The holiday season is upon us and with that comes travel away from home, schedule changes, and many types of celebrations. From potlucks with friends and family, to fancy parties at restaurants, the increased exposure to situations that might derail the most disciplined persons nutritional routine is enough to totally destroy the progress of someone who is just starting to make positive changes to their nutrition.

With that being said; it doesn’t have to! It is possible to make it through the holiday season without having to sacrifice your health or fitness:

1. Remind yourself: ITS NOT GOING TO BE AS BAD AS YOU THINK. When you get through a holiday or event, or a vacation and are able to stick to your nutrition plan, you’ll feel great! Everyone around you might be miserable because they ate too much, but you will feel awesome.

2. Watch out for “reward” or “re-entry.” This is when you make it through a holiday party or vacation and stick to your plan perfectly only to come home to binge because you let your guard down and/or want to reward yourself for all that work. This is a trap! Stay vigilant after the holiday, party, or vacation.

3. Use the “hand method” when building your plate. A closed fist is about how much protein you should have, an open hand is about how much carbohydrates (mostly veggies) you should have and the tip of your thumb is about how much fat you should have (usually you don’t even have to count this as most food at holiday parties already has butter on it or was cooked in oil.

4. Get ONE PLATE. Don’t snack or go back for seconds. Just don’t!!!! Blurring the line here can lead to over snacking/eating.

5. Consider meal times for the whole day. If you have a party that starts late and you feel like you may not eat until late or even earlier than usual. Be sure to move meals around during that day so you aren’t starving when you get there.

6. Pack an emergency snack. Bring a snack and leave it in your car, coat pocket or purse- If you decide to not have anything that’s being served, you can run to the car to have your snack to hold you over.

7. Focus on the people not the food. Meet new people, learn their names, or learn something new about someone you already know. It doesn’t have to be all about the food.

8. It’s not impolite to say no. If someone gives you a hard time about what you’re eating or not eating, tell them to f**k off…. Just kidding, just politely let them know, you: don’t eat that, aren’t hungry or are already full, or no thanks. They probably are only giving you a hard time because getting someone else to do what they are doing validates them in that behavior (I.e. If you have the cookie, they’ll feel better about the fact that they are having the cookie). You aren’t responsible for making everyone around you feel good about themselves by doing something you don’t really want to do. Just say no.

Do you have questions on how to improve your nutrition?
megan.mullins@equity-sc.com

Interested in giving Equity a try? Check out how to get started.
https://www.equity-sc.com/getting-started-1/

Cheers,
Megan Mullins
Equity Nutrition Coach