Be a smart cookie and eat right

No sooner have we started to recover from the excesses of the Christmas holidays, the Lunar New Year is upon us. This is a time filled - again - with family gatherings, parties and lots of food. Here are some tips to help you avoid the inevitable temptations without falling off your healthy bandwagon.

Don't be tempted to skip meals. The strategy of skipping breakfast or lunch to save up for snacks or a huge dinner often backfires. It might sound logical, but skipping meals can have the opposite effect to the desired one. Imagine being surrounded by those New Year goodies while you're starving - it's just too easy to eat too much.

There's no need to deprive yourself; just eat smaller quantities of the foods you love. If you can't resist fried turnip cake (lo bak goh), then ask for a slice and fill up with juicy clementines or pomelo.

If you're having a buffet, don't hang around the serving tables. Take a smaller plate, serve yourself small portions of what you fancy and then walk away. Eat slowly, and put your chopsticks or fork and knife down after every mouthful.

Wait for 15 minutes after you've finished your food before getting up to fill your plate again. It takes that amount of time for your brain to register that your stomach is full. Remember this is not a race against others or time to eat as much as possible. Aim to go up a maximum of three times.

Drink lots of water. You may think you're hungry but you could be misinterpreting signs of dehydration as hunger pangs. Drink at least eight glasses of fluids a day. You can alternate water with soda or juice drinks, and keep those calories down.