FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Can I go large and maintain my health gains?

You make mindful food choices the rest of the year, but the only thing you’re conscious of in December is that you’re nailing the chocolate tin.

For a season that’s supposed to make you feel merry and bright, Christmas can leave you feeling anything but, giving rise to an emotion that’s about as welcome as a definitely-too-long hug from your uncle: guilt. You want to dive into the mince pies at 11am, but you also want to eat your five a day, smash your Parkrun PB and maintain your hard-won energy levels. Spoiler alert: you can do all these things.

Introducing festive sarnies and mulled wine into your regular healthy-eating regime won’t automatically undo your gains. The calories you’re getting from food and the energy you expend should be taken into account over a period of several months or more. A few weeks’ slack won’t have any long-term effects.

Let’s start with the sweet stuff. If you’re worrying about the advent calendar chocolate that serves as a daily breakfast amuse-bouche, don’t. The recommended daily limit for added sugar intake is 30g, and a single Cadbury advent chocolate contains around 2g. Not worth losing sleep over.

Of course, it isn’t just the daily window-popping treat you’ll be scofing. As to the short-term impact, it’s the stuff you already know: eating an excess of refined carbs or sugars can cause a spike in blood-glucose levels, resulting in a blood-sugar crash, meaning your energy levels nosedive and you end up with a headache and feeling irritable.

As for any longer-term effects, they’ll vary from person to person. When you put in more calories than you burn, your body stores it as excess fat. Continue to do this and, over time, it could lead to weight gain. As for how quickly you’ll lose your fitness when you swap the gym for Christmas catch-ups, that too will vary. A study published in the 'Journal Of Applied Physiology' tested the cardiovascular fitness of marathon runners who had stopped training and found changes in their hearts after four weeks of little or no exercise, but no decline in VO² max (a measure of maximal aerobic capacity). But, generally, research suggests that, after two weeks of not working in your heart-rate training zone, you will start to lose a bit of aerobic fitness.

My advice? Moderation is key to happiness. Don’t deprive yourself, but learn how to fuel your body well so that you’re not tempted to overdo it. Keep on preparing your regular nutritious packed lunch so you don’t fall into the turkey-cheese-bacon-cranberry sandwich trap for the entire month, and keep some nuts or fruit in your drawer to snack on to inject some cold-fighting vitamins and minerals into your diet. Keep moving as much as possible, even if it’s just going for a walk.

Oh, and if ‘going hard’ means hitting the bar with the same energy you usually reserve for your HIIT class, you’ll do your health and wellbeing no favours. Stick to the recommended limit of 14 units a week spread over several days, and chase every drink with a glass of water. Ultimately, it’s a time of year for enjoyment, but that doesn’t mean you need to forget your health completely.

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STOCK UP ON THESE

CHESTNUTS

A very festive addition to your diet that also happens to be low in sat fat and high in fibre.

VEGGIE SAUSAGES

They can be a healthier alternative to pigs in blankets. Heck does a great range.

VITAMIN D3 SUPPLEMENT

It’s key to boosting your immune system, and the government recommends Brits pop a 10mcg boost daily in the winter months when you’re not getting much from the sun.


Written by Rhiannon Lambert in "Women Health", UK, December 2018, excerpt. p.20. Digitized, adapted and illustrated to be posted by Leopoldo Costa.

(Rhiannon Lambert, registered nutritionist and author of "Re-Nourish: A Simple Way To Eat Well")