Seven Tips for Maintaining a Healthy Weight During the Holidays

Maintaining a healthy weight during the Christmas season seems like an almost impossible task. Puerto Ricans enjoy music, parties, dancing, but above all, traditional foods and drinks. It is almost impossible to think of the Christmas holidays without the tasty crunch of suckling pig skin, blood sausages, delicious rice with pigeon peas, and pastries of all kinds of dough and meat, among other typical delicacies of Puerto Rican cuisine. This is why avoiding weight gain during Christmas becomes a challenge. Studies show that the average American gains between seven and ten pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day.

To maintain your weight during Christmas and avoid regret in January, it is best to only eat traditional foods on holidays or at parties and eat a balanced diet the rest of the time. Below is a detailed table of foods and their calories:

Below are several strategies for maintaining a healthy weight during the holiday season:

1. Eat before arriving at the party.
   • Avoid arriving at parties on an empty stomach. Have a small snack before you go out, preferably low-sugar yogurt or a small piece of fruit.
2. Eat small portions of typical dishes.
   • Traditional foods during this season are high in calories. However, this does not mean you cannot enjoy them. Just be moderate and very careful with the combinations and quantities of food you serve yourself.
3. Avoid consuming all typical foods in a single meal.
   • The typical Christmas menu in Puerto Rico includes pasteles, rice with pigeon peas, pork leg, potato salad, elbow pasta salad, pickled green peppers, blood sausage, desserts, and coquito, among other dishes. If you are going to eat all of this on the same day, select several options for lunch and the rest for dinner. Always try to select a source of protein (meat), preferably white meat. If this is not available, then select the loin, the center cut, and the hind leg of pork because these are low-fat cuts.
   • You can control the portion size by using the palm of your hand as a reference; it is equivalent to three portions. Avoid eating the famous "cuerito" (pork rind) of the suckling pig, as it is mainly fat. You can accompany the meat with a source of carbohydrates such as rice with pigeon peas or potato salad. Make sure the portion is approximately the size of your fist and only select one of the two. If you choose cake as your meal, this already represents a complete meal, as it contains carbohydrates, protein, and fat. If you are going to eat cake, accompany it with a green salad or vegetables.
4. Avoid consuming desserts and alcoholic beverages.
   • When consuming alcohol, choose only one type; don't try them all. The recommended portions for alcoholic beverages are one drink for women and two for men. Wine has fewer calories than what is known as "hard liquor": rum, whiskey, vodka, among others. Avoid mixing liquor with carbonated drinks or juices and drink it with water or "on the rocks." Remember to choose between dessert or an alcoholic beverage.
5. Choose a smaller plate
   • If you don't feel like choosing between the available options, use a hors d'oeuvre plate to serve yourself a little bit of everything.
6. Don't let them serve you
   • Try to serve your own plate. If you are unable to do so, speak to the host of the party and tell them the amounts of each food you can consume.
7. Dance, move around a lot
   • Don't forget to enjoy Christmas, dance, sing, and share with your family and loved ones.

Finally, remember to watch your portion sizes and get some exercise, which will help you control your weight despite indulging in Christmas treats. This will help you start the new year off on a healthy note.

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The author is a nutritionist at Centro Ararat. You can follow her on social media

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