How to Stay Healthy Over the Holidays

Gingerbread cookies. Hot chocolate. Peppermint bark. Pie after pie after pie…it’s easy to see how eating around the holidays can be problematic. And even if those extra calories result in just a pound or two of weight gain, it can be enough to make you feel less confident and more lethargic when you return to school. Here are a few tips to keep you in shape this holiday season.

Think before you eat.
This tip seems simple, but it’s crucial to avoiding holiday weight gain. Mindless eating can be a huge source of calories, and the foods we tend to reach for when we’re not thinking about it generally to have little to no nutritional value. This can be especially dangerous during the holidays because there’s simply more food around. If everyone you’re with is eating unhealthy food and you find it hard to resist, try tricking your body by eating a candy cane. It’s still a seasonal treat, but much healthier than other alternatives because it will last for a long time and is low in calories - one candy cane usually has only about 55 calories. Also, the peppermint flavor may make you feel less hungry for other food, the same way that brushing your teeth discourages you from eating any more.

Help with cooking for holiday meals.
If you put two sticks of butter into a pie crust yourself, you may be less likely to eat as much as you would have otherwise. This will also give you the opportunity to try out some recipes that are lower in sugar and fat. Try using canola oil instead of butter, or natural sweeteners like honey instead of sugar. Cooking will make you more aware of what you’re eating, and your family will be thrilled that you’re helping out. It can also be a great way to get you off the couch and on your feet - a 130-pound woman will burn about 230 calories in 90 minutes of cooking.

Stay active with your friends.
J-Term will be a great time to catch up with old friends from home. Instead of meeting up for coffee or dessert, try to plan some sort of physical activity like going for a long walk, working out, or ice-skating. Recreational ice-skating can burn up between 300 and 800 calories per hour! You can still catch up with friends while staying active, and trying new things together can be a lot of fun.

Be aware of calories from drinks.
A grande peppermint white chocolate mocha from Starbucks packs 550 calories. Instead, try putting a shot of peppermint or gingerbread syrup in your black coffee, adding only 20 calories (or 0, if you opt for the sugar-free version). Don’t undo your whole day of careful eating by indulging in a highly caloric drink. Flavored syrups can still add holiday flavor without all the extra sugar and calories.

Never skip meals to eat more later.

As you’ve probably heard before, when you skip meals your body goes into starvation mode, slowing down your metabolism. You will also be more likely to overeat later on. Start your day with something healthy to help you make good food choices the rest of the day.

Don’t forget your healthy eating habits from the rest of the year.
If you never eat more than one dessert a day, don’t change that just because it’s the holiday season. When friends and family get together for the holidays, every meal can seem like an excuse to pig out because it’s a “special occasion.” Disassociate “special occasions” with eating a ton, and you’ll be better off.

Sources:
http://www.spanglercandy.com/spangler/newspr/nutritionfactspage.php
http://www.healthstatus.com/cgi-bin/calc/calculator.cgi
http://www.usfigureskating.org/Programs.asp?id=118