You Overdid it. Now What?

Parties! Sweet treats! Shopping! Family time! It’s easy to go a little overboard during the holidays when our regular routines are thrown off. Here’s how to recover and mitigate any damage.

- MELANIE MANNARINO,JORDAN KAY

the holiday season is all about festive social gatherings and high doses of cheer and goodwill (not to mention cookies, cake, eggnog, hot cocoa, and glasses of bubbly). With so many opportunities to celebrate, there are countless ways to overdo it—and feel it the next day. “It’s a season loaded with pressure to show up, give more, do more, be more,” says Lindsey Benoit O’Connell, certified meditation teacher and founder of The Lab Wellness and Elevate Mindfully. “And underneath all that is a longing to feel connected, to belong, to make things meaningful. So we go all in.”

We all want to embrace the joy and good cheer, but having a strategy for how to rebound will help keep everything bright and merry.

You stayed up way too late.

Last night seemed like a great time to check everything off your to-do list—but now it feels like you won’t make it through breakfast with your eyes open.

Instant recovery plan: Resist the temptation to overcaffeinate, warns Umo Callins, a registered dietitian, board-certified sports dietitian, certified personal trainer, and the owner of Well Rooted Health and Nutrition in Oklahoma City. “It may help a little, but too much can make you feel jittery, anxious, and unable to focus,” she says. Instead, stay hydrated and eat nourishing foods to keep your body well-fueled. And be realistic about the day ahead. What are the tasks you need to tackle versus to-dos you can delegate or push till tomorrow? Give yourself an out if you need to: It’s OK to buy a side dish for book club instead of making the recipe you planned.

Better luck next time: Don’t ignore your body’s sleep signals. Be honest with yourself about how late you can comfortably stay up and not feel the negative effects the next day.