December is a stressful month where we have to organise a lot. It’s a month in which we also ask ourselves: “How am I going to survive the holidays without gaining weight this year?”
During the festive season, we often let ourselves go a little bit. With all the food around, it’s so easy to overeat! Afterwards, we feel lethargic, hungover, and beat ourselves up about it.
This year, don’t wait for your New Year’s resolutions to make up for the overindulging. Be prepared and follow my Health Coach tips to survive the holidays without gaining weight.
1. Stick to your routine
If you’d normally go to the gym or for an early morning walk, keep doing this during the holidays.
2. Limit your alcohol intake
Alcohol is full of sugar, empty carbohydrates, and can cause overeating. Drink a glass of water after every glass of alcohol, you’ll drink less alcohol if you do. By changing to water after every drink, you’ll stay hydrated and it’ll decrease the hangover. Choose a long thin glass, it’ll look fuller than a short wide glass. You’ll drink less.
While you’re at it, you might want to limit your sugar intake as well. Watch out for these hidden sugars during the holidays.
3. Don’t arrive at the party on an empty stomach
If you arrive with an appetite, you’ll go all out on the snacks and will regret it later.
4. Take a plate to share
That way you’ll know there’ll be a healthier food option for you to nibble on. You can find some healthy options here.
5. Try to eat mainly vegetables and leafy greens
But… also eat your favourite foods and enjoy them to the maximum, just in moderation (as it’s usually something no too healthy). If leafy greens are your favourite food, go all out!
If you need some more help on how to include more greens in your diet, click here. It’s really not that hard.
6. Don’t skip meals to save on calories
Your blood sugar level will crash, which will cause you to overeat later.
Have a healthy big lunch with protein, healthy fats, good carbohydrates (vegetables!), and a healthy snack in the afternoon. It will fill you up and stabilise your blood sugar level before going to that party or dinner at night. You’ll be able to control yourself better around those delicious looking snacks, eat less, and will have fewer cravings.
7. Drink enough water
Drink water during the day, at least 1.5 litres to stay hydrated (and a bit more if you live in hot Australia, just like me). If you don’t drink enough water, you can end up feeling hungry, while in fact, you’re thirsty and dehydrated. Don’t mistake your thirst for hunger!
8. Clear your plate
Clear your plate if you’re finished eating and feel satisfied. That will prevent you from going back for seconds, when you’re actually not hungry anymore and you’re just eating for the sake of it.
9. Count your blessings (sticks)
If you’re eating snacks on a skewer, keep the skewers in your hand so you keep track of how much you’re actually eating.
10. Eat only what you really want to eat
Don’t eat everything that’s offered to you. There’s no such thing as mandatory eating. Check-in with yourself and decide if you’re really hungry. Don’t ever feel bad about saying no!
11. Concentrate on eating
Eat mindfully. Focus on chewing and enjoy the taste, texture, and smell of your food. Be present. This can have a huge impact on the amount of food you consume.
12. Get enough sleep
It’s simple. If you’re tired, you tend to overeat.
Are you struggling to get enough shut-eye? You might be making these sleep mistakes.
13. Stay active
Don’t be a couch potato! Go outside and take the kids, your dog, or yourself for a walk.
14. Be realistic
Don’t try to lose weight during these festive days. It’s a great accomplishment if you manage to maintain your current weight!
If you want to lose weight, be realistic, and wait until after the holidays. Just remember that New Year’s resolutions don’t work either and here’s what to do instead.
15. Don’t be too hard on yourself
Do not beat yourself up if you find yourself eating or drinking a bit too much. You’re only human after all! Enjoy these special days with family and friends.
Something very important!
For many people Christmas is a stressful time of the year, preparing delicious festive meals to enjoy with family and friends. For some people, there will be NO food…
Please share your Christmas spirit with a cause very dear to my heart, the people of the Smokey Mountain in the Philippines.
What is the Smokey Mountain?
The Smokey Mountain is not an actual mountain. It’s a big pile of garbage, a dumpsite in Manila where the poorest of the poor are making a living by picking up garbage.
In 2012 I visited this place, to support a Dutch organisation called Young Focus.
The photo is one I took during my visit and shows how people actually live on the Smokey Mountain, right on the garbage dump in a house made of recycled garbage.
Young Focus
Young Focus believes that education is the most effective way to tackle poverty faced by children and young people on the Smokey Mountain. They educate kids from preschool to college. Many children in these slums are malnourished. Young Focus provides them with nutritious and healthy meals.
How can you help?
Young Focus currently has over 1000 children in their programs and wants to provide them all with a Christmas food package so they don’t have to be hungry this year.
Please help them realise their goal and donate one or more food packages through this link: https://www.youngfocus.org/christmas/
Food packages are only $13USD/$ 19AUD/€12.50 each.
I’ve visited this organisation myself, have stayed in touch with the founders and can guarantee that your donation is ending up in the right place.
Find out more
If you’d like to know more about this organisation and what the Smokey Mountain looks like, this is a short video: https://youtu.be/1aJdXjTO_ZQ
Get the tissues out and try not to cry…
Thank you so much for sharing your Christmas spirit!
