How to Handle Holiday Eating

Holidays are fun. We have our family, friends, great memories, and great food all around us. But are they compatible with a healthy lifestyle? You see, when the holiday season comes in, it is easy to relax and overlook some rules of healthy eating and exercise that we’ve typically maintained all year long. Combined, the festivities and the holiday stress can hit our general well-being from November right until the New Year. But does it have to be this way? I don’t think so. The good news, however, is that with a couple of tricks, you can stay healthy all year round.

Tips for staying and eating healthy during the holidays

Everyone knows that healthy living is uncommon with holiday living. Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas tables are usually adorned with decadent recipes – very sweet stuff you can indulge in, and so there’s usually a very slim chance that we will stick to the healthy diets we’ve had during the year. However, with the tips below, you will be able to maintain your mental and physical health throughout the holiday season.

Source for healthy alternatives to your dishes

Healthy eating is doesn’t place a ban on special treats – you need nothing more than a few modifications. You can reduce the quantity of bacon and butter in your green bean casseroles, maybe use yogurt in place of mayonnaise in your deviled eggs, and discard the frying oil so you can bake the turkey. These are very simple tricks that can help you keep your favorites on your plate without all the calories.

Moderation is key

Yes! Moderating your recipes will be your saving grace during the festive season. I’m not saying it is bad to indulge in a festive dinner. However, you’ll want to ensure that your meals are nutrient-dense and healthy. A good idea would be having a light lunch like a salad with olive oil dressing, then opting for a rich breakfast like avocado on whole-wheat toast. When you eat healthy during the holidays, you can step out for a couple of big events.

Homemade foods are better than processed foods

Making everything at home can be tasking especially when you have so much at hand. However, it will also help you to eat much healthier. Processed, canned, and premade foods are loaded with excess sugar and salt. You can avoid all these when you make your food by yourself. Cut down on your sodium intake by preparing your mushroom soup, and reduce your sugar intake by preparing your cranberry sauce yourself. Just take some moments to stir the stuff in a pot before simmering them.

When you make your food from the scratch, you’ll know what goes into each recipe, what you’re eating, and equally have more control in the long run.

Add more vegetables

Nothing sounds easier than going all out with your favorite recipes. But here’s the thing – eating better may be as simple as keeping lots of healthy choices on one hand. Put more vegetable dishes on the table, dressing them up here and there without causing them to look unhealthy. Roasted sweet potatoes and carrots or asparagus have a rich taste and look beautiful.

If you are ever in doubt, serve the veggies first – like a salad before dinner or a veggie appetizer just before lunch. With this, everyone looking forward to your menu can get the vegetables they need rather than stuffing up on buttery potatoes.

Slow down when at the dinner table

Everyone is always eager to eat decadent food. However, an important tip to being in health over the holidays is to slow down when you are eating. Several studies have shown that slow eating gives your tummy plenty of time to send hormonal signals to your brain that you’re full, thus preventing overeating. With this, you can control your portions better.

Taking a walk after dinner isn’t a bad idea

Walking after a meal can give you a wide range of benefits. first, it gives you ample time to exercise. Then you also have that quiet time to destress and boost your digestion. These factors promote your mental and physical health and may contribute to weight loss as well. Studies suggest that taking a walk after a meal is best for you and can maximize these benefits better than waiting for an hour.

Make out time to exercise

There are a million things to do, and if you don’t have access to your home gym, working out can seem tougher. But even at that, you must exercise regularly. It is good for your physical and mental health. Exercise is good for your body as well. It is a good stress reliever that is so commonplace during the holiday.

How about probiotics?

If you are still concerned, then a suggestion is to take this new probiotic that has shown to be effective in changing the way your body handles carbohydrates. This particular one is a specific strain that in human testing has shown to reduce the effect carbs have therefore reduced some of the difficult choices you might make.

https://doctorfood.metagenics.com/ultraflora-control

If you do use these guidelines, when the holidays are done, come and give us some feedback as to how you did and if these tips have helped you. Use your historical holiday weight gain, if that is an issue in the past, to then measure your success. Gaining one to two pounds over the holiday is much, much better, than gaining ten.

MBBCH wishes you and your families and friends an amazing thankful and blessed holiday.

Note: All information on MBBCH is intended for educational purposes only. It does not constitute a medical consultation. Please consult a certified medical professional for diagnosis.

Image provided by Pixabay

Ifiokobong Ene

Ifiokobong Ene is a Medical Physiologist, and a freelance medical writer. Ifiok brings his years of medical research experience to help consistently create high-quality, and engaging articles and products that uphold the highest medical standards. He is dedicated to making health and wellness information available, actionable, and understandable so that readers can make the best decisions about their health.