Robert Brault

The Importance of Rituals

October 20, 2022
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Health, Personal Development

There are days when everything just feels BLAH. I don’t really feel like doing much of anything, and I don’t even know what to do first.

It’s not that I don’t have plenty to keep me busy.

Could the weather have something to do with it? Maybe I didn’t get enough sleep. Perhaps I’m trying to do too much.

Am I striking a familiar chord with any of you? 

We all have days.

This is where rituals come into play. They’re important. They help us stay grounded. They’re what we rely on when everything feels discombobulated. (Yes, it’s a real word.)

Rituals: an act or series of acts done in a particular situation and in the same way each time.

Rituals are the autopilot of life that can get us through a day.  

Like steppingstones across a fast-moving river. If we want to get to the other side, we had better look for those stones.

Perhaps you have a morning ritual. You wake up, head to the bathroom, brush your teeth, make the coffee…

The day goes on. You head to work, make the necessary calls, are courteous to others, say “thank you,” have dinner with your family, conclude the day with your bedtime ritual.

Those things we just do because they’re the right thing to do, no matter how we feel.

Rituals.

Consider your daily rituals. Are there any that you’d like to change or improve upon?

Maybe it’s time to revamp some of them because circumstances have changed.

Are you a recent empty nester? Is your youngest child in school all day—finally? Is your work satisfying?

Various life situations can push us to come up with different rituals in order to improve the quality of our lives.

I have a good friend who found herself feeling a bit depressed. Her children are grown and gone. She needed to find a new purpose for her life. She found a job. She has a new reason to get moving. She’s happier.

Sometimes we simply need to spend a few quiet moments to consider our day-to-day activities.

We can easily fill our days with busyness, and not feel as though we’re accomplishing anything worthwhile.

And sometimes we just feel BLAH because we need more sleep and sunshine. 

If many of your days are discombobulated, perhaps you could stand to update some of your rituals.

As a coach, I can help you find the clarity necessary to make a small, yet significant, update.

Send me an email and we’ll figure it out together.

You’ll even enjoy the process.

Much love,
Health Coach Carol

 “There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.”—Deborah Norville

4 Tips to Gain Some Control of Your Life

October 13, 2022
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Health, Personal Development

As we approach the holidays and see Christmas decorations showing up in store aisles before Halloween, it can make us a bit, well, CRAZED.

How does this happen? Where do the days, months, years disappear to? 

Maybe it’s just me. I highly doubt it. It’s true what my dad told me years ago. The older I get, the faster the years seem to fly by.

My dad was a very smart man.

A word of truth to all of you who are control people: There’s not much that we can really control in life. (I’m only the messenger, so please don’t delete me from your Inbox.)

With that being said, there are some things we CAN control that will help us feel more at peace, even on the craziest of days.

These are simple. The key is remembering how to spend your time and energy.

4 Tips to Gain Some Control of Your Life

  1. Focus on what you CAN control. It might help to make a list so that you can refer to it on really challenging days. For instance, you can decide your mindset for the day, how you’ll best utilize foods that are available to you, how much you’ll move your body (even if you have limitations), when you’ll begin your sleep ritual so that you get a good night’s rest, the relationships you’ll nurture and those that you’ll release.
  2. When you don’t know what to do, do the next right thing. What can you do that takes 5-10 minutes that will help you move forward in your day? Perhaps you can write a quick note to a friend who could use some cheer, meditate or pray, wash the dishes from the last meal, take a walk around the block, read a few pages of a very good book, fill up your water container and take a drink, make a salad for later. Doing a quick and easy activity starts the momentum when you feel stuck.
  3. When things go way off track, give yourself permission to start over and let the guilt go. Life isn’t perfect for anybody, even though social media may lead us to believe a different story. Whether it was the pizza, chips, or disagreement with a coworker that brought you down, consider what pushed you to that point, then move on. Forgive, and go back to tip #2. Do the next right thing.
  4. Take some slow, deep breaths. When we get stressed, our breathing gets shallow, or we may even forget to breathe. Paying attention to our breath and exhaling slowly tells our brain that we are safe. We reduce the stress and anxiety that we are feeling.

Something else to keep in mind. I know many people that are grieving loss, battling illness, nervous about world affairs, and much, much more. 

As we take on a spirit of loving kindness, we help others feel better, whatever their circumstances.

People will wonder what you are up to. Keep them guessing.

Remember, you have control over your mindset.

Much love to you,
Health Coach Carol

P.S. Need coaching around this topic? Would you like to create a plan that sends you into 2023 with some well-established fitness habits? Let’s do this together!

“Let go of the need to control. Trust in the wisdom of a divine plan.”— Cheryl Richardson

5 Fall Health Tips and Nature Journaling

October 6, 2022
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Food, Fun, Health

As the weather cools a bit, the pace of our days tends to shift. Maybe not slower, but different.

Different means a change in wardrobe, activities, chores, comfort foods, exercise, priorities.

There’s much to do, and daylight is lessening.

Fall makes me want to stay home, go hiking, roast marshmallows, wear cozy sweaters, drink hot tea in the afternoon. 

Here are 5 tips to help you stay healthy and happy as we move into a quieter time in Nature.

  1. Dust off your crock-pot or instant pot and scout out a couple of recipes that are simple and abundant in veggies. Remember to use bone broth as a base, either homemade or store-bought. You’ll get more protein and health benefits.
  2. Enjoy some outdoor time doing things that make you happy. Hike the Dunes, go for a bike ride, sit fireside with good friends, take a walk around the block, visit a park and sit on a swing. Depending on your age, you could try the merry-go-round, but that can be a bit scary. (How did I not kill myself on that thing when I was a kid?)
  3. Stay hydrated. Many people remember to drink plenty of water in the summer, then neglect this healthy habit with cooler weather. If you’re feeling “off,” it could be dehydration. About half your weight in ounces is a good foundation for your water requirement. Adjust accordingly. If this is a challenge, get a fun container to help you keep track. Make a game out of it with those you live with. Water is necessary in every season to help you stay healthy.
  4. Beware of sugar intake and overload. It starts pre-Halloween and continues into the New Year. Nip it in the bud now, before it’s a problem that equates to increased illness, increased weight, increased blood sugar. Moderation in all things except for maybe vegetables. I’ve not heard of anyone overdosing on vegetables.
  5. Reprioritize your “To Do List” if necessary. I love summer and neglect many indoor projects to play outside. Now my priorities shift to getting stuff done. It may be time to clean out your fridge/freezer/pantry and stock it with staples that are better suited for seasonal cooking. Wardrobes sometimes need a clearing. Perhaps you can lessen some extracurricular activities and simplify your life a bit.

Nature Journaling

 Nature journaling is a great way to connect with the natural habitats near where you live. It’s the process of sketching, painting, and writing about natural subjects that you encounter while exploring the outdoors.

The neat thing about nature journaling is that it can be whatever you’d like it to be. There’s no wrong way to do it.

You can take a break from your hike, walk, or bike ride, and make notes or sketch something that catches your eye. 

The only equipment you need is a journal of some sort, and a pen or pencil. There’s usually a good selection of reasonably priced journals at stores like T.J. Maxx or Marshalls. Your supplies can include colored pencils and more sophisticated pens if you feel so inclined.

Remember, no rules. And don’t even try to make it perfect.

Need help with your fall priorities? I’m here for you.

Much love,
Health Coach Carol

“October, baptize me with leaves! Swaddle me in corduroy and nurse me with split pea soup. October, tuck tiny candy bars in my pockets and carve my smile into a thousand pumpkins. O autumn! O teakettle! O grace!”—Rainbow Rowell

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