Santa Claus won’t give his age away, but will say “put it this way, I have a lot of letters from the Queen”. He is 1.8m tall and weighs 113kg. Contrary to common belief, work isn’t just racing around the world on the many Christmas eves across the world; as you can imagine, a lot of planning goes on well ahead of time. A typical workday consists of waking up early to brief the elves on who has been naughty and who has been nice. Throughout the day it’s making sure that Rudolph, Blitzen and the other reindeer are fed, watered and exercised, then it’s overseeing the workshop, making sure the construction of toys is taking place.
Santa says: "I normally start with a very substantial breakfast to get things going. I think that given the line of work I’m in, it’s typical that there are some unhealthy snacking habits — all the milk and cookies that are left out for me can take their toll! I have realised that I do eat a lot of pies. I hear that in New Zealand there is a lot of pie eating also. I hope that isn’t my downfall when I’m at home at the ASB Santa’s Bach."
6am Oatmeal with walnuts, wholegrain toast and several cups of tea. Mrs Claus used to make a cooked breakfast but I am making healthier choices these days and, because I drink so many cups of tea, I have cut the sugar out of that too.
10.30am
2 Christmas mince pies and a handful of assorted nuts. Morning tea with the elves sampling some of the goods.
12.30pm
Ham sandwich with cranberry sauce and salad. More Christmas tradition. These days, however, I’ve opted for a sandwich rather than a full roast meal. I still need to fit in my sleigh!
4.30pm
2 mince pies and a handful of scorched almonds.
7pm
Roast turkey with steamed vegetables. Mrs Claus, the elves and I have a large, sit-down meal to show our appreciation to one another.
10.30pm
2 mince pies, mulled wine. I’m not a big drinker but I enjoy winding down with a mulled wine and yes, more mince pies!
Nadia Lim’s nutrition quick fix
Well, Santa, you certainly love your mince pies! In order to make sure the reindeer aren’t struggling under too much weight, I think you’re going to have to cut down to only one or two small mince pies a day as a treat.
However, I think Christmas day is an exception, where we don’t have to worry too much about what we’re eating - we should just eat what we want and enjoy the day, but there’s no still no need to pile your plate up with everything on offer. Be a little picky and only choose the foods you really love. That way, you’ll end up enjoying your food more and eating less.