When you are working on improving your nutrition, the holidays are a challenging time.
And I get it!
The baking, the stuffing, the gravy, the pie, the specialty drinks, the chocolate… really, how can you stay on track the whole time?
Well, it is not impossible to avoid all the treats and it would certainly be the best decision for your health, but for many people it is really hard because food is a part of the holiday celebration.
And not indulging feels kind of like going to the beach with your friends but not being able to swim or going camping and getting poison ivy…
Food is part of what makes the holidays awesome. But that doesn’t mean that everything you eat over the holidays has to be unhealthy.
Today I am going to show you how you can make decisions that will allow you to fully enjoy and participate in your holiday gatherings while still maintaining one of your highest values…your health.
And I have got a completely awesome Holiday Meal Plan for you to download at the end of this blog. It has By Design appetizers, main dishes and my favorite ‘better option’ dessert. The best part is that it comes fully equipped with a Planning Guide so that you can get started cooking now! Oh, and it is free.
So, as we have already established this can be a challenging time and here is why…
- You know that holiday foods taste delicious and they only come once a year.
- You may be afraid to offend someone by saying no to food that they worked hard to prepare.
- You actually really want to eat and enjoy these foods despite the fact that they are not healthy for you, so you do. And then you feel guilty.
Know where you draw your line.
The first strategy that I want to give you is to decide in advance where you draw your line. What treats are you absolutely going to indulge in and which ones are just not worth it.
For me, it is apple pie and shortbread. I love them both. But I do not really enjoy cake or butter tarts. So I know, when I am staring at the dessert table, that I do not need to try one of everything. I will be happy with a decent sized sliver of pie and a cookie.
Deciding in advance takes the decision paralysis away (the moment when your brain goes numb and you just stop trying to decide and you eat everything in sight…and pay for it the next day).
Here’s how to decide where you draw your line:
Take two minutes to think about which foods you really love and are willing to accept the consequences of going off track for, and what is a reasonable amount to eat.
You are afraid to offend the host.
It is hard to say ‘no thanks’ to someone who pushes a dish of food in front of you when they have been cooking all day or even worse, when they have made it just for you.
But if you know that there are consequences to eating that food, whether it is having diarrhea all day tomorrow or just that you will feel tired and foggy, it really is worth it to decline the foods that you are trying to avoid.
I think a great way to do this with class is to say “No thanks, I just do not feel well when I eat…(offending food).” (You can use that line even if you feel perfectly fine after eating it but you are avoiding it just because it takes you away from health).
Or you can just say ‘no thanks.’ You do not owe anyone an explanation.
If this person is truly your friend they will understand that you are making decisions for your health because your life is better when do this. And it will make them happy to see you happy.
If they are still offended after you explain your situation, then personally I would reevaluate the relationship.
Do some meal prep before Christmas.
Doing meal prep means that you make some meals or side dishes or even just prep some veggies in advance so that you have less work to do each day at mealtime.
If you can even manage a two-hour time slot you can get eight meals or more in your freezer.
Because let’s face it, even those with the best of intentions usually lose the desire to cook a healthy meal in the midst of all the holiday running around.
With a bit of meal prep, you will have meals ready and waiting when you need them.
Check out this great video that will show you exactly what I am talking about.
Food journal
This strategy is not going to appeal to everyone and I understand that the holidays are a time that we want to let loose.
But we often lose sight of how loose we are letting…
By jotting down a quick food journal each night, you can be really clear on what you have actually been eating (you will not forget about the last three cookies you snuck in) and how it made you feel.
For example, if end up really constipated on boxing day, you will be less likely to chalk it up to ‘who knows’ if you know that you had a large gluten-filled portion of stuffing.
Eat in advance.
Simple.
Eat at home before you go out and you will be less hungry, and therefor less likely to feel compelled to indulge in foods that do not make you feel well.
Adapt your favorite meal.
When I talk about eating ‘off track’ I am specifically referring to eating foods that are not good for you health.
Do you think that stuffing is off track? If it is made with bread, yes it is off track.
But that does not mean that I do not eat stuffing. Instead of avoiding it I created a recipe that includes all of the good stuff (sage, sausage, onions, cranberries) and I left out the ingredients that were not healthy like bread
And as I mentioned, I love shortbread so I found a recipe for grain free shortbread cookies that is excellent.
(Both of those recipes are in the Holiday Meal Plan that you can download at the end of this blog).
So you see, I do not really go without. I just adapt. And I always bring enough to share.
If you need some help adapting your favourite recipe you can come to our Facebook page and we can help you find a great recipe to replace your not-so-healthy favourites.
Ditch the guilt.
If you made a plan and you stuck to it, even if it involved eating off track, then you have followed through. You can feel really good about that.
If you still feel guilty (or sick, bloated and tired) it is a sign that you need to make a different choice next time.
So accept the decision you made, and the consequences, and make sure that your next meal is on track.
Here is a quick recap of the strategies that I want you to use to stay on track as much as possible throughout the holidays:
- Know where you draw your line. And do not be afraid to offend people (because you do not have to).
- Do some meal prep before Christmas.
- Keep a food journal
- Eat in advance.
- Adapt your favourite dish and bring it to the party.
- Ditch the guilt.
What is your favourite treat that you would love to see adapted into a healthier recipe? Let me know in the comments below and I will see if I can help!
You can download our free By Design Holiday Meal Plan HERE.
Happy Holidays!