“Navigating Holidays With Waistline In Mind”

[Written by personal trainer and health coach Tania Kowalski]

How can you socialize and still manage to stay on track with your health & fat loss goals? The holidays really aren’t that much different than any other time other than that there may be more socializing than normal going on. Socializing is an integral part of life.

What is life without friends and family? You can enjoy the people closest to you without going overboard on the food & drink. Shift your focus to the people around you rather than what goes in your mouth.

Here are my top party/dinner going tips:

• 1] Never go hungry – don’t assume that there will be healthy choices. Have some raw veggies & hummus [something that will fill your tummy] prior to going out.

• 2] Plan before you go – set your limits and stick to them. Decide how many drinks and/or appetizers you are going to have prior to the event.

• 3] Take something along – make a low cal appetizer that you like so that you have something that you know is made with healthy ingredients to have. Your host will thank you and I bet that there will be others glad to have a healthy option.

• 4] Enjoy what you do choose. Whether it’s a nice glass of wine or a holiday cookie, enjoy it, savor it…never wolf it down. Don’t waste calories on something that you don’t love.

• 5] Make smart choices – veggie tray [steer clear of creamy dip unless it’s hummus], chicken skewers , sushi, smoked salmon, olives, etc.

• 6] Choose your cocktails wisely. Each glass of champagne has between 78-110 cals, wine ranges 115-150 cals per 5oz glass [most glasses are poured much more than this!], regular beer ranges from 100-150 cals, spirits [mixed with soda – not tonic or other soft drinks] can range from 60-120 calories per oz and most fancy cocktails and liqueurs are very calorie dense [can be easily 300 calories or more]. Of course as soon as you add any kind of mix to a spirit it can double or triple the calories. A wine spritzer will cut the calories in half and allow you to sip longer.

• 7] Drink up – water that is!! – Drink 2-3 glasses of water to each drink. If you are drinking alcohol your body will thank you the next day and you’ll get more exercise walking to the bathroom.

• 8] When it comes to holiday dinners stick to the turkey and veggies. If all of the veggie dishes are candied or dredged in sauce or butter offer to bring a veggie dish or ask to help make a healthy veggie dish. Choose and have what you love keeping in mind that the goal is not to stuff yourself but to taste the things that you really love and enjoy the people closest to you.

I’d love to have you add any tips of your own under this post or on my FB Health Fanatic Page.

Cheers and Happy Holidays!

Tania Kowalski is an ACE certified Personal Trainer and Health Coach and is Precision Nutrition Certified. Tania advocates that the right training and nutrition can transform your life and her passion is helping others to change theirs. You can follow Tania’s tips, workouts and recipes on Facebook [Health Fanatic] or on her website.

#Fitness #Health #LifestyleColumns #TaniaKowalskiColumns

Category: All