5 Ways To Enjoy The Holidays Without Breaking Your Fitness Goals
There’s no way around it. The holidays are full of delicious and amazing foods of many flavors. Desserts are bountiful and it’s easy to take a cheat day or three! It’s also easy to fall off the track in regards to your fitness goals. Holiday laziness topped with pies and all the other incredible treats can lead to restarting your fitness plan from the beginning.
Of course, the holidays are so much more than food but there is usually a lot of deliciousness going on. So, with that being said let’s get down to business.
A Well-Balanced Plate: Being mindful about what you eat and how much of it you eat can help you stay on track. So many foods - so many flavors. Here’s the trick, when you make your plate make fruits and veggies be 50% of your plate, add a healthy serving of protein, and a medium portion of starches. Eat your food slowly and mindfully because our taste buds will talk us right into another helping of baked mac and cheese. Give yourself time to digest in order to avoid overeating.
Make A Game Plan: Before the holiday festivities begin with family, friends, and fantastic food, take some time to write out a holiday plan regarding holiday fun and fitness goals. Remember your intentions and address them around food, alcohol, exercise, and rest. Try to stick to your plan and remind yourself why you made one and why it’s important to you.
R&R: Rest and relaxation might seem counterproductive but it is absolutely essential. Daily life can leave us feeling worn down so take advantage of some R&R while you can; just don’t get crazy lazy or you might regret it later. Enjoy laying around the house indulging in a good book or browsing a magazine. Enjoy a glass of wine while enjoying a new movie or your favorite show. Take some time to just chill and enjoy life.
Get Active With Holiday Festivities: Christmas lights are up and decorations are everywhere, why not take a walk around town with family and/or friends to go check them out. Go ice skating or set up some active games indoors or outdoors if the weather agrees. If you have a Nintendo Wii pull that baby out and get everyone involved in some active gaming.
Don’t Show Up Hungry: It is a common practice to avoid eating until it’s time for the big holiday meal. DO NOT do this. Showing up hungry or waiting until all of the days worth of cooking is done. This is a sure-fire way to overindulge and overeat. Make sure to eat something light earlier in the day to avoid being so hungry. This way you won’t be too hungry but you’ll still have an appetite when it’s time for the big meal. If there are snack trays and platters nibble on some but not too much. Again, be mindful in order to avoid breaking your fitness goals.
One bonus tip we wanted to share was use a waist trainer or a weight slimming vest. If you don’t have one, get one before it’s time for pie. You can wear it directly under your outfit and it will be unnoticed. It will help train your waist, help remind you of your better body goals, and keep you sweating just enough to keep extra weight from slipping in. You should also make sure to be ready for a body cleanse with our full body detox! Helps flush out all of the junk our body doesn’t need which is helpful after holiday stress, fun, and food.
It can be disappointing when goals are broken and not achieved. It doesn’t mean that it’s the end and you can’t get back into it all over again but it can be frustrating and it can possibly lead to giving up. Keep your eyes on the prize but make sure you still enjoy the holidays. Friends, family, food, and fun are all an incredible part of the holiday season. You simply have to keep your focus and have a little self-control because it can be easy to overindulge on all of the deliciousness waiting to be had.
