"If you're performing well, it's a great opportunity to pick up a lot of points in a very short period of time," Howard told BBC Radio Merseyside.
"You don't train as much and you're really in the flow of getting out there and playing the full 90 minutes."
Everton face Birmingham, West Ham and Stoke over the festive period, following their fourth victory at Eastlands in the last four seasons.
The United States international admits the win was important on a number of levels and that the post match celebrations underlined the passion and determination among the players.
I'm a firm believer that if you just get your head down and work hard on the training ground, eventually things come good
Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard
"I think that was raw - it was pure emotion," added the 31-year-old. "It was weird how good that felt and I think we've beaten a few top teams in the past and they've felt good, but against City it was different.
"I can't really put my finger on it, but I think you saw from the players and our supporters how much it meant.
"Maybe because it was a Monday and it was cold or because they could have gone top of the league, there were a whole bunch of reasons."
Manchester City had 25 attempts on the Everton goal during Monday's game, and Howard was called into action on many occasions to keep the Merseysiders in the lead.
The former Manchester United keeper says the team has been preparing hard and are now seeing the reward for their effort.
"I'm a firm believer that if you just get your head down and work hard on the training ground, eventually things come good," he said.
"I think we've been playing pretty well as a team, but we've got too many draws. We had an opportunity to turn one of those into a win and you saw how big it was."
Source: BBC Sport
Source: BBC Sport