Seasons
change, but that doesn’t mean that your body has to do the same. You can have
your slim waist and your pumpkin spice too if you get prepared for the season
and all its temptations.
With shorter
and colder days approaching, there is a lot stacked up against you. For one,
you can wear more forgiving clothes again so you don’t have the same incentive
to keep your abs tight as you did during the summer. You also naturally crave
more filling and warm foods, which typically means more calories and pounds.
But there are
also good things about the new season: you’ll want to be inside more, which
means the gym can be your new hangout spot and you’ll likely drink less since
the sun goes down earlier and happy hours aren’t as tempting. We’re loving the
new season for a chance to stay healthy and stick to our summer body goals.
A New Workout
Schedule
Before you
face your first plate of mac and cheese at the next company potluck, do
yourself and your summer body a favor by planning out
consistent workouts for your entire week. If you know you can’t avoid eating a
little bit more this season, plan 5 times a week to work out for at least 30
minutes.
Keep in mind,
that it’s less important what you do at the gym and more important that you
move consistently. Don’t know where to start? Here’s a model for your new
weekly workout schedule:
·
Sunday: Yoga
·
Monday: 30 minutes walk or jog
·
Tuesday: Upper body strength workout
·
Wednesday: 30 minutes on stair climber (or actual stairs)
·
Thursday: Lower Body Strength
·
Friday: Boxing or HIIT class
Since you
won’t be at the pool, use some of your new-found free time to get an extra
workout or two in each week.
A New Meal
Prep Routine
You can also
use the shorter days to your advantage by coming home to large batches of food
for your weekly meal prep. In the summer there is always something going on, but as fall settles in, you’ll likely be home more
often, which means you can use some of that time for cooking.
Think of your
favorite comfort foods and find healthy alternatives, like veggie or turkey
chili, cauliflower mac and cheese, and other healthy spins on your favs.
To meal prep
for a week, just plan out 2-3 main meals that you can eat for dinner and lunch
over the week. Make one large batch of your favorite breakfast, and add fruit
and nuts for your snacks if you need.
A New Sleep
Schedule
It’s sad to
see the sunset so early as months pass by, but this is great news for your
sleep schedule. Shorter days are the perfect time to reset your
clock—literally. As it gets dark, you can use this time to start preparing for
bed earlier, and hopefully getting more hours of precious sleep.
Fortunately,
your meals will be prepped so you should have less to do when you’re home after
work and the gym. Rather than fight to stay awake, use the extra hours of
moonlight to trick your body into sleeping earlier.
One piece of
advice: don’t start by adding 2 hours to your sleep schedule at
first. Instead, start with about 30 minutes more for a few weeks at a time,
until you are able to get to sleep for 7-8 hours each night. This is the
recommended time to help your body thrive during the day.
With our help,
your summer body is about to get a new name.
SOURCE: BLACK DOCTOR
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