Eat, drink & be very merry without holiday weight gain

It’s said the average person gains at least 1 – 2 (some sources report an average of 5 – 7) pounds during the holidays. I’ve even heard of the festive 15! Yikes. Even if it is only 1, statistics show that most people don’t lose it so those extra LBs add up year after year. Not to mention weight put on during other times of the year due to celebrations, vacations, various events and stress.

This is a fun time of year but all the parties, happy hour, holiday shopping, gift wrapping and erratic schedules can throw off your routine… it can all be a recipe for disaster when it comes to maintaining a healthy diet and staying slim. But it doesn’t have to!

This is such a fun time of year. Although, it can be hectic – I literally have something going on nearly every night between now and Christmas! However, I am making a concerted effort to be extremely mindful of living in the moment and enjoy the holiday parties, decorations, corny Christmas movies, moments with my boys, the festive sites around the town, the chill in the air – yes even in Los Angeles, it’s 45° as I write this tonight! 

It’s easy for weight to creep on even when we aren’t celebrating and throwing caution to the wind so being mindful and adopting good habits throughout the holidays will set you up for success.

It’s not always easy for me, believe me. I eat well and take care of myself so I’m usually at a good weight but I fluctuate and it sucks when clothes fit a little tighter. Ugh. But I learned how to stop the fluctuation. I’ll share that with you too because why should you wait till January, drop a few pounds now, you’ll look hot for all the holiday festivities and 2020 won’t be another year that weight loss tops your list of resolutions.

I share more tips in my video series: How To Avoid Holiday Weight Gain  Part 1, Part 2, Part 3. And for more on balancing nutrition and blood sugar levels for weight loss and maintaining, read, Discover 3 Key Factors To Achieve Your Ideal Weight & Optimal Health.

Tips & habits I swear by

Eat protein with each meal Protein helps keep you satiated and it’s key for preserving muscle mass.

Don’t party hungry  Eat something healthy and low calorie before you head out. This will help you eat less since you won’t be starving.

Bring it Bring something healthy and delicious to those potlucks so there will be at least one thing at the table you can enjoy that won’t be loaded with saturated fat.

Get plenty of sleep Watch your caffeine throughout the day and don’t drink any in the afternoon. Have your magnesium levels checked, a deficiency can affect sleep. Inadequate amounts of sleep can cause a spike ghrelin,the hunger hormone and a dip in leptin, the hormone that signals satiety.

Fill up on the good stuff  Enjoy the treats and special main courses but pile your plate with lots of veggies and fruit to help fill you up.

Sneak in exercise  Make all that running around work for you. Walk briskly, take stairs & take the long way around the mall. Instead of meeting a friend for coffee, chat while you power walk together. Take a family walk after dinner.

You absolutely CAN avoid packing on the LBs this holiday season! 

Dance! Step away from the food table and socialize on the other side of the room away from the spread. Burn major calories on the dance floor. Whatever you do, don’t mindlessly chat and graze when you’re not even genuinely hungry.

Fill up on fiber Eat your veggies first, the fiber will help you feel satiated so you’ll be less likely to fall prey to unhealthy choices.

Go Green Use clean, non toxic beauty and personal care products. Toxins are stored in our fat cells. Many of them are endocrine disrupting obesegens that promote fat storage, can alter metabolism as well as the balance of lipid metabolism in promoting calorie storage as opposed to burning them. 

Manage that stress Stress is a recipe for disaster when it comes to weight management. It can cause cortisol levels to spike which can impede weight loss. De-stress in ways that feel good for you… reading, meditation, working out, playing with your dog, getting out in nature, sex… whatever de-stresses you, do it!

Be festive Focus on your family, friends and new acquaintances. Put the emphasis on the experience and making memories.

Self Care You must take time for yourself during the holidays, especially if it’s a particularly stressful, anxiety-ridden time of year for you.

Stay hydrated  Drink plenty of water, sometimes thirst signals as hunger. Dehydration can also cause fatigue.

It’s about creating habits, these are principles and strategies you can use throughout the entire year

Go sparingly Rather than piling a few slices of cheese in your sandwiches, just add one, you’ll still get that cheesy flavor minus up to a few hundred calories.

Limit taste tests  Calories can really add up when you mindlessly nibble here and there. Eat only while you’re sitting down and enjoying your food. It’s so much more enjoyable that way anyway.

Plan ahead This is a really important one. It can save you from making fattening, unhealthy food choices. When you’re running around shopping and doing all the extra stuff we do during the holidays. Arm yourself with healthy snacks.

Planning ahead & eating healthy when you’re crazy busy can be a challenge, for a quick and easy list that will make this easier for you, download my free guide:

The Savvy Girl’s Guide To Healthy Eating On The Go

Walk it off  On the phone? Walk and talk outside or in the hallways. Walk wherever you can.

Stop when you’re satisfied Pay attention to your satiety, take a few deep breaths. Control your thoughts, eat only when you’re hungry. When you’re starting to get full but continue eating you’ll be stuffed and uncomfortable. Doing this often is where extra pounds come from.

Commit to staying on track Make your mind up to do it. Like anything you truly want to accomplish, it starts with your commitment. Food is fuel. It is not comfort or a reward.

Decide before you partake Make the decision before you go to each festivity that you are either going to stay on track or allow yourself to indulge. If you do, enjoy it. Count it as your cheat meal.

Bonus Tip If you do indulge more than you planned here and there, don’t beat yourself up. Live a little, enjoy it, have fun and move on. It’s just one meal and you can snap back into good habits quickly. What you resist, persists. If you are not feeling it, if you’re not in alignment with watching what you eat then give yourself a break without getting too off course and get back on track when it feels in alignment for you.

As my wise mom always said, everything in moderation. Don’t go hog wild just because it’s the holidays but don’t completely deprive yourself either. Have a few of your mom’s famous Christmas cookies, not a whole plate. Balance with small portions and eat until you are satisfied, not stuffed. Sounds simple but it works. You’ll be happy when you’re not faced with trying to lose 5 extra pounds come January.

How does holiday weight loss sound? 

If you do gain, I can help you take it off with ease. Or maybe you want to lose a few to look and feel your healthiest and most gorgeous for the holidays? You can!

The things we need to do to maintain weight and even lose weight are really rather simple but they’re not easy. However, they certainly get easier as they become your new normal. Build on the habits day by day and they will become second nature.

It’s not always easy for me, believe me. I like to indulge just as much as anyone. I’m usually at a good weight but I have always fluctuated. I eat right, exercise and live a healthy lifestyle but sometimes I’m up 5-7 pounds which does not feel good on me. I know, not a lot of weight, I keep it in perspective but it’s not comfortable on my small frame. I have an hourglass figure, I’m not trying to keep my curves at bay, I simply feel better and like the way my clothes fit when I’m at my smaller size. That hourglass can easily look like it has too many hours if I’m not careful!

Let me be clear, this is about being healthy and maintaining a weight that you are comfortable with, it is not about being skinny or trying to look a certain way. It’s a personal choice. Sure, being at a healthy weight is vital to your overall health but there’s a range of healthy weight. Two people can be the same height and bone structure, have a 15 pound weight difference but they can both be healthy and look great. Was I unhealthy with that 8 pounds? No, but I’m more comfortable without it. Furthermore, I like having sexy curves! I have a small frame but I’m going to have a J Lo booty no matter what size I am!

That being said, if you are several or even just a few pounds over where you want to be, then get rid of it.

A mere 10% reduction in body weight reduces your risk of various weight-related diseases by 50%!

They say losing weight is easy, keeping it off is hard. Frankly, freaking losing weight can be hard which is why I’m happy that I learned how to make both pretty damn easy for me and my clients.

I share more about that in the video series but if you’d like to learn more and have a free consultation, click here to book a time that is convenient for you. It’s an innovative lifestyle approach that gets your mind and body working together helping you adopt healthy habits that contribute to your long-term success.

Grab your FREE Healthy Eating On The Go Guide for more tips, suggestions and inspiration! 

Be sure to check out the video series: How To Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

Have fun & indulge in a bevy of holiday merriment this holiday season

A votre sante!