Staying Healthy While Feasting over the Holidays

Cookies and candy canes will not be an option for some people at Penn Manor, but most of them say they “don’t care.”

The winter holidays is the time of year where most families get together and enjoy a lot of good fatty food together. Cookies are annually made along with lots of ham, mashed potatoes and gravy. Even though most students at Penn Manor choose to ignore the nutritional values of the food, a few people do.

The classic ginger bread cookies, baked for the holiday season. Photo by fun.familyeducation.com

“I am going to try to not eat a whole lot of candy over Christmas break,” said Jeremy Vital.”I am trying to improve my dental health because it is not very good.

The best way to avoid cavities and have the best oral hygiene is to not consume sweets at all. This rarely happens over a holiday such as Christmas and New Years, so instead you could brush twice a day with toothpaste containing fluoride and also visiting the dentist for regular check ups according to dentistry.about.com.

“My wife makes great food for Christmas, so I don’t care what I will eat on Christmas,” said assistant principal Mr. Howe.

Howe will be doing “CrossFit” to work off some calories from Christmas dinner over the break.

“CrossFit is the principle strength and conditioning program for many police academies and tactical operations teams, military special operations units, champion martial artists, and hundreds of other elite and professional athletes worldwide,” according to crossfit.com.

The average American eats an about 2,500 calories of food for just one meal. Participating in an activity such as basketball typically burns up to 600 calories in a full hour of play.

” My mom is making turkey and I will eat a lot of it,” said Pat Navin. “I am all about protein so I eat a lot of meat to fuel my massive muscles.”

Navin considers himself the most nutritious person that attends Penn Manor. Candy is no part of Navin’s to the extent that he denies any piece of candy offered to him.

“The only sugar that I eat is natural from fruits,” said Navin.

“Over the break, I don’t plan to workout because I play real sports, and I’m not trying to be the best at exercising,” said Navin.

According to ehow.com, there are few good steps that could be taken to eat a little healthier over the Christmas break.

1. Eat a healthy breakfast and lunch prior to Christmas dinner. By eating well during the day, you will not be famished by night time. This avoids the risk of you doubling up on calories later in the day. The best foods to eat are cereal, wholemeal breads and soups. They are high in fiber and will keep you feeling satisfied for a while.

Christmas Dinner. Photo by nelsonideas.com

2. Once at the dinner table, eat only half portions. For main course, try using a salad plate. This will make you have to put less food in your plate, and you will soon realize that you don’t need a large portion of food to feel satisfied.

3. Drink plenty of water during the day. Sometimes people confuse hunger for thirst, so they may eat more while trying to hydrate themselves. This will not happen if you drink enough water during the day, and when it comes to dinner time, the water in your stomach will make you feel fuller faster.

4. If you are in charge of cooking, make substitutions in order to keep your meal lower in fat and calories. For example, switch your regular mayo for extra light mayo. Use skimmed milk and low fat cheeses. Use sugar substitutes instead of sugar.

5. Keep your drinking under control. Between Christmas and New Year, most of the calories consumed in excess comes from drinks. So limit yourself to two glasses of wine with your meal, or avoid drinking altogether if you can.

By Kyle Hallett

2 thoughts on “Staying Healthy While Feasting over the Holidays”

  1. I don’t remember saying that I have poor dental health, but according to Kyle Hallett I did, so i must have…The Pat Navin section is amazing though.

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