4 Tips to Avoid Weight Gain During the Holidays

#weightloss #holidayeating #holidaypounds

Tis the season...

It is almost time again for all the food festivities that come with the holidays. Yummy to my tummy...but HOLD the weight gain please!

Over the last few months I have lost 40lbs...and with the holidays right around the corner, I am earnestly trying NOT to gain them back.

Here are 4 ways that I am planning to stave off the holiday pounds

The Kate Rule.

When I was finishing up my surgical residency in Pittsburgh, PA ( Go Steelers!) a co-resident and dear friend of mine shared her rule with me. Let me just say that Kate is one of those people who stays fit, she is a marathon runner, who can do chin ups with ease - 'nuff said.

One time when we were out to dinner, Kate ordered dessert. A large, yummy piece of vanilla flavored cake. The cake had a thick spread of whipped icing and ample filling between two perfectly sized cake layers. As she began to eat her dessert, she took a large fork-filled bite. Slowly ate the mouthful of cake, then put her fork down and pushed the dessert away. Our conversation continued.

I asked her why she did that?

She replied - "it's my rule. I don't deny myself of foods I enjoy. However, I don't indulge in large amounts." Her rule didn't include special occasions or celebrations. Instead this was her rule for every day life. Now I know you are thinking - the holidays ARE a special occasions, which is true. However, what I usually do, thanks to my friend Kate, is choose a few (no more then 3 items) or so that I want to enjoy at the holiday meal. Instead of indulging in all food items. That way I am not packing my plate with everything; but I am not denying myself either. A single bite here. A little nibble there. Then my 1-3 items in normal portions. NOT heaping on my plate.

Additionally, I plan what specific meal I will indulge for my few items. Breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, or dessert. NOT all those meals.

It's all in the planning... make your decisions before you begin to make your holiday party rounds. Trust me, it makes a difference in your weight management.

CHUG - CHUG - CHUG.

Water before. Water during and water between.

Before I eat a meal, I drink about 8-16oz of water.

During my meal, I also sip on room temperature water.

Then between meals I also drink water.

Water consumption has long been linked to health and weight management. From my experience, when I drink water, I am less likely to overeat. I even practice this water consumption in my every day lifestyle. Not just during the holidays.

Staying properly hydrated has been a game changer in my weight loss journey as well as my weight management.

KEEP MOVING.

The holidays usually means lots of family gatherings and being more sedentary than in your usual daily life. Communing with other is one of the best parts about the fall and winter holidays. However, when we stop moving, we burn less calories. Which means the possibility of weight gain. NO BUENO...

What I do, regardless of where I am traveling or who is visiting - I make physical activity a priority. Not necessarily hard core workouts or 1 hour weight sessions - but more so keeping up with my daily step counts (8-10k) and doing hip stretches (that helps manage my cortisol levels which is such a big deal for women's health and weight loss).

I started doing these stretches about 2 months ago on direction from my awesome nutritionist - Cyndee at the BreathEasy Wellness Center

Even though admittedly, I do get very excited and caught up with all the activities and holiday festivities, I try to keep my healthy lifestyle goal in mind. Yes, we want to live and enjoy yummy food - however, we should also want to honor our bodies and our commitment to ourselves.

Don't compromise all your days/months or years of hard work for a fleeting moment of pleasure.

Be Accountable.

Yep. You know I had to add this one it. Sorry, not sorry. Lady, it is so much easier to stick with your weight loss and weight management goals if you have a way to track your actions and be accountable. Sometimes, discussing with a close friend or even journaling your goals can prove to be extremely helpful. Oher times, using an app that tracks your meals, nutrition and water intake can help to keep with focus and provides lots of information. I like to do a combination - I use the free version of an app, and I tell my goals to my friends and my family members. Especially those who I am going to be spending the holidays with. That way they can be sure to help me with my accountability. I give them permission! Look, all the help I can get! RIGHT?

If you are not comfortable with being reminded of your weight management goals, then just stick to the app our journaling.

The app that I like to use is called MyFitnessPal. I use the free version. It's an extremely user friendly platform that, even with the free version, still provides an extensive amount of information.

Eating a balanced meal is important to weight management. MyFitnessPal allows me to track my Proteins, Fats, Sugars, Carbohydrates and also lets me know how much of each that I need to eat daily in order to stay on track with my weight loss goals.

To end, the fall and winter holidays are wonderful and exciting. I pray you all enjoy your experiences with your loved ones! In the end, you have to give yourself grace. The goal is to life a healthy lifestyle - not live in restriction or self deprecation.