Family gatherings, parties, and indulgences are the things that can make or break the holiday season. However, there are multiple tips and tricks to keep you happy and healthy during this time of the year.
Keep reading to know how you can enjoy the holiday season without the fear and stress of gaining too much weight.
Tips and Tricks To Keep You Healthy and Happy
You can indulge yourself in the yummy treats and excitements of the holiday season without it getting out of hand with the tips below:
- Control your stress levels
- Don’t go hungry
- Practice mindful eating
- Exercise
- Keep your meals balanced
- Limit liquid calories
- Get plenty of sleep
Control Your Stress Levels
Some people’s weight and diet can be connected to their emotional and mental state. The holidays and the stress that comes with them may trigger overeating.
It can be hard to admit, but spending time with families, friends, or even co-workers can cause stress and anxiety. But don’t worry; here are some simple tips that you can do to help you get through:
- Limit the time you spend with them – try not to communicate too much on your phone before the gathering to avoid upsetting interactions. More importantly, keep busy, so you have more things to look forward to than to overthink. You can also try not to attend gatherings too early or stay too late.
- Be with your buddy – being with someone you are comfortable with at these gatherings can help ease you. They can also support you to keep you motivated and accountable for your weight goals during the holidays. More importantly, they can also encourage you to enjoy and have fun.
Don’t Go Hungry
Don’t starve yourself all day in anticipation of eating a big meal. Keep generally eating throughout the day. Have some small snacks and keep yourself hydrated by drinking lots of water before and during the meal to help pace yourself from falling into the trap of overeating.
Practice Mindful Eating
Avoid eating your meal too fast, which is a primary reason you can overeat. It can take 15 to 20 minutes for your brain to let your stomach know that you’re full and need to stop eating. And during this period, you may already have eaten a lot of food.
To practice mindful eating, you need to be aware of these steps:
- Take a few deep breaths. Do this before you start eating to induce relaxation.
- Chew your food, drink water, and put your fork down between bites. This will help you to recognize your body’s fullness signals.
- Minimize your distractions. Don’t stare at your electronics, and never keep your mind occupied with other things, such as work.
Exercise
Colder months can make people exercise less and eat more. However, you don’t need a full-blown workout to make yourself active during the busy holiday season – you need to keep moving!
You can set a goal of moving 30 minutes daily and divide it into three 10 minutes segments. This way, you can switch up your movements from stretching in the morning to doing a short cardio session to going for a walk with your loved ones.
Keep Your Meals Balanced
If you find yourself having difficulties reducing your consumption of food during the holiday season, then here are some tips to beat that:
- Eat some protein with every meal – meat, poultry, fish, and some food plants like beans and quinoa are beneficial for weight control as they increase your metabolisms and reduce your appetite-inducing hormones.
- Eat fiber-rich food – vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, and seeds can reduce total calorie intake, which may help to prevent weight gain.
- Snake wisely – there will be a lot of unhealthy snacks for you to take as you please during the holiday season. Although you can indulge in some, you should only snack if you are hungry and not just because there’s food around, as this will lead you to overeat.
- Limit sugar intake – excessive sugar consumption is a common cause of weight gain. A trick to not overeat desserts is to focus on your favorite ones and ditch the rest. Another tip is to take your time savoring them, eating them slowly, which will leave you satisfied.
Limit Liquid Calories
The holiday season is when you consume much more calorie-rich beverages such as eggnog, wine, soda, beers, etc. You need to watch how much you drink these liquid calories as they contribute significant sugar and empty calories, causing weight gain.
More importantly, it would help if you watch your alcohol intake. Keep yourself hydrated by drinking water in between any alcoholic beverages. This will help you to slow down from not only getting drunk fast but also not munching on other treats on the table, as alcohol can sabotage your self-control and fool your appetite.
Get Plenty Of Sleep
Getting a good few hours of sleep may be uncommon during the holidays due to the celebrations, preparations, excitement, and stress. However, sleep deprivation may lead to weight gain.
This is because people who sleep less tend to be hungrier when they wake up, consuming more calories and feeling lazier and more tired. Eventually, they will exercise less. Additionally, inadequate sleep has also been linked to lower metabolism, making the body burn fat and calories slower.
Conclusion
If you fall off the wagon and gain a bit of weight, don’t be too hard on yourself! The holiday season is the time to focus on your relationships with families and friends. Nevertheless, you should always feel good and comfortable about your own body. Are you looking for weight management treatment plans? Contact EVOLVE patient care for hormone-optimizing, fat-burning medications!
