Make healthy choices this festive season!
Prevent that other traditional seasonal event ? winter weight gain!
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Christmas is almost upon us and because of it?s timing this year, the partying for some has already begun! Use these simple tips to help stay fit and healthy this year and get a head start on that Resolution.
1. Routine, Routine, Routine
Keep as close to your current exercise plan as possible. Parties to go to? Then squeeze in a quick run or workout beforehand or make sure that you have a tough session the day after a splurge (ie Boxing Day). Your body will thank you for it in the long term and you will feel infinitely better in the short term. The key here is planning ? identify where in your Christmas schedule you?ll have some time and book in a little you time.
2. Portion Control
This can be the toughest thing to manage at Christmas. It?s all too easy to eat until you literally feel as if you?re going to burst. Instead, try to stop before you feel full ? the hormones which tell us we are full actually don?t kick in until we are past the point of no return. So this year, eat until you feel about 80% full and in 15 minutes your brain will have caught up.
3. Choose the Right Party Foods
Most party foods are simple carbohydrates or very high in refined sugar or grains. Try to make intelligent snack choices ? go for unsalted nuts, smoked salmon or veggie bites. It?s very easy for the foods that surround the main Christmas meal to be the ones which do all the damage.
4. Drink Sensibly
We consume more alcohol over the festive period than at any other point in the year ? remember, you can still have fun without overdoing it! Also make your drink choices wise ones, champagne is a good low-calorie option as each glass equates to only around 80 calories and the resveratrol in red wine does confer some health benefits (although these are negated by over-consumption). Again, balance is key ? if you do decide to let your hair down, make sure you make up for it the next day (eat less and get out and exercise!).
5. Stay Hydrated
What with all this drinking, we often forget to keep taking in water. As well as staving off the next day?s hangover, alternating alcohol with water will also help to fill you up and mean that you eat less.
The main thing to remember is to enjoy the next couple of weeks with your friends and family. This time of year can do wonders for our mood ? especially important for us Scots, normally hunkering down in our dark, wet winters. If you do ?fall off the wagon? don?t beat yourself up about it too much, just resolve to be better the next day.
Merry Christmas and a Healthy, Happy New Year to you all from Gemma and I!
Alasdair
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