How to balance indulgence and control during the holidays

In our previous blog, we shared some tips on dishing out a healthier version of some popular Christmas delicacies. Here, we will give you some clues on how you could strike a balance between indulgence and gorging. After all, Christmas is all about fun, family, and food. And, don’t we all know that festivals, celebrations and overeating are an eternal combination?

For the health conscious, this occasion can put a cap on your dieting and will derail you. To strike a balance between indulgence and having fun with food, you have to prep beforehand.

To help you begin, start off days before you say ‘Happy Holidays’.  We take our regular drill and give it a Christmas twist.

A walk into your kitchen:

Clever cooking and mindful eating:

Avoid takeaways and eat at home. If homemade meals are boring, try infusing some variety in your food to make it a stellar dish. At home, experiment with another type of cuisine. Be mindful to select the healthier variety of that food style.

For eg: Kerala cuisine. Have you tried mushy appams? Appam is perfectly partnered with a chicken dish with succulent pieces swimming in thick heavenly coconut milk. You can trade this with pudina chutney instead.

What about poha? Here is yet another filling and healthy breakfast meal.

Cook with the vegetable you have cold-shouldered so far like drumsticks or yellow pumpkin. Reach out to all those ingredients that can keep your health at the optimum like seasoning with curry leaves, using jeera, cloves, cinnamon.  Have you tried paanch phoron, the whole spice blend used in Bangladeshi cuisine? Pepper your dishes with hara dhania (fresh coriander) and add a dash of tanginess with lemon, tamarind or kokam. So we are sorted, taste in place, health assured.

Now you may stop drooling.

Nutrition options first:

If you go visiting your relatives, try and keep away from farsans, fried and sugary sweet stuff. Opt for a healthier version like green tea, a fruit chat, upma for example.

Drink water regularly:

Keep yourself hydrated even if you are not thirsty.  Even if it is winter and you are not eager beaver for water, still, drink it up. Carry a bottle of water when you go out so that you don’t forget.

Fruits are a great option as they are delicious, sweet and healthy at the same time. 

Healthy snacks for office:

Refer to our blog on healthy snacks or simply carry a box of homemade trail mix – raisins, cashew nuts, almonds, dried slices of apricots, apple, and dark chocolate with sprinkles of coconut shavings, a dash of icing sugar and cinnamon powder. There are other nutrition options you can turn to like snack made of kurmurra, rajgir laddoo, diet bhel and such others.

Reach out for dried fruits and nuts to satiate hunger pangs between meals. 

Move, move, move:

Now that we know every movement counts, get up and start moving, especially when at the office. Sitting for a long duration reduces metabolism. Our body then cannot break down the food resulting in calorie accumulation. Make those small changes. Here are the tips:

• Walk faster. Whenever you walk, you march.
• Take stairs, avoid intercoms.
• Get up from your seat. Do stretching exercises, neck exercises and so on.

This will help you burn calories and increase your energy too.

Dance little lady dance

Catch the holiday high and switch gym for some dance moves. This Christmas the pitch is in ballroom dancing.  Fox trot, Waltz, Rumba and so on. If you think they are slow then go Latino. Join a dance class that will teach you that classic ballroom dance which is worth remembering. Go for the twist or sensuous tango or salsa. So, shall we dance?

Hula Hoop

How many of you, as children, took a rubber toy hoop and swirled it around your waist? What fun it is to go back to those awesome games that today we know will keep you slim. Get yourself a hula hoop and twirl it around. Have fun.

Go beyond green, cinnamon here we come:

Besides green tea and various hues of our dear chai, try the cinnamon infused tea and sweeten with honey. Hmmm, it’s yum and invigorating.

Sleep:

A good night sleep has a significant role to play in maintaining good health and weight.

In reverse, lack of sleep can play havoc with your hormones that regulate your appetite. It will show up in the middle. Get your beauty sleep of 7 – 8 hours to balance these hormones and help your body to work efficiently, building your resilience all in preparation for more the party season.

The key by the end of it is to strike a subtle balance!