The step before planning

Holidays, vacations and festive seasons are usually when a lot of us tend to put on a few extra pounds. This year I have joined the January Jeans Club 2014 to make sure that I maintain my weight, no weight gain for me this season.To know more about January Jean Club 2014 click January Jeans Club 2014

I love this idea because there are so many blogger who have joined in and so many different ideas that can help me and you keep the holiday weight away

January Jeans Club 2014: My first step

Even before planning know what you are planning for

Some of us might have a vacation planned for December, some of us might have family visiting, some of us might be visiting family, some of us have guests over for Christmas and some of us might be invited to many Christmas parties (office party, neighborhood get together, family dinner...)

Workouts:

It’s easy to say you will stick to your routine; I really try to do that but some days that’s not possible. There are days when I have people coming over for dinner so I can’t attend my 6:00 pm RPM class instead I will switch it for a morning jog or some other class but this is possible only when I know my day in advance.

So before making your plan make sure you know how many days are you really celebrating? How many parties do you really need to attend? And how many days will you be busier than usual. This is important because you can plan your workouts accordingly, sometimes early in the morning, sometimes a jog in the night, sometimes a workout in your room.

It is important to consider every small detail, I will be traveling so I know the day I travel I can manage an early morning workout because my flight is at night but because it is a long journey I will be traveling almost 12 – 13 hours (flight + drive home) I am usually tired the day I reach and can start only a day later, keeping this in mind it’s easier to have a plan that I can stick to instead of just saying I will work out on the same day..

Some days when I know I will have guests at home I will work out early in the morning, before anybody gets up that way there is no excuse for not having time and for days when I am a guest if it is only one day I will use that day as my rest day but if I am a guest for more than that I have an exercise routine that I could do in my room.

If you know your days in advance you can always find a way to include your workout 

Food:

All of us are different and different strategies work for us when it comes to avoiding unhealthy food. Some of us might prefer sticking to a calorie count, some might be ok with eating one day and adjusting the next few days others might prefer not budging from their regular plan. If I go for a dinner party I always fill my plate with salad and meat, nothing more...if there is something I like I cut it into bite size pieces and have one piece I make sure I stick to my calorie count. If there are two or more desserts I will pick the one I like, divide that into bite size and take my bite. Sharing is another thing I do. If I am hosting dinner my focus is always 70% clean (roasted vegetables, baked or grilled meat) the remaining 30% is optional (bread, fried stuff and dessert)

I find it is easier to plan when I know where I am going, if I know I have a dinner party to attend I will make sure I eat cleaner than usual around that one meal. Just because I will be celebrating in the evening does not mean my breakfast and lunch will also be unhealthy. I will take extra care for the rest of my meals.

People:

There will be lot of people who will have a problem with how you live your life, they might really be concerned, it might be an old habit either ways I know for sure that being prepared helps me. Usually you meet the same people so you have an idea. I know who will point out about my eating habits, I know who might try to feed me more than I want to eat so I think about how I could handle this. It’s good for me to have an action plan, different for different people. You can either be stern or just avoid them every time they get food anywhere close to you or change topic (More about this later)

Once you know all of this (busy days, food and people) we can start planning (next post)

Keep Reading I will Keep Writing 
Tanvee