There is no doubt, this year’s holiday season will be somewhat different. Many families will choose smaller events with only the people in their bubbles. Even with less pressure and tension from serving and hosting large groups, the stress and isolation due to the pandemic is weighing on most people. The good news is that smaller gatherings can be more intimate and encourage healthier holiday food options.
Healthy eating tips for this holiday season:
Break from tradition: Instead of feeling like you need to hit on every tradition and make every single dish that you usually have at your parties, this is a great excuse to try something new. Consider a themed holiday dinner (think French countryside, Tapas, or even Harry Potter) and opt for healthier dishes that include grilled meats and vegetables. Building a meal around a soup, stew, or chili main course could also be fun. Not only do soups warm up a cold body, but they can also be quicker and healthier than traditional plated meals.
Include the kids: While kids love decorating sweets and cookies, also include the kids in making healthy dishes like a Christmas tree crudités or crudités wreath. Be sure to include more kid friendly veggies like broccoli, tomatoes or carrots. If veggies aren’t your family’s thing, try a fruit Christmas tree or Grinch kabobs.
Don’t go overboard: Unless you’re planning to make cookies or cakes as gifts for family and friends, limit the amount of sweets coming into the house. Pick a few favorites, but don’t get carried away. Odds are you will have less people coming over, so there’s no reason to make a never-ending array of cookies and cakes. If desserts are a key aspect of your holiday celebrations, look for ways to lighten things up with healthier recipes or by choosing to make mini versions of your favorites like these mini cheesecakes.
Go vegetarian: In addition to helping the environment, eating vegetarian is often healthier than meat-based diets. Consider integrating one vegetarian meal on a major holiday this winter. This list includes classics from broccoli-cheddar casserole to butternut squash and spinach lasagna—so the options are endless.
Integrate exercise: Hopefully you’ve already found a groove for integrating some exercise into your weekly routines. Exercise is so important because it releases endorphins, which will boost your mood and well-being. Never under estimate the power of exercise. It’s never too late to get started. Make it a point to integrate 20+ minutes of exercise on days where you will be eating more than usual. This can include many at-home activities such as walking and workout videos (yoga, aerobics, etc.). The key is to work in exercises with some consistency, even if it’s just a couple of times a week.
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The holiday season can be a wonderful time of the year to enjoy with your family and friends. The list of events often appears endless: work parties, school events, and big family dinners, to name a few. In between all the formal engagements comes shopping, cleaning, cooking, baking, planning, and scheduling. It’s easy to get lost in the details and miss actually enjoying yourself. Here are a few ways to keep calm this December.
- Slow down! While it’s easier said than done, especially with the aforementioned list of holiday duties, take time to enjoy yourself and your loved ones. Shift your focus from relying on drawing gratitude from material goods and work on loving the time you get to spend with your family. Look for ways to prioritize memories!
- It’s okay to say, no! With so much pressure to be a million places, buy a ton of gifts, and make endless batches of cookies and brownies, it can easily lead to exhaustion. Instead of agreeing to every holiday request, look for a way to balance the plans. Try to incorporate self-care into the mix. It’s okay to send bought cookies to your child’s school function and it’s okay to say no to events if you are already booked up.
- Find help by working with friends. When you can’t say no, look for ways to combine forces with a friend or another mom in the community. Odds are your friends, especially other moms, will also be stretched thin. Carpooling, baking parties, and holiday meal prep gatherings can help spread out your load.
- Look for ways to include your kiddos in the plans. While this is tricky with small children, kids five and up can certainly lend a hand. By being involved in the cooking, cleaning, and planning of the events, odds are the kids will feel more connected to it. Some ideas include having the kids make holiday cards, wrap presents, set the holiday table settings, or even come up with a holiday variety show act to entertain guests.
- Acknowledge your feelings. Most people feel moments of sadness around the holidays. Whether it’s sadness from a lost loved one, a break up, or even feelings of isolation or loneliness, it’s best to allow yourself to accept the feeling. It’s okay to take some time to be sad or to cry. Feel it and work to move on. If having trouble with the feelings, then reach out for help. Look for local social, religious, or community organizations that can help you deal with the emotion.
- Stick to a plan! One of the best ways to navigate the holidays is to plan your activities in advance. This will help you stay organized and be less stressed overall. While using a calendar to plan activities is a no brainer, also make lists of what needs to be done (cooking/shopping/cleaning) and lists of items you plan to purchase.
- Lastly, take a break! If you find yourself feeling stressed in the moment, try taking a 10- or 15-minute break to clear your mind. Some ideas include a crisp walk around the block to stargaze or look at the neighborhood lights, following a short yoga or guided meditation video online or on your phone, or even simply taking some time to sit in a quiet room with music on. Do your best to enjoy this wonderful time of year.
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How to Survive the Holidays Without Overindulging
It’s the most wonderful time of the year again, and you’re freaking out. Everywhere you go, you don’t see glistening snow and smell effervescent pine cones. You see sugar topped cookies and cakes and smell savory roasted meats. You love so much about the holiday season, but you dread all the extra calories that come along with parties, gifts of food, and magical memory merrymaking.
Don’t hide in your house all season long just to avoid the temptation of holiday eats. Follow these seven holiday hacks to get the most out of the season of joy without overindulging or packing on the pounds.
- Protect Yourself from Mid-Day Temptation with a High Protein Breakfast. Oh no. Carol brought her famous gingerbread cookies into the office, and you’re starving. Before you know it, one little gingerbread man has turned into four, and you’re laden with guilt and gumdrop button crumbs. You’ll be better able to fight mid-day sugar cravings and unexpected temptations if you start with a healthy breakfast that includes hunger-quenching protein. Consider a healthy protein shake as a way to start your day off right.
- Eat Something Healthy Before Grocery Shopping. Not only are you surrounded by holiday treats at home, the office, and all your friends’ houses, you’re surrounded at the grocery store. Walk through the bakery this time of year and it’s even more tempting than usual since it’s packed with holiday cookies, fruit cake, and yule logs. Researchers from Cornell University found that if you eat something healthy before you grocery shop, you’ll be less likely to add unnecessary junk food items to your cart. Never grocery shop hungry, or else your bad decisions will follow you home for the holidays in the form of pumpkin spice ice cream, pumpkin spice bagels, and pumpkin spice potato chips (oh yes, they’re real).
- Don’t Skip Your Daily Workout. Your calendar may be filled with parties, shopping, and other holiday commitments, but it’s more important than ever to make sure you’re getting exercise daily. Thirty minutes of exercise five days a week will help you stay energized, burn calories, and make better dietary decisions. And yes, mall walking can count.
- Don’t Skip Meals Before Holiday Parties. Admit it. You skipped lunch before your Thanksgiving dinner, didn’t you? Let us guess. You figured you’d eat the equivalent of two of your regular meals during your Thanksgiving feast, so you would be better off skipping lunch. This choice can be an all-too-easy diet mistake. You’re better off eating a small, healthy meal before that big dinner party. Walk into cocktail hour starving, and you’ll be more likely to indulge in extra hors-d’oeuvres and chug an extra pint. Take the edge off your cravings with a healthy lunch so you can enjoy the company of the other party guests, and make sensible choices, no matter what’s on the menu.
- Take Your Dog for an Extra Walk (or Two). It can be tempting to stay indoors when the weather turns cold, but you and your dog both need to get your 10,000 steps in for the day. Commit to walking your dog before, or after dinner every day. Or, step up the challenge and walk him before and after dinner. We’re sure he’ll thank you with lots of extra love.
- Put Away Your Loose-Fitting Sweats. On chilly weekend days, all you want is to cozy up in warm sweatpants, but doing so may thwart your diet plan. When you regularly wear loose-fitting clothes, it can be easier not to notice the addition of a few extra pounds. Instead, choose formfitting clothing that makes you feel confident. It will encourage you to exercise and make healthy meal decisions throughout the day when you’re not hiding under layers of cotton-polyester blend.
- Stop Drinking Soda. Just Stop. Empty calories that come from sugary drinks can quickly lead to extra pounds you never saw coming. Always choose water over pop, sweet teas, energy drinks, and that extra glass of wine, especially during the holidays. Not only will you cut back on calories, drinking plenty of water will help you stay hydrated, shed pounds, curb cravings, and make healthy decisions throughout the day.
Remember, you don’t have to fear the holidays or go into December feeling resigned to weight gain. Yes, you will face extra food temptations, and your calendar will make it harder to find time for exercise this season, but consider it a challenge to head into 2018 as the best version of you possible—healthy, happy, and confident.
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