10 Survival Tips for Fitness this Holiday

If you're like many of us, the holidays are a challenge to your fitness routine, the routine you've worked so hard to turn into habits and the diet you finally have control over. You've made your fitness a part of everything, from eating healthy meals that are appropriately sized for your goal to being active daily. And then here comes the holiday season with it's time for joy, celebration, family, mouth-watering meals, parties, and the potential to undo all the progress you've made. Instead of throwing your hands up in defeat or making yourself sick with stress over how to get through the season without gaining 10 pounds, relax, do a little planning, and follow these 10 simple rules for enjoying the holidays without wrecking your progress.

1. Adjust your goals. If you know the season is going to make sticking to your eating and training plan a challenge, make an adjustment to your goals. If you add stress to an already stressful time just to hit your goals, you run the risk of burning yourself out, having a miserable time, and still missing the goal.
2. Go to the party / event / gathering. Avoiding them because you're afraid to go off plan will leave you feeling like an excluded loner and a little more likely to swallow the sorrows with empty calories.
3. Never go anywhere on an empty stomach. Whether it's an office party, the family meal, or out for the shopping, eat a healthy snack before you go. Something as simple as beef jerky or a salad can give you just enough to keep you from eating every appetizer in sight while waiting for the meal.
4. Don't skip meals. It seems like it makes sense to skip lunch if you know you've got a party, but you inevitably end up snacking on calorie-dense, not-so-healthy food before the real food comes out.
5. Drink water at a rate of one glass for every hour you plan to be at the party. If you are hydrated, you are less likely to munch or drink high calorie soda. If you're going to drink alcohol, beware of mixed drinks. Even though the alcohol can have some bad effects for you, most mixed drinks are loaded with sugars, which we all know have negative effects on body composition. For example, one cup of Egg Nog has 343 calories.
6. Sample the desserts, don't pick up an entire plate. The first bite will be the best bite and by the fourth bite, they'll all taste the same.
7. If you happen to miss Rule 3, this rule can save you...don't be afraid to leave food on your plate. Really, you won't hurt anybody's feelings.
8. Don't "compensate" for yesterday's eating. Yesterday is done, aim to get back on plan with today. Even if you went off plan for an entire week, the best thing you can do is return to eating on plan instead of overreacting by starving yourself the next week.
9. Keep active and train if possible. Lots of gyms will give you a day-pass and if you can't find one close, there's always bodyweight work. Even if you're schedule is packed with activities, you can do the 8 Minute Monster (at the bottom) and burn calories and get your heart pumping.
10. RELAX and ENJOY! While we all have goals for health, failing to enjoy our loved ones, stressing out, and not enjoying these special times can be worse for us than any food or drink. Everybody needs a break, a chance to shut off mentally and just recover. If you've been going non-stop, all year, this may be the perfect time.

Most importantly, have a little perspective about what this time of year really it. At the end of the season and for years to come, you won't look back and think about how your weight or your waist changed over the month; you'll look back and remember how you enjoyed the company, the laughs, and the special moments that no fitness goal could ever replace. Make your friends and family, smiling and laughing, and enjoying the season the priority.

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8 Minute Monster

Perform each exercise for 30 seconds for max repetitions.
Repeat each quadset 2 times.

Push-ups (Hand Release, Divebomber, Clapping, Regular)
Mountain Climbers
Shoulder Taps (Push-up position)
Knee Hug Crunch

Bodyweight Squat (If this is too easy, do single leg squats)
Toe Touch
Lunge (or Split Squat)
RKC Plank

Getting Married, Taking a Break from Health and Fitness, and Compensation

If you follow us on any of our social media you know there were some big changes for Erin and I in the month of October. On October 10th, we tied the knot in a small ceremony on the beach in Cape May, NJ. It was a small ceremony, and aside from the wind, it was absolutely wonderful. Following the ceremony, we went across the street to the Union Park Hotel for the reception. Let me tell you, if you ever have the chance to go there for a meal, they are amazing. After another day in Cape May and a few days in Ocean City, NJ, Erin and I headed for our honeymoon cruise from San Juan, PR to New Orleans, LA. It was wonderful weather in St. Thomas, St. Kitts, St. Martin, Grand Turk, and Jamaica. The best part of it all was we got to relax. We didn't count calories, restrict ourselves from what we ate, or even train that often. That isn't to say we ate any and everything or we sat in a lounger by the pool the whole time, but we didn't act like we do at home either. After being away from home for 17 days and away from our gym for 19 days, we returned home. When we got settled back in, we realized a few things.

First, our health and fitness didn't collapse. Any time there is a disruption to a nutrition or training plan, people develop a fear that everything will collapse around them, that they will gain weight at an unbelievable rate, that their strength will leave them as though they don't even lift, and that they won't be able to get back on the horse. Let me tell you, none of it is true. Your body responds to stress, whether it's from your work, school, or training. Taking a break from everything to take a true vacation truly relieves stress. Your body NEEDS the break, it wants the break, and when it gets it, it will respond amazingly. The reduced stress of the break will allow your body to recover and compensate. Instead of being worse, you may actually return better, seeing results your body couldn't produce because it was so stressed. You may actually be more energized and have a greater desire to train, just like that newbie phase without all the awkwardness.

Second, our bodies felt better. Yes, we feel good when we train and eat right. However, taking the break from our normal diet to enjoy wonderful food from different countries, eat dessert, and even have a few drinks allows our body the chance to recover and refuel, to de-stress. Also, with limited equipment (50 lb dumbbells as the heaviest weight, some machines, and a jogging track) our muscles and joints had almost three weeks to recover with our workouts taking less than 35 minutes to complete. Most of our days were spent walking around ports, snorkeling, sight seeing. When we did head into the gym, we did "Metabolic Training", which is essentially three quadsets (a group of four exercises done one after the other) to move the muscles, get the heart rate up, and burn calories. On other days, we jogged a few miles while we waited to get into port. The end result, happy muscles and joints.

Finally, we came back energized. We can say we get enough sleep, enough rest, and feel great when we're at home, but as long as you're on the go, your body doesn't really get to reset. On vacation, we woke up when our body wanted to, fell asleep when we wanted, and could take naps if we wanted. For the first few days, we were asleep early and sleeping late. Finally, we got back on a more normal sleeping schedule. A few days later, we woke up with energy and held strong throughout the day until we turned in for the night. No midday dip, no post-dinner crash, just level energy from the time we woke up til the time we went to sleep. Now we're home, and the pattern is continuing.

So the point of this brief post is simply: take a break! If you've been training for over a year without any real time off; if you've been following a strict nutrition plan without any extended breaks; if you're burning the candle at both ends and not seeing results... take a break. It doesn't have to be three weeks, maybe not even two, but take time away, allow your body to recover and compensate for all the hard work you've been doing, I promise, you'll be better off for it.