It’s getting to be that time of the year… diet season. Right now decorations are going up and people are getting festive by baking and sharing holiday treats for all to enjoy. Right now you aren’t even thinking about being healthy or following your weight loss plan, instead you’re enjoying the plethora snacks.
The truth is, it could save you a few extra pounds to lose with your New Year’s resolution by not overdoing it right now and staying focused. Honestly, this is a rarity and too many of us fall into temptation. So, I want to help you remember a few things when trying to lose weight. My biggest advice would be to avoid fad diets. How do you know if you are falling into a fad diet?
Susan is a NESTA Certified Fitness Nutrition Coach, a regular contributor on Gyminee.com, and writes about fitness and nutrition via her blog, Catapult Fitness Blog. Gyminee is the premier fitness social network for detailed tracking, online accountability, and motivation. Whether you are trying to lose weight or get fit, it’s time to start taking your fitness seriously. Enjoy this holiday season by staying in shape! Gyminee provides free tools for finding and tracking workouts, monitoring caloric and macro-nutrient intake, and a motivational support system to keep you focused and true to your goals.
The holidays are a time to celebrate with family and friends and so often, also a time where many of us tend to go overboard on the smorgasbord! Office parties, family dinners and New Years revelry, along with the stress of the holiday season, make it easy to pack on unwanted pounds. The good news is that with a little planning you can have your cake and eat it, too.
Suggestions for staying on track this holiday season include:
Plan Your Workouts: You know how busy you’ll be between Thanksgiving and New Years so start off on the right foot by committing now to a regular exercise routine.
Amy lost 54 lbs in 4 months by eating low carb and changing her attitude towards food. She has an online cooking show called Eating Low with Amy that teaches people how to cook low hassle, low carb recipes. She also runs the Eating Low web site and forum.
You’ve got the latest diet book. You’ve read it from cover to cover. You’re psyched up and ready to go. Or are you? Preparation is one of the keys to successfully losing weight and is especially important when you are starting a new plan.
Make sure you understand the diet guidelines. Even if you think you know what the plan is all about, go back and reread the guidelines again. The better you understand the plan, the easier it will be to shop for the right foods or even stay on plan if you are caught without your planned food and need to eat out.
Get rid of food that is not on your plan. Don’t even keep it in the house. It’s too easy to cheat if you keep a bunch of junk in your pantry. If your family eats food that is not on your plan, store it in a separate cabinet or have them hide the junk from you.
Make out your menu for the week. Most plans offer sample menus. Go through the sample menu and make any substitutions. Write out your plan so you know exactly what you will be eating during the week. You don’t want any surprises.
Ranae from Ranesheart.com joins us as a guest blogger today. Ranaesheart.com was born as the result of a life-changing weight loss and the commitment to “pay it forward” in helping others achieve the same success. This site is dedicated to helping people transition to a healthier lifestyle by implementing nutritional food choices, moderate exercise, positive self-talk and surrounding themselves with the support of friends, family and Internet social networks, such as MedHelp.org, an online health community that provides medical information and support.
In these economically challenged times, the competition for our food dollars is fierce. In addition, with large corporation failures, Wall Street tumbling and foreclosures at record highs, there is an ever increasing need for us to tighten our belts and be frugal with our food budgets.
Here are some suggestions on how to live on a shoestring and make wise choices while pinching pennies:
- Visit your farmer’s market or street side stand to purchase the freshest fruits and vegetables of the season. The further you get into the growing season, the more plentiful the produce and the greater value you can find.
- Check out the frozen fruits and vegetables; sometimes they are less expensive than their fresh counterparts.
- Watch the weekly ads at your local supermarket and plan your menu around those items. If you don’t get the paper showing you the advertisements, you can usually obtain a copy at the courtesy counter.
- Managers also have many in-store specials. Here are a few to watch for:
- Take a stroll to the meat department and watch for items priced to sell quickly. Just use them quickly or pop them in the freezer and they’ll be ready to use when you are!
- Scope out the produce department as markdowns are made when items reach the ready-to-eat stage.
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