Tips for maintaining your weight this holiday season

The holiday season starts from Thanksgiving and ends with Christmas, being the time of festivities and celebrations, and no party is complete without mouth-watering food and desserts. Aside from the decorations and socializing, people are more focused on what to cook for their guests or which dish to try first in someone else’s gathering. 

An average person gains around 0.5 to 0.8 kg weight during the holiday season, but obese and overweight people can put on as much as 1 to 5 kg of weight. These statistics and circumstances tell us that the holiday season is by no means a time to lose weight. It will be highly commendable if you can retain your original weight during this season.

Following are the few things you can do to maintain your weight during this holiday season:

1. Control your Cravings 

Holidays are synonyms with seasonal treats and recipes, especially for those who are eager to taste food that’s cooked only during holidays. How many times you’ve found yourself eating leftovers in the middle of the night just because you can’t get enough of a dish? 

If not the food, snacks are another reason to incite your binging tendencies. You start with one cookie, and the next thing you know, you’ve indulged in the whole jar. You need to control your midnight cravings and binge eating sessions and look for alternatives to satiate your cravings. 

Granola bars, bulk nutrients supplements, fruits, and vegetables are the kind of alternatives that are low on calories and are suitable for your health. Supplements will give you the necessary nutrients and make you feel full for hours, eliminating any chance of you spiraling out of control at the same of seasonal treats.

1. Eat Less, Eat Healthily

Everyone thinks that they get a free pass to overindulge during the holiday season. You’ll see people who normally won’t even eat one cupcake loading their plates with two. The common idea behind this carelessness is that it’s just for a few days, and they’ll go back to their diets after the festivities. 

Resuming your diet isn’t helpful, now that you have extra weight to shed that you’ve put on during your celebratory relapse. Self-control and restraint are the key characteristics that you need to adopt if you want to maintain your current weight. 

If you can’t keep yourself in check, then be mindful of how much you are eating and opt for small portions of everything you eat. If there is plenty of food on the table, then these tiny portions will let you taste all of them without messing up your diet. 

1. Police your Calorie Intake 

Most holiday delicacies are heavy on carbs, which is why gaining weight during these days is inevitable. Oily food, chocolates, desserts, sweets, and all the things that can potentially ruin your diet are the must-have items in holiday menus. If you don’t pay attention to your calorie intake, you’ll find yourself gaining weight faster than anyone else. 

Try to include fiber in your diet since it makes you feel full and stays in your stomach longer, along with proteins for muscle development.

1. Keep Your Body Moving

The holiday season makes you lazy, and most people prefer to binge-watch Netflix and TV while simultaneously eating the holiday treats. This combination is not suitable for your health, and it fuels unhealthy weight on your hips and stomach. 

The ideal way to avoid unnecessary weight gain is to participate in the holiday preparations. Help your family in putting up decorations, moving around furniture, grocery shopping, and trimming the lawn, etc. Staying active and on your feet helps you avoid unnecessary consumption of food. 

1. Talk to People 

Imagine going to a holiday party or attending a dinner and all you can focus on is food. If you want to control your weight gain, then distract yourself with things other than food. Talk to people and socialize more; that way, you’ll have an excuse to stay away from the dinner table.

Please go out to these parties with people you like, so there is no chance of you getting bored and going after food to keep you occupied. 

1. Exercise More 

Watching your calorie intake and portions are not enough to keep you in shape; therefore, you must double down on your exercise routine to maintain your weight. If you were exercising 20 minutes before, then extend it to 40 minutes now. Similarly, lengthen the period dedicated to your morning walks and cardio for a healthy lifestyle during the festive season.

1. Avoid Unhealthy Beverages 

No party or dinner is void of beverages, especially sugary ones and sodas. These seemingly harmless beverages can contribute to your weight gain at an alarming weight. Drink water instead of consuming these fruity drinks at parties, no matter how delicious they taste. 

If you are throwing a party at your house, then opt for freshly squeezed fruit juices without any sugar mixed in it. If you want to keep holiday celebrations healthy, then start from yourself and advocate your agenda to your family and friends.

1. Eat Slowly 

If socializing is not enough to reign in your food cravings, then try eating whatever you have on your plate slowly. Take your time to savor the flavor and chew your food correctly. This way, you’ll spend more time eating your small portion, which will make you tired enough to forgo eating more.

1. Recharge your Energy 

Parties tend to make you stay awake until late in the night resulting in sleep deprivation and will fuel your hunger more and will make you binge eat treats that you don’t even like. Try to stay cordial with your biological clock and do not go off the rail partying. 

In Summary:

Your weight gain is directly proportional to your self-control, which means the more your restraint yourself during the holiday season, the better it will be for your health.

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