Get ready for the Holidays by adding a gym routine to prevent weight gain.
Do you know that people gain the most weight annually during October to January? Here is a study from Pub Med that proves it. It’s because of all those damn holidays! Don’t get me wrong, I love the holidays. An excuse to pig out on mom’s Turkey dinners at Thanksgiving and Christmas! Pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice everything including cheerios! Slightly ridiculous! Don’t get me started on Halloween candy. And then when the candy goes on sale! Temptations come from everywhere, and from every angle. Then there’s the chocolates you get as gifts, and copious amounts of alcohol at Christmas and New Years. No wonder people gain the most weight at this time of year.
Lets not forget the STRESS around the holidays as well! The more stressed you are, the more cortisol is released into your bloodstream which makes your body store more fat. Here is a great article explaining just that from Web MD. It’s like a vicious cycle, because the more stressed you are, the more sweets and alcohol you are likely to crave. But have no fear, as I have a solution for you! Hit the gym!
If you were to go to the gym 3 times a week for an hour from now until January 1st, you will significantly reduce your chances of weight gain over the holidays.
Hallelujah! This means you can still enjoy the dinners, alcohol, chocolates, and pumpkin spice cheerios without having to worry about gaining that extra weight.
By hitting the gym, I mean lifting weights. This will improve your muscle mass which will help your body burn fat and also speed up your metabolism. So often I see or hear of people just doing an hour of cardio in the “fat loss” zone and then doing 300 sit ups. This, my friend, does not work. To get the most bang for your buck at the gym, you must hit the weights to build muscle, to help you burn more calories throughout the day. Be sure to get help from a personal trainer so that you reduce your chance of injury and get more value for your time spent at the gym.
A great reason to lift weights during the holidays is to reduce stress!
I think during the holidays, as great as they are, are stressful for everyone. I bet if there was a study, everyone would have increased blood pressure around this time. Hey, lifting weights also can decrease high blood pressure!
So grab that workout gear, gym shoes, and water bottle and sweat the stress (and weight) of the the holidays away!