5 Non-Depriving Tips For A Healthy Holiday | Family Counseling in Orlando

One of my favorite ideas is that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. So, think back over the last few holiday seasons you’ve had – do you typically end your holidays a few pounds heavier than how you started them, or feeling sluggish and yuck? Are you able to get through and feel that your overall health has improved, or do you move into the New Year feeling the need for detox and an army boot camp? Aren’t we all too familiar with the holiday routines that lead us into unhealthy habits over the holidays? So why do we do the same thing over and over again? We know that holidays are filled with joy, cheer, and cookies at every turn. So, going without a plan to stay healthy over the holidays is a bit like walking into a doughnut shop after not eating for a couple of days – a no win situation, right? But the battle against the holiday bulge can be won. If you can relate, here are 5 tips that will help you feel healthy, trim, and vibrant through the holidays.

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  1. Start Your Exercise Plan NOW. Don’t wait for the New Year, start now and aim for 30 minutes of moderate to high intensity movement a day that you enjoy. Do something that you know you can accomplish. Make it a daily priority over the holidays and you will benefit from an improved mood, mental clarity, and more controlled appetite, and most likely a trimmer figure for the New Year.

 

  1. Commit your food indulgences to the holi-DAY, not the holi-DAYS. It’s not typically a day of indulging that kills health goals, it is extending the indulgences on throughout the entire season. Think about it, there are approximately 4 months between Halloween and New Years! That’s a lot of time for damage if the indulgences are not confined to the holi-DAY. Instead of indulging, plan fun and active events that are coordinated around fun and friends, not food.

 

  1. Eat a portion of protein before you go to your social event.  Do not attend your holiday events and parties hungry. Eating a palm sized portion of protein prior to your social event will curb your appetite and stabilize your blood sugar so that you can navigate around the impulses and stay mindful to make better and healthier choices.

 

  1. Drink your body weight in ounces per day of water. The health benefits of drinking water are endless – consistently drinking water gives improvement in every area of bodily function, including natural detox, clear skin, weight loss, reduced inflammation, and a boosted functioning of the immune system.

 

  1. Just say No to Sugar, but yes to food! Sugar causes an inflammatory response in the body that makes us more susceptible to disease, and you are in fact more likely to catch a virus in the 30-60 minutes after ingesting sugar. It’s more technical than that, but simply put, sugar compromises your immune system’s ability to fully function. Sugar also causes blood sugar to spike and drop dramatically, which plays a large role in out of control cravings and appetite. Instead of reaching for the treats, stock your fridge, pantry, and workplace with healthy whole foods that you can easily reach for when you need to snack. Keep a variety of fruits, vegetables, nut butters, protein, and herbal teas sweetened with stevia or water within reach and eat real food, not sweet treats, when you are hungry.

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Zuleida is an experienced therapist, but she is also a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister, and a survivor. Zuleida’s therapeutic specialty is relationship. Her clients know her for bringing her best therapy for “Women and those that they love” She is skilled at addressing important issues: Relationship, Depression, Co-Dependency, Anxiety, and Abuse, to name a few. Families, Women, and Teenage girls in crisis connect especially well with her. She is well versed in the unique stresses and multiple balancing acts that busy families face, especially with families that require crisis therapy intervention.

Call Zuleida today to find out more information about Orlando Family Counseling Services at 407-622-1770.