The holiday season is a wonderful time. The air is filled with joy, anticipation, the twinkling of lights and the sounds of holiday music. And without noticing, we get into a Holiday mood, buying and wrapping gifts, spending more time with friends and focusing on the people that mean the most to us.

The only problem I see during the Holiday season is food, or to be more specific it is the QUANTITY.

Usually in the four weeks from Thanksgiving to New Year I gain a few pounds which I later have to lose. This year is going to be different!

And it can be different for you as well.

Instead of kicking off the New Year with a resolution to lose weight, why not make a Pre-resolution to stay fit and heartburn-free over the holidays?

Here are 22 Great Tips that can help us have a great time without putting on extra weight:

1. Have a smaller variety of food on the table.

The greater the number of dishes on the table, the more we and our guests will end up eating. The temptation to sample a little bit of everything is what makes us feel stuffed, sleepy and bloated before the dinner is over.

You can serve fewer dishes and still make your holiday dinner feel festive. A great way to do this is to put the same appetizers and snacks into 2-3 smaller bowls and set them on different sides of the table. If you have vegetarians for dinner you can also make similar salads in two versions: vegetarian and not.

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Weight loss is not always a piece of cake. Although, I kind of wish it was, both literally and metaphorically. However, losing the few extra pounds that you have packed on over the winter holidays is not as complex and difficult as most people come to believe.

Basically, losing weight and keeping it off comes down to 5 simple things:

1) Burning desire to have a fitter, slimmer body
2) Courage to accept that some eating habits need to be changed
3) Long-term commitment, not just a spontaneous wish to be slimmer
4) Knowledge about the foods we eat and the psychology behind our eating habits
5) Certain amount of will power

Take a few seconds to ask yourself what stands in your way of achieving your weight loss goals?

• Do you really-really want to get fit or do you simply like the idea of losing a few pounds?
• Do you realize that losing weight is not just about staying on a diet for a few weeks? It is about changing your relationships with food?
• How committed are you to your weight loss goal? Are you motivated to make long-term lifestyle changes? (If you are not sure, you might want to read this first)

If you have answered “yes” to all three questions you are mentally prepared to get into the best shape of your life. All you need is a place to start!

The practical tips and psychological insights below can help you to achieve your weight loss goals by changing your eating habits little by little.

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Summer is the perfect season to get back into shape and burn those unneeded and unwanted pounds that we have put on during the cold winter season. And the best part is that you can do it without having to spend hours on a Stairmaster or exhausting yourself with crunches and push-ups.

Here are 25 fun and easy ways that will help you to lose weight, get fit and look gorgeous in your new swimming suit:

1. Drink plenty of water

The heat outside makes it easy to drink those 8 glasses of water a day that health professionals suggest we should drink. Our body naturally craves fluid to prevent dehydration and maintain the healthy operations of almost all our internal organs. In fact, it has been shown that most of our hunger pangs are caused by dehydration of the body, not by the desire to eat something. So next time, you feel hungry, drink a glass of water and see if your hunger goes away.

2. Avoid diuretics

Most high-calorie beverages like soda, juices, sugared iced tea, coffee or alcohol instead of hydrating us and quenching our thirst during hot summer days, work as diuretics (which means that they increase the excretion of water from the body), dehydrating us even more. No matter what TV ads tell you, there is nothing better than a glass of water with lemon to quench thirst and detoxify your body.

3. Start your day with a nutritiously-delicious breakfast

If you are one of those people, who regularly rush out of the house without eating breakfast, you might want to reconsider. In fact, there are some very compelling reasons to make breakfast the most important meal of the day.

Research has shown that in the morning our levels of blood sugar are seriously low and skipping breakfast can backfire on us later in the day with lack of energy, poor concentration, headaches and dizziness. However, starting your day with doughnuts, chocolate bars, pancakes, Sausage McMuffin (or almost any other dish from a fast food menu) is not particularly healthy either. While all these items may increase your blood sugar, they contain plenty of fat and very little nutrients, which lead to weight gain, decrease in energy and a foul mood. Therefore, to feel great, incorporate fresh fruits, berries, nuts, yogurt, oatmeal and natural juices into your breakfast menu.

4. Get more sun to get fit

There is some scientific evidence that says serotonin plays an important role in regulating appetite and mood. It means that boosting your levels of serotonin can leave you feeling happier and noticeably lower your appetite, especially by reducing cravings for foods that are high in carbohydrates. The production of serotonin, in turn, is closely linked with the amount of natural sun that we receive. This is one of the reasons why we eat more during the cold winter months and less in summer.

There are also a number of foods that help to increase the serotonin levels in our blood. Some of the most popular ones are bananas, wheat germ, cottage cheese, turkey, flaxseed oil, and dark chocolate! So in order to lose those extra pounds, grab a banana and hit the beach.

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