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To maintain a gym routine; and
To not stray far from our normal eating habits.
Here’s how we’re going to accomplish those goals:
1.
By Saying Yes and No to the Right Holiday Events.
Stop cramming every weekend between now and New Year’s Eve
with parties you’d rather not attend.
This time of year should be fun, but it seems more often
than not, I spend a lot of the season going to events due to
feelings of obligation.
Most of the holiday invites are not mandatory and, in fact,
no one would miss me if I didn’t go. So this year I asked
myself: “Why force myself to attend huge, hours-long events
trying to make small talk with a bunch of people I don’t
know while checking my watch every five minutes to see if
I’ve spent enough time so I wouldn’t look rude when I leave?
I’m saying “no” to the stuff that doesn’t put me in the
holiday spirit!
I’m going to say “YES” to the plans that excite me, like our
FabFit Christmas Pajama Jam Party! No fancy dresses, high
heels and uncomfortable spanx under my clothes! We’re
wearing comfy pajamas & slippers and spending the evening
laughing, playing games and enjoying each others company.
It’s a get-together that we all look forward to and enjoy,
and it makes the holidays more fun!
Don’t feel badly about missing a party or two to spend time
with your family to watch
A Christmas Story or A Charlie Brown
Christmas to simply relax on the couch. If instead of
going to a party, you’d rather go to the gym or sit on the
couch in your pajamas and shop online, then do that. Just
tell yourself, I’ve already made plans (shopping in your
PJ’s does count as a plan) and don’t feel guilty about it.
2. I’m Going to Make Myself a Priority.
It seems as soon as our schedules get a little weird, the
first two things to be thrown out the window are diet and
exercise.
It takes time to work out and it’s easier to grab whatever
food is around, rather than take the time to either make a
healthy meal or go get a healthy meal.
But the truth is, when I miss my
workouts: I actually
miss my
workouts and I MISS my workout Sistas!!
I know that if I eat a few too many
less-than-healthy meals in a row, I feel terrible, I look
terrible and my mood is awful!!! I’ve come to realize that
it would just be better for me (and everyone who has to deal
with me) to take thirty to sixty minutes to work out, and
take ten minutes or so to go get a flipping salad, and avoid
eating the chocolate Kisses and chocolate covered peanuts in
the office kitchen.
I need at least five workouts a week to feel healthy, some
need less! But if you need at least three workouts a week
to feel healthy, then get them in -
come hell or high
water!!! If you’re feeling tired and frazzled, then
come to Fabulously Fit Gem where you can get a variety of
classes that always leave you feeling energized & awesomely
mellow (shameless plug….but the truth…lol)!
You want to take care of yourself so you can actually feel
good through the holidays and not like a grumpy bloated
version of yourself.
3. I’m
Making No Excuses, Neither Should You!!
Maybe it’s not that it’s hard to fit your workouts in and to
eat right.
Maybe, especially if a healthy lifestyle is something you
are still trying to adopt whole-heartedly, you are using the
holidays as an excuse to skip the gym and to eat every piece
of sweet potato pie you come across! Hmmmm, sound famililar???
It’s the holiday, I can eat (fill in the blank)!!!!
If that’s the case, stop that sh** right now! Do you really
want to be faced with tight pants, gut rot, and the feeling
of desperation that shows up around New Year’s Day when you
realize you totally undid a good six months of work in the
course of eight weeks?
Probably not!!
4. I’M GOING TO
Enjoy the Parts of the Holidays I Love!
Celebrate this time of year. Just do it selectively.
I would never tell anyone not to eat
their favorite foods on Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hannukah,
Kwanzaa, etc. That’s ridiculous. I never
want to be that person who spends Christmas and Thanksgiving
trying to find a steamed vegetable and a lean piece of
non-fried turkey to eat because I didn’t want to go off my
diet even for one meal.
Do not be that person, and if you are, stay very far away
from me!!!!
Because unless you have a bodybuilding show or a
weightlifting competition the next day, there’s absolutely
no reason you can’t enjoy the holidays with your family and
eat the foods you love that are special to this time of
year.
Go for the pumpkin pie, the cranberry sauce, or the fried
turkey - if those are things you truly enjoy. But don’t
drink the eggnog if you don’t even like the stuff.
Then, the next day,
get back to normal.
So to summarize:
I’m planning to maintain my exercise routine, eat seasonal
foods but not go crazy, and actually enjoy the holidays in
the way that I enjoy them. I will do this by:
1. Saying Yes or No to Holiday Events;
2. Making Myself a Priority;
3. Making No Excuses; and
4. Enjoying the Parts of the Holidays I Love!!
I hope this helps everyone, myself included, make their
holiday season more enjoyable, healthier, and less
stressful. Please feel free to email comments or to share
your tips and tricks for making this time of year special
and stress-free.
I wish you a heartfilled Christmas and
a Heathy and Happy New Year!
Angela R. Steward
Certified Group Fitness
Trainer
Healthy Living Motivator
Head Instructor and Owner
of
FABULOUSLY FIT GEM
1855 S. Reynolds Rd.,
Suite C
Toledo, Ohio 43614
1855 S. Reynolds Rd. (In
Olive Garden Plaza)
Classes: Mon 9a & 6p, Tues
6p, Wed 6p, Thurs 6p & Sat 9a
Email:
FabFitu@yahoo.com
Phone: 419-699-9399
Stop into any class, your
first visit is….FREE!!!!
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