How to Have Your Cake and Eat It Too This Holiday Season
Scrolling through my feed on Instagram, I see a lot of super valuable messages reminding people that being restrictive over the holidays is far from being healthy and that you can and should eat the damn cake. I couldn’t agree more - if your struggle is that you put too much stress on yourself to eat “perfect.” But what if that’s not you? What if letting your foot off the gas around holidays, de-prioritizing moving your body and nixing your normal 80/20 rule till January 1st is how you normally approach the holidays? What if all that applies to you and January 1st rolls around and you lose your motivation by February? First off, you are not alone - but it’s because your setting yourself up for failure with an approach like that. What makes you think that you’re going to actually want to go all hardcore in January when your habits have proven otherwise in December? Your mindset NOW is a huge testament to how successful you can and will be with goals you have going into the new year.
Here’s some tips to think about this holiday season:
START WITH PROTEIN. Eating like a rabbit all day leading up to a big holiday dinner is not going to work. I mean, really - has it ever? Prioritizing protein in your meals and snacks early in the day will satiate you and make you less likely to over indulge later. The holiday foods you will most likely be enjoying later will be higher in carbs and fat so consistently getting your protein in early in the day during the holidays can also help preserve lean muscle, even if your workout schedule is not as regiment.
KNOW WHAT FOODS ARE HYPER-PALATABLE FOODS. Knowledge is power and is what will enable you to truly be intuitive during the holidays AND to have intention in the decisions you make. Hyper-palatable are foods high in sugar and/or vegetable oil and are designed to make you crave more without giving you that feeling of fullness. Think: chips, candy and fried foods. Even just knowing what foods are hyper-palatable is so powerful so you can choose to pair them with a healthy fat or protein so your fullness cues actually kick in. For example, if you want to enjoy some chips and dip, first - put a serving on a plate or in an individual bowl versus grazing from the serving bowl or straight from the bag. Then, put some of the shrimp from the shrimp cocktail appetizer on your plate, or the meatball or bacon-wrapped scallops. You see where i am going with this? Just as you want to start your day with protein during the holidays, pairing those less nutritious foods with protein is a prime example of being intuitive while having intention in your approach to the holidays.
BE CONCIOUS OF GRAZING. I am not a huge fan of counting macros long-term and definitely do not suggest it during the holidays, but know that grazing is an easy way to eat 1000+ more calories a day, versus putting what you want on a plate and not standing in front of the appetizers and snacks.
MAINTAIN THE HABIT. Notice I use the word “maintain” - not to set overly lofty goals during a season where, again, you want to eat the cake, you want to celebrate and you want to do all the “holiday things.” Have a realistic mindset. Know that you’re probably going to gain weight (yes, I said it) and when you do, don’t let it be a mental deterrent to not enjoy the rest of the holidays. Get back to what you know. Don’t have a freak out moment. Don’t look for a quick fix because you know that doesn’t work. Set yourself up for success in knowing that there are definitely going to be days where you can’t get to the gym, so have a plan for those days (like body weight workouts or running/walking routes you can take).
Know that if you follow a healthy routine and maintain the majority of the habits you’ve had throughout most of the year, you may gain 1-2 pounds, but the habits you’ve maintained will carry through as discipline to get you back to where you want to be shortly after the holidays.
UNDERSTAND HOW ALCOHOL WORKS. I love a good skinny marg. I love learning about wines and appreciate a good bottle. It’s a social thing for me. I have never been one to pour myself a glass of wine during the week - but zeroooo judgment if that’s your jam. I choose to fit it into my life because being healthy is much more than what’s on my plate or what’s in my cup. Being healthy for me means prioritizing my social life. A good buzz can be a good time, but if alcohol is a regular part of your diet and you’re struggling to build muscle, tone up and lose some body fat, here’s some things that might help you make sense of it all.
Alcohol can cause excess fat storage. When drinking, the body becomes preoccupied breaking down the alcohol and it shuts down the digestion of other nutrients. Thus, any protein, fat or carbs you eat while drinking will be stored as body fat or glycogen until your body clears the alcohol from your blood. So if you’re in a calorie surplus and consuming a lot more fat (which hiiiiiii, I can house a whole plate of nachos to myself when I drink), then alcohol can cause excess fat storage. While alcohol itself can’t be stored as body fat, it blocks fat oxidation, which in turn accelerates the rate at which your body stores dietary fat as body fat. So, it’s not the calories from alcohol that increase your body fat percentage, it’s the crap you eat with it, which is hard to resist when ya get buzzed.
Alcohol can also impact the synthesis of protein and disrupt the building of new muscle, making those bootaaay gains (or toning up in general) difficult.
Ending on positive note tho - alcohol is unique in that it has a high thermic effect, with about 20% of the calories in alcohol being burned during digestion. So, if you substitute some of your daily carb intake with an equivalent amount of alcohol, there’s been research to suggest you could lose weight.
SLEEP. Aim for at least 7 hours of sleep. When you are sleep deprived it triggers certain hormones to crave a “pick me up,” usually in the form of sugar so you get that instant high.
REMEMBER YOUR WHY. This is something that is relevant to achieving your goals year around - but can be especially helpful during the holidays when you catch yourself saying, “I will just start fresh in the New Year” and you give yourself a pass to stop working out or make healthy choices when you can. Your “why” should always be deeper than an aesthetic goal, like “because I want to look good for an upcoming vacation.” Think deeper. For me, my “why” is because I know that working out and eating well makes me the best version of myself. Sometimes your “why” has nothing to do with you either. While my “why” is that I work out and eat well to be the best version of myself, I want to be the best version of myself so I can be the best version of my myself for my husband, my dog, my family, my friends and everyone in my life. Something I consistently ask myself is, “What is the one thing I could do today to get me closer to transforming myself into what I want to see in my life?”
Now, enjoy the hell out of the holidays but take these tips with you so you can feel empowered with a little extra nutrition knowledge to make decisions that have intention behind them.