8 doable ways to help avoid holiday weight gain

During the six-week stretch between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, many of us find ourselves asking the same two questions: “Does pumpkin pie for breakfast count as a vegetable serving?” and “Why am I gaining weight over the holidays?” So it’s not surprising that some research suggests that people tend to gain weight over the holidays. That said, it’s not inevitable.

By focusing on a few simple strategies, it’s possible to stay on track and still enjoy this festive season — complete with mashed potatoes, a spiced cocktail, icing-laden sugar cookies, or whatever feels like special holiday must-haves to you.

Read on for expert-backed tips for helping you navigate holiday eating without missing out on the moments you love.

Holiday meals can be tricky because they often look very different from our normal routines. We may eat at different times, have snacks and sweets left out throughout the day, or be surrounded by foods we only have once or twice a year, so it can be harder to rely on the routines and habits that normally give us structure. Plus, there’s an emotions component. “There’s also so much more tied to holiday food than nutrition. Food can represent family traditions, culture, memories, and connection,” says Clarissa Garza, M.S., R.D., L.D., the nutrition program lead at Weight Watchers Clinic.

So do your best to follow these tips, but also cut yourself some slack if you’re a little looser than usual, and remind yourself that you can get right back into it. Perspective can help keep you from going into a screw-it spiral and acknowledge that this is a short period of time in the scheme of things. “Maybe you ate more than you planned, didn't track, went back for another serving, or had more dessert than you intended. That doesn't mean anything is ‘ruined’ and there's also no need to compensate afterward. Just return to your usual routine at the next opportunity. A few meals that look different from your normal routine don’t define your overall eating pattern,” says Garza.

Have you noticed that you always leave your grandma’s table feeling the need to unbutton your pants, yet she still tries to serve you more of her famous dish? “Family members may encourage or pressure us to eat more, comment on what's on our plate, or bring up weight and dieting. Even when those comments are well-intentioned, they can make it harder to focus on our own choices,” says Garza. Since food is often a way people show love, someone offering another helping may genuinely be trying to take care of you, even though it can feel like pressure.

But you don’t have to give in to be loving. “You can appreciate the gesture without feeling obligated to eat more,” she says. One strategy she recommends is having a simple, go-to mantra, such as, “Everything was so good, but I’m full right now,” that you just keep repeating as needed. The second strategy is to say you’re full now, but to ask if you can take extras home; this shows you enjoy the food, but you don’t have to get uncomfortably full. Before and after the meal, you can shift the focus away from food by rallying the group toward conversation (a favorite family memory works well), games, traditions, music, a group walk, a festive movie, or whatever you enjoy doing together.

“It can be tempting to skip breakfast or lunch to ‘save’ calories or Points for later, but that backfires,” says Garza. “Arriving extremely hungry can make it much harder to make intentional choices.” So if you’re having a holiday dinner or a New Year’s party, treat the rest of the day normally, trying to meet your nutrition, movement, and hydration goals. “If the holiday meal is later than you normally eat, pregame with a balanced snack with a protein and a carbohydrate.” Think an apple and peanut butter, hummus and veggies, Greek yogurt and berries, or a turkey and cheese tortilla roll-up.

“Think ahead about which foods you're most looking forward to,” says Garza. Then prioritize those when you make your plate. Maybe for you, that’s enjoying hors d'oeuvres you don’t have at home, like cheesy artichoke dip or pigs in a blanket, or maybe it’s your mom’s rice pudding she only makes for the holidays. Knowing what matters most to you can help you feel like you’re getting the thing you’re excited about and not filling up on things that aren’t as meaningful to your experience. When you get to the buffet, “take a look at everything that's available before making your plate, so you can prioritize the foods you look forward to most, especially those special family recipes or dishes you may only have this time of year,” she says. “Remember, you don't have to try everything simply because it's there. Add your most-wanted items first, then round out your plate with opportunities to include protein, fruits or vegetables."

It’s easy to tell yourself you’ll eat mindfully and enjoy every bite — it’s another thing to actually be able to do it when the kids are running circles around you in pure chaos and your uncles are in a shouting match about whether it’s better to buy or lease a car. “Put food on a plate and take a seat, rather than grazing from the serving area, where it’s easy to eat mindlessly,” says Garza. Try to take a moment to notice the food — its taste, its texture — so you can fully savor it. “Slowing down also helps you notice when you're becoming satisfied,” says Garza, so you don’t go on autopilot and end up with that stomachache, over-full feeling. If you notice you're continuing to eat simply because food is sitting in front of you, moving away from the table, kitchen, or buffet can help shift your attention elsewhere.

Along with bringing joy, the holidays can also increase your stress due to long shopping lists or gatherings with difficult family dynamics at play. And that stress can stoke the desire to emotionally overeat or cause you to reach for sugary carbs. One helpful step is to pause and ask yourself if you’re actually hungry. If the answer is no, and you just feel like eating, try setting a 5-minute timer and switching gears to focus on something else you find calming, whether it’s an outdoor break, texting a friend, or listening to your favorite holiday songs. Once time is up, get curious: Do you still feel the urge to eat? (If the answer is “yes,” that’s O.K. too.)

This season can feel especially busy…which is why it’s especially important to carve out time to rest and get eight hours a night of sleep. People who skimp on sleep may feel hungrier and crave more high-calorie foods than those who get enough sleep each night, so it’s no surprise that high-quality sleep is correlated with better weight maintenance. One study found that for every one hour increase in sleep at night, the participants ate about 160 fewer calories each day.

Feel like your brain clicks into overdrive at night? A bedtime mindfulness exercise may help you drift off by quieting your thoughts and refocusing your attention on the present moment. To practice, take 10 deep breaths — inhaling for a count of five and exhaling for a count of five — try a guided meditation app on your phone, or one of our other research-backed sleep strategies.

It’s easy to get into an all-or-nothing mindset after the holidays, and can be hard to get back to your routine. After the holidays are over, try to move forward without judging yourself. Self compassion means accepting how things went (even if not perfectly according to plan) and talking to yourself as you would a friend. Then make a plan for “one small action that helps you reconnect with your routine, like eating your usual breakfast, refilling your water bottle, resuming tracking in the WW app, or getting back to your normal movement routine,” says Garza. “Remember, consistency over time matters much more than ‘perfection’ at one holiday meal or even one month of the year.” Need a little help getting back on track? The Weight Watchers Points Program ® can help you track how you’re doing each day, with members reporting that they have 24 times more mindfulness about what they eat than those who are given standard nutritional guidance.*

The holidays can be a time when it feels a little harder to maintain your weight due to indulgent food, pressure from family, crazy schedules, and higher-than-normal levels of stress. You can still enjoy all of what makes the holidays special while avoiding weight gain by making a few changes, such as prioritizing your favorite holiday foods, resisting pressure from family to overeat, reducing stress, eating mindfully, getting enough sleep, and making a plan for how to get back into your routine. Remember that long-term weight loss is a product of the choices you make most of the time, and no single meal, day, or even month will determine your overall success.