friday five: healthy holiday tips

so like i mentioned at the beginning of the month, i'm making an effort to lessen my sugar intake and focus on healthy foods. however, some people might argue that this is the worst time to try to do that, since the holidays are right around the corner! and i would agree that the holidays definitely make it harder to be healthy, but it's not impossible, and i'm not going for perfection. today, i'm linking up with mar, cynthia, and courtney to share my top five tips for staying healthy around the holidays.

1.) buy cute cold weather fitness gear
the holidays around here come with cold weather, and usually when the wind is blowing and the snow is falling, i want nothing more than to sit on the couch under blankets. but! if i have something cute and new, i'm dying to use it. by getting myself new, cold weather gear, i'm infinitely more likely to go out for a run, despite the weather. this is on my wish list right now:

okay, it WAS on my wishlist. until i saw an asics sale...now it's on its way to me.

2.) sign up for holiday races
another way to motivate myself to run around the holidays is to sign up for some of the super fun, themed races put on around the holidays. i already mentioned signing up for the turkey trot, but there's also a santa shuffle for christmas that i might do. not only does training keep me healthy, but by having a race right around the holiday itself, i can work off the extra food from the day!

3.) focus on water instead of alcohol
i'm already horrible at staying hydrated in the cold weather (for whatever reason, water never sounds good in the fall/winter), but add yummy holiday drinks in to the mix and i get super dehydrated. so, i try to save the spiked cider for the actual holidays themselves, and have water and decaf tea throughout the day. by doing this, i stay hydrated for my runs and feel healthy all the time, and it helps me recover from unhealthy days faster.

this tea is so yummy and helps keep me hydrated!

4.) use lazy moments to strength train
i don't know about you, but when i'm full, i want to lay down. i used to use this time to just be a sloth and skip nighttime workouts, but i recently picked up some light hand weights while laying on the floor to do a little arm work and added in some hip exercises, and it makes my laziness a little less lazy.

5.) make healthier versions of your favorites
so it's not really practical to say have NO indulgences around the holidays, but when possible, you can switch ingredients in your favorites for healthier options. maybe use whole wheat flour in those cookies, use avocados in your brownies, or sneak extra veggies in to your side dishes. i'm so looking forward to having some (okay, a lot!) of alex's mom's pumpkin pie mousse on thanksgiving; it has no added sugar, but is so yummy!

okay, okay, i end up adding sugar with whipped cream!

what are your tips for staying healthy around the holidays?

-b