8 Steps to Surviving Holiday Weight Gain

How to avoid holiday weight gain

It seems to happen every holiday season.

You attend parties and office gatherings to share a few festive moments with family, friends, colleagues and lots and lots of food. But when the holiday season is finally over, the bathroom scale reveals that you’ve gained some weight again, much to your chagrin.

Research studies show most adults gain some weight over the holidays. But don’t despair because this year can be different.

“I recommend to my patients that they just try to keep their current weight, as opposed to focusing on losing weight,” says Julia Renee Zumpano, RD, LD, registered dietitian, Preventive Cardiology and Rehabilitation. “Even though it’s hard to resist temptations all around you, there are simple steps you can take that can keep the extra holiday pounds off.”

How can you try to maintain your weight and heart-health during such a tempting time? We’ve conjured up these tips to surviving the holiday hoop-la that is sure-fire success – this season and in the future ones to come.

1. Get moving

One of the most effective ways to maintain or lose body weight is to engage in regular, sustained aerobic activity (*).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.

Exercise is a great way to burn those extra calories you may be taking in this time of year (remember those iced reindeer cookies you had with lunch?). Here are some ideas to get you moving:

• If you have a stationery bicycle or treadmill at home, dust it off and put it in front of the television or radio for some background entertainment while you’re exercising. Why not watch your favorite television show and exercise at the same time?
• Go to the library and get a book on tape or CD, listen to it and read (so-to-speak) as you exercise.
• Haven’t used your gym-pass in awhile? Hire a personal trainer to teach you effective calorie-burning techniques, or join that kick boxing class you’ve always wanted to try.
• Go for a morning or evening walk alone or with a friend.
• Put a little kick in your cleaning technique. Fire up some music and dance while you clean. Who ever knew cleaning could be so fun?
• Have bad knees or other joints? Don’t worry – water aerobics or swimming is your answer! The water prevents your weight bearing down on the joints and is an effective way to burn calories.

(*) If you haven’t exercised in at least 6-months, check with your doctor first before starting.

2. Aim for seven-a-day

Making sure you eat seven or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day is a great way to help fill-up your stomach but not your calorie level. When compared to other snack foods like chips, crackers and cookies, gram for gram, fruits and vegetables contain fewer calories and tons more nutrients. What’s more – the fiber in fruits and vegetables fill you up faster than traditional snack foods. Pack your refrigerator with bags of cut-up vegetables and whole or cut-up fruits. Grab a bag while on the go or at work. Make a pact with yourself that you’ll eat your five-a-day before you snack on any cookies or other holiday treats. You’re sure to take in fewer calories overall.

3. Control the risk for temptation

Controlling even the slightest chance of coming in contact with ‘tempting’ foods is one way to effectively reduce your intake. While you won’t be able to control all situations, focus on the many ones you can. For example, do you keep candy or cookies at your desk or workspace? Do you frequent the dining room table or pantry where you store all your holiday goodies? Make a mental note of tempting places and try to control them. For example, make a pact with co-workers that goodies will be kept solely in the break room, not at the front desk or in various offices. Mentally plan out how you will avoid tempting situations. If you can’t avoid them entirely, see number 4.

4. Limit to one-a-day

While you can’t control every situation, you can control how much food goes into your mouth. If you are constantly bombarded with holiday parties and displays of desserts or candies you can still effectively help prevent overeating and weight gain. 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. Remember that you may have to compensate for it later in the day by reducing your total caloric intake or by burning a few extra calories while exercising. If you aren’t confronted with holiday foods that day, just skip your one-a-day – but don’t compensate and double-up on your serving the next day.

5. Always plan ahead – Never go to a party hungry

Before you go to a holiday party, eat a healthy snack such as a serving of your favorite fruit, fat-free yogurt or a low-fat, whole grain granola bar. When you arrive at the party, you won’t be craving hors d’oeuvres.

“If you’re going to a potluck dinner, bring a healthy dish to share such as a salad, veggie or fruit tray, or a low-fat pudding, Jell-O or fruit dessert,” says Zumpano. “That way, you’ll know you have at least one healthy item on the table spread.”

6. Be in charge of your party choices:

• Small plate, please
  Be wise when choosing appetizers – a small portion of some appetizers may help you from overeating at dinner.
  “Pick up a small plate, and stick with vegetables, but limit or avoid the creamy dips,” advises Zumpano. "Restrict your intake of butter crackers, chips, cheese and meats. If you must have a deep-fried appetizer, eat only one small serving. Never go back for seconds. For dinner, fill half of your plate with salad and vegetables, one quarter with meat, and the final quarter with starch,” Zumpano says.
• Avoid the sauce
  Avoid sauces made from cream, half-and-half or meat drippings. For salads, use oil and vinegar, vinaigrette or low-fat dressings. Broth -based or vegetable sauces are fine.
• What about desserts?
  The best low-calorie choices are fruit, Jell-O, pudding, an unfrosted mini muffin, shortbread cookies, ginger snaps or angel food cake. If you must have a dessert with frosting, butter cream, cream cheese, or chocolate chips, limit yourself to one small cookie or one thin slice of cake.
• Watch the drinks
  “Besides restricting your alcohol to one or two servings, you also need to restrict the type of alcohol,” says Zumpano. “For example, instead of high-fat eggnog, have a light beer or wine. After that, stick with calorie-free drinks such as water, unsweetened ice tea, hot tea or coffee.”

7. Say No Politely

Many times you feel forced to eat foods because people keep putting it in front of you. Learn to say no politely, such as "No thank you, I’ve had enough. Everything was delicious", or "I couldn’t eat another bite. Everything tasted wonderful". You’ll find saying no isn’t so hard to do after all.

8. Focus on socializing

Don’t stand around the food table when you are at a party – focus your energies on making conversation with others instead of focusing on foods. Conversation is calorie-free.

Remember, the holidays are meant to celebrate good times with family and friends. Enjoy the holidays and plan effective strategies to help you achieve your weight loss goals. Achieving what you sought out for will give you one more good reason for holiday cheer! Happy Holidays!

The Truth Behind Six Cholesterol Myths

High cholesterol is a commonly misunderstood subject. Learn the facts here.

Do you know what your cholesterol levels mean, or the difference between good and bad cholesterol? Clearing up your confusion and understanding the dangers of high cholesterol can help you keep your levels within a healthy range, lowering your chances of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. Meanwhile, everyone 20 years and older should get a cholesterol test once every five years — it’s a simple blood test that your primary care physician can order to determine if you have high cholesterol levels.
Sorting Out Cholesterol Myths
First, it’s important to separate fact from fiction about cholesterol.

1. Cholesterol is a bad thing. Your body needs cholesterol to function; it keeps cell membranes stable and aids in the production of certain hormones. “Patients need to understand that cholesterol is required for health,” says John Willard, MD, medical director for cardiovascular services at Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth. Cholesterol only becomes a problem when too much of it circulates in the blood and builds up inside arteries, leading to a condition known as atherosclerosis. If too much cholesterol builds up, that artery becomes blocked, and a heart attack or stroke can occur.
2. Everyone should aim for the same cholesterol levels. “There’s not one particular number for everyone,” Dr. Willard says. “It depends entirely on what your risk factor profile is.” People with no risk factors — such as being a smoker, having diabetes, or having high blood pressure — should try to get their levels of LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, under 160 mg/dL. High LDL cholesterol is a risk factor for heart disease. High levels of HDL, or “good” cholesterol, on the other hand, protect against heart disease and are desirable. However, if you have two or more risk factors for heart disease, your LDL cholesterol should be under 130 mg/dL. Those who already have heart disease, or those who have diabetes, should aim even lower, for LDL levels under 100 mg/dL.
3. High cholesterol is caused mostly by diet. The biggest factor in a person’s cholesterol levels is heredity, Willard says. The liver is supposed to remove excess cholesterol from the body, but genetics play a large part in its ability to keep cholesterol at a healthy level. “If your liver works perfectly, you’re one of the lucky people who can eat whatever you want and your cholesterol will be perfect,” Willard says. “Most of us have varying degrees to which it’s not quite as effective as it needs to be.” For those people whose livers are just slightly under par, a healthier diet can be the solution, reducing cholesterol levels by 10 to 15 percent.
4. It’s always better to control your cholesterol through diet alone than with medications and diet. While this may be an option for people whose cholesterol levels are only slightly elevated, those with significantly high cholesterol levels or a history of vascular disease (like atherosclerosis) may need something extra, like a statin, to lower their cholesterol. “If they try to control it just through diet, they’re not going to reach their target,” Willard says. “Plus, these meds have additional healthy effects. They decrease inflammation and the risk of having a heart attack, independent of what their cholesterol levels are.” While there are potential side effects to statin drugs, like muscle damage, they are extremely rare. “If you look at the number of patients having adverse effects, those numbers are tiny compared to those that have heart attacks because their cholesterol wasn’t controlled,” Willard says.
5. Margarine is better for cholesterol levels than butter. Margarine is made from vegetable oil, so it contains no cholesterol, unlike butter, which is made from dairy products. However, Willard says, margarine is also high in trans fatty acids — substances that raise your LDL cholesterol while lowering the levels of HDL cholesterol in your blood, putting you at risk for heart disease and stroke. A healthier option: monounsaturated fats like olive oil and canola oil, which can lower your “bad” cholesterol levels. Willard also recommends trans fat-free spreads with low cholesterol content; Smart Balance is an example of such a product.
6. Children can’t have high cholesterol. “Like adults, if their liver works partially, their cholesterol may be elevated, but not so bad that they have the onset of vascular disease as children,” Willard says. However, he adds, when children with high cholesterol become adults, they are more likely to experience cardiovascular problems at a younger age than their peers. As with adults, children can lower their high cholesterol levels somewhat by exercising regularly and following a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and foods low in saturated fat. In rare cases, children can also have a potentially fatal disease known as familial hypercholesterolemia, an inherited condition in which the liver is unable to remove cholesterol from the bloodstream. This disease may be suspected if a one or both parents have very high cholesterol levels, or if the child has a total cholesterol level of over 250.

With all the information floating around, you need to remember that your doctor is the best source for advice on your cholesterol levels and how to manage them.

Stroke Risk!

Today a cardiologist told me not to exercise because it could be me at risk for a stroke! Imagine that no exercise for me, but health comes first. My blood pressure has been very high, the reason for my visit. Today it was 190/110. So I got more medication and had an ultrasound on my heart. Will know more in 2 weeks.

50 days unitl I'm 50!

Well now the biggest challege starts, losing weight by my 50th birthday. Besides the goal to lose by a certain date it will fix a lot of my health problems, especially the blood pressure.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE OVERVIEW

Hypertension (high blood pressure) is a common condition that can lead to serious complications if untreated. Making dietary changes and losing weight are effective treatments for reducing blood pressure.
Other lifestyle changes that can help to reduce blood pressure include stopping smoking, reducing stress, reducing alcohol consumption, and exercising regularly. These changes are effective when used alone, but often have the greatest benefit when used together.

November Numbers

How to Maintain Fitness Over 40 With Less Weight and More Energy

Maintaining fitness over 40 is easier than you might think. Whether your fortieth birthday is rapidly approaching, or even if you are older than forty, you may be wondering whether you'll ever recapture those youthful, vital feelings that come with being completely healthy and in great shape. Sometimes it feels as though society gives us permission to let ourselves go after we hit the "Big Four-Oh" but we don't have to give in. The fact is, most of us will live to be octogenarians or nonagenarians, and some of us will live to be over one hundred years old. Can you imagine living a sedentary, unhappy life for nearly half a century or longer? Luckily, fitness over 40 years of age doesn't have to be difficult; all it takes is a small amount of effort.

Fitness Over 40: Recapture Lost Energy, Regain Your Youthful, Trim Appearance, and More
Have you ever wondered what happened to the energy you used to have? Do you wake up feeling fatigued rather than refreshed, or discovering mysterious new aches and pains that make you worry that life will never be fun again? Are old problems getting worse instead of going away? If so, imagine yourself finding your way back to a younger, more energetic, healthier feeling you. It really is possible.
If you are over forty and suffering from an ever-expanding waistline and other bulges, then you might be feeling as though your social life is over. If the only clothes that seem to fit lately have elastic waistbands, comfort panels, and other features designed to make living with a high percentage of body fat more tolerable, then you might think your fashion choices are diminishing as you get older. Don't worry - it's not too late to retain your youthful appearance and maintain fitness over 40.

The fact is, there is a simple and effective way to get your life back on track and enjoy all the things you have worked so hard to gain over the years. It does require some effort on your part - after all, no one has developed a magic pill yet!

• You will need to keep an open mind, and be willing to learn about how your choices affect your energy level, your waistline, and your health in general.
• You will need to be willing to try new foods
• You may need to change your attitude about exercise - many of us think we've got to work up a real sweat in order for benefits to occur, and that simply isn't true.

All it Takes is a Personal Commitment to Fitness Over 40
By making a personal commitment to yourself to give your body the tools it needs to rebuild cellular structures properly, get rid of accumulated toxins, and replace old habits with a new and empowering mindset, you really can regain a youthful appearance, improve your energy, enjoy life more and keep your fitness over 40. Best of all, you don't have to do it on your own. A new program, Happy and Fit Over 40, provides you with all the tools you need to make positive, lasting changes. By this time next year, you could be looking at a whole new you...all it takes is a commitment to yourself.

November wasn't a good month!

Between getting new medication on the 1st that had a great side effect( Weight Gain) to holiday eating it hasn't been a great month for me. Of course I'm not going to give up, I going to go hard on one of the worse months to ever diet! Office snacks, holidays parties and family get-together don't help at all. I'm at my best with challenges like these. Getting back on track.