Great suggestions for eating healthy during the holiday season!

2. Navigate the Holiday Maize
Don’t Gain During the Holidays!

3. Holiday Weight Gain Stats
• A study published in the New England
Journal of Medicine found that Americans
gain an average of .4 to 1.8 pounds each
year during the holidays
• And this is not likely to come off the rest of
the year

4. Holiday Weight Gain Stats
• If you are overweight, your risk for gaining
goes up to 5 or more pounds during the
holidays

5. Holiday Survival Strategies
• There are only three real feast days
– Thanksgiving
– Christmas or Kwanzaa or Chanukah
– New Years
• It is too little exercise and too many
calories on the other days that causes
weight gain during this time of year.

6. Don’t Skip Breakfast
• Start your day with a healthful breakfast
• Oatmeal, skim milk and fruit make a great
way to start
• Whole-grain cereal is a
better choice than baked
goods such as Danishes,
coffee cakes and
croissants

7. Holiday Survival Strategies
• Celebrate what the holidays are really
about –
– Spending time with family and friends!
• Find creative activities or ways to get your
family and friends to be active instead of
eating
– Play a game
instead of eating!

8. Party Survival Strategies
• Eat a light, low-fat snack such as soup,
fruit, salad or cereal before going to
parties or out to eat.
– This will help you curb hunger and make
better choices.
– Keep fruit with you for eating on the run.

9. Party Survival Strategies
• Bring a healthy dish to the party.
• Ideas include: tossed salad with
vinaigrette, vegetarian chili, fruit salad, raw
veggie platter or veggie side dish

10. About the Buffet….
• Think first- Do I really like this? Do I need
to eat the whole thing?
• Taste next – Just a taste, not the whole
thing!
• Focus on conversation
• Choose veggies
• Limit or avoid rich or calorie-dense foods
such as desserts, nuts and fatty meats or
appetizers

11. Party Survival Strategies
• Limit alcohol.
– If you drink, enjoy one alcoholic beverage and
then switch to diet soda or water with lime.

12. At Home Survival Strategies
• Try to eat a large low-fat salad or a broth
based soup before most meals.
• Make sure vegetables take up half the
space on your plates for parties and
dinners.

13. At Home Survival Strategies
• Keep minimal baked goods on hand this
year.
• Only bake enough to give away or use for
one festivity.

14. At Home Survival Strategies
• Lower the calories in your holiday recipes
by using less fat, sugar and cheese.

15. Prepare Your Kitchen
• Stock up on a variety of healthful foods for
fast and easy meals
– Potatoes
– Brown rice (whole grains)
– Pasta and low-fat pasta sauce
– Salad
– Stir-fry
– Baked Chicken/fish

16. Prepare Your Kitchen
• Keep salads and fruits ready
to go
• Whenever you cook, make
big batches and refrigerate or
freeze the extra – great for
eating during hectic times

17. Prepare Your Kitchen
• Ask family members what foods are really
important to make over the holidays to
avoid making too much of the foods no
one really cares about

18. Prepare Your Kitchen
• Make your favorite recipes lower in fat.
– For example, substitute egg white or nonfat
egg substitute for real eggs
– Use low sodium broth instead of oil or butter
– Use fat-free dressings, dips, mayo and cream
cheese
– Use skim milk in place
of whole milk

19. Less Fat = Fewer Calories
Use/in place of: Save Calories:
• Broth/oil, 1 cup 1,975
• Fat-free/regular mayonnaise, 1 cup 741
• Fat-free/regular sour cream, 1 cup 392
• Fat-free/regular cream cheese, 1 cup 254
• Fat-free/regular egg, 1 cup 231
• Fat-free ricotta, 1 cup 228
• Fat-free/regular egg nog, 1 cup 164
• Skim/whole milk, 1 cup 64

20. Prepare Your Kitchen
• Cook healthier lower-fat recipes at home
during the holiday season
• This helps compensate for richer holiday
foods that are consumed away from home
• Be aware of serving sizes
– use smaller plates
and serving utensils

21. Calories in Favorite Treats
Be aware:
• Slice pumpkin pie 320
• Slice fruitcake 302
• Cup eggnog 342
• 2 cookies 140
• 2 oz fudge 240

22. Holiday Survival Strategies
• Make a goal with a friend to lose 5 pounds
or more for the holidays
• OR just pledge to keep weight the same
and don’t gain!

23. Holiday Exercise Strategies
• Keep up with your exercise during
holidays and try to be more active. Shorter
workouts are better than no workouts
• Getting enough sleep helps you get up to
go to the gym!

24. Burn 100 More A Day
• Add 15 minutes a day of walking – this
compensates for extra 700 calories per
week

25. Other Ways to Burn 100 Extra
Calories Per Day
• 45 minutes shopping/walking
• 35 minutes housework
• 30 minutes raking leaves
• 25 minutes rowing
• 20 minutes skating
• 20 minutes aerobic video or dancing
• 10 minutes stationery bike
• 10 minutes jogging
• 10 minutes downhill skiing

26. More Ways to Be Active
• Walk to enjoy holiday lights
• Purchase gifts for fitness
• Walk more for shopping – walk the mall
before you start

27. More Ways to Be Active
• Get more sleep so you can get up for the
gym
• Slip gym time in before a party
• Do one activity each day – clean the
house, walk the mall, walk at lunch
• Stay moving on your lunch break!

28. Make Resolutions Now!
Make your New Year’s resolutions now and
stick to them:
• Eat better and eat out less often
• Exercise more (3-5 days a wk)
• Drink less alcohol
• Eat fewer foods with sugar
• Eat more fruits, vegetables and
whole grains

29. “Holidays are an expensive trial of strength.
The only satisfaction comes from survival.”
— Jonathan Miller