As we head into a month of holidays (and heavy meals), take a moment to think about how you want to experience the next few weeks, and how you want to feel once the holidays are over. For many people, one of the best things about this season is the opportunity to share meals with friends and family. Some of the unfortunate side effects of so many large meals so close together, however, are tightening waistbands, a constant feeling of being too full, and a sense of being out of control.

For a refreshing approach to holiday meals, and a chance to enjoy feeling good while you eat, try some of the following suggestions:

1. Don’t walk into a meal hungry. I know this is a challenge when you’re coming from a long Rosh Hashana davening, but when you do have some control over the situation, try the EAT formula: Egg, Apple, Twelve ounces of water. It’s a great snack to have before you head into dinner or a big lunch so that you don’t eat your way through half the table before you realize you’re full.
2. Fill up on vegetables first. Start with a plateful of salad and other vegetables, then move onto the other dishes.
3. You can try everything, just keep the portions small. You can always have seconds if you love it, and this way you don’t have feel like you’re denying yourself wonderful treats that you’ll never see again.
4. Only eat it if you can’t get it better someplace else. Don’t just eat it because it’s there, be discriminating. If the honey cake at kiddush tastes like the cardboard box it came it, don’t put it in your body. You deserve, and should wait for, something truly worth savoring.
5. Eat slowly and pay attention to when you become full. (Then stop eating.)
6. Drink lots of water all day long. Consider keeping a bottle of water with you in synagogue if you plan to attend services. You want to aim for at least eight eight-ounce glasses of water a day. It will fill you up and clean you out.
7. On days when you’re expecting to be at two large meals (lunch and dinner), make one a small meal (lots of salad, little or no dessert), and the other a splurge meal.
8. Walk as much as you can. Enjoy the day, move your body, burn some calories.
9. Take a moment to think about what will really make you happy. Are you really hungry? How hungry? Does your body need nourishment or are your eyes the only parts of your body that want to eat? Is the food really going to give you pleasure or is it going to cause you discomfort, disappointment and a distended belly? Then choose to do what you feel is really best for you.
10. Fill your plate and then focus on the people in the room. This is what the meal is really all about. Set your intention to enjoy the moment, talk to your friends, be part of a beautiful tradition that is thousands of years old. The food is there to enhance the celebration, not replace it. Trust me, I love to eat, but when the eating actually gets in the way of enjoying a meal, it’s time to slow down and make room at the table for some new dining companions: your consciousness, your intellect and your spirit. When you all sit down to a meal together it can truly be a religious experience.

Monica Shah is a holistic health counselor who specializes in helping successful professionals enrich and transform their lives. If you're looking to achieve more balance in your own life, feel free to contact Monica through her website, idealbalanceinc.com.