The Only Healthy Holiday Gift Guide You Need To Get Your Christmas Shopping Done

Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Get out your fuzzy slippers, your cozy pajamas, and your hot tea…we are less than two weeks away from Christmas! Hopefully for you, Christmas means relaxing and spending time with friends, family, and those you love. But before that relaxation can begin, there is surely much to do – from visiting Santa and making gingerbread houses, to prepping food and snacks and wrapping gifts.

Even so, before wrapping gifts comes purchasing gifts…and if you are like me most years, you still have some shopping to do. So, if you have been putting off shopping for your sister, your yoga instructor, your son’s teacher, or your bestie - simply because you just don't know what they would like - here is the only gift guide you will need to get the job done. The best part? From good nutrition to quality relaxation, these gifts enable better wellness.

Give the Gift of Better Nutrition

Skip the summer sausage and the artificially flavored/chemically colored holiday “treats.” Instead give the gift of better nutrition with these ideas:

Brassica Coffee and Tea with truebroc | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Leap Smoothies | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Coffee & Tea Sampler Pack: Pair your favorite coffees and teas along with a sassy foodie mug. One of my favorites morning beverages is Brassica coffee and tea with truebroc - it offers the powers of glucoraphanin, a special phytonutrient that enables healthy, natural detoxification.
Make-Your-Own Trail Mix Jars: Combine whole nuts and seeds with dried fruit and whole grain cereal and place in a glass jar with a festive ribbon tied around the top. Winning combos include pistachios with dried cherries and dark chocolate chips, or Nature's Path Cocoa Coconut Qi'a Superflakes with pecans and almonds. Gift this to your coworker or your child's teacher for a healthy desk-side snack!
Smoothie Packs: Simplify your sister's crazy busy life - while helping her eat better - by gifting her with Leap Smoothie packs. These packs offer 8 servings of organic fruits and vegetables, a healthy amount of protein, and feature functional ingredients like raspberries, goji berries, chlorella, and pomegranate. To create, simply mix the powder in the packs with water or other liquid (in a shaker cup or blender) for an on-the-go breakfast or post-workout option.

Give the Gift of Relaxation

Natural Calm | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Calming Down: Calm down your cells - from the inside out - with Natural Calm, a powder to drink with hot or cold water to allow magnesium to get inside your cells (and calcium outside) to help wind down the body's stress response. You can also get calm with Natural Calm Bath -- bath salts with magnesium and lavender. Pair it with an eye mask, some butter london nail polish, and some body oils for a complete destress kit.
Cozy Blanket: Give warmth and comfort this season with a cozy blanket, like these from Boll & Branch. Boll & Branch's blankets, bedding, and luxury sheets are made with high standards: they are ethically produced with organic cotton and shipped in luxurious reusable (or recyclable) packaging.

Give the Gift of Spirituality

Printable Wisdom | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

SheReadsTruth [Autoship]: Dive into Scripture with SheReadsTruth. Every month, your giftee will receive at least one book to help them learn, study, and reflect on text and themes in the Bible. If spirituality and learning the truth is what your loved one is craving, this is the perfect fit - and a gift that keeps giving all year round.
Scripture Prints: Your home is a reflection of who you are. Gift scripture prints like this one from Printable Wisdom -- both small and large prints can framed for decoration and for help with Scripture memorization.

Give the Gift of Creativity

Dot To Dot | Creative Wellness | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Adult Coloring Book: Aesthetic wellness for your foodie friend is delivered with this Foodie Coloring Book. Whether you'd like your loved one to use it to help relieve stress or to enjoy it just for fun, a set of colored pencils and this 128-page book makes the perfect Holiday stocking stuffer.
1000 Dot-to-Dot: According to its description on Amazon, Dot-To-Dot puzzles have been shown to "improve short-term cognitive acuity, hand-eye coordination, and concentration skills." If that's not enough, they also satisfy the inner child in us all. Win!

Give the Gift of Physical Activity

Skiing | Healthy Holiday Gift Guide 2016 | Tori Schmitt, MS, RDN, LD

Online Gym Membership: You read that right! Now, you don't even have to leave your home to get a gym-like workout. Check out these 6 online gyms featured by Well + Good. Perhaps a membership to one would work for that hard-to-buy-for fitness bestie who loves her workout DVDs but is getting oh-so-tired of them?
Outdoor Winter Wellness Opportunities: Give the gift of physical activity -- without making it feel like a workout! Opt for gift cards to the nearest ski resort to allow your loved one to ski, snowboard, snowshoe, ice skate, or snow tube.

Material things aside, remember the words of American cookbook author, Peg Bracken, when she said, “gifts of time and love are surely the basic ingredients of a truly Merry Christmas.” Take your sis out for a barre-crawl (hit up some local juice shops after a barre class), spend some time with your mom walking at her favorite state park, or with your bestie, opt to not purchase gifts for each other but to instead volunteer at a local food pantry together.

Remember the reason for the season – and aim to live it out this month and into 2017.