Day 9: How To Stay Fit During The Holiday

Hi and welcome back to day 9, of my 12 Days Of Christmas series. Todays topic is all about staying it during the holiday season. 1. Make Staying Fit A Priority. Registered dietitian and certified specialist in sports dietetics Lindsey Pine suggests signing up for seasonal activities. She recommends signing up for fun runs, half marathons or obstacle course races. This is a great way to stay fit and do it with friends, family members and random strangers (just remember to socially distance yourself and wear a mask). 2. Take a Brisk Walk (or Jog). You can take a walk or jog before you eat that big meal and/or after that big meal. It doesn’t have to be a long walk or jog, you can do a brisk 10 min run/walk or you can do an hour run/walk. Because of COVID, I am not going to the gym right now, I am riding my spinning bike and sometimes I am lazy but I want to get my cardio in, so I do the 20 minute intense ride. 3. Workout Inside. If the weather isn’t perfect (i.e. to cold, to hot (depending on where you live) you can do your pushups, sit-ups, body weight squats, ab crunches, get some dumbbells (5lb, 8lb, 10lb, 15lb and 20lbs) Use these exercises to create a circuit. Example: I can ride my bike for 5mins, do 20 push-ups, 20 sit-ups, 20 ab crunches, 20 body weight squats, 10 bicep curls, 10 tricep extensions, rest and then repeat. 4. Drink Plenty Of Water. I know it’s the holiday season and many of you will be getting your drink on. But please make sure you are drinking responsibly and get in plenty of water. You have to drink your water, even though it’s the holiday season. Yes, you can substitute one or two of those cups of water w/your favorite tea (Earl Gray, Peppermint, lemon ginger, etc.) 5. Reward Yourself. Create a reward for sticking to your workout plan. You can treat yourself to a new purse, a piece of jewelry, getting your hair done, get your nails done, purchase a new pair of shoes and the list can go on and on. Now for every day you miss working out, you can pay a fine (you decide the dollar amount) and put it in a jar and save it for later. I would like to know how you all are choosing to stay healthy during the holiday season! Never use the holidays as an excuse for falling off the healthy eating and exercising wagon.