Life

For those with weight-loss goals, the holidays can present special challenges, with an increased focus on food and drink and greater potential for missed workouts. In fact, many people put off starting a fitness program during the last few months of the year, believing that they will be so busy that their chances of success would be small. When the new year rolls around, there is often a desire to crash diet or go full force into an exercise regimen, in hopes of making up for extra calories and too little activity.

We all want to enjoy ourselves during the holidays, but know that it can be easy to get caught up in the excitement and fun of parties and family get-togethers and forget how much food we are consuming. Foods eaten just before and after holiday meals, such as appetizers, snack foods like chips and dip, drinks and desserts, account for roughly one-third of holiday calories eaten. Some tips:

Focus more on what you can eat instead of what you can't. Depriving yourself of all treats is not necessary and rarely works out for the best, so your plan should include permission to indulge, but in small amounts. Much is written about foods that cause weight gain and how we must avoid them, but any food can be permissible as long as what is consumed is burned off. The primary reason to consume treat foods in small quantities is that they lack sufficient nutrients for good health. The majority of your diet should be healthy choices, foods that benefit you, and luckily, traditional holiday meals give us a variety of great options. Roast turkey, for example, is a great choice, high in protein and with little fat provided you forego eating the skin. It is a good source of zinc, selenium, B3 (niacin), vitamin B6 and B12 — all essential for energy production. A 3.5-ounce serving of skinless roasted turkey breast has only 115 calories.

Cranberries are extremely low in calories at just 25 in ½ cup, and are a very good source of vitamin C and fiber. When compared to 19 other common fruits, cranberries were found to contain the highest level of antioxidant phenols.

Pumpkins are packed with vitamins and minerals, are high in fiber, low in fat and low in calories. A ½ cup of cooked pumpkin contains only 25 calories, less than 1 gram of fat, 281 milligrams of potassium and 1,325 milligrams of vitamin A. One study by the USDA showed that diets high in pumpkin tended to curb the appetite, while supplying high nutritional benefit for the number of calories consumed. Pumpkin seeds can be roasted and eaten as snacks, and are a good source of magnesium, iron, manganese, copper, protein, monounsaturated fat and zinc.

Sweet potatoes are one of the most nutritious vegetables you can find. Low in calories, they are an excellent source of vitamin A (beta-carotene) and vitamin C, and a good source of fiber, manganese, copper, biotin, and vitamins B2, B5 and B6. A small baked sweet potato has only about 110 calories.

Tossed salad, cooked or raw vegetables, and fruit are always great choices if you are trying to slim down. These carbohydrates are high in vitamins and minerals, a great source of fiber and are low in fat and calories. One study involving nearly 80,000 women and 40,000 men found that people who ate 5 servings of fruit and vegetables each day had a 30 percent lower risk of ischemic stroke. This type of stroke is the most common, and is caused by blockage of blood vessels. Avoid over-cooking vegetables or cooking in water, as this causes greater loss of vitamins and antioxidants, and if you are watching your weight, pass on high-calorie toppings like croutons and cheese or use lower-calorie substitutes. When it comes to salad dressing, choosing fat-free or lighter versions will help you cut back significantly on fat and calories.

More tips in next week's column.

Marjie Gilliam is an International Sports Sciences Association Master certified personal trainer and fitness consultant. She owns Custom Fitness Personal Training Services. Write to her in care of the Dayton Daily News, contact her at (937) 878-9018 or by

e-mail

at OHTrainer@aol.com. Her Web site is www.ohtrainer.com.