Some Turkey day thoughts

So my client Charlene wanted me to a do a post on (and this is major paraphrasing here), "how to get through the holiday season". She gave me this idea before Halloween and I held onto it because I am of the thinking that Halloween simply does not count. You are not 5. It is no longer cute if you dress up like a pirate. And you shouldn't be consuming 2000 grams of sugar in a ten day period...so seriously, when it comes to Halloween, just grow up.

Thanksgiving and Christmas are entirely different. How cruel of our culture to put these two holidays back to back. The good news is that, contrary to common believe, the average weight gain over the holidays seems to be a half to two pounds. Only 5 % of the population gorges themselves to the point of a 5 pound or more weight gain. The Internet is FULL of lists about this subject that claim to help you avoid the weight gain during this season!

Take this for example: http://dianascimone.typepad.com/funiq_fitness/2010/11/8-ways-to-get-through-the-holidays-without-gaining-weight.html

I apologize to this poor woman as I simply typed in "ways to get through the holidays without gaining weight" into google. She should be happy google is putting her near the top of the results. However, her suggestions are to shake and dance to burn calories or to reward yourself with exercise for each person you buy a gift for? Most of my clients would probably smack this woman at the idea of exercise being a reward. Only sick individuals like myself do this stuff for fun. But the Internet is full of these lists right now and they are mostly GARBAGE. If you get up and shake and dance at your Thanksgiving day get together, pray I'm not there because I would shoot you. Honestly people...

But I get it. I understand how hard it is. And here is how I would handle it. Take Thanksgiving and Christmas and use those as CHEAT DAYS. Yes, everyone knows Rob loves the cheat days. Have fun. Eat. Drink. Be Merry. But don't turn the cheat day into a cheat month. My first suggestion is to be the gracious guest. Have someone else host. Eat what you want and then say thank you and good bye. If you did the hosting, get the CRAP out of your house the day after. Give it to a shelter. Give it to the local wildlife. Give it to your friends. Just don't keep the pie around and give yourself a BS excuse to keep eating it. Trust me, I have the same temptation if it's there. You need to remove it from your sight. Don't turn two holidays into THE HOLIDAYS.

But Rob??? What about Christmas work parties and get togethers with friends? I typically give myself one cheat meal a week. Between Thanksgiving and Christmas that is five cheat meals. If you are the type of person that is just incredibly social or (like me) has a dysfunctional family and 3 Christmases instead of 1, then it's time to choose. Decide who makes the best food and cheat that day. Admit it. Mom makes better pies than your friend Sue. So when you go to Sue's party, pass on the pie. And pass on any other awful carbs she wants to shove down your gullet. You can deal with Sue being upset. Mom is a different story.

And when it comes to those cheat meals, be reasonable for crying out loud. I love stuffing and mashed potatoes as much as the next guy, but three helpings....really? Let Uncle Bill and Cousin Gary shove their faces with your second and third helpings. Have your turkey. Have the stuffing. Have the pie....then end it!

In terms of working out, do not use the holidays as an excuse to stop. Trust me, you want to be the person going into the gym on black Friday instead of shopping...have you ever seen a crazed woman hopped up on pecan pie looking for the newest toy for her bratty kid? You don't need that kind of stress. Stress keeps weight around the midsection. So be the guy or gal running through a circuit 3 times a week during the holidays! Why not?

If you travel during this season, find a gym and pay the 5 bucks a day...it's worth it. And if you are worried about program design, don't!  Stick to simple circuit training/Crossfit methodology. Pick 2-4 exercises that we use at Renegade and toss them into a circuit of 3-5 rounds or AMRAP (as many rounds as possible) in X number of minutes. These workouts can be brutal.

Examples:
10 Kettlebell Swings (no Kettlebell? Use a dumbbell...)
5 Burpees
10 Minutes AMRAP

Run 400 M
10 Dumbbell Thrusters
10 Push Ups
3-5 rounds

If you use the simpler exercises and always stick to dumbbells instead of barbells (barbells are more complex typically), the combinations can be endless and in 25-30 minutes you can be out of the gym. I am, of course, tacking on warm up time! And as always, FORM over SPEED and use weights you are comfortable with.

So when it comes to the Holidays, treat it like any other week of the year. Have your weekly cheat meal, but the rest of the time eat well and exercise. When you think about it, it really isn't that hard, is it?