12 healthy days of Christmas

Christmas is just one day, right? One day of eating all the delicious foods, even overeating them, is not going to harm your heart.

However, most of us have spent the whole year overeating. And Christmas isn’t just one day, when you think about the three to four weeks of Christmas parties, social gatherings and excess food that happens at this time of the year. Research actually shows that the average person puts on about 2kg over this time and never loses it.¹

Rather than putting off healthy eating changes as next year’s problem, you can start making easy changes now. Christmas is going to come around every year for the rest of your life – get a jump on it and learn to manage it!

If maintaining a healthy eating pattern over the Christmas season is important to you, then here are 12 simple tips to maximise health and enjoyment during the festivities.

The number of serves of fresh fruit to include in your diet each day. Antioxidants, fibre and carbohydrates are all great reasons to eat fruit. For snacks, salads and desserts, fresh is always best!

The serves of protein-rich foods to include each day. That’s one serve for each of your main meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Protein helps you feel fuller for longer, helps maintain muscle mass and can increase your metabolism.

• Choose whole foods whenever possible.
• Swap out ham and bacon for whole pork or turkey.
• Swap out schnitzel for whole chicken breast.
• Swap out sausages for steak or mince.

The number of days you can safely keep pre-cooked or pre-prepared food in your fridge. Prepping food in advance is a great way to stay organised, especially when you’re busy. Boil and peel eggs, poach chicken breast, pre-cook brown rice or wholemeal pasta, make up mixed garden salads or make a Bircher muesli or chia pudding for breakfasts.

The number of grams of fibre (or more) that you should aim to get in your bread of choice. Five grams or more of fibre per two slices of bread is a great benchmark and a key to helping you choose a healthier bread option. Fibre is vital for a healthy gut and a healthy heart.

The number of days in the week that you need to prioritise healthy behaviours. Whether it’s a daily walk, vegetables at dinner, whole-food snacks or early nights, aim to make healthy living ‘who you are and what you do’. When it’s a normal part of your life, you’re less likely to fall off the wagon and more likely to do it long term. To make this possible, these healthy behaviours need to be realistic and suit your lifestyle.

The number of glasses of water to aim for during the day. On hot days or when you exercise for over an hour, you’re likely to need more than this. If your urine is dark yellow, you’re not drinking enough.

The number of times you need to try a new food or a new habit without giving up. In fact, you shouldn’t give up at all! Taking action, getting out of your comfort zone and doing something different is the key to creating new and lasting behaviours.

Setting a goal to hit 10,000 steps per day. If you don’t have a step counter, there are step counter apps available to download for smartphones. Keep moving over the festive season to help burn energy and keep many body systems, especially your heart, in tip-top condition.

The number of kind, uplifting and encouraging things you need to tell yourself in one day! Looking after your health starts with a positive mind-set and kind self-talk.