Season’s eatings and working out
The calendars and coffee mugs with smiling faces had reached their intended targets. Yearend bonuses had gentlemen flocking to tech and sneaker stores and ladies to hair salons for the requisite beauty restorations. Gift giving and opening of presents had mostly ended, some disappointed not getting what they had expected.
With satiated feelings and slightly expanded waistlines, we had survived the first part of the holiday stuffings but there’s more to come between now and up to the conclusion of the Sinulog festivities.
The holidays have made us eat more and move less and it is very difficult to stay fit. Finding time to break some sweat during this season of eating is beneficial to our physical and mental health.
Pacific Lutheran University kinesiology professor and Olympic trainer Colleen Hacker cited several science-grounded reasons to keep active – it boosts our energy, lifts our mood, gives us better sleep, makes us happy, strengthens bones and muscles, fights depression, lowers anxiety and stress, manages or lowers risks of diabetes and heart issues, manages pain, improves sexual health, boosts brain function, improves skin and it makes us to eat healthier.
Motivation is the biggest hindrance to physical activity. Dr. Hacker said that once we think of exercise as something we want to do or get to do, not what we need to, we are more likely to do it.
Do we want to maintain or change our current fitness level? Do we need to de-stress or socialize? Sports psychology expert and author Caroline Silby says, “Reflect on what you want to achieve. The more you understand your specific goals for this timeframe, the more likely you’ll stay motivated to exercise over the holidays.”
She suggested creating several exercise plans – if plan A won’t work, opt for plan B or plan C. “Challenge yourself to adapt and adjust, rather than doing nothing over the holidays”, Silby said. Hacker added, “If you’re not walking at all, then walking 10 minutes a day is a win.”
Consistency, not intensity, will be the key, thus choosing a daily exercise that we like is important. There will be days missed and doing it another day won’t hurt, unless we intentionally miss it. 30 minutes 5 days a week of moderate activity is recommended for adults 18 to 65 years old.
Hacker said that the best physical activity is the one that we can really do and it should be meaningful and enjoyable. “If you hate the thought of running, then don’t run. Find something else you will enjoy”, she said.
We can change our daily habits to have more movement. Instead of bringing our vehicles to the car wash, we can do it ourselves and doing it for an hour burns about 300 calories. That would take care of the slice of that rich, artery clogging Titay’s torta eaten during the day, washed with blacker than black coffee. An hour of dusting and cleaning the house is 160 calories removed. Our spouses would be very happy if we mop the floors and we burn 150 calories with 20 minutes of mopping after that cup of sikwate.
So when we go for that second helping of lechon or caldereta or attack the dessert spread, walk around the buffet table five times. Perhaps we’ll kill the urge for more season’s eating.
Well, happy eating nevertheless.
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