Christmas cookies line the tables at work. Holiday sales tempt you into buying not only presents, but that sweater you need for yourself (or at least you tell yourself you need it). Extra emails, phone calls and parties lure you away from work and your other obligations.

Why are the holidays such a distraction from all priorities?
Diets, budgets, work, free time...they all go out the door starting the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. While December is an all-consuming month filled with entertainment, it still serves as an interruption to completing any type of pre-planned goals.

So how do you keep on track during this overwhelming season? To be blunt, you don’t! You will inevitably give in to those delicious sugar cookies, skip out of work for the extra happy hour, and spend some extra unplanned cash. However, you can still contain the December mess by following these tips (or at least one of them).

1. Get your shopping done early. Make a list of what presents you have to buy and scope out the sales to find the best deals on those gifts.

2. Beef up your exercise routine. Or for the rest of us that don’t have one, start exercising.

3. Make a list of your realistic work priorities through the holidays and stick to them. That way, coming back after the new year you may have to lose a few pounds and save some money, but you won’t be behind at work.

So deck the halls, sing the carols, enjoy some bubbly, and most importantly, try to keep at least one of your goals on pace!

This is a post by Lauren Kleinman.