The Holidays are just around the corner! With the pandemic and our second lockdown in Toronto, it can be quite easy to lose motivation and lose track of our health and wellness goals. What most of us don’t realize is that we are still able to control so much in our lives, especially when it comes to our health! Just because we are living through a pandemic does not mean our healthy lifestyle needs to go out the window. We are so much stronger than that.
Below are my 5 tips to stay healthy during the holidays!
These are things you are able to control, and they will make you feel better inside & out.
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Go through your kitchen, and make a list for the next grocery store trip!
This one can be the hardest one, but it’s better to get the tough one out of the way first! Am I right?! Go through your kitchen cupboards and your fridge. Look for things that aren’t “healthy” – packaged foods, refined sugars, and those sweets that you can’t stop buying!
Before going to the grocery store, make a list of exactly everything you need (need, not want!). One thing that really helps me is making a list of all the ingredients I need for my meal prep. This way, I’m not tempted to go into the “junk food” aisles! And if you do end up going to the junk food aisles, look at the ingredients & nutrition facts. Avoid ingredients like canola oil, artificial sweeteners, artificial colours, artificial flavours, and aim for 0% trans-fat!
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Put health-focused gifts on your wish list!
I don’t know about you, but it’s a lot easier to put a wish list together when your gift exchanges will be online this year! My family usually does Kris Kringle, but this year we are doing it over zoom. We get to make our own wish list and when buying a gift for our match, we ship it directly to their home!
Some great health-focused gifts can be workout equipment for those quarantine workouts, a new glass or stainless-steel water bottle, essential oils, or your favourite healthy snacks! These are great ways to keep you motivated and excited to stay on track with your health and wellness goals.
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Go for family walks after dinner
Any type of movement is better than no movement! Going for a walk after having a meal is known to be effective for controlling blood sugar. Walking can help speed up the time it takes to digest your food and it can also help improve satiety after eating! Getting the whole family (yes, that includes your dog!) to join you is also a great way to catch up, get some fresh air, and maybe you can even sneak in a snow ball fight ;)
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Look for healthy-alternative holiday recipes
You can make this super fun! Look for the not-so-healthy ingredients in your typical holiday recipes and see what you can swap it out for! For example, if you see heavy cream in your mashed potatoes, use almond milk/oat milk instead! Instead of butter, use ghee. Lastly, instead of your typical BBQ sauce full of sugar, use Good Food for Good’s BBQ sauce! You can turn this into a game with your kids to teach them how to be aware of certain ingredients!
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Get an accountability partner
This one is my favourite. Start a challenge with a friend, or follow a holiday program! One of my annual traditions is doing Training2XL’s Advent Calendar – it’s jam packed with workouts, recipes, lifestyle tips, and seasonal fun for everyone! My friend and I get her advent calendar every year and do it together, it’s a great way to stay healthy (and also stay connected during this pandemic!)
When you have an accountability partner, you are more motivated to stay committed to your health and wellness goals. Send each other photos of your meals, motivational phrases, and schedule facetime/zoom meetings to get your workouts in together!
I hope these tips will help you prepare for the holiday season! Happy holidays everyone!
Also, remember that being healthy also means you get to treat yourself once in a while. Being consistent is important, but restricting yourself to things that you want is also not healthy. Do things this holiday season that will make you feel good, happy, and connected to your loved ones.