• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
G-Free Foodie logo
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers & Snacks
    • Baked Goods
    • Beverages
    • Dairy Free
    • Desserts
    • Kid Zone
    • Main Dishes
    • Paleo Friendly
    • Quick & Easy
    • Recipes & Techniques by Cooks We Love
    • Salads & Dressings
    • Side Dishes
    • Soups
    • Tips & Tricks
    • Vegan
  • Articles
    • Dining Tips
    • G-Free Foodie Guides
    • G-Free Foodie Mommies
    • G-Free Foodie Product Reviews
    • Gluten Free Advice + Experts
    • KC's Blog
  • About
  • Shop
  • Help!
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Browse Recipes
  • Articles
  • About
  • Shop
  • Help!
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home / Articles / Gluten Free Advice + Experts

    5 Tips to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

    Leave a Comment

    5 Tips to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain
    Gluten Free Advice + Experts

    Share

    For better or for worse, the holidays are upon us. Time to get a bunch of stuff given to you that you don’t want or need, and time to give a bunch of stuff to other people for which they have no want or need. But that’s what the holidays are all about, right? Ok, it’s about other stuff too. Like family tension and drama. And getting in touch with your love/hate relationship with holiday music. And of course, eating and drinking too much and hopefully finding “being merry” on the other side of those behaviors. Because of this, weight gain is all too common over the holidays, but here a few tips to try and minimize that. Even staying the same weight would be considered a win over the holidays.

    1. Skip Dessert. Definitely way easier said than done, no doubt. But consider that dessert, high in saturated fat and sugar and low in everything else, is probably the most damaging to your waistline of all the eating you’ll be doing. In many ways, the holidays are all about dessert, so skipping or cutting back will be no easy feat. But know this, and perhaps make a compromise with yourself and green light yourself on everything but dessert. Eat that 2nd and even 3rd helping of your Christmas ham. Go nuts on hors devours, soup, salad, and bread. The goal is to try and fill yourself up to the point where the idea of dessert makes you feel almost literally ill.
    2. Minimize Alcohol Use. I know, what fun am I, right? Don’t eat dessert and don’t drink any booze. Well, drink all you want but know that alcohol over the holidays is a silent killer. Now granted, the holidays and sobriety don’t really mix too well, so this is definitely an uphill battle. Just be conscious of it and know that alcohol goes right to your hips and/or stomach faster than food. Maybe offer to be a designated driver once or twice, and give your friends and family the gift of a safe ride home and yourself the gift of having saved yourself hundreds of empty calories and a hangover in the morning.
    3. Have Dietary Forethought. Be realistic with yourself and your behavior and try and plan just a little bit ahead. If your holiday work party is tonight, don’t kid yourself and pretend you won’t be binging on things like champagne, cheese, chicken, chocolate, and conversations you would never dream of having sober at the office. If you’re going nuts that night, try and simply eat light and healthy before that. Small breakfast, light lunch, and then don’t even worry about what you eat and drink at the party. It’s only a few hours and one meal, you can’t do that much damage. Especially if you’ve kept it light the rest of the day.
    4. Get Plenty of Sleep. This will help you avoid weight gain for many reasons. One is that well-rested people are able to regulate their appetite better and make better food-related decisions. Ample sleep will also reduce stress. Stress is a killer for many reasons, as it leads many people to consume and over-consume the exact types of foods they should be avoiding. And under stress, the body is even more likely to add fat in the midsection right around the belly and organs.
    5. Use Caffeine. Caffeine and the holidays is a match made in heaven for many reasons. Even getting out of bed on a cold morning to go buy people the aforementioned things they don’t need is easier when a nice caffeine buzz awaits. Beyond that, caffeine is a natural appetite suppressant and encourages lipolysis, the body’s burning of fat for fuel. Additionally, the beverages caffeine is inherent to like coffee and tea contain many natural antioxidants that confer many positive health benefits and help to balance out the many other foods you’ll no doubt be eating over the holidays that confer no health benefit of any kind.

    So those are at least a few tips to try and avoid the almost obligatory 5-10 lb weight gain (or more) that occurs every holiday season. It is definitely a season fraught with many kinds of temptation, and learning how to manage and selectively avoid some or most of these temptations will allow you to have a healthier, more fun and fulfilling, and more guilt-free holiday season. Or you could just be the typical American, and give yourself carte blanche and go nuts over the holidays, then try and get your act together come January. And according to the Mayans and many others, there won’t even be a January, so maybe disregard everything I said and live in opulence and decadence over the next couple weeks. Either way, happy holidays.

    Article Courtesy:  Andrew Steingrube

    You May Also Like

    • biggest cooking mistakes
      The Most Common Cooking Mistakes!
    • peanut butter and peanuts
      What are Lectins; and could I Be Allergic to Lectins?
    • gluten free strawberry cupcakes with strawberry frosting and fresh berries
      The Best Gluten-Free Recipe For Strawberry Cupcakes…
    • how to cook duck breast: perfectly cooked duck breast on salad
      How To Cook Duck Breast: Tea Brined Duck Breast
    « Foodie Girl, I Don't Love It When You Walk Away & I Hate To See You Leave
    Some Things To Be Thankful For. »

    Share

    Reader Interactions

    Let Us Know What You Think Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    K.C. the G-Free Foodie

    K.C. is a farm-grown foodie, born and raised in the fertile fields of California’s San Joaquin Valley. After being diagnosed with Celiac Disease following years of unexplained illness, she has infused her gluten-free life with flavor, fork in hand. Learn more about K.C.

    Featured Recipes

    Glass bottle filled with tomato vinaigrette in front of a salad on a wooden table.

    Tomato Vinaigrette: An Easy Salad Dressing To Try Now

    gluten free coconut layer cake recipe

    The BEST Gluten-Free Coconut Cake

    tomato water

    Tomato Water | The Fresh Tomato Recipe You Didn't Know You Needed

    easy single serving sangria

    Easy Single-Serving Sangria

    SHOP GLUTEN FREE FAVES

    Popular Categories

    • Appetizers + Snacks
    • Beverages
    • Desserts
    • Dining Tips
    • Main Dishes
    • Quick + Easy
    • Salads + Dressings
    • Soups
    • Tips + Tricks

    Footer

    People

    • About Us
    • Meet K.C. Cornwell
    • G-Free Foodie Gluten Free Advocates + Experts

    Business

    • Partnerships
    • Contact
    • Gluten Free Consulting Services
    • Privacy Policy & Disclaimer
    • Links & Cool Stuff

    Follow Me

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • TikTok

    G-Free Foodie © 2025 · All Rights Reserved