FROM THE DESK OF RANDALL A. KROCKA
SMOHIT Administrator
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Our corporate partners at Gold's Gym always put out interesting and helpful information in their newsletter, especially at holiday time when we can use it most. Please look over the tips below to learn how to successfully deal with all of the temptations of the season.

Healthy Holiday Game Plan

All great players know that they need to mentally and physically prepare before they take the field and face the enemy. We want to help you have that same tough stance as you take on the holiday season with its party platters, time crunches and season-ending sweets. As Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL star Herschel Walker puts it, "If you train hard, you'll not only be hard, you'll be hard to beat."

To make sure you're on the winning team this holiday season, we spoke to two members of the Gold's Gym Fitness Institute to create a healthy game plan: Belisa Vranich, a clinical psychologist and author of Get a Grip: Your Two-Week Mental Makeover, and Robert Reames, the head fitness trainer for The Dr. Phil show and author of Make Over Your Metabolism.

PREGAME

Look at old game tapes. "Sit down and think about last year," Vranich says. "Ask yourself: Was last year's cookie worth the guilt afterward?"

Rest well. "Get at least eight to nine hours of restful sleep nightly," Reames advises. "When you're fatigued, your blood sugar drops and you crave sugar."

Tailgate right. Both experts agree: Always eat before you hit a holiday party so you don't arrive hungry and head straight toward the buffet.

Put on your best game face. "Look for alternatives to the bad food that makes you feel bad about yourself before-not while-you are having an intense craving," Vranich suggests. In addition, don't let your mind fall into certain traps-like thinking, I'll start eating right next year or I worked really hard and deserve a splurge.

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