It’s that time of year when many of us decide to make that New Year’s resolution to drop some holiday pounds. You’ve probably made this resolution in previous years; perhaps you make it every year. Whether this is your first resolution -- or the 20th -- the following tips and suggestions will streamline your battle with your bulging midriff and oversized caboose for 2009.

Focus on nutrition, not calories
Most of you will alter your diet when trying to drop some pounds. This is important. However, the problem I often see is how the focus tends to be on calorie restriction versus nutrition intake. Sure you can probably benefit from eating less (which will lower your calorie intake), and there’s no doubt that too much food will over-burden your digestive system. Alternatively, if instead you focus on adequate nutrition, the desire to eat a lot of food diminishes along with the urge to eat sweets and other junk foods. Furthermore, with hunger satisfied and cravings reduced, you won’t need to rely on sheer willpower to get you through the day. Rather than feeling deprived and grumpy, you’ll feel content, energized, and on your way to shedding some pounds.

Eat smaller meals at night
Controlling your intake of food at night may be tough. After all, you’re hungry after a long day’s work and you’re ready to chow down, right? Well, another problem with consuming too much food has to do with digestion. Your stomach acids and available enzymes can handle only so much food at a sitting; the remainder of food that isn’t broken down properly is stressful to your digestive tract. In this regard, chronic poor digestion has been linked to weight gain. So, eat less at night. And you can make it easier to control late-night feasting by eating slightly larger meals for breakfast and lunch; this will also help with alcohol cravings. In addition, consider using a smaller dish at night. A salad plate in lieu of your typical dinner plate should help – and no seconds!

Get your 8 hours of sleep
Research is still proving that lack of sleep contributes to weight gain. This is not new news. But I constantly find that people struggling to lose weight are simply not sleeping enough. The body is simply unable to regenerate properly if you don’t get enough rest. And if you’re exercising, even more regeneration needs to take place; so all the more reason to get plenty of sack time. One common blunder is to get up early in the morning, sacrificing sleep to make room for exercise. Thus, if you are getting up earlier in the morning to squeeze in that early-bird workout, then you need to be getting to bed earlier at night. When trying to lose body fat, proper sleep is just as important as exercise.

Working out or Working in
It takes energy to make change. If you don’t have very much energy, then a traditional exercise program may not be the best choice for you. ‘Working-out’ is an activity that takes energy. If your energy levels are low, you’ll be better off ‘working-in’ for a period of time first. Working-in activities are slower-paced movements tied in with breathing. When done properly they will actually revitalize you, enhance your energy levels, and contribute to your weight loss. Tai Chi and Qi Gong are two common methods of working-in training. But you don’t need to learn these arts in order to gain the benefit. Almost any exercise can be done in a working-in manner. The idea is to pace the exercise with your heart rate by moving very slowly. Less is more in this case.

When it comes to many things in life, working smarter precedes working harder. Fitness is no exception. Yes, getting in shape can be hard work. But do it wisely. Not every aspect of it needs to be grueling. So don your thinking cap and get to work!

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