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2003/12/01, 04:11 PM
Here is some info that I just come across, thought would be just good timing for the H-Days and all.
Tuesday, November 25, 2003 Posted: 10:54 EDT
by Wayne L. Westcott, Ph.D.
Special For eFitness
The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are a special time of year for a variety of reasons, but this festive season of families and feasting presents a major problem
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from a health and fitness perspective.
Consider that the shorter days and colder weather make it more difficult to do outdoor physical activity. The days of mowing the lawn, raking the leaves, hoeing the garden and trimming the bushes are long gone. Outdoor walking, jogging and cycling are less inviting. Backyard games of softball, basketball and touch football are hard to find, and no one wants to be your golf or tennis partner.
Unfortunately, the summertime appeal of fruit salads, vegetable salads and lots of cold water has waned, and larger, heartier meals are much more inviting. Add to this the banquet tables, parties and food-filled family events characteristic of the holiday season, and we have a hard-to-beat recipe for weight gain.
What simple steps can we take to maintain a desirable body weight and fitness level during these festive weeks? Good news: there are several things we can do to avoid weight gain and fitness loss, but they work better synergistically. That is, selecting one or two interventions is not nearly as effective as incorporating as many strategies as possible on a daily or weekly basis. By the way, if you have similar problems between New Year's and springtime, these strategies are equally effective throughout the winter months.
Step One: Find 15 minutes to exercise everyday. Regardless of the time or place, commit to at least a quarter-hour of physical activity. This can take the form of calisthenics exercises when you get up in the morning or before you go to bed at night.
A walk around the block at home or around the parking lot at work, a trip up and down the office building steps twice a day, a few dumbbell exercises at home or a circuit of strength machines at the gym after work can all be effective. A home exercise cycle while watching the morning news, 15 minutes on the stair climbing machine at the fitness center before work, an uninterrupted walk around the mall parking lot on pleasant days (and the same walk inside the mall during inclement weather), walking the dog and playing with your children whenever possible are also good means of exercise.
Step Two: In lieu of 15-minute activity sessions, make a serious effort to park farther away from the office, stores, banks, restaurants, etc. Lots of shorter walks are actually as beneficial as a single longer walk. Be sure to take the stairs rather than the elevator or escalator, at least for traveling between three floors or less.
Avoid people movers like the plague, especially in airports where walking is the only exercise you are likely to get between sitting in waiting areas and on planes. Carry some luggage when traveling by air, and park away from the comfort stations when traveling by car. Use doors that open by hand rather than by automatic sensors, change television channels at the set rather than by the remote control, refuse to use drive-up stations at banks and restaurants, and get out of the car as often as you can whenever you travel. If you take the train, stand as much as possible rather than sitting throughout the trip.
Step Three: Promise yourself to avoid fast food establishments and to minimize high-calorie snacks or meals. With so much great food available during the holidays, it makes no sense to indulge in junk foods when you can enjoy more nutritious and delicious meals.
Convince yourself that one desert per meal is plenty even when there are three different pies to choose from. Pies keep very well, so go with the apple today, the pumpkin tomorrow and the cherry the next day. Be cautious about too much coffee, cola and other caffeinated beverages, as well as alcohol, all of which can have a dehydrating effect.
Stay away from all you can eat buffets, as extra food is hardly necessary during the holiday season. Eat only until you feel satiated, even if there is plenty of additional food on the table. If you experience hunger pangs later, there should be lots of leftovers to meet your needs.
Always select lower fat/lower calorie alternatives when given choices. For example, many dinner events offer alternative entrees, such as prime rib or baked scrod. Unless you can't stand seafood, go with the much healthier fish dish.
Because salads seem to be prevalent this time of year, fill up first on tossed salad, fresh fruit salad, carrot-raisin salad, waldorf salad, tuna salad, etc. before consuming the more calorie-dense and fat-laden main courses. Along the same line, bread and rolls are not fattening, unless you smother them with butter or margarine. Eating a couple plain rolls or a few slices of good bread can help you feel full without adding a lot of calories.
Colorful and aromatic as they may be, shun sauces, gravies and creamed dishes that can really weigh you down with extra fat and calories. You may also find that following large holiday meals, simple deserts are more satisfying than the more complex concoctions that leave you feeling overstuffed and heavier than lead. A single dish of ice cream can leave you feeling a lot better than a death by chocolate combination that contains more calories than the rest of your dinner.
Step Four: Plan ahead for events that you know will be hard on your diet and a challenge to your willpower. If you are going to a special dinner or party, eat less for lunch, drink plenty of water throughout the afternoon and establish firm parameters for your eating behavior before you enter the establishment.
Resolve to eat only one appetizer, one desert, the healthiest entrée available, and to go heavy on the salad bar instead of the open bar. For most of us, the real battlefield is in our mind. If we premeditate on how we will act at dinner, we are much more likely to eat in a sensible and healthy manner. On the other hand, if we decide when we get there or go with the flow, we will probably find the experience less satisfying than it could have been.
Remember, it is unlikely that any single factor will make a big difference in your holiday health and fitness. However, if you consistently incorporate several of these survival steps into your holiday lifestyle, you may find yourself in better shape for the New Year than you were in November.
Wayne L. Westcott, Ph.D. is Fitness Research Director at the South Shore YMCA in Quincy, MA., and author of several books including the new releases Building Strength and Stamina and Strength Past 50.
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