Tips for Dealing with Halloween Candy

Ah Halloween, a time filled with fun costumes and bags, and bags and BAGS of candy.  My house gets mobbed every year.  I guess as a fitness blogger I should give out almonds or something, but where’s the fun in that?  Nope, I gave out 180 bags of mixed candy and 4 bowls of lollipops once those where done.  (Teenagers get the lollipops.)  By 9:30 p.m. everything was gone.  Yay!

But then my own kids brought home their loot and I will cop to eating their Kit Kats and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.  Here are some tips to balancing out a fun tradition with good health.

180 bags of Halloween candy plus 4 bowls of lollipops!
180 bags of Halloween candy plus 4 bowls of lollipops!

3 Tips for Dealing with Halloween Candy

  • Enjoy several treats in one sitting and then have the kids brush their teeth.  Eating a piece or two every hour without brushing can lead to acid build up on their enamel, which can cause cavities.
  • Move the candy out of sight.  Chocolate just sitting on the kitchen table is begging to be eaten.  Out of sight out of mind.
  • After a weekend of munching, get rid of the candy!  Last year we participated in the HalloweenCandyBuyBack program and plan to do it again this year.  Here’s how it works:  Your kids bring in their candy to a participating dentist.  The dentist pays them something nominal, like $1 per pound of candy.  The candy then gets donated to soldiers abroad.  So everyone wins.

    Thank you, Soldiers
    Thank you, Soldiers

In other news – it’s a new month!  Each month I make fitness goals and check back at the end of the month to see how I did.  My goal for October, Operation Skirt Zip, was a success!  My mother was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer this July and I gained some emotional eating weight as a result.  I’m still not in tip-top shape but with concerted effort my normal clothes are fitting again.

GoalsGoals for November

  1. Incorporate some organic food at Thanksgiving dinner.  The more research I do on clean eating and hormone-free food the more I want to go organic.  I’m not sure a) where to find an organic turkey and b) how much all this will cost compared to “regular” food, but I’m willing to make the effort to find out.
  2. Re-introduce flexibility training 2-3 times a week.  This was another area of my fitness routine that was put on the back burner while I focused on my mom’s health.  I can feel the difference in how stiff my movements are now compared to six months ago.  It will probably seem like I’m back at square one, but better to be at 1 than -50 right?
  3. Take a few long runs now that the weather is cooler.

How about you?  Do you have any goals for November?

Lisa ;)

ShesLosingIt.com (c) 2014 Lisa Traugott. All rights reserved. No portion of this blog, including any text, photographs, and artwork, may be reproduced or copied without written permission

 

 

 

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