The holiday season is quickly approaching and we all know what that means… Food. And lots of it. The last few months of the year are extremely hard to remain health-conscious due to all the holiday treats and eats around you. Starting as early as October when Halloween candies line every grocery store aisle to Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts that will have you looking for your favorite pair of stretchy pants to slip into after – we know maintaining a good diet can be hard. Here are some ideas on how to remain healthy during these times of pure temptation:
EAT BEFORE THE EVENT
If you know you’re heading out to any holiday themed event (costume parties, family gatherings, office parties, etc.), have your regular meal before you go. This will limit your hunger which will in turn make you less tempted to snack on any goodies lying around. Even if you know that there is no way of escaping your family’s hand cooked Thanksgiving dinner, at least you will be full enough to narrow down the proportions when fixing your plate to avoid over eating while remaining a polite guest.
KEEP IT UP AT THE GYM
The last few months of the year are easy to say “I’ll just skip the gym today” when its cold outside and holiday movie marathons seem to be on every channel. But you need to break this mentality! Sticking with your normal gym routine will help you feel less guilty if you sneak in one or two extra cheat days of holiday food indulging. You can so treat yourself a bit if you burned off those calories this morning – right?
KEEP TRACK
Whether you write it all down or install an app that will remember for you – keep track of what you are having. When you are in the moment of eating a full plate of holiday food and then treating yourself to dessert after, you aren’t thinking about your diet. However, if you are forced to sit down and add up all the damage you did, you will be able to see first-hand how much you’re consuming and then plan out how to compensate. You can also look back on your records and see how far you’ve come in your progress and use that as motivation to continue your healthy goals! This can even be helpful in the weeks leading up to your next holiday feast – if you keep track and stay on course you could reward yourself with dinner and dessert at your next holiday meal with your friends and family.
Remember that the holidays should enjoyable, so if you want to treat yourself go ahead – just be mindful of how you do it! There’s no need for the last few months of the year to make your upcoming New Year’s resolution become “Go to the gym everyday”.