Lancaster Personal Trainers 4 Tips to Keep Fat-Free Throughout the Holidays

Hey Everyone!

We are back, sorry it has been awile since we have had any updates. Due to our house issue and such, we are just now getting back into the swing of things. I hope the following will help you through the "tough" times of the Holidays.

Now we all know how busy we can get right? I sure as heck due. However, you can't let yourself get caught into the trap of not working out to make more time for the holiday run around. Its typically a big mistake that most people fall into; which puts you at risk of losing the lean muscle mass and strength that you have worked so hard to build and maintain. "Why?", You might say. Loss in lean muscle mass will lower your resting metabolic rate, which accounts the the vast majority of calories you burn in the day(about 60-75%). So, this means when you lose lean muscle mass, you will in turn be burning less and less calories throughout the day which will put you at a much greater risk of putting on nasty, ugly, unwanted body fat during the holidays. Make sense? Plus, losing strength will meant hat the next time you start to workout your perofrmance will be less than par and you'll get smacked right upside the head with that ugly work nobody cares to hear when it comes to training: Regression! Therefor, there are more clever ways to maintain or increase the number of calories you burn per day, both from exercise and from your normal daily activities, to stay fat-free this holiday season.

I promise if you use the strategies below you will maintain or even increase your current amout of Lean Muscle Mass and Maximize your daily calorie burn to the best to protect yourself from the holiday BLOAT.

1.) Perform atleast One Intense Strength Training Session Per Week!

Studies show that only one single strength training workout per week during times when you cannot train like you would like is an effective way to maintain current levels of strength and lean muscle mass. So, to best maintain where you currently are, shoot for atleast one good strength trining workout per week to stay buff during the holidays and prevent that unwanted regression. To maximize fat burning, perform three total body strength workouts and also perform three cardio interval workouts per week on non strength training days.

2.) Hit Your Totals

Your body is a moron. In other words, it can't tell the difference between 100 pushups performed in a row vs. 100 total pushups performed in a day. When you honestly can't find a five to 20-minute time slot to complete an effective total body workout, look for hidden chunks of time during the day that you can sneak in a certain amount of reps to shoot for a daily total. i.e. - 20 push ups when you get up, 20 push ups at lunch, etc...=100 per day!
Using this method throughout the da will lead to big numbers by the end of the day that will burn the same amount of calories in addition to creating similar muscle building effects, as if you did them all at once.

It is important to note that this "Hit Your Totals" routine is merely a back-up option the the ideal 20 minute interval training workouts which are proven to burn nine times more fat than ordinary exercise. Short rest periods between rounds create the optimal hormonal enviroment for rapid fat loss and lean muscle gain, where as the long rest periods, full recovery, between movements do not. However, it comes down to effective versus optimal, so be sure to at least be effective this holiday season. (effective=Hit Your Total, optimal=50-10 Interval Workouts)

As we talk about in camp, make sure you get the most Bang for your Buck while doing these types of workouts. (i.e. - dealdlifts, lunges, pushups, rows, push press, high pull, etc.) Use the plan below to guide yourself into building your own "Hit Your Totals" workout. Adjust the repetition ranges accordingly base on your current strength levels. The only thing you need is your body weight, dumbbells, and/or bands. Perform this plan up to three times per week, resting a day between workouts. Make sure to alternate between Plan A and Plan B for variety reasons. You can either hit your total by doing one exercise first, or simply employ a circuit style setup.

The Hit Your Total Workout For The Holidays
Plan A-

Body weight Squats or Hip Extensions: 100-200 total
Push-ups: 50-100 total
DB/Band Rows: 50-100 total

Plan B-

Body weight Lunges or Single-Leg Hip Extensions: 50-100/total per leg
Off Chair/Couch Dips: 50-100 total
DB/Band Push Press: 50-100 total (feel free to swap pull-ups or pull-downs here if you have access to the equipment)

3.) Rage Against The Machines

Machines have made us an incredibly out of shape and overweight society. This holiday season make it a point to not use them! Now I don’t mean to say that you cannot drive to the mall during the holidays. However, when you get to the mall, try to park further away so you can do more walking to get inside. Avoid using elevators and escalators and opt for the stairs; all those steps truly do add up. Instead of having your naughty kids carry the bags, burn more calories by carrying the bags yourself (sorry, that was the former naughty kid in me raging, ha ha). Stay on your feet as much as possible and resist the temptation to let a robot or machine do the work for you.

4.) Engage in more outdoor holiday activities

I have been in some pretty incredible snowball fights in my day. Though I was always having a blast while pelting my friends behind some sweet built-by-Greg igloos, I was never aware of how exhausting a good snowball fight can truly be until I came indoors afterwards. My snowsuit was soaked with sweat and I had spent the last 30 minutes or so in total fight or flight mode. Talk about an awesome way to burn calories without even thinking about it! Get outdoors this holidays season and throw around the pigskin or have your very own “Ice Bowl.” Once again, all these calories here and there truly do add up and could make a difference between you fitting in your pants or ripping your pants by the time the clock strikes midnight this New Year!