It’s that time of year again when we are making our resolutions for the new year. If you’re ready to swear off all the bad stuff (sweets, alcohol, chocolate, bread) for life, you’re not alone. It’s totally normal and really exciting to create healthy resolutions, especially following what can be the over-indulgent holiday season.
Avoiding holiday weight gain may sound as feasible as Santa fitting down millions of chimneys on Christmas Eve, but we promise these are logical strategies to stay on track. Many of us experience weight gain during the festive winter months and unfortunately we typically don’t get all of it back off.
“When I look in the mirror I see a more confident person who is genuinely happy.”
The holiday season for some can be more challenging than wonderful. When the days grow shorter, many people slow down, are more fatigued, have a tougher time falling asleep and waking, difficulty with concentration and have intense carb cravings with related weight gain.
Although you may want to stay snuggled up in your warm bed, winter shouldn’t be a time that your fitness plans hibernate too. Especially with all of those holiday treats around. With the right attitude and mix of exercises, winter can actually be a fantastic time to mix up your workouts, get creative and even reignite your love of fitness by trying new, fun activities. Not to mention, exercise can help you beat that winter blues that is so common.
Did you know that about 50% of Americans gain 5 to 7 pounds during the holiday season? It’s shocking, but true! That’s about 500 extra calories each day from Thanksgiving to New Years. Just one slice of pie, 3 or 4 cookies, or even 2 brownies will add 500 calories to your diet.