Tips for Eating Without Holiday Weight Gain

Whether you're watching your weight or not, these tips from Michelle May, MD, can be helpful in allowing you to enjoy the holidays more and experience less regret:

1. Make an effort to pay close attention to your body's signals.
2. Be a food snob.  Think of how much less you'd eat if you only ate things that tasted fabulous!
3. Think of your appetite as an expense account.  How much do you want to spend on appetizers or the entree?  Do you want to save some room for dessert?
4. Pace your eating prior to the event so you'll be hungry but not famished at mealtime.  
5. Socialize away from the sight of food.  People who tend to overeat are "food suggestible", so just hanging around food causes them to eat more than they need.  
6. When surveying the buffet, choose the foods that you really want most at that time and remind yourself that you can have the other foods at a later time.
7. Eat mindfully by reducing distractions and sitting down to eat- even if it's just a cookie. 
8. If the food doesn't taste as good as you expected, stop eating it and choose something else.  
9. Since the duration of the meal tends to be extended at social events, you may need to have your plate taken away (or put a napkin on it) once you are satisfied to avoid nibbling unconsciously.
10. Be aware of the effects of alcohol on your food intake.
11. Be cautious of "obligatory eating"- avoid eating just because it is on the table, on your plate, because you paid for it, it's free, or because someone made it.  Deal with Food Pushers with a polite but firm, "No, thank you."
12. Avoid indulging in food just because it's there. 
13. Before having a cookie, a piece of fudge or other holiday treat that was laid in the break room, check your hunger level. If you're hungry and you choose a favorite food to satisfy you, remember to sit down and eat it mindfully- no guilt. 
14. At restaurants, request appetizer portions, co-order, and co-eat with your dining partner, or have the server package up your meal to go as soon as you feel satisfied. Remember "super-size" is no bargain if you didn't need that much food in the first place!
15. Look for opportunities for physical activity- take a walk after dinner to enjoy the lights, take a few laps around the mall before it opens to do some window shopping or take guests to local attractions.

Most importantly, delight all of your senses.  Enjoy the company, the atmosphere, the entertainment, and the traditions as much as, if not more than, the food.

*Source: www.amihungry.com*