Healthy Eating This Holiday Season- Avoiding an Outbreak
New Years Eve might be right around the corner, but now is NOT the time to make your declarations for a new year and a new you. The trick to healthy eating and staying slim this holiday season is to enjoy things in moderation. We can talk about making major changes in your diet after the new year, but for now, enjoy the festivities and the specialty food and drinks that come with it.
As we prepare our bodies for the cold of winter, our taste buds begin to shift to sugar and spice and everything nice. Stop feeling guilty about that! This isn’t a time to count calories or walk a rigid dietary tightrope. This sort of withdraw will probably lead you down the path of binging instead. This is about nurturing yourself and allowing yourself to indulge in some the sweetness that the holidays bring. If you think about it, the reason why we crave fatty, sugary things is that our body naturally wants to stay warm and the change of foods that we eat enable us to shift with the seasons. There is a rhythm to nature and it is time that we begin to honor that rhythm.
If you truly want to honor that rhythm, you must first find your own rhythm and pulse. This requires us to connect with the inner most parts of ourselves, creating a soul connection. Those of us who have a tough time getting our hands out of the cookie jar are often overeating because of an underlying stress that has not been resolved. The quick rush of sugar gives us an endorphin like high, but the downside of the slope will send us dozing off on the couch. Then, as our blood sugars drop below normal, we reach for a double espresso or another cookie to pull us through the day. If this is you, you need to take the time to be with your thoughts, so that you don’t just run your body into the ground and get sick. We are here for you, just raise your hand and speak up.
Here are a few healthy eating tips that can truly help you to get through the holidays without having to drop all of your favorite goodies off the list.
1. Drink at least 50% of your body weight in ounces every day. This will help to hydrate your body and to cleanse some of the toxins in your food and beverages.
2. Start your day with a cup of hot water, lemon, and honey. This will stimulate your liver to detoxify your body and will provide you with some extra vitamin C to keep your immune system up to par.
3. Eat at least one green vegetable a day. Kale, swiss chard, broccoli,and brussel sprouts are all excellent choices. Consider making some kale chips to replace your cravings for potato chips. Our three year old loves kale chips! Experiment with olive oil and coconut oil or adding cajun spices, onion powder or smoked paprika.
4. Before going to your next holiday party, be sure to eat something healthy ahead of time. This will decrease your chances of over indulging.
5. Keep a stash of healthy snacks around (carrot sticks, apple slices, seaweed) have some in your car, in your purse and at work. (If you have herpes, do not overdue it on nuts and seeds because they can lead to outbreaks)
6. Drink alcohol and caffeine in moderation: both caffeine and alcohol are high in arginine, which is a known trigger for herpes. As a preventative during the holidays, you might want to start supplementing with L-Lysine. This will help to counteract the arginine in these foods.
7. End your day with an attitude of GRATITUDE. Review all of the things that you are happy and grateful for in your life.
If you need some support, please jump in the Forum and introduce yourself. We would love to hear from you. The stress of the holiday season can trigger an outbreak, so allow us to support you and keep your stress levels to a minimum.
Live. Love. Thrive.
Dr. Kelly Amazon Best selling author of Live, Love and Thrive with Herpes: A Holistic Guide for Women
