Although the holidays are a fun time of year, are they also a very stressful time of year? 45% of Americans say they would prefer to skip the entire season due to financial pressure. Most Americans believe that stress really starts to increase around December 13, until it gets worse on the 18th and peaks on Christmas Day.
This holiday stress can be very damaging to your health, and it is sad but true that many take their lives during this time. The physiological impact of this stress manifests as increased cortisol levels, which increases blood sugar levels, stimulates weight gain and breaks down muscle.
Here are some proven ways to combat holiday stress syndrome:
Get your workouts in! This isn’t the time to skip workouts – even a short workout can have an immediate and lasting effect on reducing your mental and physiological stress response. A quick, high-intensity workout – just three 20-second sprints with one – four minutes of active recovery – is all it takes! Remember that something is always better than nothing when it comes to training.
Get your sleep! Easier said than done, but by focusing on when you eat, when you go to bed and when you wake up, you can keep your body in a good rhythm. A simple way to do this is to get up and go to bed at the same time every day, regardless of the day of the week. Don’t change your schedule on weekends.
Time your food and drink intake! Keep your food and drink intake (except water) within the 12-hour window, so you don’t eat or drink anything for 12 hours. For example, if you wake up at 6:00 am and have a cup of coffee at 7:00 am, the clock started at 7:00 am.
This means that you want to eat your last food or drink no later than 7 p.m.
If you know you will be going to parties, try to have your first food and non-water drink later in the morning. If you start at 9am, you have until 9pm to finish all the food and drinks. Keeping your sleep/wake cycle consistent, along with your eating and non-eating schedule, will help your body recover.
If you’re going to parties, start early and leave early, or just start drinking water and nothing else once you reach the end of your 12-hour window.
Set an alcohol budget – and switch to water after pressing it. If you do this you can avoid many problems!
Do not overbook yourself or your family – Plan downtime and keep it simple. Less, but often more in life, and the holidays are no exception!
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