Staying healthy in the holidays

Holidays are upon us and we all know that the year typically ends in a festive way. For the privileged ones, there will be year-end parties and family gatherings to wrap up the intense year that 2020 was and, of course, welcome the new year with its possibilities.

It goes without saying that every single year some of us push the celebrations a little further than others and, come January, there are regrets when we realise we have a lot of damage control to do. So, why not implement a few healthy behaviours now that will help to curb any form of “damage” during this time?

Here are five tips that you can consider using now as the festive season kicks in:

1. Drink water, lots of water. First thing when you wake up, before each meal, during and a cup after eating. This will
help to curb overeating and of course act to flush out toxins. If you are consuming alcoholic beverages, drink some water in between your glasses.

2. Walk as much as possible. If you’re visiting a shopping center, park far away from the entrance and maybe even park at the entrance furthest away from the shops you will be visiting. If you are home or away on holiday, plan afternoon or early morning walks with the family on a daily basis. Don’t focus on pace or distance, use it as an excursion to explore the neighbourhood and change the route every day if possible. Just keep moving.

3. If you are visiting friends and family for a braai, have a healthy snack at home to help you avoid overeating. Some might see this as disrespecting
the chef but it’s not. You can still eat when you get there, just keep your portions small. This brings me to my next point.

4. Watch your portion sizes. I am a realist and I won’t suggest that you don’t eat the “good” stuff. The hard truth is that overconsumption of desserts, alcoholic beverages and starchy, fatty foods are usually the culprits of the damage caused during the festive season. Consume them, just watch your portion sizes. For example, have one slice of cake, not three. Have one or two blocks of chocolate, not the whole slab.

5. When you are away on holiday, especially at self-catering places, it’s often easier to simply pop into the local restaurant for all your meals. Post-Covid and lockdown, most restaurants need as many patrons as possible. When we eat out at restaurants, very often we don’t stick to the correct portion sizes.

My suggestion is, make your own meals and maybe choose one meal to have at the restaurant. Breakfast is often the easier meal to make of the three so
I would suggest that you pick breakfast as the one at home. I prefer lunch at restaurants because it still gives me the afternoon to walk it off. This is then followed by a light dinner at home. Sometimes I eat half the portion at lunch and the other half at dinner.

It’s all up to you and how much damage control you feel like doing after the holidays. Feel free to modify and utilise these tips and you will thank yourself in the new year.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.