by Molly Magunga, MS ATC, NFPT CPT, CES
Hello everyone! This week’s “Fitness Tip of the Week” is about keeping on track during the holidays. It’s a busy time of year for most. Kids are home from school, lots of travel trips planned (and maybe cancelled), and work deadlines before the end of the year are mandated. Routines are all thrown off, which means staying in a fitness groove can be very difficult. You may not be able to physically get into a gym, but there are a lot of little things you can do to have yourself a healthy holiday season.
Healthy Holiday Tips:
The best way to have a healthy holiday season is by starting with a plan. It doesn’t have to be perfect and it’s okay to adapt the plan as you go, but starting with something at least gives you direction during the next couple of weeks. Your plan should incorporate three things: workouts, nutrition, and self-care.
Workouts: Be realistic about what days you can and can’t workout. Plan active activities with family when possible to help supplement. It may be cold, but skiing, snowshoeing, or sledding are all fun things to do that also get you moving. Gosh, even snow-ga is a thing. Seriously, there is yoga outside in the snow that people can do. When you do have time to workout, make them fun so you don’t dread doing it.
Nutrition: The holiday season is a time to enjoy. The big key thing to remember is to listen to your body and don’t overindulge. Don’t deprive yourself, just remember moderation. You can also put a different spin on some of your favorite dishes by making them a little healthier. Tip: skip the sugar on vegetables. Sweet potatoes with some cinnamon on them instead of marshmallows will still be yummy, but much healthier. You also can pack your own snacks for traveling. You can control what you eat and avoid the fast food pit stop. Personally, I road trip with premade, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Tip: If you put peanut butter on both slices of bread, the jelly is less likely to make your bread soggy.
Self-Care: Enjoy your time off. Use it to catch up on sleep, so you feel refreshed coming into the new year. Keep your hydration up. The air is cold and it’s very easy to become dehydrated. Take this time as well to maybe ask for/gift yourself some new workout gear or equipment you have really wanted, but keep putting off.
In a pinch?
I feel like it wouldn’t be a special edition fitness tip, if I didn’t provide you with a fun workout you can do anywhere. Repeat these exercises as many times as you can in 30 minutes
| H- High Knees- 30 sec O- Overhead Press- 12 reps L- Lunges- 12 reps each I- Inchworms- 12 reps D- Diamond Jumps- 30 secs A- Abs (your choice)- 12 reps Y- Y Raises- 12 reps S- Skater Jumps- 30 sec |
If you have any questions on this topic, please feel free to contact me at mmagunga@healthworksfitness.com or comment below!
Molly’s Fitness Tip of the Week 