Charles Runels, MD  

How to Have a Healthy Holiday (and Still Have a Fun Celebration)

Sometimes parties and celebrations seem incompatible with becoming healthier.  I've watched my patients to see who loses weight and who gets healthier during the holidays and asked them about their ways of celebrating.  I've also done some experimenting on my own and come up with a few holiday traditions that make for plenty of fun while at the same time allowing me to stay healthy.

Here are a few of tips:

1. For every feast day that you plan, plan a low calorie day (I prefer two days) the day after the feast.  This can be a day of fasting on water or dilute fruit juice or a day of only low-calorie protein shakes with fruit.  Mark it on your calendar just like you did the feast day.  Make this a day of contemplation about the reason for the holiday.
2. Don’t give up your walking
   1. Use walking as a way to visit with other people.  Let the slowest person set the pace (best done by simply saying nothing, but allowing them to walk 1/2 step ahead of you if you are the faster walker)and it will be comfortable for everyone.
   2. Walk or exercise twice or three times as much as you normally do the day before the feast day.  Then feast day becomes a day of recovery from the extra exercise rather than a day when you gain weight.
3. When at a party where people are drinking, consider being the designated driver and not drinking at all.  Alternatively, drink at least one or two waters or diet drinks for every alcoholic drink.
4. Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables at the feast (as much as you want) and you will have less room for the fattening foods.
5. When traveling, be sure to take a cooler full of healthy drinks, fresh fruit, and protein bars (my favorite are the Zone line and Atkins bars).
6. Just by avoiding high calorie drinks (stick to water, un-sweet tea, diet drinks) you can cut the calories at the feast.
7. When someone tries to pressure you into eating a high calorie desert, say, "This salad (casserole, beans, fruit salad, or whatever vegetable you like) tastes so wonderful let me eat more of this first.  Then while they eat desert, you eat more vegetables.  Then by the time they finish desert, you say, "I'm so full now, let me eat my desert later."  Of course, later doesn't have to come until next Christmas, but an hour later when most of the family is passed out in front of the TV, they've forgotten that you didn't ever eat the third type of pie by the second Aunt who was guaranteed to be offended if you didn't partake.

Other problems during the holidays include

• How to defeat holiday depression.
• How to make the time for exercise when visiting with others.
• How to actually do the fast days in such a way that you stay comfortable and undo any damage done on the feast days.
• I've put all of this and other details in a 48 minute audio CD called "How to Have a Happy Holiday."  If you are my patient, you should receive a free copy in the mail.  If you do not, then call the office and I will mail a copy to you.  If you are not my patient, then send me your snail mail address and I'll send you a copy for free.

Peace & Health,

Charles Runels, MD