With the holidays in full swing, working out may be taking a backseat to everything else. It’s hard to fit in social gatherings, shopping, exercising and everything else that needs be done within the same amount of time we used to have when we didn’t have nearly as much to do! While letting our workouts slide seems like the best option to make some time, it really isn’t the answer. Unfortunately, it only takes about two weeks to start seeing a decline in our fitness and it will take us twice as long to gain back our fitness as it will to lose it!
Not wanting to lose all of the fitness gains we’ve made, we want to make sure to find ways to fit exercise into our busy routines and stay healthy. While it’s not always easy, there are some things we can do to make sure we stay fit through the holidays and still have time to get everything done.
Here are 5 ways to stay healthy through the holidays:
- Plan & Schedule – Make lists to stay organized and to help alleviate stress. We need to schedule our workouts just as we would schedule a family or friend get-together. Also, we need to have a plan for what we’re going to do during each workout so our workouts are as efficient as possible.
- Have an At-Home Option – Whether you do your own combination of bodyweight exercises, have a TRX or use a workout DVD or YouTube video, have some workouts you can do at home. This will cut out travel time to the gym and still allow you to fit in your workout.
- Keep Moving – It’s tempting to sit down and watch marathons of our favorite holiday movies or sporting events, but it’s important to keep moving. We can enjoy our shows, but if we’ve been sitting for too long we need to make sure to get up and move. We could even make a new holiday tradition and go for a family walk before a meal.
- Remember it’s a Holiday not “Holimonth” – While it may not be so bad to indulge for a day or two, indulging for the whole holiday season can lead to derailing our healthy routines. There may be sweets and other goodies everywhere, but we need to make sure to find our balance and try to only indulge on the actual holiday.
- Find a Buddy or an Event – Sometimes having a reason other than your health to exercise can provide an incentive even during the craziest times of year. We need to find a workout buddy or sign up for an event. A workout buddy can keep us accountable because we feel bad cancelling and signing up for a run or other type of physical event provides extra motivation to keep up our training.