Give Yourself the Gift of Health: StrollerFit Helps Hold Off Holiday Weight Gain

CINCINNATI, OH – When it comes to the holidays, not gaining weight is like going to Vegas and not losing money – not bad, considering the odds! If Thanksgiving was a four-day holiday from sensible eating habits and you celebrate all 12 days of Christmas, you may be wishing for drawstring pants by the New Year. Small changes in holiday eating and drinking can make a big difference on which weigh your holidays go.

Mary Beth Knight, Chief Fitness Mom for StrollerFit® Exercise with Your Baby™, the premier mom and baby fitness company, has these easy tips for keeping holiday weight gain at bay.

1. Eat before you go. Never go to a holiday party hungry! Hunger can lead to low blood sugar, which leads to poor food choices. Stabilize your blood sugar by eating small sensible meals often throughout the day.

2. Forget the appetizers. Better yet, bring a veggie tray with low-fat dressing. Munching on low-calorie, high-fiber food will fill you up and make it easier to resist temptation. Eating rabbit-like food will help you avoid feeling like a stuffed turkey!

3. Put the leftovers away immediately … out of sight, out of mind. Nibbling DOES count.

4. A little of this and a little of that can add up to too much of everything. Instead of a slice of pie, a few small holidays cookies, half a candy cane, a bite of the Yule log, and a taste of the spiked eggnog, select your favorite dessert and treat yourself to a full serving. Savor every bite and when the last bite is finished, so is dessert!

5. Avoid alcohol. Not only will the extra calories add up, alcohol slows your metabolism, promotes inactivity, weakens willpower and encourages overeating. Lose the alcohol and lose the weight. By the weigh, beer has always been low in carbs - don’t let a slick marketing campaign trick you into believing there’s anything new about that. All alcohol has 7 calories per gram that you just don’t need. Your body will burn the calories from alcohol first and store the food that follows it.

6. The more you move, the smaller the chance of getting bigger. Work exercise into your busy holiday schedule. Just 15 to 20 minutes a day devoted to walking, running or weight lifting could be the difference between your current clothing size and the one you promised yourself you would never move up to.

7. Ring in the New Year a month early. Why wait until January to get the new you under way? Change a few small habits now and reach your goals sooner. Start a point system to reward your good habits. Aim for 100 points each day. When you reach 1000, 2500 and 5000 treat yourself to manicure, a massage, anything that will motivate you to stay on track. Your system might look like this:
o 20 points for working out
o 20 points for eating six servings of veggies and fruits
o 20 points for keeping a food log and adding up the right number of calories
o 10 points for avoiding alcohol
o 10 points for drinking 8/8 oz servings of water
o 10 points for eight hours of sleep
o 10 points for avoiding high calorie desserts

It takes 3500 extra calories to gain one pound. Consuming an extra 300 calories every day from Thanksgiving to the New Year will add up to four pounds. It’s unbelievably easy to rack up those extra calories: eight ounces of eggnog has 320 calories, one chocolate chip cookie is 275 calories, a slice of fruit cake is 336 calories, and a pumpkin spice latte with non-fat milk and whipped cream counts for 320 calories.

Bottom line? Eat smart through the holidays and start the New Year off without a few extra pounds to lose.

About StrollerFit® Exercise with Your Baby™: With more than 60 franchises in 20 states, StrollerFit® Exercise with Your Baby™ is the premier mom and baby fitness brand. The StrollerFitâ program blends exercise science, infant and child development and group dynamics into a 50-minute workout experience. Its unique mommymuscle exercise method conditions the muscles women use and abuse most during pregnancy and early motherhood through a blend of strength training, body sculpting, aerobic endurance and flexibility. Babies and children are immersed in the workout with auditory, visual and tactile stimulation. For more information on StrollerFit®, visit www.strollerfit.com.

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