Holiday Bulge: Exit Strategy Needed

Happy holidays everyone!

I have solved the gain weight during the holidays dilemma! All you need is an Exit Strategy!

I was worried about Thanksgiving because as most of you know at this point one bad mean can send me spiraling down a very chubby path. And then I had a chat with myself... Thanksgiving is one day and really only one meal. Get a grip! Ok so I'm no angel - it's not like I ate that one meal and that was it. There were leftovers and holiday cookies and Primanti Brothers a must when visiting Pittsburgh and let us not forget holiday drinks! I enjoyed all of it but I still lost TWO pound!!! I'm out of the 250s now! I'm at 248.

Here are my top 10 tips to beat the holiday weight gain...

10. Keep your eye on the prize. Constantly remind yourself that you are in fact on a weight loss journey.

9. Eat like you normally eat on your diet for two out of the three meals a day. I kept my breakfast the same everyday even though there were muffins and pie, pancakes and bacon... I also slept in a lot so sometimes breakfast was an early lunch followed by a small, healthy snack like a handful of peanuts or some fruit.

8. Make sure you always have a low-calorie or low points snack in your bag or near by. I snacked on zero point snacks in between meals so I wasn't starving at mealtime and could control my portions.

7. Plan to start your holiday with a morning walk or run. We did a Turkey Trot in Pittsburgh on Thanksgiving morning. It was a great way to start the holiday and it was nice that the entire day was not about FOOD. For Christmas find a Santa Run or make up your own in your neighborhood.

I felt awesome that morning posing on a bridge that I would have normally driven over. At that point my mom was starting to feel the pain in her knees and back, but I just kept reminding her that she did a loop at Burke Lake which is almost 5 and this is only 2...

you can do it! And she did it! Mom I'm so proud of you! And my cousin ran the 5K in less than 35 minutes breaking her previous time! And I spent a little Q-time with the Pirates Parrot.

Just look at all the people who came out to RUN on an EATING DAY! The three of us had a great time, got a great workout and headed home to cook a great meal. Oh wait, AND we helped the Pittsburgh YMCA, a place that helps people on this journey every day! I've never spent the holiday doing something so good for me but let me tell you, I think this is a new tradition for me.

6. When faced with the BUFFET of food, take a deep breath and put it all in perspective. You can have a LITTLE bit of everything and only go back for the things you really like. You can also avoid things that you know you don't absolutely LOVE or things that you get any day, like bread for instance, that you can skip when you're faced with so many yummy special holiday treats.

5. Take pride in leaving food on your plate. If you are feeling full or just right, put your napkin on top of your plate and push it away or take your plate to the kitchen and return to enjoy the holiday banter.

4. At our house, there are always more than one dessert. So I actually didn't eat dessert that night because I realized, guess what... it will still be there tomorrow! Imagine that. But I also decided to only choose one of the desserts and I left out the add-ons like whip cream on that slice of pumpkin pie or the scoop of ice cream with that piece of apple pie. Cut back where you can.

3. Remember that to binge is a choice. You can stop after that ONE meal. EXIT from the holiday!

2. Make plans to work out at some point during the weekend. Make it a long one. Sunday after Thanksgiving I did a loop at Burke Lake - 5 miles and I jogged about half of it! 5K in April here I come! Run with me if you want! Register at http://www.gwparkwayclassic.com/ and site Boys & Girls Club as the referral source - an organization that is near and dear to my heart benefits from this event!

1. Create your EXIT Strategy BEFORE the holiday. With planning all of this is possible. I learned that this year and it's my pleasure to share what I've learned with all of you.

Pass it on! I'm at 248 and want to be 242 by 1/1/2010. Join me - pass on the blog! We CAN do this!

Nik