Staying Lean Over the Holidays
By Nutritionist: Kelly Carter BASc (Hons), CNP
This can be the most challenging time of the year – especially when it comes to sticking to our diet and exercise plan we have been working on since the start of the last New Year!
Here are my TOP 13 TIPS to control your calorie intake this holiday season:
1. Don’t make is JUST about the food.
Don’t make food the center of your attention, focus, or obsession. Instead focus on what the holidays are truly about, spending time with friends and family, caring for others, showing and expressing gratitude, and being mindful of your actions. Continue living your “normal” life and routine (i.e. you wouldn’t normal over indulge in pies, cookies, or cakes on a daily or weekly basis, why start now just because it’s the “season”).
2. BYOD (bring your own dish!).
When you can, bring your own healthy dish! If you are hosting a party make sure that there are enough dishes that resemble natural foods such as a vegetable dish, whole grains, lean protein or bean salad. When you can focus on your proteins, vegetables, whole grains, nuts/seeds and beans first the processed, high fat, high sugar, high calorie foods will be consumed in lesser amounts.
3. Careful with the sauces!
When you can take control of what goes on your plate. Gravy’s and sauces are a fantastic way to ramp up your calorie intake quickly. A great way to make the turkey, roast beef and mashed potatoes healthier is to forego the sauces or just spoon a little on for flavour.
4. Be aware of the calories that you drink!
Sometimes at certain family gatherings we downright need a good cocktail to get through the night. However – they can pack on the sugar and calories quickly!
Did you know that a bottle of red wine can contain between 600 and 800 calories? Or that 1 shot of vodka is roughly 100 calories?
Start the night off with a soda water + lime “mix drink”. Sip on it for the first hour and then instead of overindulging in the sweet, exotic drinks, stick to the basics. Reach for light beer or clear liquors like Vodka mixed with water OR if you MUST have some sweeter mix drink Sugar Free Red Bull /Diet Coke. These drinks will not only eliminate that post cocktail bloat, they will also add up to only about half the calories of other drinks. Also, it is a good idea in between each alcoholic drink to have a glass of water to rehydrate.
5. Check in and weigh yourself.
This is something I do not usually recommend – however to keep you accountable make mandatory “check-in weigh-ins”. It can be a great way to keep yourself honest when you see that you are anywhere from 3-5lbs up on the scale. Dial it back before that 5lbs hits 10 or 15!
6. Increase exercise!
At the end of the day food does play a large role during the holidays and overeating will occur. The way that you perceive that indulgence will make a huge difference whether or not you are able to stay lean during this season. Firstly, DO NOT feel bad, upset or any negative emotion towards last night’s indulgence. Rather let it be the fuel for your next workout – and make it be one of the best workouts you have ever done!
Want to stay lean this holiday season? Follow these 7 tips to improve and strengthen your physical and mental state!
1. Revisit your ice cube tray
Yes, you’ll need some regular old ice cubes for entertaining. But you can also use ice cube trays to curb overindulging
– Rather than drinking the dregs of that bottle of wine at the end of a party, pour it into an ice cube tray to use while cooking
– Bake as many holiday cookies as you need for gifts and special events, and then freeze extra cookie dough in an ice cube tray. When you want a treat, use a dough cube to bake a little cookie just for you (rather than mindlessly eating five cookies just because they’re lying around). This works for freezing individual portions of mousse and puddings, too (as long as there’s no whipped egg whites in them).
2. Be hands-on at parties
Keep your hands busy at holiday parties: take photos, wash dishes, pour drinks. This will keep you from refilling your plate just so your hands have something to do. Bring a healthy dish to every party to ensure there’s something nourishing for you to eat.
3. Get stemware savvy
Nip into a home store and invest in slender stemware for the holiday season. It’s much easier to over-pour calorie-laden alcoholic beverages when using big, squat wine glasses or tumblers. Champagne flutes help you control your portions—plus, they’re classy.
4. Break up your workout
As your evenings fill up with holiday parties, it will be virtually impossible to stick to your full after-work or evening workout.
– Get up 10 to 15 minutes earlier tosqueeze in some exercise in the morning.
– Take 10 minutes at lunch for another micro-workout.
– Do 10 minutes of cardio as you’re getting ready to go out (this could include dancing to your favourite jam).
There. You’ve fit in your workout and you’re pumped up for the party.
5. De-clutter while you decorate
Decorating can be one of the most relaxing parts of the holiday, but not if the end result leaves you drowning in knick-knacks—more “reindeer-obsessed hoarder” than “tasteful nod to the season.” Only use the decorations that give you joy. Donate the rest. And if every surface is already covered, make a rule: for every decoration you set up, one other object has to be recycled or donated. When the decorations come down, you’ll have a tidier, more relaxing home to enjoy in the new year.
6. Bin it as you bake
Holiday baking offers a similar opportunity. If you find yourself rummaging through cupboard clutter, quickly recycle or dispose of these items:
– containers without a matching lid, and lids without containers
– excess silverware people have accidentally brought home
– the ghosts of parties past (e.g. the two paper napkins left over from that children’s theme party)
7. Pick a food partner
Even better than a secret Santa is someone to help you eat well over the holidays. Take five minutes in the morning to make a plan for how you’re going to eat healthy that day, including how you’ll navigate any parties. Let your food partner know. Then take five minutes in the evening to follow up on how your plan worked.