Handling Holiday Weight Gain

Let's get real for a second here, you are one of two people at this current moment:

1.) Not giving a shit and not worried about the holidays, the food, and the possible weight gain associated with them

2.) Beyond worried, confused, and extremely mixed in your emotions as what to do to avoid or even lose weight during the holidays

I am here to tell you that either option is perfectly normal, I do not care what some of your favorite athletes, coaches, fitness models, and more say. There are some people are in the middle so they would be the #1.5 but in that case this article may not be for them or focused on such people. I can be up front and let you know I am #1, I truly embrace the holiday's simply due to the fact I love food, I am not stepping on stage soon, and honestly I am loving my life right now. I am 100% comfortable in my skin and know I pretty much have a grasp on what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, and how it needs to be done.

On the other end of things many of you reading are going to fall under category #2 and are the opposite of how I described myself. That is ok, it is perfectly fine to feel this way and feel a bit vulnerable, I find that being honest with yourself is truly the first step in being able to help yourself around your nutrition and training goals. With that said I am writing this article to provide some general insight, information, and general tips to help you ease the load a bit so that you can enjoy the holiday season BUT as well reach your personal goals without having to wait for the start of the new year.

1.) Start Now: one of the biggest mistakes everyone makes in my opinion is waiting for the right time or perfect moment. Let me be the first to burst your bubble but there is never a perfect time to do anything. Not a perfect time of the year to compete in a show, never a perfect time to start your own business, and there is never a perfect time to change your health and lifestyle. All you have is RIGHT NOW, not January 2nd 2017, February 10th 2017, hell not even May whatever 2017, you want to change and defeat your old habits, ways, and more the time is RIGHT NOW. Do you know that about 95% of the people who start the typical weight loss resolution either, stop, fail, or quit after two months? Yeah, the average person starts the change and quits after about 8 weeks. Why is that? There are so many reasons that I can save for another article, but the key piece is not having the right mind set, plan, and set of execution in place. With that and as you are reading I am not telling you to get on a diet, commit to a gym, or even hire a coach, I am simply saying if you want to change you need to start researching, reading, learning, and planning NOW!

2.) Be Ready: strap on the gloves, put on your ass kicking boots, and put in your mouth guard because ass kicking season is here. Ok, you do not have to get that extreme but here is what I am getting at. You mentally and emotionally know that with the holidays comes FOOD, cakes, candies, sweets, pies, fat, carbs, and more. So, knowing this mentally and emotionally brace yourself, tell and commit to yourself that you will have self-control, you will enjoy but no indulge, and will not let things get out of control. I tell everyone weight loss, lifestyle change, and more starts in your head, not by physical actions. Yes, physical actions lead to a result BUT you must mentally and emotionally connect yourself to your goals.

3.) Don't quit before you even start: how many of us have said to ourselves "I have x amount of lbs. to lose so what if I gain 10 lbs. and now have x lb.s to lose, I still have to lose weight"? A lot of us right, where you accept gaining weight and make it ok to eat indulge and make things a lot worse. Listen, say you have 25 lbs. to lose, 25 lbs. is a lot of weight and will require a lot of commitment, time, energy, and more to lose. So saying fuck it and adding another 10 lbs. to that 25 lbs. is just making things even harder. You may not give a shit now BUT when the weight loss process gets very hard you have no one to blame but yourself. Look I am telling you that I have been in a lot of people's shoes before. I go on vacations, YOLO it up, and end up gaining 10 lbs., over a long weekend, coming home to go from enjoying myself to being pissed at myself. I have gained excess weight of 70 lbs. because I felt I could and easily lose weight only to let you know that was one of the worst decisions I have ever made. If you can begin to 'Start Now" with focusing on "Being Ready" you will find that you will be READY!

Look, a large portion of us spend about 355 days a year tracking our nutrition, eating as best we can, and committing ourselves to some formal nutrition or training goals. 10 days out of the year will not hurt you UNLESS you allow it to. The holidays for a lot of us is time to spend quality time with our family, friends, and loved ones, as well it reminds us of how grateful we need to be breathing and alive. So, I do not want to ruin anyone's holiday's but at the same time I just need to be real with many of you. If you want to change, lose weight, get healthier, compete, or whatever it is you may want to do the time is right now. I do not know what it is I can further advise or tell you but if there is anything I can possibly answer or advise please do not hesitate in reaching out and asking me at any time as I will be more than happy to answer.

RJ Perkins

Owner and Head Coach

Email: atncoachingllc@gmail.com

Site: www.atncoaching.com

Twitter: @atn_coaching

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