After a long term and exhausting weeks, many of us just want to relax and enjoy the holidays. We all know too well that it’s easy to over indulge during the holidays when the season of parties, leftovers and endless amount of treats is upon us. So while you’re at home enjoying the holiday season, keep in mind these five easy tips to stay healthy:

1. Eat Slowly

Eat slowly and enjoy the flavors of all your favorite holiday dishes. It takes the brain about 20 minutes to let you know when you are full and satisfied. However, we often eat so fast by the time 20 minutes rolls around we’ve already gone back for seconds, two pieces of pie and we feel so painfully stuffed. Eating slowly will allow your brain time to catch up and save you from the post holiday feast regret.

2. Stay Hydrated

Your brain can also confuse thirst with hunger. A large glass of water before a meal, and especially before getting seconds, can help decrease the amount of food you consume. Try drinking two glasses of water before big calorie rich meals; also opting to drink water instead of juices, cider or eggnog is a foolproof way to keep from consuming unwanted calories.

3. Get Moving

We all know that snuggling under a blanket with a mug of hot chocolate by the fireplace all winter is so tempting. While it’s totally fine to get your fix of holiday movies and cozy afternoons spent inside, it probably won’t help you maintain your health and fitness. Instead of baking treats or watching movies all day, try bundling up doing something active outside, go for a long walk, build a snowman or igloo, go skiing and do anything that you enjoy to keep you active.

4. Beware of Food Pushers

Whether it’s your Grandma’s famous casserole or your Aunts not so great fruit cake, you may often feel forced to eat certain foods simply because people are persistently offering them to you during the holidays, but it’s okay to say no. Smile and politely decline, just say you’re too full right now, but you’ll take some home as leftovers, if you want too. Don’t let others bust your gut–literally.

5. Indulge for a Night, Not a Season

You shouldn’t worry about eating too much on a single day, like Thanksgiving or Christmas. The truth is that over indulging for a day or two day won’t pack on the pounds and set your fitness level back too dramatically. However, more often than not we tend to make a pattern of daily treats and skipped exercise during the holiday season. It’s important to enjoy the holidays, but stick to a healthy diet and regular exercise as much as possible. Don’t let the holidays go from a day of indulgence to a month of indulgence.

Happy Holidays from the BD team!

Photo source:

Brina Blum (via unsplash.com)