1. Find a replacement
Since the days of the Soviet past, the New Year’s table has been strongly associated with Olivier salad, Herring under a fur coat, sandwiches with red caviar and a glass (or even more than one) of champagne. If you have become a vegetarian, but do not want to break the established traditions, do not break it. There is a delicious substitute for every traditional dish. For example, sausage in Olivier salad can be easily replaced by its vegetarian version, soy “meat” or avocado seasoned with black salt. And “Shuba” in a vegetarian way is even tastier: in it, herring is replaced with nori or seaweed. As for sandwiches with red caviar, large stores sell an inexpensive vegetable analogue made from algae. In general, the main thing is desire, and your table will not differ from the traditional one. As for champagne and wine, they can also be replaced with non-alcoholic versions. Or…
2. Prepare delicious homemade non-alcoholic mulled wine.
What’s more, it’s so easy to make it. To prepare it, you need to heat the juice from cherries or red grapes. Add cinnamon sticks, orange or lemon zest, star anise, a few sticks of cloves and, of course, ginger to a saucepan with juice. This is practically the key component of non-alcoholic mulled wine. The more it is, the stronger and more vigorous the drink will be. When the drink warms up, you can add honey, pour into glasses and garnish with orange slices. Your guests will be happy, we promise!
3. Drink water
The ideal food on New Year’s (and any other) night is not food at all, but water! It will be great if you drink water instead of food, or at least partially replace food with water. Following this advice, it will be easier for you to survive the feast, not to be tempted by harmful dishes, and to meet the new year cheerfully and energetically.
4. Stock up on fruit
New Year’s Eve is a real “tangerine boom”, but don’t limit yourself to tangerines. Buy in the store all the fruits that you like, everything that you wanted to buy, but always put out of the basket: blueberries, physalis, mango, papaya, rambutan, etc. Put a beautiful fruit basket on the table that will replace harmful sweets. Ideally, if your guests are at the same time with you and agree to such a light fruit table.
5. Don’t Overeat
Regardless of where and how you celebrate this holiday, we highly recommend not to try to try all the dishes at once. It is best to drink a large glass of water half an hour before the intended meal to slightly reduce your appetite. The perfect start to a gala dinner is a large bowl of salad, but certainly not Olivier. Keep your salad as green as possible: add spinach, iceberg lettuce, romaine, lettuce, cucumbers, garnish with cherry tomatoes, sprinkle with sesame seeds and season with your favorite vegetable oil. If you want to make this salad more satisfying, you can add tofu or Adyghe cheese to it. Also, at the festive table, do not lean on several hot dishes, choose stewed vegetables or grilled vegetables. And it’s better to leave desserts for the morning of January 1! After all, your task is not to eat “to satiety” and lie down on the sofa, but to be energetic and easy-going!
6. Walk!
A great way to celebrate the New Year is to do it outdoors. Therefore, after a feast (or instead of it!) – run outside to play snowballs, build snowmen and disperse those extra pounds. Walking in the fresh frosty air energizes, hardens the body, and the New Year’s street atmosphere creates a feeling of magic and celebration in the soul.
7. Go to a retreat center
An interesting option for celebrating the New Year can be a trip to a yoga retreat. Luckily, there are a lot of these events now. The undeniable advantage of such a New Year’s pastime is that you will be in an atmosphere of like-minded people with a benevolent consciousness and a desire for spiritual development. And, as they say, “as you meet the New Year, so you will spend it”, especially since the New Year is the beginning of a new stage, and it is very favorable to start it in good company and with the right attitude. Yoga retreats are usually accompanied by vegetarian food, gong meditations and, of course, yoga practice.
8. Take stock of the year
It is very important before the New Year to sum up the old, look back at the past year, remember all the joys, let go of all the worries. Forgive everyone who offended you, do not take negativity in the New Year. Mark (and even better – write down) your achievements and successes. You probably already know that leaving the past in the past, you make room for the new: new ideas, events, people and, of course, development; Unexplored new horizons will instantly open before you.
9. Write plans for the New Year
And, of course, you need to write in the smallest detail what you expect from the New Year, all your goals, plans, dreams and desires. There are several options for how to do this. For example, you can choose one or more global goals for the next year in various areas: health, travel, finance, self-development, etc. And then in each direction write small goals that will lead you to global ones, you can also plan them by months. Then an addition to the list of goals will be a “wish list” with pleasant things, places, events that you dream about.
Another option is to write everything in one big common list, without dividing it into blocks, in a free flow, listening only to your heart and “pouring out” thoughts on paper.
10. Start a “jar of happiness”
Before the new year, you can prepare a beautiful transparent jar, decorate it with colored ribbons, embroidery or wrapping paper and put it in a prominent place. And start a tradition – next year, as soon as some good event happens, when you feel happy, you need to write a short note with the date and the event, roll it into a tube and lower it into a “jar of happiness”. By the end of 2016, the jar will be filled, and it will be incredibly pleasant to re-read all the best moments of the past year and again plunge into those wonderful feelings and moods. By the way, you can put the first note in the “jar of happiness” on New Year’s Eve if you follow our advice 😉
11. Breathe and be aware
In this New Year’s Eve hustle, try to slow down, pause, and listen to your breathing. Just stop and try to let go of all thoughts. Feel this wonderful feeling of anticipation of a new stage in your life, a new year and new discoveries. Perhaps the most important rule of New Year’s Eve: be aware. Be “here and now”. Feel every minute, enjoy what is happening to you, enjoy every moment of this magical New Year’s Eve!
Good New Year to you!