This Time Of Year is Wonderful…but hard work.

Sleigh Bells Ring…

All I want for Christmas…

Walking in a Winter Wonderland…

Its Winter. It’s Christmas.

And it’s cold.

😨😨😨😨

Despite absolutely loving this time of the year I am also so aware how much more support my clients need.

And why does it get like this?

Well it’s dark.

It’s cold.

And who wants to exercise when you can stay under a blanket?

You could exercise…with a blanket?

But seriously though.

It’s hard. And it’s so easy to slip into the bad habits…which then spiral out of control.

For example:

1. Have one bad day of food
2. Skip the gym the next day
3. Feel sluggish and tired
4. Drink alcohol to try and make yourself feel a little better
5. Eat badly again
6. Still haven’t exercised
7. It’s now raining. Really don’t want to go out and get your hair all frizzy.

That’s a whole week outlined there. It’s an all too common story in Winter. And notice how I haven’t mentioned:

• Work
• Social Engagements
• Family

Just life stuff.

Sounds depressing right? So if you got this far don’t worry. Because the next bit…is how we fight it off.

These are my Strategies for staying active in Winter.

1. Get a set of thermals.

Sounds daft right? We aren’t exactly sub-zero too often in the UK. But if You thermal up, and stop the cold from getting into you…You will feel far more comfortable going out and about, especially to the Gym, but it also has an impact on the food you will want to eat. If you are warm, and haven’t expended energy all day trying to keep warm, and feeling uncomfortable then, you will make better choices when it comes to diet.

For example. You will crave Water over Milky Coffees and Teas.

2. Invest in Gym clothes that make you feel epic

The hardest part about this time of year is the way you feel about yourself. Chances are you feel flumpy. You aren’t. But perception is reality and so because you have thick jumpers and coats on, fancy eating Carbs more and more you just feel flumpy. So having clothes in the gym that make you feel sexy as hell…will help. A lot. People desperately underestimate the importance of feeling great when working out. Getting your good shoes on can make a 5km into a 10km….

3. Buddy Up

Motivation is the word here. And it aint gonna come easy. So buddy up. Make a friend at the Gym and try and workout with them. Or find a friend to work out with. Or hire a PT to keep you going through these dark days. Or join the running club. There’s tons of options. And I don’t regularly advise this, because you need to make sure you are able to keep your own responsibility for your exercise regime, but when the weather is like this. Buddy up. Do what you can to stay active.

4. Drink Hot Drinks, Eat Broths and Soups

God I love a coffee. Because it warms me up AND wakes me up. But Green Tea and Peppermint Tea will warm you up just as well. When it comes to the Broths and Soups, not only are they dead easy to make. You can pack a ton of top nutrition into them, without tasting it, and you don’t feel like you are eating a salad in the winter. It’s a win, win, win.

5. Some Days will be harder than others

But that’s ok. This is true in life. But also some days you just will feel a bit blurgh (that’s a word). It’s cold, there’s lack of sun, sometimes all you see is darkness, and it’s ok to acknowledge that has had an impact on you. How best to deal with that, is when you notice these feelings coming in….then do something the next day to break the habit. Go and exercise. Take a lunchtime walk outside. Give your eyes something real to look at…not just screens and indoor lights.

I hope this helps you in some way!