6 Easy Ways to Lose that Post-CNY Weight

So, Chinese New Year officially ended for quite some time. We had our share of fun collecting (or handing out) angpows, doing house-to-house visits, tossing yee sang and of course, binge eating on lots of foods and drinks during the Chinese New Year celebration. Pineapple tarts, kuih kapit (love letters), bak kwa (dried meats), scrumptious Chinese dishes... you name it, they were all hard to resist. And by the time the festive celebration is over, you realise you have gained some “prosperity” around the waistline as well. That being said, here are the six ways you can do to shed some extra fats away and get back into shape.

1. Do cardio workouts

After two weeks’ worth of nonstop eating and drinking during Chinese New Year, it’s time to get physically active! Exercise should be one of your main priorities here, especially if you’re looking to burn some calories and losing weight. While they are many kinds of exercise you can do, performing cardio workouts remain the best. Any cardio will do as long as it gets you all sweaty and pumped up. That includes jogging, cycling, skipping rope and even climbing staircase. Some of these cardio workouts can be done outdoors and indoors. Alternatively, you can join a fitness class like KFIT and get your buddies to participate together as well.

2. Drink more water

Over the course of the Chinese New Year celebration, most of the drinks we had were either fizzy beverages, packet drinks or alcoholic drinks. Consume too much of these sugary and alcoholic drinks mean you’re packing extra calories into your stomach as well. By now, you should make water as your best drinking buddy. It’s time to drink more water since this clear, unflavoured liquid is 100% calorie-free. Besides, water also helps increase your metabolism. But in case you hate drinking water (we get it, it’s tasteless), you can jazz it up with natural flavour like adding a few lemon slices. Speaking of that, here is one fruit infuser water bottle you should own.

3. Eat smaller meals

Chinese New Year sure made (most of) us ate a lot. Now, it’s time to change your eating habit. Try eating in smaller portions and do this in a frequent manner. Also, make a habit of always using smaller plate or bowl upon consuming your meal. Hey, less food on your plate or bowl means less consumption.

4. Cut down sugary food and drinks

Too many sugary food and drinks are a recipe for disaster. They gave you more calories than you ever need. If you want to lose weight, take control of what you eat here. While it sounds like mission impossible to avoid sugary food and drinks altogether, at least make a habit of cutting them down to a minimum if possible.

Instead, switch to more healthy options such as fibre-rich foods like beans, broccoli, whole-wheat pasta, oatmeal and avocados. Not only fibre helps regulate your digestion speed, but also lowering your cholesterol level and making you feeling full. Too lazy to cook? Here are some of the healthy food choices you can try over here.

5. Get adequate sleep

During Chinese New Year, we tend to stay awake till late for gambling or catching up with old friends over once-a-year reunion. It’s important that we need to get enough sleep (preferably 7-8 hours, depending on the individuals) every night. Because an adequate amount of sleep can help you increase your metabolism, burn more calories and make your brain function properly than those who are sleep deprived. But in case you are having trouble catching some z’s, perhaps this aromatherapy sleeping mask might come in handy.

6. Brush your teeth after meals

Generally, we brush our teeth early in the morning after waking up from the bed and again during the night before we go to sleep. But what if we tell you can include brushing your teeth as part of your weight-loss plan? This is how it works: every time you finish a meal (say, after lunch), make a habit of brushing your teeth with a toothpaste. Since toothpaste contains sodium lauryl sulphate, this type of compound helps subdue your tongue’s sweet receptors. It also means your bitter receptors become more sensitive and make you less likely to crave on sweet snacks. Alternatively, you can also gargle with this easy-to-carry minty mouthwash after every meal to prevent you from overeating.

So, there you have it. Hopefully, with these six handy tips above, you are able to lose some weight and be healthy for the rest of the year.