4 tips to find balance with your eating habits between Christmas and New Year's

Do you find it hard to avoid going “all out” in the festive period between Christmas and New Year’s? Are you prone to telling yourself “I’ll get back on track in January”? 

Whilst it’s important to enjoy the holidays, finding balance between health and festive fun is important. In fact, threatening yourself with a restrictive diet in January can trigger “The Last Supper Effect”. This means you find yourself excessively consuming foods you enjoy or fear going without as a way to pre-empt the imminent restriction of dieting in January. Instead, here are four tips to inject a little more balance between Christmas and New Year’s.

Make vegetables the star of the show

Learning how to add more veggies with each meal will help you all year round, so why not start now? When cooking your favorite holiday foods, take inspiration from the delicious seasonal vegetables on offer during Summer. Think juicy tomatoes, versatile zucchini and crunchy capsicum and lettuce. 

Don’t skip snacks before events 

Tempted to skip eating before a big event? Unfortunately, this is a sure fire way to arriving starving and then overeating. Instead, have a satiating snack beforehand. Snacks like our Crispy Roasted Chickpeas, Whipped Ricotta And Feta Dip with vegetable sticks or greek yoghurt and fruit all contain protein and fibre to keep you satisfied. 

Swap to lean protein

Although pork crackling and heavy roasts are wonderful festive delights to enjoy, focusing on lean proteins after Christmas is a great way to find balance. Swap to options like seafood, lean ham, eggs and tofu or legumes for plant-based eaters. For delicious recipe inspiration, try our Lemon and Herb Fish Skewers, Pea, Zucchini and Ricotta Frittata with Cherry Tomatoes or Plant Powered Sausage Rolls.

Mindful eating

If you are a regular reader of our blogs, you know we preach this tip all year round. Mindful Eating is a fantastic way to find true satisfaction with indulgent foods, no guilt attached! Giving yourself full permission to enjoy all foods but being sure to slow down and focus on the smell, taste, texture and appearance will prevent you from swinging between restriction and overeating. 

If finding balance during the holidays is something you need support with, book in one of our Accredited Practising Dietitians.