Holiday Hunger Pains: Helpful Tips to Prevent Holiday Weight Gain
With summer officially over, that means we’re entering the holiday season. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day are the major holidays for this time of the year, and the biggest way people celebrate those holidays is with food. Food is what brings people together to fellowship and break bread together, so it’s understandable why food is the focus around the holidays. But it’s also the reason why people gain a considerable amount of weight around this time of the year too.
According to the National Library of Medicine, the average American gains an average of one pound between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. And true enough, that number isn’t very big so it may not cause you too much concern, but the thing to be concerned about is the fact that people don’t lose that extra weight. One pound is the average weight gain but all the overeating, calorie-rich foods, and sedentary behaviors we all engage in, some people gain more than one pound.
Because excess weight is so hard to get rid of, in most cases, the weight you gain during the holidays is one of the biggest contributors to your annual overall weight gain. But people make excuses to overeat and indulge themselves in food simply because they’re going to start fresh in the new year.
People make these resolutions that they’re going to cut carbs, join a gym, and get more sleep to jumpstart their healthier lifestyle… And some people actually do just that and stick with it. But the majority of people will get started on their journey of healthy eating and working out, but then their efforts become less and less to a point where they completely just stop.
*Cue the extra pounds!
The biggest question is why do people feel they have to wait until January 1 to try and start losing weight? If you want the truth, the holiday season is when you need to get your weight loss journey started simply because it’s the biggest contributor to your annual weight gain. If you can prevent gaining weight during the holidays, you will have more of a fighting chance in your weight loss efforts throughout the start of the coming new year.
With the holidays quickly approaching, you can still enjoy the holiday foods you love, but there are smarter and healthier ways to do it. Take a look at these helpful tips to get ahead of the holiday weight.
Helpful Tips to Prevent Holiday Weight Gain
Watch Your Portion Sizes
With the cheesecakes, turkey and dressing, sweet potatoes, and macaroni and cheese at your disposal, it can be very easy to overload your plate. It’s funny because if you look at the size of the average dinner plate, they’re much smaller than holiday-sized festive plates that are typically on display in stores… It’s like the world wants you to overeat!
But don’t give in to the temptation. Eating from a smaller plate will limit the amount of food you can fit on there. Another trick is to look at the size of the serving utensils. They’re typically pretty big but even with big-serving utensils, people will put two big spoonfuls of food on their plate. Only get one spoonful of food, and the spoon doesn’t have to be piled high either. This is all dependent on the utensils being used but you have to use your own judgment too.
Make Sure You’re Getting Plenty of Sleep
The holidays can bring about late nights from preparing food, hosting guests, and wrapping gifts… It’s the holiday season so this is expected. But sleep deprivation can also cause your body to feel hungrier than usual, which also causes holiday weight gain.
Because it’s the holiday season, there are more desserts around and people tend to eat them right before bed… Don’t do that. Eating before bed is one of the worst bad habits you need to break to get better sleep. Whether you have to put yourself on a sleep schedule or turn the TV off before bed, you need to do everything you can to make sure you’re getting plenty of sleep, and especially during this time of the year.
Start a Juice Cleanse
Don’t panic, to start a juice cleanse doesn’t mean you have to do it on Thanksgiving or Christmas. But it is important to note that those holidays fall only on one day every year, so that means you probably won’t be eating those big dinners every day from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day. You could start a juice cleanse between the holidays to jumpstart your healthier lifestyle.
Rawgeneration.com is a great juice cleanse for weight loss that will help you during this most tempting time of year. With this, you’ll definitely be able to prevent that holiday weight gain. This also doesn’t mean to go overboard on the holidays either, but portion control and mindful eating will help make your weight loss journey go the distance.
Avoid “Seconds”
This time of year is the only time when going for seconds is highly encouraged. Want more turkey and dressing? Go for it! Want more pecan pie? Eat your heart out! But you can’t do that. All that sugar and processed foods aren’t good for you, and if you’re going to eat them, you want to definitely eat them in small portions, and of all things, avoid seconds, no matter how bad you want them.
