Surviving The Holidays Without Sacrificing Your Health

      Well it's that time of year again. The holidays are here. For most of us this means family parties, work parties, and other holiday social get-togethers that are sure to be full of food, food, food. So how in the heck does one enjoy the holidays without completely falling off the healthy eating wagon? It's not easy and many will give in to temptation promising themselves that they will resume their healthy habits after the New Year. You don't have to be one of them. I have listed below a few tricks to help you survive the holidays with your health and waistline intact.

1. Supercharge your workout- Do an additional 15 or 20 minutes of exercise to burn a few extra calories in preparation for the extra calories you may consume.

2. Offer to bring a dish- and then make it a healthy one. This way you know that at least one dish will be heathy.  If all other dishes are covered in cheese and swimming in grease you can make the majority of your meal your healthy dish.

3.  Never go to a party hungry. If you are hungry there is no way you will be able to resist the appetizers. Avoiding appetizers is a great way to avoid extra calories. Make sure you eat a healthy snack of protein and fiber prior to leaving the house.

4. Avoid alcohol. Alcohol is full of empty calories. If possible avoid it completely. If alcohol is a must for you, try to stick to red wine. It has about 100 calories for 5 ounces which isn't great but it beats the calories in mixed drinks. An added bonus: you will get heart health benefits from the antioxidants in the red wine.

5. Think of this meal as any other meal. Just because it is Thanksgiving does not mean that your body needs twice the serving size that you normally consume at dinner. Keep your turkey to one serving or about the size of the palm of your hand (without the fingers). Do not overload your plate by piling food on top of food. Do not go back for seconds. Do not take 2 or 3 rolls. As you make your plate remind yourself what your "normal" plate of food looks like and stick to that.

6. If you absolutely have to have some of your Aunt Cathy's mashed potatoes and your Uncle Ed's stuffing-go ahead. But limit yourself to just a little bit. By keeping these portion sizes small you can get a taste of your holiday favorites without having to loosen your belt after the meal is over. :)

7. When dessert time comes pick the pumpkin pie. It usually has the least amount of calories and is high in vitamin A. You can skip the whip cream topping to trim a few more calories as well.


Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!