The holidays are here, as are rich foods, gooey desserts, and cold weather, making it easier to forgo any physical activity and instead lay by the fire and watch football or movies. This is the perfect time of year for fitness companies and weight-loss programs to capitalize on Americans' worry over their waistlines. Your lifestyle doesn't have to change drastically just because ice is forming on your windshield. (Likewise, summer isn't the only time to get a game of neighborhood kickball going.)
It may take some extra effort, but dragging your family out after hearty meals can make it much more bearable. Here are a few ideas to get the gang moving and to help them focus on healthy habits year round:
- Make your usual holiday dishes, but cut the recipe in half. Focus on the vegetable dishes and put out some fruit among the desserts.
- Cook as a family. The activity engages everyone and keeps people on their feet.
- Give gifts that encourage fitness: personal training sessions, a bike, a yoga mat, etc.
- If it's nearby, walk or bike to the grocery store to pick up ingredients for your meals.
- Play an active game after dinner, like charades, Wii, or Dance Dance Revolution (known as DDR at my cousins' house).
- Consider snow a lucky advantage for your part of the country -- not everyone gets a winter wonderland! Build a fort and have a snowball fight, or make a snowman family.
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