Well if you made it through Thanksgiving in one piece and you enjoyed yourself, today is a new day to just get back on track with healthy eating and put that turkey, stuffing and good desserts to use ! If you are like many of us, the holiday season from Thanksgiving to after New Year’s can become overwhelming and cause you to set your fitness goals aside for family gatherings, food and fun. Part of this misconception is that you can’t enjoy yourself without missing out which is far from the truth.Will-power is in limited supply as we are surrounded by many food choices within our immediate environment. Rather than relying on willpower, you can change the environment so that you don’t overindulge. Out smart your stomach and keep reading on about how to have fun but stay in check for the remainder of the holiday !
Use SMALLER plates! Yes your eyes will be fooled that you are eating a FULL plate, however if your plate is smaller you are now consuming less.People who chose a large plate put about 52% more food on their plate and ate about 45% more. This applies to popcorn containers, soda glasses, and soup bowls.We rely on the visual of the container to tell us how much to serve ourselves. We feel that we should fill the plate to capacity.
Make the unhealthy stuff less accessible. Did you ever realize how easy it is to just take a small bite out of that pumpkin pie that is just sitting in the fridge on the top shelf starring at you? Or those cookies that are on the counter? If it’s out of sight it’s usually out of mind.The more barriers you put between you and unhealthy food choices, the easier it will be to avoid the temptation.
Food journal and be honest. If you have to be accountable for what you eat, you are less likely to overindulge. You don’t want to look back and see that you ate half the pie but don’t understand why your up 5 pounds on the scale. By making yourself accountable even if it’s just to yourself you can identify where you are eating too much or if you have the room to have a few more treats !
Listen to your body ! Your body produces hormones telling you that your are full. It also produces neurotransmitters that tell us to keep eating rewarding food when it tastes good.. If you slow down how fast you eat, you can still enjoy the reward signals, but allow the satiety hormones to catch up to our eating. Also fill your plate with A LOT of green veggies ! This will fill your stomach without calories and then eat the things you enjoy in moderation.
Being mindful with eating is not going to help you lose weight drastically BUT it might reduce the gradual weight increase that comes over time. By eating slightly less unhealthy food, you can reduce harm that accumulates over time. This holiday season, try eating with a smaller plate, keeping unhealthy food out of sight, but the evidence in sight, and eat as slowly as possible.