Secrets for a Merry Christmas

My top tips for what to eat, drink, and do for a merry Christmas

First things first - merry Christmas!

I'm so grateful that you've decided to receive my newsletter. Teaching people to be healthy is certainly the most fulfilling work I could imagine, and I can only afford to do it through premium subscriptions to this Substack, affiliate marketing, and direct consultations with patients. If it weren't for you, I would be stuck in some hospital as a cog in the medical-industrial complex.

"I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

- John 10:10

Today, I'm going to share a few key things I've learned over the years to help you have a healthy, happy holiday.

The number one thing that patients complain to me about over the holidays is the WEIGHT GAIN.

So let's get REAL about weight gain.

Using your scale as a measure of your health is a good way to ruin your health.

Why do I say that?

Because small fluctuations in weight are 99% due to water and 1% due to food. Besides which, the name of the game in health and wellness isn't "weight loss," it's "body composition optimization."

Many women don't realize that their usual strategies to lose weight are also good strategies to weaken their bones, ruin their mood, wreck their fertility, and otherwise make themselves miserable and even unattractive to men.

That last part, ladies, should really get your attention. Controversial opinion time: men are not attracted to women who are thin in the conventional sense of the word. They are attracted to women who are fertile, and fertile women have the weight necessary to make a human brain 100% from scratch and that means a lot of FAT.

Most women don’t need to lose weight - they need to build lean muscle mass underneath a healthy amount of fat.

My strength coach, Jim Laird, opened my eyes to this by sharing his experience helping hundreds and thousands of women lose weight over his 25 year career in strength and conditioning.

The truth is, you can lose dress sizes and actually gain weight. And that's exactly what most women in our modern, sedentary society, should actually be focusing on. How your clothes fit is a much better litmus of your health than what your scale says

So stop worrying about what your scale says!

Regardless of weight, we all want to have as healthy a Christmas as possible.

Over the years, I've come up with lots of little tips and tricks to turn what are often sinful indulgences into not-so-sinful or even downright healthy Christmas treats. I'll also include some things that I think should be non-negotiable activities around the holidays.

Here they are:

1. Sweets and desserts. There are so many low-sugar out there that you really have no excuses left to be cooking with sugar. In addition to this, many of the non-sugar sweeteners actually have some health benefits all their own. I use honey, molasses, and maple syrup regularly. Naturally, those of you with high blood sugar/diabetes need to be wary of this. I usually push you sweet folks to go keto for a while when you become a patient.

2. Holiday coffees and hot beverages. Skip the Starbucks this year in honor of baby Jesus and make your delicious beverages at home. Here are my top holiday drinks and their health benefits.

• Hot cocoa. One can of full-fat coconut milk. Two tablespoons powdered cocoa powder (or more if you really like chocolate). Honey to taste. Chili powder if you like a little heat. The cocoa is a great source of copper and magnesium. The coconut milk has so many healing properties that I won't even bother to list them.

• Coffee with nut milk and pumpkin spice. What is pumpkin spice, anyway? It's a combination of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and ginger. You can make this at home or buy it in the store, but there's one important health benefit to this brew worth mentioning, and that's the ginger (that's not to diminish the benefits of the other herbs, by the way). Ginger helps to boost glutathione, which is a critical ingredient to good health. I am careful to consume more ginger in the winter for this benefit. What about nut milks? I don't use store-bought nut milks - I make my own. I just add a handful of nuts to eight ounces of water, blend, and drink. It really isn't that complicated. I store it in the fridge for a few days at most, but since it's so easy to make, there's really no excuse not to make small batches fresh every few days.

• Chai tea. I get a really good one from Mountain Rose Herbs (there are no affiliate links in this blog - marketing on baby Jesus's birthday just seems wrong). Chai tea is heavy on ginger, which is one of the reasons I love it.

Here are my non-negotiable habits and activities over the holidays.

1. Walks or hikes. Get out there and get active with friends and family. This is the darkest time of the year, so you MUST make the most of the light that you have! Morning walks are key to a healthy mood and proper sleep, so prioritize those.

2. Sauna and cold! If you don't have a way to get uncomfortably hot during the cold winter months, you need to find one. Sauna. Hot springs. A fireplace. I would avoid hot pads and heating blankets because of the EMF they put off. Pair hot with cold for an invigorating and refreshing combination. If you buy a large enough sauna, it's fun for the whole family.

3. Weight lifting. Weight lifting is one of the pillars of good health. Body weight exercises, free weights, weight machines - whatever weights you have available, lift them!

4. Singing. Singing has a lot of important health benefits. Singing is one of the reasons that attending church reduces your risk of all-cause mortality.

5. Acts of charity. Do something nice for someone, especially someone who can't do anything for you in return. There are always lots of volunteer opportunities around the holidays - look one up and go make the most of it.

6. Donating blood. If you don't know anything about the health benefits of blood donation, read this blog post. I know how busy the holidays are - book your donation for the new year.

7. Go to church. Going to church reduces your risk of all-cause mortality (that means “death”).

Thanks again for subscribing to my blog.

Merry Christmas,

Dr. Stillman