Uh Oh! The holidays are almost here.
It’s the most dangerous time of year for those of us on a weight loss and fitness mission. Excuses to not workout are everywhere, delicious sugary sweet food is EVERYWHERE! Alcohol and sugar laden drinks are everywhere! Whatever exercise and eating routines you’ve put in place are quickly destroyed by visitors, work functions, parties, BBQ’s, family, and the big day itself.
Last year we went away for the holidays and spent Christmas with family and friends in Australia. I was right in the middle of my own weight loss and fitness mission, having lost about 40kg. I’d developed good habits but didn’t have a plan for the holidays and Christmas. As a result I put on about 5kg, I was gutted! This year I have a plan for how not to put on weight over Christmas and the holidays.
I’m not going to tell you to skip the alcohol, the delicious food, or the good times with family and friends. Remember we don’t do battles of willpower here, and being healthy includes having fun and being social with the people you love. I want you to do all of that stuff, but I want you to maintain the momentum you’ve got and not lose the new, healthier habits you’ve been forming.
Let’s dominate Christmas and the holidays!
Let’s get something straight right now. Any kind of workout is roughly 4517% better than no workout at all. Holidays seem to breed excuses and are definitely a motivation killer. It’s super easy to think, “shit, I’ve only got a few minutes, what’s the point?!” I’m here to tell you there’s definitely a point! Plenty can be accomplished with just a few minutes, even if you just do a couple of sets of this simple exercise plan and go for a 10 minute walk. That’s better than nothing at-all and you’ll feel way, way better for it!
Food matters
We already know that what you eat, and how much you eat makes all the difference in your weight loss and fitness mission. But don’t stress over it, if you blowout at Christmas lunch, it doesn’t mean it’s game over and it certainly doesn’t mean you get to say ” fuck it, I’m gonna eat it all ! “.
It took me a long time to realise that one bad meal wouldn’t make me gain weight, let alone put all 60kg back on. But it does make the next meal really important. It’s when one bad meal turns in to a week of poor choices that things start to go bad real quick. The odd bad meal during the holidays is gonna happen, deal with it and move on.
- If you’re gonna eat an unhealthy meal, remember that it still gives you a chance to make the next one a healthy meal.
- If you find yourself in a situation where you’ll eat poorly, try to avoid adding beer, wine and soft-drinks on top of it. Liquid calories are a killer.
- If you find that you’ve eaten a couple of bad meals in a day, go for a walk. Trust me, you’ll feel better for it!
Make a choice. You made a choice to start this weight loss and fitness mission and how you choose to deal with all the bad food that surrounds you these holidays is another choice. Gaining weight at this time of year isn’t inevitable, there’s no reason you can’t kick ass and keep the momentum you’ve worked so hard for in the past few weeks, or months. Make a choice to make good choices.
Just don’t forget to have some fun at the same time.
A healthy Christmas and New Year?
Here’s my plan for getting through the next few weeks:
- Eat all the meat. The more protein you eat, the less room you’ll have for the unhealthy stuff like cake, trifle and all that other stuff.
- If you can, trade the potatoes in for kumara. Kumara is higher in both vitamin A & C than regular white potatoes, has more fiber and protein than potatoes, and is lower in calories. Kumara for the win!
- Eat (nearly) all the vegetables. Veggies should dominate your plate. Go all out on broccoli, asparagus and leafy salads. As above, avoid potatoes, but also corn – corn isn’t a vegetable, it’s a grain and we don’t process it very well.
- Drink all the water! Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Have a glass of water on the table with whatever else you’re drinking with the meal, and down a big glass of water every time you go back for another beer, or wine.
- Eat the unhealthy stuff last. Typically unhealthy foods have the least nutritional value, but pack the biggest punch in the form of calories. Basically you can pack a lot of this stuff away without feeling full. So, go nuts on all the healthy stuff and save those other things till last when you don’t have a lot of room left.
- Get your mission back on track the next day. So you had one moderately unhealthy day. Sweetas. Let’s get back to normal the next day. Go for a walk, do your workout and eat great.
Remember to have fun and enjoy the break!
– Shane
image credit: Christmas dinner at Taylors, Asparagus, asparagus, Christmas trees, Run, Santa!, Pile ’em high!, Ornaments
