7 TIPS FOR SMART EATING DURING THE HOLIDAYS

Tips for the Whole Season

TIP 1: BE PICKY!

Pick ONLY your favorite holiday treats

Use portion control 

Skip the stuff you can live without

SELF CHECK QUESTIONS: 

"Do I really really love this or should I save my indulgence for another treat/time?"

"Is this an indulgence I can eat anytime outside the holidays?"

TIP 2 FOR PETE'S SAKE GET SOME Exercise! WHY?

Relieves “holiday stress” 

Helps burn off those extra calories

Careful!! keep goals realistic during holidays when you have less time and don't beat yourself up about doing a little less.

SELF CHECK QUESTION: "How can I modify my workouts to make the most of the limited time I have?"

Damage Control for Parties

TIP 3: Eat!

• Do not skip meals the day of a holiday party to “save up” you will end up bingeing at the party..Instead, eat smaller meals prior to leave a little room for those extra calories you will be eating during the party.

TIP 4: Alcohol Counts (sorry...)

• One drink = 100-175 calories. 
• Mixed drinks and cocktails may have several hundred more calories from the sugary mixers and the cream liqueurs they contain.
• And here's the deal...egg nog IS dessert, okay?

STRATEGY: Try alternating an alcoholic 

drink with water or some no-cal beverage so you always have a cup in your hand and don't feel awkward or get handed another full glass of something.

TIP 5: It’s a Party! Try using your mouth more for TALKING than for chewing

• Enjoy the party by socializing rather than bingeing at the buffet table.
• Station yourself away from the food if you have a hard time not nibbling the whole time.

TIP 6: Find the good stuff

• Opt for low calorie options
• These will help fill you up with the fiber and water they contain leaving less room for the unhealthy options.

LOOK FOR: crudites, fruits, green salads, roasted vegetables, bean dip

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TIP 7: Be a "healthy" party host

• Now, before you call me crazy and imagine the family mutiny when you serve up your first "Tofurkey"...relax. I mean serve some healthy side dishes this year to create balance on the menu. Steamed veggies are a fresh taste next to that juicy steak and Martha Stewart's ridiculously good mac-n-cheese.
• While I am not a fan of low fat stuff in general-using reduced fat ingredients in dips & sauces (where it won’t affect flavor) can offer a big reduction in calories
• Serve water and unsweetened tea instead of sugary drinks-let the sugar come from the desserts!
• Plan some activities to make it fun and not all about eating.

Good for you? Bet you America makes a CHIP out of it!

We Americans have a special love for anything in "chip form" and seemingly a similar disdain for healthy foods- even though we all know we should be eating them.  Thankfully, the food manufacturers love to solve all of our nutrition woes, which is of course why we are all so fit and trim around here.

Nowadays, if you can name a healthy food that you couldn't pay many Americans to eat in its actual natural form (soy, legumes (AKA beans), kale and other dark leafy greens, quinoa, etc.) I will bet you a dollar that you can buy it as a CHIP. The only problem is that the dollar will probably only buy you about one of those healthy chips, since only rich people would consider paying $4-7 for 4-8 ounces of something called "Farmer Ted's Organic Sour Cream and Onion Flavored Kale and Amaranth Chips" or whatever.

I saw this in my local store last night so I am going to pick on this one, but I think you can pick up any of these products and make a similar comparison.

Get your whole grains in a chip, right?

DIPPIN' CHIPS SUPER GRAINS 

"QUINOA, AMARANTH, BLACK SESAME" VARIETY

Let's break it down...

COST COMPARISON

DIPPIN' CHIPS 5 OUNCE BAG (fyi it looks HUGE with all the air in there) = $3.99 

That's about $.80/ounce wich may sound cheap but maybe when you think about it as $12.77 per pound you might change your mind (last time I checked you could buy Filet Mignon for less than that, and aren't plant-based grains supposed to be so much cheaper?).

$12.77 per pound

For a "healthy" chip:regular chip comparison, one can purchase a 10 ounce bag of Tostitos Whole Grain or regular variety corn chips for $3.28 (according to walmart.com) That's .33 cents per ounce or $5.24 per pound. 

NUTRITION COMPARISON

1 oz serving of Dippin' Chips

Calories: 150

Fat: 8 grams

Sodium: 120 mg

Fiber: 2 grams 

First two ingredients (the most prevalent)

White corn, vegetable oil

Last three ingredients (least prevalent)

Amaranth, quinoa, teff

Nutritionally, alas still a chip.

First ingredient...good ol' corn.

1 oz serving of Tostitos Multigrain Scoops:

Calories: 140

Fat: 7 grams

Sodium: 110 mg

Fiber: 2 grams 

First ingredients: 

Corn, vegetable oil 

Remarkable how much like Dippin' Chips these are....

Hey, I like a chip as much as the next American, and this Super Bowl weekend we will eat more chips and salsa than on any other of the year. However, if you want to eat quinoa and kale, please go get some and make it and eat it and be healthy-because they ARE healthy foods. But when they come in a bag, I say let's call a chip "a chip"?