LIving It Can Be Hard, But The Alternative?

I get that kicking bad habits is hard to do. The main reason they are is that the habits themselves are comforting and we want that comfort. We are used to it, even when we know it has the potential to shorten our lives like cigarettes we want what we get from it.

We are in the most dangerous time of year for most of us whose habit is less than healthy foods. There will be party after party with too much sugar and too much booze and too many snacks that have too much sodium and fat and sugar in them as well.

To make matters worse the weather stinks for outdoor exercise and it gets dark later in the morning and early at night so we don't get as much exercise as easily.

There you are at the event and you have decisions to make to stick to your program. That is part of "living it." Changes are best done year round and it is hard to turn down stuff that you used to look forward to.

A great strategy is to make sure that your potluck item is something that you like that is also healthy so you have something to eat. Then there is always the veggie tray -NO DIP- and likely another item or two.

Resisting the chips and dips and desserts is hard (the title of the post might have given you a clue) but setting yourself back three months over the course of December is much worse. That requires another 3-4 months of your life to fix and a renewed commitment that we don't always decide to make when we should.

There are 540 calories in an average meat and cheese tray serving that also includes 37 grams of fat and over 1000 mgs of sodium. An average slice of pie will be just under 300 calories with 14 grams of fat and 1/2 or more of the sugars you should get in a day.

The list goes on so take care to watch what you do eat.

Here is a great strategy. Before you go to the party eat a couple ounces of raw almonds or have a smoothie made with 1 tbsp of chia seeds or a maybe a nice green salad. These items will fill you up and stick with you so you don't get as hungry. Then stay away from the buffet and the bar as much as possible and alternate your drinks with water.

Have fun without setting yourself back.

Be very well and more soon....