Holiday Indulgence without Weight Gain

December 03, 2011

Written By Erik Garcia | Photo By Katelyn Robertson The holiday season is a time for friends, family and of course great food. Prior to the holidays most people have an excellent diet before caving in and indulging on these wonderful rich foods. I am the first to admit that, even as a fitness professional, I indulge in cookies, pies and wine, but don’t let the treats during this time of year get me off track. In order to stay fit and feel great, it is important to have a plan for preventing the holiday bulge. My 5-step plan helps stay on track with exercise and to maintain nutritional goals:

Water: It is important to stay hydrated daily. Drinking water is essential for digestion, helps to maintain healthy weight, to flush out toxins, and to deliver nutrients to cells. Start your morning with 12-16 ounces of water before having any another liquids. At the next holiday party, begin with a glass of water, add lemon or lime, and have water throughout the event. It is important to drink a glass of water between cocktails not only to prevent intoxication, but in order to stay hydrated.
Drink: Keep it simple. There are hidden calories in most specialty cocktails that may lead to unwanted weight gain this holiday season. If you are a beer drinker, stick with light beer because one 12-ounce bottle has approximately 95-136 calories and you get the same great taste without the extra calories. Next, steer clear of sugar filled cocktails like a chocolate martini (438 calories), a margarita (200 calories), or a white Russian (400 calories). The best thing to do is keep it simple with red wine, favorite liquor on the rocks, or a Vodka and soda water.
Snack: Have a well-balanced snack before you head to your next event, which should consist of a protein, a healthy fat, and a carbohydrate, such as 2-3 ounces of chicken breast, small handful of almonds, or half of an apple. This prevents overeating, which is typical at a holiday party, and from being quickly intoxicated.
Graze: Don’t stand by the food. It is important to mingle with friends and family, and do not hover over the food. Grab a few items and walk around socializing for about 15 minutes before returning for a second serving. Not walking away, could result standing in front of the hors d'oeuvres all night long and overeating.
Exercise: When pressed for time during the holidays, it is important to remain on a regular exercise schedule. Especially for those who are short on time, consider doing a High Intensity Interval Training Session (HIIT) that is designed at a high effort level to be completed in a short amount of time, and to burn calories post-exercise.

Try the following Tabata HIIT that only takes 16-20 minutes of actual workout time, so that’s only 36-40 minutes including the warm-up and cool down. The workout should be done as follows (See the demonstation video): Complete 6-8 rounds of 20 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest of each of the following exercises. Complete the 6-8 rounds before moving on to the next exercise. The goal is to get the same number of reps for each set:

Squats
20 foot Shuttle run (down and back is one rep)
Push-Ups
Sit-ups

Implement this 5-step plan throughout the holidays and you should be able to beating the bulge and feel better than before. Look for more fitness tips on my website http://www.redlineendurance.com