Learn more about weight loss surgery at Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians www.RMAP.com (801) 268-3800

With the holiday season quickly approaching it’s a great time to plan ahead for those holiday gatherings. You may have heard the phrase “A plan to be prepared, is a plan to succeed,” something like that is often discussed in our weight loss surgery support groups.

Here are some tips on how to survive this holiday season:
1.) Don’t skip meals! When you anticipate a high calorie dinner or party coming, eat less at your other meals. Skipping a meal will make you edgy, nervous, and hungrier. You shouldn’t go to any type of party hungry. Instead, eat a little fruit or half a sandwich before you go so that you will have a little buffer against stuffing yourself full.

2.) At a dinner or cocktail party, don’t fill yourself with appetizers, especially those that are breaded, fried, buttered or covered with a sauce. Instead, choose fruit, hard cheese, shrimp, or raw veggies. Avoid high calorie party foods like cheese spreads, fruitcake, guacamole, quiches, chips and dip, pates, and rich canapes. Seafood or veggie snacks tend to be more nutritious and a little lower in calories.

3.) Bring a long a low-calorie hostess gift, fresh fruit tray or relish tray, or anything else that you might like to munch on. That way you will know for sure there is at least one thing you can eat a lot of.

4.) Limit yourself to one reasonably sized helping. Move away from food just as soon as you’ve filled your plate. Stand away from the food; get involved in games or conversations.

5.) Find yourself an interesting person to talk to. It’s hard to have a great conversation with your mouth full. Hold your drink with both hands. That always helps to keep your hands busy and not reach for chips or other little tidbits to munch on.

6.) If you are invited to cocktails before dinner, arrive late, thus less time to eat or drink before dinner.

7.) Freeze any baked goods in individual portions so you can thaw out exactly what you need when guests arrive, instead of having high fat, high calorie goodies always around the house.

8.) When planning a get-together, take the emphasis off food. Focus instead on activities such as miniature golfing, skating, touch football, softball, trimming the tree, etc.

9.) If you are thinking of drinking alcohol, try wine spritzers instead (2 oz. wine in club soda or ginger ale with a lemon twist). Remember each gram of alcohol has 7 calories.

10.) When attending barbecues, avoid high fat meat items such as hot dogs (each hot dog has about 17-18 grams of fat). Try a smaller size hamburger instead and eat side dishes such as green salads and fresh fruits instead of potato chips or potato salads high in fat.

How are you preparing for your next holiday gathering?

www.RMAP.com
Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians
801-268-3800
1160 East 3900 South, Suite 4100
SLC, UT 84124

Learn more about weight loss surgery at Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians www.RMAP.com (801) 268-3800

Food is an important part of many holidays, celebrations, family and cultural traditions. In fact, special occasions often center around food. As a result, many people gain a little (or a lot of) weight between Thanksgiving and the New Year. What’s to blame? Perhaps it’s all the tempting treats available during the holiday season or the pressure from family, friends and coworkers to overeat. Maybe it’s the increased emotional eating (whether it be from holiday stress or holiday joy) or the extreme laxity with eating and physical activity regimens in anticipation for the strict “new diet and exercise plan” you’re going to start January 1^st.

Regardless of the reasons, it is not necessary to avoid holiday festivities in an attempt to maintain your weight. Consider these 8 tips for fully enjoying the holiday season without gaining weight!

1. Focus on weight maintenance vs. weight loss during the holidays. If you are currently overweight and want to lose weight, this is not the time to do it. Maintenance of your present weight is a big enough challenge during the holiday season. Don’t set yourself up for failure by making unrealistic goals for yourself.
2. Be physically active every day. Often, our busy holiday schedules (or lack of structured schedules) bump them off their exercise routines. Physical activity can help relieve stress, regulate appetite and burn up extra calories from holiday eating.
3. Make a plan. Think about where you will be, who you will be with, what foods will be available, what foods are really special to you (that you really want to eat) vs. those that you could probably do without, what are your personal triggers to overeat and how can you minimize them. Once you’ve thought about all of these things, make a plan of action. It’s much easier to deal with a difficult social eating situation if you’ve already planned for it.
4. Take steps to avoid recreational eating. While some foods are more calorie-dense than others, no food will make you gain weight unless you eat too much of it. At parties and holiday dinners, we tend to eat (or keep eating) beyond our body’s buy phentermine cheap online physical hunger simply because food is there and eating is a “social thing.” To avoid recreational eating, consciously make one plate of the foods you really want. Eat it slowly—enjoying and savoring every tasty bite. Then, when you’re done, pop a mint or stick of sugar-free gum in your mouth, get a tall glass of water and sip on it throughout the night, or position yourself away from the buffet table or food trays to keep yourself from overeating.
5. Reduce the fat in holiday recipes. There are plenty of low-fat and low-calorie substitutes that are amazingly tasty. Try using applesauce in place of oil in your favorite holiday breads; use egg substitutes in place of whole eggs; try plain nonfat yogurt in place of sour cream. Magazines are full of reduced calorie and reduced fat holiday recipes. Give them a try, and share your cooking creations with friends and family.
6. Choose your beverages wisely. Limit your intake to 1 or 2 alcoholic drinks per occasion. And, what out for calories in soda, fruit punch and egg nog as well.
7. Enjoy good friends and family. Although food can be a big part of the season, it doesn’t have to be the focus. Holidays are a time to reunite with good friends and family, to share laughter and cheer, to celebrate and to give thanks. Focus more on these other holiday pleasures, in addition to the tastes of holiday foods. The important thing to remember is balance and moderation. It’s OK to eat too much once in a while. Just relax, enjoy the holidays and remember what the season is all about.
8. Maintain perspective: Overeating one day won’t make or break your eating plan. And it certainly won’t make you gain weight! It takes days and days of overeating to gain weight. If you over-indulge at a holiday meal, put it behind you. Return to your usual eating plan the next day without guilt or despair.

What are your suggestions and ideas on Holiday Eating?

www.RMAP.com
Rocky Mountain Associated Physicians
801-268-3800
1160 East 3900 South, Suite 4100
SLC, UT 84124