Overall, it’s a good idea to get no less than 30 minutes of exercise a day whether that’s at the gym, riding your bike or even walking (briskly) in your

neighborhood. If you happen to want to shed some weight going into the holidays, commit to doing 300 minutes of cardio and strength training a week. That should help you

to get at least a couple of pounds off before Thanksgiving. Even more before Christmas!

You probably already know that drinking water is good for you. It flushes toxins, stabilizes your mood and helps to reduce aches, pain and inflammation. It can help you to

lose weight too. Not only will water help you to feel more energized during your workouts, but it also increases your metabolism and helps you to feel fuller so that

you’ll eat less. Another cool thing about water is it’s a calorie-free way to stay hydrated. Remember this while you’re eating all of the carbs and sweets. If you choose

to drink water instead of something else, that will prevent you from taking in more calories thanks to alcohol, juice and egg nog.

It’s kind of a myth that bread makes you gain weight. Like a lot of foods, it’s eating a lot of it that can pack on the pounds. It’s certainly

better to have whole grain bread than the white stuff (which has very low nutritional value), but do keep in mind some of the things that happen when you reduce how

much bread you have. You lose more water weight (which is what happens when you cut carbs). You will experience less cravings (because carbs are what intensify them in the

first place). Based on your family history, your chance of having heart disease or diabetes might increase (carbs affect blood cholesterol levels). Listen, everything in moderation. We’re not saying never

eat bread. But if you love your grandma’s dinner rolls, lay off of the bread prior to the holidays so that you can have more than one over the holidays.

If you like to snack, you don’t have to give that up. The key is to snack smart. A hard-boiled egg will improve how your thyroid functions. Watermelon is a

low-calorie sweet treat that is made up of 90 percent water. Dark chocolate chips will satisfy your sweet tooth while giving you energy. A small bowl of ricotta cheese and

whey protein will give you both whey protein and fiber. Baked zucchini chips will raise your metabolism and lower your blood pressure. Click here for a tasty recipe

you can make at home.

One last thing. Commit ahead of time to not overdo it. Just because there’s a ton of food before you, that doesn’t mean you have to consume it all. Especially

not all at once. Exercise portion control. Pay attention to when your body says that it’s full and don’t eat super late at night. If you do all of these

things, you can still enjoy this holiday season of food and maintain your waistline too!