It’s that time of year when Christmas ornaments are up way too early and that annoying (yet catchy) holiday music is on repeat everywhere you go.
With Thanksgiving being less than a week away, the holiday season is officially kicking off and the socially acceptable gorging is too. But, for those who want to escape the holidays with just cheer and no more inches around your waist, you have come to the right place. I am all for holiday food and pigging out with my cousins, but I hate feeling too full to the point where I vow to never eat such a copious amount of food ever again (until I do it again next year...)
So, here are some tips on having holidays that are full of food, family, and friends where you don’t have to feel guilty about how much of mom’s stuffing you scarfed down or your aunt’s cookies that you hid in your pockets.
1. Eat breakfast. This will help you control your appetite more later on in the day when you’re face-to-face with that third slice of pumpkin pie.
2. Try to skip the thirds. I’m not saying don’t get seconds (come on, you’re allowed to pig out a little!), but try not to get another heaping portion of something you know you don’t need.
3. Only put on your plate what you know you want to eat and try to make at least half of it nutritious food (no, cranberry sauce does not count as nutritious.)
4. Try to take as long as possible to eat your meal -- savor each bite! It’s not a contest to see who can eat the most food the fastest at Thanksgiving or Christmas (unless it actually is a contest in your family. In that case, I wish you luck and you should stop reading this), so enjoy each bite!
5. Go easy on the booze since alcohol is high in calories too.
6. Make an agreement with yourself. Maybe say that if you eat all of your salad and no bread, you can have another glass of wine or piece of pie. It’s all about compromises, people.
7. Try to eat as many greens as possible. Even if it’s in a casserole, they’re still veggies.
8. When the pie is calling your name, see if you’re up to taking the crust off and eating just the filling (it’s the best part anyway!)
9. Make sure you are drinking your water. I once heard that 90 percent of the time when you think you’re hungry, you are actually thirsty. Drinking water will help you feel more full and will help you to not eat as much.
10. Eat until you are full. I know this sounds silly, but it takes your brain 15 minutes to get the signal from your stomach saying you are full. When you start to feel full, in a few minutes, you will begin to feel even more full (weird, I know!)
11. Go for a walk after the meal. Walking helps you to digest your food better and will help you feel not as full afterward.
12. Go easy on yourself; it’s the holidays, after all!
