In honor of the “12 Days of Christmas,” the St. Francis Weight Loss Center offers a dozen ways to watch your waistline while still enjoying the holiday season:
1. Plan to maintain your weight over the holidays. Decide which treat is worth the calories, take a smaller portion, and savor every single bite.
2. Take the focus off food. Instead of baking cookies with your children, create non-edible projects like wreaths, dough art decorations or a gingerbread house.
3. Think ahead to make mealtimes less hurried. On a cold, wintery night, few things say comfort like a bowl of hot soup, paired with crusty, whole-grain bread. Start a pot simmering on the stove or in the slow cooker while you spend the day decorating the tree, addressing cards or doing any other holiday preparations. Add a piece of fruit and a cup of milk, and you have a well-balanced meal.
4. Experiment with seasonal produce to lighten up your meals. Consider chutneys as an accompaniment to meats, slices of pears or oranges in your salad, cranberries or dried fruits in rice pilaf, or apple sauce substituted for some of the fats in your baking. A little creativity can go a long way toward heightening taste and sneaking in your produce needs in your diet.
5. If you like to socialize near the kitchen, move the conversation away from the food so you will not be tempted to grab something to eat within arms reach that you really do not want.
6. Avoid temptation- invest in the desserts your really want. If there is a bowl of candy on the table, but you really want Aunt Carol’s famous pie, avoid the candy, save those calories for the items you really want! Its okay to indulge in sweets occasionally and still stay on the weight loss track, just keep your portion sizes small and your eye on the overall goal.
7. Make exercise time play time. Enjoy an afternoon of football, sledding, ice skating or playing in the snow. Or even enjoy the holiday lights while taking a long evening walk.
8. Discover different dips. Who says dips have to be high-fat and joined by chips? Replace cream cheese with silken tofu, or experiment with dips made with nonfat cream cheese, sour cream or Greek yogurt. Pair with vegetable spears or baked pita chips.
9. Watch your appetizers. Limit high-fat choices such as fried chicken wings, miniature sausages and most cheeses. Choose fruits and vegetables instead.
10. Enjoy the mall. While shopping, stretch your legs and squeeze in some exercise in a warm, dry environment.
11. Be a happy host. Balance your famous cookies with healthier options. Grab a fruit or vegetable tray from the store. Be sure to send your leftovers home with guests.
12. Have a healthy holiday spirit. Cocktails, “real” eggnog and other holiday drinks quickly add up in calories. Alternatives include sparkling or hot apple cider, light eggnog or seltzer mixed with fruit juices. Try drinking a glass of water before you drink an alcoholic beverage. This will cut down on excess calories consumed from satisfying your thirst as opposed to drinking for pleasure.
With a little creativity, you can start the new year without quite as many pounds to lose come Jan. 1 – and might just find a new tradition in the process.
More holiday eating and nutrition tips are at http://www.stfrancishospitals.org/weightloss/images/healthyholiday.pdf
To learn more about services and programs available at the St. Francis Weight Loss Center, go to www.stfrancishospitals.org/weightloss.
