Staying Active This Holiday Season

You know that working out offers great mental and physical benefits, and you can really use a boost of both during the holiday season. This time of year can be filled with stress, keep you up late, and certainly keep you busy, so maintaining your regular fitness routine can help you deal better with it all. However, the one thing you tend to lose more of than willpower this season is time in the day.

With special events and traveling marking up your calendar, you have an overabundance of activities and to-dos that have to fit into your daily routine, but although you need to also work out, your fitness tends to be the first thing that drops off the list. If you’ve been using your Pilates reformer regularly and want to maintain your fitness through the holidays, this post gives you some great ideas on how to stay active and squeeze in a workout whether you plan to travel or stay close to home this time of year.

Top Ten Ways to Stay Active During the Holidays

Once you see and feel the difference that fitness brings to your life, you don’t want to give up your workouts for anything, not even the holidays. Besides, working out helps you to recharge both mentally and physically and keeps you feeling good and on track even when you indulge a bit in your holiday favorites.

So if working out is a priority for you, you don’t have to give it up just because you’re on holiday. In fact, you can use these tips to stay active not just during the holidays but also when you’re on vacation, take a long weekend, or happen to be out of your normal workout location and routine. It just takes some planning. Even if you don’t think of yourself as a natural planner, you’ll be surprised at how easily you can find solutions to staying active if you give yourself a moment to think.

From the obvious to the creative, this list will get you thinking about the many ways you can stay active and enjoy the holidays in a healthy way:

1. Find online workouts. Although you can’t pack up your Pilates reformer and head over to grandma’s house, you can take your Pilates workouts with you. Your workout subscription with Frame Fitness offers mat Pilates options as well as options you can do with all ages. So not only can you do your workout anywhere you have a bit of floorspace, but you can invite others to join you. You can expand your online workouts, by searching for a variety of workouts you can squeeze in with just 10 minutes or workouts that specialize in a specific muscle group. As long as you do your searching before you head out and put a plan in place, you’ll be all set to get in a workout when you have the time.
2. Look for places to hike, run, or walk. Of course, you can always just stroll down a sidewalk, but this time of year you can find all kinds of unique places for a healthy stroll, run, or hike. Depending on the terrain when you’re visiting, you might have beautiful vistas as a reward for a rugged, hilly hike, or you can find areas that have walk-through lights displays, holiday markets, and fairs that can help you get your steps in. If you’re visiting friends and family, be a part of the planning. Look ahead of time at the special events in the area. If you’re going to see a holiday play in a downtown area, ask to see the sights and get your miles in before you walk to the theater. If you’re staying in a suburban area, bundle up for an after-dinner stroll to see everyone’s holiday displays. Again, the key is planning, and you can make it festive by including as many people as possible from your party to come along.
3. Establish a holiday sports challenge. Many families gather together with all ages on the holidays, and with a little planning, you can start an unofficial pickup game of any sport or organize some active games that get everyone’s blood pumping no matter their ages. You may even be the inspiration for some who have been afraid to get back into physical fitness. By injecting a little fun and perhaps some healthy competition, you can show others the joy of movement and help them see how great their bodies feel after some physical activity.
4. Share your joy of working out. Many people are simply intimidated about working out. So ask others to join you, even for just a few minutes, of a light workout. Adapt it to meet their needs and ability level and just have fun with it. Like a sports challenge, you may reintroduce fitness to someone who’s been longing to try it, and for some, it takes just one experience to get them hooked. The bonus is that you end up with a workout partner for the holidays.
5. Find a gym with a guest pass or daily pass. Just like taking a walk in the neighborhood, this one may seem obvious, but you may not have considered all of your resources. If the gym you already belong to is a chain, chances are you can gain guest privileges at other locations. If not, ask a friend or family member where you’re staying whether they have a gym that offers guest passes. Also check with your insurance. Some insurance plans have gym memberships or reimbursement programs, check your plan to see if you are covered. If all else fails, you can likely find a local gym nearby. You may have to pay a small fee for a daily pass, but it’s worth it to clear your mind and get in your workout.
6. Sign up for a holiday run. Start a tradition with those you gather with for the holidays and have everyone sign up for a holiday fun run. You can typically walk or run in these events, and they usually have options for the kids to take part in, too. Not only does this give you a fun holiday event to attend, but it also keeps you motivated to stay in shape so you can finish it, too!
7. Be the first one to help clean up. The holidays are usually fun but also messy. Be the first one to start cleaning up, sweeping up, shoveling walks, scraping cars of snow and ice, or helping to haul gifts in and out the door. If you stay long enough, you may even be able to help with taking decorations down and packing them back into the attic or garage. Not only will you get in some activity, but you’ll be an awesome house guest, too.
8. Use downtime wisely. When everyone else falls into a food coma, take advantage of a lull in the action. Use that time to squeeze in a walk or run, grab all the kids and play tag, or just get out the one piece of Pilates equipment that’s easy to travel with—your mat—and get your workout done.
9. Pack the right gear. It’s not enough to secure a pass at a gym or sign up for a holiday fun run, you have to bring the right gear along with you. Have some workout clothes, shoes, earbuds, and any other workout necessities already packed in a bag. Just have it ready like a go-bag so you can toss it in with your luggage or in the back of your vehicle when you’re ready to head out. If you pack it all up long before you go, you don’t have to worry about forgetting your favorite leggings or leaving your earbuds charging on the counter.
10. Be flexible and maintain perspective. A game of tag with the littlest ones in your group may not seem like a workout, but it’s better than sitting and watching the game (or falling asleep) on the couch after dinner. The goal is to be active when you’re outside of your normal routine. You may not get the exact same workout as you would when you are home, but you have to be flexible and a little creative. Be satisfied with some physical activity that gets your blood pumping and don’t feel guilty if it doesn’t match the sweat factor you usually produce with your regular workout.

Getting in some physical activity when you’re not in your normal routine is a victory regardless of what kind of activity it is. Plan ahead and create several options to choose from so that you can be flexible and squeeze in something while you’re away. Keeping active can help you to maintain the fitness momentum you’ve worked all year to establish.