Nutrition Tips for a Healthy Holiday Ep 40

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I'll see you there. Welcome back to the Find Your Edge podcast. This is your host, Christina Fiumara Newport, and I am here with another one of our dietitians on the team, Amber D'Angelo. And today we are talking all about how to approach the holidays in a little bit of a healthier manner and hopefully avoid some weight gain. So Amber, thanks for being on the show again.

Thanks for having me. Awesome.

So we were just talking before we started is that the holidays kind of start with Halloween and then it blends into Thanksgiving and then it blends into Christmas and New Year's or whatever holidays you celebrate. And then all of a sudden now the Super Bowl is here and then Valentine's. So sometimes it feels like it never ends, but also these are tips that you can use Any time of the year, honestly.

Yep.

Because another thing that we were looking at before coming on here is what is the research saying in terms of do people gain weight during the holidays? And from what we could find, the short answer is yes. The long answer is that it tends to be pretty condensed from what I could tell in December, but most people lose a little bit of that by like March-ish. But overall, there is a net gain, albeit not a whole lot, uh, on average about a pound, but that pound tends to be really sticky. In other words, it's harder to get off. So we've got some tips for you to try to avoid this weight gain and just overall be a little bit more cognizant of your environment and enjoy the holidays a little bit more. So we're going to start with what to do at like large holiday gatherings. So Amber, you got some really awesome tips.

Yes. Looking at these large holiday gatherings and just recognizing what the whole purpose of that gathering is. And the purpose should be to be social and to gather together with family and friends and to celebrate each other and those relationships and the things that we're thankful for. And so if you go into those gatherings with that mindset, you're going to be able to prioritize spending time with your family and friends over the food. Spend a few moments before you go into that large event or social gathering, or even if it's not large, right? So a family gathering or a large meal with family or friends, spend a few moments and just get your mind right and just remember why it is that you're going there. And then when you get there, just focus on the conversation instead of being overwhelmed with how much food there may be or what food you should eat. But, you know, that food is there to nourish you and to enjoy, but you should enjoy the company and the people that you're with more than you enjoy that food. And food is wonderful, and it is— it has a purpose. It's there to nourish us. You know, a lot of other good things that it can bring into your life besides just eating. Food gives— brings the family together. It brings friends together, and that can start even in the kitchen and preparing food. And so enjoying the whole process there, preparing the food, and take time when you're at a meal with family and friends to enjoy the smells, to enjoy what it looks like, look around, enjoy how the table looks and how your plate looks. And actually looking at your food is a great thing to do so that you're not just mindfully grabbing everything but actually being aware what that plate looks like. And do you need that much food? Is that really the food that you like? You know, so focusing on the food that you're actually like, pick the food that you really, really enjoy. And there's something like, if you don't like, you know, green bean casserole, don't eat the green bean casserole. You know, pick something that you like and really taking time to just Enjoy the sights, enjoy the smells, see your food, slow down and let that food nourish you, but let the company nourish you as well.

That's awesome. Very insightful words there. Definitely. I would say some of my favorite tips for this time of the year is if you are watching that big game after say Thanksgiving, for example, try not to eat when you're watching TV. And this is kind of a general environmental cue anyway is that we're so used to just popping down on the couch and, you know, grabbing the bag of chips or just the bowl of nuts. And some of these foods may not inherently be bad foods, but we're going to underestimate how much we eat anytime we're engaged in TV specifically, right? So that would be one of mine. So to combat that is getting a plate or napkin and putting your food on that plate or napkin first. Because then it's that like registering of, oh, I have food on my plate and I'm actually remembering and thinking about like what goes in.

Right.

Which is a good tip for like parties, you know? And yeah. What was it that you had said? Like seafood first or something?

See your food, look at it.

Yeah.

Make sure what you want to eat and how much you need.

Yes, exactly. I like your tip of like, don't pick the stuff you don't like. There's some really great research out by a Cornell researcher on food psychology and food behavior. And one of them, he compares like slim diners or like normal weight diners to overweight diners. And one of the things that they do at buffets is the slim diners are like step back and they like preview the whole buffet first and kind of get the lay of the land. Like, okay, what are the things that I want to choose? And sure, like healthier options are like good quality proteins and some veggies and, you know, your whole grains and whatnot. Um, doesn't mean you have to skip things that are unhealthy. You could still have unhealthy things. They can still fit in, but the overweight diners would just go right to the line, grab their plate, and just take a little bit of everything, whether they liked it or not. So little things like that, that you may not even be realizing that you're doing, are things that now the thought is in your brain. The next time you go to a buffet or the next time you go to a party or a large holiday gathering, like step back, think about what are the, all the options are and choose what you like. Cause I know, I know if anything has marshmallows on it, that is, that's a big no for me, but like I'm always going to have a slice of pie. I'm always going to have any, if it has chocolate, Yes, please. So, but you know, like the green bean casserole, I was like, I just don't, I'm not a green bean casserole kind of gal. Doesn't do it for me. So, but like hook me up with some roasted Brussels sprouts or yeah. So definitely doing that also, like don't meal skip. Oh yes.

Right.

So like our family this year is meeting for Thanksgiving at like 3 or 4 o'clock in the afternoon, which might be like a time when I'm doing like a snack. So I might snack a little earlier or maybe have a little bit of a later lunch so that I'm not— because if I skip lunch, by the time we get to 3 or 4 o'clock, I'm eating all the pie, right? Like, it's—

yeah, it's—

yeah, not good. And then if you can, I know there's a lot of— it's a little bit less— it's certainly not in my control because I'm going to somebody's house for Thanksgiving in particular this year. I can't control the size of the plates and bowls and cups, right? But knowing that the bigger the plate you have, the more food you will put on it. That is just how it is.

Yep. We're going to fill it up.

Whether you have a master's in nutrition or not, or if you're 10 years old, like it doesn't, it doesn't matter. So, you know, if you pick up that plate and it's ideal is like a 9-inch dinner plate, we start getting into like the 10, 11-inch, and then we have that beautiful charger and all that other kind of stuff. So kind of visualizing the bigger the plate, like maybe draw yourself a little imaginary border of like, don't let your foods touch the edges so that you keep it— it's not— I don't know. Yeah, that's— some things just are not in your control, and that's okay.

Well, and also, if you find yourself full, you filled that plate up, you sit down and you're like, wow, I got a lot of food, and you start eating, you don't have to finish everything on your plate. It's okay.

Yes, Amber, you have talk about— I mean, we're totally not going to throw him under the bus, but maybe we will a little bit— your husband. And, and I think this just speaks to like culturally and also like family values and just how each one of us was raised. I was raised in a clean plate club, and so was my husband.

Yeah.

So tell us a little bit about your husband and how you like to leave some of your food, and he— and how does he handle that?

So I don't know how many years ago it was. I just started a habit of leaving a little bit of food on my plate. I would always leave like that last bite just to get into the habit of mentally knowing that I don't ever have to finish my plate. It would drive my husband nuts because he thinks we are not done. Do you not like it? What's the matter? You know, why is there still food on your plate?

Sidebar, your husband is a chef. So this is like his thing, right? Yeah, he loves food.

And, you know, we eat, we try, we eat very healthy and we eat very portion controlled. But even just leaving that little bite has translated into so I can go to a restaurant and I don't feel like I have to clean that whole plate when I am no longer in control. It is just something natural for me to not clean my plate. But yeah, if there is food left, my husband likes to reach over and finish it. So it will be clean, maybe just not by me. But, you know, we can always leave a little bit of food and you don't even have to waste that food. You can put it away for later. If you find that your plate is just too much after you go through the Thanksgiving, or if you too big of a serving size, save it for later, wrap it up, put it in the fridge. And that's another— leads into something else. If there's always tends to be a food pusher, you know, at every gathering, you know, we call them the nutritional gatekeepers.

Oh yes, but we can call him a food pusher too.

That's why I, yeah, I remember lots of food pushers over the years just wanting you to, you know, they've put a lot of time and love into making these foods and they want you to experience and try it. And don't eat because you feel guilty not eating someone's food. It is okay to say, I would love to try that, or I did really enjoy it, but I'm full. Is it okay if I take some of that home and have it for dinner or have it tomorrow? Even if it's dessert time and you're not quite ready for dessert yet, you're still full. I know that pumpkin pie looks delicious, but I just, I can't, I don't have room for it right now. Can I take a slice home and enjoy it later? So it's okay to do that.

That's an awesome tip. I love that. And you're satisfying everyone. Like every— that's a win-win situation. I feel like.

Yeah, I think so.

All right. So we got some sort of large holiday meals. Now another topic, alcohol. Yes, there tends to be a little bit more involved in the holidays. So what would be some of your tips on how to manage our alcohol intake? Because alcohol is just easy calories, honestly. And some of us detoxify better than others, and that's a lot of genetic. Some of us are smaller or larger than others. So what are some of your tips, main tips for alcohol consumption during the holidays?

Well, you know, it does add up pretty quickly, our caloric intake, but also after you've had one or two, food starts to taste better. You kind of lose all that mental preparation we talked about. Kind of, you lose all that after a glass or two of wine or whatever you choose to drink. And so I like to have a glass or tell my people to have a glass and then have a big glass of water before you go and fill up again and just always do that. You know, have a glass, have a big glass of water. And you might find, hey, I don't need another glass now. It might just be you might be drinking because everyone around you has a drink in their hand. And so you can switch to something else or, you know, have some nonalcoholic, like a spritzer, you know, or just like a carbonated water, something to have instead of alcohol. And it's okay to use a small glass too. We talked about using a smaller plate, so small glass so you don't have as big of a pour. And that's my small glass. Have water in between.

Yeah, great tip there. Because as you're saying, like the glasses, like there's something just so fabulously sexy about the big red wine glasses in my mind. Like I love just like feels neat to hold this like lovely big wine glass. But a 5-ounce pour is wimpy in that glass, honestly. So, you know, there can be like smaller glasses to choose, or like you had mentioned, and I know there might be a few people who will gasp at this, but you can leave some in your glass. Yes, you don't have to drink it all. I'll especially do that if somebody's like, oh, you got to try this. This is really great. And then like, I'll take a sip and I'm like, that is not my favorite. And I don't want to drink anymore.

And you don't have to drink.

Yep. There you go. So, you know, and there are some great mocktails out there now. There's some great non-alcoholic beers. You can trick a lot of people if your intention is to trick. It may not be. And because honestly, a lot of people are not even going to notice. But like a tonic or a seltzer with like a lime slice on it, nobody's going to know there's not alcohol in that. Oh yeah, kombucha is so fun and it's like bubbly. And yeah, that's, that's a good one. So pretty glass. Yes, I love that. Because I know we were chatting before we got on this, like it's a matter of is it worth it, whether it be pie or alcohol or whatever, for what your health-related intentions or goals are. And I can't answer that for other people.

It's individual for sure.

So I know if I drink too much red wine and I do have a genetic SNP that does not help me to detoxify as effectively, and I'm finding that more and more as I get older, especially red wine, I sleep terribly. And I love sleep. So, yes.

Well, and that affects your next day too. So now you're talking about, you know, it bleeding over and impacting your workout the next day, or even how you eat the next day because you're just not feeling—

and how you treat people the next day. Oh girl, I'm glad you mentioned that. Yes. Which is a great segue to movement. Yes. So there is actually research on this, and we were talking about this before we got on here again, you know, like, oh, the people who did exercise during the Christmas— there was research, an actual controlled trial that was done back in 2020. I don't remember the name of the journal, but I can link to it. Who— they took a group that stayed sedentary and another group that was active, and no surprise there, the group who was active was better able to manage their weight. So getting in the movement is key. What are some of your tips, Amber, for staying active through the holidays?

I think just looking for those opportunities to fit in movement, even if it's just a few minutes. So like you mentioned, watching the football game earlier, you can make movement part of that instead of just sitting on the couch. You can do a game if you know the team that every time the team you're you're rooting for scores a touchdown, you know, get up and do jumping jacks. Or if the opposing team scores a touchdown, then you have to do burpees, you know, and get the whole family involved playing any active games that you might have inside. Or if you can get outside, I know that we're going to be gone for a whole week out of town and we will take our pickleball rackets with us. So our paddles so that we can try and find a place to play pickleball when we're gone. It's just something my family likes to do. We're spending time together, but we still get that movement in. It could be a walk, could be climbing the stairs, just find those opportunities to move and involve your friends and your family. Again, we're talking about prioritizing that time with your friends and your family. And it's good for everyone to just move. It doesn't have to be an hour-long workout.

Yeah. It doesn't. Yeah. It doesn't have to be some crazy HIIT workout. I mean, it can be.

Yeah, absolutely.

So, uh, there are so many different opportunities for like 5Ks or turkey trots or just holiday runs, or, you know, if we're traveling, we like to find different places to like go for a hike. If we're stuck indoors, I'll throw my son on my back and do squats and he thinks it's hilarious.

And then we're all laughing and then, you know, so good for the act, right?

To laugh. Yes, for sure. So just being intentional about that movement, I think, is just as you're being intentional about the choices that you make at the table, being intentional about adding in that movement, even if it's small, it is still worth it.

Yes.

So speaking of all these movement and nutrition tips, tell us a little bit about our upcoming holiday challenge we have.

We have a holiday challenge coming up. It starts the Sunday after Thanksgiving and goes for 21 days, and it is called A Season of Nourishment. And Season of Nourishment, 21 Days of Nourishing Gifts. And it is all about some self-care gifts and focusing on adding in a gift or a— it's a challenge, but these challenges are not going to ask you to cut anything out or to take anything away, but it's all about adding in something that could become a healthy habit. Hopefully they will become healthy habits over these 21 days and that they will carry you through into the new year, and they will help to increase your movement, improve your eating habits, help you manage stress, and, you know, maybe maintain or lose some weight. They're very simple habits, but sometimes things we don't think about and Each day there will be 3 different challenges or gifts to choose from. There will be a nutrition gift and a movement gift and a mind or spirit gift. And for an example of that would be the nutrition gift might be fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables today, or add vegetables to your breakfast today. So just totally doable, but really good habits to, to, to build into your daily life. It would be some of the movement we've already talked about. Climb the stairs today for a few minutes or go for a walk after lunch or start your morning with a walk. So even if you have a daily exercise routine, this is just adding in a little extra movement so we can build that active lifestyle. And then the spirit or mind or spirit gift might be to volunteer in your community or to make somebody a homemade gift. Or to go to bed and, you know, go to bed, get 8 hours of sleep tonight, read a book. Those are some of the challenges that'll be in there. And you can do all 3 of them every day, or you don't have to. It's a very flexible challenge. There's modules that provide information, nutrition information, and there's some mobility videos that are going to be available in the modules and just information to help you accomplish these goals. There'll also be a group chat function available. And so we can get on there and talk to each other and encourage one another and share what everyone is doing to accomplish these challenges. And hopefully we will feel very nourished and encouraged during those 21 days.

Awesome. Yeah, I think the chat feature is nice, especially when it's like, oh no, panic, I'm going to grandma's house and she just told me X, Y, and Z, or, you know, what do I do?

Yes.

Amber is going to be part of that program offering support, which is pretty cool that this is going to be managed by you. So, uh, and I know that you've really poured your heart and soul into it and it is really, it's a fabulous program. So I hope everybody's able to sign up and you guys can sign up at theenduranceedge.com. So head to our website. Similarly, if you register, uh, like as soon as possible, you can get our 25-page healthy holiday recipe book, which is, we were talking about alcohol. It's got mocktail recipes. It's got turkey recipes. It's got protein bite recipes. It's got like kind of a little bit of everything. Every recipe has a really nice picture with it and all the nutrition facts broken down and different options for different dietary needs. I think this is gonna be a nice change from something like, I don't know, a plank challenge or You know, like you had mentioned, like give up alcohol for— I don't know, this is not Dry December.

Or cut out all the sugar.

Yes. Yeah. Cut out all the sugar.

Yeah.

I mean, this is not that.

About adding all the good things in.

Exactly. Very cool.

Those protein balls and bar recipes that are included in that recipe book would be great to incorporate into your holiday baking this year for a little—

Yeah. A little something different. And which also reminds me, like, You know, tell your family like, hey, I have this new fantastic— like that. I think there's a couple of Brussels sprouts recipes in there. Cause again, I like Brussels sprouts and I used to hate them as a kid, by the way. There's one for like a salad with like cranberries. It's like a really festive and holiday-like. It's nice when you can offer to bring something like, I have this really great recipe that I want to try. Is it okay if I bring it? Then you can control what goes into it.

Right.

And know that you're bringing something healthy, especially— I mean, it's great, especially if you have like food allergies or very specific sensitivities that you want to accommodate yourself.

Right.

And also have everybody else try something new and different.

Yeah. Cool. All right.

So let's wrap it up with our top sort of like 2 or 3 tips. What are some of the things that you want to make sure people go away with this holiday?

So the top tip is just going all the way back to talk to being social and preparing mentally when you go into a party or a gathering that you're there to enjoy the company of your friends and family and to prioritize that family and friends over eating and keep that the focus. And then the second one would be to really savor the foods you enjoy. And we didn't talk a lot about, but there are strategies you can accomplish that. So, you know, Savor the food, slow down, drink plenty of water, you know, while you're eating, put the fork down in between bites, chew your food completely, have conversations while you're eating. You don't want to talk with food in your mouth. So have conversations while you're eating or have a conversation before you get back up for seconds. So just those strategies to help you slow down, to savor your food and to enjoy the people around you.

Cool. And I'll say for me, it's based on your leave a little bit of food on your plate is it's okay if you don't finish everything, whether it be the glass of wine or the piece of pie, or, you know, the green bean casserole that grandma insisted you put on your plate. You're just not really into, right? Thank you so much, grandma. Love you. So it's okay to not finish something. And I would say also like, kept moving in some way, shape, or form, you know, for sure. Um, walk, run, ride, jumping jack, burpee, something, pickleball, something. Just get moving.

Yeah. Cool.

Awesome. Well, Amber, thanks again for coming on.

Yeah, thank you.

And happy holidays, everyone. Thanks for listening to the Find Your Edge podcast. If you like what you heard, don't forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so you never miss an episode. And if you're interested in learning more about our endurance coaching, sports and wellness nutrition, metabolic and sweat testing, triathlon training team, or our triathlon training library, be sure to check us out at theenduranceedge.com. And don't forget to follow us on social media at The Endurance Edge. Thanks again, and we'll catch you next time.