Creating balance physically as well as mentally is tough, but it is critical for your health during the busy holiday season. If you are stressed over maintaining your weight, staying healthy, deciding on the gifts you will give to your loved ones, fitting all of the holiday parties and activities into your calendar, managing your finances, and keeping up with your work and travel schedules, now is the time to learn to optimize balance.  

Balance Holiday Eating

Sugar-based and rich, fatty foods have long been part of holiday celebrations. Along with this comes the worry about holiday weight gain. Overeating and overdrinking are very common during the holidays because of social influences. Social eating occurs because we let others influence us into a feeling of obligation. Overindulging is also a common way for people to cope with stress. But does indulging really make you feel less stressed? Ask yourself how you are going to feel after you have had several drinks or several brownies?

Get rid of the all-or-nothing mindset. Indulge with intention, and have a plan that allows it. Deprivation leads to frustration. Make a list of the foods you really love and crave, and build them into your plan. Pick those indulgences that matter the most to you so you don’t overdo it. Prepare ahead, and be intentional. You can have one of your favorite cookies: savor the indulgence, eat slowly, and enjoy it to the fullest. Then, be done.

The holidays are not a free pass to overindulge because it “only comes once a year.” Food is not a reward. Food is fuel. Don’t abandon healthier eating habits over the holidays by relying on resolutions you intend to make after the new year. Research shows that 80 percent of people give up on their resolutions by February. 

Eat slowly,and wait twenty minutes before going back for a second serving. Studies show that it takes that long for fullness signals to hit the brain. Eat mindfully, and indulge with intention. Use smaller plates, and eat something before going to a party or gathering so that you don’t overdo it. To avoid feeling deprived and to maintain balance, allow an occasional indulgence throughout the year and throughout your life.

Balance Immune System Health

With the holiday season comes the increased risk for colds and illness. Eating healthy helps your immune systems. 70 percent of your immune system is located in your gut, so a healthy gut is imperative. Foods you consume interact with the bacteria in your gut and with the immune cells in your body. Good gut health is the foundation of overall health, balance, and well-being and has been shown by the CDC to prevent disease and promote a good immune system.

Realize, however, that this needs to be consistent and lifelong and that changing over the holidays alone is not going to cure your gut microbiome. Prioritize a balanced relationship with food long term. This will lead to changes in digestion, decreased bloating, less gas, and less stomach rumbling.

Keep your gut health strong through the holidays. Add more fiber, fruits, and vegetables. Add fermented foods, such as yogurt, kombuchas, and sauerkraut to help digestion. Probiotic foods with good bacteria buffer stomach acid and increase the chance that those good bacteria will make their way through the entire digestive system. If you are not getting the probiotics through food, a supplement is critical for healthy metabolic balance.

Exercise and move your body to improve blood flow and to increase the movement of food through the digestive system. Stay hydrated with plenty of water, and get enough sleep. Your body repairs while you sleep, so consistently getting the rest your body needs will improve immune function and overall health.   

Balance Physical Fitness

To maintain balance, don’t forget about fitness. Americans typically exercise less in the winter months and even less during the holiday season. Establish an exercise routine that you can maintain. Any kind of movement is beneficial; just get off the couch, grab your sneakers, and go.  

Balance Mental Health

Balancing your mind can prove to be difficult, especially during the end-of year holidays. Holiday stress comes in varying degrees, but remember that with this stress comes the beauty of the holiday season. Appreciate the special music, twinkling lights, and decorated trees.

Mental health and physical health are exquisitely connected. Studies demonstrate that good mental health prolongs life and poor mental health leads to physical diseases that decrease it. Many of the stressors over the holiday season are those that we put upon ourselves. Ask yourself, “Am I overdoing holiday plans and preparation, or have I done enough?” Lean on those around you to help and ease your stress by delegating. 

Ease the financial burden of the holidays with its accompanying commercialism and materialism by respecting the family budget. Purchase gifts that do not cause financial stress. Give something that creates joy, is food for the soul, and balances mental health. Consider giving the gifts of your time to family and friends or volunteering for a charitable cause.

Be kind to yourself, your family, and others, and disengage when needed. Be mindful; maintain moment to moment awareness of thoughts and feelings, and be fully present without being overwhelmed or overreacting. This will balance your health and keep you grounded. Practice gratitude by reminding yourself every day of at least one thing for which you are grateful.

Keep it simple. Focus on your values, the way you want to live your life, and how you want to be remembered. These are not things you check off on a list. Journaling your values can help you to be mindful and grounded. Find peace in your body and mind this holiday season by seeking  joy and finding pleasure in small moments and things. Remember, a little balance is all it takes to have happy, healthy holidays.