5 Nutrition Tricks to Stay Slim and Trim During the Holiday Season

How to stay healthy and on track during the holidays?

Here are 5 of the best Nutrition strategies to stay slim and trim this holiday season.

1. Make your plate as colourful as possible

Fill half of your plate with fruit and veggies (therefore colour), so you will be nourished with vitamins, minerals, disease fighting phytochemicals preventing illness and keeping your energy on track. Moreover, the fibre will keep your digestion and elimination on track. This way you watch your portions but in a positive, non-restrictive way.

2. Eat the rainbow first

You don’t have to deny yourself a homemade treat or a slice of pie…but make sure you eat your vegetables first and that vegetables are the MAIN part of your meal (not cake!). This will fill you up with healthy, nutritious but low-calorie food and allow you to be satisfied with less cake or other treat.

3. Add water

Celebratory drinks are everywhere during the holidays. Specialty drinks can have 500-600 calories per portion! So avoid sugary mixers and choose instead fizzy water with a slice of alkalizing lemon or lime.  Always have a glass of water per cocktail and try to limit yourself to 2 cocktails maximum. Only drink alcohol AFTER a meal or snack containing some healthy fat and protein. Never drink on an empty stomach: it starts a nasty craving cycle which usually leads to overeating afterwards.

4. Start each day with breakfast

Skipping breakfast is a stressful even to the body and increases production of stress hormones in our body. This in turn starts to break down muscle (yes, muscle, not fat!) to use for energy. This very stressful situation for the body messes up blood sugar balance for the rest of the day. Have breakfast within one hour of waking and should be a balanced meal including protein, fat, and carbohydrates.

5. Enjoy festive movement

The holidays are supposed to be fun so get moving with friends or family by dancing or go out to skate, playing a ball game of any kind (just watch those garden pots!), take a hike or run around in the snow (if any) .  Did you know ice skating burns 420 calories per hour? And skiing is in the same region… We certainly don’t need to be in a gym to work out. Swimming and trekking or surfing on holiday near a hot, sunny beach are also more than worthwhile pursuits!