With the holiday season quickly approaching, present shopping in full swing, and Christmas baking everywhere you look, it can be a daunting time for many of us trying to maintain a healthy lifestyle. From lack of exercise, overindulging on sweets, and maybe drinking a little too much at Christmas parties, you may be thinking that there is no way you’ll make it through the holiday season without gaining a little weight. Well, lucky for you, Kaizen Naturals® is here to help you stay on track during the holidays with 7 easy tips and tricks to keep you moving and fueling your body with your goals in mind.
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Make a Plan
One of the easiest ways to ensure you are staying on track during the holidays is to plan out your meals in advance. If you know that you will be attending a holiday party in the evening, try to make great choices with your food and activity all day so that you won’t feel guilty if you have a couple unhealthy snacks while at the party. But make sure that you are not skipping meals in preparation. This will only leave you feeling hungry and more likely to give in to temptation when you are surrounded by delicious goodies. Instead, have a healthy and filling meal before arriving at the party to help curve your cravings and help you to stick to your diet during the holiday season. Or, if it is a potluck style party, bring a healthier snack that you can munch on throughout the night. Looking for some healthy snack ideas? Click here.
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Get Moving
Although the holidays are certainly a time for relaxation, they are also a time for fun with your family. Instead of spending an hour at the gym each day, when you could be spending time with your family, make getting active a part of your family activities. Take the kids to an outdoor skating rink, go for a snowshoe, or help them build a snow fort – all of the shoveling is more of a workout than you would expect. If you are having a difficult time coming up with ideas about how to get active with your family this holiday season, check out our Winter Bucket List Challenge.
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Drink Water
Drinking enough water may be the last thing that you are thinking about while you are running from store to store trying to find the toy that your child desperately wants for Christmas, or while you are making your third trip to the grocery store to get an ingredient that you need for the perfect holiday meal, but it is essential for your health and to help you stay on track during the holidays. Drinking water, not only helps your body function properly but it can also help to keep you feeling full before and during meals. In addition, water is also a great choice to have as a substitute for alcohol. Or if you don’t want to cut alcohol out completely, you can opt for one glass of water in between each drink. Bonus: this will also help to reduce your hangover symptoms.
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Go Veggie Heavy
When stacking your plate full of yummy holiday dinner food, go veggie heavy. Make sure at least half of your plate is comprised of fruits or vegetables. Its important for your body’s functioning and for your waistline to be eating enough fruits and vegetables each day. Another way to ensure you are getting the proper servings is to start your holiday meals with healthy choices. Have a large salad first and then go up for the mashed potatoes and stuffing.
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Remember your Goals
When you’re struggling to turn down that second serving of dessert, it can be helpful to remember why you wanted to get healthy in the first place. Whether your goals are purely aesthetic, or you have a deeper reason, like being able to run and play with your kids or maintain your health so that you can be around long enough to meet your grand-kids. Whatever your goal and reason for getting healthy is, use it as motivation to help yourself stay on track during the holidays.
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Test Out Your New Year’s Resolution
We are all guilty of making a new year’s resolution and then only sticking to it for a month, a week, or 2 days. This year let’s make an effort to start our new year’s resolutions early. This will help you stay on track during the holidays and can also help to make it a habit before the new year hits, helping to stick to that resolution for longer. Whether your resolution is to drink less, workout more, or eat better, its never too early to kick start good habits.
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Balance
The holidays are joyful time filled with family, love, and happiness. If stressing over your diet or fitness goals is stopping you from enjoying time with your loved ones then just forget about it. The holidays only last for so long and can only set you back so far. What is more important than staying on track during the holidays is spending time with loved ones. Enjoy the time that you have, try to find a happy balance between making healthy choices and enjoying these precious moments. And remember, if you fall off track, you can always get right back on.
Enjoy the holiday season and try to make healthy choices for yourself and your family. Remember why you started and keep working towards your goals every day.