More Holiday Survival Tips

Well, my Jerdlings, we have one more holiday outing left in 2012; and that means one more potential excuse to make bad health choices under the guise of social convention.

Back before Thanksgiving I offered up some insight on how to Survive the Holiday Dinners, but I thought it would be good to expand on that a little and offer up some quick tips on getting over this last speed bump of the season. This way you can start the New Year off right by immediately making resolutions you know you will never keep and failing miserably at them by mid-February setting a positive tone and showing some willpower!

The Jerd’s Patented Holiday Survival Tips

1. You can enjoy the Holidays without going overboard and completely torpedoing whatever plan you have put in place for yourself. Moderation is the key.
2. If you feel an overwhelming sense of guilt then you are probably doing something wrong. Cut it out!
3. Make sure that, no matter what event you are attending, you don’t go hungry! You can usually count on the food being less than healthy at big holiday gatherings, so make sure to eat a healthy snack before you head out. (A cup of yogurt with some fresh fruit, a half a sandwich on some whole grain bread, a salad, etc…)
4. Remember portion control, especially if it is a buffet style event, and severely limit putting anything covered in sauces or butter on your plate. Stick to mostly vegetables and lean proteins, with a small amount of whole grains if available. Avoid the dinner rolls!
5. If you are somewhere that there is a lot of pressure to over-indulge, you can fool Aunt Bertha and her insistence on shoving her homemade deep-fried, buttered gut-bombs down your throat by “nursing” your plate, much like you would nurse a drink to make it last a lot longer than it should. Fill your plate with foods that will still taste good once they cool off and eat very slowly through the feasting portion of the evening so people can never tell if you are on plate 1 or 4.
6. If you fell into the common holiday trap of spiralling bad behavior this year (where one day of turkey-filled Thanksgiving goodness leads to repeated days of bad choices until by Christmas you are a slovenly train wreck) use New Years as an opportunity to re-exert control over yourself. Don’t rationalize to yourself that “one more day of eating crappy won’t hurt” and that you will “get back to the gym next week and work it all off“. You are better than that!

So it is up to you; how are you going to decide to close out the year and start another one? Personally I hope you ring in the New Year with a commitment (be it long-standing, new-found, or re-kindled) to living healthy! Even if you don’t though, the Jerd still loves ya and will be here to help you make and meet your goals come 2013!

So everyone out there in Jerd-land have a spectacular (and safe) New Years, and do your best to a hold strong to your goal of having healthy lifestyle! Drop me a comment and let me know what your 2013 fitness goals are, and don’t forget you can reach me on Facebook or Twitter and be sure to Sign up for our free newsletter!