Holiday Healthy Eating
Content Courtesy of the Forever Young Podcast with Christiana Egi and Cherrie-Marie Chiu.
In preparation for the quickly approaching holiday season, this week’s podcast was focused on healthy eating during the holidays- with insightful tips and tricks from Dr. Uche Odiatu. Dr. Odiatu is a well-known dentist in Toronto, as well as one of the authors of the best-selling health solutions book: “The Miracle of Health”. He has been a guest speaker on the topic of health on over 400 television/radio shows and has given over 400 lectures in numerous countries around the world. Listen to the full podcast episode below or keep scrolling to learn more about healthy eating during the holidays!
It is no doubt that the holiday party season can often lead to bad eating choices, as it is easy to indulge when spending time with our loved ones (leading to a complete change in our eating habits). However, Dr. Odiatu states that on average an individual gains only 1-3 pounds during the holiday season; as opposed to the commonly speculated 5+ pounds. He emphasizes that it is during the rest of the course of the year, that people gradually gain weight from poor holiday eating habits.
When it comes to preparing yourself to get into the season of joyful eating, there are many useful tips and tricks that you can benefit from using. As many often have self-control issues when it comes to the challenge of not over-indulging in holiday foods, Dr. Odiatu recommends focusing on engaging in more conversation rather than the food in front of you. For example, talking while eating can help restrict you from over-eating, as you are more focused on who you are speaking to. Also, it can be helpful to attempt eating healthy before attending social gatherings. Doing so would likely be less hungry once you arrive, resulting in fewer temptations to over-eat in these settings. Trying to eat low glycemic foods (such as vegetables, fiber, high protein foods), and keeping hydrated can be done to keep you full. This leaves plenty of time for family bonding, and less from food temptations.
Dr. Odiatu encourages implementing physical activity in your routine, before attending holiday parties. This is a simple yet very effective tip, as exercise allows the body to have a less challenging time increasing metabolic fire during digestion. It is also important to note that Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption (aka EPOC), transitions your body to a higher metabolic state; making it easier for your body to be able to burn off the food just consumed. This may sound problematic to many, as exercise is usually avoided during these often-busy times. However, it can be made enjoyable if done with family and friends along the way! One way you can add exercise to your holidays is by establishing a new holiday ritual. Post-meal walks with your loved ones can become something looked forward to.
Getting back on track post-holiday season was raised as a concern in our conversation with Dr. Odiatu. He acknowledged this as essential for guiding us back to not overeating throughout the new year. If you haven’t already, trying intermittent fasting could be helpful to you in this journey back to health. Cutting out foods that were over-indulged in over the holidays for a period of time would double the result of your fasting, as easy as it sounds! Attempting to manage stress and sleep habits is often overlooked during our busy daily schedules. It should be a priority because stressed and sleep-deprived people are often the ones to make poor food choices in spite of hard times. Poor sleep and high-stress levels are known to make one more insulin resistant, therefore making time for rest should be a must!
Overall, the holidays are one of the most eventful times of the year, but they definitely bring unwanted weight and habits onto us. In an attempt to not let yourself fall into the spell of over-eating this season, think of Christiana Egi and Dr. Odiatu’s pro tips! Drinking lots of water, making healthy eating choices before attending gatherings, focusing on the conversation rather than food, eating high fiber/protein foods would all help reverse your way of eating during the holidays. Most important of all, hara hachi bu as much as possible! Dr. Odiatu recommends reminding yourself of this Japanese term, which means to eat only until you are 80% full. Eating until you cannot anymore be very dangerous for our health. Thus, eating right can be made simple!
*The Forever Young podcast is created and produced by Christiana and Cherrie Marie Chiu. Produced and engineered by Elisse Hill. The podcast represents our opinions and those of our guests. The content should not be taken as medical advice. It is for informational purposes only. Please consult your health care professional for any medical questions. If you like our show, please tell your friends and leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts. New episodes are available every other Wednesday. Have questions? Email us at ourforeveryoungpodcast@gmail.com.
