How to Keep Trotting Through the Holidays
The holiday season is upon us! This is traditionally a time of year with increased stress and impulsion’s that trigger many of us to take a break on our exercise program only to promise we will restart with the new year. What steps can we take to maintain our exercise regimen when faced with holiday lists, parties, and stimulation overload?
Avoid getting caught in a cycle of unfruitful traditions and holiday habits that leave you feeling drained. Everyone’s holiday traditions differ but for many, they are variations of the following: decorate, bake, shop, gather, eat, and SIT. In many American homes that sitting involves watching football.
When it comes to football [and many traditions] I’ve been told more than once that I am “very un-American.” But– I’ve been called worse things, so I’m totally okay with this one. Truthfully, I am proud to be an American, but I would much rather play than sit and watch someone else play.
Get Off the Carousel
Holidays can certainly be a wonderful time of the year. We spend time with friends and family, celebrate, and give thanks. However, so often in life and especially during holidays, we go through the motions entrenched in traditions. Let’s hop off the carousel and improve our American traditions with physical activity.
How?
Recent research has shown that practicing mindfulness can enhance exercise engagement and adherence. Mindfulness is a process of actively making new distinctions about objects in one’s awareness which cultivates sensitivity to variations in context, rather than relying on entrenched categorizations from the past.
People who are not present in the moment tend to think and act automatically. Thus, when we are more mindful of our environment, we have greater control over our lives.
Steps:
- Be present in the moment.
Instead of perceiving and acting out of habit, be aware of what is occurring. An example: the TV is on, recognize that you have a choice about sitting down to watch TV or doing something else.
- Accept what is occurring.
The reality is that you get to make a choice. You are not a robot!
- Note what is actually happening instead of what you have a habit of perceiving.
Is your family welcoming you to come watch TV with them or do you have a habit of perceiving that they pressure you to watch TV? You get to choose either way, but recognize that your habitual perception may not be their true intention.
Start A New Tradition
This Thanksgiving when you are with your family and friends, I promise, this article on mindfulness will come to mind. 🙂 Use it as a prompt and take action. Even if you go on an hour walk, the football game will STILL be on for another 2.5 hours when you get back! When you chose mindfulness instead of taking a seat on the habit carousel, you will live more intentionally. Furthermore, it will truly enhance the quality of your holiday experience.
Thanks for reading! 🙂
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Reference:
Baltzell, A., & Cote, T. (2018). Mindfulness. In S. Razon & M. L. Sachs (Eds.), Applied Exercise Psychology. (399-416). New York: Routledge.
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