GETTING BACK INTO IT AFTER THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS.
Hey everyone,
I hope you all had an amazing Christmas and New Year. Everyone I’m sure we all had our fair share of chocolate, cake, alcohol, treats and all things delicious. This most likely then turned into two weeks of eating whatever, whenever and basically finishing off all the leftovers, eating all the Christmas gifts and then there’s using all the gift vouchers for all the restaurants and cafes – it truly feels like it’s never ending! You would have to be superhuman to resist all the Christmas treats. Keep in mind, it happens once a year so no reason to feel guilty and put yourself down about it. I know how many of you struggle to brush it off and come to terms with it but hopefully these tips below will help motivate you to get back on track and jump-start a healthy new year!
MY 5 TIPS TO GET BACK ON TRACK AFTER CHRISTMAS.
- DONT PANIC.
First things first. A few days off the diet plan or training doesn’t mean you need to have an anxiety attack, its ok to have a break over the Christmas/New Years period to recover, recharge and relax…and yes that includes relaxing on the training and the diet. After this period you will see a lot of quick fix diets advertised, please don’t feel the need to seek out these and to use them because most do more harm than good. You don’t need to be forcing down some disgusting detox juice with beetroot and cabbage or doing 40 hours of cardio a week to burn off the tub of ice-cream or family block of chocolate you ate (Don’t act like you haven’t done this before ha-ha) What you should aim to do is to simply just get back on track with proper nutrition and training as soon as possible and let your body work itself. Take one day at a time and just focusing on the simple basics that work, and that is to eat healthy and get moving each day.
- GET THE DAY OFF TO A GOOD START.
I’m a completely different person depending how I start my morning. If I sleep in, skip my morning workout or breakfast I am angry LT. Starting my morning off right is SO important to me, getting moving in the morning just sets up your day so well both physically and mentally. It doesn’t have to be forcing yourself to do a hard session at the gym. Sometimes it’s getting up that little bit earlier to go for a walk without your phone or starting the moving with some simple yoga stretches and movements.
Which leads into starting the day with the right nutrition. I’m sure you’ve all heard the saying “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. To me breakfast is essential to fuel my body and brain properly – I know you girls will feel me when I say this, I’ve had some rushed mornings in the past where I’ve slept in, completely missed my morning routine, skipped breakfast and started my day feeling like zombie, not my vibrant, outgoing self – in fact I felt depressed, unmotivated and extremely negative even though I got more sleep than I normally would. When you’re getting back on track after Christmas something as simple as getting into a routine or having breakfast might help! Starting your day with a nutritious and filling breakfast will set you up for the rest of your day.
TRY AN EGG WHITE OMELETEE.
I LOVE EGGS. If you don’t already know ha-ha. Great source of protein and a personal favourite of mine. The great thing is you can now go to your local woollies or Coles and buy cartons of egg whites, which saves you having to separate egg whites, so easy! Egg whites are super high in protein but very low in calories, the reason to separate the yolk from the white is that each yolk whilst packed full of goodness and nutrients still contains around 5g of fat each yolk, so you can still do 1 or 2, but then make the rest of the omelette from the whites of the egg. You can play around with the ingredients to suit your own taste but I love adding a handful of spinach, tomato and a little bit of feta cheese. I normally have this by itself or add a slice of rye sourdough or burgen bread to provide some additional carbs. Try avocado instead of butter.
- HYDRATE!
I can’t promote this enough! I am literally always drinking water, trust me – your body gets used to it. A great way to know if you’re drinking enough is getting one of the 1.3lt or 2.2lt big bottles from Team Flex (Add link) and start off buy drinking a whole bottle or two each day, I also check my pee, if it has a strong, dark yellow colour you are still dehydrated, you want that pee to be clear and you’re on the right track.
Organisation is everything. I went out and got myself a diary to plan some busy days ahead, if I don’t write down what I’m doing, have a task list or do groceries then you’ll most likely catch me going through maccas drive through for dinner LOL. When you plan your meals and have them already prepped, you are less likely to make unhealthy choices. Keep in mind to always lay out your workout gear and pack your fitness bag the night before, it helps you to get ready easier in the morning and have less excuses to skip the gym or contact a friend to meet them so they can keep you accountable.
- JUST MOVE.
It’s simple. Just do something and by that, I mean, get moving. Do some form of exercise during the day. It’s as simple as taking action again. Put together an overall body workout together from my app and work through it, whether you’re taking the harder option or the lower option, at least you’re moving and doing more than what you did yesterday. Another good option is walking! If you’ve still got the family with you, get them in on the act. The time will fly by when you walk and talk, 30 mins to an hour really won’t feel like exercise. Maybe you’re feeling a little more active but your local gym is still closed. Put on your joggers, jam in your headphones and get running. Weather it’s as simple as 20 seconds on of sprints on the beach and 10 seconds of rest time 20 times or pacing yourself for a 20-30min run it won’t take you long to work up a sweat or get your heart pumping and feeling amazing post run and most importantly the indulgence will seep out of your pores. (Gross but so good lol) Running isn’t for everyone so if you truly hate it then don’t force yourself. Perhaps try some bodyweight exercises (So many to pick from on my app) which requires no equipment and you can set up literally anywhere! The goal is to keep things short, sharp and to the point. Keep rest periods brief and don’t drag it out for a two hour marathon. 40 minutes max! Just get it done. Your body and mind will thank you later.
The bottom line is, you need to revert back to your day to day plan ASAP! Yes, you should totally enjoy yourself but there comes to a point where Christmas has to end, at the end of the day if you want to make progress you need to be putting in the work. Yes, it may seem like a massive struggle but simple take small steps to get back on track. Oh, and also… my last advice is to throw away the chocolate or puddings sitting around in the house or even donate it to a homeless hub.
Love always,
LT. x
