Whether you're noshing nervously on appetizers at a cocktail party or savoring traditional family fare with your loved ones, you're bound to eat more than usual in December and January. The holidays mean an endless stream of social gatherings centered around food ... and limited opportunities to work off those celebratory calories.
And although I positively COMMAND you to be kind to yourself about any holiday-related foody activities, I also understand that the aftermath of overindulgence can be daunting. Even when the parties have finally ceased and you've returned to normal levels of consumption, your options for jettisoning those fruitcake-and-eggnog pounds remain limited. It's still winter, it's still cold and dark outside, and your body still just wants to hibernate.
Hopefully, you don't need me to tell you that it is completely natural to gain some weight during these frigid times. Hopefully, you're able to recognize that, even though it feels a little harder each year to work off that holiday heft, it's well worth your time and effort to do so. And hopefully, you're well aware that punishing your body with a crash diet or outrageously intense exercise regimen isn't actually going to help in the long run. As aggravating as it can be to go the slow route, the healthiest way to return to your pre-December self is by eating smallish, healthy, balanced meals and engaging in moderate-but-regular exercise.
But in case you're looking for a few simple ways to boost your exercise routine and kick that metabolism awake once more, here are some things I do all winter long to supplement my trips to the gym and combat the effects of holiday eating:
Park far away
This can be positively painful if you live in a land of subzero temperatures (as I most certainly do), but you will be absolutely astonished by what a difference it can make. Park as far from the door as possible when you drive to work, the grocery store, the movie theater, the mall, the library, EVERYWHERE. Three to six extra minutes of bracing cold per trip adds up fast, my pretties, and soon you're getting in a bonus 20-minute walk every day. Over the course of an entire winter, that accumulated exercise works wonders on the wubba.
Invest in some free weights for home
Even if you live in a studio apartment that could never accomodate a bulky treadmill, likelihood is you've got room for a set of dumbells under the bed. Although free weights will certainly help you keep your arms from going to mush, these little darlings can also help with obliques, quads, hams, and glutes. This site may have slightly goofy-looking animations, but if you cruise around a little, you'll see dumbell-centric exercises that work nearly every major muscle group. When you can't make it to the gym because it's blizzarding outside, you won't be trapped at home with no way to work out.
Do the stairs
I don't just mean take the stairs to your office. I mean take any and all stairs that present themselves to you. In parking garages, airports, malls, doctors' offices, bookstores, and schools. If you need to get to the 23rd floor, take the elevator to floor 18 and walk the rest of the way. If it's too cold to walk outdoors during your lunch break, spend 10 minutes going up and down a friendly flight of stairs instead. I do at least 15 flights per day, more if I can, and it prevents my hiney from expanding to epic proportions when the wind is whistling outside.
Although many of us allow our bodies to poof up with winter poundage until we simply can't fit into our pants, we CAN choose to take action sooner. Now that the shindigs have finally subsided, revert to healthy living habits, and tack on these easy activities that will keep you active a bit more each day. You'll feel stronger and more energetic, healthier and stronger ... and you'll establish some new fitness habits that will serve you well even after it warms up again!
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