Ok guys, so we are shutting down for 10 days over the Christmas period, but that doesn’t mean you need to get fat and lazy. This time of year is notorious for weight gain. You have got parties all through December, Christmas day where you eat yourself stupid and then it is all topped off with copious amounts of alcohol on New Years Eve and usually a party or BBQ on New years Day.
Wow, I am tired just writing about all those things. So imagine what this time of year can do to your fitness, your waist line and your health!
It is no accident that the number of people at training drops throughout December. Everybody says it is because they are out late at functions etc and yes, this is one of the reasons, but the other reason which doesn’t seem so obvious is what I call “Health Motivation”
“Health Motivation” is very high when somebody;
- Starts a new exercise regimen
- Starts a new diet
- Has a special event coming up that they want to be a bit fitter for
- Has an event coming up that they need to lose 5kg’s for.
But unfortunately “Health Motivation” doesn’t last very long, which is why we need to set goals.
Without goals, you are just plodding along and the problem with just plodding along is that it is very easy to get distracted, so please I urge you all to set your health and fitness goals before the new year starts. Remember that they must be measurable and achievable. If they are not, then it is just as easy to get distracted because they may seem unattainable and may result in you questioning your approach to them and will probably see you stray from the path you were on.
But, there is something else that affects “Health Motivation” dramatically more than other things and that is a lack of either diet or exercise.
Meaning, if you are in a great routine, you are eating really clean and you are training hard, you will be seeing results and you will be feeling fantastic.
So, lets say you get an injury and have to have 3 weeks off from training. What do you think happens to your diet? There is now a lack of motivation to keep eating healthily because you are not training anyway. Have a good long think about it and I will guarantee you have gone through this without even really thinking about why you strayed from your eating.
Now let’s look at it the other way. Let’s say you have a whole bunch of functions that entail eating bad food and drinking lots of alcohol. This way of eating will have you feeling quite flat and this will now result in you losing motivation to train. Again, have a good long think about it and I am sure you will have gone through this also, without really thinking about why your exercise regimen may have slipped. This is the reason why numbers are lower at training at time of year, not just because of late nights.
You really need to eat healthy and train regularly to feel good and keep “Health Motivation” high.
So, what are you going to do over the Christmas break?
- Have 10 days off training?
- Eat as much rubbish food as possible to really enjoy the festive season?
- Not think about training because it is a time of rest and you don’t want to feel guilty?
- Start 2011 3kg’s heavier than you were at the start of December?
- Find it hard to get started in 2011 because you are in sloth mode?
OR
- Indulge on Christmas day and then get back to eating healthy until New Years Eve?
- Don’t overdo the alcohol on New Years Eve or New Years Day?
- Eat very healthy on a day where you know you’ve got a function on at night?
- Train everyday except Christmas, Boxing and New Years day’s?
- Survive the holiday season without gaining any weight?
- Kick off 2011 pumped and ready to go?
Realistically, if you read this and make choices from the first list, then maybe you need to read the lists again and have a good think about what they actually say.
So, to keep you on the straight and narrow, here is a list of workouts that you can tick off over the holiday break. They are not long, you should be able to knock them over in about 20 mins on average.
1) 100 burpees for time
2) 5 sit ups, 10 push ups, 15 squats – 10 rounds for time
3) Run 5km for time
4) 10 star jumps, 20 bench dips, 30 mountain climbers – 5 rounds for time
5) 1 minute as many push ups as possible, 1 minute as many burpees as possible, 1 minute as many air jacks as possible – repeat for a total of 15 mins
6) 20 squats, 2 sit ups run 100m, then 18 squats, 4 sit ups, run 100m, then 16 squats, 6 sit ups, run 100m – continue with this cycle until you get to 2 squats and 20 sit ups, always incorporating the 100m – for time.
7) 100 bench dips, 100 bicycle, 100 mountain climbers, 80 of each, 60 of each, 40 of each, 20 of each – for time
There you go guys, 7 workouts for the 7 days I would like you to train whilst we are on the Christmas break – 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th, 31st, 2nd, 3rd.
I wish everyone a safe, happy, healthy Christmas and a fantastic New Year!
The Fitta Bodies Team
