Stationary Bike Stand Buying Tips and Reviews
If you’re anything like me, then you’ll know that pigging out over the Christmas / New Year season is inevitable. It’s just too hard to resist those chocolates, that extra glass of wine, or another slice of your mother’s latest caking adventure…
But even so, there’s no reason to lose sight of the winter goal: keeping yourself in relatively good shape DESPITE all those sweets and treats. You might have woken up this New Years a little chubbier than you planned, but don’t worry, we’ve got it covered with FIVE crucial tips for staying in shape (especially if you bought one of these for Christmas)!
Don’t miss our guide to staying in shape using your trainer with SEVEN awesome tips!
SEE ALSO: How a daily indoor trainer session can help prevent the Big C
Don’t go nuts – eat nuts!
Nuts are everywhere over the holiday season, and could be a great answer to many of your festive slimming woes. Nuts have a lot of vitamins and minerals, but also provide a great source of protein and heart-healthy fats. Probably best of all, they actually do fill you up, unlike chewing on a carrot or lettuce leaves. Of course, you should steer clear of the more luxurious looking nuts, the ones covered in chocolate or honey-roasted, as they’ll be packed full of sugar, and hence a lot more calories.
Try and stay with the natural, raw nuts, like almonds. And once the New Year’s parties and celebrations are over, they are still a highly recommended munchie.
Watch what you eat
An obvious one this one…but seriously, watch out for those heavy, calorie-laden meals heading your way over the winter season.
Most holiday meals are based on something nutritional, like pumpkin, turkey, or sweet potatoes, but more often than not, all that nutrition goes to waste during preparation. Looking at a pumpkin pie for example, the pumpkin part is virtually fat free and good for you. It’s the sugary biscuity crust which will pile on the fat. And turkey roasts are in theory a great nutritional booster, but if they’re soaked and roasted in butter for an hour or two you can kiss that nutrition goodbye.
And once the New Year is over, keep up the good work with those weekend family visits and goodie-rich dinners!
Drink and be merry – but don’t forget to drink water!
Most of us enjoy a drink or three over the festive season, and it’s soooo easy to get half-drunk pretty much the entire holiday period. But that’s a lot of calories to work off. One of my fave tricks for keeping fairly in control is to drink as much water as possible. I always try and have a glass of water between alcoholic beverages, as the water fills me up a little and leaves less room for another beer or whatever is available. I also make sure I drink a glass of water before going to bed as this keeps me hydrated through the night, especially if I know I’ve had one or two too many.
Another little trick for you: hold a glass in your hand at all times. This should avoid friends or relatives pushing a freshly filled glass your way at all times possible…
Don’t stay at the dinner table for extra-long conversations!
When we’re eating around the table or at a buffet-like party, it’s inevitable that we’ll munch on things that are within arm’s reach. Disaster! Don’t be completely unsocial and run from the food and company, but try and steer the conversation away from the food if at all possible.
Forget those super sweet lattes from Starbucks!
There’s nothing like stopping by at your fave coffee shop or Starbucks for a seasonal coffee drink – but boy do those drinks pile on the calories! Just thinking about a pumpkin spice latte or peppermint mocha is enough to get us salivating, the only problem is we’ll be paying for it later! Just look at all those sweet drinks and the added chocolate, whipped cream, whole milk etc – that’s a ton of work on your indoor trainer to work off!
