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A practical guide to eating during the holidays without overeating
Practical tips to enjoy festive food and wine without overeating. Stay balanced, avoid holiday stress, and feel good all season long
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The holidays are supposed to feel warm, joyful, and delicious. But for many people, December becomes a month of guilt and pressure. Too many dinners, too many desserts, too many drinks, and suddenly you feel like you've lost your balance.
Let's face it: the average person gains between 1 and 2 kg during the holiday season. You don't overeat because it's the holidays. It's the combination of rich meals, flowing alcohol, disrupted sleep, less movement, and the familiar “I'll start my diet in January” mindset that does the damage.
The holidays come once a year, and you deserve to enjoy them. The goal isn't to deprive yourself or skip the celebrations; it's to find a balance where you can indulge mindfully without feeling stuffed, guilty, or uncomfortable. It isn't about perfection. It's about having a strategy that lets you enjoy your favorite dishes, toast with loved ones, and still feel good in your body on January 1st.
Most people overeat because there's no plan, too many choices, and too much pressure to “try everything.”
Why Overeating Happens in December
Holiday meals create the perfect storm: big tables with too many options, tiredness at the end of the year, alcohol that dulls your sense of fullness, and the social pressure to "taste every dish".
None of this means you have "no discipline". It simply means you're human. When you understand why overeating happens, it becomes much easier to stay balanced without relying on willpower or restriction.
Many people try to “save up” calories by eating less in the days leading up to parties. Research shows that restricting food before big meals increases hunger hormones, speeds up eating, weakens fullness signals, and leads to compensatory overeating. In other words, “saving calories” doesn’t help; it makes your body more likely to overeat later.
So how do you enjoy holiday food and wine without losing yourself in the process?
1. Set your personal boundaries
Before the event, decide what actually matters to you. Maybe it’s your grandma’s pie, the champagne toast, or the cheese platter.
Give yourself permission to enjoy two or three true “must-haves” and let the rest be optional. It takes the pressure off trying everything and enables you to focus on the food you genuinely want, not everything on the table.
2. The Plate Rule
A simple way to stay balanced at a holiday table is to picture your plate in a few easy sections. Fill half with vegetables or salads, a quarter with protein like turkey, fish, or lean meat, and leave the last quarter for anything else you want to enjoy, from potatoes and bread to the richer sides.
This gentle framework keeps portions reasonable without feeling restrictive. Starting with vegetables helps you ease into the meal, slow down naturally, and feel comfortably full rather than overwhelmed.
Vegetables and protein stabilize your appetite and slow digestion, which makes it easier to enjoy the meal without overeating.
3. Eat slowly and mindfully
Slowing down makes a bigger difference than most people realize. Put your fork down between bites, chew a little longer, and give your body the time it needs to recognize fullness.
Your brain usually needs about 15 to 20 minutes to register that you’ve had enough, so eating at a calmer pace keeps you from rushing through your plate. Conversations during the meal help with this naturally. When you’re enjoying the moment, you eat more mindfully and with much more pleasure.
4. Create natural breaks - "wait 20 minutes" rule
Natural pauses during the meal make a big difference. Get up between courses, chat with guests, or simply move around for a moment.
Avoid staying right next to the food table, where it’s easy to snack out of habit. These short breaks give your body time to register what you’ve eaten and help you stay more in tune with your appetite.
If you feel like you want seconds or dessert, give yourself twenty minutes first. Often the craving fades as your fullness cues catch up, and if it doesn’t, you can still enjoy a small portion without guilt and actually appreciate it more.
5. Alcohol management
Alcohol is part of most celebrations, but a few simple habits help you enjoy it without losing balance. Alternating each drink with a full glass of water keeps you hydrated and naturally slows your drinking pace.
Choosing wine or spirits instead of sugary cocktails also helps, since they’re less likely to spike your appetite. And deciding in advance how much you want to drink makes the whole evening feel intentional rather than accidental.
If you pair wine with food, choose combinations that naturally encourage you to slow down: sparkling wine with light appetizers, Barbera, Syrah, or Pinot Noir with the main dishes, and a small glass of dessert wine when you’re actually ready to enjoy something sweet.
Pleasure over volume.
Alcohol weakens fullness cues and increases appetite, so slowing down is the key. And if you ever want a break from drinking, a festive hot chocolate or spiced tea can give you the same cozy holiday feeling without pushing your appetite up.
6. Pre-party snack
Having a small, protein-rich snack before heading out, like Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, or a boiled egg, takes the edge off your hunger so you don’t walk into the party already feeling empty. It makes it much easier to stay calm around a buffet and choose what you genuinely want, not just whatever happens to be in front of you.
Danger Zones (what to watch out for)
Mayo-heavy salads
Holiday salads made with mayo can be surprisingly heavy, and high in calories, so choosing lighter versions with yogurt or starting with fresh vegetable salads helps you enjoy the meal without feeling weighed down.
Mindless grazing
Most overeating happens not at the table but while socializing, when nuts, chips, or chocolates disappear without you even noticing. Keeping your hands busy with a drink or a napkin naturally breaks the cycle and slows you down.
Liquid calories
Sugary drinks, eggnog, and cocktails add volume without giving you any sense of fullness, so choosing water, sparkling water, or tea between alcoholic drinks helps you stay balanced without missing the fun.
Practical Life Hacks
Don't compensate with extreme restriction
Skipping meals the next day only slows your metabolism, increases hunger, and sets you up for binge cycles. It’s far more effective to simply return to normal, balanced meals with plenty of vegetables and protein.
Keep your routine steady
Feast days stay enjoyable and special, but they don’t replace the rhythm your body relies on. Keeping your usual habits (your normal meals, your water intake, your walks or workouts), helps prevent the slow “holiday creep”
Prioritize sleep
Lack of sleep increases hunger hormones and makes high-calorie foods much harder to resist, especially during busy holiday weeks. Aiming for 7 to 8 hours helps stabilize appetite, improves decision-making, and keeps your body feeling steady.
Stay hydrated
Holiday meals tend to be saltier and richer than usual, so staying hydrated helps your appetite, energy, and mood stay steady throughout the day.
Add movement
A short walk after a meal, a few minutes of stretching in the morning, or even helping around the house keeps your body in a natural rhythm. If your plans allow, you can even walk to a holiday gathering instead of driving: it gives you a little movement without effort. You’re not “burning off” food, you’re simply supporting digestion, sleep, and overall well-being.
It's about joy, not just food
The holidays are about connection, traditions, and the moments you share. The food is only one part of that experience. When you focus more on the people around you than what’s on your plate, the whole celebration naturally feels lighter and more meaningful.
One day won't ruin everything
A single night of overeating won’t change your body and won’t cause weight gain. Real weight gain comes from weeks of excess, not one dinner. The only risk is turning one or two festive meals into weeks of grazing.
Love yourself
Each day and each meal is a fresh chance to make choices that support you. If you overdo it, don’t spiral into shame — guilt usually leads to giving up completely and eating even more. The goal is to feel good both physically and emotionally throughout the entire season.
Holiday balance isn’t about rules, it’s about awareness, kindness to yourself, and choosing what genuinely brings you joy.
The holiday season isn’t the problem. When you choose what you truly want to eat and drink, and enjoy it with presence, you stay in control and still get the full holiday experience.
Food and wine are meant to make the season richer, not heavier.
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