How was your Easter weekend? Mine was filled with good company and delicious Easter treats.

Easter basically means plenty of feasting and fun with family and friends. Of course there is nothing wrong with enjoying ourselves during the holiday but it can mean heading back to work after several days, feeling a little fluffy.

So if you indulged a bit more than you think you probably should have this weekend, here are some easy ways to burn off your Easter calories so you can get back to where you started.

Begin with exercise

If you filled yourself with chocolate mini-eggs, it’s time to give them a break. Get in a solid workout session to give your metabolism a boost and help you burn off the extra calories consumed. A brisk walk to the beach, laps around the stadium or an outdoor bike ride are a few free options. You could also head to an outdoor circuit training class, a spinning class or a strength-training class in a gym.

Sub a meal

I want to reiterate, it’s time to pack the chocolate away. Often we eat treats or chocolate which may contain 500 to 1,000 calories (that’s roughly how many there are in a bunny!) and then continue eating meals as usual, for the remainder of the day. If chocolate is your thing, go for it, but this may mean that you will need to cut out some of the other meals in the day. I personally don’t think chocolate is worth skipping a meal. So now that Easter is over, it’s time to try and focus on your proteins and vegetables.

Increase time between meals

I’m sure many of us have overeaten this holiday, but the beauty of fasting is that it is a great way to give your body a break to burn through everything that you have consumed before you have another meal. This week you could start with ensuring that you have at least ten to12 hours between dinner and breakfast. This is an extremely effective strategy to counterbalance overeating and avoiding the weight gain that could result.

Increase your steps

One of the best ways to increase your daily step count is to start tracking how much you’re walking. You don’t need a fancy watch. You could really just start with a pedometer or your phone, and carry them with you the entire day to get an accurate count. Fitness trackers and pedometers are great ways to stay motivated and encourage healthier habits because they increase accountability and make us more aware of our daily activity. It is easy to lose sight of how little we’re walking, so getting confirmation that you’ve only walked 300 steps during the day could be the nudge you need to start making some lasting changes.

Factor in the soup or salad

The simple act of replacing one meal each day with a low-calorie soup or high-protein salad is one of the easiest dietary strategies to help reduce overall calorie intake and still boost your nutrition. Not only do vegetable soups and large salads fill you with tons of nutrient-rich foods, but the fibre helps to keep the digestive system working at its prime when we are feeling overly full, tired and bloated. Try and have at least one salad or soup meal this week to buffer the calories of your Easter treats.

Drink water

Drinking water is probably the last thing you want to do when you feel like your belly is about to explode. However, hydrating is so important for minimising bloat. Water keeps everything moving along smoothly in your digestive system, which is needed for regular bowel movements. Bloating is also the result of eating high-sodium foods. Sodium causes water retention. The goal with drinking water after your meal is to offset the sodium and encourage your body to let the fluids go.

Say bye to the Easter treats and B-Active For Life.

Betty Doyling is a certified fitness trainer and figure competitor with more than a decade of experience. Look for B. ActiveForLife on Facebook