You CAN survive the silly season!

It’s around this time of year that I start hearing people ‘plan’ to put weight on over the Christmas period, saying there are so many social functions to attend, too much tempting food, no time to exercise, and so on. And it just seems inevitable that they’ll put weight on.

Our weekends usually get busier than usual, and at many of these functions we tend to over do it with the food and booze. It’s a busy and social time of year, and there are definitely more temptations around us.

BUT (you knew there was a BUT coming!)…….. I’m fairly sure that you won’t actually have extra food or alcohol forced down your throat. Christmas or not, your choices are still YOUR choices. Don’t plan to just go with the flow and eat and drink whatever you can get your hands on purely because it’s Christmas, or because that’s what everyone else is doing. Let them do whatever they want, that’s their choice, but you make your own choices. Start preparing yourself to not write the whole silly season off and undo months of good work. Start preparing to feel great when January rolls around, and be proud that you didn’t completely fall off the wagon.

Saying all that, with all the extra temptation around I’m sure some of us will not be quite as disciplined as normal over Christmas, so here’s a few tips to help get you through!!

• Stick to your current food plan as closely as you can – which means being organised, like always, having everything you need in your pantry and fridge.
• Remember that Christmas Day is 25th December – that’s only ONE day!!
• If you’re out, make sure you’ve got your emergency snacks with you to avoid temptation (fruit, nuts, etc)
• Plan to have some ‘naughty’ treats to make you feel like you’re not missing out – here’s one idea (and great for kids) https://www.thehealthychef.com/2012/11/gluten-free-gingerbread-men/
• Keep up your water! Especially if you do have some extra alcohol – you need to keep your fluids up!
• Maybe keep a measuring tape in view, even if you don’t use it to measure your waist over the Christmas period, just having it there might help keep you under control!
• Lastly, remind yourself how you will feel if you let yourself go too much over Christmas, all that hard work you’ve undone, and all the hard work you need to do come January!!

Remember, what you do is always your choice – and if you want to live a healthy and fit lifestyle, you’re better off trying to maintain these habits all year round.

No, I probably won’t be perfect over this coming silly season – but I won’t be straying too far off track, and I’ll definitely hold myself accountable for any damage done!

Have a great day

Paula