Move Throughout the Holidays

The following guest post was submitted by Nancy Schwartz, Founder and Transformational Strategist, Envision Healthy Retirement. AARP Connecticut urges people to consult with their doctor about their dietary needs.

In a recent CDC announcement, “Only half of all US adults get the exercise they need. Approximately, 50% of the entire US population lives with a chronic illness, and half suffer from two conditions or more.” In order to be the best version of you, you can utilize daily movements to improve every area of your life. As you age, it becomes imperative to embrace new ways of moving so that you can maintain a high quality of life, unencumbered by limited mobility. Life gets in the way – especially around the Holidays. 

Science now points to new thinking – what if you could spread out this movement session instead of packing it to one short energy burst? Nobody has any extra time in the Holidays to go to the gym. We forgot about thermogenesis, which is your body’s ability to generate heat by burning calories when you move. Any movement counts. Daily activity is the source of up to 70% of your metabolic output – your calorie requirements per day. Keep moving during the day! 

Benefits: 
It turns out, there’s quite a bit.

• Improves resting heart rate, and increases Heart Rate Variability (HRV). Better scores help to deal with stress and fatigue, often felt more during the Holidays.
• Supports energy levels throughout the day – which helps us to reduce caffeine consumption and over eating.
• Builds muscle mass to support the many social engagements and travel so that you can celebrate the Holidays and have FUN.

Top 3 Holiday Secrets and BONUS to Implement TODAY:

• Take the stairs.  It’s usually faster than the crammed elevator, and moves the whole YOU. 
• As you are catching up with all your friends and family, make a conscious choice to choose the phone over Zoom. Therefore, you can make this a walking meeting, either indoors or outdoors. If it’s in person, even better to move both of you!
• Ask Santa for an early present. Use wearables to gamify daily movement with monthly awards. Why not earn extra points and crowns for the Holidays!

BONUS: 

• Adopt a dog. Dogs love the holidays, are people connectors, and will add to your movement scores. Better yet, dogs add to the quality of your life, and help reduce stress!

Start slowly adding one movement at a time to your calendar. What would that be for you?

I encourage you to think about what matters most for YOU in the Holidays in terms of continual daily movement. Don’t be discouraged if your first planned movements don’t go as planned. Keep going during the Holidays! Have fun, and you will find the right movements for you that fit into your lifestyle, and give you results you seek in the New Year. Get ahead of the game!