How To Have a Healthy Holidays
The holidays are a time of joy, connection, and tradition. Part of the tradition is savoring your favorite holiday foods. It’s only once a year, but if you aren’t mindful you may overindulge. Below are 5 tips for ensuring healthy holidays that include intentional splurges.
#1 Swap Some of Your Recipes
If you’ll be hosting holiday meals at your house, rethink your recipes. Keep your beloved family recipes and other nostalgic dishes but swap lower-priority dishes for healthier alternatives. This might be a healthier version of the same dish or something new. Get the family in on which recipes can stay and which can be swapped out and test all new recipes beforehand.
#2 Plan Your Indulgences
Go ahead and eat guilt-free for Christmas dinner, New Year’s Eve, and maybe another party or event. Where things get tricky, is that temptation is all around. In the aisles of the grocery store, sweet treats at work, and less-than-healthy food gifts. Even a trip to your favorite coffee shop greets you with holiday beverages that have a full day (or more) of sugar. So, plan 3 or 4 indulgences for the season, and say no to the rest.
#3 Plan Ahead
Keep temptation to a minimum by eating before you arrive at parties and events that aren’t a planned indulgence. This will make it easier to resist temptation. Also, consider bringing healthy snacks with you everywhere you go this time of the year. That way if you’re going to snack, it’s on something nutritious.
This might include:
Nuts and seeds
Carrot sticks
Celery sticks
Hummus
Natural nut butter
Non-fat yogurt
Low-fat cheese
Pretzels
Plain popcorn
Veggie chips
#4 Don’t Skip Meals
If you overindulge on holiday foods or have an upcoming splurge meal or day ahead, you might be tempted to skip a meal. The mindset that skipping a meal will even things out is a byproduct of toxic diet culture. It implies that nutrition is a simple equation of caloric intake when it’s so much more!
If you skip a meal, you’re more likely to overindulge when you eat next. You can also throw your body into starvation mode, where your body stores fat because it’s not sure when you will nourish it again. Not to mention, you feel weak, tired, and irritable when you skip meals. Instead, eat nutrient-dense meals before and after your planned (or unplanned) indulgences. In addition to nutritious foods, aim to drink at least half of your body weight in water and unsweetened herbal tea each day. This will aid in digestion and flushing out the toxins in your body.
#5 Manage Holiday Stress
Nutrition isn’t the only consideration for planning healthy holidays. You aren’t alone if this time of the year comes with as much stress as it does joy. From family conflicts to finding the perfect gifts, your jam-packed social schedule, getting your house ready for guests, and more. How you manage stress is unique to you, but don’t just power through until the New Year. Leave time in your schedule for rest, relaxation, and your preferred means of self-care.
How Can I Help?
Reach out to Nina’s Nutritional Values to discuss your holiday meal plan, how to plan your indulgences, or how to get back on track in the New Year.