Mindful Christmas eating

Christmas is a time to enjoy good food, good company and some much needed festive cheer. Something we all deserve especially after the year we have had and continued issues relating to the bloomin’ virus. But many people go a bit mad over Christmas – over eating, indulging in endless treats, drinking more often and more than normal and generally thinking ‘damn it’ it’s Christmas!

It feels good to switch off from work, kick back and ease off the pressure but we really need to try and be mindful about what we eat. Having a few treats feels good, helping us enjoy those special occasions, but too many and we can derail our health, put on weight and weaken our immune system. We all need to be looking after ourselves and a couple of weeks of gung ho eating and drinking could set you back more than you really want when you are taking stock in the New Year.

My advice for getting to the end of the holiday season in good shape?

Don’t go all in! Enjoy your food, your drinks and a few indulgent options but keep it sensible as much as you can. Be mindful of what you are eating, why you are eating it and how it will make you feel the next day.

Maybe try some of my lower carb, lower sugar, Christmas treat options shown in the photo – carrot mincemeat mince pies (which taste nicer than they sound!), no alcohol low sugar mulled wine and a lower carb easy to make tiramisu.

Here are my three top tips for the holiday period that should help keep your weight and waist steady and start 2022 raring to go:

1.      Don’t eat unless you are hungry and skip a meal the next day if you have eaten a lot – if you are generally eating lower carb you will be burning your fat for fuel and able to manage this easily. It really does stop you overloading your body and help stabilise your hormones.

 2.      Be kind to yourself if you do overindulge or eat the wrong things – just get back on it, with renewed commitment, the next day. Try and avoid the habit of a daily food related ‘treat’! What else could you do instead to give you a buzz? Call a friend, go for a walk, play with a dog/cat/child or do 5 minutes of exercises while the kettle boils 😊

 3.      Get some fresh air and exercise absolutely every day – 30 mins of walking is all you need, ideally in daylight and can even be done in multiple, short bursts. This will help reduce insulin resistance which is the root cause of spreading waistlines. Do more exercise if/when you can!

Enjoy Christmas!!!