How to Avoid the Biggest Diet Mistake During the Holidays, According to a Dietitian

The holiday season is synonymous with joy, family gatherings, and an abundance of tempting culinary delights. It's a time when our regular eating habits often take a back seat to the festive spirit, leading many to make dietary choices that can have lasting impacts on their health and wellness goals. But what's the biggest diet mistake you can make during this time? A dietitian offfers guidance on how to avoid the most common diet mistake that occurs during the holiday season.

Biggest Diet Mistakes During Holidays and How to Avoid Them

(Photo : Pexels/Nicole Michalou)

Skipping Meals

Abbey Sharp, a certified dietitian, advises that you should avoid eating too little or skipping meals days before the holiday feast. In a video recently uploaded to TikTok, Sharp explains why it is not a good idea to consume less food before any activities involving food.

As mentioned, you set yourself up for a binge when you become hungry by not eating enough during the day. We reportedly find it extremely difficult to refrain from eating well beyond the point of feeling comfortably filled as our hunger hormones go into overdrive.

Aside from having an unfavorable impact on digestion, such as bloating, gas, heartburn, and gastrointestinal disturbances, this also results in a significant surge and drop in blood sugar levels. Sleep can also be adversely affected by both of these factors.

Stressing Yourself to Avoid 'Unhealthy' Foods

Overthinking the food choices you make throughout the Christmas season can, in the end, take away the joy that you should be experiencing during this joyous time of year. Even though you should give yourself credit for making an effort to eat wholesomely, you should not be too hard on yourself if you end up overindulging.

According to Maggie Moon, M.S., R.D., a registered dietitian and the author of The MIND Diet, which has been a best-selling book, stress itself may result in elevated production of cortisol, the stress hormone, and the accumulation of belly fat. Consume the cookie if that is what you choose to do. Nevertheless, whether you choose to consume it or not, you should remove the emotional burden that comes along with it.

Strict Routine

Consider that December will not be a month in which you can continue living your typical life. Granting oneself unrestricted authorization to indulge in food and festivities should not be confused with encouraging oneself to engage in excessive food and alcohol consumption, skip rest, and disregard personal care. Dr. Emilia Thompson, a nutritionist who has assisted thousands of individuals in developing a compassionate connection with food, recommends that individuals should, ideally, adapt to the practice of taking flexible and imperfect action to prevent a change in routine from seeming overwhelming or derailing.

Accordingly, take into account that taking a week off from your workout routine will not impede your growth or cause any changes in your health or body composition. Make use of any time you have off from training in a manner that feels beneficial to you, which could mean getting some rest, going to the theater with your friends to see Christmas movies, or going for a walk with your family in the park in your neighborhood.

During our lives, there will reportedly be periods when we will prioritize our fitness and health, and there will be other times when we will concentrate on our family, relationships, and experiences. She reminded people that we cannot do everything perfectly all at once. Therefore, try to avoid overstating the amount of calories you consume or the diet you follow, and show some compassion to yourself during this time of year.