How to manage healthy eating habits during the festival of Diwali

How to manage healthy eating habits during the festival of Diwali

The whole year we all eagerly wait for Diwali. There are many reasons for it.. It is a festival of lights, new clothes, crackers, rangolies, gifts, get-together with family & friends AND... delicious Diwali snacks & sweets. We all love to enjoy these snacks & sweets. But, for weight watchers, it can end-up getting stressful decision. All of us want to enjoy these delicacies but do not want to end up gaining weight during Diwali. We definitely do not want to make Diwali sweets & snacks the weakest link to spoil the efforts that we are taking throughout the year. So here are few tips to manage your diet & weight during the festive season.

1.  Small frequent meals:

Try to follow your regular diet pattern of eating 'small frequent meals' (3 to 4 hourly meals). Do not over-eat in any particular meal. This will also help you have a portion control & prevent from binge eating. With this, we can ensure well-distributed calorie intake throughout the day.

2. Enjoy Diwali snack at evening snack time:

Do not have Diwali snacks accompanied by any regular meal (example: a Mithaies with lunch/dinner) . You can have it as a small meal (example: as a tea-time snack). Remember, the portion control is the key. Avoid munching these snacks or sweets throughout the day.

3. Prefer healthy replacements:

You can prefer dry fruits over mithais or fried snacks. You can also experiment in cooking methods. (Example: baked Chaklies, roasted chiwda over fried chiwda & date rolls without sugar.)

4. Stay hydrated:

Drink 10-12 glasses of water per day. Yes... during this festive season as well. Don't skip this habit of staying well-hydrated throughout the day. Drinking enough water helps in better digestion, elimination of toxins from our body & it also prevents over-eating. Always have a glass of water before having Diwali snack or mithai.

5. Stay away from aerated drinks & alcohol:

Stay away from these empty calories. These drinks will just add up a lot of empty calorie load in your diet. These also act as diuretic due to high glucose content, thus leading to dehydration.

6. Savor your treats:

Eat slowly & savor the taste of the delicacies. This will help you to have portion control while enjoying these sweets & snacks.

7. Serve in small plates:

One more way to have portion control is by serving the snacks in small plates & trying to avoid second serving of the snack. This will help you to control the calorie count. "Mindful eating" even during festive season is very important.  

8. Take out time for exercise:

We definitely do not want to make Diwali snacks & sweets the weakest link to spoil all the efforts taken throughout the year to get into shape that we desire. So exercise is one more way to have that control. Taking out time for physical activity is also important. So don't forget to workout for 40-50 min per day. One can also do 15-30 min of HIIT workout to have maximum benefits in small duration. This way, you can burn those extra calories consumed.

9. Do not skip meals:

All the Diwali preparations & get-together with family & friends can put your diet & workout schedule at a toss. But make sure to follow your diet routine. This is one of the ways to prevent over-eating in next meal.

Note: These are general dietary guidelines. People with medical conditions such as Diabetes, Heart disease, high cholesterol, kidney disease, etc. should follow their regular dietary restrictions advised by their nutritionist or doctor.