How many travel days do you see during the holidays? Is yoru ability to get to the gym cut short because of work overtime, travel, parties or shortened hours at your gym?
Working out and staying active over the Holidays is super important. The “I’ll wait until next year” mentality is probably what got you to say that in the first place. You waited all year to start your resolutions, or you’re in a hurry to get to your goal in the last few months of the year because you waited too long. You might be thinking, “so why not put it off until next year?” My answer to that: Because if you put it off any longer, you’ll never start it at that rate!
Here are some reasons why working out will help you through the holidays.
I’ll share some of my workouts that can be done without equipment so you now really have no excuses to do them. Read until the end.
Exercise controls weight
Burning extra calories helps combat the extra eating and drinking during the holidays so you’re not gaining a ton of weight.
Exercise improves mood
Activity promotes certain activity in the brain that stimulates chemicals that make you feel happier and more relaxed.
Exercise gives you energy
If you’re feeling winded by just walking from the back of the parking lot to the front of the grocery store, then you may feel lower energy. Working out helps endurance so you have more energy to do the extra walking and climbing steps.
Exercise helps you sleep better
When you exercise regularly, your body falls asleep faster and stays asleep longer.
Exercise reduces stress
When you’re more active you sleep better and your mood is improved. All together that should help you feel less stressed and exhausted.
What to do when you don’t have access to a gym
Here are some exercise ideas that should take less than 30 minutes. Do as many rounds as you like or increase the reps and do 50 reps of each. Any exercise is better than no exercise.
Workout Plan #1 Upper Body
Bicep curls x 10 with gallon jugs of water
Tricep dips x 10 on a bench or any elevated surface
Push ups x 10
Reverse Fly x 10 with homemade weights use bottles of waters or anything weight weight easy to hold.
Workout Plan #2 Lower Body
Stair climb: Explains itself. Find a flight of stairs and climb up and down 10 times or more.
Squats or Squat Jumps x 10
Lunges or Lunge Jumps x 10
Wall Sit until failure
Single Leg Dead Lift x 10 each side
Calf Raise x 10 (hold onto anything with weight instead of DBs)
Lateral Lunges x 10 each side
Workout Plan # 3 Full Body
Plank Walk out to Push up x 10
T-Push Ups x 10
Workout Plan #4 Core
Plank Walk Out to Plank Jack x 10
Mountain Climbers x 20
Bird Dog x 10 each side
Supermans x 20
Crunches or Double Crunches x 20
Now, get busy planning, and make room for 30 minutes of exercise per day minimum. You’ll feel so much better if you do! And if you don’t do it, I guess you’ll never know.
Your Life & Nutrition Coach for life!
Liz <3