As we’re rapidly approaching the festive season, I thought I'd discuss a couple of my intentions for staying as healthy as possible, whilst maintaining a sensible and realistic balance. My goal is to enjoy some of the delicious festive offerings over the next couple of months without feeling like I'm letting go of all of my established healthy behaviours.

I made the decision to give up alcohol in the spring of last year and whilst I don't know if this will be a lifelong change, I am happy to remain alcohol-free for now. This can prove quite a challenge during the festive period. One way that I plan to approach this is to make sure that I have a plentiful supply of enjoyable soft drinks at home, which I can bring with me if I’m invited to a festive gathering. I especially like a sparkling fruit juice that comes in a bottle with a champagne-style cork. This helps me feel like I'm still joining in with the celebrations, particularly if I drink it from a special glass!

Daily-ish movement is a really important part of my life and I hope to continue this throughout the winter months. The darker mornings and  evenings can increase the challenge and decrease the motivation, but I’m fortunate to have an exercise bike which I'm using a little more often instead of walking or running in the dark. I’ve recently increased the amount of high intensity interval training (HIIT) that I do and have now built this into my regular weekly routine, often using the exercise bike. However, on a recent weekend away, I had to adapt my HIIT training. Our eighth-floor hotel bedroom gave me the perfect opportunity to use the stairs for a quick HIIT workout! 

Since the summer, I've cut right back on my consumption of milk chocolate because I find it very easy to over-consume it. My willpower might become rather tested once we open the annual tub of Christmas chocolates! Therefore, I’ve decided to make some choices in advance to help me manage my intake of chocolate, but to still enjoy it as a treat now and again. This might include a rule that I won't eat any chocolate that I’ve purchased for my family– but I will enjoy a treat if somebody else buys it for me as a gift! Let’s hope I'm not gifted too many bars of milk chocolate! I also love dark chocolate, and I'll enjoy a square of this on most days. Thankfully, a small amount is usually enough, and I almost never feel a craving to overconsume it.

Whilst I do have perfectionistic tendencies in some aspects of my life, I'm also keen to be flexible and balanced, so that I can enjoy an extra treat or two, whilst maintaining many of my long-term healthy habits. Whatever your health goals and intentions are over the festive period, I wish you balance, strength and flexibility! And if you’d like to work on your actual balance, strength and flexibility in the New Year – feel free to email me to book your place in a regular weekly Pilates class in Hook Village Halls for the next block, starting in January.