Healthy for the holidays

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The holidays offer many moments of sabotage to maintaining a healthy weight and exercise routine. Parties, office break room sweets and edible gift giving all present opportunities for extra calorie consumption, and tight schedules leave little room for exercising. So what are some ways to help maintain a healthy body during this season of gratitude and thanksgiving?

Moderation and watching calories. Embracing moderation when it comes to holiday foods and spirits is key. Be choosy and particular about the calories you ingest. Ask if the calories are the worthy fuel your body needs or is it for pure palatal pleasure? By all means food should be enjoyed, but recognizing this initiative can make the difference in extra pounds. Keep indulgences to a few bites and not a few servings.

  Exercise even on a tight schedule. When it comes to exercise and time is short, evaluate what you really need. Holidays, work stress and family demands could mean you really need to spend 10 minutes relaxing, focusing on your breath. See the box to the right for some ideas to get in workouts on busy days this season.  

Keeping a healthy body and mind can be done in conjunction with enjoying this beautiful holiday time. Relying on consuming in moderation and using your time wisely to exercise will help keep extra pounds away. Doing this will free your mind to focus on your relationships with friends and family during this deeply reflective and joyful time.

Ideas for quick workouts

  • Jump rope. If energy is high, a more vigorous quick 10-20 minute workout helps burn some of the extra holiday calories. Grab a jump rope and burn, and you can burn roughly 100 calories every 10 minutes.
  • Shop. The average shopping trip will burn about 75 extra calories every 30 minutes of shopping.
  • Walk the course. Golfers, if you walk rather than ride, you will burn an extra 50-60 calories every 30 minutes of play.
  • Walk or run around villages. Take advantage of the sidewalks within our community by walking from the Emmet O’Neal library in Crestline to the light on Montevallo via sidewalk for a total of 1.4 miles roundtrip. You could choose to walk there and run back or periodic intervals along the way. If you continue on the sidewalk from Montevallo to the Western in Mountain Brook Village, you will add another .7 miles. So break it down however you want to with walking or sprints and however much distance you want.
  • Run stadium steps. If you live near Mountain Brook High School, running the stairs will burn off around 200 calories in 15 minutes.

*Calories noted are on average; individual amounts may vary.

Lois England lives in Crestline and is the wife of Lee England and mother of R.L., Brice and Harrison. She is a registered nurse and certified personal trainer. Always an advocate and critic of all wellness issues, her focus with clients emphasizes improving postural weaknesses and flexibility.