It’s
officially the start of the “meteorological winter” in the UK. Watching the weather news while sipping my
morning coffee, I’m mentally preparing myself for the onset of the inevitable
‘cold snap’ we are to expect and its made me realise:
- We are actually in December so it should be cold right? We have been lucky to enjoy the luxury of the mild weather leading up to now
- How the hell is it December already and what happened to the rest of this year
- Errrr – did we have summer? I don’t remember it?
- Eeeek! – its nearly Christmas!
Of
course as the cold is approaching and the dark mornings/eves are already here,
I’ve started to remember that feeling when you wake up and can’t even stick one
foot out from under the duvet because it’s too cold and dark for getting up
early, for doing all those things you needed today, and under the duvet, not
out of it, is of course a much better place to stay – probably until about April
when the sun comes out again and spring is in the air!
BUT
NO. Instead of hibernation mode I’m
pledging to get over it and get up and embrace the cold winter months. There are cool (excuse the pun) things to
look forward to in the winter –
- Christmas of course and
- New Year
- Nights in with Netflix (without feeling guilty)!
- Hot chocolate, mulled wine
- “comfort food”
- Warm cosy winter clothes
- (and … please insert here all the things you love about the dark cosy winter nights)
Plus, I
found this article - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/avelist/5-ways-to-motivate-yourself-to-exercise-during-the-colder-months_b_8462780.html
that got me thinking…
Ways to
motivate yourself to exercise during the colder months. The
exercise part – getting out there in the cold dark mornings – didn’t cross my
mind when contemplating hibernation, which goes to show how much activity is on
my mind! Then I thought about it again, that
feeling when sticking your foot out from under the duvet…..imagine taking your
entire body out and into the park in the dark for a run in the cold! God forbid.
My nose will run, my chin will freeze, my ears, my lips and my fingers
will hurt! My toes in my lightweight
runners won’t make it through the damp cold grass or frozen ground and I will
see my own breath as I’m panting after the first 3 minutes! No, no no. There are too many excuses not to
get out and exercise during the cold months, BUT there are lots of things you
can do to flip the excuses and enjoy exercise during the winter too. Reading this article DID motivate me and that’s
why I’m sharing. In the hope it will do
the same for you. 5 motivating factors that start with buy new clothes – gotta be a
winner!
So the
article lists the following 5 factors to motivate you to get out and exercise
and I agree with them all – I also wanted to add my own. They say:
BUY NEW
CLOTHES Perfect – did
we really need an excuse? But this one
solves the problem of the cold wet toes, freezing finger tips and ears
etc. Treat yourself to a new winter work
out wardrobe. Perhaps a nice long
sleeved and insulated outdoor running top.
How about a hat, gloves? Remember
its dark in the winter mornings and evenings so wear something reflective, something so you
can be seen – even if running in the park – you may still need to cross roads,
encounter cyclists etc so be seen and be safe.
In case you need more inspiration – check out this list of the best
running shoes 2015 http://www.runnersworld.com/running-shoes/the-best-running-shoes-of-2015
PLAN FOR THE SUMMER MONTHS Basically what they are saying here is get a
goal. Goals are the best motivator in
all things you are doing, whether that’s in your training and exercise, your
job, your financial planning etc. In
this case a goal of perhaps a spring race, a fundraiser in the new year – 5K,
10K or even the cold runs through the winter if you fancy it (check out winter
runs in support of cancer research here for example http://winterrunseries.co.uk/)
If you
don’t want to or are not ready to sign up for a race / run / event yet, set
your own smaller goals. For me – I’m
still aiming for my first elusive 5km and know even if I only run an extra 30
seconds faster, or longer than last week I feel good and have achieved. So over
the colder months keep your goals in mind, set new ones, push yourself as much as you can and stick
with it. Don’t stop or lose sight just
cos it’s dark and damp ok!
USE THE COLD
WINTER MONTHS TO OUR ADVANTAGE. Totally get this one as in my youth I loved
ice skating! In London over the winter,
up pop the festive ice rinks.
Yes you
can buy mulled wine, hot cider, hot chocolate, take a loved one on a date and
fool around BUT remember skating is a great form of exercise too, so go on a
date and include some activity.
Seriously – if like me you haven’t been ice skating since you were in
your early teens you will feel it in your hips and your bum the day after you
do it “just for fun” at almost 40 years old! (London pop up winter ice rinks
are listed here http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/ice-skating-in-london
there are LOADS) Other than skating
think about winter sports you might want to try – skiing holiday anyone? Snowboarding with those amazingly cool (hot)
guys / instructors…..?
GET NEW TUNES Update
the playlist. You’ve got the outfit,
you’ve found the sport and you are on your way to your winter goals. What else will help motivate? A new music playlist
of course. As we head to Xmas everyone is bringing out new tunes aiming for the
Christmas no1. Granted, festive melodies
may not scream run tracks, but I’m sure you can find some new stuff you love
and sing along to on the early morning work outs. If you don’t find something new, then look
back to the summer(?) and the summer tracks from this years holiday perhaps? Make yourself a new playlist with your summer
faves and blast it on a cold winter morning as the sun comes up. Yep – motivating for sure.
TAKE IT ONE
DAY AT A TIME. Basically (and I love this one) If you don’t
feel great, and don’t feel like exercising one morning, then don’t. Duvet days are fine – especially in the
colder months. Everyone has days when
they just don’t want to – and you know what – if you don’t want to then
don’t. You are the one imposing your own
goals, you are the one motivating, you are the one who decides. It’s totally up to you if you exercise or
not. Don’t punish yourself if you don’t
feel like it. Just don’t do it and try
again tomorrow…or the next day…or start again Monday…or do it on the
weekend…whenever. As long as you do it
soon/again, its ok.
ADDITIONAL NO NONSENSE MOTIVATORS:
For me,
as well as agreeing with all the above, I’d add the following:
My
first tip to stay motivated is doing things as a GROUP – accountability, not letting others down, moral support etc
– all fabulous motivating factors. Also
if you don’t fancy running or strenuous exercise, WALKING is a great starting point and walking with others as a
group really builds confidence and community.
As a fully qualified walk leader, I lead group walks with Walking for
Health/Ramblers/Macmillan - you can find details of the walks starting in
January on our website here http://www.nitakothari.com/no-nonsense-nutrition-news/
REWARDS. A lot of us
are reward driven. We like to think we
aren’t, but we are. And a high percent
of rewards for humans (as for dogs!) are food based. Of course we are talking about motivators for
exercise here, so let’s not fall into the trap of “been to the gym, deserve a
bacon sarnie” approach. But after a run
on a cold winters morning, look forward to the hot cup of coffee on your
return, or the cup of tea / hot chocolate.
As well
as looking at winter sports, how about CHANGING
IT UP? Hot yoga in the summer is
even hotter and often not too enjoyable.
Hot yoga in the winter is warming and something to look forward to. Swimming is great in the summer, but the heat
of the pool I actually find enticing during the winter months too (just
remember your hair dryer as there is nothing worse than the headache from cold
wet hair after winter swims). Outdoor
swimming can also be amazingly invigorating during the winter months. **PLEASE NOTE** I can seriously tell you
open, outdoor swimming is for fully competent swimmers only. You need to be a good, strong, capable
swimmer but nothing will wake you up and invigorate you more before a long hard
winters day, than an outdoor cold swim.
Outdoor
ponds/lidos in London that are open during the months can be found herehttp://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/lidos-and-outdoor-swimming-pools-in-london Or try www.wildswim.com for more outdoor swimming
venues around the south east (or anywhere in the UK – just use your location on
opening the site). Or how about outdoor
heated pools (In London I found this
http://www.better.org.uk/leisure/london-fields-lido)
Not
appealing – then no worries, you can always EXERCISE INDOORS. As well as
cold in the winter, there is also wet weather.
For me that’s so much worse. So
sometimes, when you want to hibernate and just haven’t got the motivation to
get dressed and outdoors, exercise inside.
You can hit the gym and run on the treadmill, use the cross trainer or
bike too for some cardio activity, or build in some strength training. If you can’t even get out the house – that’s
ok. There are a million fitness DVD’s
(and there will be more in the new year) so grab one and get into the living
room and work it! If you’re even lazier
than that – YouTube. Find a fitness
channel and whack it on in the bedroom, then just creep out of bed, stretch to
warm up and work out right there!
Still
staying indoors - there is always SEX!
Yep, it’s a great workout and an undeniable calorie burner. And you don’t have to leave the house or even
your bed or come out from under the duvet if you don’t want to. Just so long as you have a willing partner
they get to exercise with you too!
Sharing is caring. You can even work out your calorie burn here http://www.sexcalculator.co.uk/
MAGICAL
MORNINGS Think about
outdoor exercise again – assuming you’ve made it out from under the duvet, it’s
still dark and you head out. The streets
are really quiet, but it’s almost magical.
I love this time of day. It’s not
scary or intimidating darkness as late in the evening is, but early morning
darkness is hopeful. You start running
under the cover of darkness and it feels good, like no one is watching and you
have a certain sense of freedom. Then
the sun slowly rises around you and all of a sudden you are running on a
bright, beautiful day.
For me,
watching the sun rise is the best motivator for early morning, outdoor
exercise. On the other hand, if you
prefer to exercise later in the day, time it for the sunset if possible. It can be just as beautiful and as the sun
goes down the temperature drops and you heat up, so perfect climate conditions
for outdoor exercise. Then of course you can head home for the hot dinner and
hot choc and hot bath and massage!
Finally,
I would say look forward to the spring months and the BIG REVEAL. Working on
yourself and your body over the winter months when your body is hidden under
clothing layers, leads to the spring when you finally start peeling those
layers off to show off your toned arms, legs, abs etc. Don’t let them be covered and forgotten
during the winter. Work on your winter
bod, to reveal a healthy summer body, without having to crash diet or overdo
it, or do any of those stupid fad diets 2 weeks before your springtime
holidays. Preparation, goals and
thinking long term – believe me there are no short cuts so all this works!
So good luck in staying motivated through the colder
months, by exercising at home, indoors at the gym, taking up a new sport,
embracing the winter sports, rewarding yourself with hot healthy treats, getting
some new tunes and of course new clothes!
Enjoy nature during the winter months and take it one day at a
time. Seeing through the winter to your
spring time goals is the best motivator.
Keep going, don’t hibernate and remember a duvet day once in a while is
totally OK.
For more info on health, fitness, activity and
exercise, please check out our Friday Fitness posts on
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**Please remember this is advice ONLY (as is all other
information contained in this blog, the website and social media related to it)
None of the info or advice is intended to override any recommendation from your
GP or health professional**
