From hot chocolates and mince pies to prosecco* and canapés, it can be really tricky to find balance at Christmas time. We want to enjoy the festive celebrations but we don't want to fall into bad habits that will last long after December 25th.
We sat down with Operation Transformation expert Aoife Hearne to get some top tips.
"The biggest thing at Christmas is to enjoy Christmas day," insists Aoife. "That's key. Eat food, it is enjoyable but enjoying Christmas day all the way through to New Year's Day is likely only going to have one effect on the scales so it's to be smart about it."
1000% THIS!!!!! https://t.co/QoFG2X08Ow
— Aoife Hearne RD (@DeiseDietitian) December 17, 2018
The dietitian advises that we keep a normal routine with our diets in December, meaning that we should only splurge on specific meals but, likewise, we shouldn't withhold any food to make up for it.
"Try not to leave long gaps between eating because sometimes that leads you to eat way bigger portions. Just try to eat regularly. Eat food, enjoy it, enjoy whatever you want to eat because I often find that when people are overly good at Christmas, come the end of January or end of February, they think they didn't even get to enjoy Christmas."
Getting excited for an epic @OpTranRTE series in Jan!!! @DeiseDietitian @dreddiemurphy @DrSumiDunne pic.twitter.com/ApbiMtBJvK
— Karl Henry (@karlhenrypt) December 9, 2018
Overall, Aoife says that Christmas is a time to enjoy your favourite foods but to keep moderation in mind.
"There are boxes of Heroes, Celebrations, Roses everywhere. One sweet is nearly 50 calories so ten in a day is the equivalent of a meal, so you are better to pick five or six, enjoy them, know that you've had them and then move on rather than mindlessly eating twenty."
*If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can visit Ask About Alcohol
