Hungry Anyone? Tips to Get Through the Holiday Season in a Healthy Way
It’s November now! It’s hard to believe that this year has zoomed by so fast. As the weather and seasons change, it’s time to get ready for the holidays!
For those who love the holiday season like me, this time of year may be thrilling! Others may find it hard because of recent loses in their lives or just because of the amount of temptations on each Thanksgiving and Christmas table. Wherever you are on this spectrum, we all have to get ready for what’s ahead. Here are some steps to curb your diet through the holiday season.
Bring a Healthy Dish to Holiday Parties
At work, school, or parties of family and friends, you may find lots of food around you. From turkey to cookies, you’ll find many of your favorite treats just an arm length away. What to do in times like these? Bring your own healthy yet delicious dishes to parties. This gives you an option if you don’t have any other healthy choices on the spread in front of you. You can always depend on your dish to curb your appetite in a healthy way.
This has definitely worked for me in the past at family gatherings. For my family holidays I started to bring a sautéed corn dish with onion and bell peppers. Some people call this Mexican corn. I just call it my staple healthy dish. In it I use minimal salt, pepper, and use only natural seasonings. If I use butter, it’s usually “I can’t believe it’s not butter”. So overall the dish has very little calories, but very big taste. And guess what? My family likes it so much, they ask me to bring it every year.
Keep Score of What You are Eating
I tell patients this ALL the time no matter what the season. Writing down the foods you eat and keeping score (which could mean calorie counting for some) can literally change your diet in a few strokes of a pen. Many times we don’t even think about what we eat on a daily basis. We just try to fill ourselves up with yumminess, not thinking that it may cause issues like diabetes and high blood pressure in later years. For women, you daily calorie intake is 2000 (1500 calories if you want to lose weight). For men, it is 2500 daily calories or 2000 for losing weight.
By keeping a tally of what you are eating and drinking, you’ll be able to better determine if you should take that last bite of that delicious cookie with vanilla frosting. Your list of foods will keep you accountable and in check for the new year.
Look at the Menu before you go to a Restaurant
Some people look at menus to see if their favorite dish is on it. I look at the menu to see if there are any healthy dishes available. I don’t mean that you have to order a salad at every restaurant. No, you don’t have to do that, but if you want to that is fine. I am saying you can order healthier alternatives like fish instead of steak or chicken instead of pork. Please don’t starve yourself though or deprive yourself of good food, just be mindful that you have healthy options.
These are just a few tips that may help you through the holiday season. If you have more helpful tips that work for you, be sure to share them in the comment section. We are a community here and want to help uplift everyone.
