The holidays are here - let the eating begin!

It’s hard to eat anything close to a healthy diet with amount and kinds of food you’re facing this holiday season.

So here’s the special Holiday Edition of “Eat This, Not That” to help you keep your nutrition on track.

1) Eat Smaller Portions (Not Your Body-Weight)

I am not going to sit here and tell you that you can’t eat any treats this holiday season. I am a little bit of a choco-holic, so it would be hypocritical for me to tell you to stay away from the holiday treats.

I remember going to my grandma’s house every year for Christmas dinner as a kid and consuming my body-weight in deep-fried, full-fat and not-so-healthy foods. I could barely stand up after the meal and suffered for a few days as a result.

I still enjoy all of my favorite holiday foods over at grandma’s. But instead of having a full serving of everything, I just have a few bites of the stuff that tastes really good, but is not so good for you.

Enjoy your favorite holiday treats without over-indulging in large quantities of them.

2) Focus on Your Wins (Not On Your Losses)

No one’s perfect and no one expects you to steer clear of all holiday treats for the next 2+ weeks. Don’t get mad at yourself if you go a little overboard one day and end up eating too much sugar/fat/food. Just make sure that you don’t neglect healthy foods all together.

It’s very easy to get mad at yourself for eating the “bad” foods, but carrying that negativity around isn’t healthy at all. Instead, be proud of yourself for making better choices when you can.

3) Eat Something Green (Not Just A Dessert with Green Icing)

There are no foods that are naturally green that aren’t good for you. So with every meal you eat this holiday season, add some vegetables or salad on the side.

It will help you feel more full and make you less likely to over-indulge in the not-so-healthy options. Keep those high-quality nutrients flowing into your body and you won’t feel like you are carrying around the weight of a whole other set of equipment when you start the second half of the season.

What’s your favorite holiday food? If it’s not so healthy, what better choice could you make instead?

Stay healthy this holiday season and start 2009 off right.

~ Coach Kim