12 Simple Ways to Avoid Winter Weight Gain

For some people, winter is synonymous with weight gain. Your active outdoor life comes to a screeching halt as you start to spend your time indoors instead, which usually means more hours in front of the television or computer and more time eating.Although some people look at gaining weight in the cold winter months as inevitable, it doesn’t have to be a certainty. In fact, if you follow these twelve simple suggestions, you may actually find yourself thinner come springtime:

#1: Enjoy the season for what it is. You can’t change the fact that winter is coming, so try to come to peace with it instead of dreading what it represents. Yes, it can get bone-chillingly cold, but winter also contains some great holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Don’t forget that it isn’t all bad, even if you’d rather have it sunny and warm. Keeping a positive attitude will make it less tempting to overeat in an attempt to deal with your negative emotions.

#2: Have healthy snacks on hand. Eating has a greater propensity to get out of control during the winter months, so get one step ahead by having healthy snacks on hand at all times. This allows you to enjoy a nibble when you feel you need one without worrying about what it will do to your waistline.

#3: Take in some sunshine. It may not be as pleasant to be outdoors when there is snow on the ground, but the vitamin D that the sun’s rays provide will do you some good. Not only will it improve your mood, but some studies have shown that people with adequate amounts of this key vitamin tend to have lower weights as well.

#4: Schedule weekly events with family or friends. Keep yourself from getting depressed and overeating from November to February by setting up weekly engagements with people that inspire you to be healthy and strong. Make it a point to get yourself out of the house and be social, and you won’t be sitting at home fighting with the food in the cupboards or fridge.

#5: Keep buying fruits and veggies. Even though you’ll likely no longer have access to fresh fruits and veggies via the farmers market during this time of year, that doesn’t mean that you should forgo these healthy options all together. Simply add them to your supermarket list and continue eating them, choosing items that tend to be better this time of year, like squash and apples.

#6: Practice portion control. While it may be tempting to spend your winter on the couch eating from the potato chip bag or ice cream carton, that isn’t a good plan. Use your SlimPlate portion control snack plates and bowls when you’re eating to make sure you don’t overdo it.

#7: Take up a new hobby. It is easy to overeat when it is cold out and boredom sets in as you’re stuck inside all day. So, this is a perfect time to take up a new indoor hobby, such as painting or woodwork. Plus, it keeps your hands busy so you can’t eat.

#8: Play around with cooking. If cooking is your natural tendency in the winter months, then use it to your benefit. Play around with different herbs and spices and come up with new, healthy dishes you can enjoy all year round.

#9: Drink a cup of herbal tea. There is nothing more relaxing than sitting in front of a fireplace with a cup of herbal tea to soothe your body and soul. Choose green tea options, and you’ll get lots of antioxidants and maybe a little extra weight loss too!

#10: Develop a winter-friendly exercise plan. Prepare in advance by setting up an exercise routine that you can do right from the comfort of your own home, eliminating the excuse that it is too cold to go to the gym or go outside. Get a used treadmill or buy a couple of weights and, you’re good to go.

#11: Take up a winter sport. Just because it is cold outside doesn’t mean that you have to hibernate and become completely inactive. Try a fun winter sport like skiing, snowshoeing, or ice skating and burn some calories while learning something new.

#12: Set a goal. Don’t let yourself wait until next year to lose weight; set a goal now to be down a certain number of pounds by the time winter passes. It is easier to lose or maintain a loss when you’ve got a goal right in front of you.

Feel free to share these ideas with your friends so that they can avoid winter weight gain too! What are some of the ways that you beat winter weight gain?