Not everyday needs to be perfect, but they all still count…
When it comes to this festive time of year, there are certainly more drinks being poured and more canapés being served, than any other time of year and YES, the number one thing is to enjoy it all, but it’s equally as important to consider your health on those days when you’re not celebrating.
We can all easily fall into bad habits of thinking that "if I’m being bad with my food and don't have time for exercise, then I might as well let it all go and just forget about my health until things are back to normal".
The big concern with this all or nothing approach to health, is that often irreparable damage can be done in just 2-6 weeks of poor eating. In fact, science shows that as little as ONE DAY of poor eating can kill off entire populations of health gut bacteria… so how do we avoid this?
My Top 5 Festive Health Hacks:
1) If you eat a donut, take away, pizza, or other ‘’junk’’ foods, then simply eating an apple or carrot on the way out the door or when you get home can feed those ‘’starving’’ healthy gut bacteria who are seeking fibre rich, plant foods.
2) If you drink too much alcohol, then continue to hydrate with loads of water for up to 48 hours afterwards (and even some electrolytes too or Berocca) as good rehydration takes at least 24 hours and allow another 24 hours of good hydrating to give your liver a break from the alcohol toxicity. (This does mean trying to allow 48 hours between drinking sessions, otherwise I suggest you try to limit yourself to 1-2 drinks per day)
3) Your choice of party beverages can not only be hazardous for hangovers but also to your waistline, especially if you are choosing the sweet, high calorie options like the pre-mixed flavoured drinks. My advice is to choose a tonic with no artificial sweeteners with some gin, some soda water with fresh lime and vodka, or even a Bacardi and kombucha with some fresh berries on a hot summer’s day. If you fancy a beer, try to choose low carb (although there isn’t much of a difference sadly) or if you’re a wine lover, avoid the sweet varieties and choose something dry and add lots of ice to keep it cold (plus subtly diluting the calories).
4) Feeling hungry after a big night out? The most common foods to eat when you get home often include drive thru options, pizza, deep fried foods or re-heated frozen oven treats like party pies, sausage rolls, chicken nuggets and hot chips. I would recommend that you prepare some ‘’snacks’’ before you go out that will be equally as satisfying, but will do less than half the damage to your health. Try putting together a ham and cheese sandwich with some low carb bread (Herman Brot is great!) in the fridge that you can put in the toasted sandwich maker when you get home or keep some frozen dim-sims handy and pop these in the microwave with some water to steam or even in an air-fryer for a crunchier result without the guilt!
5) When you are assessing the best choices on party platters, you can’t go past the antipasto platters they usually include some healthier options such as olives, pickled vegetables and even small amounts of leaner meats such as pastrami, prosciutto and leg ham. Other healthier alternatives are raw veg or wholegrain crackers with dips, however try to avoid the cream cheese based ones and aim for guacamole, beetroot, hummus, pumpkin and tzatziki. Lastly, if there is a fruit platter, help yourself and if there is hot food, choose the high protein, leaner options such as chicken skewers, prawns and any other seafood options.
Fabulous advice Kate as always ??