The Holiday Season and Healthy Living

The Holiday Season and Healthy Living

Now that Halloween is behind us, the holiday season is just around the corner.  That means a lot of things, including time spent with friends and family, taking part in holiday traditions and maybe even some travel. For many people, the holidays also mean eating more treats than you usually do and struggling to find time to exercise. This can be a recipe for health issues and weight gain.

But, don’t worry, it’s certainly possible to have a happy holiday season and still pay attention to your health. Here are a few tips!

Be Aware of What You Eat

One of the easiest ways to overeat is through “mindless eating.” This is when you consume food just because it’s there and not because you actually want it. For example, you might eat mindlessly while watching TV or while standing near the snack table at a party. In order to avoid this, don’t eat when you’re doing anything else and physically move yourself away from the food after you’ve chosen what you’d like. For example, if you go to a holiday party and there are snacks, take a plate, put whatever you want on it, and then walk away. This will prevent you from continuously snacking while you’re socializing.

Schedule Some Exercise

This is a very busy time of year and that can make it tough to exercise. If you put together a schedule now, before the holiday madness truly starts, you’ll be more likely to stick to it later on.

Enjoy Alcohol Responsibly

If you’re planning on consuming alcohol this holiday season, do so responsibly. Not only can too much alcohol harm your overall health, but many alcoholic drinks contain far more calories than you might expect. To avoid overdoing it, alternate between alcoholic drinks and other drinks when you’re at a party and be sure to have plenty of water as well.

Don’t Skip Meals

It might be tempting to skip a meal if you know that you’re going to a party or other social event later on. However, this often causes you to overeat when you get there. To maintain a healthy diet, be sure to continue to eat healthy and balanced meals throughout the day.

Have your Favourites

Of course, we’re not saying that you’ll need to completely deprive yourself of holiday treats entirely. The key is to make sure that you have your favourites and to limit everything else. For example, if you find yourself at a dessert table at a party, take only the ones that you really like. This means you won’t fill up on a pile of snacks  that you only kind of enjoy and you’ll still be able to have the ones that you truly appreciate.