Worried about putting on weight this holiday season?

Can’t resist those office treats and Christmas party finger buffets?

Weak-willed in the face of a good wine?

🎁🎄🦃🍷🍤

We’ve been busy thinking about how one can limit the damage of the festive excess and Christmas Day binge - and have come up with some hints, tips and hacks to navigate these troubled waters! YULE not want to miss these!

1. Fail to prepare and prepare to fail!

Just because you’re going to be naughty later, doesn’t mean you can be extra naughty and skip you’re regular gym session! Make sure you keep enough time back to look after your body and keep training throughout the festive season. If you need that extra bit of encouragement to go to the gym, why not sign up to online fitness coaching with boot camp instructor Jamie - he’ll write you a personalised plan which you’ll access via the True Coach app (and have to mark up when you’ve completed it!) Sign up here.

2. One drink, one water.

No-one wants to be ‘that person’ who isn’t drinking at the office party or girls night out, so if you are going to knock back a few drinks, moderation is your friend. For every drink you have, make the next one a water. Not only will you half the calories you’ll be consuming, but you’ll be keeping your body hydrated and that hangover at bay! Win-win.

3. Know the calorie content of your favourite drinks

It is a truth universally acknowledged that booze is high in calories and low in nutritional value. *Sigh*. But you’re going to have a drink anyway, so let’s break this down for you.

While the spirit seems like the best option from a calorie perspective, you’re going to want to mix it with something - and that’s where people don’t realise the implications: A Diet Coke may have ‘zero calories’ but is loaded with sweeteners and caffeine. Even your trusty ‘slimline tonic’ has 115kcal per 210ml can, so when added together thats 175kcal for your G&T. So, pick wisely.

4. Pick your favourite.

We can all agree navigating the finger-food buffet is a calorie-dense nightmare. Mini-quiches, chocolate fountains, cheese platters, mini Cumberland sausages and filo pastry parcels. Gosh, that’s a lot of choice. And I bet they’re all tasty.

Let that little voice remind you that you don’t *have* to try them all (or go back for seconds). Start by identifying your favourite item, and let yourself try that - I mean, what is life without some indulgence! But then, be wise and do some basic nutritional knowledge and calculate the ‘naughty-factor’ of each. Let’s see:

• Cheese platter = pure fat and dairy is oh so hard on your digestive system, but feel free to pick away at the grapes and pear slices.

• Mini sausages = well, they’re higher in protein at least, but don’t load your plate up with them as they’re high fat too, especially if they’re coated in honey mustard sauce.

• Carrot sticks and hummus = you can munch away feeling slightly less guilty.

• Tempura Prawns = Compared to the cheese puff alternative, much better for you - but try not to dunk them too vigorously into the sweet chilli dip!

• Smoked salmon blinis = Salmon is a super-food with loads of omega3 and fish oils, but beware of those that are heaped with too much cream cheese!

5. Get home safely.

So you’ve failed all our advice thus far, you’re merry and about to call your uber home. DON’T DO IT. I know you’re eyeing up Special Fried Chicken Palace’s award winning kebab, but it’s just not worth it. According to a feature report by The Independent newspaper on fast food chains:

“Kebabs were the main risk to health with one doner kebab containing "unsatisfactory levels" of two types of food-poisoning bacteria, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus. Listeria poisoning can cause, in the worst cases, septicaemia, meningitis and miscarriages in pregnant women while staphylococcus can cause severe vomiting and abdominal cramps” . Lovely.

6. Surviving Christmas Day.

The annual tradition is to overindulge from 9am through to 8pm: gorging on chocolates pre-breakfast, nibbling on canapés as you cook, finishing your heaped plate of Christmas roast and then a helping of pudding to see it off. All the while you’re sipping on some bubbly. Yeah, me too.

We all know we’re going to exceed our daily calorie allowance on Christmas Day, it’s about pre-empting danger-foods and looking at damage control.

• Cook smart. For example; Pre-made cranberry sauce has vast quantities of sugar and preservatives. Instead make your own cranberry sauce with fresh cranberries and orange juice for sweetness. You can also then control how much sugar you add - if It needs any! Also, do you *really* need to cook your potatoes in heaps of duck fat, or are they just as tasty par-boiled then roasted with a teaspoon of coconut or vegetable oil?

• Set aside your beige food. Cauliflower cheese, roast parsnips and potatoes. Swap them for the colours of the rainbow. Brightly coloured vegetables have been shown to have better nutritional content and anti-oxidants. We’re talking about roast broccoli florets, green beans chilli, honey roast carrots, purple cabbage cooked in apple juice and even those pesky Brussel sprouts sautéed with chestnuts. The more of these types of vegetable that you serve the better. (We’ll be posting some of these recipes on our social media channels - so make sure you’re following us!)

• Chew, chew and chew again! Your body takes time to register when it gets full. Which is why when you eat quickly, you end up feeling too full afterwards. Paul McKenna’s advice is to chew your food at least 10 times before swallowing it, thus giving your body time to register the ‘I’m full’ signals from your gut. And wash it down with plenty of liquid. Like during party season, keep alternating your alcoholic drink with a soft one or water. My favourite is to have a glass of sparking water with a sliver of cucumber. It makes me feel like I’m sipping on a ‘drink-drink’.

Do you have any tips and advice to add to this? We’d love to hear from you! Drop us a comment in the box below, on Facebook or Instagram, or even by email to info@whodaresslims.co.uk

Whether you follow this advice or not, we’ll be here to help your 2020 fitness and weight loss goals. Check out all our upcoming dates here.

Who Dares Slims is a fitness and weight loss boot camp for women of all sizes, shapes and abilities. There is no such thing as ‘too big’ or ‘too unfit’ - as we can adapt all our activities to your individual needs. You’ll be getting fit and losing weight with a group of likeminded women at our stunning venue in southern Spain or our rugged home in Scotland. Hill walking, boxing, circuits, yoga, pilates, adventure games and swimming are just some of the activities you’ll be taking part in daily - with all your meals and snacks provided by our boot camp chef. Our food-ethos is healthy, balanced and nutritious meals designed to help you burn fat and never to feel hungry. Make 2020 the year you reach your fitness and weight loss goals - let Who Dares Slims be the boot camp who help you achieve them.