Survive the Christmas party season without gaining weight!

With tiny black dresses and huge temptations all around, the party season is traditionally a mid-winter extravaganza that leaves a dieter feeling left out in the cold. The choices available at Christmas parties are often far from fat-free, the atmosphere is usually carefree, the alcohol is flowing and it’s a time to really let loose after months of hard work.

The temptation is just to jack in the diet for the duration of the party season, and sort out the damage in the New Year. BIG mistake, you will feel so disappointed with yourself and the truth is you can have fun and control your weight. I never believed that before but for the last 4 years I have enjoyed Christmas with all the indulgence and celebrations but not gained weight!

Regardless of how much mistletoe there is around, you don’t have to kiss your diet goodbye this Christmas! If you were planning to opt for the corset to hold in the curves this party season, why not just make a few careful choices instead?

I’m not suggesting that you abstain completely from the fun but these tips will help you party on without piling on the pounds!

Plan ahead!
Due to large numbers attending Christmas dinners and parties, hotels and restaurants often ask that you make menu choices before the event. If you make the choice beforehand, you avoid the risk of being tempted with a higher calorie meal.

If you are going to a drinks reception, try to have a healthy meal beforehand. If you don’t have time for a full meal, fit in a protein rich snack, such as a Herbalife Formula 1 bar, protein bar or crackers with low fat cheese. Being hungry means you will be more tempted to nibble your way through those calorie and fat laden finger foods!

H²0, H²0, H²0!
Keep a glass of water in front of you at all times. This will help to fill you up and also help to reduce the amount of alcohol you are drinking.

The facts on finger-food
Stay away from conversations around the buffet table, it’s all too easy to just keep picking.

Avoid deep fried finger foods like chicken nuggets, cocktail sausages or samosas – one tiny cocktail sausage can have over 60 calories and 5g of fat! Vol-au-vents, quiches and other pastry-based foods are also high in fat – remember that pastry is usually 50% fat!

Vegetable sticks and dips are a good option but watch out for those fatty dips – one tablespoon of mayonnaise or sour cream dip has around 170 calories and 17g of fat. Go for yoghurt or vegetable dips and vegetable or bean pâté instead – you could save yourself over 100 calories per tablespoon!  Chicken tikka or satay skewers are a great choice but again beware the dips.

Mini sandwiches are a healthy choice but avoid fillings based on mayonnaise. Steer well clear of crisps and dips, as well as salted nuts or else you’ll be prone to water retention, which certainly won’t match your new dress!

So, go ahead – enjoy those Christmas parties AND feel good!!

Why Wait Till Monday To Start Your Diet?

I started my diet on a Friday and was really glad I did as it was so new that it helped me resist all the temptations that are around at the weekend and stick to a sensible eating plan.

It is a great opportunity to plan what you are going to eat healthily over both the weekend and the next week while your willpower is still strong.  You can also make sure that you have healthy snacks and food in stock.

The shops are filled with seemingly irresistible “bargains” and we often start building up the Christmas stash of food from October.  The first half price (or better!) tin of chocolates appears, the one that no Christmas would be complete without, or that box of shortbread that you’d never think of buying the rest of the year, and then each week we buy the next offer.

There’s also present shopping to be fitted in on top of the regular washing, ironing and cleaning chores!  Christmas shopping can be a great cardio exercise. Pounding the stairs of multiple department stores laden with bags is not entirely dissimilar to weighted lunges!

One of the best things I found about starting on Friday was that by Monday I felt lighter already!  This boosted my resolve even further and was a really great encouragement to keep going.  It certainly stopped me from wavering about whether to start or not which would have been my usual downfall on Monday!

So, next time you think about “the diet will start tomorrow” or “I’ll start on Monday” go ahead and try Friday instead.  Why not make this Friday the day the “diet starts tomorrow”?  You’ve still plenty of time to lose a few pounds before Christmas!