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Monday, 26 November 2012

Christmas Weight Loss Plan


Christmas Weight Loss Plan - Cheat Your Way Through This Holiday Season

 

Are you interested in a Christmas weight loss plan or are you here because you think it is ridiculous to think that someone can actually lose weight during the holiday? Either way I am glad you are here because I am going to share a fresh new way to diet through the holidays that will allow you to enjoy every one of your holiday dinners and parties. If you are curious how you can eat pumpkin pie, stuffing and mashed potatoes and still lose weight then take the next 2 minutes to read on.

Christmas Weight Loss Plan

1. Regularly cheat on your diet to keep your fat burning high. The problem dieters face is a big one. When they stick strictly to their diet their body adapts to what they are doing by slowing the metabolism. This is a big problem because when your metabolism is slow so is your weight loss.

To lose weight consistently you must balance a low calorie diet with periodic high calorie days which keep your metabolism pumping. And this works wonders over the holidays, in fact it is in my opinion the only way to avoid weight gain during the Christmas holiday.

Here is what I recommend you do, simply diet strict for the week leading up to your party and then take the day off and enjoy all the fixings and Christmas cookies. Your body will retain water from this day but you will have boosted your metabolism and that is enough to more to get rid of that water weight and you will burn fat faster giving you a net weight loss.

2. Cheat on your exercise time. When you exercise this holiday season you want to cut down on your time and increase your fat burning and this is how you do it - add intensity. A Harvard study proved that short burst of intensity followed by short burst of rest was the key to putting the body in a fat burning mode. You can cut a 40 minute workout and actually get better results.

This Christmas weight loss plan is designed to allow you to eat your favorite foods and cut your exercise time in half while increasing the rate your body burns fat, I encourage you to follow this plan yourself or click on the links below to learn more specifics.

The good news is that you don't need to pick up any weight or feel deprived over the Christmas holiday season to keep from picking up all the weight you have lost! In fact, it is possible for just the opposite to occur and to lose weight over the Christmas holiday season...

The bad news is that Christmas does not give you permission to over-indulge and undo all the good you have done so far! Remember, it's only food, and the pleasure is temporary.

Go into the season with a different way of thinking this year - the Christmas season is probably the ultimate test you will ever endure in terms of food and losing weight, so think about food differently, and you will walk out of the Christmas holiday season with a looser belt and a grin on your face because you would not have picked up any weight...

The most helpful tip I can give you is that you actually make the commitment to yourself before all the feasts begin to choose to only eat when hungry. Make the conscious decision this holiday season, that no matter what, you will not stuff yourself on food, but food remains food no matter the season, and you choose to eat only when hungry. If it helps, take a doggy bag to eat over a longer period of time over a couple of days rather than stuffing yourself in one go. That will make you feel that you are not depriving yourself, but you will still be exercising self-control.

Here are some other practical and helpful tips to get through the holiday season in victory:

  • Monitor liquid calorie intake. Obviously water doesn't count - you can drink as much of it as you want. What you really should be cautious of are things like fizzy drinks and alcoholic beverages including beer, wine and champagne which are empty calories. Limit yourself to just one or two during holiday dinner activities. Sip water in between your drinks to space them out a bit.
  • Snack before dinner. If you eat an apple or drink a full glass of water about 20 to 30 minutes before you eat, you'll eat less because your appetite won't be horrendous. With that said, never go to a meal feeling starved, or you'll end up with a food hangover for sure. Those tend to be filled with feelings of regret and major bloating - it's just not worth it for those few minutes of temporary pleasure...
  • Eat a side plate of salad before your main meals. This helps prepare the body for the abuse to come, and you will find that this serves two benefits - the raw food helps to digest your meal faster, which means faster elimination and it serves to fill you up a little before the "bad" foods come tumbling down.
  • It's perfectly okay to indulge - a little. You can still have a taste of everything you enjoy, just watch your portions. Split your huge slice of pie with a family member and take small samples of everything else you want to try.
  • Move after eating. Try to walk around a bit after you eat instead of plopping your stuffed butt on the nearest couch. It'll help you burn a few extra calories.
  • Work out extra hard (and during the holidays, you will have extra time so you can't use lack of time as an excuse...sorry!) On weeks you know you'll be having holiday get-togethers, put some extra effort into your workouts. If you eat more than you planned, work it off by putting in the extra time to burn the extra calories you ate.
  • It's okay to say "No." Don't be afraid to tell people "no, thank you." It's YOUR body, and it's YOU who has to get rid of the excess through hard work.
  • Be aware. Before you start eating, look at the food on your plate and tell yourself that this is a lot of food and it will fill you. Of course, don't initially pile your plate up high so that you have an excuse to overeat! Rather dish up a small portion, pause when done and if you are still hungry, only then go back for more.
  • Copy a thin person. If you have not yet learnt how to identify true hunger, copy someone who is thin. Watch how much they eat and simply copy them!
  • Eat slowly. If you eat slowly, you'll give yourself a chance to feel full, rather than jamming food down your throat fast and then feeling like you're going to throw up afterwards because you're so full.

Most importantly, if you are tempted to overeat, remember that it's just food and the pleasure is only temporary.





 

 



References

 

Dr. Becky Gillaspy

Claire Carradice

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