The game plan made complete sense, but sometimes you just want to go straight home after work. You packed your gym bag to take to work. You meal prepped. You had plenty of sleep. Yet, you still do not feel like going to the gym. Which excuse are we going to use? “It is getting dark early”,  ” I have to go Christmas shopping”, ” I want to go to happy hour with co-workers”, “The kids have homework”.  The list can go on and on.

December is historically the most difficult month for everyone to stay motivated. Unfortunately, you cannot avoid the fact that eventually you will lose motivation. However, the key to success when you are losing motivation is to understand that discipline is more important than motivation.  Motivation is great to get you started on making changes, but discipline will keep you going in the long run.

I believe that the holidays do deserve more flexibility in regards to your  fitness program and goals. With that being said,  here are a few tips  to help you keep up the routine and healthy habits.

1.) FOCUS ON DISCIPLINE

Everyone has days when they “do not feel like working out.”  Sometimes you need to just go to the gym even if you do not feel like it.  Being discipline  will help you reach your goals when motivation is not enough.

2.) KEEP FITNESS IN YOUR TOP 3 PRIORITIES

When you are getting started on your fitness journey, fitness is your #1 priority. However, when the holidays come up it is easy for fitness to fall completely off the list.  Enjoy the holiday parties, your kid’s school events, or even a trip out to the mountains. The goal is to keep fitness in your top 3 priorities this time of year.

3.) SIMPLIFY YOUR WORKOUT TO 3 DAYS PER WEEK FOR 45-60 MIN

Your goal was train 60 minutes for 5 or 6 days per week with only 1 cheat meal per week.  Now that the holidays are  here you start to say, “I keep missing days, so what’s the point? I’ll start up again in January.”  To answer your question, the point is keep a healthy habits and structure in your lifestyle.  Missing a few workouts will not ruin all of your progress, but missing a whole month will set you back much further than you realize.  A workout program of 3 days per week for 45-60 minutes will keep your blood flowing and help keep you in the routine of showing up to the gym.

4.) MAINITAINING IS ALSO A GOAL

Maybe when you started working out  your goal was to lose weight, but you want to enjoy the holidays.  Maintaining during the month of December is a good goal.  The average person will gain 7-9 lbs of body fat during the holiday season. If your goal is to maintain, you will be 7-9 lb ahead of the game come the new year.

5.) KEEP HEALTHY HABITS

Having a healthy breakfast, eating adequate protein, drinking plenty of water, and getting enough sleep will make it much easier to start training hard after the holidays.  Do not let the holiday parties take over your entire lifestyle and leave you feeling you need to “detox” on January 1, 2020.

Life is about balance. Enjoy yourself, but do not let the holidays be the reason bad habits are created. I hope you found this article helpful.  Send me a message or email on any topics you would like to learn about.

The Ultimate Fitness Coach app is expected to be complete early January.  I will be offering a 30 day free trial as a part of the official launch. More details coming soon.

Have a healthy holiday season,

Houston Fry

Ultimate Fitness