Healthy food swaps for christmas
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Everyone knows that Christmas is a time for family, good times and overindulgence! It's probably one of the hardest times of the year to eat within portion control and moderate our intake of sweets or foods that we may not consume on a regular basis.
But hey it's Christmas and I don't want to miss out and life is all about balance and enjoying the fruits of your labour.
We have put together some helpful tips to help you this Christmas in managing some food choices, whilst still enjoying the holiday season.
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Swap ham for turkey
Bypass the big pink leg and grab a slice or two of lean turkey breast.
Turkey is a very lean source of meat and is quite high in B group vitamins, which help with energy production. The problem with ham is mostly the curing process – it's soaked in brine, which is salty water, so it's the salt content that's an issue.
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Swap pudding for seasonal fruit
It's certainly rich and sugary and if you have a massive slice, you're not going to feel so good.
The upside to Christmas being in summer is we've got cherries, grapes, mangoes, blueberries and raspberries so making a lovely fruit salad or fruit and cheese platter can be nice to nibble on after the main meal.
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Swap lollies for dark chocolate
Try to think about quality over quantity.
You might buy some nice dark chocolate and have small amounts of it. Really concentrate on eating it, enjoying the taste and eating slowly so you don't just eat a large amount. Because it's not as sweet you won't be enticed to mindlessly eat all afternoon.
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Swap chips for whole nuts
Things like cashews, almonds, macadamias are all good options to munch over with the first few beers you get to put away.
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Swap soft drink or alcohol for fruity mineral water
Freeze ice cube trays with fruit and drop it into your water, fruit like Lime, lemon or kiwi fruit all work well.
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Swap heavy dressings for something a little lighter
Potato salad or coleslaw is a classic Aussie accompaniment to the main meal, however, are often drenched in mayo.
To cut the calories, and added sugar and saturated fat, without sacrificing flavour, make your own creamy dressing made with Greek yoghurt, olive oil, a squeeze of fresh lemon and some Dijon mustard.
It not only gives the dish a protein boost but it also provides some gut-loving probiotics.
