There are differing studies regarding how much weight people gain on average during the holidays. Some studies estimate that the average weight gain is 10-15 pounds, while other surveys of people reveal a gain of about 5 pounds. The trouble, according to the New England Journal of Medicine, is that most people don’t ever lose the weight they gain, meaning that much of their midlife weight gain is attributable to holiday eating.

For those who are already overweight, the holiday weight news is worse since they tend to gain even more during the holidays. Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day can be deemed a ‘high risk’ time for the overweight - there’s more alcohol, more sweets, more snacks, more cheese and other high-fat appetizers, and generally more justification to eat whatever, whenever.

How did you do this past holiday season? Did you put on a few extra pounds with the promise that you’d do something about it in 2016? Well that time has come, and below is a great tip on what you can do - as a first step - to assist with your weight loss and get off the roller coaster once and for all. Are you ready to commit? If so, read on.

A key ingredient is this: Figure out if you’re an emotional eater. You can pick up any book or magazine and it will tell you at least 50 things you should do to lose weight; typically physical things such as restricting calories, measuring your food, exercising more, using smaller plates, etc. Some of those tips may be helpful in the short term, but they don’t address a major factor for most people, and that is the issue of emotional eating. Emotional eating is when we turn to food for purposes other than nourishment or to satisfy hunger. We learn early on that food can provide "comfort" – and the foods we were given in times of sadness or in times of being rewarded were typically high-fat, high-sugar junk foods. Sugar begins its addictive lure at our earliest birthday parties, Halloween, Easter, and really has become just about part of the daily fare. We also turn to food in times of stress as not only a source of comfort, but as a source of numbing pain or a source of distraction. Or we may just be eating blindly out of habit, unsure of why we eat when we’re not hungry.

Where do you begin to address the problem of emotional eating? Just knowing that you are indeed an emotional eater is not enough to resolve the issue. A better understanding of any negative emotions, as well as the relationships and circumstances that trigger them, is key to being able to get past them. Let me share briefly about a man I know named Chef Del. He’s an internationally known Chef and the author of several best-selling cookbooks. He was put on a diet at the age of 8 and hence learned the art of secretive eating, binging and starving. After a lifetime of yo-yo dieting, he reached a breaking point at 500 pounds and decided to change his relationship with food. He has lost over 200 pounds to date, and yet was recently questioning why he was struggling with the remaining weight. He realized that he was only getting PART of the equation right.

He knew the laws of nutrition, but they were not enough to overcome the reason for his binge eating in the first place. Some tips he offered in his recent article include these:

- Deal with the emotions that cause you binge and starve yourself. This is not just about having "happy thoughts" and it’s not divorcing yourself from family members and others; instead learn to reframe things, how to respond in a different way, and how to have a happier life experience even when surrounded by people who choose not to do this.- The plan you make for the rest of your life must be put into practice every day. Chef Del makes a resolution every morning to take care himself, emotionally, physically and mentally; to live life to the fullest and be a happy person.

- You can’t pick and choose the things you’ll do right. You must do the whole thing. Eat well, deal with your stress, exercise, stay hydrated, get plenty of rest, and follow his other tips in the article. Chef Del offers a Permanent Weight Loss program at Wellness Forum Health and can be reached at sroufed@wellnessforum.com. I have his permission to share this information and would encourage you to explore taking his course if you know you’re an emotional eater. Overcoming this basic hurdle will be the best thing you can do regarding your 2016 commitment to a better diet and better health. I’d be happy to help you with the food equation – no counting, dieting, measuring or supplements….just the right food. If you’d like to read Chef Del’s article in its entirety, please contact me through www.cydnotter.com and I’ll be happy to forward a copy to you. Happy New Year!