Easter treats and celebrations without the guilt.

Easter

Easter is almost upon us, so I am sharing with you my top 5 tips for enjoying the celebration, staying on track and leaving guilty feelings behind.

Easter traditions:

How do you celebrate Easter?

When I think of Easter, what comes to my mind is family sharing a meal around the table with the token chocolates to celebrate the occasion. Most people connect to each other and their cultural group through similar food patterns. And food plays a significant role in the lives of most families. For example, it wouldn’t feel like Easter for me if I didn’t make the traditional Easter treats with my children, like dying and decorating hard boiled eggs and making the chocolate Easter cake.

Enjoy the Easter occasion

You want to enjoy this special time surrounded by your family and friends and not stress too much about what you are putting in your mouth or breaking your health goals.

So plan your food tactics ahead of time for the 4 days of Easter.

 Tip 1:

Family get-togethers can become a massive feast. Everyone is willing to bring a dish and with all that tantalising food on offer you feel exuberant and are willing to try just about everything. But make a decision on what you most want to eat and remember your portion sizes. By using a smaller plate when serving yourself, you can save from over indulging. Opt for salads and vegetable dishes and by all means try the creamier options like potato bakes or creamy pasta dishes but only serve a smaller portion such as 1/4 of a cup size. In addition, hold on the dressings or sauces as these can be exceptionally high in kilojoules.

Tip 2:

Eat something healthy before going out, like a piece of fruit, nuts and some yoghurt, this way you won’t be starving when the food arrives and overindulge which can leave you feeling stuffed and guilty.

Tip 3:

Bring a dish that you know is not only healthy but delicious, low in calories or high in protein which will keep you feeling full for longer.

Tip 4:

If you are lucky enough to get the extra public holidays off why not choose some outdoor activities like going for a bike ride or a bush walk during the day to burn off those extra kilojoules you may have consumed.  

Easter Chocolates and desserts

“Easter is meant to be a symbol of hope, renewal, and new life.”
Janine di Giovanni”

Tip 5:

To stay on track enjoy your Easter chocolates and desserts in small amounts. After all you don’t want to deprive yourself when celebrating the festive occasion.

20 grams of this dark Lindt chocolate (2 squares) provides you with 423 kJ or 100 calories. However, when deciding on what chocolate to eat choose quality over quantity.

Dark chocolate with its slightly bitter taste has health benefits, such as offering protective antioxidants and being low in fat and sugar, in contrast to milk and white chocolate. It is also much easier to eat in moderation as of its rich flavour leaving you feeling very satisfied.

Don’t forget to look at the nutritional label and the serving size and if you need to convert kJ to calories divide by 4.2.

Savour the Easter chocolate or dessert.

Savour the moments whilst eating your Easter treats by being mindful. Revel in the aroma, texture and flavour enjoying every mouthful without the guilt. This will not only give you the pleasure and enjoyment you are seeking but you will discover how good it does taste and also how little you actually need. So remember your cues if you feel full stop eating as you don’t need to finish what’s on your plate.

Look out for my recipes for Protein truffles or super indulgent chocolate cake on my recipes page that are super great as a mid-morning or afternoon snack or as an after dinner treat.

Want to know more about food ?

Why not contact me to book in a workshop. I have many to choose from including Good Nutrition or Cooking on a budget. Alternatively, you may want to have a nutritional assessment done. Ask me about my subscription packages. If you want to know more information about any of the topics in this and or my other blogs just call or email me.

Wishing you a Happy Easter.

Theresa Gray. X