To be honest, trying to keep the kilos off at Christmas is a bit like asking Santa to fit an entire replica BMW pedal car in your child’s Christmas stocking.
Not only are there doubts among us older folks as to Santa’s authenticity and/or ability to deposit anything in stockings, but there are also hams, Christmas puddings, and Christmas cheer to deal with. And that’s just the 25th.
Christmas has its pressures, as does every day of the festive season and we haven’t even started with New Year. So how do you stop a fuller festive figure creeping up on you over the holidays?
One: Stay motivated
The danger of that word ‘holiday’ is that we can apply it to everything. Somehow all the business and activity we cram into every working week has to go by the wayside in favour of endless eating, drinking and lying about on beach towels. No wonder we start the new year with a bulge. Start your holiday with an open mind and active outlook and don’t succumb to idleness.
Two: Improvise some festive exercise
If you’re on holiday, you’re out of routine. You may also be surrounded by all kinds of family distractions that make a regular exercise regime tricky to maintain. So get active in other ways. Grab the kids (and big kids) and charge around in a game of backyard or beach cricket. Grab a ball or Frisbee and kick/throw/pass it around the yard, park or beach. Grab any available pedal power and tour the area. If there aren’t any bikes, go forth on foot. Anything that gets your heart pumping and works the odd muscle is good for burning off your Xmas pudding.
Three: Create backyard and beach circuits
Choose say six exercises – push-ups, burpees, star jumps, crunches, squats and leg raises – and mark six exercise points in a circle in the yard or on the beach. Jog the circle five times, do the first exercise, five more circles, do the next. Get the kids and relatives involved to add humour and some holiday mayhem. Chaos or not, you’re exercising.
Four: Ask Santa for a gym membership
All year you’ve had the excuse of being too busy to take those first tentative steps into the world of organised exercise. Now, with (maybe) some free time on your hands, you can take the plunge. Hopefully, you’ll be so enthused, you’ll find the time that seemed so elusive pre-holidays.
Five: Drink loads of water
Not exactly a fitness activity, yet it is. Staying hydrated in and around a bit of holiday partying is essential for your more active endeavours. Alcohol can lead to serious dehydration, not to mention lethargy and hangovers. Not the ideal preparation for a workout. So try to drink in moderation and keep the water coming. Also, drink before you eat to reduce your appetite.
