Feeling Guilt-Free Is Not Easy Over Christmas.

It’s this time of year you’ll see fitness professionals talk about enjoying Christmas, not counting calories, eating what you want, feeling guilt-free, how it can all be fixed next year.

I get that. I believe in that. BUT let’s put it into a little context.

If you’ve been exercising consistently all year, been fairly disciplined with your nutrition, been dealing with stress ok and sleeping fairly well — the “dont-feel-guillty” approach is pretty solid advice.

It’s a time to relax, recharge the body and mind, to come back ready for another push in 2023!

But let’s be honest. There will be swathes of people out there, in Ely and beyond. who HAVEN’T been able to do that in 2022. >> And they know the festive period means putting on a stone (or more). << This advice doesn’t really connect with them, I feel.

I’m sure the festivities will mean feeling pretty anxious, lacking control, stress and wondering how you’ll ever recover to get going with your health and fitness after 2 weeks of even more over-indulgence.

Here’s some simple advice that I use to help myself feel better, mentally and physically, over the Christmas period……..

We have time off from work. Never under-estimate the power of a winter walk.

Sure, it’s not going to transform your body BUT it will help to make you feel better amid all the madness of Celebration sweets and watching empty booze bottles pile up.

Take it further, wake up, have a ‘healthy’ breakfast, go for a walk. Then what happens the rest of the day happens. You’ve moved your body, helped your mind to feel better, and instilled a little discipline into your day — which can be built upon post-Christmas to get going.

Have a day ON/OFF with alcohol.

There’s nothing worse than having time off, too much indulgence, then returning to work feeling even worse than when we broke off! (I’ve done it, trust me!! We all have right?)

Drink and enjoy yourself of course, on designated days, but make a promise the next day will be booze-free. Together with your walk, this will really help. Try to drink lots of water on ‘off’ days too!

Realise The Holidays Are SHORT!!

(**For me, this is THE most important of all**)

I used to beat myself up at Christmas because, like you, I eat and drink more than normal. I’d return to work feeling sluggish, bloated, like my brain wasn’t in gear, clothes feeling tighter, less toned, it was hard to get going. To be truthful, I was a little annoyed at myself.

And during the break I always had a feeling of guilt, that I was ‘being bad’, at the back of my mind — which never allowed me to fully relax.

After years of this cycle, I identified that with 2 or 3 exercise sessions under my belt after Christmas, I was largely feeling like I did before the break.

Two weeks of madness really didn’t change everything – like I was telling myself. It was all in my head. I quickly got back to my routine, began enjoying exercise again and life resumed.

In fact, I noticed I felt MORE energised because I’d given my body and mind a break.

Please keep this in mind. It’s NEVER as bad as we tell ourselves, and ANYTHING can be fixed (with the proper action).

Hope this helps someone to navigate the holiday. 🙂