Here are some great tips for how to enjoy the holidays without gaining weight. Buckle up, it might not be what you expect.

Fill your plate with all of the delicious holiday food that you and your family worked so hard to prepare. Go back for seconds. Go back for thirds. Eat mountains of mashed potatoes with rivers of gravy. Indulge in dessert. Twice. Drink your wine, sparkling cider, champagne, eggnog, beer, or whatever you please. Enjoy your family, friends, and loved ones. Be thankful and grateful for your loved ones. Enjoy yourself.

Don't count calories. Don't practice portion control. Don't starve yourself the week before, or after a holiday. Don't punish yourself with a restrictive diet or brutal workout video the next day. Don't weigh yourself after a great big holiday "cheat" day. Don't worry about weight gain. Don't throw up your hands over minor slip ups or even giant whole-day slip ups and declare that the entire rest of the year is a wash because you have failed, that instead you will start your clean eating and exercise habit after January 1st.

Just like one meal or one workout isn't going to make you fit or lean, a couple less-than-healthy days in the form of the holidays is not going to ruin your progress or make you gain weight. What matters most around the holidays is that you realize that the actual holidays only take place around several days. Do your best (practicing moderation as needed if you have many holidays parties and exposure to the typical abundance of holiday "junk" food) to eat healthy all the rest of the month, and to keep up with your workouts.

Whatever you do, don't let your worrying interfere with your ability to enjoy your holidays. If you beat yourself up or tell yourself that you have "failed" somehow, you're setting yourself up for a stressful situation that will actually increase your likelihood of skipping workouts, binging, and overindulging more often, which can actually lead to weight gain.

Once you've enjoyed your holiday, go right back into your healthy eating habits. Drink lots of water, and get back into your regular routines of Fitness Blender workout videos.

Whatever holidays you and your family celebrate, we hope you enjoy them to the fullest extent possible!