Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash
In short: You stay on track in December by keeping the few habits that make you feel good and letting go of the idea of a perfect month. Eat real meals every day, cook simple things that don’t keep you in the kitchen for hours, enjoy the festive food you truly love, and keep moving and sleeping. A handful of special meals changes very little. What you do on the ordinary days in between is what counts.
The first invitations arrive. There’s the office lunch, the school Christmas fair, the drinks with the neighbours, the box of chocolates someone has left open next to the coffee machine. You look at the calendar and feel a little knot in your stomach, because each year is the same, and each year you tell yourself that this year it won’t happen again.
What are you most worried about this season?
Staying on track with your health goals?
Feeling heavy and tired by the time January comes?
Having enough time to prepare everything?
Don’t stress. There are easy ways to get through this month without worrying about your weight, your time or your health, and with plenty of room left for the pleasure of it.
Why does December feel so hard?
Because everything changes at once. The days are short and dark, so you move less and long for comforting food. The diary fills up, so there’s less time to shop and cook. Sweet things appear everywhere, at work, at school, at every counter. And you’re tired, which makes all of it harder to handle.
On top of that comes an idea many of us carry around: that the holidays are a test, and that we either pass or fail. One mince pie and the day is “ruined”, so we might as well carry on until January. This all-or-nothing thinking does far more harm than any festive meal. You don’t have to be perfect. You only have to keep coming back to what makes you feel good.
What does staying on track really mean?
I’d love you to choose a different measure for this month. Staying on track doesn’t mean eating less, avoiding the table or earning your dessert. It means arriving in January feeling well: rested, with good energy, happy with the time you spent with the people you love.
So before the month gets busy, choose two or three things you’ll keep, whatever happens. A proper breakfast. A walk in daylight. Vegetables at lunch and dinner. Bed at a reasonable hour on the evenings when nothing is planned. I call these non-negotiables, and I explain how to choose yours in how to protect what keeps you steady.
How do you eat well without spending hours in the kitchen?
Healthy meals in December don’t need to take long. Most of my recipes for this time of year are ready in less than half an hour, taste delicious and leave more time to spend with the family.
1. Make one big pot a week
A vegetable soup, a lentil stew or a tray of roasted winter vegetables gives you several lunches and dinners. Add an egg, some fish, a tin of chickpeas or a piece of cheese, and the meal is complete.
2. Keep a few rescue meals in the cupboard
Eggs, tinned sardines, frozen spinach and peas, wholegrain pasta, a jar of good tomato sauce. On the evening you come home late from the Christmas market, dinner is on the table in ten minutes, and you don’t end up eating biscuits standing at the worktop.
3. Plan the ordinary days, not only the feast
We spend hours planning the Christmas menu and nothing at all on the Tuesday before. Yet the ordinary days are the ones that carry you. Write down three or four simple dinners for the week and shop for them once. You’ll find ideas among my easy healthy recipes.
4. Let the children help
If you have kids at home, let them help you in the kitchen. It’s the easiest way to have them eat healthy food, because children usually love what they prepare, or helped to prepare, themselves. And they love discovering what’s on the menu each day, a little like opening a door of the Advent calendar.
What about all the sweets and treats?
Enjoy them. Really. Festive food is part of the season, and a slice of your grandmother’s cake eaten slowly, at the table, with pleasure, is good for you in every way that matters.
What helps is to choose. Not everything that is offered is worth it to you. The chocolates by the coffee machine that you eat without noticing are not the same as the dessert you look forward to all year. Have the one you love, sit down for it, taste it. Leave the rest without regret.
You can also make healthy sweets and snacks at home: baked apples with cinnamon, dates filled with nuts, mandarins, a square of dark chocolate with a few almonds. And if you find the pull of sugar very strong at this time of year, it’s often a sign that you haven’t eaten enough at your meals. I explain why in why sugar cravings happen and how to calm them.
How do you handle a big festive meal?
Eat normally during the day. “Saving up” for the evening means you arrive starving and eat fast. A real breakfast and a light lunch work much better. Your body does best when it’s fed regularly, as I explain in why you need more food, not less.
Start with the vegetables. Fill half your plate with them where you can, then add what you fancy.
Slow down. Put your fork down between mouthfuls, talk, listen, look around the table. You’ll notice sooner when you’ve had enough. If that feels unfamiliar, read how to recognise your hunger and fullness cues.
Drink water alongside. A glass of water next to your glass of wine helps you feel much better the next morning.
Go back to normal at the next meal. No fasting, no punishment, no extra exercise to make up for it. Your usual breakfast, and on you go.
What else helps in the busy weeks?
Food is only one part of feeling well in December.
Go outside in daylight. A short walk after lunch lifts your mood, helps your digestion and makes sleep easier.
Protect your sleep. When you’re tired, everything sweet looks twice as tempting. Keep a few early nights in the week.
Don’t do it all yourself. Ask each guest to bring a dish. Simplify the menu. Nobody will remember whether there were three desserts or one.
Keep a little quiet time. Ten minutes with a cup of tea and nothing to do is worth a great deal. There are more ideas in my last-minute Christmas tips to stay calm and in how to take care of yourself this winter.
Try this today: take your diary, look at the next four weeks and mark the evenings with nothing planned. Those are your evenings for a simple home-cooked dinner and an early night. Protect them like appointments.
Frequently asked questions
Should I eat less during the day before a big festive meal?
No. Arriving very hungry makes it hard to eat slowly and to notice when you have had enough. Have a normal breakfast and a light lunch with vegetables and protein, and you will enjoy the evening far more.
How do I say no to food I don’t want without offending anyone?
A warm, simple sentence is enough: “It was delicious, I really couldn’t eat another thing.” You can also ask to take a piece home for the next day. Most hosts want you to feel good at their table, not to feel stuffed.
What if I have a day when I eat far more than I meant to?
Then you had a big day, and that is all it was. Don’t skip meals the next day to make up for it. Drink water, go for a walk if you feel like it, and have your usual breakfast.
How can I get my children to eat well over the holidays?
Let them help in the kitchen. Children usually love what they have prepared, or helped to prepare, themselves. Washing vegetables, stirring a soup or rolling energy balls is enough to make them curious about what is on the plate.
When should I talk to my doctor?
If you have a health condition that affects what you can eat or drink, such as diabetes, or if you take medication that doesn’t go with alcohol, ask your doctor before the festive season how to handle it. Do the same if this time of year brings a lot of anxiety around food.
Would you like some help?
Keeping your good habits going through the busy seasons, without guilt and without missing out, is one of the things we practise in my group programmes in nutrition and health, such as Six Tuesdays in Montignac. If you’d like to know when the next group opens, write to me at hello@catherinepolet.coach.
Would you rather work one to one? I also coach online. Book a free 20-minute call, and we can talk about what would make this festive season feel lighter and happier for you.
About Catherine
I’m Catherine Polet, a holistic nutrition health coach, yoga and autogenic training teacher for more than 30 years, author and speaker. I help people find a way of eating and living that suits their own body, online in English, French, Spanish and German, and in person in Southwest France.
