50 FREE tools for health optimization

Getting started (or restarted)

I love to share (and get asked often) about tools and products I use. Sauna, cold plunge, red light therapy device, exercise equipment, protein powders, supplements ... These things can be great, convenient, helpful but are usually not necessary and certainly not as effective unless they are first layered on top of some foundations (most of which are free or low cost).



So I'll keep sharing about those special tools from time to time in case it helps, but I'll also make sure I continue to share about the FREE things we have available to us that might make even more of a difference on your health, mood, body composition goals and energy levels.



Whether you'd call yourself a beginner to this whole health thing, intermediate, advanced, a dabbler, confused, or you've lost your way recently and could use some guidance in coming back home to YOU, below are some ideas. They each have their own ways they can shift our day or life and improve our physical, mental and emotional health. Take what you want, leave what you don't like or don't need right now. This is your journey and you get to advocate for yourself. <3

1. Walk

2. Stretch

3. Strength train using whatever you already have (body weight, bands, dumbbells)

4. Short sprints (run, bike, swim, rollerskate, hill repeats)

5. Steady state cardio (jog, swim, bike, rollerskate, rower)

6. Hike / nature walk

7. Five or more minutes outside a day

8. Get your grounding / Earthing in

9. Plan, manage or start a garden

10. Call a friend

11. Find or connect with a community that means something to you

12. Laugh on purpose (look up jokes, watch a comedian on TV or the internet, hang with your funny friend)

13. Hug someone you love

14. Sexual intimacy (partnered or solo)

15. Breathwork

16. Meditation

17. Journaling

18. Take a relaxing bath

19. Drink more water

20. Declutter a drawer or corner

21. Affirmations

22. Add something joyful to your day or calendar

23. Learn a language on Duolingo

24. Teach yourself something using Youtube

25. Set boundaries clearly + kindly and follow through

26. Read a book you already have

27. Cold exposure using your environment or shower / bathtub

28. Have a no complaining allowed day and take note of how high you felt all day as your brain was left searching for the positives. Same day. Same life. Same stressors. Totally different perspective.

29. Aim to stay present (it's a practice I believe we ALL will need to practice forever without ever mastering. Challenge accepted!)

30. Gratitude

31. Board, card, dice or conversation starter games with family / friends

32. Happy lists ... dream about future possibilities if anything was possible (it is) and write it out

33. Music - listen or play

34. Volunteer

35. Sing or hum

36. Cook a meal

37. Bake something using real food ingredients

38. Open the blinds (and windows in home, car)

39. Sleep

40. Turn down the heat at night so you sleep better

41. BELIEVE that your body is capable of amazing things and if you don't yet feel that deep in your core, do the hard work until you do

42. Decrease stress by remembering you cannot control other people (even your kids), events, the weather, etc. but you CAN control your thought patterns, behaviors, habits, way you respond to everything. And that amount of control can change your entire existence when you embrace it.

43. Refuse to be sedentary. Even if you exercise, do not sit for many hours straight. Get up. Walk around. Makeshift standing desk. Ask work to cover a treadmill desk. Stretch while watching TV. Walking meetings. EVERYONE is trying to move more. If you lead the way, you'll probably be helping someone else feel brave enough to do the same.

44. Give yourself 12 hours of fasting overnight.

45. No food, alcohol or calorie-containing beverages 3 hours before bed.

46. On that note ... work towards no alcohol, less frequent alcohol and / or less alcohol per sitting.

47. Eat protein, fat and fiber in every meal. Most of us can skip some take out, restaurant meals or junky snacks or alcohol so focusing on PFF is NO extra cost or maybe even a savings.

48. Get unscented everything. Skip the perfume, cologne and scented candles / laundry detergent / hair products.

49. Dance in your kitchen. I could swear it's medicine.

50. Do something that makes you sweat at least a few times a week (no sauna access? Take a HOT bath, go for a sweaty run, do yard work)

If you're feeling inspired, grab something from the list and do it today!



XO,
Tara



P.S. If you're looking for a much deeper dive on health optimization, fat loss, muscle building, keep in mind the waitlist is open for the March round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. Sign ups begin in 3 weeks!

You're invited! Protein + Cravings Workshop

We have some things to talk about.

I put up a poll in my instagram stories last week asking if I did a free, public workshop (it's been awhile since my last one!), what would you want me to discuss? Well cravings and protein were a dead tie and thankfully for me that's an easy fix as those 2 things are SO intertwined.



So, next Monday February 12th at 8 PM Eastern I will be hosting The Protein + Cravings Connection Workshop. We will be diving into the reasons for our cravings and how to overcome them, why protein is important, how much we need (you'll know how much you, personally, need), how we're supposed to time that, and some tips on exactly how to get in that much protein (whether you're an omnivore or a vegetarian). I'll also share my personal protein goal and how I manage that.



It's free and if you can't make it live but are interested, sign up anyway because those who sign up will also get the replay.



In the meantime, let me share some items I like to have on hand always or often to help me reach my protein goals. Keep in mind I'm a vegetarian (who doesn't promote vegetarianism. More on that here) so if you do eat meat, fish and dairy, that's great! It'll be much easier for you.



This pasta gives me 20g protein with each serving and only 6g net carbs

Their rice has 20g protein per serving too

I typically have this protein powder on hand at least in vanilla, chocolate peanut butter, and unflavored (so I can add to savory dishes)

This plant-based collagen (I have it in a canister)

I like these protein bars specifically in this flavor (creamy peanut butter and sea salt b/c it has more protein and less sugar than their other flavors)

I'm a fan of these protein bars too in peanut butter cup and peanut butter chocolate chip -- Jagger got his ninja coach onto these recently :-P

Nut butters

Seed butters

Various nuts and seeds

Usually have some frozen edamame on hand

Organic, sprouted tofu happens sometimes (maybe 1-2 times a month for me?)

The kids eat this more than me, but this cereal does make a delicious snack or dessert at 8g protein and very low sugar / carbs! Just a few ingredients and grain free. All of the flavors are great so we get the variety pack and work our way through. I made this post on turning it into an entire PFF-balanced meal, too.

Unbun bagels (I get from Whole Foods)

Treeline fermented cashew cream cheese adds 3g protein (also a Whole Foods find)

Eggs + egg whites are my savior

Chickpea pasta like this bundle of rotini or this single box of spaghetti

Different kinds of beans

Nutritional yeast adds 8g protein and aa cheesy flavor to sauces and dips

Chickpeas

Lentils

Egglife wraps

Simple Mills protein pancake + waffle mix

Marys Gone Crackers -- this one is great with 5g per serving



Hope that helps get the creative (protein) juices flowing and I'll see you on Monday night! 



XO,
Tara



Didn't sign up for the workshop yet? Do that right here.

Benefits of grounding

Have you touched the Earth today?

Some of you are all about and others are ... skeptical. Why am I always talking about grounding up in my instagram stories? Why do we spend time talking about it in TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28-day metabolism-boosting course? Does it really affect metabolism?



Let's chat.



Grounding (or "Earthing") is the practice of coming in contact with the Earth in a way that allows our body to be altered electrically.
In a nutshell, we tend to accumulate more positive ions through regular living, inflammation, etc. When we are mindful about grounding regularly, we are exchanging some of those positive ions for some negative ones (electrons). We then use these electrons in the Electron Transport Chain to 'power up' our body's own power plant, if you will. 


In other words, these electrons help charge up / fuel the parts of our cells that can then create energy and fuel up the rest of our body. Grounding can:

• reduce inflammation

• improve disease

• improve cardiac health and help prevent atherosclerosis

• increase energy levels

• improve mood

• expedite healing + recovery

• improve fat oxidation

• boost metabolic rate

• improve metabolic flexibility

• and more

Just like with all of the things I share, it's not magic. It's not like you can walk outside barefoot and you'll be healed and lose all the extra body fat. Wouldn't that be amazing? It's just another tool to have in your toolbox. Really, it was a tool we used to have in our toolbox that was removed when we started doing things like live in weather-proof and safe structures and now we just have to be intentional about getting back to.


"How often? How long?"


More often. And longer. We really don't have protocols yet. Our natural state has always been to be outdoors for so much of our day, that it didn't require effort to ground. It was just what we did. In modern society, we can easily go entire days or even weeks without grounding if we're not careful. So at this time my own personal goal is to make sure I am grounding daily ... even if just for a few minutes. When possible, longer and more often. I do this even in Winter but definitely get a lot more grounding time in in Spring, Summer and Fall.



What counts as grounding?



This is the fun part!

• Swimming or wading in the ocean, lake, river, creek

• Walking barefoot on the grass, sand, dirt

• Barefoot on concrete, cement, pavers count too, if there isn't a vapor / moisture barrier underneath

• Lie down or sit on grass or sand

• Gardening with bare hands

• Picking weeds

• Touching puddles, having a snowball fight, building sandcastles with your kids or grandkids

• Taking a bath or sitting in a hot tub with metal pipes

• Earthing sheet or Earthing mat

• Climb a tree

Bonus points for grounding AFTER a lightening storm as the ground is extra full of electrons then. Be safe and make sure the storm has definitely passed before doing that, mmmkay?



Sunlight and red light / infrared light therapy *can* count as grounding too ... it just requires an additional step using fatty acids to convert the light energy to electrons (slightly different but not completely dissimilar to the way solar panels turn sunlight into electricity).



Quick aside... if you've been eying the Lumebox for red light / infrared light therapy, this special link saves you 45% only through February 4th. The company emailed me to say the price will be going up after that. The discount will not show up until you add to cart. Then you'll see it's $349 for the next 5 days.



"Can we ground with socks on?" Your socks are only conductive if there is some sweat on them. So, possible but barefoot is a better bet.



Shoes? 99.99% of the time no, but there is a company making barefoot sneakers with wide toe boxes AND grounding technology. I've been looking into them and just want to hold off on giving the details until I do my due diligence but it's an exciting idea nonetheless.



One more thing grounding can do is make you gain the "weird / interesting neighbor" label as you start doing everything barefoot. You're welcome! ;-)



Hope you found this helpful!



XO,
Tara

Come tour our home gym with me!

Come on in! Just please leave your shoes at the door. ;-)

I'd love to take you on a little tour of our home gym today (actual tour below)! We don't have a full gym but what we do have works so well for us in the room that is also our home office. These options altogether only take up about half of our pretty small room! If you haven't seen our little corner in use, here's a glimpse.




Let's start with the things that I think are a great idea for almost everyone just starting out with some home equipment and then I'll share some of the bells + whistles we have (which is still far less than many people with full garage gyms and things ... but bells + whistles in that they are next level and not necessary for those just starting out). Sharing the exact links of what we have when I can but for things that are older or unavailable, I'm trying to get as close as possible for ya. 




Yoga mat


Adjustable dumbbells (pricey but wayyyy cheaper and a huge space saver as compared to buying these all as separate dumbbell sets)


Long, straight resistance bands (SO versatile)


Fabric loop resistance bands (fabulous for leg / glute day)


Empty toilet paper roll ... to do this with


Chair (for step ups, tricep dips...)



Those basics cover A LOT OF bases. We've also added to the arsenal over the years:



Long loop resistance band (great for assisted pullups, heavier upper body work, banded deadlifts, etc)


Lighter loop resistance bands (work well for increased range of motion like squat to standing abduction, shoulder and arm work...)


Workout bench with back extension (flat, incline work, decline work, preacher curls, back extensions, glute-focused back extensions, hip thrusts, dips ...)


Airdyne bike (pricey and ours is an older model from a friend but ... assault bikes are SO spicy and perfect for low impact, indoor, high intensity interval training)


Tire to flip ... we acquired this old, big, HEAVY tire and keep it tucked off to the side of our backyard. 


Pull-up bar and rings


Jayflex hyperbell bar  -- they recently gifted this to me and we're LOVING it. It's helping me get over how much I've been missing barbells in these past 4 years since I stopped working out in a gym setting and started doing home workouts only. Basically, it turns a pair of dumbbells (even adjustable dumbbells) into a "barbell". They gave me a discount code to share. Use code TARA_ALLEN_HEALTH15 for 15% off.


Kettlebell (kettlebell swings, kettlebell flows, outdoor workouts, I travel with ours sometimes ... very versatile)


Medicine ball (med ball slams, upper body, ab work, full body...)


Swiss ball (abs, alternative seating option, balance, hip openers...)


Bosu ball (incline work, stability and balance...)


Battle ropes (then gave them away b/c we got the wrong ones, so maybe we'll get the right ones soon)


We're always rearranging and it's not the most aesthetically pleasing space at this time but it has everything we need and then some to help us achieve and maintain all of our fitness goals.


Check it out here



Hope you found this helpful!



XO,
Tara


P.S. If you missed out on this January round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course -- the waitlist is now open for the March round. Hop on it if you want to stay in the know and receive a discount code when enrollment begins.


P.P.S. If you're looking for custom help ... with body composition goals, health goals, lab work, custom workouts and nutrition guidance and tons of accountability, check out more on 1:1 coaching. Spots are limited and not always available, but clients graduate out of program often and spots then open up, ;-)

Some of my random 2024 intentions

Just in case you are easing into this New Year and still thinking about how you want to set up your days, weeks, and mindset...

...I figured I'd share some of my intentions with you. Most of these have been intentions for many years and I'd like to keep them in. Some of them are newer. Do we have any in common?




I'm listing in a bit of a brain dump kinda way:

• LISS (low intensity steady state cardio)

• HIIT (high intensity interval training)

• MISS (medium intensity steady state cardio)

• Strength training

• Sauna

• Cold exposure

• Walks or dance parties

• Sunshine

• Lumebox

• Dry brush

• Declutter

• Pour into relationships

• Cooking

• Baking

• House projects

• Read / learn daily

• Business growth w/ improved systems

• Stretch / mobility

• House vibes: peace, fun, connection, playfulness, support, unconditional love, leadership, responsibility, relaxation, open-ended conversation, everything is figureoutable

• Sing, hum

• Music (listen, make)

• Create - draw, paint, write

• Celebrate - a bunch of milestone birthdays for my people this year

• Financial growth, investment

• Indoor garden and outdoor garden

• Sleep

• Hobbies + fun - snowboard, ice skate, boogie board, jet ski, rock climb, live music, date nights, comedians, friends, family

• Minimal nighttime artificial light

• Romanticize more of the small moments
  

• Monthly self assessments
  

• Weekly digital declutter session (photos, videos, email)
  

• Grounding daily
  

• Take more days off (Have worked 364 days in the past many years taking only Christmas off completely. That has to change).
  

• Love my people in THEIR love language more
  

•  Volunteer projects / donate - kids involved where appropriate

• Start that big new work project

• Change lives through my course and coaching

• Alcohol less than 1 drink per week

• 'Buckets' I plan to focus on: health, marriage, motherhood, 'housekeeping / homesteading', hobbies / personal, business, finance, social / give back

• Flexibility + ebb and flow ... nothing here is forced, just highly valued.

Hope it's been a great start to 2024 for you so far!



XO,
Tara



P.S. Today is the last day to join the January round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. If you have any health or body composition goals for this year, get ready to do something WILDLY different to get to the root of the issue(s). More information and sign up link here.

Busting health + dieting myths

'Tis the season for ... all the diet marketing nonsense!

I love me a great festive theme, so let's debunk a bunch of health myths today, shall we??



Myth #1: Coffee works for breakfast.
Actually ... coffee on an empty stomach can raise cortisol levels, increase belly fat storage, lead to undereating during the daytime and overeating at nighttime or on weekends, lower metabolism and spike blood sugar.


Myth #2: You should keep cutting calories back (beyond a reasonable amount).
Actually ... this will lower metabolic rate, lead to muscle loss and increase risk of disease in the future.


Myth #3: You need to workout more, longer, harder.
Actually ... Exercise is great and I'm a big fan, but those who think they need to increase it endlessly until they "see results" tend to dial up inflammation and risk injury -- both of which can backfire.


Myth #4: Eat 6 mini meals a day for metabolism
Actually ... this doesn't improve metabolism and can hinder it because of the way insulin is kept elevated. This promotes more fat storage, not less.


Myth #5: You should weigh yourself daily.
Please don't! Unless you have NO emotional connection to the number at all (not happy when it's down, not upset when it's up). Otherwise, you'll be manufacturing extra frustration + defeat and we don't make the choices we want to from those emotional states.


Myth #6: Weight loss is good, weight gain is bad.
Actually ... it's much more important to think about the kind of weight you want to gain, lose and / or maintain. Most people want to either gain or maintain muscle and either lose or maintain fat. This requires a very specific way of doing things. Your garden variety diets, cleanses, bootcamps, etc. -- even if they take weight off -- likely won't be enough of the kind of weight you're looking to lose.


Myth #7: Save calories during the day so you can eat more when you go out to dinner or to that party.
Actually ... undereating during mealtimes can lower metabolic rate, have you losing precious muscle, and increase cravings, hunger and the feeling of being 'out of control' around food later.


Myth #8: The sun is bad for us.
Actually ... the sun is very healing! Too much of a good thing isn't a good thing, of course, so we don't want to burn. But we get red light and infrared light around sunrise + sunset. The sun helps us set our circadian rhythm, improves mood, energy, digestion, blood sugar management. And the blue light we get during the middle of the day is important for other things like hormones and vitamin D.


Myth #9: Carbs are bad.
Actually ... we all use carbs. We either eat too much and store them as fat after they spike our blood sugar and cause some damage, eat a moderate amount to match our needs, or eat too few and our body will make what we need then through a process called gluconeogenesis. Eating a moderate amount is helpful for fat loss goals, thyroid health, moods, sleep, energy and performance.


Myth #10: Walking is enough for exercise.
Actually... walking is GREAT for us and if that's all you can do right now, PLEASE do it! For those who are looking to improve their health or have body composition goals and are able to, I recommend keeping walking in for movement or even cardio if it's a fast enough pace to leave you slightly out of breath. But strength training is a separate category and we all benefit from ensuring that's included in our days and weeks, no matter your age or level (as long as its not contraindicated for YOU).


Myth #11: 2 eggs is a high-protein meal.
Actually ... 2 eggs is only 12g of protein. That's something(!) but not enough for a meal. I recommend most people get 20-40+g of protein with each meal. Since that amount of eggs would likely also contain a lot more fat than you need in a meal, you could consider adding an additional source of protein alongside the 2 eggs ... some meat, egg whites mixed in, etc.


Myth #12: Muscle makes you bulky.
Actually ... muscle takes up less space, pound for pound, than body fat does. Meaning, you can increase your scale weight but be putting on muscle and taking off fat and your measurements (like waist circumference) would actually be going down.


Myth #13: The cold weather makes us sick.
Actually ... we are outside less, get less vitamin D, spend more time indoors around more people and germs, and tend to have more food, sugar and alcohol this time of year. More germ exposure + weakened immune system makes us sick. Cold exposure ... when done gradually and intentionally ... improves our immune system.


Myth #14: Fevers are bad.
Actually ... fevers are genius and I aim not to interfere if my body or my kiddos' bodies have created a fever. Of course I'm vigilant to make sure it doesn't become dangerously high or rise so quickly it can cause febrile seizures, but otherwise we welcome and celebrate fevers. In fact, we try to remember that runny noses, vomiting, diarrhea, coughs, post-nasal drips are all genius too. These are not the germs' doing, but rather our body rounding the troops to help fight off and get rid of the germs.



I'm sure I missed a bunch of common myths, but I'm not trying to write a novel today for you. :-P



If you're ready to do things WILDLY different in 2024, you should know that sometime later today the waitlist for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course -- will be pulled down. So, this is your last chance to hop on! Enrollment for the January round will begin tomorrow. Those on the waitlist will get a discount code sent tomorrow when the cart opens. Join us!



XO,

Life Coffee

Life Coffee.

That's what I'm going to call it. 



Once a month in 2024, probably on the last day of the month, I will be starting a new practice. Join me?



I will be finding at least a handful of minutes to sit down with a cup of coffee (or tea or whatever) and do a little monthly self-review.



I will start with reflection:

• What am I proud of from the last month ... behaviors, progress, intention, results?

• What might be something I want to tweak going forward? What would be a reasonable next step forward?

• Any specific challenges or worries coming up in the next month? If so, how do I want to navigate it?

• What do I want to work on for the next month? What do I need to plan, schedule, buy, start doing, stop doing in order to pull it off?

I will be asking these questions across a few areas of my life: as a wife, mother, health and self care, business and finances.



If you'd like to start a new process that will help with all other processes, join me with a monthly Life Coffee!



Wishing you a beautiful last few days of the year. 2024, we're coming for ya!



XO,
Tara


P.S. A couple of ways we can work together in the new year:

1. TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28 day metabolism-boosting course. Enrollment begin January 3rd.

2. 1:1 coaching is best for those who want additional accountability, customization, or who have certain diagnoses that will benefit from extra guidance, support and a deep dive.

Between the parties - PFF balanced meal ideas

It's party szn! (GIFT below)

Holidays, holiday parties, friends, family, coworkers ... have you had your fill yet?! :-P



You may decide to use some strategies for healthy holiday-ing this year or maybe you just want to indulge at the parties. Either way, you (and your family?) need to be eating in between all of those parties and plans too. This time of year, we often crave comfort but also ease. Add our goals (fat loss, healing, optimization) on top of that and what are you going to do?



Enjoy this holiday gift I made for you. :-). It's a big collection of meals that are all balanced for fat loss, blood sugar balancing and health optimization goals. I've included a whole bunch of 1 pan meals, stews, soup, a couple of smoothies / smoothie bowl, some warm breakfasts and a couple of super-quick (5 minute) options. They all happen to be free of gluten and dairy. Many are for omnivores (meat, seafood, eggs) and there are a bunch that are plant-based as well. 



Did I mention, they're balanced for fat loss and blood sugar balancing? ;-) That means they are great for recalibrating hunger, fullness and cravings in between the holidays and parties as well.



I hope you love it! And actually, I really just hope you use it. <3



If you're on the waitlist for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, get ready for a lot more recipes balanced in a very specific protein / fat / fiber / carb way for your goals. Not only that, but you'll learn how to balance meals this way without needing recipes or a meal plan because who wants to always be following that?!?! Of course we cover lots more than nutrition too. Take a look at the details and hop on the waitlist if you're ready for a change in 2024.



XO,
Tara

Holiday Cheers orrrrrrr....?

CHEERS to ... poison?

Not to be dramatic, but alcohol is a toxin. But you knew that. This newsletter isn't going to be all doom + gloom, though we do need to cover a few less-than-fun facts right off the bat -- and then a free gift for you to lighten the mood. :-P




Most people think the reason alcohol isn't great for their waistline is the extra calories. That's not really it.



Alcohol is a toxin that needs to be detoxed from our body and FAST. We drink and our body immediately gets to work trying to get rid of it. Here's what happens downstream of that:

• fat metabolism slows as our body is aiming to process + detox the alcohol

• while alcohol itself isn't easily stored as excess body fat, everything else you eat before, during and after drinking will be

• alcohol makes our blood sugar ... wonky. It could spike it up, it could come crashing down. But it's rarely in a healthy + stable place when we drink

• our pre-frontal cortex is compromised -- decision-making skills are altered. This can range from choosing foods that aren't aligned with your goals to much worse

• oftentimes people consume a bunch of sugar, additives, artificial dyes and the like in their drinks ... so now our body is detoxing + processing the actual alcohol AND the stuff that came along for the ride

• fatty liver disease is now often caused by overeating but drinking can do this alone and certainly the combination (not just at the same time, but in general) is not a good idea

• hangovers suck

• alcohol will increase muscle loss and interfere with any muscle gain attempts

Alright. Let's stop there. Some of you might not drink at all. YAY! But if you do and you have any kind of health or body composition goals you're after right now (and I'm assuming you do because this would be a weird newsletter to sign up for if you didn't!), then here's my recommendation:



Drink less.



Seriously. Drink less days per week. Drink less at each sitting or event. Take a month off as a challenge. Set boundaries. Be ok saying you're not going to drink even in the presence of your friends, family and colleagues who do. That can be hard! You and your friend Mary drink every time you see each other for the last 20 years. Feels weird to order the seltzer then, right? But do it! Use it as a chance to tell Mary about your goals and how you feel so much better when you drink less. Don't make it about weight. If you say, "I'm not going to drink b/c I'm trying to lose weight.", many people will reply with, "Oh, diet starts Monday. Come on!" But if you say, "I feel incredible when I skip it!", I highly doubt Mary will say, "Oh, you can feel incredible on Monday instead." It's hard to argue with wanting to feel incredible.



And if you plan to drink less but still occasionally, remember you can stop at half a drink or 1 or 1.5. And the lesser of the evils will be to order liquor (not liqueor) with a non-sweet mixer (like water, seltzer, club soda or over rocks) and if you need a little flavor, something not sweet like muddled lemon or lemon juice, lime juice, mint, cinnamon, rosemary.



If you're hosting or visiting this holiday season and want to have some fun mocktail options to make, here's a little collection of recipes for you. Of course most are indulgences as they are sweet, but feel free to skip the sweetener or keep it simple with sparkling water, and a handful of cranberries on top with rosemary and a few dried orange slices. It's pretty and will add a little flavor without being too sweet.



Hope you enjoy!!



XO,
Tara



P.S. The next round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course -- will begin in January. It makes a great gift for someone who just wants to feel better, achieve their health + body composition goals, heal and have a great relationship with food and their body. If you would like to purchase this as a gift for someone, let me know. Gift certificates are available.



P.P.S. Gift certificates are also available for my 1:1 coaching. Email me if you'd like to find out more - Tara@TaraAllenHealth.com

Holiday Cookie Time

It's almost Cookie Month! That's what we're calling December these days, right???

My FAVORITE holiday cookie and everything sweet recipes are inside my e-cookbook, Smart Cookie. There are 84 recipes in there, to be exact. It has something for EVERYone like pumpkin, gingerbread, cranberry, apple, so much chocolate, hazelnut, mint ...



Pies, cake, fat bombs / freezer fudge, no bake, bake, stovetop, slow cooker ... and of course lots of cookies.



But just in case it's not in the cards for you to grab that cookbook this year, I wanted to share these 4 cookie recipes that didn't make it into my book. Hope you enjoyyyyy!



Cookie Mini Collection



XO,
Tara



P.S. If working with me makes sense as a gift for you or from you to someone you care about, here are two options:


1) TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. Enrollment will begin on January 3rd, but if you want to purchase as a gift, just email me and let me know so we can make it happen ... and I will provide you with a gift certificate. Tara@TaraAllenHealth.com


2) One-on-one coaching. Same deal. If you'd like to purchase as a gift for someone, email so we can chat.

2023 Holiday Gift Guide

I stayed up 'til 11:15 working on this one night last week because...

I asked you guys in my instagram stories if it would be helpful and there was a shocking amount of YES PLEASE feedback.




I created the 2023 Holiday Gift Guide for anyone on your list who is health-forward with goals like fat loss, muscle-building, longevity, healing, thriving, sports or gym performance or just healthy family / kiddos. It also works well if people are asking YOU for suggestions on what to get you for the holidays and you are having trouble coming up with anything.



I wanted to be inclusive of all budgets, so there are items that are free, $6, hundreds of dollars and every price range in between.



Oh, and because experiences are a big thing for us, I made sure to include whole section on those.



Hope you enjoy!



GRAB YOUR FREE COPY RIGHT HERE.



Happy Thanksgiving week,
Tara



P.S. Today is the LAST day to take advantage of my pre-Black Friday deal for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. The cart will close at midnight and everyone who got in in time will get access to the whole course + all the materials tomorrow. You can browse through everything over the next few weeks or fully dive in and get started early. Up to you! Since we don't officially begin until January, I will also be hosting a bonus, live Q+A session in December just for those who got the pre-Black Friday deal so you can ask whatever questions have come up thus far. If you can't make it live, I'll be sending you the replay. 


This course is for those who have fat loss, muscle-building or "toning up" goals and who want to learn how to achieve those goals in a WILDY different way -- by boosting metabolism instead of dieting. This approach is for those who also want to improve their relationship with food and their body (no counting calories or tracking macros) and work on improving their health, healing and longevity focus all the while.


Want to grab the pre-Black Friday deal and get access tomorrow too? CLICK HERE for more info. and to sign up.

How much body fat can you lose in 1 day?

Daily fat loss has an upper limit.

So what happens, then, if your caloric deficit is greater than the amount of fat you can lose in a day?



Are you sure you wanna know? It's not good.



Last chance to close this email and be none-the-wiser.



Ok, you got it ....



What happens is you lose lean (non-fat) tissue. You lose muscle, bone density, mitochondria. Your organs shrink. You lose brain mass. Say goodbye to some of your collagen.



The law of thermodynamics is strong with us. Eat less than you use up and you'll lose. Eat more than you use up and you'll gain. But that used to be where it ended. Now we know there's nuance. WHAT, exactly, are you losing? WHAT, exactly, are you gaining? 



Most people lose a mixed bag (some fat but lots of muscle and other lean tissue) but when they gain some or all of it back, it's almost entirely fat. This is usually NOT the desired intent or even something they were aware of!



So how much fat can you actually lose each day???



It depends. It depends on your size and current body composition / body fat percentage. It depends also on whether or not you're maximizing fat loss potential through all the things I talk about here in my weekly newsletters and over on instagram. For example, someone who has better blood sugar balance will be able to maximize daily fat loss potential, moreso than someone whose blood sugar is riddled with spikes and crashes. They are more of a "fat burner". Similarly, someone who is barely getting any sleep and not working on stress management will be more of a "sugar / carb burner" and will tend to lose a greater percentage of their weight as lean mass rather than excess body fat.



But I can tell you this ... it's not a lot and probably less than you'd like. That means the process should be slow. If it's fast, you're likely losing lots of precious lean mass (like muscle) and will be actually priming your body for a greater body fat percentage over time. 


So, fast weight loss isn't just not advised. It's not the fat loss that most people think they're getting! And it sets our body up for MORE fat gain and worsened metabolic health (chronic diseases) down the line.



To give some more context, if you're losing 5 lbs in a week or something, you're almost definitely blowing wayyyy past your maximum daily fat loss and burning through precious lean mass. Even less (2, 3, 4 lbs a week) can be problematic. Too fast and that's where damage is done.



Little caveat ... sometimes, especially in the beginning of some lifestyle changes, inflammatory water retention starts to go away. In this case the pounds might come off faster as a result of that process. That's not a problem and will be temporary.



Example: Person A has fast weight loss. Person B has slow weight loss (with attention to detail like strength training, protein, sleep, blood sugar control). Person B is almost always losing MORE fat than Person A, even though society will tell you otherwise. *Eye roll*


If fat loss is a goal of yours, keep this in mind!



XO,
Tara




P.S. This Friday will start the Early Black Friday deal for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. We cover all the bases (nutrition, fitness, lifestyle) that will help you maximize your daily fat loss potential as well as focus on health optimization so you feel incredible all the while. <3  Enrollment will be open for just a few days because on actual Black Friday I will be decorating my house with the fam and making our traditional Christmas loops. So, I'm closing the cart before Thanksgiving. ;-) Here's how it'll work: if you enroll between 11/17 and 11/21, you'll be in for the upcoming January round. But not only that, you'll get early access to the whole course and all the materials on 11/22. You can check it out or even start early if you'd like! Make sure you're on the waitlist if you're interested. Waitlist people will get a discount code sent to them when the cart opens.

New some new workout ideas?

Your future called ... and it's SO proud of how strong you are.

That's from all the progressively overloading workouts AND sleep / nourishment / rest you've been giving it. ;-)



Now maybe this is a reality for you right now. You know you're progressing with your workouts and have an awesome plan for the rest that you're implementing or starting to implement. Or maybe you're on the waitlist for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind and will have soooo much confidence and clarity around all of this very soon. But if you're not yet strength training or you've been kind of bopping around and counting group exercise or Peleton-with-weights classes as strength training, this email is for you in particular.



Progressive overloading is the way we strength train when we have fat loss, muscle-building, or "toning up" goals. Once we've reached all of the goals and just want to maintain our strength and body composition, we have more flexibility to be able to bop around to various workouts because it doesn't take as much of a stimulus to maintain as it does to achieve those goals. It takes consistency to maintain! But there is more flexibility to the approach.



I'm going to assume for the rest of this email that you have fat loss, muscle-building, or "toning up" goals. Here's how to approach the strength training part of the puzzle if that's the case:

• Have a solid, 1-week plan that targets all major muscle groups in the various ways they need to be targeted and in the various planes of motion and angles -- you'll likely need help with this, it's coming below ;-)

• Use a resistance, reps, and sets that make at least the last few reps of each exercise feel HARD to complete. That's important. Write that down. What exercise? How much weight? How many reps? How many sets?

• Repeat the same workouts week after week for 8-16 or so weeks before changing it up to a different set of workouts BUT, make it spicier over time. Meaning, add resistance as you can, reps, or even sets over time.

In case you need a week's worth of workouts to get you started, you can use some of mine! This is a 4-day a week plan and covers all the major muscle groups. Because someone will ask ;-) core is sneakily baked into ALL of my programming so I gotcha covered there too. Do them on any 4 days a week that you'd like, just avoid doing similar muscle groups on back-to-back days (like don't do upper 1 today and upper 2 tomorrow. Not enough rest there for recovery + progress).


Upper Body 1

Lower Body 1

Upper Body 2

Lower Body 2


If you plan to sign up for the January round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, keep an eye out. I will be offering an EARLY Black Friday deal -- early access to the whole course! Enrollment will open and close before Black Friday (I don't want to be in launch mode on actual Black Friday -- I'll be decorating the house with the fam and making our traditional Christmas loops). You will then have a full progressively overloading workout routine in there as well as optional meal plans, fun recipe collections, and other resources in case you hate cooking or are always on the run, cycle synching, menopause, pregnancy, postpartum, men / andropause, and breastfeeding considerations. Those are just some of the resources. It's really a whole COURSE and that's the true magic of it. ;-) You can check out more details right here.

Hope you enjoy those workouts!!


XO,
Tara

Stress Eating?

Has this ever happened to you?

You had a long day at work or at home and 5 PM rolls around. You're hungry, tired, stressed and still not sure what you're making for dinner. So, you mindlessly eat the opened bag of pita chips that are sitting on your counter b/c ... pita chips aren't so bad, are they?



And / or you pour yourself a glass of wine to sip on while you try to pull together a meal from whatever random ingredients you have in the fridge.



And / or you grab the pretzels but quickly move over to a pint of ice cream at 9 PM when you finally sit down on the couch to turn the TV on and your brain off.



This, my friend, is stress eating or emotional eating and it's superrrrr common. We have all done it at least occasionally and we are actually hard-wired to have this type of relationship with food. Because if we eat when we're stressed, we get a temporary bump in the pleasure molecules inside our brain. This makes sense! From a survival standpoint, we would have wanted to store extra body fat during times of stress to have a reserve for whatever might be coming.



But if you have current fat loss and / or health and longevity goals, repeating this pattern fairly often will get in the way of you reaching those goals.



What can you do?



Start by understanding your biology! The extra food is a form of self-medicating. It makes you feel good in the moment, but probably not so much afterwards, right? Bloating, cravings, excess hunger later or the next day, feeling out of control, not accomplishing goals ... not awesome.



Instead, pre-plan some options for ways to "self medicate" that help you feel better right then and there AND later. Excess food won't be it.



Eat a satiating, balanced meal. You might actually be hungry! Fill your body with what it wants and can use well. Protein, fat and fiber. You'll likely feel better right then AND later.


Take a walk. Maybe call a friend or family member to catch up with too, or just grab any and all family members to join. That'll make you feel better right then AND later.


Put on some music, take a few deep breaths, have some herbal tea. Better right then AND later.


It's not that you'll never stress / emotional / overeat again. But if you can cut it back drastically, what do you think that would do for you and your goals? How about your confidence?


Next time you're ready to mindlessly eat or drink, ask yourself what you need and what you can do that'll make you feel good both right then AND later. That's the definition of true self care. It feels good in the moment and still feels good later on.


You got this!


XO,
Tara


P.S. The Early Black Friday deal will start November 17th! The cart will be open for just a few days to enroll for the January round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind, my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. If you get in for this deal, you'll get access to the whole course and all the materials the day before Thanksgiving. You can dive in anytime and have a nice, big head-start before we officially begin together as a group in January. Make sure you're on the waitlist! The waitlist will get you a discount code. ;-)



P.P.S. If you need some more customization, accountability, hand-holding because of unique medical situations or you just know yourself well and this is how you work best, check out my 1:1 coaching program.

If I wanted to lose excess body fat before the end of the year, here are 4 things I'd start right now

No one waits around until January 1st to set goals anymore, right?

I really love that we're embracing the fact that we can upgrade anything we want about ourselves at any time. With the holidays getting kicked off a week from today with Halloween, it's the perfect time of year to begin to make a change. It's empowering to go off script a bit plus you can make progress on your goals while reducing cravings ... which comes in very handy around your kids' Halloween haul, during Thanksgiving dessert or that Wednesday night holiday party in December.



I have no current fat loss goals but if I did, here are 4 things I'd start doing right away:

1. I'd skip the calorie obsession because it leads to overeating. When we pick meals based on them having a lower calorie count, we are not getting enough of the nutrients that actually turn off our hunger. Therefore, whether later that afternoon or night or a handful of days later on the weekend, we will end up overeating. Instead, I'd be ensuring that I was getting enough -- protein, fat and fiber -- at each meal. I'd want this to be at least 20-30g protein, 10-20g fat and 5-15g fiber per meal (3 meals a day ... maybe with an afternoon snack too). This would make me feel nice + satiated and stop the food obsession, cravings, endless hunger and overeating episodes that feel like a willpower issue but are really just a biological issue.

2. I'd make sure my workouts weren't non-existent, mostly cardio, random, or being phoned in. The way muscle mass helps us have so much more flexibility with our nutrition isn't being talked about enough! More muscle means better blood sugar balance, extra fat burning 24/7 (yes, even when being a sloth on the cough or sleeping), and a higher carbohydrate tolerance. More muscle improves both health and body composition goals. I'd do this by strength training 3-4 days a week, following a comprehensive plan that gets all muscle groups, repeating that same suite of workouts each week for 8-16 weeks or so (not randomly switching it up) and making sure the last few reps of each set feels hard to complete. And then I'd progressively overload by increasing something (reps, sets, resistance) over time. Cardio is great for health, but I would not prioritize that for fat loss goals.

3. I would indulge with intention. I wouldn't swear off any foods for fear of messing up my progress, but I would also have a serious convo with myself about the truth about my indulgences. Am I saying I don't indulge often but when I go out to eat I have a burger with both buns, fries, and a drink? Or some bread from the bread basket, pasta with my entree and a little dessert? Hot cocoa season is coming up. And cookies. And pie. How much alcohol am I drinking on the weekends? And weekdays? Do I indulge at every party, date night, event, holiday...? Once I had that hard convo with myself about my indulgences, I'd then make sure I kept my favorites in while reining things in a bit. It's not deprivation if you're choosing what you want most over what you want right now. It's just a choice and you get to make whichever one you want in each situation.

4. Movement. Knowing 15% (sometimes more!) of our metabolic rate is based on how much we're moving outside of workout time, I'd get creative about how to start moving more. Can I ask my employer for a standing desk or just doctor one up myself by stacking my laptop on a bunch of books? Can I take that call or meeting on a walk? Can I sit on the floor and stretch while watching TV instead of sinking into the couch? Can I plan to walk each morning or lunch break? And if the weather is bad, what's my backup plan? Maybe one of those walking pads or under-desk bikes? Can I plan some family fun on weekends that involves being active ... like a hike, playground games, or after dinner walk or bike ride with whoever wants to join? If fat loss was a goal, I'd definitely not skip out on this and make my metabolic rate 15% slower as a result.

What else? Well if you need some more help, you might be interested to know I'll be briefly opening up early enrollment for the January round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind around Black Friday. This will come with early access so you will have the whole course and all the materials to be able to utilize all of it starting in November!



If you have some diagnoses you believe are making your fat loss goals trickier or could use some customization or extra accountability, 1:1 coaching might be more your flavor.



Oh and if fat loss isn't one of your goals, that list is still a great one if you "just" care about longevity and optimal health. ;-)



XO,
Tara

Ever lose + regain the same 20 lbs?

Losing and regaining the same 5, 10, 20, 50 lbs over and over isn't fun.

But ya know what's worse? Realizing that the weight you lose and the weight you regain aren't actually equal. Most weight loss efforts are done in a way that includes lots of muscle lost alongside any fat. Oftentimes organs shrink during this unhealthy kind of weight loss too. Yikes! Yet when that weight is regained, it's typically almost entirely excess body fat gained. Rinse + repeat and you can see how you end up with a higher body fat percentage over time, even if the weight yoyos within a certain range. This can be a big problem for metabolic health and body goals. But there's also a way around this problem so you never have to deal with that again!



It's a big topic, so I recorded a video just for you for this week. You can listen like a podcast if that's easier ... no need to see my mug the whole time. ;-) Check it out right here.



As I mention at the end of the video, if you'd like to get help / support / guidance and an actual freaking plan that aligns with your goals thankyouveerymuch, feel free to check out more about my 28-daya metabolism-boosting course, TRANSFORM: Body + Mind and 1:1 coaching.



XO,
Tara

Underactive thyroid?

I used to have hypothyroidism.

... alongside PCOS, insulin resistance and prediabetes. Basically, I was a metabolic wreck and my doctor let me know he expected me to have an unhealthy body composition for life because of all of this. Thankfully, I believed in my own body's ability to heal + evolve and said, "Hold my beer." as I got to work. P.S. I no longer have any of those conditions and he was quite shocked and wanted to know how I did it all without meds. He meant well but just wasn't even aware of our potential!



I'm actually not writing this newsletter to tell you about my backstory, but I did want to let you know I've had some experience here. Someone on instagram recently asked me if I had 'regular' hypothyroidism or Hashimoto's -- the auto-immune kind. I told her I wasn't entirely sure because I didn't know enough to advocate for myself back then and my thyroid antibodies weren't tested at the time of my diagnosis. But the cool thing is that it didn't matter a whole lot. I did the same things to aim to get to the bottom of it, regardless of what was causing the hypothyroidism. Namely, 1, I aimed to increase my metabolic rate and health (this directly influences thyroid output) and 2, aimed to decrease inflammation and oxidative stress (which would be incredibly important when there's any kind of autoimmunity).



Last week I created a highlight just for thyroid health -- a series of posts and reels -- in response to the increase in questions I've been getting (mostly from new followers who are hearing about my story for the first time). In that highlight, I discuss what I did and why, lab work to consider requesting, nutritional additions that have helped, protocols and things most docs don't know about yet and therefore aren't sharing yet. Since subclinical thyroid function is incredibly common at this time, I wanted to share with you too! Click that link above and you may have to scroll my highlight bubbles, but it'll be there! It's labeled "thyroid".




Whether or not you have an under-active thyroid, I think this reminder is always helpful: our body tends to do SO WELL when we give it what it needs and then get the heck out of its way. If you're on some kind of a healing journey, you're doing incredibly important work! Keep going. <3



XO,
Tara



P.S. If you'd like some help, here are a couple of ways we can work together:



1. My 28-day metabolism-boosting course, TRANSFORM: Body + Mind. We work on boosting metabolism (helping to rev up that thyroid) as well as aim to bring down inflammation + oxidative stress (potentially helping auto-immunity). Best part is that while I guide you on what to do and how, I also teach you about your body, metabolism and health optimization so that you can make informed choices for yourself going forward. The next round isn't starting until January, but there will be an opportunity to get early access around Black Friday if you're on this waitlist. ;-)



2. I do work with some clients 1:1. This is much more in depth with tons of customization and accountability. Spots are limited, but clients are often graduating out of the program, opening up spots so hop on the interested list if you'd like to chat more about this option.

Steal my breakfast idea!

If it ain't broke, why fix it?

Many moons ago, I was an oatmeal-for-breakfast kinda gal. I'd add some coconut oil, cinnamon, walnuts and blueberries. It was delicious! And unfortunately, it wasn't balanced well enough so when I found out I was unwell and had some work to do, I switched up my breakfast.



I share about my daily breakfast often up in my stories on instagram, posts, or with my clients who ask for ideas. A bunch of my clients now have the same breakfast and even lovingly refer to it as "The Tara Breakfast". Ha! But I don't think I've ever shared about it in a blog post?!



Ready for it?



I typically have 1 full egg plus 1 cup of egg whites scrambled in (olive) oil and topped with: spinach, sometimes other greens or microgreens / sprouts, real sauerkraut, sriracha and salsa.



This puts me right in the sweet spot of a balanced PFF meal with 38g or so of protein, fat (from oil and egg yolk), fiber (veggies), probiotic food (sauerkraut) and then the sriracha and salsa is really just for taste. Sometimes I'll add some leftover roasted veggies in too if I have that on hand or grab kale from the garden on the rare occasions that we run out of other greens.



This breakfast fuels me well with steady energy, keeps me full until lunch, and is low carb which means I typically eat my starchy carbs at other meals / snacks throughout the day to ensure I'm getting in a moderate amount there. The savory start to the day vs. sweet start to the day also plays a role in staving off sugar cravings.



If you want to make breakfast one of your intentional carb meals, you could always add some fruit or potatoes on the side or a slice of your favorite toast.



Oh, and this meal come together much faster than going to a drive thru. No one has time to be gourmet on a Wednesday morning, amiright?



So go on ... steal my weird but oh-so-good breakfast and tell me whatcha think!



Here's a recent reel during which I was making said breakfast in case you're a visual person.



XO,
Tara



P.S. Here are a couple of ways we can work together, if you need some help with your health + body composition goals:


1) Join the waitlist for the next round of TRANSFORM: Body + Mind -- my 28-day metabolism-boosting course. The next round will be in January but stay tuned for an opportunity for early access like ... ahem ... a Black Friday deal or something. ;-)


2) TRANSFORM: 1:1 coaching is great for those who want a deeper dive, customization, who have unique situations or just know they need that accountability and hand-holding. Learn more here.

One pan PFF meals

It's officially the Fall! My FAVORITE.

I love the weather. I love the leaves changing. I love the scents and flavors (but, like, not the fake ones). I love that we're still outside a ton and that the holidays are approaching but I'm not scrambling to buy gifts and send cards yet. I dunno ... it's a vibe.



But it's also a hectic time of year with back to school, school events, sports, the return of bigger house projects (do you put them on pause for Summer too?), and it's a very packed time of year in my business. 



We want to cook, but a lot of times also not really. Right? And we *certainly* don't want a big clean-up. So I made you something! Here's a One Pan PFF-balanced meal collection. There are options for omnivores, plant based peeps, and everything happens to be free of gluten and dairy. Feel free to add your own gluten or dairy if you desire. ;-) 



These meals are balanced to help with metabolism-boosting, fat loss, "toning up", muscle-building, blood sugar balancing, craving-busting, and satiety-between-meals goals.



Which one are you going to try first??




Hope you enjoy,
Tara



P.S. Why was the robot couple's anniversary in the Fall?
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They were autumn mated.

Fat loss: A learning series

You're a real catch... and I appreciate the heck out of you.

Just wrapped up another super-exciting launch at Tara Allen Health. One thing I typically do when I'm in 'launch mode' for that one week, several times a year is I tend to do more live videos on social media. My goals with this are 1, to share more context about what I do in the course and why I do it so differently. 2, I'm more present for those who have questions. And 3, I want to make sure that even if you and I never get to work together, you still have lots of actionable tips to implement on your own. If you're a TRANSFORM alum, these lives might serve as good reminders for you as well. ;-)



But maybe you missed them? So I wanted to drop them here in a blog this week. Feel free to select just the topics that sound interesting to you or listen to them all in order as a learning series. You don't need to stare at my face! Haha. Pop in some headphones and take me along on a walk, while you're doing housework or even just listen on your commute.



Only thing is ... all the talk about enrollment for TRANSFORM: Body + Mind being open is no longer applicable. Cart closed last week and we actually began yesterday. The next round will be in January though so don't feel like you missed out. You can now hop on the waitlist for that round if you'd like.



Ok, here we go ...


Episode 1. Is there more to the fat loss story than "eat less, exercise more"?

Episode 2. 6 things you're doing for weight loss that are backfiring

Episode 3. Fat loss goal of less than 10 lbs? Or want to “tone up”? Discussing 8 things specific to YOUR goals to keep in mind.

Episode 4. Fat loss goal of 10 lbs or more? Sharing 7 tips specific for you.

Episode 5. 7 reasons you’re giving yourself cravings and what to do about it.

Episode 6. The biggest mistake the weight loss industry is still making!


Hope this helps!


XO,
Tara