The most wonderful time of the year can lose some of its luster once you find yourself committed to 4 potlucks, 3 cookie exchanges, an endless lineup of cocktail hours or appetizer parties, and a slew of family traditions you need to make time for. Not to mention the overload of treats and decadence bogging you down, even if that second serving of cake feels great in the moment. To avoid holiday burnout, we’ve got four tips to help you stay fueled for your festive fun!
1. Feed Your Body What it Needs
The holidays make it so easy to go off the rails of an otherwise healthy diet. A quick cookie on the way out the door here, an extra scoop of mashed potatoes there, a few too many glasses of eggnog at the party – we’ve all been there. The thing about the holidays is just that – they’re the holidays! We want to be able to enjoy the indulgences that only come around during this special time of year, and we encourage you do the same! During the week or any other time you don’t have plans, stick to your regular healthy eating habits, but when the festivities roll around, enjoy the treats without guilt! We generally try to stick to the 80/20 rule… or 70/30 if we’re being more realistic. We also love to keep snacks on hand that still give us a festive feeling, like Pecan and Gingerbread RXBARs! To level up our snack game even more, we’re making Chocolate Pecan Protein Turtles so that we can feel our best while we rock around the Christmas tree.
2. Plan for Rest
We all know that making sure you get enough sleep is important, so we won’t preach to the choir. In addition to catching those zzz’s when you can, try to plan for activities and events that are a little more low key, but still check a box on your holiday bucket list. Cozy nights watching Christmas movies aren’t just tradition, they’ll put some gas in your tank too. If you find holiday baking or gift wrapping to be a meditative activity, make sure you’re carving out time for that!
3. Make Your Activities Active
We always feel our best when we’re regularly moving our bodies but sticking to a consistent routine can be tough with the scattered schedules and busy calendars this time of year. To help burn off any of that pent-up holiday stress or to avoid the inevitable holiday sluggishness, make some of your festive plans more active to kill all of the birds with one stone! Things like Christmas tree cutting, ice skating, or a Christmas Eve walk around the neighborhood to look at the lights are all great ways to sneak in some movement while still making the most of the season.
4. Prioritize What Matters
This one might be the most important but is also the most challenging. It so often feels required to say yes to every invite that comes your way or to participate in some traditions just because they’re traditions, but if they’re not serving you, they gotta go! If you hate writing Christmas cards, it’s okay to let them fade into obscurity while you focus on making the homemade gifts that you love to pour yourself into. If you got an invite for yet another gift exchange, it’s okay to say that you’re unable to make it! If you stretch yourself too thin you won’t be able to feel the joy of the season, and that’s really what we’re trying to achieve here – a happy holiday!
Disclaimer: Our content is provided for entertainment and general information about or related to our products and is not offered as a healthcare service. To help you assess, measure, improve, or learn about mental and physical health, please seek advice from a qualified health professional.
