It’s not too late to keep up your fitness this holiday season. Traditionally, all those good habits head right out the window and into the cold at this time of year. The vast majority of us do it. All the extra foods, cocktails and festivities mean we eat more low-nutrition food and exercise less.
Being able to keep up your fitness routine throughout the holidays can make a significant difference to your overall wellness by the end of the year. The reason is that even if you’re not eating as well as you should, you are still keeping up your fat burning. Moreover, this exercise in a routine way is excellent for your mental health.
Why Keep Up Your Fitness for Mental Health
When you keep up your fitness throughout the holiday season, you automatically take an important step to control your stress. Even if you’re not feeling overwhelmed by stress at this time of year, it’s still there. For that reason, doing what you can to minimize it can play an important role in controlling your eating and reducing the impact of overeating. After all, when we’re stressed, we’re far more likely to eat mindlessly, to drink and to give in when things are offered to us at parties and dinners.
If you keep up your fitness, you also stick to a familiar routine, which has a comforting component to it. This, in combination with the physiological effect of exercising, can help you to simply feel calmer, which is always pleasant.
Tips to Keep Up Your Fitness
The following are a few handy tips to be able to keep up your fitness routine no matter how busy or stressed you may be.
- Get up earlier – Make a priority of your workout. Even if you just set your alarm ten or twenty minutes earlier, you’ll buy yourself enough time to get it done right away. That way, you’ll start the day with your workout already complete, you’ll feel more energized, and you’ll be better prepared to cope with what heads your way.
- Use your lunch break – If you usually eat your lunch at your desk and then watch YouTube videos or read the news until it’s time to get back to work, skip the zoning-out time and use it to get active. After you’re done your meal, head outside for a brisk walk. A few minutes of fresh air and movement will recharge you to face the rest of the day.
- Contribute to parties – Whenever someone asks if you want to be a part of the planning or to contribute to a party. That way, you’ll be able to spend some extra time moving around by decorating, jogging through a store to buy some last minute items, or otherwise moving around to get things done. At the very least, you can offer to bring healthier options to eat or drink, to help you and other partygoers not to overdo it too much while trying to keep up your fitness this season!
