Merry Christmas!!
Brace yourselves it’s that time of year again
More nights out, parties, social events, office full of chocolates and biscuits etc
It’s a potential disaster for your waist line (again)
Well it doesn’t have to be, with a little bit of planning and a little bit of discipline you can still enjoy all of the fun things Xmas has to offer
Without piling on all of the extra pounds
Did you know that on average people gain between 8-11 pounds over the Xmas period?
Wow depressing right?
Don’t worry I’m going to lay out some tips and tricks to help prevent u turning into a Xmas pudding
1 – make sure you drink 2-3 litres of water per day
This is still very important to stay hydrated and will help you overcome any hangovers and prevent cravings and increase your energy better than any stimulants will
2 – keep active as much as possible even if you cannot get to the gym, aim to keep your steps up to around 10,000 per day
This alone can burn just as many calories as a workout
3 – it’s inevitable that you will eat and drink more during the Xmas period but try and limit yourself a little and be selective about the days and nights you do this
As with any other time of the year, one night out in the grand scheme of things isn’t probably going to cause much damage but 5, 6 or 7 days might
4 – Try Fasting until lunch time. Basically you skip ur breakfast on the days that you know that you will be going out to eat or drink
This will save you anything from 300-500 calories
Ok you might possibly end up consuming more than this but the slight deficit will help the overall damage done
5 – Also on the days that you know you will be likely consuming more calories from food and drink, try reducing your meals to protein and veg only
This will help to reduce your overall calorie intake whilst still packing in your protein and plenty volume of nutrients
6 – Limit your carbs and fats on days that you know you will be eating and drinking out
The extra calories from carbs and fats on top of everything else can tip you well over your daily intake
Chances are you might end up well over in any case but this is just a little extra damage limitation trick
7 – If you have time to get a workout in then go for it. Don’t worry about it being ur best workout ever or hitting any personal bests the idea is to keep ticking over
I would opt for a full body workout incorporating big compound moves including some, squats, deadlifts, bench presses, over head presses etc
And if you have time add on some isolation exercises for arms and abs if u want and finish off with 10-20 minutes of cardio
Example workout
A1 – Squats
A2 – Bench press
A3 – Deadlifts
A4 – Over head press
10-15 reps of each exercise as many rounds as possible in the time you have
B1 – bicep curls
B2 – triceps press
B3 – sit ups
B4 – leg raises
10-15 reps of each exercise for 2-3 rounds
C1 – 10-20 minutes of cardio of ur choice
8 – if you are stuck on time but still want to get a workout in then try this home HIIT workout
- Press ups
- Squats
- Lunges
- Mountain climbers
- Burpees
Complete 10 reps of each exercise as many times as possible in 10-20 minutes
If you want to make it harder aim to do 1 minute of each exercise resting for 1-2 minutes at the end of 5 exercises
And then repeat as many times as possible in the 10-20 minutes you have available
9 – Alcohol!! The big elephant in the room. Try and make better choices with your drinks choices. Stick to white spirits with diet mixers or lime and soda
Gin and Tonic or vodka lime and soda are my choices
10 – plan ahead now for January then you don’t have to panic. Get your calendar out and schedule in the days and times that you are going to make a start again
The days you will start training
The days you will prepare ur foods again
The days you will get rid of all the left overs
The day you will draw a line under it all and get back on track
If you don’t know where to start and you need some help from professionals who are friendly and supportive but also proven at getting results
Then get in touch and we can have a chat and see if you are a good fit to join our program
Hope you find this useful
Damien 🙂