10 ways to make it through the holidays without gaining a pound!

The average American gains about 5-7 lbs from Thanksgiving through New Year’s! Don’t let this be you this year. I have 10 tips to help you survive the holidays without gaining a pound. And if you follow most of them you will probably lose some weight!

It is really easy to just let yourself “go” during the holidays. There is so much food available and everyone else is eating as much as they want. Don’t let this lure you into doing the same. Remember what your goals are and don’t put them on hold for the next two months with empty promises of starting back again after the New Year.

#1. Plan your treats. If you plan to treat yourself you can manage the rest of your diet and exercise program to compensate. Plus, by planning them, I guarantee that you will eat less then if you didn’t.

#2. Get plenty of sleep. The holidays can be exhausting enough. Add in no sleep along with all the ready available food and you have a disaster. When you are tired you are not as active so you burn less calories. On top of that your body will tell you that you need to eat more so you will have more energy. Not true, that will just lead to more sitting around, which will lead to more weight gain.

#3. Be more active. Sign up and participate in a Turkey Trot. It is a great pre-pig out workout! You don’t have to be a runner to participate. Most Turkey trots have a 3 mile walk option. If you don’t have a Turkey Trot to go to you can join us. We are doing a 5 mile run or 3 mile walk. Call me for details 443-226-6799. If you can’t make it to a turkey trot take frequent breaks and walk your dog more. You will burn more calories and your dog will love you! I need to listen to this one, My dogs are not happy with me right now.

#4. Eat every few hours. When you overeat your blood sugar spikes and then you get really tired, which causes you to sit around more burning less calories. Not to mention your body starts laying down fat cells from the excess food you ate. So eat smaller meals every 3 to 4 hours to keep your metabolism burning all day long!

#5. Never skip breakfast! While you are sleeping your body is in “fasting” mode. Kick start your metabolism and start burning calories by eating a healthy breakfast first thing in the morning! This is the most important meal of the day, yet most Americans do not eat breakfast.

#6. Drink Water! You will be surprised, or maybe not, about how many people NEVER drink water. First of all there is zero calories in water, so drink as much as you can. Water is the second most important thing your body needs next to oxygen! Water is also a natural appetite suppressant. Most people are severely dehydrated and mistake feeling hungry for thirsty and overeat. I recommend drinking 8 oz. of water before every meal. This will cause you to feel less hungry and eat less. Also drink another 8 oz. of water between meals with your snacks. This will give you a minimum of 6 8oz. glasses of water a day!

#7.Balance each meal. Your body needs a balance of carbohydrates, protein and fat in every meal. This helps stabalize your blood sugar which keeps your metabolism burning all day long.

#8. Start a resistence program. Lift weights (bodyweight included) to build lean muscle. For every pound of lean body mass you have your body burns an extra 50 calories or more! Not sure where to start? We are offering 2 free weeks at boot camp right now. Take advantage of that to jump start your holiday fitness program.

#9. Start doing Interval Training. High Intensity Interval Training H.I.I.T has been proven to be more effective than “traditional cardio”. Quit reading your magazines for hours while on the recumbant bike!  You can burn more calories from doing less just by increasing the intensity for short bursts at a time. Your metabolism will be boosted for a few hours afterwards which burns way more calories.

#10. Stress less! The holidays are stessful. Try to think about the bigger picture, of what’s really important. Give yourself a spa day or a massage. Stress produces cortisol which has been proven to increase belly fat. It also increases appetite which leads to overeating and causes fat storage and slows down your metabolism. So this holiday season promise yourself not to take it so seriously! Enjoy th time you have to spend with family and friends. Give yourself a gift! Besides no one wants to spend time with someone who is all stressed out and no fun to be around.

Well that’s it! Follow these tips and don’t settle for being average and waiting till the holiday’s are over to take action! Take action now. I promise if you do even half of these tips you will be feeling better, looking better and will have to buy yourself a new wardrobe before New Years. And if you want a jump start on your fitness program visit one of our boot camps for a free two week trial! Happy Holidays!