We have started the annual year-end eating festival. Halloween through the Super Bowl presents a host of mouth-watering opportunities to indulge in all the sweet foods, large portions, and extras we add to make foods more festive. Which means that this time of year is infamous for piling on the pounds.
While research shows that only a few pounds may be gained during a holiday season, these extra pounds are usually never shed after the New Year, and so become part of our permanent extra baggage each year.
But the holiday season doesn't mean you're condemned to pack on extra pounds. Try some of these tips:
- Keep tempting foods out of sight and out of your stomach. At work, don't leave extra food at your desk or in the center of the lunch table. At parties, don't hang out at the food table and graze. At home, keep sweets like cookies in the freezer until you're ready to share them.
- Think low-calorie drinks. With more parties come more high-calorie drinks. Alcohol is one of these of course, but so are apple cider, hot chocolate, eggnog, and juice mixes. These drinks can add 150 to 200 calories per drink to your intake, easy. If you plan to splurge on the food, take it easy on the drinks. Think low-calorie drinks like hot tea, coffee, seltzer water, and diet drinks.
- Bring your own healthy dish to the party. You can be the one who brings something healthy to feast on. Bring a vegetable appetizer or side dish. Salads, vegetable crudités, and cooked vegetables will fill you up and are a lot lower in calories than the usual crackers and cheese or pasta and potato side dishes.
- Eat slowly and enjoy your food. When you slow down your rate of eating, you often eat less because you then give your stomach more time to feel full. Take the time to talk with others and put your fork down between bites.
- Don't forget about physical activity. In spite of all the busyness of the season, we still must build in some physical activity. Make exercise part of your family's fun and start a new tradition — the family winter walk.
How do you plan to keep the weight off this holiday season?
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