Thanksgiving morning I woke up early, ran to the store (twice; I always forget something), put on some Christmas music, sipped my coffee and started on breakfast. My parents, Trey's parents and my sister Connie and my brother-in-law Russ were all coming over for lunch and I was anticipating a pleasant day. As I started breakfast, hot tears began to trickle down my face and land on the counter. I knew why. I was attempting to make my grandmother's Cocoa and Biscuits. Its a family recipe of thick, dense biscuits that are baked and crumbled into a bowl and served with a mild hot cocoa (more like a thin chocolate gravy) poured over them. (Trey is completely appalled by this Cajun meal, but he also doesn't appreciate sweet cornbread and milk, so I generally discount his feelings on food.) I still haven't  gotten it quite right. I didn't pay enough attention when my Mawmaw was alive. I just remember walking into her house early Thanksgiving morning to the smell of the biscuits in the oven. No matter how crazy busy she was cooking everything else, she always found the time to make us our special breakfast, too. I wouldn't exactly say I was close to MawMaw; she was always very busy caring for her parents, her garden, her church, her son still at home, her other 5 kids and all of the grandkids, but she was an amazing cook. She knew all of the grandkids favorite meals and cakes and she always showed how much she loved us with the food she lovingly cooked for us. My sweet girls know how important this meal is to me, so they make sure to ask for it the night before and then excitedly come downstairs and eat a bowl and then ask for seconds. I suspect that they don't even like it. There is a strong possibility that they are just humoring me. I am completely ok with that. One day, I hope that they make it for their kids as a way of remembering me and the memories of their childhood Thanksgiving mornings.

Even though its a happy memory and a happy day, I felt sentimental, emotional and just raw. This can be such a rough time for so many of us. The pang of lost or far away family members, the stress of family coming together, the horrible weather, the financial stress and the lack of sunlight can all conspire to steal the joy from our celebration and our daily lives. I'm personally very sensitive to the winter blues. I hate being inside, but I can't stand the cold. One of the downsides to losing 100 lbs is that I have zero tolerance for cold. I live my winters huddled under 3 electric blankets, sipping something hot by the fire, still shivering. (And I live in Texas, ya'll. I can't imagine how bad it is for people who deal with serious winters.) After 37 winters, I've finally started to anticipate just how likely I am to get depressed. Knowing this, I arm myself against it, so I'm still sane come January and my husband, my friends and my family hopefully still like me. So here's what I've learned to help myself and now to help my coaching clients stay sane and happy through the winter:

No surprise there, right? I know I sound like a broken record, but sometimes we all need to hear it 84,000 times to make sure it sinks in. You can't control your emotional state if you are not moving your body. Countless studies have been done on this and the evidence is in. Physical activity can treat or prevent depression. Move your butt. However you enjoy moving, make sure you do it! Zumba, Kickboxing, T25, Piyo, Tai Chi, Xbox Kinect games, WHATEVER. Just move it. Not because you are worried about your holiday weight gain, not because someone told you that spring break bodies start in the winter, not because you feel guilty about that pie you ate. NO! Exercise because it will make you a happier, more pleasant person.

Look, I get it. The holidays are all about the food. Do you think I calculated the calories in Cocoa in Biscuits? That I thought once about how this was throwing off my macros? Or that eating it early in the morning would throw off my intermittent fasting? That I mentally added extra burpees to make up for it? NOT FOR A SECOND! Nothing us ties us to family and memories and emotion quite like the smell and taste of traditional foods and despite what the Fitness Culture tries to tell us, that's OK! That being said, if you eat food that has no nutritional value from Thanksgiving through Christmas and then straight on through New Years, you will feel horrible and you will get depressed. Our brains need decent food to regulate our hormones and keep our moods level. So, you have to be smart about your indulgences. You still need your daily veggies and you need to supplement your diet to make up for the fact that we don't have the high quality fruits that we would see in the summer. Smoothies and supplemental shakes are a great way to make sure you continue to get greens and antioxidants in your system on a daily basis.

Everyone knows this. A gratitude mindset has been shown to improve your mood and boost your happy hormones. Yet, its not enough to just say you are grateful. Personally, I don't think its enough to just think about it. Its best if you have some action associated with it. I always have my clients keep a physical list every day of what they are grateful for (with a PEN and PAPER). If you want serious benefits, you will tell someone how grateful you are. I'm not gonna lie, this one takes some bravery, but its powerful. Write a letter or a text or a private message, or go all out and call them. Tell someone sincerely how much you are grateful for them and exactly why. Not only will it make their day, it will completely change your life. Do this for 7 days straight and I guarantee, you will be deeply affected.

This once can feel impossible. I promise its not. Even if you are an introvert and living in a new place and you don't know anyone. The internet is an amazing thing. It allows us to truly connect with so many people just like us. Figure out what you really love and then go find other people who really love it and build a connection with them. Churches, group fitness classes, Facebook groups, Meetups, Volunteering- there are hundred ways to find people to connect with. Every positive connection you can make improves your immune system and protects you from depression and just makes life more enjoyable all around.

When the holidays hit and we suddenly have parties, shopping, traveling, and hosting, our schedule can feel like a constant stream of exhausting activity. I haven't mastered the serious mediation, but I do schedule in 10 minutes of quiet time on my phone every day. An alarm goes off and I color in my coloring book or sip a cup of coffee on my patio or listen to some music by the fire or sometimes I doze on the couch. The important thing is that I focus on shutting off my brain and the constant to do list that is always running in the background and I try and just breathe for 10 minutes. Schedule it. That's the only way it will actually happen.

The short answer is nothing. Not really. Fitness doesn't usually have much to do with a hardwood floor unless you are discussing some workout involving sliders.

But this week, in my house, fitness had a tremendous to do with hardwood floors. You see, this week I paid off the floors for our our house and that is a pretty big deal to me.

I almost never talk about money. Part of me thinks its just awkward and another part of me is embarrassed. In my industry and in my company, I see so many stories from people I know of fancy new cars. over the top vacations, and paid off houses. While I'm happy for my friends and mentors and all their success, my business isn't there yet. I'm not the sole breadwinner of the house, I'm not on any ranking boards, I'm still paying off student loans, and I still drive a 14 year old hooptie. In short, I'm still very careful with money. My husband and I run a tight budget for everything from food to birthday presents to Aggie football (of course there's a budget for that), so I don't really feel like a success.

I think in my head, "success" means not having to budget every penny, but I'm in the process of revising that self-made definition and I'm trying to celebrate my smaller accomplishments. When we moved into this house two years ago, I HATED this house. Yes, I seriously hated the house. We moved for the school, the beautiful yard and the awesome neighbors, but the house itself was old, outdated and oddly built. There's crazy Burger King crown molding all over the place (still there), the walls were all shiny white (except the dining room that was some horrid wall paper), there are two showers and no bathtub in the carpeted (wth?) Master bathroom and the floors throughout the house were disgusting. The entryway had narrow, obsolete hardwood, the kitchen had small, white tiles and the living room carpet was ancient and gross.  Even so, this new (ha! just new to us) house was much bigger and in a nicer neighborhood, so the move and the new house note meant that our budget became even tighter to accommodate. That meant there was zero money for the very necessary and important home improvements that desperately needed to happen.

So, Trey and I decided that my business would pay for our upgrades. The business that I never talk about about because I don't feel successful enough and I'm a little embarrassed.  My small, seemingly insignificant business that I had original started so that I could just pay for my personal supplements without it stretching our household budgets.  This week it does not feel insignificant. It feels powerful. Not because I'm featured at convention or because I'm in the millionaires club or because I'm driving around a new, electric blue mustang (*sigh* one day!), but because I was able to financially improve my family's life. I'm proud of my house and I'm proud of all the changes we've made to it. Now it feels like our house, and it will just keep getting better as I fund more projects.

I tell everyone that I am a Beachbody Coach because I love helping people get fit and because it keeps me healthy and happy.  That is the honest truth and the heart and soul of my team, but I always fail to mention what else it has done for me. I've had some of the best training on how to help people, I've paid my personal way to conventions, seminars and trainings in Vegas, California and Florida. I've gotten my personal training certification, equipped a full private gym in my house, and paid for beautiful new floors. Today, I feel like a SUCCESS! Thank you, Beachbody!