I feel like I need to find some wood to knock on before typing this post. So, now that I’ve knocked on our beloved hutch, I want to share with you some of my tips for finding moderation amongst the crazy weekends.

The past few weekends have consisted of a bit more late nights out, cocktails, and fun than normal.

Last night was no exception to the trend, including a delicious two hour dinner, fancy cocktails,and a bed time far past 2am.

Even though the parties have been going non stop since the holidays, I’ve actually lost weight, improved my running, and feel healthier overall. Don’t get me wrong, this post isn’t necessarily advocating 4am dance parties, cocktails, and nights out on the town. What I am trying to do, is share some of what I’ve learned, so that you too can live up the best time of your life and not have to buy a new wardrobe due to weight gain.

1. Make your weekdays even better: Do your best to fit in your workouts Monday through Friday. If you find it’s difficult to find motivation, invite your friends to join you for an evening yoga session,a run, or your other favorite workout. Since the holidays, I’ve also made it my goal to enjoy one day with double workouts, whether that means running in the morning and doing yoga at night or running with Lululemon run club in the evening after a personal training session. This extra bit of movement, versus normal, has really helped my mood and gives me something to look forward to during the week. To prevent over training, I ensure that my evening session is a recovery.

2. Write it down: Monday through Friday afternoon, I track everything that eat. This helps me keep my food intake in check. Since I joined Weight Watchers almost six years ago, I’ve always weighed in on Fridays. This allows me to enjoy the weekends with friends and Bo without stressing. Writing my food down has helped me turn a blind eye to office treats as well. Having a food journal can also help me analyze meals and stay in touch with which ones satiate me more so I can improve my meal choices, ensuring that the calories fuel me in the best way possible.

3. Protein: After years of reading about protein’s benefits, I finally listened to my personal trainer and started bulking up my meals with protein. For me, it needs to be easy and tasty or I won’t keep up with it. Therefore, things like protein shakes don’t work as the half mixed, chalky taste doesn’t do it for me at the office. A few of my additions/swaps are below:

• My oatmeal breakfasts now include either 1/2 scoop protein powder, chia seeds, or flax seeds.
• My salad includes two healthy proteins versus one.
• My afternoon snack is now Chobani yogurt, fruit, and 1/4 cup of cereal or apple and either almonds or cheese stick.

4. Get back on track faster: Historically, Friday night through Sunday night were my “free days” during which I enjoyed, in moderation, what I wanted. Now, even if Saturday night’s fun doesn’t end until 4am Sunday morning, I do my best to get back on track Sunday versus continuing the indulgence on the sofa. For example, this morning we all craved an indulgent brunch which came in the form of healthy challah French toast (using egg whites, skim milk, etc) instead of a bottomless brunch.

I also try to squeeze in some type of workout the day after a late night just to get my body moving. Today I squeezed in a quick hour workout, including a 5k run and elliptical session which was the perfect mix of sweating and catching up over magazines. Knowing that I had the rest of the day to enjoy the couch, Grey’s Anatomy, and my friends made me push myself even harder at the gym so I could finish quicker.

Tell me: How do you find moderation?