Feature Articles: Food, Fitness and Holidays
Holiday Eating Strategies
Food, food -- everywhere you turn there’s food! “To avoid over-indulging, you’ll need some proven tips to reduce the potential for the average holiday-season weight gain of five pounds,” says Susan Mills-Gray, Nutrition/Health Specialist with University of Missouri Extension. “For years, people have been told to drink lots of water before going to a holiday event, but honestly, that just doesn’t work for most of us,” she added. These updated tips have brought success to many people during the holiday feasts in the weeks to come!
- Be realistic – don’t focus on losing weight during
the holidays. Focus on maintaining your current weight.
You can get back on track with weight loss when the diet
danger zones of November and December have passed. Also,
don’t let yourself justify binge eating over the
holidays because you expect to restrict food after Jan.
1. Plan in advance to eat a little more when you face
holiday temptations. This way, you can enjoy treats more
often, and you’ll be less likely to binge.
- Don’t go to a holiday event hungry. We eat more and
faster when we’re hungry. Eat healthy throughout the day
to keep glucose levels stable and to boost metabolism;
this will work to reduce hunger for an evening event.
Choose a high-protein snack before an event; examples
are: an apple with peanut butter, yogurt, unsalted
almonds or walnuts, hardboiled egg, or nonfat mozzarella
cheese.
- Watch your portion. Treat yourself to a nice drink,
sweets or creamy dips without guilt, but keep portion
sizes under control. This is a great way to sample
different foods. Commit to “small plate – no piling”.
- Survey party buffets before filling plate. Decide
what you’re going to eat in advance, and make only one
trip to the buffet. Fill small plate with ½ vegetables,
¼ lean meat and ¼ starches.
- Avoid recreational eating. It takes about 30 minutes
for the message to get from the stomach to the brain
that it’s full. During this time, you can pile on the
calories through “social eating” – food is there and
everyone else is eating. Enjoy your choices, and then
wait at least 30 minutes before deciding if you would
like a bit more.
- Make sure whatever you’re offered is splurge-worthy.
We all have some favorites that we look forward to
during this time of year. Why waste calories on foods
you can have anytime (chips, salted mixed nuts, dip,
etc)? Try rating food options on a scale of 1 to 10 (10
is best) and have a bit more of the foods that are truly
special and unique to the season.
- Make a conscious choice to limit high-fat items. If
it’s creamy, fried, or cheese-filled, it’s going to be
loaded with calories. Commit to tasting portions. Low
fat, high fiber foods allow you to eat a larger amount
for fewer calories and not feel deprived.
- Use strongly intense mints, gums and strips. These
dull the taste buds and also trigger satiety messages to
the brain. So use one when you arrive and more when you
find yourself wanting to nibble.
- Choose alcoholic beverages wisely. Alcohol is high
in calories – liquors, sweet wines and sweet mixed
drinks may contain up to 450 calories per 6 ounces!
Alcohol can lessen inhibitions and induce overeating;
also, calories from alcohol tend to be stored in the
abdomen. If you choose to drink, select light wines and
beers and use non-alcoholic mixers such as water and
diet soda. Also ask for your drink in a tall, slender
glass; you actually receive less while giving the
illusion of more.
- Go easy on eggnog and punch. Many holiday beverages
are packed with calories. Choose calorie-free water or
diet sodas to help fill your stomach and keep you
hydrated.
- Maintain perspective. Overeating one day won’t make or break your eating plan. And it certainly won’t make you gain weight. It takes days and days of overeating to gain weight. If you do overindulge, don’t just give up. Plan to get back on track the next day. There are going to be a few bumps on the road to healthier eating and we have to acknowledge this to avoid guilt and despair.
For more information contact your local University of
Missouri Extension Center or this faculty member directly at
mills-grays@missouri.edu.
Last update: Tuesday, May 05, 2009
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