12 Healthy Fit Tips To Get You Through The Holiday Season

It's that time of year again! Fun with friends and family and it's the busiest time of year for most of us. Every event is planned around food and drinks and while it's fun, it always leaves us with extra pounds to shed in the end.

So how can you help keep off those extra pounds without dwelling on it and enjoy the season? Here are a few valuable tips to help get you through the holidays.

1. Don't veer off your training schedule. Work out early, before the day gets going. If you must wait until after work, do it first thing so you aren't easily side-tracked. If you work out 3 days a week, try your best and stay on that schedule, but don't beat yourself up if you can't. The goal is to maintain your fitness, not gain fitness through the holidays.

2. Set a goal of doing something everyday for 30 minutes. Do your regular workout program and try adding in a walk, stretching or yoga. You can even park further away at the mall, take the stairs and carry your own groceries. It all adds up! This will help keep hoiliday stress at a minimum and deter the calories from packing on.

3. Find balance-not perfection. Give yourself some leeway during this time of year and know that things may not work out perfectly all the time, but that you'll get back on track.

4. Minimizing "cheating" and eating unhealthy by taking essential fatty acids like fish oil with your meal. These EFA's help inhibit some of the enzymes that are responsible for fat storage.

5. Take digestive enzymes with your melas to help minimize fullness and indigestion.Enzymes are really great, especilally this time of year when we tend to eat foods we wouldn't normally eat.

6. Fill up on protein and veggies. Protein increases metabolism by 20% and veggies take more calories to digest than they contain.

7. Drink plenty of H2O. We tend to overeat when we are dehydrated, which is exactly what you don't want heading to holiday gatherings!

8. Bring a healthy holiday dish to your family gatherings and/or parties. This way, you'll know of at least one dish that you can eat without the guilt! Of course, you are going to want to have some of your favorite foods this time of year so just go with smaller portions. We all know it's unrealistic to not have any!

9. Don't skip meals. Eat your regularly scheduled meals when you are used to eating them. Don't get side-tracked wrapping gifts or making cookies and forget to eat. This will only be setting you up for disasterous overeating of those cookies or at that party your headed off to.

10. Plan a time each week to wear your favorite tight fitting outfit. This will help you stay focused and on track just knowing you plan to shimmy into that cute black dress you love!

11. Go easy on the alcohol. Sure drinking is a fun way to celerate the holidays with friends, however it's also one of the main reasons people gain so much weight over the holidays. Make a deal with yourself on your limits before you get to the event. You can always opt for champagne, which is only about 80 calories for a glass.

12. And lastly, ask yourself, "Do I really have to _______?" There's no reason to put more pressure on yourself than necessary this time of year. You have more choices than you think and really, how much fun are you going to be if your heart's not in it? Pick an choose what you go to, what you sign up for and what you feel obligated to do. Everyone's doing their best this time of year.

You can make the decision to have a healthier holiday season this year. Don't wait until the New Year to decide on a fitness plan and goal. Be unique and different-90% of the population will wait until the holidays are done, so you'll be one step ahead of them! By following these simple tips, you can enjoy your holidays feeling great about yourself and focus on what's really important-family, friends and loved ones.