Whether you love the holiday season or not, it鈥檚 difficult to escape it.
We either look forward to or endure a month that brings company Christmas parties, festive dinners with friends, countless latkes, endless baking and many alcohol-fuelled parties that culminate New Year鈥檚 Eve. And if you celebrate an Orthodox calendar, your season continues through to early January.
This season does its best to destroy your carefully planned eating habits and regular exercise routine. How do you get through the holidays unscathed? You don鈥檛. But you can do some damage control.
The parties, dinners and baking that come with socializing only last a month and then you are back to your regular schedule. So, although you might lose some of your fitness, the holidays shouldn鈥檛 destroy your fitness goals.
The reason I love this season so much is because it gives us the opportunity to spend time with the people we care about. We show our gratitude by giving gifts and taking the time out of our busy schedules to show others that they make a difference in our lives. What other holiday does that?
Here are a few pointers to help you get through the next few days without giving up your mom鈥檚 pumpkin pie or playing the family Scrooge by skipping the party to go for a run.
1.听 Don鈥檛 deprive yourself during the year.
By allowing yourself to have treats and indulge once in awhile during the year, you will be less likely to overindulge when the holidays come around.
2.听 Exercise early.
Schedule workouts early in the morning so you are less likely to miss them later in the day because of social engagements. These early morning commitments should also help you avoid staying up too late or drinking too much the night before a big workout. Even if you aren鈥檛 able to fit in the time for a full workout, something is better than nothing.
3.听 Eat before you snack.
Eat dinner or a smaller meal before going to the party so you aren鈥檛 hungry and less likely to graze on unhealthy, rich goodies and snacks.
4.听 Plan for a pot luck dinner.
Research and cook healthy dishes to bring to pot luck parties so you are guaranteed to have at least one healthy dish to choose from. Some ideas:
o聽聽 Salsa and bean dip with low-fat tortilla chips
o聽聽 Grilled or baked chicken wings with a low-fat dip
o聽聽 Baked pita chips with hummus
5.听 Exercise moderation.
Choose which parties at which you will allow yourself to cheat and which ones you will eat healthy. The company Christmas party might be a good night to act as the designated driver and stick to your usual healthy eating plan while your best friend鈥檚 ugly sweater party might be your night to let loose.
6.听 Limit your alcohol consumption overall.
Alcohol not only packs a tonne of calories but the high sugar content also does a number on insulin production, which causes most people to overeat.
7.听 Remember the 80/20 rule.
Our bodies are extremely resilient and can cope with a few late nights and a few over-indulgent meals but can only handle so much. If you eat healthy and stick to your regular training schedule 80 per cent of the time, you should be waking up in January without the added holiday bulge.
Kristina Bangma is a coach, personal trainer and writer with a love of riding and racing. Email questions to [email protected].
