London - Next time you reach for another chocolate, you might want to bear this in mind.
Many people take up to four months to lose the weight they put on over the festive season, a new study has revealed.
The average person will put on 4lbs (1.8kg) between Christmas Eve and New Year’s Day after consuming twice their recommended calorie intake.
And the bad news is that it can take until Easter to repair the damage.
More than a third of those surveyed (34 percent) said it would it would take four months to get back into the same shape they were in before Christmas.
The results were revealed in a survey of 1 000 people for the diet company Forza Supplements which looked at excessive consumption over the Christmas and New Year holiday.
The vast majority of people (94 percent) take a break from their normal eating habits as they relax with friends and family.
For 18 percent of respondents this holiday lasts only from Christmas Eve to December 26 - with healthy eating resuming on December 27.
However, 44 percent let themselves go completely through Christmas and New Year and 32 percent party for more than a month - starting at the beginning of December. Just three percent said they didn’t over-indulge.
Half of those surveyed (52 percent) admitted to eating twice their recommended calorie intake over the holiday - largely because of the increased alcohol intake.
Christmas Day was by far the most fattening day of the festivities.
Just under a third of those polled said they completely let themselves go on December 25 and had a “complete blow-out” - with consumption of a staggering 8 530 calories.
That is more than triple a man’s daily 2 500 calorie intake and four times a woman’s 2 000 daily limit.
December 26 was the second most fattening and New Year’s Eve was third.The survey found that just three percent don’t over-indulge over the entire holiday.
For nearly everyone else, it is bad news with 24 percent putting on between 1-3lbs (900g to 1.36kg), 39 percent between 3-5lbs (1.36kg and 2.26kg)and 21 percent between 5-7lbs (2.26kg and 3.1kg). Five per cent will put on more than half a stone (about 3kg) .
While it is easy to pile on the pounds, shifting it afterwards is a lot more difficult. New Year diets clearly have a positive effect for some because 31 percent have lost the extra weight by the end of January.
A further 24 percent take two to three months to get back to normal. But 34 percent said it would take at least four months to get rid of the flab. Just 11 percent said they would lose no weight at all or get heavier.
Forza Supplements Managing Director Lee Smith said: “We all want to let our hair down at Christmas and enjoy ourselves.
“But it can take months to repair the damage if you really let yourself go.
“Easter Sunday is on April 20 next year and a lot of people will still be feeling the effects of Christmas even then.
“The key to limiting your weight gain is to do simple things like eat slowly and avoid over-filling and make sure you take some exercise.'“- Daily Mail