So you enjoyed the holiday/vacation/weekend a little too much? Good for you! We all do, even me. But it isn’t the setback you think it is. Unless you don’t do anything about it and continue your celebrations throughout the week. But that wouldn’t make you feel any better, would it? Here are my top tips for getting back on track after enjoying yourself a little more than your meal plan would have expected.

First, and most importantly, you need the right mindset. It’s important that you look at your holiday/vacation/weekend, ect. as a treat, not as a cheat. I used to be guilty of this. I would think to myself, “Well I already ruined my diet, so what’s a few more days of bad eating habits?” And then I would proceed to self-sabotage and feel even worse. Now I look at is as I had a treat, I deserved it, I didn’t gain ten pounds, and now it’s time to jump back on the wagon.

With the right mindset, it will be much easier to go back to your normal routine as soon as possible and as strict as possible. It’s much easier to undo a few days of poor eating habits, than an entire week of them. Think of it this way- if you stepped on the scale today and saw it went up 5 pounds you have two choices. You can either get frustrated with yourself and say, “Screw it,” and continue unhealthy eating habits and gain another 5 pounds by the end of the week. Or you can realize that you enjoyed yourself, but now that’s over, and take the rest of the week to get back into the grove and take those 5 pounds off. By the end of the week, that’s a difference of 10 pounds depending on which path you choose.

I have found that when I gain a larger than normal amount of weight in a short period of time (like a holiday weekend or on vacation), it usually comes off fairly quickly as long as I do something about it right away. Besides going back to your normal nutrition and workout routine, drinking extra water helps with this process. You should be drinking enough water on a daily basis to begin with, however, a little extra doesn’t hurt to help flush everything out of you. Plus, if you enjoyed a few cocktails this weekend, chances are you are probably dehydrated.

Lastly, set realistic goals. If you don’t lose it as quickly as you gained it, that’s okay. You need to accept the fact that you gained the weight (you can’t change that it happened), and know it may take a few days to undo it. Be patient. You lost it once, you will lose it again. And if all else fails, there’s always the 3-Day Refresh or the Ultimate Reset.