5 Ways to Stay in Shape for the Holidays

5 Ways to Stay In Shape for the Holidays

Cumming, GA – Halloween is over, the gravestones and zombie hands are gone from the front lawn, and icicle lights and reindeer are being put up early once again. Thanksgiving and Christmas are on the way, and while we all look forward to the holiday cheer, you might be worried about the extra pounds from all the upcoming turkey dinners.

We asked the experts at the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA) to tell us the 5 most effective ways to stay in shape over those dangerously delicious holiday months.

If you haven’t heard of the ISSA, they are the organization that literally teaches the nation’s top personal trainers how to get their clients into shape. Below is what the
Technical support staff of the trainers to the personal trainers told us on how to avoid weight gain and maintain a state of fitness throughout the winter holidays:

1. Drink lots of water – Our bodies are made up of something like 70% water. Just a
1% drop in water intake can severely dehydrate you, limiting your performance in every aspect of your life.

2. Cut out fast food – fast food just isn’t good for your body. Regardless of what the high-powered advertising agencies tell you. Fast food has too many chemicals, food additives, refined sugars, high fructose corn syrup, fried foods, and an overall lack of nutrition. Sure, you’ll be getting calories from those holiday dinners, but at least there’s some nutritional content in a home cooked meal.

3. Exercise every day – Old research said you must exercise 30 minutes a day, but the latest experts suggest this just isn’t enough. What do you need to get in the best shape of your life? 60 minutes of vigorous exercise, daily.

4. Eat 5-7 small meals per day – Yes, you heard that right! Not only does eating small frequent meals throughout the day level out your blood sugar and decrease the lows you may experience throughout the day, but eating sensibly, and often, will provide your muscles and body with the appropriate nutrition you need to get you through your entire day.

5. Reduce your calories by 300 per day (if over daily amount) – There are 3500 calories in a pound of fat. So if you cut your calories by 300 per day, times 30 days in a month, that is a 9000 calorie deficit -- approximately 2 ½ half pounds. Combine this with exercise, and you are virtually guaranteed to win the fight against the fat that comes with Grandma’s Chocolate Oreo Mudslide Cheesecake.



Dr. John P DeMann, ISSA