Many people aren’t sad to see swimsuit season go.

I’d be lying if I didn’t find some pleasure in slipping on a sweatshirt after months of worrying about my arms, stomach, etc. Summer can certainly make us unnecessarily body-conscious. Unfortunately, winter can make us too lax and be even less healthy. As animals, we have the instinct to eat more when the weather gets cold. But gorging on calorie-dense holiday food can kill any beach body aspirations before they can even start. Simply put, if you want to be fit come springtime then it’s pivotal to not lose it now. You don’t want to spend all of January on a treadmill because of what you ate in November and December.

Enjoying the holidays is important. You should certainly go out, eat, drink and be merry. But there are some clever ways to navigate a party without adding too much cargo. Follow these tips to successfully attend a holiday party and not gorge.

Come Full

If you only follow one of these tips — let it be this one. Eat before you come to a party, directly before you come. At home you can make yourself a nice, healthy dinner or snack that is much better for you to fill up on. If you go to a party hungry then it doesn’t matter what they are serving — you’ll have to eat it. Often, holiday dinner parties have a few hours of hors d’oeuvres before the meal comes. If you cruise into the fray fresh off a healthy snack you won’t need the bacon-wrapped, chocolate-drizzled, peppermint-dipped finger foods to tide you to dinner. It’s fine if you want to sample one or two on your own accord. But not needing to eat these fat landmines will help you to not blow your calorie count before dinner even starts. [Read more…]