Reduce stress during the holidays

Life can get very stressful, from work to taking care of your family, it seems like time for yourself goes out the window. Now, with the holidays coming up, there is even more to be stressed about. So how do you get all the jobs done and still have time for yourself?

Healthy lifestyle expert and author of Stress Less, Weigh Less Holly Mosier says, controlling your stress starts with "opting out." This concept explains that you need to cut out activities that do not serve you. Your day is for you and needs to be manageable.

Mosier knows first hand what a stressful life can do to someone.

"When I turned 40 I hit a wall, I was fatigued and overweight, I was a mom, a stepmother and a trial lawyer and I thought, what will I feel like at 60 or 70 at this rate?"

Stress increases stress hormones, such as cortisol, she says, this hormone increases appetite for fatty foods. You know, like that jar of cookies you go for when you've had a rough week.

She says, when the holiday seasons come around, her stress would increase 10-fold. Mosier suggests that during the holiday season you choose to focus on it for one day, do not stress about gifts or making meals. For example, instead of buying a gift for everyone at your party, she says, have a gift drawing. Instead of washing dishes, use disposable ones.

Simple things will take alot of stressors out of your day, making you able to enjoy each moment.

You can find Holly's book, Stress Less, Weigh Less at Barnes and Noble , Books-A-Million, Indie Bound, Borders, Target , and Amazon.com .

For more information go to www.hollymosier.com .