It happens to all of us: we go home for the holidays, come back after fun times with family and friends, and then ruin our good mood completely by stepping on the scale. We discover that we need to spend the next month or so eating salad and weight training to burn off all the calories we wolfed down. But which states are the worst for weight gain, and how can we stop it?
To maintain your weight throughout the holidays, sign up for an Exercise.com PRO plan today for access to certified personal trainers, workout plans, training logs, and more.
How We Found the States
You’d think we just found the fattest states in the Union and called it a day, but believe it or not, none of the five fattest states in America according to Healthy Americans even made the top five. In fact, only one of them, Tennessee, cracked the top 10. So, you might want to leave your assumptions at the door; those packing on the pounds are not who you think they are.
First, we started with a study from America’s Health Rankings, which surveyed average weight by state over the 20-year period from 1988 to 2008.
To break out weight gain by year, we turned to the New England Journal of Medicine, and its excellent analysis of holiday weight gain. That gave us a good baseline for an average weight gain, which we then cross-referenced with the 20-year weight study. That gave us not only the states that were packing on the most weight … but also an idea of how many pounds they put on, on average. The following are the bottom five states in holiday weight gain:
#5 – Kansas
Holiday Weight Gain (Men): .93 pounds
Holiday Weight Gain (Women): 1.12 pounds
Fattest State Ranking: 16
We guess we’re not surprised a state famous for farming carbs is fifth, but still, that’s a lot of weight to plow off, Kansas.
#4 – Oklahoma
Holiday Weight Gain (Men): 1.03 pounds
Holiday Weight Gain (Women): 1.04 pounds
Fattest State Ranking: 7
So close to beating out Kansas for one slot down the rung.
Get More Out of Your Health and Fitness Routine. Go PRO!
Sign Up
#3 – Arizona
Holiday Weight Gain (Men): 1.06 pounds
Holiday Weight Gain (Women): 1.05 pounds
Fattest State Ranking: 35
Well, given the dry air in Arizona, you know it’s not water weight. Still, you’d think one of the 20 leanest states in the nation would do better over the holidays.
#2 – New Jersey
Holiday Weight Gain (Men): .91 pounds
Holiday Weight Gain (Women): 1.31 pounds
Fattest State Ranking: 43
New Jersey is the only state where the ladies have such a large lead on the men in weight gain, although they can take consolation for being in the top 10 leanest. We’re guessing the gyms of New Jersey get very, very crowded come Black Friday.
#1 – Texas
Holiday Weight Gain (Men): 1.21
Holiday Weight Gain (Women): 1.13
Fattest State Ranking: 12
You’d think a state famous for its beef would eat protein and avoid the fatty cuts, but we’re guessing that whole “everything is bigger in Texas” mentality contributes to their “victory.”
Get More Out of Your Health and Fitness Routine. Go PRO!
Sign Up
The Complete Rankings
In case you were wondering, Massachusetts puts on the least weight, with only half a pound gained.
| State | Men | Women | Men Per Year | Women Per Year | Avg. Per Year | Adjusted for Control |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 24.2 | 22.6 | 1.21 | 1.13 | 1.17 | 1.35 |
| New Jersey | 18.2 | 26.2 | 0.91 | 1.31 | 1.11 | 1.28 |
| Arizona | 21.2 | 21 | 1.06 | 1.05 | 1.06 | 1.22 |
| Oklahoma | 20.7 | 20.8 | 1.04 | 1.04 | 1.04 | 1.20 |
| Kansas | 18.6 | 22.4 | 0.93 | 1.12 | 1.03 | 1.18 |
| Nevada | 18.7 | 21 | 0.94 | 1.05 | 0.99 | 1.14 |
| Missouri | 18.5 | 18.8 | 0.93 | 0.94 | 0.93 | 1.07 |
| Tennessee | 19.4 | 17.9 | 0.97 | 0.90 | 0.93 | 1.07 |
| Virginia | 20.2 | 16.7 | 1.01 | 0.84 | 0.92 | 1.06 |
| Alaska | 14.5 | 22.2 | 0.73 | 1.11 | 0.92 | 1.06 |
| Maryland | 18 | 18.6 | 0.90 | 0.93 | 0.92 | 1.05 |
| Alabama | 19.7 | 16 | 0.99 | 0.80 | 0.89 | 1.03 |
| Georgia | 18.6 | 17 | 0.93 | 0.85 | 0.89 | 1.03 |
| California | 13.5 | 21.7 | 0.68 | 1.09 | 0.88 | 1.01 |
| Montana | 16.6 | 18.1 | 0.83 | 0.91 | 0.87 | 1.00 |
| New York | 18.2 | 16.2 | 0.91 | 0.81 | 0.86 | 0.99 |
| New Mexico | 17.7 | 16.3 | 0.89 | 0.82 | 0.85 | 0.98 |
| Arkansas | 19.9 | 13.6 | 1.00 | 0.68 | 0.84 | 0.96 |
| Idaho | 17.8 | 15.5 | 0.89 | 0.78 | 0.83 | 0.96 |
| West Virginia | 17.7 | 15.4 | 0.89 | 0.77 | 0.83 | 0.95 |
| Nebraska | 18.5 | 14.5 | 0.93 | 0.73 | 0.83 | 0.95 |
| Mississippi | 16 | 17 | 0.80 | 0.85 | 0.83 | 0.95 |
| United States | 17.1 | 15.4 | 0.86 | 0.77 | 0.81 | 0.94 |
| South Carolina | 18.1 | 14.3 | 0.91 | 0.72 | 0.81 | 0.93 |
| Utah | 16.2 | 15.9 | 0.81 | 0.80 | 0.80 | 0.92 |
| Oregon | 18.2 | 13.5 | 0.91 | 0.68 | 0.79 | 0.91 |
| Hawaii | 16 | 15.1 | 0.80 | 0.76 | 0.78 | 0.90 |
| Illinois | 17.3 | 13.7 | 0.87 | 0.69 | 0.78 | 0.89 |
| Washington | 15.7 | 15.1 | 0.79 | 0.76 | 0.77 | 0.89 |
| Ohio | 17.2 | 13.5 | 0.86 | 0.68 | 0.77 | 0.88 |
| Rhode Island | 12.4 | 17.8 | 0.62 | 0.89 | 0.76 | 0.87 |
| Kentucky | 17.8 | 12.2 | 0.89 | 0.61 | 0.75 | 0.86 |
| Michigan | 16.7 | 12.8 | 0.84 | 0.64 | 0.74 | 0.85 |
| Wyoming | 13.7 | 15.8 | 0.69 | 0.79 | 0.74 | 0.85 |
| South Dakota | 17.9 | 11.2 | 0.90 | 0.56 | 0.73 | 0.84 |
| Florida | 18.2 | 10.6 | 0.91 | 0.53 | 0.72 | 0.83 |
| North Carolina | 18.1 | 10.6 | 0.91 | 0.53 | 0.72 | 0.83 |
| New Hampshire | 17.7 | 10.4 | 0.89 | 0.52 | 0.70 | 0.81 |
| Connecticut | 14.6 | 12.2 | 0.73 | 0.61 | 0.67 | 0.77 |
| Colorado | 15.5 | 11.1 | 0.78 | 0.56 | 0.67 | 0.77 |
| Minnesota | 12.2 | 14.2 | 0.61 | 0.71 | 0.66 | 0.76 |
| Iowa | 10.9 | 14.3 | 0.55 | 0.72 | 0.63 | 0.73 |
| Vermont | 13.1 | 11.7 | 0.66 | 0.59 | 0.62 | 0.71 |
| Louisiana | 17.9 | 6.8 | 0.90 | 0.34 | 0.62 | 0.71 |
| Delaware | 15.9 | 8.5 | 0.80 | 0.43 | 0.61 | 0.70 |
| Maine | 13.3 | 11.1 | 0.67 | 0.56 | 0.61 | 0.70 |
| North Dakota | 16.1 | 7.8 | 0.81 | 0.39 | 0.60 | 0.69 |
| Pennsylvania | 15.7 | 7.1 | 0.79 | 0.36 | 0.57 | 0.66 |
| Wisconsin | 15.9 | 6.3 | 0.80 | 0.32 | 0.56 | 0.64 |
| Indiana | 11.9 | 8.4 | 0.60 | 0.42 | 0.51 | 0.58 |
| Massachusetts | 11.7 | 7.9 | 0.59 | 0.40 | 0.49 | 0.56 |
How Does Holiday Weight Gain Happen?
There are two key factors in holiday weight gain: you eat more calories, and you exercise less.
The former is pretty obvious: between the end of November and the end of December, we celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, etc., with a lot of traditional foods stuffed with saturated fats, carbs, sugars and usually only one traditional source of protein (and no, the sausage in the stuffing does not count), that also can have plenty of hidden weight dangers.
And that’s not even counting travel food: sure, you bring a healthy snack or two, but one flight delay can mean you’re stuck eating fast food. Then, there are all of those empty calories from alcohol lurking: the day before Thanksgiving is traditionally known as the biggest drinking day of the year. Needless to say, New Year’s Eve is not far behind.
Physical activity also dwindles during the holidays. Part of the problem is that we hit the road, which essentially means we’re sitting around doing nothing for a good chunk of time, with all of that aforementioned bad food. Secondly, when we get where we’re going, there may not be a gym to hit, and we doubt it’s open on the holiday itself. And finally, you probably don’t want to make the entire family join you for a five-mile run, so even the most intense exercise fanatic eases off for at least a day or two.
Adding to all of this are your own instincts, which can betray you. Some scientists believe that we like to pack on a few pounds over the winter because fat helps contain body heat, increasing our odds of survival. Our bodies still think we live in caves and hunt squirrels for lunch, so having some fat on you is a good way to avoid starving to death. Remember: our brains still think fat is a limited resource, not abundant in pretty much everything we eat now.
Still, in the end, it’s a pretty simple equation: lots of calories in plus fewer calories out equals a bit more rubber on the spare tire.
Avoiding Holiday Weight Gain
So, how do you keep your state out of the top five…or just keep that pound or so of holiday weight far, far away?
Plan your workouts with Exercise.com. Weight training is the best way to burn fat and to burn fat faster, and we’ve got the tools for you to design a diet and workout plan to keep the weight off, even if the gym is closed. So, give yourself a gift this holiday, and plan to lose weight by signing up for an Exercise.com PRO plan.