I love the Christmas holidays. It’s a great time of feasting, probably one of the only times we let go of calorie counting and eat everything on the plate. It’s also a season of sitting on the couch chatting with family and friends for hours. I dare say it’s one of the times when a sedentary lifestyle makes perfect sense.
As one who consumes red meat intermittently, I ate more goat meat in a few days than I probably had in three months. I savoured every bite and added extra garnish when I could. There’s something about the Christmas holidays that supports throwing food and drinks caution to the wind, and I believe it’s all part of the aesthetics of the season.
Christmas holiday is the gate pass to everything enjoyment (sometimes excessive), so thankfully, it is only a couple of weeks because it can be catastrophic to your waistline to stay in this high-level merriment for an extended period. Eating everything on the plate for a couple of weeks is okay, but soon enough, you might notice some unwanted results. You might start to feel slightly heavier, begin to get accustomed to a sedentary lifestyle, and start to consume too much alcohol, and all of these will impact your physical well-being in no time.
Healthy living is the first requisite of happiness.
tochi okafor
I struggled on my first day back at the gym after the holidays, and some parts of my brain suggested I move my gym resumption to a later date. I almost yielded because I had been lounging on my sofa a few days before eating everything served to me. Honestly, I was seduced by the idea of falling back. If you are reading this article and looking for motivation, here are a few tips you can adopt to help ease into your health & fitness goals in this new year.
Add Vegetables To Every Meal: While I ate a lot of jollof rice, goat meat & ofada during the holidays, I wasn’t as committed to adding vegetables to my meals. Like most Nigerian meals, we are heavy on carbs and animal protein and pay very little attention to fruits and steamed vegetables. The first thing I noticed was my bowel movement became less frequent, and that’s evidence of a lack of fiber. Fiber is found mainly in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes and is best known for its ability to prevent or relieve constipation. It would be best to remember that a healthy bowel movement indicates a healthy gut, which impacts your health. I have since re-introduced fruits and vegetables into my meals, and like a miracle, my bowels are happy again. By all means, indulge in your rice and chicken, including a serving of salad, beans or any steamed vegetable. If there’s one health tip I highly recommend for 2023 is that you include dietary fiber in your meals. This way, you keep your gut happy.
Increase Your Water Intake: During the holidays, our fridges are usually stashed with sodas, juices, alcohol and all sorts of sugar-laden drinks. We eat differently during the holidays (usually more unhealthily). If you do a quick audit, you will be shocked to realise you have dropped from your usual water intake. I noticed a drop in mine. Everywhere I turned, there was an offering of wine, a cocktail or a glass of juice, and I drank them with no questions asked because, again, it was the holiday, and I had declared total enjoyment. But it is advisable to make the switch after the holidays. Good habits are easy to break, and if you keep with the holiday drinking for too long, you might be stressed and dehydrated. Fill up a bottle and carry it with you, so it serves as a reminder and helps you meet your daily water intake. Water remains the best form of hydration, so make the switch today.
Start Moving Again: From breakfast in bed to watching movies on Netflix all day, the Christmas holidays keep us on the sofas for long periods. We get accustomed to moving only from the living to the kitchen for refills. My average steps per day before the holidays (excluding my workout sessions) was definitely above 5,000 steps, and during the holidays, I barely hit 1,000 steps on many days. Frequent movement contributes to high energy levels, so being sedentary can lead to fatigue. Suppose you aren’t ready to hit the gym; try to hit a reasonable number of steps daily. You can include long walks or a jog to increase your heart rate.
Reset Your Sleep Cycle: Staying up late becomes a part of our routine during the holidays. We lose track of time and stay up even when we are exhausted. Maybe it’s FOMO(fear of missing out), but there’s something about sleeping early and for long hours that doesn’t feel right during the holidays. Now that the holidays are winding down, you need to let go of the feeling of FOMO and get to bed. 7-8 hours of sleep is highly recommended, so pull out your alarm clock if you need to, decline offers of late nights or make more of an effort to get a good night’s rest.
Stay fit, live healthy.
Please don’t take the impact of the holidays for granted, and we usually adopt new habits to match the festivity. If some of these habits go unchecked, it can lead to unwanted outcomes. The after-holiday transition is necessary to intentionally let go of the holiday habits and behaviours and revert to the good habits that deliver your desired results. A few days into the new year, I observed a “cleanse” – to reset my body. I mainly ate pawpaws, bananas, apples and other fruits. I re-introduced my insulated bottles, also. I had not been carrying my insulated bottle around, so I wasn’t meeting my 2.5 litre-a-day water target. Another health tip I highly recommend in 2023 is an insulated bottle. With a bottle always with you, you will stay hydrated and meet your required daily water intake.
These four things can be part of your health & fitness goals for 2023. They are habits that will contribute positively to your physical and mental well-being. Cheers to a fantastic year of health & fitness.
Thank you for reading.
1 Comment
Awesome thanks