Bouncing Back After Eating All The Things

Tweet this!

Whether you over did it on alcohol or ate too many cheesy potatoes, chances are that most of us overloaded our bodies with something this past holiday. Instead of mentally punishing yourself for over imbibing, try following these 6 steps to help your body bounce back after an over indulgent holiday (or not!) weekend:
             

1. Water! Detox water, with lemon, mint, and cucumber will help you down it fast and flush your system, but if all else fails and you don't have these ingredients on hand, JUST DRINK WATER. You should aim for AT LEAST half your body weight in ounces.
   
   
   
2. Protein! Chances are, despite the Thanksgiving holiday being turkey-centered, your eating was focused on Carbs, Carbs, and more Carbs! Make sure you are incorporating protein so that, as you ramp your workouts up, your muscles are able to handle it and rebuild. Some good protein ideas are...
             -Chicken Breasts, cooked stovetop, baked, or grilled
             -Beef, via ground beef on the stovetop or grilled steaks
             -Turkey (yes, more of it), either ground up, or leftover from the bird carcas
   
   
   
3. Greens! Your body needs lots of nutrients and fiber to... er... move through the food you consumed, so make sure you are loading up on veggies and greens. Some great ideas for greens and fiber are...
             -Spinach
             -Arugula
             -Butter lettuce
             -Romain
             -Basil
             -Celery
             -Cucumber
   
   
4. Sweat! Even if you got some good exercise in over the break, chances are that you ate your way through those calories burned (trust me - it's easy to do). As a result, you're running off of a caloric surplus. A surplus of money is good. A surplus of calories... not so much. To combat the extra pumpkin pie and mashed potatoes with gravy, make sure you are getting some extra exercise in. Make sure you combine cardio and weights! Some good post-indulgency workout ideas are...
             -Cardio: Treadmill, Elliptical, Stairmaster, Biking, Spin classes, Aerobics classes, Swimming
             -Weights: Body By Science, Bodypump (LesMills), GroupPower (BTS)
             -Stretching: Pilates, Yoga
   
   
   
5. Avoid the alcohol. It is an excessive amount of calories, and drinking multiple glasses of any alcohol laden substance will risk slowing your metabolism. In short: Unless you've got something really mind blowingly amazing going on, just skip the alcohol for at least a few days.
   
   
   
6. Avoid the salt. Or, at very least, go easy on it. Salt has a tendency to cause us to bloat, which is not a great thing when you're also taking in massive amounts of water. It will deceive you into thinking you have gained more weight than you have. Make sure you don't add salt to your food. Instead, opt for flavorful but salt-free seasoning. Mrs. Dash and Cavender's both make a delicious salt-free seasoning.

Hover over this image to Pin it!

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

• What rules do you follow to bounce back?
• Do you follow any of these?