Ways to stay slim over Christmas

Hands up if you've ever said to yourself that you're going to cut down on your Christmas eating and drinking this year, only to give in to the inevitable over-indulgence that makes the festive season so, well, festive?

According to the British Dietetic Association (BDA), on average we eat our way through as many as 6,000 calories just on Christmas Day – thanks to all those second helpings of Christmas pud, mince pies, Belgian chocs, savoury snacks and, of course, the variety of alcoholic tipples that pass our lips.

It's almost impossible to resist. After all, it's just one day, isn't it? The problem, however, is that Christmas isn't just one day any more. And thanks to all that overeating and drinking, we gain an average of 5lbs in weight over the festive period.

"At Christmas we're always surrounded by lots of lovely food and drink, and while there is no reason to feel guilty about enjoying yourself it's easy to overeat," says the BDA's Sue Baic.

"It's important to enjoy yourself over the festive period, but taking some simple steps can contribute to a healthy and enjoyable festival period and may even stop you worrying about the post-Christmas crash diet.

"While many of the traditional foods are actually very low in fat, it's the trimmings and extra nibbles that can add the pounds. So go easy on these and take smaller portions of the roast potatoes, gravy, puddings and Stilton. And finally, try to take some exercise over the festive period such as brisk walking or cycling."

Healthy habits

As Sue says, not all Christmas food and drink is unhealthy. Far from it. Here are just a few reasons why festive eating and drinking may be better for you than you might think…

• You have lots of vegetables – you might even get all five servings of your daily veg with your Christmas dinner if you tuck in to Brussels sprouts, parsnips, red cabbage, peas, carrots and other favourites.
• Your food is fresh. Christmas dinner may well consist of plenty of veg, but it's usually fresh veg – which makes a welcome change if you normally exist on ready meals.
• You eat healthy snacks. As long as you take care not to eat too many of the high-calorie, high-fat snacks such as mince pies and chocolate Brazils, there are plenty of healthier options including satsumas, dates, figs, walnuts and chestnuts. Also go for plain popcorn, pretzels, raw veggies and low-fat dips.
• You eat healthy spices. The traditional Christmas spices – including cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger – don't just make food taste delicious, they may help boost your health too. For instance, cinnamon and ginger are traditionally used to help with digestion.
• You have a post-meal walk. Many families take a festive stroll after lunch on Christmas and Boxing day, which is a great way to start walking off all the calories you've eaten.

Xmas food swaps

If denying yourself food and drink treats at Christmas is going to make you miserable, here's some news that might cheer you up. It's easier than you might think to make some Christmas treats healthier – here's how:

Swap champagne for Buck's Fizz: adding orange juice not only makes the bubbly go further, the added vitamin C is good for you too.

Swap Stilton for goat's cheese: If you can't pass on the cheese board, select your slices carefully. For instance, a 30g serving of Stilton has 4g more fat than the same size serving of goat's cheese.

Swap chocolate truffles for chocolate liqueurs: Everyone loves a chocolate or two at Christmas, but chocs with liqueur centres have around half the number of calories of a chocolate truffle. Just don't have too many.

Swap Bailey's for Tia Maria: Cream liqueurs are notoriously high in fat (see High-fat festive foods, below). So have a non-cream liqueur instead, such as Tia Maria or Cointreau.

Swap chocolate Brazils for nuts in shells: Not only will you save on the chocolate that comes with chocolate Brazils, but having to fiddle with the nutcracker means you may eat fewer nuts (or, at least, eat them more slowly).

Swap cheese straws for breadsticks: If savoury party nibbles are your weakness, eating one large breadstick instead of two cheese straws will save you around 75 calories and 6g fat.

• How much do you really know about healthy eating? Find out by taking the healthy eating self-assessment test at www.allabouthealth.org.uk/content/tools

High-fat festive foods

The official recommendations for daily fat intake in this country are 70g (or 20g saturated fat) for women and 95g (or 30g saturated fat) for men. Indulge in some Christmas foods, however, and your daily fat intake might more than double. Here's what to avoid (or at least, eat sparingly) if you want to fit in your party dress by New Year's Eve…

Macadamia nuts - 23g per handful

Brazil nuts - 24g per handful

Wrapped chocolates - 8g for 4 assorted

Sausage meat stuffing - 16g fat per 100g

Roast potatoes - 4.5g fat per 100g

Strawberry trifle - 10g per serving

Double cream - 7g per tbsp

Sour cream dip - 6g per tbsp

Sausage rolls - 5g per mini roll

Brandy butter - 5g per tbsp

Cream liqueurs - 4g per shot

Festive fitness tips

Does the festive season put a stop to your fitness regime? Top fitness trainer Justin Way from Pure Gym Edinburgh has the following advice to keep you motivated:

• Head for a workout straight from work. Don't go home first because the dark, gloomy and freezing cold weather will make it easy for you to stay on the sofa getting bored – which could see you raiding the treat cupboard
• Warm up efficiently. During the winter your body is colder, so it will take longer to warm up. Always ensure you're out of breath and nearly sweating before you really go for it.
• Plan your sessions. Make sure you have a workout schedule and stick to it.  Plan your workouts and don't miss them. That way, when it comes to January and everyone is obsessed with losing weight, you'll already be one step ahead.
• Wear good workout gear. If you train outdoors then invest in some good base layers – tight fitting clothes worn under some runners shorts and t-shirts. These should be tight enough to compress the muscles (research suggests a compressed muscle can exert more power, which means getting to your goal faster).
• Buddy up.  Find someone who also has health and fitness goals and train with them. Much research suggests if you train with a friend or in groups you will stick at working towards your goal for longer –and that means you'll have a greater chance of achieving it too.
•  Stick at it. If you've worked hard through the spring and summer months getting into shape, why stop during the winter and wind up back at square one? Be disciplined and follow your routine, and next year you'll be looking – and feeling – even better.

Pure Gym is an affordable gym chain with branches open across the UK (www.puregym.com).