Keeping the Body Fit During the Holidays, and Gearing up for the New Year

People get in a different mindset around the holidays. Work falls by the wayside as Yankee Swaps take over the office. Bedtimes suffer because of parties or TV specials for the kids. And shopping and planning gobble time up – meanwhile, both exercise and diet take a back seat to the celebration.

This, says Rita Matraia, owner of the Core Connection, doesn't have to happen. Matraia said not only can you maintain your good habits through the holidays (what is left of them), but ramp up for the new year – a new year with a kicking body.

The Core Connection at 290 Main St. in Northborough is a Pilates, yoga and fitness studio where Matraia and other instructors hold classes and also offer personal training. Opening in the fall of 2007, the venue expanded to almost 2,000 square feet in 2009, and moved to the first floor of the same plaza.

The first thing to go during the holiday season, said Matraia, is the fitness routine. Out goes the daily jog, or the treadmill or sit ups at night. The problem lies in the idea that "we still think of fitness as a luxury instead of a necessity. Although times are changing, and more and more people are understanding the important benefits of daily exercise, it is still hard to break the habit of putting our bodies last because we figure 'the holidays only come once a year.'"

Matraia's retort to that is, "Why not continue with your routine and enjoy your holiday indulgences even more with the satisfaction that comes with knowing you didn't sabotage your own body because your relatives are in town?"

Well documented is the fact that humans are more productive at work and deal with stress better when their bodies are taken care of, Matraia reminds us. That being the case, the same would apply in dealing with stress during the holidays.

"Daily rituals such as exercise are important and when we interrupt this process, although we may not realize it, we get disappointed in ourselves," Matraia said. "This disappointment affects our level of confidence and our ability to have fun and really enjoy and savor the holidays."

As always, Matraia sees a slower time at the Core Connection during the holiday season, as well as the summer months, but should see some pick up come next week, when folks are applying their New Year's resolutions and paying attention to their bodies once again.

"At the Core Connection," she said, "we teach our clients to develop exercise habits and give extra incentive by empowering them with a thorough understanding of proper body movement and alignment. Knowledge is power, so these tools encourage them to stick with their routines. If you consider the fact that each person may see us 2-3 times per week, we need to teach them proper movement so they can implement it in other workouts or recreational activities in the many hours that they are not at the studio."

Whether they use the reformers, take Pilates mat class or Yoga, Matraia said people know there is a consequence to skipping the very thing that makes them feel good and keeping their bodies balanced. That routine, she repeats, is crucial.

"Whether our clients are recovering from injury," Matraia said, "training for a specific recreation or simply improving posture, they understand the risks of halting the processes that have that have brought them great function. For example, a skier knows that without our Powder Prep Class, they run the risk of injury because their muscles are not trained to withstand the quick movements necessary to get down that icy New England slope."

Some clients, she added, are working on retraining a group of muscles. In that case, stopping the retraining might revert them to old compensation patterns that may result in re-injury. 

Matraia offers tips to keeping with the routine, especially during the holiday season:

1.     Accept that your physical and mental health and wellbeing is derived through consistent habitual exercise and understand the importance of maintaining your routine, particularly during stressful times of work deadlines and holidays.

2.     If you typically run, bundle up and get out there! If it's snowing, throw those snowshoes on and do a few laps up and down the street. You will find it exhilarating and fun. Continuing your routine no matter what the circumstances, will keep you strong, keep you present and grounded, and maintain the self-confidence you work hard on maintaining all year.

3.     Know that your first priority is your body, its health and wellbeing. Continuing your routine will not only make you healthier, it will make you happier. The best part is, all those around you will be happier, too.