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November and December. For a lot of people these back to back months might as well each be re-named National Weight Gain Month. These are the worst months of the year for someone trying to lose weight of even maintain their current weight. The combination of holiday parties, familiar get-togethers, and just being insanely busy is enough to completely destroy your good intentions of eating well and exercising.

It is kind of strange. November and December are sort of “pleasure” months. You indulge in all kinds of extravagant foods and high calorie beverages. On the flip side, January is kind of “pain” month. This is when you typically go on a strict diet and exercise regimen and have more than enough motivation to maintain it.

The question is where is all the motivation in November and December? For most people, it is put on the back burner for all the other crazy things that keep you busy. But just because you don’t feel overly motivated during these times does not mean that you have to sabotage any progress you may (or may not) be currently making. You just need some tools and strategies to help you through it. This article is going to give you a few tips to get you started to help you get through the holidays. Here we go:

Don’t completely give up on working out

There is no doubt that the holidays are one of the busiest times of the year. Your workouts can easily be the easiest thing to eliminate from your daily “to do” list. One of the major benefits of exercise is that you just feel better afterwards. This can be tremendously helpful when you are extremely stressed out. Remember that the way you feel physically has a great impact on how you feel mentally. If your body is constantly tired and carries a lot of tension then you are undoubtedly going to feel that way mentally too. Moderate exercise can be a great way to elevate your mood and make you feel energized.

Watch the amount of alcohol

Just like massive amounts of potentially unhealthy food, alcohol is usually in abundance at most holiday parties. You might find yourself tempted to consume a little more alcohol than you know you should. Having a drink or two is not going to sabotage your weight loss goals. But having a lot more than that certainly will. Alcohol is very calorie dense. It is like drinking empty calories without any nutrition benefit whatsoever. You can still have a drink or two and enjoy yourself. But I don’t have to tell you the consequences or over-indulging. Having a hangover is a sure way to kill any chances of getting in a quality workout the next day. If you just have alcohol in small quantities (or you can certainly choose not to drink at all) is going to help you avoid having a hangover as well as keep your calorie intake minimal.

Workout at home if your schedule gets really crazy
Sometimes getting to the gym is just not an option. If you have a hundred things going on then you probably aren’t going to want to take an hour or so out of your day to drive to the gym. This is where having a faster home workout can be a huge help. Exercising at home is a very effective tool for busy people. You can get a great workout in a lot of ways while exercising at home. I like to use things such as my own bodyweight and a stability ball. Just those tools are all you really need to get a great home workout. The key here is to do something that will make you feel energized and healthy. Even if you know you are going to have a meal that is not conducive to your weight loss goals you can still workout ahead of time. This will make you feel great and you might not want to sabotage that by overeating.

It can be easy to go through November and December in “survival mode”. There is a lot of holiday shopping to be done, events to attend, and reasons to neglect your health and wellbeing. But with a little bit of strategy you can plan ahead and stay on top of it. Moderately exercising at home can be a great way to keep your body energized and your metabolism elevated. This will boost your mood and at least counter balance some of the excess calories you might encounter during the holiday season. I hope that this article was helpful with putting some things into perspective. The holiday season is a great time to spend with friends and family and is even better when you know that you are on top of the game and in control of your health and especially your weight. Good luck!

Resources: The 21st Century 6 Pack Abs Training workouts will show you how to get a flat stomach without ever having again having to do any boring crunches or sit ups. To get on the fast track to losing belly fat, visit Quickest Way to Lose Weight. Tom Gifford is a Certified Personal Trainer, author, and fat loss expert.