Tips For Sticking To Your Diet During The Holidays

One of the problems we all face is how to maintain a diet during the holiday season. Undoubtedly for some it is fasting the week before Thanksgiving. There is less guilt when sitting down to enjoy this delicious feast. This has sometimes been the norm rather than the exception.
To avoid having to fast or go on a crash diet and still be able to enjoy the holiday fare, here are some tips for sticking to the diet maintained all year long without having to worry about the guilt and the added pounds.

Experts recommend drinking a few glasses of water and having a protein snack before beginning a holiday feast. There is an old expression, to wit; never go food shopping on an empty stomach. The same applies to the holidays. If preparing the holiday meal or being invited to a family gathering, eat a snack beforehand and drink water to alleviate the need to begin nibbling before the sit down meal commences.

Prepare a vegetable tray for guests with a low fat dip. If you have been invited to someone’s home, bring a vegetable tray as well. It is not only healthy but is a wonderful alternative for others who may be dieting as well.

Check out some recipes online that can be incorporated in preparing holiday meals and which offer substitutes for high-fat content. In addition, instead of the array of desserts traditionally served every year, why not make an angel food cake and top it with berries and low fat whipped cream. Serve vegetables along with the Christmas ham. If serving a salad use low fat dressing. A delicious homemade vegetable soup can be prepared as a second course instead of pasta.

There are so many different ways in which to use alternative foods during the holidays, yet still enjoy every morsel. Moreover, portion control is the key to maintaining any diet. We all know that holiday fare consists of many courses. Take a walk with family members or friends in between courses.

If the weather permits, play a game of touch football in the backyard.
While these are just some tips to help stick to the diet you have maintained all year long, you can still enjoy the holidays. Substitute foods high in fat with recipes that are just as pleasing to the eye and palate as the traditional foods offered during the holiday season.

Dreidel – The Hanukkah Game

The origin of the Dreidel has an interesting background. Apparently, when the Jewish people were under the rule of Antiochus, the Greek leader of Syria, Egypt and Judea, they were barred from studying the Torah.

The Dreidel was devised as a ruse by the Jews in order to make it seem as if they were playing a game instead of studying the Torah. Thus, whenever the Greeks approached, the Jews would hide the books, bring out the Dreidel, and begin to spin it as in a game.

The Dreidel is a four-sided top which has four distinct letters in Hebrew on each side.
The object of the game is to spin the Dreidel and collect coins or candy depending upon what letter appears after each spin.

Each player puts one coin or candy into the center of the table. This is called the pot. Then each player spins the Dreidel and depending upon what letter appears, this determines what each player will or will not receive.

The explanation of each letter is as follows: “nun” means a player receives nothing, “gimel” means a player can take all of the coins or candy in the pot, “hay” means the player can only take half of the pot, and “shin” means the player has to place one coin or piece of candy into the pot. Whoever winds up with the most coins or candies at the end of the game wins.

Now here is an interesting tidbit. A similar game using a spinning top had been played for centuries in Europe as a means to gamble. For example, the letters used in English speaking countries would be T, H, P, and N meaning take, half, put and none.

In addition, research indicates that the Hebrew letters actually originated in Germany where a similar toy was manufactured. Nonetheless, the Hebrew letters signify a phrase which means “a great miracle happened here.”

Moreover, research has also revealed that one of the letters on the Dreidel has been changed – shin is now called “pay.” In addition, the Israelis changed the word Dreidel to Sivivon, derived by the Hebrew word sovev meaning to turn.