3 Tips To Avoid Overeating This Holiday Season

The above image is exactly how some organs in our body think when we're faced with too much good food! And this scenario plays out in our lives a few times too many - especially around Christmas and New Years when our diaries are filled with work parties, social drinks and family get-togethers. Our eyes are faced with lavish spreads and we're forced to make very difficult decisions - do I listen to my tongue or do I listen to my stomach? Should I just get one appetiser so I can eat two desserts?

But this holiday season change the way you approach all these social functions with a few tactics to help your body and mind have a good time. 

1. Balance Your Day - Christmas events are often planned and written in diaries weeks in advance. It gives us time to prepare ourselves. We know when we get to these functions that there are often more delectable food items than we can imagine - and we come under the control of our tongue rather than our mind! If you know that parties and dinners are a weak spot for you, then plan your day accordingly. If you have a big Christmas dinner with your work friends on Friday, then begin on the Thursday before. Have a light dinner on Thursday night - a simple vegetable soup or steamed veggies. Do the same on Friday - eat a lighter breakfast and lunch than you normally would. And on Saturday - fill your day with lots of hot herbal tea to help flush out any extra toxins and lethargy from your body. 
2. Sweat It Out - Social functions are a chance for us to accumulate a lot more than we are used to. So practise the opposite to balance yourself out - find a way to increase your exercise this holiday season, so you can help counter all that excessive eating. We eliminate toxins from our body in three ways: through urine, faeces and sweat. Increase your cardiovascular activity to sweat more and hence release toxins from your body. Join local gym classes for the month of December, try a new class with a friend, if you're a member of a gym - then spend some extra time in the steam room or sauna. 
3. Choose Wisely - when you're at your social function or work party, choose wisely from the spread placed in front of you. Allow yourself to get full from the healthier options, so you're less likely to choose the fatty, dense, high-card or high-sugar options. Choose the soups or vegetable-based options. Vegan and gluten-free options are so popular these days, that it's easy for you to choose something from this menu. 

If you follow these 3 simple tips, then you're sure to have a happy AND healthy time this holiday season!