Despite what past years have you believing, holiday weight gain is not inevitable. It can easily be avoided without skipping parties or spending agonizing hours at the gym. Follow these 10 steps and you will still be able to see those abs come January 1st. 1. Awareness Don’t go into the holidays blindly. Know that calorically-dense temptation is lurking around every office potluck, every holiday party, in every stress-busting cocktail. Don’t rationalize your behavior because it’s the holidays, unless you’re okay with not fitting into your New Year’s Eve dress. 2. Set Rules Consider making some rules for yourself…”I’ll only go to the party tonight if I workout before hand,” or “I can only have 4 cocktails max this weekend.” Stick to them. 3. Don’t Go To Parties Hungry Eat a healthy snack before heading into any festivities with food. This way you aren’t so famished that you scarf half of a cheese ball before you realize what you’re doing. 4. 15 Extra Minutes of Movement If you’re already in a workout routine, add an extra 15 minutes. If you aren’t on a workout routine, start now and start small. Commit to one 15-Minute activity per day, whether it’s taking a 15 minute walk, or doing 15 minutes of strength training with the 5 lb. weights laying around the house. The extra minutes help balance combat the extra calories. Another easy movement rule is to walk after meals. Grab the fam or go it alone, but even a short walk around the block after a big meal is a great way to jumpstart your digestive system and metabolism, and relieve that uncomfortable bloat. 5. Balance If you fell prey to a huge holiday meal one day, make changes immediately following. Heavy dinner one night? Eat light the next day. Not only because of the obvious -calories- but also to give your body (Especially your digestive system!) a chance to catch up on the added work you caused it. 6. Water Don’t forget to stay hydrated! It can be easy in the winter to slack on your H2O intake, but now is not the time. Drink a big glass of water before meals, and even more if you’re sipping cocktail. It’ll help flush out the extra sodium, and keep you full. 7. Be Smart with Alcohol Don’t forget to consider the calories in your drinks. Either weigh that in when considering your full caloric intake at a meal, or skip your snack that day and have the cosmo instead. Also, watch how tipsy you get. The regrettable behavior caused by a little buzz isn’t limited to texting an ex. It can cause you to lose control over how much you’re eating, and next day;s hangover will likely have you chasing greasy food and skipping workouts. 9. Sugar Smart Consider how much sugar you’re consuming at once…washing down a piece of pie with wine is a recipe for a fat-storing, sugar-crashing disaster. Space them out! 10. Pace Yourself The holidays can be stressful, but they’re meant to be enjoyed. Don’t scarf, and don’t chug. Take small portions, and really enjoy them. If in 10 minutes you really feel like you need more, then take more. Have tips that help you? Share them below!