Holiday parties might be filling up your schedule, and those extra calories stretching out your waistline. Laurie Molina, a Mayo Clinic dietitian, has some healthful tips on how to enjoy holiday gatherings. And she gives an estimate of what it would take to burn off holiday party calories from some traditional favorite treats.

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Holiday parties can mean an abundance of food and drink.

"You can always have a snack before you go, a balanced snack— lean protein and a vegetable and some sort of a whole grain so that you go and you're not starving," says Molina.

She says then enjoy some party food. You'll feel full faster. But take your time and eat slowly.

"Slowing down and taking your time to eat can prevent overeating," she says.

But calories can still add up. 

"If you are about an average-sized person, 150 pounds, and you eat about six Swedish meatballs, you'd have to walk for about 42 minutes to burn them off," Molina says.

Eggnog is high fat and high calorie.

"Depending on the size of your glass, it could be about 60 minutes of walking to burn it off," she says. "One small holiday cookie would be about 20 to 30 minutes of walking and two glasses of Prosecco would be about 45 minutes of walking."

Keep your focus on what you're celebrating this season.

"Enjoy yourself, your food and the time with your family," she says. "But in moderation."

Related posts:

• Mayo Clinic Minute: Relationship between food, disease stronger than you may think.
• Maintaining not gaining over the holidays.
• Mayo Clinic Minute: Ditch the junk food.

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