Unusual tips to take the stress out of the holidays

The holiday season doesn’t have to be stressful; in fact, it shouldn’t. Follow these tips to find more enjoyment, and less stress, in your season.

1. Do your shopping and wrapping early. Make sure each gift is tagged and organized according to where and when the gift will be given. The earlier the better – but if you don’t have it done yet, aim to have it done for Friday.

2. Spend one day super cleaning your house and decorating, and another super undoing and cleaning. Make sure to schedule it in ink and have fun. The decoration day is easy to make festive. The take down day requires work… pizza and movie night to cap it off? Make space for new stuff?

3. Think easy and healthy entertaining. Whole grain crackers and hummus for an appetizer, a lightly dressed bagged spinach salad, a one dish meal with lean meat and veggies baked in the oven or slow cooker, and a healthy dessert do the trick just fine. Try not to cut corners by purchasing dessert. They are normally laden with heart destroying fat and sugar. A fruit crumble is so easy and you can cut the sugar way back and use a healthy oil. You can even make some ahead and freeze them.

4. Do not offer to bring something to every party. Sometimes, you just have to enjoy!

5. Don’t over indulge. The holidays cover a very large span of time and if you do, you will likely end up feeling heavy, sluggish and without the energy you need to enjoy them. There is no such thing as over-enjoying. A big piece of cake is no more tasty than a sliver, but it will make you feel terrible. No enjoyment there.

6. Make time for your fitness! Now is not normally the time for big goals but make at least one SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, timely) to keep you going. You can probably find a Christmas or New Year’s Day 5k in your area. These events work well since running is often the easiest way to maintain your fitness when you have no time for the gym. Experienced runners can also focus in on their speed and keep their calorie burn and fitness up with shorter, faster, interval based workouts when they can’t do the big mileage.

7. Every outing doesn’t have to be food related. Make plans with friends and family to do a Christmas-light tour or go tobogganing. The fresh air, fun and exercise might make for long lasting memories and give you a chance to escape the holiday stresses.