Maintain your gains this holiday season

Happy holidays to you and yours! This is a hectic time of year and it can be difficult to get all your workouts in. It’s a challenge, even for us trainers. I’m bound for Washington, DC to visit my baby niece through the New Year and will have trouble fitting in workouts too. Here’s a little advice!

First, don’t beat yourself up if you miss a few workouts. As you know, training goes in cycles. Periods of rest and recovery are important for your long-term success.  Use this time to take it easy. That does NOT mean that you should stop training altogether! Doing something is always better than doing nothing. Here are some ways you can maintain your gains this holiday season. First, get into the gym whenever you can. When you’re not at the gym…

 

 

 

• Keep moving! Any kind of physical activity is good for you and is going to make coming back strong easier in January.
• Before or after family dinners, suggest a family walk around the neighborhood.
• If you’re traveling, enjoy the cities you’re visiting on foot or on bike.
• Staying in Texas? Make the most of this mild winter and get outside as much as possible. Take those out-of-town guests for a walk around Lady Bird Lake or to Mt. Bonnell to see the sunset. Knock out the stairs a few times for extra credit!
• Enjoy all of your favorite holiday foods and drinks, but watch your portions. Take the time to really savor these annual delicacies and take pleasure in sharing the experience with your loved ones. Ditch the guilt!
• Make good choices in your non-holiday meals. Just because you are indulging more than usual doesn’t mean you should turn December into a giant binge fest! Choose whole foods as much as possible and make sure you get good quality protein at each meal (and before you dig into that pumpkin pie).
• Make a plan to come back strong in January! Consider signing up for our Kickstarter program which is designed to help you get your nutrition and fitness on-point to see results faster. The program begins the first Saturday of each month, lasts for four weeks, and is capped at 10 participants each month. By the end of 30 days, you will be stronger, leaner, and feeling better than ever! Learn all about it here!
• Feeling ambitious? Below is a bodyweight workout that can be done anywhere and any time. Even 10 minutes of badassery is beneficial!

BODYWEIGHT WORKOUT

Knock out the following reps/sets of exercises every day.  If you’re short on time, skip the breaks and do them back-to-back for a quicker workout guaranteed to get your heart rate.

• Air squats (15-20×3) – Keep them tight and controlled and try to get as deep as possible. Squeeze your glutes and keep your knees out!
• Push ups (10-15×3) – Focus on getting a full range of motion  and make sure your chest almost hits the floor! Keep your abs tight tight tight.
• Break
• Lunges (16×3) – Alternate legs and stay tight and controlled.
• Jackknife push ups (10×3) – These work the tops of your shoulders (medial deltoids). Stand with your feet wider than hip-width apart, then lean forward and place your hands on the ground over your head. Bend at the elbows to bring your head almost to the ground, then straighten and push up. Like doing an overhead press against the ground.
• Break
• Good mornings (15×3) – These work your back, hamstrings and glutes. Stand straight with your feet wider than hip-width apart. Put your hands on the back of your head as you would when doing a sit-up. Keeping your back flat, hinge at your hips, forcing your hips back, keeping your knees soft but not really bent. Lean forward as far as you can while keeping your back flat, then quickly pop back up, driving your hips forward and snapping your knees tight.
• Triceps dips (from bed, sturdy chair, etc.) (15×3) – Focus on getting a deep dip with a full range of motion. Keep your elbows pointing back and your butt close to the bed/chair.
• Break
• Wall sits (1 min x3) – Keep your knees apart, thighs parallel to the floor. Progress to1:15, 1:30, 1:45 or 2 mins as possible!Planks for time (1 min x3) – Progress to 1:15, 1:30, 1:45 as possible.

Beckie Lough is a personal trainer at Austin Simply Fit South. Beckie specializes in strength training and is an accomplished powerlifter with several medals under her belt. Want to train with Beckie? Email her today at beckie.lough@gmail.com