Smiles on a yoga mat. ©Kasey Phillips

I met Kasey through our fraternity Facebook group page, (shout out to all my Alpha Kappa Psi brothers!). I joined her fitness beta group for a month and was impressed with her genuine kindness to help people live a healthy lifestyle. There is no force or guilt with her. She listens to your story and wants to help you. We finally met in person a few weeks back over coffee. I asked her to write a piece about how to stay in healthy during the cookie-filled season and she gladly accepted. Please welcome Kasey Phillips! You will be seeing more healthy articles from her in the future. 

While staying on track with your health and fitness all year is no piece of cake (haha), the holidays bring with them particularly challenging treats and temptations.

So, how do you stop one-holiday cookie from turning into five? How do you prevent a holiday toast from turning into a weekend binge and how do you thwart a month-long hiatus from working out?  Hopefully, some of these tips can help.

Embrace fast food, but not FAT food: Convenience does NOT need to come from a takeout bag. There are many non-drive thru meals that can be made in minutes.  Try a rotisserie chicken with a microwavable sweet potato and some steamed veggies.  Or try one of the hundreds of different crock pot meals that you can prep WEEKS in advance. Freeze your favorite piece of meat pop it in the crockpot with some water in the morning, and 8 hours later, just serve and enjoy!  Here is one of my personal favs: http://www.kaseyphillips.com/2014/11/chicken-taco-soup.html

Schedule your workout early:  I am NOT an early morning workout person, but I KNOW around the holidays if I don’t get it done before I start my day, it is often the thing that I cut out at the end of the day, vowing to double it up tomorrow, as a result changing the rest of my day..  But the reality is, I don’t have any MORE time the next day and my workout is in jeopardy of getting pushed over and over again UNLESS I move it to the morning and knock it out bright and early.

©Kasey Phillips

Minimize your workouts:  Yep, you heard me.  Now is NOT the time to commit to two-hour workouts six days a week, Save that for your New Year’s Resolution.  Be realistic about your workouts.  Find a really great 20-30 minute HIIT workout that you can do three to four times a week and a 30-40 minute yoga workout you can do once a week.  What is even better is if you can get home workouts in your routine because you save the time driving to and from the gym, looking for parking, putting away stuff in the lockers, and needlessly chit-chatting with the front desk workers.

Allow yourself some alcohol: Holiday parties are going to happen unless of course, you are a hermit, which just is not the case for most people.  Enjoy yourself at these parties, but make conscious choices.  Stick to one or two drinks.  Choose something that is light on the mixers to save yourself a few hundred calories.  For example, skip the margarita and opt for a tequila and club soda with a squeeze of lime (100 calories) OR go for the gold and get a 4-ounce glass of bubbly (only 85 calories).  Who doesn’t prefer champagne anyway?

Always choose homemade: Colorful boxes of cookies, candies, and other sweet treats will undoubtedly appear at your office sooner rather than later.  Avoid ALL packaged goodies but let yourself indulge when someone brings in a homemade treat to share.  Homemade treats have fewer preservatives and are often far more enjoyable than their packaged counterparts.

Make sure to pre-party:  Before heading out to an event, make sure to ALWAYS put something healthy in your stomach so you are not starving when you get to wherever it is you are going.  If you are at home, you can actually have a full meal before you go.  If you are already going to be out, bring an apple, some cut up veggies, or a protein bar with you to eat in the car before you get to the party.

©Kasey Phillips

Be a picky eater:  If you are at a buffet-style party or a potluck, be picky about what you eat. Don’t load up on EVERYTHING in sight.  Take careful stock of the options, noting your typical favorites.   Choose a small plate over a large one if you have the option, and “load” your plate so that there is still room on it.  Personally, I don’t like my food to touch, so I always have little piles all over my plate.  Take your plate and move away from the food table.  Wait at least 20 minutes after finishing your plate to decide if you want seconds.  If you do, repeat the process, but this time, choose only your favorite items, things you have not yet tried, or (obviously) the healthier choices like veggies.

HO HO H2O: Make sure you stay hydrated during the cold months.  It is much easier to chug water when it is sunny and warm, but you need to be drinking about half of your body-weight in ounces of water year round.  Drink 16oz when you first wake up to flush and hydrate your body first thing.  Drink water before and after meals to aid in digestion.  Warm or hot water with a little squeeze of lemon is fantastic all day long!

Don’t skimp on sleep:  If you are anything like me, besides your workouts, sleep is one of the first things that gets cut out when life gets busy.  DON’T DO THAT.  Sleep is extremely important for muscle growth and repair, hormonal balance, mental clarity, and energy.  When you start skimping on the sleep, you start making less than desirable choices all around (skipping workouts, making trips through the drive-thru,etc.).  Get in your 8 hours if at all possible.

ENJOY YOURSELF: The holidays are supposed to be FUN.  Stop stressing about whether the ribbon matches the wrapping paper;the kids will not care.  Stop worrying about whether you have enough wine for your party because odds are (1) you do and (2) people will bring some to share.  Stop rushing around trying to be productive when what you are really doing is just being busy.  Take a breath, slow down, enjoy your family and friends.  That is what the holidays are all about after all!

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