Feel Great, Look Great This Holiday Season

There is nowhere to hide; the holiday season is here! Love it or loathe it, the holiday season often leaves exercise a last priority, and when you forgo fitness, feeling and looking great also fall by the wayside. Before you know it, you’re perched on a heap of tinsel furiously wrapping presents, stressed to the brink, yelling at your kids, eating last night’s apple pie for lunch. Now is the time to talk holiday fitness strategy.

You Are the Boss of You

From November to January, the calendar is full of social engagements, shopping, family obligations, and trying, trying, trying not to eat the holiday cookies. Plan ahead to maintain control. You may feel pulled in a million directions, but your happiness is your own. Make personal fitness a priority, and always keep in mind, it isn’t just about exercise. Personal fitness encompasses body and mind via diet, sleep and stress management.

Maintain a Regular, Healthy Diet

Before you stop reading and write me off as an evil health-nut scrooge, I say wholeheartedly: This is the holiday season, not the season of depriving oneself of joy. But with all those cookies, stuffing and those bite-size, mini-quiche-things, the holiday season is also a fat-and-calories love fest. This does not mean holiday weight gain is inevitable, nor does its avoidance demand total deprivation of decadent deliciousness. Enjoy those lovely morsels of frosted, buttered, salted, sugared heaven. Absolutely, have a cookie! Just don’t have six. The key to outsmarting the holiday season’s most cunning calorie packers is moderation. Indulge a bit in your favorite dishes at the party, but forgo the leftovers. Outside of party time, maintain a diet rich in whole grains, leafy greens and fresh fruit.

Get a Good Night’s Rest

Skimping on sleep will make you fatigued, irritable and more prone to getting sick – and it will show all over your face. Holiday-season chaos can make unwinding and sleeping restfully difficult, so, take at least one-half hour to decompress before bedtime. Have a cup of chamomile tea, light a candle, read a book. This is crucial you time during a season when you are probably expending oodles of energy on everyone but.

Make Appointments with Yourself to Exercise

Yes, you do have time to workout! Even a 10-minute workout makes a world of difference for everything from the head to the heart to the hips. Schedule exercise just as you would a holiday party you must attend. Put it on the calendar! Be it a quick jog on the treadmill, a brisk stroll around the neighborhood, or even a power-walk with the dog, just a little cardio can make a world of difference for body and mind.

Golden Rule: The Best Defense Is a Good Offense

Don’t be blindsided! Plan ahead to avoid holiday weight gain and squelch stress before it starts, instead of waiting for headaches, breakouts, and digestive issues to emerge. Set your strategy now to stay on the path of holiday season fitness.

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