Ease into the holidays

MANILA, Philippines - They say that Filipinos celebrate Christmas early. But I’m starting to think that we just like to prepare for the holidays in September because we’ve lived here long enough to know that December can be a nightmare. People are getting their gifting lists ready to avoid the impending traffic but everyone seems to be thinking the same thing. Christmas is here — as well as the traffic that comes with it.

Aside from preparing gifts, I’ve also heard about friends prepping their bodies for the Christmas food intake. Once your titos and titas text-invite you to the annual family Christmas party, you know you’re in for another night of lechon and queso de bola. I don’t know about you, but having a buffer for the parties is always a good idea. Plus, there’s nothing wrong with being active once in a while, especially when you’re going to be stuck in traffic for about four hours every day.

Nike Training Club (NTC) set out a challenge to get back on the healthy track in time for the holidays. Scrolling through the all-new, relaunched app, I’ve seen some old favorites — Ellie Goulding’s Tighten and Tone is perfect for runners — and a bunch of new workouts. One of the new ones that stood out was the partner workout with Serena Williams and Kevin Hart. You can also invite your friends and keep track of each other’s progress if you really want to get that partnership going.

Another highlight of the new app is the monthly plan that you can start any day (you can’t let that rare workout motivation go to waste, can you?). NTC will customize it according to how active you currently are and how active you want to be. For starters, the app suggests workouts that will focus on mobility, instead of endurance and strength. It really eased us into the lifestyle and helped us build the stamina to endure higher-intensity workouts. And if you miss a week of your program, NTC will customize the program to help you get back on track. It will also sync your runs recorded through Nike Running Club so you don’t have to manually input your data every time you workout.

The best thing about NTC is it’s free. Say goodbye to your gym membership, because with the current road situation, you’ll never be happier to work out at home.

* * *

Nike Training Club is available in both Apple and Android devices.