A friend of mine recently started a high protein diet and asked me how much carbs he should consume. While I gave him a generic answer, here’s a guest post by JC which explains low carb diets and how you should go about it if you wish to try it out to achieve your healthy weight loss goals.

Just as numerous diet plans have emerged in the markets, myths regarding low carb diets have increased also. Those who plan specific dieting techniques tend to ignore some of the essential facts and theories associated with them.

Finding the right healthy diet for you can be a little frustrating, especially when you have a weight loss goal. As a follow up post to Bindu’s article on fiber-rich chia seeds, here’s registered and licensed dietitian, Betsy, informing us on fiber and how it factors into our weight loss efforts!

Dietary fiber is great tool that you can use for weight loss as it is something that will fill you up without filling you out. Hunger sensation is the result of the signal that the stomach sends to the brain when it is empty and fullness is when the stomach sends the signal saying it is full.

Consuming a diet high in fiber has shown to be very beneficial. Meeting dietary fiber goals daily has shown to reduce the risk of developing coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, diabetes and obesity. Certain types of fibers are also beneficial in lowering cholesterol levels.

Dietary fiber is classified into soluble fiber and insoluble fiber. Soluble fibers include viscous and fermentable fibers such as pectin. These fibers are fermented in the colon and it binds the cholesterol and removes it from the body. Insoluble fibers have bulking action and not completely fermented in the colon. These promote regularity of the gastro-intestinal system.

Fiber and Feeling of Fullness

Studies have shown that people eat the same amount of food to feel full. Eating a meal high in fiber and water-rich foods will provide fewer calories as compared to eating a similar portion of food with high carbohydrate or fat content. Therefore, if you choose foods high in fiber such as vegetables or whole grains you will feel fuller faster and save on some calories.

A 2009 study in the journal Appetite compared the fullness factor of apples, applesauce and apple juice with added fiber before lunch. People who ate an apple before lunch ate 15 percent fewer calories than those who ate the applesauce or drank apple juice. This suggests that the fiber in the whole apple was more filling even when compared to the juice that had added fiber. Also, the chewing of the apple took longer sending fullness signals to the brain.

Sources of Fiber

Fiber is a plant product. Therefore, fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of fiber. Whole grains like wheat, oats, barley and millet are also good sources of fiber. Beans and nuts also contain fiber. In short, any plant product that has not been refined and processed and is consumed in its whole state will provide fiber.

Fiber keeps you feeling full for longer and promotes satiety. Natural sources of fiber are more compatible for body than fiber capsules. If you must take fiber supplement, a powder fiber supplement is better choice than in the pill form.

Adding Fiber to Diet

Add fiber slowly to your diet so your body can get used to it and prevent bloating and gas. Drink plenty of fluids while adding fiber. Try these tips for adding more low-calorie foods to your meal plan to boost fiber while keeping calories in check:

• Choose whole fruits instead of fruit juices or processed fruits.
• Choose vegetables for snacks.
• Have at least 2 servings of vegetables each meal. Make sure your plate is filled half with greens.
• Choose non-starchy vegetables to keep the calories in check.
• Choose broth based soup rather than creamy soups.
• Start your day with a high fiber cereal or whole grain toast. Add a fruit and a low fat dairy to round off your hearty breakfast.
• Enjoy beans and nuts. But beware of the portion sizes.
• Make all your grains whole and limit them to a few servings each day.

Remember, that fibers alone will not take off the pounds. Fiber along with a well-balanced, low calorie meals and exercise will help you stay on track of your weight loss goal. Controlling or maintaining your weight is a lot easier with a diet rich in fiber.

About the Author

Betsy is a registered and licensed dietitian who provides weight loss counselling and is part of My Diet Planr where you can get your own diet plans.

I usually add ground flax seed to my morning smoothies to get more fiber in my diet, and if I’m having digestive upset in the form of constipation, I drink a glass of water with a teaspoon of psyllium husk. Do you have any fiber-increasing tips of your own to share?  

Here’s a guest post that’ll make you sit up and read like a demon! Will Kashis is here today to tell us about a new and highly out-of-the box way to lose unwanted fat and get fitter, developed by a Canadian research scientist!

You may have heard of a fairy tale which begins like this: “In order to lose weight you need to start a diet, carefully count calories, avoid food that is high in carbs and fat, and don’t believe anyone who promises super-fast weight loss.”

Well, it’s a true story. But what if, for some reason, you’re tired of constantly being in “dieting mode” and having to think of how many calories a product contains – or simply can’t exclude some food from your diet – and, in addition, still have a couple of pounds to lose? If this is the case for you, turn your attention to Eat Stop Eat.

In short, Eat Stop Eat is a weight loss method that teaches people how to get fit by using a combination of short-term (24-hour) fasting and weight training. It was designed in 2008 by Brad Pilon, a research scientist from Toronto, who had worked for almost decade in the nutritional supplement industry.

His approach offers a new way to cut calories. It preaches a change in focus whereby calories are counted weekly rather than daily. Unsure what that means? Let me give you an example:

Assume you need about 2,000 calories a day to maintain your bodyweight. This means that if you want to lose half a pound of fat a week, you’ll need to eat 250 fewer calories every single day for seven days, if you follow a traditional weight-loss regime.

But you can do it differently. You can eat normally 6 out of 7 days, and then fast one day to burn 1,750 calories and lose that half a pound.

Both men and women who practice Eat Stop Eat method usually do 1 or 2 fasts during a week to burn fat, and exercise to build muscle mass if it’s necessary. They are totally free in planning their fasts during a week.

Beginners can start with one fast a week; while more experienced practitioners can go through two fasts during the same period. Very experienced followers can even perform workouts during their fasting days.

Most people describe Eat Stop Eat as an “auto-pilot” or “brainless” diet. But in fact, there are no secrets to the Eat Stop Eat technique except one simple weight loss fact – the only scientifically sound way to lose body fat is by creating a calorie deficit. And intermittent fasting, as Brad says, is just an easy means to eat fewer calories, which leads weight loss.

The most common myth about intermittent fasting is so-called ‘starvation mode’. During starvation mode, the body supposedly slows its metabolism due to too few calories being ingested.

But Brad claims that a large body of scientific research shows that you can eat very low calories for extended periods of time with no change in your metabolism. Also, there is no decrease in muscle mass, as long as you do some form of resistance training.

Furthermore, a recent study by the Intermountain Medical Center in Utah showed that the body releases cholesterol during fasting, enabling the body to tap into its fat reserves for energy. In fact, a recent British study on fasting has also come up with some positive results and health benefits for fasting.

[Editor's Note: Natural Health guru, Dr. Mercola, has also written numerous articles on fasting and exercising, including: Study Finds Routine Periodic Fasting is Good for Your Health, The Benefits of Exercising Before Breakfast and How to Slim Your Waistline Without Depriving Yourself.]

If you want to learn how intermittent fasting can help you lose weight, then visit Eat Stop Eat weight loss program website for additional information.

About the Author

Will Kashis is a nutrition writer who freelances for niche publications and recently launched his site at www.Diets.md.

I must admit that in my recent experience, there’s merit to this idea of fasting (or under-eating) and exercising. Due to my Spiritual Kick-in-the-Ass over a month ago, my appetite has been almost non-existent (I have been eating, though, and healthy foods, at that) and I’ve been exercising to combat stress – losing over 15 pounds, several inches and over 5% in body fat so far!

Will you be trying this Eat Stop Eat approach?

It’s been almost a month now since I wrote about my current struggles and plans to overcome them in Yo Yo Healthy Living. It’s time for an update and although I have some disappointments to share, I also have some super exciting news on my next adventures!

First, let’s start off with some good news. This weekend is a long weekend for Canadians, Victoria Day is tomorrow (I hope everyone’s enjoying it everywhere!) and I’m happy to report that I’ve had a lovely balance of responsibility and fun. Which is what healthy living is all about, isn’t it?

Lovin’ Right Now

For starters, Honey and I took care of the first step in fixing a current housing situation (borderline crisis!) and had fun doing it together, enjoyed the beautiful weather with some gardening (mmm… sustainable, healthy and cheap eating), decluttering (with a good chance we’ll get back to renos tomorrow!), physical activity AND tons of good times (yes, partying and fireworks) with family and friends! Whoo Hoo!

Setbacks on the Plan

As for the plans to get back on the healthy living wagon that I outlined in Part 1 and in cleaning up my finances mentioned in Healthy Finances are a Part of Healthy Living, well, it’s been a bit rocky. I’m still slacking on the exercise and eating, plus I overspent (just a bit) and failed to budget for the costs of fixing our housing situation. Boo.

Positive Changes (Literally!)

Despite these minor setbacks, there are some amazing positive changes already undergo and coming up! There are two main changes that I’m certain will help me take back my control of my life:

1. I’ve applied for a part-time job (with two employers, so far) that will help increase my income – probably the most prominent factor contributing to my current financial reality. (By the way, if you have ANY money management issues and still haven’t checked out Til Debt Do Us Part, please do! It continues to inspire me to take responsibility for my financial health and because I’m watching it with my Honey, it’s even helping strengthen our relationship.)
2. Remember this week’s guest post on The Benefits of Hypnotherapy? I had a free consultation with Positive Changes, a well-known behaviour modification center using hypnosis, and was so impressed that I signed on for nine sessions. (Thank you, Mom, for this wonderful birthday present!)

Since I’ve fallen off the healthy living wagon, I’ve been trying to tackle the problem the same way I did last time when I succeeded. However, it hasn’t been working and my efforts have moved into the realm of insanity, according to Einstein’s definition. So it’s time to change tactics and approach.

There’s a lot to look forward to for me with these particular choices. Not only will the part-time hospitality job help improve my finances, it’ll also provide me the social and physical activity I crave. Plus, I can afford then to take a step back from my freelance writing biz to evaluate if it’s working for me.

As for the hypnotherapy, I suspect that as long as I do my homework, it’ll create sustainable changes in my behaviour. I’ll I be getting experienced support in creating those changes and the hypnosis will be targeting stubborn, out-dated subconscious programming no longer serving me.

I’m stoked for both of these adventures, though I’ll admit there’s some fear because of the upcoming changes. Each will change my life in different ways but no worries, I know this is what I have to do to start creating a more agreeable reality, so I’m sucking it up and being a woman!

Stay tuned for another update (about a month) in Part 3 of Yo Yo Healthy Living. If you’re curious about hypnotherapy and the Positive Changes center, I’ll be writing a series of articles about my personal experiences!

This silly yo yo healthy living is beginning to irritate me. And I strongly believe that it’s due to my stubborn, self-limiting, subconscious beliefs roadblocking me from sustainable change. So let’s hear from guest blogger, Catriona Boyle, about the benefits of hypnotherapy!

After many years of skepticism and stigmatisation, alternative and complementary therapy is finally becoming a popular and recognised form of treatment for many issues and problems, as well as helping people boost their overall well-being and health.

Hypnotherapy is one such therapy, and is becoming renowned for its effectiveness in dealing with weight issues and smoking in particular. However, it can help with a whole range of emotional problems, compulsive obsessions and habits, and mental health problems.

Hypnotherapy works by tapping into the subconscious and using the power of suggestion to help promote change, giving beneficial ideas and suggestions to help the individual bring about the change they desire.

Hypnotherapy is often used in conjunction with other therapy methods, including counselling and psychotherapy, to help deal with the problems at the heart of the issue, to ensure it doesn’t resurface again.

According to the British Society of Clinical Hypnosis (BSCH), it is estimated that 85% of people will respond at some level to clinical hypnotherapy, which is an excellent success rate. It is of course dependent on how open someone is to the therapy, how confident they are in it and what kind of change they want to make.

The benefits of hypnotherapy can literally change someone’s life. It can mean achieving specific things such as learning to understand and letting go of the past, reducing day-to-day anxiety, curing  a damaging habit or achieving a goal. Or simply benefitting from self-improvement such as strengthening the immune system, increasing self-esteem or having a better outlook on life.

An open mind and a willingness to change is all that’s required to let hypnotherapy into your life, and start moving onwards and upwards.

About the Author

Catriona Boyle writes and works for a new website, Hypnotherapy Directory. It is a free web directory listing qualified and insured hypnotherapists all over the United Kingdom. The site also has a wealth of information about various types of distress that hypnotherapy can help, as well as a blog about the latest health news.

What do you think of hypnotherapy, Readers? Do you think hypnosis can forever squash sabotaging beliefs interfering with positive change? If you’re interested, check out the Hypnotherapy Directory’s blog post, “Habits – Why Willpower Alone Doesn’t Always Work.”

You’ve heard of yo yo dieting but have you heard of yo yo healthy living? It’s when you’re struggling to adopt healthy living practices and I’ve been living it for awhile now. Perhaps you can relate so today I’d like to share with you what I’ve been going through and what I’m doing about it.

In December, I wrote Confessions of a Fallen Health Nut and had an awesome health plan for the new year. I was doing o.k. and following it fairly closely until I got super busy in March (when I had planned to stop smoking). Great news for my business but not so hot on the health front.

From my experience in getting healthy, consistency (i.e. forming habits) is key (read my health her-story here). But damn, it can be hard to accomplish when life gets hectic, even when you know what to do!

Why is it so hard? According to Paige Waehner in this About.com article, it comes down to the energy needed to change and way too many choices every single day. I hear that. It seems when I don’t exercise in the morning, I rarely get it in before the end of the day.

But I believe the main reason it’s difficult to change is because of stubborn subconscious beliefs. To help squash these persistent roadblocks, I’ve begun a series of daily (morning and night) affirmations to try to reprogram some of my self-limiting beliefs. I’ve also been dabbling in using Emotional Freedom Technique.

Another biggie (from my experience) is having a clear vision of what you want to accomplish and why it’s important to you. So I started meditating 10-15 minutes daily (almost) about 3 weeks ago and started reading Soul Purpose: A Practical Guide For Creating A Life You Love by Janet Amare. I figure that if my freelance writing biz is truly my life purpose, then I would have enjoyed the busyness more.

I refuse to give up! I’ve reread 15 Practical & Easy Health Tips, I’m going to continue to aim for activity every day, including strength training 2-3 times a week to increase my metabolism (which I’ve been doing successfully for 6 weeks now), and will make more of an effort to save the junk food for only my cheat days. I’m aiming to get back down to my healthy weight (20 lbs lighter) and also, of course, stop smoking.

Whew! This post was challenging for me to write. Why? Well, ever since I slipped off the health wagon, I feel my integrity is shot. It doesn’t feel right to be blogging and offering health advice when I’m struggling myself. But my friends have been encouraging me to be more personal on the blog and share these struggles because they believe it’ll help you, too.

Does it help you to hear about my personal struggles? Shall I continue to write regular posts like this to keep you updated on my progress? If I don’t get any comments, I’ll assume you like the typical way I blog (i.e. more informational)!

Update: Thank you for the encouragement, Heather! If you’re interested, read Part 2 and Part 3 of the Yo Yo Healthy Living series.

Today is officially the 1st day of spring! What better way to wrap up the Holistic Spring Cleaning Series than with a guest post about a super clean, nutritious grain that helps you lose weight? Bindu Grandhi, flexitarian cookbook author, blogs about quinoa and shares with us an easy, tasty recipe.

Grains are my-go-to staple food – they’re mild in flavor, inexpensive, and keep well. My pantry is stocked with brown basmati rice, whole-wheat pasta, couscous and my most favorite grain – quinoa (pronounced keen-wah).

While quinoa is considered a grain, it is actually the seed of a plant that is related to beets, chard and spinach. Honestly, I don’t care how it’s classified because if you’ve never tried it, you don’t know what you’re missing!

This ancient grain native to South America was considered “the gold of Incas” because they recognized this superfood’s value in increasing the stamina of its warriors. In fact, quinoa is quite the nutritional powerhouse:

• High in protein, it is one of the few non-meat foods that provide all eight of the essential amino acids that our bodies need to repair themselves.
• High in fiber, low in gluten and a great source of healthy carbohydrates.
• Great source of lysine which plays a critical role in tissue growth and repair.
• Loaded with vitamins and minerals (such as iron, magnesium and potassium); its magnesium, copper and phosphorous content means that quinoa is especially good for those that have migraine headaches, atherosclerosis and diabetes; its potassium content can help beat bloat.

Best of all, one cup of cooked quinoa has just 220 calories and keeps you satiated! So if you’re trying to eat healthy or shed a few pounds or fueling up for exercise, make quinoa a part of your meal plan.

Look for quinoa in your local supermarket or in natural foods stores. Some of the price clubs also carry quinoa; I got a 4 lb. container for $10! Make sure you store quinoa in an airtight container. It will keep for a longer period of time, approximately three to six months, if stored in the refrigerator.

Prepare quinoa by placing it in a fine-meshed strainer and rinse under cold water. Cook according to the package directions. By the way before I cook, I shallow-fry the quinoa in a skillet over medium-low heat for 2-3 minutes – stirring constantly until the raw smell disappears.

It takes only about 15 minutes to cook, making it a great time saver for busy cooks. When cooked, it has an airy rice-like and slightly crunchy texture, and a somewhat nutty flavor. Quinoa is so versatile, the perfect accompaniment for vegetables, beans, or tofu.

If you have recipes that call for couscous or rice, just substitute quinoa instead. When I’m short on time, it makes for a great one-pot meal and I jazz it up with spices!

Here’s one of my favorite recipes:

Sautéed Vegetables and Quinoa

This nutrient-rich packed dish loads up on veggies, mixed with quinoa and just a hint of garam masala. Simply yummy – great for brunch, lunch, dinner or snack!

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 25-30 minutes
Makes 4 servings

• 1 cup quinoa, dry roasted
• 1 ½ tsp. extra light olive oil
• 1 red onion, peeled and sliced
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and sliced
• 1 bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and chopped
• 3 baby portabella mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
• 1 jalapeno (optional), stemmed and diced
• ¼ tsp. garam masala
• 2 cups of water
• Salt to taste

Garnish: ¼ cup fresh cilantro or parsley, chopped

In a medium saucepan, heat oil and sauté onion, garlic, bell pepper, mushrooms and jalapeno for 6 minutes. Add the garam masala and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add 2 cups water, cover and bring to boil. Add quinoa. Cover and return to boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork and salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro.

*Variation of this dish: Try other vegetables like eggplant or zucchini. Or add baby shrimp in place of the mushrooms.

About the Author

Author of Spice Up Your Life, Bindu Grandhi is passionate about healthy and flavourful cooking, especially when it’s flexitarian. She shares her health knowledge with the world by providing practical, healthy and tasty recipes as The Flex Cook.

Quinoa rocks my world! Here’s another quinoa recipe from the Live Lighter archives for you to try. How much do you love quinoa?

Editor’s Note: For many people “diet” is a nasty, four letter word. Actually, we’ve blogged about how diets are unsustainable methods for weight-loss before, like in A Solution to Permanent, Healthy Weight-Loss. In today’s guest post, Lauren Bailey writes about why moderation works better than diets.

Oh how I rolled my eyes every time mom reminded me, “all good things in moderation.” She was referring to shopping and drinking but nowadays the saying applies to so much more. Your food intake is just one of the hundred things you worry about.

Unfortunately, we usually put good eating habits on the backburner when stressed. Then, one day, you begin to reminisce about how your body looked 10 years ago. You can’t overcome the intense desire to get it back and when January 1st rolls around, you jump on the fad diet train.

The multitude of diets on the market makes it easy for someone to tell you how to eat. Mr. Atkins seemed like a pretty nice guy, you may have chosen him as your nutrition guru a few years ago. Or to make things even easier, you may have chosen the diet with the best celebrity endorsement. The Zone Diet? Jennifer Aniston sold you on that one didn’t she? Or maybe, Whoopi Goldberg convinced you to try Slim Fast.

We’ve all been there. The marketing strategies of these companies make most fad diets look so easy. However, the majority of Americans end up reporting the same results. Quick weight loss is common at the beginning (usually water weight).

All of a sudden, we feel deprived. Life doesn’t seem like it’s worth living without all of your favorite foods. You invite your girlfriends over to celebrate the occasion: You’re dumping your diet. All starchy carbohydrates and sugary cocktails welcome. You don’t even revert back to square one because you end up fatter than before you started that stupid diet!

Cut yourself some slack. We are only human, and food is meant to be enjoyed. When you suppress your cravings, your mind constantly reminds you of the deprivation. That piece of cake left in the conference room is all you can think of. You resist the urge to eat it, and you feel skinnier when you get home. The following day, you reward yourself by eating 5 blueberry muffins left over from the morning meeting.

If you would have just eaten half of that piece of cake, you would have probably been much nicer to your husband that night. Plus, you would have felt fulfilled and may have even eaten a healthier meal for dinner.

This is where being skinny becomes part of a lifestyle rather than a two month diet. You can’t restrain yourself every time junk food is within a one-mile radius. The key is to eat a little bit of whatever you crave, and stop before things get nasty.

So, if you are going to eat a Big Mac for lunch, don’t supersize your fries, make your soda diet and eat a healthier low-cal meal for dinner. So let’s say you spent $6 and 800 of your calorie intake on lunch. Don’t punish yourself for the next month. Just have a lighter option when the evening rolls around. Plus, don’t eat McDonalds 7 days a week. Limit it to once or twice a week instead.

That snobby little word, moderation, knows what he’s talking about. If you make moderate changes to your portion size and calorie intake, you may not lose 5 pounds every two days. You’ll probably lose 5-8 pounds a month. Your stomach will shrink, and you naturally won’t be able to finish a Big Mac or Quarter Pounder a year later.

At the very least, it won’t feel like cruel and unusual punishment to share the other half of your sandwich.

About the Author

Lauren Bailey regularly writes on the topics of online colleges. She welcomes your comments at her email Id: blauren99 @gmail.com.

Editor’s Note: Many of us struggling with weight issues often feel it’s too complicated for us to overcome. But in today’s guest post, Jim Rollince simplifies the entire matter so we’re better informed whether we’re interested in weight loss, weight gain or weight maintenance.

Over 60 percent of the population in the United States is considered clinically obese or overweight (editor’s note: we find the same stats in Taylor, B.C., Canada – read my review of CBC’s, Village on a Diet). The obesity epidemic in the United States highlights the weight struggle that many Americans deal with on a daily basis.

As many scientific studies suggest, the food that an individual consumes and the amount of exercise they do has the potential to impact their health in a positive or negative way. Individuals interested in maintaining a healthy lifestyle or those trying to lose weight often take up intense exercise regimes performing cardiovascular and muscle building fitness routines.

There are tremendous benefits associated with regular exercise, yet there is one overlooked component. Often time those trying to maintain their weight or lose weight put too much focus on adhering to a strict exercise regime, eating only low fat or all natural foods, and staying away from unhealthy foods. Yes, depending on the choices you make all of these factors can contribute to weight loss or gain as well as building a physically healthy or unhealthy person.

These issues become even more confused when you turn on a television or flip through the pages of a magazine and see products that claim to speed up your metabolism and reduce your appetite. These products are designed to target individuals that have difficult experiences with maintaining or losing weight, and don’t believe or know the process to be a straight forward matter of science and math.

Yet, the key to keeping the pounds off or losing them is not found in the raw food movement or boot camp style exercise regimes. The secret to managing weight is in the Negative Energy Balance (NEB).

The science behind NEB is simple: calories consumed – calories burned = weight loss, weight gain or weight maintenance. How? Well, your body is an efficient machine. It uses available calories first (i.e. food you ate at your last meal or two) before drawing from your natural reserves (fat and muscle) to fuel physical activity.

Weight gain: When you consume more calories than you use to expend energy, the leftover calories is stored as fat and contributes to weight gain.

Weight loss: You must exert more energy during the course of your day through activities like working out, walking home from work, playing with your dog, etc., than you consume in calories. When you do this, your body seeks out alternative stored energy from fat and muscle to burn and you lose weight.

Weight maintenance: You only need to burn less than or the same amount of calories consumed during the day. Attention to how many calories burned versus how many you put into your body helps you avoid losing too much fat or muscle so you can maintain a healthy weight.

The Negative Energy Balance equation can be used for balance. If you know you will be walking or exercising during the day, you can give yourself more leeway (how much depends on your health goals) to eat something you might not otherwise select if you have a low level of physical activity planned for the day.

The trick to weight management is using the NEB science and balancing your food choice with expended energy.

About the Author

Jim Rollince of Gym Source, a supplier of home gym and fitness equipment, including treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, arc trainers and more!

What do you think about this simple science of weight management? Do you feel confident that you can apply this knowledge to your health plan?

Holiday weight gain and the havoc sweets & alcohol have on our system often leaves us in a post-holiday funk. Armed with info and choices, it doesn’t have to be that way. Last post we covered Healthier Holiday Bevvies and today, Shirley Simpson shares a few holiday weight-loss tips!

Weight loss is a problem for many people. And the thought of shedding those extra pounds over the holidays, a time of year that is traditionally characterized by unchecked eating, may seem ludicrous. But bear with me, here. It’s not as hard as you think.

In fact, this is the perfect time of year to undertake your weight-loss goals, before you pack on those holiday pounds and have to face the New Year (and another resolution) several pounds heavier than the year before.

If you just follow a few simple guidelines to get through the impending feeding frenzy brought on by the season, you can not only maintain your current weight, but actually start to lose before the year is out.

For starters, avoid certain foods. This will likely be the most difficult part since your mom might just start crying if you turn down a second (and third) slice of her famous chocolate cake. Explain to your family and friends that you are trying to turn over a new leaf and make a better you, they will probably be more than happy to help out.

That said, almost everything can be consumed in moderation.

One item you should certainly try to avoid: alcohol. Not only are most forms of alcohol pretty high in calories, they will also lower your inhibitions, which is no good if you’re trying to control yourself. A glass of wine certainly won’t kill you, but try not to go beyond that. From there, you will want to prepare yourself for the calorie-laden meal to come.

A great way to approach an impending feast at which there will be a lot of “bad” food is to preface it with a few days of healthier eating. Cut down on calories leading up to your family meal by sustaining a diet that is high in vegetables, whole grains and lean protein sources.

There are a lot of ways to get your fill of food without consuming mass amounts of calories, and by cutting back on your intake before you begin feasting you will be able to enjoy many of your favorite foods guilt-free. Don’t take this as an invitation to starve yourself, though. If you don’t eat anything, your metabolism will slow so that when you finally eat, it will all go into storage rather than getting burned off.

Keep your goal in sight. Resist viewing your good behavior beforehand as an excuse to go hog wild. Remember: everything in moderation. You’re going to have to show a bit of restraint by limiting yourself when you sit down for a holiday meal.

There are a couple of ways to do this:

• You can start by filling a salad-size plate instead of a larger dinner plate. This way you’ll be forced to take less of everything, so that if you want a lot of different foods, you’ll only be able to have a couple bites of each.
• Don’t even think about going back for seconds. A sampling is all you really need and you’ll probably find that this is the first time in years you don’t end up feeling ill after stuffing your face with mom’s cooking.
• Try eating slowly and savouring every bite. This will help you to feel satisfied even though you’re actually eating less.

And of course, exercise. During this stressful time of year, 30 minutes of activity, even a couple of times a week (although 3-4 is better) will not only get you burning calories and feeling great, it will also help to relieve anxiety and clear your head. In addition, it will give you the energy you need to complete the many tasks you face this holiday season, as well as giving you the motivation you need to stick to your health plan and reach the New Year as a newly fit you.

About the Author

Shirley Simpson writes for AdvanceMe, the nation’s leading merchant cash advance provider and credit card factoring company.

A couple more ideas: resist your typical treats (like pop, chips, candy) and save yourself solely for holiday treats; enjoy calorie-reduced drinks (like low-cal eggnog); and while socializing, take a break from the food. What are your holiday weight-loss tips?