Monday, December 8, 2014

Post Holiday Party Mayhem...Recovery & Prevention

The curve balls of life. Just when you are feeling like you're on track and taking good care of yourself, eating an ideal diet and thinking maybe you are going to keep your slim figure, a punch to the gut comes. Welcome The Holidays, and the Christmas cheer, food galore, delicious sugar desserts then spiked egg nog to lower your standards of eating. 'Tis the Season.

This little guy never had a chance
Someone told me recently that Tiger moms eat their first born litter tiger cubs. They eat them in order to build up their strength. Did you just lose a little respect for tigers? Me too. The idea of a Mom Tiger eating children tigers DOES make me feel  less guilty about all the dessert I consumed this past weekend; see - at least I didn't eat any babies.

This Saturday night, I decided to throw in the towel and have some cocktails; lemon drop martinis and Crown Royal were calling my name. Fast forward to 5 drinks later, I found myself with the remnants of chocolate cake and ice cream on my plate. And then shortly after that, creme brulee and chocolate pieces were thrown on top like a pretty little insulin bow in my gut.

Our dog Carmen, less than enthusiastic about becoming our reindeer
And oh did I pay the price the next day. All day yesterday had me feeling like a fallen mistletoe that had been ran over by a reindeer. Santa was watching and he was not happy my food and beverage choices. Here's what hindsight has enlightened me with:




Holiday Party Basics:


  1. Before you go out, agree on the number of drinks (2-3 is a respected number). Don't be 'THAT GUY or GAL' who drank before they arrived and is super touchy-feely in front of their co workers AND their spouse.
  2. Get your sweat on before you 'hit the streets.' There's a reason that people were crowding the gym up on Thanksgiving morning, get your burn on before you feast
  3. Move. The worst you can do after too much food is be stationary. Go for a walk, even just to the bathroom a couple times. Movement works towards lowering insulin. Remember insulin is your enemy when it comes to fat loss.
  4. Live a little. If skipping dessert is an option, do it IF you can be happy by it. If you are going to feel deprived then eat the (damn) dessert. Anytime I feel angry about missing out on foods, I usually end up making up for it later by eating more of something else, so you might as well enjoy the moment with everyone. Really enjoy it by eating small bites and eating slowly
  5. The next morning consider doing some detox and eating lots of salads to get your fiber and nutrients
  6. By all means, enjoy the holidays and don't eat any baby tigers, mmmkay. Thanks.

My fav ugly sweater with shoulder pads. It's not for sale, people

No comments:

Post a Comment