Remaining Stress Free During the Holiday Season - CulinArt Group

Eat Well Blog

Remaining Stress Free During the Holiday Season

The holidays are time of cheer, celebration, and sometimes chaos! The pressure of meeting deadlines before holiday breaks, decorating, preparing meals, and shopping for loved ones can make for a less than happy holiday. While it may feel impossible to avoid feeling stressed or anxious there are a number of ways to maintain your mental health during the most wonderful time of the year!

The foods we choose impact our mood. Focusing on foods with mood boosting properties and blood sugar stabilizing nutrients will promote mental clarity and energy levels.

Carbohydrates- While Christmas cookies and other holiday treats look irresistibly delicious, the refined carbohydrates and added sugar they contain cause sudden spikes and drops in blood sugar and is linked to increased production of the stress hormone, cortisol. Carbohydrates are our bodies main source of energy; focus on those that are high in fiber and keep blood sugar steady. Think oatmeal for breakfast, brown rice or quinoa stir fry for lunch and whole wheat pasta at dinner.

Omega 3 Fatty Acids-Found primarily in fatty fish including salmon and tuna as well as walnuts and flax seed, these forms of fats are essential for proper brain function and play a role in keeping you positive by stabilizing cortisol and are anti-inflammatory which has been shown to help fight depression.

Magnesium-Found in spinach and other leafy greens as well as in nuts and legumes, this mineral is linked to reduced headaches, insomnia, fatigue, and generalized anxiety. Snacking on almonds during the day and incorporating beans and leafy greens into your meals will ensure adequate intake of this mineral; the original chill pill!

Take time during the day to incorporate feel-good physical activity. For some, the holidays are a time when regular exercise routines may fall off their to-do list, however this is when you need feel good endorphin-boosting exercise the most. A brisk walk or attending your favorite group fitness class is the perfect way to increase blood flow and lower symptoms associated with depression or anxiety. Meditation and reducing screen time (TVs, computers, cell phones, etc) can also promote improved sleeping habits and relaxation.

Make the most of this special time of year and share in the enjoyment and merriment of the holidays by incorporating these stress-reducing habits into your daily routine all season (and year) long!

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  • December 23, 2019

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What our clients are saying

“What a wonderful dinner we had tonight for our international families. The food was delicious and well presented as well.”

“Thank you for including me today in the food waste demonstration/[chef competition] and flattering me with the role of “judge.” I will proudly don the [Stop Food Waste Day] apron the next time I plan an “event” in our own kitchen. I think this is a very worthwhile cause and the statistics you read off are staggering. They, alone, can intimidate a home chef, let alone be the “driver’ for a professional one.”

“Thank you and your staff for all the care and thought you give CSW adults and students. You approach events with such care and elegance- I don’t know how you do it! Especially day after day. Please thank all your staff for their wonderful work and kind manner with all of us. Here is to a great year!”

“Many, and I do mean many, thanks for a great Parents Weekend.  I heard from so many happy parents and you all work very hard to make it happen.  In gratitude and kindness…”

“We are so thankful and so impressed by your immediate attention to our power outage. It was such a relief to see all the equipment and workers coming in within a few hours of the outage. Thank you for serving dinner to all [the] students in a very difficult circumstance. Please extend our thanks to your workers who braved cold weather to grill hamburgers and hotdogs.”

“With all the prep work from Winterim ramping up and classes continuing as usual, it's a busy time to be a Forman teacher. Imagine my delight, tired as I was, when I delved into the upscale-restaurant-quality chicken parmesan our dining hall served last night. Forman is all about support, and providing our students with a dinner of that quality is just as important a measure of support as anything that happens in a classroom.”

“I can’t thank your entire team enough for the outstanding service, food, displays, everything!  You are a master at detail, and because of that Adam and I were able to focus on the parents.  I know what a sacrifice pulling off a weekend like this means, we are so appreciative and grateful to you all for your talent and generosity.”

“I ALWAYS feel spoiled by the meal offerings at CSW (The Cambridge School of Weston) and am entirely grateful for it. As I eat today's delicious and lavish lunch (and think about yesterday's as well), I can't tell you how much I feel so well cared for here, both with the food and by the dining hall staff. CSW cares for us in so many ways, both big and small.”

“Thank You! Chef Budd [and team], you overcame a new online ordering system (and hundreds of labels daily!), provided creative and healthy menus, continued to connect with local farmers to incorporate locally sourced ingredients, and worked tirelessly to serve the school community on three campuses.  While it feels like you are all a little like the Wizard of Oz right now, working behind a curtain in a kitchen far away, we sense your smiles and your passion to deliver the best possible service during these trying times. We are all so grateful!”

“I will say that CulinArt has always been a very collaborative partner to T. Rowe Price, listening to our current needs and future goals and suggesting realistic and achievable strategies to meet those goals.  2020 was obviously no exception.  CulinArt also altered other areas of our OCS and pantry programs to create safer environments for all our associates. We can only thank you for your continued flexibility and innovative ideas through these difficult times.”

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