"3 Holiday Strategies and 1 Heckuva Sweat"

Before I dive into the formula we need to address your 'Holiday Indulgence Factor'. Because it's different for everyone.

You must first determine your starting point. If you need to lose 40 pounds, you're 'Holiday Indulgent Factor' will be less than someone needing to lose 10 pounds.

If you need to lose weight, sacrifices must be made. And indulging during the holidays will be one of them. So, for some, it might be best to skip the parties, throw out the cookies, sip on light egg nog and look forward to ringing in 2011.

But if you do allow yourself to indulge, then follow this formula.


3 Holiday Strategies

It's time to party! Between work, social, religious, and other groups you probably have a few Holiday parties to go to. I have a buddy who goes to at least 8 or 9 every year! Sometimes there's no way around it. Follow these 3 strategies to make holiday parties your friend, not foe.


1. Eat before you go.
Nothing new or fancy here. Just DON'T go to a party hungry. Failure is for certain! Eat a healthy meal with lean protein and veggies 30-60 minutes before the party. You'll have a chance to satisfy your sweet tooth with something small, but you won't go overboard trying to make a meal out of bon-bons.

2. Drink one, then drink another.
No, no, no. Not another in quantity. Another in type!;-) Have a tasty libation, but switch to water or club soda with a lime afterwards. Do this with every other drink. Pace yourself and drink moderately. Remember, everyone makes fun of the company drunk. No one really wants to be them.

3. Be Balanced.
If you know you have 3 parties this coming weekend, don't go out for a burger and fries everyday at lunch. Nutrition isn't as easy as 'banking' calories (this is one of the flaws with the Weight Watchers point system). But during the holidays it's not a bad strategy to follow. Eat a couple of light meals on Saturday before your big Holiday party. Be balanced and don't go overboard every chance you get this season.

I assure you these 3 strategies will prevent the average holiday weight gain. But we're not finished with the formula.

Now it's time to work up one heckuva sweat. Go sweat your butt off! Go get after it. I'm not talking about walking the dog or reading a magazine on the stationary bike. Go hard, go intense. Go chase your kids in the backyard. Go wrestle with them in the snow. Do a high intensity interval on the elliptical. Do something. And do it hard.

I remember one of our clients had a T-shirt that said 'Go Animal or Go Home!'. That's good to keep in mind as you work up your sweat!

And if you really want this to be effective, do this before and/or after your party. Get your metabolism cranking and burn off the extra sugar and calories.

Put this formula into play. I'm certainly going to. And I'm also going to eat the cookies my trainer and his girlfriend made!:-)

Happy Holidays,

Tim Chudy


P.S. Do you have any other holiday fitness or weight loss tips? I'd love to hear them and so would the others reading this blog. Post them below.

P.P.S. John started the Holiday Kickstart last week. His wife Connie is jumping on the Fitness Holiday bandwagon tomorrow. That means it's not too late for YOU!