Weight Management
Holiday Weight Gain: What the Research Shows and How to Plan Ahead
The average adult gains about 0.8 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year's, and studies show that gain usually stays on. Here is what the research found and why a medically supervised weight loss program plans for the season in advance.
Reviewed by the clinical team at Zest Regen Health · October 27, 2026 · 7 min read
Content managed by Phil Kim, Lucky Consulting Group
The average adult gains about 0.8 pounds (0.37 kg) between Thanksgiving and New Year's, far less than the often-quoted five pounds, and the research shows that gain usually stays on instead of coming off in the new year. People with overweight or obesity tend to gain more, and even people who are actively trying to lose weight often see their progress stall or reverse during the holiday weeks. At Zest Regen Health in Columbia, Maryland, the medical weight loss program treats this season as part of the plan rather than a break from it, so patients can get through the holidays without giving back the progress they already made.
How much weight do people actually gain during the holidays?
The most-cited study followed 195 adults from mid-November to mid-January and measured an average gain of 0.37 kg, about 0.8 pounds (Yanovski et al., New England Journal of Medicine, 2000). The five-pounds figure that circulates every November did not come from that study's average; it was closer to the gain seen among participants who were already overweight or obese, a group that was significantly more likely to gain five pounds or more over the season. A separate study of college students measured roughly a 0.5 kg gain over the Thanksgiving break alone, with students above a healthy BMI gaining substantially more than those in the normal range (Hull et al., 2006).
Does holiday weight come off afterward?
Generally no. In the 2000 study, participants showed no significant weight change between January and March, and when they were reweighed the following fall, the holiday pounds were still there. The holiday season accounted for most of the year's net weight gain. A 2017 narrative review of the holiday weight literature reached the same conclusion: gains of roughly 0.3 to 0.9 kg across the season were typically retained rather than lost.
Why the holiday weeks are a high-risk stretch for weight loss
- More eating occasions: parties, travel, leftovers, and an extended run of higher-calorie food that lasts six weeks, not one weekend.
- Disrupted routines: changes in sleep, exercise, meal timing, and medication schedules all work against the habits that create progress.
- Alcohol: drinks add calories and tend to loosen the food decisions made around them.
- A restart-in-January mindset that turns a few hard weeks into several months of drift.
What a medically supervised program does differently during the holidays
The difference is that the program keeps running. Patients in the Zest Regen Health medical weight loss program carry eating and activity guidance through the holidays, continue scheduled follow-ups, and, for patients on GLP-1 programs, follow a clear plan for big meals, alcohol, and travel. If side effects, dosing questions, or scheduling conflicts come up, the clinical team is a phone call away instead of a January appointment. The standard is not a perfect holiday; the standard is keeping progress intact.
Practical steps to protect progress from Thanksgiving to New Year's
- Keep the anchors of your routine: regular meals, water, sleep, and a daily walk matter more than any single food choice.
- Choose the one or two events that matter most to you, and treat the rest of the season as ordinary days.
- Serve yourself a smaller plate, put food away after the meal, and pause before going back for seconds.
- Keep your scheduled check-ins. A November or December follow-up is one of the highest-value appointments of the year.
- If you are on a GLP-1 program, follow the dosing and guidance plan through the season. Stretching or stopping doses on your own can cause nausea, rebound hunger, and lost progress.
What a gained pound over the holidays does, and does not, mean
A heavier week is a data point, not a verdict. What the research shows is that the real risk is compounding: small gains that are never reversed accumulate year after year. Addressing a holiday gain in January is far easier than starting over after months of drift.
See how medical weight loss works at the Columbia clinic (/services/medical-weight-loss/).
Meet the physicians who review weight management care at Zest Regen Health (/dr-francisco-ward/).
Find the clinic at 8860 Columbia 100 Parkway, Suite 216, Columbia, MD (/columbia-md/).
Sources & further reading
Next step
If you are losing weight and worried about the next six weeks, or if you have never had medical support for weight loss and want to understand options such as GLP-1 programs, a free 15-minute consultation at the Columbia clinic is the next step. The team will explain what a physician-guided program includes and how it handles exactly this time of year.
Talk with our care team about this topic
A member of our clinical team can answer your questions at the Columbia, Maryland clinic. If Medical Weight Loss may be appropriate for you, the first step is a consultation.
Care at Zest Regen Health is physician-guided. Meet our physicians, who evaluate patients at the Columbia, Maryland clinic.