5 Tips For NOT Gaining Weight Over the Holidays:

1. Shrink Your Plate Size! If you use a smaller plate, you can clean your plate, but still eat less. 25% smaller plate, 25% less food! The small dessert size plate is perfect. You can try everything without taking super huge portions.

2. Don’t Party Hungry! If you are headed out to a party, grab a healthy snack before you go. You won’t be famished, and you will be more likely to eat and drink less.

3. Load Up On Protein! Some of the biggest things that can get you this time of year are the sweets. The problem is, if you eat sweets and desserts, you will crave more and more sweets and desserts. If you eat more protein, it helps stamp down those sugar cravings, so opt for the turkey instead of the tiramisu.

4. Choose Your Drinks Wisely! I’m not saying you can’t drink alcohol at all, but remember that most holiday alcoholic drinks are loaded with sugar, and alcohol is a depressant. Not something that is conducive to keeping your trim figure… and eggnog practically causes weight gain from just looking at it!

5. Stay Hydrated! This tip will serve you year round, but is especially important during this dry time of the year (and with all the party boozing). Drink 2 glasses of water for every alcoholic beverage you consume.

Leslie Gant, TV host and self-proclaimed “Green Girl” (but NOT an unapproachable tree-hugger) will be on my show this week to talk about her struggle with binge eating. Leslie realized in college that she was a compulsive eater, and that she has struggled with it her whole life. Leslie has decided it’s time to get this dark secret out into the light of day, and she turned to me for help because I have my own food addiction. We are about to kick off a new program for binge eaters (and if you aren’t sure what that means it goes by many names: overeating, binge eating, food addition, sugar addiction, or an eating disorder), and Leslie is our most vocal client on the subject.

She is so brave to be speaking out and going public with this! You don’t want to miss this interview on Wednesday May 20th at 12:00 PST/3:00 EST on www.WellnessWithRoseRadio.com , and you can listen to the recording there after if you miss it.

Okay, so last week I did my first blog entry. I was telling you how I had fallen off the “bandwagon”, horded a tin of sugary mints, gorged on several deserts. Since sugar is a definite trigger for me, the results weren’t pretty. As of my last post, I was bound and determined to get back on the “program” with my eating and exercise, and thought I was well on my way. Yeah, I was wrong. A full 7 days later, I’m still struggling to get my butt in gear because even though I was doing well, I fell off again.

This is really hard for me to admit – and very, very humbling for me. I have positioned myself as an expert in this field, and here I am struggling with the very things I tell people to do. But you know what, even though it’s difficult for me to put my pride and ego aside, I want you to understand that I am living with the same issues that you are. I *love* sugar. And when I let it get out of control, it’s not a pretty sight.

So, after last week, I went to a birthday party for a friend and ending up knocking back a few drinks. Then, (please don’t laugh at me – cause you know you’ve been there too) they had these delicious looking cupcakes. I decided to have one (even after I asked myself if it was for my higher good – the answer was “no”, but I ate it anyway), and after one bite of it, I only at the top with the icing. The cake wasn’t sweet enough… LOL.

My boyfriend watched me eating just the top of the cupcake with his mouth hanging open in shock. I must have looked ridiculous – but I just didn’t care! Then it was all downhill from there. The Next day at a kid’s party, they had these deep-fried and breaded chicken nuggets. Now normally, I would NEVER have touched these things, but I ate a dozen! Smothered in BBQ sauce! When I let sugar and alcohol in my body, it’s like I can’t help myself.

Instead of dwelling on what I’ve done, and punishing myself for it – I’m going to get back on the “bandwagon” with my eating. There are times that I’m totally on the “program” and choosing what is for my highest good on a regular basis, and times when I am definitely NOT on track. But I’ve learned to dance with this, and I know that once I’m back in a groove that I’ll look back in amazement that I could get so off track.

I’ve been doing this long enough to know that there’s a pattern here. But now when I binge eat or get off of my exercise program it’s so minor compared to where I used to be! I’m saying this because I want you to know that each time you get back on track it will get better and better. The hardest part is just getting started again.

You might be thinking that it sounds easy to just stop eating, or start exercising, but others who struggle like I do, know that it isn’t easy. I’m going to have to bear down, and white-knuckle my way through this to get back on track.

Believe me, the easy route would have been to fib and say I was doing great since last week – but this blog isn’t about looking perfect for me. It’s about truth. And I want you to know that I struggle just as much as you do – there’s no easy solution, and we ALL have to work at maintaining our health!

Here’s a great video I created about how to get back on track with your health.

The last couple of weeks I’ve been doing a lot of entertaining…. a weekend with friends up in Mammoth Lakes CA ,and doing a lot of get-togethers. Because of this, I’ve also been off of my usual eating regime… drinking a little wine, eating a little wheat, a little sugar, a little dairy – and you know what, it’s totally triggered my food cravings and overeating.

It’s been a while now since I’ve been on track with my eating and health, and for some reason, I always think I’m so over my issues with food… the cravings, the addictions, the binge eating. And I’m always amazed when I indulge that they always come back.

The first night I went off the “band wagon”, I woke up looking 4-5 years older than I usually do. No, I’m not even kidding. My whole face was puffy, and I had about 70% more wrinkles around my eyes. My skin looked dull and flaky. It was upsetting to say the least! I eat so healthy, and take such good care of myself. It’s not fair that one night of throwing caution-to-the-wind with my eating would cause such dramatic effects.

And that was just the beginning. I was tired and dragging all day. I found myself craving more and more sugar (and more food in general), and I just kept indulging! And I don’t know why I forget this, but my body *always* produces an excess amount of mucus from the dairy and wheat, which is always fun.

I hate to admit this, but here goes. The day that we drove up to Mammoth Lakes, I had this tin of mints in my purse. They were chock full of sugar – and I normally don’t carry stuff like this – but they were a gift from a friend who owns the company who makes them. I tried one. Then I ate another. Next thing I know, I’m literally sneaking them into my mouth so my boyfriend won’t see them. Next thing I know – they are G-O-N-E.

That’s when I realized it was time to get myself in check. But, my weekend was just beginning, so I put it off for a few days. Gosh, I wish I hadn’t. I’m totally hurting today. I got in two major fights with my boyfriend. I’m not my peppy self, and let’s not even talk about my bloating and digestive “issues”. Eating this way actually causes depression for me (and many other people, but they don’t realize it). I remember that when I used to eat like this all the time, this is what I felt like ALL the time. I just didn’t know there was another way I could feel.

So, I’m getting back on track. It always takes my body 3-4 days to get back on the bandwagon and over the cravings. I have to get there by cutting out ALL of my “trigger” foods – which means for me NO sugar, NO wheat, and NO dairy. I’m actually starting my own “21 Day Food Intolerance Cleanse” that I developed, which is one of the cleanses that I teach in my “10 Week Transformation” Program.

The good news is that I can start to see major shifts in my skin, bloating, and energy in as little as 3 days.

The difference is I’m NOT beating myself up over this like I used to. Instead I choose to look at this as a blessing and a lesson to remind me why I do the things I do. It’s no fun to look and feel older than I am. So, I’m getting back on the bandwagon! It’s so worth it.

~Rose