5 Low-Carb Ways to Celebrate the Holidays

meals

It's that time of year when parties, family gatherings, and of course, eating, become a regular thing. And if you're following a low-carb diet, you probably know you'll have some questionable appetizers, hors d'oeuvres, sides, and main dishes to choose from.

It's not that the typical holiday fare doesn't taste good. It's just that many holiday favorites are high-carb foods like cookies, sweets, bread, white potatoes, and your drink of choice (like sparkling cider, eggnog, juice, and most alcoholic beverages).

How do you handle the holiday carb-fest for the next few weeks?

Do you swear off eating low-carb for now, assume you'll gain weight, feel bad, and just grin and bear it? Don't do that, OK.

You can still stick to your low-carb plans during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other holidays. You just have to be smart about what you eat, where you go, and how far you're willing to go to stay low carb.

Here are 10 low-carb ways to celebrate the holidays.

1. Count carbs

Do you know what your carbs-per-day limit is? You should. Most low-carb diets recommend no more than 50 to 150 grams of carbs per day.

But that number is pretty much meaningless if you’re not reading food labels and keeping track of what you eat. Keep a written log, or use a mobile app like MyFitness Pal to keep track of your carbs throughout the day. That way, when you do end up at a party, you’ll know if you’ve got the carb-count left to have a slice of cake, or go for an extra serving of pulled pork instead.

2. Tell your family and friends

If no one knows following a low-carb diet during the holiday is important to you, you can’t expect to find low-carb options when you show up to a Thanksgiving or Christmas party or meet at a restaurant. Tell your family about your plans to stick to a low-carb diet, and ask your friends to help you. Most will be mindful of your dietary needs, and help you stick to your goal.

3. Bring a low-carb side to the party

Walk up to the standard holiday party table, and you’re probably going to find foods like potato chips, fried foods, cookies, cake, and desserts. And that’s a problem. These foods are loaded with simple carbohydrates that can cause rapid spikes in blood sugar levels, and lead to weight gain. So bring your own sides to the party like:

  • Deviled eggs
  • Cheese ball
  • Onion-pepper soup
  • Nuts
  • Vegetable tray, salsa, and low-carb chips.
  • You could even pick something from our Low-Carb menu

4. More meat

When you’re on a low-carb diet, most of your calories come from protein and fat. During the holidays, take that as a cue to enjoy a variety of different meats. We’ve got you covered. Our Low-Carb menu meat selections include Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other holiday options:

  • Beef Brisket
  • Beef Pot Roast
  • Beef with Bordelaise Sauce
  • Corned Beef
  • Hickory Smoked Spiral Sliced Honey Ham
  • Lemon Rosemary Pork
  • Salmon Caponata
  • Roasted Turkey with Gravy
  • Smoked Boneless Pork Loin
  • Whole Herb-Smoked Turkey

5. Be flexible

Accept the fact that there’s a chance you’re going to end up in a situation where low-carb isn’t an option during the holidays. Deal with it. Do you best to plan ahead. But don’t let it ruin the holidays for you or your family. You can always get back on track the next day.

Want to have a Low-Carb holiday celebration? Let us take care of the cooking. Pick your favorite meat for a main dish and sides from our Low-Carb menu, and we’ll take care of the rest.