Tag: maintain don’t gain

Nutrition Tips for Your Healthiest Summer Yet

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Summer is almost here! That means lots of BBQs, weddings, vacations and more. Wondering how your healthy lifestyle fits into your busy and very fun summer schedule? Check out my top nutrition tips for summer – including healthy grilling, managing parties, staying on track on vacation, and more.

1. Use the Portion Plate at BBQs & Buffets

Make half your plate non-starchy vegetable at lunch and dinner – it’s easier than counting calories! This will keep the carbs and lean meat to the other side of your plate, keeping calories low and nutrients high. Keep in mind if you don’t use your carbohydrates for energy, they will get stored as fat.

2. Meal Plan for Success

Summer schedules are BUSY! With vacations, work events, and kids being out of school it seems like the summer just flies by. Choose a day on the weekend to take 10 minutes to look at your week ahead. See what days you have an event going on and work backwards to see which days you will want to plan healthy meals for.

3. Use the 80/20 Rule

Focus on functional foods 80% of the time, and give yourself 20% of the time to enjoy the fun foods of summer! The most important part is that after the party/BBQ is over, that you just jump right back in where you left off. There is no falling off the wagon when you are focusing on building healthy lifestyle habits.

4. Fire Up the Grill

Focus on lean meats (chicken, fish, bison burgers) to focus on getting as much protein as possible, and also prevent grill flare ups. Grill vegetables whole or use a grilling basket for a healthy side!

5. Maintain Don’t Gain on Vacation

Let’s be honest – no one expects to lose weight on vacation (what fun is that?). Enjoy yourself while keeping your healthy habits in mind by utilizing the portion plate when dining out and finding a way to incrorporate movement into your day (walk, local gym, swimming, and more).

6. Alternate Alcoholic Drinks with Water

Keep hydrated and keep the calories low with this trick. Even better, choose a low calorie drink like a spiked seltzer over a beer.

7. Cut Out Sugary Drinks

This includes sodas, sweet teas and juice. Cutting out two sugary drinks per day could result in losing over half a pound per week. Remember, these count in the carb portion of your plate. Try regular, or infused or sparkling water for best results!

8. Schedule your workouts on Sunday

Take a look at your week ahead and schedule your workouts ahead of time. Write it down in your planner and reschedule if you have to – just like you would a doctor’s appointment.

9. Let your hunger and fullness drive your choices

Recognizing your hunger and fullness cues is the key to dining out on vacation and eating at BBQs/weddings. On a scale of 1-10 try to eat when you are at a 3-4 and eat until you are a 6-7. Avoid being ravenous going into a meal, this will put you at risk for overeating.
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Maintain Don’t Gain This Holiday Season

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On average, Americans gain between 1-5 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. While this may not seem like a lot, research has shown that those pounds are often never lost, and accumulate over time.

Between the office holiday party, increased amount of sweets laying around and cookie exchange parties – losing weight during the holidays is nearly impossible. Rather than trying to lose weight this holiday season – try to maintain your weight and your healthy habits!

You know that little voice in your head? The one that says “It’s ok! I will eat these cookies now, and I will just set a weight loss goal for my New Year’s Resolution.” Avoid that New Year’s mentality!

Stay focused now and stick with your healthy lifestyle habits to stay on track to your health goals. You have worked so hard to get to where you are – don’t stop now!

5 Maintain Don’t Gain Holiday Tips

  1. Plan Your Meals and Snacks. Staying on track with your health and wellness goals is all about planning, especially when you have a busy schedule. Meal planning is more important than ever during the holidays. Have a holiday party this week? Write it down and plan your healthy meals filled around it. This way you will be able to hop right back on the wagon if you splurge a little at the party.
  2. Implement Your Holiday Exercise Plan. Last month we talked about putting a healthy holiday exercise plan in place, now is the time to implement! Write down your exercise in your planner just like you would a doctor’s appointment. If you have to cancel, be sure to reschedule with yourself.
  3. Don’t save up. Research has shown that those who skip meals throughout the day when they have a big holiday meal or party coming up tend to overeat at that event. Continue to focus on your healthy breakfast, snack and lunch patterns and be sure to listen to your hunger and fullness ques.
  4. Set realistic goals. If you have a sweet tooth, swearing off sweets during the holidays may set you up for failure. Try and come up with a realistic and reasonable goal that you can stick to. Setting a goal to have a sweet treat just twice per week is more reasonable and can fit into a healthy lifestyle.
  5. Get 6-8 hours of sleep. A lack of sleep can weaken your immunity and increase your cravings for those high fat high sugar foods. Set a bedtime, and try to stick it. Also, don’t underestimate the power of a nap!

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