It happens every year, as we celebrate the holidays with friends and family – the dreaded weight gain that builds and builds right into the New Year. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.
Most holiday traditions and gatherings center on food and drink. Of course we want to enjoy all the festivities, but how do we avoid the average five-pound weight gain that happens between Thanksgiving and New Year’s?
Five pounds of fat equals 17,500 calories. That’s a lot of calories that you have to burn off later, in order to take that holiday weight gain off.
So instead of becoming the human stocking stuffer again this year, why not try to avoid gaining weight altogether. You can do this by adding some extra exercise into your daily routing and by making better food choices. Here are my top ways to avoid holiday weight gain:
• Stick to your workouts: Even if it means getting up earlier in the morning to fit in 20 minutes of cardio, get it done. And no matter what, do not skip your workouts to save time for holiday prep. These are busy times, so you must prioritize your workouts, just like you would any other important appointment.
• Eat protein: Protein is the best way to stabilize your blood sugar, prevent hunger pangs, and avoid fat storage. Protein makes you feel fuller longer and ensures you don’t fall into the “hunger pang/I’ll eat anything” trap.
• Limit alcohol: Alcohol contains empty calories. But even worse, it slows fat burning. As I explain in my book; Eat More To Lose More, alcohol is a toxin that must be metabolized by the liver, immediately. While your liver is busy dealing with the alcohol, other metabolic processes are halted. This leads to a decrease in your metabolism by a whopping 30%! At parties, limit yourself to one drink and sip slowly. Wine is the best choice and contains beneficial anti oxidants. Mixed drinks made with sugary mixers or fruit juices are the worst.
• Plan your food and keep a food diary: If you know you will be having a taste of the holiday dessert, include it in your calorie count, and keep the serving size reasonable.
• Don’t kid yourself: Instead, plan for the occasional treat by working out a little extra or eating super clean the next day.
• Don’t go to parties hungry: A common misstep is to starve ourselves all day before a party, thinking we can enjoy more food without doing damage. This strategy always backfires. First off, your metabolism slows down when you skip meals. Secondly, it is more difficult to resist temptation when you are starving. Thirdly, your body can only store so many calories in the blood and liver, and the rest must be converted to fat. When you eat a very high-calorie meal, you will store fat – even though you may have eaten very little through the remainder of the day. So, instead of starving yourself all day, make sure to eat light, small meals throughout the day to prevent storing fat and overeating unhealthy party-food later.
• Carry snacks when you shop: Inevitably you will get hungry while you are out running errands and shopping. Getting things done during the holidays takes longer than usual, traffic gets hectic, malls fill to the brim. So, carry along a healthy snack to avoid having to buy gooey delicious items you don’t want to eat – or worse yet, not eat at all, thereby stimulating fat storage.
Staying in shape and preventing weight gain during the holidays is possible and you will feel so much better starting off the New Year without excess weight.
For more tips on how to stay fit and healthy, check out my book, Eat More To Lose More, or visit www.EatMoreToLoseMore.com.