Eight Rules for Avoiding Holiday
Weight Gain. . .
The holidays are fast approaching!
And during the holidays, it's easy to lose focus of your health
and fitness goals as you're subjected to the constant onslaught
of stress, obligations, tempting foods, and festive parties.
This pressure can be compounded by the worry of how much weight
you may gain during the holidays. But you can do something
about it -- just stick to these eight simple rules.
- Have a vision.
What is your long-term vision for your body and health?
What's important to you: weight loss, increased self-confidence,
more energy, a better quality of life? Have a long-term,
year round plan and not a plan just to get you through the
holidays. Set a timeline to achieve your vision. During
the holiday season, focus on the short-term. Think about
how you want to look and feel now and at the beginning of
the New Year. Allow for contingencies and plan how to deal
with them. What contingencies, obstacles or outside influences
will you encounter during the holidays: tempting treats,
too much to do and too little time to do it, emotional ups
and downs, judgmental and discouraging relatives? Prepare
yourself for these contingencies. Put your plan in writing.
- Track your eating and exercise
habits.
Although the holiday season may not be the most conducive
to keeping track of your eating and exercise habits, it
is critical to achieving your weight loss goals. Make a
commitment to yourself to continue tracking food and exercise
habits throughout the holidays. It should only take a few
minutes each day. Even if you feel there is not enough time,
do it anyway.
- Eat regularly.
Eat regular meals and planned snacks every day so that you
don't get hungry. Hungry people lose their ability to make
good choices and find themselves eating whatever is available.
In order to reduce cravings, binges, and general overeating
throughout the holidays, eat enough so that you don't get
hungry!
- Think 90/10.
Completely depriving yourself of treats, especially during
the holidays, is a recipe for disaster. Aim to eat healthy
food and stay within your calorie and fat goals approximately
80-90% of the time. For the remainder of the time, don't
worry about what you should or should not eat.
- Watch portion sizes.
During the holidays it's especially easy to eat bigger portions
and more of everything. Be aware that the large amount of
food around you at holiday parties may prompt you to want
to eat bigger portions than you normally would eat. Portion
control is a must for weight control.
- Avoid emotional eating.
Avoid misusing food to ease emotional discomfort or to make
social situations easier. No matter how stressed or down
you're feeling, don't fall into the trap of emotional eating
at holiday time. In the end, you'll feel worse, not better.
- Value exercise.
During the holidays it's easy to find exercise-avoiding
excuses. Ignore these excuses and exercise anyway.
- Don't procrastinate!
Holiday time is prime time for putting important things
off until the next day. If you feel like you've strayed
from your weight control plan during the holidays, don't
think "I'll start again tomorrow." You must start again
immediately! If you keep waiting until "tomorrow," you'll
never make the changes you need to make.
|
| Ten Tips for a Good Night's Sleep
Do you have trouble falling asleep?
Do you fall asleep easily, then wake up 5 hours later and
can't fall back asleep? Do you wake up several times during
the night and have trouble staying asleep? If so, you are
one of over 100 million Americans who experience some form
of insomnia and your sleep may be improved by better sleep
habits.
- Make your bedroom primarily
a place for sleeping. It is not a good idea to use your
bed for paying bills, doing work, etc. Help your body recognize
that this is a place for rest or intimacy.
- Keep your bedroom peaceful
and comfortable. Make sure your room is well ventilated
and the temperature consistent. And try to keep it quiet.
You could use a fan or a "white noise" machine to help block
outside noises.
- Hide your clock. A big,
illuminated digital clock may cause you to focus on the
time and make you feel stressed and anxious. Place your
clock so you can't see the time when you are in bed.
- Expose yourself to bright light/sunlight
soon after awakening. This will help to regulate your
body's natural biological clock. Likewise, try to keep your
bedroom dark while you are sleeping so that the light will
not interfere with your rest.
- Exercise early in the day. Thirty to sixty minutes of exercise every day can help you
sleep, but be sure to exercise in the morning or afternoon.
Exercise stimulates the body and aerobic activity before
bedtime may make falling asleep more difficult.
- Do not nap during the day. If you are having trouble sleeping at night, try not to
nap during the day because you will throw off your body
clock and make it even more difficult to sleep at night.
If you are feeling especially tired, and feel as if you
absolutely must nap, be sure to sleep for less than 30 minutes
(early in the day).
- Jot down all of your concerns
and worries. Anxiety excites the nervous system, so
your brain sends messages to the adrenal glands, making
you more alert. Write down your worries and possible solutions
before you go to bed, so you don't need to ruminate in the
middle of the night. A journal or "to do" list may be very
helpful in letting you put away these concerns until the
next day when you are fresh.
- Don't eat a large, heavy meal
before bed. This can cause indigestion and interfere
with your normal sleep cycle. Drinking too much fluid before
bed can cause you to get up to urinate. Try to eat your
dinner at least two hours before bedtime.
- Limit caffeine and alcohol. Avoid drinking caffeinated or alcoholic beverages for several
hours before bedtime. Although alcohol may initially act
as a sedative, it can interrupt normal sleep patterns.
- Keep a regular schedule. Try
to go to bed and wake up at the same time everyday, even
on the weekends. Keeping a regular schedule will help your
body expect sleep at the same time each day. Don't oversleep
to make up for a poor night's sleep - doing that for even
a couple of days can reset your body clock and make it hard
for you to get to sleep at night.
|
| Fitness Quiz
Test your fitness knowledge.
- On average,
which of the following exercises burns the least amount of
calories?
- Jumping rope
- Jogging
- Cycling
- Pilates
When it comes to burning calories,
Pilates is no match for traditional cardio. Jogging can burn
up to 1,000 calories per hour, while Pilates pales by comparison,
burning approximately 275 calories per hour. (d. Pilates)
|
