Surviving the Holidays: 5 Tips to Stay Fit & Fab

December brings excitement, sun, beach, lake swims, catching up with family and whole lot of good times!

This all sounds great, but for some people it’s common to feel overwhelmed during the holidays.

You’ve set goals, made a daily choice to create some good habits, you have a positive mindset which now sees you nailing your nutrition and training and you want to maintain this momentum into the New Year.

So what can you do to enjoy the holidays while eliminating the damage?

 

Here are 5 Simple Things you can do to keep on track and avoid pitfalls over the silly season.

 

#1: AVOID THE “FUCK IT’S THE HOLIDAYS” MINDSET

What is the “fuck it mindset”?  It’s giving up as soon as the nativity calendar gets pulled out. And then abandoning all self-restraint.

You may not be able to control all situations that might arise but you can control your attitude. 

Don’t get stuck between “Fuck it and What If”.

#2: MAINTAIN YOUR TRAINING

Forgoing your training during the holidays is never a good idea. You can lose almost all of your conditioning with 6 weeks of inactivity, and strength and power will also be significantly reduced.

Find a gym when out of town and reschedule workouts to suit your holiday plans. At the least, check out one of our TrainHer On Demand Ultimate Bodyweight Programs, and focus on staying active.

#3: DO SPRINT INTERVALS!

If you can’t make it to the gym, or you find that those sneaky high carbohydrate foods keep accidentally slipping into your mouth (hello pavlova and chocolate!), you should try some hill, sand or stair running.

Sprint training is the perfect form of damage control during the holidays.

Sprints increase insulin sensitivity and raise fat burning enzymes so your body is better able to burn fat for fuel.  Sprint training is hard and fast, great if you are without equipment, and will leave you with an influx of post exercise endorphins too.

Try this:

Warm-Up

1 x 400 easy run, rest for 70 seconds
2 x 100m pick up runs (speed up) rest for 60 seconds
Make sure you include some Ballistic stretches in here.

Interval Training

2 x 80m Fast with 30 seconds rest
4 x 60m Fast with 25 seconds rest
6 x 40m Fast with 20 seconds rest
2 x 80m Fast with 30 seconds rest

Cool Down

1 x 400 easy run, rest for 70 seconds
Make sure you include some static stretches here.

#4: PLAN YOUR MEALS

Holiday meals always feature high-quality proteins, so use this to your advantage!

Be sure to include vegetables which are low in energy but high in fibre and water, which makes them great for managing your appetite. They also provide antioxidants that help the body to eliminate any toxins you may ingest from alcohol or junk food.

Pick a set meal frequency, such as 4 or 5 meals over the course of 12 hours in order to avoid hunger and keep blood sugar steady.

#5: STAY HYDRATED

Our Kiwi summer is all about long hot days enjoying the outdoors. Remember to stay hydrated, drinking water also has the double benefit of blunting appetite.

Aim for 3 litres of water a day, drinking at regular intervals.

You got this ladies. Don’t let the “Fuck It Mindset” creep in, or lose the momentum of your long term plan.

You’re in complete control, go and enjoy yourself this holiday and before you do make sure you’ve nailed these 5 steps to staying on track over the holidays!

Shan x

 

 

 

References

1. Wagner, D., et al. Weight and body composition change over a six-week holiday period. Eating and Weight Disorders. 2012. 17(1):e54-6.

2. Stevenson, J., et al. Effects of exercise during the holiday season on changes in body weight, body composition and blood pressure. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2013. 67, 944-949.

3. Tremblay, A., Simoneau, J., & Bouchard, C. Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism. (1994). Metabolism, 43(7), 814-818.

4. Trapp, E., Chisholm, D., Freund, J., & Boutcher, S. The effects of high-intensity intermittent exercise training on fat loss and fasting insulin levels of young women. (2008). International Journal of Obesity, 32, 684-691.

5. Hazell, T., Hamilton, C., Dylan Olver, T., & Lemon, W. Running sprint interval training induces fat loss in women. (2014). Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 39, 1-7.

6. Higgins, S., Fedewa, M., Hathaway, E., Schmidt, M., & Evans, E. Sprint interval and moderate-intensity continuous cycle training differentially affect adiposity and fitness in overweight women. (2016). Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 48(5 Suppl 1), 217.