How to Eat Your Way through the Holiday!

Today's guest blog is from Dr. Kristen Bentson is the creator and owner of YouAnew Lifestyle Nutrition.

Caution—Holidays Ahead. Okay, get ready; here comes Santa, Sleigh Rides, Snow and all that food, glorious food!! If there was one question I answer the most, it’s how to get through holidays. Why? Because every holiday (whether it be Valentine’s Day, Fourth of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas) revolves around food. I've got a couple tips to get you through (and of course you are always welcome to join the YouAnew Program and get one-on-one coaching individualized to meet your needs!!).

Here we go!

Tip 1: SMALL PLATES!! Face it, you’re gonna fill it, right?!? I’m guessing you won’t want to appear piggy, so you don’t load your plate to the point that mashed potatoes and gravy overflow onto the holiday table cloth. If you have a small plate, you will probably eat just the right amount. If grandma already set the table with mondo sized dinner platters, envision that your plate has a border and is half the size.

Tip 2: GO SLOW!! The tendency is to wolf food down. I know, I know…It’s all your favorites and in anticipation of the feast, you haven’t eaten for days. Here’s the deal, if you move slowly, savor your food and enjoy the company, you will not only enhance your holiday experience, you will eat less. When you eat less, you have less work to do to shed those post party pounds.

Tip 3: MORNING RUN!! If you know you are going to eat (a little) more than a typical day, add an ADDITIONAL ½ hour or 45 minutes of morning exercise. This will help to offset the extra calories. Plus, you’ll have more energy, feel happier and better enjoy your day!

Tip 4: STEER CLEAR OF MARSHMALLOWS!! Most holidays feasts are made up of super nutrient rich foods! I LOVE turkey, corn, green beans, sweet potatoes, and pearl onions. YUMMY and HEALTHY! Here’s what I don’t love is the “enhancers” like gravy, butter, French fried onions, candied topping and cream. Skip those add-ons and avoid the post party pooch.

Tip 5: DON’T STUFF YOURSELF!! Stuffing is for turkey only. Don’t ever allow yourself to get totally full. Shoot for comfortable satisfaction.

Keep calm, stay in control and focus on your family! Enjoy every minute with those you love the most.

About The Author: Dr. Kristen Bentson is the creator and owner of YouAnew Lifestyle Nutrition. Her mission is to show people how to change their lives, how they look and how they feel by changing their approach to food. 

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Business News in Lehigh Valley - 11/20/12

Good morning, and happy Tuesday! Hopefully you didn't have to scrape too much ice off your car this morning, it sure is getting cold out there!

In local business news, Senator Pat Toomey was in Lehigh Valley yesterday, providing more than 200 business professionals with a D.C. Update on the state of the Congress, the rising concerns over the "fiscal cliff", state pensions and taxes, among other issues.

Bethlehem merchants have launched a "Buy Local" campaign in an attempt to encourage shoppers to support local businesses, called ShopLocalLV. Adams Outdoor Advertising is helping the effort by putting up billboards on Routes 22 and 378. Remember to try to shop local this holiday season, because it benefits the community within which you live!

Although money might not buy happiness, the opposite was recently found to be true. A study by the National Academy of Sciences found that those who express more positivity as teenagers and young adults find higher incomes by the time they're 29.

That's all for now, we hope everyone is having a great holiday week so far. Be safe!
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Black Friday Takes on Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving leftovers will barely be cool by the time the first batch of holiday shoppers head out the door Thursday night and on Black Friday.

A number of national retailers and shopping malls are opening doors as early as 9 p.m. Thursday.

Bay Park Square mall in Ashwaubenon and the majority of its tenants are among the retail locations getting an early jump on the holiday shopping season.

"Last year we opened at 4 a.m. … but there were about a dozen stores that opened at midnight and reported significant sales and a jump on the day," said Amy McCarthy-Gignac, director of marketing and business development at the mall. "This year, with the department stores nationally opting to open at midnight, pretty much everybody wants to follow suit so as to not lose ground on the most important shopping day of the year."

She said the mall tailors its hours around those of the department stores.

The mall is open from midnight Thursday to 10 p.m. Friday.

East Town Mall in Green Bay and several of its retailers are opening at 3 a.m. Friday and others at 7 a.m.

Mike Bettiga, chief operating officer at Ashwaubenon-based Shopko, said much of the industry has eyed the move to an earlier opening time on Black Friday.

Shopko stores traditionally are open Thanksgiving Day from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and will be again this year. They then will reopen at midnight for Black Friday.

"It's done very strategically this year in terms of what the competition is doing and what customers are obviously looking for," he said. "What we have seen over the years is there are a lot of customers that don't like that mad crunch you got at 4, 5 or 6 in the morning."

Bettiga said Shopko expects the shopping on Friday will be spread out over a longer period of time with several customer spikes.

"It's going to be more convenient for customers to come in and get those types of specials for a longer time," he said. "You will get an early peak and then you'll get another and probably get another one early in the morning. We think most of the peaks that day will occur between midnight and noon. Then it will be a more subdued shopping pattern in the afternoon and early evening."

Smaller Shopko Hometown stores open at 5 a.m. Friday.

The move to sales on Thanksgiving night and in the wee hours of Black Friday does have a market, said Barry Berman, professor in the Department of Marketing and International Business at Hofstra University in New York

"There are some real advantages to retailers," he said. "If you're a compulsive shopper you can say, 'I can spread my time out and do some shopping late Thanksgiving evening and I can do some shopping Black Friday.' There is a hardcore group of shoppers who are value-based shoppers looking for the very best buy."

It also offers a shopping window for people who would rather shop at 9 p.m. instead of waking hours before the sun comes up to start shopping.

But Berman expressed concerns over the social implications of Black Friday bleeding into Thanksgiving night.

"You have a 9 p.m. bargain and what's going to happen is at 8 p.m. when you are serving dinner or the family is sitting down reminiscing about someone that recently got married, gave birth or passed away, someone is going to say … 'Nothing personal, but this hot (camera) I've always wanted now is my chance. And I'll take dessert with me.'"

Walmart stores plan to kick off Black Friday specials at 10 p.m. Thursday, while Toys R Us will open its doors at stores nationwide at 9 p.m. Thanksgiving Day.

Old Navy is also expected to be open the majority of the day on Thanksgiving, McCarthy-Gignac said.

"We'll see how that trend continues," she said. "If the customer is willing to shop on Thanksgiving then the stores, by and large, will want to tailor to the desires of customers to shop on that day. So it's in the hands of the customers."

Not all stores open early on Black Friday.

David Zeller, owner of Zeller's Ski and Sport in Allouez, is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

"Due to the business I'm in, it's a totally different scenario than a mass retailer," he said Wednesday. "I'm more of a destination business, so I think people that want to ski and want the service are going to come here regardless if I'm open at midnight."

Zeller said Black Friday usually yields strong sales, but he'll see a spike in business on Saturday in the wake of the rush to mass-market retailers.

Bettiga concedes the midnight opening is uncharted territory for Shopko.

"This is kind of brave new territory for us, none of really know for sure. Our expectation is it will peak and valley and that the overall day will be similar to what we've done in the past, just more spread out," he said. "You're going to react to what customers want and what markets want, but I think now that it's moved to midnight that will become the new norm for most people."

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