Blog Posts by The Editors of WOMEN'S HEALTH

If only this joyous season were filled with just that-joy. But the truth is, the holidays bring a ton of stress, not the least of which is financial. I mean, all those presents, hostess gifts, cookie ingredients, and plane tickets add up! Which is why it's no surprise that couples often spar about money at this time of year.

To help spare you and your honey from cash squabbles, we got advice from a few experts:financial advisor Bambi Holzer, author of Financial Bliss: A Couple's Guide to Merging Money Styles and Building a Rich Life Together; etiquette expert Peter Post, author of Essential Manners for Couples: From Snoring and Sex to Finances and Fighting Fair; and Helen Fisher, Ph.D., a professor of anthropology at Rutgers University. Here, some dough dilemmas and peace-keeping tips:

1. He wants to go in on family gifts together, but she thinks it's too soon for joint purchases.

Fisher: You should be close to getting engaged [if you want to give joint gifts]. From an

The holiday season is one of my favorite times of year, what with the cocktail parties, fantastic sales, and excuse to eat more than my fair share of chocolate. But what I don't enjoy so much is the mounting stress to get everything done by a rapidly approaching deadline. That's why I was thrilled when I came across these six easy ways to ease stress-fast. The best part: They won't siphon off your gift-buying budget.

1. Tea Off

In a study at University College in London, 75 volunteers drank the equivalent of a cup of black tea before completing two stressful tasks. Afterward, their cortisol levels dropped an average of 47 percent, compared with 27 percent for the people who didn't imbibe.

Try these stress-busting tea options.

2. Just Say "%&*# It!"

Swearing reduces stress, according to research published in the Leadership & Organization Development Journal. I don't suggest dropping an F-bomb in the middle of an intimate dinner party, but a strategically placed

When we're insanely busy and in need of every ounce of energy we can muster, the very thing that fuels us is the first to get dropped from the to-do list: Exercise.

Luckily, there's a way to fit workouts into your already full schedule. It boils down to one simple principle: Get in and get out! By making every second at the gym count, you'll see results faster and have no excuse for skipping those important sweat sessions. Here's a plan to get you started:

COME UP WITH A STRATEGY

Without one, workout time becomes wasted time. Figure out what equipment you need before you start, says Ed Scow, a certified personal trainer in Lincoln, Nebraska. Grab what you need-dumbbells, stability ball, bands-and put them near a mat or adjustable bench so you can do your entire workout in one place. "You won't expend time wandering from machine to machine or waiting in line," Scow says. "And by creating your own personal space at the gym, you maximize your intensity and efficiency,

Cheating rarely gets you ahead in life. But when it comes to dieting, it turns out that going off course occasionally can help you get into shape. In fact, research shows that a flexible approach to eating leads to more weight loss than an all-or-nothing strategy. We got leading nutrition pros to fess up to the diet violations they commit, without gaining weight. Let their rule-breaking strategies inspire you.

1. The Rule: Eat five small meals a day.

Who breaks it: Renee Melton, R.D., director of nutrition services for the mobile weight-loss program Sensei. "My schedule doesn't give me time to prepare healthy snacks, much less eat them, so I make sure I get what I need in three squares a day."

Why you can too: The graze-don't-gorge philosophy is based on the premise that having frequent small meals keeps your blood sugar steady, your metabolism ramped up, and your appetite in check. But some studies show a link between obesity and eating more than three times a day,

We all know what it feels like to be frazzled, and it's not fun. But I recently learned something interesting, albeit counterintuitive, about stress: Some events that make us want to tear our hair out can actually be beneficial to our bodies. You see, when stress comes in short blasts (such as giving a work presentation), our bodies instantly go on the defense, causing our cells to emit healing properties and our immune system to rev up for a fight. This physiological chain reaction can actually help you live longer.

But here's the catch: In order to reap the benefits of stress, you need to chase your meltdowns with some downtime. Your body can't start repairing itself until you begin to relax. And at the same time, you have to strike the right balance between having too much stress and too little (yes, there is such a thing). Here are five ways to help you find your stress sweet spot:

1. Keep a stress calendar

You know when you're tense, but it's hard to remember how

Every woman on the planet has experienced the maddening feeling that they're being tuned out by the guy in their life. Well, I stumbled on a fascinating little piece of biology that may unlock the doghouse door for men everywhere: Studies show that men have an easier time processing the sound of other men's voices than they do women's voices. But that doesn't mean you'll never be heard! Here are four easy ways to penetrate the male brain.

TALK SIDE BY SIDE

If you're broaching a potentially sticky subject (stuff like your wanting to get married, or his partying too much), avoid a face-to-face conversation. "Although it seems counterintuitive, insisting on eye contact while hashing out an issue can actually make the problem worse," says Scott Haltzman, M.D., coauthor of The Secrets of Happily Married Women. Looking him directly in the eye can make him feel threatened-and when confronted, men instinctively kick into survival mode, triggering a fight-or-flight response. To put

Massages deserve to be at the very top of the list of life's great pleasures. After all, a great rubdown does more than just ease achy muscles-it can melt away stress or get you in the mood for sex. So whether you want to wind down or get all wound up, there's a massage here to meet your needs.

Sensory

Massage typically aims to engage as many senses as possible (which explains the standard-issue scented oil, flickering candlelight, and soft music); but try blocking one of them out. "Anytime you restrict one sense, the other four instantly become magnified to compensate," says Sandor Gardos, Ph.D., founder of mypleasure.com, an online adult toy store.

Eliminate sight by wearing a blindfold while he rubs you down (or have him don one if you're playing masseuse). "When you can't see, you don't know what will happen next, which heightens excitement," Gardos says. Or block out sound by nixing the soft music and instituting a "no talking" rule. Taking a vow of silence and

Raise your hand if you've ever knocked back a frappa-latte-something-or-other on the go or downed several glasses of wine with a super-healthy dinner. I know I have. The problem: We somehow forget to calculate the caloric impact liquids have on our diet. And get this: Roughly 37 percent of our total daily calories come from sugar-sweetened drinks, according to a recent study published in the American Journal of Nutrition.

In other words, we're sucking down an average of 400 calories a day! Even worse, guzzling these beverages has a bigger effect on our waistlines than anything else we eat. The upside to all of this is that kicking these bad slurping habits is one of the easiest ways to drop weight fast. Here's how to monitor your liquid consumption.

Drink These Freely:

Tea

We may live in the land of the Big Gulp, but for the rest of the world, tea is the most popular beverage after water. And for good reason: Hot or cold, it's calorie-free, and studies have