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It is safe to say that after the holidays we may not be feeling our physical best.  We may have overdone it with the sweets, rich foods, and alcohol.  As a result our pants are tighter than they ought to be, our muffin top is  growing and we may feel sluggish.

The most important thing you need to do is to practice self-forgiveness.  Don’t beat yourself up and think negatively about yourself.  Negative energy slows you down, limits your true potential and truly causes you to feel heavier.   Negativity will just add to your body’s stress load and actually slows down the process of weight release and body repair.

So give yourself the gift of forgiveness and get back on the right track.  And here is a guide to boost your metabolism with these seven tips.  

1. Sleep

During the holidays we don’t always get enough sleep because we were so busy preparing – the extra shopping, the cooking, the baking, the parties.  But the consequence is that our metabolism tends to slow down.  Our hormones become unbalanced and we gain weight.

Even though we aren’t burning as many calories when we sleep, we are helping our body’s reset and restore its regulation so that we are burning calories like we should when we are awake.

Treat yourself right and get at least 7 – 9 hours sleep per night.  You deserve it!

2. Drink Green Tea

This superfood is rich in antioxidants and helps to boost your metabolism.

In one study, participants were given green tea on a daily basis, but made no changes to the food they ate or exercise they did. At the end of 90 days, participants lost an average of 2.64 pounds, ¾ inch from their waistline and reduced their body mass index—not bad considering that no dietary or exercise changes were part of the study.

Aside from weight loss, there are many health benefits to drinking green tea, including preventing cancer, reducing inflammation, and overall heart health.

I have to admit that I don’t care for the flavor of plain green tea, but I really enjoy it when it is combined with mint, mango, or lemon.   Go to the grocery store and try some different kinds of tea – it’s an easy way to improve your health and lose some weight.  Drinking as little as 2 ½ cups of green tea per day can help with weight loss.

3. Laugh … A Lot!

A little laughter may go a long way. Scientists have found that as little as 10 minutes of genuine, heart felt laughter per day (or about half an episode of Modern Family) can burn extra calories.  Just another reason to be happy and stay smiling!  It’s good for you!

4. Eat your greens

You knew this was coming right?  One of the very best things you can do for yourself is to make a wonderful salad with every main meal.  This does take some planning.  I almost always have avocado, cucumber, shredded carrots and cherry tomatoes on hand along with romaine or baby spinach.  Make your salad interesting by adding in some fruit and nuts – such as apples, walnuts and goat cheese crumbles, or add almond slivers and mandarin oranges.  If you have leftover meat such as chicken, throw that in as well and have your salad as the main meal.  Make some homemade salad dressings to really get it right.  But remember it does take planning.

Create some delicious homemade salad dressings such as:

• Creamy Lemon Mustard Vinaigrette
• Asian Salad Dressing

5. Get the Right Kind of Carbs

Most of us have way too many simple carbs this time of year: the “white foods” – sugar, flour, potatoes, rice – this time of year.  Get yourself off of the blood sugar roller coaster and choose steel cut oats or whole rolled oats instead of boxed cereal.  Choose sweet potatoes instead of white potatoes, brown or wild rice instead of white rice, fruit instead of cookies.  These foods will help to get your metabolism back on track instead of going into glycemic overload and taxing your body.

6. Get Your Soup Pot Out

For most of us in the northern hemisphere, it is winter and a homemade bowl of soup made with homemade chicken broth, or organic, low salt chicken broth is a great way to incorporate more veggies into your diet.  Personally, I happen to LOVE minestrone soup.  It’s packed with veggies and  keeps you warm inside.

I invite you to try a Wild Rice Soup that I make with leftover chicken or turkey.  It’s filling, tasty and nutritious and it has a special place in my heart because I am from the Northwoods of Wisconsin and grew up on it.

7. Get Movin’

Even though it is true that what and how much you eat is the key factor in weight loss, movement is important too.  Figure out what you like to do and commit to yourself that you are worth it and JUST DO IT!  Even better would be to get an accountability buddy commit to exercise at least 4 times per week.  With the weather being colder, you might want to consider a joining a gym, group fitness class – Zumba, Kick boxing, Yoga –or working with a personal trainer.  Muscle burns more calories than fat, so start building