All the holiday trimmings

The holiday season is traditionally a time to eat, drink, and be merry – which, unsurprisingly, can lead to a bit of over-indulgence. Despite their best efforts, the average Aussie will gain around 0.8-1.5kg over the holidays. Although this doesn’t seem like a lot, we all know how difficult it can be to shed these few extra kilos once the new year has begun.

With some nutrition know-how you can still enjoy the holiday indulgences but also get a head start on achieving the most common New Year’s resolution: to lose weight.

Rather than aiming to losing weight over the holidays – aim to maintain your weight. Here are a few simple tips to help you on this path:

  • Christmas is only one day – But if you stock up on lots of goodies for the Christmas/New Year period you’re setting yourself up for several weeks of indulging. Instead only get enough for the ‘event’ and stock up on fresh foods so they’re on hand and easy to grab rather than treats.
  • Drink smart – You don’t need to deny yourself, simply alternate alcoholic drinks with a soda or mineral water with lemon or fruit to space out your consumption of alcohol. It may also help to consider – one beer or wine takes a 20-minute run or 30-minute walk to work off! Your waist and head will thank you!
  • Enjoy extra movement – Add an extra 10-15 minutes of a fun activity daily to burn a few of those extra kilojoules. Try a sunset run around the street to take in the Christmas lights, walk along the beach looking for shells or take a swim to beat the heat.
  • Focus on fresh – This is the season to enjoy mangoes, berries, stone fruit and the many vegetables that are in season. Salads, grilling or barbecuing are the healthiest cooking options.
  • Don’t say no, just say less – Indulge in your holiday favourites but have smaller helpings instead of a plateful. Also, if you’re heading to a holiday event, it helps to eat lighter at the other meals that day.

Celebrate the holiday season with a focus on socialising rather than eating and drinking. And when you indulge, as we all should and will, make sure you enjoy it! Save your indulgences for what you really love. If a fruit mince pie takes your fancy, then savour it. For me, I’d rather skip the mince pie and have an extra beer!


For more information, please contact us here or book an online appointment


Happy Holidays!

The Ethos Health team wishes you a very happy and safe Christmas and we look forward to helping you make every day better in 2020.

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