P90X is a high-intensity workout program that was developed by fitness guru Tony Horton to reshape your body in only 90 days. The program makes a lot of claims about losing weight and toning your entire body. So, just how can P90X and Tony Horton make these claims and stand behind them? Here are the specifics on how the P90X workout exactly works.

Muscle Confusion

The muscle confusion principle is the key to P90X and reshaping your body. Tony Horton developed this workout technique so that your body was always being challenged during every workout. This is effective for losing weight and getting toned because your body never gets used to the exercises and always has to put forth effort to get the workout done. Your muscles are constantly confused, which means that they are going to be burning fat and calories like crazy. This accelerates a person’s results since your body is never going to plateau. You can continue to lose weight and develop muscle throughout the whole 90 days and beyond and not have to worry about your body plateauing and your exercise efforts are never wasted.

Diversity

With the P90X workout, you get 12 different workouts that are done on a set out schedule depending on what level you are starting at. P90X easily gets rid of the boredom of exercising, as you could be doing yoga one day and extreme cardio and plyometrics the next day. Most people who start an exercise program get bored after a few months because it’s all the same exercises and workouts. P90X offers a diverse offering of 12 different workouts that will definitely keep you from being bored during the program.

Efficient

There is no wasted time during your P90X workouts. Every exercise in every one of the 12 workouts that you do are specifically done for fat burning and strength building reasons. With some workouts you may have wasted exercises that may do nothing for your body. With P90X you have different levels of difficulty which means you are always getting an efficient workout no matter if you are a beginner or a seasoned pro. You get at least an hour of constant sweating and fat burning with little rest during the workouts. No one wants to waste time when they are working out. People have busy lives and need a workout that is efficient and will utilize every minute of the workout to losing weight or getting toned. That is exactly what P90X does.

Tony Horton’s P90X is not a miracle cure or anything like that. It is a well-developed workout program that takes effort and time on a person’s behalf to lose weight and get the toned body that they want. P90X will not work if you do not commit fully to the program. The P90X workout uses muscle confusion as well as exercise diversity to help people lose weight and get the toned body they want. A person has to put in the efforts for the program to be a success.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/health-articles/how-does-p90x-work-1154348.html

About the Author:  Tiffany Brunskole is a writer for Surfer Body Fitness, an Online retailer who specializes in workout products and supplies from Beachbody fitness such as P90X. P90X can help you burn more calories and achieve weight loss faster.

CVS Unlimited, LLC is a paid affiliate of Botanic Choice.

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This policy is valid from 12 November 2009. I am C. Small, the administrator for this blog. For questions about this blog, please contact cvsmall.small@gmail.com. This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, since I am an Affiliate of the advertisers in this blog, if you buy something I will get paid, not much but I’m retired and need whatever I can get. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or post made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. Even though I receive compensation for the advertisements, I always give my honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog may not be my own, but I agree with them. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

When purchasing any weight loss product, it is important to do your research.  Many people are exchanging their opinions about Weight Loss on DietBlogTalk.com.

For an additional source, check out Weight Loss on the very popular Sensational.com

Why It Is Important To Maintain A Healthy Weight

There is a simple way to keep you heart, mind and body overall in good health:  maintain a weight appropriate for your build, gender and age.  Though it may seem like a simple matter, a healthy weight can prevent heart disease, high blood sugar and cholesterol, certain kinds of cancer, and depression; this is not to mention the obvious improvement in overall appearance and self-image.  And despite what many people think about losing weight, it can be quite simple—a routine of healthy eating and daily exercise plus proper supplementation is often enough to take off and keep off extra weight.

What To Look For In A Diet

A diet that is designed around healthy and permanent weight loss will be based on nourishment rather than deprivation.  People who reach a healthy weight and maintain it usually do so by eating a well-rounded diet of fresh foods from each food group.  Such a diet serves two purposes for the dieter by keeping hunger at bay while also stimulating the metabolism to burn faster.  Diet guides, weight loss cookbooks, and structured meal plans can provide dieters with a way to stay focused on their goals.  Exercise, too, can become easier when certain resources are employed.  At-home exercise equipment is often a good way to exercise, as it is convenient for the dieter; workout DVDs and book-based programs provide a similar benefit.  As long as the dieter is keeping up her heart rate for at least 30 minutes at a time, she can assume it has been a productive workout that may lead to weight loss.  It is recommended that those losing weight stay active nearly every day in order to experience continuous benefits (fat being turned to energy, a faster metabolism, creation of lean muscle, etc).  You may also want to try one of the proven weight loss supplements now available.  When used in conjunction with diet and exercise they can offer some good assistance.  Look for one with ingredients that burn fat and help to control the appetite and cravings.

Where To Find Good Information

Any dieter seeking free information can find what they’re looking for online—there are many sites devoted to dieting, exercising and the products that make weight loss easier.  You can tell a reputable weight loss site based on its affirmation of eating well and staying fit as the keys to weight loss; another indication is its unbiased look at supplements and equipment.  A product site should feature comments from consumers or a user-run rating system. Message boards and forums that allow dieters to post can also be a great place to ask questions or find encouragement from others who are losing weight.

Conclusion

Thankfully, the increase in obese and overweight people has been met with the creation of new resources to help all people lose weight.  Maintaining an ideal weight yields so many benefits, from a great looking body to a healthy heart, that there is no reason to not start on the path to weight loss right away.  Let today be the day you gather weight loss resources (cookbooks, guides, meal plans), exercise supports (equipment, DVDs, books by the experts) and online information so you can begin burning fat, defeating your cravings and working your way to a better you.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/weight-loss-articles/weight-loss-healthy-weight-maintenance-information-810700.html

About the Author:  Shane Crafton is a diet editor, whose team specializes in health, fitness and weight loss reporting.

Insanity: The Ultimate Cardio Workout and Fitness DVD Program
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FINE PRINT

This policy is valid from 12 November 2009. I am C. Small, the administrator for this blog. For questions about this blog, please contact cvsmall.small@gmail.com. This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, since I am an Affiliate of the advertisers in this blog, if you buy something I will get paid, not much but I’m retired and need whatever I can get. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or post made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. Even though I receive compensation for the advertisements, I always give my honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog may not be my own, but I agree with them. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

With so many different machines out there in the gyms across the country, many people tend to forget about the easiest, cheapest, and the best way to get into shape. A cycle exercise, such as riding your bike, is a great fitness routine to get into. Health should be the number one priority for people because there is nothing more important. The healthier you are the more you will get out of life in the end.

One of the most obvious benefits to cycle exercising is that of getting out into the world and enjoying the scenery while getting all of that fresh air. Breathing that clean air is another thing that is excellent for your health. Instead of staring at the same four walls at the gym and smelling all of that stale sweat, you could be watching the blue skies and getting all of the fresh air you could ever want.

Another reason why this type of exercising is so beneficial is because it is low impact. Those who have a little trouble with their joints will enjoy this exercise, as the motion of the exercise of cycling does not stress the joints too much. You will be able to exercise for a much longer period of time this way. Those trying to get their joints back to tip top health after joint surgery find cycle exercises to be a great rehabilitation path.

There are also many cardiovascular benefits that come with cycle exercising. By increasing your fitness level, you will lower your risk of arteriosclerosis and heart attacks. Also, this sort of fitness routine will help you drop those unwanted pounds you have wanted to shed for some time now. And since those who are in need of dropping a few pounds may not be used to working out, cycle exercise is wonderful because it provides a slow warm up. You can easily start slow and then gradually increase your speed and resistance as time moves on.

Variety is the spice of exercise. It is very easy to end up bored and tired of the same old exercise routine day after day. No matter how important fitness is to your health, you can easily lose interest in the entire thing should you become bored. With cycle exercising you can switch your scenery whenever you like which means you never have to be bored with your exercise routine again. The more interesting you can make your workout the more you will enjoy the overall experience and the more you will stick with it.

So if you have not already gave cycle exercising a try for yourself then there is no better time than now. When it comes to your health, it is important to take action and stick with it. Even though it may be hard to get into a routine in the beginning, just hang in there. It will eventually become second nature and you will actually feel out of sorts if you miss a day of cycle exercise.

Weight loss and dieting is a major struggle for millions of people. Being even slightly overweight can lead to some avoidable medical issues including joint pain. Many people suffer from secondary  Osteoarthritis  and harsh joint pain brought on by obesity.

Dieting and avoiding the foods you like can be very difficult, even if you are highly motivated. Therefore one method that has proved successful is portion control. Eating the same food you would normally just eating a little less of it. Instead of your normal portion try serving yourself a little less. Start out with about 3/4 of your normal serving and try to work to 1/2 within a few weeks.

If you are still cooking the same amount, make sure to put some away in a sealed plastic container to avoid coming back for seconds. If you’re eating out this may seem a little harder, because you’re not the one putting the food on the plate. And I know what you’re thinking, “if it’s there I will eat it”. Well, here’s how to combat that. When ordering at restaurant that has very large portions ask for a “to go” container when you place the order. This way you can move part or half of the portion to the “to go” container so it’s off your plate and out of site. As a bonus you just got two meals for the price of one.

With a smaller portion you may still feel a little hungry after you eat but wait 30 minutes before going back for more. Often it takes that long for the stomach to signal the brain that you have had enough and feel full.

Many fast eaters will often continue eating way more than they need, but because their eating so fast the body doesn’t have time to tell them to stop. By the time the body does send that signal they have completely stuffed themselves and feel bloated and ill.

So control your portions and give your body time to register what you ate. It will lead to a feeling of satisfaction after you’ve eaten and a healthier you.

To read more stories like this visit the  Flexcin Blog  for health advice, exercise tips, healthy recipes, stories from customers and even Flexcin special offers.

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This policy is valid from 12 November 2009. I am C. Small, the administrator for this blog. For questions about this blog, please contact cvsmall.small@gmail.com. This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, since I am an Affiliate of the advertisers in this blog, if you buy something I will get paid, not much but I’m retired and need whatever I can get. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or post made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. Even though I receive compensation for the advertisements, I always give my honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog may not be my own, but I agree with them. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

Today we hear the word diet much more than we hear the word nutrition. There are so many diets on the market that it’s easy to get lost in the fad and forget what nutrition truly is. There is the Atkins Diet, the Zone Diet, Weight Watchers and many others, from Slim Fast to the various one-food diets, such as the cabbage soup diet or the grapefruit diet. Society has become fixated on the ‘diet’, instead of quality nutrition. Unfortunately, this fixation isn’t working. America is the fattest nation in the world, with high rates of diabetes, heart disease and other life threatening illnesses. While diets are becoming more popular, nutrition is suffering.

What is a diet?

While many people think a diet is a set of rules you follow to try to lose weight, your diet is actually the food that you eat to supply your body with the nutrients it needs to function properly. While an average American diet consists of large quantities of processed sugar, white flour, meat and fast foods, a healthy diet is one that supplies the body with vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and enzymes. These nutritional building blocks affect your energy levels, your quality of life, and have a direct affect on your mood, memory, eyesight, body functions and lifespan. Without a healthy diet that supplies the body with much needed nutrients, you are more susceptible to colds, infections, and illnesses. Your diet, in other words your nutrition, is what sustains your life.

Nutritional Labels

There is much confusion surrounding nutritional labels. Most people look strictly toward the top for calories, fat grams and serving size information. The truth is that nutritional labels offer a look at the nutrients in one’s food, such as vitamins A, C, D and E, as well as calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc and folic acid. This information, although lower down on the nutritional label, is very important information if you are seeking to supply your body with nutrients, as opposed to empty calories.

The most important aspect of a nutritional label, although almost completely overlooked, is the actual ingredients within your food. While it may be easier to check to see how many calories and fat grams a certain food product has in each serving, when it comes to healthy nutrition the most important ingredient is what you are actually ingesting. It may have only 220 calories, but where are those calories coming from? Are you ingesting mostly corn syrup and sodium phosphate, or high amounts of preservatives, such as sorbic acid and sulfur dioxide? The ingredients in your food are the tell-tale clues to how much nutrition you are actually taking in. If your food is strictly cheese and flour, as opposed to nutrient providing vegetables and vitamins, it doesn’t really matter if the calories are low.

A Nutritional Diet

Nutrition comes from vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Food sources that are rich with nutrients are whole, living foods that are supplied from the earth. Dark leafy greens offer more calcium than milk, while beans and grains offer high amounts of iron. It is easy to turn your focus from diet to nutrition. And when you do, you might find yourself eating a diet that is rich in nutrients and optimal for losing weight.

At fifty, many of us take stock of our lives.

We can look back on careers, friends, and family that we are proud of, but what do we want to do with our middle years?

How can we make the most of our lives? Perhaps the most overlooked aspect of our later years, as well as the one that may have the greatest impact on our overall well-being, is our health and fitness.

How, then, can we best ensure our health and fitness into our mid and later years?

Exercise can help slow down the onset of the symptoms of aging.

The health benefits of a good exercise program are numerous.

Exercise helps maintain muscle strength and joint flexibility.

In addition, the stress put on our bones through exercise help maintain their strength and integrity.

Even our mood can be improved by staying healthy-–researchers have discovered a link between exercise and a decrease in depression and anxiety.

This may be due to the increase in energy and the improved sleeping patterns among fit fifty year olds.

Of course, nothing beats exercise for battling weight gain and getting our body into the kind of shape that can still turn heads as we walk down the street.

Besides that, our blood pressure tends to drop, lowering the chance of heart disease.

Even our immune system gets a boost from regular exercise.

Believe it or not, physical activity has even been linked to improved mental function!

Think of the advantages of living a longer and a more active life.

From walking, running or cycling, to push-ups and sit-ups to actual weight lifting, at home or at the gym, each form of exercise has its own benefits to keeping you fit and strong.

This will reduce the discomfort to the joints and muscles after the exercises are done.

Similarly, after a workout, make sure and take the time to stretch and cool down.

How you decide to stay fit and healthy is up to you.

If the thought of bouncing around a gym or workout center in spandex makes you cringe, take heart.

Chair aerobics are designed to give those with mobility problems a good cardio workout without putting strain on the joints and bones.

A chair aerobics session may include kicks, punches and stretches, and often includes the use of workout bands and weights to increase strength and resistance training as the workouts get more intense.

Better heart function, lower blood pressure, increased circulation and heightened alertness, say the experts.

It’s the perfect solution if you can’t leave your desk or if you work at home and can’t get to the gym.

It’s also an excellent solution for older Americans who may not be as mobile as they once were, but who can benefit from regular exercise.

According to many recent studies, engaging in moderate exercise three to five times a week can help reduce the risk of heart disease, hypertension, stroke, diabetes and arthritis.

Among the exercise that the American Physical Therapy Association recommends for seniors are golf, gardening, walking, swimming and jogging.

Water fitness classes are among the best aerobics exercises you can do, especially if you suffer from joint stiffness or arthritic pain.

Because you’re in the water, there’s no impact shock, making water exercises the ideal form of low-impact aerobic exercise.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/advice-articles/fitness-for-50-and-beyond-45531.html

About the Author: Learn Tips on Health, Fitness and Weight loss at Weight Loss Help

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This policy is valid from 12 November 2009. I am C. Small, the administrator for this blog. For questions about this blog, please contact cvsmall.small@gmail.com. This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, since I am an Affiliate of the advertisers in this blog, if you buy something I will get paid, not much but I’m retired and need whatever I can get. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or post made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. Even though I receive compensation for the advertisements, I always give my honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog may not be my own, but I agree with them. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does contain content which might present a conflict of interest. This content may not always be identified.

Most people think they have a slow one.  We all wish ours was a lot faster.  The slimming industry has made a fortune selling pills that supposedly boost it… Even my local curry house is claiming that eating spicy food will make it sky rocket!

But what exactly is ‘ metabolism ‘?  Why is it important for weight loss? And how can it help us in our quest to fit back into our favourite jeans?

Your body is a made up of trillions of cells.  Within each of those cells are chemical reactions that burn up the calories in the food you eat.  The name given to all of these calorie burning reactions is ‘metabolism’, and the speed at which this process happens is called your ‘metabolic rate’.  The faster a person’s metabolic rate, the more calories they burn each day.

Try to think of your metabolism like an engine burning up the fuel you consume.  Put in more fuel than your metabolism can burn, and the excess gets stored as fat.  Put in less fuel than your metabolism burns and you will burn off your fat stores to make up for the shortage.  Long term fat loss only occurs when you eat less calories than your metabolism burns.

So if your metabolism is like an engine, how much fuel do you need each day to run it? The government recommends 2000 calories a day for women and 2500 for men, but this is guesswork.  To find the real figure we need to look at the three factors that make up your metabolism -   Resting metabolism, Movement and Digestion.

• Resting metabolism is the amount of calories your body burns at rest.  It is the energy required to sustain your organs and muscle tissue, even while you are sleeping.  The bigger you are, and the more active muscle you have, the more calories your body burns at rest.  Someone with lots of muscle will have a faster resting metabolism than a skinny person.

• Movement metabolism is the amount of calories your muscles burn when they are working, that is if they are working at all!  The more you move the more calories your body burns, so even chewing gum or fidgeting is proven to increase the amount of calories you burn each day, albeit not much!  Someone who exercises daily will have a faster movement metabolism than someone who is sedentary.

• Digestion metabolism is the amount of calories it takes for the food you eat to be broken down and pushed from your mouth to your backside.  High protein, unrefined foods require more energy to digest than high sugar, refined carbs.   Someone who eats healthy food little and often will have a faster digestion metabolism than someone who binges on junk food.

The internet is swamped with slimming and weight loss pills that claim to speed up metabolism.  I’ll make this simple.   There are only three ways to speed up your metabolism – increase your resting metabolism, increase your movement metabolism, or increase your digestion metabolism.  If you want a faster metabolic rate, you have to either 1) build more muscle to increase your resting metabolism, 2) exercise more to increase your movement metabolism, 3) eat better quality meals to increase your digestion metabolism.

No slimming or diet pills can do this for you, so it’s time to put an end to that little fantasy!  To boost your metabolism you have to start eating healthier and moving more, but you knew that already.

With over 60% of the North American population currently overweight there has been much emphasis lately on the ways and means of healthy weight loss. If you have just successfully dropped a hundred (or even 10) pounds, congratulations – you did it! Now here comes second part of the challenge – weight management.

Research has shown that approximately only 20% of dieters keep excess weight off long term once they have reached their target goal. In fact one of the richest most powerful women in the world, Oprah Winfrey, has recently shared with the public her frustration and deep disappointment at unsuccessfully being able to maintain her ideal weight. So the woman who has everything; the guy, the job, the homes, the cars, a stellar career, fame and fortune still can’t buy thin and has to somehow muster the strength and courage to start all over again.  Good luck Oprah, you can do it, you really can, and so can any one else who has a solid weight management plan.

To begin developing your own plan for weight management, you will need to figure out what the ideal weight for your height and build is so that you know what healthy weight to set your weight loss goals by. Determining an estimate of your ideal body weight can be done by using a Body Mass Index Calculator or through a consultation with your doctor.

There are many weight loss options available that can aid you in reaching your ideal body weight. You can choose from a multitude of different diets, such as low-calorie or low-carbohydrate diets. There are fad diets such as the Cabbage Soup Diet and the South Beach Diet. There are prescription diet pills and OTC diet pills that can provide a multitude of benefits including lessening your appetite, increasing your metabolism and blocking fat absorption from the foods you eat. There are also exercise programs and bariatric surgeries. Carefully consider the risks and benefits of each option, do your research and enlist a medical doctor to help you make an informed choice.

All of these methods to lose weight, however, are only tools to assist you as you ‘battle the bulge’. Nothing, not even the best diet pills or most costly surgery will do all the work of losing weight for you – you still have to do your part. Your responsibility as someone who not only wants to lose weight, but wants long-term weight management is to make healthy adjustments to your lifestyle. This may include educating yourself about healthy eating and nutrition, learning how to exercise safely and effectively, and addressing any emotional aspects of your relationship with food and eating that may have been a contributing factor to your weight gain.

Weight management following weight loss is not complicated – all you need to do is consume a calorie-controlled diet and get regular exercise. It sounds pretty simple, so why is the success rate of weight management so low? The two main reasons are the inability to stay motivated over the long term, and a belief that dieting has an end goal rather than seeing it as a permanent lifestyle change. Weight management requires modifying behaviors around food and activity. The good news is that it takes less calories to lose weight than it does to maintain it and you can adjust your diet accordingly. Clinical studies have proven that the common denominators found amongst those who have successfully lost weight and have kept it off for a period longer than five years are:

–         high levels of activity

–         low-calorie, low-fat, portion-controlled meal plans

–         eating breakfast

–         developed and consistent eating patterns

–         they stayed motivated and did not cheat or fall off the wagon

The only truly good reason to lose weight should be to gain health despite social and cultural mores that would have you believe otherwise. Losing weight and achieving your weight loss goals is only half of your journey to a healthier you completed. The other half of your journey is weight management and keeping the weight off once it’s gone.

You can  melt away belly fat  with three proven techniques for weight loss: cardio training, healthy eating and muscle building exercises. Belly fat is just like any fat that is stored on the body and it comes off in the same way. Hiding it is one option but we all know that that only works to a certain extent. When you have extra fat on your tummy, all you want is to know how to get rid of it.

Here are 3 strategies that will help you melt away belly fat:

1- Step Up the Fat Burning

One of the best ways to melt away belly fat is by stepping up your heart rate and stoking your body’s fat burning furnace. It is true that any kind of sustained exercise burns extra calories but when you exercise to increase your heart rate, you burn even more calories as your body taps into your fat stores even more quickly. This is accomplished with cardiovascular exercise.

It does not matter which type of exercise you do as long as you are sustaining your workout at a rapid rate. First, you need to determine your target heart rate range, and then you should work out at the top of that range. Anything above can be dangerous and anything below will not be as effective. Whether you choose to power walk, swim, dance or bike, you can burn extra calories and melt away belly fat in just a few weeks with regular exercise.

2- Eat Smart

Cardiovascular exercise will not do much if you are taking in more fat and calories than you are burning.  It is equally important to follow a healthy diet plan to achieve the maximum benefits of exercise. Cut out all fats and sugars from your diet and increase lean protein and complex carbohydrates.

3- Build that Muscle

Strength training tones the muscles all over the body and can firm up your belly area, too. With strength training, the more muscle you build, the more fat you will burn.

If you really want to  melt away belly fat , use all three of these methods and you will see fantastic results in just a few weeks!

Los Angeles, CA (Dec. 21, 2008) – The holiday season may bring visions of sugar plums dancing in our heads, but trouble can ensue when pies, cakes, cookies and other fatty holiday treats start dancing on our plates.

With careful planning and smart choices, you can have your fill of holiday cheer without filling your plate with calorie-rich foods, said Netty Levine, RD, CDE, a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator, at  Cedars- Sinai Medical Center.

“You can enjoy your favorite traditional holiday foods in moderation without dragging extra pounds into the New Year,” Levine said. “Make smart choices at parties and in buffet lines, and on days you’re not celebrating make sure you’re eating healthy, well-balanced meals.”

Fitting in exercise, drinking plenty of water and maintaining a healthy diet will not only be good for your waist line, but can also ensure you have enough energy for the season’s many celebrations, Levine said.

She offers these suggestions for sensible eating during the holidays:

1.  Vow to maintain, not gain. If you’re on a long-term weight loss plan, make every effort to maintain your weight. Maintaining weight despite the season’s many temptations should be considered a reasonable goal.

2.  When going to  a holiday potluck, bring along a healthy dish or treat you enjoy. Find ways to lighten up traditional recipes, or bring along a vegetable or fruit tray. Presentation and creativity count!

3.  Never go to a party hungry. Eat a small healthy meal or snack to ward off cravings, which can help make temptation easier to resist.

4.  Drink water. Avoiding high-calorie beverages will make those holiday splurges easier on your waistline.

5.  When dining buffet-style, choose a smaller plate and pile it high with fruits, vegetables and green salads. Load up on lean roasted meats, and choose small portions of your holiday favorites

6.  Dodge the pre-dinner cocktail. Alcohol makes you hungrier, and lower inhibitions can lead to poor food choices. Opt instead for a drink with your meal. When ordering cocktails, reach for those made with a low- or no-calorie mixer.

7.  Don’t be too busy for breakfast. Starting the day with a healthy meal will help control cravings later.

8 . Be picky about dessert. Indulge only in your very favorites, and when presented with several dessert options, choose just one. Check in with yourself when eating. Do you want the whole portion of a rich treat, or do you feel satisfied after a few bites?

9.  Make time for exercise – be active when you can. Even short bits of exercise can add up.

10.  Focus on friends and family, not the food. Make the company of loved ones the center of your gathering – not the tasty treats.

To arrange interviews, please contact Nicole White, media specialist, at nicole.white@cshs.org or at (310) 423- 5215.  # # #