It’s true that I live in the South, but I have lived in cold climates as well. Trying to figure out how to stay active in the winter can be a challenge. Especially when, according to Men’s Health magazine, the average person eats over 600 extra calories a day during the holiday season! No wonder a lot of us gain weight this time of year! So in honor of that extremely startling calorie statistic, here are 20 things you can do to stay active during the winter season!
1. Make a commitment to do something on a regular basis. It doesn’t have to be 6 days like I do – but commit to regular movement!
2. Take advantage of those malls that open early for walkers. It’s not just for old people!
3. Join a gym. Often times, especially in colder climates, gyms offer short term memberships.
4. Go to your gym. If you are already a member – go already!
5. Take advantage of warmer days. Even in the Northeast, there are days that warm up a bit. Make sure to jump outside and take advantage of the sun.
6. Find a new DVD workout to try. Here are some I like:
Leslie Sansone: Walk Away the Pounds – Complete In-Home Walking System
Jillian Michaels – 30 Day Shred
7. If you have stairs available, either at work or at home – use them often!
8. Create a home gym. By looking at classified ads, you often can equip a small home gym for yourself for very little money!
9. Check out a local university. Often times you can use the university’s gym/pool facilities for a very low yearly fee. For us, it’s $100 for the family, for the year.
10. Put some music on and dance!
11. If you have snow on the ground, try some cross country skiing or skating. Both are great exercise – just don’t break anything.
12. Find a workout partner. Often times this helps hold you accountable and gets you out of the house when you might otherwise stay in.
13. Work on strengthening and toning your muscles. Check out Jody’s site for lots of information, both for the beginner and the advanced!
14. Watch your food intake. I know this isn’t directly related to exercise, but it does go hand in hand.
15. Get warmed up first. If you are warmed up a bit before exercising in the cold, it really helps.
16. After you work out in the cold weather, don’t take off all your layers as soon as you get inside. Give your body a chance to acclimate to the warmer temperature for a few minutes.
17. Dress in layers. This makes a huge difference. When I did the Turkey Trot Thursday the temperature was 32 degrees. I wore a short sleeve shirt and then a warm running fleece on top of it. Even with the wind and the cold after the big hill, I took off the fleece. Then when I finished I put it back on because I got cold!
18. While you are watching TV – don’t just sit there – do something! Do crunches, or grab some light weights instead of a bag of cookies!
19. Use every opportunity you can to move your body, be it parking farther away from the door or getting up yourself to get something rather than asking your family member to get it. (Not that I ever do that. 
)
20. Pay attention to your body. Know the signs of hypothermia and frostbite. Be fit, but be careful!!
Do you have any ideas on staying fit during these winter months? Diane
youve pretty much nailed it ALL
here in TX the struggle is in the summer for me–but the answers are 100% the same.
do what I can. when I can. no matter the “motivation” levels
and usually hiding inside while I do it.
Miz´s last fabulous musings ..Ask me Ask Experience Life magazine
I think you got most of them like Miz says.
Excersise during Winter or Summer doesn’t really make a difference to me. I prefer Winter because I’m not a Summer girl, it’s often too hot for me.
On weekdays that I work I train at the gym mostly because it’s too dark too early and no street lights where I run but in weekends I run outside and wear layers like you also mentioned in your tips.
For me it is the gym. But some days when the weather is bad I have to really push myself out the door.
Karen´s last fabulous musings ..Playing Games Leads to Something Fishy
Love this Diane & YES, use every opportunity to move!!!!! I have a post coming up on this later this week, so I will leave it for then…. sharing some articles on how to burn calories do regular every day things!
Although.. here is southern CA, my car read 35 degrees this morn!
Jody – Fit at 53´s last fabulous musings ..Doing for Yourself- Doing for Others
very good list
I know someone who goes to a taller office building, runs/walks the stairs UP, and then takes the elevator down. then she repeats. the danger of stair injuries is (usually) on the way down (odd as that sounds), so this is a really good idea. And it doesn’t have to be a very tall building to have this work – even just 2-3 stories can be a good workout with a fast pace.
The other one I wanted to mention is tabata’s. Charlotte explains them here:
http://thegreatfitnessexperiment.blogspot.com/2010/09/trick-to-tabata-workouts-bring-barf-bag.html
Tabata’s are a sprint with a tiny breath and then another sprint. It does not have to be a running sprint. It can be jumping jacks or very fast walking or high knee marching in place.
vickie´s last fabulous musings ..starting out- we all begin in the beginning- and mostly- yes- it sucks
If you want to stay fit in the winter, this is a great list of helpful suggestions!
I remembered I had actually written on Tabata’s too, with a link to Debby’s post. You will find them both here:
http://baby-steps-v.blogspot.com/2009/10/maximum-benefit-it-only-takes-4-minutes.html
vickie´s last fabulous musings ..starting out- we all begin in the beginning- and mostly- yes- it sucks
For me, a gym is necessary. I see people running in 10-degree temps but I don’t envy them. That seems miserable!
Tracey @ I’m Not Superhuman´s last fabulous musings ..Sugar Overdose
Never underestimate things like Yoga, Pilates and Qi Gong to help keep you fit in the winter months as well . They build core strength, keep you flexible and supple. Very important factors in overall health !
Diane´s last fabulous musings ..Bone Broth- not just for Zombies
I love these suggestions too. Exercise is so important in the winter for me. It fights off my SAD like nothing else.
Desert Agave´s last fabulous musings ..Back to It
Most serious runners I know prefer the cold weather… I wouldn’t know from experience, but I do enjoy a brisk walk in the cold.
I like the new DVD idea, and our Wii gets a lot more use in the cold months, for sure.
Very thankful I have a baby on board this holiday season to help with a few of those extra calories!
Those are some great tips! It’s so hard to believe that people are eating 600 more calories a day – wow! That’s amazing, and it’s such a good reminder for us to not let the holidays be an excuse to really overindulge or to give up the good work that we’ve already started. One other thing that I’ve found helpful is to create “gym friendships,” those people at the gym that we say hi to every day. It creates a loose sense of accountability with them because you wonder where they’ve been when you haven’t seen them for a few days, and vice versa. They can also be a great source of encouragement.
BlessedMama´s last fabulous musings ..Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll and Thanksgiving- 2010
My workouts don’t change much during the seasons. The only thing that changes is I don’t run outside as much. But I still swim 2x a week and go to the gym!
Those are great tips! I like the basic one for finding any way to move your body. Every little bit adds up.
Tina @ Faith Fitness Fun´s last fabulous musings ..high school date night
I have the 30 DS, home equipment and stairs (my office is on the third floor with NO bathroom so I’m up and down the stairs all day long). One thing about living in a really cold climate is that exercising is often the only thing that will warm me up on a cold day. The hardest thing for me in winter is not going for the warm foods … breads, creamy soups, hot pasta dishes.
Siobhan´s last fabulous musings ..I survived
Great list! I honestly have nothing to add, I spend half my year doing DVDs and working out at home for just this reason.
Taryl´s last fabulous musings ..This week needs to be over!
You covered all of my options for staying fit in winter. I usually go between doing DVDs at home and the gym.
For me winter is a big red flag for weight gain! I am not a winter person and Michigan is definetly deprived of warm sunny days for several months. I end up watching movies and eating at night. I accidently found a cure for this: My children are learning to play the violin this school year but with the current economy, I could only afford to pay for one “private lesson” a week. I thought “Which of my kids can take a private class and then teach the lesson to the other children?” I concluded, “ME!”. Taking up a new hobby has helped me beat winter boredom. So at night, instead of watching movies and eating, I practice my violin, which I really enjoy. I think taking up a new hobby you enjoy is just as important as maintaining exercise, especially during the winter season.
Two things that get me moving in the winter are:
1. Buying myself fun cold weather clothes, which then makes me want to go outside and use them.
I’m a runner and getting new running gear helps get my butt off the couch. And it doesn’t mean I spend much on it, I tend to go to Ross/TJ Maxx. It helps me want to go out.
2. Signing up for a winter race. I would much rather run in the winter than the summer and putting races on the calendar in the Northeast can be tricky due to snow (last winter we got 40″ literally in 6 days!), but with something coming up it keeps me outside running. And to make the idea even better, most races support a charity, so not only are you doing something good for yourself, you’re doing something good for people you don’t even know, but really need your help.
Great tips. Thanks!
Lisa´s last fabulous musings ..My thanksgiving update Did it get ugly Thanksgiving pics
I think you covered it all! Awesome tips. I do find it harder to stick with my exercise routine in the winter months because of the weather. I have several of the Leslie Sansone Dvds, free weights and a yoga dvd. They just are not as fun as walking out in the great outdoors.
Great ideas — love number four (thanks for the reminder).
I have Michaels’ DVD but haven’t tried it yet — need to get on that agenda too…
‘Drea´s last fabulous musings ..When A Minute Lasts Forever
At this moment, I have no ideas of how to stay fit during winter months because the coming winter of ours, will only be coming next year and then I will see how I will cope with that.
Thankyou for the great tips.
blackhuff´s last fabulous musings ..Christmas decorations
I love going to the gym in Dec – it’s so dead.
January is always hard – it’s my least favorite month to begin with, plus the gym is PACKED, but I just try to make sure I stick to my schedule.
And FYI, if you do some research, you can do a perfectly good circuit workout at home with just a yoga mat and a set of weights. It gets the job done.
Quix´s last fabulous musings ..2010 Race Season- Did I Do All That Part 1
For years I was the opposite of most people- I would work out a lot during the winter and then come the summer BBQs I would pack on the pounds. I do try to move more in the winter, but mainly inside. Though I do try to get outside for an hour or so on the weekends, even if it is freezing, to get my Vitamin D to try to ward off SAD.
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