Sneaky holiday fitness destroyers

The few weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year can wipe out a full year of hard work if you aren’t careful. Here’s a guide to help you stay fit over the holidays.

The holidays are a time for family, friends and cheer, but taking too much of a detour from your fitness regimen can seriously hurt both your progress and your motivation. The holidays are always the tricky part for any fitness enthusiast. The few weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year can wipe out a full year of hard work if you aren’t careful. Luckily, Muscle & Fitness magazine published a Holiday Survival Guide to help you stay fit over the holidays.

Muscle & Fitness identified diet destroyers that threaten to knock out your fitness progress. These innocent things can sneakily pack on pounds and quickly push you off track. Here are the four things that you should avoid.

• Office goodies. During the season of sharing, everyone gives the gift of food. Every December, the office is overflowing with sweets and baked treats. I recently visited an office that even had its own Christmas bazaar with tempting yema cakes, chewy chocolate chip cookies and mango floats on display.

These sweet little treats will derail your progress fast. The best way to avoid these goodies is the proximity strategy. There’s usually a designated place in the office like the pantry or meeting room where all the goodies are. Avoid these places altogether and you’re a lot less likely to indulge.

Then there’s the “New Year’s Resolution” excuse. You tell yourself that you’ll just indulge for December and start that new diet in January. You let your gym membership expire and say you’ll just wait for the new year to get back. 

The problem with this kind of thinking is that you’ll be inching farther and farther away from your goal. Come Jan. 1, you’ll be set back by months of progress. Don’t wait and start today. Find a program that excites you and get a head start going into the new year. 

• Booze. With Christmas parties left and right, you’re much more likely to enjoy a little too many cocktails this month. All those extra calories from liquor really add up. Alcohol has more calories per gram than protein or carbs. It’s also a “priority nutrient,” meaning your body will utilize it for energy before burning anything else. That seriously sets back fat loss. Makes you rethink that refill, right?

The best way to counter this is to drink one glass of water per cocktail you consume. This age-old rule isn’t just an old wives’ tale. It’s a proven way to help counter the negative effects of alcohol. This will cut down the amount that you drink, plus keep you hydrated. 

• Poor meal planning. When you’ve waited all year for your epic holiday meal, it’s easy to go overboard. While you can’t imagine how you could possibly control yourself from some of your favorite special Christmas dishes, there are some hacks you can try.

Eat a healthy, filling, high fiber snack an hour before the meal. This will help you show a little more self-control. Before going for carbs, start with protein that will keep you full longer. Meat like chicken, turkey or ham with a side of vegetables are diet-friendly and less likely to be binged on. When you’re done with that, then go for smaller servings of whatever you’ve been craving. If the meal is buffet-style, eat just one plate and make sure three quarters of it is made up of protein and veggies. 

• Less time in the gym. It’s the busiest time of year for your company. Your social calendar is packed and you’re all set for your year-end vacation with your family. I know, between all that, it’s hard to find time to go to the gym. 

At the end of the day, you decide to make time for what matters to you. No matter how crazy the Christmas rush can get, you can still squeeze in a quick workout — gym or no gym. Instead of your one-hour cardio, go for burpees or jump rope, which burn more in a shorter period of time. There are do-anywhere bodyweight circuits that take as little as 10 to 15 minutes, and full-body workouts that only take 30 minutes to complete. Surely, you can spare a few minutes of sleep in the morning, or before you go to bed at night, to do something good for your body.

The holidays are tough for those who want to stay fit but if there’s a will, there’s a way. With a few smart hacks, you can kick back and enjoy the season without sacrificing your fitness.

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Post me a note at mylene@goldsgym.com.ph or mylenedayrit@gmail.com.