6 Tips for Beating the Holiday Bulge

Most of us look forward to the holiday season with its events, activities, traditions and of course, the food. Is it possible to enjoy the holiday season without getting off track of your fitness program, or worse yet, gaining weight? It sure is. It may not always be easy, but with setting yourself up with some ground rules, you can enjoy holiday parties without overdoing the food and without starving yourself. The following are some ideas to help you enjoy the season and keep on track with your program. 1. Don’t listen to your friends People aren’t intentionally out to sabotage their friend’s goals, but they often-times aren’t overly supportive of others trying to maintain a clean diet, especially during the holiday season. If you intend to be around other people who may be eating sweets, treats and other unhealthy foods, be prepared. If you walk up to them with a plate full of vegetables and other healthy options as they’re eating fried and sweetened appetizers, you may make them feel a little guilty. Don’t expect your plate of healthy food to motivate them. Instead, they’ll likely try to convince you it’s okay to eat like they are. If you do choose to eat some of the less healthy options, do it because you decided to, not because someone else talked you into it. You’re less likely to feel guilty afterwards if you make the decision. 2. Workout before your party A high-intensity workout prior to a dinner party of other event can help your body better metabolize the food you’re going to eat. You likely won’t burn more calories in your workout than you’ll take in at your party, but your body will be more prepared to handle the food. Exercise increases insulin sensitivity and prepares your body to store more glycogen, meaning more of those carbohydrates will likely be stored in your muscle instead of being converted to fat. Of course, a good workout isn’t a license to eat to excess, but it can lessen the negative effects of over-indulging. A sixty-minute resistance training and metabolic conditioning workout can have the most beneficial effects, rather than just running on the treadmill for an hour before your party. The workout will likely enhance your mood so you won’t use food and drink to do that, and because you did something healthy prior to the party, you may be less likely to make choices that undo the benefits of the workout. 3. Hang onto a water bottle Constantly sipping on water is a great way to help yourself stay “filled up.” Drinking too much water can negatively affect digestion, but a couple of glasses prior to eating a meal or starting on appetizers is a great way to help yourself feel more satisfied. In fact, Brenda Davy, recently presenting at an American Chemical Society meeting , explained drinking two glasses of water prior to a meal has been shown to produce greater weight loss than just eating a meal. Her research team compared dieters who drank two glasses of water prior to meals with another group who didn’t. At the end of twelve weeks, the group drinking the water before meals lost 40% more weight.  They also averaged 75 to 90 calories less per meal. Hanging onto a water bottle will keep you from hanging onto a glass of punch, alcohol or other higher-calorie drink. If you don’t want to carry a water bottle, just ask for a glass of water with lemon while everyone else sips on their other beverages. 4. Go for the vegetables whenever and where ever Besides being loaded with nutrients, the large amount of fiber and water found in vegetables is another way to help you feel filled up. If you’re dining out, start the meal with a side salad. If you’re at a party, look for the vegetable tray. For those who like something crunchy like chips and crackers, raw vegetables are a great way to reduce the cravings for less healthy crunchy foods. The fuller you are from vegetables, the less room you’ll have for the less healthy foods. 5. Search for the leanest protein you can find and fill up Some fat in the diet is important, and the fat found in pasture-raised or grass-fed animal protein even has many health-promoting effects. However, when you’re at a party or going out for dinner, it’s likely the meat wasn’t raised that way, which means the fat in the meats may not be as healthy. That’s why lean meats are a better choice when you’re out.  Along with eating plenty of vegetables, look for a lean source of protein such as grilled chicken, fish, turkey, even lean cuts of beef. If you’ll be getting added fat from other sources during your meal, you might as well try to keep your protein source fairly lean. 6. Save the sweets and carbs until after you’ve eaten your vegetables and protein If you followed the ideas above, you’d likely feel pretty satisfied. Whatever your favorite starchy, high-carb foods are, hold back on eating them until you’ve had your vegetables and lean protein. When you do go for the starchy carbohydrates, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes and rice are better options for starchy carbohydrates and they’re gluten-free. If you think you’ll still have a cookie, piece of pie or some other high-carbohydrate treat, you’ll likely have much better self control if you eat the vegetables and protein first. Summary There’s no reason to be carrying extra guilt from an uncontrolled diet during such an enjoyable time of the year. Without making holiday treats the center of your diet, you can have a limited amount of them and still maintain your weight through the season. Just be sure the core of your diet stays the same every day – vegetables and lean proteins – and fit in the other foods on occasion. Dismiss the idea that all foods are okay in moderation. They’re not. If treating yourself on occasion can lead to out of control eating, don’t give into it. If, on the other hand, you can have a few treats once a week, and it doesn’t get things out of control, go for it. If the scale starts creeping up, get your nutrition under control right away. One final suggestion – don’t let the coming “New Year” be a reason to skip your workouts. Exercising regularly through the holiday season can help keep weight gain at bay and give you a head start on everyone else who starts their exercise program after January 1. You won’t be able to undo bad choices with exercise, but hopefully exercising will help you make better choices and keep you feeling great through the holiday season. Ten Healthy Holiday Gift Ideas ‘Tis the season for shopping and gift giving. Instead of sweets and treats or unnecessary gadgets, think about giving something to enhance the health and fitness of those you’re giving gifts to. The following are some gift ideas you may not have considered. They’re great gifts that can have a long-term impact. You don’t have to lecture your friends or family about the importance of nutrition and exercise. Let these gifts influence them for you. 1. Food, Inc. DVD Food Inc. isn’t a blockbuster movie, but it will have a significant impact on your friends and family. Not only will it will change the way they eat, it will leave them motivated, educated, frustrated and disturbed, which will fuel a change in nutrition and shopping habits. Most people understand that processed are not healthy and choosing organic foods is a good idea, but those often are not powerful enough reasons to make a change. Food, Inc. uncovers financial, political, environmental, social topics surrounding the food industry. It goes just deep enough to spark a desire to change, which for many people is all they need. In the end, people often understand how their shopping choices can affect a change for the worse or the better in the production of our food. If you haven’t seen it yet and you’re thinking of giving it as a gift, be sure to get a copy for yourself as well. 2. The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth by Jonny Bowden Each time someone asks for a recommendation for a good nutrition book, 150 Healthiest Foods is always on my list. It’s also recommended more than any other book by our top Registered Dietitians. Rather than focusing on a particular diet, Dr. Bowden helps the reader discover interesting facts on his top 150 Healthiest Foods, while weaving in interesting stories and colorful pictures. It can be read from beginning to end, or can serve as a great coffee table book to pick up on occasion and read something new each time. The colorful pictures make each of the foods jump off the page. Though the book is not a weight loss book, basing a diet on the foods found in the book will certainly help people manage weight, but they can also help improve health, fitness performance and longevity. With a listing of 150 foods, there shouldn’t be a shortage variety in an individual’s diet. Dr. Bowden has several other great books, but this might be the best one to start with. 3. Digital Food Scale Whether for making cooking easier or for controlling calories, a digital food scale is one of those kitchen tools you don’t know you need until you have one. From a health and fitness standpoint, being able to measure the foods you eat is a great learning experience. Very few people know what a one-ounce serving of nuts looks like. A four-ounce piece of chicken or steak is smaller than most people think. They may buy blocks of cheese and shave off what they think is a serving, when in reality it’s closer to three servings. Though you may not get a glowing response right away from giving away this gift, you’ll likely hear many “thank yous” in the future as your friend or family member starts using it. 4. Magic-Bullet People either don’t have enough time to eat quality meals each day, or they just don’t make the time for it. Either way, owning a Magic Bullet makes it much faster and easier to take in a quality meal buy making a protein shake. Protein shakes are great for just about anyone and can be made in hundreds of different ways. The headache is often in the cleanup, especially with large blenders. The magic bullet allows you to make a fast shake and it cleans up even faster. We use ours about ten times per week. If you want to be a bit more creative, pick up a Magic Bullet, and then stop by LifeCafe and get a bottle of protein powder and give them as a gift together. 5. Entry Fee for a 2011 Athletic Event Do you have a friend or family member who often talks about doing an event like a running race, cycling race, triathlon or some other athletic challenge, but doesn’t follow through? Do you know someone who needs a reason to stick to a fitness program? Why not sign them for the event yourself and give it as a gift? They will be motivated by the fact that they’re already registered and because you signed them up, they’ll feel more obligated to follow through. 6. Two or more sessions with a Fitness Professional or Registered Dietitian Another way to help someone who’s been on the fence about sticking to a program is to connect them with an expert. You could cover the cost of a couple of sessions with a Fitness Professional or Registered Dietitian to give them the kick start they need. If they’ve battled with injuries or other physical issues, a personal trainer can be someone to get them going. If nutrition, eating habits or other lifestyle factors have been affecting their health, a holistic-minded Registered Dietitian can be a great choice. 7. Gift Card or Membership to a Local Food Co-Op Do you know someone who is stuck in their way of grocery shopping just because it’s the way they’ve always done it? Give them a gift card for a local food co-op or other natural food store. If the co-op has a membership, you could also consider buying a membership. However, a gift card is like paying for groceries, so if you choose the gift card it will be more likely whoever gets the gift card will use it sooner than later. 8. Vitamin D Looking for something that almost everyone needs and is super-cheap? Pick up some vitamin D. When you’re shopping, be sure you’re buying vitamin D3, which is absorbed much better than another source sometimes found in supplements called vitamin D2. Vitamin D has  been in the news on a consistent basis with study after study showing the importance of this vitamin. Since sunlight is main source, more than half of Americans are thought to be deficient in vitamin D and the majority of Americans are likely below optimal levels. Although it’s inexpensive, like all other supplements, it’s best to buy it from top quality brands. At Life Time, we chose to carry the Douglas Labs version in LifeCafe. You can find it at your local LifeCafe along with several other Douglas Labs products. 9. Gift Card for a Health and Fitness Retailer Gift cards are always an easy gift to give. It takes the pressure off of the giver to find the perfect gift. If you’re going to give a gift card and want to promote health and fitness, pick a retailer that focuses on health and fitness products or services. It could be a gift card for your fitness center, a sporting goods store or a specialty store such as the Nike store or Lululemon. 10. Water Filter Reverse osmosis filters are the best way to filter tap water, but they’re beyond the gift price range for most people. A tap filter or pitcher filter is inexpensive and does a reasonable job of filtering water. Drinking plenty of water every day is important for proper metabolism, energy production, weight management and normal detoxification processes. Filtering water helps to remove toxins such as chlorine from the water. Each time your friend or family member drinks a glass of water, he or she can think of you.