Start 2013 with the Free Let's Fight Holiday Fat Weight Loss Program

Something happened this year that has never happened in the past: I gained so much weight that I exceeded my 9-months-pregnant weight...

The day I looked down and saw 152 on the scale, I knew that it was time to stop screwing around. I began a diet and exercise routine under the supervision of a doctor who specializes in gastrointestinal health and I have lost 18 pounds to date.

Not bad for two months, right?

Unfortunately, I began this diet right before the holidays. That's the worst time to start a diet, but I just couldn't wait any longer!

I think it's safe to say that the holidays make it hard to stick to our healthy eating and exercise routines, whether it be the long hours at work, the holiday shopping, the parties and traveling. To help me stay strong during the holiday season, I signed up with the Let's Fight Holiday Fat website - it's free! - and it has made a world of difference for me! I just did my biweekly weigh-in on Thursday - that's right, two days after Christmas dinner - and I lost four pounds in the last two weeks.

OVER CHRISTMAS.

How did I do it? Well, I won't lie and say it was easy, but it was hard. I thought I'd share some of the ways I have kept on plan when presented with temptation. These tips apply at any time of year, not just for the holidays.

1. Prepare for the unexpected. If you're heading to an event or party, eat a light meal, bring a bottle of water or a snack along in case there is nothing that is diet-friendly.
2. If you "cheat" on your diet, do not go all-out on that cheat! For instance, on Thanksgiving, the only thing being served that I was allowed on my diet was Turkey. I still ate mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, dressing and sweets, but I only ate a bite or two of each thing. I was still able to enjoy the forbidden foods, but I didn't gorge myself on them.
3. You MUST exercise. Even if you simply walk the dogs around the block, do a set of jumping jacks in between loads of laundry or do 50 crunches when you wake up, you must do some type of aerobic activity each day.
4. Don't buy it if you can't eat it. This is one of the hardest things I have had to change about our diet as a family. No more ice cream. No more candy, no cookies, chips or junk food. If I don't buy it, I can't eat it - and neither can anyone else in the family. It is hard to get used to this, but once the pounds start coming off, it gets easier.
5. Drink water. And lots of it. I try to drink at least 8 8 oz glasses of water a day, and if I am going out to eat, I order water to drink. When your stomach is full of water, you're not only hydrating yourself and flushing toxins from your body, but there is less room for food!

On the Let's Fight Holiday Fat website, there are so many resources to help you lose weight, get in shape and maintain it! There is a user-friendly exercise schedule, a journal for recording everything you eat and do, as well as a progress tracker, where you enter your weight each day - or however often you like to weigh-in - as well as recipe resources, calorie logs and a photo tool so that you can visually keep track of how much weight you've lost.

I am finding that keeping track of my weight each day is helping me to resist the temptation of really cheating on my diet and exercise plan. Seeing how far I've come helps me so much each day. When I see that I've lost 18 pounds over the last two months, it makes it easier to ignore that piece of pie staring at me from the menu at the restaurant, or to put my fork down when I am full.

I personally hate to exercise, and that is why I've always had an issue with my weight. But there are short and simple routines shown on the Let's Fight Holiday Fat website that we can watch and learn how to fit those short activities into our busy lives!

I know that many are thinking of their goals for 2013 right now, and one of the most popular new year resolutions is to lose weight and get healthy. If this is you (it is certainly me), then why not try signing up for the Let's Fight Holiday Fat website?

Membership is free and you have nothing to lose - except weight!

I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for alli. I received a promotional item as a thank-you for participating.