The holidays are upon us, and you know what that means…

The average American can gain up to 5 pounds over the next couple of months. Why? Shorter days, darker days, more time inside, an exponential increase of treats and beverages everywhere we turn. I’ll add stress to the list too, why not?

As a registered dietitian and fitness expert who has worked on 3 of the largest and very significant weight loss studies in North America, we have taken note of what works and what doesn’t in terms of not only losing the weight, but keeping it off, and preventing weight gain.

Tip #3 Those who track what they are eating and drinking are 50% more likely to lose the weight and keep it off (those who pretend the weekends aren’t real, and don’t track on weekends, are not the people who see results, and those who pretend their alcohol has no calories also do not see results – it has 7 calories per gram, almost twice as much as carbs and protein).

Tip #2 Fill up on vegetables, fruit and whole grains first (the foods that have fiber, water, and nutrition you need). You can still have all the other stuff, but have those 3 first and you’ll be way ahead of the game!

Tip #1 Invest your time into some strength training. As you lose weight, you lose muscle. Muscle is more metabolically active than fat (helps you burn more calories), so you want to keep it. You keep muscle by getting enough protein and by strength training (walking is great, but doesn’t make the cut). If you continue to lose muscle as you lose weight (which you will if you don’t strength train), your metabolism will slow down and you will need to consume fewer calories just to maintain your weight (which makes the holiday season even tougher if you’re trying to lose or maintain your weight). More details on strength training here

.