Cookies, candy, eggnog, party buffets… how to manage your weight during the holidays.
This is the time of the year when people who rarely bake pull out the family recipes and whip up delectable delights. Cookies galore, made with real butter, plenty of sugar, come in all sizes, shapes and flavors.
If you are invited to holiday parties, food is so plentiful; it can be difficult to focus on anything else, especially if you are a foodie. Trays of appetizers have been carefully selected, most of which are high-fat, high-salt finger foods. Drinks flow freely, both those with alcohol and the sweet, caloric type. Many parties are set up buffet-style, with an array of tempting foods.
How are you supposed to manage this food fest and still eat healthy without weight gain? Despite the holiday season, fueling our bodies remains #1 priority. Food is not good or bad, just some of it nourishes your body and some of it tastes good but does little to nourish you, other than add calories. Once you’ve eaten some delicious nourishing food, enjoy whatever seasonal cuisine you desire. Scan all of the tasty choices and pick the ones you really like or most want to try. Don’t feel the need to heap your plate high with everything just because it’s on the buffet table.
We are visually cued to eat more than we need (or want), so if you plan in advance to choose only the “most desirable”, you will cut out quite a few unnecessary calories. If absolutely everything looks perfect, take a small taste of each dish. Savor each bite slowly. Did you know that as you eat a food, the first few bites are the most flavorful? Also, when you are truly hungry, the flavor of food is the most intense. As you fill up and your hunger is satisfied, your taste is less sensitive, so taking a huge plate of food and eating to overfull is NOT actually enjoying food to its fullest.
So, go to every party, event or family dinner and enjoy the food and dessert. Ask yourself before making your choices, “Is this worth the calories?” If it is, enjoy it, every bite, S-L-O-W-L-Y.