Here's the math: To lose 5 pounds, you need to shave 17,500 calories (or 3,500 per pound). Break that down over November and December and it works out to only 300 calories a day. You're losing at a very healthy, controlled rate less than a pound a week which makes you more likely to stick to your weight-loss efforts and keep the weight off post-Jan. 1. Here's how to do it.

1. Cut Calories Modestly
Resist the temptation to make major cuts in your diet. There are just too many fabulous things around to eat this time of year. Instead, aim to reduce your intake by just 100 calories every day, while bumping up the frequency and intensity of your workouts. To offset the calorie increases at the holidays, focus on exercise that way you won’t feel deprived.

Cutting calories is easy if you know where to look. If you give up one slice of bread, you're saving 100 calories. And if you choose lean fish or grilled, skinless chicken breast over red meat, you can also very easily save 100-200 calories.

The trick to translating this to weight loss is two fold: Don't make up the calorie loss with holiday treats (you'll need to budget for those) and stay consistent in burning the other 200 calories with exercise to hit a daily 300-calorie deficit. On days you exercise less or not at all, make up the difference by cutting more calories from your food intake. When you do a longer, more vigorous workout, you may want to have a small treat or bank those calories expended.