5,400 calorie feast

According to new research by Wren Kitchens, the average person will scoff their way through a whopping 5,373 calories this Christmas Day – that’s nearly three times the RDA for the average female and twice the RDA for the average male.

Although the great British festive feast begins quite modestly, with folk opting for a breakfast of toast or fruit salad, the majority of us have cracked into the selection box as early as 9am – and over a third have started on the celebratory tipple before noon.

Indulging on a calorific morning of confectionery, fruit juice and champagne means most of us will have hit our recommended dietary allowance of calories and fat intake before the main event has even begun.

But counting calories is a festive taboo for 73% of us, who admit they simply don’t worry about their food intake over the festive period – over half (60%) go as far to confess that Christmas is their ‘get out of jail free’ card to indulge in whatever they please – 37% admit they’re likely to crack open a bottle every single day of the festive week.

Zuzanna Sobocinska, registered associate nutritionist warns us not to make it a habit:

“While Christmas Day is one to enjoy all the trimmings, it is important to understand that getting into a habit of consuming such a high number of calories and exceeding the recommended units of alcohol can have a negative impact on our health, which includes a higher risk of diseases such as diabetes or certain cancers.

“As it would take nearly one and a half marathons (walking) to reverse one day of guilt-free feasting on Christmas Day introducing a healthy, balanced diet along with regular exercise straight after Christmas is a recommended way to reverse Christmas Day’s indulgence.”

The research reveals that the average person would need to head out on a lengthy 19-hour-long walk this Boxing Day in order to reverse the damage of Christmas Day’s calorific feast. Alternatively, you could undertake a 12 hour aerobics class or sweat it out on the treadmill for seven hours.