5 Thoughts [including a chocolate peppermint smoothie recipe and a gift for you!]

It’s Thanksgiving week! I know this time can be really wonderful for many of you, but also very challenging for others of you. Either way, it’s okay to be right where you’re at. I know for me, it wasn’t always how it is now. No matter where you’re at, I do hope you take good care of yourself and get some good rest this week!

1. Day Trip to Portsmouth, NH

Last weekend we drove an hour north since Nick and some of our friends were running a half marathon. I love Portsmouth so much and love it even more that it’s so close to Boston. The last time we were there was the end of March so it was fun to be back during a different time of year. It was a chilly (wind chill was in the 20s), but beautiful day for a race. The sun was out and leaves were still on the trees. Although I was certainly not running myself, I felt like I raced after walking around cheering the whole time and moving around to stay warm ha.

Afterward, we got brunch at Dolphin Striker. The inside was so cozy! I ordered the caprese omelet that came with homefries cooked in duck fat (so good) and a biscuit. I had planned to take pictures and then went to edit this post and had nothing to share. Oops. Total fail.

2. What if You Changed the Way You View Self-Destructive Behaviors?

Jennifer Rollin is an amazing ED and HAES aligned therapist based in Maryland that I know online, but unfortunately have not been able to meet in person yet. I came across this article she wrote where she walks you through some steps to shifting behaviors. I think it would be incredibly helpful no matter where you’re at with your relationship with food/body/exercise/yourself. I love this compassionate line from the beginning of the article.

You are not ‘crazy,’ or broken, or screwed up, rather you are in pain and trying desperately to cope.

3. Drinking This Smoothie Everyday

There is published research showing eating dates (about 7 dates/day or 70-80g) from 36 weeks onward in pregnancy can increase the likelihood of spontaneous labor, decrease the need for pitocin, shorten the length of the early phase of labor, increase cervical ripening and dilation, increase the likelihood of vaginal birth after induction (vs cesarean) and decrease blood loss after birth. The studies were small so more research is needed, but I think the research we do have is encouraging. Although, it’s important to know there isn’t research on date consumption in women with gestational diabetes. If you don’t have GD, the “risk” of eating dates is quite minimal so I’m all for it. But GD could present other risk factors that would be important to discuss with your health care provider. If you’re interested in reading more, I’ve linked the studies to the bottom of this post. And a great website if you’re ever interested in evidence-based information on both pregnancy and childbirth is Evidence Based Birth which is run by a nurse with a PhD. Lots of non-biased, fantastic info there!

So with that said, after a couple days of eating dates I was over them. So I had to get creative. I’ve been craving peppermint all the time since it tastes refreshing to me so I made a chocolate peppermint smoothie. Also, even though it’s obvious, drink this smoothie anytime (pregnant or not) because it’s tasty and delicious. The below ingredient amounts are really just estimates so play around with them until you get the smoothie consistency you enjoy!

1 cupish almond milk or coconut milk (or any milk you like – soy, cow’s milk, goat milk, whatever)

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 tablespoon chia seeds

7-10 deglet noor dates (you can use medjool dates too, but they are bigger so use about 4-5)

**make sure your dates are soft too so they blend well! soak in warm water for a few minutes if needed

1/2 frozen banana (you can use a whole, but then you might taste the banana flavor)

1/2 tsp of peppermint extract

Blend it all up, add a 4-5 ice cubes and then continue blending until smooth.

4. Black Friday

Are you a black Friday person?? I am fascinated with people who go stand in lines for hours or rush to the stores. I commend you. Because I would have a full blown anxiety attack or lose all patience and end up crying in line. Really though…that would not work out well for me. So I’m not a black Friday person. But I am an online shopping person so Cyber Monday is my jam if I want to buy anything on these big shopping days. I can sit in my PJs on my calm, quite and cozy couch and not have to deal with crowds. People can get quite aggressive on black Friday! I’m also an impulsive person so if I actually made it into the stores to shop without getting overwhelmed by the crowds I would see deals and sales and think “that’s such a good deal!” and come home with a bunch of stuff I didn’t actually need to buy… ha.

Even though I won’t be out shopping, I will be offering 30% off all online courses starting Black Friday (11/23) through Cyber Monday (11/26) using code RLRD30OFF. So if you’ve been on the fence about purchasing one of my online courses – now is the perfect time. This will be the biggest discount offered! If you have hormonal issues, body image struggles or are a clinician wanting to incorporate IE and HAES into your practice there is a course for you! These courses would make a great gift for a loved one too! Enroll here!

5. Don’t miss out on…

We have our next virtual Intuitive Eating Support Group starting on January 15th! I know this is a couple months away, but with the craziness of the holidays coming it’s easy to forget. And what better time to protect yourself from all the New Year diet noise and instead cocoon yourself in a supportive community of women who know what you’re going through? If this says anything about the group, we are now adding on more sessions after the 10 week group ends because the women want to continue with the group – and their wish is our command! Just saying. And don’t miss out on the new lower pricing for the New Year. You can read more here!

And lastly. If you have PCOS or are a clinician helping women with PCOS, but are sick of hearing about treatment options that only include birth control, other medications, weight loss and dieting – this webinar could be just what you’re looking for. I’m talking about evidence-based treatment and management of PCOS through an Intuitive Eating/Health At Every Size framework. The thing is, weight loss and dieting is actually harmful, not evidence based and can worsen PCOS. The optimal treatment approach for PCOS in multifactorial – lifestyle modifications, psychological treatment, supplements, and medications all play a role. If you’re interested in learning more you can sign up here for just $39! With the $39 monthly membership you get access to the PCOS webinar (earn 1 CPE as an RD) in addition to past webinar videos (worth 6 CPEs)  – you can cancel membership at any time. If you’d like to upgrade to the lifetime WellSeek membership, you can use the promo code: ROBYN10 for 10% off, which will be good through November 30th.

I hope you have a great week – share your thoughts for the week in the comments!

Al-Kuran, O., et al. (2011). “The effect of late pregnancy consumption of date fruit on labour and delivery.” J Obstet Gynaecol 31(1): 29-31.

Khadem N, Sharaphy A, Latifnejad R, Hammod N, I R. 2007. Comparing the efficacy of dates and oxytocin in the management of postpartum hemorrhage. Shiraz E-Medical Journal 8:64–71.

Kordi M, Meybodi FA, Tara F, Shakeri MT. (2014). “The effect of late pregnancy consumption of date fruit on cervical ripening in nulliparous women.” Journal of Midwifery and Reproductive Health 2:150–156.

Razali, N., et al. (2017). “Date fruit consumption at term: Effect on length of gestation, labour and delivery.” J Obstet Gynaecol: 1-6.