I just love Christmas. I love spending quality time with my lovely family, I love summer holidays, and I love catching up with friends. However, this year, I saw Christmas in a different light. Listening to several Christmas lunch celebrations made me ask myself when it became socially acceptable to overeat during the holiday period.
How to stop overeating this Christmas
Stay hydrated
Staying hydrated will help you avoid overeating as you will not be able to confuse hunger for thirst. Drinking a good amount of water will also make you feel full hence preventing you from eating a lot of food.
Sit down to eat
Before the main meal, try as much as possible to avoid nibbling on snacks. Why? Because once you start, it is hard to stop. This is why you need to avoid taking the first bite. If you know that you will cave, have some health nibbles on stand-by.
What about vegetable sticks with homemade guacamole? Or some festive cherries or berries instead of potato chips and chocolate?
Fill up on fiber
Take lots of delicious vegetables and quality proteins. Doing this will regulate your blood sugars and help you avoid the temptation to binge.
Don’t multi-task at meal time
If you are in conversation, just put down your cutlery and wait until you are done. Did you know that slowing down will make you eat more mindfully? If you are struggling to slow down, eat with your non-dominant hand- If your fork is comfortable in your left hand, switch it to your right hand. This can help you reduce the quantity of food you eat by about up to 30%.
Bring awareness to your plate
Before you eat, take a deep breath and bring your attention back to your food. You need to ask yourself why you are eating, how much you are going to eat and if you have picked the right choices on your plate. Bring awareness back to your meal time.
Make sure you are adequately rested
Lack of enough sleep can skew your appetite and have you reaching for a bowl of sugar to keep your energy levels up. Rest up.
Enjoy the taste of your food
In most cases, we reach for one thing after another and never get to savour the taste. Just sit back, relax and enjoy the experience.
BYO
If your family is not on the same page as you when it comes to nourishing their bodies with good food, make your own.
Contribute your own dips without the added preservatives, a colourful summer salad, or a delicious yet healthy dessert option that will satisfy your urge to indulge. Having your own options on the table will help you avoid the temptation of straying too far from the day’s intentions.
Reflect
One hour after your Christmas feast, ask yourself how you feel. Are you feeling lethargic, anxious, exhausted, or energetic, satisfied and happy? Your body will be able to give you the answer helping you know whether you made the right choice or not.
Get moving!
Avoid sitting around and drinking more and more wine, nibbling on more snacks or going back for seconds post meal. Instead of these, go for a walk, get active or play a game or cricket. Most importantly, remember to take a step back and be grateful for everything that you have. It will surprise you how powerful this moment can be.
Do you have any tips for avoiding the Christmas bulge?