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`Tis the season for eggnog, cookies, hors d’oeuvres and enormous turkey dinners with all the fixin’s.  Unfortunately the most wonderful time of the year can also be the most fattening time of year.  Recent studies show that the average person gains one to four pounds over the holiday season. We asked registered dietician, Susan Burke March, the author of Making Weight Control Second Nature: Living Thin Naturally, for advice on healthy eating habits over the holidays. With these tips you won’t have to make a New Year’s resolution to lose the weight you just gained!

1. Don’t arrive hungry at holiday gatherings
Go to the parties with a plan.  Instead of eating less the day of a holiday feast, eat breakfast, lunch and a healthy snack.  You will be more likely to resist the urges at the buffet table if you’ve eaten well earlier in the day.  Once you arrive at the party, think moderation.  Enjoy the foods offered, but just a little bit at a time.

2. Think about what you want to wear, not what you want to eat
If you abandon all mealtime restraint throughout December, the chances are pretty good that the little black dress you plan to wear on New Year’s Eve won’t fit.  To keep you on track, visualize yourself looking great in that black dress.  It may help strengthen your resolve to eat healthy.

 3. Limit alcohol intake
Alcohol contains high amounts of calories, and unfortunately it can lead to a major increase in your weight. To help limit your consumption, start and end the evening with a full glass of water.  If you are feeling extra motivated, try to alternate a cocktail with a glass of water throughout the entire night. Another tip is if you drink, stay away from the most sugar and calorie laden cocktails.

4. Go easy on the butter
Fat calories can really add up at the holiday table. March suggests basting the holiday bird in orange juice rather than butter; using low-fat dairy products; and replacing half the oil in cookie and cake recipes with applesauce or pureed fruit. You can experiment with other ingredient swaps as well. Don’t sacrifice flavor, but try to review your recipes and see where you can make healthy changes.  Your guests won’t know the difference!

5. Beware the buffet table
Don’t tempt yourself by hanging out next to the food. Circulating at a party is more fun anyway.  At parties, March likes to “circle around, find cocktail shrimp or otherwise healthier option, and enjoy myself. I carry a wine glass full of club soda and lime, and keep sipping.

6. Don’t stuff yourself to make someone else happy
Even if your Grandma keeps telling you how thin you look, or your sister-in-law insists you sample her famous marshmallow sweet potatoes, stick to your guns. “Don’t make an issue of refusing foods, and if anyone tries to ‘push’ a dish, I just say, ‘No, thank you’ with a smile,” says March.  Don’t let others guilt you getting off track. In other words, eat what you want, and not what anyone else wants you to eat.

7. Make it a point to burn more calories over the holiday season
Know you’ve got five parties coming up? Compensate by increasing your exercise level.  Run a few minutes longer, park far away from the store.  Another great tip (that may turn into tradition!) is to invite holiday guests to take a walk with after dinner.

8. Calm down
If you tend to eat more when you are nervous, try to mentally prepare yourself before a social event, especially one that may be stressful or anxiety-provoking (think a company bash with the boss or dinner with your boyfriend’s parents). Several deep, slow breaths or even a few minutes of meditation can center you so you don’t end up compulsively shoving nibbles in your mouth.

9. Eat until you’re full and then stop
Try to be aware of your fullness and of how much you’ve consumed.  Don’t overstuff yourself once you’re sated.  It may be hard to keep track of what you’ve eaten at a holiday party, so try to make mental notes of what you’ve eaten and when you feel (or should feel) full.

10. Take the focus off food
Let’s face it—we sometimes think of the holidays as an excuse to stuff our faces.  “Treat the holiday meal as you would any other,” March says.  Focus on the people and not the food and you will enjoy yourself just as much.

SOURCE: http://shine.yahoo.com/event/holiday/10-ways-to-avoid-holiday-overeating-554610/