Everybody loves the holidays, whether it be Halloween, Christmas, New Year or even just those regular celebrations that we enjoy with our friends and family. Holidays also means food, not just snacks but lots and lots of carbs and sweets! Who wouldn’t enjoy it right? Perhaps you’re an athlete or someone on a diet, these holidays are definitely a tough call for us.
In sports, there’s this thing called the reversibility principle where athletes can lose the effects of training when they stop and gain the effects when they begin to train again. There is no doubt that there are difficulties of going back to the rhythm of working out and training or even getting back on track with schedules and routines after the holidays. So here are 4 tips to successfully get back to training after the holidays! Sit back, learn and apply these tips to regain that hot bod of yours!
Be more forgiving with yourself
Holidays are meant to be enjoyed with our family and friends but sometimes we hold back on enjoying the celebration because of certain things that we prohibit ourselves from doing like eating sweets, carbs or generally just eating too much. Well, don’t beat yourself up too much if you’re feeling a little sluggish because it is totally normal and the holidays can really do that to any person.
Cheat days or cheat weeks are not something you should be afraid of. You shouldn’t push yourself nor your body to its limits after the holidays to take back or withdraw the amount of food you ate during the holiday season. But instead, see things differently and take all your time to build up your momentum and slowly increase the intensity of your workouts to let our body adapt and recover with the changes. Just do it slowly, one step at a time, and you will surely be back on track!
Be mindful of what you take in your body
Just like macaroni and cheese, exercise and proper nutrition should always be together. Besides exercising daily, proper diet and nutrition are as equally important as how rigorous or dedicated you train and it is necessary to keep track of your diet after the holidays because this is the primary phase in your preparation to get back to training.
You should supply your body with proper nutrients and the right amount of protein, carbohydrates and fats to maintain that healthy, strong and fit body. Eating vegetables and fruits are taught since we are in grade school and even practiced at home since these are extremely beneficial to gain nutrients that can help maintain a healthy blood pressure and also to boost your metabolism. Hydrating yourself throughout the day can also have a big difference, not just to quench your thirst but also to replace the lost fluids in your body while you workout or continue through your day. Did you know that water helps flush out excess toxins in our body to get things moving in our digestive system? Well if you don’t, you should start drinking more!
Be respectful of your body’s need for rest
Rest is an important part of a healthy lifestyle of a person. Resting can help the body refresh, relax and recover strength which can also affect our mood, immune system and memory. When training, setting a schedule is important to properly pace yourself to get back into the habit of working out. Going overboard with your training during the first week after the holidays is a major no-no since you are abusing your body even more.
The principle of rest and recovery in training suggests that it is important to go slowly to let your body adjust and recover from the new routine that you are working on and proportionate amounts of exercise should be done to avoid too much stress in the body. Do not push yourself too hard as this can lead to injury, start slowly, eventually increasing the duration and intensity of your workouts as you progress. Also, log your achievements and keep tabs to see your progress, don’t worry, you can do it! *wink*.
Lastly, establish a healthy sleep cycle. We all know that quality sleep boosts our heart health and improves your memory though some of you might find it hard to sleep easily because you might’ve messed up your body clock over the holidays but you should make sure to adjust so that you don’t deprive yourself of quality sleep. Sleeping well will not only give you energy for your workouts and an energized body but can also make you feel more motivated to hit the gym!
Be well-prepared by having a positive mindset
Treating yourself is a positive way to encourage and motivate yourself to continue training. Treat yourself to some new workout gear or maybe buy that shoes you’ve been eyeing for a long time, or that sports attire that you’d like to have for so long. Checkout our website whistlekick.com for some new training gears to treat yourself may it be sparring gloves, shin guards and many more. This might encourage you to make return trips to the gym because when you look good, you feel good!
Another way is to set new goals may it be long-term or short-term and work towards them to reach your desired outcome. Every time you feel unmotivated and discouraged, think about your goals and why you even wanted it. Thinking or planning about working out is already a good start so stop thinking and start doing!
Enjoy the Path of Recovery Training!
We all might feel guilty because of eating so much, sleeping late and skipping our work out sessions during the holidays but we should also keep in mind that pushing our body to its limits might end up bad and instead of having positive results, we might even injure and hurt ourselves. Be more forgiving with yourself and allow your body to adapt and recover with the changes after the holidays. Maintain and observe a proper diet and drink lots of fluids to keep your body hydrated! Don’t forget to rest to have more energy and to be more active, energetic and strong during your workout sessions. Lastly, have a positive mindset and set your long-term and short-term goals to achieve and successfully get back to training after the holidays!
When you stop training, many things would really change, may it be your body, skills, techniques and you might even experience fear and anxiety when starting over. It might be stressful and nerve racking to start over again in a new school, regardless of how long it's been but always remember that good stuff doesn’t come easy.
Overcoming fear is not just a part of martial arts but is also a part of life and that is how you grow as a person so be brave, rise and start training again! Check out Whistlekick Martial Arts radio podcast episode 547 to be inspired by Jeremy Lesniak and Mr. Andrew Adams from the breaks they took from their own martial arts journey and how they got back on track!