It seems like we want to be reminded of the obvious this time of year. What's the best diet, who is doing what in Hollywood and which ab machine on TV will turn me into the next super model? In truth, every year around this time we tighten up our belts and start looking for answers to why we don't fit into the same size cloths we did in high school or before the kids or before that "tragic life circumstance" that made us gain 15 pounds.



The thing is it's none of the above. We gain weight because we don't have activity levels that equal our eating levels.

The real deal is that we don't need to find any new tricks or angles. Keep your cash in your pocket. You can't pay for results. The basics have been pretty much figured out over the last 50 years of health and fitness. What we need to do is get control of ourselves and our emotions. We need to stop looking to outside sources for reasons to treat our bodies and therefore our minds better and realize that temporary satisfaction is just that. Temporary.

In reality, we know what we need to do. It's just that we don't.

Does that mean no fun during the holidays or that you're doomed to a life of no chocolate cake or beer? Of course not, I love both chocolate cake and beer and plan on having some of both over the holidays. I also plan on keeping active and picking my spots for decadence. The reason is because even though these bits of temporary satisfaction may be fleeting and only last minutes, I want to experience and enjoy them.

Lets face it, we do what we want, not what we are told. I happen to be a big fan of "both" when asked if I want a fat free body or to enjoy treats.

Life is short and should be packed with as much joy and happiness as possible. If treats make you happy then you should have some. If you eat treats all the time though, you get fat. Being fat makes people unhappy in the long run. So if you look at the big picture, eating treats all the time is like shooting your happiness in the foot (if happiness does in fact have a foot).

Eating treats every once, like on a planned treat day, a family get together or night out on the town and TRULY enjoying the experience is a 100% win-win in my book!

Beer and cake are not the problem. Beer and cake multiple times a week and then turning it into "your treat that you deserve at the end of the day" is the problem.

Our bodies are pretty amazing things. We can do just about anything to them in small infrequent doses and our bodies will work hard to minimize the damage and restore balance. Given frequent whacks over the head with the "nutrition bomb" stick, things start to fall apart.

So how do all of us fitness groupies survive the holidays without gaining ten pounds? Plan your fun and stick with your eating and exercise program the other 98% of the time. Keep your metabolism fired up by hitting the gym with hard, intense workouts and keep your eating on track during the normal times. Then when you go out for a night or two during the holidays, let it rip. Go crazy and get the bugs out of your system.

Once you get the bugs out of your system, you're ready to run your metabolism hot for the next couple of weeks. No regrets but some great experiences and a ton of fun. Did I mention you'll still have that six pack when you book your trip for Mexico?

O.K. fine. Just for the sake of keeping with personal trainer holiday tradition, here are my tips to keep the pounds off during the holiday season:

1. Do high intensity interval training for your cardio.

2. Think less about the length of your workout and more about the intensity.

3. If it comes prepared and in a package, it belongs on your "treat" list.

4. Spend more time lifting iron than you do pedaling and jogging.

5. Simple is good. The complexity of a workout has no bearing on the results it will produce.

6. Eat smaller meals but do it more often.

7. Do not cut fat out of your diet and then replace it with carbohydrates.

8. When eating out, get full on protein before you look at anything else.

9. When it's time to have fun, don't hold back.

10. When it's time to work, don't hold back and don't compromise when others want to steer you down a different path.