20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge
Now that we’ve said sayonara to both Halloween and Thanksgiving, I think it’s safe to say that we’re currently in the thick of the holiday season. I’ve even got the decorations to prove it.
From holiday parties with buffets of seasonal cakes & cookies, to the urge to cook and devour warm carbs every night, the chilly winter season is full of temptation and opportunities to overindulge. For me though, it’s easier to manage winter weight gain by staying active instead of refusing to enjoy special, once-a-year holiday goodies. Therefore this year I’ve decided to ward off the weight with a plan.
There’s 20 weekdays from now until Christmas, and I intend to workout on every single one of them, taking Saturdays & Sundays off. ‘Cause your body needs a break, and I hate working out on the weekends.
There, I said it.
Luckily I have 40+ treadmill and workout routines to choose from on my Workouts Page, so every day I’ll pick one and, come hell, high water, or, shudder, a 5am trip to the gym – I’ll complete it.
Please feel free to join me in my challenge if you’d like, in any way you can. Maybe you hate running, but love walking, using the elliptical, or taking workout classes. Perfect! The idea is just to stay active over the next 20 weekdays.
I’ve created a 20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge page where I’ll be documenting what I do. Leave your blog URL, or name if you don’t have a blog, in the comments section of that page if you plan on participating in the challenge. I’ve also tossed around the idea of making a button to copy/paste on your blog, so let me know if there’s any interest in that!
In the meantime, here’s to the most wonderful, time – and YOU – of the year!
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How do you ward off holiday/winter-related weight gain? Making careful food choices, taking it up a notch in the gym, or just figuring it will even out eventually?
Do you have to cook to accomodate a special diet, or food allergies?
Stephanie @cookinfanatic 12.04.2011
What a great shopping trip, I’d love to visit MOA at some point in my life! Booo to the snow though, it was 60 degrees here today and it can stay that way for as long as possible please haha ;)
20 Day Holiday Challenge | Macy's Musings 11.30.2011
[…] If you interact with me on either Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, you can probably tell that I like to cook based on my numerous photos of my cooking creations. Many of these meals come from my favorite daily blog, Iowa Girl Eats. If you haven’t read her blog, DO IT! It’s a great place for easy-to-follow recipes (usually healthy) and fun workouts for any season. Not only is she a fun & entertaining writer, but she is also very motivating. Her most recent endeavor is her 20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge. […]
Dream Mom 11.30.2011
I try to balance out the eating a bit. For example, the day before Thanksgiving, I ate light, drank my green spinach smoothies and that kind of stuff. I hahve Thanksgiving pretty much down and try to make just a few dishes instead of tons of stuff. I didn’t gain any weight.
I use diet to manage my arthritis. I have severe arthritis from overexercising in my teens and twenties. I drink green spinach smoothies (1 frozen organic banana, 1/2 cup frozen organic berries, 4 cups of organic spinach, 1 cup of water) every other day and my pain went away. I also focus on whole foods, make most of my own food from scratch (including bread) and eat organically as possible. I used to feel pain in my joints before it rained or snowed and now I have no pain at all. I think the nutrition healed it along with staying away from inflammatory (refined) foods.
I also use foods to manage my son’s health condition. He’s medically fragile (gtube/severely mentally/physically disabled) and used to suffer from frequent pneumonias. I use 1 tbsp of Now Foods Organic Virgin Coconut Oil/day via his tube and he hasn’t been hospitalized in 14 months (he used to have 3 pneumonias a year and many hospitalizations).
Alex 11.30.2011
My BF just found out that a few weeks ago that at 29, he has high cholesterol as well! We already love your recipes so I am excited to try new ones that he will enjoy and can still help him get healthier!
Eric Rymarz 11.30.2011
Hey Kristin,
Great minds must think alike (but for different reasons), I was just in the midwest for Thanksgiving chowing down on the local favorites which put on a few kg… Challenged myself on a similar program until christmas!! Check it out: http://thehealthypress.blogspot.com/2011/11/balance-moderation.html
PS. The Turkey Burger Recipe looks amazing!!
I need a to-do list. « thedishbytrish 11.30.2011
[…] yesterday was Day 2 of the 20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge and I really didn’t allow myself much time for a good workout. Therefore, I’ve decided […]
Carrie Shaw 11.30.2011
I’m sorry about the high cholesterol- looks like you’re making the best of it though!!
This challenge is awesome!
Shrinking mommy of 2 11.30.2011
I will be with you on the challenge. I wrote down some of your treadmill workouts…anyway you could just email me all of them :-)
have a great day! off to do one of the workouts!
katie 11.29.2011
i’m with ya! 20 days! already got 2 out of the way :)
IowaGirlEats.com Redesign Reveal! | Iowa Girl Eats 11.29.2011
[…] I’m so pumped that YOU’RE so pumped about the 20 Day Holiday Workout Challenge!! […]
Masha @TheMashaUltimatum 11.29.2011
I totally decided on making those Turkey burgers tonight. They just looked soooo delicious and I really had a craving for something Greek. Thanks for the recipe/inspiration.
Ashley @ PCFO 11.29.2011
These burgers look phenomenal! It’s always so comforting to read recipes that are both healthy and delicious – the two aren’t mutually exclusive by any means, but it’s so much easier to revert to the good ole fatty and tasty route. I’ll probably make these soon, and will certainly let you know how they turn out!
Sarah 11.29.2011
That burger looks yummy, I’m all about anything with kalamata olives :)
I gave up red meat (except for an occasional burger) a few years ago to help deal with my IBS, and went full vegetarian about 7 or 8 months ago. For a while I cooked vegetarian versions for me, and meat versions for my husband, until he gave up meat (he still has an occassional burger) a few months back! We’ve also started to limit our dairy/egg consumption to once or twice a week…but aren’t willing to say we’re 100% vegan :)
MB 11.29.2011
Regarding cholesterol, consider that carbs might be the issue rather than saturated fat, and that includes whole grains. Gary Taubes has some great books on the subject, but this one is the easiest read: http://www.amazon.com/Why-We-Get-Fat-About/dp/0307272702/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1322606009&sr=8-2
Sienna 11.29.2011
My gym is doing a workout challenge that started the day after thanksgiving and run until Christmas Eve. If you go 25 times you get 5 free guest passes and $50 off any service. I’m using that as extra motivation to get me to go 6 days a week. It will be nice to hear about your workouts as motivation too!
Robyn 11.29.2011
Have him check into Red Yeast Rice. High Cholesterol runs in my family so even though I’m a vegetarian and I exercise alot, I still had problems with my cholesterol. I’m not one for medicines unless I really need it. I have a doctor who told me to take 1200mg of Red Yeast Rice in the morning and in the evening with my meals and it had a huge impact! I only take it in the mornings now and still get to eat cheese. You can get Red Yeast Rice at Walmart.
Iowa Girl Eats 11.29.2011
Cool! So is it a pill/supplement, or actual rice?
Robyn 11.29.2011
Sorry, it would have helped if I had clarified that:) Red yeast rice is a pill. You can find it with the vitamins. It worked great for me. Ben might want to ask his doctor what he/she thinks about it. I had great results and have continued to for a couple of years now.
Alexandra 11.29.2011
Just the motivation I need! I read your blog daily and I know if I haven’t worked out that day reading it will be just the reminder I need.
Tracy 11.29.2011
That’s too bad about Ben’s cholesterol. Good to know early and watch it. He’s young! Why does he have to watch what he eats for just “a couple of months”?
Iowa Girl Eats 11.29.2011
He just has to be really diligent for the next couple of months until he gets rechecked. He’ll never go back to eating whatever he feels like just willy nilly, but the next couple months are extremely strict so he can get those numbers down!
Allison 11.29.2011
I try to ward off holiday weight gain both by not eating a lot of holiday treats and increasing my workouts per week. Unfortunately, in order to maintain my weight, I cannot eat whatever I want and rely on exercise to burn if off. I still partake in a cookie or two here and there, don’t get me wrong, but I keep it reasonable. I also don’t drink, b/c I’d rather spend calories on sweets than wine or beer.
Lea @ Healthy Coconut 11.29.2011
Great idea on the 20 days of workout. I actually set some goals for the next 20 days, I call them active minutes and I’m trying to be active for 1,000 minutes for the month of December.
It can be a walk around the neighborhood, a hike…doesn’t have to be a structured workout.