Standing in front of the mirror and holding the belly fat that was fed with sweets and scrumptious cuisine may not seem to be an appetizing site especially when you’ve been breaking a sweat at the gym to look glamorous in your holiday pictures.
Kudos to you! You’ve managed to click some quirky pictures that got you loads of likes on social media but what about the cravings you had due to which you couldn’t hold yourselves back and devoured on the attractive pool of carbs and fats. Now crying over spilt milk isn’t a solution, right!
Food Habits That Will Burn You Holiday Fat
Many people believe burning off holiday fat is to move mountains. But the fact is it isn’t as tough as it seems. In fact, a few cautions and changes in diet can really make a huge difference. I’ll be sharing with you some tips and tricks that will turn you from flab to fab. These tips can reverse your holiday fat and can help you gain that perfect torso in a week’s time. Let’s get started.
Coconut For Coffee
Substitute your caffeine kick to a coconut knock. Experts believe that substituting 16-ounce of coffee to 12-ounce of coconut milk can really help you shed up to 560 calories in a week’s time. It also helps in raising your good cholesterol (HDL) and cuts down your bad cholesterol (LDL). By sticking on this routine a week can really do noticeable wonders.
Cook In Over Order In
Holidays are the time when all sorts of scrumptious cuisines are made at home. But festive cravings often come wrapped in fatty delights. Who can say no to hot puris being served with your favourite potato gravy and chickpeas? Mouthwatering, isn’t it? Post holidays also try to cook at home instead of ordering in. you just need to redo your menu. Opting for less oily food cooked in home spices are way healthier than restaurant food. You can easily reduce 500 calories in a week.
Green Tea Over Regular Tea
Green tea can do wonders. It not only contains the anti-toxins that purifies the body of germs and bacteria but also helps you reduce weight. It enhances the body’s metabolism and helps down to break the excess fat. It also cuts down the cholesterol thus helping you to strip down the excess body fat.
Diluted Orange Juice
Orange is a rich source of vitamin C. Diluting your orange juice can help in reducing weight and can help you overcome cold as well. In order to reap healthy benefits pour four ounces into your cup instead of eight and add bubbly water, also known as soda water. This cuts down 61 calories per day and can burn up to 500 a week.
Dark Over Milk
Reducing weight doesn’t mean killing your chocolate cravings. A simple substitution of your preferences can make a significant change in calories. Substitute your normal milk chocolate to dark chocolate. It may taste a little bitter, but dark chocolate has incredible benefits. Opting for 2 individually wrapped squares of dark chocolate can cut up to 600 calories. Dark chocolate is also known for keeping heart healthy and enhancing mood. Now you know which box of chocolate to open post festivals.
A Low-Calorie Breakfast
Exercising without balancing your diet won’t help. Don’t forget that cuisine is the main culprit in gaining holiday fat. Shedding the same requires some serious food commitments. Substituting your regular dosa to ragi dosa is advisable. Ragi is rich in fibre. You can serve this dosa with piping hot sambar or coconut chutney. Ragi tames the untimely cravings as it takes time in digesting. Green pea Upma is another palatable dish you can make for breakfast. Add protein-rich green peas for a healthier option. Upma is nutrient-rich and tames cravings.
Switch To A Smaller Plate
Reduce the size of your dinner plate. Tricking the brain works in cases where you limit your resources. Reducing the size let’s say of a 12-inch plate to a 10-inch can really do wonders for you’ll fill less. Portions of food served, in this case, can be up to 22% smaller which will cut the overall calorie count to 500. Who could have thought that a minor adjustment to a plate size can really make a big impact? But it does.
Soup For A Healthy Life
Your regular tomato soup with thick cream may look tempting and taste delicious but it high in fats and isn’t a healthy choice at all. Replace your holiday soup with spices spinach soup or bean and chicken soup that are rich in fibres and proteins. Even tomato soup can be made delicious and healthy. Cut off the cream and replace it with a carrot for added fibre benefits.
Keep Your Sandwich Simple
Refrain the mayo lover in you. A sandwich can be a wholesome cuisine and can be equally tasty. Swap your sauces for a healthier dressing. Switch to the mustard sauce. It’s healthy and low in calories. Two teaspoons contain not more than 12 calories. By doing so you can easily cut down 150 calories. Swapping cheese to Indian cottage cheese or Paneer is a delightful option. Paneer is rich in proteins. If you are non-vegetarian swapping paneer to chicken breasts is also a viable option. Chicken breasts contain 40 fewer calories than processed meat. Overall switching to a healthier sandwich choice can easily spare you a good 500 calorie intake.
Say Goodbye To Soda
The last time you opened a bottle of soft drink was to serve your guests and yourself. But that was a festive delight. Keep it a memory. Soft drinks contain a high amount of processed sugar and are not healthy for the body. Imagine the calorie intake you’ve made out of that glass that you gulped down your throat effortlessly. Replacing that with a 12-ounce glass of water and continuing the routine for a week can cut down the calories to 980. Sounds amazing, isn’t it? Artificial sweeteners trigger insulin resulting in overweight. So say no to soda and refrain from drinking the same even on festivals and holidays.
Don’t Refrain From Hosting Dinners
Holidays are all about chilling and unwinding with your friends and family. Conversations over a few healthy evening snacks are the best way of destressing and opening up. Make sure you’re going in for oil-free snacks that are generally baked or just a result of assembling the raw materials that go into making them. For example
Physical Activities To Burn You Holiday Fat
When we talk about burning fat, it is impossible that we don’t talk about a physical workout. Post holidays is when people, in general, start their fitness regime. But did you know you don’t have to go all out and start intensive workouts and make your body tired of it within a week? Start with smaller things and then gradually lead it on to the more intensive and tougher things so that your body get used to it without a sudden shock.
Stand Up To Stand Out
Standing burns more calories than sitting. Being on your feet and doing the chores can prove to be beneficial. An average person burns 150 calories against 100 if he stands and involved in his work. This habit also proves medically beneficial. There are certain cancers and heart diseases that can be prevented from happening.
Taking Stairs Over Elevator
Opting for stairs while gyming or swapping some regular habits like taking the elevator to healthy habits like taking the stairs adds to the cardio and helps you burn unwanted fat. A 10 minute run up and down the stairs can burn up to 270 calories. Doing it for a week can do wonders.
Deep Cleaning Your Room
Who says festivals are the only time when the house needs a thorough cleaning. Engaging in productive activities can happen anytime. Rearranging the room by moving furniture not only changes the overall nook but also helps you burn some calories. It helps you become more productive and mentally active and creative.
Cleaning can be toxically addictive especially when you’ve started doing it. Deep cleaning your room is all about breaking a sweat until you feel accomplished. Refrain from doing the entire house at once. Start with your room with moderate efforts. 30-minute religious cleaning can burn 500 calories. And if you make it a daily exercise then it can really help you remain fit and your home remains fab.
Go For A Jog
A jog can do wonders and the results are overwhelming. All you need is to set your smartwatch and to tie up your sneakers for a good 60-minute jog with an average of 10-minute-per-mile and the same can easily shed off 600 calories. A jog on a treadmill might not be that effective but a jog in the open air in the early morning is good for the body.
Spin-off Through Cycling
Cycling has always been looked upon as a healthy retreat and signing up for an indoor cycling session is certainly what you should be looking for. A rigorous spin session of 45 minutes at your gym can burn up to 500 calories. Associating with a studio where the same can be tracked on the leader board can be an ad on. It will motivate you more for you can track the real-time progress and it entices you competitively as you challenge yourself by hitting new milestones every single time.
Join Swimming Classes
Swimming is hands down the most effective way to reduce weight. Just one hour of moderately freestyle of swimming can reduce 600 calories. It not only burns calories but also enhances your cardiovascular strength. Post holidays, join a swimming class.
Don’t Break From Dance
Dance is the most fun way to remain fit and alive. It doesn’t really require an occasion. When you took off for a family function and took dancing lessons to make a mark on stage, you unknowingly engaged in a fun workout. Then why stopping! If not otherwise, then joining a zumba session can do wonders in burning fat and reducing your overall weight. It adds grace to your personality and makes you feel alive and kicking. Just 2 hours of shaking and dancing can really burn up to 650 calories in your body. Unbelievable, isn’t it?
Increase Your Workout Time
Motivation is the best teacher and a positive motivation can help you achieve wonders. Now imagine applying motivation in increasing your workout time to burn those extra calories and fat because you can’t wait to look awesome again. Increase your time interval to a few extra minutes. Make a count of burning an extra 100 calories. In a week’s time, you can burn down 500 of it and with a revised workout regime. Effortless, isn’t it?
Opt For A Jump Rope
Skipping helps to reduce weight and is also one of the best exercises to challenge yourself. It strengthens your core and burns calories. It also strengthens your carbs and shoulders. 20-minute of jump rope can burn up to 250 calories. A week can easily shed enough to tone you or to start you getting into shape.
A High-intensity Interval Training (HIIT) Home Workout
Following an intensive workout regime burn calories even post-workout. This involves a high-intensity workout with regular intervals between exercises. A set of 1.5 min of burpees, 1.5 minutes of squat workout followed by 1.5 minutes of pendulums, 1.5 minutes of the band jumps followed by 1.5 minutes of bicep curls with bands can really pump your body and help cut the excess fat off. A repetition of this set thrice is what’s recommended by experts.
Having fun in your ‘holidays is no doubt the very exciting and fun to do but it is important that you also have a proper detox and get back to living healthy without having it prolonged till your next holiday. Reducing your fat intake and incorporating these few weeks in your daily food and workout routines will do the needful.
