The paper decorations are torn.  The champagne sits on a dirty table utterly flat.  The frosting is crusty and stale.  You feel guilty, fat and flabby.  The holiday is over and now it’s back to reality.  Where do you start?

Here are six quick tips to keep you on track and prevent a detour from turning into a full on backwards slide …

Give yourself a hug. You enjoyed a holiday, congrats!  You spent time with friends and family.  You relaxed, you indulged even.  Awesome.  Don’t beat yourself up over it, be happy that you did it.  We live in such a busy world, just taking time out to enjoy life a bit is a great way to recharge your batteries.  I hope you enjoyed yourself immensely.

Have a cleanse day. I don’t mean drink lemon water and honey and starve to death.  But go vegetarian for a day.  Keep the starches to a minimum and focus on the fruits and veggies.  Mentally this will help push the reset button and get you back into those healthy patterns again.

Don’t get on the scale! I know I say that you should weigh yourself regularly but don’t get on the scale for a day or two.  Your body is adjusting and you know the number is ugly so just don’t look at it.  By the third day get back on and assess the damage.  Maybe you’ll be pleasantly surprised and it will be the same as it was before the holiday started.

Goose your cardio. If you really feel bloated and can’t believe how much you ate goose your cardio the week after a holiday.  If you normally do 30 minutes, bump it up to 40 for a week (maybe two) and you’ll feel like you’re accomplishing so much more.

Up your resistance training. Add one extra weight training activity into your week.  Here are some options:  circuit training in a gym, yoga or Pilates class, a bootcamp class (this could also help assuage your guilty conscience by beating it out of you!), extra free weight work, a resistance training DVD or cable show.  Do what you normally do but add this one thing in the mix.  Again, you’ll be purging guilt and helping to hit the reset button.

Don’t use it as an excuse.  Many people can trace their diets falling off track to a holiday blowout.  Once the holiday is over they continue with bad habits and the pounds creep back on.  Don’t use one or two days as an excuse for the next six months.  Do the steps above, just for one week, and continue with your healthy lifestyle.

Hope this helps.  Feel free to share any tips you might have.  :-)

Lisa

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