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Julie: It’s time to name the neglect from typical food advice. Welcome to the Find Your Food Voice podcast, hosted by me, Julie Duffy Dillon. I’m a registered dietitian with 20 years of experience partnering with folks just like you on their food peace journey. What have we learned? Well, cookie cutter approaches exclude too many people, and you don’t need to be fixed. It’s not you. It’s not me. It’s all of us. Only together we can start a movement and fix diet culture. And we will. Let’s begin with now.

Coleen: Hello and welcome to our first minisode of the wintering season, I am going to be your host for this minisode, Coleen Bremner, and I’m a part of the Find Your Food Voice Podcast with Julie Duffy Dillon. This episode is going to be all about rest and relaxation because as we know the holiday season can bring on just the opposite. So sit back, grab your favorite cup of tea, coffee or cocoa and enjoy this minisode. 

Coleen: The best part about the holiday season is getting a chance to kind of rejuvenate and reset from maybe you get some time off of work or you’re gearing up for, you know, the holiday season. It’s right around the corner and it’s a really awesome opportunity to just take a step back, take a breath and really try to calm yourself in stressful moments. So I wanted to do a minisode about how to do just that. And obviously, some of my tips and tricks may not be the best fit for you. You will have to kind of look inward and see what works best for you. But I have a few options for you to walk away with. 

Coleen: So the first and foremost, I know it sounds like a no brainer but take a deep breath. Um I really like box breathing. That’s a method of breathing that you can use and visualize. So you just visualize a box and then you breathe in for one side, breathe out for the other, breathe in, breathe out and, and I know it sounds simple, but it really helps me feel a little bit more calm during this chaotic time or what can be a chaotic time. 

Coleen: Another great tip is to plan fewer activities. So I am guilty myself of just jam packing the holiday season because I have time off. But it’s really awesome if you can just plan to not plan. So just take some time to rest, relax, recuperate, maybe light some candles, read a book you’ve been wanting to read or dive into and try not to overwhelm your schedule with you know, lots of friend hangouts and family hangouts and things like that. Definitely do those things. Don’t get me wrong, like, enjoy, but try to plan some time for just you and just trying to reduce your own stress. 

Coleen: Um, another way I like to just kind of relax and rest is by playing music and that could be traditional holiday music if that’s for you. Uh, it can also be like Enya is like, of course, one of my go to uh relaxing playlist to play and you might not want to keep it on all the time but, you know, find a way to incorporate a little bit of music listening in your day that might help you feel more relaxed and excited about the upcoming season. 

Coleen: So I’m sure this will also sound like a no brainer but try to get some quality sleep. If you’re used to getting up early, maybe for work or, you know, for something else, you’ll probably find it difficult to change this habit based on your own, you know, circadian rhythm and what works for you. But if you can try to go to bed just a little bit earlier and even if you still wake up early, treat yourself to maybe laying in bed a little bit longer. So I’m definitely like a go to bed early type and wake up early type. But I found even if I just take an extra 30 minutes in the morning to kind of lay in bed, you know, read a book, just kind of start my morning a little slower. That can really help me feel a little bit more relaxed and rejuvenated. 

Coleen: And try to do things that you enjoy. So, rather than, you know, picking up a ton of extra family responsibilities, like scheduling things or planning events or, you know, whatever the case may be, think about things that you actually enjoy doing in your day and try to find some time throughout the day to do those things. So for me that’s gonna be going on a little outside walk with my partner, that’s gonna be, you know, picking up my book trying to get through another chapter, trying to um you know, maybe cook something that sounds really yummy and I am a big fan of just a little bit of couch potato-ing. So like just hop on the couch and, and relax for, you know, 15-20 minutes, put your feet up and, and try to try to just, yeah, rest your body and relax. I think we spend the entire year, go, go going. Um I’m not sure any of us are great at slowing down and, and, you know, kind of taking a beat or taking a moment to just really chill and this is a great time to do that and it can really help you feel grounded and centered as you enter into the new year. 

Coleen: I also recommend trying to forget about the time if you have like a holiday break or you get a few days off of work. I try really hard to not set an alarm during that time and to try not to time check throughout the day, the clocks control our lives all the time. So just try to like, separate yourself from the clock and checking the time if you can. And this is also a great way to listen to your body. Um, you know, I think oftentimes are like breaks and meals are scheduled around looking at the clock, but this is a great time too to really be in tune with what feels good for you and eat when you’re hungry and eat snacks when you’re hungry and um, try not to check the, the clock because I think it’s a great way to just really hone into your own rhythm and your own kind of what feels good for you. 

Coleen: So those are kind of all of my tips and tricks for kind of just resting and relaxing, but honestly do what feels really good for you like, it doesn’t have to be any of those things. Maybe it looks different for you, maybe, you know, playing with little fur babies is, is a great way to rest and relax. Maybe a, a face mask is your way or, you know, getting some pampering done or whatever the, the relaxation that looks like for you. We just, at Find Your Food Voice, really want you to lean into that this holiday season and just take the the break that you need before entering into the new Year. So I hope you enjoyed this minisode. Please feel free to follow me on Instagram. I’m at @AbruadAbroad and I look forward to connecting with you on the interweb. Have a lovely holiday season and see you in the New Year. Bye bye.