While most of us will probably put on a small amount of body weight over this festive period, you could always go against the grain and lose some! While temptation is just about everywhere, there are things you could do that might help prevent putting on more weight, or even help you lose a little bit! None of these tips are over-the-top, they are just simple bits of advice that most people should be able to follow along with, provided you want to…
Wake up and Have a Big Breakfast
By getting up before 9 am every morning and having a large breakfast will not only fill you up for the day, but it also kick-starts your bodies metabolism and that means you will burn even more calories naturally throughout the day.
Keep Away From Dairy
From Eggnog to cream cakes and milky coffees. It is hard to stay away from dairy especially at Christmas, but you could always swap that said dairy for another sort of milk and it will taste much the same.
Have Lunch Before 1 pm
If you have a late lunch you will still be digesting a lot of it when it comes time for dinner, so do try to eat lunch before 1 pm. This will give your body a few hours to digest that said food before then evening meal. and this should mean your metabolism keeps active and isn’t overworked.
Smaller Potions Are The Key
One of the best tips you can learn is to make your portion sizes smaller. This means you can eat the same things you enjoy, but just make sure they are not large potions, especially when it comes to treats. Have 1 small glass of eggnog, have a small bar of chocolate.
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Use Smaller Plates
You might be feeling a little cheated if you only have a small portion of your favourite foods, but by making the plate smaller should trick your mind into accepting that smaller portion! This will also make you feel fuller once you finish the whole plate.
Eating Times Are More Important Than What is Eaten!
This isn’t the key to eating all you want, but it is the key to using all these other tips to maximum effect. You should never eat 3-4 hours before going to bed and always try to have breakfast before 10 am. There are times when your bodies metabolism is higher, so knowing those times are the key to using it to maximum efficiency.
Make Just One Meal a Light One!
While you should have a big breakfast you should aim to make at least 1 meal something light. Maybe just a sandwich, or soup, or salad. Making just one meal a light one will help your body rest between larger meals and then you will enjoy the larger meal even more! Who needs diet pills when you have a clock!
Try and Stay Relaxed
This might sound like a mental health tip (which it also is) but your happiness is also linked directly to your weight gain or loss. By staying as positive as you can you won’t find yourself eating so much to comfort yourself. Sadly this is a stressful time of the year and that is harder said than done but do try to ignore more of the negative things and enjoy more of the positive things like peoples smiles and pay more attention to those who are enjoying themselves.
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Drink only In Moderation
While food is one temptation of this festive period, it is drink that will add the lost weight to your body. This doesn’t mean you need to stay tee-total, but you should only drink with a meal or light snack to soak up some of the liquid.
Go for Festive Walks
A large part of festive weight gain is that we all tend to batten down the hatches when it comes to Christmas and stay indoors. But going for a short walk after meals will help your body consume the food you have given it and keep your metabolism working at full speed. The general rule of thumb is to go for a walk long enough to stay to sweat a bit, then return home. The slower the walk, the more of that lovely fresh air will fill your lungs.
Do you have any other tips that will help us all lose weight over this tasty time of the year? If you do why not leave them in the comments below so we can all learn from them.