Some Thoughts On Excess Holiday Poundage
by Pam Brooks

The average American gains approximately seven pounds between Thanksgiving and New Years. There are endless opportunities to pack on pounds. My theory is that it starts to go wrong beginning with Thanksgiving dinner and goes south from there. (Especially if you follow the Glutenfreeda style of food preparation where everything tastes great!) If you eat normally all day and go into Thanksgiving dinner in your usual state of caloric intake, you’re more vulnerable to overeat at dinner. It seems justified, after all, it’s a special occasion. That’s just the start of the special occasions to overeat on the way to the New Year’s extra poundage.

With the usual Thanksgiving overdose of food, most people feel stuffed, regretful of eating so much, and hopeful that it was just that one instance and not a pattern. That negative feeling can take hold and influence the same behavior at the next holiday gathering. People who fall off their diets often figure that they’ve been bad and wrong about food intake and feel defeated. The next step in thinking can be, why fight it?

What if you decided to budget your holiday food intake the same way you budget your holiday spending money? Instead of skipping all the good stuff and becoming a martyr, why not plan your indulgences so you can enjoy them, guilt-free?

First of all, if you moderately increase your activity, (a brisk walk on your lunch hour, a few times a week perhaps?) your body will forgive some of your less fortunate food choices. You build in a little bit of a buffer zone against weight gain.

Second, resolve to control weight gain but don’t expect yourself to lose weight during this time. The high expectations can program you to fail and give up.

Third, begin to budget food intake on the days you’re having a special event like a Christmas party or a dinner party. Eat a balanced but minimal breakfast and lunch during the day. That way you don’t have to feel food deprived. When you face the buffet table or the dinner table, you can eat a reasonable amount and not have to face the unhappy truth on the scale.

Fourth, avoid the egg nog or other rich drinks. There’s a big difference in the caloric makeup of those festive holiday drinks and a glass of wine. Also, alcohol lowers your food inhibitions, so moderate your intake to avoid a binge.

And last, spend your party calories frugally — try to graze your buffet table, choosing some of the lesser evils like veggies. That way you’ll feed your hunger and avoid overdoing on the most fattening items. (Do allow yourself some of those, (the gluten-free ones, of course,) and enjoy every bite!)

Best of luck getting through the holidays in good shape. All that said, if you have trouble with your financial holiday budget, you might experience the same difficulty in budgeting your holiday calories. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to combine both food and financial counseling when you visit your local consumer counseling service?

– Pam Brooks

These are all fitness moves you can do at home. The ones that you do with a chair are great for staying in shape when you travel.

#1 Chair Double Dip: (Lower abdominals, obliques, triceps)

1 A: Stand with your back to the chair and place your hands on the armrests. Raise one leg off the floor.	1B: Bend your elbows to 90-degree angles while you bend your extended leg and reach the knee toward your chest. Return to the starting position. Do 15 reps. Repeat with the other leg extended. Work up to three sets with each leg.

#2 Chair Push-up: (Shoulders, chest, triceps)

2A: Stand several feet from a chair that you’ve placed against a wall. Hold the armrests and lean forward till your body is in a straight line.	2B: Slowly lower yourself toward the chair by bending your elbows to a 90-degree angle. Push back up, slowly. Work up to 3 sets of 15 reps.

#3 One-legged Squat: (Hip flexors, gluteals, thighs)

3A: Stand facing the back of a chair. Hold onto the top of the chair with both hands. Cross one leg over the other knee.	3B: Slowly bend the floor leg and lower yourself until you feel a gentle stretch in your right buttock and your thigh. Hold this pose for up to 15 seconds. Slowly return to the start position. Work up to 3 sets on each side.

#4 Ball Lift: (Hamstrings, gluteals)

4A: Lie on your back with your heels resting on an exercise ball (you can also substitute a heavy chair.) Rest both arms flat on the floor, palms down. Lift your hips while pressing your heels into the ball or the chair. Bend one knee, rolling the ball closer to your body using your heel to cause the movement. Repeat on each leg, working up to 3 sets of 15 repetitions on each leg.	4B: For an advanced challenge, extend one foot toward the ceiling from the lifted base position. Switch legs. Rest and repeat, work up to 3 sets of 15 repetitions.

Reverse Sit-up: (Back muscles)

5A: Lie face-down on the exercise ball with your belly button centered in the middle of the ball and your legs placed out wide apart to form a solid base of support.	5B: Clasp your hands behind your head. Slowly raise your chest upward, off the ball. Slowly return to your base position. Work up to 20 slow-motion repetitions.

Dumbell Crunch: (Abdominals)

6A: Lie on your back. Open your knees to each side and put the soles of your feet together. Life a 5-pound weight with both your hands and raise your arms to a 45-degree angle over your torso.	6B: Squeeze your abdominals to raise your torso off the floor. Reach as far forward as possible, then slowly lower and start again. Work up to 3 sets of 15 repetitions.