5 Holiday Weight Loss Tips & Their Reality Checks
Do you find it almost impossible to stay conscious and
contentious about weight and nutrition during the holidays? Of
course you do. More than half of all Americans are overweight:
You're not alone.
A new government study might give you a ray of hope though: The
study shows that Americans gain only about one pound over the
holidays. The study found that people participating were
influenced by two main factors over the holidays: The level of
their hunger, and the level of their activity. In other words:
Those who reported being less active or more hungry during the
holidays had the greatest weight gain.
So common sense says: If you can stay focused on dealing with
just those two things, you'll probably win your personal holiday
weight loss battle. At the very least, you'll win by not adding
more weight to what's already waiting to be shed.
"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of weight gain," says
Dr. Samuel Klein, the Director of the Center for Human Nutrition
at Washington University in St. Louis, MO. "Preventing the
increase in weight is a lot easier and better than actually
gaining weight and then trying to get it off again."
So the answer seems simple: Eat less and exercise more. The
reality of implementation of course, is far more difficult.
The good news is that most of the people overestimate how much
weight they'd gained over the holidays. Fewer than 10% gain 5
pounds or more.
The bad news is: The small amount of weight gained is never
lost. One pound of weight gain is quite a small amount, but
since it's not usually lost again: The weight adds up over time
- to obesity.
Now we all know there are tons of tips out and about this time
of year, designed to help us keep from putting on that extra
pound or two during the holidays. Unfortunately what's usually
not talked about is: The reality of day-to-day holiday stress
and situations. Let's explore the tips... along with their
reality checks... in depth:
Weight Loss Tip 1: Stay active. The best thing you can do is try
to stick to your normal schedule and routine.
Holiday Reality Check: It's pretty hard to have any kind of
decent routine in the busy months of November and December. Busy
people tend to sacrafice yoga classes, long walks, and visits to
the gym because they need time for extra things like decorating
the house, cooking, cleaning up before the visitors get there,
and of course: Shopping.
The Good News: Walking around the shopping mall and stores is
great exercise, and so is cleaning the house. In addition to
those activities, decorating can be quite intensive too: You're
climbing up and down to hang things; lifting, lugging, and
dragging boxes out of storage; bending, twisting and turning to
get it all looking just right. So don't beat yourself up about
not making it to the gym... you're getting plenty of activity
and every little bit helps!
Weight Loss Tip 2: Don't let yourself get too hungry. If you go
to a party and you're starving, everything will look even more
scrumptious than normal. And of course, you'll eat much more
because of it. Try starting each day with a good, solid
breakfast - particularly something with protein. And when you're
at the party, try muching on the veggies to help keep you
feeling full. These two things will help your hunger stay under
control, and will in turn help you refrain from "gorging" on
anything you see just because you're famished.
Holiday Reality Check: We're all very busy during the holidays,
and it's not always possible to remember to eat - let alone eat
well - particularly in the morning when we may have already
overslept and are now running late for everything. And eating
healthy at a party isn't always possible either: Not everyone in
this country serves vegetable plates, salads, or fruit bowls.
Sometimes the only things in site are junk: Chips, candy, and
cookies.
Here's a suggestion: Try taking your own veggie plate to a party
where you know there won't be one available. A quick and easy
way to do this is simply buy a bag or two of pre-cut veggies and
some ranch salad dressing. Alternatively, eat a decent meal
before you go to the party. Don't overdo things, but don't make
it a light snack either. Eating first will help you to just
"nibble" a bit on the worst of the holiday treats offered.
Weight Loss Tip 3: Stay away from the food. Literally. Just
don't go anywhere near the buffet table, appetizers, or
treats... and you'll be fine.
Holiday Reality Check: In most cases, the food is everywhere.
And even if it's not right in front of your face, you sure can
smell it! Trying to just "stay away from it" is pretty
unrealistic - and it can feel like torture for some of us. And
for most people: When you can't have something, you want it even
more. So trying to stay away from the food will most likely just
make you overindulge worse than you would have otherwise.
Try this instead: Allow yourself whatever you'd like. But with a
catch. First: Take only half the amount you normally would. And
take just one food item. Eat that and enjoy it without guilt.
Then, wait a full 20-30 minutes before you get something else.
Then repeat the process: One item, half the portion size as you
normally would, enjoy it without guilt, then wait before getting
something else.
Allowing yourself to eat gets rid of the mentality of "I can't
have it (and thus I'm more determined to have it)" It lets you
enjoy the good food and the holidays, without beating yourself
up. This is healthy and can help tremendously with the way you
view food and eating in general. Only taking half of it though,
will help you not take in as much calories, fat, sugar or other
bad stuff you usually avoid. And then waiting 20-30 minutes
before you get something else will help your body realize when
it's had enough... or too much. So you're much less likely to
overdo things, and feel horrible physically later.
Weight Loss Tip 4: Wear cloths that are slightly tight on you.
This should help you feel full faster, and keep you from eating
too much food.
Holiday Reality Check: We want to wear looser cloths because
we're looking forward to eating all that great food! Yes,
wearing something tight might help us not go back for a second
helping of potatoes... or it might ruin a favorite outfit.
In the end, how you approach this tip is up to you, and you
alone. Make your decision and be happy with it.
Weight Loss Tip 5: Keep your portions small. Try to load up on
salad and vegetables, and take just tiny amounts of anything
else.
Holiday Reality Check: Taking just a "bite sized" amount of
anything is going to put you into the have-not mental state
mentioned earlier. You'll feel as if you can't have something,
and you'll want it all the more.
Try the tip noted above instead: Take half the size you normally
would. Trying to have just a little bite of pie will whet your
appetite for more, but having a whole piece is going a bit
overboard - particularly if there's 5 different pies for you to
sample. So try actual sampling instead: Cut a piece half the
normal size. This allows you to have a "whole slice", and more
than several little bites. Then wait about 20 minutes before you
go and try the next pie. Even if you end up eating a bit of all
5 pies, by having a half-sized slice of each, you've drastically
cut the amount of calories, carbs and sugars compared to what
you would have had with whole slices. And you'll still feel
stuffed and satiated, instead of deprived and resentful.
So there you have it: 5 different, common holiday weight loss
and eating tips, followed by the reality check of each, and a
suggested compromise that should help you enjoy the holidays to
their fullest, without depriving yourself of the great food we
all look forward to.
Whatever you decide to do, remember to actually have Happy
Holidays!
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