Maintaining a healthy diet is not always easy through the holidays. In fact, holiday parties are potential danger zones for overindulging from alcoholic drinks, appetizers, cookies, cakes, and candies. However, you can still prevent weight gain if you have a strategy for how to avoid overeating at holiday parties.
Healthy Eating Tips That Help Through Festive Celebrations
- Plan ahead of time by eating a small meal with protein first before you go to those parties can help. The reason is that your hunger will be satisfied instead of allowing that need for food from an empty stomach make the decision for you. In fact, protein such as cheese, cottage cheese, chicken, Greek yogurt, nuts or something such as eggs can fill you up longer as well to safeguard against that desire to nibble.
- Before picking up what may tempt you from the holiday buffet, keep the proverb: a moment in your mouth and a lifetime on your hips in the back of your mind. Silently repeat that phrase every time your willpower wanes. Instead, focus on healthier options such as the veggies with bean dip, fruit or a small handful of nuts. For instance, 14 almonds can amount to about 100 calories while providing that protein to guard against hunger as well as contributing needed fiber.
- Plate size does matter in regard to how much we eat. It never hurts to ask for a smaller plate if the available ones are huge. Less space tricks the mind into thinking that you’re eating a full plate of food.
- Water is the best beverage for how to avoid overeating at home, work and holiday parties. Nonetheless, if you plan on drinking an alcoholic drink, then try to limit it to one. Although one serving of alcohol like vodka, whiskey, gin, wine or beer has about 100 calories, the mixed drink cocktails with the syrups and fruit juices can do you in calorie-wise besides being bad for your health. Wine spritzers or just adding some sparkling water to the alcohol can help extend the life of that drink that you could nurse. Nonetheless, if you plan on drinking an alcoholic drink, then try to limit it to one after you eat. If you drink first, then you are asking for trouble since it will only awaken your taste buds and make you hungrier.
- Savor each bite and sip instead of mindlessly munching. Chewing longer such as taking 25 to 20 seconds before swallowing helps digestion. At the same time, it is another mental trick that can fool your mind into feeling more content.
- Something sweet could be impossible to resist if that is your weakness. What you can do is to grab a napkin that can only hold a cookie or a candy. A napkin is smaller and more fragile compared to a sturdier, larger plate for holding more cookies, candies, cake, pie, and other rich desserts.
Hopefully, this post on how to avoid holiday weight gain will make a difference. You also might find it beneficial to read my earlier post with dieting tactics after too much holiday feasting.