Navigating the Holidays by Aliza Beer, MS RD

Health & F tness

How to Navigate the High Holidays

By Aliza Beer MS, RD, CDN

It’s that time of year again! The holidays are here, and much preparation is needed. Yom tov can be difficult for people trying to lose or maintain their weight since it involves a lot of late-night eating and significant temptations. During a regular week, it is easier to keep indulgences to a minimum because we are busy with our daily lives and are focused on our goals. During the holiday season, food is on everybody’s minds. We typically have multiple courses each meal, as well as new and unusual foods that symbolize this special time.

Over the holiday season, we will be washing for bread 23 times! This is not the norm for a regular week for anybody, regardless of their health goals. I assure you that with my tips, as well as some willpower, the holidays won’t ruin your healthy-eating progress. Enjoy this festive time surrounded by great food, family, and friends. 1. Have a proper breakfast. I cannot stress enough the importance of eating a proper breakfast on yom tov morning. Understandably, the morning is hectic as we are often rushing to get ready for shul or preparing the food for the lunch meal. However, if you don’t eat, you will show up to your meal famished. This can lead you to overeat and/or make the wrong choices. Instead, plan ahead and buy yogurt, cook some hardboiled eggs in advance, or make some egg muffins so that you have quick and easy breakfast options for those busy mornings. Treat yom tov day like a regular day: have breakfast, eat lunch, have an afternoon snack, and dinner. If you keep to your usual routine, your body will work more efficiently.

2. Find an alternative to chal-

lah. We will need to wash 23 times throughout the holidays! Although challah is delicious, and there is certainly room for it in a healthy lifestyle, eating this much bread is not very good for you. The refined carbohydrates will make you feel sluggish and will overwhelm your digestive system.

My recommendation is to choose one or two meals where you will have a slice of challah (ideally day meals) and choose to wash on spelt or whole wheat matzah for the others. If you can, maybe experiment with a wholewheat or spelt recipe for the times you choose to have a slice of challah. Stick to a slice and remember that challah isn’t going anywhere and that you can have it next week.

3. Start your meal with a soup or

salad. Instead of preparing a heavy meat appetizer, make a soup or a salad. On yom tov we tend to serve multiple courses of food. However, you don’t normally eat a three-course meal on a typical Tuesday or Wednesday. This can be a shock to the digestive system and may leave you with some discomfort. To save room for your delicious main course, keep the appetizer small and light. 4. Designate dessert. The cake, cookies, and tarts can be very tempting. Instead of restricting yourself, choose a meal (ideally a day meal when your body can work to burn it off) to have a piece of dessert. This will ensure you don’t feel the need to overindulge in desserts and will make sure your progress isn’t affected. If you can, try to choose a healthier dessert made with unrefined flour and a natural sweetener. For the other meals, stick to fresh fruits or compotes. You can even make baked apples by simply baking apples sprinkled with cinnamon covered in the oven with a little water at 350°F until soft. 5. Plates and portion sizes. It is important to be cognizant of your portion sizes. It can be tempting to pile up your plate with all the foods you are interested in trying. However, eating too much will cause your stomach to hurt and your digestive system to be overwhelmed. Instead, keep protein portions the size of a fist and choose to fill up your plate with salad or non-starchy vegetables. If you want to sample every dish, you can do that by taking small amounts of each food and making sure you stick to one plate. Regulating portions can have a very huge impact on your weight and progress throughout yom tov.

A tip I recommend to my clients is to assemble a plate of the foods you desire and don’t go back for seconds. Oftentimes, when we keep adding and adding to our plates, it is hard to keep track of how much we’re eating.

You should be able to fit all of your food on one plate. If you can’t fit all of your food onto one plate, then you are taking too much food. 6. Don’t pick at foods. Sometimes, we pick at different foods and we don’t realize how much we’re eating. Mindlessly eating is when you eat while your brain is distracted and not aware of what or how much food you are consuming. Your brain can think you barely ate anything, when in reality you consumed 1,000 calories! A big factor in fullness and satiety is sitting down and focusing on the food

you are eating.

It can be tempting, especially while cooking, to want to taste the food. Instead, when it is mealtime, make yourself a plate and sit and eat it. If you’re pressed for time and cannot sit down for a meal, make sure you have cut-up cucumbers, jicama, peppers, or sugar-free candies to snack on while you’re cooking. Utilizing these tips can save you hundreds of calories from mindlessly eating. 7. Keep active. Whether it be a pre-holiday run or a walk on yom tov, make sure to keep moving. There is often time between lunch and dinner when you can go out for a nice walk. Weather permitting, try your best to go walking every day of yom tov. If it is raining, try to walk up and down your steps a couple of times or hula hoop for 15 minutes. You can also do a couple of squats or planks – anything to keep you moving. Staying physically active will help with digestion and will keep your metabolism activated, both very important for weight management. 8. Planning is everything. Whether it is preparing breakfast in advance or choosing when you will have lean proteins and when you will have red meat, it is best to go into the holiday with a plan. If you know that you’re going to have a slice of challah at this meal and a piece of dessert at another meal, you’ll have what to look forward to and you won’t feel deprived. Having a plan will diminish any stress about food, and you can now relax and enjoy the holiday.

9. Focus on what you can have

and not what you can’t. Oftentimes, it can be difficult for people trying to manage their weight to not feel deprived of their favorite foods. Instead of thinking to maintain your progress you cannot have this, think about what you can eat to help you feel your absolute best. Whether it be finding a healthier alternative to your favorite dessert or cutting out some sugar in your recipes, you can almost always find a better option. If you love fried chicken, think about how you can replicate it and make it healthier. Find a healthy popsicle to have for a dessert or bake your favorite fruits with some cinnamon and lemon zest. Let’s celebrate the never-ending list of foods you can enjoy instead of focusing on the ones that may impede your goals for the time being. 10. Have a pre-yom tov meal. On yom tov night, we often find ourselves liflower. Stick to salads, non-starchy vegetables, or vegetables soufflés as your side dish. There are so many different ways to prepare non-starchy

A big factor in fullness and satiety is sitting down and focusing on the food you are eating.

being prepared with your food are just a few ways you can ensure you will maintain your progress over the holidays.

Get your family involved and plan a walk each afternoon and encourage them to stay moving. If you make certain not to come to the meals famished and choose when to have a mindful indulgence, you are set up for a successful yom tov. Focus on being with your family and friends and remember that after the holidays are over, you will be back to your routine.

Wishing all of my readers and clients a kesivah v’chasimah tova!

sitting down for dinner past 8pm or 9 pm. If your usual dinner time is at 6pm or 7pm, this can leave you ravenous. When we’re super hungry, often our judgment is impaired and we eat whatever we see without thinking. To avoid this, sit down before yom tov starts and have a bowl of soup and a piece of chicken. This will ensure that you come to the meal already satiated and will help you make better choices. 11. Stay well-hydrated. Not only is proper hydration a key component of every day health, it can be very helpful when it comes to weight management. Oftentimes, we can mistake dehydration with hunger, and this can lead to unnecessary eating. Try to drink a cup or two of water before your yom tov meal because it will help you go into the meal feeling less hungry. Also make sure to drink throughout the meal. 12. Eat slowly. Often, when we get to the meal, all we want to do is eat. But it takes the brain 20 minutes to receive the signal from the stomach that it’s being fed, so try to take it slow. Chew your food properly, take a drink of water, and put your fork down a couple of times. This will allow you to feel fuller faster and will prevent you from eating to the point of uncomfortable fullness. The slower you eat a meal, the less food you end up eating in that meal. 13. Watch your carb intake. If you are going to be eating a serving of challah or matzah, count that as your carb for the meal. If that’s the case, try to avoid starchy side dishes like potatoes, quinoa, or rice. Instead, substitute rice with cauliflower rice, pasta with zucchini noodles, and mashed potatoes with mashed cauvegetables that can be both filling and tasty!

Yom tov is a special time when you are surrounded by family, friends, and fantastic food. If you commence yom tov feeling prepared and driven to reach your goals, it will not be difficult to make healthy choices. Eating a nutritious breakfast, seeking a challah alternative, being mindful of portion sizes, staying active, and

Aliza Beer is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition. She has a private practice in Cedarhurst, NY. Patients’ success has been featured on the Dr. Oz show. Aliza can be reached at alizabeer@gmail.com, and you can follow her on Instagram at @alizabeer