Exercise Tips for Holiday

If you follow the exercise tips given below, you should be able to survive holidays - whether you stay at home or travel.

• Make a Plan:
  
  One of the biggest problems is that people don't plan for holidays. By taking the time to think in advance about what you will do - what will you eat, where will you exercise? - you will dramatically increase your chances of success.
  
  In fact, many people do exactly the opposite. They expect to fail over the holidays - they expect to blow their diet, they expect to skip workouts, and as a result they don't even make the effort. By planning to succeed you can set up a positive expectation, and increase your chances of success.
   
• Plan your workouts:
  
  Whatever your holiday plans, be sure to plan your schedule in advance. Write them down and you won't be caught unprepared or tempted to procrastinate. People who try to operate on the fly, fitting in workouts and meals as and when they have time left over inevitably find that there isn't any time left over.
   
• Set Goals:
  
  Rather than seeing this as a time to relax and let things slide, set yourself some goals. This can either be goals for what you will do while you are on holiday, or goals that run past your holiday that will require you to work out and eat right during the holiday. When you set your goals, be sure to write them down - research shows that people typically achieve around 80% of the goals that they commit to paper.
   
• Cut yourself some slack:
  
  Aiming for perfection is the route to disaster. When you are on holiday you want to enjoy yourself. Schedule some off days when you don't workout, and be sure to allow yourself to eat some treats. Having these planned "cheat days" helps you to stay on your program better, and will have little overall effect on your physique or fitness.
   
• Climb back on the horse:
  
  One problem many people have is that they let one failure doom their whole program. If you skip one workout, have too much dessert one night, big deal. Simply get back up on the horse, and that one transgression will have almost no overall effect.
   
• Aim for consistency:
  
  Consistency is the key. If 80 to 90 percent of your diet is good, if most days you eat five or six small meals of healthy, nutritious food, then the occasional big dinner or extra treat won't be a big deal. Similarly, if you are working out four or five times a week, missing a workout is not a problem.
   

By following these simple steps, you can ensure that your holiday doesn't sabotage your health or fitness program.