Avoid Winter Weight Woes
As the weather cools down, the weight goes up for most people. And whatgoes up doesn’t alwayscome down, at least not to where it started. But that winter weight-gaincycle can be reversed oravoided, says a University of Georgiascientist.”It’s a matter of making little lifestyle changes,” said Connie Crawley,an Extension Service food,nutrition and health specialist with the UGA Collegeof Family and Consumer Sciences.”Once the weather gets cooler, sitting at home and eating hearty mealsbecomes more tempting,”Crawley said. “That’s especially true around the holidays. As a result,it’s not unusual for people togain 10-15 pounds over the winter.”The weight gain can be a normal fluctuation that goes right back downwhen you become moreactive and eat less next summer. But as people get older, they tendto hang on to at least some of that weight gain.”It’s when the weight goes up in the fall but doesn’t come all the wayback down that you wantto stop and look at the trend,” Crawley said.Winning the weight war, she said, is mostly a matter of becoming moreactive and making wiser food choices.”With most people, the activity is the most important,” she said. “Ifyou get more exercise, theimproved diet will usually follow.”More exercise doesn’t have to mean serious workouts. “It can be as simpleas getting rid of theTV remote control so you at least get up to change the channel,” Crawleysaid.”It may be taking your lunch to work so you can walk 15-20 minutes atnoon,” she said. “Evenwalking down the hall to talk to a co-worker rather than calling themon the phone or sending theme-mail can increase your activity level.”If your job keeps you in one place all day, she said, get up and walkaround a little every hour.”Walk to the water fountain but not to the vending machine,” she said.”Make it a rule not to eatat your desk. Many people become computer potatoes at work, not justcouch potatoes at home.”Crawley offers some tips for keeping the winter weight down. When you watch TV, do something active. This can be housework,a craft or even exercise. Atleast keep your hands busy with a worthwhile project instead of a bagof chips. Brush your teeth before you clean up after meals or parties.You’ll be less likely to snack onthe leftovers. This is a good strategy before you start cooking, too. Take a walk after supper. In Georgia the weather is rarely badenough to prevent a walk atnight. Take along a child, a friend or your spouse. Walk in well-lightedareas, and vary your route,so you won’t become bored. If walking outside isn’t safe, look intomall walking or a treadmill. Keep tempting foods out of the house. Eat high-calorie foodsin one-portion sizes so you willbe satisfied but won’t be tempted to overeat. Store all food out-of-sightas an extra precaution against temptation.When you do overeat, Crawley said, don’t overcompensate by starvingyourself the next day. “Goback to your normal, healthy eating habits,” she said. “Eat three moderatemeals a day and allowtime for rebalancing your diet.”Maintaining a healthy body weight, she said, isn’t a feast-and-fastaffair.”To keep your weight down,” she said, “you have to make permanent lifestylechanges.”