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5 Tips for your Holiday Survival Guide

5 Tips for your Holiday Survival Guide

Strive-Fitness-and-Therapy-Winnipeg-MB

Wow, I cannot believe we are planning for the holidays already, where has the time gone? With such a beautiful Winnipeg Fall (hottest city in Canada last week) it is no wonder mid-November and the holidays are sneaking up on us so rapidly. While these winter months are some of the best family time of the year, it also comes with a lot of stress and frustration as we aim to rebound hard in January. As we enter the holiday season think of the following, and keep this an enjoyable time of year!

Trust your Habits

Have faith that you are doing a lot in your power to take control of your health and fitness. If you are reading this, you most likely have spent time working on your strength, movement, conditioning, and nutrition. You have taken steps to improve your physical health, as well as inspired people around you. Over the next couple months, your time may be divided by various factors. However for a lot of clients, fitness and exercise has become a way of life.

As times get busy, focus on your minimums, your non-negotiables. In the next six weeks, aim to get to the gym 10 times. That is twice a week for four weeks, and once a week for two. The qualities of Strength and Conditioning takes longer than we think to diminish. Don’t add stress or lose sleep by barreling through your tasks. Trust your habits, and stick with it.

Prep your List

As the saying goes, “if you fail to plan, then plan to fail”. Take 30-60 minutes with a pen and paper and write your list of everything that needs to be done (don’t let your phone distract you, if you need to copy it into your phone we can do that after). Are you traveling? When, where, what do you need. Are you buying presents? Who, when, what, set your budget. Are you planning a dinner? Who is coming, When, What do you need to buy.

Get your list in order, when things need to be accomplished, and get it into your list.

Focus on One Task at a Time

As you look over your list, ruthlessly prioritize your “must do’s” and begin to pick them apart. A study on procrastination tells us that no matter how long you have to complete a task, we accomplish about 5% in the first third of time, 20% in the middle third, and 75% as the deadline approaches with us exponentially increasing activity before it is too late. Ruthlessly prioritize and chip away at getting things done over time.

Make Time for Yourself and Recovery

It is recommended to find 20 un-interrupted minutes to yourself most days of the week. While taking time can be difficult, find moments where you can do something you enjoy or quiet time to reflect. These opportunities should take you out of your day to day thinking. Consciously find moments you can appreciate and break during your day like going for a walk, sitting in silence, or texting a friend. Many clients enjoy moments and the community of training at Strive with your buddies, or make a commitment now to treat yourself with a November / December massage from our massage therapist Kyle. Make a commitment to find moments to yourself to do nothing.

Enjoy the Holidays

Success is built over the long haul. A couple family dinners, a night with friends, and a night for coworkers is not going to break your health and fitness journey. In fact, stress can wreak havoc on metabolism, weight loss, and weight management; allowing yourself to relax and enjoy these moments can be crucial for long term sustainability and peace of mind. The trick is to not allow those days to spill over and last a week. Plan to have a singular meal. While eating mindfully and having leftovers is encouraged, do everything in your power to prepare meals accordingly and leave desserts behind. If it is in your house, either you, a family member, or friend WILL EAT IT eventually. Tell yourself to enjoy the moment, then get immediately back on track.

Through this Holiday season understand that there will be highs and lows, busy periods, and sleepless nights. Do your best to stay in the moment, take things as they come, and take care of yourself.

You got this!

The STRIVE Team


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