6 Ways to Survive the Holidays

The temptation to fall off the bandwagon over the holidays is REAL.  Even those who are extremely strict with their diet struggle over the holiday season.  Family is in town, we're busy, and there are delicious holiday treats EVERYWHERE.  Don't let all your hard work this past year go under water over the next month! Here are 5 ways to survive a holiday binge.

1.  Bring your own healthy dish.  Get creative with it.  Bring something that you won't feel guilty eating, but that will also make you feel like you're not missing out.  

2.  Exercise.  This is a tough one because when everyone is in town, it's hard to make time to workout .  I promise that even a 10 minute workout will not only make you feel better but it will also get your blood circulation going which is important to keep your metabolism up.  (not to mention that working out will relieve some stress) 

3.  Fill an entire plate with healthy foods first.  Get full off the healthy stuff first and your chances of cheating will decrease.  

4.  Be assertive.  If someone offers you something that you can't eat, politely decline the offer.  Don't be bullied into eating or drinking something that you are going to regret later on. 

5.  Do some healthy snacking all day before your big party.  It's crucial not to let yourself get hungry when there are so many temptations on the table.  

6.  Take the focus off the food.  Enjoy your time with your loved ones and try to focus on other things going on at the party, other than the food! 

7.  Practice healthy holiday cooking.  

Swap Out: 

Butter for coconut oil 

Regular flour for coconut flour, almond flour, gluten-free flour  

Sugar for apple sauce 

Sugar for Vanilla Extract (this cuts about 400 calories out) 

Sugar for stevia 

Oil for apple sauce 

Butter for avocados 

Oil for bananas 

Eggs for Chia seeds 

Chocolate chips for dark chocolate chips 

Peanut butter for reduced fat peanut butter or almond butter 

Eggs for egg whites 

Bread for Ezekiel, brown rice, or gluten free bread 

Syrup for Coconut Nectar 

These little tricks makes a big difference over time.  You can use this blog as a tool not only for the holidays but for any situation where you will be tempted to cheat! I hope this helps and I hope that you can end 2014 will a bang! 

Xoxo 

Ashley 

For clean recipes for the holidays, Click HERE.