Raise your hand if you threw down eating some delicious food during the holidays! You are not alone. Many of us ate some of the all-time favorites like sweet potato pie, red velvet cake, lemon pound cake and more during the holiday season. 
Jenifer Lewis, who was Colorado Black Health Collaborative’s special guest in October (https://www.coloradoblackhealth.org/annualgala/), had a great diva party in December 2018. We were not at the party but enjoyed reading about it online. Wish we had been there. Page Six (https://pagesix.com/2018/12/18/jenifer-lewis-gathers-divas-for-her-holiday-party/) wrote about the gathering, sharing that Ms. Lewis feels that the key to a successful Christmas event involves more than just good music but also laughter and games. These all play a role in creating a jolly atmosphere. And food, of course, is important. However, unlike many of
us who use this as a time to splurge, the article quotes Ms. Lewis as saying, “one thing I am always conscious of is to have lots of choices for folks who are vegan or who don’t drink alcohol.” “Considerations like that add to the feeling of warmth and togetherness. After singing and games, with bellies full, we sit around the fire and express our dreams for the next year.”
The holiday season creates the perfect storm of sweet treats, delicious holiday meals, longer nights and exhaustion which leads us to eat more and exercise less. Many of us notice a 1 or 2 pound weight gain. Health and Happiness for the Holidays 2018, an employee publication of Kaiser Permanente, notes that studies show that the weight gain during the holidays tends to stick with us and build up year after year, eventually adding up to 10 pounds over 5 years.
Dr. Stephan Guyenet in his YouTube video (https://youtu.be/Mp2p4TdLn_8) entitled, Why We Overeat, gives a scientific assessment of eating in America. He relays some interesting information, including the fact that 52% of annual weight gain in the United States occurs over 12% of the year — during the 6-week holiday season. This weight gain is attributed to overeating during the holidays. Dr. Guyenet says that holiday overeating is related to:
- High palatability and calorie density (food is good tasting and packed with calories).
- High variety of food.
- Ease of access (food right there at your fingertips).
- Alcohol – many people drink more alcohol during this time.
- Social factors promoting eating.
- Habit – being used to eating a lot during this time.
There are many things that you could do to work on the pounds you gained during the holidays. We have included just a few tips to get you started. We hope you find these useful. Drop us a line and let us know if any of these tips helped.
Here are a few tips to shake off the holiday pounds:
Dr. T.
Colorado Black Health Collaborative
Just for the Health if it!