Realistically Staying in Shape Through the Holidays

Whenever the holidays come around, I hear news stories like the one I heard before Thanksgiving suggesting, "eat all the veggies you want, but stay away from the fattening dip." Comments like that make me mad! It's the holidays, and there is good food all around. Who says you can't have some of it? Ideally you would skate through the holiday season without touching a single goody or treat, but what fun is that? I say the holidays are a good time to try some of the snacks you gave up all year round - but that doesn't mean you have to gain 10 pounds in the process. These tips should help you learn how to have your holiday dinner... and still stay in decent shape.

Tip 1: Cut back, but don't cut out. As I stated, many guides would tell you NOT to eat certain foods. They say don't eat dip, don't eat deviled eggs, don't eat cookies.... but give me a break, I'm not giving all that up. Instead, I have learned over the years to cut back without cutting out. I still eat all of those things, but in much smaller scale. I'll only dip each veggie once, instead of how I used to break it into little pieces and get 3 dips out of one piece. You know you do that too! This way I still get to enjoy the dip without eating too much.

Tip 2: Stay out of the kitchen. My rule of thumb on the holidays is this - if I'm not in the kitchen, and I STILL want some of the yummy snacks, then it's ok. However most of the time I find that if I'm not in the kitchen and not around the goodies, they don't even cross my mind! Most of the time I start craving the snacks when I see them. So, spend some time out of the kitchen at your holiday parties and I bet you'll cut at least a few calories from your day.

Tip 3: Remember... there will be leftovers! In the past I used to have a habit of making sure I ate everything that was available on Christmas Day while I was still celebrating Christmas Day. Now I've learned that there will be leftovers that I can take home and enjoy over the next few days. I eat less on Christmas Day now and instead plan to take some home for the next day. Once you remember that you don't HAVE to eat it all right now, you'll find you can enjoy having 1/2 the goodies, and save the other 1/2 for later. If you are stuffed, you don't HAVE to eat dessert just because it's yummy, you can take it home for tomorrow.

Tip 4: Don't get overstuffed. This goes along with Tip #3 in that you don't want to eat the food just because it is there. Think about every bite of food you have and eat it slowly - enjoy it! After all, you are trying to indulge in the food, not shovel it down. Don't just sit there dipping chip after chip and not paying attention to it. Eat it slowly and make sure you really are enjoying the taste. If you enjoy food as if you were tasting wine, taking small bites and really savoring the flavor of each bite, you'll find that you don't eat as much because you are paying attention.

Tip 5: Make plans to get out. It's very hard to exercise during the holidays. You eat so much at your holiday dinners and parties that when you do have a day off you just want to crash on the couch for three days. That's obviously not going to help! Since it's hard to actually motivate yourself to go to the gym, why not make a plan to just get out of the house? Go see a Christmas display, play in the snow with your kids, or plan a trip to mall walk. Once you get up and out of the house, you'll end up exercising for hours without even thinking twice about it.

Tip 6: Give up going out to eat. Even though you are going out to exercise, you want to avoid going out to eat. My husband and I like to go to a restaurant 2-3 times a month, but in November and December we give up going out to eat completely. During this time span, there are so many holiday dinners, parties, snacks at work, etc, that it's almost no fun to go out to eat. If we do go out to eat in December, we end up feeling real overstuffed just because of all the other food we have during this time. Make a concious effort not to go out to eat unless you are getting together with friends and you'll save money and calories!

Tip 7: Put away the snowblower. In the winter, I really enjoy taking the time to go out and shovel the snow. As long as it's not too much for you, shoveling the snow offers so many benefits over using the snowblower. Don't let the snow pile up to high or else shoveling can become overwhelming and dangerous for your health. Instead, spend 1/2 hour shoveling various times throughout the day and you'll find yourself getting some great exercise! If you are young and healthy, why not offer to do the neighbors driveway as well? You'll be doing a good deed and getting even more exercise. Don't make your kids shovel - do it yourself - you need the exercise too!

Tip 8: Don't overcook. This year my husband thought we should buy 4 pies for a party we were going to - I said 2 was enough and I was right. I ended up taking a whole pie home since someone else also brought a dessert. Don't overdo it, because in the end you'll end up taking the leftovers home and eating them yourself. Luckily I had a little family gathering the next day to share my pie, or else I would have certainly eaten it throughout the week. Getting a slice or two of pumpkin pie during Thanksgiving week is fine, but getting 8 slices is not good. Think practically and don't make more then you have to.

Tip 9: Finally, don't sacrifice too much. It's good to modify some recipes to make them healthier, but it doesn't mean you suddenly have to go cold turkey and give up everything unhealthy. Look for ways to scale back or slightly modify your recipes without making major changes. In the end, if you make too many major changes to your holiday favorites, you might end up disappointed and wanting more by the end of the night. If you cut your favorite holiday snack out completely, you'll probably end up craving it by the end of the night. Instead, eat it in smaller portion and you'll feel more satisfied in the end. There's nothing worse than reaching in the fridge on midnight on Christmas night feeling unsatisfied.

These are tips I practice during the holidays so I end up maintaining, or perhaps even losing, weight. You don't have to give up your diet completely, but you also don't have to stick to it 100%. If you follow the above tips, you'll learn it is possible to enjoy your favorite snacks this holiday season without going overboard. Enjoy!!