| Food
is an important part of many holidays, celebrations, family
and cultural traditions.
In fact, special occasions often center around food. As a
result, many people gain a little (or a lot of) weight between
Thanksgiving and the New Year.
What’s to blame? Perhaps it’s all
the tempting treats available during the holiday season or
the pressure from family, friends, and co-workers to overeat.
Maybe it’s the increased emotional eating (whether it
be from holiday stress or holiday joy) or the extreme laxity
with eating and physical activity regimens in anticipation
for the strict “new diet and exercise plan” you’re
going to start January 1st.
Regardless of the reasons, it is not necessary
to avoid holiday festivities in an attempt to maintain your
weight. Consider these 10 tips for
fully enjoying the holiday season without gaining weight!
1. |
Focus
on weight maintenance vs. weight loss during the holidays.
If you are currently overweight and want to lose weight,
this is not the time to do it. Maintenance of your present
weight is a big enough challenge during the holiday season.
Don’t set yourself up for failure by making unrealistic
goals for yourself.
|
2. |
Plan
on NOT dieting after the New Year. Anticipation
of food restriction sets you up for binge-type eating
over the holidays (“after all, if I’m never
going let myself eat this again after Jan. 1st, I might
as well eat as much as possible now!”) Besides,
restrictive diets don’t work in the long run. They
increase your loss of lean body mass vs. fat, slow down
your metabolism, increase anxiety, depression, food preoccupation,
and binge eating, and make weight re-gain more likely.
|
| 3. |
Be
physically active every day. Often, busy holiday
schedules (or lack of structured schedules) bump off exercise
routines. Physical activity, especially aerobic activities
(like brisk walking, jogging, bicycling, and swimming)
can help relieve stress, regulate appetite, and burn up
extra calories from holiday eating.
|
| 4. |
Eat
a light snack before going to holiday parties.
It is not a good idea to arrive at a party famished. Not
only are you more likely to overeat, but you are also
less likely to resist the temptation of eating the higher
fat and higher calorie foods. Try eating a piece of fruit,
a small carton of yogurt, or a string cheese before you
go.
|
| 5. |
Make
a plan. Think about where you will be, who you
will be with, what foods will be available, what foods
are really special to you (that you really want to eat)
vs. those that you could probably do without, what are
your personal triggers to overeat and how can you minimize
them. Once you've thought about all of these things, make
a plan of action. It's much easier to deal with a difficult
social eating situation if you've already planned for
it.
|
| 6. |
Take
steps to avoid recreational eating. While some
foods are more calorie-dense than others, no food will
make you gain weight unless you eat too much of it. At
parties and holiday dinners, we tend to eat (or keep eating)
beyond our body’s physical hunger simply because
food is there and eating is a “social thing.”
To avoid recreational eating, consciously make one plate
of the foods you really want. Eat it slowly— enjoying
and savoring every tasty bite. Then, when you’re
done, pop a mint or stick of gum in your mouth, get a
tall glass of water and sip on it throughout the night,
or position yourself away from the buffet table or food
trays to keep yourself from overeating.
|
| 7. |
Reduce
the fat in holiday recipes. There are plenty of
low fat and low calorie substitutes that are amazingly
tasty. Try using applesauce in place of oil in your favorite
holiday breads; use egg substitutes in place of whole
eggs; try plain nonfat yogurt in place of sour cream.
Magazines are full of reduced calorie and reduced fat
holiday recipes. Give them a try, and share your cooking
creations with friends and family.
|
| 8. |
Choose
your beverages wisely. Alcohol is high in calories.
Liquors, sweet wines and sweet mixed drinks contain 150-450
calories per glass. By contrast, water and diet sodas
are calorie-free. If you choose to drink, select light
wines and beers, and use non-alcoholic mixers such as
water and diet soda. Limit your intake to 1 or 2 alcoholic
drinks per occasion. And, watch out for calories in soda,
fruit punch, and egg nog as well.
|
| 9. |
Enjoy
good friends and family. Although food can be a
big part of the season, it doesn’t have to be the
focus. Holidays are a time to reunite with good friends
and family, to share laughter and cheer, to celebrate
and to give thanks. Focus more on these other holiday
pleasures, in addition to the tastes of holiday foods.
The important thing to remember is balance and moderation.
It’s OK to eat too much once in a while. Just relax,
enjoy the holidays, and remember what the season is all
about.
|
| 10. |
Maintain
perspective. Overeating one day won't make or break
your eating plan. And it certainly won't make you gain
weight! It takes days and days of overeating to gain weight.
If you over-indulge at a holiday meal, put it behind you.
Return to your usual eating plan the next day without
guilt or despair. |
|
