As I type this, my niece and nephew are taking naps. Not gonna lie, Aunt Kimmie had a nap too.

In fact, I think Aunt Kimmie probably needed the nap more than they did. 

Ho ho ho my goodness. 

So far today we've played hot potato, made ginger bread houses (so sticky), and played football in the back yard.

Before I get back to to "Despicable Me," I thought I'd throw out a couple of last minute gift ideas for the fitness enthusiast in your life. Or the person who is planning to become a fitness enthusiast in the new year. 

1. The New Rules of Lifting books

If you can get to your local Barnes and Nobles, pick up one any one of Lou Schuler's New Rules of Lifting books. I got my first start with fitness by using The New Rules of Lifting for Women - it was both an education on lifting and also included six months worth of programming from Alwyn Cosgrove and some great recipes from Cassandra Forsythe. It's the best 15 bucks you can spend.

Though I haven't had a chance to read it yet, Lou and Alwyn recently updated the original book with "Strong," which includes nine workout programs. They have several books in the series, and any one of them would be a great pick up for someone wanting to get fit.

2. A heart rate strap

While there are plenty of fitness devices out there that will track your heart rate, I've found that the straps you wear around your chest work best. To date, I've tried out three different brands, including Polar, Wahoo, and MyZone. The MyZone straps are often sold and used at certain gyms (we use them at Spurling), but both Polar and Wahoo can be found on Amazon or at Best Buy. 

If your recipient is a smart phone user, the Polar H7 Bluetooth Heart Rate Sensor or the Wahoo Tickr Heart Rate Monitor both work with smart phones or Apple Watches. Either option will cost you around 50 bucks. Though I haven't done my own review on this site, I'd rank them, in order of performance, just the way they are here. The MyZone has worked best for me, followed by the Polar and then the Wahoo.

If you'd like to read a more thorough review, check out this recent article from ware.com.

3. Fitness E-books

If you're looking for something a little more advanced and you don't have time to actually go anywhere, there are some fantastic e-products out there, including Eric Cressey's High Performance Handbook which is the closest thing you can find to working out at Cressey Sports Performance. This program is perfect for anyone who is looking for some guidance on strength training - and Eric has broken the programming down into either two days, three days, or four days. 

You could also hop on over to Nia Shanks website (check it out even if you don't need gifts) and purchase the Lift Like a Girl Fat Loss program, or check out the Modern Women's Guide to Strength Training from the ladies over at Girls Gone Strong. 

Ok, the kids are awake and we're about to get our Minions on. 

In a few days I’m going to release my first free e-product.

Are you excited at the prospect?

Or are you wondering what the *** an e-product is?

It’s a free downloadable guide with tips on staying sane and on-track with your fitness goals during the holidays.

Rooney is a BIG fan of the holidays. Especially my annual holiday card.

But in the meantime, here are a few thoughts on managing your fitness during the holiday week.

1. Workout hard earlier in the week

Whether your traveling to family or family is coming to you, chances are Monday and Tuesday are for putting in a longer day at work and washing all of the sheets in the spare rooms.

Include a long workout one of these days.

This is your go all out, leave it all on the floor strength training session that includes a thorough 10 minute warm up (but you guys always warm up, right?), 45 minutes of strength training, and a finisher.*  This type of workout will boost your metabolism, which is what you want heading into a holiday week.

2. Get in one more workout for the week

By Wednesday you’re probably doing food-prep and I live with a chef so I’ve seen what Wednesday nights before Thanksgiving can look like. So that’s the day for a quick kettlebell workout at home or a 20 minute walk with the dog.

For a short kettlebell circuit at home, try a reverse ladder of 10 kettlebell swings and one kettlebell clean. For the next cycle do nine swings and two cleans, until you’ve made your way to one swing and 10 cleans.

On Thursday you should eat. If you like Thanksgiving dinner, just eat.

By Friday, if you’re not still in a food coma, get back on the workout wagon with a quick trip to the gym or another at home workout.

3. Keep your toe in the water

The goal for the week is to stay present with the moments you have and enjoy the family, friends and food. That’s the goal for the week. Fitness-wise, it’s about having the mindset that you’ll do what you can for the week and not judge yourself for what doesn’t happen.

Most of all, don’t let this be a week that derails you for the rest of the year. We’ve got six weeks left in 2016. You don’t have to wait until January to get back on track.  

Happy Saturday!

My first full week of being 40 has been filled with the norovirus. I'll wait while you google that if you're unfamiliar.

You're welcome. Hopefully I only share that special kind of hell verbally and not physically.

Also, when I renewed my driver's license, I was informed that I had to take an eye exam because I'm "over 40."

This isn't on the list, but smoothies are a great way to get some quality nutrition. In the picture above, I've got almond milk, a scoop of vanilla protein powder, greek yogurt, berries, and a greens supplement. 

Let the games begin.

I joke, but a friend put it best the other day: enjoy the privilege of aging. 

Anyway, a full four days of ginger ale has me thinking full steam about nutrition and the kinds of food I plan to eat when I starting putting solid food back in my system. So with that in mind, here are five random thoughts on nutrition:

1. Track your food for a week

It sounds so basic, but the best way to figure out how to make changes to your diet is to spend some time tracking everything you eat.

And I mean everything.

Apps like MyFitnessPal have made this process much easier, as you can scan a barcode, type in the serving amount, and voila! You have your total calorie amount.

The catch is to track everything and to be totally honest for one week. This includes salad dressings, drinks, snacks, apples, chocolate chips, supplements; track it all.

2. Measure your food

This goes along with the first thought, but measuring your food for a few days can be very helpful. Let me tell you how I felt when I measured out an actual serving of Trader Joe's Trail Mix versus what I felt was a serving.

Very. Sad. In. My. Heart.

Measuring is especially important with any oils or dressings your using. I've seen folks who practice clean eating and don't  see the results they expect. Often it comes down to something as simple as recognizing you were using three tablespoons of olive oil on your salad instead of one tablespoon.

Three tablespoons equate to 360 calories and 42 grams of fat. 

But it's easy to over-use if you don't measure. 

3. Find like-minded people who support your nutrition changes  

When you begin to turn down the sweets around the office or french fries when out with friends, others often react to what your personal changes mean about them. If you're cutting down on carbs and I'm not, I might suddenly feel guilty that I'm not joining you. So my reaction, sometimes without even thinking about it, is to pressure you. 

"It's just one night."

"You're going to the gym every day."

"It's just dessert." 

The bottom line is finding a supportive group of people who respect your wishes. Sure it's ok to indulge now and then when you're making these changes. But if you're constantly swimming upstream because no one around is supporting your decisions, it will be a lot harder to stay the course.  

4. Make small changes 

Overhauling your entire nutrition plan is a lot to ask. And yet almost all of us do it, and many of us are caught in a cycle of doing it over and over again. First of all, we're overwhelmed with the amount of options out there, and it's hard to decide which one is right. 

Whichever route you decide to take, practice changing one habit per week. (Tracking your food intake can help you make these decisions). 

Start with the empty calories in drinks. Sodas, iced teas, even some types of flavored waters can have 45-90 calories. 

Are you eating two breakfasts? Do you eat when you get up and then eat again a few hours later? Try eliminating one of those meals and see how you feel. Sometimes we eat out of habit, and not out of hunger. 

5.Practice the 80/20 rule.

Some of the simplest nutritional advice I've ever seen is from Tony Gentilcore. "Don't eat like an a**hole." It's concrete, to the point advice, that might lack some details but sums up the basic idea behind clean eating.

Most of us know what we need to do, it's just a question of doing it. Eating clean is simple, but that doesn't mean it's easy.

It's also nearly impossible to eat perfectly all of the time. Thanksgiving is next week; there will be pie, and turkey and gravy and pie. The 80/20 rule means that you're eating clean at least 80% of the time, and understanding that 20% of the time you're going to be at family gatherings or on vacations where you can't stick to all of the same habits. Allow for those times. 

And enjoy your Saturday.