Eating Healthy At Christmas Is Possible
The Christmas holidays, as we know, are a period of celebration and sharing with loved ones. In the midst of so much joviality, it’s hard to eat healthy at Christmas!
Because of this, many people are afraid of putting their food and sports routine at risk and, therefore, of undermining the progress made up to that point.
To help you, we present some tips that will help you eat healthy at Christmas . It will be simpler than you think!
Eat healthy at Christmas
Eat something before going out
Are you planning to go out for dinner with work colleagues and do you know that the menu of that particular restaurant will be particularly caloric?
To make sure you’re eating healthy around Christmas, make a light salad that includes green leafy vegetables and some protein or a high-fiber smoothie.
You can have a normal portion of salad a couple of hours before dinner: in this way you will feel full and eat less at the restaurant.
Maintain regular hours
A very common mistake is to change our lunch and dinner times during the holidays. If you wait several hours before your next meal or if you eat earlier than normal, you will be tempted to consume larger portions and it will therefore be difficult to eat healthy at Christmas.
What’s more, when your usual meal time comes, you may fall into the temptation to eat again.
When you have to attend a business meeting where there is a refreshment with food, follow our previous advice and prepare a light salad.
Eat as always
Eating healthy at Christmas when you have diabetes, high blood pressure or any other condition is vital. The amount of food is not only reflected in our weight, but also in blood glucose levels or blood pressure.
Prioritize natural foods
When you have to attend a Christmas event or dinner, you will surely find dishes that do not provide any nutrients. Before filling your plates with these foods, try to identify healthier options.
Help yourself with some protein and vegetables and try to avoid pasta and flour. This way you can afford a little sweet, which provides enough carbohydrates on its own.
Don’t forget to drink water
Drinking water helps avoid temptation and overeating. When you feel peckish and the desire to have an encore comes over you, drink a glass of water. This way you will avoid taking that second serving and will eat less.
Eating healthy at Christmas does not necessarily mean having to choose only vegetables or steamed foods. It is also about learning to understand when it is time to avoid the “sins of gluttony”.
Replace traditional recipes with more nutritious ones
Do you already have in mind which menu to present for Christmas? You have most likely already started making plans for your dinner and perhaps while planning, you have realized that your menu is not exactly the prototype of the healthy meal.
Our advice is to change traditional recipes to make them healthier and prepare them with the products you like best.
You can also replace traditional sugar, which provides excessive amounts of calories, with more natural alternatives, such as:
- Classic honey
- Agave honey
- Manuka honey
You can also try substitutes for some of the ingredients in your recipes or simply choose a healthier alternative.
Keep your drink consumption under control
Alcohol and sugary drinks are featured on all Christmas menus. Both options are high in calories, carbohydrates and lots of sugars; for this they can sabotage all our good intentions.
Avoid them as much as you can. In case you just can’t avoid drinking alcohol, add it only to plain water.
Thanks to this trick, you will reduce the effect of alcohol on the body, also because the consumption does not become excessive, and you will also be more hydrated.
Among sugary drinks, choose those with the fewest ingredients. The first to avoid are those that contain juice, whether natural or bottled, since in both cases the sugar intake is high.
Also avoid consuming syrups as they provide the largest amount of sugar.
Follow the rule of 80 with 20
A foolproof strategy for eating healthy at Christmas or any other time is the 80 with 20 rule.
This rule consists in consuming 80% of healthy food and drink, thus leaving 20% made up of cheats.
This rule is very easy to follow and will make the holidays more bearable from a food point of view. However, if we suffer from some pathology that requires a more restrictive diet (for example, diabetes) this strategy is not recommended.
Maintain the routine
With the arrival of Christmas and the holidays, maintaining your routine can become very complicated.
However, eating healthy will be easier by following a few points in your daily eating habits. Don’t forget to create your meal plan as usual and train as usual.
By following these tips, you will arrive in the new year in good health!
