HOLIDAY WEIGHT GAIN: 5 TIPS TO KEEP OFF THE WEIGHT

For many people, the span between Halloween and Valentine’s Day can be among the trickiest to navigate without holiday weight gain. But it can be done! This year, try following these tips to make sure you don’t experience holiday weight gain before the New Year:

Have a Plan: It’s no surprise these holidays are coming, along with their holiday weight gain challenges. Why not sit down and make a conscious, written plan of how you’re going to navigate this tricky season? Think about what problems you’ve faced in years past and how you will overcome them. That way when you come face to face with a holiday weight gain challenge such as a holiday party, seasonal treats in the company lunchroom, a relative urging you to eat more, or no time to work out you’ll already have a plan in place and know exactly what to do to keep holiday weight gain at bay.

Get More Active: Putting fitness on the back-burner is a common mistake people make during the holiday season. This year, do the opposite aim to increase your activity levelto help offset any extra calories you eat and to help keep your stress level (a common cause of binge eating and cravings) under control. Simply squeezing in a walk as part of your holiday activities can help keep your holiday weight gain in check.

Watch What You Eat During the Week: A strategy that works well for many people is to stick to their plan faithfully during the week, perhaps even shaving a few hundred calories off per day. That way, when the less structured and more challenging weekend comes, they have extra calories to play with. Even if you don’t cut calories during the week, following the plan five days a week during the holidays is better than not following it at all.

Pack Your Lunch: Relying on high-calorie, high-fat takeout food as a way to save time is another common cause of holiday weight gain. Resist the urge to go out to eat with co-workers and be diligent about packing a brown bag lunch instead. You’ll have much better control over your calorie intake and won’t be tempted to eat foods you know you shouldn’t.

Aim to Stay Even: Losing weight during the holiday season can be done, but if that seems like too tall of an order to you, aim to just stay even until after Valentine’s Day. Not gaining weight is still a big accomplishment during this time, and if you don’t have any holiday weight gain, you won’t have to lose any extra weight later.

The holidays are a special time, so be sure to put the focus on enjoying moments with your friends and family rather than on food. Be good to yourself and remember that what you do on any single day isn’t as important as what you do most of the time. Happy Holidays!