How to Lose Weight During the Holidays

Holidays are a time where we can either use a lot of excuses or we can learn to calm the fuck down and get through them without eating our faces off.

If you’re used to giving up and stuffing yourself through the holidays how about deciding right now to do it differently this year?

The holidays happen every year and this time and you can decide that this year WILL BE DIFFERENT.  I’m talking about enjoying our meals without EATING our faces off.

Here are my three best tips for holiday weightloss in this Losing 100 Pounds with Corinne podcast episode.

3 Tips for Holiday Weightloss

Tip 1: STOP making the holidays HARD

If you’re thinking “it’s hard to lose weight during the holidays” your brain will think about all the reasons it’s hard! We have to recognize where we’re catastrophizing the holidays to begin with. Weightloss is really about taking ownership. You’ll lose weight or you won’t lose weight during the holidays, but it will be on you.

Before you can make weightloss easy and make a plan for the holidays, you have to listen to how you’re talking about the holidays first. The journaling exercises below will help get you to a point where you realize there might be something else that you can think.

Holiday Weightloss Journal Prompts:

• Make an “I can’t lose weight during the holidays because I think _______” list. Then ask yourself whether each item is true.  If you say yes, ask yourself if it’s really true.  (It likely is not).

 

• From November 1st to December 31st, I will lose _____ pounds and the holidays will either help me or hose me. If I were to lose ____ pounds during the holidays, this is what I’d have to do _______.

Then, once you know the thoughts that are making weightloss during the holidays hard, watch what you’re telling yourself everyday. Allow your brain to believe for a moment that something else might be true. You CAN lose weight during the holidays if you decide to stop thinking that it’s hard.

Tip 2: Get aware of how many meals we’re REALLY talking about.

How many holiday meals will you be eating this year? Are you going on trips, eating out, or attending holiday parties? Is it a lot?

Many members in my No BS Weightloss Program tell me there are ‘alot’ of special events or occasions revolving around food.  When I think a lot, I think 45, but when I sit down and break it out, there are usually only about 10 or 12 special meals over the holidays. Out of 183 meals in November and December, that is only about 5%-6% of the time.

So, I want you to figure out EXACTLY how many holiday meals you will be eating to give your brain some DATA.

Holiday Weightloss Journal Exercise:

• Take out a calendar and write up every meal that you can think of over the holidays that is outside your home or outside of your control.  Count them.  Look at how many days there are between November 1st and December 31st (61) and how many meals you typically eat in a day and compare those numbers.  It shows how many meals are still completely in your control.

 

• On the “out of control” days, you can still make a plan.  “I will have one slice of pie.”  If there’s always been pie at every Thanksgiving meal you’ve gone to, you can likely plan this one.  “I don’t have control, I don’t know what’s happening” is catastrophizing the situation.  For Thanksgiving, you can typically expect turkey, mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, pies, and wine.  You don’t have to imagine it too hard.

Years ago, people in my No BS Weightloss Program membership tried to figure out who had the most events planned during the holidays.  The winner had 9 days where it was all-day food fests and she was still able to lose weight.  She didn’t overeat.  She had a little bit of all the things she loved.  She didn’t eat non-special/everyday items.

Don’t just eat because you gave up by thinking it’s too hard. You can still make reasonable decisions without being an asshole to yourself. You don’t have to give up on your hopes, dreams, and goals because somebody went to Kroger and bought a bag of rolls.

If you can’t figure out 2 months’ worth of events, you can at least look at the calendar weekly and figure out where you’re going this week.

Tip 3: Make your decisions ahead of time.

Most people walk into the holidays hoping for better than last year and put their emotions in someone else’s hands.  Rather than loving themselves, they stuff themselves to avoid emotions.

You CAN decide what you will eat, how you will think, and how you want to feel BEFORE the holidays. You have TOTAL CONTROL of what you put in your mouth and it’s easier when you make your decisions ahead of time instead of in the moment. Don’t eat because you’re gone numb and thought there’s no way you can lose weight over the holidays.

Holiday Weightloss Journal Exercise:

• What do you want out of the holidays?  What is truly important?  How are you going to deal with anxiety or overwhelm?  How do you want to feel when you’re at events?

 

• If you remember holidays as feeling depressed or anxious in the past, you have to work on yourself before you go into them.  How can I have compassion for myself? How can I be there for myself?

 

• Plan what you will eat at each holiday meal.

 

• Decide what’s important to me and what’s not?

What’s important to me during the holidays is homemade food. I will skip over anything that is store-bought or made from a box. I savor the homemade mac and cheese and skip it when it’s store-bought.

One common thing I hear members in my No BS Weightloss Program say is, “It’s too hard to plan because I’m not cooking the meal.” You don’t have to know what your mother is cooking on Thanksgiving to know whether you’re going to overeat or not.

You can’t go to a holiday event thinking “I will for sure overeat.”  Is that helpful???  NO!

You didn’t overeat because someone offered you chocolate pie.  You overate because you said yes to chocolate pie.  Take ownership. Think of the food or types of food that will be there and think about eating them until you are satisfied, not stuffed. You can plan to listen to your body and stop eating once you’ve had enough.

Ready to SLAY the holidays instead of giving up to only “start over” January 1?

Losing weight during the holidays doesn’t have to be stressful.  Don’t go into the holidays with fear.  Go in with intention. I know you can make decisions without being an asshole to yourself.

I got you.

Listen to my podcast for more information about each holiday weightloss tip or set yourself up for success by taking my free Losing for Life Kickstart Video Course.