How to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain By BOOSTING your metabolism:
the Root Causes You Can Fix Now
The holidays are a time to enjoy family and food - but if you have a weight loss goal it can be an inner battle - I have to have more willpower and avoid all the sweets!
Maybe you used to be able to get away with some extra cookies or a glass of wine or eggnog in your 20s and 30s but since you hit your 40s and beyond, you seem to gain 2 to 5lbs overnight from one holiday meal.
It’s not your imagination — and it’s not a willpower problem.
Midlife metabolism changes are REAL, but here’s the empowering truth:
Your gut, hormones, stress and blood sugar play a bigger role in holiday weight gain than the food itself.
And you can support your metabolism without dieting, skipping meals, or avoiding the foods you love.
Here’s more good news: if you look like you gained weight overnight, that’s not actual weight gain, it’s likely bloating, constipation and inflammation!
Here’s exactly how to keep your metabolism steady, your energy strong, and your digestion happy — so you can enjoy holiday meals without the weight gain.
IS IT ACTUALLY WEIGHT GAIN, OR BLOATING, CONSTIPATION & INFLAMMATION?
It’s important to remember that you don’t gain real body fat overnight from one indulgent holiday meal.
What feels like sudden weight gain is almost always a combination of constipation, bloating, inflammation, and water retention — all completely normal and temporary.
Alcohol and salty holiday foods (like cheese, gravy, charcuterie, stuffing, and sauces) cause dehydration, which triggers your body to hold onto water.
Travel can disrupt your hydration and digestion even more. Larger meals, heavier foods, more sugar, less fiber, dehydration, and changes to your routine can easily lead to constipation, which makes the scale jump and your stomach feel distended.
Meanwhile, stress, poor sleep, alcohol, and sugar all increase gut inflammation, leading to puffiness and fluid retention throughout the body.
The good news? You can reverse this quickly, with the same strategies to boost your metabolism below.
TIPS TO Boost Metabolism & Prevent Holiday Weight Gain
1. Eat to Balance Blood Sugar (no dieting or skipping meals!)
Unbalanced blood sugar = cravings, belly fat storage, bloating, and low energy.
Balanced blood sugar = stable metabolism.
Your goal at each meal:
30 g protein: a palm size piece of fish, 3 eggs or tofu
Fibre: 1/2 plate vegetables paired with 1/4 plate whole grains or legumes
Healthy fats: thumb size serving of olive oil or other healthy fat, olives, nuts or seeds or fatty fish
This keeps glucose stable, reduces cravings, and tells your body it’s safe to burn — not store — energy.
Skip the “save up calories for later” mentality. It backfires every time.
2. Eat Breakfast Within 1 Hour of Waking
In midlife, cortisol spikes earlier — and skipping breakfast worsens cravings, belly fat storage, and blood sugar crashes.
A morning meal with protein + fibre:
✔ calms cortisol
✔ stabilizes blood sugar
✔ prevents overeating later
✔ boosts metabolism
3. watch your salt intake & stay hydrated
Holiday meals are often loaded with salty foods—cheeses, charcuterie, gravies, sauces, ham, packaged snacks—and when you add alcohol to the mix, it’s the perfect recipe for dehydration and bloating.
Here’s why it happens:
1. High salt intake makes your body hold onto water.
Salt (sodium) pulls water into your tissues. When you suddenly eat more salty foods than normal, your body retains extra water to dilute the sodium. This shows up as:
Puffiness in the face and hands
Tight rings
Belly bloating
That “puffy all over” feeling the next morning
This isn’t fat gain—it's temporary water retention.
2. Alcohol dehydrates you — and increases bloating.
Alcohol is a natural diuretic. It makes your kidneys release more water, which leads to:
Frequent urination
Loss of electrolytes (like sodium, potassium, magnesium)
A dehydrated & irritated digestive system
When you're dehydrated, the body holds even more water the next day, causing swelling, puffiness, and bloating.
3. Electrolyte imbalances worsen digestive symptoms.
When sodium, potassium, and magnesium get out of balance, digestion slows and water moves irregularly between cells. This can lead to:
Constipation
Sluggish digestion
Abdominal bloating
Feeling swollen or heavy
Here are simple, effective strategies you can use during and after holiday meals:
1. Prioritize electrolytes — not just water
Plain water helps, but when electrolytes are depleted, you need to replenish them.
Great options include:
Electrolyte powders without added sugar
Coconut water
A pinch of sea salt + lemon in water
This helps rebalance fluid levels and reduce swelling.
2. Hydrate before drinking alcohol
Start the night with 1–2 cups of water + electrolytes.
Alternate each alcoholic drink with a glass of water.
3. Add potassium-rich foods
Potassium helps counteract sodium and flushes out excess fluid. Try:
Avocado
Leafy greens
Sweet potato
Bananas
Coconut water
4. Use natural diuretics to ease puffiness
These help the body release excess water gently:
Teas: dandelion & ginger
Parsley, cucumber
Lemon water
They support kidney and lymphatic function, helping reduce water retention.
4. stay regular & support your microbiome (gut bacteria)
Add a probiotic to support digestion, regularity, and cravings. Sometimes we think we’ve gained weight when really we are just constipated! If you aren’t having at least one large, complete bowel movement per day, or if you strain to pass it, you’re constipated.
Support regularity with a probiotic containing strains like Bifidobacterium lactis, Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus plantarum, or L. rhamnosus, which are well-studied for improving constipation and motility. If you’re still struggling, try a motility supplement - find my favourites in the Restore & Revive supplement protocol.
Certain probiotics have also been proven to support a healthy metabolism including:
Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis (notably strain “B420”) — A frequently studied strain in overweight/obese adults. A randomized controlled trial found that B420 helped control body fat mass over six months.
Bifidobacterium breve — Some research links this strain to reductions in body fat mass and improvements in fat‑oxidation/metabolic profile.
Lactobacillus gasseri — Has been associated in studies with reductions in abdominal fat and improved metabolic outcomes (less fat absorption, possibly reduced inflammation).
Lactobacillus rhamnosus — Some evidence suggests it supports weight/fat‑loss, particularly in women. In trials, women taking specific L. rhamnosus strains lost more fat than placebo.
Lacticaseibacillus paracasei (e.g. strain “K56”) — In a recent pilot study among adults with obesity, supplementation with L. paracasei K56 led to reductions in body fat mass, trunk/visceral fat, waist circumference, and improved glucose metabolism.
Akkermansia has also been well studied to support blood sugar management and weight, but use as a probiotic is still up for debate.
Add fermented foods to your diet for a natural source of probiotics to support your microbiome, staying regular and boosting meatoblism.
Good sources include:
Yogourt: regular or vegan
True fermented sauerkraut, kimchi or pickles
Low sugar kombucha
Miso
5. Repair Leaky Gut
Your gut lining can become leaky” allowing particles of food and bacteria into the bloodstream, mounting a full body immune and inflammatory response. This not only leads to food sensitivities, it also contributes to:
weight gain
mood changes
sleep issues
inflammation and pain
allergies
skin conditions like eczema and acne
What causes leaky gut?
stress
medications: anti-inflammatories, antibiotics, antacids, mental health medications
poor diet: high in processed foods and sugar OR overly strict diets with limited variety of foods and/or low in fibre
All of these factors inmpact the gut microbiome which, when imbalanced further worsens leaky gut.
On a metabolism level, leaky gut allows inflammatory molecules into the bloodstream, driving:
stubborn belly fat
bloating
low energy
cravings
thyroid sluggishness
higher cortisol
slower metabolism
Women in midlife are especially prone due to stress, hormonal changes, and reduced stomach acid.
I walk you through leaky gut repair inside the Restore & Radiate Pre-Holiday Gut Reset.
6. Increase Fibre Intake for Blood Sugar & Insulin Support
Most midlife women are severely under-consuming fibre.
Fibre:
✔ slows blood sugar spikes
✔ improves insulin sensitivity
✔ keeps you full
✔ feeds good gut bacteria
✔ reduces inflammation
Aim for 25–35 g per day, especially from whole foods.
Good sources:
legumes: beans, lentils and chickpeas: however these are high FODMAP and can cause gas, bloating and gut pain for people with IBS
whole grains and gluten free grains: oats, quinoa, wild and brown rice, sorghum
fruits and vegetables
nuts and seeds: especially ground flax for hormones
I typically do not recommend taking a fibre supplement if high fibre foods give you gas, bloating and gut pain. Start slowly incorporating more high fibre foods and see how you feel. If they give you gas and bloating, try a peppermint tea.
If you’re confused about what to eat or not sure how to add gut-friendly fibre to your meals, join us inside the Restore & Revive Pre-Holiday Gut Reset for simple gut-friendly high fibre (& high protein) meal and snack ideas.
7. Add Myo-Inositol for Insulin Resistance
If you’ve been told you have elevated fasting insulin, prediabetes, or PCOS history, myo-inositol can help:
improve insulin sensitivity
support ovarian function
reduce cravings
stabilize mood
boost metabolic efficiency
8. exercise & Weight Training
This may be the #1 metabolism booster for midlife women and it doesn’t mean you have to spend hours at the gym. It’s especially important if you’ve been told you have insulin resistance.
Cardio helps with bloating & constipation: even a gentle 15 minute walk can help.
Weight training: muscle tissue is highly metabolically active and it declines rapidly with age.
Muscle tissue:
burns more calories at rest
improves insulin sensitivity
reduces belly fat
stabilizes blood sugar
increases metabolic rate
You don’t have to join a gym or do an intense Crossfit or HIIT class for it to make a difference: even two 15 minute weight training sessions per week can make a huge difference!
You can start at home by doing some squats, lunges, planks and push-ups. Start slowly and listen to your body.
Be sure to have a protein snack afterwards to help your muscles recover and grow more strong!
9. Manage Stress to Prevent “Cortisol Belly”
Chronic stress raises cortisol, which pushes the body into fat-storing mode — especially around the belly.
Simple “stress-shedding” techniques:
get into nature
move your body gently
sing: actives the vagus nerve switching the nervous system into a calm “rest and digest” mode where cortisol is not released
watch or do something that makes you laugh
do one thing daily just for you
Small shifts = big hormonal benefits.
9. Prioritize Sleep (even though it’s harder in midlife!)
Poor sleep → slower metabolism the NEXT day.
This increases:
cravings
hunger
blood sugar instability
emotional eating
belly fat storage
To improve sleep in midlife:
avoid screens 1 hour before bed
dim lights in the evening
supplement magnesium glycinate
keep your room cool
stay consistent with bedtime
If you’re still struggling with sleep, there may be something else going on including blood sugar crashes in the middle of the night, hormone shifts, or cortisol peaks.
Join us inside the Restore & Radiate Pre-Holiday Gut Reset to discover how to sleep through the night and wake up bloat free and energzied!
10. Support Your Mental Health
Holding in stress or emotions increases inflammation, raises cortisol, disrupts blood sugar, worsens sleep, and leads directly to emotional eating.
Midlife hormones make this even more intense.
Seek support from:
loved ones
a therapist or counsellor
support groups
church or other spiritual connection
community (which is why group programs work so well)
Your metabolism responds positively when your nervous system feels safe.
11. dig deeper: testing
If your metabolism feels off, don’t guess.
Ask your practitioner to test:
Blood sugar
Fasting insulin
Thyroid panel (TSH, Free T4, Free T3, antibodies): your thyroid is the master of metabolism. This is one of the most commonly overlooked causes of a sluggish metabolism - be sure to test antibodies too, as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a common cause of poor thyroid function, especially in women.
Vitamin D
Vitamin B12
Identifying imbalances early helps prevent midlife weight gain before it snowballs.
12. Gut Microbiome Testing (the missing piece for many women 40+)
The gut microbiome affects:
blood sugar balance
cravings
thyroid conversion
inflammation
metabolism
mood
hormone regulation
weight set point
I use the GI-MAP stool test, which shows:
✔ bacterial imbalances
✔ yeast overgrowth
✔ parasites
✔ leaky gut markers
✔ inflammation
✔ digestion + absorption
✔ detoxification capacity
✔ estrobolome function (estrogen recycling)
When we rebalance the gut, weight becomes easier to maintain — even during the holidays.
Ready to Prevent Holiday Weight Gain (Without Restriction)?
You don’t need to:
diet or fast
skip meals
give up holiday treats
punish yourself with extreme workouts
You do need to support your gut, hormones, and blood sugar — and I can show you exactly how.
Want to learn how to optimize your gut health, reduce inflammation & sleep better so you can prevent holiday weight gain?
Join us inside the Restore & Radiate Pre-Holiday Gut Reset!
You deserve to feel comfortable, confident, and energized in your body — without giving up the holiday foods you love.
Click below to learn more and join us!
