Four Ways to Fight Holiday Weight Gain

The holidays are a time for family and friends to congregate, laugh, reminisce, and eat. A lot. North Americans tend to go a little overboard with the sweets, treats and meats come the holiday season. Add on the cold winter temperatures that make outdoor activity difficult, and you have the annual perfect storm of holiday weight gain. Fortunately, there are ways to battle the seemingly inevitable ten pounds of winter weight gain. Here are four tips to make your holiday season less destructive to your waistline.

Drink Plenty of Water

We get it…you like eggnog, and spiced cider, and rum, and any of the endless list of holiday drinks that we all love. But nothing can help you keep your appetite under control like a simple glass of water. In addition to keeping you hydrated, and keeping your skin clear and supple in the harsh winter temperatures, water also helps regulate your appetite. A glass of water before and after your meal can help your stomach keep your eyes in check. In other words, in a time when treats are so easily accessible, water can help prevent you from putting more on your plate than you can handle. Did I mention it also aids in digestion? Add that to the list of its benefits!

Take a Stroll Through Your Local Shopping Center

Let’s face it, getting outside during the winter can be tough in a lot of places, so being active can be a little more difficult than usual. While holiday shopping in malls can often be reminiscent of a lost chapter of Dante’s “Inferno”, the simple act of walking through any of the massive malls/big box stores that litter your community can help burn off that slice of Aunt Vera’s Red Velvet Cake. A simple brisk mile walk can burn as much as 200 calories. Take the stairs instead of the escalator and add a few more calories. Park a little bit further away than normal, and add even more calories. Swing by the movie theater and use the lines of teenagers excited about the latest “Twilight” film as an impromptu pylons in your own walking obstacle course for that extra burn! You get the point.

Eat Smaller Servings, Slowly.

The average holiday get-together has more food than you should ever attempt to eat…but that doesn’t mean you can’t try. Since we all are going to be around a variety of foods constantly this holiday season, it would be a bit much to expect anyone to turn down all of it. So instead, try limiting your portion sizes…and take your time eating them. It’s a proven fact that your body takes around 20 minutes to register the fact that it’s full. So if you put a massive mound of Momma’s potato salad on your plate, it’s probably going to prevent you from enjoying much else, comfortably.

Fight Off That Post-Meal Nap!

Many people have a Thanksgiving Day Schedule that goes a little like this: Cook. Eat. Argue. Fall Asleep on Couch as the Detroit Lions lose on TV. This year, try and break the pattern a little bit: instead of immediately drifting off to sleep, take a brief, brisk walk – even if it’s just to the corner and back. Sleeping right after eating is a quick way to pick up unwanted pounds…and it’s not the best thing for your digestive ability either. When sleeping your body goes into rest mode…and all those calories you just ingested go unused which means weight gain. ANY physical activity is better than going right to sleep after eating a heavy meal. Toss a ball around with the kids outside. Jump rope. Even playing a video game is better than sleeping. Besides, this just might be the year that the Lions win one!


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