Tips to Stay Lean and Fit During the Holidays (part 1)

Here are some tips to help you stay lean and fit and still be able to indulge during those hectic holiday weeks:

1. Create a plan ahead of time. Before the holidays sneak up on you, create a plan for incorporating fitness and good nutrition into your daily routine. Evaluate your holiday schedule and then determine how much time you will realistically have available to devote to working out and/or eating healthy meals.

2. Don’t put your fitness goals on hold until the New Year. If you can’t exercise as often during this time period as you normally do, adjust appropriately. Don’t use the excuse that since you don’t have time for your full workout you just won’t workout at all. Instead accept your limited availability and simply reduce the
frequency and/or duration of your exercise. It’s much better to cut your fitness time in half than to completely eliminate it.

3. On the day of a party, be sure to eat regularly all day long.  One of the secrets to avoid the holiday weight gain is to eat small meals throughout the day (consisting of some lean proteins like chicken or low fat dairy products) to keep your metabolism elevated. When you are at the party you are less likely to overindulge, not to mention if you starve yourself all day and save up your calories, your body can not process all those calories at once, and as a result you gain FAT!

Stay tuned for 3 more tips tomorrow....