The Christmas Weight Loss Survival Kit
Oh dear, it's that time of the year...again!
In this special episode of the show we give you our top tips and advice for how you and your waistline can survive the Christmas chaos, and come out the other side ready to attack the new year.
The knowledge we share on our podcasts comes from our own personal experience as well as our professional experience helping people around the world just like you change their lives inside and out.
All we do is create this podcast and change lives.
Check out the resources below to learn more about what we do and how we can help you!
• The Weight Loss Podcast Facebook Group – Our free community group! Come hang out with us and other like-minded fans of the show. Fun, learning and inspiration all guaranteed!
• How to overcome the mental hurdles that keep you from losing weight – Courtney's first Ebook, all about the mental and emotional issues we face along the way, and what you can do to overcome them.
• 10 signs you're about to lose weight – Courtney's second Ebook. Ever get frustrated as it seems like you just aren't changing? In this book you will learn to recognise the signs that you ARE changing, even if you can't see them in the mirror.
• Why people fail at weight loss – Our free webinar (think of it like a visual podcast!) that explains the common mistakes millions of people make in their weight loss attempts, and how to learn from those mistakes.
• Free 6-Day Weight Loss Course – Our free video series designed to give you valuable tools to help overcome the common obstacles that we face during long-term weight loss attempts. Give us 10-15 minutes of your time each day and we'll give you loads of science-based information that will change the way you look at permanent, successful weight loss.
• The Weight Loss Podcast Classroom – In this introductory 12-week education program, we will teach you how to achieve real results using the same science-based, research-proven body transformation system that has seen us change our lives, as well as the lives of countless others just like you.
• The Weight Loss Podcast Academy – If you need personalised support from us personally, as well as accountability, structure and direction, then get all the details on The Weight Loss Podcast Academy here. We accept clients via application only.
Transcript
Welcome to the Weight Loss Podcast, where we offer solutions to the obstacles you face when it comes to achieving your health and fitness goals.
Matt:As a married couple who has lost a combined weight of 100kg and 11 clothes sizes, our raw, real and relatable stories will show you the path you must walk to achieve and more importantly, maintain the results you know you can reach.
Matt:Because we know it works.
Matt:So get ready to share the success and show the results with your hosts, Matt and Courtney.
Courtney:Hello, and welcome to the Weight Loss.
Speaker C:Podcast, the video weight loss podcast.
Courtney:We can.
Courtney:Well, we can't see you, but you could see us, which is new for us.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:So this may be good news, may also be bad news.
Speaker C:You can now watch us.
Speaker C:Sorry.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C: So we're here for the: Courtney:Here we are in our Christmas jammies.
Speaker C:Matching jammies.
Speaker C:That's just how we roll.
Courtney:It is December, so it works.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:So the idea here is we're here to help you get through the coming period of time when people tend to lose their minds the most.
Speaker C:Christmas, and then eventually New Year's.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Courtney:Yes.
Speaker C:So if you.
Speaker C:If you're listening to us or you're watching us like, there's a pretty good chance you still want to, you know, lose weight, get in shape, improve your health, even despite, you know, going through the Christmas New Year period.
Speaker C:But also, if you're like us, you've probably struggled with what?
Speaker C:Overeating, overindulging, not being able to sort of say or feel like you can't say no, thank you to things, to people, to, you know, temptations, whatnot.
Speaker C:And you tend to come out the other side of New Year's with pants that might be a little bit too tight for your liking, and you start to sort of feel like, oh, fucking hell, I've got to spend the next three to six months undoing what has just happened in the previous four or so weeks.
Speaker C:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker C:You've.
Speaker C:You've gone through this, haven't you?
Courtney:Yeah, yeah, I think we all have.
Speaker C:Yep.
Speaker C:Okay, so we are here with our handy notes right here in front of us to take you through what our recommendations are.
Speaker C:To survive, basically.
Speaker C:To get through life.
Speaker C:To survive in life.
Speaker C:Yes.
Speaker C:We're here to help you survive life at Christmas time.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Does that work?
Courtney:That works, yeah.
Speaker C:Okay, so.
Speaker C:Oh, Lord, rock to gush.
Speaker C:That what.
Courtney:I think I prefer it when people get to hear us and not see us.
Courtney:What we do.
Speaker C:You're about.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:One of the benefits of video.
Speaker C:Well, actually, one of the benefits of audio only is that we can fuck up and we can do dumb shit and you didn't know about it.
Courtney:God damn it.
Speaker C:Now there's no hiding for us.
Speaker C:This is like a form of accountability.
Courtney:And now we have these little microphones here rather than like a microphone in front of us.
Courtney:So we used to do for our.
Courtney:The big fat, not video podcasts.
Speaker C:Audio, you might say.
Courtney:Yep.
Courtney:And so then there was at least something that I could hold on to or do something.
Courtney:And now I feel.
Courtney:I'm feeling very.
Courtney:Like, I'm just feeling very out of whack with this so far.
Courtney:So I have my drink bottle.
Speaker C:We have Courtney's comfort bottle here with her.
Courtney:So that's okay.
Courtney:We're gonna roll with it.
Courtney:It's fine.
Courtney:I just feel like I'm fidgeting already.
Speaker C:Just chill out, bro.
Speaker C:Just be cool.
Courtney:I'm so.
Speaker C:This is good practice for us.
Speaker C:So you know what?
Speaker C:Let's just get into this.
Courtney:Sorry, sorry.
Courtney:Back to the list.
Courtney:Enough about me.
Speaker C:Let's get good through practice.
Courtney:Let's do it.
Speaker C:So what's the first thing we want to talk about in terms of surviving Christmas and New Year's?
Speaker C:What would you say here?
Courtney:What is the first thing on the list?
Speaker C:Jump in, man.
Speaker C:What have we got?
Courtney:The first thing on the list is worry about what you eat between Christmas.
Courtney:Sorry.
Courtney:Between New Year's and Christmas, more than Christmas and New Year's.
Courtney:So that's a long way of saying worry about what you're doing throughout the entirety of the year.
Courtney:Not between one week.
Courtney:Not for one week.
Courtney:Do you know?
Courtney:I think I made that harder.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:So you think about it, the Christmas New Year period is this really short period of time.
Speaker C:I'd be more concerned.
Speaker C:I am more concerned about what I'm doing for the rest of the year.
Speaker C:So it's like, hey, you've got a small period of time here in your life.
Speaker C:Hopefully you're with friends.
Speaker C:Hopefully you're with family and loved ones and whatnot.
Speaker C:Having some what, say what, well earned downtime.
Courtney:Yeah, hopefully don't be a psycho.
Speaker C:Don't be addict to yourself.
Speaker C:Like, just have a good time.
Speaker C:Yeah, have a good time.
Speaker C:And the thing is, I'll speak personally here.
Speaker C:If I've been, and I know honestly with myself, being honest, if I've been consistent through the year, what's one week going to do?
Speaker C:Really, in the big picture, what's one week going to do?
Speaker C:Tell me.
Courtney:It's a mind over matter thing.
Courtney:I think.
Courtney:I think we can all convince ourselves that we can convince ourselves of pretty much anything.
Courtney:And the last thing, the reason I think that this one is so big on our list is because the last thing you want to do is cause yourself more emotional distress by really beating yourself up about things.
Courtney:And that will force you to go backwards more I think, than if you just give yourself a little bit of grace during this time.
Courtney:I mean, often you're not preparing food, you're going to places where you're not preparing food or you know, you don't control the situation.
Courtney:But there's also a lot of traditions, there's a lot of cultural traditions around this time of year, whether, whether it be Christmas or something else that you usually celebrate around this time.
Courtney:And with those traditions often come traditional foods that you really only get the chance to eat around this time of year.
Courtney:And so it's okay to give yourself a little bit of grace to enjoy those things and to not feel left out in those traditions.
Courtney:But the biggest point is that if you start beating yourself up about this.
Speaker C:It will spiral probably a lot more, a lot more comforting to say the way you just did.
Speaker C:The me saying don't be a psycho or don't be a dick.
Courtney:Yeah, I just think it's the, it's, it's the loop of self criticism that we can get into really easily, I think.
Courtney:And then that just like it can just really throw you off track because it's so easy to keep going and keep going and keep beating yourself up.
Courtney:And you might not necessarily, like, your clothes might not necessarily fit differently, but you'll convince yourself that they are.
Speaker C:Oh, you start manifesting things, you start.
Courtney:Getting a little bit puffy just because you're retaining fluid or you know, whatever it might be down here.
Courtney:You know, in Australia it's hot at Christmas.
Courtney:So you know, you might, you might feel a little bit puffier, you're hot and you know, you're eating foods that you don't necessarily normally eat.
Courtney:And so then that'll convince your mind that you've gained, you've gained weight and it can just, it can just be a never ending loop.
Courtney:As I said, you, we can convince ourselves of pretty much anything.
Courtney:So it's really important to go in there with the knowledge that you're going to give yourself grace and give your.
Courtney:Make sure you've got a sort of a mental plan to go in to Christmas for yourself.
Courtney:Because if you don't have a plan and you're not giving like you don't know you're going to Give yourself this sort of grace.
Courtney:I feel like.
Courtney:Yeah, it can spiral really easily.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And ultimately as well, use one of your favorite words, perspective.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:Step back and look at the big picture.
Speaker C:What's one week, or even for some people might be one day?
Speaker C:Like, for me, I don't.
Speaker C:I don't go off the rails or go completely off plan for the entire week.
Speaker C:I'm gonna have a couple of indulgences on Christmas Day and then it's just back to normal on, like, literally the day after, you know, so pick your spots, enjoy them, but also understand that in the big picture, what's a day, what's a week in the entirety of the year and the entirety of your life.
Speaker C:Have a good time.
Speaker C:So moving on from there, the next sort of tip we want to give here to get through this period of time, just with every event that you've got or everything you've got.
Speaker C:Coming up, Christmas parties, family gatherings, whatever it might be, plan in advance, set your boundaries, and also really sort of ask yourself, like, what's my intent with this?
Speaker C:Like, am I going to this Christmas party just to get wasted?
Speaker C:I mean, if you're listening to us or watching us, maybe the answer to that's probably not.
Speaker C:However, that's not to say you can't enjoy a couple of dreams here and there, like, hey, live your life.
Speaker C:But overall with what you're going to do, plan things as best as you can.
Speaker C:And above all else, I would say set your boundaries.
Speaker C:That's what I said before about myself on Christmas Day.
Speaker C:I'm going to set my boundaries.
Speaker C:I'm going to enjoy myself within those boundaries because we're having some nice time away with family, and I'm going to have a couple of.
Speaker C:A couple of tasty treats and then just do what I usually do, like, it's not a big deal, you know.
Speaker C:So one thing that you've mentioned in the past, Courtney, that if you're going somewhere where it's a set menu, don't be afraid to ask to see the menu in advance, you know, and, you know, if you can, if you're in control of things to a certain extent, like choose one, you know, choose options with the most amount of vegetables or quality protein source, like, be informed as much as you can.
Speaker C:Like, we got a bunch of Christmas parties coming up.
Courtney:Yes, we do.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:I'd also like to know what I'm walking into as best as I can, but also understanding that sometimes, you know what shit happens.
Speaker C:It's life.
Speaker C:Just fucking roll of it, man.
Speaker C:Do the best you can.
Courtney:Well, it's usually just one meal.
Courtney:Remember how many meals you're going to have throughout that day.
Courtney:And it's usually just one meal, maybe two meals, you know, maybe Christmas Day itself.
Courtney:You have a tradition where it's like food non stop all day or you've got multiple places to go to.
Courtney:I mean, we're lucky.
Courtney:Generally we only have one house to go to, but you know, there's a lot of people that have a lot of different houses to visit on that one day.
Courtney:So you're eating constantly throughout that day.
Courtney:I understand that.
Courtney:But for most of us, you know, it's just one meal, a couple of meals.
Courtney:So.
Courtney:And the rest of the meals that day or that week, you get to choose yourself.
Courtney:So remember, it's not that you have to, you know, don't convince yourself that this is going to be some big thing, that you're not going to have control over your food for this entire week.
Courtney:You have a lot of control over it.
Courtney:And there's just going to be some exceptions to some meals, which is fine.
Speaker C:I think you file that under what, the shit happens category?
Speaker C:Yeah, sometimes shit happens and you just do the best you can, man.
Speaker C:Just roll on.
Speaker C:All right, number three for us, this is a big one that I'm really a fan of, is to increase your zero calorie beverage consumption.
Speaker C:So what is a zero calorie beverage?
Courtney:Water.
Speaker C:Well, not just water.
Courtney:The easiest one.
Speaker C:Any beverage that is contains zero calories.
Courtney:Yes.
Speaker C:So it actually, actually has been shown in research that five cups of tea, for example, can reduce stress by up to 20%.
Speaker C:And of course, Christmas for a lot of people can be an uber stressful period.
Speaker C:Yeah, it's, they didn't, they didn't tell us about this sort of shit when we were kids.
Speaker C:When we were kids, Christmas was sold as Santa's coming, the presents are coming, we get to hang out with everyone.
Speaker C:Then when you're an adult, you gotta plan, you gotta host, you gotta buy the presents, you've gotta hang out with those family members you may not actually like hanging out with too much.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:Like it can be super stressful.
Speaker C:Like no one told me this when I was a kid, you know, so Christmas being such a stressful period that increasing your zero calorie beverage consumption.
Speaker C:Can one be friendly for your waistline, but also too potentially in the case of things like tea, maybe like a little low key stress reducer.
Speaker C:And like, if you're hosting this year, if you're hosting the family, which we have done before, like it is, you know how full on it is.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:So I would actually even as well, like just to go one step further with the zero calorie beverage consumption and also looking at stress reduction.
Speaker C:What are you doing over this period of time to refill your own cup and just to chill out?
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:That has to be a balance.
Courtney:And again that comes down to a mental balance of making sure that you're planning out as best you can for downtime to make sure that you've got some, you've got some things planned that are going to fill your cup back up, as they say.
Courtney:Because yes, there's a lot of emotional energy that you put out around this time of year for other people, you know, not just for yourself.
Courtney:And so you've got to make sure that you are able to replenish that, that emotional energy for yourself as well, big time.
Speaker C:So number four here, tip number four, it's really hard to eat.
Speaker C:It's hard to overeat.
Speaker C:I'm sorry, when you are full.
Speaker C:So if you're sort of worried about the food that is available or might be available at some sort of function or gathering or party that you're going to, don't be afraid to eat before you leave the house.
Speaker C:This is a low key, awesome strategy that I actually implement myself because often it's easy to think about food and think about eating just because we've put ourselves in a position when well, hey, I'm hungry.
Speaker C:So if we're hungry, rule of proximity comes in and we might be stressed or nervous for whatever reason.
Speaker C:Anything that's in front of us is like going down the hatch.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:I think that this one's also a really good one.
Courtney:If you, as we said earlier, if you can sort of get a feel or know sort of what foods are going to be available for you at a Christmas party or gathering.
Courtney:But this one's really good as well.
Courtney:For those people who don't know, you know, you might be walking in blind or you just might.
Courtney:May have no idea what's going to be there and available for you.
Courtney:Yeah, this one's a really good one.
Courtney:Especially if you're someone like me.
Courtney:Have some dietary requirements that you go by.
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:Just make sure that you.
Courtney:I would always have something to eat before I left if I wasn't sure if there was going to be anything there, substantial that I knew I could eat.
Speaker C:Just out of interest, can you also just elaborate what are your dietary requirements?
Speaker C:Because this affects a lot of people.
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:So for me, I'm not allergic to Gluten, so I don't have celiac disease.
Courtney:I think anybody with celiac disease would automatically know.
Courtney:Anyone with a, with an allergy I think is like pre programmed for a long time ago to be all over this.
Courtney:But for me it's more of a intolerance that I've had over the last quite a number of years now.
Courtney:So I have got really good at it, like what, seven, eight years now?
Courtney:Yeah, but I avoid gluten and dairy are probably the two biggest ones.
Courtney:And I do avoid garlic and onion as well where possible, especially within my own cooking.
Courtney:So I don't cook with garlic or onion.
Courtney:And yeah, I avoid gluten and dairy as well.
Courtney:So yeah, it's one of those ones where if I'm going away, if I'm going somewhere where I'm not 100% sure whether they're going to have catered for those dietary requirements for me, which is understandable.
Courtney:Not exactly the easiest ones, especially when it comes to hosting gatherings to cater for, which is, yeah, completely understandable.
Courtney:So I'll either bring my own food or as Matt said, we'll eat before we go.
Courtney:And then that way if there doesn't end up being something there that substantial that I can eat, it's totally fine because I've already eaten.
Speaker C:I think it's also probably unreasonable.
Speaker C:Would you agree to expect others to be able to cater for you as an individual based on, you know, taste preferences or allergies?
Speaker C:I prefer to sort of tell me what you think with this.
Speaker C:I prefer to sort of be as informed as I can about, you know, where am I going, what's on offer, what's available so I can then make the best decisions I can ahead of time.
Speaker C:I personally am not a fan of flying blind into things.
Courtney:I don't like flying blind.
Courtney:I don't necessarily think it's unreasonable, depending on the situation, like.
Courtney:But yeah, it's very case dependent.
Courtney:It's hard to know.
Courtney:Like, yeah, I would think it's unreasonable if.
Courtney:Yeah, it's very case dependent.
Courtney:I won't get sidetracked by going into that.
Courtney:But I do think it's a great idea to be as prepared as you can, but also don't be afraid to have a little bite to eat.
Courtney:Doesn't have to be a full meal, but just have a little bite to eat before you go.
Courtney:And as Matt said, it just stops you potentially having those stress eating responses or there being something there that you can't make.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Next tip is, believe it or not, get as much sleep as you can.
Speaker C:So obviously, as you know, you've been around long enough and we know Christmas is a mega busy time of the year.
Speaker C:Feels like we're just running around chasing our own tails.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:So, you know, ensuring our bodies get enough adequate rest to keep up with the demands that are placed upon it.
Speaker C:I mean, even outside of the Christmas period, like getting, getting more sleep and prioritizing sleep is like a universal tip that we give to anyone.
Speaker C:But this time of year can make a big difference because, you know, sleep is a big factor in the body's natural restorative processes.
Courtney:Restorative.
Speaker C:Restorative.
Speaker C:I've come prepared today.
Speaker C:So including regulating the hormones which can have a very powerful effect on your mood, your energy, your concentration.
Speaker C:All sorts of things that we can often rely on at this time of year.
Speaker C:So I think we can both agree, Courtney, getting a little bit more sleep ain't gonna hurt.
Courtney:No, if you can definitely get a little bit more sleep now, the next.
Speaker C:Tip is one that or coffee.
Speaker C:The next tip is one that Courtney is a big fan of is say you're going out Christmas shopping.
Speaker C:And we know how much of a madhouse these bloody shopping centers can be at Christmas time.
Speaker C:Don't be afraid to make it a little bit more challenging on yourself and park away, as far away as possible and don't be afraid to hot foot it.
Courtney:So this is like a nice easy one.
Courtney:And honestly, can I just say deflect for a second here.
Courtney:It angers me so much when people do this all year at the gym.
Courtney:It angers me so much.
Courtney:I know where you're going, where people will.
Courtney:Like at our gym it's like in like this old factory.
Courtney:And so it's like, it's industrial park.
Courtney:It's industrial park.
Courtney:So it has some.
Courtney:It obviously has parking, but there's not as much parking as you would expect for a gym because it's like an industrial area.
Courtney:So there's like other places you can park, but people continually park where they're not supposed to park.
Courtney:It's clearly labeled don't park here because they're too lazy to walk an extra hundred meters to, from their car to the gym where they're going to be exercising it.
Courtney:It blows my mind every time.
Courtney:And I don't know why.
Courtney:It just sticks with me, but it really sticks with me.
Courtney:But same theory goes for Christmas shopping or shopping in general.
Courtney:It's just incidental movement, really.
Speaker C:It's an easy way to sort of get your steps up.
Speaker C:Yeah, incidental.
Speaker C:Incidental movement's the Perfect way to put it.
Speaker C:Adding some incidental movement to your Christmas shopping and to be fair to shopping in general.
Speaker C:Yeah, good way to bump your steps up, get your body moving a bit more.
Speaker C:Get a bit more activity going.
Speaker C:From my personal standpoint, I like to also park as far away as possible, so no dickheads hit my car or open the door up into my car, you know?
Courtney:Yes, correct.
Speaker C:Also, we're going to say something.
Courtney:I was just going to say I was actually talking to a client about this, an elderly client about this at the.
Courtney:One of the, like the physio that I work at.
Courtney:A few weeks ago we were talking about this and she said to me that she.
Courtney:When she was younger and she had a young family, this was like obviously decades ago, but she couldn't afford to go to the gym and she needed to go to the gym for her health.
Courtney:She had a lot of back problems even back then.
Courtney:And she had a young family and they were on a single income and she couldn't afford to go to the gym.
Courtney:So she started parking further away everywhere she went.
Courtney:And she would carry her groceries to the back of the car park and she would, she would do that everywhere she went.
Courtney:And to this day she still has told me that she parks as far away as she can and she walks to the.
Courtney:Wherever it is that she's going.
Courtney:And I just thought, you know, we had this big chat because I told her about my pet peeve about the gym and people parking in the wrong spot and.
Courtney:Yeah, and so to this day she still does that.
Courtney:So amazing incidental movement that you don't, you know, you don't even think about.
Courtney:And once you, like, for her, once it became a habit, she does it to this day.
Courtney:She was probably in her 70s when I was having a chat with her a couple weeks ago about this.
Courtney:So, yeah, to this day, she still does it.
Speaker C:We'll also say with that when you're in these sort of, you know, locations or whatnot, take the stairs where you can, or if you're going out the escalators, walk them.
Speaker C:Just anything to get you moving more.
Speaker C:You'd be surprised at how effective it can be for your body.
Speaker C:But also peace of mind knowing, hey, I'm still moving around this time of year.
Speaker C:Like, it sounds like such a small little thing, but you know what, these small little things do add up over time.
Speaker C:And obviously when it comes to, you know, getting a bit more steps in over this time of year, make sure you got a good pair of shoes to walk in.
Speaker C:Can make all the difference.
Speaker C:All right, next tip.
Speaker C:Courtney, this is massive.
Courtney:Get back on track straight away, pretty self explanatory, but, yeah, again, it will stop.
Courtney:We need to be careful that we're not reprogramming the habits that we've tried to already reprogram.
Courtney:We're not allowing those to filter back in.
Courtney:We also don't want our mindset, as we spoke about earlier, spiraling on us as well.
Courtney:So as we say, do all of these things and eat and be a little bit not.
Courtney:What's the word I'm looking for?
Courtney:Give yourself a bit of grace during this time, but also make sure you're planning to get back on track and you've got a plan of when you're going back to the gym.
Courtney:If you say potentially taking that week off weight training or something like that, just make sure you have it as a plan.
Courtney:Plan.
Courtney:You've got it set in stone.
Courtney:Okay.
Courtney:My next meal prep is going to be on this day or, you know, my next weight training day is going to be on this date.
Courtney:So it just holds yourself accountable and you've got a plan to go back into it.
Courtney:The last thing you want to do is wing it for that week and then just continue to wing it after that.
Courtney:It's really easy to get sucked into that mindset.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:I tend to find the issue isn't that someone has a good time with friends and family over the Christmas period.
Speaker C:The issue is when the Christmas period becomes all January and then melts into February and we then start to catastrophize what is honestly not a big fucking deal.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:This is where I go to the start of the episode.
Speaker C:Don't be a psycho, don't be a dick.
Speaker C:Like, just get back on track as soon as you can.
Speaker C:The sooner you're back on track, the sooner you're feeling better.
Speaker C:And let's be clear about this, you are always the next decision away from being back on track.
Speaker C:It is literally that simple.
Speaker C:It is the next thing you eat or going for a walk or hitting the gym.
Speaker C:Like, you're one decision away from being back on track.
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:But I would just plan it.
Courtney:So for me, we're going away just before Christmas to the beach.
Speaker C:Not that we're looking forward to it.
Courtney:Or anything with my family.
Courtney:And we'll be away for a couple of days, so can't wait.
Courtney:I won't be weight training for a couple of days because I'm not going to weight train while I'm there.
Courtney:I will, though, have already planned when I come back, the Day that I'm going to weight train again.
Courtney:So it'll already be sort of set in my mind.
Courtney:It's just like, oh, I'll be back at the gym on this day.
Speaker C:Yep.
Speaker C:I'd also just as a reminder to say, one bad meal or one non standard week isn't going to be enough to make you put on weight.
Speaker C:Like, yes, you may feel a little bit puffy because you've had foods that you don't normally have and your body's like, whoa, what the fuck's going on here?
Speaker C:But you'd be surprised how fast your body almost deflates once you get back on track.
Speaker C:So let's, let's not catastrophize things and think that, oh, I fucked everything up.
Speaker C:Like, no, fool, you've had a good time.
Speaker C:Get back on track as soon as you can.
Speaker C:Within probably, I would say I've seen this with clients of ours as well.
Speaker C:Within a week or two, you're back to normal at worst.
Speaker C:So, yeah, just get back on track.
Speaker C:Next tip, speaking of exercise, Courtney is where you can stay active, keep up with your exercise in one way or another.
Speaker C:So Courtney mentioned that we're going away over Christmas and boy, do we need it.
Courtney:Yes.
Speaker C:Just quietly.
Courtney:We'll be away for a few days after Christmas.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:Or enduring.
Speaker C:So not that we're looking forward to it or anything.
Speaker C:We're not counting the days or thinking around.
Speaker C:We're not talking about it every single day of our lives right now.
Speaker C:Like, I have my exercise plan laid out.
Speaker C:Courtney knows what she's doing the entire time.
Speaker C:So for me, my plan is, well, I'm in the middle of a weight, a weights program, so I'm hitting the gym, but I'm also hitting the beach, you know, for walks or runs or very little sometimes, you know, but the point is, exercise is also a fantastic stress buster and a great way to just get it out of your system.
Speaker C:And for this time of year, that could be very beneficial for a lot of people.
Speaker C:So I would recommend don't stop and do nothing as much as you can.
Speaker C:Just try and keep a habit going of some kind.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Courtney:Yes.
Speaker C:All right, tip number nine.
Speaker C:We're not far from wrapping up here.
Speaker C:Tip number nine.
Speaker C:This is a huge one that I'm a big, big fan of here, Courtney.
Speaker C:What does that say?
Courtney:Understand that you are in control.
Courtney:You are in full control here.
Speaker C:You're the boss.
Courtney:Yes.
Speaker C:So you can plan and decide your treats.
Speaker C:You can plan and decide your special occasions.
Speaker C:Like, no one is forcing you to eat a damn Thing you don't have.
Courtney:To drink alcohol if you don't want to.
Speaker C:Bye, Ben.
Courtney:You can if you want to.
Speaker C:Yeah, you're the boss.
Speaker C:So I would say own what you're doing, own your decisions, own your plan.
Speaker C:You're allowed to say no and no thank you to things or to people.
Speaker C:Like, I know for a fact, knowing Courtney's family as I do, I'm going to get offered treats galore.
Speaker C:And you know what?
Speaker C:Maybe one time out of 10 I'm going to say yes, but the other nine times I'm going to say, yeah, no thanks, and just carry.
Courtney:No, we don't drink.
Courtney:But they'll still offer it because that's just the sort of people they are.
Speaker C:They're givers.
Speaker C:They're givers.
Courtney:Yeah.
Courtney:But again, it doesn't mean that we have to say yes.
Courtney:It.
Courtney:You know, for some people it might be okay, but yeah, you definitely.
Courtney:You have to remember that you're in control and you have the ability to say yes, as we've mentioned, but you also have the ability to say no.
Speaker C:Now, to be fair, though, saying no can be super hard.
Courtney:It can be.
Courtney:Especially when you're in a environment, whether you're around a lot of friends or family or even in a workplace situation.
Speaker C:Often, though, a lot of people will feel that.
Speaker C:That it's expected of them to eat or drink certain things.
Speaker C:If you actually look at this seriously, it's usually just internally.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:You feel that the expectation is there.
Speaker C:I've got to be honest, most people don't give a shit what you do.
Speaker C:You're not that special.
Courtney:Well, they're not paying that much attention, really.
Courtney:I think we think people pay more attention than they really do.
Speaker C:So I think understanding that you're in full control and being willing to say no, it is easier said than done.
Speaker C:But I can tell you from personal experience, the best way to get good at saying no is to practice saying no and be prepared to live with the consequences which you find out aren't that bad.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:Like, it's never the disaster that we tell ourselves that it is just to say no.
Speaker C:I'm good, thanks.
Speaker C:Yeah, let me just carry on.
Speaker C:So you will feel just by.
Speaker C:By understanding that you're the boss, you're in charge, you can say yes.
Speaker C:You can say no to whatever you.
Speaker C:Gives you that feeling of control and that there.
Speaker C:Gives confidence.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:But also through doing that, I can tell you from personal experience, you show and prove to yourself that, oh, actually, you know what?
Speaker C:I can get through this and it is okay.
Speaker C:And it's not a big deal.
Speaker C:And what was I worrying about all those years?
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:Like, I know for us, for our Christmas breakaway, I am so excited.
Speaker C:Like, I know that there'll be, there'll be treats, there'll be things offered, there'll be things I'm going to say say no to.
Speaker C:I'm fully comfortable with that and can't wait to get away, you know, just own your shit.
Speaker C:Finally, before we sign off, the last tip that we're going to give here is that you should really sign up for.
Speaker C:We've got a free weight loss course that is in our app.
Speaker C:And our app kicks ass.
Speaker C:Just ask us.
Speaker C:We made it.
Speaker C:So it contains a metric shit ton of free material, tips and tricks, you know, to help you not just stay on track through the Christmas holiday period, but just come straight out of it on a roll and ready to kick ass.
Speaker C:So just go to our website, which is What, I'm sorry, theweightlosspodcast.com and sign up.
Speaker C:Free weight loss course.
Speaker C:Get into it.
Speaker C:That's our final tip and we're done.
Courtney:We're done.
Speaker C:We are done.
Speaker C:So in a way where we're kind of back, but not really, we're going to be taking a well earned break through to next year when there's more videos coming with less Christmas pajamas.
Courtney:Unfortunately.
Courtney:Yeah, we won't be dressed like this for our next season.
Speaker C:No.
Speaker C:But you can look forward to Courtney as the Easter Bunny.
Speaker C:I'm Easter.
Courtney:We don't have crisp Easter pajamas.
Speaker C:We can fix that.
Courtney:Yeah.
Speaker C:Okay.
Speaker C:So before we sign off, you wanna give a shout out to our Facebook group.
Courtney:Yes, our Facebook group.
Courtney:The weight loss podcast.
Courtney:Search it up on Facebook Original and make sure that you are a member of that.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:If you're not, I have to say I'm questioning your life choices right now.
Speaker C:Come and hang out with us and other like minded fans of the show.
Speaker C:So with that, we're going to sign off.
Courtney:We'll sign off.
Speaker C:Merry Christmas.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Courtney:I hope these tips help you enjoy your holiday period.
Courtney:Whatever, however you celebrate and be safe.
Courtney:We will see you early next year for our next season.
Courtney:What season is that going to be?
Speaker C:12.
Courtney:12.
Courtney: in: Speaker C:Love you.
Speaker C:Merry Christmas.
Speaker C:Stay safe.
Speaker C:Bye for now.
Matt:Are you ready to share your success?
Matt:Head over to our website for full access to our show notes, resources based on today's topic and links to our Facebook group so you can share your story with our hosts and many others out there who are looking to achieve and maintain their health and fitness goals.
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