Now that Thanksgiving is only weeks away, and decorations are already firmly in place in department stores, it's impossible to ignore that the holidays are coming -- and the few extra pounds that always seem to accompany the holiday season whether you like it or not. Which is why, then, that this week has been declared the official start to to the pre-holiday diet -- you know, that mad rush to lose a a little extra weight before party dresses and egg nog start making a regular appearance in our life.

It's not just you and I, either. Studies show that 58 percent of women will make an attempt to slim down before the holiday season -- mostly because they want to look their best for the their office party but also, I suspect, because they don't want to feel quite so guilty when they polish off another rum ball at the neighbor's open house.


And how do we intend to do this? The majority of women -- 71 percent, in fact -- take the sensible approach to dieting by eating three healthy meals a day. But there's still a worrying 10 percent who will skip meals to lose weight. But they needn't bother -- apparently 17 percent of holiday slimmers will gain it all back by New Year's Eve, just in time for another round of dieting called the January Detox.

Losing a few pounds is never a bad idea, but yo-yo dieting in never healthy. Instead of going to extremes to lose a few before the holidays, focus on eating healthier before, during and after the holidays.

Another important tip for the season? Don't let the stress of the holidays cause you to overindulge in comfort food.