The countdown is on. With only days left until Christmas Day, it is easy to get caught up in the non-stop festivities. From chocolates around the office, Christmas drinks and meals out, it can feel like a losing battle when it comes to making healthy decisions and feeling at your best.
Just take a quick look around you and you will see advertising everywhere for chocolates, sweets, alcohol, etc. This really sends the message that to enjoy Christmas you need to overindulge.
Then, what type of advertising do you think you will start to see in January? Weight loss, gym memberships, detox plans, etc. This targets the fact that most people won’t be feeling at their best after all the overindulging. It’s mixed messaging at its best, but it is effective.
This Christmas, I urge you not to fall into the trap of overindulging only to feel at your worst in January. With a few small tips, you can feel at your best this Christmas and still enjoy the festivities without having to torture yourself with drastic New Year’s resolutions in January.
Stay Hydrated
Most people forget to drink water at this time of year. Staying hydrated is key to feeling energetic and healthy. Dehydration can lead to feeling tired, having headaches and feeling irritable – which can lead you to reach for sugar for a pick me up.
Keep an eye on your urine colour. In general, if it is a pale straw colour then you are well hydrated. If it is yellow or dark yellow, then it is a good idea to drink some more water. It is particularly important to stay hydrated when drinking alcohol and this can help to prevent some sore heads after the office Christmas party.
Get Your ZZZZZZ
It is a busy time of the year, and it can be hard to juggle all the frantic Christmas shopping, nights out and socialising with finishing up work for the holidays. The first thing that usually tends to get reduced, is precious sleep.
While it might seem like the logical thing to do to make more time in the day, unfortunately a lack of sleep can lead to feeing fatigued, make you more prone to stress and more likely to reach for a minced pie or box of roses as a source of energy. You might also be less likely to enjoy yourself when you are burning the candle at both ends.
So, keep an eye on your sleep and aim for 6-8 hours a night. You can sleep for longer on some nights to make up for nights where you got less sleep to avoid falling into a sleep debt. You will be more likely to feel at your best and enjoy the festivities more. Keeping a sleep diary might be a good idea for the next few weeks.
Eat Mindfully
It is around this time of the year when it is impossible to follow strict and unrealistic diet rules, and you might be likely to say, “screw it all” and revert to feast mode. Believe it or not, weight gain is not inevitable at this time of the year. The key is to ditch the diet rules and the “all or nothing” mentality. It is perfectly fine to enjoy your favourite Christmas treats and not feel guilty.
Some good tips to avoid overindulgence this Christmas:
Eat slowly – take 10-15 minutes to finish a meal
Really taste whatever it is you are eating and enjoy it – most people eat so fast that they don’t even taste the food or register that they have eaten it
Eat from your stomach rather than from your head – meaning, when you feel full don’t reach for a second serving out of guilt
Eat regularly, listen to your body and eat when you are hungry
Exercise Regularly
Many people exercise to keep weight under control or to lose weight. Therefore, at times like Christmas, exercise tends to go out the window.
There are so many reasons to maintain exercise throughout December. Exercise helps to reduce stress levels and flood oxygen around the body which can help us to feel more energetic. It is also helpful to keep up a routine in December so that it is not an absolute mission trying to get back to the gym in January.
Remember that you don’t need to be killing yourself in the gym to get the benefit from exercise.
Try to fit in a walk in the morning or in the evening
Try an at home YouTube workout or use an App to guide you
Do what you can – getting a 10-15-minute workout in can be extremely beneficial, as it can promote good mental health and it is an excellent opportunity to get some “you time” when life is frantic
Try to schedule in exercise 3-4 times a week. You can then build on this in the New Year
Rethink Your Drink
Alcohol consumption tends to skyrocket at this time of the year. Whilst the best advice is to drink within recommended units, this is not always realistic advice for people at this time of the year and can result in all or nothing thinking.
Just be aware that alcohol is extremely high in calories, which can be more detrimental to your waistline than the couple of chocolates that you feel guilty about eating.
A pint has roughly the equivalent calories of a piece of cake so if you’re loading up on pints then you most likely will end up packing on the pounds.
Some tips to realistically manage your alcohol consumption are:
Alternate alcoholic drinks with water to avoid dehydration
Figure out what you would usually drink at a Christmas party or social night out and cut it in half – e.g. if you usually have 10 pints, then limit yourself to 5-6 pints
Set yourself a budget – just like you budget your money, set yourself an alcohol budget. You can even use money to motivate this – e.g. “I am only spending €50 on drinks tonight”
Alternate your alcoholic drinks with non-alcoholic drinks if you feel under pressure to keep up with rounds
Opt for glasses or bottles instead of pints to reduce quantity
Spirits with slimline or diet mixers are the lowest calorie drinks if you are weight conscious
Have your food prepared for when you arrive home from a night out and for the next day to avoid a blow out
Hopefully you find these tips helpful. It can be a difficult time of year to prioritise your energy and health, but by making these 5 small changes, hopefully you won’t be stepping into January feeling down about your health and making drastic, unrealistic resolutions to try and undo the “damage”.
Remember that Christmas is about more than food and drink. It is an opportunity to catch up with old friends and family, connect with colleagues, reflect on your year to date and, most importantly, … relax!
Health is about more than just food and exercise. Aim for weight maintenance this Christmas, which allows for some indulgences in your favourite treats. Try not to let all of your healthy habits slip. Keeping them up in some way shape or form will make it easier to get back into a routine in the New Year. You do not need to be perfect to get the benefit.
From all of us at Spectrum Nutrition, have an absolutely fantastic Christmas!