The holidays are just around the corner, and with them, hustle, bustle, and stress. I don't know about you, but this is the time of the year that my health journey seems to struggle the most. When I did Keto last year before the wedding, I did pretty great until around Halloween, and then I found it really difficult, and sometimes stressful, to stick to eating healthy. Most holidays place huge emphasis on food and having a lot of it. Thanksgiving, for example, is ALL about eating.
Not to mention, since the holidays are usually about spending time with family, it can be really hard to find time or motivation to workout or go to the gym because there is always someone around. It's even harder if you're going away for the holidays and don't have access to all of your workout equipment or local gym.
If you're trying to be more health conscious, it can be really frustrating to spend so much time and effort on trying to get fitter and being healthier just for the holidays to come along and ruin all of your progress.
As someone who dreads the holidays every year, especially for health and weight loss reasons, I've put together a list of workouts/types of exercise that are easier to focus on during the holidays because either they don't take a lot of time, don't need any equipment for, involve other people, are good ways to destress, or help you escape from those stressful and annoying family members.
I'm also going to go ahead and include some video links to my favorite Youtube workouts in certain categories so if you need ideas or new workouts to try, you have them!
Hiking
This is the best season to go hiking because it's cooled down and everything is a little bit more colorful. It's also great to go with friends or family members, and you can wear cute hiking clothes. Start with a couple of beginner hikes and work your way up to some of the more intense and challenging ones.
Hiking is a nice way to get out of the house, destress, escape all of the craziness, and appreciate nature a little bit more during the holidays. It's also great for working out your legs and core while building up your body's overall stamina and endurance.
Running
I am not a huge fan of running, but if you are visiting home for the holidays and need to get out, going on a run is a great way to get out of the house for a minute. You can put in your headphones, listen to a podcast or a great playlist, and just live in your own little world for a minute. Even if you're like me and it's more like run for a minute, walk for twelve, this is a great way to get in some exercise during the holidays. If you're out of town and staying at a family member's house, this is a fun way to get out and sightsee in the area you're in.
Also, I know there are some families who run 5k during the holiday season so if you have one of those families, it's always good to get a head start on training.
Core Training
It's always the season to work your core. Fun fact: Core doesn't just mean abs, which is something I learned last year while doing Jazzercise. It also include your back, obliques, and your hips. It's important to work the core because you'll have better posture (which means you'll look better in all those holiday photos), your back and neck won't hurt as much (good for all the standing around you'll do), and it will make you stronger in other workouts.
Arms
Why arms during the holiday? Lots of reasons! Are you going to a pumpkin patch? Got to have all the muscles to carry those pumpkins. Are you in charge of the Thanksgiving dinner? Chances are you're going to be buying more groceries then normal and if you're like me, you don't like to make more than one trip. Work those arms. Holiday shopping can get crazy and you'll need the arm strength to carry all of those presents. Working out your arms doesn't just work out the biceps and triceps, but it helps your shoulders, back, and neck all get stronger as well.
Yoga
If you have an extremely stressful and overbearing family, you're defiantly going to want to do some yoga. Not only is this a great way to improve your flexibility, but it also helps strengthen the muscles in your body, especially your abs and core. Yoga is also used to calm and center people's minds so if you find yourself dealing with a lot of chaos and craziness, this is a great way to start the day off on a positive and calm note.
Anything that Gets You Up and Moving
The holidays are stressful and crazy enough as it is without you feeling like if you don't do one of these workouts I've mentioned above, you're not doing the right workout. The most important part of working out and staying active during the holidays is to be consistent and not give up your healthy routines. Make yourself and your health a priority, however it looks.
If you're more into dance cardio or working out your legs, do those workouts. If you hate working out when there are people over because you feel weird, make it a group activity and incorporate more walks with friends and family into your exercise routine. As long as you are getting in some sort of movement and exercise, it doesn't really matter what you do as long as you enjoy it.
These are some of my personal favorite workouts.
I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season, and that you don't get too off track with all of your good habits you've built up this year. Remember though, even if you do, it doesn't make you any less of a person or worthy of love and affection so be kind to yourself.
Take a shot for all of the stress and craziness head our way and toast to getting to spend time during the holiday season focusing on ourselves.
Cheers,
Kristaleagh
