Navigating Your Holiday Meals Like a Boss
By Donna Stark
I always thought I was pretty good at navigating things. You could hand me a map and I wouldn't have any problem getting you from point A to point B. If you need to do some online holiday shopping, I am a whiz at navigating the internet. Or if you are heading to a corn maze this weekend ... well, you know what I am going to say ... I'm your girl! So it was a huge surprise to me when I found myself struggling during last year's holiday meals. Actually, it was more than just a little bit of struggling. It was downright overwhelming.
Navigating Your Holiday Meals
The holidays are a beautiful excuse to spend time with loved ones, but with all the celebrating, eating, and drinking, it can be quite easy to fall off the healthy diet path. Most holiday meals contain an enormous amount of calories, don't they? Just think about it. Creamy mashed potatoes, buttery dinner rolls, cheesy casseroles and then after dinner, the desserts just seem to magically appear. Is there any confusion as to why I was having trouble navigating these choices? Especially when I had three more houses to hit by nightfall?
Well, I certainly don't want you to go through what I did last year, so here are some of my favorite tips on how to get through all of your holiday meals without giving up your favorite food or sacrificing your health.
- Eat breakfast - Sure, you may think that by not eating breakfast, you are saving room and calories for the big meal later on in the day, but that approach isn't really as beneficial as you may think. Eating a small breakfast first will actually give you more power to control your appetite and you will be less likely to binge eat when all of that delicious food is in front of you.
- Choose veggies - Fill more than half of your plate with veggies. Go ahead, load them up! Just be sure to choose the ones that aren't covered in cheesy sauces or loads of butter.
- Bring a healthy alternative - In charge of bringing a side dish? Make an old standby healthy! Leave the buttery mashed potatoes with sour cream at home and make some mashed cauliflower or sweet potatoes in its place.
- Be mindful with desserts - It's easy to say, "I'll just eat fruit," but when you are standing in front of your favorite traditional desserts, fruit doesn't always cut it. So be mindful, share your desserts if you can, and watch how many of those bite-sized pieces you choose because we all know how quickly they can add up. You only need a few bites to feel satisfied, so stick to that and fill up the rest of your dessert plate with ... yep, you guessed it -- fruit!
Navigate Without Sacrifice
By no means do you have to give up your favorite dishes when making smarter choices at dinner time. So don't stress, enjoy your family, and navigate yourself through this holiday season without too many sacrifices. It can be done!
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Lubbock, Tex.