Our Podcast has various episodes on how to Survive the Holidays.
Listen here:
Here’s the Transcript:
Today, we are continuing to talk about a few tips that you can do to help you enjoy the holidays instead of dreading them.
The tip for today is: Stay Active!
I’m not telling you to pick up an extreme exercise regiment, especially if you haven’t been working out regularly. But staying active and making sure you move every day has tremendous benefits.
When it gets colder out, it’s easy to want to bundle up and stay cozy, which is a great way to spend time when it’s snowing outside. One of the problems with that is it creates stagnation within our bodies.
Your lymphatic system is the system that fights off infections and sicknesses. It doesn’t have a pump, like your circulatory system does, but the lymph needs to be moving so it can clear things out. The “pump” for your lymphatic system is your skeletal muscles. Staying active, especially doing things that engage your calf muscles, helps keep your lymph system functioning.
Like I said, I’m not telling you to go run 5 miles a day. But going for a walk around your neighborhood is a great way to keep you moving. You don’t have to power walk and really work up a sweat, but just walking can help improve your mood and keep your lymph system pumping.
Another easy thing you can do to just get things moving is bouncing on your toes. You can just hold onto the wall for stability. I do this in the middle of the day when I’m feeling like I haven’t really done much movement, and it sends a burst of energy to my muscles and moves that blood and lymph!
If you wanted to do more exercise, that’s great too! Exercise helps you release endorphins, and endorphins make you happy! Studies have shown that only 15 minutes of light to moderate exercise has improved participants’ overall moods.
Another thing to keep in mind is that many CEOs and other upper level management types who have rigorous jobs find themselves more successful if they’re taking the time to do their daily exercise. And some of them exercise twice a day during more stressful times and when they’re doing more intense projects.
Working out will help you to clear your mind and be in your body. This will help you to prioritize your to-do list as well. There have been so many times when I have been stressed out with my 14 to-do lists and feeling overwhelmed with all of the things I need to do, and I put on my tennis and go for a run and on that run, I’m filled with more clarity on what I need to do first, what I can delegate out, and what I don’t actually need to do but have been telling myself that I needed to do it. That’s happened at least once a week!
Not only is exercise good for your lymph system and releasing endorphins, I have also found that it helps me curb some of my cravings for sweets. I could be alone in this, but when I workout and have a nice healthy smoothie and healthy breakfast, I don’t crave sweets as much. This is likely because I am filling my body with nutrients it can use, so I’m not just crashing at 2 searching for a dozen donuts to shove into my face. I actually have sustainable energy. But we’ll get to that on another episode.
Find the time to stay active this winter, and you will be able to do all of the things you want to do.