Embrace Vacation Cuisine With These Intuitive Eating Tips!

Do you spend more time worrying about food and your body image on vacation than enjoying yourself and the experiences? 

Would you believe me if I told you that vacations can be a great place to start healing your relationship with food and body?!

🤔

Pack one OR all of these intuitive eating vacay tips with you to make vacation a time of joy, self-care, and empowerment! 

1.Listen to your body’s cues:

Honor your hunger and fullness signals while savoring the delicious local cuisine. Allow yourself to enjoy the slower pace of vacation-mode and eat mindfully, sensing the flavors and savoring the pleasurable experience.  

2. Shift the focus from numbers (calories, macros, etc) to experiences:

Instead of obsessing over every bite, focus on the incredible experiences and memories you’re creating. Whether it’s exploring a new culture or basking in the sun, immerse yourself fully and let food be just one part of the adventure.

3. Challenge food rules:

Break free from rigid food rules and embrace the freedom to choose what truly nourishes and delights you. Give yourself permission to enjoy that gelato or daily croissant. Variety and pleasure are essential components of intuitive eating!

4. Practice body appreciation:

Your body is your incredible companion on this vacation journey. Celebrate its strength, resilience, and ability to carry you through incredible experiences. Wear that swimsuit proudly and bask in the joy of being present in the moment.

5. Cultivate self-compassion:

If you find yourself struggling with negative thoughts or guilt, remember to be kind to yourself. Show yourself compassion and remind yourself that enjoying delicious food and embracing body positivity are part of a healthy and fulfilling vacation.

Whether you’re squeezing in one last vacation this summer or not these tips can be practiced at any meal, any day, anywhere! If you embrace intuitive eating and practice body kindness, you will begin to live a life that nourishes your soul🌞💖

I’m Christie, a registered dietician and nutrition therapist, and I want to share the TRUTH about eating for a healthy mind & body! I host in-person and virtual workshops so you can learn how to nourish yourself for health and happiness – no diet pills needed!

If you are finally over yo-yo dieting and nutrition confusion, I’m here to support you! 

My programs are mindfulness-based, non-diet approaches that allow you to identify, understand and move beyond your eating struggles, and reconnect with your internal signals of hunger and satiety. 

Intuitive Nourishment – virtual group program – learn more!

Nutrition Workshops – check to see what’s coming up here!

As a Nutrition Therapist, Christie Caggiani speaks regularly to groups of children and adults, and counsels individuals in such areas as eating disorders, preventive nutrition, women’s health, and wellness. She works as part of a multi-disciplinary team, at the Therapeutic Oasis

Her mission has been to work with individuals and families on their journey toward a balanced and fulfilling life with food, and to challenge the intense cultural and societal pressures around eating and bodies. Her mindfulness-based, non-diet approach allows clients in all body shapes and sizes to identify, understand and move beyond their eating struggles, as they reconnect with their internal signals of hunger and satiety. 

Christie is a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, providing one on one coaching to those who are determined to free themselves from diet culture.  Additionally, she offers online workshops and courses to move the message of Intuitive Eating to groups of people in a safe, supportive setting.

What the Diet Industry Isn’t Telling You About Diet Pills

Let’s be real, marketing sells. Unfortunately, a big part of how it sells is by telling you (1) you’re not okay (2) you need the whatever-we-are-selling-you in order to fix it.

Diet culture thrives off this mentality, and the dangers of the diet industry are rarely highlighted.  The same goes for the way they promote diet pills. They promise to magically create weight loss by suppressing appetite, increasing metabolism or blocking the absorption of fat. So even if part of that is true (and most of it isn’t), the risks and side effects deserve to be talked about.

So what is the diet industry NOT telling you about diet pills?

  1. No pill really raises your metabolism. Our metabolism is optimized when we eat enough, not when we restrict.  Diet pills say they raise metabolism, but in reality they are stimulating the central nervous system – raising your heart rate and blood pressure is NOT the same as raising your metabolism.  
  2. They’re ineffective: Even if they suppress appetite and some weight loss results, the loss is typically temporary, and weight regain results – typically to a weight that’s higher than pre-diet. Hunger and appetite normally returns more strongly after the diet pills, as your body’s attempt at protecting you and ensuring your survival. 
  3. Side effects: From mild to severe, they range from nausea, diarrhea, constipation, headaches, dizziness, insomnia, jitteriness and dehydration.
  4. Dependency and addiction:  Some diet pills contain stimulants like caffeine or amphetamines, which can lead to dependency or addiction. This can result in tolerance, where higher doses are needed to achieve the same effects, leading to potential abuse and health risks.
  5. Health risks: Certain diet pills have been associated with serious health problems, including heart palpitations, high blood pressure, liver damage, kidney problems, and even stroke or heart attack.
  6. Interactions with medications: Diet pills can interact with other medications you may be taking, potentially reducing their effectiveness or causing serious and dangerous side effects.
  7. Nutrient deficiencies: Some diet pills may interfere with the absorption of essential nutrients, leading to deficiencies and other health complications.
  8. Lack of regulation: The supplement industry is not as strictly regulated as prescription drugs, so the safety and efficacy of diet pills may not be adequately evaluated before they reach the market.
  9. Unrealistic expectations: Diet pills may lead people to believe that they can achieve significant weight loss, which research has proven time and again is not sustainable, particularly if it involves restriction and deprivation.

The bottom line: anything that attempts to override your body’s signals and leads to restriction, deprivation and undernourishment, is destined to fail. Diet pills are simply another method to keep you stuck in diet culture and at the very least will be ineffective – and at the worst, dangerous. 

I’m Christie, a registered dietician and nutrition therapist, and I want to share the TRUTH about eating for a healthy mind & body! I host in-person and virtual workshops so you can learn how to nourish yourself for health and happiness – no diet pills needed!

If you are finally over yo-yo dieting and nutrition confusion, I’m here to support you! 

My programs are mindfulness-based, non-diet approaches that allow you to identify, understand and move beyond your eating struggles, and reconnect with your internal signals of hunger and satiety. 

Intuitive Nourishment – virtual group program – learn more!

Nutrition Workshops – check to see what’s coming up here!

As a Nutrition Therapist, Christie Caggiani speaks regularly to groups of children and adults, and counsels individuals in such areas as eating disorders, preventive nutrition, women’s health, and wellness. She works as part of a multi-disciplinary team, at the Therapeutic Oasis

Her mission has been to work with individuals and families on their journey toward a balanced and fulfilling life with food, and to challenge the intense cultural and societal pressures around eating and bodies. Her mindfulness-based, non-diet approach allows clients in all body shapes and sizes to identify, understand and move beyond their eating struggles, as they reconnect with their internal signals of hunger and satiety. 

Christie is a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor, providing one on one coaching to those who are determined to free themselves from diet culture.  Additionally, she offers online workshops and courses to move the message of Intuitive Eating to groups of people in a safe, supportive setting.

Week Four/The Path and The Practice That Leads to Freedom

This excerpt from the Dhammapada, a collection of teachings from the Buddha, encourages us to train our minds to be free from likes and dislikes.  Why does the Buddha recommend that we consciously practice non-attachment to personal preferences?
 
By reducing attachments, we set ourselves free.  This path of freedom leads to a deep feeling of peace.  Just like with any training program, there is great effort and sacrifice, along with some pain and discomfort.  This path requires daily practice, often starting with small steps to build confidence and strength. We can start with simple things that bring us pleasure, committing to limiting or eliminating their presence in our daily life.  A few examples are:TVSocial Media or other forms of electronic entertainmentAlcoholShoppingIce cream Remember to do this with the spirit of training the mind, rather than deprivation or punishment.  When we follow this practice, we begin to reduce the craving/wanting aspect of our minds. Likewise, this can also be done with tasks that are unpleasant and that we choose to avoid. In this case, we move toward those things and bare the discomfort that is often short lived. Again, it is recommended that we start small:Picking up the phone when a difficult person is calling or making a difficult callDoing the dishes before going to bedFolding the laundryBudgeting or paying billsThis practice requires the spirit of care and wisdom.  It is important to choose things that are helpful, not harmful.  By working on transcending our likes and dislikes, we set an intention to build our own inner strength and wisdom. As the Buddha teaches, “all fetters will fade away”, helping to empower and build confidence when we face the unpleasant aspects of life head on.
 
Patty Thomas Shutt, founder of Sacred Treehouse, is a licensed psychologist and co-owner of Therapeutic Oasis of the Palm Beaches Dr. Shutt is passionate about helping others discover the benefits of mindfulness and meditation.  She offers Beginner Meditation & Advanced Meditation classes at Sacred Treehouse, in addition to Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, Mindful Self-Compassion and various book studies throughout the year.

Meet Kathy Ornish, C-IAYT

Yoga Therapist & Teacher Kathy Ornish, c-IAYT
Pairs With Sacred Treehouse to Offer Meditation Workshop

Sacred Treehouse is pleased to announce that guest moderator Kathy Ornish, c-IAYT, will host “Introduction to Meditation”, beginning in late November.  This workshop is ideal for those curious about meditation or for anyone looking to strengthen their practice.  Through this dynamic and interactive workshop, participants will learn how to create a comfortable seated pose; practice systemic relaxation to focus and relax the mind; discover the five basic steps of meditation; learn how to use a mantra; and develop an understanding of our relationship to silence.

Classes will be held on Mondays, 10:00-11:30 a.m., starting November 27th and Wednesdays, 5:30 – 7:00 p.m., beginning November 29th.  More information is available at sacredtreehouse.org.

About Kathy Ornish, c-IAYT:

 

Kathy Ornish is a certified yoga therapist and teacher through the American Viniyoga Institute (AVI), where she is a faculty member for the Viniyoga Foundations Program for Teaching and Yoga Therapy.  She is also a certified ParaYoga teacher, as well as a consultant at the Preventative Medicine Research Institute in California.  K.O. is Owner and Director at Good Space Yoga in East Lansing, Michigan, where she has a yoga therapy practice and teaches group classes.  Her primary emphasis is on teaching the breadth of the yoga tradition using the appropriate application of its many tools to help people realize their highest potential.  She is excited to share her passion for mindfulness with the Sacred Treehouse community.

September 2017 Schedule Updates

September 4th

CLOSED for Labor Day

September 5th 

Beginning Meditation 5:30 – 6:00 pm
Introduction to meditation will be offered prior to Vipassana Meditation Group.  $15

September 13th

MBSR Orientation 5:00 – 5:30 pm
Attendance Required for all MBSR participants.  The orientation session is free.

True Refuge Book Study 5:30 – 7:00 pm
Gateway to Awareness begins.  $75 for 2 weeks.

September 22nd

SAFE Yoga Teacher Training
Full day training for SAFE Yoga.  CE credits for Yoga Instructors are available.

September 25th

Walk With Me
Join us at the “Walk With Me” Movie Screening at Regal Cinema Shadowood 16 in Boca Raton.

September 27th

MBSR
Fall MBSR program begins.  First of 8 weekly sessions.

 

Summer MBSR begins June 15th

Dr. Shutt will begin the 8 week summer MBSR Program on Wednesday, June 8th.  If you are interested in attending, but have not yet completed the orientation session, RSVP to one of the free sessions below:

  • Wednesday, May 18th at 5:30 pm
  • Wednesday, May 25th at 9:00 am
  • Wednesday, June 1 at 6:00 pm
  • Wednesday, June 8th at 5:00 pm

The registration deadline is Friday, June 10th at 3:00 pm.

For more information, call (561) 278-6033.

New Happenings at Sacred Treehouse

We have lots of fall excitement planned at Sacred Treehouse!  We are pleased to announce the following dates:

Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction

Begins Saturday, September 26, 12:30 – 3:00 p.m.

Free Introduction & Orientation sessions will run throughout September:

Wednesday, September 9th, 5:30 p.m.

Friday, September 11th, 1:00 p.m.

Tuesday, September 15th, 5:30 p.m.

Saturday, September 19th, 11:30 a.m.

Wednesday, September 23rd, 5:30 p.m.

CALM: Teen Mindfulness Workshop

Starting Saturday, October 24th, 3:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Orientation Required – call for details

Eat Happy Cooking Workshop for Kids presents Fall Fun!

Saturday, October 10th, 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

If you would like to register, please click here or call 561-278-6033 for more information.