So you may be “Dashing” to the store, “Prancing” all over town and “Dancing” as the holiday party “Vixen.” But, it is this hustle and bustle that gives your diet a good lickin’. I’m talking devouring hors d’oeuvres, chomping on chocolate, and lapping up luscious liquids.
So, what can you do to stay in control and not have to“Don” your Spanx to fit into your little holiday dress?
For one, aim high like a reindeer and plan to work out every day. Then if you cannot make it to the gym or get asked out for a last minute happy hour, you won’t feel guilty.
The Cleveland Clinic agrees, stating, “To burn off those extra calories, kick up your exercise. If you exercise for 30 minutes a day, increase it to 45 minutes. If you exercise three times a week, move it up to five times a week.”
And for those not so discreet holiday treats they say, “One way is the one-a-day method. Allow yourself one small serving of a cookie or piece of candy each day during the holiday season.”
At the buffet put a little, not a lot, of the foods you love on your “Cupid”-colored plate. The reason, according to an article on Boston.com, is that seeing red could have you eating less.
The article cited an abstract in the journal Appetite. “The authors hypothesized that the color red may elicit an avoidance reaction through socially and culturally learned habits, such as a red traffic light or flashing red alert.”
Or think about Rudolph’s nose for that matter! Think “Red Solo Cup” for soda, too as the study suggests it works when bottoms up!
The “Color of Love” could also help you see your cup or glass half full not half-way to the bottom.
“Pouring red wine rather than white wine, into a clear glass, may make it easier for you to keep your wine portion, and associated calories, in check,” an article on Boston.com reported.
Size, shape and how you hold your drinking implement that is, is also of equal importance not proportions. Boston.com suggested using tall rather than wide wine glasses, and to not hold the glass when you pour the wine.
The article cited Cornell University researchers who claim that people “pour 12 percent more into wide red wine glasses, then narrow white wine glasses.” The same percentage holds true if you pour the wine into a glass you are holding rather than setting it on the counter or table.
So while you’re busy as an elf this holiday season, eat, drink, and be merry like one too -- in miniature portions,that is.
With a little planning and some helpful elves your holiday weight gain won’t be out of this world or of “Comet” proportions. Come the New Year, you won’t have to play any extra reindeer games in hopes of “Blitzing” off those extra pounds.
Sources:
“How to avoid holiday weight gain – ClevelandClinic.com.” The Cleveland Clinic. Web 10 Dec. 2013.
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/prevention/nutrition/holidayeating12_01.aspx
“3 Unique Tips for Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain – Boston.com.” Boston. Web 10 Dec. 2013.
http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/blog/nutrition/2013/12/3_unique_tips_for_avoiding_hol.html
“The color red reduces snack food and soft drink intake – ScienceDirect.com.” Web 10 Dec. 2013.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195666311006957
“Half Full or Empty: Cues That Lead Wine Drinkers to Unintentionally Over pour – NCBI.NLM.NIH.Gov.” US National Library of MedicineNational Institutes of Health. Web 10 Dec. 2013.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24028393
Joanne Sgro-Killworth is a Television Fitness Expert, Certified Personal Trainer and Sport Nutritionist and Publicist. She is Certified in Pilates, Pre-natal/Post-Partum, Yoga and Senior Fitness. She specializes in Weight Loss, Post-Rehab and Post Cancer Training.
Joanne's fitness plans, recipes and lifestyle advice are available globally on her website www.happiwoman.com. She resides in the Phoenix, AZ area with her husband and son, where she runs her fitness and publicity business, Fitness Answer, LLC.
Reviewed December 11, 2013
by Michele Blacksberg RN
Edited by Jody Smith