These 3 things will make sure you feel less bloated and avoid holiday weight gain this year? Then keep reading…the answer is right below.
The holidays can be the death of a healthy diet.
Between the end of October and the beginning of January, it’s like the party starts and never stops. Leftover Halloween candy turns into Thanksgiving dinner-hopping and then Friendsgivings right after. And then there’s the office parties, the cookie swaps and the potlucks that get sandwiched between whatever you celebrate in December. And THEN there’s New Years Eve! A night of eating, drinking and partying that caps off the last 3 months in STYLE.
No wonder the average American gains about 5lbs during this time of the year. Which doesn’t sound like too much, until you realize that those pounds are rarely every LOST before the next holiday season comes along.
Because it’s so much more fun to put the weight ON than to work on getting it off.
Instead of spending the entire holiday season feeling bloated, hungover and like you can ACTIVELY feel yourself gaining weight, how about we set up some ground rules going in that will take you through these next few weeks without any of that.
Because let’s face it, we’re GOING to overindulge, at least some days. So this is exactly the reason why having a plan can keep us from going completely off track.
So this is what we’re going to do instead of making insane promises we can’t keep to ourselves (like “This year I’m not going to eat ANY carbs” or “I’m not going to eat ANY dessert”…yea riiiiiiiight).
These are the 3 things I do to keep myself on track, when it’s so hard to say no.
STEP 1 – 16:8 Intermittent Fasting
If you don’t know anything about intermittent fasting, click here for a good primer. The short version is you’ll eat for 8 hours, your fill of whatever you want with no limits. But, when those 8 hours are up, the eating is DONE. This only works when you stick to the plan, so plan wisely.
The time you finish eating at night only matters based on the time you had your first meal. Stay to as close a regular schedule as you can, it’ll make your life so much easier. You have 8 hours to eat, and once that time is up, your 16 hour fast begins.
Water is fine during this time, and something like seltzer can help curb the hunger rumblings if it gets too bad. The point of intermittent fasting is to give your body a chance to reset and restore itself. Digestion takes a lot of time and energy. It also means our body takes time away from things like repairs and maintenance, immune function and generally managing all of the things it needs to manage for us to be and stay healthy. It also means there are less hours in the day for us to cram extra cookies down before bed and holds us more accountable for the time we AREN’T spending at the party.
I would highly recommend putting this into play before your busiest social month so you get the hang of it. You can shift your schedule a bit based on how busy your month is shaping up (later nights, happy hours, etc), but as a rule remember the earlier you eat your first meal, the earlier you’re done for the day. So plan accordingly.
STEP 2 – Cleanse in the AM
This is not a hard core cleanse. What this is, is a very basic way to get your body back up and running after not eating for 16 hours. It stimulates your body to produce stomach acid and will support digestion throughout the day. Specifically the next 8 hours that you’ll be eating. Let’s call this our Sunrise Cocktail.
How to make the Sunrise Cocktail:
- Boil some water and pour over a 1 inch chunk of ginger root in a nice size mug. Let this steep for a couple of minutes. You can also use a ginger tea bag, if that’s easier.
- Squeeze in half the juice of half a lemon.
- Add 1 tsp apple cider vinegar (make sure you’re using the kind that’s cloudy, because the cloudy is where all the goodness lives).
- Mix in 1-2 tsp of maple syrup (to taste). If you want to be amazed at the amazing things maple syrup can do for you, read this.
- Drink!
This isn’t a pleasure cocktail. This is prep for the day. It’s like going to a hard core gym class: maybe you don’t LOVE it while you’re there, but you DO love how you feel after it.
STEP 3 – De-bloat
If bloating has every been an issue for you, you’ll love this. Do this after your biggest meal of the day, or after the last meal of the day. If you’re going particularly hard this month, you might want to keep this one around to help things start moving, especially if you eat a little more than you should have (or something you shouldn’t have).
Making the Coconut Hot Shot only takes 2 ingredients.
Cayenne pepper will promote digestion and the coconut water will help you balance your electrolytes with lots of potassium (because you might have just had a bit more salt that you need and potassium provides the balance to sodium) and good digestion with a good dose of magnesium.
You can usually start feeling things get better within the hour. And fair warning, you might want to be near a bathroom when that happens.
Do these 3 things and you’ll feel less bloated during this holiday season. Stick to these things, and you’ll be giving your body a chance to clean itself out reset itself for tomorrow and prepare itself for the next hit it’s going to take from the next party you have scheduled.