‘Tis the season for family, friends, and food… lots of food. As you’ve probably experienced over the years, the holidays can cause you to come into the New Year a little heavier than you want to be. Luckily, we have mastered how you can indulge in holiday festivities and keep your clothes from feeling snug. Here are some of our top tips to head into 2022 without the extra pounds.
Stay Away from the Food Table
The holidays are a great time to catch up with friends and family; however, make sure you keep conversations away from the food. It’s so easy to carelessly munch on party snacks when your mind is distracted. That one cookie you planned on eating can easily turn into 10 without you even realizing.
Eat Before the Party
There isn’t a rule that says you must starve yourself before attending a party. Starving yourself often leads to overeating. If you do this to justify eating extra during the party, more often than not, this strategy backfires. Do yourself a favor and eat smaller portions throughout the day before the party begins so you don’t have a primal need to consume everything in sight upon arrival.
Load Up on Fruits & Veggies
If you’re going to eat a lot, you may as well indulge in natural whole foods. Aside from their nutritional advantages, fruits and vegetables will satiate you much more than the usual sugary holiday staples.
Be Proactive
Don’t expect or rely on others to provide healthy options. There are tons of healthy recipes that you can make yourself to stay on track and bring to parties. By bringing your own dish, you are guaranteed to have a healthier option available and won’t feel restricted to the salad bowl. Here are some of our favorites from sweet Cinnabuns to savory pesto zoodles; you’ll surely find your next healthy holiday hit.
Learn to Say No
Nobody will force you to eat something you don’t want to eat (hopefully). However, we often feel obligated to eat something when someone offers it to us. It’s ok to say no as long as you do it politely.
Take a Timeout Before Seconds
It takes 20 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that it’s full. After that first plate, don’t head straight to the food table for seconds. Talk to family, drink some water, do whatever you need to do to give your stomach some time to tell your brain that you had plenty of food already.
Lose the Guilt
If you do end up overindulging, don’t beat yourself up over it. One day of bad eating isn’t going to crater your health goals. What will do that is giving up completely and making unhealthy eating a lifestyle. One day of eating unhealthy won’t change your life, just as one day of eating healthy won’t accomplish all your health goals.
Be kind to yourself, you don’t deserve it!
Purium Holiday Hacks
Purium’s CONTROL Pre-Meal Capsules are specifically designed to help you eat less and reduce the impact of simple carbohydrates and sugars, lessening the possibility that your body will convert them into fat. It is a great addition to any weight loss regimen and is amazing for those needing the extra help in curbing those cravings. Just pop a few before you head out for a party!
Everyone needs a little extra digestion and immune support especially if they overindulged during a holiday party. Aloe Vera is truly one of nature’s best aids. Rich with polysaccharides and based in organic coconut water, our Organic Aloe Digest is the perfect support to keep your stomach feeling strong and support your body’s reaction to stomach discomfort!
These are all good tips that should help people enjoy the holidays, especially when it comes to the meals they prep. Taking breaks between meals, as you detailed here, is especially important.