 Hi friends, welcome back to my channel and a very special welcome if you're new here. My name is Jen. I'm a certified weight loss and nutrition coach. I do follow weight watchers as well as counting calories and macros. I am here today with a video that is highly requested and I'm here today with a tip that you've probably never heard of before that is a go-to for me and has really helped me with my 133 pound weight loss. We're gonna talk about five tips to navigate the holidays. We have Thanksgiving coming up in just a couple of days, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's, Valentine's Day. It's a plethora of holidays throughout the year. It's a plethora of ways to get off of track, ways to gain weight rather than lose weight, ways to sabotage your health goals. And today I'm gonna share with you five tips that have been game changers for me navigating the holidays. So if you're excited, give this video a big huge thumbs up. It really helps out my channel and of course subscribe, turn your bell on because I upload five videos every single week. Check out the description box down below for nutrition coaching. I do offer personalized to you macros and calories. I cannot recommend this enough. It is so important to know what and how much you should be eating to be successful with weight loss. I also offer one-on-one coaching if you would like to chat with me directly. Links, discounts to my favorite things and come join our Facebook group. We have lots of good stuff happening over there and we'd love to have you. So let's jump into my five tips to navigate the holiday season. Like I mentioned, the holidays are rough. They're amazing, they're glorious, they're beautiful, they're festive, but they're rough. They're rough when we're on a weight loss journey, on a weight maintenance journey or just on a health journey in general. We can really just throw in the towel the last few months of the year. First we have Halloween, then Thanksgiving, then Christmas, then New Year's. It's a time where it's really, really hard to stay on track and it's very stressful to think about how we're going to navigate the holiday itself. How are we going to navigate Thanksgiving? What are we gonna eat? Are we going to just throw in the towel for Thanksgiving? Are we going to make healthy choices? Are we gonna track? Are we not gonna track? There's a lot that goes into making it through the holidays. I've been through quite a few holidays on my weight loss journey. Some of them a little bit more successful than others. But there are some things that I do every holiday that has really led to success in making it through the holidays without gaining weight or sabotaging my weight loss journey in general. One of the tips that I'm going to share with you is something that is unique to me. Something that I, I guess, made up or something that I do on every holiday. And then I'm going to share with you four other tips that are really, really beneficial to make it through the holidays. So let's jump into my five tips. Number five is to enjoy the company. The holidays aren't all about food. We think about food when we think about Thanksgiving. You know, the big Thanksgiving dinner or all the sweet treats that happen at Christmas. But the holidays aren't about food. The holidays are about our family and our friends and spending time with the people that we love. So when we're at the holiday table, when we're at all of those Christmas parties, when we're planning our New Year celebrations, focus on people that are going to be there and the event. Of course, there's going to be food there. There's going to be temptations there. There's going to be adult beverages. But if we really focus on spending time with our family and our friends, it takes our mind off the food. We're not grazing the food table at all of the events. We're focused on the company and being engaged with our friends and family rather than on the food. This is really going to help you. It's going to help you not overeat. And again, just really enjoy the experience because let's be honest, that's what the holidays are all about. Tip number four is to plan ahead. You know, I always say fail to plan, plan to fail. And this is 100% true when it comes to the holidays. Now, when we're going to parties and events, we don't have full control over what's going to be there as far as food goes. In fact, we may not even know what's on the menu, but what we can do is plan ahead for the rest of the day leading up to the event. We can make sure that we're choosing healthy foods, that we're eating foods that nourish our body, that we're planning ahead, we're saving up calories, points for that event. Another great way to plan ahead is to bring your water bottle to the party of the event. That way you have something to be drinking that doesn't involve alcohol or sugar, sweetened beverages or soda. You can make sure you're getting in your water and it's just a little piece of planning ahead that you can do and nobody's gonna think twice about you bringing a water bottle to some type of holiday party or event. Now, if it's a fancy holiday party or event, maybe that might be a little awkward, but if it's with your family or friends, nobody's even going to notice. In the event that it is a little bit more dress-up type of event or maybe a work event, make sure that whatever you order for a beverage is water. Have them constantly refilling your water so that you have that to sip on during the event. It's also going to help keep you a little bit more full and keep your hands and your mouth busy rather than reaching for all the good food. Just doing a little bit of planning ahead and preparing ahead and saving up those calories and points throughout the day can really help you not overeat and not overdo it. Tip number three, kind of goes hand in hand with tip number four and that's you need to eat throughout the day. Do not starve yourself all day long, saving up all your calories, all your points for the day so that you have them all available for you at the holiday party. That's only going to backfire. You're going to be so ravenously hungry when you get to the party that it's very, very likely, almost guaranteed that you're going to overeat. If you would have just eaten healthy meals throughout the day, maybe a little bit more volume-based, less calorically dense, less pointed meals throughout the day, really focusing on those lean meats, fruits and vegetables. So you have a little bit of extra calories and points for the party, but you still nourished your body through the day is going to be a much better option than starving all day and going to that party ravenously hungry. And a side note on this tip is to eat a little something before you walk out the door. Something that has some protein in there that's going to fill up your belly, keep you a little bit satiated. So again, when you get to the party, the event or the dinner, you're not overly hungry and you over-indulge. This is one of the main saboteurs of the holiday season. Tip number two is to bring a healthy dish. Usually when we're going to Thanksgiving, Christmas, holiday parties, get-togethers, it's kind of a potluck style where we bring a dish. Make sure that whatever you choose to bring is something that you can enjoy on your healthy lifestyle. Make sure it's a vegetable-based dish or a lean protein dish or something low in points or low in calories. At least you'll have that item to reach for on the table. We don't always know what else is going to be served. We don't have control over what our work is providing, what our family and friends are providing, what's going to be at the event, but if you bring at least something you know falls within your healthy lifestyle, you can really load your plate up with that item and then have a little bit of everything else. And that's actually another tip that piggybacks with this tip, is when you're loading up your plate, make sure that you're loading it up with the healthy foods first and then small amounts of maybe the less healthy options. That way you get to enjoy everything. You're not feeling restricted. You're not eliminating anything. You're not feeling deprived, but you're leaning on the foods that really do your body good. Those foods that are packed with protein that are lower in calories, lower in fat, focus on those foods and then just have small amounts of all of the other goodies at the party. It's number one, my tip that I've created for myself that really in my opinion is revolutionary to navigating the holidays is my plate method. When I go out to dinner, when I go to a party, when I go to a family dinner, when the holidays roll around, I follow my plate method. Like I said, I even do this when I go out for dinner. This is a staple in my life. It's really helped me watch my portions, but it's also made it so that I can enjoy any meal out, any party, any festivity and definitely get to enjoy all of the holidays. So what's my plate method, you're asking? I am so excited to share it with you guys. I've actually shared it with a few of my coaching clients and it was like mouth open mouth drop. I would have never thought of that. I can't wait to use this method for all of these holiday parties. So my plate method goes a little something like this. So think about a dinner plate. One half of your dinner plate is going to have protein. It doesn't have to be the same protein. So maybe you're at a holiday party and there's several protein choices. Maybe there's turkey, ham, maybe there's some steak. Maybe it's a taco bar and there's ground meat and there's fajitas. We don't know what's gonna be served at these holiday parties, but make sure that 50% of your plate is protein. The leaner the protein, the better and again smaller portions of those fattier cuts of meat or those higher calorie, higher pointed cuts of meat, but make sure that 50% half of your plate is focused on protein. Then take the other 50% of your plate and divide it in half. That top half of your plate is going to be vegetables. Any vegetables that are at the party, whether they're cooked vegetables, raw vegetables, maybe there's a vegetable type of casserole or vegetable type of dish. You're going to load up that other 25% of your plate with vegetables and then this bottom half, the other 25% of your plate is going to be carbohydrate sources or sweet treats. Some of those higher calorie, less healthy options. You can still have them. Nothing is off limits. We do not want to go through the holidays, not enjoying the holidays. We wanna be able to eat all the sweet treats and all those yummy breads and rolls that come for Thanksgiving. We just wanna focus those in about that last 25% of our plate. Now you might be thinking, yeah, obviously we wanna eat more of the healthier foods, but what's a little bit different about my plate method is how we're going to navigate our plate. The first thing we're going to do is eat the 50% of our plate that is protein. We are going to eat all of the protein on our plate first. Number two, we're moving over to the vegetables. We're going to eat all of the vegetables on our plate. And last but not least, we're gonna drop down to that other 25% that has carbohydrates, sweet treats, and we're going to eat those. What's going to happen is by the time you finish your protein and your vegetables and maybe not even all of your vegetables, you're not gonna have a lot of room for that more calorie-dense, point-heavy, sweet treat, bread-y portion of your plate. So what automatically helps with portion control allows you to focus on getting in your protein, getting in your vegetables, all the micronutrients that are in those healthy vegetables, and then still allowing you to have your favorite carb sources and your favorite sweet treats. I know for me, especially when I go out for dinner, by the time I get through the vegetables, like I said, if I even make it through the vegetables, I don't have a lot of room for the more calorie-dense, carbohydrate, sweet-filled foods. I might take a bite or two, which is great. I still get to enjoy everything, but I made much healthier choices by focusing on the protein and the vegetables first. Now, this plate method is something you can use every day of your life, every meal that you consume. It doesn't just have to be for the holidays or going out for dinner. I think about this every time I put a plate together. I'm telling you, this is going to be a complete game changer for you for the holiday season, and really for just eating overall in life. This whole plate method has been one of the catapults of my loss. It's something that I focus on, like I said, with every single meal. Now, more specific to the holidays, I want to talk about the choices, and so maybe this is tip number six, or like 5.5 of tips, and that is when you're filling that other 25% of your plate with the carbs and with the sweet treats, focus on carbs and sweet treats that only come around during the holidays. You don't need to put one or two crescent rolls or biscuits on your plate, because guess what? You can have crescent rolls or biscuits all year long. Focus on the dishes that come around once a year. Maybe it's the stuffing. Maybe it's the sweet potato casserole. Maybe it's your grandma's famous cookies or your aunt's famous fudge. Focus on the things that you can't have every other day of the year, because they're not special. Focus on the special things that only come around during the holidays, and that's what can make up that last 25% of your plate. So by putting my plate method into force and really focusing on those sweet treats and carb sources that come around once a year, you're still going to be able to enjoy the holidays to the fullest, but not sabotage your weight loss. And remember, Thanksgiving's once a year, Christmas is once a year, New Year's is once a year. Enjoy them. Enjoy the holidays. Don't tell yourself that you're trying to lose weight, that you're on a diet, so you can't enjoy the holidays. Yes, you can. Just focus on my plate method, enjoying everything in moderation, setting yourself up for success before you go to these holiday events. And I promise you, the holidays will be a breeze. You'll be engaged with your family and friends. You're going to enjoy every minute of it. You're going to eat all your favorite foods, and you're still going to see your weight loss move in the right direction. It's a holiday, not a hollum month. Remember, it's one day a year. You don't need to go off the rails from October through New Year's. Focus on the day, enjoy the day, and get back on track the next day. I'm so excited to finally be able to share my plate method with you. Honestly, this has spent something I've been doing for a long time, and this is the perfect opportunity for me to share it with you. And I hope truthfully that it not only changes how you make it through the holidays, but literally changes your life and how you build your plate and eat your meals every day. I promise you that this will be a big catapult in weight loss. It's going to help you heal your relationship with food by focusing on healthy foods first, but not eliminating or restricting anything and still enjoying everything in moderation. So, let me know down in the comments what do you think of these five tips? What do you think of the plate method? Is it going to help you through the holidays? I sure hope so, because this is like the black hole of weight loss and the black hole of getting off track and where everybody throws in the towel. This is the time of year and you don't have to do that. You can finish the year out strong. You can lose weight. You can reach your health goals and you can still enjoy the holidays. So, if you enjoyed today's video, give it a big huge thumbs up. Make sure you're subscribed and your bells turned on because I upload five videos every single week. Down in the description box, I will write out how I build my plate with my plate method. I'll put all that information in the description box for you along with nutrition coaching, links and discounts to my favorite things. And don't forget, come join our Facebook group. We'd love to have you. Happy Thanksgiving, friends. Happy holidays. Let's make it through the holidays. Let's lose weight. Let's eat all of our favorite foods and let's make this the best holiday season ever. I'll see you in the next one. Bye.