The holiday season indeed brings a mix of excitement and challenges. It's filled with festive activities, gatherings, and delicious foods, but it can also bring stress, fatigue, and temptations that make it harder to stay on track with our health goals. The pressure to enjoy the holidays in a specific way or maintain a certain routine can make things feel even more overwhelming. It’s easy to get caught up in the busyness of the season, comparing our experiences to others, or feeling guilty about indulging in those tasty treats. But the truth is, everyone experiences the holidays differently, and it's okay to embrace what feels right for you. Striving to be the best version of yourself, while giving yourself grace, is what matters most.
As for health and fitness during the holidays, it’s not about perfection. It’s about finding balance and making mindful choices that still allow you to enjoy the season without guilt. The key is not to view the holidays as an “all-or-nothing” time but as an opportunity to create small, sustainable habits that help you stay grounded, even amidst the hustle and bustle. However, I digress, let's talk about my top 5 ways that have personally helped me to avoid the extra unnecessary sugary and carb-y foods that the holidays bring with them.
1. Have a Game Plan
I know this one sounds like a “duh, no brainer.” But I am so serious when I say to have no plan is planning to fail. You have to set up goals for the month of December ahead of time. If daily goals are asking for too much, prioritize weekly goals that are realistic.
For example, if you are planning to go out for a holiday dinner with friends, skip going out to lunch with your coworker and go for a walk instead. Schedules will have to shift and be flexible so you can enjoy the added festivities on your calendar, guilt-free. I call this not only the “game plan method,” but also the “swap out method.” Swap your usual routine to make sure you are still staying active and aware of your food and fitness choices when you have the opportunity. Most opportunities will look different this month, so fit in your workouts and healthy meals where you can. If your typical five-day workout week is looking like a three-day workout week, you can pack a higher protein and veggie lunch, have smaller portions planned, drink extra water throughout the day, or use a low fat/low sugar creamer in your coffee that you normally wouldn’t use (holiday lattes are such a make it or break it with your calories).
These small swaps will make all the difference and help you stay on track as much as possible during the holiday festivities. Control what you can and look past these deviations in your routine so you can enjoy this time with your family and friends. Chin up, calendars out, and let's plan.
2. Volume Foods
Hello soups and salads! Eat food that is lower in calories, but higher in volume. This is going to help you stay fuller for longer after each meal instead of snacking on the chocolate peanut butter balls Suzy left everyone in the break room. Think high protein (lean ground turkey, shredded chicken) and lots of vegetable (fiber) soups you can make in the crockpot with ease. This could last you at least a few lunches to heat up at work or during your busy days. Soups have curbed so many of my sugar cravings throughout my day.
Salads, with vinegar or oil-based dressings (drop the mayo and creamy dressings) can also be a life saver. Top the salads with a lean protein mix with spinach, black beans, sunflower seeds, peppers, olives, tomatoes, and so many other options to increase your fiber intake and prolong your satiety after each meal. Not only will volume help you combat those sneaky holiday snacks, but also reduce the number of calories you consume with each meal, leaving you room to indulge at a festive event or dinner.
3. Track Your Food
Speaking of caloric intake, consider tracking your meals on an app or in a journal. As tedious a task as this can be, it can help you stay mindful of what you are putting into your mouth. As a nutrition coach, I have my clients track their food daily and more times than not, when you physically have to write down or put numbers into your phone, it makes you question if you truly need what you are consuming. Being intentional, mindful, and observant with what you are eating daily can help you choose healthier options.
If this sounds like another dreaded task, I always advise finding an accountability partner. Whether you need to hire a coach, or reach out to a friend, make this a fun challenge to stay healthy during the holidays. When you have someone sharing the same goals as you or someone checking in on your progress, it can help push you to commit to your aims and remind you why you started in the first place. Having some sort of community while tracking food can be so beneficial.
Another tool I use often is to only track my breakfast, lunch, and snacks just to be sure I am getting enough nutrients into my body before I have a Christmas dinner or party to attend in the evening. Some gatherings are buffet, family-style, or just really hard to track. In these situations, the 80/20 rule is key; 80% of my day I am nourishing my body to the best of my ability, the other 20% I get to indulge a bit and enjoy my time at the event.
4. High Protein
When nourishing your body, the best thing you can do is to get adequate amounts of protein. Whatever your usual protein goals are throughout the year, aim to achieve them earlier in the day just in case another high protein meal doesn’t present itself. If I know I am going to a cookie party and I would like to participate in some yummy desserts, I will intentionally make a higher protein breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner before arriving at the party. This ensures my daily protein goals are met. It will help you to stay more satiated so that you are less likely to overeat the sugary foods at the party.
Protein is also going to help you maintain muscle, and if you're finding yourself in the gym less often this month, this is essential. Even when you are at a holiday gathering, look at the options you have. For example, choose the chicken parmesan over the deep-dish pizza – this is going to give you more bang for your buck and keep protein intake high. Just because your normal eating routine is not the same during the holidays, it does not mean you give up. Having high protein meals is not an all-in or all-out mentality. Maybe some days you are reaching your protein goals and some days you aren’t, but I can guarantee you striving to hit them will leave you better off than not striving at all. Again, the 80/20 rule is a real thing!
5. Have Boundaries with Sugar
Let’s get something straight here. There’s no other ingredient in food that will have you addicted and wanting more like sugar does. Sugar can be just as addicting as drugs are to humans. When we eat something that is high in sugar it creates a dopamine effect and makes us feel all warm and happy inside, until it’s gone. Then the next day we find ourselves scrounging in the cupboard for ingredients to bake cookies. The day after that, we are waiting in the drive-through for a peppermint milkshake. Does that sound too familiar?
This holiday season, it is time for us to admit it – sugar is the enemy here. We can and should enjoy these “once a year” treats, but we can’t let ourselves get hooked into the daily habit of sugary food consumption. I think it is important to have treats to fully experience the holiday magic of desserts, but frequency is key. Go back to the 80/20 rule and choose a few days out of the week where you will have your favorite holiday treats. This is where I see the most over-eating happening for many people. Once we get a taste of that sweet treat, it can be so easy to fall into the habit of giving into sugar cravings daily. If you follow tips 1-4, it will be a lot easier to not overindulge in these dense sugary foods.
We are all human gifted with senses such as sight to enjoy the Christmas lights, hearing so that we can enjoy the holiday tunes, and taste to enjoy these nostalgic foods. It is all so wonderful to take in and appreciate these amazing experiences, but be aware of overdoing it at the expense of your mental and physical health. Treat yourself with kindness, and that includes taking care of yourself with healthy decisions and plans. We don’t have to restrict, but we also must stay alert of our actions.
This is the time for you to find that balance with food and fitness, break out of the all-in or all-out mentality, and establish a plan that will work for you. There is still time in 2024, and whatever mindset you had at the beginning of this year to crush your goals is still there. Reconnect with those thoughts, find that version of you, and make yourself proud as you close out this year.
We will never be able to escape the holidays- they happen year after year. But what I hope you find every year is a little more clarity and a little more balance with your relationship with food and fitness. It is worth the investment and worth the effort to give yourself the best version of you this season!
