Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain

by Susan Patterson
With the holidays around the corner, many who have their diets under control may be fearful about the wave of parties and events centered around food in the coming months. If this is your first holiday season following your healthy lifestyle, you may be apprehensive about how to handle social situations with endless buffet tables and overflowing dessert trays. While it is easy to get off track, there are a few strategies you can follow to stay on the beam.

Accountability is key during these treacherous times. Set up a system if you don’t already have one in place. A food diary is a powerful tool to keep you heading in the right direction. You may not overeat if you know that you will have to write it all down. Putting it on the internet is even better. Even if no one is reading, you still have the sense that someone else will see. Get a partner to help you through tough times, either by a supportive phone call when temptation strikes or even attending events with you. Seeing your buddy’s face may keep you from going back for seconds.

Deal with your issues surrounding eating. Experts say that those who pretend the food is not there or use other avoidance strategies are less successful. Sometimes certain foods, smells in particular, can evoke certain emotions you may not be aware of. Either pleasant or painful, these memories or feelings may cause you to eat without realizing what happened. Deal with these things before hitting the party, and have a strategy in place to deal with them more sophisticated than ignoring your emotions. Find out why things make you feel the way you do can take the power away from them.

Use other tools to help you. If you are taking diet pills, don’t stop because you know you want to eat more. A natural appetite suppressant such as hoodia may keep your cravings in check. Take it about an hour before your first event. Though not as popular, pocket calorie counters may help you avoid wrecking your day’s diet in a couple of hours. Eat light throughout the day to avoid any major damage, or eat before getting to the party so you will be almost full when you get there. The important thing is to use every tool possible to avoid caving.