Do you get swept up in the holiday season overeating?
The holiday season is typically a carousel of large quantities of comfort food and celebrations with loved ones.
This creates a perfect storm for indulging and stuffing ourselves with extra helpings of turkey, baked goodies and not to mention dessert.
If your goal is to come through the holiday season stress-free and arrive in 2020 in tip-top shape, listen up!
Here are 5 no brainer strategies to survive the holiday season
Strategy 1: Holiday eating guidelines.
By setting a holiday eating strategy you will create some clear guidelines to follow.
Guidelines are different from diet rules that can leave you feeling deprived or feeling guilty because you don’t follow them.
By doing this in advance will:
- Take the stress out of having to make food choices in the moment.
- Target your eating so that it allows you to feel (physically and emotionally) the way you want to feel.
Set a clear guideline now about anything you can eliminate from your food over the holiday period.
For example:
- What could you say no to that you wouldn’t really miss?
- What are the holiday treats that you don’t want to miss?
Strategy 2: Connection
One of the biggest keys to truly enjoying your holiday is creating connection with others.
People often think that we connect over food, but the reality is that we connect over being
together, sharing conversation.
You can still enjoy the holiday without indulging in tons food.
For example, when at a party:
- Focus on the people. Not the food.
- Start a conversation.
Allow yourself to be vulnerable and take the conversations deeper by asking them:
- How has this year been challenging for you?
- What have you learned?
- What’s meaningful to you these days?
Strategy 3: Eat Mindfully
Learning to pay full attention to the food in front of you can help you to be conscious of whether you’re hungry or when you’ve become full.
For example, follow these steps:
- Pay attention to the multisensory experience of eating. By doing so you can learn your sense of fullness.
- Eat slowly. Giving your body the chance to cue your brain that you are full.
- Use a smaller plate. Research shows that people automatically eat less if they simply use a smaller plate.
Strategy 4: Savour your food
Have you ever eaten something at a party mindlessly and without even noticing it?
Savouring allows you to completely and fully experience and enjoy the food that you’re eating.
Studies confirm, that the people who overeat the most, savour the least.
When you take the time to savour your food you will feel more satisfied with what you’ve eaten – and will likely eat less.
Here are some tips:
- Make a commitment to savour your food.
- Be fully present when you are eating.
- Notice the taste, texture and smell of your food.
- Don’t eat when you are talking with someone.
- Be aware of when you’ve satisfied your physical hunger and stop eating.
Strategy 5: Re-energise.
Excessive holiday eating and drinking can to put your body under a lot of stress and compromise your immune system.
The liver is the hardest working organ in your body.
- One of its jobs is to help clear the blood of alcohol, bacteria, allergens and chemicals that can be harmful to the body.
- Another is to balance glucose, fat, vitamin and mineral levels.
To help combat these toxins and boost your immune system, add the following foods that are rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals:
- Fruit rich in antioxidants –antioxidants are compounds that your body makes naturally. You can also get them from foods. (such as blueberries, goji berries, strawberries,
- Vegetables (such as red cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, spinach and broccoli)
- Nuts and seeds (lower inflammation)
- Drink dandelion tea (to combat the havoc that alcohol has on your gut.)
- And take some extra supplements that help your body to repair and keep you energised:
- Milk thistle (helps your liver to cope)
- Magnesium (reduces the stress hormone levels that are elevated by alcohol.)
Now I would love to hear from you……
- What is your favourite holiday strategy?
Please let me know in the comments.
The Carousel would like to thank Irena Geller for her article.
