Be smart with choices

One full-on Christmas meal on the day itself is never going to do you any harm – but some of us are fortunate enough to be invited to multiple festive sit-down meals every year, turning the weeks before the actual event into a cycle of overeating and the resulting lethargy. It doesn’t need to be that way.

A roast dinner – turkey (or nut roast), vegetables, potatoes, a bit of gravy – don’t actually contain anything all that unhealthy at all. Turkey is an excellent source of lean protein, potatoes are a wonderful low GI carb – though best when mashed not roasted in fat – and no one can criticize a brussels sprout. That alone is a pretty filling meal that you’ll certainly enjoy.

It’s just some of the additions – pigs in blankets, extra stuffing and Christmas pudding that see all the calories add up. So, if you can, try to make sure your plate is heavy on the veg front, choose mashed potato over-roasted, and ask for a more healthy festive dessert like a yummy stewed pear with cinnamon.

Of course – once a year – on actual Christmas day, just relax and enjoy yourself. One slightly overfilling meal never hurt anyone.

Stay hydrated

It’s easy to mistake the lethargy of being thirsty for the lethargy of being hungry – so before you reach for that 3 pm turkey roll, down a glass of water and wait for twenty minutes.

Staying hydrated is important at all times of the year – forgetting to drink will make your muscles less effective on the bike and can cause them to take longer to repair, too. When you’re cycling a lot in cold weather, it can be easy to forget to keep sipping, so make sure you keep an eye on the water level in your bidon. If it’s not going down you’re not drinking enough.  The one true test of hydration is the colour of your wee – if it’s closer to orange than clear, get a drink down you! Here’s a handy colour chart for you to cut out and keep…

Choose your drinks

Speaking of drinks… most alcoholic ones contain a lot of empty calories. Though something like Guinness probably will make you feel fuller, lager or a glass of wine won’t – but they still contain lots of sugar and calories. For example, a pint of lager on average is equal to a slice of pizza at 180 calories. A 175ml glass of wine will be around 130 calories – whilst comparatively a gin and slimline tonic contains less than 50 calories.

We all know drinking too much will make you feel rubbish the next day, so try to enjoy your festive tipples in moderation, keep drinking water between alcoholic beverages to avoid dehydration, and choose your drinks wisely, opting for the lower calorie spirits and sugar-free mixers if they agree with you. If not, top up your beer or wine with sugar-free lemonade to half the calorie content.

Keep riding

You know the old saying, calories in, calories out – the two must be equal to maintain the same weight? Totally true!

At the end of the day, you’ll only gain weight if you consume more calories than you burn. Therefore, if you know you’ve got a big family lunch, why not get out for a morning spin beforehand so your legs are well and truly hollow and ready to be filled? That way, you get to enjoy the pleasure of a beautiful long ride and the warming sensation of refuelling at a Christmas table with your loved ones.

If you’re looking for opportunities to get your Christmas calorie burn on, check these Christmas challenges.