Have you been over-indulging this holiday season? Have you put your weight loss and weight management goals off until the new year? Don’t wait until January 1st – the holiday season isn’t a free pass, the calories do count (unfortunately). Here are a few tips on how to fight holiday fat by TV Personality and alli spokesperson, Samantha Harris.
How to Fight Holiday Fat
- Make healthy low-fat food choices. You can easily replace higher fat ingredients with low or no-fat ingredients in holiday recipes.
- Snack Often on healthy snacks. Keep healthy snacks within reach. We keep a bowl in our fridge with fresh, washed fruits, vegetables and other healthy snacks. My kids know they can always have something from “the bowl“.
- Exercise. Even small things like parking in the farthest parking spot or sledding with your kids counts as exercise. Find small ways to fit in physical activity.
- Plan Ahead. Eat a low-fat snack before going to a party to avoid over-indulging in unhealthy choices.
- Keep Stress Levels Low. Christmas and the holiday season can be very stressful as we have so many commitments and not enough time. By eating healthy and being physically active, you can keep stress at bay. Be sure to take a few minutes for exercise, deep breathing, or eat a healthy, low-fat snack.
Let’s Fight Holiday Fat FREE Online Program
I am also using the free online tool called, Let’s Fight Holiday Fat. It is designed to help weight-conscious people through the tough Christmas and New Year’s holiday season.
The Let’s Fight Holiday Fat tool was created by alli® ( the first and only FDA-approved weight-loss aid available over the counter). It allows you to track and get support in 3 areas: diet, physical activity and motivation. For me, having a tool that allows me to see all 3 areas right in front of me will help me to withstand the temptation to over-indulge at all the holiday parties and family gatherings.
You can get a totally customized program for your weight management and weight loss goals for free. Sign up on the Let’s Fight Holiday Fat website. Choose your exercise preference to customize the program to your liking. Choose from:
- Stong & Toned for strength and toning routines
- Crosstrain Cardio for intervals, circuit training, and cardio
- Yoga-Pilates Fusion to increase your flexibility and strength.
I chose Crosstrain Cardio because for me, I feel like I have to be doing cardio to burn calories. It’s just how I am wired. Next, log in your personal weight, height, age, and goal weight so you can track your progress.
For my height and weight, I am allowed 1460 calories. Below is my home page. You can see that I consumed 1723 calories today – because I couldn’t resist my mother-in-law’s nut rolls or the Christmas cookies I made earlier this week – plus, I drank a couple cans of Coke.
It is so hard to fight holiday fat. However, I like being able to see on the screen my calorie intake and how close it is to my goal weight. I’d never be motivated by just jotting down the food and calories I consume on a piece of paper.
On the home screen, there is a follow-along fitness video for you to do each day. The video gives instructions on proper movement and position with a countdown clock running on the screen. You are actually exercising with the alli program. It goes from segment to segment with proper instructions and a countdown so there is no way you are lost in the program at any point. For each segment, it states how many calories you will burn per segment.
Although I didn’t do today’s workout video, I did burn some calories with some serious post-Christmas clean up today. I love that I get credit for it on the Let’s Fight Holiday Fat website for cleaning – in addition to having a cleaner house! Plus, we took our kids sledding for a couple hours this afternoon. I only put 65 minutes down since I wasn’t climbing up the gigantic hills the entire 2+ hours we were there – although it certainly felt like it! So, although I did go over my 1460 calorie goal, I made up for it with exercise. I really like that this tool combines diet, physical activity and motivation.
I can see how to make progress toward my weight loss goal of 15 pounds (to start!). Today, if I had skipped the Coke, Nut Roll, or Christmas cookies, I would be so much further ahead! There are other features like a Journal where you can write how you are doing and even interact with other people within the program. We can motivate each other!
Next, I choose the alli Fight Fight Plan Recipes – choose between traditional or vegetarian holiday recipes. There is a recipe section that includes healthy recipes, even for holiday entertaining. Once you prepare the recipe, you an click on “I Ate This” to add it to your daily calorie tracker.
I’m making the Spicy “Party-Pleaser” Meatballs for a late Christmas gathering this weekend. My bet is that nobody will know they are on the healthy side!
Even busy moms can use this program to combat holiday weight gain. The Let’s Fight Holiday Fat spokesperson, Samantha Harris is also a busy mom. She shares how LetsFightHolidayFat.com helps her track her goals for long-term success:
- Follow-along fitness videos; from cross training to yoga / Pilates (you choose what you like)
- Healthy (reduced calorie, low-fat) daily meal suggestions and recipes (for home and entertaining)
- Custom calorie and activity tracking
- Community, social features, and forums
- Smart phone accessibility
- Expert tips and tricks
I’ve been stuck at my current weight for years. With a visual understanding of my calorie intake compared to my physical activity, I think this program could be what it takes for me to finally lose the weight that I desperately want to lose. The online support and motivation will help me to continue once the “newness” of the program wears off. If you are looking for a weight management resource, check out the Let’s Fight Holiday Fat website. It’s free, so there is nothing to lose. Oh, wait! Yes, there is something to lose – weight!
As I see New Year’s Eve approaching – and the remaining Christmas parties that are coming this weekend, I feel like this tool will help me stay in check with my weight management goals. Plus, I will have a system in place before the New Year’s Resolutions start! I will be weight-loss ready before New Year’s Eve instead of making a resolution with no real plan for January 1st! Will you?
I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for alli. I received a promotional item as a thank-you for participating.
