Its getting to that time of year when the sun is shining, the drinks are flowing, the buffet table is packed and the only thing more full than your Christmas event schedule is your stomach after that lunch that finished somewhere between dinner and breakfast.
So how can we keep a handle on our waistline over the Christmas period, without seeming like the good-time Grinch?
It’s possible. And these 5 tips will help you start your New Year with a cheer, and with not the angst of an extra few party time kilos
1. Exercise first thing in the morning: Not only is it a good way to make a start on burning the extra calories you consumed the day before, but studies have proven that you tend to eat less total calories on the days started with some lively activity.
2. Focus on protein at meal time: Hit the ham and prawns before looking at the pasta. Protein is filling and takes you longer to digest then the carbs side of the table. Focusing your eating efforts on meat, chicken and seafood will see you consuming less total calories.
3. Eat before you go out: If you cannot control what is going to be on the menu at the venue, best not to fight that battle. Eating a meal high in protein and good fats before you go out will have you less tempted by the sweet treats and fried food on offer.
4. Slow down: How many times post Christmas meal to you feel like you are going to explode? There were so many tasty morsels on offer and you just had to try a bit of everything. The thing is it takes time for the signal to go from stomach to brain to say you’re full. And if you’re consuming a rate faster then that signal, that will lead to an excess of calories in our mouth and ultimately on our waistline and bottom. Chewing your food thoroughly, placing your cutlery on the plate in between mouthfuls and having smaller serves on our plate means less food eaten and less post Christmas sorrow.
5. Water between drinks. People forget about the calorie density of alcohol. A standard glass of wine is only 100ml and that has 10 grams of alcohol in it. Now, 1 gm of alcohol has the same calorie value as 2.2 gms of carbohydrates. Therefore 1 standard drink of wine (BTW who has 100ml glasses of wine) which has 10 gms of alcohol in it has the same energy content as 20 gms of sugar. So…every wine you are having you are having the same calories as a sandwich!
Have a water between drinks, slow down the consumption, slow the calorie intake.
These tips don’t seem like much individually, but combined and sustained through the Christmas and New Year period will help you not lose the results you have worked hard all year for and have you starting off 2014 happy and healthy.
By Ben Lucas