Ask the Powells: How Do We Handle the Holidays?

It?s that time of year…we have fun family get-togethers, work parties, and social gatherings galore. And while we love these chances to spend time with our favorite people, how do we stick to our transformation goals AND be social AND not hurt anyone?s feelings?

We get this question. A lot. It can be so hard to go where those social triggers?those foods and feelings that make it super difficult to stick to your goals?are all around you and not just throw your nutrition plan out the window and eat everything in sight. Check out the video above to get our top tips for successfully navigating all those holiday gatherings (or any gatherings, for that matter) so you can wake up January 1st with your goals still in tact and no extra holiday cheer sticking to your bones. 😉

HP_Handle_Holidays

To recap?here are our top tips to keep handy before you head out the door to those festive functions:

  • Offer to bring healthy foods to the party. This is a good idea for two reasons: 1) You know you?ll have healthy options available, and 2) There will probably be others at the party with similar goals who will thank you! Need some awesome healthy recipes? I?ve got you covered…right here.
  • Communicate. Let people know you?re on a weight loss journey and that you?ll be happy to bring your own healthy hors d’oeuvres and snacks. Who knows, they could become your greatest supporters!
  • Prepare. Eat before gatherings and get-togethers so you arrive with a full stomach.
  • Try ?glassing.? We do this all the time. When you arrive at a social event, grab a glass of water, club soda, diet soda, or something similar and keep it in your hand the whole time. It will keep you busy, and it will keep your hands busy (and less likely to grab those no-no foods). 😉
  • Stay strong! When others see you making positive changes in your life and sticking to your goals, it can be a great conversation starter, and you can end up inspiring them to do the same!

What are your favorite tips for handling the holidays? Please share below because I really wanna? know! And happy holidays!

Xoxo,

Heidi

Related posts:

My Top Ten Tips for Holiday Survival
Avoiding Road Trip Road Blocks!
All Things Food 😉

10 Responses

  1. Hi, I’m not American and my holidays have arrived,but there’s only one thing I do on holidays every single year and that’s studying without going out,so I think you’d think of junk eating normal as the only entertainment,and I also get bullied at school and it’s getting out of control, I can’t go to gym either,I’d be very grateful if you contacted and helped me,please…

    1. Hi Sarvin: Chris and Heidi truly wish they could help everyone personally, but since they can’t, they’ve put all their carb cycling tools in this post: https://heidipowell.net/9060. Make that first promise to yourself, choose a cycle, and go! You can do this!

  2. My favorite holiday or party dip recipe is super clean and tastes like the indulgent cheese dips that you really want to consume at those parties:
    16 oz cottage cheese
    1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
    hot pepper vinegar (at least a 1/4 cup)
    diced green onions
    cayenne pepper to taste (let it really have some kick)
    Mix all and chill. Serve with chips or veggies.

  3. I had a neighbors get-together a few weeks ago and I was pretty nervous about it. Firstly because I didn’t know how to explain that I can’t eat sugary cakes (I did have a glass of wine though!) and secondly because I’m a vegetarian and I was nervous there may be sandwiches with meat that I had to refuse. So I made a batch of sugarless sweet potato brownies to share with everyone. Everyone liked them and one of our neighbors was diabetic so she was happy there’s something without sugar there. Win-win.

  4. After the holidays, my 11 year old daughter and I are going to start eating healthier and exercising . What are some tips to make it fun for her?

  5. My tip is lots of sleep!! For my family it is the only rest time we all get!! Plus we play lots of games, if your mind is distracted you’ll be too focussed on something else to think about food! 🙂

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