Follow These Tips to Curb Those Extra Kilos This Christmas Season

People usually end up over-indulging during the festive season. With all those carb-heavy boozy party invitations flying around, tempting foods, family obligations, endless shopping lists, too much stress and overworked credit cards, the run-up to New Year's day can really be a tough time. It's that time of year when extra calories lurk around every corner - frosted cookies and plum cakes at home, eggnog at your friend's and neighbor's or chocolates and candies in your stocking. And once the feasting begins, it gets dragged on until mid-January when jeans refuse to zip up.

If the idea of Christmas food leaves you panicking about weight gain, here are some suggestions, with which you'll be able to enjoy the booze, the sloth, the endless party nibbles and still keep your health and weight in check.

During an event at Unplugged Courtyard, CP, Diet and Nutrition expert, Dr. Varun Katyal, said, "Basically, it's Christmas, it's time for celebration. So I won't say that don't have sweets, but some of the things could be that you could control your portions. In the sense that rather than eating a lot of sweets, you could probably cut down on the portions. The other thing is that before you leave for a party, you could have a bowl of salad, which kind of keeps you fill and you are not going to binge on a lot of wrong and unhealthy food."

Dr. Katyal further added, "Since, it is winters, so our intake of water goes quite low and sometimes we don't distinguish between thirst and hunger. Sometimes you are actually thirsty, but you feel you are hungry. If people keep themselves well hydrated by drinking a lot of water, that would cut down on them eating unhealthy food or eating unnecessarily. They should try to drink at least two and a half to three liters of water every day."

One of the things, which Dr. Katyal advises a lot of his clients, is to replace cheese and butter with hung curd because it is quite tasty and it's very low in calories. The celebrity doctor said, "Hung curd can be used in sandwiches; it can be used as a dip with vegetables and as a dressing for your salad. Another thing which is very helpful is to carry some roasted chana with you. That's very easily available everywhere. So, whenever you are hungry in between meals, you can use it as snacking options."

Busy people you needn't worry. Hectic schedules and full-time jobs don't have to get in the way of your weight loss. Here are some hacks for you to get past the roadblocks. Dr. Katyal suggested "If you are busy, you can still opt for healthier things. It is very important to drink enough water. So, you should drink one glass of water before every meal and one glass of water after every meal. This ensures that if you are having three-four meals a day, you are drinking at least eight glasses of water because a lot of times when you are busy, you forget to drink water."

Advertisement

He added, "Busy people should try and carry some healthier options with them, for e.g. they can carry some digestive Marie biscuits or oats biscuits. They can even carry roasted makhanas, so that when they are hungry they don't opt for unhealthy food."

Lastly, according to the Weight loss and Wellness expert, "Any diet which is balanced is effective. There are five nutrients, which should be there in every meal and then only your meal is complete. They are carbs or carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals. Any diet which tells you to cut off any of the nutrients, in my opinion, is not sustainable one and is not really helpful in the long term. If you follow a balanced, healthy, nutritional diet and lose weight slowly, that is more sustainable than taking a short cut."

Advertisement

Some people might say that trying to lose weight during the Christmas season is crazy, but it's definitely not impossible. So, stay fit, while you enjoy the food fiesta during the festive season. Merry Christmas!

Source-ANI