Christmas means different things to a lot of different people. To some, it is a time to spend with family and friends, for others a time for shopping, spending too much money, sharing and gift giving.

It is indeed the most wonderful time of the year but unfortunately for many, it is a time of eating too much and putting on weight.

Christmas excesses today mean that the average person consumes a whopping 5000 to 6000 calories just on Christmas Day. This is equivalent to eating 71 eggs, or 42 bananas, or 68 slices of toast. The guideline daily calorie count is about 2,500 for men and 2,000 for women, so many of us eat a lot more than we should.

Christmas dinner is the main meal that we indulge in, but because over the day we will most likely eat quite a lot of seafood, eggs, cake, chocolates, cheese, biscuits and drink wine and liqueurs, the calories will add up.

Even if you don't usually overeat during the holidays, you will most likely consume 2000 or more calories just for Christmas Dinner. Eating that much is not hard. Most likely you won't even notice how much you have eaten as you enjoy talking to your family and friends.

If you do over-indulge at Christmas time, there is no need to despair. You can easily take control of your expanding waistline. On Boxing Day cut down on food. Have some fruit, salads and lean meat and start doing a few simple exercises.

See what our friends from My Fitness Boutique would like us to know what over-eating does to your body. Explore some easy ways you can get rid of the unwanted calories acquired during Christmas.

Would you like to try some other ways to to burn off 2000 calories?

If you are an average man, you can cycle or swim for about 3 hours and if you are a woman, try 10 hours of yoga or 8 hours of dancing.