Most people like to say that from Thanksgiving to New Year’s is the most wonderful time of the year, but for health-conscious individuals, it’s the direct enemy of all things healthy and nutritious. The rich gravies, decadent desserts, holiday drinks, and hearty sides are the very things that make people conjure up excuses as to why they can overeat.

And people wonder why and how they gained so much weight over the holidays… According to the National Library of Medicine, people gain around one pound over the holiday season. One pound may not sound like a lot to you but just imagine how hard it will be to lose that one pound; it’s not going to be as easy to lose it as it was to gain it.

So how is one to fight the temptations of all the holiday eating?

It’s quite simple, really… don’t overindulge. That might be easier said than done but your stomach also has a way of letting you know when you first get full… you just have to listen to it and not let your eyes get bigger than your stomach.

With Christmas and New Year’s right around the corner, take a look at how you can fight the holiday temptations, and prevent yourself from packing on those dreaded holiday pounds.

Tips to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain This Year

Avoid Going for Seconds

There may be plenty of food but that doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to go for a second round of food. The holiday season is seriously the only time of year when going for seconds is highly encouraged. Why? Because food is made for big crowds and whoever prepared the food doesn’t want all that food in their house, so they encourage everyone to get seconds and take plates home.

You, on the other hand, should get enough on your plate to enjoy for one round. Most people tell themselves that they only eat like this a few times a year and that this is their way of “treating” themselves... but once you hop on that scale and see an unsatisfactory number, you’ll wish you didn’t go for that second round and wonder if it was truly worth it.

Watch Your Portions

It’s the holidays, so it’s understandable that you want to indulge yourself in the chicken and dressing, the macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, and pecan pie. And there’s actually nothing wrong with enjoying that food but just watch your portions.

With holidays, there’s usually a pretty sizable spread of food, so if you want to be able to taste all of it, just get a little bit of everything. A tablespoon or two of the foods you want to eat is enough for you to get a satisfying taste of all of it… If you’re really serious about your portions and don’t want to overindulge, eat from a portion control plate or container, whether you bring it to someone’s house for dinner or whip it out at your own dinner!

Go On a Juice Cleanse

Some people use the holidays as the ultimate “cheat day,” so if you’re going to use the holidays as your cheat day for those few times out the year, you need to cleanse your body with green juice. And this is something you want to do the very next day too.

If you’ve been on a well-balanced diet and your body has been adjusted to lighter meals, all that heavy food is going to throw it off balance. With a green juice cleanse, your body’s nutritional balance will be restored and you can ease your body back into the cleaner eating you were doing at first. Again, it’s fine to enjoy those rich and flavorful holiday foods but have you noticed that when you eat too much of them, it can terribly upset your stomach?

That’s the last thing you want so if you’re going to overindulge, go on and enjoy it but be prepared to go on a juice cleanse the next day… your body will thank you for it.

There are many different ways to avoid the holiday bulge but going into the holidays with a preventive mindset is what’s going to help you fight those holiday temptations.

Remember, eating healthy and being more food conscious doesn’t mean you have to be miserable by any means, you can still have your cake and eat it too… just don’t cut yourself off too big of a slice!