eating properly throughout the holidays is not easy. there are so many extra stressors going on over the next couple of weeks, it's really easy to overeat and feel like crap.

and this isn't a post telling you to diet throughout your holidays, but there are lots of great strategies to keep yourself from overeating without stressing yourself out with diets when you should be focused on enjoying the holiday season with your friends and family.

these tips are not just for the holiday season, but things you can apply to your life everyday.

Fill your plate with less than you think you will want.
1. Odds are you aren't going to miss it
Use smaller plates and cutlery
1. makes your meal seem bigger than it is, so you'll think that you're eating more than you are!
Seat yourself away from the food
1. this may be more difficult in a family dinner buffet style setting, but even in that, don't sit with your favorite foods right under your nose. make it a pain in the ass to get your second servings.
eat slowly
1. take your time and don't power down your plate of food. enjoy the food you put on your plate!
wait to go back for seconds
1. if you are continually eating, it's really hard to have a chance to listen to your body to tell you if you're hungry or not. so take a moment before you decide to get second helpings.
drink lots of water
1. sometimes you can confuse dehydration and hunger - so make sure you are drinking water throughout the day so you can know that you're hungry and not thirsty! (also, water is great for you in a million different ways- so drink some!)
don't deprive yourself
1. for the holidays and all days ~ enjoy the foods you like to eat! if you restrict yourself from it, you're more likely to binge on it later!

there ya have it. easy ways to eat well and feel good throughout the crazy next few weeks and throughout your day to day life!

a lot of the research from this blog post comes from Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think by Brian Wansink,PH.D which is a really interesting read and had a lot of great insights on mindful/mindless eating which is something i've been working on, personally.

any questions? drop me a line on my facebook or instagram page or leave a comment below!!