How To Beat The Holiday Weight Gain
Kate Irwin • December 4, 2019
You had a fabulous time creating memories with family and loved ones but now the holiday season is over, decorations are away, and the few pounds you gained during the holidays linger.
Does this scenario sound familiar?
I truly believe that memories are more important than sticking to your diet 100% over the holidays. But throwing in the towel completely isn’t the best strategy either. No matter which holiday we are talking about, be it Christmas, a birthday, or your yearly vacation, the strategies to beat weight gain are very similar.
The way to handle your nutrition varies based on your holiday schedule but no matter what you have planned, the two things that make the biggest difference are making sure you continue to prioritize movement (exercise and getting out for walks) and stay hydrated by consuming two to three litres of water per day.
TOP THREE SCENARIOS
The Dinner Party/Dinner Out:
The good news is eating a meal out is the easiest scenario to control over the holidays. Your goal is to focus on your nutrition for breakfast and lunch. For those two meals, you want to increase your protein and vegetable intake and decrease your carbohydrate intake. By focusing on increased protein and veggies during the day you allow yourself more flexibility at the main meal. You then have two choices, you can relax at the dinner and eat whatever you like at dinner or you can follow the following plating technique: ½ a plate of veggies, ¼ plate of protein and ¼ plate of carbohydrates, then if you go back for seconds avoid the carbohydrates and fill up on protein and veggies.
The Open House:
For an open house, your nutrition during the day is going to be similar to the dinner party scenario where you focus on your protein and vegetable intake during the day with decreased carbohydrates. At an open house, the goal is to plate everything you eat. When you walk around and nibble throughout the evening you increase your chances of overeating. On the other hand, if you plate your food and can see how much you are eating you are less likely to overeat by as much.
The Weekend Away:
This is the most challenging of the three scenarios. Whenever travel is involved and you aren’t in your own kitchen it decreases your control over your nutrition. In this case you want to focus on the things that you can control. Pack snacks that are high in protein like protein shakes, protein bars, and beef jerky. Nuts, seeds and other dried fruit are also good add-ons to bring along. By packing your own snacks you can help boost your protein during the day and prevent snacking on bread and sweets. The next step is to eat veggies whenever they are offered to ensure you fill up on the less calorie-dense foods. Again the goal is to enjoy yourself and not blow through your daily calories by noon. Focus on small portions and staying hydrated to help!
Helpful Hint:
Mix onion soup mix or ranch seasoning into Greek yogurt in the morning. In the afternoon while you get ready to head out to an event eat raw veggies dipped in the Greek yogurt. This not only will increase your protein and vegetable intake for the day but will also prevent you from going to an event overly hungry and overeating while out!
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